2 Corinthians 4:5 For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 

      This past Monday and Tuesday I spent attending our local Pastors’ Institute.  Pastors’ Institute is a gathering of local pastors (from all over the Conference) that we might sit and learn a point or two of doctrine that we continue our professional growth in knowledge.  This year for Pastors’ Institute we had Professor Forest Bivens from our Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary come and conduct our course of study.  The topic: Modern day Israel and the Last times.

      It was a very interesting study.  What was unheard of for 18 centuries is now considered to be mainstream Christianity.  Most of this is attributed to the publishing of a number of books over the years.  The first book that had significant impact is Hal Lindsey’s The Late Great Planet Earth.  Lately the books that have really pushed this are the LaHaye series titled “The Left Behind Series.”  It is an extremely popular set of books that lays out the authors imagined view of what is going to happen as the end times come about.  Notice what I said “the authors imagined view.”

      I need you to be aware of that fact.  Today this teaching of the end times, properly called “dispensationalism” is very popular and the majority of TV preachers and many denominations have jumped on this band wagon.  But it is a wagon without wheels or even a hitch.

      You see, as Lutherans we are amillennial.  That has been the position of the Christian church for nearly 18 centuries and yet today the modern teachers tell us that they are wiser, they have more insight and that they are the ones who really understand God’s Word.  It just isn’t true.  What they do is take their ideas and impose them on the Bible.

      For instance, they speak not of one resurrection but of three resurrections (and that depends on who you talk to)!  They speak not of one Day of Judgment but of three separate periods of judgment.  Jesus says in John 5:28-29 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out—those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.”  Notice that Jesus says there is only one resurrection and judgment.

      Why has all of this happened?  Because of a refusal to believe that the New Testament has the authority to rightly and properly interpret the Old Testament.  The New Testament in Romans, Ephesians, Hebrews and Galatians, to mention a few, clearly states that “Israel” is all those who are of the faith of Abraham.  In other words, the Israel of prophecy is the Holy Christian Church, the Communion of Saints.  But they insist that Israel must be the modern day country of Israel and that this modern day country is the key to fulfilling prophecy, the key to the return of Jesus and his establishment of an earthly kingdom.  In essence they declare that the Apostles of Jesus got it wrong.  It is really a sad, sad thing.

      Worse yet, as several pastors spoke of, is the fact that clearly their Savior Jesus and our Savior Jesus are two separate beings.  Our Savior Jesus completely won the battle against evil and Satan was clearly defeated forever through the victory of the resurrection and ascension.  But their Savior Jesus has to have a final battle of good versus evil at Armageddon.  Their Savior Jesus right now is involved in gathering soldiers for that final battle to help him win!  Their Jesus is going to save by judgments and damnation rather than the message of God’s love.  Sorry, we believe Jesus won.  We believe the battle is over and that heaven is already our home because of Jesus.  That is why we preach Jesus Christ as Lord, as our text says.

      Let’s then look at our text and all the more appreciate this message of our Savior.  Our theme will be: JESUS CHRIST IS LORD.  1^st. His light shines.  2^nd. His death brings life.  3^rd. The clay jar problem.

      Isn’t it the simplest of things to say, “We preach Jesus Christ as Lord”?  It is so easy to declare that, to assume that, to spit those words out and yet it is also so easy to not have a clue as to what those words really mean.  Take the opening discussion that I started with.  Here is a group of people who clearly and persistently teach contrary to the words of Jesus and the very message of Jesus and yet I can tell you right now they would sit back and say, “Yes, yes, we believe that Jesus is the Lord.”  But do you really believe it when you deny his words or you insist that you know better and more than He does?  So let’s just wrestle with what it means when we say that Jesus is Lord.

      According to this text Jesus is Lord because of what God has done.  Verse 6 says, “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness, made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”  Boy, there is a mouthful.  But what an important mouthful it is.

      First, we are told that everything about Jesus is “because of” God.  Our NIV simple translates “for God” which is good idiom but it lacks the clarity of the Greek text.  The Greek text clearly shows that this verse is laying out for us the reason that Jesus is Lord.  Because God, who created the heavens and earth, who made light when there was only darkness, this same God has caused Jesus the light to shine.

      Jesus’ light shines in our hearts.  And what does the light of Jesus help us see?  Our verse says, “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God”.  Please note that this light, knowledge and glory is all found in the face of Jesus.

      It is a verse that is showing us the wonder of Jesus.  Jesus came, that perfect man and perfect God.  Jesus came and completely fulfilled the will and Law of God the Father so that Jesus might become the one who reveals all things necessary for salvation to each of us.  In other words, if you want to know God you need to know Jesus.  If you want the knowledge of God you need to know Jesus.  If you want the glory of God, you need to know Jesus because apart from Jesus we can’t and won’t know a thing.  It is Jesus who reveals all and provides all.  It is Jesus who is one with the Father and reveals the Father’s plan of complete salvation.  It is Jesus who fulfills this plan of the Father.  It is for this reason that we are simply told by Jesus, “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”  Again Jesus says, “I and the Father are one.”  Or we can hear the words of the Apostles who say, “There is no other name given to men by which we must be saved.”  Jesus is it.  Jesus is the only one who counts.  Jesus is the light, the true light, the light of the knowledge of the glory of God.

      Now while there is much more that can be said of this fact of Jesus the light there is more that I wish to speak about.  For instance to speak of the implication of verse 10ff.  10 says, “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.”  Again another mouthful but wow what a lesson!

      It is these verses that help us to grasp just what Jesus did for us.  Notice how it speaks of Jesus’ death.  It is not speaking to us of this death because Jesus died as “an example of love.”  Jesus’ death is our atoning death!  Jesus’ death defeated sin, paid for our sin and put an end to the reign of death in our lives.  You cannot speak of Jesus and not speak of the sin he paid for.  I’m talking about the sin that is ours, that without Jesus condemns to eternal hell.  It is Jesus who paid the price of hell for us.  We dare never overlook or forget the gracious atonement of Jesus.

      Then notice that the verse also speaks of his life.  Jesus rose from the dead to show that not only was sin conquered but so was death and Satan.  Death is the tool of Satan but because of the resurrection the sting of death is gone and instead of fear and horror we know that in Jesus there is life, eternal life in heaven with God the Father.  All of this is a done deal.  All of this because that is what God planned and carried out for us.  Complete, sure and certain salvation in Jesus.

      Now, notice that this verse also speaks of the fact that we carry the death of Jesus with us and we also reveal the life of Jesus.  These words remind us that belief in Jesus does impact our lives.  We are no longer ruled by sin.  That’s what it means when it says we carry Jesus’ death.  Romans 6 clarifies when it says, “anyone who has died to sin has been freed from sin,” or again, “count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”  That section helps us grasp what is being said here.  Jesus is revealed in us as we out of love for him imitate his ways and life.  Jesus is revealed in us as we show that we are freed from the fear of death and filled with the love of Christ our Lord.  In other words, the redemption of Jesus and its impact on the believer is what is being spoken of here.

      Of course, we have this problem.  That problem is highlighted for us in verses 7ff.  7 says, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.”  We are jars of clay, fragile, breakable jars of clay!  It is that way so that we don’t begin to think we are the heart and core of faith, so that we don’t begin to think that we are calling the shots or that we are the greater wisdom and strength of life.  Nor is there any promise that when Jesus is a part of our life we won’t have any hardships or problems.  What we are promised is that God will be our strength and help.  That’s why the verses following say things like: “hard pressed…not crushed…perplexed…not in despair…persecuted…not abandoned…struck down…not destroyed.”

      As the children of Jesus and heirs of eternal life we are going to be under attack.  Since the world hated Jesus it will also hate us and we will be the point of attack for the world.  Yet let the world come.  Because of Jesus and his all-surpassing power we have nothing to fear.  Eternal life is and will be ours because of the power of Jesus.  The problem is that we keep forgetting that.

      We tend to focus on us.  We tend to think we know better or we are smarter than God.  Nope, we need to keep in mind that Jesus is the Lord, that he is the light of the knowledge of the glory of God.  We cannot live without Jesus.  For that matter, without Jesus we will die.  Die eternally.  It is only in Jesus that we live.  Live now and forever.  Live in Him and through Him.  Our focus is to be Jesus.  Our faith is to be that Jesus Christ is Lord and nothing else.

      What a joy it is to grasp this marvel of Jesus.  May his joy be yours now and always.  Amen.