First Lutheran Church of Little Rock

Sermon for 081521

“The Word and Wisdom of God”

Pentecost 12 (Proper 15), August 15, 2021
*Text:* John 6:51–69
*Theme: *The Word and Wisdom of God

1. *In the Name of the Father…Amen.*

*B. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.*

*C. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:*

Open our eyes, Lord,

we want to see Jesus,

to reach out and touch him,

and say that we love him.

Open our ears, Lord,

and help us to listen.

Open our eyes, Lord,

we want to see Jesus. Amen.

*D. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. *

*Introduction*

1. *Where can true wisdom and the way of life be found?*
1. Only by faith in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.
2. What we have here in John 6 is an invitation from Jesus through
His Church:
1. To repent and believe in what Jesus says.
2. To come and partake of the Sacrament of the Altar, the very
body and blood of Jesus our Lord.

* I. No one is offended by wisdom and life in the abstract.*

A. *Everyone signs on with wisdom in Proverbs 9 as a better idea than
folly:*

• *Wisdom has built her house. She has carved out her seven pillars.
(3) She has sent out her servant girls. She calls from the highest
places in the city, (6) Stop being gullible and live. Start traveling
the road to understanding (verses 1, 3, 6) *

B. Who wouldn’t be for that! Just fill in the blanks as to what you
think “wisdom” entails:

• good judge of human character,

• political savvy,

• clever in the world of business.

• Whatever. It’s a good concept.

C. Most people will even buy an abstract “fear of the Lord” (cf
Proverbs 9:10) if it leads to abstract wisdom.

A. Our cultural religion generally still likes to say, “We’re a God-fearing
people.”

*B. Everyone wants life in general.*

1. The crowds in John 6 certainly wanted to live, which is why they were
glad to have all the free barley loaves Jesus would give them.

2. Many a celebrant will respond to “Happy birthday!” with:

1. “Well, it’s better than the alternative.”
2. We all want to live.

*II. But when wisdom and life are concrete—that is a person!—then people
take offense.*

A. *“Wisdom” in Proverbs 9—and elsewhere in the Book of Proverbs—has
been seen by many as a reference to the eternal Son of God.*

1. After all, he alone has “knowledge of the Holy One” (Proverbs 9:10).

1. He’s the one who teaches the “fear of the Lord.”
1. This fear is not to be in terror, but to honor God’s divine
authority.
2. The Son is the author and giver of life (Jn 1:4), who gives his
Word of Spirit and life (6:63).
3. The Son lives in, with, and from the Father eternally (v 57; also
John 1:1, 2, 14), in love for his Father and for the whole
creation (verse
51).
4. But now you’ll get plenty of argument about wis­dom; lots of folks
will claim to be wise with­out crediting God or his eternal Son.

*B. And now get down to real flesh and blood—Jesus as the life!*

1. “I am the living bread that came down from heaven,” Jesus says. “If
anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will
give for the life of the world is my flesh” (verse 51).

2. “This a hard saying!” the crowd responds, and many of them take
offense! Many “turned back and no longer walked with” Jesus (verses 60, 66).

3. *Illustration:* Lot and his wife fleeing Sodom and Gomorrah. She
“turned back” in apostasy and died, turned into a pillar of salt (Genesis
19:23–29).

4. That is what happens if God’s Word is rejected and refused; if other
words and the world’s wisdom are heeded (Ephesians 5:6; Psalm 34:16).

a. Do not harden your heart in this way!

b. Do not grumble against God’s Word!

1. Hold it sacred, gladly hear and learn it (Small Catechism, Third
Commandment)!

5. If that’s offensive, how about this for wisdom and life: the cross (1
Corinthians 1:18)!

a. The crowds knew that for Jesus to give his flesh to eat, he would
have to die—and a bloody death at that. Gross! Unacceptable!

b. The cross is often seen as bad PR today. Not just because it’s an
ugly downer, but because it shows we’re in need of dramatic saving! As in,
*really* sinful! That’s unacceptable!

*III. Yet you know this wisdom and the life, Christ Jesus.*

A. Peter got this one right: “You have the words of eternal life” (Jn
6:68). Jesus is God’s wise plan for our life, *the* life of the whole world.

1. He lives in, with, and from the living Father (v 57).

2. He has come down from heaven to you, to give his flesh for you, to
shed his blood for you.

a. The cross *is* a scandal, but it is not the way of
death as it often seems and feels (Ps 34:19).

b. The cross seems like folly, but it is the way of *the*
life and the true wisdom of God.

3. Jesus died to give his flesh and blood *to you* as meat and drink
indeed, that you may live and abide in and with him forever (Jn 6:55–57).

4. *Illustration:* “Christ alone our souls will feed; He is our meat and
drink indeed; Faith lives upon no other! Alleluia!” (*LSB* 458:7).

*B. You, too, have faith to know the life in Christ, the “many days,”
that you so much desire (Ps 34:12).*

1. By his Word that he preaches to you (Prov 9:7–10), which is Spirit,
truth, and life (Jn 6:63).

2. By your Baptism into his cross and resurrection.

3. By his Supper, feeding you on his flesh and blood so you abide in him
and he in you (v 56).

*C. Here, too, in Christ Jesus, you have the wisdom that you also
desire.*

1. He has built his house, the Holy Christian Church on earth (Prov
9:1a).

2. He has hewn out his seven pillars, the manifold gifts of the Holy
Spirit (Prov 9:1b; 1 Cor 12:4–10).

3. He has prepared his food for you by the slaughter of himself (Prov
9:2a).

4. He has mixed his wine with the blood and water from his riven side
(Prov 9:2b, 5; Jn 19:34; see 6:54–58).

5. He has prepared his table for you (Prov 9:2c).

*IV. Continue to walk, therefore, in the wisdom and life of Christ
Jesus.*

*A. Be on guard against temptations and not deceived by empty words that
might cause you, like so many in the crowd, to turn away and no longer walk
with Jesus (Prov 9:6–8; Eph 5:6).*

1. Be on guard because it is possible for a disciple of Christ to
stumble and fall.

2. Be on guard of turning away from him and leaving, to follow him no
longer even to the point of death.

*B. Rather, continue to walk in the wisdom of Christ, which is the way
of life and light and love (Prov 9:6; Eph 5:8).*

1. Live and walk in faith toward God.

2. Live in fervent love for your neighbor, especially your brothers and
sisters in Christ.

3. This is true wisdom, misunderstood by the simple (Prov 9:4).

*C. Walking in Christ’s wisdom and life sacrifices for and submits to
your neighbor (Ephesians 5:21).*

1. Speak words that are good and right and true, making the best use of
the time (Eph 5:9, 16).

2. “Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Eph
5:19), letting the melody of the Spirit ring forth in your heart in a song
of peace in Christ to your neighbor.

3. This is how you live as a Christian. It is difficult because it is
the way of the cross in which you walk as one who is wise (Eph 5:15).

*D. Walking in the wisdom and life of Christ means calling out from the
highest place in town as Wisdom once called you, by his Father, inviting
you into his house and to his table (Prov 9:3; Jn 6:65).*

1. “Come, eat my flesh, which is true food.”

2. “Drink my blood, which is true drink” (cf v 55).

*Conclusion*

1. *You do not wish to go away, do you? *Here is eternal life in the
Word made flesh. Forsake your folly. Be not unwise, but wise. Do not take
offense at this, but continue to walk in the way of understanding, in the
way of true wisdom and real life in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Eat, drink, and
live by the wisdom of God in Christ. In the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

B. Behold, O sleeper, awake, arise, for the light of Christ shines upon
you. Here, upon the eastern shore of his Church, shines forth the light of
his resurrection. Do you see it? Leave your simple ways and live. Lift up
your hearts and heads and hands, for he who is the light and the life, who
bestows the Spirit from the Father, brings the glistening golden kernel of
his body risen from the dead. This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Here is his peace. The word of his life. “Whoever feeds on this bread will
live forever” (Jn 6:58).

C. Let us pray:

*696 O God, My Faithful God*

1 O God, my faithful God,
True fountain ever flowing,
Without whom nothing is,
All perfect gifts bestowing:
Give me a healthy frame,
And may I have within
A conscience free from blame,
A soul unstained by sin.

3 Keep me from saying words
That later need recalling;
Guard me lest idle speech
May from my lips be falling;
But when within my place
I must and ought to speak,
Then to my words give grace
Lest I offend the weak.

*D. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of
God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.*

*E. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus. Amen. *

* F. In the Name of the Father…Amen.*

Pentecost 11 (Proper 14),

August 8, 2021

Text: John 6:35–51

Theme: Take Jesus at His Word

Other Lessons: Psalm 34:1–8; 1 Kings 19:1–8; Ephesians 4:17–5:2

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

We bless you, O God, as You give seed and harvest. You are the Provider
of our daily bread. And we bless each other that the beauty of Your world
and Your Word that created it might be expressed though our lives and be a
blessing to others now and always. Amen.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Introduction

1. Jesus Christ is the “Door” not the door knob.
1. Jesus Christ is the “Bread of Life” not the bread basket.
2. Jesus Christ is the “Light of the world” not the light switch.
3. Jesus Christ is the “Way” not the signpost.
4. Jesus Christ is the “Truth” not just the messenger.
5. Jesus Christ is the “Good Shepherd” not the hireling.
6. Jesus Christ is the “Resurrection and the Life” not the
7. undertaker…
8. When Jesus Gives Us the Bread of Life, He Gives Us Himself.

1. What is the common theme in all those sentences?
1. We are to take Jesus at His Word.

1. The life Jesus’ bread gives is so much better than just more life.

1. “Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me
shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst’ ” (verse
35).
1. Jesus, and Jesus alone, is the source of true and genuine life:
1. “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone
eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread
that I will give
for the life of the world is my flesh” (verse 51).
1. This is “cross” talk.
1. Jesus gave nothing less than his life, on a cross, for
the life of the world.
2. And this is “faith” talk.
1. To “eat the bread of life” is an act of faith.
2. It’s believing in Jesus.
1. “This is the will of my Father,” says Jesus, “that everyone
who looks on the Son and believes in him should have
eternal life, and I
will raise him up on the last day” (verse 40).
3. When Jesus was about to raise Lazarus from the dead, he told
his sisters, Martha and Mary:
1. “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in
me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who
lives and believes
in me shall never die” (John 11:25–26).

1. I think most of us would agree that homemade bread is so much better
than store-bought bread
1. Life with “the bread of life” is so much better than life
without Jesus.
2. It’s not just a matter of quantity.
3. It’s not just that it’s eternal.
4. It’s also a matter of quality.
5. It’s not just more of the “same old, same old” that we may be
experiencing or going through now.
6. It’s not just more of what’s corrupted by sin.
7. It’s not just more of what’s broken and heartbreaking.
8. It’s not just more death and what’s threatened by death.
9. This is something new.
10. It’s different.
11. Jesus has put himself into it.
12. He loves us!
13. God His heavenly Father loves us!
14. God forgives us!
15. God’s got us!

1. Life with Jesus is far more than life that is here today and gone
tomorrow.
1. Life with Jesus is far more than what we can touch and taste.
2. Far more than what we have.
3. Far more than what makes us feel good or bad.
4. Far more than the working out of our hopes and dreams—or not.
5. The people in our text to whom Jesus was speaking still had the
taste of the barley loaves and fish in their mouths, the
barley loaves and
fish with which Jesus had miraculously fed them.
6. They were remembering the manna with which God fed their
ancestors in the wilderness.
7. What they were not remembering was that their ancestors ate the
manna and died.
8. Life is far more than bread and butter.
9. Life is more than our experiences in this world.

1. God does provide for our physical and material needs.
1. Jesus taught us to pray,
1. “Give us this day our daily bread.”
2. And Martin Luther reminds us in his explanation of the Lord’s
Prayer that “daily bread” is everything we need for this life.
3. But Jesus came to give us so much more.
4. He came as the source of eternal life, that we have life with
God that is forgiven and forever.
5. Jesus fed the crowd with bread as God fed his people Israel in
the wilderness with manna.
6. Jesus did this as a sign, to make a point; the same point God
made for his Old Testament people in the wilderness:
1. “He humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna,
which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he
might make you
know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by
every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy
8:3).

1. The life Jesus as the bread of life gives is life in Jesus himself,
closeness to and intimacy with God.

1. Jesus is that Word.
1. He is:
1. “the living bread that came down from heaven” (John 6:51).
2. Today’s Psalm invites us to:
1. “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Psalm 34:8).
3. In Jesus, we are able to know and experience God.
4. Fullness of life.
5. Closeness to and intimacy with God that is otherwise
impossible.
6. Our brokenness, sin, guilt, and shame corrupt our relationship
with God.
7. Death breaks it forever.
8. Jesus went to a cross for us.
9. He suffered and died for us.
10. He rose from the dead.
11. He lives.
12. He forgives.
13. He restores our relationship with God.
14. Now and forever.

1. “This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of
all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day” (verse 39).
1. “That I should lose nothing!”
2. In speaking of himself as the Good Shepherd, Jesus said:
1. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow
me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish,
and no one will
snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27–28).
3. We can’t be any more secure than that.
4. And yet:
1. “the Jews grumbled about” Jesus (John 6:41).
1. Their “grumbling” recalls the constant, stiff-necked, faithless
“grumbling” of the people of Israel against God in the wilderness.
2. And it recalls the attitude of Jesus’ hometown people in the
synagogue at Nazareth when they rejected him.
3. Do we grumble?
5. Grumbling is essentially refusing to believe in Jesus:
1. wanting something different than what he gives or, worse yet
, wanting someone different than what he is—and, thereby
losing out on the
life he does give.

1. Taste and see that the Lord is good.
1. Jesus is the bread of life.
2. He feeds us in the Word.
3. When we are forgiven in His Words of Absolution, Jesus takes
away all that stands against us, all that stands between us
and God, all
that separates us from God.
4. Jesus feeds us in the Sacrament.
5. When we gather around his Table, we receive nothing less than
himself.
6. In the bread of his Supper, we receive nothing less than his
body broken for us.
7. In the wine, we receive nothing less than his blood shed for
us, for the forgiveness of sins.

1. Paul reminds us of this life in his Letter to the Ephesians: when he
says:
1. “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with
which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses,
made us alive together
with Christ . . . and raised us up with him” (Ephesians 2:4–6,
emphasis added).

1. Recalling our Baptism, he goes on to say:
1. “Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of
life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and . . . be
renewed in the
spirit of your minds, and . . . put on the new self, created after
the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. . . . Be
imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as
Christ loved us
and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to
God” (Ephesians 4:22–24; 5:1–2, emphasis added).

Conclusion

1. Unlike the perishable manna God gave to Israel through Moses, Jesus
comes down from heaven as the true bread to give life to all who
believe in
Him.
1. Contrary to popular notions, no one “chooses” to believe in
Christ; the initiative belongs entirely to God through His
Word (verse 44;
cf 14: 6).
2. Those united by faith to Christ will be raised up on the Last
Day to enjoy eternal communion with the Father.

1. “A fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
1. Not unlike fragrant, homemade bread, prepared and baked in
love, served and shared in love, with a lot of the baker
herself put into
it.
2. Jesus is the “bread of life.”
3. He feeds us, nourishes and sustains us in life eternal . . . by
giving himself for life that is in himself. Amen.

1. Let us pray:
– O Lord God, heavenly Father, draw us ever closer to You through
Your Word and Sacraments. Amen.

1. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

1. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

Pentecost 10 (Proper 13), August 1, 2021

Text: John 6:22–35

Theme: Jesus, the Bread of Life

Other Lessons: Psalm 145:10–21; Exodus 16:2–15; Ephesians 4:1–16

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

629 What Is This Bread

3 So who am I,

That I should live and He should die

Under the rod?

My God, my God,

Why have You not forsaken me?

O taste and see—the Lord is free. Amen.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Introduction

1. Herman Gockel, in his book My Hand in His, published by CPH in 1975
shares the story of an elderly man on his deathbed.
1. His family has come to be with him.
2. One of his sons is a pastor.
3. It’s Saturday, the next day is Sunday.
4. The man tells his son to go home and preach to his people the
next day.
5. He tells his son that if he dies while his son is gone, his son
will know where to find him.

1. “You will know where to find me.”
1. Imagine dying and living in the kind of faith to say that!
2. Imagine sharing such confidence and assurance with your loved
ones!
3. Eternal life is very real.
4. It is life that really matters.
5. It is life that makes a difference.
6. Life in this world will finally fail us.
7. But not the life God gives.
8. Not the life Jesus gives.
9. Jesus says in today’s Gospel:
1. “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food
that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will
give to you. For on
him God the Father has set his seal” (verse 27).

1. Earlier, Jesus had miraculously fed some five thousand people with
five barley loaves and two fish.
1. This was meant to be a sign pointing beyond itself to something
more.
2. This sign is pointing to Jesus as Son of God.
3. It is pointing to the fact that Jesus is the source of eternal
life.
4. That Jesus is “the true bread from heaven.”
5. That Jesus is “the bread of life.”
6. For Jesus, the Bread of Life, Is the Source of Eternal Life.

1. Jesus attempts to move the crowd to see him as the source not just of
earthly bread.

1. Unfortunately, the people around Jesus stayed stuck at the sign, at
the bread, at the free meal.
1. Jesus attempts to move them along, to lift their sights to a
higher level:
1. “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because
you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the
loaves. Do not work for
the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to
eternal life,
which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the
Father has set
his seal” (verse 26–27).
2. They respond with good intentions:
1. “Then they said to him, ‘What must we do, to be doing the
works of God?’ ” (verse 28).
3. And Jesus answers:
1. “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he
has sent” (verse 29).
4. The work of God, the work God desires of us, the work God works
in us, is not work but faith.
5. It’s not what we do but what God gives us in Jesus.

1. The people had some trouble catching on:
1. “So they said to him, ‘Then what sign do you do, that we may
see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers
ate the manna in
the wilderness; as it is written, “He gave them bread from
heaven to eat” ’
” (verses 30–31).
2. They were remembering how God fed his people in the wilderness
with manna.
3. Today’s Old Testament Reading is the backstory to our Gospel.
4. Jesus says to them:
1. “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you
the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true
bread from heaven.
For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and
gives life to the
world” (verses 32–33).
5. Then, they begin to get it:
1. “They said to him, ‘Sir, give us this bread always.’ Jesus
said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me
shall not
hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst’ ”
(verses 34–35).
6. Jesus’ words about never thirsting ought to bring to mind his
words to the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4:
1. “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,”
he told her, “but whoever drinks of the water that I will
give him will
never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him
will become in him a
spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:13–14).
1. Eternal life is God’s gift in Jesus.
2. The bread of life is God’s gift.
3. Jesus is the true bread from heaven.
4. Jesus is the bread of life.

1. Jesus wants us, too, to focus on the higher things he came to give.

1. Jesus’ discourse or sermon on the bread of life goes on to the end of
John 6. We’ll hear more of it over the next two Sundays.
1. At this point:
1. bread,
2. hunger and eating,
3. thirsting and drinking
4. They are all metaphors.
5. Put together, all together, they are all about Jesus and
believing in him.
6. Jesus is the source of eternal life.
7. Believing in Jesus is God’s work in us.
8. It’s the work of the Holy Spirit.

1. As with the crowd Jesus fed, engaged, and taught, we sometimes tend
to stay stuck at the sign, at the lowest level of things, on material,
physical things.
1. We focus on:
1. food,
2. on material things,
3. on the things of our earthly existence,
4. on physical and emotional blessings,
5. and on the comforts of this life.
6. It is for higher things that Jesus came.
7. It is for the purpose of giving and sustaining eternal life
that God gave us Jesus.
2. Life with God, our life with God, has been disrupted and
interrupted by sin.
1. Our deepest hunger, though we don’t always realize it, is
for God.
2. Jesus, in his suffering and death on the cross, and in his
resurrection from the dead, satisfies this hunger, fills
the hole we all
have in our hearts for God.
3. He reconnects us with God.
4. For eternity.
5. As Paul writes in Romans 8:
1. “Nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ” (see
verse 39).
1. Nothing!

1. Bread, despite the bad rap on carbs these days, is a staple of
physical life.
1. It sustains life.
2. It’s the “stuff” of life.
3. It’s with this in mind that Jesus says:
1. “I am the bread of life.”
4. When Jesus was in the wilderness tempted by the devil:
1. when he was hungry,
2. tempted to turn stones into loaves of bread—
3. Jesus quoted words from Deuteronomy 8:
1. “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but
by every word that comes from the mouth of God’ ” (Matthew 4:4).
4. Jesus is that living Word.
5. He says in John 5:
1. “As the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the
Son also to have life in himself” (verse 26).
5. Jesus told the crowd:
1. “You are seeking me . . . because you ate your fill of the
loaves” (John 6:26).
6. What is it that we seek from Jesus?
1. We often seek what we can get from Jesus rather than seeking
Jesus himself.
2. We seek those feel-good things.
3. We seek things on every other level than the spiritual.
4. In describing Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand, John says:
1. “Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given
thanks, he distributed them” (6:11).
2. “When he had given thanks.”
3. Thanksgiving is not just about giving thanks “for”
something but giving thanks “to” someone.
4. Giving thanks is about relationship with the giver.
5. God is the Giver.
6. We are the receivers.
7. In today’s Epistle, Paul reminds us that Jesus feeds and
nourishes his Body, the Church, to build it up in
faith, love, and
maturity:
1. “Grace was given to each one of us according to the
measure of Christ’s gift” (Ephesians 4:7).
8. Grace to live life fully, faithfully, and eternally with
God, in relationship with God.

1. We often feel threatened by so many things:
1. aging,
2. health concerns,
3. hostility,
4. antagonism (from the world around us and the people in it),
5. weakness,
6. brokenness,
7. failure,
8. and regret.
9. More than anything else, we need to feed on Jesus in faith.
10. When we feed on Jesus in faith through Word and Sacrament, we
live eternally.
11. We live and die in the same confidence and assurance as the
dying man and his family in the story with which we began.

Conclusion

1. In my home state of Michigan, the COVID-19 “Stay Home, Stay Safe”
executive orders were exceptionally stringent and restrictive
just as they
were here.
1. Businesses, stores, restaurants, and bars were closed.
2. Everything considered unsafe and nonessential was shut down.
3. Unemployment was at an all-time high.
4. Some things were in short supply:
1. toilet paper,
2. hand sanitizer,
3. and even bread.
5. People were:
1. fearful,
2. angry,
3. anxious,
4. uncertain,
5. frustrated,
6. bored,
7. ready for it to be over,
8. impatient for things to return to normal.
6. But there was a new normal in place, and normal as we once knew
it was a long way off.
7. Churches were closed, limited to streaming services.
8. Zoom meetings became a new way of life.
9. But people missed being able to gather.
10. And they were largely observing a fast with respect to the
Lord’s Supper, just as we were here in Arkansas.

1. Jesus says:
1. “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).
2. He gave his life on a cross for you, for me, for all, so that
we might have eternal life.
3. So even then, in and through it all, there was no shortage of
“the bread of life.”
4. In and through all things, there is no shortage of “the bread
of life.”
5. This bread is ours to eat by faith.
6. Eternal life is ours in Christ.
7. Nothing can rob us of it. Amen.

1. Let us pray:

4 Yet is God here?

Oh, yes! By Word and promise clear,

In mouth and soul

He makes us whole—

Christ, truly present in this meal.

O taste and see—the Lord is real.

5 Is this for me?

I am forgiven and set free!

I do believe

That I receive

His very body and His blood.

O taste and see—the Lord is good.

Text: © 1991 Fred and Jean Baue. Used by permission: LSB Hymn License
no. 110000247

1. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

1. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

Pentecost 9 (Proper 12), July 25, 2021

Text: Mark 6:45–56

Theme: Help for the helpless

Other Lessons: Genesis 9:8–17; Psalm 136:1–9; Ephesians 3:14–21

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:
– Lord, save us when we are overcome by the storms of life and our
hearts are overwhelmed by unbelief. Calm the tempest that
reigns in our
hearts and minds, open our eyes to see Your blessings, and
create within us
the faith to recognize You as Savior and Lord. Amen.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Introduction

1. As we read through the stories of Scripture in these days after
Pentecost, there are certain moments when we’d like to give the
disciples a
hard time.
1. Today’s Gospel is just such an occasion.
2. We were not there with the disciples as they journeyed with
Jesus, so it’s hard for us to know what they were truly going
through as
they heard the things Jesus said and saw the things Jesus did.
3. What is recorded for us in Holy Scripture, however, seems to be
many of the teachable moments, and most of them are not all
that flattering.

1. Our critique of the disciples in today’s account centers on how they
didn’t know it was Jesus who was walking to them on the water.
1. They seem to have a short-term memory problem, for it was just
a few weeks ago when, in Mark 4, we heard that Jesus was
sleeping soundly
on a cushion in a boat as a great storm arose.
2. How could they have forgotten so quickly about that event?
3. And today, as Jesus climbs into the boat with them, it says
that the disciples were utterly astounded because they had
forgotten what
happened in the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand.
4. Why in the world were the disciples fearful, thinking Jesus was
a ghost?
5. What was so hard about all of this?

1. We often fail to see clearly that Jesus is always with us, especially
in our strains and pains of life.

1. Well, like most situations in life, hindsight is 20/20.
1. We think things should be obvious to the disciples because we
already know how everything ends.
2. The disciples were in the middle of things and could only go by
what they thought they knew and what they were seeing . . .
and they didn’t
get it.
3. They will eventually.
4. So put yourself in their shoes for just a minute.
5. Or better yet, take a look at yourself, for our response to
similar life situations is often no different from these disciples:
1. we sometimes fail to see clearly or understand fully.

1. The Gospel today shows us the strains and pains God’s people were
experiencing, both the disciples and the crowds on Gennesaret’s shore.
1. As the disciples were on the sea, the text says, they were
making headway painfully, straining against the heavy winds.
2. Make no mistake about it:
1. this was not just a tough sail for them;
2. this was hard work.
3. It was late,
4. they were tired,
5. and there was a real fear on their part that they might not
make it across safely.
6. These disciples are getting nowhere fast, and it’s a strain
to make any headway at all.

1. With Jesus’ help, the disciples land on the other side of the sea,
where Jesus encounters the second group of people today.
1. Our Lord’s fame had spread throughout the region, so when
people recognized him, they brought to him their sick and lame.
2. All of them who felt the pains of life were healed by Jesus,
even if all they were able to do was grab hold of the fringe of his
garment.
3. For the disciples and for the people, there was only one thing
that could help as they experienced the strains and pains of
this mortal
life:
1. the presence of Jesus.

1. It’s the presence of Jesus that helps us still as we go through the
strains and pains brought about as the effects of sin.
1. If we look at our lives as a whole, most of us would probably
agree that they’re filled with many blessings from God.
2. We have family and friends to share our lives:
1. we are blessed with jobs and opportunities to use our gifts
in service to our neighbor;
2. we have a place to live and food to eat and many other
things that are called First Article gifts from our Creator.
3. We can even get to a point in life where it feels as if
we’re riding the wave comfortably and can simply enjoy all that God
provides.

1. However, there are moments where the wind picks up:
1. we get in a fight with someone we love,
2. our job becomes a dreadful burden or is taken from us,
3. the joys of homeownership overwhelm us,
4. or our very lives seem to be in jeopardy.
5. Like the disciples, we find that the days become long and we’re
tired; we’re lonely.
6. We’re making headway in life painfully.

1. As people of God, our faith knows where we can turn for help in these
times, but as sinful people, we often don’t do it.
1. We tell ourselves that painful headway is still headway,
2. that we can do it ourselves,
3. and even if Jesus factors into things, we often see him as the
disciples did: like a ghost and not really there.
4. In fact, we do this so often that we begin to think this is
just how things are in life.

1. When life becomes work and work becomes life, when hardship befalls
us, when suffering enters our world, we have a tendency to be
like a turtle:
1. We close up, to isolate ourselves, and to desire simply to be
alone in the strains and pains of our misery.
2. As people of faith, we ought to know this isn’t the way things
are intended to be for us, that we are never alone, that we
know where we
can turn to find divine help, and yet so many times our life
looks quite
different.
3. An outsider looking at our life might sometimes think:
1. “How can you not get it?
2. How can you not see where your help is?
3. Why have you not learned by now that Jesus is always with
you?”

1. But from the moment of our Baptism, the Lord’s prom­ise is that he
will never leave us or forsake us—even for eternity.

1. But it was the presence of Jesus that brought calm amid wind and
waves.
1. It was the presence of Jesus that brought healing to the sick
and diseased.
2. It is the presence of Jesus that comforts us and joins us to
his help and healing and life through His forgiveness and grace.

1. From the moment of your Baptism, the Lord’s promise is that he will
never leave you or forsake you.
1. He continues to make his presence known to you as you receive
his forgiving word of absolution, as you are reminded of his promises
revealed in his Holy Word, and as you have his very life
placed into your
mouth in the Lord’s Supper.
2. His presence is manifest to you as a recipient of his daily
provision and is shared as you bring works of mercy to others.
3. At all times, in every circumstance, in every place, Jesus is
there with us:
1. “I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew
28:20).

1. In fact, Jesus is not just present with you but has borne the burden
of the strain and pain of sin for you.
1. He knows the heartache and hurt that you experience.
2. He has died for you on the cross and has risen from the grave
to give you the eternal gains of forgiveness, life, and salvation.

Conclusion

1. There are some today who would characterize Christianity as nothing
more than a collection of pious platitudes.
1. When times are tough, people will encourage turning to God,
having faith, trusting in the Lord, and the like.
2. And these things are not wrong in of themselves.
3. But it stops there.
4. You often hear such platitudes at funerals, likely because
folks don’t know what to say.
1. “He’s in a better place.”
2. “Now she’s at peace.”

1. When things were rough for the disciples today on the sea, and when
they thought they saw a ghost, they quickly had their fears come
to an end
by Jesus.
1. Our Lord came to them in their time of need and did not simply
give them a catchphrase to help them.
2. He was no ghost either.
3. The flesh-and-blood Jesus came directly to them, he got into
the boat with them, and their struggles subsided immediately.
4. In all our times of struggle or pain, we as well receive very
tangible help from our Lord, who meets us in our Baptism and
in the Lord’s
Supper to touch us with water and bread and wine and who
speaks to us sure
and certain words:
1. “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid” (Mark 6:50).

1. “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid” (Mark 6:50).
1. These words some of the most powerful, comforting words from
our Savior today and in all of Scripture.
2. The strains and pains of life are sure to come, but as a child
of God, you know where you can turn for help in your time of need.

1. Look to Jesus, for he is there.
1. He steps into the boat with you to bring an end to your
strains;
2. he brings his healing touch to you for all your pains of body,
mind, and soul;
3. he has gained for you the kingdom and promises you life with
him eternally.

1. Just as He Promised, Jesus Is Always with Us, Especially in Our
Strains and Pains, to Secure for Us Eternal Gains.

1. Your health and life are forever preserved by the presence of Jesus,
so whatever may come for you, you can confidently pray to the
Lord that He
is with you always and will never, ever leave or forsake you. Amen.

1. Let us pray:
– Our hands and feet, Lord, strengthen;

With joy our spirits bless

Until we see the ending

Of all our life’s distress.

And so throughout our lifetime

Keep us within Your care

And at our end then bring us

To heav’n to praise You there. (LSB 754:6)

Amen.

1. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

1. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.