The Seventh Sunday of Easter | John 15:26-16:4 | I Do, By the Grace of God

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The Seventh Sunday of Easter | John 15:26-16:4 | I Do, By the Grace of God

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The Seventh Sunday of Easter May 17, 2026 John 15:26-16:4 It seems to me that we hear these words of the Gospel each year, in addition to this Sunday, but in a different way. Let’s ponder them for a moment, and forgive me, but I’m going to paraphrase the Gospel here. Jesus says He’s sending the Helper, the Holy Spirit, to the disciples to show them what He has done for them by dying on the cross and rising again on the third day. But they, likewise, will then need to bear witness to the world for what Jesus has done, or as we commonly say today in the church, “Confess” Jesus, His cross and resurrection to the world. Then Jesus goes on to say that He’s telling the disciples these things because He doesn’t want them to fall away from Him – to fall away from faith in Him. Jesus is telling the disciples these things because after His death and resurrection, they will be rejected by their people, thrown out of their synagogues, and killed in the name of religion. In fact, Jesus says these people will think they are offering a sacrifice to God by killing them. Jesus says they will do these things to His disciples because they don’t actually know His Father. They don’t understand the Scriptures, nor why Jesus came in the first place, to save His people from their sins. But Jesus tells His disciples these things because when—not if—the time comes to suffer for His name, they will remember His words and know that He is with them, that they carry His divine truth, and even if believing in Jesus costs them their earthly lives, eternal life remains for those who have faith in Him. And this is exactly what happened to many of Jesus’ disciples. St. Peter, Andrew, and Philip were crucified for their witness and faith in Jesus. St. James, son of Zebedee, beheaded. St. Bartholomew, flayed alive. St. Simon the Zealot, sawn in half. St. Matthew, killed with a sword. St. Jude, also known as Thaddeus, killed with arrows or an axe. St. James the Lessor, stoned to death, as was St. Matthias. Alright, so where else do you hear this little sermon about suffering for the witness and faith in Jesus Christ? In the Rite of Confirmation, where the often young disciple of Christ is asked twice if they are willing to die rather than fall away from their witness and faith in Jesus. Just listen to the questions from the rite now. The Confirmand is asked, P Do you intend to live according to the Word of God, and in faith, word, and deed to remain true to God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, even to death? R I do, by the grace of God. P Do you intend to continue steadfast in this confession and Church and to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it? R I do, by the grace of God. If you happened to grow up in the time of The Lutheran Hymnal, otherwise known as TLH, these same questions were there, just with slightly older language. Twice, the Confirmation student confesses their desire to die rather than fall away from the Christian faith. Twice, they confess to remaining steadfast, even if the world or, worse, those who are supposed to be in the church with them, try to cause them to stumble in their faith. Isn’t that interesting, the danger of being led away from Christ within the Church? You see, the Greek word for “Falling away” or “Being led away” is σκανδαλίζω, meaning to scandalize. Consider this: in some cases, a person’s death may actually stem from turning away from faith out of fear of death itself, while others, even within the church, work to silence your faith. But an amazing thing, as you reflect on the deaths of the Apostles we listed earlier, is that they never fell away. After the resurrection, they didn’t turn away from Jesus, they did not turn; they stood their ground and confessed their faith, even to the point of death. How could they stand so firm in the face of death? Because the Holy Spirit remained with them, Jesus and His Father kept their promise and sent the Holy Spirit to give them faith and courage, forgive their sins, and assure them of eternal life. This is, after all, what the Confirmand confesses after they’re asked if they’ll suffer death rather than fall away from the faith, “I do, by the grace of God.” What is grace? Grace is God’s undeserved, free gift of mercy and forgiveness to sinners, by which He declares them righteous solely on account of the works and merit of Christ. Grace is the gift of God’s favor and His working within you. But how do you receive this grace and favor of God? This is the work of the Holy Spirit. Remember what you learned in Confirmation: what is the Third Article of the Creed? I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. What does ...

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