Midweek Lent 5 – Pr. Anderson sermon
Genesis 3:22-24; St. Mark 15:37-39 “Gate of Paradise: Paradise Closed; Paradise Opened”
March 20, 2024 | Christ Lutheran Church
In Nomine Iesu
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O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down. Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown. O sacred head, what glory, what bliss, till now was Thine; yet though despised and gory, I joy to call Thee mine. And when I am departing, O part not Thou from me; when moral pangs are darting, come, Lord, and set me free: And when my heart must languish amidst the final throe, release me from mine anguish by Thine own pain and woe. Amen. (Evangelical Lutheran Hymnody #334 v. 1 & 9)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (Rom. 1:7, etc.)
There are many action movies that will use the concept of an impenetrable fortress. This could be anything from an elaborate prison, a castle, a top secret offshore government black site, or the Death Star from the original Star Wars series. If the movie is using the impenetrable fortress method, it usually means that the protagonists are going to succeed in rescuing someone, or infiltrating and destroying the impenetrable fortress. As the audience is enjoying the fact that the good guys won the day, we tend to not think about how these impenetrable fortresses were actually pretty penetrable. This could bring up the question, is there a place that no one can get into? Is there something that is truly impenetrable? I would think the cherubim angels with flaming swords guarding the tree of life would be impenetrable. Everyone wants access to the gate of paradise, and as Adam and Eve are kicked out of the Garden of Paradise and it is closed off to them, the greater gate of paradise is opened forever.
People tend to joke about entering the gates of paradise, but we know for Adam and Eve to be kicked out of the Garden of Eden was no joking matter. They had been given tremendous blessings, but one of the gifts, being able to eat from the tree of life could not be done. Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil. Now, lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat, and live forever–” therefore the LORD God sent him out from the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. This seems harsh. Adam and Eve had to leave the only home they knew. God has His reasons for this move. Adam and Eve now had what the devil told them they would have if they ate from the fruit.
The devil failed to mention that the knowledge that they gained, the knowledge of good and evil was corrupt. The good that Adam and Eve knew was the good that they had lost. The evil that they now knew put chains around them. There was no way for them to get out of these chains on their own. Scripture reveals how quick they are to try and reverse the damage they had done. They believe their first child Cain was the promised offspring. Cain however, committed the first recorded murder. God sees the extent of Adam and Eve’s sin, and we see the triune God working together in unison as He removes His creatures from the garden. As harsh as it is, He removes them from the garden so that they can’t eat from the tree of life and live forever.
The tree of life has fruit of immortality. It could stay put in the garden before because Adam and Eve were perfect. We are designed to live forever. You can tell by how many people live with the hope that they can find a way to stop from dying. Death is unnatural. As the world searches for ways to prolong life, the one thing that could have, was taken away. He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. Why would God take away what so many desperately crave?
We live in a sinful and depraved world. We know that the aging process is not fun. We have many aches and pains. Could you imagine having them forever, having no peace? If Adam and Eve had taken a bite of the tree of life they would still be here today. They would be sinful, imperfect, decaying beings that can’t die. The definition of the living-dead closed off from paradise. There are times we crave this kind of life because we then escape the inevitable. We see that paradise was closed and because of the sins that we hold, we can’t talk our way into getting the gate open no matter how hard we try.
As the world tries to get everyone to escape death and access to the pearly gates, human hands will never open them. God knew this when He took away the tree of immortality. With mankind driven out of the garden away from that beautiful paradise, they left knowing that God would give them what they couldn’t have in sin. Only God could give man life again and that is what He did. The key to heaven, was hanging on the cross. And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” As Adam and Eve tried to rectify what they had done by giving birth to their first son, their salvation wasn’t going to rely on a child born in their image. The child was going to be what they had been. The child was going to be perfect. The child was going to be tempted and overcome the temptations of the devil. Succeeding by living a perfect life and beating back the temptations of the devil, the child then took their place. The Son of God took on the sins of the world and then He did what we will not. He willingly breathed his last. As the Centurion exclaimed His title, Only the perfect Son of God could take our place.
As Christ died on the cross, breathing His last, He told the thief where they were going. The gates of heaven, paradise was opened. Those who heard these words then physically saw the truth that was in them. The curtain that had separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was torn in two. This was the section that the High Priest could only enter once a year and he had to bring blood with Him. Jesus gave His lifegiving blood on the cross and because of His blood, the curtain is no longer needed. The sin that required blood and separation because we stand guilty before God is taken away. We are no longer kicked out because God sees the perfect life and work of His Son.
You might be wondering, is this too good to be true? You know that life is difficult. You feel the burden of sin and you feel the aches and pains that sap your strength. Can I really join God in His holy presence? Do I really deserve to live forever and escape the death that I justly deserve? God remembers His creation. He knows that you seek to live forever even though you do not deserve it. He tells you because of your sins, you can’t attain it, so He attains it for you. He did close the garden of paradise and He took from them the tree of life, but in keeping His promises, life is given back to you in the One and only Son of God. He is the way and the truth and the life! In His death, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. Jesus death on the cross is where you find your new life. A life that is well pleasing to your Father in Heaven because it is a new life that is not your own. God does all of the work because of His great love for you.
What about the people of the Old Testament? Was paradise closed to them? Paradise of the Garden of Eden had been closed to them so they could not eat of the tree of life, but they were given the same promise that you hold on to with all your might. They looked to the One who would come. The One who could bring life and salvation through His death. The world wants paradise opened because they can’t escape death. This life is not a life that is worth having forever. A life where sin is no more is a gift that we do not deserve. The Gate is opened through the One who gives life. This life is found in Jesus, who spills His blood in the Holy of Holies once and for all. The impenetrable gate of heaven is opened for you by Christ’s glorious death and resurrection! Paradise is opened! Eternal life awaits! Amen.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, forevermore. Amen.
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