Six of the seven seals opened

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Rev. Paul Rydecki
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Sermon for Midweek of Judica – Lent 5

Revelation 6:1-17

We come back to the heavenly throne room this evening, with the throne and the One seated on it, the 24 elders, the four living creatures, the Lamb, and the scroll with the seven seals which only the Lamb is worthy to open.

Six of the seven seals are described in chapter 6. What we should notice here is largely a retelling of the things Jesus already told His disciples during Holy Week, the things that would be going on in the world during this New Testament period as signs pointing to Jesus’ coming at the end of the age.

We come to the first seal: Now I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, “Come and see.” And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.

The first through the fourth seals depict four horses and their riders, sometimes referred to as the four horsemen of the Apocalypse. This vision has some things in common with two visions of riders and colored horses that the prophet Zechariah saw as Jerusalem was about to be rebuilt after the captivity. There were four, because they go out into all four directions of the compass, into all the world.

This first horse is white in John’s vision. White is used throughout Revelation to symbolize cleanness, purity, and victory. This rider has a bow, and he has a crown. There are two words for “crown” in Greek. There’s the king’s crown, like a crown of gold, and then there’s this kind of crown given to the rider on the white horse. It’s the wreath given to the victor. It’s what the winner of the Greek Olympic games received, and it’s the kind of crown Jesus promised to those who remain faithful unto death. This rider is sent out conquering and to conquer, and he will be victorious.

The interpretation of this rider seems pretty clear if we look forward to Revelation 19, where a rider on a white horse appears again at the end of the world to bring final victory to the Church. There the rider is identified as the Lord Jesus Himself. So this rider in chapter 6 also appears to be the Lord Jesus, or at least His preachers, riding out into all the world to conquer, not yet with the sword, but instead with the Gospel. That’s exactly what Jesus told His disciples would happen in this New Testament period. This Gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world, and then the end will come.

Then we come to the second seal: When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.

Red is the color of blood and fire, and this rider clearly represents violence, war, and bloodshed, including the persecution of Christians. What did Jesus tell His disciples? You will hear of wars and rumors of wars…They will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you…and lawlessness will abound. The world has always seen war and bloodshed, and Christians have been persecuted since the time of Christ. Will it get worse? It’s already getting worse, isn’t it? And it looks like it will get worse yet in the near future. But we shouldn’t worry. Jesus told us many times that it would be this way.

What else can we expect during this New Testament period? When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.”

Black is the color of calamity and mourning, and this rider represents famine, scarcity, and economic imbalance. He has a balancing scale in his hand, like the kind that was used in the marketplace for weighing out food. “A quart of wheat for a denarius” is kind of like a loaf of bread for a day’s wages. Talk about inflation! Food becomes scarce and the price of food becomes impossibly high at times during this New Testament period, just as Jesus told His disciples that there would be famines in the earth before His coming, sometimes naturally caused, but sometimes caused by men, as right now at this moment climate activists are getting rid of the very fertilizer that the world depends on for abundant crops. Interestingly, it’s grains like wheat and barley that depend most on fertilizer, while olive trees and grape vines (where the oil and wine come from) don’t depend on it as much.

When He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come and see.” So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and Hades followed with him. And power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.

“Pale” is actually a greenish color. It represents sickness and the plagues that cause it. The rider of this horse symbolizes death that spreads through pestilence, but also through violence and famine and hunger, not to the entire population of the world at once, or even to most of the world at once, but to “one fourth” of it, which, figuratively, signifies a sizable portion. And then there’s Hades right behind Death, that is, eternal destruction in hell, which follows death for the vast majority of people who die. Together, the four horsemen sum up all the things that bring death and misery into the world as a result of mankind’s rejection of the work of the first horseman, the preaching of the Gospel.

Now on to the fifth and sixth seals.

When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held. And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.

This is the first time the altar in the throne room is mentioned, the “golden altar which is before God,” as we’re told in chapter 9. The souls of the martyrs are pictured there. They weren’t defeated or lost when their bodies were put to death. Their souls are always in the presence of God. And they’re pictured longing to know how much longer this New Testament period will last, how long before justice is done, how long before the enemies of the Church are finally vanquished. The Christian isn’t to take vengeance himself. But that doesn’t mean there is no vengeance. Vengeance is Mine, declares the Lord. It is Mine to repay. The souls in heaven recognize that. But they’re comforted, and God assures them that it will only be a “little while” longer that they have to wait to see the Lord’s vengeance on His enemies and theirs. What needs to happen first? The full number of the elect has to be gathered into the Church, including those who will also lay down their lives as martyrs for the Gospel.

Finally (for this chapter), the sixth seal is opened. I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.

This sounds almost exactly like what Jesus described to His disciples. It’s a picture of what will happen right at the end, on the last day.

And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”

As Jesus put it to His disciples, Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

Finally unbelievers will stop mocking God—and His people. Finally they will pay attention to Him. But it won’t be with worship that they welcome Him, but with dread. They dread “the wrath of the Lamb.” That’s somewhat ironic, isn’t it? Because lambs aren’t usually angry creatures; no one is afraid of what a lamb will do if it gets angry. But Christ, the Lamb of God, will have plenty of wrath for unbelievers on the last day, and people will no longer view Jesus as a gentle teacher. They won’t be singing to Him as if He were their boyfriend, as so many so-called worship songs do today. All the “COEXIST” bumper stickers will be peeled away. And unbelievers will cower at the wrath of Jesus, even as so many Christians have been made to cower in the face of their persecutors and oppressors over the centuries.

Who is able to stand on the great day of His wrath? Only His blood-bought people. Only those who have feared His wrath during this life and have taken refuge where He has offered it: in His blood, shed on the cross for our sins. What great comfort these words must have been to John’s readers who were already suffering the hatred of the world, whose eyes told them they had made a mistake trusting in Jesus! No, it was no mistake. Through all the misery, calamity, afflictions and death of this world, the Lamb reigns on His throne. And the only thing keeping Him from coming back sooner to avenge His people is the knowledge that there are still a few more sinners who will hear the Gospel and believe it before the end, who will repent and escape, together with us, from the real and permanent destruction that’s coming on the unbelieving world! Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Wednesday, March 29th

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Mark 15:20-47

20 And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.

21 Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross. 22 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. 23 Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it. 24 And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.

25 Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him. 26 And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

THE KING OF THE JEWS.

27 With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left. 28 So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And He was numbered with the transgressors.”

29 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, “Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 save Yourself, and come down from the cross!”

31 Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. 32 Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.”

Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

33 Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

35 Some of those who stood by, when they heard that, said, “Look, He is calling for Elijah!” 36 Then someone ran and filled a sponge full of sour wine, put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink, saying, “Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to take Him down.”

37 And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last.

38 Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”

40 There were also women looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome, 41 who also followed Him and ministered to Him when He was in Galilee, and many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem.

42 Now when evening had come, because it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent council member, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, coming and taking courage, went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 44 Pilate marveled that He was already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him if He had been dead for some time. 45 So when he found out from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph. 46 Then he bought fine linen, took Him down, and wrapped Him in the linen. And he laid Him in a tomb which had been hewn out of the rock, and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. 47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses observed where He was laid.

In our Bible lesson today, as the Apostles’ Creed says,  Jesus “was crucified, died, and was buried.” As we look at Jesus on the cross, we know that He is not dying for His own sins, because He did not have any. We who did sin are the ones who deserve to be punished. Instead, Jesus dies in our place.

As we come to Him confessing our sins and clinging to Him in faith, something wonderful happens! Luther called it the “blessed exchange”: Jesus exchanges His righteous and holy life for our sin and death. He goes to the cross to pay for our sin, and we get His righteous and holy life—a forgiven life, a restored life, an eternal life! That is not a particularly good deal for Jesus, but an incredibly great deal for us! Therefore, as Christians, we keep our life’s focus on that cross. Remember that the cross signifies that blessed exchange with Jesus, which includes His atonement for your sin and its spiritual consequences. All this is exchanged at the cross and received in faith.

That is what Jesus did for you! That is what the Gospel means—Christ Crucified for you means that your sins are forgiven, that you have a holy life now, and an eternal life with Christ in heaven forever! That is what Jesus means when, on the cross, He says, “It is finished!” (Jn 19:30). His work of salvation for us is now accomplished. We receive that work in faith, and we are saved, forgiven, justified with God, and now live in peace with God. “Truly this Man IS the Son of God!”

Let us pray: O almighty God, mercifully look on Your people, and by Your great goodness govern us in body and preserve us in soul; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Tuesday, March 28th

Posted on March 28, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Mark 15:1-19

15 Immediately, in the morning, the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council; and they bound Jesus, led Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate. 2 Then Pilate asked Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

He answered and said to him, “It is as you say.”

3 And the chief priests accused Him of many things, but He answered nothing. 4 Then Pilate asked Him again, saying, “Do You answer nothing? See how many things they testify against You!” 5 But Jesus still answered nothing, so that Pilate marveled.

6 Now at the feast he was accustomed to releasing one prisoner to them, whomever they requested. 7 And there was one named Barabbas, who was chained with his fellow rebels; they had committed murder in the rebellion. 8 Then the multitude, crying aloud, began to ask him to do just as he had always done for them. 9 But Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.

11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd, so that he should rather release Barabbas to them. 12 Pilate answered and said to them again, “What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?”

13 So they cried out again, “Crucify Him!”

14 Then Pilate said to them, “Why, what evil has He done?”

But they cried out all the more, “Crucify Him!”

15 So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.

16 Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison. 17 And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, 18 and began to salute Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 19 Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.

Morning has arrived, and the whole Jewish council—the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes—have condemned Jesus, bound Him, led Him away, and handed Him over to Pilate. Among other things, Pilate then asks three questions: “Are you the King of the Jews?”; “Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?”; and “What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?” Answers: Yes, Jesus is the King of the Jews; the crowd asks for Barabbas to be released, instead of their King; and then they demand that Jesus, their King, be crucified.

Then Jesus the King is scourged, struck on the head, spat on, and mocked as a King: clothed in a purple robe and crown of thorns, mockingly bowed to and worshiped, and saluted with “Hail, King of the Jews!” All in all, it’s a very rough day to be the King of the Jews, and the day is not over. It only gets worse for this particular King.

Fortunately, we know that for this King, His kingdom is not of this world. Good thing too, because with subjects like this, who needs enemies! But then, that’s the point, isn’t it? We who should rightly receive Jesus as King have been born into the same sinful world that despises Him and lives in rebellion against Him. All of fallen humanity would continue in this rebellion against the rightful King if nothing had been done. So, Jesus our gracious Sovereign did what needed to be done for His subjects—He took on human flesh Himself, subjected Himself to God’s holy Law, fulfilled it for us, and then paid the penalty for breaking that Kingly Law with His own life… for us! The King takes the penalty for the rebellion of His own subjects—where else in this world does such a thing happen? It does not. In faith we proclaim, “Hail, King of God’s Kingdom!”

Let us pray: O almighty God, mercifully look on Your people, and by Your great goodness govern us in body and preserve us in soul; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

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Each Day in the Word, Monday, March 27th

Posted on March 27, 2023 by Tom and Karen Klumb

Mark 14:43-72

43 And immediately, while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. 44 Now His betrayer had given them a signal, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the One; seize Him and lead Him away safely.”

45 As soon as he had come, immediately he went up to Him and said to Him, “Rabbi, Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

46 Then they laid their hands on Him and took Him. 47 And one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.

48 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? 49 I was daily with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.”

50 Then they all forsook Him and fled.

51 Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men laid hold of him, 52 and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.

53 And they led Jesus away to the high priest; and with him were assembled all the chief priests, the elders, and the scribes. 54 But Peter followed Him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest. And he sat with the servants and warmed himself at the fire.

55 Now the chief priests and all the council sought testimony against Jesus to put Him to death, but found none. 56 For many bore false witness against Him, but their testimonies did not agree.

57 Then some rose up and bore false witness against Him, saying, 58 “We heard Him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands.’ ” 59 But not even then did their testimony agree.

60 And the high priest stood up in the midst and asked Jesus, saying, “Do You answer nothing? What is it these men testify against You?” 61 But He kept silent and answered nothing.

Again the high priest asked Him, saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?”

62 Jesus said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.”

63 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “What further need do we have of witnesses? 64 You have heard the blasphemy! What do you think?”

And they all condemned Him to be deserving of death.

65 Then some began to spit on Him, and to blindfold Him, and to beat Him, and to say to Him, “Prophesy!” And the officers struck Him with the palms of their hands.

66 Now as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came. 67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.”

68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are saying.” And he went out on the porch, and a rooster crowed.

69 And the servant girl saw him again, and began to say to those who stood by, “This is one of them.” 70 But he denied it again.

And a little later those who stood by said to Peter again, “Surely you are one of them; for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.”

71 Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!”

72 A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when he thought about it, he wept.

Years ago the Army recruiting slogan was this: “In the Army, we do more before 9AM than most people do all day.” Jesus is not most people. Before the rooster even crows twice (which is long before 9AM), Jesus is betrayed by Judas, arrested by an armed crowd, abandoned by His supporters, tried by the Sanhedrin, slandered by false witnesses, condemned wrongly as deserving death, spat on, blindfolded, beaten, mocked, and denied by Peter. The day is still young, and this is only Mark chapter 14; we know what follows in chapter 15: Jesus’ trial before Pilate, His crucifixion, and His death. The recruiting slogan for Jesus’ army at this point could only be this: “Come suffer with us”—“Take up your cross and follow Me.”

From the betrayal of Judas to the denial of Peter, we clearly see that even the very best of humanity—those specifically chosen by Jesus Himself for this very task—are woefully inadequate, unreliable, and untrustworthy. By contrast, Jesus proves Himself fully adequate for the task, fully reliable, and fully worthy. Despite all that is thrown at Him in opposition, nevertheless He continues His course, to complete the task assigned by the Father—that Jesus fulfill all righteousness for us by keeping God’s holy law in complete and total perfection, and then by being the sacrifice paid for us, for all the sins, for all the times when we too proved to be woefully inadequate, unreliable, and untrustworthy.

Judas “goes his way” because he dies apart from faith in Christ, but Peter is later forgiven and restored, as he receives that in faith. We too look to Christ who forgives and restores us any time that we fail Him, by our own types of denials. We come to Him in repentance, admitting our sins, and He is quick to forgive, fully and completely, which we receive in faith.

Let us pray: O almighty God, mercifully look on Your people, and by Your great goodness govern us in body and preserve us in soul; through Your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

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The truth either causes enmity or converts

Posted on March 26, 2023 by Rev. Paul Rydecki
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Sermon for Lent 5 – Judica

Hebrews 9:11-15  +  John 8:46-59

In the beginning, after Adam and Eve sinned against God, God said to the serpent: I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers. Enmity. Hostility between the offspring of the devil and the offspring or “seed” of the woman. We see that enmity on full display in today’s Gospel as the offspring of the devil—the unbelievers among the Jews—hiss against Jesus, the promised offspring of the woman who would bruise the serpent’s head, while Jesus, for His part, stood firm against them. Enmity between unbelievers and believers in Christ is still what we see in the world today. And the truth that Jesus spoke in today’s Gospel still does one of two things. It either hardens people in their enmity toward God and His people, or it converts them from hate-filled enemies of God into penitent children of God.

Jesus had been speaking the truth to the Jews in Israel for nearly three years at this point, and that truth is really very simple. The truth is that all people descended from Adam and Eve, both Jews and non-Jews, are lost and condemned sinners by birth. But God sent His Son into the world to save sinners. He calls all men to repentance and faith in Christ. Salvation is by faith alone in Christ Jesus alone. As Jesus put it earlier in John 8, I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.

But when the Jews heard Jesus talking about them as people who walked in darkness, when they heard Him talking about Himself as the light that leads to life, they got angry. How dare He make either of those claims! They were Abraham’s children, after all! Children of God!

Oh, but Jesus showed them that they were neither children of Abraham nor children of God. Because true children of Abraham and true children of God would have believed the truth that Jesus was speaking. Which one of you convicts me of sin? And if I am telling the truth, why do you not believe me? He who is from God hears God’s words. This is why you do not hear, because you are not from God.”

True children of Abraham and true children of God hear Jesus, listen to Jesus, believe Jesus. Those who have God for a Father hear God’s words. Those who don’t hear and believe God’s words are among the offspring of the devil.

This isn’t fatalistic, though. Saul the Pharisee didn’t believe the word about Jesus either for many years of his life. He wasn’t from God at that time. He was still among the offspring of the devil at that time. But finally the word of Christ broke through his stony heart, and then he was born of God, and from that time on he did listen to the word of God and believe it, even as he went on to preach it.

So it has been ever since. At first the word of God, the truth of Christ sounds bitter, because we so desperately want to defend ourselves and justify ourselves. We want to believe what we want to believe and do what we want to do. Until God steps in and says, “You’re not good enough as you are. Your natural beliefs are wrong. Your behavior is immoral. Your deeds are tainted. And you can’t lift a finger to save yourself.” That truth hurts. But those who are born of God know it to be true, while those who are not of God try to deny it, and oftentimes lash out at the one who speaks the truth.

Then the Jews answered and said to him, “Do we not rightly say that you are a Samaritan and that you have a demon?”

That was their brilliant argument. They actually resorted to name-calling. “Samaritan! Demon friend! How dare You claim that we, the Jewish leaders, are not children of God!” Oh, the world takes great offense when Jesus says such things. For as godless as people are, most of them still claim to be good, godly, even religious people—people who are on the side of the angels, the truly good and decent people of the world. They at least pretend to be shocked if they are exposed as unbelievers who are on the devil’s side. No, they say, it’s You, Jesus, the intolerant One, it’s you Christians, the intolerant ones, who have a demon!

Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it and who judges.”

Jesus doesn’t argue with the Jews. He simply denies their charge that He has a demon. And then He simply tells it like it is. He is the One who has God for a Father—in the truest sense of all. He is the One who is honoring God His Father, even as the Jews dishonor Jesus. And that will not go well for them. You can’t honor God the Father while dishonoring Jesus. As He said earlier in John’s Gospel, All should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. Jesus doesn’t seek His own glory as the Son of Man, but the Father demands that people honor His Son, and He promises to judge those who don’t.

But to those who do honor Him, who hear His word and keep His word, Jesus has an amazing promise. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.

Now only God can claim such a thing, so already you see just what Jesus was claiming about Himself. But what does He mean that a person who keeps His word will never see death? Both Christians and non-Christians die. But to “see” death or to “taste” death, as the Jews put it, is worse than dying. It’s being condemned to eternal torment and suffering. It’s your soul “on fire” as Jesus pictures it in the parable of the rich man and poor Lazarus, with no hope of that fire being extinguished. But Jesus promises that the one who keeps His word will never see any such thing. And even the bodily death that we still endure is only a temporary thing, for those who keep Jesus’ word. They will never see condemnation. They will never see hell.

But the Jews didn’t want to dig deeper and find out what Jesus actually meant. They made fun of Him and pointed out how ridiculous His claim was.

Then the Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, and so did the prophets. And you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died. Who do you make yourself out to be?” Jesus answered, “If I honor myself, my honor is nothing. It is my Father who honors me, of whom you say that he is your God. You do not know him; but I know him. If I were to say, ‘I do not know him,’ I would be a liar, like you. But I do know him and keep his word.

Notice, to these people who are lashing out against Him, Jesus doesn’t stop and rephrase and explain Himself. “No, no, you’re right. Abraham died. People die. That’s not what I was talking about. What I meant was…” No, even as the Jews doubled down on their unbelief, so Jesus doubled down on His bold claims. He knows God. They don’t. And that’s why they’re not interested in an actual discussion with actual arguments.

There’s a lesson in that. When it comes to the truth of the Christian faith, you can’t give an inch to those who aren’t acting in good faith in the first place. You don’t back down. You don’t apologize. You stand firm on the truth. And maybe you even say something more shocking, like Jesus did.

Your father Abraham was glad that he would see my day, and he saw it and rejoiced.  

The Jews kept claiming that Abraham was their father. So Jesus throws it back in their faces. “Your father” (in quotes) Abraham was looking forward to My day, to My coming into the world. And by faith he saw it. He saw it as something sure and certain, that I would come, descended from him, and be a blessing to all the nations of the earth, that I would come as his true Heir according to the covenant, just as God promised him.

Then Jesus adds the final blow: The Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old! And you have seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

I AM. That is the name of the LORD, Jehovah, Yahweh. I AM WHO I AM. Jesus was claiming to be more than just Abraham’s offspring, more than just the offspring of the woman. He was claiming to be the eternal LORD God. And they understood what He was claiming, because they  picked up stones to throw at him.

Now, it must have seemed almost silly as Jesus, a 32-year-old man from Nazareth, stood before them and claimed to be the God of Israel, the great I AM. But there are only two possibilities: Either Jesus was telling the truth, or He was lying. Either He is the eternal LORD God and you should listen carefully to every word He says, or He isn’t, and you should get as far away from that liar as possible.

You’re here today because you have heard the word of Jesus and believed it. And you were right to believe it. He is true God and true Man. He is the light of the world. He is the resurrection and the life. So don’t worry about the enmity toward Christ you see in the world. And don’t worry about the enmity that’s directed toward you or toward God’s Church. It must be this way, until the Christ comes again in glory on the last day. As for you, cling to the truth that Jesus has spoken. Cling to Him as your Savior. And listen carefully to every word He says. Listen especially to His promise of the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation to all who believe in Him. And know that He is able to keep that promise, because He really is who He says He is, the God who became Man in order to crush the ancient serpent’s head. Amen.

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