Ordination Sermon for Rev. Duncan Sprague

Dear saints of God, Dear Christian friends and fellow members of Christ’s family here at Grace Lutheran Church here in Lamar, Also, Kira, Doug & Jenny Sprague My fellow brothers in the Ministry of Jesus and finally, last but not least Duncan – my former Vicar, my friend, and soon to be my brother in the ministry, I bring you grace, mercy and peace from Jesus our Lord and our Savior who suffered who died and who has risen from the dead, who has commanded that repentance and the forgiveness of sins be preached in his name to all nations. I will begin by bringing you greetings from the people of God back in Chuckery, Ohio. I will have you know that they are envious of you. Over the months that they were served by this man who will be your pastor they grew to love him and did not want to see him go. And that says nothing of Kira. If he was loved and appreciated, then Kira – his better and fairer half, was loved and appreciated doubly so. We will miss them, and you I am sure will love them. The theme for our message today is “The Unexpected”. I need to tell you how that theme developed. It was itself, rather unexpected. I was speaking with Pastor Schulz, your circuit counselor, on the phone making connections and arrangements for the service today and he asked me about the theme for the message. He heard a long pause because I had no idea. Seeing I had no theme in mind, He jokingly quipped, “How about The Unexpected.” We decided that would work just fine. And it will, because our text for today is all about things that are unexpected. Our text recounts for us events that, while planned and known by God, yet from the perspective of the disciples these events were completely and totally unexpected. They were unanticipated, unlooked for, surprising and even shocking when they occurred. Yet our Lord hid salvation in those unexpected events so that those things they had not looked for and even dreaded and feared in their coming wound up bringing them joy and especially salvation. Our God is a god of the unexpected. If you would like to hear about things that are unexpected, you might ask your new pastor to recount for you the events that have occurred in his life over this past year. Ask him about his year of vicarage. Talk about unexpected! He began his time in central Ohio in what was supposed to be a convertible vicarage – it was supposed to roll right over into a permanent placement. But, unexpectedly, he ran up against a church confused about who their next pastor was going to be. Midstream the seminary had to put a stop to the dysfunction unleashed on him. About December he found himself without a vicarage. Enter the saints of St Paul Chuckery. Most unexpectedly, and in spite of their own dire financial straits, the people of St Paul took it upon themselves to rescue this displaced vicar so that he could finish out his year and move toward placement in a timely manner. And talk about unexpected blessing! The vicarage proved to be mutually beneficial, as Vicar Sprague filled a void during a critical time at St Paul and while St Paul provided a good learning environment for a young aspiring pastor. The Lord most unexpectedly brought blessing in the midst of a bad situation. Oh, but the unexpectedness continued. As call day came and went for the eager seminarians, it became evident that there were more candidates than calls. Some of the candidates would have to wait an unexpectedly long time to receive their first call. But again, our God came through. He moved you, the people of Grace Lutheran Church here in Lamar, Colorado to select our vicar to be your pastor. If vicarage was a blessing, if the Lord’s providence provided blessings and gifts in short term, then his gifts will be given in even greater measure as God works here at Grace through the both pastor and people to build and grow his Church! Again, our theme is those things that are unexpected. We have seen in the life of this man that the unexpected has occurred, yet in the midst of those unexpected things God works unexpected blessings. This in nowhere more potently displayed than in the life and work and ministry of Jesus himself. Consider the disciples, they were followers of Jesus whom they expected to be crowned king in Jerusalem to sit on David’s earthly throne. Yet unexpectedly he was arrested and crucified so that they despaired even of all hope and thought that all was lost. But of all the unexpected things! Through his death, Jesus became the substitute in God’s divine judgment for the entire human race. He paid our penalty for our sin. And then, even more unexpectedly, God raised him from the dead and accomplished eternal life from an otherwise doomed and damned race. Our text picks up in the middle of this revelation. 36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” 37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. 38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” 40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate before them. Talk about unexpected. The disciples were hiding and afraid, thinking it was all up for them. Jesus was dead and gone. They were sure they were next. But then the dead man become alive stood in their midst. Flesh and blood, skin and bone. He showed them hands and feet and side with holes from Romans nails and Roman spear. And then he ate a piece of fish. Talk about unexpected. And it was unexpected. Because Jesus died not just as a Roman execution of Roman justice, but as a Divine execution of Divine justice. Jesus died as substitute for all people. This death unexpected and unanticipated by the disciples became the very thing that set them free not just from Rome and not just for the duration of their life. Jesus accomplished the release of all of God’s creation, all people, all men and women for every time and every place and freedom that will last forever. This freedom is received through faith. And now, this freedom needs to be delivered through all people. So Jesus made it so. He gave a supper, a fellowship meal of bread and wine for forgiveness for sinners. He gave a bath, a washing that cleanses not just the body but also the soul. He gave words of forgiveness to be spoken, preached and proclaimed so that sinners could know for sure that this death and this new everlasting life was theirs, for them, for sure. That death of Jesus is the Gospel. The means of grace are the delivery point for the gift earned at Calvary. But there must be someone to do the job, there must be someone to hand out the gifts. There must be a delivery man, an ecclesiastical UPS man, who works for Jesus to give the gifts of Jesus to the people of Jesus. And so Jesus gave pastors. 44 Then Jesus said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you ware clothed with power from on high. Repentance and the forgiveness of sins needs to be preached. It needs to be proclaimed and for that there needs to be preachers. Jesus gives preachers. And this man is your preacher. Not yet. He hasn’t been ordained yet. He hasn’t been installed yet. Jesus gives these gifts through his Church, through the means of his Church, and so the Church has gathered here today. Yes the Local congregation. But also pastors from sister congregations, your circuit counselor and even some guy from Ohio. The Church has showed up here to do this thing, to put this man into your preaching office so that you can know that when he takes your children and puts water on them with the Word that child is God’s child – dead to sin but alive to God. When he takes bread and wine with God’s Word you have Christ’s body and blood and with it the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. When he speaks to you forgiveness, that forgiveness is spoken in heaven. We said a few minutes ago that God hides his salvation in unexpected places. He does. On a cross, in an empty tomb, in words and water and bread & wine. And god delivers that salvation through most unexpected means. A man. A sinner – not too bad a guy as far as sinners go, but he’s a sinner. You will see that. You will come to know that. And his sins would earn for him God's well deserved punishment. So don’t get your hopes too high. Or maybe do. Because he is a messenger. And a messenger is only as good as the one who sent him. This messenger is the messenger of God and you will find in his mouth words that are most unexpected. Words of exhortation and words of comfort. Words of consolation and words of hope. Words that will move your heart to repent and words that will move your heart to the joy of God's forgiveness. God's Word will be hidden away in his mouth and on his lips to give you God's Word for you. Our Lord is a God who does things most unexpected. He takes things we least expect and turns them into things that we most need in ways that are surprising, in ways that are certainly unexpected. Amen.