Title: Jesus came for sinners and He has found you!
Text Luke 15:1-10
5 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
When the Squalus crew realized they had taken their last dive and that they were lying helpless at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean 240 feet below the surface, they sent up smoke flares and a buoy. Would one of the sister ships find them, and if so could they be rescued? Their help must come from above, and in agonizing silence they waited.
Within an hour after that fatal dive the submarine Sculpin set out in search. In a few hours the red smudge was found, then the buoy. But 24 hours passed before actual rescue work could be started. A giant 10-ton diving bell dipped and rose again and again, each time taking several men alive from those awful depths, until all 33 men who were alive in the submarine had been rescued.
When that huge diving bell came for the Squalus crew not one sailor refused to be rescued, but all gladly accepted the way to safety. Will you not today accept God's way of salvation for you?
—Good News Tract.
Jesus came for sinners and joy in the good news that He has found you!
15 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
The charge against Jesus has always been harsh. “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” How might that reflect on you and me and those with whom we associate? Are you accused of being like those with whom you associate?
Interesting, is it not? Jesus came for sinners and that very fact has the Pharisees and scribes grumbling.
Ill.
Years ago in the distant eons of the 1970s I was playing at a club and a young Priest came with a friend of mine to hear us play. As we talked during a break he remarked, “I wonder what my parish would think of me hanging out in a bar and listening to a rock band.” And then he said, “It is probably the place I should be and the place I could do the most good.”
When you think about it … where did Jesus spend most of his time? And who did he spend that time with? For sure He was among the people, but here and in many other places in scripture He was with the Pharisees, rulers, scribes and the Jewish leaders teaching … and rebuking … and calling.
What does that say about sinners? They’re everywhere; in the church and out of the church. Those who are piously leading religious lives … or so the impression seems and those who are far away from God … at a bar … hanging out … or so the impression seems.
For Jesus and in His day the perceptions were the same. Some who seemed religious were not and those who were seen as sinners, as in the stories of tax collectors and adulterers, were those God called to faith and used as witnesses to the working of God, through the word, in their lives by His Spirit.
The joy is that there was a purpose for Christ’s coming and that is that:
Jesus came for sinners and He has found you!
3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?
Ill.
She was a young woman. She loved her husband. He died. She was lonely and distraught. She hired an airplane and placed in the fuel tank enough gasoline to take her far into the air and to sea. When the gas was consumed she would plunge into the sea and that would end her sad and lonely life. No one could trace her or find her. This must not be called suicide—this she insisted. It was just her way out; it was her exit. The newspapers and columnists com-mented on this tragic flight into what they called the "unknown." But there is no "unknown" to God, to whom all things are known (Psa. 139:7-12) Her body is in the sea, but this does not mean extinction, for the sea will give up its dead (Rev. 20:13). This woman who flew to the sea by way of the air did not find her husband.
—The Wonderful Word.
On the other hand, Jesus came for you, the one lost sheep just as each one of us are lost at birth. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save those that were lost.” (Luke 19:10) What the sinners need is Jesus Christ and His Word and Spirit in their lives; all else is hopeless.
Jesus came for sinners and He has found you!
5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
The place of strength … the high Priest’s shoulders is where the sheep is carried. In the Old Testament there is example of the making of the Ephod, which was an article of clothing worn by the High Priest of Israel:
6 “And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and of fine twined linen, skillfully worked. 7 It shall have two shoulder pieces attached to its two edges, so that it may be joined together …
9 You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, 10 six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the other stone, in the order of their birth …
12 And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the LORD on his two shoulders for remembrance. (Ex. 28:6-7, 9-10,12)
Jesus carries the lost sheep that have been found upon his shoulders we find as the parable continues.
6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
The joy of the Good Shepherd is you!
Jesus came for sinners and He came for you!
The joy for sinners is that you are not so lost that Jesus can’t find you. As He says in the parable of the lost coin:
8 “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, Greek - ten drachmas; a drachma was a Greek coin approximately equal in value to a Roman denarius, worth about a day's wage for a laborer if she loses one coin, the lost sheep or you does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? Jesus Christ by the working of His Holt Spirit will continue to seek you. 9 And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’
It is a joy to find what was important that was lost because as has been said:
Objects are lost because people look where they are not instead of where they are. Or, as might be said:
People are lost because we preach the gospel where they are not instead of where they are. 10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Jesus rejoices over sinners and He rejoices over you!
So just as our lesson began today:
5 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
Joy in the good news that Jesus is willing and able to meet sinners – you and me - where we are. He comes to you through the word preached and through the sacraments rightly administered and that is exceedingly good and blessed news. But He also is with you when the gospel of promise is used by you to reach those friends or strangers as a comforting balm for the hurting and sinfulness of this life … that breaks us and others … saying that the only way out is death and despair. The comfort of the gospel is there too because Jesus is the Gospel. He is the Good News. He is the comfort, and He is the Peace.
He will find the lost because He will never stop seeking you and those who need to hear this blessed joy that:
Christ came for sinners, and you dear friends … are found!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Monday, September 30, 2013
Monday, September 9, 2013
Sermon Sept. 7-8, 2013
Title: Christ kills sin and gives life in Him!
Text: Deut. 30:15-20
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.
19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, 20 loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
It has been said that the tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.
Richard L. Evans, Bits & Pieces, March 4, 1993, p. 2.
The truth is that we can do nothing to begin our life as God’s children but that God has called us by the Gospel, through word and sacrament, enlightened us with His gifts, creating faith in us to believe, and through this faith we trust in Him, who is and was and is to come … our Lord Jesus Christ:
Kills sin and gives life in Him!
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 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 in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
In our Old Testament lesson today we hear the very familiar call.
... choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
The idea of choosing sounds good to we who, living in a democratic society, get to choose quite a lot of things. We can choose where we live in the country, what career we might wish to go into and whom we marry. The call of … choose life … is often confused in the life of a Christian and applied to the work of evangelism as though we can choose to believe just as we can choose to be born.
The gift of life is both given in our natural birth as well as the gift of faith is given in our spiritual birth from a God who came to redeem those who were unable to redeem themselves and that is why the text here today is a good one for us to understand and rejoice in.
The call of God in this text is not to the world but to God’s people Israel. Those chosen children of Abraham whom Moses had given God’s Law written on the tablets of stone by the finger of God, were called by Him to choose to stay in the relationship with Him apart from falling away into sin, false gods and idol worship. This keeping of God’s commandments, statutes and rules would bring God’s blessing as they entered into the land that He was giving them to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.
What is given you by God in your call to faith is Life and blessing, the very same gift given to those hearers in our Old Testament lesson for today. But were they to fall away, just as some among us unfortunately fall away from the faith, what they would receive as a consequence of their actions would be only death and curse.
With God is Life and blessing apart from God is death and curse. The true nature of being born in sin is death but our Lord and Savior:
Jesus Christ kills sin and gives you life in Him!
How about you, how about me, how about our time in this life together? Does this call of God hit home for you?
Ill.
It does and it did for me here at church Wednesday morning. Vandalism of God’s house is no joy. It leaves you sick in your stomach for both what is done and also for those who did it. I arrived to the church at around 9:15 and as I got out of my truck I noticed black paint over the backside of the paper recycling bin with pictures and words of a sad and juvenile variety. I thought, “So this is what life has come to in Waterford, where a recycling bin is even defaced?" As I walked up to the church, spray painted in large letters was (blank) God. I'll let you fill in the blank. It covered most of the door. The attack was on the church, and the recycling bin was on church property and therefore part of the church. It broke my heart, not for the church and not for the doors as the church does not exist because of doors or buildings but for the lost who Christ calls to Himself. In the afternoon I went to Lowes and bought some paint thinner that was of the weakest variety I could find in hope of cleaning off the paint but knowing that the one who did this is angry and crying out for help, a help that is waiting in the loving arms of Jesus. We can clean up the mess and take proper action in the hope of keeping ourselves and the church property protected, but only God can clean the human heart of sin, hate and destruction. The death and curse of the human heart apart from God both kills the soul of the person clinging to sin but it touches and affects us all – seen this week in a real and unfortunately tangible way.
Ill.
Former member and Pastor of Lutheran Church of Christ the King, in Duluth Minnesota, John Wurst, just had the sad duty of seeing his church close after nearly 60 years of service to God’s people. As Pastor Wurst said in speaking with a reporter about the closing … “This building here it can't save us!" He pointed out that the loss of young families, who have moved away in the hope of finding work and those young people who have chosen to stay home rather than come to church are a large reason his church and many small churches are closing or could close in the future. The vandalism of our church and others is a cry for help and we dear friends have much work to do. Not only to show the love of Christ but to show that we, as His followers are truly loving, and wish to be a beacon of hope for the lost and that true and lasting hope is found only in our Lord and savior Jesus Christ and His gifts of word and sacrament. That is the true gift and something that we can all celebrate and share!
So vandalism, church closings, and the like are a result of sin and though it hurts and it stings when it happens to you as happened last Wednesday, God and His saving gospel will keep you in the blessed faith unto life everlasting in spite of the sickness of this life, corrupted and covered by sin.
Christ kills sin and gives new life in Him!
20 loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him,
Is the call that you and I are called to. It is the call that Janice Gallipo was called to in her service to the Lord. And we celebrate today, her service here at Peace and joy with her in her retirement. 40 years is a long time and no easy task. It takes hard work, talent and surely the Lord’s blessings. Jan had plenty of that and gave of herself to the Lord … but to each one of us here as well. Whether serving as organist or choir director, financial secretary or lay reader and I’m sure at many other service positions and functions here at Peace, we, God’s people gathered here at Peace, thank you! Our Lord and savior Jesus thanks you; because, as one of His children you have chosen life, and received both life and blessing, in Him. Well done good and faithful servant!
… or he is your life and length of days that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
That is the gift that He gives all His children that stay connected to Him. You are His and the Lord blesses you, giving life and peace to you in him.
Christ kills sin and gives life in Him!
As we celebrate Jan’s retirement, and another Rally Day here at Peace Lutheran Church of Waterford, celebrating our 50th year of service to Jesus and His gospel, we call all who have heard that gospel message to choose life! Because Christ has chosen you and He desires to keep you in the palm of His hand never to let you fall:
God Himself will keep you from stumbling and it is God Himself who will present you blameless when you enter into the presence of his glory. This, dear friends will bring you comfort and great joy, 25 because the only true God, who also is our Savior, and Lord Jesus Christ himself, has called you by the gospel and given you, His gifts, so that you have received His glory, and are covered by His righteousness, through His majesty, dominion, and authority, not for only now, but before all time and now and forever. Amen. (Jude 1:24-25)
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Text: Deut. 30:15-20
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.
19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, 20 loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
It has been said that the tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.
Richard L. Evans, Bits & Pieces, March 4, 1993, p. 2.
The truth is that we can do nothing to begin our life as God’s children but that God has called us by the Gospel, through word and sacrament, enlightened us with His gifts, creating faith in us to believe, and through this faith we trust in Him, who is and was and is to come … our Lord Jesus Christ:
Kills sin and gives life in Him!
15 “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. 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 in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.
In our Old Testament lesson today we hear the very familiar call.
... choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
The idea of choosing sounds good to we who, living in a democratic society, get to choose quite a lot of things. We can choose where we live in the country, what career we might wish to go into and whom we marry. The call of … choose life … is often confused in the life of a Christian and applied to the work of evangelism as though we can choose to believe just as we can choose to be born.
The gift of life is both given in our natural birth as well as the gift of faith is given in our spiritual birth from a God who came to redeem those who were unable to redeem themselves and that is why the text here today is a good one for us to understand and rejoice in.
The call of God in this text is not to the world but to God’s people Israel. Those chosen children of Abraham whom Moses had given God’s Law written on the tablets of stone by the finger of God, were called by Him to choose to stay in the relationship with Him apart from falling away into sin, false gods and idol worship. This keeping of God’s commandments, statutes and rules would bring God’s blessing as they entered into the land that He was giving them to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.
What is given you by God in your call to faith is Life and blessing, the very same gift given to those hearers in our Old Testament lesson for today. But were they to fall away, just as some among us unfortunately fall away from the faith, what they would receive as a consequence of their actions would be only death and curse.
With God is Life and blessing apart from God is death and curse. The true nature of being born in sin is death but our Lord and Savior:
Jesus Christ kills sin and gives you life in Him!
How about you, how about me, how about our time in this life together? Does this call of God hit home for you?
Ill.
It does and it did for me here at church Wednesday morning. Vandalism of God’s house is no joy. It leaves you sick in your stomach for both what is done and also for those who did it. I arrived to the church at around 9:15 and as I got out of my truck I noticed black paint over the backside of the paper recycling bin with pictures and words of a sad and juvenile variety. I thought, “So this is what life has come to in Waterford, where a recycling bin is even defaced?" As I walked up to the church, spray painted in large letters was (blank) God. I'll let you fill in the blank. It covered most of the door. The attack was on the church, and the recycling bin was on church property and therefore part of the church. It broke my heart, not for the church and not for the doors as the church does not exist because of doors or buildings but for the lost who Christ calls to Himself. In the afternoon I went to Lowes and bought some paint thinner that was of the weakest variety I could find in hope of cleaning off the paint but knowing that the one who did this is angry and crying out for help, a help that is waiting in the loving arms of Jesus. We can clean up the mess and take proper action in the hope of keeping ourselves and the church property protected, but only God can clean the human heart of sin, hate and destruction. The death and curse of the human heart apart from God both kills the soul of the person clinging to sin but it touches and affects us all – seen this week in a real and unfortunately tangible way.
Ill.
Former member and Pastor of Lutheran Church of Christ the King, in Duluth Minnesota, John Wurst, just had the sad duty of seeing his church close after nearly 60 years of service to God’s people. As Pastor Wurst said in speaking with a reporter about the closing … “This building here it can't save us!" He pointed out that the loss of young families, who have moved away in the hope of finding work and those young people who have chosen to stay home rather than come to church are a large reason his church and many small churches are closing or could close in the future. The vandalism of our church and others is a cry for help and we dear friends have much work to do. Not only to show the love of Christ but to show that we, as His followers are truly loving, and wish to be a beacon of hope for the lost and that true and lasting hope is found only in our Lord and savior Jesus Christ and His gifts of word and sacrament. That is the true gift and something that we can all celebrate and share!
So vandalism, church closings, and the like are a result of sin and though it hurts and it stings when it happens to you as happened last Wednesday, God and His saving gospel will keep you in the blessed faith unto life everlasting in spite of the sickness of this life, corrupted and covered by sin.
Christ kills sin and gives new life in Him!
20 loving the LORD your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him,
Is the call that you and I are called to. It is the call that Janice Gallipo was called to in her service to the Lord. And we celebrate today, her service here at Peace and joy with her in her retirement. 40 years is a long time and no easy task. It takes hard work, talent and surely the Lord’s blessings. Jan had plenty of that and gave of herself to the Lord … but to each one of us here as well. Whether serving as organist or choir director, financial secretary or lay reader and I’m sure at many other service positions and functions here at Peace, we, God’s people gathered here at Peace, thank you! Our Lord and savior Jesus thanks you; because, as one of His children you have chosen life, and received both life and blessing, in Him. Well done good and faithful servant!
… or he is your life and length of days that you may dwell in the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
That is the gift that He gives all His children that stay connected to Him. You are His and the Lord blesses you, giving life and peace to you in him.
Christ kills sin and gives life in Him!
As we celebrate Jan’s retirement, and another Rally Day here at Peace Lutheran Church of Waterford, celebrating our 50th year of service to Jesus and His gospel, we call all who have heard that gospel message to choose life! Because Christ has chosen you and He desires to keep you in the palm of His hand never to let you fall:
God Himself will keep you from stumbling and it is God Himself who will present you blameless when you enter into the presence of his glory. This, dear friends will bring you comfort and great joy, 25 because the only true God, who also is our Savior, and Lord Jesus Christ himself, has called you by the gospel and given you, His gifts, so that you have received His glory, and are covered by His righteousness, through His majesty, dominion, and authority, not for only now, but before all time and now and forever. Amen. (Jude 1:24-25)
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Sermon Aug 31-Sept 1, 2013
Title: In Christ your sin is covered and you are exalted!
Text: Luke 14:1-14
10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Anyone who travels to Edinburgh, Scotland will find Edinburgh castle a tower of seemingly insurmountable strength. But the truth is that the castle was once actually captured. The fortress had an obvious weak spot which defenders guarded--but because another spot was apparently protected by its steepness and impregnability, no sentries were ever posted there. At an opportune time, an attacking army sent a small band up that unguarded slope and surprised the garrison into surrender. Where the castle was strong, there it was weak.
Today in the Word, Feb 89, p. 36.
Humility, or pride and arrogance can drive the decisions that you make and though sin can cause you to try at times to reach places of honor for yourselves in this life. You can be comforted that:
In Christ your sin is covered and you are exalted!
7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him,
Ill.
Saturday night the 17th of August, Monica and I attended a wedding. It was for a young lady that had been in Monica’s Girl Scout Troop. There was beautiful weather and the wedding was outside in a nicely set up garden area with the reception afterward in the hall, decorated with linen and the finest food that you might expect - in this particular price range. It was a beautiful wedding!
As we entered the hall with tables throughout … we noticed a table with our name and a little heart symbol. As we walked through the hall we found our table, in the back and off to the left of the head table. And as you might expect, it wasn't the table of honor. That was reserved for the wedding party and the ones closest were reserved for the parents of the bride and groom, relatives and close friends. Monica and I and her friends Lori and Sheila were friends ... but not elevated to the level of family or very close and dear friends.
Had the table seating designations not been clearly visible, you can imagine just how confusing the seating might have been. Possibly even coming to us and asking if we could move to the back corner so that the bride’s parents and relatives could take the seats closer to the main table.
In our lesson today, Jesus was in the house of a Pharisee.
And as a guest Jesus had noticed just how those who had been invited, Pharisees and lawyers, were looking to have the seats of honor at this dinner. Ordinary, feasts of the Jews were usually attended to in a more casual and informal manner, but with this diner and in the wedding feast of Christ’s illustration, rank and status among the guests was important.
… do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, Jesus says.
I always found the irony in Jesus statement here, as an invited guest to this diner, as the only begotten Son the God … who could be more distinguished? Here, God in the flesh is among them, but as was read earlier in the Gospel, the ruler of the Pharisees and the lawyers who were in attendance had another agenda.
There just so happened to be a man with dropsy in attendance at this diner. Now, I looked up this medical condition reference and dropsy could be understood as the equivalent of congestive heart failure today.
We've all seen this condition in many of our friends, neighbors and relatives and Jesus, knowing the Law better than the Pharisees and lawyers, knows that it is quite alright to show acts of mercy on the Sabbath, so He heals the man, saying to those whose intent was to trap Him as a violator of the Law:
“Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?”
6 And to this question, they could not reply to these things.
So the intent of their false feast is crushed by Christ’s healing of the man with dropsy, but He doesn't stop there. He now points out the true arrogant nature of their sitting in the place of honor when one truly more distinguished than they … has been invited … and is now sitting among them.
The arrogant sinner will stand before the throne of grace covered in their own righteousness but:
In Christ your sin is covered and you are exalted!
You too exalt yourself at times; taking too much credit for things you’ve done in the world or in the church. You do … and I do. The sinner always minimizes sin and exaggerates virtue. It’s what sinners do. The sinner sees the sin of others clearly … in view … with no distractions. But, their own sin remains masked in a veil of acceptance, false piety - which is nothing more than the quality of being religious or reverent - or indifference.
Ill.
This past week, if you are unaware, it was MTV, their music awards and Miley Cyrus who captured the headlines. I didn’t see the show or her and really don’t care to. But I’ve been overwhelmed by the news of it on line, on facebook and through blogs and the like. It seems that she did something offensive to some or many depending on your perspective – a visual adaptation of a song of hers that is currently sitting at no. 3 on the Billboard charts. That means that it has been heard, seen and bought by quite a few; namely young, underage easily influenced girls and boys to young men who like seeing girls like Miley degrade themselves in this way with suggestive acts because it feeds some fantasy of their own, I guess.
The bloggers were ripe and all over this. As one mom blogger wrote:
Yes, this is what happens when you constantly hear everything you do is awesome. This is what happens when people fawn over your every Tweet and Instagram photo. This is what happens when no responsible adult has ever said the word “no,” made you change your clothes before leaving the house, or never spanked your butt for deliberate defiance.
http://roadkillgoldfish.com/2013/08/26/dear-daughter-let-miley-cyrus-be-a-lesson-to-you/
To another blogger who wrote:
“Ms. Miley paraded around on stage in a skimpy outfit, babbled a bunch of inane lyrics, sang off key, touched herself suggestively, gyrated in front of the crowd … with some of the other performers. In other words, it was a pretty routine evening of cable TV programming. It’s not that I don’t find her behavior offensive and crass (he says) — I do, very much so — it’s just that I’m always a little surprised by the folks who seem to be only selectively opposed to the moral decay of our culture. I’ve seen outraged parents on Twitter and Facebook swear that they “won’t allow their daughters to listen to Miley Cyrus anymore”.
Anymore? (He continues)
You do realize that little display last night was an accurate portrayal of the CONTENT of the actual song? … So you let your daughter listen to music that actively encourages her to … do these things, you just won’t let her see the visual?
He goes on to say:
I don’t think she should see it, either. But maybe we ought to think about the consequences of having that messaged hammered into our children’s brains every day, all day —
http://themattwalshblog.com/2013/08/26/offensive-absurd-and-pornographic-on-mtv-you-say-i-cant-believe-it/
So, the point is … that we, you and I, when we let sin deceive us, place our desire to not recognize sin for what it is, over and above God’s word … well, we just elevated sin to a place of honor, when someone more distinguished – the living, active and incarnate Word of God Himself, is among us and in us.
11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The truth of sin taking a place of honor in your life is nothing new. Luther called it the Bondage of the Will. That our will in and of itself is bound to sin and that is all it can do, but thanks be to God that because you have been raised to newness of life by God the Holy Spirit, there is truly Good News that:
In Christ your sin is covered and you – dear friends - are exalted!
So, Jesus goes up to the host, the ruler of the Pharisees, who had invited him and He says:
12 “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
Those who Christ came to redeem are the poor sinners, crippled from birth and lame, blind to God’s saving work in Christ if not drawn to believe through the invitation and working of God the Holy Spirit in them by faith.
You too, dear friends, have received this blessed invitation to His banquet feast and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb by faith. And today, you will receive a foretaste of this feast when you receive Christ’s true body and blood in the blessed table of the Lord, the Sacrament of the Altar – given and shed for you! It matters not which seat at the table you occupy because the host of this feast comes to where you are – bodily – in, with and under the bread and wine so that you truly receive Him, who is and was and is to come, in a real and tangible way – for the forgiveness of all your sins. Even though these sins, sill at times work havoc in our lives, they are forgiven as far as east is from the west … not to be remembered by the Father ever again.
In Christ … your sin is removed and you are forever exalted in Him!
Though, like the Edinburgh castle in Scotland … that had good defenses all around … its greatest defense was left unprotected and proved to be their downfall. You have a defense and a protection that will never fail because it is God Himself, not you, who will protect you because He came to live, suffer and die for each one of you and as a result you are his, the table is set, and you are invited, in fact you have already received all that is promised … rejoice!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Text: Luke 14:1-14
10 But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. 11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Anyone who travels to Edinburgh, Scotland will find Edinburgh castle a tower of seemingly insurmountable strength. But the truth is that the castle was once actually captured. The fortress had an obvious weak spot which defenders guarded--but because another spot was apparently protected by its steepness and impregnability, no sentries were ever posted there. At an opportune time, an attacking army sent a small band up that unguarded slope and surprised the garrison into surrender. Where the castle was strong, there it was weak.
Today in the Word, Feb 89, p. 36.
Humility, or pride and arrogance can drive the decisions that you make and though sin can cause you to try at times to reach places of honor for yourselves in this life. You can be comforted that:
In Christ your sin is covered and you are exalted!
7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he noticed how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him,
Ill.
Saturday night the 17th of August, Monica and I attended a wedding. It was for a young lady that had been in Monica’s Girl Scout Troop. There was beautiful weather and the wedding was outside in a nicely set up garden area with the reception afterward in the hall, decorated with linen and the finest food that you might expect - in this particular price range. It was a beautiful wedding!
As we entered the hall with tables throughout … we noticed a table with our name and a little heart symbol. As we walked through the hall we found our table, in the back and off to the left of the head table. And as you might expect, it wasn't the table of honor. That was reserved for the wedding party and the ones closest were reserved for the parents of the bride and groom, relatives and close friends. Monica and I and her friends Lori and Sheila were friends ... but not elevated to the level of family or very close and dear friends.
Had the table seating designations not been clearly visible, you can imagine just how confusing the seating might have been. Possibly even coming to us and asking if we could move to the back corner so that the bride’s parents and relatives could take the seats closer to the main table.
In our lesson today, Jesus was in the house of a Pharisee.
And as a guest Jesus had noticed just how those who had been invited, Pharisees and lawyers, were looking to have the seats of honor at this dinner. Ordinary, feasts of the Jews were usually attended to in a more casual and informal manner, but with this diner and in the wedding feast of Christ’s illustration, rank and status among the guests was important.
… do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, Jesus says.
I always found the irony in Jesus statement here, as an invited guest to this diner, as the only begotten Son the God … who could be more distinguished? Here, God in the flesh is among them, but as was read earlier in the Gospel, the ruler of the Pharisees and the lawyers who were in attendance had another agenda.
There just so happened to be a man with dropsy in attendance at this diner. Now, I looked up this medical condition reference and dropsy could be understood as the equivalent of congestive heart failure today.
We've all seen this condition in many of our friends, neighbors and relatives and Jesus, knowing the Law better than the Pharisees and lawyers, knows that it is quite alright to show acts of mercy on the Sabbath, so He heals the man, saying to those whose intent was to trap Him as a violator of the Law:
“Which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out?”
6 And to this question, they could not reply to these things.
So the intent of their false feast is crushed by Christ’s healing of the man with dropsy, but He doesn't stop there. He now points out the true arrogant nature of their sitting in the place of honor when one truly more distinguished than they … has been invited … and is now sitting among them.
The arrogant sinner will stand before the throne of grace covered in their own righteousness but:
In Christ your sin is covered and you are exalted!
You too exalt yourself at times; taking too much credit for things you’ve done in the world or in the church. You do … and I do. The sinner always minimizes sin and exaggerates virtue. It’s what sinners do. The sinner sees the sin of others clearly … in view … with no distractions. But, their own sin remains masked in a veil of acceptance, false piety - which is nothing more than the quality of being religious or reverent - or indifference.
Ill.
This past week, if you are unaware, it was MTV, their music awards and Miley Cyrus who captured the headlines. I didn’t see the show or her and really don’t care to. But I’ve been overwhelmed by the news of it on line, on facebook and through blogs and the like. It seems that she did something offensive to some or many depending on your perspective – a visual adaptation of a song of hers that is currently sitting at no. 3 on the Billboard charts. That means that it has been heard, seen and bought by quite a few; namely young, underage easily influenced girls and boys to young men who like seeing girls like Miley degrade themselves in this way with suggestive acts because it feeds some fantasy of their own, I guess.
The bloggers were ripe and all over this. As one mom blogger wrote:
Yes, this is what happens when you constantly hear everything you do is awesome. This is what happens when people fawn over your every Tweet and Instagram photo. This is what happens when no responsible adult has ever said the word “no,” made you change your clothes before leaving the house, or never spanked your butt for deliberate defiance.
http://roadkillgoldfish.com/2013/08/26/dear-daughter-let-miley-cyrus-be-a-lesson-to-you/
To another blogger who wrote:
“Ms. Miley paraded around on stage in a skimpy outfit, babbled a bunch of inane lyrics, sang off key, touched herself suggestively, gyrated in front of the crowd … with some of the other performers. In other words, it was a pretty routine evening of cable TV programming. It’s not that I don’t find her behavior offensive and crass (he says) — I do, very much so — it’s just that I’m always a little surprised by the folks who seem to be only selectively opposed to the moral decay of our culture. I’ve seen outraged parents on Twitter and Facebook swear that they “won’t allow their daughters to listen to Miley Cyrus anymore”.
Anymore? (He continues)
You do realize that little display last night was an accurate portrayal of the CONTENT of the actual song? … So you let your daughter listen to music that actively encourages her to … do these things, you just won’t let her see the visual?
He goes on to say:
I don’t think she should see it, either. But maybe we ought to think about the consequences of having that messaged hammered into our children’s brains every day, all day —
http://themattwalshblog.com/2013/08/26/offensive-absurd-and-pornographic-on-mtv-you-say-i-cant-believe-it/
So, the point is … that we, you and I, when we let sin deceive us, place our desire to not recognize sin for what it is, over and above God’s word … well, we just elevated sin to a place of honor, when someone more distinguished – the living, active and incarnate Word of God Himself, is among us and in us.
11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The truth of sin taking a place of honor in your life is nothing new. Luther called it the Bondage of the Will. That our will in and of itself is bound to sin and that is all it can do, but thanks be to God that because you have been raised to newness of life by God the Holy Spirit, there is truly Good News that:
In Christ your sin is covered and you – dear friends - are exalted!
So, Jesus goes up to the host, the ruler of the Pharisees, who had invited him and He says:
12 “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
Those who Christ came to redeem are the poor sinners, crippled from birth and lame, blind to God’s saving work in Christ if not drawn to believe through the invitation and working of God the Holy Spirit in them by faith.
You too, dear friends, have received this blessed invitation to His banquet feast and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb by faith. And today, you will receive a foretaste of this feast when you receive Christ’s true body and blood in the blessed table of the Lord, the Sacrament of the Altar – given and shed for you! It matters not which seat at the table you occupy because the host of this feast comes to where you are – bodily – in, with and under the bread and wine so that you truly receive Him, who is and was and is to come, in a real and tangible way – for the forgiveness of all your sins. Even though these sins, sill at times work havoc in our lives, they are forgiven as far as east is from the west … not to be remembered by the Father ever again.
In Christ … your sin is removed and you are forever exalted in Him!
Though, like the Edinburgh castle in Scotland … that had good defenses all around … its greatest defense was left unprotected and proved to be their downfall. You have a defense and a protection that will never fail because it is God Himself, not you, who will protect you because He came to live, suffer and die for each one of you and as a result you are his, the table is set, and you are invited, in fact you have already received all that is promised … rejoice!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Monday, August 26, 2013
Aug. 24-25,2013
Title: The Lord will gather you home … in Christ you are saved!
Text: Luke 13:22-30
29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The story is told of a new bank president who met with his predecessor and said, "I would like to know what have been the keys to your success." The older gentleman looked at him and replied, "Young man, I can sum it up in two words: Good decisions." To that the young man responded, "I thank you immensely for that advice, sir, but how does one come to know which are the good decisions?" "One word, young man," replied the sage. "Experience." "That's all well and good," said the younger, "but how does one get experience?" "Two words," said the elder. "Bad decisions."
Today In The Word, November, 1989, p.23.
When you think of the bad decisions you’ve made in your life and how you might approach those decisions now from the experience you’ve gained, it is comforting to know that even though you remain dead in your sin, Christ has made you alive and:
The Lord will gather you home … in Christ you are saved!
22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem.
As we’ve discussed over the last few months, Jesus was resolute on His way towards Jerusalem. He was not running there but was diligently going on about His business to get there. Along the way He did what He loved to do … teach!
As was the case with Jesus and His teaching and what happens often when teaching through the Bible, questions come to mind. Such was the case here. As Jesus went about His business someone in the crowd of followers who had been accompanying him says:
23 … “Lord, will those who are saved be few?”
Seems like a reasonable question. Who will be saved and how will it be determined? Again, as has been the case before, Jesus uses this question to answer and teach. The question might have been asked differently though, not so much, “will those saved be few”? But, will I be among them? This is how Jesus answers this important question.
And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
To those who see salvation as a cooperative act, it might seem to them that this work of striving is the work they do to enter in through this narrow door. Christ is the door of entrance and we can know this from the epistle of St. John the 10th chapter where Jesus says in verse 9:
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
Those who enter in do so by faith in Christ. Those who cannot enter have been trying to make their own way and the key they’ve been trying to use to unlock will not open the door because the key is faith in God’s only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Himself.
So Jesus gives this example in illustration:
25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’
What a harsh reality. The door will not open. No pleading, no solution, a bad decision that has no happy ending … though the experience learned is written in the bible for our learning … at the time of judgment some will be excluded for lack of making use of it. The Word of God and the working of the Holy Spirit have been active … but rejected.
Some here at Peace reject God’s gift too. They make little attempt to hear God’s word and reject His gift of faith in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. How sad to think that they too might hear, “I do not know where you come from.” To all who reject the gift of faith might not the cry be:
26 … ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’
The riches of temporal blessing and success or mere apathy blind the way to the cross for many.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer said:
The figure of (Jesus) the Crucified invalidates all thought which takes success for its standard.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Because as George MacDonald said:
"In whatever man does without God, he must fail miserably or succeed more miserably"
Warren W. Wiersbe, The Integrity Crisis, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, p. 42.
Don’t you see that whatever you do as a means to find justification in work, acts of love and caring, success in life, charity are nothing that can open the door to eternal life.
28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.
Those who hear Jesus hear the words of eternal life. Faith is created and the Kingdom is theirs. Those who in their sinfulness look to other means to open the door to salvation, apart from the means of grace of word and sacrament that God has ordained, will find the door locked and they themselves cast out.
Sobering to think about? You come to church … but only go through the motions and fail to trust the promises of God. Some have even stopped coming at all, thinking life too short or their life’s too busy for making time on Saturday or Sunday to be in worship. Especially, in the summer when the weather is so nice, like last weekend, and I too was even tempted to stay home and get a jump on the work I needed to do around the house. But Monica and I went to St. Augustine in Troy for their 11:00 am service to see my friend Paul and Pastor Paul Monson. Pastor Monson was on vacation but I had the joy of hearing his father Pastor Emeritus John Monson preach.
All the Emeriti pastors always bring a great message, as I’m sure you all heard here last week yourselves with Pastor Merrell handling the duties. But, I noticed at St. Augustine just as here at Peace, there seems to be a drop off in attendance during the summer months. Some, go away to the cottage, some attend elsewhere … if out of town, some get drawn away into the joys of summer and some … just lose interest and don’t come at all. Sad but true, and to some, who’ve been given the gift of faith by the working of the Holy Spirit will find no faith at all, in that day because it has died to the ways of the world.
But Christ still comforts:
29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The truth is that some will not enter because of lack of faith. Jesus tells the people that the door is opened by faith and He is that door. Trust in him is the key and it is the gift of faith which you can not earn but is a gift that is given freely by God’s Spirit so that you and all who believe can enter in.
Pastor Matt Harrison in his sermon at the National Youth Gathering referenced Martin Luther when he said:
Ill.
Luther says that all of us come to church as poor, miserable sinners with an empty sack. We have nothing to give God. We confess our sins and receive forgiveness – in the blessed absolution, a gift from God, which we put in our sack. Over and over in the service we receive gifts: grace, mercy, love, the Word of God … A multitude of blessings! All of these gifts go in our sacks. We leave the service with a sack over-flowing with good gifts from God. We take our gifts home, and we share all the goodies we received with our neighbor!
God gives His gifts to you. He forgives you. He blesses you and you receive His gifts from his word and through His sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. This He freely gives … to you. And He calls you to come, as you are to His house because you are His child and He wishes to bless … you.
God’s grace is nothing you deserve; it is nothing you can earn; and it is only received by faith in the finished work of Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit. And you have been given that gift of faith in Christ and you receive His forgiveness in Christ and you are His Child in Christ and you will enter through the door that is Christ Jesus … because of His call and work in you.
The Lord will gather you home … because, in Christ, you are saved!
As the sermon Hymn, so beautifully reminds us to:
Listen God is calling; Through His word inviting.
Offering forgiveness, comfort and joy!
To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence, without fault and with great joy - the benediction from All God’s People Sing says in comfort to us.
To which the congregation responds:
To the only God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, power and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forever more.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be and abide with you all now and forever.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Text: Luke 13:22-30
29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The story is told of a new bank president who met with his predecessor and said, "I would like to know what have been the keys to your success." The older gentleman looked at him and replied, "Young man, I can sum it up in two words: Good decisions." To that the young man responded, "I thank you immensely for that advice, sir, but how does one come to know which are the good decisions?" "One word, young man," replied the sage. "Experience." "That's all well and good," said the younger, "but how does one get experience?" "Two words," said the elder. "Bad decisions."
Today In The Word, November, 1989, p.23.
When you think of the bad decisions you’ve made in your life and how you might approach those decisions now from the experience you’ve gained, it is comforting to know that even though you remain dead in your sin, Christ has made you alive and:
The Lord will gather you home … in Christ you are saved!
22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem.
As we’ve discussed over the last few months, Jesus was resolute on His way towards Jerusalem. He was not running there but was diligently going on about His business to get there. Along the way He did what He loved to do … teach!
As was the case with Jesus and His teaching and what happens often when teaching through the Bible, questions come to mind. Such was the case here. As Jesus went about His business someone in the crowd of followers who had been accompanying him says:
23 … “Lord, will those who are saved be few?”
Seems like a reasonable question. Who will be saved and how will it be determined? Again, as has been the case before, Jesus uses this question to answer and teach. The question might have been asked differently though, not so much, “will those saved be few”? But, will I be among them? This is how Jesus answers this important question.
And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.
To those who see salvation as a cooperative act, it might seem to them that this work of striving is the work they do to enter in through this narrow door. Christ is the door of entrance and we can know this from the epistle of St. John the 10th chapter where Jesus says in verse 9:
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
Those who enter in do so by faith in Christ. Those who cannot enter have been trying to make their own way and the key they’ve been trying to use to unlock will not open the door because the key is faith in God’s only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, Himself.
So Jesus gives this example in illustration:
25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’
What a harsh reality. The door will not open. No pleading, no solution, a bad decision that has no happy ending … though the experience learned is written in the bible for our learning … at the time of judgment some will be excluded for lack of making use of it. The Word of God and the working of the Holy Spirit have been active … but rejected.
Some here at Peace reject God’s gift too. They make little attempt to hear God’s word and reject His gift of faith in the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. How sad to think that they too might hear, “I do not know where you come from.” To all who reject the gift of faith might not the cry be:
26 … ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’
The riches of temporal blessing and success or mere apathy blind the way to the cross for many.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer said:
The figure of (Jesus) the Crucified invalidates all thought which takes success for its standard.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
Because as George MacDonald said:
"In whatever man does without God, he must fail miserably or succeed more miserably"
Warren W. Wiersbe, The Integrity Crisis, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, p. 42.
Don’t you see that whatever you do as a means to find justification in work, acts of love and caring, success in life, charity are nothing that can open the door to eternal life.
28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.
Those who hear Jesus hear the words of eternal life. Faith is created and the Kingdom is theirs. Those who in their sinfulness look to other means to open the door to salvation, apart from the means of grace of word and sacrament that God has ordained, will find the door locked and they themselves cast out.
Sobering to think about? You come to church … but only go through the motions and fail to trust the promises of God. Some have even stopped coming at all, thinking life too short or their life’s too busy for making time on Saturday or Sunday to be in worship. Especially, in the summer when the weather is so nice, like last weekend, and I too was even tempted to stay home and get a jump on the work I needed to do around the house. But Monica and I went to St. Augustine in Troy for their 11:00 am service to see my friend Paul and Pastor Paul Monson. Pastor Monson was on vacation but I had the joy of hearing his father Pastor Emeritus John Monson preach.
All the Emeriti pastors always bring a great message, as I’m sure you all heard here last week yourselves with Pastor Merrell handling the duties. But, I noticed at St. Augustine just as here at Peace, there seems to be a drop off in attendance during the summer months. Some, go away to the cottage, some attend elsewhere … if out of town, some get drawn away into the joys of summer and some … just lose interest and don’t come at all. Sad but true, and to some, who’ve been given the gift of faith by the working of the Holy Spirit will find no faith at all, in that day because it has died to the ways of the world.
But Christ still comforts:
29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
The truth is that some will not enter because of lack of faith. Jesus tells the people that the door is opened by faith and He is that door. Trust in him is the key and it is the gift of faith which you can not earn but is a gift that is given freely by God’s Spirit so that you and all who believe can enter in.
Pastor Matt Harrison in his sermon at the National Youth Gathering referenced Martin Luther when he said:
Ill.
Luther says that all of us come to church as poor, miserable sinners with an empty sack. We have nothing to give God. We confess our sins and receive forgiveness – in the blessed absolution, a gift from God, which we put in our sack. Over and over in the service we receive gifts: grace, mercy, love, the Word of God … A multitude of blessings! All of these gifts go in our sacks. We leave the service with a sack over-flowing with good gifts from God. We take our gifts home, and we share all the goodies we received with our neighbor!
God gives His gifts to you. He forgives you. He blesses you and you receive His gifts from his word and through His sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. This He freely gives … to you. And He calls you to come, as you are to His house because you are His child and He wishes to bless … you.
God’s grace is nothing you deserve; it is nothing you can earn; and it is only received by faith in the finished work of Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit. And you have been given that gift of faith in Christ and you receive His forgiveness in Christ and you are His Child in Christ and you will enter through the door that is Christ Jesus … because of His call and work in you.
The Lord will gather you home … because, in Christ, you are saved!
As the sermon Hymn, so beautifully reminds us to:
Listen God is calling; Through His word inviting.
Offering forgiveness, comfort and joy!
To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence, without fault and with great joy - the benediction from All God’s People Sing says in comfort to us.
To which the congregation responds:
To the only God, our Savior, be glory, majesty, power and authority through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forever more.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be and abide with you all now and forever.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Sermon Aug. 10-11, 2013
Title: Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
Text: Luke 12:22-34
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
During his years as premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev denounced many of the policies and atrocities of Joseph Stalin. Once, as he censured Stalin in a public meeting, Khrushchev was interrupted by a shout from a heckler in the audience. "You were one of Stalin's colleagues. Why didn't you stop him?""Who said that?" roared Khrushchev. An agonizing silence followed as nobody in the room dared move a muscle. Then Khrushchev replied quietly, "Now you know why."
Today in the Word, July 13, 1993.
We have all had to deal with fear in our life, some real and some imagined but we can all have joy and be comforted that:
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
Sounds good! If you are well fed and clothed you have little for the devil to use to torment and bring anxiety over. As Jesus talks to His disciples in particular the bigger picture of His warning is applied to all people generally.
The examples that Jesus give are common to our everyday lives.
24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
Ill.
The week of VBS I built a bird feeder. My wife’s friend Laurie had her husband make this for her out of two pressure treated 4x4. The design is simple and uses a 10” lag screw drilled through 4x4s cut at 4 foot lengths crossed at the center and set a lot the vertical 8’ 4x4 that is placed into a post holder spike that keeps the whole thing vertical. It’s a simple design that I copied and constructed in my backyard allowing 4-6 feeders to draw and large number and variety of birds from Chickadees, to Blue Jays and Hummingbirds to feed. We even had a Wood Pecker.
I bought a variety of seed and suet cakes and as things got depleted I would rush to get the feeders filled again … thinking that if I didn’t get them filled that the birds might go hungry …
The reality of these birds being fed by me is nothing more than a convenience that God is using to allow me to enjoy these creatures of His creation. The birds are fed by God’s design whether from food provided by my feeder or the natural food that they find in their habitat as they fly from place to place.
Jesus reminds the disciples and you as well when He says:
25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?
Ill.
The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety!
George Muller Massena, one of Napoleon's generals, suddenly appeared with 18,000 soldiers before an Austrian town which had no means of defending itself. The town council met certain that capitulation was the only answer. The old dean of the church reminded the council that it was Easter, and begged them to hold services as usual and to leave the trouble in God's hands. They followed his advice. The dean went to the church and rang the bells to announce the service. The French soldiers heard the church bells ring and concluded that the Austrian army had come to rescue the town. They broke camp, and before the bells had ceased ringing, vanished.
Source Unknown.
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
You fear as I do it is a natural part of who we are as sinners. Why do we concern ourselves with that which we cannot control? For many, when young, it involves boyfriends, girlfriends and marriage. Why not me, why not now, does God not hear my prayers? Anxiety, worry, concern and sadness all come into your thoughts day and night and you let these thoughts, at times, suck the joy out of our daily existence. Especially when friends and family seem to have all these things fall right in place.
Lord! Don’t you care? This might be the common plea, out of frustration and worry. Always the bridesmaid … but never the bride, or so she thought.
Adrianne Dorr who is managing editor of the Lutheran Witness thought so too. In her late 20’s, she began doubting if marriage would be for her. Or as she laments:
Ill.
“Sometimes, when you’re single, you doubt the Lord’s goodness. You forget that there is a difference between being alone and being lonely. You pray fervently for a pious spouse. And then you stop praying, sure that the Lord’s good gift of marriage is not for you.”
“You resign yourself to a life you didn't imagine, one you didn't want. And then, in His perfect time and in His perfect way, the Lord gives you the perfect gift. And, in this case, that gift was a 6’2 Lutheran dairy farmer, one who had been praying and waiting himself. And when that happens, you just can’t help but kick your heels up a little. Because when the Lord does something, He does it well. When He sees you through all broken hearts, all the tearful calls to your mother, all the whining to your sisters and your best friend, all the sighs, all the Valentine’s Days, He does it in style.”
“Because His plan is always good and perfect and best.
Despite the evidence.
Despite proof of the opposite.
Despite your feelings
And you wonder why you ever doubted.”
http://letitstet.wordpress.com/2013/08/02/the-lords-goodness/
27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
There is only one thing which should be the object of anxious search and that is the kingdom of God.
To be a member of this kingdom, to have and keep true faith in the heart, through which such membership is insured, that is the one fact which should give every Christian his chief concern, on account of which he daily prays the Second Petition – Thy kingdom come!
All the other things that are necessary for the sustaining of life are added without worry or care, by the providence of God.
P.E. Kretzmann, pg. 336
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Jesus Christ has given you the Kingdom in Him. From the “little flock” of the disciples and through simple means of the word of promise God gives the Kingdom to those whom He desires to. So Christ tells them:
33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The desires of the heart towards God in faith cannot be destroyed. Giving to the needs of others and not being consumed with the things of this world opens the treasure of heaven, Jesus Christ, by faith. No thief can take that away because you are in the hands of Christ Jesus as He promises in John 10:28:
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
Though the world at times tries to keep you quiet in fear, as Nikita Khrushchev did to those who questioned him, God has set you free of that fear by faith in the finished work of His Son who calls to His side, covers you with His righteousness and comforts you with the Good News that the Kingdom of Heaven is yours – in Christ!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Text: Luke 12:22-34
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
During his years as premier of the Soviet Union, Nikita Khrushchev denounced many of the policies and atrocities of Joseph Stalin. Once, as he censured Stalin in a public meeting, Khrushchev was interrupted by a shout from a heckler in the audience. "You were one of Stalin's colleagues. Why didn't you stop him?""Who said that?" roared Khrushchev. An agonizing silence followed as nobody in the room dared move a muscle. Then Khrushchev replied quietly, "Now you know why."
Today in the Word, July 13, 1993.
We have all had to deal with fear in our life, some real and some imagined but we can all have joy and be comforted that:
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
22 And he said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. 23 For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
Sounds good! If you are well fed and clothed you have little for the devil to use to torment and bring anxiety over. As Jesus talks to His disciples in particular the bigger picture of His warning is applied to all people generally.
The examples that Jesus give are common to our everyday lives.
24 Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds!
Ill.
The week of VBS I built a bird feeder. My wife’s friend Laurie had her husband make this for her out of two pressure treated 4x4. The design is simple and uses a 10” lag screw drilled through 4x4s cut at 4 foot lengths crossed at the center and set a lot the vertical 8’ 4x4 that is placed into a post holder spike that keeps the whole thing vertical. It’s a simple design that I copied and constructed in my backyard allowing 4-6 feeders to draw and large number and variety of birds from Chickadees, to Blue Jays and Hummingbirds to feed. We even had a Wood Pecker.
I bought a variety of seed and suet cakes and as things got depleted I would rush to get the feeders filled again … thinking that if I didn’t get them filled that the birds might go hungry …
The reality of these birds being fed by me is nothing more than a convenience that God is using to allow me to enjoy these creatures of His creation. The birds are fed by God’s design whether from food provided by my feeder or the natural food that they find in their habitat as they fly from place to place.
Jesus reminds the disciples and you as well when He says:
25 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 26 If then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest?
Ill.
The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety!
George Muller Massena, one of Napoleon's generals, suddenly appeared with 18,000 soldiers before an Austrian town which had no means of defending itself. The town council met certain that capitulation was the only answer. The old dean of the church reminded the council that it was Easter, and begged them to hold services as usual and to leave the trouble in God's hands. They followed his advice. The dean went to the church and rang the bells to announce the service. The French soldiers heard the church bells ring and concluded that the Austrian army had come to rescue the town. They broke camp, and before the bells had ceased ringing, vanished.
Source Unknown.
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
You fear as I do it is a natural part of who we are as sinners. Why do we concern ourselves with that which we cannot control? For many, when young, it involves boyfriends, girlfriends and marriage. Why not me, why not now, does God not hear my prayers? Anxiety, worry, concern and sadness all come into your thoughts day and night and you let these thoughts, at times, suck the joy out of our daily existence. Especially when friends and family seem to have all these things fall right in place.
Lord! Don’t you care? This might be the common plea, out of frustration and worry. Always the bridesmaid … but never the bride, or so she thought.
Adrianne Dorr who is managing editor of the Lutheran Witness thought so too. In her late 20’s, she began doubting if marriage would be for her. Or as she laments:
Ill.
“Sometimes, when you’re single, you doubt the Lord’s goodness. You forget that there is a difference between being alone and being lonely. You pray fervently for a pious spouse. And then you stop praying, sure that the Lord’s good gift of marriage is not for you.”
“You resign yourself to a life you didn't imagine, one you didn't want. And then, in His perfect time and in His perfect way, the Lord gives you the perfect gift. And, in this case, that gift was a 6’2 Lutheran dairy farmer, one who had been praying and waiting himself. And when that happens, you just can’t help but kick your heels up a little. Because when the Lord does something, He does it well. When He sees you through all broken hearts, all the tearful calls to your mother, all the whining to your sisters and your best friend, all the sighs, all the Valentine’s Days, He does it in style.”
“Because His plan is always good and perfect and best.
Despite the evidence.
Despite proof of the opposite.
Despite your feelings
And you wonder why you ever doubted.”
http://letitstet.wordpress.com/2013/08/02/the-lords-goodness/
27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 28 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! 29 And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 30 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 31 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.
There is only one thing which should be the object of anxious search and that is the kingdom of God.
To be a member of this kingdom, to have and keep true faith in the heart, through which such membership is insured, that is the one fact which should give every Christian his chief concern, on account of which he daily prays the Second Petition – Thy kingdom come!
All the other things that are necessary for the sustaining of life are added without worry or care, by the providence of God.
P.E. Kretzmann, pg. 336
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Jesus Christ has given you the Kingdom in Him. From the “little flock” of the disciples and through simple means of the word of promise God gives the Kingdom to those whom He desires to. So Christ tells them:
33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
The desires of the heart towards God in faith cannot be destroyed. Giving to the needs of others and not being consumed with the things of this world opens the treasure of heaven, Jesus Christ, by faith. No thief can take that away because you are in the hands of Christ Jesus as He promises in John 10:28:
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand
Christ removes all fear through trust in Him!
Though the world at times tries to keep you quiet in fear, as Nikita Khrushchev did to those who questioned him, God has set you free of that fear by faith in the finished work of His Son who calls to His side, covers you with His righteousness and comforts you with the Good News that the Kingdom of Heaven is yours – in Christ!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Sermon Aug 3-4, 2013
Title: Christ gives you all things in Him!
Text: Luke 12:13-21
15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
The Bible defines worldliness by centering morality where we intuitively know it should be. Worldliness is the lust of the flesh (a passion for sensual satisfaction), the lust of the eyes (an inordinate desire for the finer things of life), and the pride of life (self-satisfaction in who we are, what we have, and what we have done).
Worldliness, then, is a preoccupation with ease and affluence. It elevates creature comfort to the point of idolatry; large salaries and comfortable life-styles … become necessities of life.
Dave Roper, The Strength of a Man, quoted in Family Survival in the American Jungle, Steve Farrar, 1991, Multnomah Press, p. 68.
In life there are necessities and the Lord desires to give you good things, but also warns that when the focus of life becomes the things we covet and desire we need to be reminded that:
Christ gives you all things in Him!
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Jesus had just been talking to the crowd about the leaven of the Pharisees and their hypocrisy, not to fear those who kill the body but fear the one who has the authority to cast into hell and to acknowledge the Christ before men so that Jesus will also acknowledge them before His Father in Heaven.
This is pretty heady stuff about life, death and your eternal security … right?
And from the crowd someone yells out in interruption, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Sounds whiny to me and like this guy hadn’t really been listening to what Jesus had been talking about all along. So, as interruptions go Jesus replies:
14 “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?”
Now, I don’t know about you because the Bible doesn’t necessarily give us a sense of how Jesus might have responded but every time I’ve read this response from our Lord I always get a sense to read it as …
14 “Man! … who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?”
I hear just a little bit of emphasis on “Haven’t you heard a thing I've been saying?” “I’m talking about eternal security and your thinking about temporal blessings?”
And then the Lord gives him and the crowd this little reminder:
15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
Now, that might have been enough to sit the interrupter down. But the Lord decides to use this interruption as an opportunity to teach by parable or a story, and illustration if you will, what covetousness can ultimately lead to.
Ill.
A young banker was driving his BMW, in the mountains, during a snowstorm. As he rounded a turn the vehicle slid out of control and toward a cliff. At the last moment he unbuckled his seatbelt and jumped from the car. Though he escaped with his life, his left arm was caught near the hinge of the door and torn it off at the shoulder.
A trucker passing nearby witnessed the accident, stopped his rig, and ran back to see if he could be of help. There standing, in a state of shock, was the banker at the edge of the cliff moaning, "Oh no, my BMW, my BMW.” The trucker pointed to the banker’s shoulder and said "man you’ve got bigger problems than a car".
With that the banker looked at his shoulder, finally realizing he’d lost his arm, and began crying "Oh No, my Rolex, my new Rolex!”
Now, Jesus’ parable gets to the meat of the matter. What shall I do with all my stuff for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods, my BMW and my Rolex 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; nice home, 60” flat screen, house on the lake and even a boat, relax, eat, drink, be merry.”
Have you been there? Have you let the desires of the world keep you from the true joy of faith in Christ?
Christ gives you all things in Him!
God knows you have. It seems that no sooner than the acquisition of the next thing on the demand schedule than you and I are off with our eyes set on the next need. The sinful nature can do that. That is why we are warned in the 9th and 10th commandments not to covet your neighbor’s house and wife, manservant and maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
I had a real bout of coveting that I had to deal with this summer. Every time I saw one I had to have it. I had one before, but over the last 5-6 years I did without, but the fever started to get really bad. I needed a riding mower!
Oh I have one … it just didn’t work. It started blowing white smoke about 6 years ago and I put it in the shed. You see my son cut the grass and he just walked the self-propelled push mower over the yard. After he graduated college it became my job to cut the lawn again and I started to fix up the rider, as I sweated through walking the whole yard … a daunting task!
But, there were issues with my rider that I couldn’t figure out, so my eyes started wandering. John Deere, Craftsman, Wheel Horse, Toro, Cub Cadet, you name it, I wanted it; even dreamed about sitting down and mowing. I went and looked at a few … convinced Monica that a $500 used rider would do. I even drove to Livonia to look at one! I was finally put in touch with a man that could fix mine. He found that I needed the carburetor rebuilt - something he said that looked like solid Amber was in there and I needed two new blades. $86 later and I’m in heaven. But you can see how things can pull you into the worldly spell of stuff.
Back in 1981 George Carlin did a piece called “Stuff” that hits the nail on the head. He said in part:
So when you get right down to it, your house is nothing more than a place to keep your stuff … while you go out and get … more stuff!
George Carlin 1981
It’s funny because the irony that he uses is true; exaggerated but true. We all fall victim to this need for stuff. And when we get the stuff we want … we want more stuff. That is what Jesus said in the parable when he brought it to its logical conclusion:
20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself (all that stuff) and is not rich toward God.”
The Good News is that:
Christ gives you all things in Him!
Jesus knows that you need … stuff. He desires to give you the desires of your heart. Last week he promised that:
13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
He has given His Son to die for you and has made you heirs along with Christ. You have all things good given to you. In Christ you have an eternity that will never end. For your sake Jesus has conquered sin and death and has triumphed over the devil, just for you. You have been adopted and our sons and daughters of your Heavenly Father.
While the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life can cloud your view of the Kingdom. God has given you clear vision through Baptism as you have been washed clean and marked as one redeemed by Christ the crucified!
Christ gives you all things in Him!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Sermon July 27-28, 2013
Title: The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Text: Luke 11:9-13
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
In Valladolid, Spain, where Christopher Columbus died in 1506, stands a monument commemorating the great discoverer. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the memorial is a statue of a lion destroying one of the Latin words that had been part of Spain's motto for centuries. Before Columbus made his voyages, the Spaniards thought they had reached the outer limits of earth. Thus their motto was "Ne Plus Ultra," which means "No More Beyond." The word being torn away by the lion is "Ne" or "no," making it read "Plus Ultra." Columbus had proven that there was indeed "more beyond."
Source Unknown.
Columbus didn’t take NO for an answer and neither should you; 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Because:
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Our Gospel lesson today begins with our Lord in prayer … a practice that we know from the scriptures, that He did very often. Most of us know that prayer is – conversation with God – we talk to God about our needs and wants but find it hard at times to know how or for what to pray. This leads to the disciples in our lesson asking Jesus to teach them to pray and His giving of the Lord’s Prayer.
Martin Luther the great reformer was also asked by his barber, Master Peter Beskensdorf, how he prays? Luther, not one for quick or short answers in spite of all that consumed his time gave his barber a reply … a letter of 40 printed pages! Titled “A Simple Way to Pray”, Luther delved into the his deep understanding of prayer and all that the world, the flesh and the devil work at to keep you away for prayer and your conversation with God.
Jesus teaches his disciples:
“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread,
4 and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”
Martin Luther begins his letter to Master Peter by focusing on what he needs to do to be skilled at his vocation as a barber.
Luther says:
A good clever barber must have his thoughts, mind and eyes concentrated upon the razor and the beard and not forget where he is in his stroke and shave. If he keeps talking or looking around or thinking of something else, he is likely to cut a man’s mouth or nose – or even his throat. So anything that is to be done well ought to occupy the whole man with all his faculties and members. As the saying goes, He who thinks of many things thinks of nothing and accomplishes no good. How much more must prayer possess the heart exclusively and completely if it is to be a good prayer!
Jesus says:
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Because:
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Prayer is a beautiful thing but one that has many obstacles.
Ill.
The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.
So says C.S. Lewis about prayer:
C.S. Lewis
You know you miss the mark when you pray. So do I … and it is one of the things that I resolved to do and to be better at after my visit to the Doxology conference in June. Prayer is something that must be done by you and by me as Jesus tells us to ask … than to seek … and finally to knock.
Luther continues his letter to his barber with this:
It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business in the morning and the last in the evening. Guard yourself against such false and deceitful thoughts that keep whispering: Wait a while. In an hour or so I will pray. I must first finish this or that. Thinking such thoughts we get away from prayer into other things that will hold us and involve us till the prayer of the day comes to naught. (Or becomes nothing)
You can’t know your heavenly father without communing with Him. This is done by prayer as you ask, seek and knock and by hearing his word of reply as you partake of weekly worship, hearing the Lord’s word of Law and Gospel but truly being comforted by the holy absolution given by God through his means of word and sacrament.
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Ill.
Last Sunday Pastor Merrell and I went to the ordination and installation of the Rev. Martin Dressler as pastor of Christ Lutheran Church in Milford. It was a beautiful service with wonderful music, much singing and prayer.
When God calls a pastor to His church He is calling a pastor to be His representative, called through the congregation to bring Christ and His gifts to His people. It was joyful to see so many pastors in attendance on a beautiful summer Sunday in July. Lifting up Martin in prayer for what God was calling him to do in service to Christ’s church in Milford.
As we think about our Lord’s words again in the Gospel for today regarding prayer:
11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
The Holy Spirit was given in abundance at this ordination because God wishes to richly bless His people with His gifts and the most blessed gift you can have is the gift of the Holy Spirit given to you who works in you, faith in Christ’s finished work and keeps you pointed to Him so that on the last day you may stand firm in that faith unto life everlasting.
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
And by the Holy Spirit’s work in you from our epistle reading today bring the joyful gift of prayer to the Lord’s logical conclusion when it says:
10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 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, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
Rejoice! You who are loved by the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
When you were born in sin the devil would have placed a sign upon your forehead that like the opening illustration might have read "Ne Plus Ultra," which means "No More Beyond." You are dead in sin and dead you will stay. But, God in Christ, like that lion has ripped the word “no” from your sin and has given you His heavenly home through the cross that He endured for you, so that in Him you might have an eternity 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Text: Luke 11:9-13
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
In Valladolid, Spain, where Christopher Columbus died in 1506, stands a monument commemorating the great discoverer. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the memorial is a statue of a lion destroying one of the Latin words that had been part of Spain's motto for centuries. Before Columbus made his voyages, the Spaniards thought they had reached the outer limits of earth. Thus their motto was "Ne Plus Ultra," which means "No More Beyond." The word being torn away by the lion is "Ne" or "no," making it read "Plus Ultra." Columbus had proven that there was indeed "more beyond."
Source Unknown.
Columbus didn’t take NO for an answer and neither should you; 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Because:
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Our Gospel lesson today begins with our Lord in prayer … a practice that we know from the scriptures, that He did very often. Most of us know that prayer is – conversation with God – we talk to God about our needs and wants but find it hard at times to know how or for what to pray. This leads to the disciples in our lesson asking Jesus to teach them to pray and His giving of the Lord’s Prayer.
Martin Luther the great reformer was also asked by his barber, Master Peter Beskensdorf, how he prays? Luther, not one for quick or short answers in spite of all that consumed his time gave his barber a reply … a letter of 40 printed pages! Titled “A Simple Way to Pray”, Luther delved into the his deep understanding of prayer and all that the world, the flesh and the devil work at to keep you away for prayer and your conversation with God.
Jesus teaches his disciples:
“Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
3 Give us each day our daily bread,
4 and forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And lead us not into temptation.”
Martin Luther begins his letter to Master Peter by focusing on what he needs to do to be skilled at his vocation as a barber.
Luther says:
A good clever barber must have his thoughts, mind and eyes concentrated upon the razor and the beard and not forget where he is in his stroke and shave. If he keeps talking or looking around or thinking of something else, he is likely to cut a man’s mouth or nose – or even his throat. So anything that is to be done well ought to occupy the whole man with all his faculties and members. As the saying goes, He who thinks of many things thinks of nothing and accomplishes no good. How much more must prayer possess the heart exclusively and completely if it is to be a good prayer!
Jesus says:
9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Because:
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Prayer is a beautiful thing but one that has many obstacles.
Ill.
The moment you wake up each morning, all your wishes and hopes for the day rush at you like wild animals. And the first job each morning consists in shoving it all back; in listening to that other voice, taking that other point of view, letting that other, larger, stronger, quieter life come flowing in.
So says C.S. Lewis about prayer:
C.S. Lewis
You know you miss the mark when you pray. So do I … and it is one of the things that I resolved to do and to be better at after my visit to the Doxology conference in June. Prayer is something that must be done by you and by me as Jesus tells us to ask … than to seek … and finally to knock.
Luther continues his letter to his barber with this:
It is a good thing to let prayer be the first business in the morning and the last in the evening. Guard yourself against such false and deceitful thoughts that keep whispering: Wait a while. In an hour or so I will pray. I must first finish this or that. Thinking such thoughts we get away from prayer into other things that will hold us and involve us till the prayer of the day comes to naught. (Or becomes nothing)
You can’t know your heavenly father without communing with Him. This is done by prayer as you ask, seek and knock and by hearing his word of reply as you partake of weekly worship, hearing the Lord’s word of Law and Gospel but truly being comforted by the holy absolution given by God through his means of word and sacrament.
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
Ill.
Last Sunday Pastor Merrell and I went to the ordination and installation of the Rev. Martin Dressler as pastor of Christ Lutheran Church in Milford. It was a beautiful service with wonderful music, much singing and prayer.
When God calls a pastor to His church He is calling a pastor to be His representative, called through the congregation to bring Christ and His gifts to His people. It was joyful to see so many pastors in attendance on a beautiful summer Sunday in July. Lifting up Martin in prayer for what God was calling him to do in service to Christ’s church in Milford.
As we think about our Lord’s words again in the Gospel for today regarding prayer:
11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
The Holy Spirit was given in abundance at this ordination because God wishes to richly bless His people with His gifts and the most blessed gift you can have is the gift of the Holy Spirit given to you who works in you, faith in Christ’s finished work and keeps you pointed to Him so that on the last day you may stand firm in that faith unto life everlasting.
The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ … loves you!
And by the Holy Spirit’s work in you from our epistle reading today bring the joyful gift of prayer to the Lord’s logical conclusion when it says:
10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 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, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
Rejoice! You who are loved by the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
When you were born in sin the devil would have placed a sign upon your forehead that like the opening illustration might have read "Ne Plus Ultra," which means "No More Beyond." You are dead in sin and dead you will stay. But, God in Christ, like that lion has ripped the word “no” from your sin and has given you His heavenly home through the cross that He endured for you, so that in Him you might have an eternity 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
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