Sermons

Dear fellow Lenten worshippers of our one and only Savior, Jesus Christ “Learn a lesson from the seeds!” I. Death is necessary…..II. so that life will come INTRODUCTION It happens every spring. Even when we get a late snow like we just had, it still happens. What I’m talking about is, gardeners and farmers alike look forward to that time when they are able to plant the seeds which will bring a fall harvest. But did you ever think “How do we get the seeds?”? I say that because that is what we need to think about to understand what our Savior is talking about in our text for today. Jesus tells us to “Learn a lesson from the seeds”! In order for us to have that packet of seeds to plant this spring, last fall or winter a plant or vegetable or fruit had to die to give off the many seeds in that packet you will plant. With that picture in mind, our Savior speaks to us in a spiritual vein and tells us “Learn a lesson from the seeds”! That lesson is I. Death is necessary………II. So that life may come. I invite you listen for those thoughts as we read again vv. 20, 21, 23 & 24 of our Gospel lesson from John 12. I. Death is necessary…… “We want to see Jesus” that was the request of some of the Greeks to Philip. “We want to see Jesus” that is still the request of people today. But sadly that request then and now sometimes comes from the wrong motive. Remember that these Greeks were relatively new to the faith. They had heard of Jesus and his miracles – how he had raised the dead, healed the sick and changed water into wine. And now they wanted to see him do something similar in person. Still today when people say “We want to see Jesus”, they want to see him on their own terms. They want to see Jesus in their own way and not always as he is. Did you think about what we sang in v. 2 of the hymn (#387) just a few minutes ago.? “How well you know my griefs and fears, your grace abused, my misspent years”. We confessed together that God knows we have doubted and wrongly been afraid. That we have abused God’s grace and not always lived our lives in ways that are pleasing to our heavenly Father. Realizing that, we want to come before our heavenly Father and ask for complete, full and free forgiveness of all our sins. If that is the way we want to see Jesus – if we want to see him as he really is – not just in his power and glory, but also as our suffering Savior – we need to learn the first lesson from the seeds – death is necessary! Just like death is necessary for one seed to produce many others, Jesus’ death is necessary for our salvation. In order for our sins to be paid for, Jesus had to die. It was only his perfect life – keeping every part of God’s Law where we had failed miserably and his innocent death – so that as we were reminded in our second lesson (Hebrews ) Jesus could offer to his heavenly Father the complete and full payment for your sins, for mine and for the sins of the whole world. That is why Jesus tells us – death is necessary! But he also wants us to learn an equally important second lesson from the seeds – when death is necessary and happens – life will come. II. So that life will come Because of the death of a plant or vegetable or fruit last fall or winter, you and I can go to the hardware store or garden center and get a packet of seeds which will give new life to a plant this spring. Because of the death of Jesus, we also have life - spiritual life. The gift of faith has been put into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. We are the seeds! But if you go down and buy those seeds for your garden and leave them on the shelf in the garage or shed – what good do they do? It is only when those seeds are planted in the ground, watered, fertilized and nurtured that they grow and produce fruit. In the same way, if we simply take the seed of faith which has been planted in our hearts and so to speak put it on the shelf. If we do little or nothing with it and keep it to ourselves, it is not going to grow and produce fruit. Our Savior therefore asks us “what are you going to do with that seed?”. He saw that death was absolutely necessary to win salvation for us. He willingly, gladly and freely gave himself – soul and body for us. The result is that we have new life – spiritual life with him forever. How are we going to use that life? That is what we just sang about in v. 4 of the sermon hymn “To pledge my labor willingly, which shall so sweet a service be”. Some might say “Since my Savior willingly gave himself for me, I am willingly to give my whole self – soul, body and mind – to do whatever he asks me to do. I am going to strive to dedicate my time, my abilities and all my earthly blessings to be used for his glory”. Some might realize what a great blessing that seed of faith is – that new life which they have been given – and see others around them who do not have it and say “I am going to share it with them so that out of Christ’s death, they too may have the new life of faith”. Still others might say “Since Christ gave himself entirely for me, I am going to give my life in full time service to him and his Church.” CONCLUSION Perhaps you remember just over 20 years ago when an airplane crashed into the Potomac River outside of Washington D.C. What is etched in the minds of many people is an unnamed man who clung to the tail of the airplane. Every time the rescue helicopter would lower the lifeline, he would pass it to another passenger. When the rescue helicopter had rescued everyone else and went back to get him, it was too late, he has slipped into the icy water. He willingly gave up his life to save the life of others. In a similar way, that is what Jesus stresses to us in our text that he willingly gave up his life to save each one of us. He could have come down from the cross. He cold have walked away from his suffering and death. But he saw it necessary that he go through it all – to give us life – the life of faith. And now he asks each one of us “What are you going to do with that life?”