A Sermon from Our Conference

St. Michael's Evening Prayer
SID Pastors' Conference, 2 Oct 2007
Text: Daniel 10:10-14; 12:1-3
Pastor H. R. Curtis

Grace, Mercy, and Peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Poor Daniel. He saw more persecution and faced more hardship than most. Tossed in a lion's den, conspired against by prime ministers, at the beck and call of a madman-king. And, to make it all worse, he is afraid. Yes, he has faith. Yes, he turns to the Lord in prayer. But he is also full of fear and trembling. He is, like the disciples of the Lord – like you – a faithful coward. Simul fidelis et tremens.

Look at how he tortures himself with worry and fear. For three weeks his worry drives him to distraction: no meat, no wine, no delicacies, no washing up and anointing with oil. Twenty-one days into a fast that was meant to go who knows how long, Daniel receives a vision. He is told not to be afraid. And he is told that his fasting and worry were without consequence. He is given what is not so much a rebuke, but rather more of a punchline: I was sent to see you because of your prayers, right from the start when you first set you heart on asking I was sent: I've just been held up for twenty-one days dealing with Persia. But I was always going to come and I'm here now. Do not be afraid.

Oh beloved, is Daniel not a mirror for your own heart? Your prayers go up to God – you make your secret deals that if this will just work out, then bulls will be sacrificed on His altar – you worry and fret and miss sleep – food looses its flavor or becomes a crutch to pass the time – you fast and pray – you drink more than you should and cry more than you want – you stare at your office wall or the computer screen too paralyzed with fear about the list of things that have yet to be done and are unsavory to perform. Oh, beloved: he heard you the first time. Your heavenly Father knows what you need before you ask; he is in control; have you not heard what is said about the sparrow and the lily of the field? Repent.

Such is the lesson that Daniel learns. The curtain is pulled back just a hair and he sees all that is being done for him. The angels are busy in their duties: armies are being drawn up in your defense. Even Holy Michael, prince of your people, delights to put on his armor and go to war for you.

For what else can these angels do but serve you? For look what their captain and Lord, the God of Sabaoth does for you. He straps on his weaponry woven from the womb of the Woman and strides into battle to be run through with the nails and spear driven by the force of the world's sin and the Father's holiness. He walks a path of humble service for the sake of his own love. He dies for you and rises again. He loves you and washes you clean. He speaks forgiveness to you, personally, through his called messenger (whom you need to hear more than your parishioners – for no man can absolve his own sins). He feeds you with the True Manna, the food of heaven, his own Body and Blood. This is his Divine Service to you – and the angels bow before this mystery and imitate it in their devotion to the cause of your salvation. So tell me, O Daniel: what need do you have to be afraid?

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.