God's Word does what it says. Think about that for a second. If the Lord says something, it happens. If the Lord declares something, then it is so. If the Lord speaks, it is accomplished. His Word doesn't wait for our faith. It doesn't come with conditions or strings attached. When the Lord speaks, that is what is so. Parents and kids know what this is like a little bit. A parent says something to a child and the child asks “why?” And the answer? Mom or Dad says, “Because I said so.” Just because Mom or Dad said it, that makes it so. How much more God's Word which speaks creation into existence and which declares our sins forgiven. How much more God's Word doing what it says when it condemns to judgment or pronounces a “not guilty” verdict for Jesus' sake?
Brothers and sisters in Christ: Never think God's Word—either in the Bible or preached and taught—is an idle Word. A Word that doesn't do anything or doesn't matter one way or the other. Everything depends on God's Word doing what it says and being true. You know, there are two ways to look at God's Word. One way, the WRONG way is to think of God's Word as just facts and ideas. Just so much more “information.” Take it or leave it. The choice is up to you. What is the Bible? What is the sermon? Some would say it's presenting some facts for you to learn and say, “Yes, I believe that” or “No, I reject that.” But that's not what God's Word is. Not just facts to learn. God's Word is what He speaks to accomplish what He wants done. Consider the creation. How was it done? God spoke and it was. “Let there be” and it came into existence. When Jesus says, “Your son lives,” then the man's son lives, from the very moment that Word is spoken. And that is the Word that creates faith, for when the man saw that the Word did what it said, he believed. That's how His Word works: He speaks and it happens. St. Paul calls God's Word a sword. It can slash and hack and fight off the enemy: Satan and our sinful flesh.. God's Word isn't just words on a page; it's the power of God by which He does what He does.
God's Word can do something else that facts and ideas can't do. God's Word can become flesh. The eternal Son of God, the Word of God from all eternity, became flesh and dwelt among us. Christ is God's Word. If you want to know what God has to say, pay attention to Jesus. If you want to know what God is up to, pay attention to Jesus. If you want to know what God says about you, pay attention to Jesus. And so we look at Christ and what do we hear the Lord saying? He says He has come to seek and to save the lost. He says He goes to suffer and die and rise again. He says He goes to prepare a place for you. He says that He has come to do the will of the Father which is to save sinners. He says if you eat His Body and drink His Blood, you will live forever. He says that you are saved by what He has done. He says your salvation is finished. He says He will come again. What the Father says is not hidden or difficult but simple: that for the sake of His Son, Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven and you are a child of God.
But His Word doesn't stop there. After Christ's ascension, His apostles and preachers went into all the world, bringing that Word that does stuff. The Word of God says, “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” That Word doesn't just say something ABOUT you. It actually DOES something in you and to you, namely, forgive your sins and put God's name on you. “I forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” That is not just some fact, “Jesus died for you. Accept that.” No, absolution IS God's Word which actually wipes away your sins and declares you “not guilty” before the Lord. “Take eat; this is my body, given for you. Take drink; this is my blood, shed for you” doesn't just relay some historical facts. Those words actually bring Christ's Body and Blood along with the bread and wine to your mouth so that you can eat and drink the flesh and blood of the One who promises to raise you from the dead on the Last Day. The preaching of Christ isn't just some history lesson. A sermon is the very proclamation by which the King says something to you that is true and happens: you have a Savior. Your sins are forgiven. Just as much as that man's son was healed by Jesus at the very moment He spoke, so your sinful flesh is put to death by the Law of God and so your sins are taken away whenever Christ's Word is spoken to you. Because the Lord's Word does what it says.
Now you know, many people like to say, “If only God would speak today. If only He would give a sign.” Some even listen for God. They think that if they are quiet enough or meditate enough, they will hear God speak. There are churches that have a “quiet time” during church for you to listen for God. There are churches that do signs and miracles so you can know something about God. There are churches where you can learn to listen to God actually whisper in your ear! But these are all looking –and listening—in the wrong place. Jesus says, “You will never believe unless you see signs and wonders.” So what does He do? Does He go and heal the man's son? No, instead, He teaches the man to trust in His Word by speaking His Word and leaving it at that. “Your son lives.” And from that moment, the son was no longer dying. There is a great temptation to wonder about the things in life and how they point to God or not. People are easily persuaded that coincidences must somehow be interpreted as signs from God. I heard of a lady after Hurricane Katrina whose neighbors' houses were both destroyed but hers wasn't because she had prayed. What's the sign? Her faith was strong? I know others, a pastor even, who lost most of what he had. What does that sign mean? Your cancer went away: what does that mean God is doing? Your cancer came back: what does THAT mean. Don't look at the things that happen in your life to see about what God says. Rather, look to the Word and signs that Christ has actually given us. Hurricane or no hurricane; cancer or no cancer; Your Baptism says you are God's child. Money or no money, problems or everything's going great: Christ's Body and Blood say you will be raised up on the Last Day and live forever. Christ's WORD is what is sure and certain because it does what it says. And His Word says you are His, no matter what the world says.
God's Word does what it says. That's Good News. It's Good News because it means that when He gathers us here in His church, it isn't just to learn some facts. It's not just to pump us full of knowledge. Here, in His church, Christ comes to us to actually do stuff. To forgive. To renew. To make us a new creation that glorifies Him and loves and serves our neighbor. Here, the Lord speaks and actually does what He says, bestowing upon us the forgiveness of sins, salvation and everlasting life. We are bombarded every day on TV and radio and in school and our jobs with “information.” But here there is much more than information. Here God's Word speaks and life is given to you. In the Name of Jesus. Amen.
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