​3rd Sunday after Epiphany – C                                                                      LSB #’s 908, 839, 803
Text – Nehemiah 8:10c
 
And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.
 
THE JOY OF THE LORD
 
 
Have you had the opportunity to explore a cave at one of our national parks?   The rangers always warn of the impact of “total darkness.”   When all light is absent,  the effect of  “total darkness” is disorienting & debilitating.  Rangers stress that without at least some light,  even an experienced caver  is in grave danger of losing his way  & his life. 
Without God’s Word, without God’s Torah,  human beings are in total  spiritual & eternal darkness.   We cannot know   where we’ve come from,   who we are,   or  where  we are going.  We lose sense of how to judge what is right  & wrong.   We have no capacity, in God’s sight,  to be good spouses,  good neighbors,  or good citizens.  We are on a path  to eternal death. 
For several hundred years  that had  increasingly been the problem for the people of God.  Like that of Ezra & Nehemiah,  our culture has been struggling with confusion.   Some of our cultural leaders are simply “in the dark” about the most central matters that God has revealed to the human race.   In many cases  our government has also been promoting that darkness. 
At any national park in our country,  you’ll see signs explaining how the geology came into being over hundreds of millions of years.   The first verses of the Bible give us much greater clarity: “In the beginning,  God created  the heavens & the earth.”  (Genesis 1:1 ESV) 
Our government has been trying to tell us that there are any number of genders among the human population.  It has also been confusing us by claiming people can choose whatever gender they want to be.  As the first chapter of the Bible was being written, it’s like God knew what kind of confusion would come upon His creation, & V. 27 teaches us:
“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him;   male &
female He created them.”  (Genesis 1:27 ESV)    Our Lord knew the temptations Satan would put before us  in an effort to confuse people  about who we are.  Without God’s Word, we cannot know  where we’ve come from,   who we are,   or  where we are going.  Jan & I had a neighbor who believed that when she died  she’d simply to return to the ground,  & that would be her end. 
Many Christians claim John 3:16 as their favorite verse.  Could the reason be  that it tells us where we are going?  “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son,   that whoever believes in Him  should not perish but have eternal life.”   Without God’s Word,   we cannot know  where we’ve come from,   who we are,   or   where we are going. 
That was the case with the people of God  after they returned from exile  to rebuild Jerusalem.  Disaster had struck in 587 BC, when the temple was destroyed, the line of kings from David ended, & the nation ceased to be.  The most valuable people were deported to Babylon to serve its king.  Yahweh allowed all of this  because the people had rejected Him as their God. 
Among other things,  they’d been worshipping the false god Molech by sacrificing their children to him by fire.  With that as their heritage,  & spending 70 years in exile in a pagan nation,  the people were set free to return to Jerusalem.  The first 7 chapters of Nehemiah record the external fortification of Jerusalem – the building of the walls. 
Chapters 8-10 record a spiritual rearmament of the people, & that’s where the OT lesson began: “And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate.  And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses  that the Lord had commanded Israel.”  (Nehemiah 8:1 ESV)     Did you notice whom it was  that asked for the Word  to be read? 
It wasn’t the prophet telling the people, “You need to sit down & listen!”   It was the people  telling Ezra  to bring the book…    “And he read from it…  from early morning until midday…”  (Nehemiah 8:3a ESV)   Are you thinking  that’d be your worst nightmare  to have me preach  a five hour long sermon!   The people of Israel were so confused  by all the false teaching of the world  that they were willing to sit, & listen to a five hour reading of God’s Word,  God’s truth,  God’s Torah.  What kind of trial & tribulation in your life  would it take  so that you’d  be willing to sit here from 7 AM to Noon  just to hear someone read  the Word of God? 
Now,  you have a tremendous advantage – you have the ability to read.   It’s estimated that maybe 3% of the population in Nehemiah’s day was literate.  And,  owning any sort of book  was impossibly expensive for 95% of the people in that time.  In Nehemiah’s day  the people could not sit down & read a daily devotion.  They could not sit down & read God’s Word. 
So when Ezra read it to them,  & they learned how far they’d fallen from God’s will, “all the people wept…”  (Nehemiah 8:9b ESV)   This heritage of life from God & from their forefathers had been completely lost to them.  They realized why they’d been so confused about life.   Now they understood  where they came from,   who they were,   & where  they could be going. 
They realized that their exile into Babylon was God’s judgment on an unrepentant people.  It was a fulfillment of centuries of warnings issued by the prophets sent from Yahweh.   But, instead of berating them with more Law,  Ezra, Nehemiah & the Levites “…said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God;  do not mourn  or weep.’”  (Nehemiah 8:9 ESV) 
This 1st day of the 7th month  was a scheduled day of celebration, as Nehemiah wrote: “…This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep…  …Go your way.  Eat the fat & drink sweet wine & send portions to anyone who has nothing ready,  for this day is holy to our Lord.  And do not be grieved,  for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  (8:9-10 ESV) 
Another reason they were told not to mourn or weep is related to Jesus’ words in Luke 15: “…I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God  over one sinner who repents.”  (15:10 ESV)   Being lost in unrepentance  is like being lost in a cave of debilitating & total darkness, but the heavenly Father doesn’t need 24 hours of wallowing in repentance from you   before He will welcome you home.  The moment you turn back to Him  there is rejoicing in heaven.   When anyone recognizes the error of their ways & turns to Yahweh,  the joy of the Lord becomes their strength.  His Spirit lifts them up. 
With God’s Word,  brilliant & illuminating light shines upon us.  We learn that we are His special handiwork – created in His image.  We know we’re not “here today & gone tomorrow” into the darkness  of an aimless evolutionary process.   In Christ,  God has rescued us from the darkness of our own ignorance & sin.  Jesus is the light of the World.  (John 8:12) 
The foundation for the ancient nation of Israel  was the covenants  God made with Abraham & his descendants.   On the night when He was betrayed, Jesus instituted a new covenant, as He said, “Drink of it, all of you; this cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” 
Just as accurate a translation would be to say, “Drink of it, all of you;  this cup is the new covenant in my blood…”  Holy Communion is the fulfillment of Jeremiah 31:31, “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel & the house of Judah.”  By faith, all of Abraham’s descendants are of the house of Israel & Judah. 
The scene of joyous covenant renewal,  led by Ezra & Nehemiah 500 years before Jesus,  was enacted for us  when God’s Son instituted Holy Communion.  The next day He earned forgiveness for our sins  through His death on the cross.   As Lutherans leave the Lord’s table, having received that forgiveness, we often hear words like these:
“Now may this body & blood, of your Lord & Savior Jesus Christ, strengthen & preserve you steadfast in the one true faith  unto life everlasting.  Depart  in joy & peace.”   That “joy   of the Lord  is your strength.”  That joy of the Lord is your forgiveness.  That joy of the Lord brings light & hope & peace  into all  the trials & tribulations  you are going through.   No matter how disorienting & debilitating  is the darkness of sin,  Jesus is always the light of the world.  Whoever follows Him will not walk in darkness, but will have the light  of life.  (John 8:12)   
Our Father who art in heaven  has created our path home  through the human flesh of His Son Jesus Christ.  (Hebrews 10:20)  His Spirit lights our way along that path.   Even in the confusion of our culture, knowing Jesus Christ reveals to us  where we truly come from.  It shows us who we are,  & guarantees where all of God’s children are going. 
No matter how well-intentioned, government & science are both the endeavors of sinful men.  They will never be done perfectly enough  to save anyone from destruction.  Looking at our sins honestly is disconcerting at best.  It is frightening at worst.  Yet, our Creator says to us:
“Go your way.  Eat the fat & drink sweet wine & send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord.  And do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”  All the trials & tribulations & confusion of this life are temporary & none of them will follow us into eternity.  Cling to that hope & know that God is good. 
That is the promise of our Lord & Savior.  Depart in joy & in peace.  Amen. 
 
 
 
O Christ,  our true & only light,  enlighten those who sit in night;  let those afar now hear Your voice  & in Your fold with us rejoice.     O gently call those gone astray  that they may find the saving way!   Let every conscience sore oppressed  in You find peace & heavenly rest.     Shine on the darkened & the cold;  recall the wanderers to Your fold.  Unite all those who walk apart;  confirm the weak & doubting heart.     That they with us may evermore  such grace with wondering thanks adore  & endless praise to You be given  by all Your Church in earth & heaven.  Amen.  LSB 839:1, 3-5. 

Life Sunday – 2025                                                                                       LSB #’s 802, 906, 861
Text – John 2:1
 
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee...
 
A NEW BEGINNING
 
 
A wedding reception celebrates a new beginning.  When Jesus attends the wedding at Cana, He miraculously changes water into wine.  While water is necessary for life, wine is a Biblical symbol of joy.  By this miraculous sign, Jesus reveals that God has come to earth   in order to overcome the sorrow of our failures & our poverty.  Jesus is offering a new beginning.   
The Fall into sin had separated mankind from God.  At Jesus’ conception a marriage occurred between God & His creation.  Human flesh is once again united to the Holy Trinity.   At Christ’s conception, a new beginning was created for the fallen creation of God.  Yahweh has not forsaken His people.  We are not left dead in our trespasses & sins. 
The Heavenly Bridegroom has come, & by the shedding of His holy blood on the cross has made His Bride, the Church, glorious.   Though we now endure tribulation in a fallen world, we have a new beginning in Christ.  You & I have been united to a kingdom that will never end.  Now, each time we’re forgiven of sin is a new beginning.  Each time, we start with a clean slate. 
People suffering from post-abortion syndrome need that clean slate & new beginning.  Tens of millions have been harmed by abortion; not just the babies who lost their lives.   Women, & men also, have been haunted by nightmares, sadness, even depression.   The pro-choice crowd claims that the guilt comes from pro-life people who lay that guilt upon others. 
Certainly that can be true, but it’s also certain that it is not always true.   Think of it this way.  If you break your mother’s favorite dish, you naturally feel guilty, even when no one else is around to impose that guilt upon you.  If you can’t legitimately blame your guilt on someone else, how are you supposed to deal with it?  Many people suppress that guilt, which causes great psychological harm.  Post-abortion syndrome is very sad, & it is very real.  People who suffer from it need to hear that Jesus has washed their sins away.  Forgiveness is the only cure no matter what the sin may be.   All sins separate us from our holy Creator, but Jesus has paid the penalty for all the sins ever committed by all of mankind.   
Jesus died, & rose from the dead, so that you & I could have a new beginning.   Through the waters of Baptism, powered by the almighty Word of God, the Holy Spirit begins a new beginning.   There, God gives you a new identity as He calls you personally by name.   He promises His presence, His help, His mercy, & He makes us heirs of His glory. 
At the baptismal font, the one whose very life is a gift from God now receives the gift of a new beginning by water & the Spirit.  This new life will blossom into a glorious future,  one going beyond the tear-stained days  of this earthly life,  one that will go  far beyond death itself;  one that initiates us into God’s family  as beloved children of the Heavenly Father. 
 Satan tempts us, & our sinful nature tempts us, to place value on human life based upon the circumstances of this life.   However, our value to God the Father goes far beyond anything we accomplish here on earth.  Children of God have infinite value to their Creator because He creates each one of us, in His image, to live into infinity. 
Ending a life prematurely robs this world of the eternal worth & value of that human being.  Ending a life prematurely robs each of us of the eternal worth & value of that human being, even if we never would have met them here.  It’s that kind of truth that causes people, involved in promoting a specific abortion, to suffer from post-abortion syndrome. 
Once we receive the new beginning Jesus offers, the darkness always tries to draw us back into fear & confusion.  Even Christians have abortions because Satan draws them back into darkness through their fears.  They’re led to doubt that our Lord’s forgiveness is able to create the new beginning they’ll need if they give birth to God’s creation.  We should never mistake that phrase – God’s creation.  In spite of what evolutionists claim, no one is able to bring life into this world apart from the power of Yahweh.  Whenever a human life comes into existence, it is always by His will, even when that conception occurs outside marriage. 
With the conception of a child, that child’s new beginning always comes with the offer of a new beginning for the mother & father.  They need only turn back to their Lord & Savior for the strength & the wherewithal to continue on His path of their new beginning.  Ending the life of a child in the womb because it’s inconvenient is to refuse God’s offer. 
Whenever a man or woman feels guilty, because of their role in having a baby’s life ended, the guilt is another offer from God to receive His new beginning.  Our Lord allows guilt into our lives so we realize something is wrong.   If you put your hand into boiling water, the pain you feel is a warning that something is wrong.  Guilt & pain are meant to turn us around. 
Christ knows what it is to carry guilt & pain.  He carried all of our guilt to the cross   & He endured the pain there that was our due.   Whenever anyone turns back to Him, He welcomes them with open arms.  Then Jesus creates for them a new beginning.  That doesn’t mean there are never consequences for our sins, but they cannot harm us eternally. 
Keeping a child instead of ending the pregnancy is certainly filled with consequences.  Too often the church forgets that, & fails to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  God sent His Son to die for our failures as well.  Then, in Christ’s Word, in Holy Baptism, in the body & blood of our Lord given at Communion, there are real answers to real problems. 
The unbelieving world doesn’t see it that way because they have refused the new beginning of the Holy Spirit which would allow them to see.  They see forgiving sin as simply excusing it.   They try to overcome their failures, their sins, guilt & shame through self-help books, by denying that a fetus is human, or shrugging off sin by saying, “It’s okay.”   We live in a turbulent time.  The boundaries between right & wrong, good & evil, are blurred & even erased.  Many who hold positions of power have some responsibility in this, by making & enforcing laws that are entirely opposed to God’s Law & will. 
We ourselves have often turned a blind eye to the evil within us & around us.  We have failed to speak on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves.  Of this, repentance turns us back to our Creator.   A man whose name you will recognize said this:
“Once the Church’s voice is stifled in the public square, the role of culture-makers shifts to the secular realm.  The State will see this need & fill that need itself – in the name of national unity.  In the case of Nazi Germany, it realized that it was now the State’s educational role to create a unifying worldview for the nation…” 
Adolf Hitler spoke those words to a group of Nazi leaders in the year 1933.  If the Church – that is – if we as Christians do not speak,  if we allow our voices to be stifled in the public square – the State will take over (in many ways, has already taken over) the creation & molding of a new  secular society  where those in power tell the people what is good  & what is evil. 
Jesus calls us to be a light in this world of darkness.  He is the True Light, who shines that light into the dark places of the heart.  There is only One whom we follow, one Shepherd whose voice we hear, the One who can save & defend us, & teach us true right from wrong.  
An old Welsh hymn says: “I’d not seek a life that’s easy,   Gold & pearls so little mean;   Rather seek a life that’s joyful,   A heart that’s honest, a heart that’s clean.”   A heart that’s clean.  That’s what Jesus does for us.  He creates in us a clean heart.  He renews us by His Spirit.  Only in Jesus can we continue the battle against the devil. 
Only in Jesus can we fight this good fight for the lives of our babies, our children, the
elderly, the handicapped, the suffering, & those who are dying.  In Jesus, we can proclaim the dignity & value of human life.   In Jesus, the woman who’s been emotionally & physically scarred by abortion can find peace, forgiveness, & rest. 
In Jesus, each of us can know what it means to have God’s approval; to know we are forgiven of our sins, to have the promise & absolute assurance of eternal life in a better world – a world without sin, without abortion, without death – a world that you & I inherit by grace alone, through the holy blood of the Lamb who was slain & then raised from death to a new beginning. 
Our sins have already been punished in Him, on that cross.  Jesus bodily rose from the tomb so that we would know even death itself cannot harm those who belong to Jesus & trust in Him alone – for as He lives, so we live as well. 
Pastors who are afraid to speak of the sin of abortion cannot offer the only true solution – which is the same for all sins: turn back to Jesus & receive your new beginning!   In Christ’s blood, your sins & my sins, like fiery darts, are extinguished & harm us no longer.   The wedding at Cana is much more than the account of Jesus attending a nice country wedding.  
The changing of water into the very best wine is a sign of who He is & what He has come to bring.  It means that God is now with us.  It points to Christ as Messiah, Savior of the world, who alone can erase our sins & make us free to be who we were meant to be.  Jesus Christ alone is the One who can save us from all our fears.  
On this day, when the Church observes the wedding at Cana, we also observe LIFE SUNDAY.  How appropriate!  The LORD of LIFE, who gives to us our very breath, is the Lord who turns water into wine, who fashions a new creation, who draws joy from sadness, who forgives sin & brings us forth as new people in the life-giving spring of our baptismal bath. 
A new beginning!  Water into wine.  Joy at the Wedding Feast to come, when Jesus, the
Bridegroom, welcomes His Bride, the Church, into the halls of victory & triumph.  Then we shall sit at the festive table with the King, who shall fill our cups with the very best wine & say, “Come, …inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”  (Matthew 25:34 ESV) 
Yes, our God is the God of Life, & in Christ, each day He offers each of you a new beginning that will never end.  Amen. 
 
 
This day at earth’s creation the light first had its birth; this day for our salvation Christ rose from depths of earth; this day our Lord victorious the Spirit sent from heaven, & thus this day most glorious a threefold light was given. This day, God’s people meeting, His Holy Scripture hear;   His living presence greeting, through bread & wine made near. We journey on, believing, renewed with heavenly might, from grace more grace receiving, on this blest day of light. That light our hope sustaining, we walk the pilgrim way, at length our rest attaining, our endless Sabbath day.  We sing to Thee our praises, O Father, Spirit, Son; the Church her voice upraises to Thee, blest Three in One.  Amen.   LSB 906:2-4. 

​The Baptism of Our Lord – C                                                                      LSB #’s 405, 498:1-2, 4-5; 399
Text – Luke 3:16
 
John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but He who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit & fire.” 
 
WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT & FIRE
 
 
As the saying goes, “You have to be living under a rock” if you have not heard about the fires in Los Angeles.   Having served on a fire department  I experienced firsthand  the speed & ferocity  with which a fire can spread.   I’ve seen families standing in their yard at midnight  watching their earthly possessions go up in flames  as we fought the fire. 
Those examples are miniscule  in the face of what’s happened this past week in LA.  Several of the fires are still spreading  & the devastation,  even apart from human lives,  is apocalyptic.  Tens of thousands of acres of human development  have been utterly obliterated.  And in the face of it all,  whatever the reasons,  human beings have been powerless  to stop it. 
So far, the destruction is limited to parts of one city, albeit  a rather large city.    Last Sunday  the people there  were living their lives as normal  without a clue  as to the unimaginable extent of what was coming.   Jesus reports a similar situation recorded in Matthew 24:
“For as were the days of Noah,  so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  For as in those days before the flood  they were eating & drinking,  marrying & giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, & they were unaware until the flood came & swept them all away,  so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”  (24:37-39 ESV) 
It is horrible what’s happening in Los Angeles,  but the parallels with the flood are there.  God’s grace, mercy & forgiveness are available without cost,  but if they are not taken advantage of in this life  there will be no second chances.   Jesus made clear in His teaching  that the things of this world are not to be the focus of our lives.   The only treasure you can keep  is that which God is storing for you  in heaven.  Since no one knows when the end of the world will come each of us should be constantly ready – ready & watching for the master to return.    This morning, our world  & our lives  may appear to be normal – eating & drinking,  marrying & giving in marriage,  but  what’s instore for anyone of us  tomorrow?    The truth is,  we haven’t a clue! 
The fires of Los Angeles are terrible & horrific,  yet they are nothing compared to the fire that is coming, as St. Peter outlined for us:
“Since all these things will be destroyed in this way,  think  how  holy & godly you should live,  waiting for & earnestly desiring the coming of God’s Day  that will destroy the heavens with fire & melt the elements with heat.  But according to His promise we expect new heavens & a new earth where righteousness dwells.”  (2 Peter 3:11-13 AAT) 
You & I have hope for a much better life to come,  so we refuse to cling to the things of this world.  One day  all of it will be destroyed anyway.   It is our privilege to share the news of the new heavens & a new earth  that are coming  where righteousness dwells.   It is our privilege especially  to share that news with people who are suffering in this life. 
Many people, in the day of John the Baptist, were suffering miserable lives.   It wasn’t from fires or hurricanes, but from oppressive governments that dictated many aspects of their lives.  It was all the wealth being concentrated in the hands of the elite,  while the rest lived in poverty or slavery.  Even the religious leaders were serving themselves  instead of the people.  
Then,  & today,  how many people had become numb to any hope of healing or future?  How many have sought ways to deaden themselves to the pain & tragedy of life in a world that is broken by sin?    How many of us would have been found coming to see John the Baptist, wondering if he had a word of hope  like the earlier OT prophets had? 
All the Gospels clearly indicate that John’s activity caused a sensational stir in Israel. 
Would he cause such a stir today?  John was a powerful preacher who had a great impact on people, but this text also shows the strength of his humility.  He did not exploit the opportunity to his own advantage.  Many times, people in "middle management" positions, or those working in periods of great change, take advantage of the situation for their own enrichment.  Not so John. 
We are living in what is going to be a period of great change  as our federal government transitions from one administration to another.    There will be opportunities for many to take advantage of the situation for their own enrichment.  It will be an exciting time for many  & a difficult one for many others. 
Offering hope, & making promises for change,  is easy during a campaign.  Governing is where the rubber meets the road.   The mayor of Los Angeles has found that out in excruciating detail.   When people felt hopeless during the days of John the Baptist,  some  listened to his preaching & he offered them One greater than himself.  John was the forerunner for Jesus:
“He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit & fire.”  (Luke 3:16b ESV)   Jesus does have the power  to fulfill  all His promises,  but those promises always have an end times goal – eternity in heaven.  Only faith in Jesus  as Lord & Savior  allows anyone to see the fulfillment. 
In this life Jesus gives physical blessings too,  but all will fade or be destroyed  by the effects of sin.  The blessings Jesus offers that are eternal & everlasting  are not so easy to see or identify.  Patience, self-control, faithfulness,  & forgiveness,  are not as readily obvious  as a new car or a successful surgery.  To be “seen” those blessings require faith in Jesus as Lord & Savior. 
A good illustration of that is the last sentence of the sermon text, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit & fire.”   As I read through all the resources I had,  everyone generally agreed on what John meant by “baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”   Where there was no consensus is on the last word “fire.”  Was it a reference to destruction or hell?  Was it a reference to the purifying effect of God’s Word?   Is it simply a reference to the Gospel – that Jesus would pay, with His life, for our sins?  I could not find a definitive answer.  John was clearly talking about blessing in the spiritual realm.   Our lack of understanding highlights the difficulty in appreciating the things & the work of God’s Spirit  in our daily & in our eternal  lives. 
As in the life of Job, God often gives us no direct or specific answers for the suffering we endure.  Why did God allow the fires in LA,  or hurricane Helene in NC,  or the broken relationships we so often see in marriage & in raising children?  Why does God install governments that are incompetent & corrupt?  Why does He allow us to sin as we often do? 
Since we are not God,  & we don’t have the answers we seek,  we are faced with a dilemma.  Do we trust God’s love for us,  or  do we go our own way?  That Jesus came to die for our sins is proof of God’s love & goodness.  Going our own way  eventually brings nothing but helplessness & death.  No matter what you accomplish, every human legacy is erased by time. 
In Jesus’ baptism  God is at work remaking you,  purifying you to be people in whom nothing but righteousness dwells.  That’s why the heavenly Father spoke these words, “You are my beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.”  (Luke 3:22 ESV)   He spoke them of Jesus, & since Jesus was taking your place,  those words now cover you. 
You are righteous because God says so.  That is our Creator’s response to the sin & the resultant suffering we find ourselves in.  Short-term it’s the not the most pleasing answer to our questions of “Why?”.  However, God has an end times view & goal in everything He does.  All of His salvation works are eternal,  & once we are in heaven  we will understand. 
Instead of washing us sinners away, as in the days of Noah,  at the baptism of Jesus, God used water to save, rather than to destroy.  God was still pleased with Jesus when He made His own Son to become the very sin which infects us all.  (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV)   It did not seem like the Father was pleased with Him at that point, but in hindsight, when the pain was in the past & Jesus was raised from the dead, the pleasure of the Father with His Son was clear.  Now, Jesus is at work baptizing us with the Holy Spirit & fire,  & because of that we can receive the gifts of forgiveness, holiness & righteousness. 
As the Lord spoke in the OT reading from Isaiah, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.”  (43:1b ESV)   Paul added to that in the Epistle lesson from Romans:
“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?  We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death,  in order that,  just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.  For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His.”  (6:3-5 ESV) 
We may not know exactly what God is saying with the words, “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit & fire.”  But we do know that our life now exists in the almighty Son of God,  & He loves us with an incomprehensible love.  He has promised to never leave us nor forsake us.  In that, God’s children find peace & rest, no matter what may be burning around us.  Amen.
 
 
 
Come, Holy Ghost, Creator blest,  & make our hearts Your place of rest;  come with Your grace & heavenly aid,  & fill the hearts which You have made.    Your light to every thought impart,  & shed Your love in every heart;  the weakness of our mortal state  with deathless might invigorate.     Drive far away our wily foe,  & Your abiding peace bestow;  with You as our protecting guide,  no evil can with us abide.  Amen.  LSB 498:2, 4-5. 

Epiphany – 2025                                                                                            LSB #’s 342, 394, 397
Text – Matthew 2:12
 
And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.
 
BY ANOTHER WAY
  
In western NC  many people are traveling  by another way  than they would have six months ago.   Hurricane Helene  has made that a necessity.   The Gospel reading from Matthew 2 ends with the Magi going home  by another way  because hurricane Herod  meant to wreak havoc  on anyone daring to challenge his place as king. 
In earlier years, Herod had at least two of his own sons murdered  out of fear they were plotting to take his throne.   The Gospel of Matthew is like a trumpet  sounding the message of God’s grace  in God’s kingdom.   Yet, chapter two is introduced with these words: “…Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod  the king…”   That is not by accident. 
Some people have the mistaken idea  that for Christianity to be true  there must be perfect peace & harmony in our world.   Some people extend that idea  to individual human beings.  They believe that  if you are a Christian,  then you will always  be kind, patient & tolerant.   In other words,  Christians should be perfect.  If they are not, then Christianity proves to be false. 
That understanding of Christianity,  as a means of perfection,  is not entirely untrue;   it is just completely mistaken in its timing.  Those who follow Jesus Christ are being perfected,  but it is never complete  in this life.  The kingdom of God is alive & well right here & now.   The struggle we have  is that it’s barely visible to the naked eye. 
In His wisdom,  Yahweh has chosen to keep His kingdom hidden  behind the brokenness of this world.    Faith does see the love of God  hidden behind the dead body of God’s Son as it hangs on the cross.   Unbelief sees the same thing  & recoils in horror at the apparent foolishness of such a God.   Unbelief demands results  right now  & demands them  on its own terms.   Unbelief detests  the very essence of the 1st commandment = You shall have no other gods.  Anyone who refuses to accept Jesus as Lord  also cannot trust Him as Savior.   Unbelief desires a god that caters to its every whim.  At its heart,  unbelief is always about idolatry of some kind. 
So that faith stands out as genuine, God hides His kingdom behind the brokenness of the fallen creation.  Even as Jesus was raising people from the dead, the Gospel of John tells us what happened: “When Jesus had said these things, He departed & hid Himself from them.  Though He had done so many signs before them,  they still did not believe in Him.”  (12:36b-37 ESV) 
Therefore, God’s mercy & grace was born in Bethlehem “in the days of Herod  the [murderous] king…”  And, “…behold, [Magi] from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He  who has been born king of the Jews?  For we saw His star when it rose  & have come to worship Him.’”  (Matthew 2:1-2 ESV) 
They came to worship the true King,  but they dealt with a false king  along the way.  There are many false kings in our lives as well – some  of our own making.   Herod certainly worshipped himself,  but also power  & wealth  & reputation.  Any kind of alternate king would be threatening  to each one of his idols. 
Yet, when the Magi arrive in Jerusalem, God presented Herod with an opportunity to ask himself, “How did I get here, with this need to destroy anyone I view  in any way  as a threat?”  When the chief priests & scribes told Herod where the Christ was to be born,  Herod truly did have an opportunity to go with the Magi  to worship Jesus. 
However,  Herod would have to go there by another way.   His current path  of pride & idolatry  would never lead him to worship the Christ Child  as the Magi intended to.   Have you ever found yourself  in circumstances where you asked, “How did I get here?  What have I done to get myself into this predicament?   And how do I get out of it?”   If that happens while driving, you just use Google Maps & it will show you another way.   Most predicaments of life  are not as easily solved.  A worst-case scenario is Putin of Russia.  If he’s at all a rational being, he must realize the path he’s on is ludicrous,  but his pride & idolatry will not allow him another way. 
Kings & dictators have had that problem throughout history.   Because of sin,  each of us acts  like a king or dictator,  even if  on a much smaller scale than Putin or Herod.  Maybe the bed  always has to be made in a certain way,  or the items in your toolbox have an exact location  in which they are to be placed. 
Sin brings chaos into our lives,  & then sin corrupts  our efforts  to control that chaos.  Sin attacks us  coming & going.  By writing that Jesus was born in the days of Herod the king, Matthew invites us into an earthly kingdom filled with power & fear, deception & murder.  God wants us to know that Christianity is not some Pollyanna religion  that denies our cruel reality.
With Jesus arriving in the days of Herod the king,  God is making it clear that He’s willing to effect our salvation from the inside out.   Putin is trying to impose his will on the people of Ukraine from the outside in.  That approach saves no one,  & brings nothing but death & destruction.  Jesus took on human flesh to change the very essence of what we are. 
It’s a much more long-term process, but it effects  real & eternal change for good.  The events of Jesus’ conception & birth are filled with signs that God is directly intervening to save His people.  Angels appear to Mary & Joseph to reveal God’s plan because it was a bit out of the ordinary.  The Magi, who are clueless otherwise,  are warned in a dream  not to return to Herod. 
Because God intervened,  & because the Magi trusted Him,  they return home by another way.  When we find ourselves in a predicament,  & wonder how we got there,  we can count on God to rescue us.  As St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful, & He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”  (10:13 ESV)   However, when God comes to rescue,  it is better for us  if we do listen.  The Magi departed Bethlehem by another way  because they listened to God’s warning. 
God is busy  everyday  bringing moments of grace into our lives.  They often go right over our head,  in one ear & out the other.   God is calling us in those moments of grace, to travel by another way,  a way you & I would never choose on our own.   Repentance is one of those ways,  & it always leads to our Lord’s love & forgiveness,  life & healing. 
When we face a dilemma & can think of no good way out,  Jesus calls us simply to follow Him.  Like the Magi who followed a star, we too can trust God & find blessing.  There will be doubts along the way.  Those come from our sinful weakness & from Satan’s temptation.  In time, God’s plan will be made manifest. 
From a manger, where a child lay wrapped in bands of cloth,  God’s reach,  God’s embrace in Christ  gets larger & larger & larger,  down through the years  to the days of you  & me.  The events involving the Magi  are meant to bring hope & life into our lives.  As the opening hymn put it:
Come, Jesus, come, Messiah Lord,     lost Paradise restore;     lead past the angel’s flaming sword – Come, open heaven’s door.  (LSB 342:4)   Amen. 
 
 
Grant us grace to see Thee, Lord,  present in Thy holy Word – grace to imitate Thee now  & be pure,  as pure art Thou;  that we might become like Thee  at Thy great epiphany  & may praise Thee,  ever blest,  God in man made manifest.  Amen.  LSB 394:5.