"Rejoice In The Day"

I don’t now about each of you, but as far as I’m concerned, one of the most important characteristics that we want to see in a friend or co-worker is that they keep their word. It can be really frustrating when someone says "I’ll take care of it," and then we find out later that the task they promised to do is still not done.

Or when someone says something like, "Yes, I’ll be at the meeting tomorrow and I’ll support you 100%." But then the meeting takes place and your fellow employee either doesn’t show up or even worse, never says a word on your behalf. It’s all about integrity. It’s all about keeping your word. It’s important for our friends to keep their word, so we can trust them to be there when we need them the most.

In our Gospel lesson, we also hear about keeping a word. It’s not about keeping our word or our promises, but rather it’s about keeping the Word of God. Here, keeping the Word takes on a whole new meaning, because it’s not about putting our trust in ourselves or in other people. It’s about putting our trust in the Word of him who is completely trustworthy, Jesus Christ. Jesus says in our text; "I do know (the Father) and I keep his word." Later Jesus says that there are great benefits for those who keep his Word.

So today, let us keep the Word of Christ. Let us keep His Word because He is the Son of God.

In their spiritual blindness, the Jews could not see or understand who Jesus was. They were fully aware of his earthly ancestry. They knew he was a descendant of the great king David. But they could not get their heads and hearts around his divinity. They are quite sure that he has a demon. They insult him with an insult that was as bad as they could come up with. They call him a Samaritan, and they want to know who Jesus is making himself out to be. In fact, they get so mad at him, they picked up stones to throw at him.

The question "who is Jesus" still attracts attention and debate today. Some see him as nothing more than a great teacher or prophet. Others see him as a fraud or even as a cause of violence in the world today. People are often not just indifferent, they are hostile. Paul reminds us in his letter to the Romans that apart from faith in Christ, that spiritually we are enemies of Christ.

For some people, religion in general and Christianity in particular, is seen to be one of the great problems of humanity. Remember the song "Imagine" by John Lennon? It’s one of the most popular songs of modern times, but the words imply that the world would be a better place without religious beliefs. The lyrics imply that religion and the ideas of heaven and hell are the causes of war and violence.

"Imagine there's no Heaven - It's easy if you try - No hell below us - Above us only sky Imagine all the people - Living for today - Imagine there's no countries - It isn't hard to do - Nothing to kill or die for - And no religion too Imagine all the people - Living life in peace - You may say that I'm a dreamer - But I'm not the only one - I hope someday you'll join us - And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions - I wonder if you can - No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man; Imagine all the people - Sharing all the world - You may say that I'm a dreamer But I'm not the only one - I hope someday you'll join us - And the world will live as one"

Even we would have to confess that we sometimes fail to remember just who Jesus is and we forget about his love for us, causing us to doubt his goodness or even struggle inwardly with his authority over us. But Jesus makes his eternal nature clear when he tells the leaders of the Jews "Before Abraham was, I am."

Jesus is the Son of God, who is both God and man. Like the Jews, we can’t understand or get a grip on that mystery. How could such a thing be? Of course that mystery is grasped only by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Today is the Sunday of the church year that is set aside to honor the mystery of God’s triune nature. It is fitting that Trinity Sunday is observed on the first Sunday after Pentecost, since the Bible and the Lutheran confessions teach that God is one divine essence…yet there are three person, the father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit….and that these three persons are of the same essence and power.

In today’s world of universalism and pluralism, in which there is a lot of confusion as to the identity of God, it is as important as ever to emphasize that the one true God is the triune God. Any gods other than the triune God are false gods. It is important also that we understand that the way to the Father is through faith in the Son, which is possible only by the power of the Holy Spirit.

So let us keep the Word of Christ because of the precious promises he has made to us through his Word. As we get to know God, and this is a process that never ends, we understand more and more who he is and his love for us. His Word promises that Christ has overcome the devil and hell and that sin cannot harm us. (Acts 2:21-36) His Word promises eternal life. Jesus said in our text, and we get a better rendering straight from the Greek text; "Whoever keeps my word, he will never see death eternally." (8:51)

Let us keep the Word of Christ because it brings joy and gladness to our lives here and now. Abraham saw the day of Christ and it brought him joy and gladness. He knew that someday, God would send the Messiah. Even though Abraham lived some two thousand years before Christ, he trusted in the promises of God that the Savior would come. God had spoken to Abraham many times, and he knew God’s word could be trusted; it was as good as done. For Abraham, the promise was as sure as if he had seen it fulfilled for himself.

Abraham rejoiced in the knowledge of the Savior because he knew it would bring great spiritual blessing to the world. We too, can rejoice in the knowledge of the Savior and be glad. To know that Jesus came and honored and glorified the Father perfectly with his obedience – in our place – proves God’s great love for us. To know that God has always made provision for our eternal welfare, whatever happens in this life, brings us joy and gladness, even in the midst of sorrow and sadness.

So we can see here that keeping the Word of Christ brings blessings far beyond what we could ever expect to receive from any other person. To keep the Word of Christ means that we can have faith in who he is, the Son of God, as we will confess in the Athanasian creed in just a few moments; "It is the right faith that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is at the same time both God and man."

It also means that we can trust in his promises, that he has overcome death and sin for us, and that we will not see death – we will not see eternal death.

And finally, to keep the Word of Christ means that we can be encouraged and have joy and gladness in this life, knowing that no matter what happens, God’s love for us in Christ is an eternal reality. Amen.