Here are the particulars for worship on Feb. 28th.
Hymns
725 Children of the Heavenly Father
The Hen Her Brood (a hymn about the Gospel lesson to the tune for When I Survey the Wondrous Cross- 425)
708 Lord, Thee I Love With All My Heart
728 How Firm a Foundation
Scripture Lessons
Jeremiah 26:8-15
Psalm 4
Philippians 3:17-4:1
Luke 13:31-35
Collect of the Day
O God, You see that of ourselves we have no strength. By Your mighty power defend us from all adversities that may happen to the body and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Midweek Lenten Service- I'm being true to myself
Midweek Lenten Service 2
Feb. 24, 2010
1 Peter 1:22-25
I'm being true to myself
In the name of Jesus, amen. Identity is something that is both easy and hard to understand. And it is also something that rapidly changes. While we may think our elementary, junior high, and high school years move so slowly, we realize how quickly those years pass. And our identity during those times changes at a lightning pace. When you go to pre-school, you’re still pretty much a toddler, but by the time you reach first grade, you seem so different. In junior high you exhibit traits of childhood but also some characteristics of a teenager, maybe even a young adult. In high school we still may act childish yet are able to demonstrate the mature thinking of someone much older, often showing those qualities in the span of an hour.
We wrestle with identity, even when we think we know who we are. It used to be, in the time of our grandparents, that the vast majority of people had one employer for their career. Now people shift jobs quite frequently, sometimes by necessity, sometimes by choice. And that impacts our identity. When I worked for company A, I was this. Now I work for company D and I am this.
And if you are blessed with marriage, and if God opens the womb and wills for you to have children, what’s your identity then?
It is no longer guaranteed that we are born into our identities. The king had a son, that son would someday be king himself, but that way has really changed. Bill Gates was a college drop out. Warren Buffet wasn’t born rich. Dave Thomas was a short order cook living paycheck to paycheck in Tennessee who gambled on a KFC franchise and then turned that into the Wendy’s chain. Phil Knight took his love of running and turned that love into the Nikeworld.
Yet as things rapidly change, we often don’t know who we are. Our sermon title this evening is something frequently said by people, “I’m being true to myself.” The sad reality is that the people who are being true to themselves do not know what their true identity is. Tonight we heard Jesus say, “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” The ones crucifying Jesus were being true to themselves. Judas was being true to himself. The disciples who fled when Jesus needed them most were being true to themselves. But it was the Son of God they crucified. It was the Son of God Judas betrayed. It was the Son of God they deserted. It’s a soul-searching question: who are you?
Perhaps you know who you are: you’re a Christian! We are in a Christian house of worship doing Christian things, so that answer might seem obvious. You may be bold enough to tell others that you attend Bible class and worship on a regular basis, but let’s push things a bit. How many of you are still searching for your true place in life? In our search for a sure identity, this time we live in does not help. We are constantly bombarded by all the media messages, the commercials, the self-help programs, the life-style magazines. I have a facebook page, but that’s not my true identity. I don’t post everything there. All of my facebook friends see what I want them to see. We can create our own identity, projecting what we want people to perceive of us.
And the situation gets only more terrifying with the knowledge that there are identity thieves lurking around every cyber-corner. Rebuilding a life wrecked by identity theft can be a long and costly process.
When it comes to our identity, we’re really a patchwork quilt, aren’t we? Various patches are stitched together. Through relationships, occupations, and former experiences we fabricate our identities like a patchwork quilt. A little from my parents, something from my first marriage, a little from the Bible, a little from here and a little from there. How can we say we are being true to ourselves, when we don’t know who we are? Father, forgive us, for we do not know what we do.
Peter’s teaches about identity in our lesson this evening, and the lesson is that our true identity is found in only one place, in only one man, Jesus. “You have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding Word of God. Hearing that we have been born again should lead us to the baptismal font. Because you are baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus your identity is changed and you are given a new identity. Your identity as condemned sinner is changed to an identity of forgiveness from Jesus Christ. Your identity of trusting no one but yourself is changed into an identity of trusting our heavenly Father who has given us an eternal salvation.
Your identity as a patchwork of all the influences upon your life is changed to one core fact: your life is bound to Jesus Christ! Our ‘Life Together’ is about our identity as children of God. We don’t have to pay for this identity. It is not earned by our hard work. God sees you and me through His Son Jesus. And when He sees you, God sees you perfectly.
Of ourselves, we’re unsure of who we are. God gives us our identity in Jesus.
Our identity in Christ is threatened. Our weekday lives are bombarded with messages of what the world wants us to be. And so much around us is here today and gone tomorrow. It does appear to be true that the only constant is change. Do you let the changes of life change who you are? Do you let the world’s purposes take you away from your true purpose? The grass withers, the flower fails, but the word of the Lord endures forever.
When Peter quotes Isaiah, Peter informs us of two constant things. Change is constant, but something else that is constant for all eternity is God’s Word. God’s Word engages our ever-changing lives so that we can live and grow into the identity to which we’ve been given in baptism. Our lives are marked with constant change, but God’s reality is marked by His Word which stands forever. Week by week the preached Word grows and strengthens your identity. Week by week the preached Word engages our lives to keep us true to who we are in Christ. Your identity, the way that God the Father views you as His child, does not change, just as God’s Word does not change.
The Father heard the Son’s words- Forgive them, for they know not what they do. And the Father has forgiven you and through His Word continues to forgive you. God does not consider you to be a jumbled up patchwork quilt made of bits and pieces. Instead, God has crafted you into a beautiful portrait- a portrait of the cross and the resurrection of Christ. That’s our identity, proclaimed by God’s Word that will stand forever.
In revealing Jesus to us, God also reveals who we are. We are called to be God’s children. We are to be true to Him through the identity He has given us. We can be sure of who we are in Christ because although all things around us wither and fade, God’s Word stands forever. We are not a patchwork quilt crafted by you or any other person. We are God’s church, a community that comes together around the Word, in the Word, to be the body of Christ. Born again of the imperishable Word, this is our “Life Together”. This is our identity. God is being true to His Word and to you. Amen.
Feb. 24, 2010
1 Peter 1:22-25
I'm being true to myself
In the name of Jesus, amen. Identity is something that is both easy and hard to understand. And it is also something that rapidly changes. While we may think our elementary, junior high, and high school years move so slowly, we realize how quickly those years pass. And our identity during those times changes at a lightning pace. When you go to pre-school, you’re still pretty much a toddler, but by the time you reach first grade, you seem so different. In junior high you exhibit traits of childhood but also some characteristics of a teenager, maybe even a young adult. In high school we still may act childish yet are able to demonstrate the mature thinking of someone much older, often showing those qualities in the span of an hour.
We wrestle with identity, even when we think we know who we are. It used to be, in the time of our grandparents, that the vast majority of people had one employer for their career. Now people shift jobs quite frequently, sometimes by necessity, sometimes by choice. And that impacts our identity. When I worked for company A, I was this. Now I work for company D and I am this.
And if you are blessed with marriage, and if God opens the womb and wills for you to have children, what’s your identity then?
It is no longer guaranteed that we are born into our identities. The king had a son, that son would someday be king himself, but that way has really changed. Bill Gates was a college drop out. Warren Buffet wasn’t born rich. Dave Thomas was a short order cook living paycheck to paycheck in Tennessee who gambled on a KFC franchise and then turned that into the Wendy’s chain. Phil Knight took his love of running and turned that love into the Nikeworld.
Yet as things rapidly change, we often don’t know who we are. Our sermon title this evening is something frequently said by people, “I’m being true to myself.” The sad reality is that the people who are being true to themselves do not know what their true identity is. Tonight we heard Jesus say, “Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” The ones crucifying Jesus were being true to themselves. Judas was being true to himself. The disciples who fled when Jesus needed them most were being true to themselves. But it was the Son of God they crucified. It was the Son of God Judas betrayed. It was the Son of God they deserted. It’s a soul-searching question: who are you?
Perhaps you know who you are: you’re a Christian! We are in a Christian house of worship doing Christian things, so that answer might seem obvious. You may be bold enough to tell others that you attend Bible class and worship on a regular basis, but let’s push things a bit. How many of you are still searching for your true place in life? In our search for a sure identity, this time we live in does not help. We are constantly bombarded by all the media messages, the commercials, the self-help programs, the life-style magazines. I have a facebook page, but that’s not my true identity. I don’t post everything there. All of my facebook friends see what I want them to see. We can create our own identity, projecting what we want people to perceive of us.
And the situation gets only more terrifying with the knowledge that there are identity thieves lurking around every cyber-corner. Rebuilding a life wrecked by identity theft can be a long and costly process.
When it comes to our identity, we’re really a patchwork quilt, aren’t we? Various patches are stitched together. Through relationships, occupations, and former experiences we fabricate our identities like a patchwork quilt. A little from my parents, something from my first marriage, a little from the Bible, a little from here and a little from there. How can we say we are being true to ourselves, when we don’t know who we are? Father, forgive us, for we do not know what we do.
Peter’s teaches about identity in our lesson this evening, and the lesson is that our true identity is found in only one place, in only one man, Jesus. “You have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding Word of God. Hearing that we have been born again should lead us to the baptismal font. Because you are baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus your identity is changed and you are given a new identity. Your identity as condemned sinner is changed to an identity of forgiveness from Jesus Christ. Your identity of trusting no one but yourself is changed into an identity of trusting our heavenly Father who has given us an eternal salvation.
Your identity as a patchwork of all the influences upon your life is changed to one core fact: your life is bound to Jesus Christ! Our ‘Life Together’ is about our identity as children of God. We don’t have to pay for this identity. It is not earned by our hard work. God sees you and me through His Son Jesus. And when He sees you, God sees you perfectly.
Of ourselves, we’re unsure of who we are. God gives us our identity in Jesus.
Our identity in Christ is threatened. Our weekday lives are bombarded with messages of what the world wants us to be. And so much around us is here today and gone tomorrow. It does appear to be true that the only constant is change. Do you let the changes of life change who you are? Do you let the world’s purposes take you away from your true purpose? The grass withers, the flower fails, but the word of the Lord endures forever.
When Peter quotes Isaiah, Peter informs us of two constant things. Change is constant, but something else that is constant for all eternity is God’s Word. God’s Word engages our ever-changing lives so that we can live and grow into the identity to which we’ve been given in baptism. Our lives are marked with constant change, but God’s reality is marked by His Word which stands forever. Week by week the preached Word grows and strengthens your identity. Week by week the preached Word engages our lives to keep us true to who we are in Christ. Your identity, the way that God the Father views you as His child, does not change, just as God’s Word does not change.
The Father heard the Son’s words- Forgive them, for they know not what they do. And the Father has forgiven you and through His Word continues to forgive you. God does not consider you to be a jumbled up patchwork quilt made of bits and pieces. Instead, God has crafted you into a beautiful portrait- a portrait of the cross and the resurrection of Christ. That’s our identity, proclaimed by God’s Word that will stand forever.
In revealing Jesus to us, God also reveals who we are. We are called to be God’s children. We are to be true to Him through the identity He has given us. We can be sure of who we are in Christ because although all things around us wither and fade, God’s Word stands forever. We are not a patchwork quilt crafted by you or any other person. We are God’s church, a community that comes together around the Word, in the Word, to be the body of Christ. Born again of the imperishable Word, this is our “Life Together”. This is our identity. God is being true to His Word and to you. Amen.
Busy, busy, busy
waiting for whatever will come weather-wise. Sorry for not posting too many things. But I will get last night's sermon up soon. And I will post something about the upcoming baseball season. It leads me to believe that spring will come at some point in 2010.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Lent 1 sermon
Here is the sermon from yesterday's service.
Lent 1
Feb. 21, 2010
Luke 4:1-13
The war we wage
In the name of Jesus, amen. Talk of war has been common among people even though it is unpleasant. We wage war against all sorts of maladies. War on poverty, war on drugs, war on illiteracy, the global war on terror, the Cold War, class war, race war, the battle of the belly, the fight over finances, war of the sexes…war talk is all around us. If you are a sports fan, the war talk continues, especially if there is a particular rivalry you follow. The games become clashes, battles, and the athletes become gladiators on the battlefield.
But all the war talk is unpleasant because the reality dwells with us that in wars, people get hurt, maimed, and killed. Talk about war is serious, and within the Church of God, talk of war is relevant.
Our Gospel lesson for this first Sunday in Lent presents Jesus going off to battle, led by the Spirit into the wilderness where Satan would tempt and torment him for 40 days. We begin our Lenten journey by remembering that this journey is a rigorous one, engaging us in a life-and-death struggle against the forces of death itself. We are only foot soldiers, marching behind our champion. Our Lenten journey is a journey to war.
And what you and I do in this warfare is a replay of what our Israelite ancestors did in the past. God acted mightily in Israel’s past, and the Exodus event is the greatest example of God’s mighty, saving activity. Often Israel failed to trust and yet God acted on their behalf. With God’s outstretched arm and mighty hand, He fought for His people.
Jesus’ battle against temptation does perfectly what Israel failed to do when attacked: trust.
Like Israel, we are a people under attack. What are the attacks? God’s plan for marriage is under attack by those who favor the sin of same-sex marriage. Life issues are under attack by forces that are opposed to the protection of the unborn, protection of those who are disabled, and protection of the elderly and infirm. Christian morals, values, and ethics are attacked by opposing forces who continue to scream from the mountaintops that there are multiple truths, there is no objective right and wrong, and that what is true for you may not be true for me. Truth is relative and the only thing we can say with certainty is that everyone should be nice to puppies. The Church is under attack by those who look at the abuses of the Church and then think that the whole thing ought to be abolished.
Like Israel, we are people who struggle to believe. The opposing forces can speak so convincingly, so reasonably, yet so deceptively. Our minds get twisted around and we find ourselves getting tripped up. We let our guard down and we find ourselves in peril. Attacked on so many sides, we turtle, that is, we hide under our shell because that is the safe thing to do.
But we cannot escape the warfare of our journey, our journey through Lent, our journey through life. Very soon we’ll mark memorial services for two faithful soldiers- Dick and Sam, Christian soldiers who were also US soldiers. These two men followed after their champion Jesus.
For Jesus, there was no avoiding the battle. Not even Jesus could short-circuit the suffering.
Jesus is tempted by Satan to doubt his identity. If you are the Son of God, prove it by turning these stones into bread.
Jesus is tempted by Satan to bypass the road to the cross. If you want glory, simply worship me. Glory without pain. Glory without suffering. Glory without bloodshed. All of that can be yours if you only worship me.
For us, Jesus did not take the easy way out. God the Father had not promised to protect Christ Jesus from the cross and suffering. We could not anticipate Easter without the glorious gore of Good Friday. Jesus clung to the Word and trusted God.
And so the Church of God must follow Christ to war. This is such a great conundrum for Christianity, the great paradox of Christianity. Christ’s greatest glory was in dying in battle on the cross. Christ defeated Satan by allowing himself to be killed. Imagine that, glory through death, victory by being killed. Never is Christ more victorious than when he is viewed as a loser, as he hangs on the cross. Never is Christ more victorious than when he triumphantly marches out of the tomb. Never is Christ more victorious than when he offers himself to us in the body and blood of Holy Communion.
We share in this paradox of Christianity. In Holy Baptism we receive the sign of the cross from the hand of the Father. Daily we drown the old Adam and rise in the new man, for Christ is within us.
The Christian, saved, redeemed, and loved, marches into battle. And as you march, you sing, for you see victory. Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness foreshadows victory over Satan on the cross.
Psalm 91 is the soldier’s psalm, and it enlists us in the battle of Lent. The battle is raging, but we fear nothing. “I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.’”
With abiding trust we live our Christian life, we march into battle, under the cross.
This Lenten journey has a goal. It is into the battle, it is to the cross, it is also to victory. The battle and the war we wage is our participation in Christ’s death, struggling daily against Satan’s slings, arrows, and assaults. And the victory is our share in Jesus’ resurrection, won for us when he overcame Satan’s temptation and suffered death. We have this victory in the new life of Holy Baptism. And we have the armor to fight on to this victory in our communion with Christ and all His saints in His Supper, the heaven on earth that we live in the Divine Service.
The war we wage is a war of love. It is a war of service and compassion, a war of fidelity and integrity to our Savior. It is a battle that ends in the victory of Christ our redeemer. SDG
Lent 1
Feb. 21, 2010
Luke 4:1-13
The war we wage
In the name of Jesus, amen. Talk of war has been common among people even though it is unpleasant. We wage war against all sorts of maladies. War on poverty, war on drugs, war on illiteracy, the global war on terror, the Cold War, class war, race war, the battle of the belly, the fight over finances, war of the sexes…war talk is all around us. If you are a sports fan, the war talk continues, especially if there is a particular rivalry you follow. The games become clashes, battles, and the athletes become gladiators on the battlefield.
But all the war talk is unpleasant because the reality dwells with us that in wars, people get hurt, maimed, and killed. Talk about war is serious, and within the Church of God, talk of war is relevant.
Our Gospel lesson for this first Sunday in Lent presents Jesus going off to battle, led by the Spirit into the wilderness where Satan would tempt and torment him for 40 days. We begin our Lenten journey by remembering that this journey is a rigorous one, engaging us in a life-and-death struggle against the forces of death itself. We are only foot soldiers, marching behind our champion. Our Lenten journey is a journey to war.
And what you and I do in this warfare is a replay of what our Israelite ancestors did in the past. God acted mightily in Israel’s past, and the Exodus event is the greatest example of God’s mighty, saving activity. Often Israel failed to trust and yet God acted on their behalf. With God’s outstretched arm and mighty hand, He fought for His people.
Jesus’ battle against temptation does perfectly what Israel failed to do when attacked: trust.
Like Israel, we are a people under attack. What are the attacks? God’s plan for marriage is under attack by those who favor the sin of same-sex marriage. Life issues are under attack by forces that are opposed to the protection of the unborn, protection of those who are disabled, and protection of the elderly and infirm. Christian morals, values, and ethics are attacked by opposing forces who continue to scream from the mountaintops that there are multiple truths, there is no objective right and wrong, and that what is true for you may not be true for me. Truth is relative and the only thing we can say with certainty is that everyone should be nice to puppies. The Church is under attack by those who look at the abuses of the Church and then think that the whole thing ought to be abolished.
Like Israel, we are people who struggle to believe. The opposing forces can speak so convincingly, so reasonably, yet so deceptively. Our minds get twisted around and we find ourselves getting tripped up. We let our guard down and we find ourselves in peril. Attacked on so many sides, we turtle, that is, we hide under our shell because that is the safe thing to do.
But we cannot escape the warfare of our journey, our journey through Lent, our journey through life. Very soon we’ll mark memorial services for two faithful soldiers- Dick and Sam, Christian soldiers who were also US soldiers. These two men followed after their champion Jesus.
For Jesus, there was no avoiding the battle. Not even Jesus could short-circuit the suffering.
Jesus is tempted by Satan to doubt his identity. If you are the Son of God, prove it by turning these stones into bread.
Jesus is tempted by Satan to bypass the road to the cross. If you want glory, simply worship me. Glory without pain. Glory without suffering. Glory without bloodshed. All of that can be yours if you only worship me.
For us, Jesus did not take the easy way out. God the Father had not promised to protect Christ Jesus from the cross and suffering. We could not anticipate Easter without the glorious gore of Good Friday. Jesus clung to the Word and trusted God.
And so the Church of God must follow Christ to war. This is such a great conundrum for Christianity, the great paradox of Christianity. Christ’s greatest glory was in dying in battle on the cross. Christ defeated Satan by allowing himself to be killed. Imagine that, glory through death, victory by being killed. Never is Christ more victorious than when he is viewed as a loser, as he hangs on the cross. Never is Christ more victorious than when he triumphantly marches out of the tomb. Never is Christ more victorious than when he offers himself to us in the body and blood of Holy Communion.
We share in this paradox of Christianity. In Holy Baptism we receive the sign of the cross from the hand of the Father. Daily we drown the old Adam and rise in the new man, for Christ is within us.
The Christian, saved, redeemed, and loved, marches into battle. And as you march, you sing, for you see victory. Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness foreshadows victory over Satan on the cross.
Psalm 91 is the soldier’s psalm, and it enlists us in the battle of Lent. The battle is raging, but we fear nothing. “I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.’”
With abiding trust we live our Christian life, we march into battle, under the cross.
This Lenten journey has a goal. It is into the battle, it is to the cross, it is also to victory. The battle and the war we wage is our participation in Christ’s death, struggling daily against Satan’s slings, arrows, and assaults. And the victory is our share in Jesus’ resurrection, won for us when he overcame Satan’s temptation and suffered death. We have this victory in the new life of Holy Baptism. And we have the armor to fight on to this victory in our communion with Christ and all His saints in His Supper, the heaven on earth that we live in the Divine Service.
The war we wage is a war of love. It is a war of service and compassion, a war of fidelity and integrity to our Savior. It is a battle that ends in the victory of Christ our redeemer. SDG
Thirty years ago
was the Miracle on Ice. What a great story of the collegiate US Hockey team beating the 'professionals' from the Soviet Union to advance to the gold medal game.
Yesterday the US played Canada and won. It was a good game and quite compelling. Olympic hockey is anticipated by many and for a lot of viewers, it is looked at as something much better than what is typically played in the NHL. I think that is only somewhat true.
The rosters of the US and Canadian teams were composed entirely of NHL players. And these NHL players were not fourth line checking wingers. The rosters are all-star quality, so when you get the best of the best, the quality is going to improve. You may have moments of great hockey in a Minnesota-Tampa Bay regular season game, but you'll have to look much harder for those moments.
What makes Olympic hockey better is not entirely the players. What makes Olympic hockey better is the emotion. USA-Canada, Russia-Czech Republic, USA-Russia, Czech Republic-Slovakia. Those are great matchups with lots of emotion. Putting a sweater on with the USA shield across the front is a little different.
The NHL has that emotion at times, and that emotion is seen when the rivalry teams play frequently. Blues-Blackhawks is not always a 'great game' because for several years the rosters were second rate. But those games were emotional games because the teams played each other frequently. Friday night in Chicago is followed by Saturday night in St. Louis. The memories and the bruises were still fresh. When months lapse with no rivalry games with teams in your division, then the hockey gets a little cold or stale.
Before we think that the NHL should be more like Olympic hockey, perhaps the scheduling of games should be looked at as a way of increasing the 'quality' of play. Or perhaps there should be fewer teams, thereby increasing the number of skilled players on the professional teams and weeding out those that are less-skilled.
Yesterday the US played Canada and won. It was a good game and quite compelling. Olympic hockey is anticipated by many and for a lot of viewers, it is looked at as something much better than what is typically played in the NHL. I think that is only somewhat true.
The rosters of the US and Canadian teams were composed entirely of NHL players. And these NHL players were not fourth line checking wingers. The rosters are all-star quality, so when you get the best of the best, the quality is going to improve. You may have moments of great hockey in a Minnesota-Tampa Bay regular season game, but you'll have to look much harder for those moments.
What makes Olympic hockey better is not entirely the players. What makes Olympic hockey better is the emotion. USA-Canada, Russia-Czech Republic, USA-Russia, Czech Republic-Slovakia. Those are great matchups with lots of emotion. Putting a sweater on with the USA shield across the front is a little different.
The NHL has that emotion at times, and that emotion is seen when the rivalry teams play frequently. Blues-Blackhawks is not always a 'great game' because for several years the rosters were second rate. But those games were emotional games because the teams played each other frequently. Friday night in Chicago is followed by Saturday night in St. Louis. The memories and the bruises were still fresh. When months lapse with no rivalry games with teams in your division, then the hockey gets a little cold or stale.
Before we think that the NHL should be more like Olympic hockey, perhaps the scheduling of games should be looked at as a way of increasing the 'quality' of play. Or perhaps there should be fewer teams, thereby increasing the number of skilled players on the professional teams and weeding out those that are less-skilled.
Returning joy
Even though Lent is a more somber time for us, I was reminded this morning of the Lenten Catechesis portion that is found in Treasury of Daily Prayer. After praying the Scripture and the Writing for the day, there is a portion of the Catechism to reflect upon. I had forgotten that since last Lent, and what a joy. The only kind of pastor I want to be is a Small Catechism pastor.
Having this portion of catechesis in Lent is a nice feature, as Lent was often used as preparation for baptism and communion. The learner would spend the Lenten period learning the teachings of the faith so that on Palm Sunday they would be baptized and on Easter Vigil they would receive their first communion. And the material that was learned was known as the catechism. Later Martin Luther would write his Small Catechism because the local churches and clergy knew nothing of what they were worshiping.
What a joy to spend a few extra minutes pondering portions of the Six Chief Parts.
Having this portion of catechesis in Lent is a nice feature, as Lent was often used as preparation for baptism and communion. The learner would spend the Lenten period learning the teachings of the faith so that on Palm Sunday they would be baptized and on Easter Vigil they would receive their first communion. And the material that was learned was known as the catechism. Later Martin Luther would write his Small Catechism because the local churches and clergy knew nothing of what they were worshiping.
What a joy to spend a few extra minutes pondering portions of the Six Chief Parts.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Waste of time
I cancelled Bible class so I could attend a meeting. Fortunately I had finished what needs to be done for this weekend, but I was hoping to attend an educational and fruitful conversation with a Muslim as part of the monthly LINCC (Lutherans in New Castle Co) meeting. Due to a scheduling conflict, the gentleman was unable to attend. But the conversation that was shared responding to our visit to the Mosque in January makes me wonder: Have we lost sight of the truth? of the Gospel? of the reality of sin? that inclusive love is impossible without the recognition that repentance is necessary?
We have so watered down the proclamation of God's law that we have become afraid to preach the Gospel in its purity, in its beauty, in its grandeur. As Lutherans we don't know who we are anymore, so when we are asked who we are we have no response other than to say that we are who you want us to be. Can you see the problem in that? The Church is not consumer-driven, or at least it didn't use to be.
I was looking forward to that meeting this morning. It's been rescheduled for a later date, but it is something I need to learn about as we figure out who and what Islam is in America. They live next to us, work with us, and go to school with our children. Islam is such an amorphous thing that figuring them out is like nailing jello to the wall.
We have so watered down the proclamation of God's law that we have become afraid to preach the Gospel in its purity, in its beauty, in its grandeur. As Lutherans we don't know who we are anymore, so when we are asked who we are we have no response other than to say that we are who you want us to be. Can you see the problem in that? The Church is not consumer-driven, or at least it didn't use to be.
I was looking forward to that meeting this morning. It's been rescheduled for a later date, but it is something I need to learn about as we figure out who and what Islam is in America. They live next to us, work with us, and go to school with our children. Islam is such an amorphous thing that figuring them out is like nailing jello to the wall.
Ash Wednesday Sermon
Here is the sermon from last night's service. It was a great beginning to our Lententide. Loved praying the Litany at the beginning of the service with its great mental imagery.
Ash Wednesday
Feb. 17, 2010
1 Peter 2:2-25
Life’s better in whose hands?
In the name of Jesus, amen. We have responded to the call of Ash Wednesday to gather again to hear the stories of Lent, the stories of Jesus’ passion for you and me. I know your life is busy, and we do not have the time to hear the stories in a mindless way. You don’t want to hear the stories in a routine, in-one-ear and out-the-other sort of way. You’ve come for your spiritual growth. We want the word of the cross to go in both ears, to get into our head and to go down into our heart. As Jesus himself said from the cross, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” We want to leave worship knowing that life is best lived when we live it totally in the Father’s hands.
Yet what we know is very often the opposite of what we experience. Sometimes life is better in my hands and not in the hands of other people. Is your life better when you leave it in the hands of the state or federal government? Survey after survey say that we do not trust the government to take care of us. Is your life better in the hands of Wall Street? Wall Street seems to be doing okay these days but Main Street is not in great shape. Is life better when we put ourselves into the hands of technology and science? To be sure we have been greatly benefited by scientific advances but there are many Toyota drivers who are not so sure about that. Technology is not a fail-safe way to accelerate towards happiness. We all know that life is not dependably better in the hands of other people.
More and more people are saying, “Life’s better in my hands.” There are a lot of self-assured confident know-it-alls around us. I’m one of them. How many of us give advice yet never listen to what we are saying? We are bull-headed. We know what is best. We know how to get ourselves out of every jam we find ourselves in and if something goes wrong, we know that certainly there is somebody to blame. Yet I periodically get the wake-up call that life is not better in my hands.
So what is left? Yes the ashes but not merely the ashes. We’ll wash the ashes off when we get home. The cross remains. From the cross we hear our savior say, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Ash Wednesday repentance should drive us to confess, to live the truth that life is better when we entrust our life to the heavenly Father.
I believe that is what we heard this evening in the text from 1 Peter. Peter was writing to Christian slaves in Asia Minor, let’s just call it present-day Turkey, although Asia Minor encompasses a larger area than that. It shouldn’t be too hard to imagine that many of those slaves were leading wretched lives. And what is Peter’s encouragement? It is not rebellion but obedience. Do not take life into your own hands. Instead Peter pointed them to the example of Christ. Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. He entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
Life is better when we entrust ourselves to our heavenly Father. But Peter’s words do not simply suggest that Jesus is our moral model. The reason we are in church is because Jesus is our suffering savior from sin. He has forgiven me and you for taking life into our hands. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
Coming to Ash Wednesday, to the season of Lent, we come to the awareness of how joyful repentance can be. We do receive the news that life is not better in our own hands as we live with the consequences of our prideful decisions. We think that we know best. So tonight we repent and our Father forgives.
Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree. He did that for a reason- so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness. True repentance is confessing our sin and receiving God’s forgiveness for Jesus’ sake. And in gratitude for that we will pray God’s Spirit to help us live holier lives.
How we will do this is to keep doing what has been done. We’ll come together around the cross, under the cross, in the cross. The body of Christ will come together to ponder the stories of Christ. These familiar stories of Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem, of Jesus celebrating the Passover, of Jesus’ betrayal, his time in Gethsemane, the injustices wrought by the religious establishment, of Jesus’ crucifixion, and of Jesus’ crowning story, his triumphant resurrection…they are not stories that go in one ear and out the other. These are stories that keep going in both ears, in our mind, down into our heart, out through our lips and our lives. We have a life together in this congregation and this life is different than any other association we have in our life. Life together here is a way the Holy Spirit keeps putting our lives in the hand of the heavenly Father.
We’re going to hear references to a great book called Life Together. It was written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian martyred at the hand of the Nazis. Bonhoeffer wrote,” Beware of being alone. Into the community you were called, the call was not meant for you alone; in the community of the called you bear your cross, you struggle, you pray. If you scorn the fellowship of brothers and sisters, you reject the call of Jesus Christ, and thus your solitude can only be hurtful to you.”
In whose hands? Life is better in the Father’s hands. Amen.
Ash Wednesday
Feb. 17, 2010
1 Peter 2:2-25
Life’s better in whose hands?
In the name of Jesus, amen. We have responded to the call of Ash Wednesday to gather again to hear the stories of Lent, the stories of Jesus’ passion for you and me. I know your life is busy, and we do not have the time to hear the stories in a mindless way. You don’t want to hear the stories in a routine, in-one-ear and out-the-other sort of way. You’ve come for your spiritual growth. We want the word of the cross to go in both ears, to get into our head and to go down into our heart. As Jesus himself said from the cross, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” We want to leave worship knowing that life is best lived when we live it totally in the Father’s hands.
Yet what we know is very often the opposite of what we experience. Sometimes life is better in my hands and not in the hands of other people. Is your life better when you leave it in the hands of the state or federal government? Survey after survey say that we do not trust the government to take care of us. Is your life better in the hands of Wall Street? Wall Street seems to be doing okay these days but Main Street is not in great shape. Is life better when we put ourselves into the hands of technology and science? To be sure we have been greatly benefited by scientific advances but there are many Toyota drivers who are not so sure about that. Technology is not a fail-safe way to accelerate towards happiness. We all know that life is not dependably better in the hands of other people.
More and more people are saying, “Life’s better in my hands.” There are a lot of self-assured confident know-it-alls around us. I’m one of them. How many of us give advice yet never listen to what we are saying? We are bull-headed. We know what is best. We know how to get ourselves out of every jam we find ourselves in and if something goes wrong, we know that certainly there is somebody to blame. Yet I periodically get the wake-up call that life is not better in my hands.
So what is left? Yes the ashes but not merely the ashes. We’ll wash the ashes off when we get home. The cross remains. From the cross we hear our savior say, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Ash Wednesday repentance should drive us to confess, to live the truth that life is better when we entrust our life to the heavenly Father.
I believe that is what we heard this evening in the text from 1 Peter. Peter was writing to Christian slaves in Asia Minor, let’s just call it present-day Turkey, although Asia Minor encompasses a larger area than that. It shouldn’t be too hard to imagine that many of those slaves were leading wretched lives. And what is Peter’s encouragement? It is not rebellion but obedience. Do not take life into your own hands. Instead Peter pointed them to the example of Christ. Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. He entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
Life is better when we entrust ourselves to our heavenly Father. But Peter’s words do not simply suggest that Jesus is our moral model. The reason we are in church is because Jesus is our suffering savior from sin. He has forgiven me and you for taking life into our hands. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”
Coming to Ash Wednesday, to the season of Lent, we come to the awareness of how joyful repentance can be. We do receive the news that life is not better in our own hands as we live with the consequences of our prideful decisions. We think that we know best. So tonight we repent and our Father forgives.
Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the tree. He did that for a reason- so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness. True repentance is confessing our sin and receiving God’s forgiveness for Jesus’ sake. And in gratitude for that we will pray God’s Spirit to help us live holier lives.
How we will do this is to keep doing what has been done. We’ll come together around the cross, under the cross, in the cross. The body of Christ will come together to ponder the stories of Christ. These familiar stories of Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem, of Jesus celebrating the Passover, of Jesus’ betrayal, his time in Gethsemane, the injustices wrought by the religious establishment, of Jesus’ crucifixion, and of Jesus’ crowning story, his triumphant resurrection…they are not stories that go in one ear and out the other. These are stories that keep going in both ears, in our mind, down into our heart, out through our lips and our lives. We have a life together in this congregation and this life is different than any other association we have in our life. Life together here is a way the Holy Spirit keeps putting our lives in the hand of the heavenly Father.
We’re going to hear references to a great book called Life Together. It was written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian martyred at the hand of the Nazis. Bonhoeffer wrote,” Beware of being alone. Into the community you were called, the call was not meant for you alone; in the community of the called you bear your cross, you struggle, you pray. If you scorn the fellowship of brothers and sisters, you reject the call of Jesus Christ, and thus your solitude can only be hurtful to you.”
In whose hands? Life is better in the Father’s hands. Amen.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Playing favorites
I know we aren't supposed to play favorites but I am so thrilled with the start of Lent because I can break out my Lenten chasuble- rich purple, deep black, gold crosses. It is so lovely. (Or perhaps I'm just a closet Bal'mer Ravens fan.)
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
More snow
I thought the snow was supposed to be overnight. 8am is not overnight! And people seem to be driving like normal. Egads.
Saw on Baltimore news that they were sitting at 79.9" of snow. Wow.
Saw on Baltimore news that they were sitting at 79.9" of snow. Wow.
Transfiguration Day Sermon
Here is the sermon from our Feb. 14th service. It was a wonderful Transfiguration Day.
Transfiguration Day
Feb. 14, 2010
Deuteronomy 34
People, Potential, Promise
In the name of Jesus, amen. Mountaintop experiences can be both literal and figurative. We could spend lots of time in a friendly debate about whether the view from the Skyline Drive is better than the view from Mt. Hood or Mt. Washington or Mt. Cuba. Climbing mountains allows you to get a view you’ve never had before, to perhaps look down on clouds, to look down on trees, to be higher than an eagle, to see the twists and turns of a river in the valley.
You can also have a mountaintop experience sitting in your office cubicle, in the library, or on the phone, when you suddenly find something so clear that you are stunned. Moses was no stranger to mountaintops. And Moses was given some clarity in our OT lesson this morning. It is a remarkable lesson about people, about potential, and about promise.
As you live with the Bible, Moses is somebody you get to know pretty well. His history is well-known, from birth to rescue to burning bush to the exodus to the Red Sea to Mt. Sinai to the wilderness and finally to Mt. Nebo. And how about this nugget of information from our lesson: Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. Don’t we all wish for that kind of thing? What an amazing man Moses was.
Yet Moses was human. He had disobeyed God on more than one occasion. He was stubborn, prone to violence and anger. Thus Moses was able to see the Promised Land but could not enter it. With tremendous clarity on the top of Mt. Nebo Moses could see the Promised Land from north to south, from east to west.
And the people that Moses led were people. Moses saw the children of Israel at their best and he saw them at their worst. Moses heard them praise God for his protection and provision yet Moses also heard the people grumble and complain against God.
There are times when I see you at your best and at your worst. And there are times when you experience me at my best and you know when I act on my worst instincts.
Yet God calls us to be His people. And God mercifully uses us for His glory and purpose. Where there is a need, God plugs us in to meet those needs as faithfully and as best we are able.
On top of Mt. Nebo, Moses saw the Promised Land, and I imagine he saw the potential of that land. Under all the snow at my house is a garden. It might not look like much now, but there is potential. With a little love, hard work, and fertilizer, something will grow. With some tender pruning and some good compost, my blueberry bushes will grow closer and closer to bearing fruit. There is potential. And we know that people have potential. Little children are not what they will be. Teenagers are not what they will be. Adults are not what they will be either. There is growth, maturation, learning, mistakes, missteps and errors.
The Promised Land was good land. The twelve tribes of Israel were going to settle on that land and they would be cared for. Through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, you and I have been grafted into that great nation. The twelve tribes had potential. And we have potential too.
Potential for what? Sometimes our vision is shortsighted and we cannot see beyond what is right in front of our noses. But there are times when the Lord calls us to make clear the potential of what the Lord can do in the lives of His people through the power of God’s Word and the Sacrament. Our potential is a danger if it is disconnected from the dynamic power of God’s Word and has lost touch with God’s grace present in the Lord’s Supper and the water of Holy Baptism.
The potential that you and I possess comes from a promising God who keeps His promises. Moses got to see the Promised Land. On a different mountain Moses showed up with Elijah, another great prophet. And in between Moses and Elijah was the fulfillment of all the promises- our Lord Jesus Christ.
God made a promise when he announced that the woman’s offspring would have his heel bruised by the serpent yet that offspring would crush the serpent’s head. God made a promise that the virgin would conceive and bear a son. God made a promise that his servant would bear the stripes, the wounds, the lies, the mockery and would yet reply, “All this I gladly suffer.” God’s suffering servant would make a promise that he would be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be put on trial, condemned, and crucified, but on the third day He would rise again. Jesus didn’t stay dead. He came back to life and He is alive today!
All the promises made by God are kept by God. As Moses looked over the Promised Land, perhaps God was looking over the landscape and thinking about the land of heaven, where one day there will be people farther than the eye can see and they will be assembled around the throne of God saying, “Worthy are you to receive glory and honor and power.” This great day will come because God keeps his promise.
God keeps his promise that he ‘desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth’. God keeps his promise that ‘if we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness’. In the announcement of forgiveness, in the gift of salvation, in the hope of heaven, in the gift of Jesus to you, God keeps his promises.
We pray as the people of God that we would see the potential God sees in us as God unfolds his promises of love, grace, and mercy to us. God grant it! SDG
Transfiguration Day
Feb. 14, 2010
Deuteronomy 34
People, Potential, Promise
In the name of Jesus, amen. Mountaintop experiences can be both literal and figurative. We could spend lots of time in a friendly debate about whether the view from the Skyline Drive is better than the view from Mt. Hood or Mt. Washington or Mt. Cuba. Climbing mountains allows you to get a view you’ve never had before, to perhaps look down on clouds, to look down on trees, to be higher than an eagle, to see the twists and turns of a river in the valley.
You can also have a mountaintop experience sitting in your office cubicle, in the library, or on the phone, when you suddenly find something so clear that you are stunned. Moses was no stranger to mountaintops. And Moses was given some clarity in our OT lesson this morning. It is a remarkable lesson about people, about potential, and about promise.
As you live with the Bible, Moses is somebody you get to know pretty well. His history is well-known, from birth to rescue to burning bush to the exodus to the Red Sea to Mt. Sinai to the wilderness and finally to Mt. Nebo. And how about this nugget of information from our lesson: Moses was 120 years old when he died. His eye was undimmed, and his vigor unabated. Don’t we all wish for that kind of thing? What an amazing man Moses was.
Yet Moses was human. He had disobeyed God on more than one occasion. He was stubborn, prone to violence and anger. Thus Moses was able to see the Promised Land but could not enter it. With tremendous clarity on the top of Mt. Nebo Moses could see the Promised Land from north to south, from east to west.
And the people that Moses led were people. Moses saw the children of Israel at their best and he saw them at their worst. Moses heard them praise God for his protection and provision yet Moses also heard the people grumble and complain against God.
There are times when I see you at your best and at your worst. And there are times when you experience me at my best and you know when I act on my worst instincts.
Yet God calls us to be His people. And God mercifully uses us for His glory and purpose. Where there is a need, God plugs us in to meet those needs as faithfully and as best we are able.
On top of Mt. Nebo, Moses saw the Promised Land, and I imagine he saw the potential of that land. Under all the snow at my house is a garden. It might not look like much now, but there is potential. With a little love, hard work, and fertilizer, something will grow. With some tender pruning and some good compost, my blueberry bushes will grow closer and closer to bearing fruit. There is potential. And we know that people have potential. Little children are not what they will be. Teenagers are not what they will be. Adults are not what they will be either. There is growth, maturation, learning, mistakes, missteps and errors.
The Promised Land was good land. The twelve tribes of Israel were going to settle on that land and they would be cared for. Through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, you and I have been grafted into that great nation. The twelve tribes had potential. And we have potential too.
Potential for what? Sometimes our vision is shortsighted and we cannot see beyond what is right in front of our noses. But there are times when the Lord calls us to make clear the potential of what the Lord can do in the lives of His people through the power of God’s Word and the Sacrament. Our potential is a danger if it is disconnected from the dynamic power of God’s Word and has lost touch with God’s grace present in the Lord’s Supper and the water of Holy Baptism.
The potential that you and I possess comes from a promising God who keeps His promises. Moses got to see the Promised Land. On a different mountain Moses showed up with Elijah, another great prophet. And in between Moses and Elijah was the fulfillment of all the promises- our Lord Jesus Christ.
God made a promise when he announced that the woman’s offspring would have his heel bruised by the serpent yet that offspring would crush the serpent’s head. God made a promise that the virgin would conceive and bear a son. God made a promise that his servant would bear the stripes, the wounds, the lies, the mockery and would yet reply, “All this I gladly suffer.” God’s suffering servant would make a promise that he would be betrayed into the hands of sinful men, be put on trial, condemned, and crucified, but on the third day He would rise again. Jesus didn’t stay dead. He came back to life and He is alive today!
All the promises made by God are kept by God. As Moses looked over the Promised Land, perhaps God was looking over the landscape and thinking about the land of heaven, where one day there will be people farther than the eye can see and they will be assembled around the throne of God saying, “Worthy are you to receive glory and honor and power.” This great day will come because God keeps his promise.
God keeps his promise that he ‘desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth’. God keeps his promise that ‘if we confess our sins, God who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness’. In the announcement of forgiveness, in the gift of salvation, in the hope of heaven, in the gift of Jesus to you, God keeps his promises.
We pray as the people of God that we would see the potential God sees in us as God unfolds his promises of love, grace, and mercy to us. God grant it! SDG
Monday, February 8, 2010
Sermon for Feb. 7
Here is what I would have shared with you Sunday morning if we were allowed to gather for worship.
Epiphany 5
Feb. 7, 2010
1 Corinthians 14:12b-20; Luke 5:1-11
Sinners served, Saints sent
In the name of Jesus, amen. Within our Epistle and Gospel lessons we find an acknowledgement of a ‘modern’ question, and this modern question likely dates back several decades. The question is, “What’s in it for me?” Being in a church, that question is especially important from a spiritual viewpoint.
What in the church, in this particular worshiping community, is for me? I’ve asked a bad question, because my supposition is that I, and you, are in the center of the thought. And what is something that has been expressed about our church but that we are Christ-centered, cross-focused. Asking what is in it for me starts to push God away from the center, perhaps even out of the picture.
That might not have been the malady of this congregation. That might not have been the problem, but it has been revealed to us that there is a goal for this gathering. There is a goal for worship.
In our past worship was regarded through this German word: Gottesdienst. It is important to know our historical past so that we can live toward our realistic future. That German word from our past is the word for worship. Literally, Gottesdienst is God’s service. Jesus, our God, in worship serves us.
God serves us. He presses on our hearts His Word of forgiveness. He lays on us the knowledge of how Jesus served us by dying for us. God serves us as He gives new life, new birth in baptism. God serves us, feeding us with the very real nourishment of His own body and blood for the good of our spiritual lives. God serves us, loving us. God serves us, setting us free to love him, setting us free to love and serve those who are in our lives.
What is in worship for me? Is worship for God, or for me? When we examine other religions around us, worshipers gather to serve their gods. In Christian worship, the true God gathers. The true God stoops down to serve. As we gather together, sinners come and uncover the glorious beauty that they are served. More than being served, sinners are saved. The eye of sinful humanity, my eyes, your eyes, are drawn to the cross, are fixed upon the empty tomb, and the reality of forgiveness is lifted up for all to see. It is not a phony forgiveness or mere happy talk that God’s love is waiting for you to do what is right, that God is waiting to lavish such love upon you if you only will do what you know to do. That is not forgiveness. That’s bribery!
In God’s service, in our weekly times of Gottesdienst, full forgiveness is offered and full forgiveness is grasped, clutched, cherished, and celebrated.
What’s in it for me? for us? In worship Jesus comes to us, giving us his Good News. That is nurture. Jesus comes to us, proclaiming the Father’s gift of life. That is outreach. Jesus comes with his love for us all. That is fellowship. Jesus comes with his caring for all of our needs. That is service. Worship, nurture, outreach, fellowship, service- God’s service is the beating heart of our life.
This beautiful idea is no high-minded, ivory-towered concept. It is foundational and it is concrete. We were given a beautiful image in our Gospel lesson this morning. It is a remarkable story, yet also a common story.
First off, Jesus is teaching. He is talking. Here Jesus is the great role model for pastors. The tremendous hope that so many people would come to listen and discuss that more room was needed. Jesus got into Simon Peter’s skipjack and put off a little bit from shore. So we have the example of teaching and conversation and fellowship. Even nurture as Jesus feeds the crowd with his gracious words. And when the lesson was concluded, Jesus wanted to do some fishing.
Peter is honest, yet quite polite: “Sir, it’s not the best time to go fishing. Fish bite best at night and now it is daytime. We spent our nighttime trying to catch the rascals and they outsmarted us. We’d just like to clean and mend our nets and then rest a bit before trying again. But…at your word I’ll try again.”
And there was a miraculous catch of fish. With Jesus, miracles are always happening, aren’t they? Now if Simon Peter was simply thinking about his business as a commercial fisherman, the miraculous bounty of fish would have been amazing enough. This haul would mean new nets, perhaps a new boat, perhaps more boats to catch more fish. The great number of fish would mean that Simon Peter could afford to put his children into private school, could pay for a new gym membership, could buy his wife a new car or that his kitchen could have granite countertops with stainless steel appliances. This amazing catch could change Simon’s life.
Certainly Simon Peter’s life was changed. When Simon Peter saw it, the miraculous catch of fish, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” In this gracious miracle, Peter saw who he was and who Jesus was. What was in the miracle for Peter, but the knowledge that God was serving him. God in the flesh was standing before Peter and Peter knew how dirty, how grimy, how messy he was and that he didn’t want his mess to get on Jesus. Depart from me. I’m not good enough for you.
But it is Gottesdienst. It is God serving us. Sinners are served. “Do not be afraid. From now on you will be catching men.” Jesus came for Peter. Jesus came to serve Peter, to save Peter, to use Peter.
Peter the sinner was served. Peter was called to follow. Peter the saint was sent to do what had been done to him. And so were James and John the sons of Zebedee. So was Andrew and Matthew, Bartholomew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeusa nd the rest of the twelve. There were others. God has been gathering and serving His people. God has been saving His people. And God has been sending his people.
In worship, we can ask what is in it for us. We are served. We are sinners called to acknowledge our sin and grasp God’s forgiveness. And we are sent. We are sent to our families. We are sent to our coworkers. We are sent to our schools. We are sent into our daily lives to reflect the love of the God who serves and saves. SDG
Epiphany 5
Feb. 7, 2010
1 Corinthians 14:12b-20; Luke 5:1-11
Sinners served, Saints sent
In the name of Jesus, amen. Within our Epistle and Gospel lessons we find an acknowledgement of a ‘modern’ question, and this modern question likely dates back several decades. The question is, “What’s in it for me?” Being in a church, that question is especially important from a spiritual viewpoint.
What in the church, in this particular worshiping community, is for me? I’ve asked a bad question, because my supposition is that I, and you, are in the center of the thought. And what is something that has been expressed about our church but that we are Christ-centered, cross-focused. Asking what is in it for me starts to push God away from the center, perhaps even out of the picture.
That might not have been the malady of this congregation. That might not have been the problem, but it has been revealed to us that there is a goal for this gathering. There is a goal for worship.
In our past worship was regarded through this German word: Gottesdienst. It is important to know our historical past so that we can live toward our realistic future. That German word from our past is the word for worship. Literally, Gottesdienst is God’s service. Jesus, our God, in worship serves us.
God serves us. He presses on our hearts His Word of forgiveness. He lays on us the knowledge of how Jesus served us by dying for us. God serves us as He gives new life, new birth in baptism. God serves us, feeding us with the very real nourishment of His own body and blood for the good of our spiritual lives. God serves us, loving us. God serves us, setting us free to love him, setting us free to love and serve those who are in our lives.
What is in worship for me? Is worship for God, or for me? When we examine other religions around us, worshipers gather to serve their gods. In Christian worship, the true God gathers. The true God stoops down to serve. As we gather together, sinners come and uncover the glorious beauty that they are served. More than being served, sinners are saved. The eye of sinful humanity, my eyes, your eyes, are drawn to the cross, are fixed upon the empty tomb, and the reality of forgiveness is lifted up for all to see. It is not a phony forgiveness or mere happy talk that God’s love is waiting for you to do what is right, that God is waiting to lavish such love upon you if you only will do what you know to do. That is not forgiveness. That’s bribery!
In God’s service, in our weekly times of Gottesdienst, full forgiveness is offered and full forgiveness is grasped, clutched, cherished, and celebrated.
What’s in it for me? for us? In worship Jesus comes to us, giving us his Good News. That is nurture. Jesus comes to us, proclaiming the Father’s gift of life. That is outreach. Jesus comes with his love for us all. That is fellowship. Jesus comes with his caring for all of our needs. That is service. Worship, nurture, outreach, fellowship, service- God’s service is the beating heart of our life.
This beautiful idea is no high-minded, ivory-towered concept. It is foundational and it is concrete. We were given a beautiful image in our Gospel lesson this morning. It is a remarkable story, yet also a common story.
First off, Jesus is teaching. He is talking. Here Jesus is the great role model for pastors. The tremendous hope that so many people would come to listen and discuss that more room was needed. Jesus got into Simon Peter’s skipjack and put off a little bit from shore. So we have the example of teaching and conversation and fellowship. Even nurture as Jesus feeds the crowd with his gracious words. And when the lesson was concluded, Jesus wanted to do some fishing.
Peter is honest, yet quite polite: “Sir, it’s not the best time to go fishing. Fish bite best at night and now it is daytime. We spent our nighttime trying to catch the rascals and they outsmarted us. We’d just like to clean and mend our nets and then rest a bit before trying again. But…at your word I’ll try again.”
And there was a miraculous catch of fish. With Jesus, miracles are always happening, aren’t they? Now if Simon Peter was simply thinking about his business as a commercial fisherman, the miraculous bounty of fish would have been amazing enough. This haul would mean new nets, perhaps a new boat, perhaps more boats to catch more fish. The great number of fish would mean that Simon Peter could afford to put his children into private school, could pay for a new gym membership, could buy his wife a new car or that his kitchen could have granite countertops with stainless steel appliances. This amazing catch could change Simon’s life.
Certainly Simon Peter’s life was changed. When Simon Peter saw it, the miraculous catch of fish, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” In this gracious miracle, Peter saw who he was and who Jesus was. What was in the miracle for Peter, but the knowledge that God was serving him. God in the flesh was standing before Peter and Peter knew how dirty, how grimy, how messy he was and that he didn’t want his mess to get on Jesus. Depart from me. I’m not good enough for you.
But it is Gottesdienst. It is God serving us. Sinners are served. “Do not be afraid. From now on you will be catching men.” Jesus came for Peter. Jesus came to serve Peter, to save Peter, to use Peter.
Peter the sinner was served. Peter was called to follow. Peter the saint was sent to do what had been done to him. And so were James and John the sons of Zebedee. So was Andrew and Matthew, Bartholomew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeusa nd the rest of the twelve. There were others. God has been gathering and serving His people. God has been saving His people. And God has been sending his people.
In worship, we can ask what is in it for us. We are served. We are sinners called to acknowledge our sin and grasp God’s forgiveness. And we are sent. We are sent to our families. We are sent to our coworkers. We are sent to our schools. We are sent into our daily lives to reflect the love of the God who serves and saves. SDG
In the clear
Everything is cleared of snow at the church. Arlen brought his snowblower over and he and I got the walks cleared. So until the next snowfall (Wednesday!?) we are all set to go.
The snow looks beautiful and the icicles off the roof are glistening brightly, but I think this is enough.
The snow looks beautiful and the icicles off the roof are glistening brightly, but I think this is enough.
It really stinks
to cancel worship services. I totally understand the safety issue, but my schedule has been thrown off. I don't know what today is and I just feel 'off' and out of kilter.
Starting the week with worship has become natural and necessary. It is a blessed pattern.
I like the snow, but can't it come during the week and not mess with my schedule?
Starting the week with worship has become natural and necessary. It is a blessed pattern.
I like the snow, but can't it come during the week and not mess with my schedule?
Saturday, February 6, 2010
White out
I shoveled a bit last night, shoveled some more this morning, watched the snow plow heap up some snow in front of my cars, and have a long day ahead of me. Lord, have mercy! But it looks like it will be a good day to make a snowperson.
I think we're in the midst of a big dumping. It appears that Baltimore and north will get the most of the snow. And I'm north of Baltimore. Yikes. This better not get in the way of the Super Bowl party. I have chips and guacamole but only one can of beer! At least it's Yuengling. I'm thinking that by tomorrow afternoon, the roads will be clear enough to make it to our party so I can try the new Sam Adams Noble Pils. (I'm a sucker for marketing and it looks like a tasty brew.)
Oh yeah, we might not have church tomorrow. I'm all ready, have a sermon I think it pretty good with some nice hymns, so of course the weather monkeys got the forecast right. Drat. We'll have to see what happens.
I think we're in the midst of a big dumping. It appears that Baltimore and north will get the most of the snow. And I'm north of Baltimore. Yikes. This better not get in the way of the Super Bowl party. I have chips and guacamole but only one can of beer! At least it's Yuengling. I'm thinking that by tomorrow afternoon, the roads will be clear enough to make it to our party so I can try the new Sam Adams Noble Pils. (I'm a sucker for marketing and it looks like a tasty brew.)
Oh yeah, we might not have church tomorrow. I'm all ready, have a sermon I think it pretty good with some nice hymns, so of course the weather monkeys got the forecast right. Drat. We'll have to see what happens.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
We have
a future because we have a past! That statement can be applied to the Church in so many different ways. Churches that jettison their past often wander listlessly into the future because they have no connection to where they came from. They just move 'forward' without any sense of direction. Putting your car in "D" will not get you where you want to go. A steering wheel, gas and brake pedals, and a functioning brain will get you where you want to go.
I've been listening this morning to an interview from Feb. 2nd about the purification of Mary and the presentation of our Lord. The interview was on Issues, Etc. (www.issuesetc.org) and the guest was the Rev. Dr. Art Just. It was absolutely wonderful to hear some cogent discussion about a feast day in the Church that sometimes gets short shrift.
Dr. Just made the comment that within Luke 2, the presentation of Jesus in the Temple is the greatest part. That may be somewhat scandalous considering that the Christmas story is in Luke 2 and the circumcision of Jesus is in Luke 2. Yet with the parents of Jesus bringin the baby to the Temple, all was brought to fulfillment. Feb. 2nd is the fortieth day after Christmas, and Mary, according to the Hebrew law, was able to be declared clean from her childbirth. So they went to the temple to offer their sacrifice. But the 40th day after Christmas is also the
70th week after the conception of John the Baptist. With the entrance of the great forerunner of Christ into the world, the salvation story of God was shifting into high gear. And now all is fulfilled as the Christ is brought to His temple. Mary and Joseph offered their two turtledoves as the sacrifice. But the world's sacrifice was there also with them.
Please listen to that segment and hear the good news of God so clearly and articulately expressed.
The feast of the purification of Mary and the presentation of our Lord is something that gets a little note on our calendar. We move on so quickly from it. Too many times I regard it, and other feasts, simply as the past, as something that is not entirely relevant for our modern context. What a shame.
In this feast, we celebrate the past for it sheds light on our future. God has sent His Son into this world for our sake.
In His Temple now behold Him, See the long-expected Lord;
Ancient prophets had foretold Him, God has now fulfilled His word.
Now to praise Him, His redeemed Shall break forth with one accord.
Jesus, by Your presentation, When they blessed You, weak and poor.
Make us see Your gereat salvation, Seal us with Your promise sure;
And present us in Your glory To Your Father, cleansed and pure.
-Lutheran Service Book 519
I've been listening this morning to an interview from Feb. 2nd about the purification of Mary and the presentation of our Lord. The interview was on Issues, Etc. (www.issuesetc.org) and the guest was the Rev. Dr. Art Just. It was absolutely wonderful to hear some cogent discussion about a feast day in the Church that sometimes gets short shrift.
Dr. Just made the comment that within Luke 2, the presentation of Jesus in the Temple is the greatest part. That may be somewhat scandalous considering that the Christmas story is in Luke 2 and the circumcision of Jesus is in Luke 2. Yet with the parents of Jesus bringin the baby to the Temple, all was brought to fulfillment. Feb. 2nd is the fortieth day after Christmas, and Mary, according to the Hebrew law, was able to be declared clean from her childbirth. So they went to the temple to offer their sacrifice. But the 40th day after Christmas is also the
70th week after the conception of John the Baptist. With the entrance of the great forerunner of Christ into the world, the salvation story of God was shifting into high gear. And now all is fulfilled as the Christ is brought to His temple. Mary and Joseph offered their two turtledoves as the sacrifice. But the world's sacrifice was there also with them.
Please listen to that segment and hear the good news of God so clearly and articulately expressed.
The feast of the purification of Mary and the presentation of our Lord is something that gets a little note on our calendar. We move on so quickly from it. Too many times I regard it, and other feasts, simply as the past, as something that is not entirely relevant for our modern context. What a shame.
In this feast, we celebrate the past for it sheds light on our future. God has sent His Son into this world for our sake.
In His Temple now behold Him, See the long-expected Lord;
Ancient prophets had foretold Him, God has now fulfilled His word.
Now to praise Him, His redeemed Shall break forth with one accord.
Jesus, by Your presentation, When they blessed You, weak and poor.
Make us see Your gereat salvation, Seal us with Your promise sure;
And present us in Your glory To Your Father, cleansed and pure.
-Lutheran Service Book 519
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Worship info for Feb. 7
Here are the particulars for our upcoming worship on Feb. 7th:
Hymns
477 Alleluia, Alleluia! Hearts to Heaven
945 Your Heart, O God, is Grieved {Kyrie hymn}
946 Glory to God, We Give You Thanks and Praise {Gloria hymn}
856 O Christ, Who Called the Twelve
827 Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling
688 "Come, Follow Me," the Savior Spake
941 We Praise You and Acknowledge You, O God
Scripture Lessons
Isaiah 6:1-13
Psalm 138
1 Corinthians 14:12b-20
Luke 5:1-11
Collect of the Day
O Lord, keep Your family the Church continually in the true faith that relying on the hope of Your heavenly grace we may ever be defended by Your mighty power; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Hymns
477 Alleluia, Alleluia! Hearts to Heaven
945 Your Heart, O God, is Grieved {Kyrie hymn}
946 Glory to God, We Give You Thanks and Praise {Gloria hymn}
856 O Christ, Who Called the Twelve
827 Hark, the Voice of Jesus Calling
688 "Come, Follow Me," the Savior Spake
941 We Praise You and Acknowledge You, O God
Scripture Lessons
Isaiah 6:1-13
Psalm 138
1 Corinthians 14:12b-20
Luke 5:1-11
Collect of the Day
O Lord, keep Your family the Church continually in the true faith that relying on the hope of Your heavenly grace we may ever be defended by Your mighty power; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Thoughts on a visit to an Islamic Mosque
I handed this out on Sunday and it is my reflection on a visit to an Islamic Mosque. And perhaps it has just as much to say about pop evangelical Christianity as it does about Islam.
Just Like Us?
On Jan. 21st I was able to take a tour of the Islamic Society of Delaware’s (ISD) mosque on Salem Church Rd. Part of the tour included a presentation on what takes place within the mosque and what the activities of the ISD are. Now that I’ve been able to process and reflect on what I witnessed that morning, I’d like to share those thoughts with you.
The mosque itself is rather ‘plain’ and inside the entryway was a bulletin board with sheets of paper and various informational items posted. There were cubbies for us to put our shoes and coats in, as it is disrespectful to wear shoes inside the worship area and fellowship area of the mosque. There is a separate entrance and area for women, as the sexes do not mingle within the mosque.
There was a ‘sanctuary’, although it is not called that in the mosque. And there was a large room similar to what many churches call a fellowship hall. It was in this room that the presentation was given. They offered us bottled water and some Dunkin Donuts, so we felt right at home.
The gentleman who gave the presentation was the president of the Board of Directors for the ISD. He was born in Pakistan but for the last 20+ years he and his family have lived in NCCo. He is an engineer who works at the DuPont Experimental Station in Wilmington.
A lot of the presentation focused on the social work that ISD carries out. They offer free health clinics for all people and they offer tutoring for school children. They also help with various societal needs in the urban areas of Wilmington. (Of the three mosques in NCCo, two are in Wilmington.) They are trying to be more involved in helping prisoners who are about to be released from prison assimilate back into society.
At present there is a building being erected that will house a two-story school. I’m not sure if this is going to be a five-day a week elementary-style school or a school for the mosque’s members to use on the weekends.
We were able to sit in on the noontime prayer service. It was brief, about 15 minutes in length. There was a call to prayer and while that was going on, men began to trickle in and have a time of personal prayer. We were told that the personal prayer was mostly the men reciting portions of the Koran that they had memorized. After a few minutes the imam came in. He then led the group in what I would label a ‘call and repeat’ style of prayer. And primarily what I heard was the phrase ‘Allahu Akhbar’, which means ‘God is great’. The imam would call out this phrase and the men would repeat it back to him. It was pretty interesting to watch this take place.
I titled this paper ‘Just like us’ because that is the primary reaction I have to the time I spent at the mosque.
The bulk of the presentation focused on all the social ministry efforts that ISD is trying to accomplish. That is just like what a lot of Christian churches are involved in and what a lot of non-Christian organizations attempt. The ISD is interested in the current health care debate and are doing what they can to improve people’s access to health care. Isn’t that what a lot of churches are doing through parish nurse programs and free health clinics?
What I took away from the presentation is that the ISD wants to project the image that Muslims are just like a lot of Christians in how they live and function.
Another aspect of the similarity is that the presenter made it very clear that only ‘good’ Muslims will enter paradise. And in order to be a good Muslim, total obedience to the Koran is required. This means that a good Muslim will pray five times a day, keep the Ramadan provisions, pay the tithe, etc. Entrance into paradise (what we might call heaven) is totally dependent on what the individual person accomplishes. Isn’t that just like what a lot of Christians believe?
There are indeed a lot of Christians who believe that their good works will help them get into heaven. Christians have bought into the false and deceptive claim that they have to pass the “Good Works Test” in order to enter heaven. And if you don’t pass that test, you better like it hot because where you are going is plenty hot. So in that regard, Muslims and Christians share a lot in common.
I find that to be extremely wearying. There is no hope for the Muslim, because no matter how much you do, that little voice inside your head is going to accuse you of not doing more. And that is the same hopelessness that Christians feel when they go to sleep at night. A lot of our Christian brothers and sisters turn the Gospel into Law and they beat themselves up with it. When their head hits the pillow they are asking themselves, “Did I do enough to make God happy with me today? Did I take advantage of every opportunity to pray, to witness my faith, to point someone to Jesus?”
All of those answers are ‘No’ because of the holy demands of God. The hope of the Christian has always been, and always will be, in the life of Jesus. God the Father demanded sinlessness and perfection and Jesus the Son provided that. I knew that there was no Gospel within Islam, but it struck me how similar this is to a good portion of Christianity that does not have the Gospel either. It is no Gospel when the grace of Jesus Christ and the undeserved mercy of God are held out as if they were a carrot so that you might act or behave in a different fashion. There is no comfort in that, only pain and despair.
Islam is a major threat in the United States. The presenter stressed repeatedly that American Muslims were not the same as the radical Islamists that are found in other parts of the world (Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia to name a few places). I’d like to believe that but the teachings of the Koran are very deceptive. The Islamic concept of jihad appears very differently at different times, all depending on the percentage of the Islamic population in the area. When Muslims are in the minority, the message of Islam is peace and tolerance. When the populations are more equal, then the message of Islam is a little more aggressive and defiant.
The message that the ISD was ‘just like’ other groups could be, at the same time, comforting and dangerous. Let us be glad for their good societal work but let us also be aware of the reality that Islam, revealed in the Koran, is not friendly to Christianity.
Just Like Us?
On Jan. 21st I was able to take a tour of the Islamic Society of Delaware’s (ISD) mosque on Salem Church Rd. Part of the tour included a presentation on what takes place within the mosque and what the activities of the ISD are. Now that I’ve been able to process and reflect on what I witnessed that morning, I’d like to share those thoughts with you.
The mosque itself is rather ‘plain’ and inside the entryway was a bulletin board with sheets of paper and various informational items posted. There were cubbies for us to put our shoes and coats in, as it is disrespectful to wear shoes inside the worship area and fellowship area of the mosque. There is a separate entrance and area for women, as the sexes do not mingle within the mosque.
There was a ‘sanctuary’, although it is not called that in the mosque. And there was a large room similar to what many churches call a fellowship hall. It was in this room that the presentation was given. They offered us bottled water and some Dunkin Donuts, so we felt right at home.
The gentleman who gave the presentation was the president of the Board of Directors for the ISD. He was born in Pakistan but for the last 20+ years he and his family have lived in NCCo. He is an engineer who works at the DuPont Experimental Station in Wilmington.
A lot of the presentation focused on the social work that ISD carries out. They offer free health clinics for all people and they offer tutoring for school children. They also help with various societal needs in the urban areas of Wilmington. (Of the three mosques in NCCo, two are in Wilmington.) They are trying to be more involved in helping prisoners who are about to be released from prison assimilate back into society.
At present there is a building being erected that will house a two-story school. I’m not sure if this is going to be a five-day a week elementary-style school or a school for the mosque’s members to use on the weekends.
We were able to sit in on the noontime prayer service. It was brief, about 15 minutes in length. There was a call to prayer and while that was going on, men began to trickle in and have a time of personal prayer. We were told that the personal prayer was mostly the men reciting portions of the Koran that they had memorized. After a few minutes the imam came in. He then led the group in what I would label a ‘call and repeat’ style of prayer. And primarily what I heard was the phrase ‘Allahu Akhbar’, which means ‘God is great’. The imam would call out this phrase and the men would repeat it back to him. It was pretty interesting to watch this take place.
I titled this paper ‘Just like us’ because that is the primary reaction I have to the time I spent at the mosque.
The bulk of the presentation focused on all the social ministry efforts that ISD is trying to accomplish. That is just like what a lot of Christian churches are involved in and what a lot of non-Christian organizations attempt. The ISD is interested in the current health care debate and are doing what they can to improve people’s access to health care. Isn’t that what a lot of churches are doing through parish nurse programs and free health clinics?
What I took away from the presentation is that the ISD wants to project the image that Muslims are just like a lot of Christians in how they live and function.
Another aspect of the similarity is that the presenter made it very clear that only ‘good’ Muslims will enter paradise. And in order to be a good Muslim, total obedience to the Koran is required. This means that a good Muslim will pray five times a day, keep the Ramadan provisions, pay the tithe, etc. Entrance into paradise (what we might call heaven) is totally dependent on what the individual person accomplishes. Isn’t that just like what a lot of Christians believe?
There are indeed a lot of Christians who believe that their good works will help them get into heaven. Christians have bought into the false and deceptive claim that they have to pass the “Good Works Test” in order to enter heaven. And if you don’t pass that test, you better like it hot because where you are going is plenty hot. So in that regard, Muslims and Christians share a lot in common.
I find that to be extremely wearying. There is no hope for the Muslim, because no matter how much you do, that little voice inside your head is going to accuse you of not doing more. And that is the same hopelessness that Christians feel when they go to sleep at night. A lot of our Christian brothers and sisters turn the Gospel into Law and they beat themselves up with it. When their head hits the pillow they are asking themselves, “Did I do enough to make God happy with me today? Did I take advantage of every opportunity to pray, to witness my faith, to point someone to Jesus?”
All of those answers are ‘No’ because of the holy demands of God. The hope of the Christian has always been, and always will be, in the life of Jesus. God the Father demanded sinlessness and perfection and Jesus the Son provided that. I knew that there was no Gospel within Islam, but it struck me how similar this is to a good portion of Christianity that does not have the Gospel either. It is no Gospel when the grace of Jesus Christ and the undeserved mercy of God are held out as if they were a carrot so that you might act or behave in a different fashion. There is no comfort in that, only pain and despair.
Islam is a major threat in the United States. The presenter stressed repeatedly that American Muslims were not the same as the radical Islamists that are found in other parts of the world (Yemen, Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia to name a few places). I’d like to believe that but the teachings of the Koran are very deceptive. The Islamic concept of jihad appears very differently at different times, all depending on the percentage of the Islamic population in the area. When Muslims are in the minority, the message of Islam is peace and tolerance. When the populations are more equal, then the message of Islam is a little more aggressive and defiant.
The message that the ISD was ‘just like’ other groups could be, at the same time, comforting and dangerous. Let us be glad for their good societal work but let us also be aware of the reality that Islam, revealed in the Koran, is not friendly to Christianity.
Complaint psalms
Issues, Etc ran a week-long series on the Complaint Psalms. This was a wonderful series to listen to and learn from. These are realistic psalms for the Christian to read and meditate upon. Too much of Christianity that I see ignores the reality of life and never gets beyond the superficialities. Pity.
Sermon for Epiphany 4
Here's the sermon from yesterday's service. As always, excuse the typos!
Epiphany 4
Jan. 31, 2010
1 Corinthians 12:31b-13:13
When “more excellent” is the most excellent
In the name of Jesus, amen. Ahh, the ‘love chapter’. How many times have you heard this chapter? It’s great but perhaps a little depressing because it seems too good to be true.
I have so much to learn about love. You probably do too. We likely aim to be more lovable and we aspire to be more loving. And so we happily receive Paul’s words that he will show us a more excellent way, the way of love. And the more excellent way is really the most excellent way.
When we talk about love, too often our conversation gets derailed by the small word ‘if’. I would better love the people in my life, if only… What? What gets in the way?
Paul’s heart is revealed. Paul was always the missionary, hurrying to touch the hearts of people, to share Jesus’ love with new people. If only I could speak all their languages. If only I could speak like an angel. If only I could preach with prophetic power, if only I could give away all the marvelous wonders of God, and if I only could move mountains. Paul’s desire is so clear and so bright.
If Paul did not have love, he was just making noise. He was a bell clanging in an idol’s temple. Without love, I am nothing. Without love, I gain nothing.
If only is a phrase that paralyzes. We start to look at what we lack, at what is missing and we fail to see what we do possess. Everyday since the earthquake in Haiti I have been reading Matt Harrison’s blog. Matt Harrison is Rev. Matt Harrison and he is the executive director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care. You can read his blog at mercyjourneys.blogspot.com. Matt shares his experiences at a Haitian hospital in Jimani. Matt was dressed as he always is, wearing his clerical collar and he had his crucifix around his neck and he was helping move boxes of supplies. He would pray with people, bless people in the name of Jesus, but he mentioned that he was deficient because the primary language is French and Matt doesn’t speak French. He went to a five year old girl who had one of her legs amputated and the little girl was extremely frightened. Aftershocks are a dreadful reality in Haiti and one rolled through the region. The little girl started crying out in terror and Matt went to her but couldn’t understand what she was yelling or asking for. Matt knelt next to her and grabbed her hand and started praying but the little girl kept yelling and so Matt started to sing ‘Jesus love me’. The little girl grabbed Matt’s crucifix and clutched it tightly. The chaplain who did speak French came over and told Matt that the little girl was asking if Matt could take her and her mother away where it was safe. Matt told the chaplain, “If only I could.”
All of those ‘ifs’ that Paul puts in front of us has come true. God has set our tongues free to speak all languages. We are free to speak of the love of angels. God has given us the power of prophets, the wisdom of seers, the faith of mountain-movers. And all that God has given to you, you give. You pour out your very life, your very love, all in the cause of God’s love.
And let us be clear, when we love, God doesn’t love us more, not even just a wee bit. God loves us from the start. When we look at Paul, Paul hated Jesus, was bent on wiping the followers of Christ from the face of the earth. And then God’s love shone down on Paul.
Why does God love you? Why did God love Paul? God loves because of Himself. Just as I am, without one plea but that Thy blood was shed for me! Purely, perfectly, finally, forever- God loves you!
Too many times my prayers are silly, silly in the sense that they are selfish, self-indulgent. “If only you would change me God, then I would love more. If only you would make me more like Jesus, than I would love like Jesus.” Really? Would to God that our prayers took this tone: “God, you have loved me. You have baptized me. Help me to believe your love. You give me all your heart. Help me to live your love. Move me to live from your heart.”
Love is not ‘if only’. Love is only Christ.
For if Paul is speaking about anyone we know, anyone who can speak sweeter than angels, with great power, who knows God’s mysteries, Paul is speaking about love incarnate. Love is what Paul Gerhardt wrote about with these great Advent words: “Love caused Your incarnation; Love brought You down to me. Your thirst for my salvation procured my liberty. Oh, love beyond all telling, That led You to embrace In love, all love excelling, our lost and fallen race.
Jesus, the very image of God’s love, embraced our fallen race.
Our fallen race doesn’t do love very well does it? A church in Cleveland was going to put on a Passion play on Holy Saturday. Members of the church would play the various parts. One man was picked to play Jesus, and he was thrilled. He desired to do such a good job, he wanted to really display the life of Jesus at the very end. He took the practices very seriously. He shouldered the rough wooden cross. He endured the jeers of his fellow members who were playing the role of the crowd and the enemies of Jesus. One of the members, who lived in the same neighborhood, had the role of one of the angry crowd, and he was good at his role. These two gentlemen had issues. “You think you’re so special, huh Jesus? You think you’re so big? Too big to mow your own lawn.” The jibes and insults were nasty, personal. “You’re house looks ugly. Almost as ugly as your daughter.”
Well Jesus had had enough. He threw down the cross, stomped over the neighbor and had some words that cannot be repeated here. The passion play practice ground to a halt. The director told Jesus that tomorrow night the stand-in would have to play the role of Jesus. The poor man was so embarrassed, heartsick. He pleaded for another chance. And he got one.
Sure enough, the next night, his neighbor came back for round 2. Angry. Mean. Jesus was getting red-faced as he struggled under that cross. But the neighbor kept dishing it out. “And don’t get me started on your momma!” Jesus clenched his teeth, cocked his head and fixed his stare on his tormentor. “I’ll deal with you after the resurrection!”
Is that our Jesus? All of our nastiness and hatred hits his heart. Yet he carries our sin clear to the grave. His heart, filled only with love, Jesus rises, Jesus lives, and Jesus loves us still today. And Jesus is where we find more love, better love, the most excellent love.
To help us understand that Jesus is love, try this exercise: in verses 4-7, wherever the word love appears, insert your name, like this- Jeremy is patient and kind; Jeremy does not envy or boast; Jeremy is not arrogant or rude. Jeremy does not insist on his own way; Jeremy is not irritable or resentful; Jeremy does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Jeremy bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Thank you, my loving friends, for not laughing, for not throwing your hymnals at me, for not booing or hissing. My love fails. My heart goes dry. I am painfully aware that I need to be a better lover. Paul’s words indict me. They indict you. Paul’s words describe Jesus.
Jesus is patient. Jesus is kind. Jesus does not envy or boast or brag. Jesus does not insist on his own way. Jesus gave Himself into the hands of his God and said, “Father, not what I want. Thy will be done!”
We have a lot to learn about love. Fortunately God never stops teaching us about love. We are taught how to receive it from other people. We are taught to give it away, to all people, to people within this church family, to spouse and children, to those numbered among the least of these. Love is never about ‘if only’. Love is only Jesus.
So all that our Father God promises, Jesus pours out his pure Pentecost Spirit to make it all come true for you. Jesus never ends. Jesus is where we can find more love, better love, the best love. The more excellent way is the most excellent way that Jesus traveled- to the cross, to the tomb, to the sky. SDG
Epiphany 4
Jan. 31, 2010
1 Corinthians 12:31b-13:13
When “more excellent” is the most excellent
In the name of Jesus, amen. Ahh, the ‘love chapter’. How many times have you heard this chapter? It’s great but perhaps a little depressing because it seems too good to be true.
I have so much to learn about love. You probably do too. We likely aim to be more lovable and we aspire to be more loving. And so we happily receive Paul’s words that he will show us a more excellent way, the way of love. And the more excellent way is really the most excellent way.
When we talk about love, too often our conversation gets derailed by the small word ‘if’. I would better love the people in my life, if only… What? What gets in the way?
Paul’s heart is revealed. Paul was always the missionary, hurrying to touch the hearts of people, to share Jesus’ love with new people. If only I could speak all their languages. If only I could speak like an angel. If only I could preach with prophetic power, if only I could give away all the marvelous wonders of God, and if I only could move mountains. Paul’s desire is so clear and so bright.
If Paul did not have love, he was just making noise. He was a bell clanging in an idol’s temple. Without love, I am nothing. Without love, I gain nothing.
If only is a phrase that paralyzes. We start to look at what we lack, at what is missing and we fail to see what we do possess. Everyday since the earthquake in Haiti I have been reading Matt Harrison’s blog. Matt Harrison is Rev. Matt Harrison and he is the executive director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care. You can read his blog at mercyjourneys.blogspot.com. Matt shares his experiences at a Haitian hospital in Jimani. Matt was dressed as he always is, wearing his clerical collar and he had his crucifix around his neck and he was helping move boxes of supplies. He would pray with people, bless people in the name of Jesus, but he mentioned that he was deficient because the primary language is French and Matt doesn’t speak French. He went to a five year old girl who had one of her legs amputated and the little girl was extremely frightened. Aftershocks are a dreadful reality in Haiti and one rolled through the region. The little girl started crying out in terror and Matt went to her but couldn’t understand what she was yelling or asking for. Matt knelt next to her and grabbed her hand and started praying but the little girl kept yelling and so Matt started to sing ‘Jesus love me’. The little girl grabbed Matt’s crucifix and clutched it tightly. The chaplain who did speak French came over and told Matt that the little girl was asking if Matt could take her and her mother away where it was safe. Matt told the chaplain, “If only I could.”
All of those ‘ifs’ that Paul puts in front of us has come true. God has set our tongues free to speak all languages. We are free to speak of the love of angels. God has given us the power of prophets, the wisdom of seers, the faith of mountain-movers. And all that God has given to you, you give. You pour out your very life, your very love, all in the cause of God’s love.
And let us be clear, when we love, God doesn’t love us more, not even just a wee bit. God loves us from the start. When we look at Paul, Paul hated Jesus, was bent on wiping the followers of Christ from the face of the earth. And then God’s love shone down on Paul.
Why does God love you? Why did God love Paul? God loves because of Himself. Just as I am, without one plea but that Thy blood was shed for me! Purely, perfectly, finally, forever- God loves you!
Too many times my prayers are silly, silly in the sense that they are selfish, self-indulgent. “If only you would change me God, then I would love more. If only you would make me more like Jesus, than I would love like Jesus.” Really? Would to God that our prayers took this tone: “God, you have loved me. You have baptized me. Help me to believe your love. You give me all your heart. Help me to live your love. Move me to live from your heart.”
Love is not ‘if only’. Love is only Christ.
For if Paul is speaking about anyone we know, anyone who can speak sweeter than angels, with great power, who knows God’s mysteries, Paul is speaking about love incarnate. Love is what Paul Gerhardt wrote about with these great Advent words: “Love caused Your incarnation; Love brought You down to me. Your thirst for my salvation procured my liberty. Oh, love beyond all telling, That led You to embrace In love, all love excelling, our lost and fallen race.
Jesus, the very image of God’s love, embraced our fallen race.
Our fallen race doesn’t do love very well does it? A church in Cleveland was going to put on a Passion play on Holy Saturday. Members of the church would play the various parts. One man was picked to play Jesus, and he was thrilled. He desired to do such a good job, he wanted to really display the life of Jesus at the very end. He took the practices very seriously. He shouldered the rough wooden cross. He endured the jeers of his fellow members who were playing the role of the crowd and the enemies of Jesus. One of the members, who lived in the same neighborhood, had the role of one of the angry crowd, and he was good at his role. These two gentlemen had issues. “You think you’re so special, huh Jesus? You think you’re so big? Too big to mow your own lawn.” The jibes and insults were nasty, personal. “You’re house looks ugly. Almost as ugly as your daughter.”
Well Jesus had had enough. He threw down the cross, stomped over the neighbor and had some words that cannot be repeated here. The passion play practice ground to a halt. The director told Jesus that tomorrow night the stand-in would have to play the role of Jesus. The poor man was so embarrassed, heartsick. He pleaded for another chance. And he got one.
Sure enough, the next night, his neighbor came back for round 2. Angry. Mean. Jesus was getting red-faced as he struggled under that cross. But the neighbor kept dishing it out. “And don’t get me started on your momma!” Jesus clenched his teeth, cocked his head and fixed his stare on his tormentor. “I’ll deal with you after the resurrection!”
Is that our Jesus? All of our nastiness and hatred hits his heart. Yet he carries our sin clear to the grave. His heart, filled only with love, Jesus rises, Jesus lives, and Jesus loves us still today. And Jesus is where we find more love, better love, the most excellent love.
To help us understand that Jesus is love, try this exercise: in verses 4-7, wherever the word love appears, insert your name, like this- Jeremy is patient and kind; Jeremy does not envy or boast; Jeremy is not arrogant or rude. Jeremy does not insist on his own way; Jeremy is not irritable or resentful; Jeremy does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Jeremy bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Thank you, my loving friends, for not laughing, for not throwing your hymnals at me, for not booing or hissing. My love fails. My heart goes dry. I am painfully aware that I need to be a better lover. Paul’s words indict me. They indict you. Paul’s words describe Jesus.
Jesus is patient. Jesus is kind. Jesus does not envy or boast or brag. Jesus does not insist on his own way. Jesus gave Himself into the hands of his God and said, “Father, not what I want. Thy will be done!”
We have a lot to learn about love. Fortunately God never stops teaching us about love. We are taught how to receive it from other people. We are taught to give it away, to all people, to people within this church family, to spouse and children, to those numbered among the least of these. Love is never about ‘if only’. Love is only Jesus.
So all that our Father God promises, Jesus pours out his pure Pentecost Spirit to make it all come true for you. Jesus never ends. Jesus is where we can find more love, better love, the best love. The more excellent way is the most excellent way that Jesus traveled- to the cross, to the tomb, to the sky. SDG
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