Immanuel Lutheran Church, Springfield, IL May 17, Oneness in Sin; Oneness in Christ

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1 Easter 7, Series B Rev. Darrell Debowey Immanuel Lutheran Church, Springfield, IL May 17, 2015 John 17:11b 19: 11b [Jesus said,] Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. Oneness in Sin; Oneness in Christ TEXT Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. The text for today s message is the Gospel reading from John, chapter 17, especially where Jesus says, Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. Christ is risen! INTRODUCTION There are a lot of things that divide us. The first thing that comes to mind is race. Then you might think religion or politics or socio-economic status. Then there s the battle of the sexes: Male vs. female. And the age-old generation gap: young vs. old. The little town that I grew up in was divided by what side of the railroad tracks you grew up on north or south. However, name some things that unite us: ( ) Page 1

2 Human beings walk on two feet, not four. We re all warm blooded creatures even the most cold-hearted criminals are warm-blooded! We all have to eat and drink and pee and poop. (Am I allowed to say that? I m not allowed to say that in our preschool.) When I lived in Cleveland, one of Cleveland s most prominent citizens was Art Model, then owner of the Cleveland Browns. Art Model was an important benefactor of the Cleveland Clinic, so we would often see him hanging around the Clinic for important events. One day, one of my employees left to use the restroom. He came back rather excited because he discovered that Art Model had to use a public restroom, too, just like he did. Another thing that unites us is genetics. Genetically, there s really only one race: the human race. We have different phenotypes (that is, our physical appearance varies short, tall, blue-eyed, brown-eyed, black, white) but genotypically, we re all part of the human race. We all have 23 pairs of chromosomes we re united by our common DNA. Also, we ve all been born and that s great. But we re all going to die, too. Everyone dies. Rich and poor powerful and weak ignorant and educated. Death is pretty much inevitable. That makes death a pretty good equalizer wouldn t you agree? However, scientists think that one day they will cure death. I say, Good luck with that! Not only do I believe it s impossible to cure death, can you imagine how difficult it would be like for a brand new college graduate to find a job in a market where people have centuries of experience!? Death comes to all because we are all united by another thing. Today s sermon hymn tells us just what that one thing is: In Adam we have all been one, One huge rebellious man; We all have fled that evening voice That sought us as we ran. Page 2

3 Race, Politics, or Religion Male vs. Female Young vs. Old these things may divide us, but we re all united by our common rebellion against God. And in that rebellion, we re also divided against each other, as our hymn proclaims (st 2), We fled Thee, and in losing Thee We lost our brother too; Each singly sought and claimed his own; each man his brother slew. Yes, we re all sinners. It s not a message any of us wants to hear but it s true we confess that every Sunday: If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us (1Jn 1:8). I ve never met a person who isn t a sinner? Have you? I ve met people who refuse to admit that they re sinners but they re only deceiving themselves. And because we sin, we re all subject to the just and righteous wrath of God. Adam and Eve tried to hide from God s wrath in the Garden that didn t work. Today, people try to hide from God s wrath by redefining sin President Obama does that. He calls sin, Being out of alignment with my values whatever that means. On the other hand, Hilary Clinton has told the media that it s time for the Church to change its position on abortion and same-sex marriage. If the Church looks the other way, does that mean God does too? God doesn t change nor does His Word nor does His Will. His Commandments will always be the last word and the only word on sin. Jesus said, It s easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one dot of the Law to become void (Luke 16:17). Which means we re united in something else: Our need for a Savior from sin and God s wrath. But no mere human being can save human beings from the wrath of God. The only Being in all the universe who can satisfy the wrath of God is God. Jesus said in our text that He and His heavenly Father are one and He is not of this world, that s because He is God. His Page 3

4 heavenly Father sent Him into this world as a human being to do what no mere human being could do to redeem the world. Thus we sing (st 3): But Thy strong love, it sought us still And sent Thine only Son That we might hear His shepherd s voice And, hearing Him, be one. John writes in his Epistle: 1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. (1Jn 2:1-2). So, in Christ, God became a human being to be the propitiation for sin to suffer and die on the cross in the place of sinful humanity that s what propitiation means to be God s atoning sacrifice for sin. Jesus Christ is the world s only Savior from sin He alone rescued mankind from sin and death He alone satisfied the wrath of God. As the God-Man who suffered and died for our justification and rose again for our salvation He is the only way to heaven and to God the Father. Philosophers call that the Scandal of Christian Particularity. It may be a scandal to the enemies of God, but to all who believe in Jesus, it s the forgiveness of sins, it s victory over death and the devil, it s life and salvation it s oneness with God. And so we sing (st 4): O Thou who, when we loved Thee not, Didst love and save us all, Thou great Good Shepherd of mankind, O here us when we call. Page 4

5 Since Jesus has overcome the sin that separates us from God, those who believe in Jesus have unity with God the Father through his Son. And we also have unity with each other, for in Adam we are one in sin and death but in Christ we are one in righteousness and life! There s a certain irony in all this. We are all united in sin, yet, it is sin that divides us. I ve been told that doctrine divides. But that s not true it s sin that divides. True Biblical doctrine unites God s people under a Common Faith. It is this common faith in Christ that makes us one in Christ. Thus we sing (st 5), Send us Thy Spirit, teach us truth; Thou Son, O set us free From fancied wisdom, self-sought ways, To make us one in Thee. Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While Jesus and His heavenly Father are one in essence God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God we are one in Christ by our common Faith, our common redemption, and our common doctrine as Jesus prayed, Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. In this truth, we are set free from sin, death and the power of the devil. In this truth, we are united under the umbrella of God s love and grace and forgiveness. This unity isn t founded on anything we do, but on the true teachings from God s Word. In His Great Commission, Jesus command His disciples to teach all that He has commanded them, because the unity we have with Christ is a unity that s created and sustained by Holy Spirit through the full and faithful teaching of God s Word. Conclusion As I said last week, one of the most important characteristic of the Church is love God s love expressed through God s people which is nothing less than the Word of God put into Page 5

6 practice. Yet, here in the Church here under the cross of Christ the beauty and power of God s grace and love is that even when our love grows cold for one another, and sin divides God s people where there s jealousy and harsh words, grudges and bitterness, misunderstandings and judgmentalism God s GRACE is bigger than our divisions. The BLOOD of Jesus is stronger than whatever divides us. And God s LOVE has the power to overcome all our divisions. Division in the Church is a scandal it is a scandal because it is the failure to love one another as Christ has loved us. Local congregations may come and go as a result of sin and division, but the Body of Christ as God s ONE, holy, Christian and apostolic Church will endure forever. And the Church as God s people will endure as One. One in our knowledge of sin. One in our knowledge of our need for a Savior. One in our common faith in that Savior. And One under the banner of God s grace, love, forgiveness and truth. Lord Jesus, help us to be one in faith and love and doctrine and forgiveness as you and your heavenly Father are one in essence, Then shall our song united rise To Thine eternal throne, Where with the Father evermore And Spirit Thou art one. In His Name. Amen. Page 6