LESSON: ROMANS 8:28-30

For a brief moment I forsook you, but with great compassion I will gather you. In overflowing wrath, for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you, says the Lord, your Redeemer. Isaiah 54:7-8

The poor widow in this week’s Gospel (Luke 7:11-17) is so closely beset by very great sorrow and fear that she thinks that God, heaven, earth, and everything is opposed to her. Because she looks at all this from the viewpoint of the flesh and as it appears outwardly before her eyes, she must come to the conclusion that it is impossible for her to be released from such anxiety and fear.

But when her son was awakened from death, it seemed just as if heaven and earth, wood and stone were laughing with her and that everything was rejoicing with her. She forgot all her pain and sorrow. It disappeared just like a little spark of fire is extinguished when it falls into the middle of the sea. Isaiah speaks of a “brief moment.” Sometimes I do not see it that way, and the “brief moment” seems an eternity. But in reality, it is only “a brief moment,” and it is followed by much joy as the psalmist also reminds us, saying, “Thou hast made him little less than God, and dost crown him with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5). But that can still be hidden for us, and like the widow here in the Gospel, we do not see it. This deceased son is in the midst of life, for God has him in His bosom, and it was God’s intention to awaken him from death. There is a little spark of death there which proved itself his undoing for “a brief moment.” Of course, none of the people present saw it that way. But when he was restored to life again, that which was previously hidden before all the world became manifest.
SL 11:1653 (14)

PRAYER: Your ultimate purposes, O God, are sometimes hidden from us, but we are assured that You are always concerned for our good. So direct and govern us by Your Holy Spirit that, whatever befalls us, we are nevertheless convinced that all things must work for our good, in and through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: 2 TIMOTHY 1:8-10

When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:54-57

In our eyes, all miracles and works of God are impossible, and it is also impossible for nature to grasp them. The reason for this is that God wants us to recognize Him as an almighty Creator who brings forth a possibility from an impossibility and makes something out of nothing.

It is impossible for me to become alive again after I have died. Even if I prayed to all the angels and saints for help in this respect, nothing would come of it. What could I hope for from my own free will here? Yet even in death I am bound to say, “I will live.” This does not take place because of anything in myself or due to myself. I know that I have a God who does not make something out of a piece of wood that might be lying before my eyes, but a God who can make a possibility out of an impossibility and something out of nothing. Otherwise, He would not be in reality the true God.

Hence, if death came to me and I could live no longer, I would still be able to say, “I am still going to live and I want to live. The death which is hovering over me is like a tiny spark of fire, and the life that I hope to live looms as large as the ocean.”

Reason cannot grasp how this comes to pass. But he who has faith knows this for certain. To the man with faith, death is as a tiny spark of fire in the middle of a great ocean of life, and the little spark is extinguished in a moment. God is almighty; and he who has faith is in God.

SL 11:1652 (12-13)

PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, You are the conqueror of sin and death. In Your victory we are also conquerors of these bitter enemies. Be with us all the time of our earthly pilgrimage, especially in the hour of our death, for Your truth and name’s sake. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: PSALM 119:121-128

“I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you.” John 14:18

The common lesson taught in all the Gospels is that we should learn from them what kind of God we have. In this week’s Gospel (Luke 7:11-17), the point that is made quite clear is that God forsakes no one. And so, He lets this widow see once again what kind of God she has. When she is forlorn and without a husband or son, Christ demonstrates to her that He is still at her side and says to her in effect, “Learn to believe and trust in God. Recognize Him to whom death and life are both alike. Be brave-hearted and courageous. Do not weep; there is no need for that.”

Then Jesus steps up, awakens the dead man, and gives him to his mother.

These and similar miracles are recorded in God’s Word that we may learn in our hearts what attitude to adopt over against God and what we should expect from Him. This woman had certainly made up her mind that she had lost her son and that it was impossible for her to receive him back again. Even if someone had assured her that within an hour her son would be alive again, she would have regarded it as impossible and declared, “It is more likely that the heavens will collapse than that my son should live again.” Before she has time to look about her, God intervenes and does what she had never even dared to regard as a possibility and restores her son to life.

Why does God follow such a course? He allows a person to fall into such danger and fear that there is no longer any hope at all of counsel or help. But it is not His intention to lead us to despair. He wants us to put our faith and trust in Him alone who can bring forth a possibility from an impossibility, something out of nothing.

SL 11:1651 (10-11)

PRAYER: As far as we are concerned, O God, You are never far off but ever ready to help us, ever at our side and along all our paths and ways. Continue to support us with Your boundless grace, in and through Christ our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:10-15

O how abundant is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for those who fear thee, and wrought for those who take refuge in thee, in the sight of the sons of men! Psalm 31:19

In what happened to the widow at Nain, God lets us see what kind of God He is, how He regards us, and how we should regard Him.

This woman was the subject of two misfortunes. In the first place, she was a widow. This is misfortune enough for one woman. She is forlorn and alone, with no one to look to for any comfort. This is why God is often spoken of in Scripture as the God of widows and orphans.

Secondly, she has an only son who dies. This son should have been a consolation for her. But God intervenes and takes away her husband and her son. She would undoubtedly have preferred to lose her house and home, and even her own life, than this son and her husband.

God certainly makes some changes here. While her husband was alive, this woman failed to recognize what a gift a husband can be; when he died, she really recognized this for the first time. So also with her son. While he was hale and healthy, she did not recognize him as God’s good gift to her; but after he died, she really recognized for the first time what a treasure she had lost.

This is how matters stand with us. There are many people who begrudge the investment of ten florins in their child’s education. If the child dies, they suddenly change their mind and say, “Would to God that he was still alive! I would be prepared to spend hundreds of florins, anything, on him.”

SL 11:1649 (8)

PRAYER: Lord God, heavenly Father, provide us with open minds and hearts so that we always clearly and readily acknowledge the riches of Your goodness toward us and give You due thanks with grateful hearts, through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: PSALM 86:8-15

If many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift in the grace of that one man, Jesus Christ, abounded for many. Romans 5:15

At times God suffers a man to experience fear and distress, pain and sorrow. He suddenly finds himself in a world which seems to have no God. A man loses his sight; he becomes lame; he develops dropsy. God even lets him die like the widow’s son in this Gospel. All men are God’s creatures, and He can do with them as He pleases.

Why does God create or suffer such situations? He is resorting here to extreme measures to keep us ever mindful of His goodness. John reports that on one occasion Jesus and His disciples came upon a man who was “blind from his birth. And his disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be made manifest in him’” (John 9:1-3).

He means to say, “God wants to be praised in this blind man. God sees that the treasures of the whole world do not move us. Hence, He must take some drastic action. Out of pure grace, He sets a blind man before our eyes so that we come to realize what a precious gift we possess in the gift of sight. And since we do not recognize His goodness and grace in something advantageous, we are compelled to note it and recognize it from something disadvantageous.”

This man was born blind so that men might come to their senses and declare, “Merciful God, what a precious gift and what a blessing it is to have a healthy body and a fresh countenance!” But no one takes it to heart in this way.

SL 11:1649 (7)

PRAYER: Grant us grace at all times, heavenly Father, to interpret Your blessings for what they are, acts of Your grace and mercy, so that we may both acknowledge Your mercy and grace and return You due thanks for it, in and through Christ our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: PSALM 100

“Your Father who is in heaven … makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matthew 5:45

If I only duly considered what God has done for me in giving me my eyes, truly, a very great treasure, it would not be very surprising if I died of shame for my thanklessness in never having thanked God for this great blessing. We do not recognize the blessing and the noble treasure because it is common. But when a child has been born blind, we realize what a painful affliction of the absence of sight can be and what a precious thing even a single eye is.

A fresh, healthy countenance is certainly one of God’s good gifts to us. It serves us throughout our whole life. Without it, we would prefer to be dead. But how few there are who ever think of thanking God for something like this! Take a closer look at your body and you will find indications of God’s grace and goodness everywhere. The psalmist does not overstate the case when he says, “The earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord” (Psalm 33:5). He had clear eyes and depth of vision so that he could see that the whole earth was full of God’s goodness and blessings.

What moves God to bestow His goodness upon us? Have we deserved such treatment? Not at all! It is simply God’s good pleasure to cast forth His gifts and blessings upon the world in this manner. They embrace the thankless and the thankful without distinction. It annoys us when we have to part with one or two florins, or perhaps even less, and even if it is given to the poor. But how many blessings does not God shed abroad on this world daily, even when no one ever thanks Him for one of them? For that matter, who still acknowledges God’s goodness at all?

SL 11:1648 (5)

PRAYER: Your bounteous goodness and mercy towards us, heavenly Father, is altogether wonderful. Grant us at all times the ability to evaluate Your goodness correctly, in and through Christ our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: LUKE 7:11-17

It depends not upon man’s will or exertion, but upon God’s mercy. Romans 9:16

In this Gospel the evangelist once again sets before us a divine miracle. In it he wants to encourage us to direct our hearts to God if we find ourselves in a situation like the one in which the widow found herself. This account was not written for the sake of this widow but for the sake of those who would hear the Gospel until the end of the world. We must also be counted among the latter.

In the first place, it should be quite obvious to all of us that the kindness and grace conferred on this woman by Christ was altogether gratuitous; she did not earn it or merit it. She goes through the city with her friends, where there is nothing but wailing and weeping. It never even entered the thought of this good woman that she would bring back her son into the city alive. This is not her desire, and she does not ask for it. Even less did she merit it. Any idea of Christ’s intervention had never occurred to her; she did not know Christ, nor did she know that He helped people. All preceding merit and preparation are ruled out here.

This has all been recorded so that we may draw a general conclusion from this which applies in the case of all benefits received from God. Just as this widow obtained a blessing freely and out of pure grace alone, solely and only because Christ was moved to pity, so we, too, receive such blessings without any merit on our part and even without seeking them. It is always God who takes the initiative. He always lays the first stone.

What is the reason for this? He takes pity on us; hence, it remains God’s grace. If our merits counted here, it would not be grace. Accordingly, as a result of this, we can say, “You are a gracious God; you do good to those who do not deserve it.”

SL 11:1646 (1-3)

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, Your mercy and grace towards us are never-ending and always abounding. Continue to bestow Your free mercy and grace upon us, in and through our Savior. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:127-139.

LESSON: JAMES 5:1-6

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasure on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Matthew 6:19-20

There are sins that bring at least some kind of joy; we get something out of them, like gluttony and drunkenness, for example. The same can also be said for fornication; it does at times provide relaxation for the people who practice it. Even anger provides a certain amount of satisfaction. The same could be claimed for other vices as well.

But covetousness or greed always claims complete and full service from its devotees. It plagues and torments its victims ceaselessly and never provides anything in the shape of pleasure or joy. There the money lies in a heap and claims your full attention and service. It defies you to buy yourself even a pint of wine out of it. Rust comes along and eats away at it, but it must not be touched; that would make this god angry. And after protecting this god for so long, the servants of this god have no more than any poor beggar.

Who brings this about? God, the Lord, arranged matters in this way. They may well be plagued with a sickness which prevents them from eating. They may have something wrong with their digestive processes so that they have no taste for food. They have weak stomachs; their lungs and liver have packed up. They suffer from this or that sickness. Here something is lacking; something else there. They never have a really pleasant hour in which to enjoy eating and drinking.

This is how those who serve mammon fare. The true God puts Himself at the service of His own and serves men; mammon never does this. He wants to enjoy perpetual quiet and receive service from men.
SL 11:1618 (13-14)

PRAYER: Heavenly Father, in Your grace and mercy You supply us with all that we need for our bodies and lives. We thank and praise You for the riches of all Your goodness towards us, above all for all the blessings bestowed upon us in and through our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Editor’s note: No American Edition (AE) equivalent for today’s sermon excerpt exists at the time of this publication. For an alternate English translation of this sermon, see Lenker, Church Postil—Gospels, 5:102-117.