My Grace is Sufficient For You, For My Strength is Made Perfect in Weakness: 2 Corinthians 11:19-12:9

2 Corinthians 11:19-12:9: "11:19 For you put up with fools gladly, since you yourselves are wise! 20 For you put up with it if one brings you into bondage, if one devours you, if one takes from you, if one exalts himself, if one strikes you on the face. 21 To our shame, I say that we were too weak for that! But in whatever anyone is bold—I speak foolishly—I am bold also. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. 24 From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness—28 besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation? 30 If I must boast, I will boast in the things which concern my infirmity. 31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 In Damascus the governor, under Aretas the king, was guarding the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desiring to arrest me; 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped from his hands.

12:1 It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord: 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—4 how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. 5 Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities. 6 For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me. 7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me"

The Church at Corinth is over run with Judaizers. They want to force the Corinthians into observing all the old levitical laws and customs that the Jews grew up with. One may wonder why this is happening in a Greek Church, since Corinth is among the Gentile nations. However, when one considers that whenever St. Paul started to preach in a new city, the first thing he would do is find a Jewish synagogue and start preaching there first, when they would not listen then he would preach to the Gentiles. Now, there were often Jews who heard the message, and would be apart of starting this new church, but some of them, having been convinced by those who came out of the persecution of Jerusalem, and who believed that the old levitical customs should still be observed, started causing trouble in these new churches. Such is the case with the Church at Corinth.

This reading is the Epistle for Sexagesima, also sometimes called Exsurge, from the Introit. The theme for Sexagesima, is derived from the Gospel for the day, which is the parable of the Sower and the Seed from the Evangelist St. Luke's Gospel. St. Paul here in his Epistle to the Church at Corinth also talks about the importance of the Word of God. There is only one thing needful, and that is the Gospel. The Blessed Apostle, St. Paul, goes through a laundry list of things that have happened to him on account of this Gospel. It isn't a pretty picture.

There must have been those among the Judaizers who were boasting of their great deeds, and on account of this, some among the members of the Church at Corinth, were led astray. Therefore the Blessed Apostle St. Paul reveals what things he has suffered for the Gospel. It is on account of these things that he boasts. Now there are those, who if they had suffered much less than these things, would have left the Church. Indeed, in the Gospel reading, we see that very thing, as three out of four types of soil, reject the Gospel. That could mean that only 25 percent of the people who are preached to, actually hear and receive the glad tidings. However, this is not the point our dear Lord Jesus is making. Rather He is pointing His hearers to Himself, for He is both the seed and the soil, and the Sower, for it is on account of His fulfilling of the Law, or to say it another way, it is on account of His hearing His Father's Word and will, and doing it, that a harvest of more than a hundred fold was produced.

Part of that fruit was produced and harvested in Corinth. Here St. Paul also shows what things the seed of the Lord, those who are His offspring through the Word, must go through, the suffering they must endure for the Gospel. As was stated earlier, this might drive some off, but St. Paul shows that these things are what drives him to continue in the Gospel, for the Word that Christ has given us, is worth dying and fighting, and suffering for. For it is this Word that brings eternal life. It is the Gospel that has freed the Jews from the bondage of the levitical customs. No longer was it necessary to offer the sacrifices. No longer was it necessary to do the other customs. For Christ has fulfilled them once and for all. Therefore to go back to them, would be like going back to one's old sinful ways which they had given up.

Therefore, even though St. Paul has asked for the oppression to cease, it will not, for as our Lord says, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Christ was strongest at His weakest, that is on the cross as He dies, for even though in the eyes of the world, it appeared as if He had failed, He rather had won forgiveness, life and salvation for all. In short, He won for us grace. Therefore, His grace is sufficient, for it is the Words of eternal life.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

Be of the Same Mind Toward One Another: Romans 12:6-16

Romans 12:6-16: "6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. 9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble."

This mornings reading which is the Epistle appointed for the Second Sunday after Epiphany, doesn't really seem to have anything to do with the Gospel reading for today, which is our Lord's first miracle, the changing of water into wine at the wedding at Cana.

There is something to be said about this, that is, that certain Epistles throughout the Church year are what they call "continua lectio." This is an ancestor of the ancient practice of reading the Scriptures continuously, the Bishop telling the Deacon when to stop reading. The Deacon would start up the next time where he left off. One can see this pattern when one looks at the list of Epistle reading for Epiphany, they are all from Romans 12 and 13 with only a few gaps in between. Hence, certain Epistles in the Church year were not meant to necessarily relate in theme to the Gospel, but instead were certain parts of Scripture that were read at certain times of the year.

However, the theme of the Gospel, that our Lord manifests Himself as God, can be seen in this Epistle. Our Lord Jesus is manifested through the saints who prophesy, minister, teach, exhort, give, lead, or show mercy. When the saints do these things, they show the love of our Lord, Who shows His love in the Gospel reading today, by not only providing for a need, but revealing Himself to His disciples that He is the Messiah, and foreshadowing the blessed Sacraments of baptism and communion.

Of course the Blessed Apostle, St. Paul qualifies his statement to the Church of Rome by saying that just doing these things, doesn't manifest our Lord, but rather, those who do these things without hypocrisy, that is to say, doing these things in faith; Believing that when these things are done, our Lord Jesus Christ is manifested to those who receive them in faith. This is similar to the Gospel reading for today, for those who saw the sign, done for the benefit of those at the wedding in Cana, manifested our Lord Jesus, and His disciples believed in Him. That is to say, they had faith that He was the Messiah.

This faith is really only fostered in unity. For where there is discord and strife, a roadblock to faith is put up, for people are so consumed with the discord that they lose sight of the thing that truly matters. However, it should be stated up front that unity does not come at the cost of the Word of God. True unity exists where people dwell together in the peace of like teaching. When there is unity in teaching and belief according to those teachings, there is a trust and bond that truly displays the love of our Lord Jesus Christ through us.

This is such an important point, that the Blessed Apostle, St. Paul, tells the Church at Rome to "be of the same mind toward one another." Or, in other words, be in unity in doctrine and practice. This is only accomplished through humility. Humility comes by submitting yourself to someone else. In the Church this is done by fellow ministers of the Word submitting themselves to examination of their doctrine, life, and practice by their other fellow ministers of the Word. This is only fostered by an enviroment of accountability, meaning, when your brother ministers challenge your doctrines or life or practice, that minister should listen to them, and humble himself before them., especially if that fellow minister of the Word be a Bishop, who has the care of the ministers under his authority.

Where this humility and accountability exists, love, trust, and peace exist. Our prayer is that the whole Church on Earth might experience this great gift of our Lord God.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

Do Not Be Conformed to This World: Romans 12:1-5

Romans 12:1-5: "1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. 3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another."

The Collect for today, the First Sunday after Epiphany, states,

"O Lord, we beseech Thee mercifully to receive the prayers of Thy people, who call upon Thee; and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfill the same; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth, with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen."

This Collect carries the theme of the reading wonderfully. The Blessed Apostle St. Paul in the Epistle reading for the First Sunday after Epiphany, which is also this morning's reading, captures the spirit of the Lord's wholehearted consecration of Himself to His Father from today's Gospel reading of the Boy Jesus in the Temple from St. Luke 2. This reading is all about conforming one's self to the will of the Father. It is all about obedience. And the Blessed Apostle, St. Paul, explains to the Church at Rome, that that obedience applies to us as well.

Our Lord Jesus was to be about His Father's business in the Temple. He was to be obedient to the Father's will. We too, are to be about our Father's will. Well, this obviously begs the question, "What is the Father's will?" We learn from Dr. Martin Luther's Small Catechism, on the Lord's Prayer, the third petition, that the Father's will is done

"When God breaks and hinders every evil counsel and will which would not let us hallow the name of God nor let His kingdom come, such as the will of the devil, the world, and our flesh; but strengthens and preserves us steadfast in His Word and in faith unto our end. This is His good and gracious will." *

This means that God's will is to destroy the devil, the world, and all sinfulness. This is done by what we learn from the first two petitions of the Lord's prayer, having His Name being hallowed, and having His kingdom come. God's name is hallowed, when His word is taught in its truth and purity, and we lead holy lives according to it. In other words, when we are obedient to our Father in heaven, by listening to His holy Word, and doing it, that is, His commandments. The kingdom of God comes to us when He gives us His Holy Spirit. His Holy Spirit gives us the grace to believe His holy Word, or to say it another way, the Holy Spirit creates and sustains faith in us. The Holy Spirit does this by the blessed Sacraments, through those means of grace, which impart to us faith and life.

And even though we pray for these things, God gives them to us without our prayer. This is why He has given us the Church, and within the Church, He has established parishes, with ministers, to dole out those gifts, so that we might have faith and life.

So just like our dear Lord Jesus as a boy in the Temple, who is to be about His Father's business, so too, are we to be about our Father's business, that is receiving, and rejoicing over the gifts that He gives us, both bodily gifts and spiritual gifts. This is what it means to "not be conformed to this world." For this world, wants nothing to do with the Father's will. There are even those in the Church, who bemoan and wail about having to go to church to worship, or they moan about having worship their way. They would trade the worship of our Lord, for the worship of themselves. Even the amount of worship gets slap in the face from this world. Heaven forbid that a worship service last more than an hour! And even more so, if one advocates worshipping on more than just on Sunday (except for Advent and Lent, then people will begrudgingly relent to Wednesday night services, since they only last a few weeks).

The Early Church, and the Church of the Middle Ages, worshipped daily, at least morning and evening, and in some places several times a day. Our lives as Christians should be filled with worship, that is, with the hearing of God's Word, and the receiving of His gifts. It must be this way, because the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh do not want us to hallow God's Name, or let His kingdom come, and they will do whatever it takes to destroy the faith and life that God planted into us through the means of grace. This is why, we as Christians, must come to the Lord's House, to His Temple, and "present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." For in is in His house, the place where He hands out His Word and gifts, where we find not only rest for our souls, from the battle that we face daily because of the devil, the world, and our flesh, but it is also the place where God strengthens us in His Word and Spirit, so that those unholy three, have no power over us.

So, rejoice today that our dear Father in heaven, has sent His Son into our flesh, and on account of Him, sends the Holy Spirit to us, that we might have forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation through the means of His grace, so that we might be obedient to Him, and trust and rely on Him for all of our wants and needs.

God's peace be with you!

Deacon Dulas


* Translation from Doctor Martin Luther Small Catechism and An Explanation of Christian Doctrine based on Doctor Luther's Small Catechism, Edited by Markku Sarela, Published by The Confessional Lutheran Church of Finland, 1999.