"Rejoice ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her: all ye that love her. Rejoice for joy with her: all ye that mourn for her. I was glad when they said unto me: Let us go into the house of the Lord." (Isaiah 66:10; Psalm 122:1 – the Introit for Laetare)
In the name of Jesus. Amen. Rejoice! Be Glad! Laetare is here! The Sunday in the middle of Lent is named Laetare, which means "Rejoice!" Rejoice ye with Jerusalem!
Isn't Lent supposed to be a somber and gloomy time? Aren't we supposed to be serious about repentance in Lent?
Yes, Lent is very somber as we take a hard look at our sins. Our sins are the reason why the Son of God dies on the Cross. That's the cost of our sins. But, despite popular belief, Lent is not a gloomy season full of depression.
The Cross is the source of our joy too! In Lent, we hear about the forgiveness of our sins. In Lent, we hear about faith, which is nothing more than receiving what Jesus won for us on the Cross. There is no gloom in faith, and thus there is no gloom in Laetare!
That's the joy that bursts through this week! Halfway through Lent, the joy of the Cross of Christ bursts through! So much joy erupts that in some churches, the violet of Lent goes away for a week and the paraments bloom into rose. Our sackcloth goes away for a week and we fix our eyes on Jesus and the salvation that He will win for us on Good Friday!
Rejoice! Be glad! The Father has given His only-begotten Son not just for our sins, but for the sins of the whole world. All our evil deeds, all the wicked things that we have done, that we would be scared and embarrassed if the world knew about, were put upon Him. He died for all our sins. He didn't miss a single sin. He got them all.
If that isn't cause for rejoicing, nothing is! Faith receives the forgiveness Jesus won for us in the Word and the Sacraments. The answer to our gloom is not located inside us, but outside in Jesus' gifts for us.
In Baptism our sins were washed away. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem! In the Absolution spoken by our pastor, our sins are forgiven. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem! In the Body and Blood of Jesus given and shed for us in the Sacrament, our sins are forgiven. Rejoice ye with Jerusalem!
How could we be gloomy any longer? How could we be sad? Everything that we could possibly be gloomy about was put upon the Son of God who died for all our sins! In the name of Jesus. Amen.
"Sweet the moments, rich in blessing, Which before the cross we spend, Life and health and peace possessing From the sinner's dying Friend." (TLH 155, v. 1)
Higher Things Reflections are written by Rev. George F. Borghardt III, Assistant Pastor at St. Mark Lutheran Church, Conroe, TX