John 3:14-21 - Find the Joy in Faith - March 14, 2021

Joy. That was the traditional theme for this Sunday in the early church. The first word of the introit – what we call the “Prayer of the Day” – from Isaiah 66:10 (“rejoice with Jerusalem…”) began with the Latin word for rejoice, laetare, and so this Sunday was called “Rejoice” or “Joy” Sunday. It was intended to serve as a kind of rest stop, a respite from the serious and penitential nature of Lent. Can you feel the joy? As you came through those doors this morning, I asked many of you: “How are you?” And not one person responded, “Pastor, I’m joyful.” Why not? Is it because of some trouble in your personal life? Disillusionment with this fallen world? Pandemic fatigue? Are you just cranky because you were robbed of an hour of sleep last night? Whatever the reason, it’s good that you’re here, because today Jesus helps us find the joy in faith.

Jesus is talking to Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a member of the Jewish ruling council (John 3:1). Nicodemus had come to Jesus at night, probably out of fear of being associated with this man whom his colleagues despised and wanted to get rid of. Later, this same Nicodemus, along with Joseph of Arimathea, took upon themselves the privilege of taking Jesus’ dead body down from the cross and giving it a quick but proper burial (John 19:38-42). However, at this point, Nicodemus is still an unbeliever; curious and inquisitive – a “seeker” some might say today – but still an unbeliever. So, what subject do you think Jesus zeroed in on with unbelieving Nicodemus? Believing. Faith. Jesus refers to believing three times in our text – in verses 15, 16, and 18.

Jesus spells out the benefits of faith in him: never being condemned, never perishing and having eternal life. Seems to me that there’s a whole lot of joy to be found there, right? So what if our lives here are plagued by the threats of viruses and violence? By faith we possess a life that will not be plagued by threats of any kind (Revelation 21:22-27). So what if I can feel death’s cold grip on my body and see its dreadful symptoms in the mirror? Jesus says that through faith in him we will never perish. So what if my conscience or the devil himself accuse me of being beyond God’s love? Jesus says the one who believes in him is not condemned. What Jesus says is true. It’s true no matter what is going on in the world, in your life, or even in your own head or heart. Aren’t those rock-solid reasons to rejoice? Then why is joy such a rare and endangered species in the lives of many Christians; even in our own?

One big reason is that by nature, we give our personal faith too much credit; that is, we tend to think of faith as kind of the “finishing touch” of our salvation. Think of our first lesson, did you place the emphasis on the bronze snake or the necessity of looking to it to live (Numbers 21:4-9)? Or in verse 8 of our second lesson, which struck you as the key to salvation: it is by grace you have been saved or through faith (Ephesians 2:8). Even here in our Gospel lesson, did you focus on for God so loved the world or that whoever believes in him? In each passage, God is clearly telling us that he has provided completed salvation for his people. And yet, what’s often our takeaway? That God has simply made salvation possible for us; that it’s up to you to believe it. And what does that do? It makes faith a cause or source of our salvation.

Have you ever heard anyone say: “Jesus did it all. All you have to do is believe.” It sounds good, what’s the problem? The problem that it is a terrible mixture of Law and Gospel. “Jesus did it all,” is Gospel. “All you have to do is believe,” is Law (As is anything we have to do!). You see? Whenever you hear that faith is needed for your salvation, Jesus is no longer sufficient– you still need to do your part. In fact, it makes Jesus a liar. If your faith completes your salvation, then Jesus lied when he said it is finished (John 19:30). Sure, Jesus may have completed 99% of salvation for you; but you’ve got to provide that last 1% with faith.

And what happens when you’re faith has to fill in the gaps? Well, you’re left staring into the depths of your own heart to see whether or not you have this abstract, nebulous thing called faith glowing there. If you can see it, if you can feel it then you can conclude that you are saved. If you can’t see it, if you can’t feel it, well, then you can’t really be sure, can you? Do you really want to hang your salvation on your faith? Just consider how tenuous faith feels in the face of the realities of life. When the budget is tight – do you really trust that God will provide your daily bread? When you’ve treated your spouse like dirt or broken another promise to your children – do you really believe that you are forgiven? When the entire world out there has dismissed Christianity as a fairy tale – do you really believe that the word of the Lord endures forever (1 Peter 1:25)? When you’re standing at the grave of a loved one – do you really believe in the resurrection? In theory, faith is easy; in practice, there’s nothing harder. Our faith can’t stand up to the realities of life, much less death and hell.  

I understand that this may be shocking to many of you; that it challenges everything you’ve ever been taught about faith. If you grew up in a generic, Protestant church, you were either explicitly or implicitly led to believe that the faith in your heart is a cause of your salvation. (That’s why Evangelicals are fixated on “feeling” faith and your personal decision). If you come from a Reformed background, you were taught that Jesus only died for believers (Limited Atonement), so you have to do good works in order to “prove” your faith. You may have even gotten that impression if you’re a Lutheran – after all we place faith alone alongside Scripture alone and grace alone as the Reformation pillars on which we stand. But allow me to quote one of our American Lutheran forefathers, C. F. W. Walther, from his book The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel: “You may run through the whole Bible, and you will not find a single passage which states that man is justified on account of his faith. Wherever the relation of faith to justification is spoken of, terms are used which declare faith a means, not a cause.” (274)

Think about what you’re saying if you think you’re saved because you believe. Then your salvation isn’t hanging on the cross; your salvation hangs on how perfectly you fear, love and trust in God. Then the thin line that stands between you and eternal death is your faith – and you must spend every waking minute wondering if your faith is strong enough. That’s where Lent comes in. Lent provides an annual shock to our system which reminds us that Christianity is not about us; it’s about Christ. It reminds us that God urges us to look outward to Jesus, not inward to our faith for salvation. So where is your focus today? On your faith or the object of your faith?

Actually, you don’t have to answer that question, your behavior speaks for you. Those who focus on their own faith treat the means of grace kind of like they treat the Emergency Department: “I’ll go and get help when I’m really sick, when the over-the-counter drugs don’t work, when I’m really desperate. Otherwise, I’m fine on my own!” When we should really treat of the means of grace like we think of food, water and oxygen – “If I don’t get these, regularly, I’m dead!” Why? Because the means of grace: baptism, absolution and communion are the only places God has promised to offer his faith creating and sustaining grace and forgiveness. Now, admittedly, there’s not much to see here: some water, some words, some bread and wine – they’re about as unimpressive as a bronze snake on a pole. That’s why people who need to “feel” their faith focus on things that stimulate their emotions: sappy music, motivational sermons, creating an atmosphere that makes them “feel” close to Jesus. But feelings are a poor substitute for certainty.

The pandemic hasn’t been good for much – but it’s been great for sermon illustrations. Take the Covid-19 vaccine, for example. What role does faith play in getting vaccinated? At most, it determines whether you go and get it or not. But does your faith make it effective? Of course not! The efficacy of the vaccine doesn’t depend on you at all – it depends on the scientist who brewed it in a lab, on the technicians who stored it and the nurse who administered it. Your faith doesn’t give the vaccine its power. In fact, whether you believe in the vaccine or not is absolutely irrelevant – it’s either effective or not, regardless of what you believe. (And no, I’m not advocating for or against getting it.)

In the same way, the source, the power, the cause, the efficacy of salvation is not your faith. I’ll repeat. The source of your salvation is not your faith. Listen again to Ephesians 2:8, with the emphasis in the proper place: it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God (Ephesians 2:8). Faith is the conduit for, not the source of your salvation. In other words, even while Jesus is emphasizing faith here to Nicodemus, he’s not directing his attention to his own heart, but to God’s. Isn’t that the logical progression of John 3:16? God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Who’s the subject of that sentence? God; not you. God sent his Son to live a perfect life and die on the cross for your sins and rise again for your justification – apart from yours or mine or anyone else’s faith. Your salvation was completed long before you could ever make a decision for Jesus, “feel” faith in your heart – long before you were even conceived and born. And that, dear friends, is what makes it certain.

When you know that what you believe is certain; you don’t have to focus on your believing. That would be as foolish as someone claiming to be immune to Covid because they believe it is effective – without ever have gotten the shot. People who understand that faith is the “open hand” which receives completed salvation focus instead on Jesus. How? By focusing on where Jesus has promised to be: where people have gathered in his name (Matthew 18:20), around Word and Sacrament. They don’t gather around things that make them “feel” good; they gather around the means through which Jesus promises to come to them. Sometimes they feel great about their faith, sometimes they don’t, but it doesn’t matter. Because whenever God’s Word is preached and his Sacraments are properly administered, Jesus, the “source” of salvation, is there for you, personally, whether you “feel” it or not.

Our focus needs to be outward – on Jesus, not inward – on ourselves. Because you know as well as I do that there are times in life when you look for faith and all you see is doubt; when you want to trust but all you do is worry; when you long for joy and all you feel is fear. The only hope, the only cure at these times is outside of you: it’s in Jesus. He says that he joined you to himself in Baptism (Romans 6:3-5), so he’s there with you, even if you can’t feel it. He says that whoever hears the words of his disciples hear him, so Jesus is there speaking in the Absolution even though you can’t see him (Luke 10:16). And, he says that Holy Communion is his body and his blood, and that remains true whether you see (or believe) it or not (Matthew 26:26-28). Through these means God really gives his free, unconditional gift of salvation – whether you feel it or not.

See? There is a good reason to rejoice in Lent – because Lent shows us the joy of faith. Not in your believing – because your believing, like mine, is as unpredictable and erratic as the weather. But what you believe – that God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life – that’s not going anywhere. That’s certain. And where there’s certainty, there’s certainly reason to rejoice. Amen.