Church Sermon - January 18, 2004

Rev. Mark F. Bartels

Epistle Lesson; 1 Corinthians 10:1-5
Historical Lesson; Acts 4:8-13
Sermon Text, Matthew 16:13-19

As you can imagine, being the pastor here, I need to go into all the different nooks and crannies of our church. And, over time, I have come to know all those nooks and crannies. About five years ago, I thought I had seen everything in this building, until one day, when I happened to be downstairs. At that time, I was downstairs in the long hallway that connects the basement cafeteria to the schoolrooms. Off of that hallway is the boiler room. I had been in that boiler room many times, but that day I was way in the back of it, back behind a big, old, boiler that is not used anymore. At the very end of the wall there was a bunch of stuff that had been stored there, for many years. Among the items, were some old boards that were not being used anymore. Since I was feeling very energetic that day, I thought that I would clear out those old boards. As I was starting to clear them out, I discovered a big stack of a couple hundred bricks! I had never seen them before! The first thought that crossed my mind, "What in the world are a couple hundred bricks doing, down here in the boiler room? Who in the world took the time to carry a couple hundred bricks down here and stack them up?"

Then, as I began to look at those bricks, all of a sudden it hit me what those bricks were doing down there. They were the bricks that were brought here forty-one years ago. And, they were the bricks that didn’t make it, into the walls of our church.

Forty-one years ago, there was a foundation that was dug. The slab had been poured. The cement foundation walls were built. The footings were in. The foundation was all ready. And, forty-one years ago, there were masons, who took each little brick, one by one, and laid it on top of that foundation. One by one, each brick was laid, until this church was completed.

But, those were the bricks that didn’t make it. And, as odd as it sounds, my heart went out to those poor bricks, just a little bit. I thought, "Oh. Those poor bricks didn’t make it into this wonderful, magnificent, loyal, House of God. Those poor bricks don’t get to be a part of this building. Those poor bricks don’t get to be here, when the praises of God are being sung. They don’t get to serve as part of the House of our Savior. Those poor bricks don’t get to witness the joy that is brought into the hearts of sinners who hear the fact that their sins are forgiven." And so, my heart went out to those bricks, a little bit.

Do you know anybody like those bricks? Maybe yourself? Maybe a family member? Maybe a neighbor, or a friend? Do you know someone who isn’t a part of the Building, yet? Do you know someone who is not a part of the Church, yet?

The Church that I am talking about is not this building that is made up of brick and cement. I am talking about the Holy Christian Church. It is built on the One Foundation. It is a solid foundation. It is a rock foundation. And, Jesus is the Rock, the Foundation on which the Church is built. He is the Foundation. Anybody who believes in Jesus is set on that solid Foundation and is a part of the Holy Christian Church.

But, Brothers and Sisters, there are people who do not yet have the joy and the privilege of being built on that Rock, the solid Foundation. And, if my heart went out to those inanimate bricks, how our hearts should go out to anyone who is not yet built on that solid Foundation, which is Jesus Christ, our Lord.

In today’s scripture reading, Jesus said to Peter, "On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." What rock was Jesus talking about? He was talking about the rock of confession, which Peter had just made. Peter had said,

"You are the Christ,

the Son of the living God."

That is the rock. That is the solid Foundation on which Christ will build His Church. That Church is so safe, so secure, that even the gates of Hell cannot prevail against it! That is because it is built on an unshakable foundation! Our hearts ought to go out to those, who are not built on that solid Foundation yet, but are instead on a foundation that can so easily be tipped over, someday.

You know, Jesus said, "Whoever hears my words, but doesn’t put them into practice is like a man who built his house on sand. The storms came and the winds blew and beat against that house. That house collapsed, because it was built on sand."

There is only One sure and solid Foundation, and every other foundation, every other foundation, is sinking sand.

Think about the parable that Jesus told. He said that there was a farmer who had harvested his crops. He took in such a big harvest, that he wondered what he should do! He decided to build bigger barns and store his grain. Then he would be able to sit back, eat, drink, and be merry! You see, he thought that he was secure. He had the riches of wealth. He had power! And, so because of that, he thought that he could sit back, enjoy life and the pleasures of this life.

But then God said to him, "You fool. Tonight your very soul will be demanded of you. And then, who will get what you have laid up in store for yourself? What does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world, but loses his own soul? What can a man give in exchange for his soul?"

You see, every other foundation, someday will crumble, before God. Whatever other foundation that we are built on, whether it is money and wealth, honor, privileges, or power, it will someday not be able to stand before God. It will all crumble. None of those foundations prepare our souls to meet God in judgment. Not even our own good works can prepare our souls to meet God in judgment.

You remember how Jesus told about the two men who went into the temple to pray. The one trusted in his good works. He thanked God for not being like other men, robbers, evildoers, adulterers and even the other man praying, the tax collector. He said, "I fast twice a week. I give one tenth of everything I get." He trusted in his good works, as a foundation that he could stand on, before God someday in judgment. He expected God to say, "You deserve to be in my Home in Heaven."

But instead, what did Jesus say about that man? That man did not go down to his house, justified before God.

Then, Jesus said,

"Whoever exults himself,

will be humbled."

Even our good works are not a solid foundation that we can stand on, before God on the Day of Judgment. They will collapse, because our good works will never be good enough to earn our way to Heaven. There is only One solid Foundation that we can be built on, that will stand no matter what. That foundation is the Foundation that has already been laid, which is Christ Jesus. He is the solid Foundation.

God has made a promise to us in His Word. That promise is that He so dearly loved us that He sent His Son to do what we cannot do. He sent His Son to live an absolutely holy, perfect life for us. He has declared it to be ours. He sent His own dear Son, out of love for us, to suffer on the cross, to die, and pay for every sin that we have committed, so that God does not and will not hold our sins against us. God promises in His Word, in the solid foundation of His Word that whoever believes in Jesus, will be saved. Though heaven and earth pass away, God’s Word will not pass away. That is the solid Foundation, which is the Rock, on which the Church is built. That is the confession that Jesus Christ is my Lord. And whoever believes that, is built on a foundation that cannot be knocked over.

"On this rock

I will build my Church."

Who does Jesus say is going to build the church?

"On this rock,

will build my church."

Think about the bricks that are in the wall of our church. How did they get the privilege to be in that wall, and those in the basement did not? Was there something better about those bricks? Did those bricks ask the mason to put them in the wall? They could not do that. It is only by grace that those bricks are in the wall. It is only because somebody reached down with their hand and picked up those bricks. They then put them in the wall, laid on the foundation. They are no different than the other bricks.

It is only by grace that you and I are members of the Holy Christian Church. Jesus said,

"You did not choose me.

I chose you."

It is by grace. We are sinners. We are no better than anybody else. But, it is by grace that Jesus builds His Church. He builds it on that confession. By grace, Jesus saw to it that somebody made that confession to you. Somebody told you about Jesus. Somebody told you that Jesus died for your sins. Somebody told you that Heaven is yours, because of what Jesus did. Jesus, through those words, caused the Holy Spirit to reach down into our hearts, pick us up, and lay us on that firm Foundation, so that we became believers in Jesus, as our Savior.

Jesus builds His Church. He builds His Church through His Word and through His Sacraments. We simply serve as the instruments to go out and make that confession to the world. This church building we’re sitting in right now is completed. There can’t be any more bricks added to this church. But, the Holy Christian Church is not done being built yet. There are still people out there who are not members of the Holy Christian Church. You and I can’t build the Church. Jesus does that. But we serve as instruments when we go out and we make the confession to our friends, to our neighbors, that Jesus is the Christ. He is the Son of the living God. He is the firm foundation. He is the One alone, on whom we can build. He has paid for our sins. Jesus works though that to build His Church.

Does your heart go out to those who don’t know Jesus yet? Invite them here to the House of God, where that confession is made that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Tell them about Jesus. One by one, Jesus builds His Church upon that confession. The gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.

Jesus told Peter something interesting, and He told the rest of the disciples the same thing. When a church is built, or a building is built, what kinds of tools get used? Hammers, saws, trowels…but what tools are used to build the Holy Christian Church? Listen to what Jesus told Peter and the whole Church.

"I will give you

the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven;

whatever you bind on earth,

will be bound in Heaven,

and whatever you loose on earth,

will be loosed in Heaven."

What does Jesus use to build the Church? It is not a hammer. It is not nails. It is keys. Keys!

I have the keys to Holy Cross. If I were to give to you the keys to Holy Cross, I would trust you to do something. I would trust you to use those keys, to unlock the door for people who should come into Holy Cross. I would trust you to use the keys to lock the door, because there are times when people should not be in here. That is what keys are for. They are to lock and unlock the door.

Not many of you have keys to Holy Cross. It is a big privilege. Isn’t it awesome to know that to every believer, Jesus has said, "I give will you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven." In other words, whoever sins you forgive; they are forgiven. And, whoever sins you do not forgive, they are not forgiven. The keys are the special authority that Christ has given to His Church on earth to forgive the sins of penitent sinners. And to retain the sins of the impenitent sinners, as long as they do not repent. Those are the tools that Jesus uses to build the Church.

Now, I want to talk about that locking key and the unlocking key, just briefly. The locking key is a key that Jesus has given to each one of us, and He expects us to know when to use it and how to use it. There are actually times when we should tell people, "The Kingdom of Heaven is locked. The doors of Heaven are locked, to you. You cannot get into Heaven."

Why are the doors locked? The doors are locked, because their sins are not forgiven. And, whoever’s sins are not forgiven, cannot enter Heaven.

But, whose sins are not forgiven?

Jesus says that we should use that locking key. Now, why would we do that to someone? Why would we tell them that Heaven is locked to you and you cannot get into Heaven? It is done out of love. Out of love. It is done to show someone that unless you repent, you are built on a foundation that one day is going to collapse. You will be condemned forever. It is done out of love, to make that heart hungry then, for their Savior, asking, "What must I do to be saved?" That is the purpose of the locking key. It is to bring people to repentance and a hunger for their Savior, a hunger for that firm and solid Foundation.

Then, we should joyfully use the unlocking key. The unlocking key is the one that says the doors of Heaven are wide open to you. Your sins are forgiven. It is the declaration of the Gospel. Jesus has died for the sins of the whole world. Whoever believes shall be saved. It is our privilege, our duty, our responsibility to use that forgiving key, because through that Jesus picks us up and puts us on that Foundation, and brings us to faith. "That forgiveness is mine! I am built on that Foundation! The gates of Hell shall not prevail against me!"

This church building that we are gathered in today is done being built. These bricks that I brought up from the boiler room will never make it, as part of this building. The Holy Christian Church is still being built. There are still bricks out there, people out there, who are not members of the Holy Christian Church. It is our joy, our privilege and our responsibility to go out and make the confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. Through that confession, we trust that Jesus will build His Church and He will build us up, keeping us strong in that foundation.

Amen.

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