Historic First Lutheran Church of Pasadena

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

When our Lord Jesus encouraged His followers to “pick up their crosses and follow Him” [Matthew 16:24], many of us are sometimes tempted to probably think that Jesus was directly talking to us. There is that old Negro spiritual that declares with much emotion that “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen.” Many of us would like to make that our own personal song.

Well, my friends, if that how you feel right now – or if that is how you have ever felt – consider these things for just a moment and I think maybe you’ll reconsider:

St. Peter was crucified upside down because he didn’t consider himself worthy to be crucified in the same way as Jesus.

St. Andrew was also crucified, but hung on the cross for two days, exhorting spectators all the while. Also crucified were St. Phillip, St. Jude, St. Simon, St. Luke and St. Bartholomew.

St. James was beheaded, actually converting his accuser in the process and the two of them were beheaded together. St. Paul was also beheaded.

St. Thomas was thrust through with a spear.

St. Matthew was killed with a sword.

St. James was stoned at age 90 and, when he didn’t die fast enough, his execution squad actually picked up a fuller’s club and beat his brains out. St. Stephen and St. Matthias were also stoned to death.

St. Mark was dragged to death.

St. Judas, of course, was driven to personal despair because of the role he played in the betrayal of Jesus and committed suicide.

According to reliable church tradition and written history, those are the legacies of the first 12 disciples of Jesus Christ and other notable early Christian disciples, those to whom Jesus personally said those words about picking up their crosses and following Him, those whom He warned very clearly that they would indeed drink the cup that He was about to drink and suffer the death He was about to suffer [Mark 10:38-39]. Whether or not they realized how prophetic those words of Jesus Christ would be, not one backed away from their faith or from their Savior when death came knocking at the door for them in less than desirable ways. Instead, many even used their deaths as an opportunity to boldly witness for Jesus Christ.

So, after listening to all that, would you like to re-think your own feelings that your life is tough, that nobody knows the trouble you’ve seen? Personally I know that a quick review of the deaths of those early followers of Jesus is enough for me to withdraw my claim.

Every New Year’s Eve, I remind those of us who gather in this place that “We know not what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future.”

Every year those words prove themselves to be true. Since its very inception and until the Day when Jesus comes again, this congregation and its members have seen years come and go and bring great trials and tribulations and even tragedy, things that could never be anticipated or even dreamed of in one’s worst nightmares. With the recent death of former member, Bob Lange, I was reminded again of one of those tragedies this congregation has endured, a tragedy that made the front page of the paper: what was supposed to be a fun _____ youth group event: a hay ride that was rear ended by a drunk driver, causing injury to several of the youth and even killing one. Bob, years after that hay ride, would lose a leg due to recurring circulation complications from that accident.

We know not what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future.

Those are not just cute words. They’re actually Biblical words. That’s exactly what the Lord God said to and through the Prophet Isaiah: “But now this is what the Lord says – He Who created you, O Jacob; He Who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters I will be with you and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze for I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior” [Isaiah 43:1-3].

Now we see what our “Great Hymn of the Faith” today has to do with all that gory accounting of the deaths of the early disciples of Jesus. How could they go through what they went through, not only going through those horrible deaths, but not walking away from their faith in the process, not cursing God and dying, as Job’s wife encouraged him to do [Job 2:9]? How could they do all that? Because they discovered they were not alone. Jesus had promised them at the moment that He was ascending back into Heaven that He would be with them always, to the very end of the age [Matthew 28:20]. That promise held true for each of them.

We’re still not at the very end of the age, so Jesus’ promise holds true for you and for me. He continues to be with us always. In fact, that is one of Jesus’ Names: IMMANUEL – “God with us.” He continues to walk with us through the raging waters and furious fires of life. Nothing can destroy us. Nothing can scorch us. Nothing can separate us from Him [Romans 8:39]. And, even at that very last moment of death, Who better to have walk with us than Jesus Who has already been in the grave, Jesus Who rose from the dead, Jesus Who conquered the grave and defeated the finality of death?

Jesus indeed said, “Pick up your crosses and follow Me,” and there will be crosses in life as we follow Jesus, but He didn’t give us that marching order without the means to make it happen. Instead, whatever it is we are going through, Jesus now only knows about it, but He’s already got the solution worked out in His Hand . Before we even see or know about the problem, our Jesus has the solution. All we need to do, by the power of His Holy Spirit, is stay close to Him and allow Him to stay close to us.

One of my worship planning resources reminds its users almost every single week that the words, “Good Morning” are not a proper liturgical greeting. Instead, this one resource encourages its users to start each Sunday morning worship with the words, “The Lord be with you.” Those “proper, liturgical words” are also the words that we should hear personally and the words that we should extend to one another as we depart and go our separate ways: “God be with you till we meet again.” As we hear those words and as we extend the peace involved with those words to others, we know with all confidence that there is nothing better we can wish each other, no one better to have with us every moment of every day than Jesus Himself.

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

Pastor Christopher Schaar
Historic First Lutheran Church of Pasadena