Here Is a Place By Me, And You Shall Stand on the Rock: Exodus 33:1-23

Exodus 33:1-23: "1 Then the LORD said to Moses, 'Depart and go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, "To your descendants I will give it." 2 And I will send My Angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanite and the Amorite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite. 3 Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people.' 4 And when the people heard this bad news, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments. 5 For the LORD had said to Moses, 'Say to the children of Israel, "You are a stiff-necked people. I could come up into your midst in one moment and consume you. Now therefore, take off your ornaments, that I may know what to do to you."' 6 So the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by Mount Horeb. 7 Moses took his tent and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of meeting. And it came to pass that everyone who sought the LORD went out to the tabernacle of meeting which was outside the camp. 8 So it was, whenever Moses went out to the tabernacle, that all the people rose, and each man stood at his tent door and watched Moses until he had gone into the tabernacle. 9 And it came to pass, when Moses entered the tabernacle, that the pillar of cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the Lord talked with Moses. 10 All the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the tabernacle door, and all the people rose and worshiped, each man in his tent door. 11 So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle. 12 Then Moses said to the LORD, 'See, You say to me, "Bring up this people." But You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, "I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight." 13 Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.' 14 And He said, 'My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.' 15 Then he said to Him, 'If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. 16 For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth.' 17 So the LORD said to Moses, 'I will also do this thing that you have spoken; for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.' 18 And he said, 'Please, show me Your glory.' 19 Then He said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.' 20 But He said, 'You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.' 21 And the LORD said, 'Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. 22 So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. 23 Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.'"

In this pericope we again see Moses being a prefigurement of our Lord Jesus Christ. For our Lord God chooses to reveal His glory to Moses, but Moses must be hid in the cleft of the rock. This is very similar to an episode that the Prophet Elijah had where he too was allowed to see the Lord's glory pass by while he was in the cleft of a rock. In this we have a connection between Moses and Elijah, and this glory that they only got to see from the cleft of the rock, and not even the Lord's full glory, for His face was hidden from them, we see fully revealed on the Mount of Transfiguration. There Moses and Elijah talk with our Lord Jesus, and they are not afraid, however, the Apostles, St. Peter, St. James the Elder, and St. John, are shaking in their sandles, with their faces to the ground, for they had been revealed the full glory of our Lord Jesus.

But Moses and Elijah are not afraid, for they had seen this glory before. This cleft in the rock also holds significance, because it points to the cleft of rock that our Lord Jesus was placed into after His crucifixion. He was placed in a brand new tomb, that had been cut out of rock. Therefore, Moses, and Elijah, being placed into this cleft in the rock is a picture of the tomb of our Lord Jesus. In this tomb, our Lord reveals His true glory, for in the tomb, our Lord Jesus, buries, once and for all, sin, death, and the power of the devil, so that they can no longer harm us.

Having done this, we, unlike Moses, and Elijah, can see the full glory of the Lord face to face. And we behold that glory, whenever we receive His Body and Blood in bread and wine. The bread that we eat, is the Body of Christ, and the wine which we drink, is the Blood of Christ, this is His glory, the giving out of the forgiveness, life and salvation, that He won for us on the tree of the cross.

Therefore, as we enter into Lent, let us stand upon this Rock, and hide ourselves in the cleft of this Rock, and behold our Lord's glory, which we will reveal to us in His holy crucifixion. May our eyes ever be shown our sin, that we may cast them at the foot of the cross.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

And After He is Killed, He Will Rise the Third Day: St. Mark 9:2-32

St. Mark 9:2-32: "2 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. 3 His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. 4 And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. 5 Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, 'Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah'--6 because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. 7 And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, 'This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!' 8 Suddenly, when they had looked around, they saw no one anymore, but only Jesus with themselves. 9 Now as they came down from the mountain, He commanded them that they should tell no one the things they had seen, till the Son of Man had risen from the dead. 10 So they kept this word to themselves, questioning what the rising from the dead meant. 11 And they asked Him, saying, 'Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?' 12 Then He answered and told them, 'Indeed, Elijah is coming first and restores all things. And how is it written concerning the Son of Man, that He must suffer many things and be treated with contempt? 13 But I say to you that Elijah has also come, and they did to him whatever they wished, as it is written of him.' 14 And when He came to the disciples, He saw a great multitude around them, and scribes disputing with them. 15 Immediately, when they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and running to Him, greeted Him. 16 And He asked the scribes, 'What are you discussing with them?' 17 Then one of the crowd answered and said, 'Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a mute spirit. 18 And wherever it seizes him, it throws him down; he foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth, and becomes rigid. So I spoke to Your disciples, that they should cast it out, but they could not.' 19 He answered him and said, 'O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.' 20 Then they brought him to Him. And when he saw Him, immediately the spirit convulsed him, and he fell on the ground and wallowed, foaming at the mouth. 21 So He asked his father, 'How long has this been happening to him?' And he said, "From childhood. 22 And often he has thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.' 23 Jesus said to him, 'If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.' 24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, 'Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!' 25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, 'Deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, come out of him and enter him no more!' 26 Then the spirit cried out, convulsed him greatly, and came out of him. And he became as one dead, so that many said, 'He is dead.' 27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. 28 And when He had come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, 'Why could we not cast it out?' 29 So He said to them, 'This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.' 30 Then they departed from there and passed through Galilee, and He did not want anyone to know it. 31 For He taught His disciples and said to them, 'The Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him. And after He is killed, He will rise the third day.' 32 But they did not understand this saying, and were afraid to ask Him."

This pericope as the recurring theme of our Lord Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection. The disciples first heard about our Lord's death and resurrection immediately after confessing Him to be the Son of God, which we heard in the previous chapter. Then on the Mount of Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah appear to our Lord Jesus to discuss, we are told from another Gospel, the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. Coming down the mountain, He discusses with His disciples His death and resurrection, and then after casting out an unclean spirit, He again tells His disciples about His death and resurrection. That is three times in this reading where our Lord's crucifixion and resurrection are related to His disciples and to us; Four if you count the previous scene which happened, according to the Evangelist St. Mark, six days before.

And so our eyes and our thoughts are directed by our Lord Jesus to the cross, that is, to His death for us. On the Mount of Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah discuss His death with Him. The question is often asked, "Why Moses and Elijah?" There are several reasons for this.

First, both Moses and Elijah had the privilege of seeing the Lord in His glory pass by. Both of them were hidden in a cleft of a rock for their protection. This cleft of rock prefigured the tomb of Christ, who was placed inside a tomb that was cut out of a rock.

Second, Moses and Elijah represent the beginning and the end of the prophets. Moses was the first prophet specifically called and sent by the Lord God, and Elijah was to be the last prophet to come and herald the coming of the Messiah; He was supposed to be the forerunner. Elijah's return is fulfilled in the person of St. John the Baptist, as we learn from our Lord in this reading that Elijah has come. However, we learn from another Gospel that this was St. John the Baptist.

The third reason for Moses and Elijah being the ones who converse with our Lord Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration deals with the special relationship that these two men enjoyed with our Lord God, especially in their final days. Moses we are told was buried by God, and Elijah we know was carried into Heaven on a fiery chariot. Both of these men received special treatment in their deaths from our Lord God, and were therefore equipped to prepare our Lord Jesus for His own death.

Fourth, the Lord brings His disciples to the Mount to meet Moses and Elijah, for there were those who (not among the disciples) who believed our Lord Jesus to be Elijah, or one of the prophets, which we learn from the previous chapter of St. Mark. Therefore, we see the reason for Elijah's presence. Our Lord Jesus was also accused by some to be a blasphemer and a breaker of the Law of Moses. Moses' presence is a testimony that our Lord Jesus is not a transgressor of the Law of Moses, but is in fact in fellowship and league with him.

Fifth, our Lord brings the disciples, St. Peter, St. James the Elder, and St. John, before Moses and Elijah to present to them a picture of life and death, or to say it another way, to present to them a picture of the resurrction itself, and the power that our Lord Jesus has over life and death. For Moses had died, but Elijah did not. And so, in these two men themselves we see a picture of our Lord Jesus' death and resurrection. We can also see in these two men our own resurrection from death.

Sixth, we have here in this meeting of our Lord Jesus with Moses and Elijah, a meeting of the Old Testament with the New Testament. The Old Testament promises, made by Moses and Elijah about the coming of the Messiah, are fulfilled in our Lord Jesus Christ. And the disciples, who were present, would become the prophets of the New Testament proclaiming that our Messiah, the Christ, who is our Lord Jesus, has come, and has brought forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation.

Finally, and there could be more, we see in Moses and Elijah two prophets who defeated and destroyed that which was evil, and that led to the oppression and slavery of men's souls. For Moses, through the plagues defeated Pharaoh, and led the people of Israel out of the oppression and bondage of slavery. In this we see represented God's deliverance from the slavery of sin. Elijah, also called down fire from Heaven, and killed the five hundred false prophets of Baal. We see represented in this our Lord God's removal of all lies and false preaching.

In our Lord's death and resurrection, we see both of these things, we see our Lord Jesus' sacrifice for us, winning for us forgiveness, life and salvation. And we see our Lord dispelling all false teaching, and false ways to get salvation, for in Him alone and in His death to we find salvation. So today, we get to hear of our Lord's death and resurrection, and we get to hear of what He did for us, fulfilling the Law on our behalf, and sacrificing Himself in our place so that, like Him, we too might not die eternally, but be raised again to live with Him in Heaven for all eternity.

God be with you!

Deacon Dulas

The Spirit of the Lord God is Upon Me: Isaiah 61:1-3

Isaiah 61:1-3: "1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, because the LORD has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."

 

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me. Our Lord Jesus quotes these words about Himself, in the synagogue of Nazareth. This pericope contains that our Lord Jesus is to do and fulfill: preach good tidings to the poor; heal the brokenhearted; proclaim liberty to the captives; open the prison of those who are bound; proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God; and comfort those who mourn.

The one phrase that stands out is the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God. This is a reference to the crucifixion of our dear Lord Jesus. On that day and in that year, God's vengeance over sin was appeased by the acceptable sacrifice of our Savior on the cross. He offers Himself up as a sacrifice for our sins, taking on Himself our punishment.

This is the glad tidings that is preached to the poor, that heals the brokenhearted, that comforts the ones who mourn. The death of Christ, frees from the prison of sin and death, all those who are bound in it. It gives freedom from sin, death, and the devil to all those who are held captive by them. Our dear Lord Jesus destroys sin, death, hell, the devil, the world, our sinful flesh, all by His death on the cross.

This reading, which is the Old Testament appointed for The First Sunday after Epiphany from The Lutheran Hymnal, also ends talking about "trees of righteousness." How could this be anything but a reference to the tree upon which our dear Lord hung as a sacrifice for us. This tree which led to our Lord's death, cancels out the tree that led to Adam's death. It is a tree where His righteousness is displayed for the whole world. It happens in such a way that this tree of death, becomes for us, the tree of life. The means by which our Lord Christ, won for us eternal life by His death and resurrection.

This morning we heard from the Gospel lesson that the Boy Jesus was in His Father's house, answering and asking questions of the elders. Little did those who marveled at His wisdom, realize who this child was, nor did they know for what He was destined. We are not told what exactly was discussed, but one can't help but imagine that this passage from Isaiah, or another just like it from the Old Testament, was discussed by them. For we know that our Lord was constantly teaching people about the purpose of His coming, that is His suffering and death on our behalf.

And so, we rejoice today, for the death of our Savior. We rejoice that the Boy Jesus, who marveled the teachers of the Law with His wisdom, fulfilled that Law perfectly for us, and took our punishment upon Himself on that tree of righteousness.

May God be with you!

Deacon Dulas