How did this day, the 29th of June, become the day of St. Peter and St. Paul? Well, there is a tradition that these two very well known apostles and leaders of the ancient church suffered martyrdom on the very same day on this day of June 29th, 67 AD. Now, that’s tradition and not absolute bona fide historical fact. Perhaps more reliable is the tradition that their bodies were removed from where they suffered martyrdom to be placed in the catacombs on this date of June 29th in the year 258 AD. Many believe this is what established June 29th as being the date of the feast. But it’s hard to know for sure. Stories and traditions sometimes change and “move around” throughout history.

So many things change – so much, in the world we live in today moves around. Maybe this day is a good day to talk about that which does not move around. What is set before us today is the immovable. It’s what Peter confessed. It’s what the Lord has given in and of Himself. It’s the foundation on which the Church stands. It’s the truth that we as a Church cling to and hold on to for life. It’s Christ Himself, the immovable, never changing foundation of the Church.

It was Peter who made this confession on behalf of the disciples in Matthew chapter sixteen. We hear our Lord asking the questions to the group present, “But what about you, who do you say that I am?” And Simon Peter says, “You are the Christ the Son of the living God.” Peter doesn’t say that Jesus is “a” Christ. That is not what those who followed Jesus confessed. They did not confess He was one of many “anointed ones” that have come along throughout the years. Rather Peter said, “The Christ.” The disciples would confess that He is the one to come. He is the Lord and Savior.

And because of these words that Peter uttered Jesus would say so much more about Himself. He would say, “Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father, and on this rock I will build my Church.” The rock is what Peter would confess. The rock is immovable. The rock would be the foundation that Peter and the others would use to build the Church. Jesus was very pleased by this response. They got it right and Jesus said, “Now on this rock, this same immovable rock that is the foundation, build the church. And we often call the Church, the Bride of Christ.

You know how important the foundation of a house is to its whole structure. This is nothing unfamiliar to you. The house must have a place to stand. Not so different than what St. Matthew says in yet another part of the Gospel that bares his name. In Matthew chapter seven we hear the words of Jesus as He uses a parable to illustrate how important a good foundation is. He says, “Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain came down and the streams rose and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

The house must have a place to stand. Why? The foundation, the rock, is essential to the house. We can’t separate the house from the foundation. Much like we cannot separate the Bride of Christ, the Church, from the Bridegroom, Christ Himself. It’s an illustration that goes quite far and deep. A husband and a wife are a part of each other. In so many ways they are one, they are separate but cannot be separated. The foundation, while separate from the house cannot be separated from the house. If so, the house will sink just like in Jesus’ parable in Matthew chapter seven. And the Church and Christ are so intimately connected; they cannot be separated as well. The Church cannot function without standing on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ. All three of these illustrations have shown us that two things can, in effect, become one – that these two things need each other to be what they are together.

And that describes what we as Christians confess. As Christians we confess that we are one in Christ Jesus. The oneness that we share is very important because God, by grace through faith, has gathered us as children into His family. We are one in the faith and we are one in this community of believers – we walk together as a family of God. And the trouble that we get into is when we don’t want to be one as a family – rather we desire to be the “only” one.

Being an “individual” and doing our own thing apart from all the other activities that go on at school, at work, or with friends is one thing – sometimes the right thing if our friends or co-workers are not doing the right thing. But being alone – by ourselves – separating ourselves from the Kingdom of God and a community of fellowship gathered in a place such as this is another. One, that is being the “social individual,” might be the product of our personality. The other, that is being a “spiritual individual,” is a willful omission and spiritually dangerous.

We can’t be individuals, doing our own thing, when it comes to the Kingdom of God. We are not in a position to say, “Well, I will follow this rule but I will not abide by the law over here.” We are not in a position to pick and choose and to do it our way when it comes to God’s Holy Word. We attempted to separate ourselves from the “oneness” that brings us together as a family of God under His Word when we take it upon ourselves to be “only me” oriented. Not for the good of God or for His people, but only for the good of me. Whatever it is that I want despite what God would have for me. And with this, when we choose to go outside of the family, we start to build our houses on a “not so” sturdy foundation. Outside the family of faith, is where we build everything on the “not so” sturdy foundation. It’s not so sturdy because it’s not the rock anymore.

Where are you going to build your family – Your life? Where are we as a people of God going to build our Church? Will it be on the truth of God’s Word and nothing else, that is, where the family of God stands? Or, are we going to attempt to be “Kingdom individuals” and do it our way because we think we know better or because it’s just a better thing for me? What will it be?

Our Lutheran Confessions speak of this very matter. In the Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, the confessors would say, “As to the statement, ‘On this rock I will build my church,’ it is certain that the church is not built on the authority of a man but on the ministry of the confession which Peter made when he declared Jesus to be the Christ…

…This ministry is not valid because of any individual’s authority but because of the Word given by Christ Himself.”

And on this day we remember two great apostles. For this reason we dare not forget about the second – that is St. Paul. He spoke of the foundation of Christ as well we would expect because he would not speak of the authority or the individuality of man in these matters. Rather, he spoke of the family under the guidance and accomplishments of Christ our Savior. He said in his epistle to the Ephesians that we as a Church are, “…built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone” (Eph. 2:20). And again to the Corinthians, “For no one can lay a foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11). Why would Paul say the same thing? The Reason: because the people of God walk girded with the same truth. The people of God walk not as individuals – but rather as a family in Christ under Christ with Him as the cornerstone – with Him as the foundation.

We will have the opportunity later to witness the laying on of hands at the ordination and installation of our new assistant pastor, Pastor Froiland. He becomes a part of a family, so to speak, in a couple of different ways. He becomes a pastor, that is, a Called servant given the privilege to serve all of you in Word and Sacrament ministry. In this way he will become a part of a brotherhood of pastors. But he will also become a part of our family in another way. He will become a member of this church – a fellowship of believers gathered here to serve the one true God. Oh he will, of course, remain an individual. However, he is already a part of our family in the most important way, a member of the body of Christ – a fellow believer. Today, for our parish-family, is another day of change. We add a new pastor. For sure it’s a day of “change” for Pastor-Elect Froiland as well.

Things change – life changes – our bodies change – our families change. That’s the for sure “constant” in this world. We can count on things changing. And St. Peter and St. Paul remind us that some things never change. Jesus Christ and our confession that He is our Lord every day no matter what day it is or what happens to be going on remains the same. In good times and bad – our foundation and confession is Jesus. And while today we call this St. Peter and St. Paul day – every day is our day together in the faith that is given to us that makes us one. The reason: because we also are “saints” by virtue of Christ’s work on the cross. We build His Church, our lives, and our families as saints would build. We build on the rock, the fortress – on the might of Christ. Amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.