05312015 Trinity Sunday - To God be the Glory

Gospel Audio
Sermon Audio

May 31, 2015

To God be the Glory

 As I entered the room, the people gathered around the bed had tears running down their cheeks.  The bed wasn’t like what I get into at night, it was metal, functional and looked uncomfortable.  The wires that were draped over the sides running to the machines were clear sentry’s with an unmistakable purpose, to signal when the battle was over.  The faces of the people that were huddled around the room and especially the bed were drawn and showed signs of the weariness that words could not heal nor take away the pain they were feeling inside.  But this wasn’t just a sterile hospital room, this wasn’t just a place that would witness the final hours, minutes and seconds of relationship between husband and wife, father and daughters, brothers and sisters.  This humble room was where God’s Glory would be fully revealed and the promises of God would be clearly and unmistakably fulfilled.  This was where God meets man and this is holy ground.

The people gathered around the bed are not unknown to me.  I have played games with all of them, I have eaten meals around the table with each of them.  I have worshiped God both in their church and mine.  This is my family gathered together, huddled, holding each other and helping each other because of the reality that confronts us now, death is about to intimately touch and visit us.  Laying in the bed is someone I am more like than I can truly comprehend or understood.  Laying in the bed, dying from four types of cancer is my Uncle Don.

Though we grew up in different times, had different experiences as well as parents, what my Uncle taught me in death has stayed with me for the last twenty two years.  Simply it is what Paul concluded our epistle with today.  Paul wrote, “To Him [that is To God] be the glory forever. Amen.”

Paul in his epistle clearly understood how death does separate loved ones.  Even when Paul finally encountered and understood on the road to Emmaus the Person Jesus Christ when he saw Him face to face, that place of his encounter with Jesus for Paul was holy ground.  Jesus Christ had died outside Jerusalem and right in front of Paul’s eyes Jesus stood and spoke to him.  From that moment on, Paul’s very existence changed from being destructive of human life and Christianity, to a life epitomized in what he wrote in Romans.  “To Him be the glory forever.  AMEN”

Some of us have not had this ‘mountain top experience’ of clear personal encounter with the divine while here on earth.  But we have encountered death in our lives, whether of children we never met, spouses that we built lives and experienced love with, parents that carried us and nurtured our very nature and even siblings or friends that died at a young age or even after a long life.  Death has touched each of our lives.  But for Christians, death is not an enemy, but a doorway to walk through in our lives and an opportunity for us to look beyond death and not just repeat Paul’s words, but know the connection we have with Paul and all the saints of all time and place.  Paul understood this and hence why he stated clearly for God’s glory to be forever.

But how can we have ‘God’s Glory forever’ here at Emmanuel?  I do not have the answer.  Let me state that again, so everyone can clearly hear my personal confession.  I, Darian Hybl, Pastor of Emmanuel Lutheran in Goodland, Kansas, do not have all the answers.  I cannot by my own reason or effort explain what or why.  I cannot foresee what will happen in the next month, year, three years or five years.

This is a very humbling and hard pill to swallow.  What I have to do is like Paul, die to self.  I have to die to my knowledge, my ego and my ability, because with them, all I have done, and will do is drive people away from God and the church.  Like Paul, who captured Christians and dragged them to the authorities and to have them executed, all I am personally capable of in and of myself is the destruction of the church.

Hence, why Paul’s statement is so profound for me and for us today.  On this day that we celebrate the Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit with the confession of the Athanasian Creed, I need to stand with Paul and say clearly and emphatically, “To God be the Glory”!

You see, in order to stand with Paul and make this confession that we all will do in a few minutes, I have to do something I learned from my Uncle Don, who died of cancer.  My Uncle Don loved to fish, and he was good at it.  He could horse fish out of the side of a stream bank that had been fished hard on opening day of trout season.  He could walk up to a part of the stream and tell exactly where every fish was and if there were multiple fish.  In less than 100 feet of stream he could catch his limit of 7 fish and easily go back for more, because he was that good.

While visiting him eight years before he lay in the hospital bed, I went out fishing with him to learn some of his tricks and tips, because I wanted to learn how to be a better fly fisherman.  We came to a stream that flowed out of the bottom of a lake not far from his house.  For those of you who don’t know, the coldest water is at the bottom of any body of water and the water flowing from this lake out of the bottom into the stream was about 35-38 degrees.  As I had learned from my father, get close to the stream and make a good presentation of the fly.  With clear determination I got as close as I could without getting wet and cast the fly.  It landed perfectly.  My uncle stood back and watched.  I held my breath and waited.  The fly floated closer and closer and finally went down stream past me, so I did as any fisherman does, I tried again and again, and again.  But I couldn’t get any fish to rise.

With the wisdom of many years, my Uncle Don, looked at me and said, ‘you have good technique, but you are in the wrong place’.  Being right next to the stream I looked at him with great pessimism and in a teenage tone said, where should I be, in the middle of the stream?  And he said simply ‘yes’.  You see I had to die to all the knowledge I had up to that point and be humble and in one sense get out of my comfort zone, on the side of the stream and get right in the middle of the stream.  I had to get wet.  As I inched into the water my ankles began to lose all feeling.  Not only were my shoes wet, my pants were drenched and I was getting cold.  For the next ten minutes I stood in the middle of the stream with cold water streaming between my legs and faithfully casting my fly to every part of the stream that I could reach in search of the illusive trout that was supposed to be in the water.

Each time I would cast and follow the fly, my teeth would chatter because I was thigh deep in the coldest water I had ever experienced.  My Uncle Don watched every move and would on occasion give me little nuggets of direction and advice to catch the illusive trout.  Then it finally occurred.  I was concentrating on my casting technique, and just happened to look down.  Lo and behold right behind me swimming right up between my cold legs was none other than a….mink.  At that moment, I was supposed to be fly fishing by picking up my fly for another cast up stream, but I froze.  Right underneath me was one of the most elusive creatures in the wilderness world.  And because I had been so concentrated on ‘fly fishing’, I was now blessed to have one of God’s creatures swim up behind me and between my legs like I was a part of nature that he called his world.

In utter disbelief I stood there trying not to breathe to hard, trying not to move, chatter my teeth or shake my legs and scare the mink.  And as quick as the mink swam up and between my legs he swam up stream in search for his next meal. What I experienced in that short window of time was nothing other than exhilarating.  My Uncle Don watched the whole experience from the shore and was in utter disbelief of how close I came to such a wild animal.  As I stood there in the stream I stood on nothing other than holy ground. 

The reason I tell you this story is because I didn’t deserve the experience that even my Uncle Don had never had in all his years of fishing, hunting and trapping.  The place where I stood in the middle of the stream of extremely cold water was holy ground.  In that one moment, being as close to the wild mink as I was I saw and experienced the greatest nature experience I have ever had.  Clearly at that time, I felt closest to God and nature all at the same time.  What it also did was cement an experience between me and my Uncle Don.  For me it epitomizes what Holy Ground was for Paul and what and why he meant for people like us to join together and confess our faith.  Where we stand or sit today when we confess our faith is holy ground.

Years later as I entered his hospital room, I stepped again onto holy ground.  In that place, where my Uncle met face to face with His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and was taken home, Paul’s acclamation of “To God be the glory forever and ever.  AMEN.” was surely felt though probably not spoken.  But God’s presence was palpable and tangible for everyone gathered around the hospital bed and in the room on holy ground.  Even for us today God’s glory surrounds us daily and this is a fulfillment of His promise to and for each of us gathered here this morning.  God’s glory is a constant and what we need to do is be active in what we are supposed to be doing and God will show up when we least expect it, like the mink that swam through my legs.

For when God shows up His plan and purpose is simply for His glory to be revealed.  Whether standing at the bedside of a loved one close to death, in the middle of a stream with a wild animal swimming between your legs or even here at Emmanuel as we work on the kitchen remodel or confess our faith in the Athanasian Creed.  God clearly shows up and we can celebrate the certainty of His presence with and for us today.  For God comes not only to gather us up into His Kingdom, but to clearly unite us in the faith we confess.  For this faith points to what God has done for each and every one of us on the Cross of Calvary.  May we today be emboldened to confess with Paul and all the saints of all time and place in the words of the Athanasian Creed what God offers each and every one of us through His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ, eternal life.  AMEN.

Check out Pastor on the Prairie (ProtP)
Subscribe to ProtP

Speak Your Mind

Sermon 09302012 17th Sunday After Trinity

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer.  AMEN.

Let us pray!  Humble and obedient Lord Jesus Christ, You purposefully and carefully cut through the sinfulness that You encountered and rooted out the pride that people including Your disciples had.  Yet You also taught them and us today that we will be honored, if we humble ourselves and are obedient to Your will.  Enable us to be changed by Your Word and Witness and choose the lower place so we will be moved higher and be exalted because of Your gift to us of our salvation through Your innocent death on Calvary for all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel.  AMEN.

In the last few months, the church council has had some homework.  Unlike when they were in school a test is not given, although some of their kids might find it funny if a test were given, but it is the opportunity for each of the council members to have their faith challenged, but also enriched for their continued growth in relationship with Jesus Christ and their understanding of the Word of God.  We are reading a book entitled, “Experiencing God” written by Henry and Richard Blackaby.  This book is an opportunity for the council to understand God in a richer and deeper way and help them frame their role as council members by and through their individual and our corporate relationship with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

Recently we read a chapter entitled, “Being God’s Servant”.  This chapter dealt with how we can be God’s servant.  Blackaby’s premise is that “To Participate in God’s Work, you must be a servant”.  But in order to be a ‘true servant’, it requires two characteristics, humility and obedience.  If we are humble to God’s will and His way, and obedient to God’s will even if it ‘smacks’ in the face of what culture and society believe we should do, God has a promise for us and will shape us.  God will shape each of us into the instrument of God’s choosing and use us in a wonderful way as His servant.  Hence, we have the opportunity to relate to God, respond to God and clearly adjust our life to Him in order that God will do what He wants in and through our lives and ministry.

Jesus Christ in the Gospel this morning introduced this concept clearly of ‘servant’ mentality that Blackaby spoke about in ‘Experiencing God’.  Jesus said, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”  Jesus clearly wants us to look at what we do, not with the eyes of society, but with the eyes of God.  Now clearly, we Lutherans do not have the societal problem of getting the best seats up front, for Lutherans the best seats are in the over-flow area.

But hear clearly, this is not about what seat we sit in, but more importantly where our hearts are in service.  If you look around you this morning we have the quilts still out.  This is a prime example of service, not for ourselves, but for others.  This is the servant mentality of humility and obedience in action.  By the hands of the women of this church and one of the departed saints, Clarice Martell, God used their God given abilities to sew each quilt and blanket, tie every knot, sew every hem to make them a blessing for people we do not even know.  Because of the love of the women, the dedication of the church to this ministry Emmanuel through these women have responded to God’s call and humbled themselves with these gifts.  God through their hands are altering the lives of someone they do not even know and God will bless and exalt not only the people who receive these quilts and baby blankets, but all of the women who have given of themselves for God’s glory.

Now, let it also be said, this ministry of quilts or giving to Genesis or the Thrift Store does not ‘gain’ or ‘earn’ salvation.  God sent His Son into the World to offer us salvation on the cross without a cost or price.  These quilts and the good work whether acolyting, being lector, greeter, coffee host or even volunteering to usher, of we the people of God.  These are appropriate responses to God’s gift given to us and just as Martin Luther wrote against the sale of indulgences the work done here at Emmanuel is not in payment for grace but a humble and obedient proper response of grace in action.  For this all flows out of the sacrifice on Calvary by Jesus Christ in which all of us have been baptized into and is to which we look with every action.  God’s gift of His Son offering Himself in humble obedience is the greatest gift offered to and for each and every one of us.  Jesus Christ in suffering and dying offers all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel eternal life freely and without cost.  This is the true and purest model of humility and obedience by Jesus Christ for all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel.  So my parting questions for you this morning are how will you serve God in humility and obedience?  How will God’s gift of salvation freely offered inspire you as a saint of Emmanuel?  AMEN.

Sermon 06032012 Trinity Sunday

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer.  AMEN.

Let us pray, O Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Today we celebrate the culmination of the church year with the deepest and best expression of the Trinity in the Athanasian Creed.  We began in Advent preparing our hearts for Jesus Christ arrival, celebrated His birth, life and ministry with His disciples.  Mourned His crucifixion on Golgotha and gathered with the disciples in the Upper Room where He walked through the door of our heart.  We saw Him ascend to be with the Father at His Right Hand and last week celebrated the coming of the Holy Spirit.  May we today surrounded by the saints of Heaven lift our confession of faith in the words of the Athanasian Creed as one voice for all the world, including all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel this morning.  AMEN.

Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity! 

In the middle of the woods here on earth gathered three men.  One was egotistical and a playboy, another was celebrated in myth and legend and the third was the peace maker.  Individually, Iron Man, Thor and Captain America have faced evil and overcome it, but in the latest Avengers movie, these three men have to work as a team, put ego’s to the side and work with each other to face Loki and the intergalactic menace that he is unleashing on planet earth.

Unlike Iron Man, Thor and Captain America, the Trinity that we celebrate today on this Trinity Sunday clearly portrays and perfectly fulfills the slogan, “Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity”.  From the beginning, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit created the world!  I love to pull out my King James Bible and read Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth!”  This passage even in Hebrew, the language that Moses inspired by the Holy Spirit recorded, is poetic and beautiful.  When Moses wrote the word ‘God’, it is clearly masculine, but interestingly enough it is also ‘plural’.  Hence, in the creation of the World, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit were active and participatory in the forming and shaping of the World.  Even today God the Father continues to preserve the world that we farm, drive on and live in.

Just as the Father in the Apostles and Nicene Creed in the first article is the first person in the Trinity and is the creator of heaven and earth, Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity has a purpose.  Jesus Christ, God the Son redeemed the World.  Having been born of the Virgin Mary in a stable in Bethlehem, changed water into wine in Cana, walked the streets of Capernaum, Jerusalem, Jericho and the Jordan River and walked on the water of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus Christ chose to go to Golgotha and die on the Cross for You and for me in order to redeem us from our sins.  Jesus Christ became sin to set us free from the bondage that surrounds and binds us to this earth.  Our greed, our distrust, our selfishness that is manifest in our relationships, whether between husband and wife, Father and Son, sister and brother, Jesus Christ died in order for all of us to be redeemed by His innocent blood and repair our relationships with one another.  We confess today that Jesus Christ, second person of the Trinity redeems us from sin, death, the devil, hell and damnation in order that we may be with Him in His kingdom.  Two weeks ago we celebrated His ascension into heaven and now Jesus Christ sits at the Right Hand of God the Father, because He has redeemed us.  This is not a future fact, but a present fact and reality that we celebrate with our confession of what Jesus Christ did for all of mankind in the Athanasian Creed.

Yet, now that Jesus Christ has ascended into heaven, the Holy Spirit, the third person in the Holy Trinity sent on Pentecost has been sent to sanctify the World.  The Holy Spirit Who was with the Father and Son and took part in the creation of the World, now makes you and me Holy.  Luther’s explanation of the Holy Spirit is crystal clear of the Work of the Holy Ghost.  The Holy Ghost testifies to the truth of what God the Father did in sending His Son Jesus Christ into the world.  The Holy Ghost also and most importantly calls, gathers and enlightens us about the work of redemption found in the salvific effort of Jesus Christ.  As the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Ghost works faith in, through and for each and every one of us.   The Holy Ghost through the Gospel of Jesus Christ offers us the blessings of Jesus Christ which is our salvation and making us Holy.  And through the Work of the Holy Spirit, the Father Who created us in our mother’s womb, the Son Who redeems us by His death on the cross, daily reminds us of God’s divine presence in each of our lives.

Clearly, God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit take an active part in each of our lives today, but Satan wants us to doubt not only God’s presence, but also that God cares for us.  In this way, Satan just as in the Garden of Eden wants to woo us away from God and doubt God.  But hear clearly, Satan is wrong.  God is not far away, God is here in our midst.  This morning we heard His Word of Forgiveness when we confessed our sins.  We heard the Gospel message that Jesus told Nicodemus and us today in the promise “¹⁶ “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.”  In a few minutes we will have the opportunity to confess clearly and truly about God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in the Athanasian Creed.  And finally around the altar we will receive Jesus Christ precious Body and Blood that gives us eternal life.  May all of us saints gathered here this morning having heard the Words of Forgiveness and Salvation of the Gospel message and tasted the foretaste of the feast to come be emboldened to Confess clearly our belief of ‘Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity’ for all of the saints, especially all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel this morning.  AMEN.