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Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in Door County serves Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, and other communities throughout Northeast Wisconsin.
Text: Mark 10:2-16
Liturgical Date: Pentecost 20, Proper 22 B
Calendar Date: October 6, 2024
Location: Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church in Door County
Preacher: Rev. Dr. Christopher D. Jackson
The following transcript was generated via AI and does not match the sermon as it was preached 1:1.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
I’d like for us to open up our hymnals to page 276. About halfway down on page 276, you’ll find the vows of holy matrimony. There are two sets of vows: one made to God, and the other made between the groom and the bride. Today, we’re going to read the groom’s vows to the bride, but we’ll replace the names. For the groom, we will say “Christ,” and for the bride, we will say “Church.” Please read along with me:
I, Christ, take you, Church, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish till death us do part, according to God’s holy will. And I pledge to you my faithfulness.
The World’s Rejection of God’s Design for Marriage
The world looks at these vows and thinks Christians who make them are utterly crazy. I’ve even earned a bit of a reputation with some brides because I insist on using these vows. They’ll ask, “Can we write our own vows?” and I say, “No.” Why? Because Christian marriage is about saying, “I intend to live into what God intends for marriage.” We don’t define marriage for ourselves. We acknowledge that marriage is what God has made it to be, and we want to live into that.
So, we use these vows to reflect that. But when we really look at them, we can see why the world might think these vows are nuts. “For better,” they might say, “Sure, for better.” But “for worse”? That’s where they think we’re crazy. Why? Because when we say, “For better and for worse,” we’re not just embracing our spouse’s best qualities. We’re also taking on their worst qualities, their faults. The world sees that and says, “That’s nuts!”
Then there’s “for richer,” which the world might say, “Sure, of course!” But what about “for poorer”? When we say this, we’re saying, “My wealth, if I have any, is yours. And your poverty, if you have nothing, is also mine.”
A Bond That Surpasses the World’s Understanding
“In sickness and in health.” The world hears “health” and says, “That sounds great!” But when we pledge to be there in sickness, as Christians, we do so because we understand that the marital bond is meant for mutual support, especially when we’re at our weakest. That’s when we need support the most.
“To love and to cherish,” and finally, the part the world finds utterly baffling: “till death us do part.” It’s not “till I fall out of love” or “till I get the seven-year itch” or “till we have a different view of life.” No, it’s “till death us do part, according to God’s holy will.”
This bond says, “All that is mine is yours, and all that is yours is mine—even your downfalls.” The world just can’t comprehend it. In fact, just last week, I came across an article while scrolling through my Google feed. It was from Kevin O’Leary—you might know him from Shark Tank. He said, “You’re nuts if you combine finances with your spouse.” Well, go ahead and call me crazy, Kevin O’Leary! Because, as Christians, we are willing to form bonds that the world cannot understand.
Why the World Fails to Understand These Bonds
The world can’t understand these bonds because, first of all, they don’t understand creation, and secondly, they don’t understand redemption. But we know that Christ has bound Himself to us in every way. It doesn’t make sense according to our fallen human nature, but Christ has bound Himself to us, and in doing so, He has opened our eyes and hearts. That’s why we’re willing to bind ourselves to others.
Jesus’ Teaching on Divorce and Creation’s Design
In today’s Gospel lesson, the Pharisees try to trap Jesus. They ask Him, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” Jesus puts them to shame. He acknowledges that Moses did give provisions for divorce in the Law, but He explains that divorce was never God’s original intention. Moses allowed it to limit the damage caused by broken marriages, but this was not God’s plan from the beginning. Jesus points them back to creation and reminds them that we were made male and female and that we were made to be bound together in a one-flesh union. “What God has joined together, let not man put asunder.”
Understanding the One-Flesh Union Through Christ’s Redemption
I am convinced that we Christians can perceive the natural created order in ways the world cannot. We see it for what it truly is, but the world’s perception is clouded by sin. Romans makes it clear that the Law of God is written on the hearts of all people, but sin distorts the way we perceive it. That’s why so many in the world consider what is good to be bad, and what is bad to be good.
Why do people get it so mixed up? Sinfulness clouds the mind so that people cannot perceive what is written on their hearts and what is clearly evident in the world. But Christ, through His redemptive work, has brought light to our darkened minds. He is the light that shines in the darkness, allowing us to perceive what sinful man distorts in his own mind.
We are able to see the one-flesh union not only because our minds have been clarified but also because our hearts have been purified. How so? Christ dwells in us. He has united Himself to us, and He has done so for the purpose of redemption. In His redeeming work, Christ has intimately bound Himself to us—what we could call a one-flesh union. How? The eternal Son of God took on human flesh and became one with us. He shared in all things with us, except for sin. Yet, even though He was without sin, He shared in the consequences of sin.
The Great Exchange: Christ’s Righteousness for Our Sin
Isn’t what Christ has done for us reflected in the vows of marriage, which we recited earlier? Let’s take a look.
Christ, our bridegroom, came and joined Himself to us. He joined us for our better, but in a sense, for His worse—at least temporarily. How? Why? He came to us, full of our sin and transgressions, and He took our sin upon Himself. He shared in the consequences of our sin so that we, fallen in our sinfulness, might share in His goodness and righteousness.
Speaking of righteousness, this too we have received from Him. He took our unrighteousness, and we received His righteousness. This is the great exchange: for richer, for poorer. We ought to have hands full of good gifts and beautiful treasures to offer to the Lord—acts of loving obedience to the Father and works of loving service to our neighbors. Yet, because of our sin, our hands have been emptied of such gifts. Instead of giving good things to God and our neighbor, we have let our hands remain empty in sin. But Christ, in the great exchange of the cross, took on our poverty—our lack of righteousness—and gave us the wealth of His righteousness. He gave us His life, a life of ultimate loving obedience to the Father, a life of ultimate loving service to us, His neighbors, and His sacrifice for us on the cross.
Christ Took Our Sickness Upon Himself
In sickness and in health. Brothers and sisters, sin is a disease—a disease that results in death. As it says in Romans, “The wages of sin is death.” Christ, though He was not sin-sick Himself, took the consequences of that sin-sickness upon Himself when He died for our sake. Why? So that He could be our healer, restoring us and giving us His health, renewing us with life everlasting.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus has bound Himself to us in our redemption. Because Christ has opened our eyes to the natural order of creation, and because He has transformed our hearts through His redeeming work, we as Christians are glad to bind ourselves to one another in ways that the world cannot understand. That’s why we are glad to commit ourselves in marital unions that the world finds baffling. That’s also why we are glad to bind ourselves to our fellow Christians in ways that the world cannot comprehend.
The Christian Congregation: A Bond the World Cannot Understand
The world cannot understand the bonds we share as a Christian congregation. Week after week, we gather together in this room to hear God’s Word, to worship, and to support one another. The world looks at that and says, “What foolishness!” Imagine it: a beautiful fall day like today—Sunday, October 6, 2024. The sun is shining, the air is warm, and the leaves are turning beautiful colors. Yet, here you are, in church, sitting together in a room, listening to a man in a robe reading from a text thousands of years old. The world looks at that and says, “You must be nuts!”
You must be nuts to give your hard-earned money to the church, so that your fellow Christians can continue to receive this preaching and teaching. But as Christians, we are glad to gather together, to receive God’s Word, to share in one bread and one cup as a sign of our unity in Christ. We gladly contribute to the spiritual needs of one another because we know that, in Christ, we are one.
Our Bond with Christians Across Time
We know that we are one not only with the Christians around us now but also with Christians throughout history, from the patriarchs and prophets to the apostles and beyond. We are united with Christians of all times, and we look forward to being united with Christians in the future when Christ returns in power and glory.
We are thankful for the inheritance we’ve received from the patriarchs, the prophets, and the apostles. As it says in Hebrews, we strive to pay close attention—and even closer attention—to the message of the Gospel that we have received. This is not only for our own benefit but also for the generations of Christians to come.
Blessing Future Generations of Believers
Christ embraced the little children and said, “Do not hinder them, for to such belongs the Kingdom of God.” In the same way, we as Christians are eager to bless the coming generations. We give, even from our estates and wills, so that the children of the church can continue to receive the gift of Holy Baptism here at Saint Peter’s Lutheran Church. We want to ensure that, in time, those same children will bring their future brides and grooms here to receive the blessing of God’s Word and to make the holy vows of matrimony.
In turn, their children and their children’s children will be able to come here and receive God’s Word in Holy Baptism, in Sunday school, in Vacation Bible School, and in worship. We are glad to bind ourselves to the coming generations because we know that, in Christ, we have all been made one.
Rejoicing in Christ’s Bond with Us
Brothers and sisters in Christ, let us celebrate! Let us rejoice that Christ has bound Himself to us, taking our sin upon Himself and giving us His righteousness. He has made Himself one flesh with us, and we gladly live into God’s intention for marital union, esteeming it as a reflection of Christ’s relationship with the Church. Let us also live into the bond we share with our fellow Christians, as Christ has bound Himself to us.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.