Dear Baptized, once more, a selection from this morning's Gospel:

Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"

Is there anything more Gospel sounding than this? Aside from this past Wednesday when we heard the literal Gospel that Jesus was forsaken for us, that He received the entirety of God's wrath on our behalf, what we have just heard is also the literal Gospel. The Son of Man will be betrayed, condemned to death, mocked, flogged, and crucified. This is the Gospel we have received, and it is our privilege to share it! Why? Because that was the punishment we deserve, yet do not receive as the Baptized of Christ.

That's the entirety of God's wrath. Jesus received it all for us and on our behalf. And if Jesus has received all of the punishment we deserve, then all that is left is the righteousness that He has earned for us.

Do you deny your sinfulness? I would certainly hope not, because then the Gospel has no meaning for you. On the other hand, if we acknowledge our sinfulness, we confess that we have betrayed our God by running after our own gods, making ourselves out to be a god—we disown God. For that, we deserve God's betrayal: "[W]hoever disowns [the Son] before men, [He] will disown him before [His] Father in heaven." We would confess that we have condemned people to death. How often have we wished a person dead because they hurt our feelings? In doing so, we have condemned Jesus to death: "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me." We would confess also that we have mocked, flogged, and even crucified people. "Flogged and crucified?" you may ask. Indeed, if only in a metaphorical sense. How often have you spewed forth such evil and hatred from your mouth that it killed a person? "The tongue is sharper than any double-edged sword." For such slayings, we deserve the punishment of death, for our Lord said, "Anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell."

Enter, then, the wife of Zebedee. On behalf of her sons, James and John, she asks a favor. "Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom." In other words, "Lord, these two will cause you much grief and suffering, but they have also done so much for you and for that deserve power and special treatment." Never mind that John was already the disciple whom Jesus loved and that he and James were two of the three in Jesus' inner circle of disciples. Now, they have the audacity to ask for more preferential treatment.

Once again, I ask, do you deny your sinfulness? How much power have you sought and thought you deserved in the place where you work because you were a good, little worker? Better yet, how much power and control do you believe you have in Christ's Church because of your great merits? You come every week and sit in your pew, you make use of the Sacrament as often as it is offered, you listen to the sermon and sing the hymns like a good, little Christian. In your own mind, these are the things you do to show your great love for God. You have turned your faith into a religion of works. Now, based on these good works you have done, you believe this is your church and what you say goes: "We do things my way or no way at all!" You could phrase it like the Pharisee prayed, "God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get." How much are we not like the sons of Zebedee?

So, hear once again these words from our Gospel this morning:

Jesus called [the disciples] together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

...the Word of the Lord. Amen!

The Church is Christ's Church, He is the head of it. We are all her members; Christ is our Head. Why? Because the "Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

He asked a question of the Sons of Zebedee. The same question can be asked of us. "Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?" Our answer—and only by the grace of God—can be like that of James and John: "We can." What cup is that? Like our Lord, to be assaulted by that unholy trinity—the world, the devil, and our sinful flesh—and if it were asked of us, to give our life rather than deny the Father. For as Jesus Christ was under attack from the world which would not receive Him, the devil who would deceive Him, and our sinful flesh which would not believe Him, and as He was ultimately crucified on our behalf, so will we who bear His name face trials and assaults seeking to lead us astray and deny our salvation. All of this in the name of service to one another. For the sinful soul which seeks to disown God, condemn people to death, mock, flog, and crucify people, and seeks its own gain and power seeks to be served rather than serve.

"The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Yes, we have from our Lord an example of Christian living. More than that, however, by His selfless act of service, we have the power and desire to live like a Christian. For in His coming to serve, He gave His life as a ransom for many. And, in giving His life as a ransom, He bestows on the Baptized the gifts of forgiveness, life, salvation, and the Spirit—the Spirit of God which creates in us the mind, desire, and will toward Christian service. Hear, once again, the Word of the Lord from our epistle:

Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.

...the Word of the Lord. Amen!

This is a change wrought in us only by the Gospel. It is the Gospel which says that God sent His Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering—He sent His Son in our flesh to bear our sin and be our Savior. He took upon Himself our betrayal of God and was in turn betrayed—forsaken—by God. He took upon Himself the condemnation to death we have pronounced on others and was in turn condemned to death on our behalf. He took upon Himself the mocking, flogging, and crucifying we are guilty of subjecting others to and was in turn mocked, flogged, and crucified for us. He took upon Himself our selfishness and self-serving attitudes and became the servant of all, giving His life as a ransom for many.

That is the full, literal Gospel of Jesus Christ. Christ died in our place that we may live! This is the Gospel which says that you are forgiven for all your sins.