“THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN SUFFERED VIOLENCE FOR YOU”
Saint Matthew 11. 12-19
The Festival of The Reformation (obs): 29 October Anno Domini 2017
Father Jay Watson SSP
500 years is a long time. No, no it’s not, not really. “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” [2 Pe. 3.9] Don’t be ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with The Lord as a thousand days—and vice versa.
We eschew and ignore our sinful tendency for pride and triumphalism today. We militantly stamp down our “old Adam” urge to “crow” over and hector our synergistic and heterodox brethren. Indeed, the Gospel itself has us pray that they too would come to the fullness of The Lord’s light. So, we ignore the seeming compulsion to turn this milestone celebration into something that looks to a teacher rather than that which is taught, to an historical preacher of The Gospel rather than to the content of said Evangel.
“The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge.” While the Holy Spirit turns your heads, and directs your eyes to the Crucified One in your midst, so too does the German speaking Hebrew scholar from Wittenberg. But he did it by The Word! “I will speak of Thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed.” [Ps. 119.46] Yes, Brother Martin to Charles I, but also David himself to all the opponents of The Living God of Israel: Moses to Pharaoh, Elijah to Ahab, Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar, and so it goes. Peter to the Sanhedrin: “for we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard,” and “we ought to obey God rather than men.” [Acts 4. 20, 5.29]
But after 500 years what more needs to be said? After you were all here last week listening and “hearing” what more needs to be said? What always needs to be said—to be preached authoritatively from the mouth of God through His prophets: Christ crucified for your sins. The Lord loves you in His sacrificial actions, and now today in His sacramental realities: His presence!
“From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.” From the days of Cain and Abel until 29 October 2017 the Church Catholic suffers violence. You suffer violence at the hands of the Devil, the World, and your own fallen flesh.
You are violent sinners. You crucify The Son of Man every day again with trespasses against His gracious will for you. For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And still, now, The Law testifies to you of your sin. “Why dost thou preach my Laws, and takest My covenant in thy mouth; whereas thou hatest o be reformed?” [Ps. 50. 16-17] It’s not your piping that causes the dance and it’s not your mourning (your deeds, works, activities) that produce the needed lamentation. It’s the God/Man hanging bruised, bleeding, suffering, and dying on the tree. It’s that same God/Man Christ Jesus in the Ciborium and Chalice, given and shed for you. But John did come. He was like unto Elias. As that greatest of the Hebrew pastors would one day shine with reflected transfigured light—from the uncreated Source of all Light—so too The Baptist shines for you today saying, bolding preaching, “behold The Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world—your sin.” You children of the heavenly Father, by Holy +Washing, are justified, made right, by Wisdom. Jesus is that Wisdom enfleshed.
The portly and gaseous Augustinian could only say “here I stand” because the scarred, marred, beaten and bleeding God let Himself be stood on the Crucifix—eating down and drinking to the last bitter dregs your sins and transgressions. That is how you are reformed, and no other way. That is your Justification by Grace, through Faith, in Christ alone. You have this Jesus by the Word of God—the Holy Scriptures, and by that Word preached into your ears.
Look and behold with your eyes of faith—the eyes opened and lightened by The Holy Spirit calling you through the Good News. See the angel flying in the midst of heaven; having the everlasting Gospel! That is the Church’s message and reality for She is the Virginal Bride (i.e. forgiven and cleansed) of The Holy Godly Groom. The wedding feast which points to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.
Righteous reformation in His red blood—good! There are too many “isms.” There is no, there should be no, “Lutheranism.” “Isms” are named after heretics. The Apostle himself made this clear: “…there are contentions among you…every one of you saith, ‘I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.’ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were ye baptized in the name of Paul.” [1 Cor. 1. 11-13] You are Christian disciples of The Word, members of His Body—His Church. You do well to honor and revere the teachings of Martin Luther…AND, Saints Jerome, Cyril, Cyprian, Leo, The Cappadocians, Augustine, Ignatius, Irenaeus, and Polycarp…to name but a few.
“But we preach Christ crucified.” [1 Cor. 1.23] Pope Leo X could have been correct. He too had the Scriptures to read. The Reformer could have been wrong. He too was sinful and unclean. It’s The Word of God that you hold onto. It’s the Body and Blood of Jesus that you eat and drink. You are loosed from bondage, scrubbed spotless from filth, and have the Resurrection in your near future.
Some thought that the “angel fly(ing) in the midst of heaven” was Luther. Maybe…but no. Luther was an angel, small “a” much like every pastor is an angel—a messenger of Christ and His Evangel. The Angel is Jesus Himself. He was “The Angel of The Lord” in the Old Testament before His incarnation. Now that He has, and always will have, His wounded and scarred covered Body, He remains The Angel of The Trinity. He is The Messenger of Mercy, The flying Ambassador of Atonement, the Seraphic Savior. Jesus feared and gave all glory to His Father. He now reforms you by preaching to you, and to all who dwell on earth: Peace.
500 years have come and gone…quite quickly. Jesus Himself is coming and coming quickly. Come Lord Jesus. “Salvation unto us has come by God’s free Grace and Favor…” He comes today.
In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of The Holy Ghost
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