For the 3rd Sunday in Advent in Series B of the 3-year lectionary the 3 readings are Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 and John 1:6-8, 19-28. Chosen as the sermon passage is Isaiah 61:10, “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation; He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”

If you were to ask most Christians what is the benefit we receive because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ they would certainly answer with the “forgiveness of sins.” Yet that is only 1/2 of the primary benefit Jesus won for you. For there are two obstacles to our relationship with Almighty God since the fall of human beings into sin.

The first is the sins we commit. For that the forgiveness of sins is valid and proper. But what do you do with an individual who is aware of the many good works he is unable to perform as God demands? While the first reason for separation from God can be referred to as sins of commission, the second reason is referred to as sins of omission.

The faithful pastor, along with any Christian, will first listen to the attitude of the individual to arrive at a decision whether the broken relationship is due to an active sin of thought, word or deed or the inability to do a good work. For the former problem, the Good News is the forgiveness of sins. But for the latter problem, the Good News is Isaiah’s words of being clothed with the robe of righteousness.

That robe was given during the glorious exchange in baptism when we gave to Jesus our sins and He gave to us His righteousness. Not His intrinsic righteousness of being divine but those many good works He did while on earth. Those are transferred to us who, of course, do not deserve that robe anymore than we deserved the forgiveness of sins.

Law and Gospel distinctions first diagnose the condition of which kind of sin the person worries about. Then comes the treatment of the proper antidote of either forgivness for sins of commission or the robe of righteousness for sins of omission. In this way, the second 1/2 of the works of Jesus Christ are made available so that from God’s point of view, the believer is regarded not just as 100% sinner but also as 100% saint by grace, through faith on account of Jesus Christ!