First Lutheran Church of Little Rock

A. In the Name of the Father…Amen.
B. The Old Testament lesson from Genesis 3 serves as our sermon text for
this morning.
C. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God our heavenly Father through
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
D. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:
Ø Holy God, You know me better than I know myself, and You see me more
clearly. How impossible it seems that I could ever hide anything from You,
or even try to hide such things; but I do. Sometimes I pretend to be better
than I am. I do things I know will hurt others and act as though I am
blameless. But I am not. I am complicit, and I am guilty, and I am broken.
So I ask for Your forgiveness, because You love me more than I can imagine,
and You make me whole beyond my wildest dreams. This I ask in the name of
Jesus, who came to show me the way. Amen.

*Introduction *

A. In 2020, a new board game was released, produced by legendary game
designer Richard Garfield and seventy-four-time Jeopardy! winner Ken
Jennings.
a. With Jennings involved, it’s not surprising that it’s a trivia game.
b. Specifically, each of its trivia cards has a category, such as “Animals
with Blue Tongues,” and then it lists six possible answers, three of them
correct, three of them incorrect.
c. The game bills itself as a party game for all ages and people.
d. The name of the game? Half Truth.
e. Sounds like a lot of fun!
f. Imagine all the laughs and lighthearted banter.
g. Perhaps it evens out the playing field, because categories like
blue-tongued animals are truly trivial.
h. Care to join me in playing a game of Half Truth?
B. Of course, we already play the “game” of half-truth all the time. But
it’s not a fun party game when we’re trying to level the playing field of
our sinful lives by offering half-truths about our sin. It’s Satan’s game
(Gen 3:1–7). It doesn’t bring laughter and lighthearted banter, but only
tears and harsh words.

1. We often desire to cover sin by half-truths.
A. We try to cover sin by the half-truth of good we do to compensate for
it—as the first man and woman covered themselves with fig leaves.
1. Making ourselves look good, especially at the expense of others.
2. Trying to rationalize or downplay that what we have done is wrong.
A. “It’s not that bad.”
B. “Just a lapse in judgment; it won’t happen again.”
B. We try to cover sin by the half-truth that others are to
blame—redefining our relationships as adversarial, as Adam did with his
wife.
1. “Playing the blame game”
A. “The devil made me do it.”
B. “It’s the way my parents raised me.”
2. But here’s the sinful Saviortruth we can’t handle.
C. As with the first man and woman, our intimate knowledge of evil brings
shame for which we cannot compensate.
1. Imagine for a moment this sad reality:
A. After taking the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
Adam and Eve were able to snatch fruit from the tree of life.
B. Not only would they and the rest of humanity be sinners as we all are
now, but we would all be immortal!
1. What a miserable existence!
A. Full of sin!
B. No Savior!
C. Completely immortal!
D. As with the first man and woman, shifting responsibility may fool us but
will not answer Yahweh’s call to repentance.
1. Why should I confess and repent for something I did not do?
2. The end result is still the same: we will still die.
2. Christ is the Whole Truth Incarnate, who covers sin.
A. Christ covers our sin by taking full responsibility as the One promised
to crush the serpent’s head.
1. Verse 15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between
your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall
bruise him on the heel.”
2. This verse is known as the “first gospel” (protoevangelium)
A. It serves as a summary of what the Gospel is all about.
B. Christ covers our sin because, being crushed on the cross, he truly paid
the whole price to compensate.
1. He covers our shame with himself.
A. Here again the words of the Absolution:
1. In the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you
all your sins in the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
2. Forgive: that is, to lay aside our sins; Greek aphiēmi
B. We see this covering already taking place when he covers the man and
woman with animal garments.
1. Verse 21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and
clothed them.
2. A precursor to the sacrificial system.
3. This Whole Truth brings life.
A. We leave the garden, but life will come in Christ.
1. Amid death, the promise of more life will come through Eve.
A. Verse 20 Now the man called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the
mother of all the living.
2. Amid death, the promise of unending life will come through the seed of
the woman.
A. Verse 15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between
your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall
bruise him on the heel.”
B. For now, then, that life will be a life of repentance:
1. Of sorrow for death wrought by my half-truths.
2. Of faith in the Truth Incarnate, who works life.
*Conclusion*

A. “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth, so help you God?”
1. “I do.”
2. But later on the stand, caught telling less than the whole truth: “You
can’t handle the truth.”
B. “Well, you have to understand: part of every tax dollar I pay winds up
funding abortions, so I figure I need to fudge a few extra deductions.”
1. That’s half true.
C. “Really, Mom, I wouldn’t have gotten home any sooner if I hadn’t stopped
at Nate’s.
1. I figured it was better to wait until the traffic let up.”
2. Probably a half-truth.
D. “The devil made me do it.”
1. Another half-truth.
E. The devil is great at playing the game of half-truths.
1. Entirely true.
2. And he demonstrated that oh so cleverly in our text for today.
3. But blaming it all on the devil is only a half-truth.
4. Eve, Adam, and we are wholly responsible for giving in to temptation.
5. Thank God he’s wholly true to us, keeping the promise he gave in the
garden to send a Savior for our sins.
F. It’s True, Half-Truths Condemn and Destroy Us, but the Whole Truth
Delivers Life in Christ.
G. Half-truths won’t even get you halfway to life.
1. Only the truth can bring life; only Jesus, who is the Whole Truth in the
flesh. Amen.
H. Let us pray:
Ø O Lord, I know that You are as close as my next breath, and at the same
time it feels as if there is a great distance between us. That distance is
sometimes a tragedy when I feel abandoned. That distance is sometimes a
force of evil when something conspires against me. That distance is
sometimes my foolish choices or my selfish acts, or the hurt I cause
another. I seek Your forgiveness. So assure me of Your closeness, Your
power, Your mercy, and Your ability to change my life for the good. In Your
great mercy, Amen.
I. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, guard your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
J. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

Text: 2 Peter 1:16–21
Theme: Made even more certain
Other Lessons: Exodus 24:8–18; Psalm 2:6–12; Matthew 17:1–9

A. In the Name of the Father…Amen.
B. The Epistle lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.
C. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God our heavenly Father through
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
D. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

→ LSB 413:1 O Wondrous Type! O Vision Fair
O wondrous type! O vision fair
Of glory that the Church may share,
Which Christ upon the mountain shows,
Where brighter than the sun He glows!

Introduction

A. Wait till your father gets home!!
B. We all heard that statement a time or two when we younger, did we not?
C. Whether it was because we had gotten into a fight at school or the
report card came home and the grades were less than stellar, those words
were spoken by our mothers to us.
D. Although it would not be successful, the best thing for one to do after
hearing those words was to find a place to hide!
E. As we celebrate Transfiguration Sunday today, there was no hiding on
Jesus’ part at all.
F. Quite the remarkable scene, wouldn’t you say?
1. Three inner-core disciples along with the Master on a mountain top.
2. And then they see it.
3. Jesus is transfigured right before their very eyes.
4. His face, his clothing, his entire being radiates a light of holiness
not seen before by Peter and the others.
5. To add more to the mystery, all of a sudden Moses and Elijah show up.
6. These two giants of prophetic times, long since silenced by departure
from this world, they, too, are there.
7. The Law (represented by Moses) and the Prophets’ (represented by Elijah)
are talking with Jesus.
8. What an event!
9. What a story to tell the other nine apostles!
10. What an honor to witness such an unbelievable happening!
11. What was it all about?
12. What does it all mean?
13. Can they tell anyone?
14. Should they tell anyone?
15. If they did say anything, what would they say?
16. Especially since Jesus warns them not to speak to anyone of this event
until after the Son of Man is raised from the dead.
17. Yet when the time is right, what a testimony that The Word of God Is
Trustworthy!
I. The prophecies anticipated the transfiguration.
A. The Old Testament has images of this kind:
1. The face of Moses after receiving the Law from God (Exodus 24:15–18;
34:29).
15 Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain.
16 The glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it
for six days; and on the seventh day He called to Moses from the midst of
the cloud.
17 And to the eyes of the sons of Israel the appearance of the glory of the
Lord was like a consuming fire on the mountain top.
18 Moses entered the midst of the cloud as he went up to the mountain; and
Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
Exodus 34:29(NASB95)
It came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the two
tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the
mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because
of his speaking with Him.
2. The voice of God coming from the burning bush speaking to Moses on Sinai
(Exodus 3:14–15).
14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to
the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”
15 God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of
Israel, ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever,
and this is My memorial-name to all generations.
B. The Gospels are replete with powerful examples of Jesus’ divinity.
A. At Jesus’ Baptism, the Father’s voice spoke of his Son (Mark 1:11).
11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I
am well-pleased.”
B. Miracles demonstrated Jesus’ power over nature, as when he walked on
water and even allowed Peter to step out of the boat (Matthew 14:25).
Matthew 14:25 (NASB95)
And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea.
C. The healing of Peter’s mother-in-law proves Jesus’ power over disease
(Matthew 8:14–15).
Matthew 8:14–15 (NASB95)
14 When Jesus came into Peter’s home, He saw his mother-in-law lying sick
in bed with a fever.
15 He touched her hand, and the fever left her; and she got up and waited
on Him.
II. Doubting old Adam is never convinced by the Word.
A. Peter fell to this temptation.
1. After hearing Jesus say he must be crucified and rise from death, Peter
rebuked him (Matthew 16:22).
Matthew 16:22 (NASB95)
Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord!
This shall never happen to You.”
2. Three times Peter denied Jesus (Luke 22:54–60).
54 Having arrested Him, they led Him away and brought Him to the house of
the high priest; but Peter was following at a distance.
55 After they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat
down together, Peter was sitting among them.
56 And a servant-girl, seeing him as he sat in the firelight and looking
intently at him, said, “This man was with Him too.”
57 But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”
58 A little later, another saw him and said, “You are one of them too!” But
Peter said, “Man, I am not!”
59 After about an hour had passed, another man began to insist, saying,
“Certainly this man also was with Him, for he is a Galilean too.”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.”
Immediately, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed.
B. We, too, are prone to such temptations and failings.
1. Satan whispers to us:
a. “Is the testimony of men who lived so long ago trustworthy?”
2. The world bellows at us:
a. “Isn’t science more accurate than the Bible?
b. Doesn’t evolution make more sense than creation?”
3. The doctrine of some contends that Jesus isn’t enough.
a. You must add good works to please God.
4. Liberalism points the church to current trends and tells the church that
in order to keep up with society we must accept the new perspective on
whether it is has to do with sexuality, marriage, or gender.
a. Whether we like what society says or not, we must accept it; we have no
choice.
C. Transition:
1. All these temptations are powerful, and they’re demonic.
2. The old Adam in us is all too willing to listen and deny the scriptural
evidence of the eternal truth the Bible speaks.
3. We like hearing that we get credit for good works.
4. We enjoy sexual freedom.
5. We’re impressed with the philosophical thinkers who speak from “cleverly
devised myths” rather than the Word of the Prophets.
6. The Word of God tells us very plainly:
a. Repent and believe!
b. Repent and believe daily!
III. Now that the Son of Man has been raised from the dead, Peter can tell
of what he saw and what that means.
A. Peter does not lean on his own understanding when he speaks of Jesus and
his powerful return.
1. He leans on the Word of the Prophets, for they spoke not of their own
accord but from the very voice of God through them (verses 20–21).
20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of
one’s own interpretation,
21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by
the Holy Spirit spoke from God.
2. Being an eyewitness to the transfiguration only served to confirm to
Peter what the Word of the Prophets had said (verses 16–19).
16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you
the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of
His majesty.
17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an
utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, “This is My
beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased”—
18 and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with
Him on the holy mountain.
19 And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well
to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns
and the morning star arises in your hearts.
3. Peter doesn’t mention Moses or Elijah.
a. The trans­figuration and its confirming of the Word is about Jesus and
his return with power to judge.
B. The mission of the Son has always been to carry out the will of the
Father.
1. The plan of salvation was not a “cleverly devised myth” of man but the
will of God from eternity.
2. The plan called for sacrificial blood to be spilled. This blood would
become a light to the world, glowing from the face of Jesus on the holy
mountain.
a. Jesus does not need science, culture, or philosophy to interpret his
Word.
b. This is the Father’s will, and Jesus carries it out with plain, simple
words culminating on Mount Calvary when he cries,
1. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).
3. The gleaming white robe draping Jesus’ body was exchanged for an earthly
shroud covered in his precious blood.
a. Payment was made in full.
C. The transfigured and resurrected Christ comes to us for salvation’s sake.
1. The power of Baptism is bound to the Son of God, who at his Baptism was
identified as “my Son whom I love, with whom I am well pleased.”
a. When we were baptized, we were joined to Jesus and received the benefits
Jesus earned.
1. So now in and through Jesus, we are God’s children in whom he is well
pleased.
b. The Father’s voice continues to call down blessings on us as we kneel
before his throne and confess our sins.
1. He pours into our ears the precious Word, “Your sins are forgiven.”
2. The Supper of our Lord is the meal where he bequeaths to us his body and
blood, which is a foretaste of the feast to come.
3. This is his Word, which is as sure and certain as it gets.
a. It is truth that comes from heaven to us.
4. It is trustworthy to lean on.
a. It is our hope and stay when Jesus returns in all his might on the day
of judgment.
b. He will remove the soil, gather the body and the soul, then carry us
over the threshold of eternal life and joyous bliss.

Conclusion

A. This Word of God we can believe.
1. In the Collect for the Word, we pray:
2. Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our
learning.
3. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest
them that, by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and
ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ,
our Lord.

B. Are these words we believe in or are they just words?
1. When your emotions or circumstances do not line up with what is truth,
choose truth.
C. This we can trust.
1. For it is made more sure and certain with the life, death, and
resurrection of the Son of God, whom the Father loves and in whom he is
well pleased.
2. The Son of God has done it all for us and blesses us with the faith to
believe he is true.
3. This is certain.
4. This is sure.
5. This is the Word of God. Amen.
D. Please rise and let us pray:
→ LSB 413:5 O Wondrous Type! O Vision Fair
O Father, with the eternal Son
And Holy Spirit ever one,
We pray Thee, bring us by Thy grace
To see Thy glory face to face.
Text: Public domain