In the Name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord and Savior sanctify you in the truth, for His word is truth. Amen

The Third Sunday after the Epiphany (2012)

The Kingdom of God is at Hand Rev. Toby Byrd

Mark 1:14-20 (ESV)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, [15] and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

[16] Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. [17] And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." [18] And immediately they left their nets and followed him. [19] And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. [20] And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants and followed him.

Often when the Gospel Reading for today is used as the text for a sermon, the emphasis is on the calling of the disciples; and rightly so. However, this theme often overlooks the most important statement of this Gospel Reading and that is the proclamation by our Lord Jesus that, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (v. 15). Therefore, let us ask the Holy Spirit to open our hearts and minds to this marvelous proclamation that when our Lord Jesus comes to us, He brings with Him His Kingdom: The Kingdom of God.

Our Lord Jesus travels to Galilee, proclaiming The Kingdom of God is at Hand. Thereby declaring; here I am, here is the Kingdom of God; right now, right here, in your presence. Ever since the days of Moses you have sacrificed and worshipped in earnest for this day. Now, what you've been waiting for all those years, what you’ve been waiting for all your lives is standing in front of you, telling you to, “repent and believe in the gospel.” This is the opening salvo of Our Lord’s single-sentence inaugural sermon. Oh, that every pastors would be the same.

A pastor is required to remain faithful to the Word of God. As an under-shepherd of Christ, He speaks with the authority of Christ when it comes to His Word and Sacraments; therefore, he cannot deviate from that message. He is not to drift with the currents of popularity or political correctness. Nor is he is to preach morality or self-help messages. Some prefer such preaching, because it scratches their itching ears. However, to the contrary, a called and ordained pastor is to remind you that The Kingdom of God is at hand.

It is at hand in Holy Communion and Baptism, that’s why he is insistent that you partake of Holy Communion as often as you can and this is also why he reminds you to return to your Baptism through daily contrition and repentance; relying on God’s gift of faith for forgiveness. The pastor is called by God to speak to you of God’s gifts, reminding you of their benefits and exhorting you to partake of those gifts frequently. Sometimes people are irritated at being reminded so often and ask, “Why is he so insistent?” Your pastor is insistent for no other reason than to call you to repentance; reminding you that you are a sinner in need of forgiveness. Although such preaching is not always pleasing to the ear, the pastor has no choice in this matter. He must proclaim God’s precious, revealed, inspired, and inerrant Word. However, you can take great comfort in the wonderful good news that when you approach God’s altar in repentance and faith, the pastor is duty bound to administer to you the forgiveness of sins. Such is the power of God’s Word.

Every time the Word of God is spoken the Kingdom of God is at hand. The presence of His Kingdom does not depend on us; it does not depend on our attitude or willingness to listen to it. It depends only on God. He is where His Word is. His Word is both a Saving Word and a Word of condemnation. Therefore, His Word has different consequences for different people.

In today’s Gospel Reading our Lord is saying: the time someone can get by on ignorance is over, He has just proclaimed; “the kingdom of God is at hand.” If someone says, “But, Lord, I didn’t know,” Jesus will answer, “Why not? I told you I was here!” You have been told you have no excuse, therefore you must act now; tomorrow may be too late. Do not wait, “repent and believe in the gospel.”

Repentance! Just what is repentance? We believe, teach, and confess that: “Properly speaking, true repentance is nothing else than to have contrition and sorrow, or terror, on account of sin.” Sin is not okay! We cannot causally excuse or engage in sin. Sin is what caused God to destroy the world in the flood; sin is what caused God to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, unrepentant sin leads to eternal death. Therefore, Luther states: “This is what the beginning of true repentance is like. Here man must hear such a judgment as this: “You are all of no account. Whether you are manifest sinners or saints, you must all become other than you now are and do otherwise than you now do, no matter who you are and no matter how great, wise, mighty, and holy you may think yourselves. Here no one is godly.” Therefore, when our Lord Jesus tells you to repent, He is telling you to “Become different, do otherwise, and believe my promise.”

Repentance is about no longer being a sinner because God judges and condemns sinners. However, we know that we are incapable of living sinless lives, so now what? Now we listen to the call of our Lord Jesus to “repent and believe in the gospel.” The Law demands that we obey, repentance testify’s that we can’t, but we are truly sorrow for our sins and place ourselves into the hands of God seeking His forgiveness for the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the Gospel Jesus proclaims to all who repent.

Knowing what repentance is, we can now ask, “What is the Gospel?” We believe, teach, and confess that, “the Gospel, strictly speaking, is the Scriptural doctrine that teaches what a man who has not kept the law and is condemned by it should believe, namely, that Christ has satisfied and paid for all guilt and without man’s merit has obtained and won for him forgiveness of sins, the ‘righteousness that avails before God,’ and eternal life.” Furthermore, we believe, teach, and confess, “the Gospel and absolution (namely, that sin has been forgiven and grace has been obtained through Christ), and this faith will comfort the heart and again set it at rest. Amendment of life and the forsaking of sin would then follow, for these must be the fruits of repentance, as John says, ‘Bear fruit that befits repentance’ (Matthew 3:8).”

Therefore, by the Gospel we are declared not guilty, that is, we are innocent, and forgiven. How does this happen? It happens through the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. St. Paul tells us clearly, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21 ESV).

Furthermore, we believe, teach, and confess that “to obtain such faith God instituted the office of the ministry that is, provided the Gospel and the sacraments. Through these, as through means, he gives the Holy Spirit, who works faith, when and where he pleases, in those who hear the Gospel. And the Gospel teaches that we have a gracious God, not by our own merits but by the merit of Christ, when we believe this.” Thus the pastor stands before you and proclaims what our Lord Jesus has proclaimed; “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (v. 15).

Thus we see that when our Lord Jesus says, “repent and believe in the gospel” He is establishing the two chief parts of penitence; contrition and faith. In His statement He denounces our sin and in the latter He consoles us and shows us the forgiveness of sins. He is preaching Law and Gospel in His inaugural sermon. However, we must remember, to believe in the Gospel is not to have a faith equal to demons; to believe that Jesus was merely a man of history, a man whose life has set the standard of living for many is not saving faith. We are reminded that St. James tells us, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!” (James 2:19 ESV), rather, we are to believe that for Christ’s sake the forgiveness of sins has been given to us; this is what is revealed in Holy Scripture and what is required of true believers. In fact, it is Christ Himself who says “that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem” (Luke 24:47 ESV).

This is the true Good News; Christ has won our redemption through His life, death, and resurrection and we are granted forgiveness of our sins for His sake. If you could know that this is God’s intended purpose for you in this world, wouldn’t you have a more fulfilling and happier life than if you had “a purpose-driven life”? Rather than live by what we consider our purpose, let us live for the purpose God has intended; to be sons and daughters of His through faith in the atoning sacrifice of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.

Think of it, leading a purpose-driven life according to our efforts might be a good goal, but is it Good News? Is there anything we can do to undo sin? Is there anything we can do to obtain the glory of heaven? Is there anything we can do to save ourselves from the horrors of hell? No, not one! However, we need not despair because all that we might want to do has already been done for us through the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. He alone lived the purpose-driven life; a life which fulfilled the requirement of the Law for all mankind. Furthermore, He calls us to faith to believe in His achievement; our redemption from sin, death, and the devil. This is why He calls on us to, “repent and believe in the gospel.”

Trying to live the purpose-driven life is trying to live according to the Law, but we all know the Law will not save. Instead, our Lord Jesus calls on us to rely solely on His effort for our salvation. He calls on us to repent of our sin and rely on the Gospel for forgiveness; He calls on us to rely on the promises of God. What better assurance can one have than God’s holy promise?

Jesus reigns over His Church by Grace—there the Kingdom of God is at hand. Where Jesus is proclaimed as God’s Suffering Servant, crucified for our sins and risen from the dead to be our righteousness—that’s where you find the Gospel, that’s where the Gospel is at work. Contrary to this, there is no Gospel where Jesus is not pierced for our transgression and crucified, dying for our sins. There is no Gospel when He is not buried yet raised from the grave to cover us in His righteousness and there is no Gospel when the forgiveness of sins is denied in His holy Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion.

Today you have heard Christ. Moreover, you are in His presence, therefore, you are in the Kingdom of God’s grace and here, through His means of grace, He offers you an open door into His Kingdom of glory. Amen.

May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.