Sermon archive

Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany 2/12/12

2012-02-12T15:42:00.001-08:00

Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany2/12/12Text: Mark 1:40-45Title: Jesus; The Holistic Healer. Since Tuesday is Valentine’s Day I thought I would be good today to share with you some thoughts concerning the greatest love letter ever written: God’s Holy Word, written to us. While a male lover might proclaim to his beloved the following written by Chris Messick, “For you I would climb the highest mountain peak, swim the deepest ocean, your love I do seek. For you I would cross the rivers most wide, walk the hottest desert sand to have you by my side.” These are wonderful words expressing the love of a man for a woman. But, we all know, don’t we, how long that kind of love lasts. Sadly for many couples it is not very long before the beloved has to walk through life alone. That is the reality of modern love, but God’s love has stood the test of time. His dying proclamation of love “It is finished.” will never be taken back, as human love so many times is renounced. You have all heard the saying that familiarity breeds contempt, and it certainly is quite often true in life. That saying has its origin in one of Aesop’s fables which was written some 600 years before Jesus walked the earth. In the story I am thinking about, a fox encounters a lion. The lion is the king of all the beasts and to be feared while the fox is small and unimportant. The first time the fox sees the lion, he stands in such awe of him that he runs away terrified. The second time the fox sees the lion he hides in the bushes and watches the lion carefully. The third time the fox encounters the lion, he walks up to the great king, asks him how his family is doing and talks about how the weather is going to be that week and just walks off. The foxes’ first reaction to the lion is the most appropriate, he was fearful, but the more he sees the lion, the less afraid he is. In the end the fox treats the lion as an equal even though nothing could be further from the truth. The lion is to be feared, for he could eat the fox anytime he chose to do so, but the fox has no fear of the Lion because the lion has been kind to him. You see, familiarity breeds contempt.Too many people, because they have heard the same Bible story over and over through the years approach God’s love letter the same way the fox approached the lion on the third visit; with contempt. I say they are showing contempt for God’s Word because they no longer read it, or if they do they believe that there is nothing more that they can learn from it. Showing contempt for God’s Word shows contempt for God himself since it is, although written by humans, his words to us. We need to quit thinking that we know the story and there is nothing more for us to learn and instead start sitting at the Lord’s feet meekly listening to what He has to say to us through his Word. I bring this up because today’s Gospel lesson is a familiar one and you might be tempted to quit listening; thinking there is nothing new for you to learn. But before I get started I want to set the context in which our Gospel reading takes place, so that you might better understand why God has this particular event recorded for us. For the last couple of weeks we have been following Jesus as he goes from town to town. He is healing people and driving out unclean spirits, freeing people from their troubles. He was becoming very popular just as today the popular faith healers like Bennie Hinn draw thousands to his Miracle services hundreds flocked to Jesus. People then, as well as now are desperate to be healed from their diseases and other infirmities that they will believe almost anything that gives them hope, even if is found to be a hoax which is usually the case with modern day faith healers. Jesus has become so popular that he cannot do what he wanted to do, what he has come to do; preach the good news of the arrival of the Kingdom of God. He wants to help people in their spiritual struggles, but the people are only interested in being healed physically. People are flocking to him and so he has to go out in the countryside to preach. I am telling you this so you can understand why Jesus in verse 43 of our gospel lesson this morning sternly warns, the Greek says he is moved with anger. I don’t have time to go over this this morning, but it is not the only time Jesus became angry. Anyway, Jesus tells the ex-leper not to tell anyone which of course the man goes out and tells everyone he can. Who would blame Jesus? He can’t get anything done because people want to be physically healed. Who can blame the ex-leper? He who had been cut off for who know how long from his family, neighbors, his town, the nation Israel, and of course according the nations’ faith, God, is now healed and once the priest declares him officially clean is restored back into full membership to the community. We now know leprosy is not contagious and it can be treated, but back then they did not know that. The only thing that I can think of today that would produce the same results of being cut off from family, friends, and society is when a person has full blown AIDS once the skin sores and weight loss are apparent. I know some about AIDS and the loneliness it causes because when I first came here I would go over to the house where those with AIDS lived to share the Word of God with them. I will never forget the first time I visited. There was a young man who was still able to move around some, but was very sick because he was in the advanced stages of the disease. He looked really bad. He was in charge of the house that day and so when I knocked on the door he came to see who it was. I could tell how much he was suffering not just from the disease, but from loneliness, from not being touched, so after I introduced myself I hugged him, as I gave him a blessing from God. I remember the look on his face. He could not believe that I cared enough about him to hug him. He and I spent some time together as I shared the love of God with him before he died some months later. A terrible tragedy it is to not be loved or touched. A wonderful thing it is to loved and to also know the love of God. I mention this because the compassion that I felt that day must have been something like what Jesus felt when the leper came to him. And the hug I gave the man with AIDS, although there was no healing in my touch caused him to greatly rejoice. Just as the ex-leper rejoiced when he was healed this young man dying of AIDS rejoiced. He kept telling the others there that day how wonderful it was to be touched; to know that someone cared about him. So what is the lesson for us in part of God’s love letter to us? It can’t be about us healing lepers, for with modern medicine that can be done or doing faith healing. It is not about his teaching us to care for the unclean, the nobodies in our society which there are a lot of today. Although we should care for them.No, the lesson for us today is that we who think we are clean in spirit have leprous hearts and are thus totally unclean. We on our own are not in the relationship with God that he made us to be in with him. We like the leper are in desperate need Jesus’ healing touch. Jesus touched us by way of the cross when he took those leprous hearts we have and cleansed them by his blood, thus putting us back in the relationship with him. We are changed, not by our doing, but by Jesus doing. He did the touching. He did the dying. He did the rising and ascending. And in doing these things he restored our souls and thus our bodies since God intends body and soul to be together, as Psalm 23 tells us in verse three and following, “He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever." We, who have been restored, declared clean, have received power, not our own power, but Jesus’ power to live our lives resisting sin, helping others, and giving glory to God. We can now take our deepest hurts and turn them over to him, for though we do the walking through life, he does the restoring, the guiding, the comforting, the blessing, and the keeping. All praise to God, for his mercies are certainly new every morning. Amen.

Fifth Sunday in Epiphany 2/5/12 Mark 1:29-39

2012-02-05T12:03:00.001-08:00

Fifth Sunday in Epiphany2/5/12Text: Mark 1:29-39Title: Jesus, the Holistic Healer. Last week in our continuing study of the Gospel of Mark we found that Saint Mark in writing his gospel did not just write down the history of Jesus’ life on earth, for he wrote in the opening statement of the gospel, “The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, Son of God.” In other words Saint Mark only meant to start the story of Jesus and not write a complete account, for he knew that Jesus’s story would become our story since Jesus has gone before us to wait for our being in his presence. Last Sunday we saw Jesus drive out an unclean spirit from a man. The spirit had loudly proclaimed to all within earshot, “I know who you are; the holy one of God.” Jesus did the strangest thing. He orders the spirit to be quiet even as he tells the unclean spirit to leave the man. The spirit did leave in a rather spectacular way. The people were amazed not only that Jesus had driven out the unclean spirit, but that he also taught the scriptures correctly. His fame instantly spread around the area. Which brings us to today’s gospel reading were we see that after Jesus had driven the unclean spirit out of the man that he went straight to Simon Peter’s home. There he found out that Simon Peter’s mother-in-law was sick with a really bad fever. He immediately healed her, raising her up by the hand. After which she did what her position in life was to do; prepare and service the meal for the family and guests at the end of the Sabbath. As soon as the Sabbath was over, maybe even before Jesus had finished his supper, the people of the town began to gather at the house of Simon Peter. They brought their sick and demon possessed for Jesus to heal them. Jesus, as we see, healed many of them, not permitting the demons he drove out to speak, for they knew who he truly was while the people did not. Jesus must not have healed all the people brought to him that night, for we hear the disciples exclaim to Jesus, probably with some irritation in their voice, “Everyone is looking for you!” In other words, come on Jesus there is work to be done. People are expecting great things of you and here you are by yourself outside of town. You could have at least told us you were going out here. Don’t you care about us and those who are waiting for you to heal them? Jesus the great healer was in great demand. He had become an instant celebrity. Come to Jesus and all your problems are over they thought. They were just like the crowds that followed Jesus after he fed thousands with five loaves and two fish. Follow Jesus and you will be provided with all you need to eat. It was certainly going to be a good life following Jesus. Who knows; he might be able to make houses appear. Life was going to be good. No illness, no worry about food, maybe no worry about shelter and clothing. Jesus can do it all, if you just believe enough. Of course the people then, as well as now have missed the real Jesus, the Jesus who said to his disciples after they fussed at him, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I my preach there also, for that is why I came out.” We are not told what the disciples said in return or what the people thought when Jesus did not come back into town. But we have a pretty good idea, for the disciples and the people seemed to have missed that point. Jesus did not come to heal, drive out demons, make bread and fish multiply, or make wine out of water, as good as those things are. Jesus came to preach the good news message that the Kingdom of God was at hand and that he was it. Believe, repent, and be forgiven was his message, but the people were not hearing his message. Although I am sure that they enjoyed his calling the religious leaders to repent of their ways. Why did they not get who Jesus is? Why do people ever since; even up to today non-Christian and Christian alike do not get who Jesus is and what Jesus came to do. The answers to those questions are found in our text today. The people then, just as today did not know who Jesus is because they had a false understanding of Jesus. They only thought of him as a healer and bread king, among other things. They believed, as people do today that the reason Jesus came to be one of us is so that his followers can be happy, wealthy, and healthy. That is what was taught then and is still being taught today. Jesus, although they would never admit it, is the genie in the bottle that you pull out when you want blessings. Of course the problem is that is not why Jesus came to be one of us, as he says in today’s gospel reading. Their problem is still the same problem of those who have a false understanding of Jesus today who chase after the latest faith healer and preacher who promises wealth, if you only believe enough or give enough. They have a heart problem. They only trust in the Jesus that they can manipulate by prayer to do what they want; happiness, wealth, and good health. This false Jesus that they are staking their lives on will not restore them or save them from God’s wrath. The Jesus they believe in will do the opposite, for he is a false Jesus who cannot save them from God’s wrath and they are thus doomed to an eternity of sorrow and pain.Maybe you have been staking your hope on that Jesus, the false Jesus who will, if you only believe enough, or give enough, or do enough will give you what you want. For after all, I have heard many times, “Doesn’t Jesus want me to be wealthy and healthy”? “No” I reply. He doesn’t, if it means that you lose your soul, for as God’s Word tells us, “What good does it do if you gain the whole world, but lose your soul?” To be honest, for a lot of people it is only when their world, their support system collapses and the law bears down on them that they turn to God. That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, is when Jesus steps in just as he did when he walked the earth; touching, healing, and forgiving those who were lost without him. Jesus took all those false concepts that I believe we all have about him, with him to the cross. On that cross he became, in a sense, all that we have made him out to be false gods and all. He, in his death took God’s wrath upon himself whose wrath we still deserve and in the process changed our hearts. We who were lost, as we tried to make Jesus into our image have been remade into his image. The healing and wealth that we so desperately chase after are now ours; not as those of the world believe, but as God tells us. Our souls are healed and when we die and are raised from the dead our bodies will no longer suffer from disease or physical infirmities. No longer will we suffer from emotional or mental problems, for in the resurrection all those problems of living in a sinful upside down world will be gone and all things will be good, as God first made them. When our hearts are changed by God the lives we live are changed also. We no longer will try to make him into a god that fits our image. We no longer lose hope in the tragedies of life whatever they might be. We by knowing the identity of Jesus know our identity, our purpose in life which is simply to live our lives giving him honor and glory as we serve our neighbors. Amen.

Fourth Sunday in Epiphany 1/29/12 Mark 1:22-28

2012-01-29T12:31:00.001-08:00

Fourth Sunday in Epiphany 1/29/12Text: Mark 1:22-28Title: The Question That We All Must Ask.When you came into the Sanctuary you were given a half sheet with some Bible verses from Mark on it. When you look closer you will notice that the first set of verses at Mark 1:1, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” Keep that verse in mind as you look down to the next set that comes from the last chapter of Mark verses 1-8. In the first five verses Mark is telling the Resurrection story. Go down to verse 6 were we read “6 And he said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you." 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid." Verse 8 is the end of the original version of Mark’s Gospel before the Christian church added the next verses. Almost all Bibles will have the added verses in brackets because they are not in the earliest versions of Mark’s Gospel. That does not mean that God did not cause them to be written down. It only means that they are not part of the original gospel of MarkMark in the beginning of his gospel wrote “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.” He then concludes his Gospel after the angel told the women that Jesus has risen from the dead and that he is going ahead of them with “8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid." Saint Mark’s original ending is the perfect ending to his gospel. I say that because when you look at both the opening and closing verses of Saint Mark’s Gospel, as he originally wrote them, you see that what Mark said in the beginning; that this Gospel is only the beginning of Jesus’ story is exactly why he ends the gospel the way he does. Jesus has risen. There is fear. But Jesus is going ahead, so there is comfort.Mark even though he stopped his story at Jesus resurrection knew that Jesus’ story did not stop there. Jesus’ story continues through the centuries. His story has become our story. For just as Saint Mark wrote Jesus is going ahead of the disciples, Jesus, as he said, has gone before us preparing the way for our being in his presence, just as he had when he created Adam and Eve and put them in the Garden where everything was provided for them and they could walk and talk with God. I am telling you about this so that you will be better able to understand the rest of Mark’s Gospel; all that is written about Jesus between the beginning verse and the ending verse of the Gospel of Mark. Our Gospel reading for today in just a few verses asks both a life changing question and gives a life changing answer; both from the most unlikely sources. In Mark everything happens fast. He starts out with Jesus’ baptism. Jesus immediately goes into the desert where he is tempted by Satan. Jesus immediately calls his disciples. He then, as we see today immediately went to Capernaum where he once again immediately went to the local synagogue to teach the Good News of the arrival of the Kingdom of God. Jesus is teaching them that he is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies. He is the Son of God. Jesus is in fact the Kingdom of God. He is the Good News for Jews and Gentiles. All of this he proves by the scripture texts that were read every Sabbath in the synagogue. The Messiah, God in the flesh, has arrived.Mark tells us the people see that Jesus truly knows what the scriptures are saying about God. He teaches with authority. In other words they could tell he did not need to ask what God’s Word meant. It was obvious that he knew what he was teaching. He was not like their usual teachers who read the scriptures every Sabbath, but did not really know what God’s Word was saying, for they just, as so many do today, read into the text what they want it to say and not what God actually said. We know this because if they had truly known the scriptures they would have believed in Jesus right then and there. Behind the peoples amazement lays the question of who is Jesus. This is a question that all people, both believers and unbelievers must ask. Who is Jesus? In today’s text we get the answer from the most unlikely source; the man with an unclean spirit who cries out the answer, “I know you are the Holy One of God.” The people of God who should have known who Jesus is did not and the man with an unclean spirit who should not have even been in the synagogue knew. Wow! Why is that? The people that should have known are so bound by the law of God and the traditions of the past that they could not see that the Kingdom of God was standing right there among them. There was no faith, for they only an intellectual knowledge of God. They knew the scriptures frontwards and backwards. They knew how to worship. They knew how to live righteous lives. They had the law down pat and believed that living according to the law justified them before God. It is not any different today, for it is not unusual for me to hear from a fellow believer that truly believes in Jesus’ act of salvation that we must still do something to avoid God’s wrath. I hear it all the time. I hear it all the time, for trusting in the law is what we do. It is in a sense all we know, for the Gospel of Jesus is alien to us. Salvation given as a free gift with no strings attached? Come on now. It can’t be that simple. On our own there is no hope. We are lost, for the law can only show us what God demands of us. We are lost without Christ and his saving work. But in Christ we are not lost even though we still deserve God’s wrath, for we who truly believe have a hope that is not the hope of the world, as it trusts in relationships, power, and material things. Our hope is a sure hope, for we hope not in the things of this world, but in Jesus, God Incarnate who only has to speak and unclean spirits instantly obey. Listen to Jesus, as he speaks to the unclean spirit, “Be silent, and come out of him!" See what happens, “26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. That must have been some sight. Jesus, God Incarnate speaks and things happen. Evil spirits leave, people come back to life, water becomes wine, five loaves and two fish feed thousands, and people walk and see. Ordinary bread and wine become his body and blood. Ordinary water becomes the means in which faith is given. Jesus speaks and forgiveness is given, lives restored, and peace is made. It is said that the devil approached Martin Luther one day and tried to weaken his faith by reminding him that even the best person is sinful and weak, so he may as well give up trying to please God. He presented the reformer with a long list of sins of which he was guilty. When the devil finished reading the list he had put together, Luther said to Satan, “Think a little harder; you must have forgotten some.” The devil checked and sure enough he had left some sins off, so he adds them to his list and hands it back to Martin Luther who simply takes out his ink quill and writes across the list in red ink, “The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.” There was nothing the devil could say to that and he left. That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is why Saint Mark started his gospel with the words, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God for his Gospel did not end in Jesus’ birth, his passion, his victory, or his resurrection. Saint Mark’s gospel is a continuing story; a story that is told over and over again each Sunday in God’s Church where the saving work of Jesus is rightly preached, for in that message is found our freedom from the damnation of sin which gives us peace. To Christ be all glory forever and ever. Amen.

2012-01-15T16:18:00.001-08:00

Second Sunday in Epiphany1/15/12Text: 1 Samuel 3:1-10Title: God’s CallDuring Advent and Christmas seasons we spent time digging more deeply into what God tells us in his Holy Scripture about himself and his plan for us. We saw that because of sin God’s human creation whom he designed to walk in fellowship with him sought after other gods that would make them happy. It was then and still is today a search that always ends in disaster no matter how happy those gods we chase after make us in the short term, for no other god or gods can take God’s place. Instead of walking away from his human creation God came to be one of us, so that we can be restored to the relationship he designed us to be in, in the first place. Angels couldn’t do it and there was no human who could restore the relationship, for all have sinned and thus deserve God’s wrath.God had to come himself, to perfectly fulfill, as a human being, the laws of God that we cannot fulfill. Jesus, God Incarnate did what we cannot do and then willingly took the punishment of God for us, so that those who accept his forgiveness are declared innocent. We have seen in the past seven weeks Jesus, as a helpless homeless baby. We saw the first shedding of his blood for us in his circumcision, as he kept the law as an eight day old baby. We saw him, God Incarnate, enter the temple where God had been absent for over 600 years permanently replacing the Ark of the Covenant. We saw him standing in our place in his baptism where we heard God declare from the heavens that Jesus is his beloved Son. Those are all things learned about Jesus in God’s Holy Word. As I studied the Gospel reading for this morning it dawned on me that just like Jesus called each one of his disciples by name he called each one of us by name to be his disciples also. This is what I mean. First of all, it is Jesus, God Incarnate that calls us to be his. We did not choose him. He chooses each one of us to be his just like God choose each one of the people of the Old Testament to be his. God chooses and when God chooses someone they respond, unless the person he is calling does not pay attention to him because he does not know of the Triune God, as Samuel did not know that it was God speaking to him, for as we are told Samuel did not yet know the Word of God. It is important to know what it means to be called by God. The English word called comes from the Greek word kaleo and means to command or request to be present, to come. For example, someone is called to testify in court. It can also mean to speak of or address by a specified name, or to give a name to someone, for a specific purpose which God did in the Old Testament when he renamed people that he called to rescue and lead his people Israel. Jesus calls ordinary people today who are just like those he called to be disciples when he was walking the earth. His disciples were not highly educated, or wealthy, or famous, or powerful. They were, as we would say today simple folk, fishermen of which there were many near the Sea of Galilee, plain ordinary people trying to scrape out a living, so they could support their families just like we do. They were just like us, as we do our best to provide for our families, except it is hard to believe they worked harder than we did, for most working people in Jesus’ day had to work from sunup to sundown just to survive. As I was thinking of how God can use the most unlikely people to do his will I thought of a move that I watched a long time ago. It was called, “The Left Hand of God”. It was about a renegade pilot who was shot down over China during World War II and is captured by a local robber baron. Eventually, he escapes and flees to a small Chinese village where he assumes the identity of a dead priest who was supposed to go to the village, but died before getting there. As time goes by the most amazing thing happens. This man of war, really an outlaw himself, no longer plays the role of the priest. He becomes the priest as he ministers to the people of the village. As the move unfolds it struck me that God can use anyone, right where they are, to accomplish his purposes just as he did when he called those ordinary fishermen of his day. Jesus calls each one of us by name. Most of us he called us by name in our baptism when the pastor using water and God’s Word said, “I baptize you in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Others he called in different ways. Names are important, for they are distinctive; the direct opposite of something or someone that is nameless, anonymous, or indistinguishable from anything else. To know and use the given name of a person is the ultimate sign of respect. Saint John uses names throughout his Gospel, as the other Gospel writers do. John sees Jesus and refers to him as the Lamb of God. When Jesus sees the disciples following him and asks them what they are looking for, they address him as "Rabbi". Then Andrew finds his brother Simon and tells him that he has found the Messiah. Finally, our Lord speaks to Simon and calls him Peter. None of these people are addressed impersonally as "hey, you". No, they are people with a distinct identity. God does not address us impersonally either. He calls us each by name.Jesus calls each one of you name, as he speaks to you individually in your heart. I read a funny email this past week that illustrates that point. A four-year old girl was at the pediatrician's office for a check-up. As the doctor looked into her ears with a scope, he asked her "Do you think that I'll find Big Bird in here?" The little girl remained silent. Next, the doctor took a tongue depressor and looked down her throat. He asked her "Do you think I'll find the Cookie Monster down here?" Again, the girl did not answer him. Finally, the doctor put a stethoscope to her chest. As he listened to her heartbeat, he asked "Do you think I'll hear Barney in here?" At that, the little girl looked up with her eyes wide and said "Oh, no. Jesus is in my heart; Barney's on my underpants. God has chosen to not speak to those he chooses to be his like he spoke to the Old Testament prophets. He now speaks to us in our heart and mind as we read and hear the inspired words given to the prophets and apostles. Jesus does the calling, but recognizing the call of God is quite another story. It is not that God is not powerful enough to call us the problem is with us, in our being able to recognize his voice. It is not a new problem for ever since Adam and Eve sinned humans have had a problem listening to God. We see that in our Old Testament reading for today when God called Samuel four times before Samuel knew it was God that was calling him. And even then he had to be told by Eli that God was speaking to him. Why didn’t Samuel know God’s voice? We are told it was because he did not yet know the Word of God. He had not read the Word of God. So many Christians today have that same problem. I wonder how many blessings are missed because someone who does not know the Word of God does not recognize God’s voice calling him or her. I hope that each one of you, if you are not doing so already will start to read and meditate on the Word of God, so that when God speaks to you, you will hear his voice, for his mercies are new every morning. Amen.

Baptism of our Lord Sunday 1/8/12

2012-01-08T14:33:00.001-08:00

Baptism of our Lord Sunday1/8/11Text: Romans 6:1-11Title: Buried To SinToday we are celebrating the baptism of Jesus. Jesus’ baptism is just not something he did, for his baptism unites us to him, as we will see in the Epistle for today. But before we discover the importance of Jesus’ baptism we need to make sure that we have a clear understanding of what makes us Lutheran Christians. Our understanding of God’s Word and I believe it is the right one, is called the “Theology of the Cross”. This is what I mean. I want you think of cross. It is made up of two parts; the vertical beam and a horizontal beam which is attached to the vertical beam at the intersection of the two beams.The horizontal beam is where all humans live, which is pretty handy since living on the vertical beam would be really hard, for you would keep falling off all the time. Anyway the horizontal beam is where we live. It is where, for most of our lives we have free will; that is the ability to decide to go somewhere or not, work or play, love or hate, attend church on Sunday morning or sleep in, listen to the sermon or not. In other words it is where we live our lives. The vertical member of the cross is a different matter entirely. Imagine once more that at the top of the cross is God, a good place for him to be since God has always existed. It is through his will that everything was created. In his act of creating he made all the rules of life. He thus sustains all things that are seen and not seen. He is perfect in every way, for there is no imperfection found in him. Thus he is lacking in nothing. Agree? We on the other hand who are living on the horizontal member need everything from God whether we want to admit to it or not and there are a lot of even Lutheran Christians who find it awful hard to admit that we need God, for everything to sustain life. You got that picture? We live our lives on the horizontal beam where we practice free will while depending on God for everything. God lives at the top of vertical beam and needs nothing from anyone or anything. He is complete in himself. Now let’s zoom in on the part of the cross where the two members intersect. It is where we meet God. The problem is that in that intersection we try to make God into our image. We have to, for God cannot be grasped or understood, as hard as we might try. The problem is that in trying to make him into our image we turn him into a god that we can manipulate for our purposes; a god we can reach. And even as we try to mold God into our image we try our best to avoid him, for in all honesty he makes us look bad. We try to keep him at arm’s length. The proof of that is shown in the fact that so few Christians don’t read his words to them in the Scriptures, spend time in personal prayer, attend worship services, or Bible classes. Even the best of us could do better; couldn’t we?So, humanly speaking God has a problem. He loves his human creation. He wants to have a personal relationship with them, but they really don’t want to be near him or have a relationship with him unless it is done by thier rules. It is a problem that is for sure. Angels cannot restore the relationship. No human can restore the relationship between humans and God because they are all descendants of Adam and Eve and so are sinners. Simply put God, as we have learned had to come himself. Nothing else will work, for he is the only one who could meet his demands of perfection. So God became God Incarnate who we know as Jesus. We no longer have to make God into our image, for he is a flesh and blood, living, breathing human being, the Light of the world. He came to live on the horizontal beam right alongside of us. Eight days after his birth Jesus, God Incarnate’s blood was shed for us in his circumcision. Forty days later, at his dedication to the Lord, he, God Incarnate, entered the temple where God had been absent for almost 600 years. There is no need for the “Ark of the Covenant” for God is back among his people. Thirty years later God Incarnate shows up at the Jordan River to be baptized by John in order that, as we are told in God’s Word, “all righteousness would be fulfilled.” Jesus the sinless one who has no need of repentance, in his baptism stands in the place of all humanity as John baptized him with the baptism of repentance thus fulfilling the command of God for John to call God’s people to repentance. We, in our baptism are thus united with him in his baptism. That brings me to our Epistle reading for today. It appears that there were at least some people in the church at Rome who thought that it was a good thing to purposely sin, so that God could then give more grace. It was like they were doing God a favor; sin more so that God could do more of what he wants to do; forgive people. It was a sweet deal. Both God and they got what they wanted. At least that was their reasoning.Paul, in my words, writes to them, “Are you crazy!” Paul, you see knows what is behind that way of thinking. They are trying to justify their purposeful sinning, just as people today try to justify their purposeful sinning with really the same reasoning; sin more so God can forgive more. They say “God will forgive me, for I am a Christian that has been baptized.” Or they say, “God going to make sure that everyone is saved.” Or they might even say, “Jesus died for all sins, so I don’t have to worry about being punished.” The list could go on and on, but just like the Roman Christians that Paul was writing to, they all show a false understanding of God’s work in baptism. People have this false understanding of baptism, for they think that it is something that the pastor or person being baptized does. They just don’t get that in baptism, just like in Jesus’ death and resurrection it is God’s work. And because it is God’s work there is nothing that we can do to add to it.Because Jesus was baptized, in our baptism we are spiritually linked to him. That means that we are spiritually linked in all he did, life, death, and resurrection. And since we are now spiritually dead to sin we are not to live in sin. Paul is not talking here of being free of the sin that contaminates our bodies. He is talking of being free of the slavery to purposeful sin. You know, those sins that we know are wrong or that we try to justify by blaming others, or misquoting scripture. Those sins, Paul says, even though we struggle with them and many times commit them actually have no power over us, for in our baptism we are united in Christ in his death and resurrection. Thus my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, you, because of what God had done in your baptism have the blessed assurance that even though you continue to struggle with sin you will on that blessed Resurrection Day be raised up free of sin restored to full fellowship with God. That is God’s promise to you. That is good news indeed. Amen.

Circumcision and naming of Jesus Sunday 1/1/12

2012-01-01T13:25:00.001-08:00

Circumcision and naming of Jesus Sunday1/1/12Text: Luke 2:21Title: The Day God Returned To The TempleWhen I was putting the final touches on my sermon for this morning a hymn number 370 in our hymn book came to mind that starts off asking the question, “What Child is this who, laid to rest On Mary's lap is sleeping? Whom Angels greet with anthems sweet, While shepherds watch are keeping?” The rest of the hymn then proceeds to answer those questions, as it tells who Jesus is and his purpose for being born. I would imagine that hymn was based on Saint Luke’s Gospel, for in Luke’s Gospel we find the answer, as to who Jesus is and his purpose in being born. In the first chapter of Luke starting at verse 30 we read, “And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end." 34 And Mary said to the answered her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God.”Mary was overshadowed by God. God had entered her womb in some mysterious way that we can’t understand, just as God overshadowed the Ark of the Covenant when it was placed in the Holy of Holies of the temple. There is a lot of other good stuff going on in those verses, but because we don’t have a lot of time this morning I want to get started on our Gospel reading. “And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.”I chose to take a closer look at this verse today because today is the feast day of the “Circumcision and naming of Jesus.” This feast day which is always on January 1 has been celebrated by the Christian Church since 567 AD although it was thought to have been observed for some time before that. The circumcision part of the feast has fallen out of favor for some time, for circumcision is something not talked about. It is bloody and not a very nice thing to talk about on Sunday morning, so it generally gets overlooked. The problem with not studying this verse to learn why Saint Luke wrote it under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is to miss out on what God wants us to know about the circumcision and naming of Jesus which by the way means “Yahweh saves”, or, if you want to really get to the root of the Jesus’ name it is “I Am That I Am saves”. When Jesus was circumcised it was not a private event, as it is now. It was done publically, at the synagogue, for the circumcision of a male marked the boy as an Israelite, a people set apart, by God, from the other nations that did not circumcise their boys. It was a big event, but in Jesus case it was an even bigger event, for in the shedding of his blood, Jesus, God Incarnate, the “Great I Am that saves,” as a living breathing first born son of Israel was obeying the law of God, so that we who are under the law could be redeemed from the curse of the law. Thirty-two days after his circumcision; that is forty days after his birth, Jesus arrives at the temple with Mary and Joseph. They were there because God’s law given to the Israelites said that every first born male child was to be set apart to the Lord. Mary before she could enter the temple made her sacrifice of two turtle doves or two pigeons we don’t know which, for her purification after giving birth. This is why Jesus and Mary and Joseph were there that day; at least, as far as the other people gathered in the temple that that day knew. It was just a normal thing to do when the first son was born to an Israelite family. There were probably lots of families doing the same thing that day. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph were just one family of many. As they entered the temple area after Mary’s purification and Jesus dedication to the Lord something really unusual happens; something big, big, really big. Simeon, who we are told is a righteous old man who had been told that he would not see death until he saw the Lord’s Christ picks Jesus out of all those baby boys there that day and exclaims, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation 31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel."Those wonderful words of Simeon which we sing on most Sundays after God has entered us through the bread and wine of his Supper that we eat and drink announce to all people throughout all time that God had arrived at the temple. Salvation for all has arrived, as God had promised after Adam and Eve sinned. Let’s take a moment and step back some 600 years earlier before Jesus was born, so that we can get a better understanding of the significance of Jesus’ circumcision, his naming and Simeon’s prayer of thanksgiving. Six hundred years earlier when Babylonia defeated Israel and sacked the temple the Ark of the Covenant was taken, never to be found again. The Ark of the Covenant was not just a box with religious articles in it. It was where God resided among the Israelites in the Holy of Holies. On the Ark of the Covenant was the mercy seat where God met the High Priest and spoke to the people while he was hidden in smoke or a cloud. For almost 600 years God had not resided among his people. He had not spoken through his prophets for 400 years. It was a spiritually dark time for the nation of Israel. It was not God’s choosing, but the result of the nation of Israel turning its back on God. While there were God believing people in the nation, most of the people who even still worshiped God had made their worship into just ritual and tradition, as many who consider themselves Christians do today. God’s people were lost.God needed to do to do something, so he did what no one else could do. He came, as one of us; Jesus, God Incarnate on this earth. He was born of Mary with no earthly father. He was circumcised and named according to the law of God. And now just 40 days into his earthly life Jesus, God Incarnate enters the temple. Not in smoke or a cloud or the Ark of the Covenant, but in the arms of Mary his mother. The infinite God has come back into the temple almost 600 years after he had left the temple; a living breathing baby, God Incarnate enters the temple. Jesus is the “Ark of the Covenant” in person. There will be no return of the “Ark of the Covenant” for there is no need for it. God Incarnate the “Great I Am that saves” has entered the temple and our lives not hidden in smoke or a cloud, but as one of us bringing all people who will accept it the gift of comfort and consolation. So you see, in Jesus’ circumcision and naming his entire life is explained. The shedding of his blood in his circumcision foreshadows his blood being shed on the cross where our sin, our death were removed and cut off so that we might have the true circumcision of our heart, as we are told in Colossians 2:11, “In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ.”In his name we hear “Yahweh saves” and are blessed because Jesus is the promised Messiah. He is the one promised after Adam and Eve sinned. He is the one who stood in the courtroom of God and was found guilty and punished instead of us, even though we still deserve to be punished. He is the one who now turns and says to us, as we stand in amazement at what we just heard; “guilty but not guilty”. “Why are you still standing here? Go, live your life. God has declared you innocent. Amen

New Year;s Eve Sermon 2011

2011-12-31T20:26:00.001-08:00

New Year’s Eve12/31/11Text: Psalm 63:1-8Title: Early will I seek You.Tonight’s sermon is based on God’s Word Psalm 63:1-8 with particular attention to the last verse, especially the last sentence, “Early will I see thee.” It is a Psalm written by King David as he was being pursued by his enemies in the wilderness of Judah. “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. 3 Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. 4 So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands. 5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, 6 when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; 7 for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy. 8 My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me. ‘Early Will I Seek Thee.' ”Do you ever get a tune or song in your mind and you can't get rid of it? I remember once getting the tune to "Gilligan's Island" stuck in my mind like a broken record. For three days I couldn't stop it! Drove me crazy! Just mentioning it now starts it playing in my mind. “Just sit right back and you will hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip.”Sometimes a verse from the Bible does that. Some verse or phrase from my daily Bible reading just lodges in my mind and for days, even weeks I find myself reflecting on it. Unlike a silly tune from a television show, you don't want to try to get rid of it. In fact, you find it of great comfort and guidance. God, you see, has a way, as we study the Word, of putting those verses, those truths we most need right there into our hearts and minds, ready when we need them. That is why I chose this Psalm for tonight, especially the last sentence “Early Will I Seek Thee.” There is no greater tragedy than to try to go through life without knowing God. We can make a lot of friends; have many companions in our days, but none are so important or meaningful than our relationship with God. I know that you just as I do want many things in your life and out of life. We have a lot of dreams and desires and what we think of as needs, but we have to be careful to not be misled, for our greatest dream, desire, and need must be to be in a right relationship with God. Without a meaningful relationship with God, you will never be completely whole or know true happiness. As St. Augustine one of the great early Christian fathers once said, "Lord, you made us for yourself, and we can never know true rest until we rest in thee." You can have everything your heart has ever desired, but without a right relationship with God, you will always, in the end feel empty and unfulfilled.You like to listen to CD's? What would happen if you took a CD or a record for us older members and bored a hole just off center of it and then tried to play it? It would not work, as it was designed to work. Yet, if you placed the CD or record where it was designed to be placed it would respond with the music it was designed to play. We are the same way. We need to be centered on God to live the lives we were designed to live showing God’s glory. Tomorrow morning when you wake up in the New Year seek the will of God first thing and continue to do it the rest of your life, for when you do that you will be blessed by the Lord, for his mercies are new every morning. Does seeking God’s will early mean that all the decisions you make will turn out to be good decisions? Hardly, for we are sinful people living in a sinful world and thus even while we believe that we are seeking the will of God when we pray and read his Word sometimes what we are seeking is justification for our will. Seek the Lord early, for his mercies are new every morning. Can you think of a better way for God's children to begin each day this New Year than with thoughts of God and a desire to seek God? As much as I like my morning coffee, the "best part of waking up is not Folgers in my cup, but God in my heart, on my mind.This gets the day off right, for it focuses us on the right things, the most important priorities. Best of all it gives us a sense of God's presence throughout the day. When we know God is with us, we are then better able to face whatever the day may bring.My prayer for you and for me this New Year’s Eve is that each day next year we might find ourselves with a greater desire to seek God early in each new day, for his mercies are new every morning. Amen.

Christmas Day 2011

2011-12-25T07:07:00.001-08:00

Christmas Day, December 25, 2011Text: John 1:1-14Title: Let us Rejoice for the Word is among usIt’s no surprise to find God “in the beginning,” as we do in the first chapter of Genesis. After all, he’s uncreated, infinite, and eternal. He is without beginning and without end. If it were any other way, he wouldn’t be God, for something else would have had to create him. Everything else; that is everything except Jesus who is God Incarnate, whether it is visible or invisible, is part of his creation. We know this because in Genesis 1:1 we are told “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” He made everything out of nothing when he spoke all creation into being by his word.The Gospel of John also starts before creation with the words “in the beginning” but adds “was the Word” Prior to the creation, when there was nothing besides God, there was God’s Word as John tells us “The Word was with God” The Word and God are two distinct persons while being one God. Personal pronouns, such as “he” and “him” and “his,” must be used for the Word. He’s a divine person uncreated, infinite, and eternal. Through this Word, there in the beginning with God, “all things were made”. He was the agent by whom God spoke the entire creation into being. Light and life have their beginning and source in him, for the Word was there when everything seen and unseen came into being and it was very good.Zoom forward from “the beginning” to this moment, and what you find is far different. There’s spiritual darkness, thick darkness, and deep gloom over the whole world. The world in which we live doesn’t know God. Oh many would say different, but it is true, for they don’t know the Word that is Jesus, as God Incarnate. They are spiritually ignorant and blind, living in the darkness John talks about in his Gospel. With a single word “darkness” John describes creation’s fall, sin, death, and hell. The word “darkness” captures the confusion and misunderstanding and futility is in us and around us. For the “Darkness” John is talking about means that man can’t find God, no matter how many times he bumps into the stuff God made. He’s lost, as he lives in an upside-down world that he thinks is right-side up. Disoriented and alienated from God’s creation he constantly is inventing false gods and false worship to try and fill the emptiness he fills deep inside of himself. If the creation were to be redeemed, saved, and rescued from this darkness of sin and death, then God would have to make himself known to us. But how would he do this? God would come to the place where we are, descend to earth, enter his creation, so that we are living in the darkness lost and condemned creatures might know him and be brought back into the light. That my dear forgiven and restored brothers and sisters in Christ is the wondrous mystery of Christmas. God shows up in a place where we certainly don’t expect to find him, as John tells us, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” God the Word, who was there in the beginning and participated in the creation of all things, took on a human nature like yours.The one who was uncreated became created as one of us. The one who lives outside of time has willing become bound by time and place. The Word became flesh, Jesus Christ, true God and true man in one person. What a surprise. God’s human creation left on their own cannot find the creator, so the one who creates became human. The one who formed man from the dust has come in blood and flesh with hands and feet and eyes and mouth, as we are. He was born of a woman. Mary his mother wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger for a bed. Yet he was before Abraham, even before Adam, and yet he can be found in Bethlehem as a tiny babe. What a mystery. O come, let us adore him.The one who made the mountains and the tree that he was nailed to suffered and bled and died for his creation. The one in whom “we live and move and have our being” according to Acts 17:28 was once more wrapped, not in swaddling cloths, but in linen and laid in a tomb. He did not stay there but came bursting forth on the third day giving us assurance of our resurrection. O come, let us adore him.God Incarnate did not just come a long time ago and then leave us. He who made the wheat and the vine comes now in bread and wine to you. His true body and true blood are present on this altar. Eternal life, the light of the world, is so near that in just a few minutes you will touch him and taste him. For Jesus the Word who was in the beginning is now and forever incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ. That makes Christmas a blessed surprise. The uncreated, eternal, and infinite God comes right here among us as our light and our life. O come, let us adore him. Amen.

Christmas Eve 2011

2011-12-24T15:36:00.001-08:00

Christmas Eve12/24/11Text: Luke Title: Behold Your God!This weekend is a special time, for we have two days, today and Sunday, to worship the one who came to earth for you; our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is a great time for the people of God to come together and worship him, so we can make a statement to the world, as to who is King of our lives. For the past four Sundays of Advent leading up to today we have been looking at what "God Incarnate" means. For those who might be here today who may not be familiar with the term “God Incarnate” it means “God in the flesh”. In other words “God Incarnate” is Jesus; Immanuel, God with us. During those four weeks of study we learned why God had to come himself to be one of us instead of sending an angel or a really good person like Saint Nicholas or Saint Jerome, or Saint Paul, or any other saintly person to accomplish what he wanted to do. We learned that God had to come himself because angels after God threw out of heaven those angels that revolted against him can no longer sin or die. We also found out that a human, no matter how saintly they were would not work either, for all humans are descendants of Adam and Eve and thus are horribly infected with sin and deserve God's wrath. An angel would not work. A descendent of Adam and Eve would not work. What could he do, for it had to be someone who could sin against God, if he chose to do so, while at the same time would not sin because he loved and trusted in God so much that he would willingly and gladly keep the Ten Commandments and who would always trust in God to care for him even in the midst of the most alluring temptations and circumstances.Humanly speaking God was in a dilemma. There was no angel or human that could do what God needed to be done, so that his beloved human creation could be restored to the relationship he originally created them to be in with him. He had to do something, so when the time was right, as we read earlier in the Gospel of Luke God came as one of us. We first see him; a baby in a manager. He who made and continues to sustain all of creation made himself lower than the angels he created. He became human dependent on the nourishment from his mother’s breast and the care and protection of her husband Joseph. God did not come in a flash of light and power, so that the world would know that the King of Kings had arrived. He announced his arrival in the cries of a newborn infant, hardly noticeable among the stink and sounds of the animals in the stable. Certainly his birth was not noticeable to the people of this busy city, as they went about their daily lives. No fancy garments, no nurse maids, no hoopla, none of that. In all honesty Mary and Joseph were probably the only ones that cared that he was born. God Incarnate arrived, as one of us and the path to our having peace with God was set in motion.Jesus, God Incarnate played at his mother's feet. He learned a trade, as all boys had to do. He learned God’s Word and exhibited great understanding of it even as a child. He was a remarkable man; this man, God Incarnate. He was God on earth even though he felt hunger, the sorrow of being despised and mocked by those he loved. This God Incarnate, Jesus felt the pain of the whip and nails as they bit into his flesh, all while being crushed under the weight of human sin; all for us. When you read of Jesus in God’s Holy Word you will see that Jesus, God Incarnate had the most magnificent hands, for while they were hands like our hands they were the hands of God on earth. He would touch lepers and they would become clean. His hands would hold little children and they were blessed. His hands would heal the sick, and drive out demons. His hands would comfort the sorrowing and raise the dead. His hands would distribute bread and wine, as he gave himself to us in remembrance of his death and resurrection. And then those magnificent hands who only showed mercy were in the end pierced by nails. And because God willingly became Jesus, God Incarnate, so that he could bleed and die in our place, he shows us that he alone is able to heal our hurts, forgive our sins, and defeat our death. It is no wonder God’s Word tells us that those things we trust in; our idols, our little gods that we so often chase after offer nothing but tragedy and sorrow in the end. What is really weird, is that deep down we know that the earthly things that we strive after and put our trust in are worthless in the end, yet we continue to chase after them looking for that perfect little god or gods that will fulfill our happiness. The problem with our relying on these gods for happiness and security is that any god who doesn’t suffer, who knows no agony, or does not die for you, is a false god in which there is no future and who wants to drag you into eternal separation from God. We praise God that he did become one of us and that he did suffer, was in great agony, and died for us, so that we can be restored to the relationship that God wants us to be in with him. That restoration came with a terrible price, yet he rose in glory, as he promised he would and showed himself to his disciples. The prophet Isaiah around 3,000 years ago told the people of Israel when they were without hope, “Behold your God!”, as he told them all that God had done and was going to do for them, giving them hope and comfort. Tonight I am saying to you who, as I am, are lost without Jesus’ redemptive act, “Behold your God!” who is able to comfort you in all your troubles of life. “Behold your God!” who is willing to give you twice the mercy for the sin you have done and will do. “Behold your God!” who is preparing the way for his coming, so that your hope in being with him in the new heaven and earth is sure. “Behold your God!” who is mighty and powerful, breaking and destroying those who are against him while being gentle, kind, and loving to those he calls his children. “Behold your God!”Jesus is not just some nice godly man he is God Incarnate, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, the same God who while he appeared to his people of old in the form of fire, clouds, and smoke, now appears to us in the Word of God and the Sacraments. My dear fellow redeemed brothers and sisters in Christ it is time for us all to put away those things we try to make into substitutes for God, especially those “I can do it myself spirits” that we all rely on so much to get us through life, for no matter how strong you are, or how successful you might be in your relationships, or profession, or how good you are at making or saving money, or doing good things for people, you cannot make peace with God on your own. It is God’s work entirely, so as you head off this evening after the worship service for the Christmas festivities and family gatherings have fun, stay safe, and remember that Jesus, God Incarnate whose birth date we are celebrating is the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life that counts. There is simply no other way, truth, or life, no matter what others may tell you. He alone has done what you or anyone else cannot do. He has fulfilled the angels’ promise that they told the shepherds the night of his birth, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!" You now have peace with God. Merry Christ-mass. Amen.

Fourth midweek Advent 12/21/11

2011-12-21T18:59:00.001-08:00

Fourth Advent Midweek service12/21/11Text: Isaiah 40:1-11Title: God IncarnateFor the past three Wednesdays we have been studying Isaiah 40:1-11. We have seen God’s wonderful love toward his people Israel and a for-shadowing of his love for us. God through the prophet Isaiah, long before the people of Israel were conquered by Babylon were told that because their worship was empty and they had fallen into unbelief and depravity that they would be punished for their sin. They did not listen to God’s Word spoken through the prophet Isaiah and as history shows their beloved city was pretty much destroyed, the temple flattened and their gold and silver taken away from them, as they were hauled off to Babylonia where they would spend 70 years in captivity. God loving his people, as he did, had Isaiah speak wonderful words of forgiveness to them before this happened. Yes, they would be enslaved, but it would not be forever. At some time in the future when they had repented of their sin God would bring them back to their beloved city and the temple would be restored. They would prosper again. God would not forget them even though they had forgotten him. God would do more than just bring them back. He would bless them double the sin they had done, and they had gotten really good at sinning. Listen to what Isaiah tells us about the nation in Isaiah 1:21-23, “21 How the faithful city has become a whore, she who was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers. 22 Your silver has become dross, your best wine mixed with water. 23 Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow's cause does not come to them.” As you can tell they deserved God’s wrath, for they had turned their back on God. But God would not turn his back on them, for God told them that the trip back would be just the opposite of the trip to Babylonia. Instead of pain and sorrow there would celebration. And it happened that way, for when God saw that the time was right he used the pagan King Cyrus to accomplish what he promised. King Cyrus would not only let the people go, but would finance their trip, protect them from their enemies in the city, and spent his vast resources to pay for the restoration. Last Wednesday we read in verses 7-8 of Isaiah 40 that while, “The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” People come and go, governments flourish and fail, the wisdom of the world will rise and fall, but, as God Word tell us, “the word of our God will stand forever.” I don’t know about you, but that is what gives me hope in these times of uncertainty. No matter what happens in my life or the lives of those I am here to shepherd I know without a doubt that I and this congregation, as long as we stay faithful to God, can depend what God says he will do he will do, for we are told in God’s Word that “with God nothing is impossible.” When God says he is going to do something he does it and that my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is our sure hope. That is what gets us through the tough times.Today we are finishing our study with the words of God in verse nine through eleven. “9 Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good news; lift it up, fear not; say to the cities of Judah, "Behold your God!" 10 Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. 11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.”While there is a lot that can be said about these final verses I just want to cut to the chase by focusing on three words, “Behold your God!” “Behold your God!” who is able to comfort you in all your troubles of life. “Behold your God!” who is willing to give you twice the mercy of the sin you have done and will do. “Behold your God!” who will prepare the way for his coming, so that your hope in being with him is sure. “Behold your God!” who is mighty and powerful; breaking and destroying those who are against him while being gentle, kind, and loving to those he calls his children. “Behold your God!”When the time was right God came, and made himself one of us, a baby in a manager. He who made and continues to sustain all of creation made himself dependent on the nourishment from his mother’s breast and the care of his stepfather Joseph. Our God did not come in a flash of light and power letting the world know that the King of Kings had arrived. He announced his arrival in the cries of a newborn infant; hardly noticeable among the sounds of the animals in the stable. No fancy garments, no nurse maids, no hoopla; our Savior God arrived amongst us, as one of us.His hands would touch lepers, hold little children, heal the sick, and drive out demons; his hands would comfort and raise the dead. And his hands would break bread. He was God on earth, yet he also felt hunger and grief. He would feel the pain of the whip and nails, as they bit into his flesh while being ridiculed and crushed under the weight of sin, not his sin, but our sin. And because he became God Incarnate so that he could bleed and die in our place he shows us that he alone is able to heal our hurts, forgive our sins, and defeat our death. It is no wonder God’s Word tells us that those things we trust in; our idols, our little gods that we so often chase after offer nothing but tragedy and sorrow in the end. Any god who doesn’t suffer, who knows no agony, or does not die for you, is a false god in which there is no future and who wants to drag you into eternal separation from God. Those gods are not our God, for our God Jesus gave of himself for you and all humankind. He gave of himself to be crucified unto death, yet he rose again as he promised, so it is time my fellow redeemed sinners to put away those things we try to make into substitutes for God especially our do it myself spirit. Put away those things and take up his cross, for he is the only Way, the only Truth, and the only Life. All praise to God Incarnate; Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fourth Sunday in Advent 12/18/11

2011-12-18T13:14:00.001-08:00

Fourth Sunday in Advent12/18/11Text: Luke 1:26-38Title: Rorate Coeli (Rain Down from heaven) SundayToday is Rorate (row-rate) Coeli (ko-a-lee) Sunday. This is the ancient Latin name for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, the Sunday we are celebrating today. It means “Raining down from heaven.” And comes from the Latin translation of God’s Word, the first part of Isaiah 45:8 which reads in English, "Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain down righteousness.” As you will learn it is the perfect name for this Sunday, as we hear the angel Gabriel announce to Mary that she was going to be the mother of the God-man Jesus. In preparation for this Sunday and the Christmas celebration next Sunday we have for the past three weeks been studying the Incarnation. In this study we have learned many things about the Incarnation of God; that is the coming down of God to be flesh and blood.By looking at God’s Word we know that God from the time he created human beings wanted them to be in a loving trusting relationship with him. We know that because Adam and Eve use to openly converse with God.Then, for some reason that we will never know this side of heaven Adam and Eve quit trusting in God. We know the rest of the story, don’t we, for we don’t have to look too far to see war, hatred, crime, selfishness, greed, sickness and death. It has touched us all. We definitely know the consequences of living sinful lives in a sinful world. Because of sin God could no longer come into direct contact with his people because of their sin, but he continued to show his love, for those who many times turned their backs on him, he spoke to them by speaking through the prophets, showing himself in visions, fire, clouds, smoke, and last, but certainly not least he communicated with his people in the Holy of Holies where the Ark of the Covenant was kept. And because sacrifices could not appease God’s wrath toward sin God had to do something to reconcile his human creation to himself. It had to be, in human terms, something drastic, for his human creation could not, left on their own, no matter how many animals they sacrificed, grain or money they offered to God could ever make themselves right before God. They could not pray enough or worship him enough. Without God actively breaking into our existence all people are doomed. So God came himself to do what no one else could do; make peace between us and God. Angels could not do it. A human, even the most saintly of all humans couldn’t do it because we are all descendants of Adam and Eve. No one could reconcile humans to God except God himself. He had to come, for if he did not all of his human creation, the people he loved. The people he made to be in relationship with him would be destroyed. That brings us to our Gospel text for today; the “raining down from heaven, which we see in the story of Mary being told she was going to be the mother of the God-man Jesus, the Savior of the world. God himself coming down to be born, as one of us, except of course Mary became pregnant through the workings of the Holy Spirit. Jesus had no earthly biological father. She was a virgin before she was pregnant and while she was pregnant until after she gave birth to Jesus, for we are told in another Gospel that Joseph did know her until after Jesus was born. There are a few things in the Gospel for this morning that I would like to point out to you, so that you might have a deeper appreciation for “God raining down from heaven” to us. In the first verse the sixth month tells us that Mary’s aunt Elizabeth who was old and barren was six months pregnant. Her baby grows up to be John the one who baptizes Jesus. It is interesting to note that when an angel had told Elizabeth’s husband that she would become pregnant that he doubted and God made him mute while Mary on the other hand when she was told that she would become pregnant believed and praised God. Read down a little further to where the angel says, “Greetings O favored one, the Lord is with you. That greeting sounds a lot like the angel said something like, “Hello Mary, I bring you greetings from God, for you are a nice girl being a virgin and all. You are worthy of being the mother of Jesus. That sounds like what the angel is saying, but the English translation does not do a good job of giving us what he actually said to Mary. In the Greek the greeting carries the meaning of Mary you have been graced by God. In other words Mary you are favored, not because of who you are, or how good you are, but because God has chosen you to be the mother of Jesus. God in his picking of Mary to be the mother of Jesus made her to be the favored one. That meaning is reinforced by the verse just a little further down where the angel tells Mary that she has found favor with God. It is not her doing, but God’s doing that made her find favor with God. As we go through the text you hear the angel tell Mary how she will become pregnant. We see that Mary is confused and who wouldn’t be? I can just hear her say, “You said what?” She was a virgin and I am sure that she knew that at least back then, that you did not get pregnant without having intercourse with a man. It is impossible. Yet listen at what she says after the angel tells her, “For nothing is impossible with God.” Mary replies, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”Mary in faith accepts what the angel has told her even though she did not have a clue as to how she was going to become pregnant. What a statement of faith! While Mary in her faith completely trusted and accepted what the angel has told her after he said, “For nothing is impossible with God.” that sentence is probably one of the most twisted and misused quotes in the Bible. You usually see it on a sign or hear it spoken in a prayer when an underdog team goes up against another team who is supposed to really outscore them. It is like a cheer. God will see that we win, if we just believe.The problem is that you really have to take the angel’s saying out of context, to say that it means anything close to that, for if you pay attention to what is taking place when the angel tells Mary that “For nothing is impossible with God.” the angel is answering her question of, “How can this be?” He is telling her that if God saw to it that her Aunt Elizabeth who was old and barren got pregnant then he can certainly do what the angel has said he would do. When you read the passage in the Greek you get a better idea of the meaning, for the Greek says what God says will happen will happen. In other words the angel is not saying that what Mary, you or I say God can do he will do, but that what God says he will do he will do. Nothing is impossible for God when he says he will do it. I hear quite often, “If only Jesus were alive today I could believe and trust in him. It had to be easier to believe in Jesus then. It is harder now with all the different truths that are being taught. “Which one is right.” Maybe all of them are right” they say. To think that way is to miss the true Jesus, God Incarnate. Jesus did not quit being active in our lives life just because he ascended to heaven, as some believe. He is the same incarnate Word though whom the Father created the universe. He is the same Savior who spoke forgiveness and life for us. He is the same living Word who promises to remain close to us until his final return. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ God continues to “rain down from heaven” on us today in his Word and Sacraments and the absolution that I speak to you in Jesus’ name every Sunday. He is here now, as he has always been and always will be, for he is the great, “I am.” God Incarnate. Amen.

Third Midweek Advent Sermon 12/14/11

2011-12-14T20:12:00.001-08:00

Third Midweek Advent Date: 12/14/11Text: Isaiah 40:1-11Title: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel Today, as we have done for the past few Wednesdays we are going to continue to looking at our Advent text Isaiah 40:1-11. We know that the prophet Isaiah was prophesying about God bringing back the people of Israel from Babylonia long before they were even forcibly taken to Babylonia. Isaiah is prophesying that God was not only going to return them to their beloved country, but he was going to bless them with double the amount of grace than the evil they had committed that had led to their captivity in Babylonia. Imagine the comfort they must have felt when they read the words of God that were spoken to them even before most, if not all of them were born. Listen to God’s words in verse 6 through 8, as Isaiah hears another voice speak to him. “6 A voice says, "Cry!" And I said, "What shall I cry?" All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the LORD blows on it; surely the people are grass. 8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”It’s a strange message. Isaiah is told to tell the people and thus us since God’s Word is timeless that we are in reality unreliable and that we will fail while God’s promise is forever and infallible. A good example of this was recorded for us in chapter 39 just before the verses we are studying this Advent. “Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, (after he showed off the treasure of the nation to the people who would come take it all away later hauling treasure and people off to Babylonia) "Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: 6 Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the LORD. 7 And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon." 8 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, "The word of the LORD that you have spoken is good." For he thought, "There will be peace and security in my days."King Hezekiah just like many of those in authority today did not care about what would happen in the future just as long as there was peace and security during his lifetime even if it meant that his sons were going to made into eunuchs because he wanted to show off his wealth. While sometimes we think our governing officials are a lot like King Hezekiah in that all they want to do is make sure they are reelected, we are not much different. As long as our life is good quite often we don’t worry about the future life of others much less do anything about it. Most of us are just like the flowers of the field. We blossom only under ideal conditions, not under the blasts of real life. We moan and groan about how unfair life is when troubles hit us, but very seldom do we do anything to correct it, especially if it is others who are having troubles. Too many Christians sit in self-righteousness looking down their nose on those who are suffering while worshiping their idols of self-indulgence. We are so inconsistent in our attitudes as we proclaim our love for Jesus and yet do not do, as he told us to do. We too, just like the Israelites, need to be brought to repentance and I don’t have any doubt that that is what God is now doing; both as a nation and individually. As people of God grafted into spiritual Israel by Jesus’ death and resurrection we are in captivity. We are surrounded by corruption and false gods. We, as active Christians are made fun of and pressured to not be judgmental concerning life styles and the wrongness of abortion even when God’s Word speaks against those things. We are told that God’s Word does not speak to the problems of society today, for the people that wrote the books of the Bible were only trying to explain how things worked that they could not explain. Those who are not Christian consider us to be fools for clinging to the un-provable outdated beliefs in God’s Word. When we see how far we have fallen and how broken the world is, it explains why disappointment pervades our experience. As we see more and more of life, we are confronted with disappointment so persistently and so convincingly, hope starts to look just plain stupid. We become disappointed in our ideals, disappointed in our romance, disappointed in our career, disappointed in the people we trust, and last, but certainly not least disappointed in ourselves. That, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is the life the majority of us live in whether we want to admit it or not. And because of that we need to hear just like the Israelites in Babylonia needed to hear God’s Word of comfort. We need to hear that we can trust in God, so that our hope in the future is a sure hope, for his words will not fade away, as everything else will. We need to truly believe that no human power or condition can stop God from doing what he is going to do. Human failure is costly and can be painful and discouraging, but it’s not the end of our happiness, for God’s promise of salvation is final and sure. He is committed to us and our salvation. And in that certainty our hopes come to rest. The word of our God will stand forever.And what is that Word of God? It is, as Saint John writes in John 1:1-5, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”continuing in verse 14, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” In Bethlehem the Word took on flesh and blood. He lived away from the Father’s house for 33 years, as he lived a life we cannot live; perfectly trusting the Father’s promise that he would care for him. Then on that day when those of the world thought they were rid of him he cried out, “It is finished.” and it was finished. The world heard and still hears defeat. We though hear victory, for in that cry Jesus made peace between us and God fulfilling the angels proclamation, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!" That is our sure hope. That is our comfort. That is our glory. Amen

Third Sunday in Advent 12/11/11

2011-12-11T18:48:00.001-08:00

Third Sunday in Advent12/11/11Text: Hebrews 1:1-12Title: Why not an Angel?A long time ago a boy who is now a grown man asked his pastor in Confirmation class why God did not just send an angel to save us instead of coming himself. Needless to say that question stirred up the class and upset the pastor. He could not remember anyone ever asking that question before. He and everyone he knew just accepted that God had become human when Jesus was born. The pastor knew that that answer would not fly with this young boy because he questioned almost everything he said. How he remembered when he had told the class that God in his Holy Word said you cannot serve two masters at the same time. The young fella had shot his hand up in the air almost before the pastor had finished reading the text. “Why.” He said. “Why cannot you serve two masters?” He remembered after he told the young boy, “Because God said so.” what had happened. The whole class fell apart that day because the boy was not satisfied with that answer. Here he goes again, the pastor thought with an inward groan. This is a going to be a long class. The pastor tried to answer the question with his usual answer, “Because God said so.” but it did not work. He finally had to tell the boy that he would meet with him later after he had time to see why it had to be God that had to become incarnate, that is become human and not an angel. I bet you never thought of that question, “Why didn’t God the Father send an angel instead of his Son to die for us?” Why did God have to come in person to be one of us, is a question that we really should ask. We don’t ask it because we doubt God’s Word, but because in finding the answer we can better appreciate God’s plan of salvation. Mary, the mother of Jesus asked that question when she replied to the angel who told her she was going to become pregnant, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” In that question the whole matter of Jesus’ identity is raised. Who is he; God, man, or some kind of combination of God and man? Joseph also was really asking the same question when he found out that Mary was pregnant and he knew the baby was not his. Before the angel told him that the baby in her womb had come from the Holy Spirit he was going to divorce her. How could this be he asked. People were always questioning who Jesus was from his childhood to his death and resurrection. Who was he? They, including his disciples, could not accept that God himself had become Incarnate; that is human. “After all was not Joseph his father?” they asked. Nothing has changed. It still goes on today. People still do not accept Jesus, even many of those who consider themselves Christian, as God Incarnate. They say he, if they even go this far, is the Son of God, but not God or that he is just a good man, a righteous man who lived a long time ago and whose lifestyle we should mimic, but God in the flesh. No way! That, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is why I am doing this sermon series and Bible study on God’s Incarnation. Now we know, or at least we should know that Jesus is God in the flesh. But back to the question the young boy was really asking that day. Could God have accomplished the same redemptive act by sending an angel to become a human? According to Scripture there are three reasons why having an angel do what Jesus did would not work in God’s plan of salvation. First of all God’s angels were created. They did not always exist, as the Triune God does. Second, after the original fall when the angels sinned against God, angels can no longer sin, so an angel cannot take our place because they cannot be tempted. Last, but not least angels do not die, and as we know, for God’s plan to work a sinless human being had to die. Well, if an angel cannot do what God needed to be done to save his human creation what about another human? We all know people who might qualify; the saints of the world that have lived wonderful lives doing God’s work. Why wouldn’t they work? That one is pretty easy to answer, for there is no human being that has lived, except for Jesus that is perfect, that would qualify, for any sin no matter how seemingly insignificant in any form or fashion condemns a person. A human being just will not qualify. An angel does not qualify. A human descendent of Adam and Eve does not qualify. It simply has to be someone as perfect as God who would keep the Law perfectly, yet someone who could also become human and be able to suffer and die. That is a dilemma that only God can solve. No one else or any other plan would work. He was the only one who had the qualification to do what God needed done to save his human creation from his judgment. He had to come himself; God Incarnate. Jesus did not merely look like a human or pretend to be human, or half human, as some still teach today. Jesus was fully human precisely like us. When God came to be one us he voluntarily took on what we must face, temptation, and death. Listen to what God tells us about himself in Hebrews 2:14-18, “14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”God through the inspired writings of the writer to the Hebrew Christians is telling them and us in this text that since all humans have their origin from God Jesus is like them because the God-man Jesus origins are from God also. He did not become human to help angels but to help his brothers and sisters with whom he shares his humanness. The difference being that while death shows the reality of Satan’s power, Jesus’ death destroyed Satan’s power over us. Death for God’s children is a doorway to the rest of life with God; freedom from Satan and all the ills of this life. Death is not something that we should fear as children of God. Jesus God Incarnate in one act on the cross did what no sacrifice, no matter how many times it was done could not do; appease God. And that my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, is Good News. Amen.

Second Midweek Advent Service 12/7/11

2011-12-07T20:45:00.001-08:00

Second Midweek Advent 12/07/11Text: Isaiah 40:3-5 Title: Prepare the Royal Highway.Today we are going to focus on verses three through five of our Old Testament reading. “3 A voice cries: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. 5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." Isaiah hears a voice! God has commanded his servants, still unidentified, to bring a message of comfort to his people. Now Isaiah hears one of those prophetic voices. He hears the content of the comforting message. Since God’s Word is timeless, speaking to all people though out time we need to ask the question, “What is God saying to us today?” First of all, God is saying that our King is coming. He comes to us as we are, where we are, in the wilderness and desert of our real lives. He wants us to get ready to receive him, because right now we aren’t ready. We know from Luke 3:1–18 that Jesus is the coming King and that the readiness we need is newness of life. We can’t hide behind denominational labels, however correct we might believe they are. We need to prepare the way of the Lord!Secondly, he is saying that God will accomplish his purpose. Before he comes everything will be made ready for his coming. He is sending those he has chosen to prepare his people for his coming. Isaiah is not talking about literal changes in the earth in this text. He is talking about preaching of his Word, so that the removal of all that stands in his way no matter what it might be will be removed.He is saying that lifting and lowering and leveling and smoothing are necessary to the kingdom of Christ. He is talking about depression being relieved, pride being flattened, troubled personalities becoming placid, and difficult people becoming easy to get along with. And he is also implying that if we cling to the status quo and refuse God’s upsetting but constructive salvation, we will have no part with Christ.Thirdly, he is saying that the glory of the Lord Jesus will be revealed to the whole world. We can be certain of it. God has decreed it: “for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” His glory will be admired and delighted in and trembled at everywhere. We talk a lot about the glory of God, giving him glory and such, and we should, but do we understand what we’re talking about when we talk of God’s glory? I have come to the conclusion that we have diminished God’s glory by putting him a box where we can keep him out of our lives when we want and then when we have exhausted all our resources let him out to help us, but God is not going to let this go on indefinitely, for his glory must be seen. Listen to the words of John Piper a rather famous Baptist pastor. He writes, “In the church, our view of God is so small instead of huge, so marginal instead of crucial, so vague instead of clear, so impotent instead of all determining, and so uninspiring instead of ravishing that the responsibility to live to the glory of God is a thought without content. The words can come out of our mouths, but ask the average Christian to tell what they know about the glory of this God that they are going to live for, and the answer will not be long.”I am afraid that what he said applies to too many of us. We need to know what the glory of the Lord is, for then we are prepared for his coming. God’s Word tells us a lot about his glory present and future. I am going to just share with you today just a few of the verses, so that you get a better idea of his glory. We see his glory is the fiery radiance of his very nature. For we are told in Exodus 24:17 that at Mount Sinai “the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire.” Ezekiel tells us in Ezekiel 1:4-28 that he saw the glory of the Lord in the form of something like a supercharged war chariot coming down from Heaven to establish the rule of God on earth. When Jesus was born, we are told in Luke 2:9, “the glory of the Lord shone around the shepherds, and they were terrified.” In John 1:14 we are told that Jesus himself is the ultimate display of the glory of God. In Luke 9:28-40 we see God’s glory in Jesus’ transfiguration. We read in John 13:31 when Jesus is telling his disciples of his upcoming suffering, death, and resurrection that they are going to see God’s glory. And in Jesus’ cry “It is finished” he showed his glory. To those there that day there was nothing glorious in Jesus’ suffering and death. We, even as followers of Jesus have a hard time adjusting our view to see anything glorious in what happened. But it is there, for in his willingness to humble himself all the way to a wretched death for us he shows all with eyes to see and ears to hear God’s glory. Paul taught us in 1 Corinthians 2:8 that in this arrogant world only a weak and foolish gospel can reveal “the Lord of glory”. The cross of glory shames all human pride. But when Christ returns, how different it will be! He will appear in overwhelming glory. And God has called us to share in that glory of Christ. We are told in 2 Corinthians 4:17 that believers in Jesus will inherit “an eternal weight of glory”. This phrase does not translate well into English but what is doing is comparing the heavy tribulations of life to the life of glory we will be living with God. It will be even more so. And last but not least we are told in Revelation 21:23 that throughout eternity the New Jerusalem, that is the Kingdom of God, will need no sun or moon, for “the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb” The glory of the Lord, therefore, is God himself becoming visible, God Incarnate bringing his presence down to us, God displaying his beauty before us, the fulfillment of our deepest longings. And he promises to do this for us. It is the central promise of the gospel.God kept his promise in the hidden glory of Christ’s first coming. Jesus the helpless baby and the dying man on the cross. He continues to keep his promise as the Holy Spirit shows us the glory of God in his Holy Scripture and sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. He will complete his promise at the second coming of Christ when all people will bow before his glory. Amen.

Second Sunday in Advent 12/04/2011

2011-12-04T13:12:00.001-08:00

Second Sunday in Advent12/04/11Mark 8:27-29Title: Who is Jesus?In Mark 8:27-29 we read, “Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they told him, "John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets." 29 And he asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Christ." What is interesting is that when you continue to read the Word of God you quickly find out that his disciples did not really know who he was. They believed that he came from God, that he was the Son of God, but was not God. Jesus, at one time; he was probably frustrated with them and the others who did not believe he was God Incarnate, said, “If you don’t believe my words believe because of what I am doing.” The disciples along with those who were following Jesus thought he was everything but the Savior of their souls. They thought he was a great teacher, a healer of bodies, but they mostly thought he was the new king who was going to free Israel from the Romans and restore Israel to her past glory. This is still thought today, not just by the Jewish people, but by Christians the world over who want an earthly king. They, just like the disciples and followers of Jesus back when Jesus was walking the earth, do not really know who Jesus is. That is why this Advent season I am talking to you about the Incarnation of God; God in the flesh, coming into our midst and its meaning for our lives today and all of eternity. As I told you last Sunday God has always made his presence known to those he calls his children. At first Adam and Eve could actually talk to him. Later after sin entered the world and one could not see God face to face and survive he appeared to his people in fire, smoke, and clouds assuring them of his presence. He talked to his people through the words of the prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah just as he talks to us today through his Word. His word was and still is like a two edged sword that cuts to the bone when sin needed to be exposed and like healing salve when his people repent and need their wounds healed. God has always been active and continues to be active today among his people. We need God among us as much today as the people through the centuries needed God in their midst, for in Romans 3:23 we read, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” We, even the most righteous of us have not met the perfect demands of God. God in his perfect being cannot abide any sin. He is perfect in all things, so he has to demand perfection from his human creation. He simply has no choice, for if he were to do anything different he would not be God. Our inability to do what God demands to be done creates a huge dilemma for God, for ever since Adam and Eve sinned by not trusting in God to perfectly provide all they needed humans have all missed his mark of perfection. We are all incapable of doing what God demands and deserve his righteous condemnation. What is God to do? To speak in human terms he had a choice to make. He could either and rightly so leave his human creation to face his righteous judgment. Or he could, as he chose to do out of his perfect love for his human creation, do what we could not do; live a perfect life. So God became Incarnate, that is became human so that he could live the life we cannot, because of our sin, live and then bear God’s wrath in our place. We know the historical man Jesus who lived as one of us is God because in John 1:1-3 we are told by Saint John, “In the beginning was the Word, (Word was John’s code word for Jesus) and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” And then in John 1:18 we read, “18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he (that is Jesus) has made him known.” It is in God’s Incarnation that we know as Jesus that we see God.And in his becoming one of us we got to see a side of God that was not visible to us before he became God Incarnate; that is God in the flesh. We now see God’s love toward us, as shown in Jesus’ words and miracles. Jesus in the flesh is God, but he had to also be 100 percent human, for God’s plan of salvation to work. Jesus had to be able to be tempted to sin, as we are tempted. And he had to resist the temptations without using his Godhood, for to use his Godhood to resist temptation would not fulfill the demands of God since we are not God. Jesus had to be fully human while still remaining God for God’s plan to work.So God became one of us. He grew in Mary’s womb, as we grew in our mother’s womb. He was born as we are born. He fed at his mother’s breast. He had to be cared for and protected. He was potty trained, learned to talk, and to walk just as we were taught those things. He was human in every way, as he lived his life as one of us. We all know that God’s Law is good; perfect in every way. We know that God demands that we keep his Law perfectly. We know that, but we find ourselves in a dilemma. We, no matter how hard we try cannot perfectly keep God’s Law. We are in deep trouble. While we make excuses for our sin and try to justify our actions by blaming our behavior on others we know deep down that we deserve God’s wrath. So the God-man Jesus did what we cannot do. He kept God’s Law perfectly. He kept it outwardly and inwardly. He did not sin in any form or fashion. That is one of the blessings we receive in God becoming one of us. Jesus did what we are incapable of doing; perfectly keeping God’s Law. So, we have seen this morning that in God’s Incarnation we now see God in and through Jesus and that in God’s Incarnation we see that the Law of God has been perfectly kept as Jesus did what we cannot do; keep God’s Law perfectly. Yet in God’s Incarnation we see even more, for in Jesus God Incarnate we see salvation. We know, according to God’s Word that not only does the Law of God demand perfection from us it condemns us for our failure to keep God’s Law. The Law demands that payment be made for every violation of its commands. There is, as we sometimes hear, when a person does something wrong, “There’ll be hell to pay.” For, if payment is not made for us, we will certainly pay for it for all eternity. That is the other thing we learn from God’s Incarnation. Jesus came to save us; to take on the hell we still deserve even as we sit here this morning saved children of God. The innocent Jesus took God’s just wrath so that the guilty, that is us, can enjoy being with God now and for all eternity. Jesus switched places with us, so that when God’s hammer of justice fell it fell on him instead of us. My dear fellow redeemed ones listen to God’s Word. Know who you are “Poor miserable sinners” and then take comfort in what he has done for you, for he is the Bread of life, the Light of the world, the Door to Salvation, the Good Shepherd, the Resurrection, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. That is why we expectantly wait for his return in all his glory. Jesus; God Incarnate, our Savior. Amen.

First Advent Midweek sermon 11/30/2011

2011-11-30T16:01:00.001-08:00

First Midweek Advent Sermon11/30/11Text: Isaiah 40:1-2This Advent in our Wednesday services we are going to take a closer look at Isaiah 40:1-11. Each week I will take two or more verses and talk about them so that we can get a better understanding of the text thus strengthening our faith. As we go through the text each week you will see how relevant God’s Word is for our lives today. Sir Winston Churchill was once asked to give the qualifications a person needed in order to succeed in politics, and he replied: “It is the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year. And to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn’t happen.”While that is certainly true for a Politian it is not true for God’s prophets who were correct all of the time. They didn’t have to explain away their mistakes, for God tells us in Deuteronomy 18:22 that “If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true it is a “message that the Lord has not spoken.” In other words the person who called himself a prophet was not one if what they said did not come true. Something to remember today when you listen to the pastors proclaiming the end at a certain time or some other prophetic saying. And in Isaiah 8:20 the Prophet Isaiah says, “If they speak not according to this word (that is God’s Word), it is because there is no light in them”. Isaiah was a man who had God’s light, and he was not afraid to let it shine. That is why it is so appropriate to study Isaiah’s writings in Advent the season of light. Before we examine the text of Isaiah’s prophecy, let’s get acquainted with the background of the book so that we can better understand the man and his times.Isaiah which means “Salvation of the Lord” proclaimed to the people of God five different acts of deliverance that God would perform. First the deliverance of Judah from Assyrian invasion. Second, the deliverance of the nation from Babylonian Captivity. Third, the future deliverance of the Jews from worldwide dispersion among the Gentiles. Fourth, this prophecy concerns us, the deliverance of lost sinners from judgment and last, another prophecy that concerns us, he prophesied about the final deliverance of creation from the bondage of sin when the kingdom is established. While the last two prophecies have not been completely fulfilled yet there is no reason since the other four prophecies have come to true to not believe that they will take place. Isaiah was definitely a man in touch with God. He saw through visions God’s Son and God’s glory. He heard God’s message. When Isaiah spoke he spoke for God, as he sought to bring the nation back to God before it was too late. Just as God loved Judah Isaiah loved his nation. He uses the phrase “my people” twenty-six times in his book. He pleaded with Judah to return to God and warned kings when their foreign policy was contrary to God’s will. Just as God hates sin Isaiah hated sin; especially the sin of just going through the motions of worshiping God.As much as God is quick to condemn sin through his prophets he is just as quick to offer the wonderful Gospel message of forgiveness through his prophets. That is what Isaiah is doing in our readings today. It is a wonderful Gospel message to a people whose world had come crashing down around them. They were in a heathen land. Their beloved city Jerusalem along with the temple where God resided was leveled and burned. I would imagine that, as they were being forced to go to Babylon and while living there they were wondering what happened to their powerful almighty God who had promised to protect them. Heartache and despair were abundant. Then God spoke through Isaiah wonderful words of comfort. “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. 2Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.” Comfort in the context that they were in did not mean that God just sympathized with the plight of the Israelites. God through Isaiah is encouraging them. That is a long way off from having sympathy for them which is a feeling while comforting them by encouraging them is an action. God is going to restore his relationship with them by having their beloved city and temple restored. His presence in the temple will comfort them. In verse two Isaiah is saying that God loves them sacrificially. This is where the idea of the suffering servant begins to take place. God is willing to do whatever is needed to restore his people, the people he so dearly loves. He wants them to know that their sin that got them in the mess they were in has been forgiven, not because of anything they did, but because loves them. He forgives them. The last part of verse two is a hard one to understand, “that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.” It sounds like God is saying he doubled the punishment for their sin. It is sort of like you sin a little, I will punish a lot. And then after I have punished you double amount of the sin you did then you are forgiven. That is what it sounds like, but is that what it is saying? It makes sense to us because that is the way we would like it to be, but is that what God is saying through Isaiah? Let’s take a look. You have to go back to the Hebrew and its general usage concerning the words that are translated, “she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins.” Once you have done that and I don’t have time to go over the passages today, you see that the people of Israel received double blessings from God not double punishment. Double grace; that is the foolishness of God. Now that we have a better understanding of the first two verses of our Scripture reading for today the question has to be asked: Since God’s Word is timeless, what do the verses mean for us today?The only way to answer that question is to ask another series of questions: How is your life today? Is everything going good or could there be some improvement in your life? Are you troubled with some sin that you, as hard as you try, cannot get rid of? How is family life going? Could it be better?I could go on and on, but you get the idea. If your answer to any of those questions was that you need help this passage is for you. We all need a Savior who does not just stand by looking at us with sympathy, but acts in power, giving what only he can give us; peace between us and God and peace in our lives as we live them today. Peace be to you. Amen.

First Sunday in Advent 11-27-2011

2011-11-27T16:04:00.001-08:00

First Sunday in Advent
11/27/11
Title: The Presence Of God

Today is the first Sunday of Advent; the first major season of the Christian Church year. It is in all honesty a strange season considering that the readings are not about the events leading up to Jesus’ birth which we will celebrate just four Sundays from now, but are about the Second Coming of Jesus when he comes back in all his glory to judge the world.
The reasoning behind the readings is that we, like the people of the Old Testament, should be looking for the coming of our Lord just as eagerly as the people of Old Testament time looked for the birth of the Messiah. The problem is that Christians, for the most part, are not living under duress and oppression like the Old Testament people were, thus we, at least we who live in the United States, do not look forward to Jesus second coming, like they did, because in all honesty life is pretty good and we really are in no hurry for Jesus to come back.
Being a faithful Lutheran pastor I have always preached on the end times during Advent because they are the assigned readings, but this year I am going to speak on the Incarnation during the Advent season. The reason I am, is that we, I am afraid, don’t have a really good understanding of the incarnation and because of that we probably don’t have a real good understanding of the critical articles of faith that rest on the doctrine of the Incarnation.
Incarnation is a fine church word which means God becoming man. In other words it is about the birth of Jesus when God became a human being that we know as Jesus. Each Sunday this Advent season we are going to look at different aspects of the mystery of the incarnation of Jesus and it is truly a mystery, for how is it that God who exists from all eternity could also become a man like us? It is a deep mystery, but it has enormous practical value for the Christian life and we need to have a better understanding of the incarnation.
For you see Christianity is not just another belief system out of many other belief systems, as so many believe. Nor is it, as others believe, just about what happens when we die. Christianity is a way of life here on earth and beyond which was first personally embodied in Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word, the God-man who without his incarnation, that is his becoming human the world was reconciled to God. This reconciliation brings back together what was lost when Adam and Eve sinned. We are no longer separated from God by our sin and thus we are in a relationship with God, as he desires us to be.
It is said by the people who research society that more people feel alone today than at any other time in history. There are many reasons given for loneliness, but no matter what the cause loneliness is terrible thing. It can lead to all kinds of emotional, spiritual, and physical problems. In the worst case loneliness can lead to suicide.
There was no loneliness in the Garden of Eden. Loneliness came into being when, as I said earlier, Adam and Eve fell into sin corrupting their intimate relationship with God. But God would not let their sin separate them from him, even though Adam and Eve hid from him because they were afraid of what he would do to them. God could have just punished them right then and started all over, but because he loved them so much God promised, even before they were forced out of the Garden of Eden, that there would be a Savior who would restore the relationship that God intended. They would never be alone.
God kept his promise. God wants fellowship with his human creation. He wanted to reveal his presence among them. God appeared in many ways to his people, but usually it was in the form of fire, smoke, or a cloud. His presence reassured the people giving them comfort in the tough and sometimes terrible times of their lives.
But he wanted to do even more, so that the relationship with God that was broken would be restored. God through Moses set up a system of worship that would not only remind them of his love, but would also remind them of their sinfulness, so that they would seek him out.
The sacrificial system while not forgiving the sins of the people did through the blood offered to God keep their focus on God and the promised Messiah. There was one particular rite that I want to look at this morning. It only happened once a year. It was called the Day of Atonement. It was, as you will see a foreshadowing of Jesus death. Listen to Leviticus 16 starting at verse 20, “20 And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. 22 The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness.”

The laying on of the sins of the people on the goat and the sending the goat into the desert gave the people a picture of what Jesus did in his being taken out of the holy city Jerusalem and crucified, so that all people could be at peace with God.
God made his presence known to the people by the Tabernacle and later the temple. But, as we are told in Galatians 4:4, “When the time had fully come” he became man in the person of Jesus. God lived among us.
In John 1:1 we are told by God, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God”. And a little further down in verse 14 we are told, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” What John is saying is that Jesus always existed, so he has to be God and that when the time was right he became human. Those with eyes to see and ears to hear saw God in Jesus, for he and the Father are one, as Jesus said many times. Jesus thus is God incarnate.

One of the most remarkable things that Jesus said just a short time before his death was his comparing his body to the temple in Jerusalem where God existed for the people of Israel. By comparing his upcoming death to the destruction of the temple he was saying that the old sacrificial system was over. In his person God is present. Jesus was to be the final sacrifice. There was no further use for the temple and its system of sacrifices.
God is present with his people. In the Old Testament his presence was shown in the tabernacle and the temple in the holy city Jerusalem. Now God is revealed to us in Jesus. In Jesus we are one with God. In him we have forgiveness, because his own sin-offering of blood reconciled us to God the Father.
Next week we will see what the blessings are that we receive because of the incarnation.
So now we who are reconciled to God can look forward to his second coming in the flesh as our sermon hymn 333, The Advent of our King tells us. Amen.

Thanksgiving Eve Service 11/23/11

2011-11-23T19:50:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving Eve Service
11/24/11
Text: Deuteronomy 8:1-2
Title: In All Things Give Thanksgiving

Listen to the words of God, as Moses declared to the people, "The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers. And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not."

Thanksgiving day is about remembering the past and of course being thankful for the blessings you have received. When you gather around the Thanksgiving table to enjoy the feast tomorrow you will hear stories, and see people that you might not have seen for a while. Listen to the stories, some of which will be old, some new, all of them will be about events in the past, usually about your family.

Everywhere you look tomorrow you will probably be reminded of your family’s history. Where one of the relatives once sat, there might be an empty chair; or perhaps there are now two or three extra chairs where new members of the family are setting. Look at the faces gathered around the table; young faces, wrinkled faces, sad faces, happy faces, new faces and old faces. All of them tell the story of your family's history in in their own way. Remember and give thanks.

Memories are important, for they tell you who you are and where you come from, and in a sense you belong to. Without memories you really can’t give thanks, for you won’t know what to be thankful for or whom to thank. That is why Moses in our reading is saying what he saying. He wants the people that he is talking to know who they are, where they came from, and who they should be thanking for all their blessings in the past.

Moses's sermon is a short sermon, but during his lifetime he repeated it many times: “Remember the Lord!”; “Remember and do not forget!” he would say over and over again, for Moses knew how important it was for the people of Israel not to forget God's graciousness toward them.

This evening Moses is speaking to us. We, like the people of Israel have gathered together in God’s presence to hear his Word and partake of Jesus’ Supper, a foreshadowing of the heavenly feast to come to remember all that God has done for us.

My brothers and sisters in Christ you belong to the Lord. This is what the Lord has done for you: He sent you a prophet greater than Moses; Jesus Christ, his Son to deliver you by his death and resurrection. He brought you out of slavery to sin. He rescued you from the reign of death and the devil. He drowned your sinful self in baptismal water and called you to be his people. He has led you year after year through the wilderness of this life, a land in which you are a pilgrim and a stranger. All praise to God!

Beware of just knowing what God has done, for a proper remembrance of what God has done for you involves the whole person, not only the mind. So when Moses says, “Remember,” he isn’t reciting a set of historical facts for you to memorize. He wants your entire life to be one of remembrance, for you to remember the Lord with your head, your heart, and your hand. Through Holy Baptism, God made you a member of the heavenly Father’s family, and so you remember the Lord your God by living as his child.

Remember what it was like to be a child. You received what your parents gave. You lived in their house, you ate at their table, you called them when you were in need, and you enjoyed their goods and belongings. That is the same way it should be when you are a child of the heavenly Father through adoption into Christ Jesus.

It is here in God's holy house that you can best remember who you are, for this is your Father’s house. This altar is his table. It is spread for the feast. You call him “Father,” and his ears hear your cries for mercy. This isn’t a onetime thing; it’s your life as a child. You remember the Lord by receiving more from him: more forgiveness and more salvation. His delight is to give to you, to provide for you, to answer you. He does this not only here but in your own home as well. Everything you have is his and he gave it to you.

Listen to God's words, as Moses spoke them, "For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you."

He gives; you receive. And in receiving, you remember who you are: his beloved child. At present, however, you are living in a wilderness, much like the Israelites as they wandered through the desert, which means that there may be hunger and sickness and tears along the way. Some tables may have less this year than they did last year; some belts might be pulled a little tighter. That’s not a sign that the Lord has forsaken you, but it does test you.

The best remembrance that a child gives to his father is to do what his father does, to walk in his ways. “So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him.” To be a child of the heavenly Father means to imitate him: to forgive as he forgives and to love as he loves. You demonstrate that you remember the Lord by loving and serving your neighbor.

We are always in danger of forgetting who we are. In spiritual matters, as in the rest of life, we are prone to be forgetful and have a selective memory. But Thanksgiving, even though it is not a religious holy day, makes us remember, and God jogs our memory though the words of Moses, so that we are reminded who we are; the Lord’s people, purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ. Remember this by receiving his gifts.

Each time you start to worship God make the sign of the cross to help remember your Baptism. Listen to his Word faithfully taught. Come soon to his banquet table to eat and drink the very body and blood of your Lord Jesus Christ, for forgiveness, salvation, and life eternal, as he has promised.

Remember who you are by living as one who has been redeemed by Christ the crucified. Remember it with your heads, hands, hearts, ears, and mouths. With such remembrance and thanksgiving, go forth tomorrow, enjoy the feast. Remember the stories of your family, pass the gravy, and enjoy all that the Lord has given you, for he is good. Amen.

New Consecration Sunday 11/13/11

2011-11-13T13:32:00.001-08:00

New Consecration Sunday
11/13/11
Text: 2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Title: The Power of Grace.

It is so good to see a full church on New Consecration Sunday. It is that dreaded one Sunday a year when the pastor talks about how much money each of us should be giving. I am not going to talk about money today, as strange as that might seem since all the readings appear to be about money, for we are not here today to talk about money, but to willingly consecrate ourselves to God’s service. Consecration; just what does that word mean?

To consecrate means to dedicate something or someone to God for his service. As we are using the word today we are saying that we have come together as the people of God to dedicate our whole life to the service of God.

Why do we consecrate ourselves to God? Well there are a lot of reasons. The main one being that we owe our very existence to God. If it were not for his mercy toward us, especially the giving of his son Jesus unto death for us we would not be able to live with God when we depart this earthly life.

But there are other reasons to consecrate our lives to God like all the blessings he bestows on us during this life. Even in the midst of disease and loneliness, family and work problems God richly blesses us. Even the poorest in our society rank in the top 10 percent of the world’s richest people.

In our Old Testament reading for this morning where David is asking those present after he had given an extremely huge sum toward the building of the temple, “Who then will offer willingly, consecrating himself today to the Lord?”

He continues in verse 14, “But who am I, and what is my people that we should be able thus to offer willingly?” In other words how can it be that our hearts are changed from being inwardly focused to being outwardly focused on you and your work? He answers his own question by saying, “For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.” You see King David knows that when a person’s heart is open to God that they will gladly do what they can for the glory of God.

The people knew they were blessed by God, as a nation and as individuals. They knew they had done great wrong, but that in their repentance God had forgiven them and blessed them, as he protected them from their enemies and prospered them. They knew it was God and so they willingly gave of what they had for the building of the temple, the teaching of God’s Word, and the care of the poor.

Today, as New Testament people, we know that we are saved from the damnation that we still deserve by the graciousness of God on behalf of Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection. We know that and we count on it. In fact we bet our eternal lives on it.

As I said earlier we as a people are so blessed by God. Things that we take for granted others never see. So many times we are ungrateful for all that God has done, for we think it is our work that gets us what we have.

God asks one thing of those he died for on that cross; that is to be faithful to him and his commands. Have you ever prayed to God for more time, money, or abilities so that you could do more for him and never got any of it? Maybe it is because you have sown sparingly as our Epistle reading tells us those who sow sparingly reap sparingly.

In other words God will not bless you in abundance, now I am not talking of money here, although it could be, but in spiritual abundance, if you are not faithful in the small everyday blessings of life how can God bless you in a big way?

God tells us to sow bountifully and you will reap bountifully. How does that work you ask. Well, go down to verse 10 where you are told that it is God who is doing the giving. It is not yours, but Gods. Everything you have or do only comes to you through the graciousness of God, for he has given you, as we were reminded a week ago, the gifts to do what God wants you to do in his kingdom. Think not? Think others are better equipped than you to do the Lord’s work? Think that you aren’t capable of working in the Lord’s kingdom?

If so take a look at verse 8 where he tells you, “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, ‘He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.’”

This is what God is saying to you. God will give you what you need to work in his kingdom. He is the one giving through you to help those in need. That is where the congregation’s work comes in. We, just like the people at Corinth that Paul is writing to, are using our gifts of time, talents, and money to do what the congregation at Corinth was doing; sharing the goodness of God with those who are in need, whether it is a spiritual, emotional, physical, or relational need.

But there is more in the sharing of gifts with others than first meets the eye, as God tells us in verse 12, “For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing in in many thanksgivings to God. By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others”

God is telling you that in your helping of others no matter how unimportant you might think it is that your love and generosity will cause them to give glory to God, for they know why you are helping them the Gospel message of Jesus Christ.

In verse 14 he tells you that all of this, the generosity of your heart and the thankfulness of their hearts are only possible because of the grace of God. Thanks be to God for inexpressible gift. Amen.

Reformation Sunday 10/30/11

2011-10-31T21:24:00.001-07:00

Reformation Sunday
10/30/11
Text: Romans 3:19-28
Title: Grace!

Today is Reformation Sunday. It is the Sunday when we celebrate the posting of Martin Luther’s theses on the door of Wittenberg Church in Anglo Saxon on October 31, 1517. The posting of his theses had a profound effect on the Christian religion.
I would wager that if I were to ask anyone here today what they were about I would get an “I don’t know.” Now I am not going to ask any of you that question, because I did not know what they were about until I attended seminary.
The correct title for the Theses is "Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences." Martin Luther recognized the false teachings of selling free passes to heaven by the Roman Catholic Church to raise money for the Roman Church. He saw, along with others in Switzerland, France, and England, the corruption of God’s Word, especially Romans 3:19-28.
So, this morning I want to go through Romans 3:19-28 with you, since it is time for a second reformation in the United States. People are dying and going straight to hell because they do not know the Good News of this passage and others that clearly proclaim God’s Grace on behalf of Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection.
There are those who believe they are Christians who either out-rightly deny the free gift of God’s Grace on our behalf or believe that they must have to do something to earn God’s forgiveness. That doesn’t even take into account many who really don’t believe that they are sinful enough that Jesus had to die on their behalf.
They have all put their soul and body in danger, for on that day when Jesus comes back in all his glory to raise up all people from their graves, believers and unbelievers, he will unite their souls with their bodies as he designed them to be. For you see, when God created humans he did not make the soul to be separate from the body. The soul and body are meant to be together.
Those who truly believe in Jesus’ salvation alone will go to live with him in the new heaven and earth while those who did not believe in him will be permanently separated from him, knowing that he is the only Way, the Truth, and the Life. That, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, is hell.
That is why this passage and others similar to it in God’s Word are so important. Let’s take a look at it.

Romans 3:19-28: “Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.” Does God’s law speak to you, telling you that you have missed the mark of being good before God? If so then you, according to this text are a sinner. You are accountable to God.

“20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” In this passage we learn that the purpose of the law is to show us how sinful we are. We might be obeying the law outwardly, but inwardly, if we are honest with ourselves, we know our thoughts and at times they do not give God glory.

“21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it—“ God’s righteousness, that is, his holiness, is made clear though the words of the prophets and for us New Testament people, the apostles. There is no excuse for not knowing God’s demands and as the next verse shows us, his righteousness as shown in Jesus Christ. “ 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.”

Continuing, “For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Saint Paul restates what he had said earlier. He wants all his listeners to know that no one except Jesus has nor could meet the demands of God. You are doomed without Jesus.

But Paul does not leave you cringing, as we all should, as he continues with the Gospel message, gladdening your heart, “24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation (propitiation means to appease the wrath of God by blood sacrifice. This comes from the Hebrew word describing the Mercy Seat, that is, the lid of the Ark of the Covenant which once a year was sprinkled with blood.) by his blood, to be received by faith.”

There it is! You are declared not guilty before God, not because of anything you have done, will do, or can ever do, but because of Jesus who took your guilt upon himself, so that God would punish him instead of you. Why did God do this? We are told that “This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” This does not mean that everyone who died before Jesus’ death and resurrection were saved even if they did not believe in the Triune God. It means that, as we are told in 1 Peter, that the people of old were given credit for something that had not even taken place, Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Why would God do that? We are told in verse 26 that, “26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” In other words, it showed just how just God is. He could not, out of his sense of justice, let those who died before Jesus’ saving act be lost. That, my dear friends, is an awesome God.

Paul ends this particular part of God’s Word, by asking a question, “27 Then what becomes of our boasting?” No one can boast, for as Saint Paul has earlier explained, nothing we can do can make us right with God. It does not make any difference how nice you are, how many times you go to church, or how much you give the poor. It makes no difference, for, as he continues, “It is excluded.” By this he means our goodness will not cut it before God, because as he writes, there is no law that will make us right, only the law of faith, as he ends this reading with, “28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”

It is truly amazing that God would have anything to do with us, since in our innermost being we don’t want anything to do with God. It is truly amazing, but he does, and we give all praise to God. Amen

18th Sunday after Pentecost 10/16/11 New Every Morning sermon 5 of 5

2011-10-16T12:05:00.000-07:00

18th Sunday after Pentecost
10/16/11
Text: Lamentations 3:22-24
Title: New Every Morning; 30 Days of Spiritual Renewal sermon 5 of 5

This is the last part of our sermon series that is based upon Lamentations 3:22–24: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.”

Every Sunday we gather to receive the Gospel of God’s incredible love through his Word and Supper. We learn through his Word that he gave His Son to die on the cross that we might have eternal life. We receive in his Supper forgiveness, salvation and the promise of eternal life.

Thus supported, strengthened, and renewed, we respond to all that God has done for us. The Scriptures say that God’s mercies are continually renewed for us every morning. Our commitment to God then should also be renewed each morning.

Just as there are things in a marriage that can help you grow closer to the one you love there are things that you can do that will drive you further apart. Your relationship with God is no different, for there are specific things that you can do to help you grow closer to God, as well as things that you can do that will drive you further away from him.

And just as I hope you are working daily to do things that draw you closer together to your spouse, I pray that you are also doing things that will draw you closer to God every day.

Our study began five weeks ago and has posed several questions for us to consider concerning our relationship with God. I first asked what would happen if we begin every day in God’s Word? What if we begin every day in prayer? What if we agreed to speak positively in every situation? What if we seek the face of God first in all things? And now the final question: What would happen if every member of this congregation opened themselves up to the abundance of God every day?

This is what I mean by opening yourself up to the abundance of God every day. The Bible tells us in Ephesians that God can do much more than we can ever think or imagine. And I want to remind you, in case that you might have forgotten, that we serve a God of abundance. As our nation finds itself deep in a recession, we do not hear the word abundance too often. As Christians we often fall into trap of hearing the word abundance and thinking immediately of material blessings. We do this because we are material people living in a material world. I would remind you that according to God’s Word material things, as important as they are to us, are the least of all of God’s blessings to us.

Surprised? You really should not be for God’s Word clearly tells us that his first blessing of abundance is in our spiritual life. Listen to God speak to us in Romans 5:17: “For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.”

In this passage we very clearly see the extent of God’s abundance through a contrast. We see how death reigned in the trespass of one man as Adam and Eve disobeyed God and brought sin and death into this world. But that death is contrasted with abundant life. Scripture calls Christ the Second Adam, and just as death reigned through one man, through his trespass, now life is going to reign, and reign abundantly through the sacrifice of the one man; the Son of God.

Remember, when we are born, just by our being human, we became enemies of God, sinful and hostile toward him. And yet through Christ we are made alive. It is a resurrection that takes place inside of us that physically we are not aware of, but spiritually we know to be true, because that is what the Word of God proclaims to you and me.

And it is that abundance that is found God’s greatest gift to us. For we are told in God’s Word to us that if a person has every material possession in the world but yet his or her soul is dead, is that abundance? Would you trade your abundance of spiritual life for any material gain? I would pray not.

One of my favorite Scripture stories is when Jesus heals a paralytic man. Jesus was preaching, and there was a paralyzed man whose friends wanted to bring him before Jesus. But try as they might, the crowd surrounding the house where Jesus was preaching was just too large. So they took him up on the roof, knocked a hole in the roof, and lowered the paralyzed man down.

There he is, paralyzed and lying on a mat, being lowered through the roof of a house by his friends. And the first thing that Jesus says to him is not, “Get up, pick up your mat and go!” something we would think of being of the utmost importance, but “My son, your sins are forgiven.”

But, surprise, surprise Jesus did not first heal his body and then talk to him about his soul. Jesus gave the crippled man the best gift Jesus could give him; abundant life; that is the forgiveness of sins, the salvation of his soul and body in the resurrection. That was the best gift Jesus could give him and we need to remember that regardless of whatever physical circumstance we may find ourselves in that our receiving the gift of life in our baptism we have received life that is so abundant that it will last for eternity.

The second blessing of abundance that we receive from God is when we are obedient to His Word. These are the blessings of obedience. We read in Deuteronomy 30:16: “If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in His ways, and by keeping His commandments and His statutes and His rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you.”

Simply put, when we are obedient to God’s Word, we are blessed by God in this world. Now I have no idea what form those blessings are going to take, but I know they will be good, for you will receive his abundant blessings.

Sadly too many of us have taken another path, the path of not following God’s commands where we make choices that are not in obedience to His will or contradict what he wants. I don’t care how good or right something may feel. If you are not following God’s will you are denying yourself God’s blessings. We do not receive the blessing of obedience through disobedience. You can read account after account of God’s people not following God’s commandments in God’s Word and see clearly that you do not receive his abundant blessings by not following his commandments.

There are texts after texts in God’s Word that show us that when we follow God’s commands we are abundantly blessed. In Malachi 3:10 which is usually read on stewardship Sunday we read, “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
While this verse is often used to encourage sacrificial giving toward the support of the congregation’s mission, it is really not about that, but God challenging each one of us to test him, so that we can be blessed abundantly. Why then don’t we test God as he tells us to do? I don’t have the answer for that, but I think it is that we really don’t believe what he is telling us which leads to be deprived of God’s abundant blessings.

Obedience to God is hard. It is hard to love your neighbor as yourself. It is hard to love your enemies. It is hard to meditate on God’s Word every day. It is hard to sacrifice your valuable time for prayer and for worship. It is hard to sacrificially give of your resources. Yes, it is hard.

But it is also worth it because it is obedience of God’s Word that opens us up to the blessings. And I have yet to find anyone who has come to me and said that the blessings were not worth the effort.

God’s Word is truth, and God’s Word reminds us and tells us again and again about the character of our God. God loves us and He wants to give us good things. Listen to Psalm 36:7–9 where the psalmist tells us about God and blessings,
“How precious is Your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light do we see light.”

Do you want God to abundantly bless you? I hope so. If you are not presently doing a daily Bible devotion or if you are already are doing a daily Bible devotion I have printed out for each of you a 30 day Bible study based on this sermon series I have just finished, “New Every Morning.”

There is a big stack on the table in the narthex’; enough for each family. If we run out, I will print more. Please take one, for you will learn, as you do the daily devotions much about God and his wonderful love and abundant blessings, for they are new every morning. Amen.

16th Sunday after Pentecost New Every Morning sermon 4 of 4

2011-10-02T13:30:00.001-07:00

16th Sunday after Pentecost.
10/2/11
Text: Deuteronomy 4:29
Title: Seeking The Face Of The Lord Every Morning (sermon 4 of 5)

Grace, mercy, and peace be unto you from God our Father and for the sake of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Today we are on week four of our five-part series looking at what it means to be a disciple of the Lord. This series is based on Lamentations 3:22–24: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.”

Because God’s compassion never fails, because they are new every morning, our commitment to God; our following and responding to that love that we receive, needs to be new every morning as well. While our salvation is strictly God’s doing there are things that we can do to grow stronger with our walk with the Lord.

The first Sunday of this series I asked what would happen if all of us would start every day in the Word of God. The second week, I asked what would happen if we would also start each day with a time of prayer. Last week, I asked you to consider what would happen if we all agreed to speak to one another positively in every situation. Today, we continue with another simple question. What would happen if every member of this congregation would seek the face of God first in all things?

The reason I am asking the question is that God has given us a promise in Deuteronomy 4:29: “But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find Him, if you search after Him with all your heart and with all your soul.” This is a very simple promise. But what is God’s promise to us if we seek Him with all of our heart? His promise is that we will find him. What conditions does God place on this promise? The answer is that we only have to seek him. That means that in every circumstance, when we seek the face of God with all of our heart and all of our soul, we will find Him. Whatever circumstances we find ourselves in God’s promise is the same. When we seek Him with all of our heart and all of our soul, we will find Him.

So what does it mean to seek God? How do we go about doing that? Seeking God involves two things; control and trust. Ever since Adam and Eve sinned against God in the Garden of Eden, when they sought independence, there has been a battle for control. You are familiar with that battle. It is the battle that goes on within you between your sinful nature and your redeemed nature. It is the battle that goes on so many times between a husband and wife, between parents and children, between friends, between workers and bosses, and between Christians in congregations, as they seek control. The list could go on and on.

We have an inborn desire to want to control our own lives, to control our own destinies. We do not like to give up control to anyone. We feel that if we are not in control of our own lives others are in control and that is not good. And it is true, for we are told in God’s Word that we are either slaves to Satan and sin or slaves to God.

To be a slave to anyone is a bad thing. And it is if you are a slave to Satan. Yet most people don’t realize that the apostle Paul frequently referred to himself as a slave. This shows that Paul learned an important lesson that we, too, need to learn; that is to yield control of our lives to our heavenly Father. Simply put, God’s will has to come before ours. We have to admit and then let go of our control, so that we are under God’s control.

It is not easy to give up control. A good example is in our prayers. When we pray I would wager that there is a, maybe it is unspoken, but nevertheless it is still there, “Lord, my will be done.” instead of “Thy will be done.” We want to be in control and because of that we so many times fail to seek the face of the Lord.

When we gather here every week, we acknowledge that God is the Savior of our souls. The most priceless treasure that we have; our eternal souls, is ultimately in the hands of God. It is only by the death and resurrection of the Son that we have forgiveness; it is only on the account of God’s mercy and action that our souls have been saved.

I find it odd and I think you would to, if you gave serious thought to the matter, that we trust God with our eternal souls yet don’t trust him when it comes to our daily life. How many times do we leave worship and go home and continue to act as if we are still the ones who are in charge? We do not trust God with the daily aspects of our lives. We don’t want to give up control. But it is when we give control of our lives to God and entrust every aspect of our daily lives to Him that we can truly seek His will in all things.

Seeking God is a matter of choice, for you can go into a situation seeking a Godly outcome or not. It is your choice. Before going into a difficult meeting or a confrontation or whatever it may be, you can choose to seek God in those people you will meet or not.

Sometimes though, seeking God is a reaction. Sometimes there are situations that happen to you over which you have little or no control. It is in those situations that you must seek the face of God. Let me give you an example. It is found in 1 Kings 3:16–28. I am not going to read the text, for we all know the story even though you might not remember where it is in your Bible.

It is the story of two women who came to King Solomon to decide a dispute over whose son had lived and whose son had died in the night, for they both claimed the boy who was alive as their child. Of course only one woman’s child was alive. The other child had died.

Wise King Solomon who made it a habit to seek the face of the Lord every morning listened to the women and then said, “Bring me a sword.” So a sword was brought before the king. And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.” Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because her heart yearned for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him.” Then the king answered and said, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no means put him to death; she is his mother.”

It is reported that all of Israel after hearing of his wise decision stood in awe of the king because they perceived that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice. King Solomon had sought the face of the Lord that day, but he was not the only one that day that sought the face of the Lord.

The woman who was the true mother of the child sought the face of the Lord that day also. I’m sure it broke her heart to say, no, give my child to this woman who had stolen her son. But she did it anyway to preserve the life of her son. Thankfully, the wisdom of King Solomon was borne out and he was able to understand rightly whose son this was. But you can see in that situation who sought the face of God and who did not.

Now there is not a single one of us that will ever have to do what King Solomon or that woman did that day, but no matter what you face, the promise of God stands true. In every situation when you seek him, you will find him. Whether you choose to seek the face of God before, during, or after a difficult situation you will always find him. That is a promise by God. I pray that each of you here this morning will daily choose to seek God first. You will be blessed, for his mercies are new every morning. Amen

15th Sunay after Pentecost sermon 3 of 5 New Every Morning

2011-09-25T17:10:00.000-07:00

15th Sunday after Pentecost.
09/25/11
Text: James 3:8
Title: What would happen if we all spoke in love toward each other?

This morning we are going to continue on our journey of spiritual growth. The sermon series and Bible study that we are using is titled “New Every Morning”. It is based on Lamentations 3:22–24 which reads, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, therefore I will hope in Him.”

Not too long ago I spoke to you about the will of God, as it is shown to us in God’s Word. In those sermons You learned that God’s original will, which is still his will and always will be is that you are to walk in fellowship with him; that is have a close relationship with him, just as Adam and Eve did before they sinned. You also learned that you are to do good to others; that is, as God’s Word teaches, you are to love others as you love yourself. And finally you learned that you are to live in harmony with the rest of God’s creation; that is be good caretakers of all that God has made and given to you. That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is God’s will for you.

And since each one of you here is the recipient of the greatest gift ever given; the forgiveness of your sins, it is really your duty to walk with the Lord in your daily life, for since God’s mercies are new to us every morning, as God’s Word tells us, then our response to that great love and mercy of our God needs to be renewed every morning as well.

Since we are all sinners, not really wanting to do God’s will, we need to, as Martin Luther tells us in his catechism, “Daily drown the old man.” This is our sinful self. The way we do that is by reading God’s Word and earnestly praying to God every morning before we start our day with all of its trials and tribulations. If you are reading God’s word and spending time in prayer at any other time of the day keep on doing what you are doing. I am just saying that we should read his Word and pray every morning, for his mercies are new every morning. The Word of God and prayer prepare us for the day.

The last couple of weeks I have been asking a series of questions. The first week I asked those in attendance if they thought that starting the day reading the Word of God would make any difference in their life, their family’s life and the congregation’s life to raise their hand. Only about a third of those in attendance that day thought that reading God’s Word first thing in the morning would make any difference in their lives, the lives of their family, or the life of the congregation. In other words quite a few people don’t see the importance of knowing God’s Word for their daily life.

Last week I asked those in attendance if they thought that spending time in earnest prayer first thing in the morning would make any difference in their life, the life of their family, or the life of the congregation. I did not ask for a show of hands that Sunday, for the results would been about the same, as the Sunday before, because spending time reading God’s Word and earnestly praying go hand in hand. You simply can’t do one without doing the other.

Today’s question is, “What if every member of our congregation agreed to speak positively in every situation?” I am not talking about just here at the church, but everywhere. Do you believe that it would make a difference in your life, the life of your family, or the life of the congregation, if you spoke positively in every situation?

I am sure that every one of you would believe that speaking positively in every situation would make a difference. It sounds easy doesn’t it? But when you stop to think about it, much of what makes up our normal conversations during the day could probably be best described as negative. We can find ourselves gossiping, slandering, lying, belittling, or complaining about any number of things throughout almost any conversation we have.

This is clearly against God’s will for us and contrary to how He desires us to speak. Simply put, making these types of statements is nothing more than us not loving those that God loves, for God loves those he created in his own image; all people.

A lot of you have been going to church for many years. In all of that time have you ever witnessed two people duke it out in the sanctuary? Probably not, for most Christians generally don’t fight like that. Christians don’t fight with the fists; instead, they fight with the tongue which can be even more damaging than fists. Listen to James as he tells us in James 3:8, “No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.”
While it is true that some have more of a problem taming their tongue than others, every single one of us is guilty of failing to tame our tongue. We gather here on a Sunday morning to praise and thank God for His love, grace, and forgiveness. And then what do we do? When we leave this place, sometimes even before we are out of the building we start to tear down, to criticize, and harm our neighbor using the same tongue that just a few moments ago was praising God.

You need to understand that hurtful words are simply an overflow of what is in a person’s heart. That is why God tells us that our words will acquit or condemn us, for it is not the words themselves that acquit or condemn us, but it is the condition of the heart from which they are formed that will either acquit or condemn us.

Does that bother you? I hope so. Do you want to join me in changing? You can you know; if you let God feed you through his Word and spend time earnestly praying to him. I found a great illustration that might help you to better understand why you should be reading the Word of God and earnestly praying every morning if you want to improve your life.

Imagine that you have in your backyard two dogs. One dog is full of anger, hatred, and desires of vengeance. It loves snapping at people. The other dog is good and kind. It is full of love, peace, and forgiveness. You feed both dogs every day, but the mean dog eats all the food leaving none for the good dog. What eventually happens is that the good dog gets so weak that the mean dog eventually kills it. On the other hand if you make sure the good dog is fed it grows stronger until it can defend itself against the mean dog and the mean dog will start to leave it alone. You see the one that is fed is the one that gets stronger.

Those two dogs represent our sinful nature and redeemed nature. Our sinful nature lusts for revenge, gets angry toward others, does not want to forgive or forget, is quite often bitter toward others, and in a perverse way enjoys leaving spiritual and emotional destruction in its wake.

On the other hand our redeemed nature reflects the glory of God and understands that as a recipient of God’s grace and forgiveness that it has become a giver of God’s grace and forgiveness. It follows the God’s inspired words as Saint Peter writes them in 1 Peter 3:8–12. “Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. For “Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.”

Struggling with your tongue? Want to do better? Don’t feed your sinful nature. Feed your redeemed nature by starting your day reading and meditating on the Word. First thing in the morning spend time in earnest prayer with your Savior, asking him to bend you to his will, so that you will change. Make a commitment to change. You will. It might be slow going at times, especially if you have gotten in the habit of speaking harshly toward or about others. You will change for that is God’s holy will.

It is not going to be easy, for anyone, because our sinful nature will continue to rise up and drag you down. Even the most sincere intentions will not keep you from falling every so often into the sins of the tongue. It will happen.

But remember that because Christ gave His life for you when He died upon the cross to grant you forgiveness of your sins, he won your heart. Your heart, really your whole body, now belongs to him. Feed it, so that it stays healthy by reading and meditating on his word and earnestly praying every morning, for God’s mercies are new every morning. Amen

sermon 2 of 5 New Every Morning 14th Sunday after Pentecost

2011-09-18T12:45:00.000-07:00

14th Sunday after Pentecost
Date: 9/18/11
Text: Mark 1:35
Title: Start Your Day Purposely Praying
Sermon 2 of 5 “New Every Morning”.

The sermon series and Sunday morning Bible study that I am doing now is titled New Every Morning. It is based upon Lamentations 3:22–24, “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.”

These are incredible words when you consider that they were written at the lowest point in the history of Israel. At no other time was there greater suffering than at this time in their history. Jerusalem had fallen. The majority of the nation had been taken captive. They were in exile in Babylon living as slaves once again in the hands of a foreign power. And yet, in the midst of that, we find the writer of Lamentations speaking of how God’s compassion never fails, his mercies are new every morning, and how God is faithful in what he says and does.

God inspired the writer of Lamentations to write these words, so that you might be reminded that children of God in all times and in all places are to remember God’s mercies and keep our eyes fixed upon Him. Like the inspired writer of Lamentations, you are called to remember even in the midst of loss, or pain, or heartache, or even tragedy, that the “steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end.”

Last week I asked those in attendance to raise their hand if they believed that starting their day reading the Word of God would make a difference in their life, the life of their family, and the life of our congregation. I was surprised, to say the least, that out of the 138 people that worshiped that day there were only 48 people at the most counting both services that thought that reading the Word of God before they started the day would have any impact on their lives, the lives of their families, and the life of our congregation.

That tells me that there are a lot of people that don’t believe that God blesses those who read and meditate on God’s Word. The reading of God’s Word before you start your day will bless you. For God has promised that your faith will grow stronger when you meditate on his Word.

Because meditating on the Word of God and prayer go hand in hand I want to ask you, I am not going to ask for a show of hands, “What if everyone here this morning started every day in prayer? Would it make a difference in your life, the life of your family, and the life of the congregation?

When I say pray, I mean serious one on one time with God praying. If you are like most Christians you pray when there is something that you need, or when you have exhausted all of your human means and efforts and prayer is the final desperate tool when all else has failed. That is how most of us pray, but would it surprise you to know that that is completely opposite of how God in his Holy Word teaches you to pray?

While there are many places in God’s Word, especially where he gives his believers the “The Lord’s Prayer”, where we are taught how to pray I want to look at another verse this morning. In Mark 1:35 God tells us, “And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there He prayed”

Think about that passage for a moment. If you had read the verses before this verse you would know that Jesus was not at the end of his rope. He was beginning of his ministry. Jesus prayed often and by himself. He understood what prayer accomplishes and he made sure that prayer was a regular, intentional part of His life. That is why he began his day in prayer.

As I thought about why it is that so many Christians don’t start the day the Word of God and in prayer the only thing I could come up with is, first, they don’t believe the Word of God has much if anything to do with their daily lives because if they did they would be reading it and praying. And secondly they really don’t believe praying works.

Sometimes I will have a parent come to me for advice in how to raise their children. This is usually after they have lost control of the situation. I tell them that the best way to correct the problem is that for one month they are to give the child everything they want. The reaction I get every time, is “No Way! Are you crazy? That’s the absolute worst thing in the world that I could do.”

You are right I tell them, you can’t give your children everything they want because they don’t know what is best for them in the long run. They ask for things that are unreasonable, hurtful to themselves or somebody else, completely selfish, and contrary to what you know is best for them. You have to say no at times.

That is the same with many Christians. We don’t always know what is best for us or know what the future holds. We don’t even know what the next second holds, so why is that we think we can tell and then expect God to do what we demand of him. Most Christians just look at the results of their prayers and in doing so set themselves up, without even realizing it, as judges of God. And because they have judged God’s actions they see him as a failure, so then prayer is a failure; only something to make you feel good.

So brothers and sisters in Christ, let me ask you a question: Would your Lord and Savior engage daily, sometimes early in the morning as our lesson for today tells us, in an activity that doesn’t work?

You might be wondering, “Well then, if prayer is not about getting results from God then what is it about?” Prayer can best be described as a process, for, as we share our hearts and our minds with God, we are drawn closer to Him.

Others of you might be thinking, “Why pray? God knows it all before we even pray.” Yes, he does, thank goodness for that. You see our prayers are not for God; they are for us. That is the way God set it up. As you develop the habit of spending time with God first thing in the morning reading his Word and praying you will find yourself growing closer as you share your hopes, fears, frustrations, and even your anger with God.

Parents, if your kids are mad or frustrated at you, wouldn’t you rather have them talk to you about what is bothering them rather than have say nothing? If you want that, then why wouldn’t God want us to vent our anger, frustrations and disappointment also?

That is how prayer works. It is not based on results, as we think of results, but on the process of growing closer to God in prayer. This leads to a different kind of result, not the usual results that we pray for, but a result never the less. For, by your earnestly praying to God he will start the process of bending you to his will rather than your trying to bend God to your will.

And because of his bending and shaping you to his will the result is that you will find yourself spending time in God’s Word hearing of His merciful will which will then shape your prayers, for your faith and prayer life are shaped by the relationship you have with God.

Part of reading the Word of God and praying to God is listening. Listen to what God tells us through Saint Paul in Ephesians 3:14–21. I will put emphasis in the passage on what you receive from God when read his Word, pray fervently, and listen to him. Paul writes, “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named that according to the riches of His glory He may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Now if that does not make you want to start your day off in reading God’s Word and spending some time with God in prayer I don’t what would.

God is faithful. In our hymn of the day, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” there is that wonderful third stanza that says that God’s presence is “to cheer and to guide; Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow.” So as we meditate on God’s Word and pray in purposeful prayer every morning we take time to listen to God remembering just how high and how wide and how deep His love truly is for us.

In John 10:4 Jesus describes Himself as the Good Shepherd. It reads, “When He has brought out all His own, He goes before them, and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice.” How do the sheep know the voice of their shepherd? It is because they have learned to recognize his voice in his Word and through their prayers.

And so I pray, fully expecting God’s will to be done, that each of you will take the next step in committing yourself to starting each day, not only in meditating on the Word of God, but also in spending time in purposeful prayer listening to the voice of your Good Shepherd, as he calls you by your name; the name he has written with his very blood in the Book of Life. Amen

13th Sunday after Pentecost Sermon 1 of 5 "New Every Morning" 9/11/11

2011-09-11T13:39:00.001-07:00

13 Sunday after Pentecost
4/11/11
Text: 2 Timothy 3:14–17
Title: New Every Morning.
Sermon 1 of 5

Have you ever found yourself playing the “what if” game? You know, the one where you find yourself second guessing yourself. Most of us have been guilty of this at one time or another. We wonder how our life would be if an important event had happened differently or if something we wished for had happened. The problem with playing the “what if” game, is that it quite often can lead a person to be less appreciative of God’s blessings.

While the “what if” game can lead to some spiritual problems I have some good news for you this morning; actually God has some good news for you this morning. You can play the “what if” game in a way that doesn’t cause you to be less appreciative but more appreciative of God’s blessings in your life. Listen to Matthew 6, 33–34: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”

You have probably all heard these verses, but do you believe that what they are saying is true? Do you truly believe that if you seek first God’s kingdom that everything else will fall into place? When I say that, that does not mean that life is going to go the way you want it or exactly how you had planned it to go. In fact, I can pretty much guarantee that never happens.

And yet this statement is true. If we seek God’s kingdom first, all that we need will be given to us as well. And this really then lays down for us the reason for my sermon and Bible study series titled New Every Morning that we are starting this morning. This series of sermons and Bible studies all about the spiritual discipline of submitting ourselves to God’s will and receiving all that the gracious hand of God has for us.

I wonder what would happen if every member of Saint John Lutheran Congregation started each day reading and meditating on the Word of God? If you think that doing this would bring would bring about a blessing in your life, the life of your family, and in the life of the entire congregation, as God promises raise your hand.
I am glad to see so many hands go up, for simply put, if we seek first God’s kingdom and commit ourselves to starting each day in God’s Word, we will be better focused on God’s kingdom seeking his righteousness first.

God’s Word is really the only thing we can completely trust in to inform and strengthen our faith, and yet it is one of the most neglected tools in most Christians’ life, so I am delighted to see that most of you recognize the importance of starting each day with God’s Word.

It really is not complicated, for it only revolves around a single step, the next step that you will take in your life of faith. It does not make any difference whether you are a new believer or a long time believer. The next step for every Christian is always the same, for it is a step that takes us closer to God.

I am not going to ask for a show of hands, as I did earlier, but I do want to ask each of you, if you feel like you have arrived in your relationship with God, in that you are you are exactly where you want to be in your relationship with God. Is there some room for improvement? If you are like me there is definitely room for improvement.

Can you get closer? Of course, you can get closer. I do not care how mature you are in your faith; you can always get closer. Whether you are a new believer, a mature believer, or, as I think the case is with most of us, somewhere in between the next step is the same—“seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” That is the reason that we, as a congregation are embarking on this series of sermons and Bible studies called New Every Morning, so that, we as Christians who want to get closer to God can take that next step that God is calling each of us to take.

This is not a program, for there is not a program in all the world that is going to draw you closer to God until you respond to God’s call by seeking his will, for as we learned in the sermon series on the Will of God he wants you to be in a trusting relationship with him. And the only way to do that is to daily be in his Word.

This is a spiritual discipline that God will bless: “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” You can’t do it for others in our church, but you can do it for yourself. I can’t mandate no matter how much I believe it is good for the congregation. Each of you has to decide for yourself to study and meditate on the Word of God or not.

Each one of you will hopefully decide to begin every day in the Word of God. Start by doing it for a week, one day at a time. Continue doing it for a month. And then look back over that month and see where you’re at in your walk of faith compared to where you started. See how your life is going.

Jesus quite often talks about himself being the bread of life. That comes from the time that God saved the people of Israel, as they wandered in the desert. Forty years he provided manna so they would not die.

God was specific in his giving of manna, for he wanted them to learn to trust him to provide for their needs. He told them take only enough for one day except on Friday morning when they could take enough to last them through the Sabbath. Take too much and it would rot.

Of course in the beginning they took too much. Why not? They needed that daily bread or they would perish from hunger. The problem was that the manna they worked so hard to collect rotted, as God said it would. So they did not try that again and over a forty-year period of time was a daily reliance upon God. They went to sleep with only their faith in God that there would be provision for them in the morning. They woke up every morning and collected their daily bread. They did that for forty years and God never let them down.

What I am asking of you this morning, actually God is asking of you, is that each of you will first thing in the morning seek the daily bread of God which is nourishment for your soul. You, need the rich food God has provided for you daily as it is found in His Word.

Another lesson that the Israelites learned was that they needed to rely on the Lord’s guidance. They would move when He said “move.” They would camp when He said “camp.” They would go where He said to go, for everything that they needed came from Him.

This applies to us also since we are God’s children knowing that we are sinners in need of God’s grace. We know that there is nothing we can do to save ourselves and that we must let God speak to us about the forgiveness we need each day through suffering, death and resurrection of our risen Lord.

Don’t believe Satan’s lies that you don’t have time, or that it really is not important to read God’s Word, as long as you believe in Jesus as your Savior. Don’t believe Satan’s lies that the Word of God is too complicated to understand. For he is the father of lies, lies that are designed to keep you from doing what God wants you to do; be in his Word so that you know about him and his will for you.

Listen to God’s Word as it is found in Lamentations 3:22–24: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in Him.”

Just as God’s love, mercy, and compassion are all new every morning, they will never cease or fail. By reading and meditating on his Word every morning you will find peace in this world of trouble and who does not want that? Amen.

12th Sunday after Pentecost 9/4/11 Matthew 18:1-20

2011-09-04T12:34:00.001-07:00

12th Sunday after Pentecost
9/04/11
Text: Matthew 18:1-20

Our Gospel lesson for this morning has at least 10 different topics that I could preach on. That is way too many topics to deal with in one sermon, even if they are all good subjects, so as is my custom, I looked for an overall theme, the one topic that all the other verses supported.

What I found is this; God takes sin seriously. And why wouldn’t he take sin seriously? He is God, a perfect being that cannot let sin of any kind, whether it is that little white lie, or looking the other way when someone needs help, or keeping the gifts he has given each one of us go unused, or any of the other multitude of things that we each struggle with. God takes them seriously.

God despises sin of every kind, even those sins that we think are harmless or justify doing by misquoting or misusing God’s Word. We are indeed all poor miserable sinners still deserving of God’s wrath even while we stand before him declared innocent because of Jesus’ death and resurrection. We are, at the same time saint and sinner. Saint because of Jesus’ death and resurrection and sinner because; well, after all we are sinful human.

Three Sunday’s ago on Confirmation Sunday in your service folder was a text from Matthew 10:32-33 which explained the reason why the confirmands were there that day. It read “Whoever confesses me before men, him will I also confess before my Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies me before men, him will I also deny before my Father who is in heaven.” That is what those young people were doing that day; making a confession of their faith before the congregation.

Faith, the faith they have and you have comes from God through the work of the Holy Spirit. Faith is born in weakness. It is born in need. It is receiving Jesus. It isn’t our doing. It isn’t even our talking or praying. Faith is none of these things. Faith doesn’t do. Faith is done to. Faith receives Jesus by trusting in him.

Faith doesn’t try to earn God’s love because faith knows that Jesus has given and revealed God’s love toward us. Faith doesn’t try to earn God’s favor, for faith knows that Jesus has earned God’s favor for us. Faith doesn’t work to get a reward because faith receives the award of salvation from the work that Jesus did.

Jesus even though he was without sin suffered by choosing to bear the full and final judgment of almighty God against all sinners. He chose to embrace every bit of our sin, and by taking it upon himself he set his love against our hatred, his purity against our lust, and his humble obedience against our proud and vain contempt for God that shows up when we trust more in our own ability or the ability of others rather than God to care for us.

This is what Jesus has done, and this is what our faith receives, and rejoices in, and this is why our faith is so very precious to God. For our faith receives the priceless treasure Jesus Christ himself whom God the Father loves and has loved from eternity.

God is the only one who can actually see the faith in your heart since he is the one who created it. He created it through his Holy Word and Baptism. This is how we can be confident that baptism is a means by which we are brought to faith and kept in the faith. Baptism is God’s holy Word bound to water by God’s own command. The two cannot be separated.

In the case of adults or older children, we teach them before they are baptized. In the case of little children and infants, we teach them after they are baptized. There is no difference between the baptism of a baby and the baptism of an adult. In either case the one who is baptized is given faith and believes in Jesus even though they might be able to articulate their faith.
While we cannot truly know whether a person has true faith we can know if someone has been given faith when we see them baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We see it happen. There is a record of it that we can look up. We can know if he or she has been taught the true Christian faith and confesses to believe it when we hear them make their confession of faith on Sunday morning during the worship service.

We can see their acts of love, charity, and forgiveness. These are the outward signs of faith. The world sees what marks us as Christians: our works done in love, our baptism, and our confession of the faith God gave us.

So every Sunday we confess our personal faith as a congregation, as we read one of the historic Christian creeds. This morning we will be confessing our Christian faith using the words of the Nicene Creed. In that creed we will say, “I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.” And then we will say that we believe “In one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. And the third day He rose again according to the Scriptures and ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead, whose kingdom will have no end.” And then we will say, “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.”

We will say those things and more as we state our belief in the holy Christian and apostolic Church, one Baptism for the remission of sins, and the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. That is our confession of faith.

That confession of faith then is not just going through the motions. It is one of the most solemn most important confessions you will ever make. For you see Jesus does not say, “Go along to get along and worry later about what you said.” No! He says “whoever confesses me before men I will confess” and “whoever denies me before men I will deny.”

And since we were baptized into Christ’s body, his Church, we confess the true faith that his Church confesses. We Lutherans don’t claim that the Little Catechism is our unique confession of the Christian faith. We claim that the teaching of the little Catechism for children and the Large Catechism for adults is the confession of the universal Christian Church. It is the Christian confession.

You might be wondering why I am talking to you about the public confession of faith that we make each Sunday. The simple reason is I see outside and inside the Christian community way too much “doctrinal indifference”.

To them Jesus is a warm fuzzy. He’s a religious security blanket who makes them feel good all over. The truth of God’s law and the truth of God’s gospel escapes them. They don’t know how to discern the difference between right and wrong according to God’s Word and they certainly don’t understand what difference it makes what they believe so long as they believe in Jesus; whatever that means.

My brothers and sisters in Christ God takes sin seriously. He condemns sin, all sin. He has to, for to do anything less is to not be God. We need to know that, for it is not just some pious thing we do.

Our confession of faith is important event though we in our sinfulness confess our faith in God feebly, imperfectly, and sporadically at times.
You will fail, as we all do from time to time, in your confession of the faith. You will forget who you are. You’ll fall on your face when it comes to doing what you promised. You’ll pass by the opportunity to confess Christ and his truth before others. Indeed, you will, as we all will, will deny him by your silence.

Jesus will still stand boldly before the Father saying in his confession, “Here are those you have given me. They are the people for whose sins I suffered, whose guilt I bore. They belong to me, and I acknowledge them. They bear the name of God, for they are baptized in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Their names are written in the book of life.”

So, even though you falter from time to time Jesus will not turn away from you. He will receive you. He will absolve you of your sin. He will remind you of your baptism where he made you his. He will give you to eat of his very body and his blood, for forgiveness, salvation, and life eternal. He will restore you again, and again, and again, for you are his.

That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is the life to which God called you in your baptism whether you were baptized as an infant, a child, a teenager, or an adult. That is the only life worth living and he has given it to you and he will keep you in it. That is your confession. That is God’s confession. Amen.

Confirmation

2011-08-14T14:02:00.001-07:00

Confirmation Sunday
8/14/11
Text: Matthew 15:28

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today is a special day in the lives of these six young people sitting on the front row. For today they will stand before you, the congregation of Saint John, and publically confess the faith that they were given by the Holy Spirit when they were baptized as babies.
That is why I have put on the front cover of our service folder today the same cover that we use when we have a baptism. This is certainly not a graduation. And these young people are not becoming members of the church today. That happened at each of their baptisms when each was baptized, for it was then that the Holy Spirit entered into each one of them, as the pastor poured water on their head while saying, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” It was in that act, all done by the power of God, that the Holy Spirit came into each one of them making them a member of God’s Christian Church.
Today after making their public confession of faith they will receive alone with the rest of the confirmed members of this congregation the most wonderful gift of God; his very body and blood for forgiveness, salvation, and everlasting life. This, just like their baptism is something God does entirely on his own.
I am talking to you about this today because you will hear as you get older all kinds of wrong thinking concerning the Lord’s Supper. You need to understand and believe that what takes place in the Lord’s Supper is not something I do, anyone else does, or that you do. It is a gift from God just like your baptism was a gift from God. It is all God’s work for us. Martin Luther the founder of Lutheranism wrote in a confessional paper on the doctrine of consecration; consecration is when the pastor says the words of Christ before communion, that is quoted in the Solid Declaration which is part of the Book of Concord.
Which, by the way, I as a pastor have sworn with a solemn oath to uphold and teach since it is the true explanation of God’s Word. It states:
“This command and institution of his (that is Jesus’ command and institution) have the power to accomplish this, that we do not present and receive simply bread and wine but his body and blood, as his words indicate: “This is my body, this is my blood.” So it is not our work or speaking but the command and ordinance of Christ which make the bread the body and the wine the blood, beginning with the first Lord’s Supper and continuing to the end of the world.”
We also read in Luther’s Large Catechism which is the adult version of Luther’s Small Catechism that, “Even though a scoundrel receives or administers the sacrament, it is the true sacrament (that is, Christ’s body and blood), just as truly as when one uses it most worthily. For it is not founded on human holiness but on the Word of God. As no saint on earth, yes, no angel in heaven can make bread and wine into Christ’s body and blood, so likewise can no one change or alter the sacrament, even through misuse. For the Word by which it was constituted a sacrament is not rendered false because of an individual’s unworthiness or unbelief. Christ does not say, “If you believe or if you are worthy, you have my body and blood,” but rather, “Take, eat and drink, this is my body and blood.” Likewise, when he says, “Do this” (namely, what I now do, what I institute, what I give you and bid you take), this is as much as to say, “No matter whether you are worthy or unworthy, you have here his body and blood by the power of these words that are connected to the bread and wine.” Mark this and remember it well. For upon these words rest our whole argument, our protection and defense against all errors and deceptions that have ever arisen or may yet arise. ”
When you don’t know God’s Word or what our Lutheran forefathers taught concerning the Lord’s Supper, it is an easy thing to believe that the pastor must have something to do with making the bread and wine the body and blood of Christ. It is easy to think that it must be something he does or believes. This false understanding leads to all types of false understanding concerning the Lord’s Supper.
You must remember that, as the Book of Concord states it is not something I, those who assist me, or you, cause to happen. It is all God’s work and in that work he is offering you forgiveness, salvation, and life. Since it is a gift of God the Lord’s Supper should be taken when it is offered in our worship service, for to not do so, is to reject God’s gift to you.
According to our Lutheran teachings, I can only think of four reasons as to why a person who has been baptized and confirmed should not take the Lord Supper when it is offered in our worship service.
One is that you don’t believe that it is the body and blood of Christ given for forgiveness, salvation and life.
Second you should not take it if you believe that the Lord’s Supper is something we do, as the Roman Catholics, and many other Christian denominations believe.
Third, you should not take it if you are living in unrepentant sin, for you are not sorry for what you are doing. To take the Lord’s Supper is to mock it.
Fourth, you should not take it if you don’t think you need forgiveness, for to take it just like the first is to make a mockery of God’s gift. Martin Luther would say that if you feel that way you should put your hand on your chest and see if your heart is beating. If it is you are a sinner in need of forgiveness.
On the other hand if you, like I, am a poor miserable sinner who is struggling with sin then you should take the Lord’s Supper each time it is offered for what better gift from God can you receive than the assurance of forgiveness, salvation, and life eternal.
This morning after the service each of the confirmands will be given several gifts from the congregation. The first will be their Confirmation verse which God has led me through thoughtful prayer to pick out for you. It would be good to memorize it, for, as I have heard from many older people, some of which were on their deathbed, it will be a blessing to you, as their confirmation verse was a blessing for them.
The second thing the confirmands will receive will be a cross from Thrivent Insurance Company. The cross is a wonderful symbol of faith that you should put on the wall wherever you are living. Display it, so that all who see it will know of your faith.
The third thing the confirmands will receive is an ESV Lutheran Study Bible. This leather bound Bible is without a doubt one of the best study Bibles ever produced. It will be a big help in understanding those sometimes tough words of God. The Holy Spirit in which you will make confession of later will use the words in this Bible to strengthen your faith, to guide you through those rough patches of life that you, as all of us have, will face. It is your firm foundation. It should become a lifelong companion, for you are not through learning God’s Word. You started when your parents first read Bible stories to you, continued in Sunday School, and confirmation classes. It will continue through out your life. Your faith journey with the help of this study Bible will be wonderful and fruitful.
That is why starting next week we will be offering to the confirmands a Bible study group on Sunday morning designed especially for them that they should attend, as we all should be attending Sunday morning Bible studies each week.
I know sometimes, just like adults you would probably rather sleep, or do anything besides come to Bible study. I know that. I have been there, done that when I was your age. But remember this. Is it God or Satan that wants you to stay away? It is one or the other. God wants you to learn all you can about him and his will for you. He knows that the more you know about him the deeper your faith will be and the better it will be for you.
Satan on the other hand will do all he can to keep you from learning about God and his will for you, for he knows that when someone does not know the Word of God he or she is fair game for his lies. Who will you listen to?
Our Gospel lesson for this morning is a great example why we need to know God’s Word. It is obvious by her crying out to Jesus that she knew God’s Word. Whether she had just heard of him, or read of him, or at one time heard him teach we don’t know. But we do know she believed in him otherwise she would have never followed him that day crying out, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David my daughter is seriously oppressed by a demon!” She believed because she knew Jesus, the Son of David.
“Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David”, is our plea also, for without his mercy, as shown in Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, the forgiveness of sins, and Word of God we would not know of his wonderful love. His mercy is our mercy. Amen.

Will of God sermon 5 of 5 8/7/11

2011-08-07T18:15:00.000-07:00

Will of God sermon 5 of 5
08/07/08

For the past four Sundays I have been talking to you about the will of God. It is an important subject, for how you understand the will of God will shape not only your view of God in your personal life, but also your view of God’s role in the entire world. Without a good understanding of God’s will fear and anxiety can become commonplace in your life.

Some people see God as the big guy in the sky controlling all that you or anyone else does. It is like they are controlled by a force so powerful they cannot even think or do for themselves. They believe that we just think we have free will, but actually don’t for God has pre-ordained everything from beginning to end.

That understanding can leave a person depressed, to say the least, and leads to all kinds of questions concerning the goodness of God when bad things happen. Questions come up like, “Why does he continue to let evil exist?” “Why do the good seem to die young?” and “Why does he not control the weather when a hurricane or flood takes place with large loss of life?” The list could go on and on.

There are others who see God as a god who for the most part just lets the world do its own thing, except for an occasional tweaking. He really has no power over much of anything. This belief can lead to life in which a person believes most things happen by chance and that you are responsible for the good in your life, for God has little or no control over what happens. This belief will eventually lead to a life without hope. And to live a life without hope will either lead you to live a life of despair or on the opposite side lead you to live a life based on self-gratification; do it if it feels good. It also leads to a way of thinking, “Who are we to judge!” which means that everyone is god in themselves.

Neither one of those beliefs is correct, for that is not what God’s Word tells us about God. God according to his Word tells us that he is not is not a controlling God or a God who just lets the creation do its own thing. He is an active God who takes an active part in his creation. Those who believe this have a peaceful life even in the midst of the turmoil and evil of the world.

God created all things and after he created them we read in God’s Word that everything was very good. In his crowning achievement God created the first human from the dirt of the ground and breathing his breath into the man God gave him life and a soul. God took a personal interest in his human creation, as we can tell by the promise that he gave Adam and Eve after they had sinned. Paraphrasing the words he told them he said that he would send a Savior who would free them from the condemnation they deserved.

To achieve his original will, what I call his intentional will, for it was God’s intent from the beginning that his human creation would walk in fellowship with him, do good to each other, and live in harmony with his creation he now has to operate in a different manner. Under the circumstances of sin a price had to be paid, for their disobedience had not only affected them and all people since, but the creation itself which we are told in God’s Word groans for release from its bondage.

Jesus paid that price on the cross, for that is where God’s intentional will under the circumstances of a fallen world were painfully brought together, so ultimately his will will be complete. God used the evil in the world to kill evil and its harm to his creation. While evil is not entirely dead it will be at the end of time when God comes back to put all things including death under his feet. God will win in the end; that is his ultimate will. Once again God’s human creation will walk in perfect fellowship with him, do good toward each other and live in perfect harmony with God’s creation, as he first intended it to be done.

That is good news and we all praise God for what he has done and will do for us. The problem is that we still live as fallen people in a fallen world. We still want God to do things our way, for we, at least most of the time, we still do not trust God to care for our physical and spiritual needs.

If we truly trusted in God we would not even be struggling with trying to understand what the will of God is in our lives, for we know that, according to his Holy Word that he wants us to walk in fellowship with him, do good to others, and live in harmony with his creation.

Since that is the way we are, here are some ideas from God’s Word will be of help to you, so that you might better understand and trust in God’s will. In 1 Thessalonians 4:3-7 Saint Paul tells us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.” There is the will of God, as to how we are to live our lives.

When you learn about God’s will in the Word of God it will guide you through your conscience, that little voice inside each of us, that God has given us to warn us when we are not following his will. Learn the Word of God and then you will always be able to depend on your conscience to lead you in the direction, for it will speak to you with the authority of God’s Word and God’s Word is truth.

Another way to discern God’s will, one that I have used quite often in my life when I am not sure if it is God’s will or my will guiding me to do whatever it is that I am wanting to do, is to talk over what I think God is leading me to do with other Christians who believe that God’s Word reveals his will in their lives. It is amazing how many Christians, although it should not be amazing, have had good insight into the will of God in my life.

Even though there are probably other ways to discern God’s will in your life, they will all have one thing in common with the two that I just mentioned. They all will be built around God’s Word where God reveals his will for us. While it is not always easy to discern God’s will, for in our sinfulness when we are searching for the will of God many times we are really just wanting God to rubber stamp our will. Base your judgment on the Word of God, for it is there that we find the true will of God.

God’s original will that his human creation would walk in fellowship with him, do good toward others, and live in harmony with the rest of creation did not change under the circumstances of sin entering the world. His original will will ultimately be done as he has promised. There will be a time because of Jesus’ death and resurrection on our behalf, that those who believe in him as their redeemer will once more walk in perfect fellowship with him, do good to others, and live in perfect harmony with creation in the new heaven and earth, where everything will once more be very good. God's intentional, circumstantial, and ultimate will spell out “Intensive Care for Us!” That is good news. Amen.

Will of God sermon 4 of 5 7/31/11

2011-07-31T15:41:00.001-07:00

Will of God
Ultimate Will of God - Sermon 4 of 5
7/31/2011

For the past three weeks I have talking to you about the will of God. I am doing this because; if we don’t understand what God’s Word tells us about his will we are left to come up with our own version of the will of God. And since we are a sinful people living in an upside down world that we think is right side up, we, will always come up with the wrong understanding of God’s will. And that wrong understanding of God’s will leads us to live lives that are not lived the way God wants us to live them.

The first Sunday I told you that I was going to call God’s perfect will by three different names; intentional, circumstantial, and ultimate will. This does not mean that God has three separate wills, for he has only one, his perfect will. It is just as way for you to better understand that perfect will which never changes works in a different way before sin, after sin, and at the end of time.

The next Sunday we looked at what I have called God’s intentional will; his intent that he had for his creation which was and still is that his human creation would walk in righteous fellowship with him, do good toward others, and live in harmony with the rest of his creation which when he created it, was very good.

When Adam and Eve sinned the intentional will of God was temporarily blocked or at the very least hampered by their actions. That still happens today, as we too do not walk in fellowship with God, as he desires, always do good to others, or live in harmony with the rest of his creation.

We like to think we do what God asks of us, but at some time or other God will ask through his Word more of us than we want to do. Humanity has become self-centered and will do good only if it serves its own purpose. For we no longer fully trust in God to care for us and his creation and ultimately we want to hide from God just as Adam and Eve did so long ago.

This has, in an earthly sense, created a problem for God. Since his intentional will did not change after sin entered the world he needed he had to do something drastic; really earth shattering under the circumstances in which we live, as a fallen and broken people living in a fallen and broken world.

That drastic thing that God did so that his intentional will would be accomplished was to come into our midst, as one of us, to do what we will not do and then die in our place, so that eventually his intentional will would be fulfilled.

God used the evil of the world, as we see when Jesus was tortured and put to death to accomplish good; the salvation of his human creation. In the suffering and death of Jesus the process of restoration was started. I do not mean by that that Jesus did not complete the act of freeing us from condemnation when he died. He did that, but as we are all well aware, the whole restoration is not complete, for all forms of evil, sickness, and death surround us.

We also learned last week that although God can and does in fact use evil to do good he does not create evil. God is good and thus, cannot do or create evil, even if good comes from it. Thus disease or any of the other evil things that happen to us do not come from God.

God’s intentional will was and still is that his human creation is to walk in fellowship with him, love others, and live in harmony with his creation. Under the circumstances of sin filled world with a people who in their innermost being really do not want to come to God, God’s circumstantial will came into being at the cross when his perfect Son Jesus took the punishment that we still deserve. Because of Jesus’ death we will not get God’s wrath, even though we still deserve it. We are, as I said in my fourth of July sermon, “Free, free at last.”

That brings me to the subject for today, the ultimate will of God. The ultimate will of God is simply that his intentional will under the circumstances of a fallen world will ultimately take place in the end. At that time his entire creation will be restored, as it was in the beginning when he looked at it and said that it was very good.

You might be asking yourself, “How can you say that? From what authority do you base your statements? As I said at the beginning of this sermon series on the will of God that all I said concerning the will of God would come from God’s Word. That wonderful book of Revelation in God’s Word tells us that God wins in the end, as he locks Satan up, restores his creation to the way it was when he said it was “very good.”

That, my dear brothers and sisters, is Good News. But what about the lives we are living right now with all of its problems, diseases, and tragedies? How can I be sure that God’s intentional will under the circumstance of live be ultimately done?

All of those are good questions to ask, so I went to Weatherhead’s book The Will of God for an illustration of how God’s intentional will under the circumstances of our lives will ultimately come to fulfillment.

He tells of the time that a young woman came to see him whose husband had been killed in the war leaving her two small children without a father. She asked him how God’s intentional will was being worked out in the circumstances of her life now that her husband was dead her children were without a father. She was alone and life was going to be terrible without much hope for it to get better.

He writes that he told her, “In this life no one can answer save in faith, for no one can see the end from the beginning. On Good Friday night eleven men, in the deepest gloom felt like you. They said in their hearts, ‘We trusted him, we followed him. It was his will to establish his kingdom. After all he told them so. And evil has been allowed to take him from us. It is the end of everything.’ But they were wrong weren’t they? It was only the end of their false understanding and the beginning of the most wonderful use of evil which God had ever affected. One day like them, you will find out how wrong you are.” God’s intentional will, will ultimately be done. There is nothing that can stop it.

When my brothers and I were young we used to go down to the creek behind the high school. It came out of a spring and flowed down to a river. You could say that that was its intentional will. Every summer we would try to dam up the creek, so that we could have a swimming area. We would pile up rocks. We filled in the holes with mud, leaves, and sticks. We would build it as high as we could. We would do all we could to change the circumstances of the creek, to stop it from doing what it intended to do, that is to flow down to the river.

But no matter how high, or how well-built we made our dam each summer, we could only manage to slow the creek down. Eventually its intentional will to flow down river was accomplished, for it would under the circumstances it found itself eventually break down the dam, no matter how much we tried to stop it. It would then ultimately continue to its final destination. Its ultimate will, as God had designed it was eventually accomplished, as it flowed into the river below it.
Just as that creek under the circumstances it found itself in ultimately accomplished what it had set out to do when it came out of the spring, God’s intentional will under the circumstances of a fallen sinful world will ultimately take place. That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is our comfort in this fallen evil world in which we live. Amen.

Next week, now that we understand what the will of God is, we will look at how we can better discern the will of God in our lives and what that means for us. If you have missed any of the sermons they are on the Saint John website under sermon archives.

Will of God sermon 3 of 5 7/24/11

2011-07-24T04:45:00.001-07:00

Will of God sermon series
Circumstantial Will of God sermon 3 of 5
07/24/11

This is the 3rd of 5 sermons on the “Will of God”. I am doing this sermon series because I believe that unless a person has a correct understanding of the will of God, at least as much as a person can have they are unable to fully grasp the role of God in their life and the lives of others.

While I am breaking down the will of God into 3 wills; his intentional, circumstantial, and the ultimate will of God, God does not have 3 wills, but only one perfect will. I am just doing this so that we all will be able to better understand the will of God.

Last week we found out that God’s intentional will is that his human creation is to walk in fellowship with him, do good toward others, and live in harmony with the rest of his creation. That is God’s will.

God’s original will, his intentional will, still exists today, but it is hampered and sometimes even stopped for awhile because we too, just like Adam and Eve don’t fully trust God to do what he said he would do; care for us.

So, because of this, God’s original will is changed, not changed in that his intentional will is no more, but that his will is operating under different circumstances, the circumstances of a sinful human creation that opposes God’s intentional will.

We see his circumstantial will operating even before Adam and Eve were forced out of the Garden of Eden. In Genesis 3 we are told, “The Lord God said to the serpent; ‘Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heal.”
Right there, God’s will while being the same has changed in how it works. God is now operating in a different way, for his human creation is no longer walking in fellowship with him, or treating others as they would want to be treated, nor are they being good caretakers of God’s creation.

Because God loves his human creation so much he had to do something under the circumstances of a sin filled world to bring us back into his intentional will. He promised in that last verse that I read, a Savior that will bring his human creation back into fellowship with him, back to doing good toward others, and living in harmony with the rest of his creation.

That happened in the circumstance of the cross. Jesus could have said that he wanted to just skip the whole bloody affair, but we read in Matthew 26:39 and following, that Jesus prayed to God the Father, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” He prays this prayer three times and it is in that prayer we see God’s intentional will and circumstantial will begin to come together ending up at the cross.

Leslie Weatherhead in his book, The Will of God, gives us a great illustration that should make what I have been saying about how the circumstantial and intentional will of God work in life. He writes, “Think of a father in cooperation with his son planning the boy’s career. The will of both may have been, let us say, that the boy should become an architect. Then comes the war. The father is willing for his son to be in the armed forces, but that willingness is only a circumstantial will for his son, for his intentional will has not changed in the circumstances of evil which produced the war. He still plans on his son being an architect.” It has only been put off for a time.

Just the way the father’s intentional will for his son was temporarily changed under the circumstances of war God’s intentional will for his human creation has temporarily changed because man’s natural inclination to evil has created circumstances that cut across God’s intentional will of good for his human creation.

God used the circumstances of evil in Jesus life to accomplish his intentional purpose of having us walk in fellowship with him, as his redeemed children. Thus we have faith that ultimately in the end we will be with God in the new heaven and earth. His intentional will, will be done.

But what about God’s circumstantial will for our lives as we live them now? A good example is one that we either have or will face in our lives; the problem of disease. When I visit people who are suffering from some terrible disease I hear quite often, “Why did God do this to me.” You see people say that because they know that they have not lived as God wants them to live. They have a guilty conscience and believe they are being punished by God.

The problem is that disease is the result of evil and since God cannot do or make evil, it cannot be from God even if good comes out of it. If disease was Gods’ will, then why has God given us the wonders of science and medicine? If disease is God’s will then why did Jesus heal people? Would he not have been interfering with the Father’s will? Do you see the problem in saying that disease is the will of God

Another example could be that of a woman that cannot have children. Her body, as are all women’s bodies is designed by God to have children. This woman loves children. She has the ability to care for children, but she cannot have children, so she often hears from her Christian friends, “It must be the will of God that you cannot have children.” That statement is false, for God’s intentional will before sin came into the world is that women have children. That is why women are made as they are.
So it cannot be God’s will that she cannot have a child. This is where God’s circumstantial will comes in for this woman. She, because she lives in a sinful world and is sinful herself, has been afflicted with a terrible thing, not being able to have children.

Under the circumstances she could become bitter and angry toward God or feel helpless before God like Job did, for willing this on her, or she can do some type of good which is God’s circumstantial will. While it might not take away the hurt she can adopt or care for other’s children. She can enter professional fields such as being a nurse or a doctor that provides medical care for children. She can become a scientist that tries to discover cures for infertility or children’s diseases, or she can do many other good things all according to the circumstantial will of God.

God’s intentional will is always good. It can be nothing less. God’s circumstantial will thus is always good. God’s intentional will is his alone, while God’s circumstantial will requires, in a sense, our help, our cooperation.

A good example of this is found in Jesus, for even though he knew the horror of pain and death he faced he cooperated with the Father’s circumstantial will, so that God’s intentional will for his creation would be accomplished.

While we will never have the faith that Jesus had, we need to believe in God’s promises that he will not abandon us and that he will give us what we need in the circumstances of our life, so that his will, will be done just as he intended before Adam and Eve sinned. Amen.

Will of God sermon 2 of 5 7/17/11

2011-07-17T14:57:00.000-07:00

Sermon series on God’s will 2 of 5
07/17/011

My dear fellow brothers and sisters in Christ last Sunday I started a five part sermon series on the “Will of God”. We found out that even though you might not have ever actually spent time studying or doing much thinking about the “Will of God” you have still have an idea about the “Will of God.” Those thoughts that you have; that we all have, have not only shaped your view of how God works in your life, but how you see the world around you and all those who live in it.

Knowing the will of God, at least as much as we can know it since, as Saint Paul writes, “We see in a mirror darkly”, is critical to living our lives, as God would desire them to be lived. A great example is found in the book of Job where we see Job trying to understand the will of God. Job was a righteous man. He did everything right, but when things went bad for him he could not understand why God was not blessing him, as Job thought he should, for after all Job had done everything right.

Job is not alone, for his struggles are our struggles, although I pray that they will never be as bad, as his were. We all at least from time to time try to figure out God’s will in our lives. Just like Job we too need to not just have a personal opinion about the “Will of God”, but have a solid biblically based knowledge of the “Will of God” so that we are not tossed back and forth like a little chip of wood in the storms of life.

While in my preparation for this series I have read many books written by others on the “Will of God” what I am saying to you in this series is based solely on the Word of God. In my scripture studies I was pleasantly surprised, although I should not have been; to see how many times the “Will of God” is directly mentioned in God’s Word.
So, let us jump right in. When God created the universe, everything he created was very good. It worked in perfect harmony. Humankind was put into the world to take care of it living in perfect harmony with it and God. God’s intentional will was and still is that all of creation, especially his human creation are to be in harmony with him, each other, and the earth.

As you can see by the handout in your service folder this morning God’s Word tells us quite a bit about his intentional will. Because of time constraints I will not have time to go over all of them. So they are there so you can take them home and study them, as you have time. (For those reading this sermon over the internet the Bible texts are at the end of the sermon.)

For example, in the first verse that I have given you, you will see that whoever does the will of God is his. In other words, you need to do what God wants to do, so you can be, as he says his brother, sister and mother. But that does not tell us what his intentional will is, does it?

The next verse tells us that our discernment of what is good, acceptable, and perfect is the intentional will of God. The rest of the verses are basically saying the same thing, except for 2 Corinthians 1:1, where we see the intentional will of God is to call apostles or today we would say call pastors to teach God’s Word.

In 1 John 2:17 and Hebrews 10:36, we are told more about the intentional will of God, for we see in those verses that his intentional will is that we will abide with him in eternity and receive what he promised; salvation and eternal life with God.

As I mentioned earlier there are several verses in Genesis which I did not list that show us the intentional will of God. God’s intentional will still exists, for he still wants the same thing for us and the universe that we live in. But, because of sin his will is hampered by our unwillingness to let him work through us. While his intentional has been hampered, it has not been, or will it be stopped.

This is what I mean. In Genesis 3 we read of the fall of man. In that one action, God’s intentional will of his human creation walking in fellowship with him and each other was stopped; not permanently, but at the very least it was hampered, never-the-less. You could say that God had to come up with a new plan, so that his intentional will would come to fulfillment.

Here are a few examples that will show you what I mean. They come from a book that Leslie Weatherhead wrote titled The Will of God. He writes, that we cannot say that when a person dies from some disease that it is the intentional will of God, for God never willed that any of his creation should die, or for that matter, get sick or hurt.

On the other hand, we can say when a person is healed of a disease, that the healing is the intentional will of God, for in that act of healing, the will of God is carried out; life is preserved.

We cannot say that when a hurricane causes unbelievable damage to property and human life, even though it gave people an opportunity to do good, that it was God’s intentional will just because good was done.

We can say though that the good that is done after the storm is the intentional will of God, for as the Bible tells us, his intentional will for his human creation is that we help each other.

Our natural inclination, especially when we like what has happened even if it bad thing is to say, “God’s will is being done.” when actually, it is more than likely the very opposite of God’s will being done.
Good examples of this type of thinking show up in the past oppression of women and slavery in America, where it was taught in way too many pulpits that it was the will of God that certain people should be slaves and women kept under the thumb of men. We have to discard that faulty thinking, for it goes against God’s intentional will that we are to live in harmony with God, each other, and the earth.

Today I have covered, as much as time permits the intentional will of God. In this short time you have learned that the intentional will of God is that all people are to walk in fellowship with him, and each other for eternity, as they live in harmony with his creation.

You also learned that just because good came out of an evil act whether it be a human act or an act of nature that the evil done was not the intentional will of God. God cannot cause evil, for it goes against not only who he is; perfectly good, but also his intentional will.

God’s intentional will was and still is that his human creation walk in a trusting relationship with him, each other, and his creation. After the fall, that intentional will was seriously hampered and in some cases stopped. This does not mean his intentional will, will not be done. It just means that God works in a different way considering the circumstances of the world to fulfill his intentional will.

Next week we will look at what is called the circumstantial will of God, the plan he has for us, and for all his creation under the circumstances of a sin corrupted world. Amen.

Mark 3:35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother."
Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 8:27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.
2 Corinthians 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia:
2 Corinthians 8:1-5 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints-- 5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.
Ephesians 6:5-7 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ, 6 not by the way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, rendering service with a good will as to the Lord and not to man,
Colossians 4:12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God.
1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;
1 Thessalonians 5:18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
1 Peter 2:15-17 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 17 Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
1 John 2:17 And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.
Hebrews 10:36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.

God's Will sermon 1 of 5 7/10/11

2011-07-10T10:57:00.001-07:00

Sermon Series on “God’s Will”
Sermon 1 of 5
7/10/2011

September 11, 1991 was a day that shook America. I remember that day well. I was attending a class at Seminary. The news shook the entire seminary, both students and teachers. We gathered together in groups with our professors who were all experienced pastors to try to answer the question Why?, so that we might be able to find out what was the will of God in this terrible tragedy?
I came to quickly realize through those conversations that for the most part we just do not know the will of God. While there are many reasons why we don’t; the most glaring reason is that we just have not gotten past our preconceived thinking about God’s will to understand what God’s will is.
Ever since that terrible day, as time permitted, I have been studying God’s Word so that I might be able to better understand his will. Three years ago I finished the study and presented it to the congregation in the form of a 5 part sermon series.
This spring I started a Bible study class on the book of Job. In Job we discovered that Job thought he knew but really did not know God’s will in his life. And because of that he did not have the peace of trusting in God; both in good times and those terrible times when Job lost everything important to him.
By the second week of the Bible study I could see that it would be a great help if I were to present the sermons series again. So, I went back to the original study and fine tuned it, so you will able to better understand what God has told us his will.

Each sermon builds on the sermon before, so I would urge you to be sure and be here every Sunday for the next four weeks. If, for some reason you cannot attend, the sermons, both the written and recorded sermon will be posted on the Saint John web site each week.
If all the bad things that happen in this world were not enough to question God’s will all you need to do is look at the Old Testament where we hear God tell the people of Israel that they are to level entire cities, sprinkle salt in the fields, so they are ruined, hamstring horses so they cannot be ridden, enslave people whose land they take in war, and yes, even kill babies. What type of God does these things? Is he the God of love that we all follow? What is God’s will in all those terrible events recorded in the Old Testament?
Long before I started seminary I heard a pastor who was the most loving pastor that I know say to the grief-stricken mother of a son who just died unexpectedly, “God gives and God takes.” In other words it was the will of God that her son died. I thought the woman was going to come out of her chair and whack him. She was angry at God, for how could a loving God who died for her and her son take him away from her? It just did not make sense. How could she worship a God that did that to her son, her only son? Or another woman who said to me after her young son died unexpectedly “God needed him more than I did.” While that may comfort her for a while in time she got so angry at God that she cannot bring herself to trust him anymore. The will of God to her was a terrible thing.
That is why we need to know the will of God, at least the best we sinful self-centered people can. I would put forth to you that not only is a person’s faith affected by their understanding or lack of understanding of the will of God, but their whole outlook on life is affected.
This is what I mean. Each one of you has your own understanding of the will of God. Even though you might have not taken the time to really think through the topic you still have a particular understanding concerning the will of God.
Some get very upset at even the thought of questioning God’s will. Others see God as a powerful ruler in the sky who is in complete control of all things of their life. What happens to them is God’s will whether it is good or bad. Their life is like a game piece on a chess board that is being moved around by the grand master.
Still others believe God’s will is not to be involved in the of people at all. He came to earth. He died, rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven. And because of that when you die you know you will be in heaven, but other than that, God’s will is pretty much out of the picture. We are totally responsible for the good and bad in our lives.
Then there are those who might think of God’s will like I did before I completed my study of God’s will. I gave credit for all the good stuff in life as being God’s will while saying that the bad stuff was not his will. Those who think that way might say, if something good comes out of a bad event that God’s will was done, but for the most part, God gets credit for the good and Satan gets credit for the bad.
I don’t know how each of you see God’s will in your life, but do you see the problem? Not knowing God’s will means that you are easily tossed to and fro between life’s tragedies and life’s good times, all because of not knowing what God’s will is.
We need to know, at least as much as we can, because every Sunday, and I am sure for most of you, every day of the week, we pray in the Lord’s Prayer that God’s will, will be done.
Being a Lutheran pastor I follow a particular pattern of study concerning the things of God. I first look up and study every passage in the Bible that would give me some insight into God’s will.
After that I study the Lutheran Confessions to see what they say about God’s will. In Luther’s Large Catechism in his explanation of the second petition of the Lord’s Prayer he wrote that we should pray, “Dear Father, your will be done and not the will of the devil or of our enemies, nor of those who would persecute and suppress your holy Word or prevent your kingdom from coming; and grant that we may bear patiently and overcome whatever we must suffer on its account, so that our poor flesh may not yield or fall away through weakness or sloth.”
I hope you have noticed that in that explanation he did not address what the will of God is. He only addressed how we are to accept God’s will. It is unusual, but you actually get a better idea of God’s will in the second petition of the Lord’s Prayer, as it is presented in Luther’s small Catechism which does not go into as much detail as the Large Catechism where Luther states “That when we pray ‘Thy Kingdom come’ we are praying that the will of God is to bring his kingdom to this earth; the coming of the kingdom being when people are brought to faith and then the final coming of the kingdom at the end of time.”
Now that explanation tells us what the end result is of the will of God, but does not tell the whole story of the working of God’s will. In the end; through a though study of God’s Word and with the help of some Lutheran theologians who long ago have gone to their glory I have come to the conclusion that the only way to understand God’s will is to break it down into three wills. That does not mean they are three separate wills, but only one will. Think of them like the trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit separate but one.
Each week I will cover one of the three wills that form the will of God. The last sermon will put what I have said all together into one will of God.
The first will of God is what is called the intentional will of God, that is, God’s original intent for his creation when he looked at everything he made and said it was good.
The next week we will look at what is called the circumstantial will of God. This will of God comes into effect when Adam and Eve sinned, bringing condemnation on all people.
Last, we will look at is called the ultimate will of God which will bring us back to the intentional will of God, for his ultimate will and intentional will cannot be defeated by anyone or anything.
Once you have a better understanding of the intentional, the circumstantial, and the ultimate will of God which make up the will of God you will be better able to discern the will of God in your life, which will lead to a strengthening of your faith, so that you can have peace living your life in his holy will. That is my goal and I hope you will join me every Sunday as we learn more about our Triune God and his perfect will. Amen

3rd Sunday after Pentecost Matthew 11:28-29 7/3/11

2011-07-03T12:32:00.000-07:00

3rd Sunday after Pentecost
7/3/11
Text: Matthew 11:28-29
Title: Rest! Who needs rest?
Last week I talked to you about Paul’s letter to the Christian congregation at Rome. Paul told a story about a woman who was married whose husband died. He tells us that the law of marriage states that if she marries another man while her husband is still alive that she would be committing adultery. But now that her husband has died she is released from that law, so she is now free to remarry. It makes perfect sense for in her husband’s dying the law became void.
Paul then went on to tell us that the same thing happens to the condemnation of the law when Jesus died. Those who have come to faith in Jesus as their Savior are now free of the condemnation of the law even though the law still exists; just as the law saying that a woman can only be married to one man at time still exists even though her husband has died
This morning we read in Romans the continuation of what we studied last Sunday. Paul writes, “For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” Paul wants to do right, as all true believing Christians want to do right, but, as he says, “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry out.”
Paul is speaking as a Christian who knows that in Jesus’ death the condemnation of the law has been made void, for he says starting in verse 20 that spiritually he knows that he is free from the condemnation of the law, but in his knowing that the evil desires which are part of his nature take advantage of his release from the condemnation of the law to cause him to sin. In other words his sinful self is telling him it is alright to sin. Paul knows better than that.
In verse 24 he cries out, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” He calls his body death because if you live your live according to the desires of body you will end up in hell. Can you imagine the anguish of Paul, at that moment? Can you imagine the anguish; maybe you have felt it, when you realized for the first time that your lifestyle, that is serving the senses of the body, is leading you down the wrong path toward destruction?
Paul then writes this wonderful confession of faith, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! He knows that through Jesus’ death the condemnation, that is the force of the law died with Jesus. He is saved from punishment from God even though he still sins.
Paul’s cry, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death” comes from a man who knows himself and his Lord and Savior. Paul knows who will deliver him and it is not him. Paul is making a point. He wants his listener to know that even though Jesus has killed the condemnation of the when he died they are still going sin and bear the consequences of sin as long as they live. They cannot free themselves. They are lost without Christ.
This brings us to our Gospel lesson for this morning Matthew 11 particularly verse 28 through 30. “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
First just a few explanations that will help you to better understand what Jesus is saying. At this time and still being done in Jewish communities and those who follow Jewish law there were multiple laws put in place to safeguard the Ten Commandments; 630 of them in all.
This morning I want to give you an example of what has been put in place to just safeguard the Commandment “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy”. It is pretty simple and straightforward commandment. The Sabbath Day is to be a day of rest for animals and humans. It is to be a day in which you worship the Lord. That is what God wanted, but as human nature goes God’s Word is not enough. The rabbis by Jesus’ time had put in effect today 39 laws safeguarding the Commandment “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy”.
Here are some of things you cannot do on the Sabbath: carrying, burning, extinguishing, writing, erasing, boiling water, cooking, washing, sewing, tearing, knotting, untying, shaping, building, demolishing, spit on the ground making mud, or today flip a light switch. In other words you can do nothing that would change something such as in the example of boiling water, for the water changes from still to active water. You could not on the Sabbath leave the walls of the village.
All preparation for the Sabbath has to be finished 18 minutes before sundown Friday night and any kind of normal living cannot start up until 42 minutes after sundown Saturday night. That is what the people were living with when Jesus was walking the earth. This is still law today for those who are trying to please God.
This does not even take into account the Roman law to which they were subjected. The law that God had given to assure a good life had become a heavy yoke around the necks of those who took their religion seriously.
A yoke while it is used for single animals to control the animal a yoke is mor commonly used to hook two animals together, so that together, particularly when there is an experienced strong animal yoked with an inexperienced weaker animal the experienced strong one will carry the weaker inexperienced animal along training it how to do what it is to do.
The word lowly in heart while translated humble is some Bibles means in the Greek language a person with a servant’s attitude which accurately describes Jesus. The word soul in the Greek is referring to self, the whole self not just one’s soul. I looked up all the times it was used in the Bible and only once did it refer to just someone’s soul. Yoked to Jesus your entire life will be better, for he will get you through whatever it is that you are going through.
Jesus can say that his yoke is easy and his burden is light because he in his birth, life, and death has overcome the condemnation of the law. Those of us who are New Testament Christians are free to live our lives guided by the two commandments Jesus gave us in Matthew 22:37-39, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus through his death is our rest for in Hebrews 4:9-10 we read " So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, 10 for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his." In other words the rest that the Sabbath Commandment promised is ours right now.

We just need to believe, as Paul writes in Galatians 2:20, “(because) I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." The secret then of finding rest in our lives is to stop depending on our own efforts and learn to rest in dependence on Christ who lives in us.

To find rest in God is to worship him and him alone. Worshiping God is not, as so many falsely believe just showing up on Sunday morning. It is a condition of the heart, as we read in Hebrews 10: “24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."

Come then all of you that are burdened by life’s problems whether they are physical, emotional, relational, or spiritual. Come to the one who knows you, who knows your struggles in life. Come to Jesus and let him guide you with his Word and partake of his Supper where we take into our selves his very body and blood, for forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life. Amen.

2nd Sunday after Pentecost 6/26/11 Romans 7:1-12

2011-06-25T15:26:00.001-07:00

2nd Sunday after Pentecost (be sure and go over candles and prayer.)
Date: 6/29/11
Text: Romans 7:1-13
Title: Thank God Almighty We Are Free at Last!

On this Sunday the Sunday before July the fourth weekend, that day in when the people of this land declared themselves free from the rule of England I have titled my sermon, “Thank God Almighty We Are Free at Last.” While those words could have well been shouted out on that day, it was Martin Luther King Jr. who made them made them famous in his “I have a dream” speech on August 23, 1963 at our nation’s capitol.

“Thank God almighty we are free at last” has become a rallying cry for oppressed people not just in the United States, but all over the world who have achieved some measure of freedom, Christians, of all races, who truly believe and trust in Jesus and his saving work, can confidently proclaim “Thank God Almighty we are free at last!”

I say that because in the dying act of Jesus on that bloody cross so long ago, when he cried out, “It is finished” we received our freedom from the eternal condemnation of the Law of God. The lesson for this morning from Romans 7:1-12 declares that for us. It could well be titled, “Thank God Almighty we are free at last.”

Please turn to Romans 7:1-12 in your service folder, so that God can speak to you through Paul’s words, as he was inspired to write them down. This text, as are many of Paul’s texts is complicated. Complicated unless you understand the context in which it is written and then break down the text into smaller more understandable sections. I hope that, in the time that I have this morning, to present God’s words to you in such a way that you can clearly understand what God wants you to know about him and his will for you, for all of us.

Paul is writing to the Christians in Rome, many of which are Jews, but others have come from Pagan religions. What they all share is that they will not let go of the Ten Commandments as something they have to do to gain righteousness before God. Paul knows how dangerous that is to the Gospel message that a person is only made right before God by the grace of God, as shown in Jesus and his birth, life, death, and resurrection. The Gospel message of salvation has to stand on its own. Any addition to it, as pertains to our adding something to the work of Christ kills the salvation it brings to people.

Paul starts off with a straightforward example. He uses the example of a married woman. The Roman law stated that a woman could only remarry if her husband died. The law states that she becomes an adulteress if she remarries while her husband is alive. On the other hand if her husband dies the woman is free to marry again. Paul is not trying to teach a moral point here. He is using an example that even we today can easily grasp. Laws that are contracts and marriage laws are contracts between people are permanently broken at the death of one of the people. In this case the husband. Husband dies the law dies with the husband. So, we can all agree that the law, especially the marriage law only applies to the woman, as long as they are both alive. The husband dies he law is not in effect.

Now to understand what he has saying you have to mentally shift gears from physical laws to spiritual laws, for he next tells us that just like the marriage law does not apply to the woman anymore because her husband died the laws of God do not apply to the believer anymore, for someone has died. He is not saying that the people he is talking to have literally died, for they are reading his letter to them, or at least listening to it being read, but that Christ has died and the contract of the law that they and us are under before becoming Christians has no more power over them or us anymore.

You are no longer a slave to sin and Satan, but to God that you might do what God wants you to do; live your life under his leadership. Christ’s death has released you from the law. Notice that the law is not capitalized, for Paul is speaking of all law, both natural law and God’s law.

Then in the last half of verse six he references the written law which is the Ten Commandments. We who belong to Christ no longer have to do as the law commands, for we are free of its slavery. We, because of the grace of God now willingly, at least as much as we can in our sinful bodies, want to follow the law, for the law; the Torah in Hebrew means “instructions for living.” I might add that it means the good instructions for living.

Paul continues in verse seven as he asks the question, “Is the law sin?” or you could translate it, “Is the law something that need to be gotten rid of?” He answers his own question, “By no means!” Of course you don’t want to get rid of it, for the law is the only thing, as he writes later on that shows that a person is sinning, that is not living as God demands in his commandments.

He continues to show what he means by using an example of how the law has worked in him showing himself to be a sinner. He quotes what we would call the 9 and 10 commandments, “You shall not covet.” Coveting means to want something or someone that is not yours. It shows that a person is dissatisfied with what God has given them.

Without the commandment “You shall not covet” Paul says he would not have known that coveting was a sin. The law against coveting opened up his mind to know all kinds of coveting that he had not known before. He, because of the law actually thought of new things to covet.

That doesn’t seem to make sense that the law would do that does it? But that is how the law, particularly the Law of God works in our lives. Let me give you an example of how the law works in our lives. Let’s say you love chocolate. It is one of your favorite things in the whole world.

Then let’s say that there was a law stating that during Lent you cannot eat or even possess chocolate for six weeks. And if you follow the law you will be rewarded with weekend on the coast in a luxury condo. What takes place? I would wager that you would develop a hunger for chocolate that would be hard to stop. You would start noticing chocolate where you never noticed it before. You would smell chocolate where you never smelled it before. You would start counting off the days until you could eat and posses chocolate. You might even decide that the weekend at the condo was not even worth doing without chocolate. At the very least because of the law “Do not eat or possess chocolate” chocolate more than likely be constantly on your mind.

That my dear brothers and sisters is what Paul is talking about. The law, “Do not do (fill in the blank) and you will be rewarded” automatically focuses our mind on what we are not to do. Our sin then becomes alive and well, but as Paul points out when that happens we die in our relationship with God.

Is the law the problem? No Paul tells us the law because it comes from God is holy. Thus the commandment that Paul uses as an example, one of which we are all guilty, “You shall not covet” because it too comes from God is holy righteous and good.

You see the law and the commandment are given to us, so that we can know our sin. And in knowing our sin we can either turn our backs on God becoming hard-hearted, we can become so down on our sins that we take our own lives, or we can turn to Christ crying out him for mercy, as we do every Sunday morning in our worship service. Have mercy on me God, for I am indeed a poor miserable sinner who is still deserving of your wrath and condemnation. Have mercy Lord.

And God answers us with comforting and life giving words “Your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy spirit. Leave God’s holy house today knowing that you are his. Amen.

Trinity Sunday 6/19/11

2011-06-18T20:23:00.001-07:00

Trinity Sunday
6/19/11
Text: Multiple text
Title “Athanasian Creed”

Today is Trinity Sunday, the Sunday when the Athanasian Creed is traditionally read. It is a longest of the Christian creeds thought to be written in the Fifth Century focusing on the Trinity; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

It is an important creed for the Christian Church, especially the liturgical churches which use the Trinitarian statement “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” in their worship services and different rites such as Baptism.

We are not going to read it today because it is such a long creed and so complex that to be honest with you most people’s eyes glaze over and the brain goes numb by the time they reach the end of it. What I would like to do though is for us to read together the first six lines, for they set out the importance of the creed for all true believing Christians. And then I will talk about the creed and its importance for Christianity.

Please open up your Lutheran Service Book to page 319 where we will read the first 6 lines. As we read please remember that the word “catholic” does not mean the Roman Catholic Church, but the Universal Christian Church.

Let’s read together. “Whoever desires to be saved must, above all, hold the catholic faith. Whoever does not keep it whole and undefiled will without a doubt perish eternally. And the catholic faith is this. That we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in unity, neither confusing the persons or dividing the substance. For the Father is one person, the Son is another, and the Holy Spirit is another. But the Godhead of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit is one: the glory equal, the majesty coeternal.”

It continues to state in great detail the Christian belief in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and their relationship to each other, as one. While the creed appears at first glance to be about the Holy Trinity, it is really about Jesus and his relationship with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

I say that because it was written to correct a heresy that was starting to be taught in the Christian Church in the Fifth Century almost 1500 years or so before the Christian Church began to splinter into what has become so many different Christian denominations today. The heresy that was being taught was that Jesus was not equal to God, but was the first creature that God the Father created. In other words he was not truly God, as the Father is. Jehovah Witness’s today still believe and teach this false teaching.

Listen once more to the first of the Creed. “Whoever desires to be saved must, above all, hold the catholic faith. Whoever does not keep it whole and undefiled will without a doubt perish eternally.

That is some strong language. And it is definitely not politically correct today to say that believing in the Triune God is the only way a person can be saved. While it is true that many Christians keep silent lest they offend a person of another faith I think there are more people who consider themselves Christians that keep silent when talking about different religions because they believe deep down in their hearts that while the belief in the Trinity is their way to be saved God has other ways for other spiritually minded people to be saved.

This type of thinking is a cancer in Christianity, for it eats away at the heart of Christianity; the belief in the Triune God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as being the only way to be saved. You might be thinking what difference does it make, if I believe in the Trinity or not, as long as I believe in Jesus as my Savior. Or, if you know some about your Bible, maybe you are thinking that the Bible does not even teach the Trinity.
That might even be what you are thinking, but it is wrong thinking, for as I was preparing for my sermon this morning on the Trinity, I was reminded of all the different passages in the Bible that states just what the Athanasian Creed says in its first six lines. Here is one, for John 3:16-18 says it the best. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God."

Strong words aren’t they? But they are true words, for Jesus is saying them. And since Jesus is God while being human he cannot lie even if what he says makes us or anyone, for that matter uncomfortable. He is, as he says in John 14:6, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Some say that the doctrine of the Trinity is only a later development in Christianity, but is clearly taught in the Old Testament, especially in Genesis 1:1-3 which is made clear in John 1:1-3 where we learn of God and of the Spirit of God and of the Word of God Jesus, by whom all things were made. But even more importantly we hear Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20 say, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. "

While the words Trinity or Triune are not mentioned in the Bible it is clearly taught, for God the Father is, as John 17:3 tells us, “the only true God” while at the same time being a person distinct from the Son, as we are told in Galatians 4:4, “God sent forth His Son”. He is distinct also from the Holy Spirit since we read in Acts 10:38 that he anointed “Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power”.

Jesus is also “the true God, and eternal life” as we read in 1 John 5:20 "we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life."

Paul says of Jesus in Romans 9:5 that He “is over all, God blessed forever”. Even though he is of the same essence of the Father Jesus is distinct from the Father, as we read in John 3:16, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."

Together with the Father he sends forth the Spirit of truth as we read in John 15:26 "But when the helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me."

Which brings us to the Holy Spirit who is also God, as we learn in Acts 5:3-4 when Peter tells Ananias that, when he lied unto the Holy Spirit, he had lied unto God and in 1 Corinthians 3:16 Christians are called the temple of God, because the Holy Spirit dwells in them.

The Holy Spirit is true God while also being distinct from the Father and the Son, for in John 14:16 where Jesus is speaking, "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper (Holy Spirit), to be with you forever." Jesus clearly differentiates between himself, the Father, and the Holy Spirit.

Thus we believe through faith, which we know from Heb 11:1, “is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." that there are not three Gods or three different manifestations of God such as ice, steam, and water are different forms of water, but each is a different distinct person and each is the full and complete God. Thus the Father is the one and only God; the Son is the one and only God; the Holy Spirit is the one and only God. The three persons Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are of equal rank and majesty, none to be preferred before the other, for while being distinct in person, they are one in essence; that is in their Godhood. That my dear brothers in sisters in Christ is why we believe and baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is the only way to be saved. Amen

Pentecost Sunday 6/12/11

2011-06-12T13:34:00.001-07:00

Pentecost
6/12/11
Acts 2:1-21
Title: The Holy Spirit has entered the building.

I have titled my sermon for this morning, “The Holy Spirit has entered the building.” The reason I did that was that last week I said that since Jesus has ascended into heaven you could say, in a sense, that he has left the building, actually the world, or has he? We will see.
As I was preparing for this sermon I became curious as to why God picked the Festival of Pentecost, a Jewish holy day to announce the arrival of the Holy Spirit to the world. So, I spent some time researching Pentecost; when it started, its traditions, and history. What I found out was that Pentecost officially was the last day of the celebration of the festival of the spring harvest which took place 50 days after the celebration of the Passover which celebrates the passing over the homes of the Israelites by the angel of death in Egypt.
But, for at least 100 years before Jesus walked the earth Pentecost had become for the Jewish people, and still is to this day, mainly about the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai.
So when I found out that Pentecost was about celebrating the giving of the Ten Commandments it became clear to me why Pentecost was chosen by God as the time for the Holy Spirit to descend into the world. Pentecost is about the giving of the Law. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law.
And since all the world needed to know about his act of salvation God the Father sent the Holy Spirit who not being restrained by time and place, as Jesus was, could enter into others, so that they could continue doing what Jesus had done before his Ascension.
Besides that Pentecost drew Jews and Jewish converts from all over the known world who after coming to faith in Jesus would go back to their cities, providences, and countries where they could tell others about Jesus and his saving work. Pentecost then is the Big Bang of Christianity. It all starts here.
It is important to know that this does not mean that the Holy Spirit was never in the world before Pentecost, for there is plenty of evidence throughout the Holy Scriptures that he was active in the lives of God’s people. Jesus himself had breathed the Holy Spirit on his disciples, so that they could come to faith, although at times it was pretty weak and many times an inaccurate faith, not because the Spirit was weak or inaccurate, but because the disciples would not open their hearts and minds to the teachings of the Holy Spirit. They were stuck in the past beliefs of the priests.
So on Pentecost Day the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples of Jesus in such a way that they finally got the message. He came in the sound of a mighty wind and what appeared to look like tongues of fire. He came in a way that was meant specifically for the future leaders of the Christian Church. An event that I believe will never happen again.
For in his coming in such a manner God opened up their hearts and minds of his disciples, the first missionaries and pastors in such a way that they knew without a doubt that Jesus is the Son of God who died to save people from going to hell. They finally knew the whole story and meaning of his life, as it was prophesied about in the Old Testament.
Their old beliefs were blown away, opening their hearts and minds to what Jesus had taught them. He is the water of life from which when one drinks he never gets spiritually thirsty. He is the bread of life that when one eats he never gets spiritually hungry. He is the Good Shepherd. He is God in human flesh.
They got it and then the moment they left that room to talk to those attracted by the sound of a high wind they became Apostles, which means “sent one.” On this day the Christian church was born.
On that day the nations that had been driven apart by having their common language confused when they had tried to build a tower to God a thousand or so years earlier were united in one message, as God working through the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples.

The Christian Church started with 12 Apostles that day. By the end of the day it had grown by thousands and then multiplied again and again. People were being saved right and left daily. That has not changed, for today the Holy Spirit is still at work, as people read and hear about Jesus and his saving work on their behalf all across the world.

While we today do not have the special gifts of instantly having a complete understanding of God’s Holy Word and instantly being able to speak in foreign languages we still have the Holy Spirit in each of us, as God’s Word tells us in I Corinthians 12:4-14. Paul is speaking to the congregation in Corinth.

“"4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.”

While certain Christians are given special gifts for the good of the congregation and the spreading of God’s love all Christians have been given have been given other gifts, as we see in Galatians 5:22-25 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit."

Last Sunday I announced to those present that I, in the name of the congregation was helping a 54 year old woman who had been homeless for two months. She was living on the streets, a frightening experience she told me. I asked each of those in attendance to contribute, if so moved by the Holy Spirit, to a fund to help her find an apartment plus set her up with all the things a person needs to live. That Sunday over 1,300 dollars was collected plus by the end of the week I had enough furniture to set up the apartment. She is now in a safe environment and looking forward to being part of the community again. That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is the work of the Holy Spirit.

But that is not all. This week we had one of the most successful Vacation Bible Schools since I have been here. Many children who did not know of the love of Jesus were taught about him by people who were moved by the Holy Spirit. There were helpers, and cooks, and leaders, all moved by the Holy Spirit.

Not only were the adults moved by the Holy Spirit the children were moved by the Holy Spirit too. They contributed over 500 dollars, most of it in change, to the Lutheran Malaria fund. That is twice as much as we have ever collected from Vacation Bible School.

The Holy Spirit is moving in this congregation, as people volunteer to help in the nursery, so that our young families can worship. People are volunteering to teach the summer Bible Time lessons, and more people are starting to attend adult Bible classes here and in homes. People are willing to run for office or serve on a church board.

There is no doubt that the Holy Spirit is moving through the people of the congregation as we fulfill our mission statement to proclaim the Gospel, properly administer the Sacraments, and to reach outward in the community and world to help others know Jesus Christ as their Savior. Amen.

7th Sunday of Easter 6/5/11 John 17:1-11

2011-06-05T12:37:00.001-07:00

Seventh Sunday of Easter
6/5/11
John 17:1-11
Title: For You

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ we are between two significant events, the Ascension of Jesus which we celebrated last Thursday and the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost which we will celebrate next Sunday. In these two events we see the birth of the Christian Church

Jesus the God-man has physically left the world. He has returned to his heavenly Father. So while this Gospel reading for today which is part of Jesus’ “high priestly prayer” takes place just before Jesus achieves his glory on the cross. It is still an appropriate a prayer for, as we read in verse 11 “I am no longer in the world, but yet they are in the world.

It would help to better understand the Gospel reading for today, if you knew what Jesus had said before he says what we are reading today. The prayer is long and for the sake of time I am going to read only the last two verses. “The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!"

“Take courage, for I have conquered the world!” What wonderful words of comfort for us today as we live in a world that at times appears to becoming more and more dangerous.

We, like the disciples that day are those who are left in the world. Being in the world is very problematic for us, for we have learned that to live in this world we need to take control of our lives or someone else will do it for us. We certainly don’t want to have someone else be in control of our lives; even if that person is God in the person of Jesus.
To turn over one’s life to God, even when we know it is the right thing to do, is asking too much. It can be downright scary. What if God does not do right by us or give us what we believe we deserve? Or leads we somewhere we don’t want to go. Nope, it is better to be in control of ourselves and everything else around us.

Thinking that we are in control of our lives is one of the bigger lies Satan tells us, as he leverages that lie off of our pride. Think about it. How many of you are in control of your life and surroundings right now? There might be a few of you that think you are, but it will not last long. It just does not happen. We can’t even control our own behavior all the time much less our environment, our friends, and loved ones. I don’t know why we think we control everything else.

Most of us, if not all of us, in some fashion or other are such control freaks that even when God comes to us, in the person of Jesus we quite often will not give up control. If we don’t like where Jesus is leading us we go ahead and jump ship at the first sign of trouble like taking a stand for Jesus.

We are certainly not alone in thinking this way, for the disciples did not know the ways of God either and so they scattered before Jesus’ crucifixion. We scatter too when we are asked to share the Word of God with those who are lost, who are hurting. Just bring up the subject of outreach and the room grows quiet, palms get sweaty, and the pews empty.

Why is that? It really is quite simple. We just don’t know God’s Word well enough to trust in him, the God-man who conquered the world in his death and resurrection, to let him take control of our lives.

To do what God tells us we are to do because we are his might embarrass or inconvenience us, or heaven forbid cause us to give up control of our lives. That just does not work for us. How much is Jesus going to ask me to do? And this turning over our entire life to him; it is too much. Secretly in our little black hearts we think Jesus ought to be thankful that we come to worship him for an hour or so on Sunday morning, for after all most of the world does not do that. Come on Jesus give us a break here.

That unfortunately is what most Christians do and think. To go out of our way or to give sacrificially is too much to ask and so when we are asked to do what God has given his Christian Church to do we scatter like the disciples did that evening when Jesus was arrested and condemned to die.

We scatter and therein lies the problem, for as verse 3 of our Gospel lesson tells us this morning, “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."

To know God and Jesus is to have eternal life, thus to not know God and Jesus is not to have eternal life. That is a tough way to live, for the world is, as some of you are well aware of a tough place to live on your own much less apart from God.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Jesus has conquered the world! He has been given the authority to control our lives, for in his suffering and death he has reconnected us to God, restoring our relationship with God. We are in good hands, hands which are marked with the scars of the spikes driven through his flesh.

Early I had said that after the Ascension of Jesus you could say that he has physically left the world, but as Lutheran Christians we know that he has not left us alone. He has left us with the Holy Spirit and his very body and blood in his Supper.

We know Jesus, the Truth, the Life, and the Way because Jesus gave us the words, “This is my body given for you. This is my blood shed for you.” This is not some symbolic giving of his body and blood, but an actual giving that we cannot fully understand but true never the less because Jesus said them.

These gifts of Jesus are not for some future world, but for us in this world who truly believe that he does give of himself in the Supper, for our forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life.

As I am drawing near the end of my sermon it is appropriate that we look at the end of this section of God’s High Priestly prayer where we hear Jesus speak "Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one."

That verse reminds me of a song by John Lennon titled Imagine. In that song even though John Lennon was not a Christian he says, he is dreaming of a time where everyone is living as one. Sounds great doesn’t it? We would like living as one wouldn’t we? Of course we would. Who wouldn’t?

While it is impossible for us who are living in an upside down world riddled with sin and evil to ever be one it is not impossible for those living in the right side up world of Christ to become one because through his life, death, and resurrection Jesus made it happen.

God through the work of the Holy Spirit enables us to live as one, as God the Father and Jesus are one. When we trust God and know that we are his, (our baptism reminds us of that) we live as one with God and with one another.

That means we can have peace, for those threats from the world are not more powerful than the Conqueror of this world who guarantees our protection and thus we no longer have to be in control.

It is okay to let God take over our lives, for he has conquered sin, death, and the devil. Let us join together in this community we call Saint John, living our lives in God’s love and grace. Amen.

6th Sunday after the Resurretion 5/29/11 John 14:15-21

2011-05-28T09:38:00.001-07:00

6th Sunday after the Resurrection
5/29/11
John 14:15-21
Title: You are a Keeper.

This coming Thursday at 2 and 7 we will celebrate through our worship the Ascension of Jesus to the side of God the Father. The Ascension of Jesus has almost become a forgotten holy day which is a shame, for it is in Jesus’ ascension that we truly learn of the reason for the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Today’s Gospel though gives us a little preview of Pentecost.

Have you ever heard someone say, “Talk is cheap”? It’s easy to say you love someone. It’s easy to say “I will stay faithful to you until death parts us.” And it is really easy to say, “I love God.” It is easy to say those things, but much harder to live them.

Talk is cheap. I know it. You know it. Everyone knows it. And according to today’s Gospel, Jesus knows it. He doesn’t say, “If you love me, then say so,” but he says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” And a little further in our reading, “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him."

That puts us in an awkward spot to say the least. For we know deep down that even though we have a good shot at outwardly keeping God’s Commandments we fail miserably at keeping them in our thoughts. It leaves us in a dilemma. What are we to make of his command, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” and “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him."?

It is very easy to misunderstand these two verses because they don’t translate as well as they could in English. According to the oldest Greek Bibles there are two separate words for the “keeping” of the Ten Commandments, as in the Old Testament and the “keeping” of Jesus’ commandments in the New Testament.

The keeping of Jesus’ commandments is not a New Testament rehashing of the Old Testament Mosaic Law. The New Testament itself warns against this in Galatians 3:10, "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them." This is New Testament writing. Cursed are those who do not do everything written in the book of the Law. No wiggle room there.
Then to what is Jesus referring by the word “keep”? The word used here is not the word for keeping law, but a word that describes keeping a treasure. It’s not “keep” in the sense of going down a checklist of dos and don’ts, but “keep” as in taking care of something very important.

Here is a little illustration to show you what I mean. When a Christian couple gets married, they make vows to love each other. They carry a sign of their love by wearing wedding bands. They honor each other when they are together and when they are apart. At the same time, no Christian husband or wife expects the fulfillment of a perfect standard from the other. Instead, there is constant forgiveness in the marriage and striving daily to do one’s best for the other.

That is the picture Jesus is describing in our text. Because you love him, you really do strive to honor him. His “commandments” are the living out of his gifts of Word, worship, and your neighbor. When you love him, you will take care of these things; you will keep them with the highest care and devotion.

The problem that arises as we strive to honor Christ, is that on account of our sin we fall short of keeping God’s gifts as you wish to do. We neglect devotion in his Word, which is supposed to be the lamp for our feet and the light for our path. We do not always hunger and thirst for his body and blood in his Supper as we ought to. We do not love our neighbor as we should.

This is a terrible offense, because in whatever way you neglect your neighbor, you neglect Jesus Christ, for he tells us in Matthew 25:35 and 36 "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.” And we all know how often we do those things don’t we?

Thank God that Jesus knows that the only way we can even begin to keep his gifts holy and sacred is if we receive help, so he promises that he will send another helper, another advocate. Jesus is the first; the Holy Spirit is the second acting on his behalf.

What does this mean for us who are living long after the promise of the Holy Spirit was given to the disciples? Besides the Holy Spirit’s main function which is to give faith he is like a public defender. He helps us in our weaknesses. He does this by bringing into our memory the words of Jesus by bearing witness to Jesus, and by taking what is Jesus’ and showing it to us. He helps us by giving us the true knowledge of God, and by actually remaining not only alongside us, but in us.
Think of it this way. Imagine a courtroom in which you are the defendant. The prosecuting attorney is the devil. He has brought before the court a whole list of serious crimes you have committed. You are guilty of each and every one of them. You don’t want to admit to it, but you are guilty.

You need the best attorney there is which naturally is the Holy Spirit. He makes his appeal directly to God the Father who is sitting in the seat of judgment. Your attorney the Holy Spirit calls on Jesus the perfect Son of God who while standing before God the Father with his nail pierced hands tells God the Father that you are not guilty, not because you have not committed sin, but because he has already taken your punishment. Just who do you think will win the case; Satan or the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit of course! But he does even more, for when you have him in you; that is on your side you have Christ in you. To have Christ is to have victory over sin, death, and the power of the devil in this lifetime! Having Christ, then, is to live in faith, as Luther has described it: “From this you must learn, as the disciples did that day, to know of and think of life alone.

But it does not even stop there for when you have Christ in you, you also have the Father. For Christ while being one of the persons of the Trinity is God. He is in you now, even though you are not completely obeying his commandments, for you, in your baptism were sealed forever with Jesus Christ in his death and resurrection.

But, you say, “How do I know that?” You know because Christ manifests himself to you through love; your loving of God and your loving of neighbor. For you see your loving is not something you do on your own, your loving is always a result of his loving you first, and his love for you gives you life.

Jesus didn’t just say that he loved you or that he was going to point you to a truth, or that he was going to show you to the way, so you can find life. No, as we learned last week he loves you because he is the Truth, the Way, and the Life. There is no other Way, Truth, or Life.

He keeps you from being destroyed by sin when he died for you, he keeps you from being destroyed by death when he rose for you, and he keeps you alive today in his Word and in his Spirit. As a result, you now love him and keep his Word. Amen.

5th sunday after the Resurrection 5/22/11 John 14:1-14

2011-05-22T15:25:00.000-07:00

5th Sunday after the Resurrection
5/22/11
John 14:1-14
Title: I Am the I Am

Yesterday at 6pm the world was suppose to come to an end. Well it does not appear to have happened. That means one of two things. We were left behind or the end of the world prediction was false. What do you think?

People love to make predictions, I do too, so my in Friday Thought for the Day email I made a prediction concerning what will happen until the end of the world, as we know it comes to an end. I guarantee you that is a true prediction.

The Bible will still have all the answers; Prayer will still be the most powerful thing on Earth; The Holy Spirit will still move; God will still honor the praise of His people and Jesus will save the lost when they come to Him.

While we may want to laugh at the followers of Herold Camping, for believing that the end of the world was coming to an end yesterday they sincerely thought it was. Thousands bid farewell to loved ones. Many sold homes and businesses. Others quit jobs and gave away all they owned. Millions of dollars were spent on getting the word out across the world.

They believed in the words of a false prophet, one of many that that have come and will come in the future. They believed and last night at 6pm in whatever time zone his followers were in all hopes were dashed. As of this morning Mr. Manning has not come up with a good reason why his prediction was wrong, but I have a feeling he will soon.

What heartache and sorrow he has left his true believers in as they try to figure out if they can trust him again. Ridicule, financial failure, broken relationships, and I am sure, for many severe depression has set in. It is sad, for they were Christians our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. They don’t need our ridicule. They need our prayers.

If only they had known. If only they had been taught the truth about Jesus, who is the only truth, the only way, and the only life in a way that they could have understand they would not have followed a false teacher who, as we learned last week did not come into God’s Christian Church through the door of Jesus but came in through other means to mislead people who did not know the truth.

Truth, what is truth? Most people today would say that that there is no such thing as truth, for truth is only what each person or group of people believe truth is. They would say that the truth is that there is no truth. That is the truth they would say. Of course by their saying that there truth is the truth they have defeated their own argument against truth.

I can’t even imagine a world without truths. Think about what it would be like if the law of gravity was not true. What if sometimes things drop while other times they don’t? It would be really weird that is for sure. . We live our lives according to certain truths whether we like to admit it or not. There is without a doubt truth.

What has happened or maybe I should say what did not happen Saturday makes the Gospel reading even more relevant for us and the entire human population this morning. Every day thousands, if not millions of people die in the world without believing and trusting in the truth of Jesus Christ and his saving act.

Notice I said believing and trusting in the truth of Jesus Christ and his saving act. I said believing and trusting because there is a wide difference in those two words even though we commonly say they have the same meaning.

You can believe and not trust, for believing in something is an intellectual act. We read or are told about something, it could be anything and if it makes sense we believe in it. Trusting in something goes beyond believing in it, for as I just said you can believe in something without trusting in it. Trust is having faith, that sixth sense God gives those who belong to him, in something in such a way that you put your very being, your core belief on the line.

A quick example might help here. It is an old illustration that I am sure that most of you have heard before. In June of 1859 a Mr. Blondine, a tightrope walker strung a cable over the Niagara Falls. He walked across it. He even cooked a meal while standing on the rope. He did all kinds of wonderful feats, but his biggest feat was when he carried his manager across in a wheelbarrow.

Rumors have circulated ever since that Blondine had asked for a volunteer from the crowd, but could not get anyone to ride in the wheelbarrow. You see everyone but the manager while believing that he was capable of doing what he said he would do did not trust him to do it.

That my dear brothers and sisters in Christ is the difference between just believing and believing and trusting in something. That day no one except the manager trusted in Blondin to get them across safely and did not lose out on anything. They all went home back to their regular lives.

But it does make all the difference in our lives whether we just intellectually acknowledge; that is believe in Jesus as our Savior and believe and trust in him in as our Savior, for we stand to lose everything. Our very lives are on the line. We must know him; that is believe and trust in him, for Jesus in the Gospel reading says to us today, just as he said to his disciples that day, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

That takes care of any other ways of being saved from the damnation we deserve doesn’t it? Jesus who willingly put himself on the cross to save all people is saying that he is the only way to be saved. Now the common belief today even among many Christians is to say that Jesus’ death is our way to forgiveness and eternal life, but there are other ways to God. they might not admit it, but many believe it. The problem with believing that is that they are saying that what Jesus is saying is not the truth when it is the truth.

Look at verse six of our Gospel reading again. Let’s read it together. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Notice that Jesus does not say, “I show you the way,” as Moses did when he gave the Commandments to the people; but, “I am the way.”

Nor is he saying, “I have the truth,” like Elijah did as proclaimed the truth of God’s Word; but, “I am the truth.”

Nor is he saying, “I lead to life,” as his Apostles did as they wrote down the Word of God for us; but, “I am the life.”

Jesus, the Word become flesh, the Son of the identical essence with the Father and born of the virgin, made man, sent and came on his mission as the one mediator between God and man, in all that he is and that he does.

The moment we discount this and make it less, as when we believe that there are other ways to God we are in trouble.

God tells us in Isaiah 53:6 "All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--everyone--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all."

Only Jesus, this One Way, takes us to the Father. The astounding thing is that this Way is a person, the one person. This is not a dead-end road that one travels with his own strength, but a Way such as never existed on earth. This Way picks us up in its arms and carries us to the destination. His Way is the cross that stretches across the great chasm of life to the Promised Land.

You know, as I think about it there are only three ways to understand Jesus, as being the true way to eternal life. One, Jesus is delusional. He only believes his is the true way to eternal life. Two, Jesus is a liar. He does not really believe it, but wants to mislead us into thinking he is the true way to eternal life, or third Jesus is who he says he is "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Which is he? You must decide, for everything depends on it. I pray that you have decided or will decide that he is your Savior the Way to the Father. For without the way there is no going; without the truth there is no knowing; without the life there is no living.
While this teaching is exclusive his dying was inclusive, for he died in the place of all, even those who reject him. The truth of the matter, is, even though you might wish that there were different ways to reach God there is only one way, for no one comes to the Father except though Jesus.
I don’t know why people can’t except that, for anyone that has ever been lost in a forest or other wilderness knows that taking the wrong path makes a person even more hopelessly lost. So it is with the spiritually lost. Only one way leads to safety, to salvation; Jesus. Amen.

4th Sunday after the Resurrection 5/15/11 John 10:1-10 and 1 Peter 2:24-25

2011-05-15T14:16:00.001-07:00

4th Sunday after the Resurrection
5/14/11
Text: John 10:1-10 and 1 Peter 2:24-25

Today’s Gospel reading can be somewhat confusing, for Jesus appears to be calling himself the gatekeeper, the door, and the shepherd all in the same story. He is really not saying that. It only appears that way when you don’t know the whole story.

My intention today, is to fill you in on the whole story, so that you can better understand Jesus’ message and its relevancy to you today. This particular story takes place right after Jesus had healed a man who was born blind. The religious leaders did not like the fact that he had been healed on the Sabbath because it could have waited until Sunday. Jesus was working on the Sabbath which was against Jewish law, they would say God’s Law.

While they were grilling the man who had been born blind but could now see about how he was healed he said to them, “Do you want to be his disciples too?” That really set them off, for it was quite obvious they did not want to be Jesus’ disciples. Jesus was ruining their whole system of power, prestige, and money making. He had to be stopped. It appears that quite a few, I hate to say all, were actually crooks and thieves, even though they were considered to be righteous. They had turned religion into a money making business.

This is not the first time in history that this had taken place, for the Old Testament tells us of several instances where one or more of the prophets had denounced the priests for the same type of behavior Jesus was denouncing them for in this story.

As to the story it was quite common in Jesus’ day for the village to build a common sheepfold that would house all the sheep owned by various people. The sheep would be kept penned up at night for their protection with a gatekeeper assigned to guard the only door into the sheepfold. He only let the shepherds he knew and trusted to get their sheep out in the morning.

Before we go any further it would be good to understand what the sheepfold, sheep, thieves, and robbers, shepherd, gatekeeper, and door stand for. That way we can understand what Jesus is teaching.

The sheepfold represents God’s protective power in the form of the God’s Christian Church.

The sheep are those people in all the different Christian churches who truly believe in the Triune God and Jesus’ saving work on their behalf.

The thieves and robbers are those pastors and teachers who try to steal the people out of God’s church. They do this by teaching false doctrines such as telling people that they have to do something to please God in order to achieve eternal life, or that Jesus is not God, or that Jesus came to give everyone that believes the good life, or the hundred or more other false teaching that they teach.

The shepherd, who is Jesus the only one to die for the benefit of his people also stands for pastors and teachers from all types of Christian churches who teach the true Word of God in all purity. They love their congregation and want their members to know the Word of God, so that they can live blessed lives in the Lord.

The gatekeeper is God the Father who knows both the people that are his and the pastors and teachers that are the true shepherds of his people.

The door stands for Jesus who is the only way to the Father and eternal life. He is, as he says, “If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.”

Now that you know what all the symbols stand for I am going to paraphrase the reading. Jesus is speaking."Listen up. This is the truth, I say to you, the pastor who does not center his teaching on Christ and saving work, but teaches false doctrine is a thief and robber of souls and lives and does not belong to me. On the other hand the pastor who teaches salvation by Christ alone is the true pastor of my Christian Church. My father, God the Father entrusts his chosen people to him. The people of God hear their pastor’s voice and respond because they know that he is teaching them the true Word of God, so that they will be able to live their lives under the Lordship of Jesus. Because they trust in their pastor’s teaching they will recognize that the teachings of the false pastor or teacher are lies.” Since the false pastors and teachers that Jesus was talking to that day did not understand what Jesus was saying to them, Jesus told them, “Let me make it clearer. Listen up, for this is most certainly true. I am, actually the Greek is “I am the I am.” the only way to God. All of those pastors who did not teach this are false pastors who have tried to steal the bodies and souls of my people. I am, the I am who is the only way to God have come that all that believe in me will live the abundant life."

Do you understand it better? I hope so, for in those verses I just read there are life saving words from God, for he is telling you that if your Christian pastor or teacher is not teaching salvation through Jesus alone he or she is a thief and robber who is trying to steal your soul and thus your body at the resurrection, for as we are told in 2 Timothy 4:3-4, " For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, 4 and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths."

A good example of the latest myth that is false doctrine that even Christians are buying into is a book written by Rob Bell a pastor out of a mega church in Michigan. It is titled “Love Wins” a book that teaches that the hell the Bible teaches is here now in the lives that so many live and that in the end everyone will go to heaven whether they are Christian, Muslim, Hindu, or any of the hundreds of faith systems, for God is love. How could he condemn people to hell just because they don’t believe in him he asks?

His book which was published on March 15 of this year is so popular that it is already number three on Amazons how to book list and number 26 and climbing on the top 100 books list.

People who don’t understand God’s Word are being misled by the thousands putting their souls and bodies in jeopardy. God does not want that to happen to anyone, for he died for all people including those who reject him and his forgiveness. His message is very clear. Trust me and have a blessed life here and in eternity. That is his message.

But we, just like sheep who think the grass is greener over there, think that there must be a better gospel than the Gospel of Jesus. And because of that we scramble around looking for that latest book, movie, teaching, relationship, or drug that will make us happy and give us peace. We rejoice when we find it only to be disappointed, so we go after something else thinking we will find happiness and peace only to be disappointed again, again, and again.

Your Savior Jesus Christ knows this and still loves you so much that he came on this earth to do what you could not do; live your live completely trusting in God the Father to take care of you. He did that and then, as we read in 1 Peter 2:24 and 25 of our epistle reading for this morning, bore your sins in his body on the cross, so that you could die to sin and live in his righteousness.

It did not end there, for those wounds he suffered that day continue to heal the wounds of sin in your life today and tomorrow and the next day.

Believe in him. Trust in him. Be blessed in him, for “you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” It is only in him and him alone will you find true happiness and peace. Amen

3rd Sunday after the Resurrection 2011

2011-05-08T15:04:00.001-07:00

3rd Sunday after the Resurrection
5/8/11
Luke 24:13-35

Our Gospel lesson for this morning is the account of two dejected disciples going back to their home to Emmaus. They had believed in Jesus just as the other disciples did, that is, until the Jewish authorities got Him crucified. Then they lost hope in Israel ever being reestablished to its form glory. They lost hope because they only knew Jesus, as they wanted him to be, not as he is.
They had just experienced the worst possible Passover festival ever. The only thing that was good about it was the Passover meal with Jesus when he broke the bread and said, “This is my body.” But after that everything went downhill fast, as Jesus was captured, tortured, and crucified. It was horrible and as they walked home they tried to make sense of it all. It was all a confused jumble. This wonderful gentle man in whom they had placed all their hope was dead. There was no hope.
A traveler who we know is Jesus joins them. They don’t recognize him, I think it is because of their unbelief, for after all dead men don’t walk down the road with you.
Cleopos told Jesus how their hopes had been pinned on Jesus, for, “Jesus was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how their chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him.” He then told Jesus how they had hoped that he was going to redeem Israel, but now that he was dead it was all over.
Then Cleopos added, "Besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened.” Since we are in on what really happened we want to shout, "Cleopos come on. Did you not believe him when he said he would raise from the grave after three days? Don’t you get it it? third day; empty tomb; resurrection. The eye witness testimony of the women has lined up perfectly with the promises that Jesus concerning the inspired words of the prophets.
Obviously they did not get it otherwise they would have been rejoicing instead of grieving. Jesus severely criticizes their reluctance to believe, as he says, "O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?"
“Was it not necessary that the Christ, which is Greek for Messiah, should suffer these thing and enter into his glory,” is a hard passage for us to believe also. Suffering is not a good thing. Suffering shows weakness. That is our way of thinking in our upside down world, but in the right side up world of God suffering is power and glory, for it is in Jesus’ suffering and death that he shows his glory.
Jesus did not leave those two disciples there in their disbelief, just as he does not leave us in our disbelief. He taught them as they walked down that road that day, just as he teaches us, as we walk down our road of life. He knows how we struggle, some more than others, in letting him be Lord of our life. He knows; that is why he comes to us in his Word and Sacraments so that we can be lifted up and comforted just as a child is when his or her mom holds her to her breast.
He knows that even though we have learned to call God, “Our Father” when we pray to him and acknowledge Jesus as our Savior when we recite the Apostle’s Creed each Sunday morning that there are times when we still cannot see God as we see others around us. Far too many Christians only see God the Father and Jesus the Son as some kind of standard to follow and believe in. But to be in a personal relation with them; how can you do that with someone you can’t see?
We have a hard time seeing God in a relational manner even though God’s Word from the beginning to the end uses the same words and expressions to describe God and the spiritual world, as we use to express our knowledge of the physical world.
God’s Word has thousands of examples where God and his actions are spoken of in physical concrete terms. For the sake of time here are just a few of them, so you can better understand what I am saying. “O taste and see that the Lord is good,” “My sheep hear my voice,” and “Blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God.” Then there are those times that Jesus said I am the door, another time he said he is the gate, and yet another time he said he is the vine.
Now of course we know that God is not literally a gate, or a door, or an actual vine, but then again he is also not just some figment of our imagination either, as some teach. He is here just as much, actually more so than the air and wind are here are any other object for that matter. He is perfect in his nature. Nothing can be added to or subtracted from him.
I don’t want to get this too complicated, but you need to understand that God is absolute. He exists whether a person knows of him or not, for God’s existence validates himself. He does not need us to create him in our thoughts or imaginations, as some teach we do, for he has always existed. That is the reality of God.
God has given us our five senses so that we might know the things of world we live in. God gives to those who believe in him as their Lord and Savior a sixth sense which we call faith, so we can see what cannot be seen with the other five senses.
If it is true, and it is, that he has given us this extra sense which we call faith then the question must be answered, “Why is it that so many Christians know so little about what it means to be in a meaningful relationship with God?”
As I thought about it I came to realize that the reason so many Christians don’t know of God in a relational way, that is as the Lord of their life, is that just like the disciples in our Gospel reading for today they don’t know the true Jesus because they don’t know the Scriptures that speak of him.
God tells us in John 20:30-31, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” and then in 2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness." Just as he taught the disciples that day that the Scriptures were about him and his saving work he will teach you the same thing, as you read his words to you in the Bible.
According to those two verses and others like them the way to have a personal relationship with God is to know him through his Word. If that is true and it is, why is that so many Christians do not attend Bible studies so they can develop that personal relationship with God?
There are all kinds of reasons for not studying God’s Word. Those that don’t study God’s Word have all kinds of excuses for not learning more about God and his will in their life, but I seriously doubt that any of them are God pleasing.
While I would be the first to admit that are verses in the Bible that are not easy to understand or can even be understood the vast majority of the Bible is easy to understand if you approach it with an open mind and a willing heart. God will not hide his will from you.
My fellow brothers and sisters of the resurrection, if you have a hard time understanding God’s Word first watch a movie called “Jesus of Nazareth”. The actors playing all the different people of the Bible use the actual words in the Bible. It is pretty amazing. Then get yourself the ‘Living Bible” or an expanded Bible, as I did when I first started reading the Bible. All of those Bibles are easier to understand and then after you get the hang of reading God’s Word get the Lutheran Study Bible from Concordia Publishing house, for it is without a doubt the best study Bible in existence. It will open up a whole new world to you.
God loves you. The proof of that is in his suffering and dying and resurrection, as the prophets said he would have to do, for in that suffering and dying he came into his glory, for you. He wants to be the Lord of your life now and forever more. Will you let him? Amen.

2nd Sunday after Easter

2011-05-01T12:37:00.001-07:00

2nd Sunday of the Resurrection
5/1/11
Text: 1 Peter 1:1-9
Title: Blessed to be blessed.

Today’s Gospel lesson is the account of a meeting between the resurrected Jesus and Thomas who is commonly known as Doubting Thomas. Thomas does not believe Jesus is alive. Jesus appears. Thomas sees and touches Jesus. He believes. He makes a wonderful statement of faith, “My Lord and my God.” The one who doubted now believes. And in his believing he is blessed. Jesus fusses at him for not believing in the first place for Jesus had told him he was going to be raised on the third day. Then Jesus makes the wonderful statement to not only him but us, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Just what does Jesus mean when he says that those who have not seen and yet believe are blessed? According to the dictionary to be blessed means to be held in honor, or to enjoy life, to be content, or to have good fortune. That is what the dictionary defines as being blessed. But, is that what Jesus means when he says that those who believe without seeing are blessed? We will find the answer to that question in our Epistle reading for this morning 1 Peter chapter 1, verses 1-9.

But before we get to it we need to make sure we understand God’s attitude toward us. God loves us with a love that we just cannot fully understand. For we, even the most loving of us, do things for others because we expect to receive something back from them. If the person we love is a spouse or child we expect them to love us in return. If we do something for a friend or even a stranger we expect them to at the very least say, “Thank you.” We just expect our love to be returned in some fashion.

If we don’t receive any type of positive feedback from whomever we have helped the chances are pretty good that we will not help them again. We just expect our love to be returned. No gratitude, no help. That is the way we generally work.

And because that is how we think, we expect God to think the same way. The problem is there is so much evidence in the Bible that God does not think the way we do, that as people of the Resurrection we need to quit believing God loves the way we love. God loves because he is love. He loves even those who hate him or don’t care one way or the other about him, for he died for all, so that all might be blessed.

We see the results of that love in our Epistle reading today 1 Peter chapter 1, verses 1-9 that as much as we would like to believe otherwise Jesus did not come to give those who believe in him the good life, at least as far as those of the world defines the good life; money, honor, health. He came to give us a blessed life; saving us from ourselves.

Peter’s letter to us today is a letter of hope written for those who might be struggling with their hope in God. The hope he is writing about is not that maybe something good will happen kind of hope that we deal with in our lives. You know, maybe it will happen and maybe it will not. Peter under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is writing of a sure hope which is guaranteed because our present hope, the hope we have, is anchored in the past action of Jesus; his life, death and resurrection. That is why we are people of the resurrection.

Christ’s resurrection gives us hope, not just because he lives, but because, by God’s mercy, we live because of him. In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. By the resurrection of Christ, God has given life, not only to Jesus, but to us. We are given new birth by God; In Christ’s triumph God makes all things new, beginning with us. As a person of the resurrection you are truly blessed.

You might be asking yourself, “If that is true then why do I not feel particularly blessed right now?” Saint Peter gets to that in verse 6 and 7 where he tells us that we must endure these things in our lives, for it gives testimony to our living hope in the resurrected Lord.

As you look closely at what Peter wrote, you find that he gives us four reasons why we can not only endure the problems of life, but rejoice in them. To an unbeliever that sounds just plain weird. And I have to admit it sounds strange to my ears also. To rejoice in the midst of trouble just does not sound right, but then I remember that I am living in an upside down world where according to God’s Word right is wrong and wrong is right.

The first reason, as people of the Resurrection we can rejoice in our troubles because the hope we have in Christ points us beyond our trials of life to a time of joy. As bad as our troubles can be they will not last forever; even if it seems like they will. There will be a time when they will end. We know this because Jesus himself endured shame, hunger, and the cross because of the promise of joy that God the Father set before him.

Secondly, as people of the resurrection, we can rejoice in our troubles because our hope and faith are actually strengthened through the very sufferings that we endure. Troubles are just part of life. Bad things happen to good people.

I know it is hard to grasp, but being people of the resurrection we should actually be glad for the troubles of life, for God uses the trials of life to strengthen our trust in him so that our faith will grow stronger and not fail when Satan attacks.

Simply put, our trials of life keep us trusting in God since our troubles will sooner or later take away our self-confidence and drive us to our Savior. While that might not sound like a good thing it is because it is only then that we completely trust in God and are blessed by him.

Thirdly, as people of the resurrection, we can rejoice in the troubles of life because we know that when Jesus comes, he will bring far more than an end to suffering; he will bring his reward of blessing, life with him and all the people of the resurrection will be blessed for all eternity. Eternal glory far outweighs the worst problems of this life.

In the fourth place, and most importantly, as people of the resurrection, we can find joy in our suffering because we know that the blessedness we will receive from the Lord when this life has ended has nothing to do with our work on earth. It is a gift from God on behalf of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

As people of the resurrection all of you are truly blessed because you are linked through Jesus death to a power greater than yourself. God the Father who raised Jesus from the dead will bring you to the inheritance that Jesus has won for you. That inheritance is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for all who are being protected by the power of God through faith.

As I close listen to the words Jesus spoke to his disciples just before he went out to the Garden of Gethsemane and onward from there to his cross and his death and three days later his resurrection.

Remember them my dear brothers and sisters of the Resurrection. Put them in your memory, so you never forget them, for they define what it means to be blessed by God. “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you, Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” Amen.

Resurrection Sunday 4/24/11

2011-04-24T06:26:00.001-07:00

Resurrection Sunday
4/24/11
Matthew 28:1-10

Resurrection Sunday is one of the most holy days of Christianity. Most Christian churches will be packed, for some it will be standing room only. We sing those wonderful resurrection hymns, hear the glorious music from those who play the instruments and those who sing in the choir. We leave feeling wonderful. Then the next Sunday comes around and the worst attended Sunday of the year takes place. Churches that were stuffed are almost empty. That is the way it is and it is a sad commentary on the Christian faith.

As I thought about it this past week I came to the conclusion that there can be only one reason for the mass desertion of the Lord’s house the Sunday after Resurrection Sunday. Monday morning reality has set in. People who sang God’s praises, who shouted out to each other “He is Risen. He is risen indeed!” today find that nothing in their life has changed There are still problems and well to be honest it does not appear that the resurrection of Jesus has had no real impact on their lives. Worshiping him, studying his Word, and spending meaningful time in prayer becomes just more things to do and heaven knows there is not enough time to get everything done now.

Oh there are all kinds of excuses, for not attending worship services on a regular basis, some legitimate, but the fact remains that many of those who are hearing the message of Jesus’ resurrection will not truly understand the message that it is only through Jesus’ death and resurrection that they are saved from God’s just wrath and thus able to better live the full lives that God wants them to live here on this earth. They will not get it, for if they did they would desire to live under the kingship of Jesus and Christian Churches would be full every Sunday. It is as if there is some kind of huge stone between them and God’s Word that obscures the Gospel of Jesus.

None of us are immune from spiritual stones. We all have them. Some of them are large, but others are small and odd shaped. For those who don’t believe in any kind of God their heart has become a spiritual stone that will not let God’s Word enlighten the darkness of their heart and mind.

For others their stone is their intellect which keeps them from believing that Jesus is the Son of God who willingly died on the cross for the sins of all people and then rose from the grave. How can that be they ask?

Then there are all the other spiritual stones that are so much a part of all of us that, for the most part we don’t even recognize that they are stones getting in the way of seeing the empty grave and thus Jesus.

So many of us, in fact I would say all of us deal with our stones of self-righteousness, self-confidence, self-sufficiency, self-admiration. Notice a pattern here? They all include self. The list could go on and on. All are spiritual stones which keep us from seeing, truly seeing the resurrected Savior.

There is another spiritual stone that has plagued humans since Adam and Eve sinned and were thrown out of the Garden of Eden. It is the belief that when a person dies that is the end. We hope for an eternal life, but what we see is death and if you are unfortunate enough to see one a decomposing body.

That is the spiritual stone that the disciples of Jesus were dealing with on Friday, as those who didn’t desert Jesus saw him die that terrible death on the cross. That is what kept them in hiding on Saturday and early Sunday morning.

In fact that is the spiritual stone that stood in way of the women going to the tomb that first resurrection Sunday. They thought, no they believed, even after Jesus had told them all that he would rise from the grave, that they were going to find the dead and decomposing body of Jesus in that tomb. That was the stone that was getting in their way that morning. How do we know that? They were carrying spices and perfumes that were traditionally used to embalm a deceased loved one.

When they arrived at the tomb the stone that covered the entrance to the tomb was removed by an angel of God. And in that physical act the spiritual stone was also removed from their hearts and minds. For the first time they truly saw, if not then, later that Jesus was the Son of God, the crucified one has been raised from the dead. He is alive and they rushed back to the disciples with the Good News.

Some would say that the resurrection is not that big of deal. What is important is Jesus’ life and teachings. That is what we are to remember. But without the miracle of his resurrection we would have nothing more than a dead prophet like the other world religions have.

Jesus resurrection validates who he is, the Son of God, God in the flesh. Everything Jesus said, every claim he made, including his very identity, all stand or fall on the miracle of resurrection.

The biblical witness to this truth is significant. Paul never mentions the empty tomb in his powerful rendering of the meaning of resurrection. Instead, he narrates a sequence of appearances; a litany of people who never visited the empty tomb, but who encountered the risen Christ. The last of these was Paul himself whose life was forever changed by his encounter with the risen Christ.

Luke’s Gospel includes a powerful narrative about two disciples who cannot understand why Jesus was killed. They acknowledge the story they have heard from certain women who claim they saw Jesus alive, but the men remain uncertain. In their case, neither the physical evidence of the empty tomb, nor the testimony of eyewitnesses is convincing. It is only when the risen Christ breaks bread with them, that they recognize that he is indeed alive.

And of course there is Thomas. Thomas certainly found the way to belief blocked by a huge stone. Thomas, like we so often do, demanded proof. He would not believe that Jesus was alive until he touched wounds in the Lord’s hands and side. Thomas was not about to be fooled either by empty tombs or eyewitness accounts.

Jesus gave Thomas what he asked for, and in doing so gave us what we need. Thomas was blessed by Jesus, for seeing and believing. But Jesus told him something else, something for us today, “More blessed, however, are those who do not see and yet believe.”

That is a profound statement. Those who do not see are more blessed than those who saw and touched. Jesus is talking about us whose stones of self and unbelief have been rolled away letting us not only see the empty tomb but to see Jesus himself in God’s Word and Sacraments.

It is a terrible tragedy, for there will be some who hear this message today who will leave as they came; in unbelief; the stone between themselves and Jesus unmoved. Others will leave today changed as the Word of God starts to remove the stone that is blocking their faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection. Still others and I pray that this is true of all of you here in attendance this morning will leave enriched and energized for Christ because they are living in faith and not sight.

He is risen. He is alive. He is your Savior and King, the Lord of your life. Tomorrow when you wake up and the reality of life strikes you once more listen as he calls to you, “Come to me all of you that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.”

Will you listen and accept his help? I hope so, for his life is your life, your identity, today, tomorrow, and forever. Amen.

Maundy Thursday 2011

2011-04-21T14:15:00.000-07:00

Maundy Thursday 2011
People of the Passion
Texts: Luke 22:19-24; John 13:2-5,14
The Apostles, the Servant Leaders

They were a motley bunch, some might say a “ragtag,” group these 12 people of the passion. Several were unschooled fishermen. One was a loathsome tax collector, one a political zealot, or patriot depending on your view, one had a Greek name, one came from the obscure village of Cana in Galilee. A couple of them were known to be quick-tempered. Others were power seekers. In this Lenten series, “The People of the Passion” we’ve already heard about the Judas the traitor and the Peter the great man of faith who denied knowing Christ. As for the others most of us cannot remember all of their names. As the hours raced relentlessly toward Jesus’ death, these men gathered with Jesus for the Passover meal and for a night they would never forget—a night we must never forget.

Early in the evening, as the meal was being served, Jesus did something extraordinary. He took a towel, poured water into a basin, and began to wash his disciples’ feet. It was not out of the ordinary to get one’s feet washed on entering a home. After walking in sandals on dusty paths, a person could use a good foot cleansing. But, the person who did the washing was ordinarily a household slave. In this case, Jesus, the Master; not to mention the Messiah and God’s own Son did the washing. Jesus did the work of a slave for his disciples.

What must these men have thought? They had followed Jesus not because they felt they deserved such favors from him but because he asked them and because they believed—with sometimes wavering faith—that he was the Messiah from God. Now he stooped to wash their feet.

Peter spoke what the others must have felt. “No,” he said, “you shall never wash my feet.” But Jesus said it must be so. He was showing them how much he loved them, the kind of love that would lead him to the cross for them and for all the world. And he was preparing them for what he wanted to see from them and from all of his followers.

“I have set an example,” Jesus explained, “that you should do as I have done for you.” They too are to wash the feet of others. Washing the feet of others is to say that they are to serve others and that no task was too menial.

These unlikely men, minus the betrayer (who left shortly after this), were to be the leaders of Christ’s church on earth. But they were to be servant leaders. They were to be “foot washers.” And Jesus asks no less of us today. He calls on us to serve, to “wash feet.” that is to serve others.

Did the disciples learn the lesson? Not right then! We learn that later in that very evening they argued about which of them was to be considered the greatest. Jesus had, earlier, told them that he would die. Jesus had washed their feet. And they argued about who of them was the greatest!

Isn’t that about what we might expect? How many times have you met a fellow Christian for the first time, or maybe you have told others about all the things each had done at church: “I was president of the congregation.” “I taught Sunday school for 15 years.” “I served meals for all the funerals.” “I served on every committee ever formed.” The list could go on and on.

We serve, but we want to make sure others know we have served. We volunteer, but then we complain about how much we do and how little others do. We have ideas of how to do things, and we get bent out of shape if they are not done our way. We are never far away from wanting to be considered “the greatest.” You might never have thought of it before. In fact you would probably be shocked, but such thinking is called self-righteousness, or work-righteousness.

Jesus knew the hearts and minds of his disciples. He knew then and he knows our hearts and minds now. So what did he do about it? He stayed on course to die on the cross for their sins and ours. He continued to teach them, knowing that they would gradually catch on. He prayed an earnest prayer for them and for us that very night. And he gave a tangible expression of his forgiveness, a simple but the most holy meal that we repeat to this day.

Jesus gave them bread. “This is my body,” he said. He gave them wine. “This is my blood,” he added. And he became explicit: “This is the body that I give for you,” he explained. “This is the blood that I shed for you. This I do so you may be sure you have the forgiveness of sins.”

Jesus gave them and he gives us in the Holy Supper what played out on the cross the next day. We cannot explain it; real bread, real body; real wine, real blood given for us and to us, for forgiveness!. We just take his word for it. We rejoice in it. We come to receive it for our sure comfort. We come humbled by it and made more ready by it to serve.

What about the eleven disciples? Did they ever catch on? Well, they did go out, not to make a name for themselves but to proclaim to the world the only name given among us by which we must be saved. They carried the gospel message to the far reaches of their world: to what we know as Great Britain, Germany, India, Iran, Greece, Russia, and to North Africa; to name a few places.

They took huge risks in serving those who did not know Christ. All but one of these men, we have reason to believe, gave their lives for the gospel of Jesus Christ. They are counted among the martyrs of Christendom. The last one, John, was not executed, but he was exiled. And God used him to write a gospel, a series of letters, and the book of Revelation in the Scriptures.

It is safe to say that those men became the servant leaders that Jesus intended them to be.

Now Jesus turns to us. As he gives us again this evening his body and blood for our forgiveness, will we do less than offer our bodies in return as servants to his cause? Jesus comforts us; let us bring his eternal comfort to others. Jesus died for all the world; let us do our part in telling the world what that means. Jesus came, the Servant of God, and washed us clean from all sin. Let us go from here and be servants for Christ. Amen.

Palm Sunday 4/17/11

2011-04-17T11:11:00.001-07:00

Palm Sunday
4/17/11
Text: Matthew 21:1-11
Title: Who Is He?

Today’s Gospel reading is from the time when Jesus was a celebrity, and the people rolled out their equivalent of the red carpet for him; leafy branches and the clothes off their backs.

The people were so glad to see Jesus, for they were anxiously awaiting redemption from their oppressors, for their scriptures spoke of a Messiah, a descendant of David, who would come to redeem them, and many assumed this meant that Jesus would help the people throw off the foreign power and set them up as a mighty, independent nation again. And after everything that they’d heard about Jesus, and knowing that he was from David’s line, many people concluded that he was this Messiah.

Thus, when Jesus made his public entrance into Jerusalem for the Passover festival, the crowd thronged around, shouting “Hosanna,” which literally means “Please save us.” In other words, shouting Hosanna was a way of saying that Jesus was this Messiah. Likewise, even the strewn branches showed their expectations. Crossed palm branches were an emblem of the Jewish independence, the symbol used on one of the most common coins back in the day of the Maccabees when Israel was an independent nation.

When Jesus entered the city on the back of an unbroken colt many in the crowd no doubt remembered the messianic text from Zechariah: “Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem! Lo, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey ...”

They just knew he was the Messiah, but there was one problem. He came into the city riding on a donkey, a symbol of humility and peace, and, compared to the Roman war horse that a conqueror would normally ride, weakness.

Jesus was held in high esteem the day he entered the city, but it would not be too many days before he was jeered at, beaten, spit upon, and nailed to a cross where he died a terrible death. “Come off the cross they would shout.” but he didn’t and so he was written off as a weak imposter. Weak, weak, weak; certainly he was not the Messiah and thus they rejected him and his message of peace.

We don’t like weak people either, especially those who allow others to take advantage of them and yet, looking back, we discover that it was in that weakness that salvation was brought to the world in the way that no act of super-strength could ever do. The apostle Paul, writing later to the Corinthians, said “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are ....”

There is one more thing to note from the scripture report of this day. Although this was the day of greatest human fame for Jesus, it was still an age without the news-spreading technologies we have today. And because of the number of pilgrims who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover, there were apparently still some who did not know who Jesus was, for according to the report, there were some people who saw all the commotion from the entry and asked, “Who is this?” The answer they received was “This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee.” That was, however, an inadequate answer. Prophets were ones who spoke for God, and in that sense they were correct, but Jesus was more than that. He is God
.
Just as some there that day asked, “Who is this?” each one of us has to find the answer to the question of “Who is this?” for ourselves. It is an absolutely critical question, for until you can answer the question of “Who is this?” you cannot answer the other critical question that we must answer, “Who am I in relationship to Jesus?” Both of these questions are absolutely critical to your life here and in the hereafter.

Palm Sunday urges us to ask those questions and calls us to answer them not with “Jesus is a good man.” And I am one of your fans,” but with the reply, “Jesus is God” and “Jesus, I am a person who saved by your grace.”

It is easy to profess that faith, but staying in that faith is not an easy task, as Saint Paul says that you have to work your salvation out. That does not mean that anything that you do saves you, but that you, as we all are, are sinful and don’t always live as a person saved by God’s grace. We have to follow God to be saved.
In thinking about this I was reminded of a great Christian book that I had some time ago. It was titled “The Pursuit of God” which was written by A. W. Tozer one of my favorite Christian preachers who went to his glory in 1963. I want to share some of his thoughts with you this morning, for even though he says that we are to pursue God he means in the language of today that we are to follow God, but not in the shallowness of just following along behind God, but being in an active life with God.
I like what he writes, for we too, so many times, are like the people who welcomed Jesus into the city that day. They rushed out to greet Jesus and being so happy to see him they worshiped him. The next day life was back to the same old rat race.
We, like them, come together on Sunday to worship Jesus, welcoming him into our midst and then too many times spend the rest of the week, as if we had not come into contact with him on Sunday. This shows us how we are able to divide our life into separate compartments; one part being religious and the other part secular. Since we separate them from what we do on Sunday morning and what we do during the week they have very little, to do with each other which is a shame, for that is not how God created us.
We worship God on Sunday morning for worshiping God gives us a feeling of satisfaction and a firm assurance that it is pleasing to God. These are the sacred acts we perform such prayer, Bible reading, hymn singing, church attendance. For many Christians these acts have no direct relation to this world, and thus have no meaning for their lives.
Secular acts are, on the other hand, all those things that include all of the ordinary activities of life which we share with the rest of humanity: eating, sleeping, working, leisure activities, looking after the needs of the body, and performing our mundane duties here on earth. These we often do reluctantly and with many misgivings. Some of which we might consider a waste of time and strength. The upshot of all this is that we are uneasy and unfulfilled most of the time. We go about our common tasks with a feeling of deep frustration, telling ourselves that there’s a better day coming when we will be free of the problems of this life.

This is the problem that has plagued humans since God made himself known in Jesus. Most Christians are caught in this trap. They just cannot get a satisfactory answer to the claims of the two worlds; religious and secular. So they either for the most part ignore the religious worship side or they try to walk the tightrope between two kingdoms thus finding no peace in either. Their strength is reduced, their outlook confused and their joy taken from them.

This way of living life is wholly unnecessary. We have gotten ourselves on the horns of a dilemma, but the dilemma is not real. It is the creation of our misunderstanding. The sacred-secular conflict has no foundation in the New Testament. Without doubt, a better understanding of Christian truth will deliver us from it.
It is only in the study of God’s Word will you find that if you want peace in your life you cannot separate your religious and secular lives. That is why we have Bible Studies and special services such as during Lent our Wednesday services which include this coming week the Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services. Speaking of which, just for your information is one service broken up into what appears to be two services. If you only come to one you have missed half of the service.

I realize that there are some who for health or work reasons cannot attend either the afternoon or evening services. I realize that, but I also know that if you miss both Maundy Thursday and Good Friday services you really cannot fully grasp, as you should, the glorious event which we celebrate on Easter Sunday. For it is in these great holy days that you will find your life intertwined with Jesus’ life. It is in these services that the religious and secular meet showing you how you are to live your life in the Lord.

Come taste him in the Holy Supper. Touch him with your hearts, as you hear his Word, and see with your spiritual eyes the wonder that is God, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Midweek 6 People of the Passion "ONe of the Mob, the Follower Matthew 27:20-23

2011-04-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

Midweek 6
People of the Passion
One of the Mob, the Follower
Text: Matthew 27:20-23

“Mob mentality,” is not a good thing. One moment a crowd cheers its team; the next moment it boos. One moment you have a milling crowd; the next, a frenzied mob. People in a crowd often act in a way they would not act if they were alone. It is like certain schools of fish that swim as a unit, as they swerve back and forth. Their individual identity is lost in the school of fish. Mobs take on a life of their own.

Once when I was young I got caught up in a demonstration. All of a sudden I was shouting and doing things I would never have done on my own. Looking back it was frightening how fast it happened. That sort of mob spirit seized the crowd that had gathered for Jesus’ trial. So let’s look more closely at how it must have been at Jesus’ passion for One of the Mob, the Follower.

When the priests and Pharisees planned Jesus’ trial, they did not want a large crowd of people there. Jesus’ followers came mostly from the common people. If they should become aroused to defend Jesus, the whole plan might fail and cave in under popular pressure. The Jewish leaders could not depend on the people to side with them. Better they should dispatch with Jesus as quietly and as secretly as possible.

However, when Pilate delayed the proceedings, a crowd gathered and became a force in determining the outcome of the trial. Some came to see the spe ctacle of Jesus on trial. Others probably came to see which prisoner would be released, as was the custom on this day. Most of them ended up in a shouting frenzy, as they cried for the shedding of Jesus’ blood; just the opposite of what we might have expected from them after the hosannas they cried out just a few days earlier.

The priests and elders quickly sized up the situation and moved to control the crowd. They filtered throughout the body, spreading propaganda, whispering innuendos against Jesus. They agitated and persuaded. They shouted loudly against Pilate and against Jesus at every opportunity, so as to drown out any opposing voices and to inspire the crowd to pick up the cry to condemn Jesus.

The crucial test came when Jesus and the notorious evil Barabbas were paired for the people to choose which to set free. The Jewish leaders had done their work well. When Pilate asked which prisoner should be released, Jesus or Barabbas, an instantaneous cry went up: “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”

When Pilate asked what should be done with Jesus, the shout came back: “Crucify him! Crucify him!” When Pilate protested Jesus’ innocence, they shouted the more intensely: “Crucify him! Let him be crucified!” When Pilate had Jesus beaten and mocked and presented him again as innocent, the mob cried out: “Crucify him! Crucify him!” If there were any dissenting voices, they were not heard or were quickly hushed up by the wild-eyed mob.

But why did they turn like that against Jesus, the gentle loving Jesus who caused no harm to anyone? Why did the lips of some, who less than a week before had called “Hosanna” to Jesus, now cry, “Crucify him”? Why did the lips that once thanked and praised Jesus for some miracle of healing now join in the chant against him? Why did the mood of the crowd become so violently hostile? It is true that sin caused it. “Mob mentality” had seized them.

We don’t know what was going on in the thinking of every person who was there. But after what happened to me I can imagine how it was for one or another of the mob in the charged atmosphere of the proceedings; how he would get swept along with the prevailing mood.

Picture yourself there. You have been a follower of Jesus. But you have never given up the popular expectation that the promised Messiah (Jesus?) would be a bread king, an earthly ruler. You and your friends have looked for the Messiah to lead your country back to the grandeur of what Israel once was, as in the days of King David. You had placed those hopes on Jesus.

Now you arrive at Pilate’s court on that fateful Friday. You see Jesus: beaten, silent, meek, apparently giving up without a fight. You can hardly believe that he is the same man you cheered when he entered Jerusalem the preceding Sunday. You turn to the person next to you who seems to have been there for a while and ask, “What happened?”

He tells you that Jesus has blasphemed against God and that the priests have warned that he is dangerous to the peace of the nation. “But we thought he would lead us to better days,” you say, puzzled.

“And what has he done for the nation?” the man challenges. He tells you that the priests say that if Jesus is not stopped, he’ll lead us into trouble with Rome. Then Rome will raise taxes, disband the council, and force the people to worship the emperor.

You are confused. You think of some of the miracles Jesus had done, how he helped the people—even raised the dead. The man next to you counters that Jesus is just a troublemaker. He claims that even Barabbas is better than Jesus. At least Barabbas wants to free the nation from Roman tyranny.

Just then, Pilate appears with Barabbas and Jesus and asks which one he should release. “Give us Barabbas,” the man shouts. “Away with Jesus. Crucify him!” Crucify him!” the man next to you repeats. And you hear others in the crowd pick up the cry. You see Pilate gesturing in defense of Jesus. But if Jesus were the real Messiah, he wouldn’t be made helpless under the thumb of Pilate, would he? Pilate seems to be the only one who doubts what to do, and he is your enemy. Your doubts are all confirmed. Jesus must go. The cry goes up again, “Crucify him!’

“Crucify him!” you join in, convinced you were wrong ever to follow the pitiable wretch standing trial. He’s no king. He’s no Messiah. “Crucify him!”You become one with the mob. Jesus has no fight in him. Why should you speak up for him? You even cheer when the verdict is reached, and you follow to watch the crucifixion.

What happens to you afterward? Maybe you hear Jesus say, “It is finished,” and darkness sets in and the earthquake at his death shock you into realizing that there must be something to this Jesus who you shouted to be crucified just a few hours earlier. It was sad how the evil of the crowd that day compounded itself. The devil worked his worst that day. Nevertheless, Jesus came out the conqueror in the end.

We human beings have not changed appreciably since then. We still succumb to the pressures of mob action. We still listen to human rationalizations instead of listening to God’s Word. “Everybody is doing it” is one of our favorite excuses for sinning.

Group pressures still affect us. When you are in a crowd that is bent on doing something contrary to the way of Christ, for example, it is no easy task to stand alone on the side of Jesus.

Another example might be the drive for spiritual unity. Everyone is for it and the push is on. All you have to do is lighten up or ignore some parts of God’s Word to achieve it. Even some church leaders are telling you that absolute trust in Jesus and his Word are not necessary. And, if you object, there are many around to drown out your voice. While it is not a mob in the classic sense of a mob, it is a still a mob because the people have the mentality of “unity at all cost.”

So, where does that leave us? We need one another, not as a mob, but as a group of individual believers who are growing together in love and faith by the gospel of Jesus Christ. We need to come together to remember Christ and to glorify his name for his sacrifice on the cross. We need to listen to Jesus and to avoid any kind of mob appeal that contradicts him. We need also to hold to our Savior in his mercy and forgiveness for the times we have failed him.

Let us remember the crucifixion and the resurrection. Let us rally around the cross of Christ. Let us tell the world that even those who in weakness and ignorance shout “Crucify him!” by their words and actions will find forgiveness and salvation in his crucifixion. Let us all live in repentance and faith and rejoice to be counted as children in the family of God.

May we be faithful to the end. Amen.

5th Sunday in Lent 4/10/11 Text: John11:21-22

2011-04-10T14:33:00.000-07:00

5th Sunday in Lent
4/10/11
Text: John 11:21,22
Timing is Everything!

Today marks the fifth Sunday in Lent. We are just two weeks away from Easter. In today’s world timing is everything. In the time that Jesus was walking this earth timing was everything also. We see that in verse 21 of our Gospel reading when Martha greets Jesus. Listen to what she is saying. “Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died.” In others words you are too late to help me.

I am sure that the wait had been agonizing, for Martha and Mary as they wondered when the Lord would get there. Then their brother died and it was too late. Martha’s fussed at Jesus. Lord where were you when I needed you? I had a need and you did not take care of it. What kind of friend are you? I thought you loved Lazarus? I thought you loved me?

But then she added those wonderful words of faith, “But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” Martha said what she honestly thought, but it was tempered by her statement of faith, “But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you."

Have you ever felt that way? “Where were you, Lord? You came too late. Where were you when my loved one died? Where were you when my marriage dissolved? Where were you when my parents divorced? Where were you when my father became an alcoholic? Where were you when I was cheated out of my promotion? Where were you when my child went astray?” the list goes on and on, for our lives are filled with tragedy.

If you have fussed at God for not doing something on your timetable, and who hasn’t? Please notice that the Lord did not reprove Martha for her words! That is a valuable lesson for us to learn. It is not sinful to tell God how you feel. That may sound like heresy in the light of some things you have been taught, but it is not a sin.

You owe your life, your present life and eternal life to him, but that does not mean you are not allowed to express your feelings of pain or disappointment to him. Goodness gracious, if you cannot share them with God who can you share them with? God wants you to be honest with him. He can take it. Let him know your true feelings, for only then can you be helped by God.

The problem is that we believe that “good Christians” never express their true inner feelings toward God. To question God’s timetable in our lives is unthinkable. Do not fear that God might consider you less of a Christian, for God is more patient and accepting than anyone you know, for after all he is God.

King David cried out to God. Elijah cried out to God. Samuel cried out to God. The Bible is full of people crying out to God. Why even the great man of God Peter cried out to God. Jesus cried out to God that night in the Garden of Gethsemane. All of them showed their struggle in following God’s timetable. God never told them to shut up or quit their whining. He never turned his back on them. He loved them and gave them what they needed to carry on.

I use to think that good strong Christians never cried; that is until my mother died. What a lesson in humility. I set there on the front row of the funeral home and cried like a baby. While I had grieved when my dad died I had no concept of level of the grief that came over me that day, for my mother had died a needless death.

I cried out to God that day and the days following. I asked God some hard questions and I imagine, no, I know, that that will be times when I will cry out to God again questioning his timing when it does not match my timing. I will do that, for just as I knew that day when my mom died and at her funeral I will not be sinning by questioning his timing in answering my prayers.

God wants us to pour our hearts out to him. That is what he wanted from Samuel. That is what he wanted from Elijah and King David. That is our loving understanding God, for when you cry out in faith as they and Martha did in today’s reading God will respond in love.

Notice Jesus’ response and Martha’s confession in verse 23 and 24. Jesus said to her, ‘”Your brother will rise again”. Martha replied “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day,” but there is no doubt that she was thinking, “I know, of course, but, Lord, what about the present? I’m hurting! Where were you?”

Jesus knew she was hurting and so he told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Jesus statement says much more than the English translation allows, for in the language of the day Jesus said, “I am the I AM. In other words I am not just Jesus Son of God, I am God. This is the sixth great “I am” statement recorded in the book of John.

Martha responded, “Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” Martha had tasted grief and loss, yet she came through the trials of that time, as gold refined in the fire. Her confession was as great as Peter’s!

This great believer, a remarkable woman of faith even in her confession was not happy with Jesus’ timing. We have to face the fact that even the most spiritual suffer difficulties in understanding the delays of God’s love. They ask the hard questions. But God welcomes them and comforts them.

Notice how our Lord entered into the sisters’ grief. And after Martha had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there. When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

Sound familiar? It should for those are the same words that Martha had said to Jesus. Jesus wept, not for Lazarus, for he was going to raise him from the dead, but for those that were there that day. He felt their sorrow. That shows me that we don’t have an impersonal God. We have a God who cares about our lives on this earth.

As a baptized Christian God has entered your life and you have become one with him in his death and resurrection. He knows what it is like to live your life, for we are told in the first chapter of John that since Jesus knows our pain, God the Father knows our pain also, for we do not have a High Priest who cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities.

Therefore, seek him rather than the restoration of what you have lost. He will fill that void left by what you have lost. That is why Jesus doesn't talk to Martha about Lazarus. He talks about Jesus. "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'" I pray that you do, for God’s timing is everything. Amen.

Lent series 4/6/11 People of the Passion Pontus Pilate

2011-04-06T16:12:00.001-07:00

Midweek 5
People of the Passion
Pontius Pilate, the Thinker
Text: John 19:12

We normally do not recite on a regular basis any of the people involved in the Passion of Jesus. There is one exception to that rule, for every time we recite the Apostles’ Creed we say that Jesus “suffered under Pontius Pilate.”
So, Pontius Pilate, ironically, lives on in disgrace. I say ironically because Pilates’ goal was to achieve political greatness in the Roman Empire. He wanted nothing to do with Jesus of Nazareth.
When Pontius Pilate first took his position as governor of Judea, his political star was on the rise. The governorship was to be but one step toward a place in the Roman Senate or better for this brilliant, young Roman nobleman. But shifting political winds changed all of that, and today we know him primarily as the man who ordered Christ’s crucifixion.
Pilate’s road to success in the Roman government depended on his success in Judea. Assuming that Pilate was inclined to logically plan each move toward his ambitious goal, we will think of him today as Pontius Pilate, the Thinker.
Because of their religion, the Jews were some of the hardest people for the Romans to rule. Pilate had to keep his finger on the pulse of things. He no doubt did some serious thinking about Jesus of Nazareth long before the Jews brought Jesus to trial. Any movement among the Jews that attracted such large crowds of people around a particular leader posed a potential threat to Roman rule. Pilate would have known about Jesus and his followers.
But during the three years of Jesus’ ministry, Pilate found no reason to move against him. This Jesus held no particular danger for Pilate, for he was a peaceful man. Besides that much of Jesus’ activity was in Galilee, outside of Pilate’s jurisdiction. When he was in Judea, Jesus appeared to cause more concern for the Jewish leaders, the priests and Pharisees, than for Rome. Pilate had to like that. Whatever Pilate had heard of Jesus’ teachings, he dismissed them as harmless to the state. The Jesus movement was only of passing interest, because it did not threaten Rome’s security in the region.
Opposition to Jesus came from the Jews, not from the Romans. Pilate had things under control. He had thought it all out; but he did not reckon with the events to come during the Jewish Passover festival. The fanatical Jews would defy logic and reason in what ensued.
Quite unexpectedly, to Pilate’s thinking, the Jewish leaders arrested Jesus during the festival. They ran Jesus through a speedy trial on trumped-up charges and finally sentenced him to death for religious, not civil or political, reasons.
The next step was to bring Jesus to Pilate, because only the Roman leader could execute a death sentence. Knowing that Pilate would not support their religious notions, the Jews offered Pilate political reasons for Jesus’ death. They accused Jesus of subversion to the government, of refusing to pay taxes, of claiming to be a king.
The charges were serious, but Pilate was not going to let the Jews slip anything over on him. Instead of simply confirming the sentence and ordering the execution, Pilate decided to retry the case.
We may wonder why he did so. Quite possibly he thought about how Herod a couple of years earlier had executed John the Baptist, and public sentiment turned against him for killing a prophet. Pilate did not want to be known as a “prophet killer.”
More important, Pilate did not trust the Jews. The Jews hated Rome, but now they came accusing one of their own of being a traitor to Rome? Jesus, standing there in dignified silence, did not appear to him as the picture of a dangerous leader. Besides, Pilate couldn’t pass up the opportunity to hear Jesus’ story in this unique case. He might even overturn the verdict of the Jewish leaders and gain popularity with the common people.
So Pilate spoke with Jesus, expecting to dismiss the case in short order. But Jesus remained strangely silent. Most prisoners could hardly wait to make an impassioned plea to Pilate in their own defense, but not Jesus.
Jesus finally answered the question concerning whether or not he was a king. He said, “My kingdom is not of this world.” He said that he came as a king “to testify to the truth.”
“What is truth?” Pilate scoffed, not believing in any absolute truth. But he also concluded that the claims Jesus made as a king were innocent and harmless.
Pilate went out and told the Jews that he found no guilt in Jesus. Ordinarily that would have ended the matter right there. But the Jews resisted. They would not be satisfied with any less than the death sentence on Jesus. They would force Pilate’s hand.
Pilate hesitated. He was strangely conflicted. He had no particular qualms against condemning an innocent man. Yet he found himself alone in defending Jesus. He had the power to declare Jesus innocent and free him on the spot. But he needed to get him released without a backlash from the Jews.
Pilate tried all the angles he could think of to get Jesus released without incident. He repeated that he found no fault in Jesus. But the crowd—stirred up by the leaders—insisted that he condemn Jesus. He browbeat Jesus to speak up in his own defense and give him something to go on. But Jesus kept silent.
He learned that Jesus was a native of Galilee. So in a masterstroke he put him in custody of Herod, the ruler over Galilee. But Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate.
Pilate had Jesus whipped and mocked to satisfy the bloodthirsty mob and evoke sympathy for Jesus. But the mood only grew worse.
Pilate had yet another ploy: Invoking the custom of releasing one prisoner during the Passover, he paired Jesus with a hardened criminal and murderer named Barabbas. But the fanatical Jews took Barabbas rather than let Jesus go.
Finally, Pilate washed his hands of the innocent blood of Jesus. The mob cried for his blood to be on them and their children. To the last, he presented Jesus, though cruelly tortured and abused, as innocent. But there was no one there to sympathize or to listen. So, he confirmed the verdict: “Let him be crucified.”
You may wonder why Pilate gave in as he did. But we need to know that his political standing with Rome was shaky at this time. During the trial he had to weigh his actions against his own political welfare. In fact, what clinched the matter and made it impossible for Pilate to act independently and free Jesus was the threat by the Jews to appeal to Caesar. “If you let Jesus go,” they said, “you are not Caesar’s friend.”
That was a damning charge. Pilate, you see, wore a gold ring with the image of Caesar on it that marked him as a member of the inner circle of friends of Caesar. He was part of an elite fraternity of high-ranking officials of Rome who enjoyed the favor of the emperor. If the Jews went over Pilate’s head to Caesar, they might convince him that Pilate was not a friend. They would tell him that Pilate let a man who claimed to be king go free. Pilate’s position was on the line. In his mind it came down to a choice between Jesus or him. He made his choice.
So, what became of Pilate? His political career faltered and failed. His wife reportedly became a Christian. And most surely, he thought long and often about the trial and execution—and rumored resurrection—of Jesus.
What do you suppose this thinking man would think of Christians and Christianity today? Might he express surprise at how much like him we can be? We find ourselves doing something wrong, and we make excuses for it. How many times do we Christians say, “I know it’s wrong, but . . .”?
“I know it’s wrong to steal or cheat, but in business it’s expected. It’s the only way to get ahead.” “I know it’s wrong to indulge myself in some kinds of entertainment, but I don’t want to be a ‘stick in the mud.’ ” “I know I should be strong and say what I believe, but I can’t. People will think I am some kind of religious nut and I’ll lose my friends.” “I know it’s wrong, but . . .” That’s all that Pilate said at Jesus’ trial.
I wonder if Pilate gave any thought as to why his wife became a Christian and others like us stay with Jesus? Did Pilate learn, for example, how Jesus had predicted his own death and resurrection? How he forgave all people’s sins by his death, even the sins we still commit? How he rose from the dead? I wonder!
He certainly heard about the boundless love of God and that Jesus was the Son of God and that he will return one day. But did he ever believe? Or did this “man of reason” only wish at times that he could believe?
We do not know, but we can thank God that by his Spirit we believe and are saved. Amen.

Lent series, 3/30/11 Nicodemus, the Silent Believer

2011-03-30T10:45:00.000-07:00

People of the Passion
Midweek 4
Nicodemus, the Silent Believer
Texts: John 3:1,2; 7:50,51; 19:39

In thinking about people of the passion, I wonder whether Nicodemus might have felt any remorse that he did not do more to prevent Jesus’ suffering and death. Did he ask himself later if he could have done something differently to help Jesus?

You remember Nicodemus, don’t you? Some people call him the night disciple, or as I call him “Nick at Night” because the first time he came to Jesus was late one night. Today, however, we choose to call him the Silent Believer. I don’t know if you would have called him a disciple the first time he came to Jesus. He had seen Jesus and knew about his miracles. He had heard his teachings. He thought Jesus must be “a teacher who has come from God” (Jn 3:2). But he had many questions.

Nicodemus came at night because then he could talk with Jesus alone, away from the crowds. He could speak with Jesus teacher to teacher: he a teacher and leader among the Jews and Jesus a teacher with signs from heaven. Nicodemus wondered—and he hoped to learn more—whether Jesus was the Messiah.

His coming a night also showed he was scared to come during the day when others could have seen him. He wanted to talk with Jesus, undetected by the other leaders of the Jews who, with him, were members of the Jewish ruling council. Jesus was not popular with most of them. They saw him as a threat to their security and hated the way he seemed to flaunt some of their church laws. And they were jealous of the following he was getting.

If the council members had known that Nicodemus went to Jesus, they would likely have turned on him and possibly have deposed him from the council. He did not want to jeopardize his good standing with them.

That night with Jesus changed Nicodemus’ life forever. Jesus told Nicodemus things about the kingdom of God and how he needed a new life from the Holy Spirit. He said that God loved the world and gave his one-and-only Son. And whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

Nicodemus did not understand all of what Jesus told him, but the seeds of his faith were sown that night. He had much to ponder. He liked Jesus. But he kept silent about his visit and kept his real feelings to himself. He still had doubts and fears. He did not let on that he knew Jesus personally. On the outside he was quiet, but inwardly his soul cried out to know more.

As time went on, the members of the Jewish council grew more and more hostile toward Jesus. They did not hide their feelings. They opposed Jesus openly. They spoke out against Jesus in their meetings. Nicodemus, however, remained silent.

As matters grew worse, some of the rulers plotted to have Jesus arrested. But those sent to do the job returned empty-handed. When the council pressed them to tell why they failed, they answered simply: “No one ever spoke the way this man does” (Jn 7:46).

Imagine Nicodemus hearing them say that. He knew exactly what they meant, but he kept his experience with Jesus a well-guarded secret. Most of the others flew into a rage. “Nobody who is anybody believes in him,” they insisted. “The rulers don’t. The Pharisees don’t. And the mob knows nothing of the law, but is cursed.” They talked about knowing the law? They themselves ignored the law in their plotting against Jesus. Now Nicodemus had to say something. His conscience would not let him remain silent any longer.

He gained the floor of the council. He asked, “Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing?” It was a good legal question. But it fell far short of defending and confessing Jesus. The council ignored this legal challenge. Instead, they ridiculed Nicodemus, wondering if he too was deceived by the Galilean.

Nicodemus pondered his dilemma. He had tried to help Jesus and had courageously faced his irrational peers. Still, he had failed to press the point, failed to expose their madness, failed to confess Jesus. He needed more understanding and strength. But for the time being, judging that to say anything more would be fruitless, he remained silent.

Then, about six months later, the high priest Caiaphas convinced the council that Jesus must die. As the judgment was declared, only Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea did not consent. But neither did they strenuously object. It was too late and impossible to stop the brewing storm.

Then it happened. Late into the night during the Passover Festival, the council was summoned to meet. Jesus had been captured and was on trial for his life. Everything about it was wrong. The false witnesses, the trial, Caiaphas’ hatred were all wrong. Yet it happened. That normally august body pronounced the death sentence on Jesus. Nicodemus did not agree. He just remained silent, swept along in the relentless tide of injustice.

Was it at Calvary that Nicodemus finally realized that he had to break his silence? There was Jesus, hanging on the cross in torment. Nicodemus watched, feeling that he had let it happen. He could have spoken out more emphatically. He could have confessed his faith. Maybe he could have prevented the murder of this innocent man.

He marveled to himself how passively Jesus accepted his sentence. He heard Jesus cry out from the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Lk 23:34). That word of forgiveness meant a lot to Nicodemus, for in his mind, no one needed forgiveness more than he.

His faith grew stronger. It seems he determined right there not to hide his faith any longer. Although it was terribly late, he would show that Jesus did not die in vain. He would help bury him. He would publicly confess his allegiance to Jesus and his teachings. Let the rest of the council do their worst. Nicodemus’ place was now with Jesus, even a dead Jesus. Nicodemus no doubt faced the wrath of the council. But he did not need them anymore. He had Christ.

The days ahead brought untold joy to Nicodemus. The man he had buried rose from the dead and appeared alive. Jesus’ death was not in vain. In death, Jesus won forgiveness of sins and eternal life for Nicodemus and all sinners. He did not die because Nicodemus failed to speak. He died because he had a mission to save the world. Now that Jesus was alive, how could Nicodemus help but speak?

We look down our nose at Nicodemus, for not standing up for Jesus and not admitting his relationship with him. We do that, but how many of us have stayed silent when we should be telling the truth of Christ Jesus? Are you intimidated by bold and threatening unbelievers? Do you strain to express your faith, but hold back in weakness?

If so, I urge you to join me in learning from Nicodemus’ example. Remember Jesus on the cross. Remember him in the grave and then alive. Speak up and tell the world about him. If you have hesitated before, don’t hesitate any longer. Take the lead to honor Christ. Repent of your weaknesses and sins. Trust in Christ. Be bold to speak of the crucified Savior and the forgiveness of sins, for he died for you. Amen.

3rd Sunday in Lent 3/27/11 Text: Romans 5:1

2011-03-27T11:18:00.001-07:00

3rd Sunday in Lent
3/27/11
Romans 5:1
Because I Said So

There are four words no child, or adult for that matter, wants to hear. Even thought those four words are spoken by loving parents or someone in authority they almost always have a negative meaning. Those four words are “Because I told you.”

“Because I told you.” when spoken to us, whether it is said in a well meaning way or not, will 99% of the time get our back up. We just don’t like, so we almost always will rebel, if not outwardly inwardly against whoever said it, including God.

This morning I would like to put forward to you that when God says; “Because I told you.” it is always a positive message. A good example is found in the first verse of our Epistle reading for this morning Romans 5:1, "Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Now God does not actually say here or anywhere else the actual words, “Because I told you.” but it is definitely implied, for when God speaks it is always for our good and should always be trusted as truth and something we should do. "Therefore, (meaning, “Because I told you.) since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."

That is good news for us who are definitely not blameless before God. As try as we might all we can do is live in an ungodly manner. Oh it might look pretty good to those we come into contact with, but I don’t think anyone would disagree with me that our nature is to rely on ourselves to meet our needs. We have a “pull yourself up by your bootstrap” type of thinking and living. The problem is that when we live that way we separate ourselves from God.

We think we are doing pretty well, not perfect, but pretty well. But when each one of us looks at our life in the mirror of God’s Law, we know deep down we still deserve God’s punishment. We know that his punishment is just, for God’s Word teaches us there is no one without sin except Jesus. On our own we cannot stand before God and say, “I am just or innocent in your eyes.”

Everyone one of us deserves to be sent to hell. Yet, instead of packing you off to hell God will say, “You are just, that is innocent, because you have been justified. All that fancy church word means is that you are not guilty. We believe it because God says I told you so.

How can that be? How can God count me as being justified, that is innocent before him? It is because, as our reading tells us this morning, “Christ died for the ungodly.” Jesus went to the cross and paid the price for our sin, our ungodliness; all of it. And God counts that for us. So we are justified because God says so. You are justified, that is declared just or maybe a better way to say it is you are declared innocent because of Jesus’ perfect life and death.

So the natural question that comes up is, “If I am declared just, that is innocent, how do I receive it and why do I still act the way I do? The answer to the first part of the question is you receive the “not guilty” by faith. Faith we are told in Hebrews 11:1 is believing in things unseen and trusting that they are true. We believe even when what God said would happen does not look the way God said it would. For we are in a way two people; saint because of our faith in the salvation offered by Jesus and sinner because, well we are alive.

We wrestle with God’s forgiveness because our sinful nature still believes we have to straighten things out, get ourselves right, get our act together, to be just, that is declared innocent, before God. And even though we know better we try and try to justify ourselves before God.

Faith believes we really are justified that is declared innocent just because God said so. “You are not guilty. You are right with me.” Faith believes that and trusts in those words of God giving you peace.

God gives us peace, but peace on earth is quite often elusive. All you have to do is read a newspaper, listen to the radio, or watch TV and you see that there is truly no lasting peace on this earth, and if those in charge don’t change their ways there will be no peace up there either. So many homes lack peace. There is no peace in God’s creation other than the peace found through Jesus, the peace of God.

Peace is hard to come by. It is not that we don’t want peace, for we do, all of us do. We want peace with our college choice, our career choice, family move, or investment decision. We want peace in our families. Lord, we would be happy if we could just have peace in our family. Why Lord is there no peace.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ there is peace, the peace that comes from the faith given to us by God which grabs hold of the forgiveness. In that forgiveness there is peace, the peace that truly does pass all understanding.

God tells us through Saint Paul, “You have peace with me through Jesus Christ.” Do you believe that? God said, “I told you so.” so. hear again God’s wonderful words, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

You might not feel at peace, there might not be peace in your home or in the world or above, but there is peace, the peace that really matters, for the one you, we, all have offended, is at peace with you. Believe it because God said, “I told you so.

And because God said “I told you so”, all that believe in him have hope. Not the wishy washy hope of “I hope that what I am trusting in will pay off in the end”, but the hope of one who knows that what they believe in will do what God has promised to do; take care of us here and in the hereafter when he raises those who believe to be with him in the new heaven and earth where there is no hunger, sickness, sorrow, or death. Our hope is sure and set on the cornerstone of Jesus.

How can you be certain? God said, “I told you so. Amen

1st Sunday in Lent 3/13/11 Text: Mattheew 4:1-11

2011-03-13T18:14:00.001-07:00

1st Sunday in Lent
3/13/11
Text: Matthew 4:1-11
Title: You are what you believe.

Today is the first Sunday in Lent. The alleluia’s are gone until Easter morning. The worship service has taken on a more somber form, and the banners and altar cloths are purple to reminds us of the Savior’s suffering and his kingship.
Each Sunday in Lent we are going to look at specific Bible passages that will help us to get a better understanding of our Lord and his journey to the cross. Today our Gospel lesson focuses on the temptation of Jesus. The lesson that is normally taught in this scripture reading is that just like Jesus who resisted Satan by quoting Scripture we need to memorize Scripture passages, so that we can also resist Satan’s temptations.
That puts the burden of the Law on us, in other words it is something we have to do to resist temptation rather than something that God does for us. I wondered if that really is the lesson that God wants us to learn from the particular reading, so as I prepared for this morning’s sermon I looked at the Gospel lesson in a different way. Lo and behold, while it is certainly a good thing to know God’s Word, so that you will be able to resist temptation, that is not the reason the temptation of Jesus was written down.
Before I can tell you what I mean you need to know what had happened before Jesus’ temptation. In the chapter just before our reading for this morning we see Jesus being baptized by John the Baptist after which Saint Matthew records, “Behold, a voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased."

What God the Father is saying is that Jesus, who has willingly laid aside his godhood to live as a man, is living his life as God desires him to live; that is why he is pleased. The third person of the Trinity the Holy Spirit then takes him out to the desert where he will be tempted by the devil after fasting for forty days and nights. In doing this he will accomplish what the people of Israel could not do, what we cannot do; that is live our lives fully trusting in God to do what he promises he will do.

There is no doubt after 40 days of fasting that Jesus is tired and hungry and the devil is going to take advantage of that, so he starts out telling Jesus to make bread out of the rocks. Satan knows that he can. Jesus knows that he can. We know that he can. But the making of bread is not the real temptation. The real temptation is that Jesus should not rely on God the Father who has promised to care for him. Jesus does not fall for it. He knows who he is and so he does what the Israelites or any of us cannot do; trusts wholly in God the Father, so the devil moves on.

In the second temptation besides misquoting Scripture just like he did to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden the devil is once more tempting Jesus to see if God the Father will really take care of him by sending angels. Jesus responds to his temptation by telling the devil that God’s Word tells everyone that God will do what he has promised to do. To test him is to show a lack of faith in his promises. Jesus does not fall for the temptation because he knows who he is, so Satan moves to the third temptation.

Satan takes Jesus to a mountain top. Please notice that he takes Jesus. Jesus having the power of God at his disposal lets the devil take him to the mountain to tempt him. He does that for our benefit. There the devil promises that if he would only bow down to him, the whole creation would at some time in the future be given to him. Again the temptation is not the giving of the whole creation to Jesus, for Jesus in his godhood created and sustains everything in the creation.

The temptation is that Jesus will worship someone other than God the Father. What harm could there be in at least weighing the option of worshiping someone other than God the Father? Jesus had enough. He knows who he is. He knows who his father is and he trusts in him to take care of him. He is secure in that knowledge and tells the devil to get lost.

Satan tempted Jesus to get Jesus to contradict what it means for him to live out his mission as God’s Son. In other words what Satan was trying to do was to get Jesus to question his identity. This is exactly what Satan tries to do in our lives. He wants us to question our identity, so that he can then work through our natural sinfulness to pull us away from our Savior.

Who are you? Some would say you are what you eat. Some would say your job or lack of a job gives you your identity. Others would say what defines who you are, as an adult is your marital status; single, married, divorced, or widowed, parents or not parents.

The world tells us that you are who you are because of your sexuality, depending on whether you are male, female, heterosexual, homosexual, transsexual. Those that make commercials try to tell you you will find your identity in whatever product they are selling. Last, but certainly not least Facebook will give you an identity that you might not be able to have otherwise.

Then there are those who say your identity is based on how you were raised. Others say your identity depends on the disease you might have or have had in the past. Alcoholism or drug abusers are both good examples. Both of those describe who you are even after maybe years and years of sobriety. Breast cancer or survivor of any cancer gives you your identity. Heart disease gives you your identity; the list could go on and on.

On one hand all of those things I mentioned do in one way or the other give you your identity, but think how poor that identity is. It can change and when you die, as we all will some day that identity will also die. On the other hand those who truly believe in Jesus as their Savior have an identity that will be theirs forever, for your identity was given to you in your baptism.

Just as God the Father said to Jesus, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased.” he tells you the same thing through the water and the word of your baptism; “You are my beloved child.” You are no longer defined by the world’s standards or even your own standards; thank goodness, but by God’s standards. Your identity is now one of being wholly loved and accepted by God, for Jesus sake.

Just as Jesus’ identity was being challenged so it is in your life. You will continue to be challenged by temptation and struggle with sin. That is because you are both saint and sinner. Saint because Jesus took the punishment you still deserve upon himself. Sinner because; well you, as well as all humans whether they think they are or not are still sinners.

In closing listen once more to the Romans passage where we hear of our identity in Christ. I will start at verse “17If, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.18Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. 19For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, rejoice in the Lord, for Jesus’ identity is your identity, for his righteousness is now your righteousness. You can now say, “I am who I am because of the great I Am.” Please say that with me. “I am who I am because of the great I Am.”

I truly hope you believe that, for those words are not some magical words that one can just say and everything will be fine. They are words that identify you and all of those who trust in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Those words are awesome and life-giving words. Amen.

Lent series; 3/9/11 People of the passion Judas

2011-03-09T20:20:00.001-08:00

Ash Wednesday
3/9/11
Text: Luke 22:1-6; John 12:4-6
Title: Judas, the Opportunist

We have gathered here today once again to meditate on Jesus’ passion which culminated in his death on the cross. The passion of Jesus Christ is all about people. Jesus suffered and died for all kinds of people. All kinds of people had a hand in his suffering and death. All kinds of people were there.
Each Wednesday during Lent we will take a closer look at different people involved in Jesus’ passionToday, we look at the infamous Judas Iscariot. We have questions: “How,” we ask, “Could Judas be one of Jesus’ trusted disciples and then deliberately turn him over to his enemies to suffer and die? How could he do it? What can we learn from this man who was the devil’s pawn?” As I have studied the text it would be appropriate to call him Judas, the opportunist. He could take charge of things. He more than likely was looking for the easy route to fame and fortune.
When Judas joined with Jesus and the other disciples, he likely saw his opportunity to be in on the ground floor of something big. Imagine him thinking: “This Jesus is someone whose cause I can promote. Here may be the Jewish Messiah who would emerge as the new ruler who would like King David restore the Jewish people to the great people they once were.”
Judas knew he was on the right track. There were the miracles, the crowds of people, the growing numbers of regular followers. He saw what Jesus could do. He saw some of Jesus’ power and glory. There was no doubt he was on the right track. He was going to hitch his wagon to the star, the one with a bright future, the man Jesus.
The other disciples welcomed Judas. They saw in him an able and prudent man and a good administrator. They made him the treasurer and manager of their common purse. He fit in well with the group and shared their zeal for Jesus’ cause. The Jesus movement was under way for Judas, and everything looked promising.
We can’t help but wonder why Jesus ever let Judas become one of his closest disciples. For after all we know that Judas was the man who would do anything to satisfy his selfish ambitions. Why would Jesus take this political opportunist and potential traitor into his confidence and include him among his most intimate followers? Surely he knew what Judas would become unless it truly is, as some believe Judas’s destiny and he had no choice in the matter.
He would do it because of his remarkable love and mercy. Jesus came to save all sinners including all of his disciples which included Judas. But sadly Judas, turned away from the opportunity and turned instead to the way of destruction.
It all started quite well. Judas was a zealous supporter of Jesus. He certainly was not the only disciple with flawed thinking at the start. The question is how did he become so hostile? As you read the account of Judas’ deed you see that it was ambition that drove him. Ambition had a heavy grip on Judas’ heart. Imagine the disillusion he must have felt as, step-by-step, he saw his ambitions disappointed by Jesus himself. It could not have taken long for Judas to realize that Jesus had never once intended to establish a kingdom on this earth.
Look at what had happened during the time he became a disciple; John the Baptist was beheaded and not avenged. Instead, Jesus left the area. A groundswell of people wanted to make Jesus a bread king, and again he withdrew. When the Pharisees challenged Jesus to show a sign of his authority Jesus didn’t capitalize on the moment. How was he ever going to be a mighty king acting that way?
Instead, Jesus talked increasingly of shame and death. Jesus stressed more and more the moral and spiritual aspects of his kingdom. Towards the end the people began to desert him. Judas saw it all with growing dismay. He did not necessarily hate Jesus, but he began to see him as a deluded failure with some mysterious but ill-used powers. He began to plan how he, Judas, could salvage something from the unhappy course of events.
Judas’ spiritual life quickly deteriorated. He tottered on the brink and then fell into the beckoning abyss of hell. He tried to hold on to something, but having refused Jesus’ teaching, he could clutch only the misdirected passion of his own soul. One day, we don’t know when, he started down that slippery slope of rejecting Jesus.
Satan entered his heart and Judas whose heart had become hardened that even after sharing in the Passover meal he went to negotiate his despicable deed. Jesus is going to fall, that is certain. Why not make a little money before it all collapsed.
Judas’ faith had died, but not his conscience. Tormented by what he had done, he tried to return the money, but he did not look to Jesus for forgiveness. It was too late to change what was going to happen, the wheels of injustice were set in motion. But it was not too late to turn back to Jesus. Jesus never left him, never denounced him, but Judas would not turn back to him. Jesus still had room for him, but he had no room for Jesus. Satan had claimed him, and in despair; even before the verdict was passed to crucify Jesus Judas plunged into eternity at the end of a rope.
As we look back, we see the tragic irony of Judas’ case. Jesus offered everything Judas wanted, but Judas could not see it. Judas wanted fame, social approval, prestige. Jesus offered him lasting fame as one of the Twelve, the friendship of the angels, the love of God. Judas wanted a position worthy of his talents. Jesus offered to make him a child of God and a steward of the mysteries of God. Judas wanted earthly security and wealth. Jesus offered him eternal life, the forgiveness of sins, and the riches of heaven. Judas wanted Jesus, but only on his own terms.
Haven’t we all had our moments when we stood where Judas once stood wanting Jesus on our terms? Weren’t the times when storms of doubt shook our very souls? Remember those time when our personal passions and self-will tried to sweep us away from Jesus. But his voice called us back before we slipped and plunged headlong as Judas did.
Even now we are not immune from the errors of Judas. We by nature are fixed on our earthly welfare. Health and prosperity, prestige and power are high on the list of blessings we want. And some of today’s so-called evangelists even tell us we ought to expect those things from Jesus. We find it easy, like Judas, to want this world’s benefits from Jesus, forgetting that he already has given us much more. Looking to earth, we ignore heaven.
However, by the grace of God, we leave the way of Judas for the way of Jesus. We have security. God’s Word tells us, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). We have peace: “My peace I give you,” says Jesus (John 14:27). We have the strength of God on our side: “I can do everything through [Christ] who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). We have love and comfort with Jesus.
Jesus died burdened with Judas’ sin and with our sins. He suffered the punishment for Judas’ sin and for our sins. He died in Judas’ stead and in our stead. He paid the full cost of redemption for Judas and for us. But Judas got nothing because he refused to trust. We have everything, everything; when we trust in Jesus. Amen.

Transfiguration Sunday 3/6/11

2011-03-06T13:16:00.000-08:00

Transfiguration Sunday
3/6/11
Text: Matthew 17:1-9
Title: Listening to God

In our Gospel reading for today Saint Matthew describes a wondrous event on a mountain top. We don’t know why Jesus chose to only take Peter, James, and John, but we do know that what they had experienced no one had ever experienced before. They saw Moses, and Elijah talking with Jesus and heard the voice of God say, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.”

You would have thought that when they heard God speak that they would have been lifted up instead of driven to the ground. You would think that, but, as Saint Matthew tells us they were afraid, so afraid, that they fell to the ground.

You would think that an experience like this might serve as just the thing to transform a person from the inside out. Matthew describes this scene in such a way that we would think all doubts would vanish, all fears would fade away, all resistance to God’s summons would evaporate. You would think that all of the doubts and questions the three disciples might have had found answers in that scene on the mountain.

That is what you would think; after all Jesus is the message of Old Testament Scriptures. Moses and Elijah were with him. Jesus was a manifestation of God’s presence. His face shone and his clothes turned white. God’s voice sounded from the cloud. “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him!” Surely, from that day forward they would bear courageous, humble witness to Jesus’ ministry in the world.

You would think that they would have gotten it, except that they didn’t. Despite having seen and heard things that should have melted away their fears and insecurities, all three disciples flunked the salt-and-light test. You know, the one where Jesus said that those that believe in him are the salt and light of the earth.

Shortly after this incident, James and John let ambition get away from them. In Mark’s gospel, the two brothers themselves ask Jesus for permission to sit on his right and left when he comes in his glory. Jesus rebukes them. Having Jesus choose them as inner-circle disciples, seeing as much of God’s presence as anyone in scripture, hearing God’s voice, knowing that everything came together in Jesus; all of this was not enough for them. They still felt an urge for recognition, for status, for elevation above the other disciples that the Transfiguration had not satisfied.

What is the problem? Simply put they did not get it. That is why they fell down in fear when God spoke from the cloud. But then a most wonderful thing happened. Jesus walked over, as they lay there trembling in fear and touched them, as he said, “Rise and have no fear.” What wonderful words for them, yet, as we all know they continued to live lives of fear.

We know about Peter, of course, the great disciple of Jesus. We would expect great things from Peter, but that is not what Saint Matthew wrote down. He tells us that even after Peter was warned that he would deny Christ, you would not have done it, but he did in the courtyard three times he denied that he knew Jesus, the one he swore allegiance to just a couple of weeks earlier. It just doesn’t make sense. He saw Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus. He saw Jesus transformed into a heavenly image. He heard God’s very voice. He should have had the courage to stand up before unbelievers even in the face of danger?

Now that I have pointed out the spiritual faults of the disciples for not living the lives that we think they should have lived we need to take a look at our own lives. Oh, we are not quaking in our sandals as they were that day, but deep down inside of us, in that place where we bury our fears we live in fear. We fear the things that happened in the past that might have consequences today or tomorrow. We fear today with all of its problems, we fear tomorrow since we don’t know what it will bring, we fear that we are not going to be liked, and most of all we fear that someone will find out we are afraid, that our faith is not as strong as we say.

God’s human creation did not start out that way, for God created them to live in a trusting relationship with him. There was no room for fear, for God provided all that was needed for each day. Trust ruled the day until Adam and Eve put their trust in the words of Satan instead of God. We all know what happened after that don’t we? The wonderful right side up world of God turned upside down.

We who proclaim our love of God, who confess our Christian faith in the Apostles Creed every Sunday live in fear when we shouldn’t, for every Sunday as we come together to worship our God we hear “Rise and have no fear.” through the words of the Absolution, the Holy Word of God, and his Holy Supper.

What is the problem then? Why is it that we still live in fear? Just like the disciples that day and Jesus followers through the centuries have lived in fear we live in fear because we just can’t get rid of thinking that we must have at least some small part to play in our salvation. And as long as we think that way we will live in fear because we are not fully trusting in God.

Saint Matthew in recording the Transfiguration points us beyond the weakness of our human flesh to the power Jesus the Christ unleashed in his life, ministry, death and resurrection. God gets it right, even if Christians don’t, for the Transfiguration points us toward the resurrection. God raised Jesus from the dead. He did what he said he would do, even if we can’t let that message sink in far enough to overcome every weakness.

The most wonderful news is that even while we are fearful we are also holy; set apart to continue the work of Jesus on this earth. We are holy not because we are good enough, for even those who believe that their lives are God pleasing know deep down that they are not living entirely God pleasing lives.

We are holy because of Jesus’ birth, life, and death on our behalf. It is in our sinfulness, our weaknesses, our lives of fear that God’s power shines. God’s grace, his free gift of salvation, for not just our souls but our bodies also, heals our betrayals and lapses. The glory of God that transfigured Jesus can transform us. Let us open ourselves to the transforming power of God. Let us cling to the power of God shown on the mountain, so that, as our faith in God increases we will be less and fearful, so we become all that God wants us to be. Amen.

7th Sunday after the Epiphany 2/2/11 Text Matthew 5:38-48

2011-02-20T12:31:00.001-08:00

7th Sunday after the Epiphany
2/20/11
Text: Matthew 5:38-48
Title: Set Apart

Today we are continuing our study of the Sermon on the Mount. Since Easter, if I remember correctly, is at the latest time it can be it gives us a wonderful opportunity to study Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount in more detail than we normally could in the Epiphany season.
Before we do that though, so that we can better understand the Sermon on the Mount reading for today please turn to the Old Testament reading; particularly verse 2 where God speaking through Moses says, “Speak to all the congregations of the people of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.’”
Just what was God saying? Was he saying that we have to be perfect as he is perfect, as it says in the last verse of our Gospel reading, or is he saying something else here?
The word holy is used 665 times in the Bible. Each time the word is used it means to be set apart and not perfect, as most people understand it to mean. A modern day example would be those times when we dedicate things that are used in worship. They are referred to as being holy; that is set apart for worship. It would also be correct to say when pastors, teachers and officers of the congregation are installed in a congregation that they are holy in that they are set apart for service to God. You, as a member of the body of Christ are set apart from those outside of God’s Church. You are holy.
Our Old Testament reading for today is part of a section of Scripture where God is telling the people Israel of their personal responsibilities toward each other as people who are holy, or we would say set apart from other people, for service to him.
There are a couple of other verses that we need to keep in mind when we study the Sermon on the Mount text for today. One is the verse 18 of our Old Testament reading, the other is found in Leviticus 24:20. Verse 18 says, “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you are to love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.” Notice God says that you are not to personally take vengeance or bear a grudge.
Then in Leviticus 24:20. I will have to read it to you since it is not part of our Old Testament reading for today. This verse is part of the code for the governing of the Israelites. In other words it is not a personal directive, but a government directive for Moses and those he appointed to govern. “If anyone injures his neighbor, as he has done it shall be done to him, fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; whatever injury he has given a person shall be given to him.” Do you see the difference? The first is personal the second is for the government.
Now moving on to our Gospel lesson we hear Jesus saying in verse 38, “You have heard that it was said. ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you. Do not resist the one who is evil.” Then he goes on to talk about turning the other cheek when slapped and walking the extra mile. When Jesus said that he turned the Jewish teachings upside down, or it would be better right side up, for by this time they had corrupted the law under which they lived. Personal revenge was acceptable. What had been the job of the government, that is punishment of the wrong doer, was for many being done personally.
Concerning the walking of two miles under duress Roman soldiers had the right to make a Jew carry their gear for a thousand paces or what we would say is a mile. The Jews hated this law and so when Jesus said they were to carry the soldier’s gear two thousand paces they naturally did not go along with that teaching. How many of us would turn the other cheek or walk an extra mile carrying some one’s gear while they walked alongside of us?
Then in verse 43 Jesus says again, “You have heard it said. You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you. Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons (& daughters) of your Father in heaven.” I looked up “hate your enemy” in the Bible and there is only one place where out of 339 times a form of enemy is used is there a reference to hating one’s enemy. David says in asking God why he has not rescued him from his enemies when he hates the enemies of God, those who teach against God’s teachings.
When I started working on this sermon last Sunday night I realized that in chapter 5 of Matthew Jesus said “You have heard it said.” followed with, “But I say to you.” six times. Jesus is saying something important here. He is making it perfectly clear that those who trust in him as their Savior are not to live as those who are not his. We are holy; set apart to do God’s work here on this earth. That is why in the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount he says that those who follow his teachings are blessed.
By the time Jesus was doing his ministry the Jewish religious people had inserted into, dropped out parts of, or warped God’s commands. That is why he said, “You have heard it said.” with “but I say to you.” In other words the people did not know the true word of God from the stuff that people said was the word of God, but wasn’t.
As I looked at those words, it came to me that we have the same problem today. Many Christians today don’t know sayings that they have heard or read from the teachings of the Bible. I wonder what Jesus would say to us today, if he walked in and started teaching. Would he say, “You have heard it said” and then say “but I say to you?” I think he might have good reason to do so. Here are a few examples.
You have heard it said that Godliness is next to cleanliness, but I say to you that John Wesley, a Methodist preacher, said that in a sermon. Just because you are clean does not make you godly neither does being godly make you physically clean
You have heard it said that God helps those who help themselves, but I say to you that God helps those who finally admit that they can’t help themselves, at least as far as spiritual matters are concerned.
You have heard it said that once saved always saved, but I say to you that while nothing in or on this earth or the heavens can get you away from me you can always turn back to your sinful life and not stay in my forgiveness.
You have heard it said that God works in mysterious ways, but I say to you that sentence came from a hymn written by William Cowper. It is not in the Bible.
You have heard it said that there were three kings who came to worship me when I was born, but I say to you that it is not recorded whether there were three or that they were kings. The three king idea came from an American Christmas carol titled, “We three kings of orient are.”
You have heard it said this too will pass, but I tell you that came from a 10th Century English poem. You need to quit trying to find your comfort in the present and focus on comfort that God gives you in his promises of what is to come.
Then there is the passage that I have seen many times on banners at sporting events especially when one of the teams is thought of as an underdog. You have heard it said that with God all things are possible, but I tell you I am not talking of earthly things in that passage, but of the salvation of souls, for you cannot save yourself, only God can do that. Read Matthew 19:23-26 to see what Jesus meant when he said "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.""

There are many more sayings that are attributed to God that do not come from the Bible, but you get the idea. We, who are blessed, who are chosen to be holy, that is set apart, need to know what is God’s Word and what is not, so that we, because of Christ actions on the cross, will be perfect as the Father is perfect. Amen

6th Sunday after the Epiphany 2/13/11 Matthew 5: 21-37

2011-02-13T15:17:00.001-08:00

6th Sunday after the Epiphany
2/13/11
Text: Matthew 5:21-37

Today’s Gospel reading is perfect for the day before Valentine’s Day, for our relationship with God is a matter of the heart, not the romantic valentine heart, but the spiritual heart that makes us his. In our Gospel text for today which is part of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is responding to people who felt a right relationship with God consisted of rules and behavior. That is why before this part of his sermon Jesus told them, “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” He needed to let them know that there was not according to their standards a chance that they would be with God in heaven.

You see the scribes and Pharisees were the most outwardly righteous of all the people. They, by this time, had passed over 600 more laws to make sure they did not break the Ten Commandments. According to popular thought they thus stood righteous before God.

Jesus in this part of the Sermon on the Mount is telling us that there is more than just outwardly keeping the Law. What he is saying is that while the outward keeping of the Law is important it is the keeping of the commandments in the heart that is critical in pleasing him.

In this part of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus is addressing three of the Ten Commandments that while being outwardly obeyed by the scribes and Pharisees were inwardly being broken.

Concerning the 5th Commandment the scribes and Pharisees, just as people today have done reduced the commandment to the obvious, “Do not murder.” something they and we could keep quite easily. But Jesus tells us that the core of this commandment lies not in outward action, but in what takes place in our heart. We have not killed anyone, but we have not loved others as God loves. We have become angry with others. We have insulted others. We have used signs and gestures. We have held grudges. We have thought of others as fools when they don’t agree with us. We thus stand guilty, for it is a matter of the heart.

Jesus then speaks of keeping the 6th Commandment. Jewish society just as ours is today was very lax on the sanctity of marriage. Divorce was very easy to get. Jesus says that the 6th Commandment is not simply a matter of the outward acts of extramarital sex. It is about sins of the heart; those times when we have sinful thoughts and wandering eyes, lust, and emotional ties to someone other than our spouse.

Concerning the 8th Commandment “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor” the Pharisees by this time had developed an elaborate code determining that some oaths you really had to keep, while others you could let slide. Their purpose was to allow deceit, while outwardly giving a solemn outward appearance when they made their oath. Any lie is sinful, whether it’s given the pretense of an oath or not. Taking an oath can’t make a deceiving heart pure.

We must be more righteous than just outwardly keeping the Law. True righteousness must be in the heart, for when the heart is pure it will never produce selfish anger, insults, grudges, lust, divorce, lies.

We all know that we have not fared very well inwardly keeping those commandments or any of the others for that matter. We are born sinful and can’t help ourselves. Our heart generates selfish thoughts, our temper flashes and words slip out cutting people to the quick. Our eyes are open and temptations just jump right in. Surely God can’t hold us responsible for something we can’t help. It just doesn’t seem very fair for God to demand perfection from someone who can’t be perfect.

The truth of it is though that God does hold us responsible. He goes so far to say that we should cut off the hand and pluck out the eye if they are causing us to sin. He isn’t saying to literally blind our maim ourselves. But he is saying that he takes sin seriously and that we need to accept responsibility for our thoughts and actions. He is saying to stop making excuses for our bad thoughts and behavior.

Our hearts need to be repaired and the only one that can repair them is Christ. The blood of Christ, that same blood we receive in the Lord’s Supper makes our heart righteous.

In the verse right before our Gospel reading for this morning he says that you cannot enter the kingdom of God unless you are more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees. Through his blood you are more righteous than the scribes and Pharisees. Sins, big outward ones and small inward ones of the heart are all washed away. Jesus’ blood has paid for every murderous thought and every harsh word, every affair and divorce, and every lustful look, every lie, and every promise that we broke.

Though our hearts are corrupt, God because of Jesus’ blood has declared us righteous. Our sins are forgiven. Christ’s blood has purified our hearts. He has made alive what was dead giving us eternal life.

And in giving us eternal life we have received the Holy Spirit to transform our hearts. And in that transformation a new heart, a new spirit is created in us. This new heart is righteous and pure even though it is living right alongside what remains of our old sinful heart. The joyous news is that this new righteous and pure heart is constantly communing with God thus enabling our hearts to produce pure thoughts and actions.

Our sinful nature continues to sin even while the new purified and righteous heart truly loves our neighbor, honors our spouse, and treat others with honesty and integrity. It all comes from the righteousness of Christ, a gift freely given to us. For in Christ you are the person God made you to be.

Now that we are Christ’s we don’t want to live like the old person anymore. That life has been nothing more than a vicious circle that has gotten us nowhere. No more excuses, no more finger pointing, no more thinking that we are better than others, all those outwardly righteous acts that we have done to make ourselves look good to others while inwardly thinking evil thoughts. It is time to give up all that stuff that has kept us from being all that God wants us to be, for in Christ we are a new people. Amen

In a few minutes we will partake of Christ’s very body and blood for forgiveness, salvation, and everlasting life. Father make us what we receive. Amen.