The Day of Pentecost, 2010

Rev. Brian L. Kachelmeier

 

John 14:23-31

 

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

 

On this day, three of our beloved youth will be confirmed. They will publically confess their faith in Christ and their desire to remain in Him. As we witness this event it calls to mind our own confirmation vows and it points toward the future for those who have not yet arrived at this point in their lives. At this point, I must make it clear that confirmation is not graduation. Rather, it is the confirming of your lives as disciples. Throughout your lives you will meditate and contemplate upon the doctrine of the Apostles, but you will not graduate from it. We are in the process of being made into true disciples by being baptized and by continuing to be taught. As disciples, you are to continue to hear the word of God and ask “What does this mean?” 

 

This is just a new stage in your lives. In the Bible, new names were given to the saints of old as they crossed over into a new place in their lives of faith. Jacob was given the name Israel and Saul was given the name Paul. In like manner this group of catechumens have talked about receiving new names to symbolize this move. 

 

To one, the name Faith is given to emphasize that her joy in the LORD is not based upon her feelings, but rather on His promises. Have faith in Him throughout your life. Recognize that He alone can strengthen your faith. 

 

To another, the name Angela is given to remind her of the angelic message that for us a Savior has been born reconciling us to God. Trust in this message. Keep this message in your heart. 

 

To third, the name Athanasius is given to remind him of the stand that he must take against the world confessing the Christian Faith. Athanasius was the defender of the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity. At one point it was Athanasius against the world. Stand firm!

 

Faith, Angela, Athanasius and all disciples listen to the words of Jesus. “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words.” (John 14:23- 24, ESV) These words are no child’s play. The LORD’s desire is that you would love Him and keep His word. These are not one time actions as if you could say at one time in my life I had loved the Lord or I did keep His word for awhile. 

 

The question is always before you. Do you love the LORD? Are you keeping His word? These are not words connected to a graduation. These are words for meditation and contemplation. Because of our fallen nature, we do not love God as we should and rather than keep the Word we quickly forget it. 

 

Now, to keep is to hold on to and to cling to. You are to guard it because the devil wants to take it away. Like a bird swooping down from the air, the devil tries to take the seed while it is being sown.   The devil desires that God’s Kingdom will not come to us or to anyone else. We know the devil’s intentions and he is a formidable foe. Jesus calls him the ruler of the world and Paul calls him the “god of this world” who blinds the minds of unbelievers (2 Cor. 4). For our benefit, God has revealed the intentions of the devil.

 

In both the rite of Holy Baptism and in the rite of Confirmation, we pose the questions: Do you renounce the devil… …his works… …and his ways? The answer is a hearty, “I do.”  As we transition to becoming communicant members of the church, we pose the questions: Do you intend to hear the word of God and receive the Lord’s Supper faithfully? Do you intend to live according to the Word of God? Do you intend to continue steadfast in this confession? 

 

In our lives, we have a lot of good intentions. Sometimes due to circumstances beyond our control, we are not able to follow through with such intentions. Other times, because of our weakness, we fail. Students intend to do their homework and read their assignments. At the beginning of a day, you may intend to do certain things and then by the time the day is over it seems like nothing has been accomplished. At the beginning of the year, new year’s resolutions are loaded with good intentions. I don’t know about you, but I have a to-do-list. I don’t know how many times I have put things on this list that just don’t seem to get done. I intend to do them, but it just doesn’t happen. 

 

At the day in which we confirm our faith publically, we intend to hear the word of God, receive the Sacrament of the Altar faithfully, live a godly life according to God’s word, and remain steadfast in this conviction. Yet, we are human. The flesh maybe willing but our spirit is weak. For this reason we answer our intentions by saying, “I do, by the grace of God.” You see we need the Holy Spirit to help us with our intentions. He instills these good intentions in our hearts and fortifies them with the gospel.

 

For our benefit, God has revealed His intentions for us. He loves us and intends to keep us in His Kingdom. Jesus tells us, “…the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26, ESV) The intention of Jesus is made clear. He desires to give to us the Holy Spirit. Jesus prays to the Father for this gift. The Father desires to grant us this gift. He sends the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit desires to teach us as disciples so that we will be comforted that God loves us dearly and brings us salvation. As disciples we are learning to believe. If we knew everything, we would have no need to be continuously taught. Yet, in this life we forget what we have been taught. The Holy Spirit will use the Word of God to teach us all things and bring to remembrance all that Jesus has said. 

 

Jesus says, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid." (John 14:27, ESV) The Holy Spirit works to bring these words of Jesus to our remembrance. He is also teaching us to believe these words. As we continue to learn to believe how much God loves us, we begin to grow in our love for God. This love is made manifest in our love toward others. 

In Second Petition of the Lord’s Prayer, we are taught to pray that the kingdom of God would come to us and to many others. In the catechism, we say that God’s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit. Therefore, by His grace we believe His word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity. He is the One who strengthens and keeps us firm in His Word and faith until we die. The good and gracious will of God is to break and hinder every plan and purpose of the devil who has other intentions.

 

Although Jesus calls the devil the ruler of the world He promises us that the devil has no claim on him. The death of Jesus is not a sign of His weakness; instead, the cross is the power of God for salvation. Jesus has laid down His life freely for you in order to take it up again for you. His victory is your victory and He strengthens us by this victory in the Sacrament of the Altar. He grants us victory over sin and the devil. Thus, we sing, “This is the feast of victory for our God.” In Christ, the devil has no claim on us.  

 

As we continue to hear the words of Jesus, we begin to understand the need to keep them and hold on to them. Jesus says, “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32, ESV) On this day, we rejoice in the sending of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who helps us by teaching us and bringing to remembrance all that Jesus has said. In this way, we gladly hear and learn God’s word. Amen.