Sermon Audio

It’s been four weeks since we celebrated the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ. In three weeks, we will celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter as it will have been 50 days since the Resurrection—Pentecost! We hear of Jesus speaking about precisely this moment in the history of the church:

Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

However, He said this before He was crucified and died.

Until that time, Jesus was always with His little church, teaching them, caring for them, leading them. They could see Him, touch Him, talk with Him, laugh with Him, eat meals with Him; they enjoyed Jesus’ presence in a way we only have to look forward to, and even then, it won’t be the same as what the 12 had, or the rest of His little church. Then, Jesus and His church enter Jerusalem—He is seized, bound, beaten, tried, put to death, and buried. It’s all a shock, as we might well imagine it to be. It all happened so quickly and dishonestly; the shock and awe and speechlessness on the part of Jesus’ little church must have been compounded by this. But, it all happened just as Jesus said it would—and His little church is still confused and bewildered.

And even more quickly than it all happened, Jesus rose again from the grave. “Go to Galilee; I will see you there.” (cf. Matthew 28:7; Mark 16:7) It looked like things were going to get back to normal, except that the Teacher will have come back from the dead, something they’ve only seen once or twice or thrice before. (cf. Luke 7:11-15; Luke 8:41-42, 48-56; John 11:38-44) A short 40 days later, Jesus fulfilled the first part of what He spoke in their hearing in today’s text, taking His seat at the right hand of God. Ten days after that, the disciples were together in Jerusalem, and the second part came to pass as the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they preached in many different languages as the Spirit gave them utterance. (cf. Acts 2:4) Something had changed with Jesus’ little church, something more than just the 3000 that were added to their number that day of Pentecost. (cf. Acts 2:41)

In this day and age, we tend to look back at the little church at Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and that first Easter with a bit of disdain. How could they not have understood what Jesus had told them? It was plain as day; Jesus said He had to be betrayed into the hands of evil men, beaten and mocked, and put to death, but that He would rise again on the third day. (cf. Matthew 20:17-19 et al) Perhaps we give them a little benefit of the doubt, that sometimes, even knowing what is going on right down to the last details of when and how, the moment it happens is still shocking and disconcerting, like the puff of air of a glaucoma test—you know it’s coming, but still flinch when it does.

However, in this day and age, we are living in the post-Pentecost church. Remember, something had changed with Jesus’ little church. The disciples were preaching with power that first Pentecost day, without doubt and fully confident in the promises and Word of God. I mean, compare what Peter said that day with how he was before the Ascension; he’s a new man, and I don’t mean like the baptized kind. This is more than merely the benefit of hindsight; again, remember, the little church had the benefit of hindsight on Maundy Thursday—Jesus had said these things—and they still didn’t quite get it. The difference lies in what Jesus did to them after His resurrection:

Then [Jesus] said to [the 12], “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.” And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these things. Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.” (Luke 24:44-49, emphasis mine)

And then, what the Holy Spirit did to them for the rest of their lives.

Having their understanding of the Scriptures opened, when the Holy Spirit came upon them, they preached in Jerusalem, proclaimed the salvation of God in the death and resurrection of the Son, Jesus Christ, many gladly received St. Peter’s words, were baptized, and 3000 souls were added to the little church. What Jesus had told them in today’s text had come to pass:

However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment....

We live in the post-Pentecost church, and we are the beneficiaries of the disciples opened understanding. The church that day began with 12 pastors who taught others what Jesus said and did and will do, who in turn became more pastors in the church—men like Paul, Titus, Timothy, and Polycarp—down through the ages and into today. For those 12 the Scriptures were opened, and through them, the Holy Spirit has opened the Scriptures for countless numbers of people (though God knows the number) for nearly two millennia. You confess this truth when you speak the words of the Creed which teach that you cannot, by your own reason or strength, believe in Jesus Christ, your Lord, but the Holy Spirit has called you by the Gospel, enlightened you with His gifts, sanctified and kept you in the true faith. (cf. Small Catechism) Yes, in fact, He has taken what is of Jesus—what is Jesus—and declared and given it to you. By His work, you are sanctified—made holy—as again you are forgiven and given life and salvation.

What’s frightening is the Biblical literacy of church today. Many in the church are no better off than the disciples on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and that first Easter. They sit in their pews or seats, have the Scriptures opened to them, then are amazed or shocked at the things Jesus says in His Word. “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?” (John 6:60) Perhaps you have heard me remark how on the game show, Jeopardy, whenever the Bible comes up as a category, the contestants, without fail, struggle through it. Without commenting on whether or not they are Christian (they very well could or could not be), they can name minuscule islands and atolls in geography, spout off 16-syllable compounds in chemistry, and run through the names of obscure authors and books in modern literature, but don’t know that Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, that Jacob was the younger brother of Esau, whom God hated, that Jesus called fishermen, a zealot, and a tax collector to be among His disciples, or that Jesus predicted His passion, death, and resurrection more than once.

And let’s not be quick to pin this illiteracy on others and not yourself. We each have times at which we are astounded at what the Word of God says; to deny it would be to assume perfect knowledge of the Scriptures. There aren’t many among us who could name all the kings of Israel, in order, much less recite the verses that teach and support the doctrine of the Trinity or closed communion. This illiteracy is as common among the clergy as it is among the laity; so, don’t ask me to name all of the kings.

Therefore, it’s a good thing that the Holy Spirit still does what Jesus sent Him to do—be our Helper, our Comforter. Having been sent by Jesus, the Holy Spirit is still at work among us, doing exactly what it is we confess with the words of the Creed: “I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting.” What does this mean?

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.

The Helper comes and calls, enlightens, and sanctifies. How does He do this? As Jesus said,

However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.

The Helper takes what Jesus gives Him and gives it to you. He comes and declares to you the Law, by which He convicts you of sin. The Law shows you your sin. The Law always accuses. The Law kills. This is all the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer—daily—so that the Old Man in you daily dies to the sin by which he seeks to drive you away from belief in God and trust in Jesus' death and resurrection for your salvation. And so, by the work of the Holy Spirit, you confess your unbelief—your belief in yourself over and above God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

So, the Helper takes what Jesus gives Him and gives it to you. He declares to you the Gospel, by means of the Word read and proclaimed, in the mouths of friends and neighbors and teachers and pastors, in your own reading and devotions, that by it you receive Jesus Christ, your propitiation, the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world—that takes away your sins. The Holy Spirit works in you daily to convict you of righteousness, because Jesus, the Son of God, became sin for you that you might be the righteousness of God in Him. (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21) That is the thing the Holy Spirit is given from Jesus and gives to you. It is His work of bringing you to the Word again and again, that you may grow in your faith, as St. Peter exhorts: “[A]s newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby...” (1 Peter 2:2); by His work you “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 3:18a)

And all the while, the ruler of this world is judged. Satan is defeated in the death of Jesus upon the cross. His victory over sin, death, and the devil is your victory over sin, death, and the devil, and it is given to you in the work of the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus sent to give these things to you.

The Helper has come and convicted the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He is come and comes daily for you. By His daily work in you through the Word, Jesus Christ, you are sanctified, again and again—made holy, again and again.

How are you made holy? The Holy Spirit, sent by Jesus the Son, brings to you the forgiveness of all of your sins, won for you as Jesus died and sealed for you when He rose again from the grave. Therefore, since you are forgiven, made holy, declared righteous for the sake of Christ, when Jesus returns, the Helper will raise you and all the dead and give eternal life to you and all believers in Christ. This is most certainly true.