Years ago, I was out of Christmas gift ideas for Lori. I had to fall back to a boring gift. It was a Magic Bullet – those small, personal blenders with which you can make guacamole in 5.6 seconds and a margarita in 9. She’d mentioned she wanted one and was happy with the gift. Then we used it. Do you have one? Maybe your experience was better, but it stunk. It was a pain to clean. It never mixed everything up. Chunks of ice or tomato always stuck in the bottom. We tried it a few more times, but it now likely sits in her mom’s basement. Do you think we recommended it to friends or family?  Never.

A year or so after that, with a Kohl’s 30% off coupon in hand, and with a sale at Kohl’s (when is there not one?) on a whim we picked up a somewhat similar - the Magic Ninja. We could not be happier with it. We use it 3 times a week and it’s in an easily accessible spot in our kitchen. Did we recommend it to others? We did more than that. We bought one for my sister for Christmas a few years ago. It was a good product and we wanted someone else to enjoy the same benefits we have.

I’m sure you have a similar story about a mower, book, movie or whatever. Commercials rave about a product, you buy it, it fails, and you ask yourself, “what’s so special about this thing?” On the flipside, there are other things that are so great and invaluable you annoy people because you talk about them so much. With that in mind, which is Jesus –the overhyped or the “can’t live without”? We know what people said about him at the time, just a guy, had some screws lose or at least that he wasn’t who he said – God’s Son. We know what people say now – basically the same thing. But what do we say? Is he overhyped or essential? I know you know the answer to that question, but keep it in mind as we dig into our lesson. 

Our lesson finds Paul and Silas in prison in Philippi. What did they do wrong? They healed a demon possessed girl.  The demon was predicting the future and her handlers were making lots of cash with this scheme.  For his compassionate act of driving the demon out, and thus causing the handlers to lose their revenue stream, a crowd was roused to go after Paul and Silas.  They were “tried” publicly as enemies of the state and thrown in jail until they could figure out a way to kill them.

Now, we are going to ask this question a lot and flip back and forth to our lesson, so stick with me. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would Paul, could Paul, have driven out that demon?  Why in the world would he have brought all this hardship into his life if Jesus was just some guy?  Why would he put his life on the line if Jesus was just some crazy guy?

Back to our lesson. Paul and Silas are treated like #1 enemies of the state – immense security, lots of chains. But what are they doing, even at midnight? Praying and singing hymns. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they’ve done that? Why’d they do that if Jesus was just a myth that had been perpetuated?  They were unjustly imprisoned for doing what Jesus commanded.  If he was a phony, wouldn’t they’ve been falling all over themselves to distance themselves from Jesus?  “We never met the guy!  Hey, a person has to earn a buck, right?”  But there they are in prison, unjustly, singing.  Why?

As much as I am sure God appreciated those hymns, he had to interrupt.  He sent an oddly violent, yet oddly specific earthquake.  This prison was likely underground, as most were back then.  But the roof and walls did not cave in though the foundations were shaken.  What did happen is that cell doors flew open and the chains on all the prisoners were loosed.  And what do Paul and Silas do?  Nothing, really. They don’t head for the doors. As far as we know, they did not even move.  They stayed put. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they have done that?  Jesus had told them that, yes, they would face persecution, even to the point of losing their lives, in service to him.  But he also told them that he would work all things out for their good and that they should simply trust him.  If Jesus was just a guy – not a big deal – was there any reason for them to not race out those doors and into the night as quickly as possible?  No.  Not one.  But they stayed.  Why?

After the earthquake, the jailer sees the doors open and fears the worst – they fled. As warden, when a prisoner escaped, he’d take that person’s punishment.  Paul and Silas were accused of treason, and that carried the death sentence.  So he figured, “I might as well do myself in and get this over quickly.” But Paul speaks. “Don’t harm yourself – we’re all here.” If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would he have done that? The leaders’ plan was for Paul and Silas to die at this man’s hands.  If Paul did not heartily believe this Jesus thing, would he have wanted to spare the life of the man who’d take his? The natural thing for Paul would’ve been to let the guy kill himself. That would make escape easier. But he spares his life.  Why?

So the jailer puts down the sword, sees what Paul says is true, and asks a famous question: “What must I do to be saved? After all this, the jailer was ready to do whatever.  Paul could’ve said, “let us go free, and you’ll be saved.” “Kill the guys w/the demon possessed girl, kill them and you’ll be saved.” “Hand over your cash and valuables and you’ll be saved.” They could’ve played with this guy for days. But Paul says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you’ll be saved.” If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would he have done that - cared less about his life and showed more concern for the jailer’s? Would he have spoken of God’s mercy to a man who was going to show his neck the blade, the antithesis of mercy?  Normally, people rake someone in the jailer’s position over the coals. But Paul, after saving his body, tells him how to save his soul.  Why?

Then the jailer takes them home. They speak God’s Word to his household, his family, baptize them all, and then they do wound healing and have dinner. And there was nothing but joy in that house.  If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they have done that - not only brought peace to the jailer but to his wife, kids and servants, people they’d never met?  Would they have risked sticking around and getting caught again if Jesus was a charlatan? These are people they should have hated.  But they loved them so much they took the time to teach/baptize them and then have an informal worship service.  Why?

The answer for all these is the same. Why did they do these things? Because they knew who Jesus was and they had experienced his grace. This is the 1st Sunday in Epiphany. This season’s focus is that we come to realize the Jesus whose birth we just celebrated is not just a cute baby laying in a cattle trough but he is the one God promised in Eden, the Savior who was God, who came from God, and came to do everything God said the Messiah would do. The word Epiphany means revelation, and in Epiphany we see Jesus revealed as the Christ – the one who makes things right between God and man.

By God’s grace, Paul came to realize that as well.  Grace had brought this believer hunter over to the side of God’s children.  Grace assured Paul his past was forgiven.  Grace made Paul confident that his future, be it earthly or eternal, was solid.  Grace gave Paul a hope he never thought he would have, a joy impossible to find in this life and a peace that surpasses all human understanding.  And this grace came not from a guy, a baby, a good teacher or some person whose legend grew over time.  It came from the God man – the one revealed to him on the road to Damascus.  It came from Jesus.

That’s why Paul (and Silas – always seem to forget him) did what they did.  That’s why they endured persecution patiently.  That’s why they sang at times of darkness.  That’s why they trusted God.  That’s why they wanted to save the jailer’s life, physically and spiritually.  They knew Jesus was the real deal, and everything they did flowed from that belief.

Any different for us? If Jesus wasn’t the real deal as the Bible says, the one God promised he’d be, you’d not be here.  You’d be sleeping, shopping, fishing or watching politicians bicker on Sunday shows. You wouldn’t come before this Jesus in honest confession about your sins this week.  Who wants to bring those up? And if the sin I did made me happy, what is so bad about that? You would not respond with hymns of thanks and praise, first of all because if Jesus isn’t the real deal, he really didn’t do anything, but also, if that is true, singing to Jesus would be like singing to the tooth fairy – pointless.

You’d also not put $ in the plate. If Jesus isn’t the real deal, then all you’re doing with it is making sure we have heat for a worship service that has no real point and making sure the guy who tells you about all this made up stuff can pay his mortgage and put food on the table. And if Jesus isn’t the real deal, why would you put into practice any of the stuff we talk about? “Why forgive my enemy? I hate him! Why help those in need? It’s my money! Why be patient? I’m important! Why fight greed? I want things! Why think the best about people? They probably don’t about me!” If Jesus is a fake, phony and fraud, you’re either incredibly foolish or your brain is not working correctly, since who’d do this for a fake, phony and fraud?

But you do these things, for the same reason Paul and Silas did. Jesus is the real deal. Grace revealed him as your Savior. What Paul knew, you know. You know how sweet grace’s sound is. You know how lost you were, a few years ago or way back to when you were born. You realize how blind you were to the truth, however long ago it was, and know you see what grace means, what the real deal Jesus did for you.  You know the same grace the jailer did.  You had no answers. You asked and meant it: what must I do to be saved?  Tell me please! I have no idea! God answered you as he answered the jailer. By the working of the word, by the power of the Spirit in baptism, you came to know the simple answer: just believe.

And it is a firm belief, one grounded in fact. It’s fact that Jesus, the 2nd person of the Trinity, became a true human man while remaining God. It’s fact he, after never once sinning, gave his life on the cross in payment for all our sins. It’s fact that after 3 days in the grave, Jesus showed his divinity and glory and walked out of that tomb. And it’s fact the Jesus, who upon completing his mission, sent his Spirit to work faith in God’s people, from Pentecost to now, is the same Jesus who’ll return that we may share his glory eternally in heaven.  That is what grace has done for you.  That is what grace means to you.

With that grace in our minds and on our hearts, with that grace coursing through our veins along with the blood that keeps us alive, we head out into the world.  And the grace that has been shown to us is the grace we will show others.  We will bear suffering patiently, handle trials faithfully, speak lovingly, encourage gently, and speak boldly.  That’s what Paul and Silas did.  That is what we will do as well.  Why?  Because Jesus is not a Magic Bullet. He is the real deal.  Amen.
 

Years ago, I was out of Christmas gift ideas for Lori. I had to fall back to a boring gift. It was a Magic Bullet – those small, personal blenders with which you can make guacamole in 5.6 seconds and a margarita in 9. She’d mentioned she wanted one and was happy with the gift. Then we used it. Do you have one? Maybe your experience was better, but it stunk. It was a pain to clean. It never mixed everything up. Chunks of ice or tomato always stuck in the bottom. We tried it a few more times, but it now likely sits in her mom’s basement. Do you think we recommended it to friends or family?  Never.

A year or so after that, with a Kohl’s 30% off coupon in hand, and with a sale at Kohl’s (when is there not one?) on a whim we picked up a somewhat similar - the Magic Ninja. We could not be happier with it. We use it 3 times a week and it’s in an easily accessible spot in our kitchen. Did we recommend it to others? We did more than that. We bought one for my sister for Christmas a few years ago. It was a good product and we wanted someone else to enjoy the same benefits we have.

I’m sure you have a similar story about a mower, book, movie or whatever. Commercials rave about a product, you buy it, it fails, and you ask yourself, “what’s so special about this thing?” On the flipside, there are other things that are so great and invaluable you annoy people because you talk about them so much. With that in mind, which is Jesus –the overhyped or the “can’t live without”? We know what people said about him at the time, just a guy, had some screws lose or at least that he wasn’t who he said – God’s Son. We know what people say now – basically the same thing. But what do we say? Is he overhyped or essential? I know you know the answer to that question, but keep it in mind as we dig into our lesson. 

Our lesson finds Paul and Silas in prison in Philippi. What did they do wrong? They healed a demon possessed girl.  The demon was predicting the future and her handlers were making lots of cash with this scheme.  For his compassionate act of driving the demon out, and thus causing the handlers to lose their revenue stream, a crowd was roused to go after Paul and Silas.  They were “tried” publicly as enemies of the state and thrown in jail until they could figure out a way to kill them.

Now, we are going to ask this question a lot and flip back and forth to our lesson, so stick with me. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would Paul, could Paul, have driven out that demon?  Why in the world would he have brought all this hardship into his life if Jesus was just some guy?  Why would he put his life on the line if Jesus was just some crazy guy?

Back to our lesson. Paul and Silas are treated like #1 enemies of the state – immense security, lots of chains. But what are they doing, even at midnight? Praying and singing hymns. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they’ve done that? Why’d they do that if Jesus was just a myth that had been perpetuated?  They were unjustly imprisoned for doing what Jesus commanded.  If he was a phony, wouldn’t they’ve been falling all over themselves to distance themselves from Jesus?  “We never met the guy!  Hey, a person has to earn a buck, right?”  But there they are in prison, unjustly, singing.  Why?

As much as I am sure God appreciated those hymns, he had to interrupt.  He sent an oddly violent, yet oddly specific earthquake.  This prison was likely underground, as most were back then.  But the roof and walls did not cave in though the foundations were shaken.  What did happen is that cell doors flew open and the chains on all the prisoners were loosed.  And what do Paul and Silas do?  Nothing, really. They don’t head for the doors. As far as we know, they did not even move.  They stayed put. If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they have done that?  Jesus had told them that, yes, they would face persecution, even to the point of losing their lives, in service to him.  But he also told them that he would work all things out for their good and that they should simply trust him.  If Jesus was just a guy – not a big deal – was there any reason for them to not race out those doors and into the night as quickly as possible?  No.  Not one.  But they stayed.  Why?

After the earthquake, the jailer sees the doors open and fears the worst – they fled. As warden, when a prisoner escaped, he’d take that person’s punishment.  Paul and Silas were accused of treason, and that carried the death sentence.  So he figured, “I might as well do myself in and get this over quickly.” But Paul speaks. “Don’t harm yourself – we’re all here.” If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would he have done that? The leaders’ plan was for Paul and Silas to die at this man’s hands.  If Paul did not heartily believe this Jesus thing, would he have wanted to spare the life of the man who’d take his? The natural thing for Paul would’ve been to let the guy kill himself. That would make escape easier. But he spares his life.  Why?

So the jailer puts down the sword, sees what Paul says is true, and asks a famous question: “What must I do to be saved? After all this, the jailer was ready to do whatever.  Paul could’ve said, “let us go free, and you’ll be saved.” “Kill the guys w/the demon possessed girl, kill them and you’ll be saved.” “Hand over your cash and valuables and you’ll be saved.” They could’ve played with this guy for days. But Paul says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you’ll be saved.” If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would he have done that - cared less about his life and showed more concern for the jailer’s? Would he have spoken of God’s mercy to a man who was going to show his neck the blade, the antithesis of mercy?  Normally, people rake someone in the jailer’s position over the coals. But Paul, after saving his body, tells him how to save his soul.  Why?

Then the jailer takes them home. They speak God’s Word to his household, his family, baptize them all, and then they do wound healing and have dinner. And there was nothing but joy in that house.  If Jesus wasn’t the real deal, would they have done that - not only brought peace to the jailer but to his wife, kids and servants, people they’d never met?  Would they have risked sticking around and getting caught again if Jesus was a charlatan? These are people they should have hated.  But they loved them so much they took the time to teach/baptize them and then have an informal worship service.  Why?

The answer for all these is the same. Why did they do these things? Because they knew who Jesus was and they had experienced his grace. This is the 1st Sunday in Epiphany. This season’s focus is that we come to realize the Jesus whose birth we just celebrated is not just a cute baby laying in a cattle trough but he is the one God promised in Eden, the Savior who was God, who came from God, and came to do everything God said the Messiah would do. The word Epiphany means revelation, and in Epiphany we see Jesus revealed as the Christ – the one who makes things right between God and man.

By God’s grace, Paul came to realize that as well.  Grace had brought this believer hunter over to the side of God’s children.  Grace assured Paul his past was forgiven.  Grace made Paul confident that his future, be it earthly or eternal, was solid.  Grace gave Paul a hope he never thought he would have, a joy impossible to find in this life and a peace that surpasses all human understanding.  And this grace came not from a guy, a baby, a good teacher or some person whose legend grew over time.  It came from the God man – the one revealed to him on the road to Damascus.  It came from Jesus.

That’s why Paul (and Silas – always seem to forget him) did what they did.  That’s why they endured persecution patiently.  That’s why they sang at times of darkness.  That’s why they trusted God.  That’s why they wanted to save the jailer’s life, physically and spiritually.  They knew Jesus was the real deal, and everything they did flowed from that belief.

Any different for us? If Jesus wasn’t the real deal as the Bible says, the one God promised he’d be, you’d not be here.  You’d be sleeping, shopping, fishing or watching politicians bicker on Sunday shows. You wouldn’t come before this Jesus in honest confession about your sins this week.  Who wants to bring those up? And if the sin I did made me happy, what is so bad about that? You would not respond with hymns of thanks and praise, first of all because if Jesus isn’t the real deal, he really didn’t do anything, but also, if that is true, singing to Jesus would be like singing to the tooth fairy – pointless.

You’d also not put $ in the plate. If Jesus isn’t the real deal, then all you’re doing with it is making sure we have heat for a worship service that has no real point and making sure the guy who tells you about all this made up stuff can pay his mortgage and put food on the table. And if Jesus isn’t the real deal, why would you put into practice any of the stuff we talk about? “Why forgive my enemy? I hate him! Why help those in need? It’s my money! Why be patient? I’m important! Why fight greed? I want things! Why think the best about people? They probably don’t about me!” If Jesus is a fake, phony and fraud, you’re either incredibly foolish or your brain is not working correctly, since who’d do this for a fake, phony and fraud?

But you do these things, for the same reason Paul and Silas did. Jesus is the real deal. Grace revealed him as your Savior. What Paul knew, you know. You know how sweet grace’s sound is. You know how lost you were, a few years ago or way back to when you were born. You realize how blind you were to the truth, however long ago it was, and know you see what grace means, what the real deal Jesus did for you.  You know the same grace the jailer did.  You had no answers. You asked and meant it: what must I do to be saved?  Tell me please! I have no idea! God answered you as he answered the jailer. By the working of the word, by the power of the Spirit in baptism, you came to know the simple answer: just believe.

And it is a firm belief, one grounded in fact. It’s fact that Jesus, the 2nd person of the Trinity, became a true human man while remaining God. It’s fact he, after never once sinning, gave his life on the cross in payment for all our sins. It’s fact that after 3 days in the grave, Jesus showed his divinity and glory and walked out of that tomb. And it’s fact the Jesus, who upon completing his mission, sent his Spirit to work faith in God’s people, from Pentecost to now, is the same Jesus who’ll return that we may share his glory eternally in heaven.  That is what grace has done for you.  That is what grace means to you.

With that grace in our minds and on our hearts, with that grace coursing through our veins along with the blood that keeps us alive, we head out into the world.  And the grace that has been shown to us is the grace we will show others.  We will bear suffering patiently, handle trials faithfully, speak lovingly, encourage gently, and speak boldly.  That’s what Paul and Silas did.  That is what we will do as well.  Why?  Because Jesus is not a Magic Bullet. He is the real deal.  Amen.