THEN CLEANSED BE EVERY LIFE

FROM SIN!

December 10, 2017

Pastor Mark F. Bartels

Old Testament Lesson; Isaiah 40:1-11

Epistle Lesson; 2 Peter 3:8-14

Sermon Text; Mark 1:1-8

Our text for today is taken from Mark, chapter one, verses one through eight. We read this in our Savior's name.

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This is how it is written in the prophet Isaiah: Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare the way for you. A voice of one calling out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord. Make His paths straight.”

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him. They were baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins. John was clothed in camel's hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey. He preached, “One more powerful than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of His sandals! I baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

I love how Mark starts out! This is the beginning of the Gospel, which is The Good News. About what? About Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

And then, Mark is going to spend the rest of the book of Mark explaining that Jesus is the Son of God. We won't hear Him called the Son of God again, in the book of Mark, until the soldier, the Centurion, pierces Jesus' side at the cross, looks at Him, and says,

“Surely this was the Son of God.”

John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

These are your words, Heavenly, Father. Lead us in the way of truth. Your Word is truth.

Amen

If you were asked the question, “Who, besides Jesus, is the greatest person who ever lived on the earth”, what would you answer? We would probably have a wide variety of answers. I do know what Jesus would answer. He said, “Among those born of woman, there is no one greater than John the Baptist.” That's a high distinction that Jesus gave John the Baptist. He considered John the greatest person who ever lived on the face of the earth, besides Christ, Himself.

What do we know about John the Baptist? If we were playing Bible Trivia right now, since Jesus considered him so great, what do we know about him? If I were to ask you,

“Do you know who John's parents were?”, do you know what the answer is?

His parents were Zechariah and Elizabeth.

If I were to ask you,

“What was his father's job?”, would you know the answer to that?

His father, Zechariah, worked as a church worker. He was a Levite and worked in the temple.

If I were to ask you,

“Do you know the miraculous circumstances under which John the Baptist was born?”, would you be able to answer the question?

Here is what we know. We know Zechariah was in the temple one day, when the Angel Gabriel appeared to him. We know Zechariah and Elizabeth were older, because Zechariah said to the angel he, and his wife were well along in years. In fact, they were beyond the age of having children, and yet the Angel Gabriel promised Zechariah that he, and his wife, Elizabeth were going to have a baby. He told Zechariah the baby should be named John. He told Zechariah the baby would be filled with the Holy Spirit and the baby would go in the power of Elijah. And, here was the huge, huge thing. This baby would prepare the way. He would be the way preparer for the Savior of the world.

“Do you know who John the Baptist was related to?”

A very famous person. He was related to Jesus. How do we know that? Six months later, the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary. He told Mary she was going to have a baby, the Savior of the world, the Son of God. Then, he concluded it by saying “Even your cousin Elizabeth who was barren, is now six months with child.” So Mary and Elizabeth were cousins, or relatives, which means Jesus and John the Baptist were relatives, and John the Baptist was six months older than Jesus.

We know that when John the Baptist came, the Bible even describes what type of clothing he wore. That is getting pretty detailed, isn't it? Why does the Bible describe that?

Did you know the Bible says John was going to come in the spirit and power of Elijah? Elijah had lived 850 years earlier. He was considered the great prophet of The Old Testament. He is one of only two people who never died. We know the Bible describes Elijah as one who wore hairy garments, and a leather belt around his waist We know it was while he was out in the wilderness, near The Jordan River, that he was caught up into Heaven, in the fiery chariot. Now, 850 years later, in that same region, out in the wilderness, by The Jordan River, appears a man who is dressed the same way Elijah was - camel's hair, and a leather belt around his waist. People should have connected the dots, and realized, “This is the Elijah who was promised to come to prepare the way for Jesus.”

Then, the Bible even tells us, point blank, that John is the one who was prophesied by the prophet Isaiah, saying, “Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare the way for you. A voice of one calling out in the wilderness, “Prepare the way of the Lord. Make His paths straight.”
So, John the Baptist had the profound job, and privilege of preparing people for the coming of Jesus.

How in the world did John the Baptist do that? How do you prepare people for the coming of the Savior of the world?

We sang a verse in our hymn for today that said,

Then, cleansed be every life from sin.

And furnished for a guest within.

And, let us all our hearts prepare,

For Christ to come, and enter there.

John the Baptist's job was to prepare hearts for Christ to come into their hearts.

How did John do that? The Bible simply tells us this is what John did. It says,

“He preached a baptism of repentance

for the forgiveness of sins.”

Well, that is pretty simple. It's pretty straight forward. It is pretty plain. He preached, and baptized about a repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

Now, what in the world does that mean? I think, sometimes when we think of the world 'repentance' or 'repent', we think it means, “I am sorry for the sins I have done. I am going to stop doing them. I am going to turn around and live a different life.”

So, if I lied, I am going to stop lying. I am sorry I have lied. And, I am going to start telling the truth.

But, here is what is so important to recognize. That changed life, where I am going to start telling the truth, is not repentance. Did you know the Bible, and even John said that is the fruits of repentance. He told people,

“Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”

But, the changed life style, the telling the truth, the being kind, the being good, those are the fruits of repentance.

So, what is repentance? John preached repentance for the forgiveness of sin. As we study scripture we discover repentance consists of two things.

-Number one, contrition, or sorrow over sin.

-Number two, is faith in Jesus, as our Savior, and trust in the forgiveness of sins.

That is repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

-So, John came, and he preached contrition. He pointed out, through the power of the Holy Spirit, working through The Word, he pointed out to people the sins in their lives. The Holy Spirit worked through that to make them contrite. They became sorry for their sin. They wished their sin was gone.

And then, the second thing John the Baptist did, after preaching The Law, through which the Holy Spirit convicted hearts, is

-he preached The Gospel. He preached “The Good News”. He pointed to Jesus, and the Holy Spirit worked through that Gospel message to give people trust in the forgiveness of sins. He pointed to Jesus, and he said,

“One more powerful than I, is coming after me.

I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of His sandals!

I baptize you with water,

but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

He was pointing to Jesus as the great Son of God, who has the power to save, and the power to deliver. He pointed to Jesus and said,

“Behold the Lamb of God

who takes away the sin of the world.”

The Holy Spirit worked through that good news message to give people the comfort of the forgiveness of sins.

-Then, came the fruits of repentance. People who were sorry for their sins, and knew their sins were forgiven, would then ask John, “What should I do?”

He told them, “Give to the poor.” He told the tax collectors, “Don't take more than you should take.” He told the soldiers, “Don't extort money from people.”

“Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”

He was preparing people for the coming of the Savior of the world.

So, if John the Baptist were to come here, today, and he were to prepare your heart for the coming of Jesus, what would he do?

What would he preach? I know what he would do. It would be very, very simple. If John the Baptist came, stood in front of me, and he looked at me, eye to eye, he would say, “Mark, repent. Repent”.

Remember, repentance consists of two things.

-Number one it is contrition, or sorrow over sin.

-Number two, it is faith in Christ, as your Savior.

Some people mistakenly believe repentance happens once in your lifetime. There are some big churches that teach you repent once. That is the time when you changed your life, and decided, “I have been going the wrong direction. I have been a sinner, and now I am going to stop. I have changed. I have repented.”

But, the Bible does not teach that repentance is a one time deal. The Bible teaches repentance is a lifestyle. It is a lifestyle we live.

Some people believe repentance is something I do just when I commit some big sin. “OK, I committed a big sin, so I better tell God about that, and ask Him to forgive me.”

But, we would say repentance is more than that. Repentance is a lifestyle. It would be like saying, “You know, I took a bath one time, twenty years ago. Now I am clean. I don't have to take a bath, because I already took one.” Or, it would be like saying, “I only take a bath when I can tell I am really super dirty.” I don't do that, and you don't, either. We daily, regularly take a bath, because we know that daily and regularly we need to be cleansed. Repentance is the same way. Repentance is a lifestyle, where we daily recognize, “I have sinned against God. I have sinned against God. Today, I sinned against God. Thank God, Jesus is my Savior, and those sins are forgiven.” It is that regular realization, every day. It is a devotional part of a life of a Christian.

Now, how does that happen that we daily, and regularly repent of our sins? Did you know you cannot bring yourself to repentance? It is impossible for you to do that. The only person who can bring you to repentance is the Holy Spirit.

Only the Holy Spirit can work in your heart

to convict your heart,

causing you to be contrite, or sorry for your sins.

That can't happen any other way, but by the power of the Holy Spirit. There is no way you can comfort yourself, with the forgiveness of sins, unless the Holy Spirit works in your heart to comfort you, with the forgiveness of sins.

So, how does the Holy Spirit do that?

The Holy Spirit works through The Word.

It is through The Word that He convicts us of our sin. It is through The Word He comforts us, with the Gospel Message. That is repentance. I am sorry for my sin. I trust Jesus forgives me. And so it is so important for us, as Christians to learn how to apply The Word of God to our lives. It is through The Word that the Holy Spirit daily convicts me, shows me my sin, and daily shows me my need for a Savior, and that Jesus is my Savior.

One of the reasons I love to listen to Pastor Tweit preach, is because when he preaches, he is teaching you how to devotionally use The Word of God in your home. Any good preacher should teach you, by example, as you look at the Bible, “How does this Bible passage apply to me? How does this Bible passage, and how does the Holy Spirit, use this passage to convict me of my sin?”

You will notice every Sunday, every Sunday, Pastor Tweit (and any good pastor) is going to use the text to show you your sin, so that the Holy Spirit can work in your heart to prepare your heart for Jesus. “I am a sinner. I need a Savior.”

Then, Pastor Tweit, (and any good pastor), is going to use the text to comfort you, with the Gospel. “How does this passage comfort me with Jesus? How does it show me that Jesus paid for my sins? How does it show me that God washes away my sins, for Christ's sake? How does it show me that Jesus is the Savior of the world?”

That is the daily life of a Christian. “I want to devotionally learn to apply The Word to my life, so the Holy Spirit keeps me in that lifestyle of repentance.”

I want to tell you about something that I think is really masterful about something our Catechism does. In the Catechism you will find two prayers. One we refer to as Martin Luther's Morning Prayer, and the other is referred to as Martin Luther's Evening Prayer. Everyone is encouraged to memorize them, as daily prayers. They are really simple prayers.

I want to point out something very interesting about these prayers. What they do is teach daily repentance, the act of daily repentance. They are very similar to each other. The first one begins,

“I thank thee my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, your dear Son, that you have kept me this night from all harm and danger.”

The evening one starts out almost the exact same way,

“I thank you my Heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ your dear Son, that you have graciously kept me this day.”

They end almost the same way. They say,

“Into your hands I commend my body, and soul and all things. Let your holy angel be with me that the wicked foe may have no power over me.”

The key difference between these two prayers is that second sentence. In the evening, the Christian looks back over the day, and using The Gospel, as he looks back over the day, realizing all of his sins, he prays,

“Forgive me all of my sins that I have done wrong.”

Then, he wakes up in the morning, eager to bear fruit in keeping with repentance. “I am a sinner. I know Jesus has forgiven all of my sins. I am forgiven.” So, in the morning, he says, “What?”

“Keep me this day also from sin, and every evil, that all of my doings in life may please you.”
So, we begin the day looking ahead, saying, “I know that I am a sinner, but my sins are forgiven for Christ's sake. I am so thankful. God, today, help me bear fruit in keeping with repentance. You have forgiven my sin of jealousy. Help me not to be jealous today. You have forgiven my sin of pride. Help me not to be proud today. You have forgiven my sin of saying mean things about other people. Help me to say kind things about others today. You have forgiven the bad thoughts I had. Help me to have good thoughts today.”

As we look out in the day then, we strive to bear fruit in keeping with repentance.

But, we get to the end of the day, and again, we look back and realize, “Today, I wasn't perfect.” The Holy Spirit convicts our hearts through The Word, shows us our sin, and then we apply The Gospel. What do we say? “Forgive me all of my sins that I have done wrong today.”

That is the exercise of daily repentance in the life of a Christian. That is so important, because without repentance, which is knowing I am a sinner, and trusting in Jesus, as my Savior, there will be no fruits of repentance. There won't be a changed life. It is so critical, for a Christian, of that lifestyle of repentance.

I want to end with this thought. It says John the Baptist baptized. I think the vast majority of you have been baptized. In fact, our Catechism says,

“In the morning when you get up, make the sign of the holy cross, and say, 'In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.'”

Why is that? It is to remind you that you are baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

“At nighttime, make the sign of the holy cross, before you go to bed and say, 'In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit', to remind you that you are baptized.”

During Advent, we wear blue. It reminds us of Heaven, but it also reminds us of water, and being baptized, doesn't it?

John the Baptist baptized a repentance

for the forgiveness of sins.

There was this famous Christian by the name of Tertullian. He lived way back about 150 years after Jesus was born. He was from Northern Africa. (Do you remember the symbol of Christ is sometimes the fish?) Well, Tertullian said, “We are all 'little fish', as Christians, following after 'the Big Fish'. The devil is trying to keep us from following 'the Big Fish', Jesus, and he does it by trying to (listen to this) take us out of 'the water'.”

The devil tries to keep us from following 'the Big Fish', Christ, by taking us out of 'the water'. He was referring to your baptism.

Here is what our Catechism says, and I want to conclude with this. This is a very powerful statement in our Catechism, concerning baptism. It says,

“What does such baptizing with water mean?” Listen carefully. It says,

“Such baptizing with water means the old Adam in us should by (what?) by daily contrition and repentance be drowned, and die to all sin, and evil lust, and a new man, daily, daily come forth and arise, who shall live before Christ in righteousness, and holiness, forever.”

Where is this written? St. Paul writes, Romans, six, verse four,

“We were therefore buried with Christ

by baptism into death

in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead

by the glory of the Father,

we too, we too, may walk in newness of life.”

God grant that to all of us, for Jesus' sake.

Amen

Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be. World without end.

Now, may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep our hearts, and our minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord.

Amen