They Went Out and Preached That People Should Repent: St. Mark 6:1-29

St. Mark 6:1-29: "1 Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him. 2 And when the Sabbath had come, He began to teach in the synagogue. And many hearing Him were astonished, saying, 'Where did this Man get these things? And what wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands! 3 Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?' And they were offended at Him. 4 But Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.' 5 Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching. 7 And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits. 8 He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff--no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts--9 but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics. 10 Also He said to them, 'In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place. 11 And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!' 12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them. 14 Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, 'John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.' 15 Others said, 'It is Elijah.' And others said, 'It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.' 16 But when Herod heard, he said, 'This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!' 17 For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her. 18 For John had said to Herod, 'It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.' 19 Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. 21 Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. 22 And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, 'Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.' 23 He also swore to her, 'Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.' 24 So she went out and said to her mother, 'What shall I ask?' And she said, 'The head of John the Baptist!' 25 Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, 'I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.' 26 And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb."

Our Lord Jesus is not without honor except in His own country, among His own relatives, and in His own house. Therefore, He sends out His disciples to preach in His own country, and among His relatives, and in His own house, that is, the house of Israel. There are three things to point out about this sending. First, that our Lord Jesus gives them authority to cast out demons. They will do this through preaching His Word. Second, they are to take nothing with them, except a staff. They are to rid themselves of the trappings of this world. And they are to carry only a staff, the symbol of a prophet, as we see from Moses the first prophet, who carried the "rod of God." This staff is also a symbol of their role as shepherd to the lost sheep of Israel, just like the staff of Moses, was his rod that he used in his vocation of shepherd. Third, the preaching of the disciples is the same as the preaching of Jesus. We can see this from St. Mark 1:15, where our Lord starts His preaching by saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel." This is in fact that same preaching of St. John the Baptist, who is beheaded by Herod in this pericope, or as the ancient Church referred to it, the decollation of St. John the Baptist.

This preaching of the Jesus and the disciples, going out into the entire territory of Herod, causes him to think that St. John the Baptist is not dead. This causes the Evangelist St. Mark to relate to us the events leading up to the decollation of St. John the Baptist. Herodias is none to please with the preaching of St. John the Baptist, she doesn't like having her sin pointed out to her, she refuses to listen to the preaching of the Law. The same can be said about Herod, for he is after all the one who puts St. John the Baptist in prison. However, it is different with Herod, for we are told that he enjoys listening to the preaching of St. John the Baptist, and "heard him gladly." Herodias on the other hand shows no sign of the fear of God, instead we see from her the control and manipulation which she has over Herod, or as we say in the vernacular, "She wears the pants." Herodias plays the role of the devil, who stomps out every seed planted by the preaching of our Lord Jesus, so that it can never grow.

For this reason Herod is a poor character, for we get the sense from the Evangelist St. Mark that Herod if he was allowed to continue to listen to the Word of God would repent. However, Herodias will have none of that, and in the end, through her daughter, she brings St. John the Baptist's earthly life to a close.

One may wonder why the sending of the disciples, and the decollation of St. John the Baptist appear in the same pericope, or for that matter why in the Gospel of St. Mark, they are lumped next to each other? The answer is an easy one, when one remembers the Words of our Lord Jesus at the beginning of this pericope, "'A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house." The reality of this revealed to us when we consider that our Lord Jesus was crucified for His preaching, and that all but one of the disciples who were sent out as His apostles were killed for their preaching about our Lord Jesus. St. John the Baptist, we are shown, is killed for his preaching of our Lord Jesus, and even the some of the prophets of the Old Testament were killed for their preaching of the Messiah, who is our Lord Jesus Christ. We are shown here by the Evangelist St. Mark, what happens to the preachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The devil, through various means and people, tries to silence their voice. Herod perhaps thought that he would never hear the preaching of St. John the Baptist ever again, but our Lord shows His grace and mercy, by sending replacements for St. John the Baptist, His disciples. They go into the entire territory of Herod, and proclaim that the kingdom of God is at hand in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. This Word reaches back to Herod so that he thinks that St. John the Baptist is raised from the dead, and in a sense, that is, according to his preaching, he has been raised from the dead. New preachers of the Gospel have replaced him. Our Lord continues to send us preachers of the Gospel, so that we might hear what He has done for us. And there are still people who play the part of Herodias, who try to silence these preachers, who are offended at the preaching of repentance, who refuse to repent of their sin. Some of these are even within the Church, which we see when ministers of the Gospel are unjustly removed from their calls.

However, our Lord is abundant in His mercy for He keeps on sending ministers of the Gospel to these hard-hearted people with stopped up ears, so that they might repent. And even if they do to these preachers of the Gospel, what they did to the last one, our Lord Jesus will still send them more. There may be one or two preachers in the mix who will tickle their itching ears, and preach the ways of the world, and not the Word of God, but our Lord will continue to be gracious, and find a way for these individuals to hear the Gospel.

This is why this pericope is such good news for us, for we see the work of our Lord in providing ministers of the Gospel. We even have an example in Herod who even after he is forced to kill the one preacher he was willing to listen to, is given the opportunity to hear the Gospel preached again, through the disciples. We do not know from holy Scriptures, nor from history if Herod ever did repent, and from what we do know it doesn't look promising. But if Herod did continue to refuse to repent, it serves for us as a warning to heed the Words of the ministers of the Gospel who have been sent to preach to us, for they have been sent by our Lord Jesus Himself, to preach to us about Him. And if Herod did repent, then we have a shining example of how efficacious our Lord's Word is, for it has the power to convert even someone as hard-hearted as Herod. May the Lord God continue to send you preachers of the Gospel who will preach the Word of God in its truth and purity and administer the Sacraments of God according to Christ's institution.

God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

Behold, I Have Put My Words in Your Mouth: Jeremiah 1:4-10

Jeremiah 1:4-10 "4 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 5 'Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.' 6 Then said I: 'Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.' 7 But the LORD said to me: Do not say, "I am a youth," For you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,' says the LORD. 9 Then the LORD put forth His hand and touched my mouth, and the LORD said to me: 'Behold, I have put My words in your mouth. 10 See, I have this day set you over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant.'"

The Old Testament reading for Septuagesima is from the Prophet Jeremiah. At first glance this Old Testament lesson doesn't seem to fit in with the Gospel of the day which the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. However, when one considers that the theme of this day is calling or invitation, we can see that this pericope fits, for it embodies the calling of a prophet, specifically Jeremiah.

We can also see in this calling the reluctance of Jeremiah, just like we saw in Moses, the first prophet. Apparently, the prophets didn't learn from Moses, on this point. However, we could take this to be humility on the part of Jeremiah. After all, true servants of God are humble, properly understanding their relationship to the One Who sends thems. This same reluctance is shown in the Gospel reading for today, where the Landowner, our Lord Jesus, asks the ones who are standing idle, why they are doing so. To which they reply, "Because we haven't been asked." And upon being asked they go.

In this calling of Jeremiah, we see how the Lord consecrates or ordains His servants to preach His holy Word. The first step is that He places His hands on Jeremiah's lips. This is also seen in the ordination of the Prophet Isaiah, only he has his lips touched with a lump of coal from the altar. Ouch! Of course this was done to purify the Prophet Isaiah's impure lips. The Prophet Jeremiah, however, only receives the Lord's fingers on his lips. This is done so that the Prophet Jeremiah, as is told to us, may receive the Word of God into his mouth. Now the Prophet can speak the Word of God, proclaim what the Lord God gives to Him to proclaim, and by it he will "root out and pull down, destroy and throw down, and build and plant."

Only two of these things are positive things, that is, building and planting. The rest are forms of destruction. Rooting out implies weeds, getting rid of all the things that prevent the plants from growing. Pulling down refers to the idols that the Israelites have set up in place of the Lord God, which the Prophet Jeremiah is to pull down, and destroy. Destroying and throwing down, are related to the pulling down, destroying the false idols, and throwing down the kingdom of sin that has been established because of the false worship of these idols. And so we see from the first four tasks of Jeremiah, that his may preaching will be against sin, death, and the devil, that is, preaching the Law. After this has been done, then Jeremiah may build and plant the vineyard of the Lord God through the preaching of the Gospel.

Therefore, we see in the preaching of the Prophet Jeremiah, given to him by the Lord God, the preaching of Law and Gospel. He is to both point out sin, and correct sin, through the preaching of the Law of God, especially to this hard-hearted, rebellious people. In order that, after they have been shown their sin, and confess their sin, then Jeremiah may build and plant faith in the people of Israel through the words of the Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, which proclaims that our sins are forgiven on account of the sacrifice of Christ.

Our Lord had appointed the Prophet Jeremiah for this task before he was even formed in the womb. Before he was born, he was sanctified for this purpose. That was His plan from eternity, but now, here in time, the Lord God, calls the Prophet Jeremiah to the task he was pre-ordained to fulfill. Our Lord still calls men to be His prophets, that is, to proclaim His Law and Gospel, to this rebellious, and hard-hearted people. These men are called to call sinners to repentance, and tear down the false idols that people trust in instead of the Lord God, so that they might repent and hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It is to these men that we must listen, for what they speak is the Word of God, and not the man's word. Let us open our ears to hear the holy Word spoken from the lips of those whose mouths are full of the promises of our Lord Jesus Christ, so that we might be called by God through them, to work in the vineyard of the Landowner.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

I Will Raise Up For Them a Prophet Like You From Among Their Brethren: Deuteronomy 18:15-19

Deuteronomy 18:15-19: "15 The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear, 16 according to all you desired of the LORD your God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, 'Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, nor let me see this great fire anymore, lest I die.' 17 And the LORD said to me: 'What they have spoken is good. 18 I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. 19 And it shall be that whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him.'"

Unlike this morning's reading from the Epistle for today, which did not appear to have anything in common with the Gospel reading. This evening's reading, appointed as the Old Testament reading for the Second Sunday after Epiphany, shows the theme of the Gospel rather clearly. This reading from the Book of Moses, commonly called Deuteronomy, relates the prophecy given through Moses to the people of Israel, that our Lord God would raise up from among their brethren a Prophet.

In the Gospel for today we heard of our Lord Jesus manifesting Himself as God by working His first miracle. In this He shows that He is the Propet that our Lord God promised to the Israelites. We are told that His disciples believed on Him, on account of the miracle at Cana.

Our Lord God tells us that this Prophet would speak all the Words that He gave to Him. And whoever does not listen to them, or heed them, payment will be required. This is a clear statement that only our Lord Christ is the True Messiah, and that salvation is found only in Him. Those who do not hear His Words, that is, believe on Him as did the disciples in today's Gospel, cannot have salvation. There is only one way to heaven, and that is through the True Prophet, our Lord and Savior Jesus.

The Old Testament prophets were called and sent to preach glad tidings. The glad tidings of our Lord God, specifically the glad tidings of the coming Messiah. Our Lord Jesus as Prophet does the same thing, He proclaims Himself and His work of salvation. In the Gospel from St. John 2, our Lord doesn't speak to proclaim Himself, but He does a work, a miracle to proclaim Himself as the Messiah.

In our Lord Jesus this prophecy recorded in the Book of Moses called Deuteronomy is fulfilled. He manifests Himself as this Prophet by performing a miracle. This is really just the first step in His work of salvation for mankind. From Cana He began to preach and teach about what He was to do, and who He was. His disciples who were with Him in Cana got to spend the next three years with Him hearing His Word, which was the Father's Word. They in turn carried that Word to the whole world, until it reached our ears. We have been given the proclamation of the True Prophet. We have been told about our Lord Jesus and the great things that He did for us.

And through the mouths of the prophets of today, who proclaim our Savior, we continue to hear what He has done, that He fulfilled the Law perfectly for us, and suffered and died in our place. We hear of how our Lord Jesus sent us the Holy Ghost to work through means to give us faith and eternal life, so that we might have peace and joy in Him. And we hear of all the good things that our Lord Jesus continues to do for us through His Word and Sacraments, and that on the Last Day, He will raise us up, along with all the dead, and we who believe on Him; who have heard and listened to His Word, will live with Him forever in heaven.

May God keep you in His holy Word, and strengthen you richly and daily with His Holy Spirit.

God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

Then Melchizedek King of Salem Brought Out Bread and Wine; He Was the Priest of God Most High: Genesis 14:8-24

Genesis 14:8-24: "8 And the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and joined together in battle in the Valley of Siddim 9 against Chedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of nations, Amraphel king of Shinar, and Arioch king of Ellasar--four kings against five. 10 Now the Valley of Siddim was full of asphalt pits; and the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled; some fell there, and the remainder fled to the mountains. 11 Then they took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah, and all their provisions, and went their way. 12 They also took Lot, Abram's brother's son who dwelt in Sodom, and his goods, and departed. 13 Then one who had escaped came and told Abram the Hebrew, for he dwelt by the terebinth trees of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol and brother of Aner; and they were allies with Abram. 14 Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan. 15 He divided his forces against them by night, and he and his servants attacked them and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus. 16 So he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the people. 17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley), after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him. 18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 19 And he blessed him and said: 'Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; 20 And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.' And he gave him a tithe of all. 21 Now the king of Sodom said to Abram, 'Give me the persons, and take the goods for yourself.' 22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, 'I have raised my hand to the LORD, God Most High, the Possessor of heaven and earth, 23 that I will take nothing, from a thread to a sandal strap, and that I will not take anything that is yours, lest you should say, "I have made Abram rich"--24 except only what the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men who went with me: Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.'"

This evening we get to meet the high priest of God Most High, Melchizedek. And what does the priest of the Most High God do? He brings bread and wine. How could this not be anything but a figure of what the priests of today do every Sunday and Feast day? The priests of today, Bishops, Pastors, and Deacons, bring out the bread and wine to be consecrated in the Blessed Sacrament of our Lord's Supper.

Melchizedek is figure of our Lord Jesus Christ. The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews makes this connection for us in the fifth, sixth, and seventh chapters of that book. The Psalmist David, likewise in Psalm 110, connects the promised Messiah to Melchizedek. In these passages we have Scriptural proof, that Melchizedek is a prefigurement of the Messiah, that is, the Christ, our Lord Jesus, to come.

There are some things that need to be noted about Melchizedek. First, he is a king. Second, that he is the king of Salem. Third, that he is a priest of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth. Fourth, he blesses Abram. Fifth, the meaning of his name.

The fact that Melchizedek is a king, also ties him to our Lord Jesus. For our Lord is also a King. He sits on the right hand of the throne of God, judging the quick and the dead. What do kings do? Or, what are they supposed to do? Kings are supposed to supply the needs of their people. Melchizedek supplies the needs of those returning from the slaughter of the kings by bringing to them bread and wine. He brings them something to satisfy their hunger, and to lift their spirits. Our Lord Jesus supplies the needs of His people by giving them His very own Body and Blood in bread and wine, to feed their souls, and strengthen them from the battle with sin, death, and the devil. He also declares as King, that all those who believe and trust in Him, are free from sin, and free from the punishment of sin.

That Melchizedek is the king of Salem, also ties him to our Lord Jesus. Salem means peace. That means that Melchizedek is the king of peace. Our Lord Jesus is the true King of Peace, He is the true King of Salem. Salem is believed to be the city which became Jerusalem. Jerusalem means "set ye double peace." Jerusalem is the place where the Temple of God stood. It is where our Lord God decided to make His dwelling place on earth in the time of Solomon the king. It is also the place where the kings of Judah reigned. It is no surprise therefore, that our Lord Jesus Christ go there to take His place of residence. It is not His home, that was Capernaum. And our Lord did not dwell in the Temple, even though He preached there. Our Lord's true place of abode, the place where He reigns as our King of Peace, is on Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, that place where He offered up His own Body and Blood as a sacrifice for us, in order that we might have salvation.

Melchizedek is also connected to our Lord Jesus because he is a priest of God Most High. What do priests do? They offer sacrifices. Our Lord is the True Priest, for He not only offers the Sacrifice, but He also takes the place of the victim. He is the true Lamb of God, offered for our salvation, by the True Priest of God. Priests also intercede for the people. Our Lord Jesus, now sitting on the right hand of God the Father, intercedes for us to the Father, ever reminding Him of His Sacrifice, and that our punishment has been paid. Priests also were given the remnants of the sacrifice as their food. The Blessed St. Peter in his First Epistle calls us "a royal priesthood." What that means is that we now get to enjoy the food that once was only reserved for the levitical priests. We get to eat the once for all Sacrifice of our Lord's Body and Blood under bread and wine. Melchizedek prefigures this great meal of forgiveness by bringing out bread and wine for the weary battlers. We as weary battlers with sin, death, the devil, the world, and our flesh, are refreshed through this salutary meal.

Melchizedek also blesses Abram. This shows his role as a prophet. The purpose of a prophet was to preach glad tidings. Melchizedek preaches to Abram that it was God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth, who brought him the victory. It doesn't say it, but we can assume since Abram doesn't object, that Abram received this preaching with the ears of faith, believing wholeheartedly that God has indeed accomplished this through him. Our Lord Jesus is also a prophet, as we heard in this mornings text, He preaches Himself, and the good things that He plans to do for us. He preaches His death on the cross, for our salvation. And He preaches that He will give us His very own Body and Blood to eat and drink for our forgiveness.

Melchizedek is a prophet, priest and king. Our Lord Jesus is a Prophet, Priest, and King. That brings us to the final point about Melchizedek, and that is his name. Melchizedek means "my king is righteousness." Does that not bring our Lord Jesus to mind? Our Lord and King is Righteousness. Contrast that with our unrighteousness. We break the Law of God constantly. We fail miserably in keeping the commandments. We confess in public confession, that we are "poor, miserable sinners." This is a good confession, because it is true, and it is honest. On account of our sin we are deemed unrighteous. But our Lord Jesus is Righteousness. What that means, is that in His righteousness, He fulfills the Law perfectly for us. He covers over our unrighteousness, with His righteousness, so that our Father in heaven sees only His righteousness when He looks at our works. We, therefore, are counted righteous not because of anything that we did, or are doing, but because of what our Lord Jesus Christ did, and is doing.

Therefore, we can rejoice that we are counted righteous, that we have a High Priest, in the order of Melchizedek, who intercedes on our behalf constantly to the Father. And because of this we are deemed holy and pure. Rejoice in your holiness and perfection!

God be with you!

Deacon Dulas