Easter 1—Quasimodogeniti
Beloved. This first Sunday after Easter has the name “Quasimodogeniti” which is the first few words in Latin of the Introit which comes from St Peter’s first epistle [2.2]: As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby. The name and the reading have long roots into the practice of the early church for on this Sunday, those who had been baptized at the Easter vigil the week before received their first Communion. Also, when they were baptized, at their baptism they were clothed in white garments, symbolizing their new birth/ birth from above and they wore these garments all week for services. On this Sunday, looking like newborn babes, they wore their white robes for the last time, removing them after the Benediction.
Notice that nice tie in. These Christians had just been baptized; they are the newborn babes in Christ; they are Christians. Just like a baby is a full, complete person—both outside and inside the womb—it just needs to grow and mature; it needs food and nourishment to grow and develop-- so too the Christian needs the pure milk of the word [so] that [we] may grow in order to grow and mature in the faith. We need the pure milk of the word that we hear; we need the word that we see with our eye—the Blessed Sacrament of our Lord’s body and blood.
We have been born of God; God has, as St. Peter also writes [1 Peter 1.3-4]: according to His abundant mercy…begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for [us]. And now notice our text: everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. That’s us, the Christian. Because of Jesus’ resurrection we overcome/ conquer the world because we have a heavenly inheritance. Our new life, our spiritual birth from above, is the gift of faith that God gives us. Through this faith, and this divinely worked and given faith alone, do we receive the gifts Jesus won for us by His life, suffering and death. This faith is spiritual life and power and strength. That’s why faith is not a matter of the imagination. It is powerful and it has a solid foundation.
1. Our text: everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? The true faith, the one that God Himself works in baptism and the word, is not just any faith. It is a very solid and specific faith, that is, it has a definite object—it believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
A very popular notion today is that faith is important. That’s all well and good, but completely worthless. The main question is: but what is that faith? What does one have trust/ confidence in? True divinely worked faith is not just a general idea/ feeling that everything will be ok in the end. True divinely worked faith isn’t even some general notion that there is a God. Instead, the true, divinely worked faith has a solid, concrete object of what it believes and holds to: it believes that Jesus is the Son of God. Faith is not just knowing some facts about Jesus. Even the demons know facts about Jesus. A demon cried out to Jesus [Mk. 5.7]: What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me. Notice the demon knows exactly who Jesus is—Son of the Most High God—and it sounds even very pious: I implore You by God. St. James [2.19] puts it this way: You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble. Again, in other words, faith—one that has been divinely worked, one that gives us that new, spiritual heavenly life, one that makes us a Christian—is not merely knowing some facts about Jesus. Instead, that true saving faith that God created in us by His word and which brought us new life is trust/ confidence/ reliance on Jesus and His life, suffering and death for the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life in heaven. True, saving faith is trust/ confidence/ reliance on Jesus’ Person—who He is the Son of God and His doctrine and work!
What a glorious time we now are in to examine our faith to honestly search our heart and minds to see if we are trusting in/ relying on Jesus as our Savior—it’s Easter! This is the time we are celebrating Jesus’ victory for us over sin, death, devil and hell. We are reveling in the fruits and blessings of Jesus’ Easter morning resurrection. There we see beyond any shadow of a doubt that He is our one and only Savior; there we see that His work was accepted by the Father and that Jesus is once for all perfect sacrifice for our sins. Everywhere we now look in the Church we see Jesus’ victory for us. Let us look at Easter and be strengthened in our faith who Jesus is and what He has done for us.
Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? To believe that Jesus is the Son of God means that Jesus was sent by the Father to destroy and undo the works of the devil for me; it means recognizing that all our enemies lay at His feet conquered, that Jesus conquered our spiritual enemies for me. That’s faith, faith worked by God. The moment that God works that faith in us—and for most of us it was in the waters of holy Baptism—we have been born of God and have overcome the world. How/ Why? Faith! Our victory, our overcoming the world must happen through faith. That’s because: what could we accomplish on our own against the devil? On our own and by our own strength, don’t we just continue on in sin temptation after temptation? But Jesus is greater. He is the Son of God; He fought against sin, death, devil an hell and won. And now through faith His victory is ours. In Jesus we triumph over our spiritual enemies because in baptism we are united with Him, in the Holy Supper Jesus comes to us and unites Himself with us in a most wonderful bodily way. Jesus has conquered and faith unites us with Him so His victory is our victory.
Our faith the Holy Spirit worked in us in the word and water of holy Baptism is not a matter of imagination. It is powerful. Through that faith in Jesus as the Son of God, we receive His victory and triumph over our spiritual enemies. Look at Jesus’ empty Easter morning tomb and there see your victory through faith in Jesus!
Not only is this faith that God creates in us powerful so that we receive new spiritual life and triumph in Jesus, but this faith is powerful in our lives now as we live a life fighting sin and striving to do the will of God. That’s the overcoming the world that St. John writes about in our text. Right before our text he writes: For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commands are not burdensome. And then comes our text: because everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? Did you catch that? Why aren’t God’s commandments burdensome—or to put it differently: why do we strive to do the will of God and fight against sin? Answer: we have been born of God [and have] overcome the world. And how? This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. God given faith in Jesus, our new life/ new birth, us being as newborn babes, is a mighty thing not only because we believe that Jesus is the Son of God but because faith also shows itself in striving and delighting to do the will of God. That new spiritual life God creates in us not only converts us but gives us divine strength to fight sin, devil and our own sinful desires. Notice again our text: everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. What is the world that we overcome? That’s the world as it opposes Jesus and His will and work; the world as it follows it’s prince, the devil, and opposes the things of God and Christ.
Notice as well something else interesting—we both conquer and we have conquered: everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world and This is the victory that has overcome the world. It’s both past and present conquering/ overcoming. How does that work? We have overcome the world when in Spirit worked faith we turn to Jesus and receive His victory. His victory over sin, death, devil and hell is certain and sure! Jesus has overcome them for us—and faith receives His victory! This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith.
And yet, we are in the process of overcoming the world: everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. This is our everyday life fighting against sin and striving to do our Lord’s will. This is something that we are engaged in until our dying breath. Remember, dear Christian, you have been born of God. He has created in you the desire to fight against sin. And here too we can look at our hearts and lives—if we see in ourselves no desire to fight against sin, if we don’t care whether we sin or not, if we have no hatred of sin in our life, if we don't seek to root sin out of our lives then we must ask ourselves: have I really been born of God? But, if we indeed have been born of God, with the desire to do His will, through that faith He works in us, we receive new God-given strength to live a spiritual and heavenly life as we receive His gifts and blessings and strengthening in His word and sacraments. We fight against sin, and by God’s grace we begin to gain the victory over sin’s domination in our life. Will we be always successful? Will we ever be perfect? Hardly! But as we engage in the battle against sin and delight in doing the Lord’s will, what do we read in our text? Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. Did you catch that? The very fact that we have faith in Jesus, are Christians, are the newborn babes means that we are overcoming the world. The battle may be slow and grinding. We may often see much more defeat/ sin than overcoming/ holiness. But the victory remains with our Lord’s dear Christian! Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. That’s because, through faith, we are united with Jesus. And Jesus fought the battle against sin and temptation and won it for us. So even when we sin, we then run to Jesus, seek His forgiveness. And He forgives us our sin and gives us His perfect keeping of God’s Law and covers us with His perfect righteousness. Faith is always receiving that victory of Jesus for us and so we are overcoming the world.
And then, what is so glorious, is that receiving our Lord’s forgiveness and salvation, we are so filled with joy and love of the Lord that we--the new self, the Christian in us-- strive all the more to fight against sin and temptation, strive all the more to do the Lord’s will and so overcome the world.
And our great comfort here as well is this: Everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. That’s a promise! As we have been born of God, as we stay in the faith, stay in the new birth we overcome the world. It doesn’t depend on our feelings and whether we feel if we’re forgiven; we dare never doubt God’s word of holy absolution; we dare never doubt His promise to us as He gives us His body and blood and tells us: Give and poured out for you for the forgiveness of sins.
Our faith has a solid foundation; it is not a matter of our imagination. It is firmly grounded on Jesus and His holy life, innocent suffering and death for our sins and on His glorious resurrection and ascension. In His holy word and sacrament, Jesus continues to give to us the gifts and blessings of His work to strengthen and keep us in the faith. The very fact that we have this faith in Jesus means that we have been born of God of water and the word. This Spirit worked faith is the seal, certainty that Jesus, in fact, the holy Triune God dwells within us. We have been born of God and by His grace and faithfulness we overcome the world. INJ Amen