Category: Forgiveness

Can’t We All Just Get Along?

The expression, “Can’t we all just get along?” was first spoken by Rodney King, a black motorist who was dragged from his car in 1992 by Los Angeles police officers, and beaten by the officers severely. When those officers were acquitted of charges in their trial, South Central LA erupted in riots, resulting in numerous deaths and massive property damage. Apparently, the answer to Rodney’s question was, “No.”

Still, it was a good question, and has been quoted many times since then. even becoming a humorous internet and movie meme.

This week, the intent of the question, if not the actual words, has come to the fore, following the presidential election results. The campaign had been brutal, with all kinds of charges and insults flying both ways. The heat became so intense that a gunman even fired on Donald Trump, wounding him in the ear. Because of the intense division in the country, many people have anticipated actual violence erupting, whatever the election results might be.

In an attempt to reduce the “temperature” of the electoral passions,  leaders of both parties have called for “getting along” now that the election is over. President Biden promised a peaceful transition of power. President-elect Trump promised to help our country heal, and to be a President for all the people. In their pronouncements, they have followed in the footsteps of a previous president, Abraham Lincoln, who during a failed Senate campaign in 1858, spoke about the growing division between North and South, saying,”A house divided between itself cannot stand.”

Of course, Lincoln didn’t invent that phrase. He was quoting Jesus’ words from Matthew 12:25, Mark 3:25, and Luke 11:17. The context was a question about how Jesus was casting out demons: was it by the power of Satan? Jesus said if Satan was casting out demons, then Satan’s kingdom was divided and would fall. Lincoln took that teaching of Jesus and expanded it to be true of our country that was half-slave and half-free. He said the issue had to be resolved or the house, the United States, would fall.

I think Jesus’ words, though spoken in the context of spiritual warfare, do have more universal applications. A marriage won’t last if husband and wife are divided in essentials. An army will be defeated if it wars against itself instead of united against the enemy. A company will fail if employees don’t work together or sabotage the owner.

As I thought about this question of division versus unity in our country, I wondered what other things the Bible says about us “getting along.” I found that Scripture actually teaches both – unity and division – depending on what we are talking about.

When are we to get along?

    1. First, we recognize that all people are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27) and are due respect for that reason.
    2. The commandments require us to love our neighbor in several ways: not to steal from them, not to mistreat them sexually, not to lie about them or defame them, not to covet their possessions nor their relationships with others. In fact, Jesus summed up all God’s law into two commands: to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
    3. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9). Restoring peace through reconciliation is good.
    4. Jesus said, “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). Loving those who we agree with is easy; loving our opponents is hard.
    5. Jesus taught us what we call the Golden Rule: “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. (Luke 6:31). I don’t think any of us wants to be mistreated, so we should treat others well.
    6. As we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we ask our Father in heaven to forgive us, as we forgive those who sin against us. Then right after teaching us that prayer, Jesus goes on to say: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:14-15). We may not want to forgive others who hurt us, but Jesus himself requires it of us.
    7.  In Matthew 5:22-24, Jesus gives further commands to us to seek reconciliation with others: “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you,  leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.”.
    8. Paul said,”Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:32), and, similarly, “bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you forgive” (Colossians 3:13).
    9. Finally, remember that like our enemies, we are sinners too, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Ultimately, God’s will is that all who are in the Church, be one in Christ and be known as his disciples by the love we show each other (John 13:35 and 1 John 3:1). This was one of Christ’s final prayers at the Last Supper, when he asked the Father that we may be one, even as he and the Father are one (John 17:21). So in summary, God desires for all people to be united in love, respect, and service to each other (even our political adversaries), especially in the Church with our fellow believers.

So, if unity is so desirable, are there occasions when scripture commands us to be separate from others?

When we are to be divided?

  1. When the other person teaches heresy or blasphemy against God. We should separate ourselves from them and not affirm their opinion just to maintain a relationship. Psalm 1 says, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;”
  2. When the other person is sinning, we are not to participate or excuse it. Ephesians 5:11 teaches us, “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.“
  3. Separation from ungodly people and their works is commanded by 2 Corinthians 6:15, which asks, “What agreement does God have with Belial?” (Belial is another name for the devil.)
  4. We are not to compromise our faith, even if causes discord with other people, even those we are closest to. Jesus said  “For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law” (Matthew 10:35). Jesus, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) said he came not bring peace, but a sword, meaning division between his followers and the world.
  5. 2 John 1:10 warns against tolerating or allowing false teachers to teach their falsehoods: “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting.” The term “house” may mean either, or both, your home or the church.
  6. James 4:4 warns, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
  7. Finally, we are warned not to be conform to the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, in order to do the will of God (Romans 12:2). This will put us out of step with what the world approves and does.

Therefore, the answer to the question, “Can’t we all just get along?” depends on how we respond to God’s commands to love both him and our neighbor. The command to love our neighbor requires us to show love to all people, whether we agree with them,dislike them, or consider them to be our enemies, personal or political. At the same time, if unity with them means disobeying God and his commandments, then separation is required. In fact, the act of separation alone may be a testimony to our faith and cause the other person to reconsider their beliefs and actions. And if our witness, whether spoken or acted, causes them to come to Christ, then we have shown them the greatest act of love.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Isaiah 5:20; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; James 5:20.

 

What Would Saint Patrick Do?

A number of years ago (just like this year), St. Patrick’s Day fell on a Sunday. As I was scheduled to preach that Sunday, I told my Senior Pastor, Pastor Deuel, that I planned to preach about Saint Patrick. He asked why, saying “We’re not Roman Catholic.” To which I replied, “Neither was Patrick!” So, even though he shook his head, I did in fact preach a first-person sermon, a monologue, that Sunday about the patron saint of Ireland.

Of course, the sermon was actually about the Gospel; Saint Patrick was only the vehicle for presenting the Gospel, which his own words and writings show he would have completely endorsed. To know why Patrick’s life was all about the Gospel, it would be helpful to remember some of the details about his life and why he came to be called a saint.

First, we recognize that Patrick was neither Roman Catholic nor even Irish. Patrick was born a Romanized Briton named Patricius in the 5th Century AD. At age 16 he was captured by Irish raiders who took him to Ireland to work as a slave in a pig farm. While slaving for six years, he became more devout in his Christian faith. Then one night he dreamed that a ship was ready to take him home,  so he escaped and found the boat and sailed back to England. He then studied and was ordained as a missionary. Again he had a dream, in which a man handed him a letter called, “The Voice of the Irish.” Patrick later wrote that he seemed to hear a certain company of Irish beseeching him to walk once more among them. “Deeply moved,” he says, “I could read no more.” Therefore, he returned to the land and people of his slavery and brought them the freedom of Jesus Christ. He became their bishop and spent the rest of his life preaching, teaching, and baptizing them, though often opposed and threatened by kings and their pagan priests.

As I said, we celebrate not the person named Patrick, but rather the Gospel which he took to the Irish people. So how does knowing Patrick’s life help us to know and spread the gospel, too? We could ask, “What would Patrick do?” Consider the following:

  1. Though enslaved and treated harshly, he did not surrender to despair, but used his experiences among the Irish to serve the Lord. Indeed, it was his enslavement which created in him the heart to evangelize his former oppressors.There are two passages in the Bible which encourage us not to be defeated by adversities, but to see in those conditions the benevolent hand of God.
    • Near the end of Genesis, we read of Joseph’s rise from slave to second in command of Egypt after prophesying to Pharaoh of a coming famine. In his elevated position, Joseph was able to stockpile enough food for many people to survive the famine. Later, Joseph confronted his brothers who had sold him into slavery. Though they feared retribution for their actions, he told them, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today” (Genesis 50:20).
    • In Romans 8:28, Paul teaches the same principle, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” Rather than cursing the misfortunes that befall us, we should pray to discern how God may use the situation to bless us or others.
  2. He held no hatred toward his captors, but rather forgave and sought to bless them with the Gospel. Jesus told us not to hate our enemies, but to forgive and love them. In Matthew 5:43-44, Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. . .” Patrick had every right to hate the Irish and avoid going back to save them, but he gave up that right out of love and obedience to Christ. Likewise, we will meet people we just cannot stand, who have wronged us by word or action. Yet Christ calls on us to forgive them and seek to do them good, rather than evil. Do as Jesus commanded: “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.” (Luke 6:27-29).
  3. Patrick persevered, though he doubted his ability. In his writings, Patrick confessed that even as he returned to Ireland after escaping, he had serious doubts about his abilities to preach and evangelize the Irish people. He felt inadequate to the task at hand, but he went ahead, and as a result he planted churches and converted many to the glory of God. This is a great example to all of us, most of whom also feel inadequate to the task of proclaiming the Gospel to those around us. Those who haven’t gone to seminary may be afraid they don’t know enough; those of us who went may feel overwhelmed by the immensity of the task. Soon after I began my internship, I was called to the home of a man who had died. When I arrived, his widow called the grandkids into the room and told them that Pastor Eddy would tell them about what happened to their grandpa. At first I panicked inside, feeling inadequate to the task, until I heard a voice inside saying, “What do you think I have called you to do?” With that rebuke in mind, I sat down with the children and we talked about life and death and heaven (and whether there are Taco Bells there!).
  4. Snakes. Okay, so it is only a legend that Patrick drove the snakes from Ireland. Scientific articles are happy to point to Ireland’s climate and isolation from the European mainland as the REAL reasons the island is free of snakes (except as pets and zoo exhibits). But there is another meaning to that legend, and that is the connection of snakes to Satan, the original snake in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3 and Revelation 12:9 – “that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan.”). The island was under the control of Satan and those who worshiped him through pagan gods. By bringing the Gospel, Patrick overcame the angry opposition of the pagans, who threatened to kill him, with the freeing truth of the Gospel. In that sense, he “drove the snakes” from Ireland by replacing them with Christ. We must expect opposition from spiritual powers when we do God’s work, but we must not fear that opposition, knowing that “he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
  5. Shamrocks. Okay, probably another legend, but it is said that Patrick taught about the Trinity using the three leaves of a shamrock combining on one stem. Whether true or not, we know two things: First, Patrick did believe in the Trinity, beginning a poem with the words. “I bind unto myself today, the strong name of the Trinity: three in one and one in three.”* And second, Patrick did not invent the Shamrock Shake, available at McDonald’s since 1970. (Besides, McDonald is more likely Scottish than Irish.)

So there you have it. Enjoy St. Patrick’s Day, but as you eat your corned beef and cabbage, washed down with a Shamrock Shake, remember the reason for the season. Consider what Saint Patrick would do, and use his example in your life as a Christian.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.**

Read: Genesis 50:15-21.

*From the hymn known as “St. Patrick’s Breastplate,” which is #188 in our Lutheran hymnal (LBW).

** In Irish: An Tiarna beannaigh tú agus tú a choinneáil, An Tiarna a dhéanamh ar a aghaidh a Shine ar tú, agus a bheith gracious a thabhairt duit. Tógfaidh an Tiarna suas a ghnúis ort, agus síocháin a thabhairt duit. Amen. (I can’t begin to pronounce this, so I will stick with English.)

Without Easter

Have you ever wondered what the world would be like without Easter?

For those who don’t know Christ, it might mean some of the following:

  • The absence of hollow rabbits made of questionable chocolate.
  • The vanishing of marshmallow Peeps(r).
  • One less family feast (with ham instead of turkey).
  • A decline in Hallmark’s holiday sales figures.
  • The end of community egg hunts for the children.
  • Not seeing The Ten Commandments movie on TV (the only acceptable religious show, even though it does not deal with Christ’s resurrection).
  • And for atheists, good riddance!

Yes, without Easter, our modern culture would lose some of its traditions, but nothing really earth-shaking. There would have to be some changes made, but eventually there would be a “Coming of Spring” holiday that would take Easter’s place, just as a celebration of Winter has supplanted much of Christmas. Then the chocolate bunnies and Peeps(r)  would return and even the atheists would be happy.

But for Christians, a world without Easter – not just the celebration of it, but the reasons for it – would be devastating. Christians know that without Easter:

  • Good Friday would not be so good.
  • The mocking of Jesus by the priests, soldiers, and crowds would ring bitterly true. (Luke 23:3).
  • The death of Jesus would be just another death, like all the false messiahs before (Acts 5:36-37) and after him (Matthew 24:24). His work would have ended with his death.
  • The promises of God would be null and void. We could no longer trust his word, nor believe Jesus who promised he would rise on the third day (Matthew 27:63, Mark 9:31, Luke 18:33).
  • We would have to strike our Creeds, which proclaim Jesus was raised “according to the Scriptures” (Nicene Creed) and “on the third day he rose again” (Apostles’ Creed).
  • We would not have the Christian Church. At the most we would have a social club or philosophical society debating the sayings of Jesus.
  • Sundays would no longer be miniature Easters.
  • Christmas would lose it importance. Why celebrate the birth of another Jewish baby 2000 years ago?
  • Eternal life would be a futile hope.
  • We of all people would be most to be pitied (1 Corinthians 15:19).
  • The deaths of our loved ones would be disasters, and we would grieve as those without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13).

It’s clear that to a believer, Easter is an essential part of our faith, however it is celebrated, with hymns or lilies or bunnies or Peeps(r). It is the core of our faith, the motivation for our lives, and the hope of our future. It is irreplaceable and all-encompassing. In it we find peace and joy. It is life itself.

But there’s one more great truth to remember about Easter. It does not affect only Christians. Though much of the world denies its truth and tries to live in ignorance or denial of the greatest event in history, its truth will one day catch up with them. Because God’s promises were fulfilled at the empty tomb, so also will all his warnings be fulfilled at the end – of the world or of their lives. One day even those who denied or mocked Jesus will realize he is who he said he is: Lord of all. On that day, “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11). For many, that will be a terrible day of judgment and wrath. But for believers it will be a day of unspeakable joy.

A world without Easter? Never! That glorious event happened 2000 years ago and changed everything. Because it happened, “all the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]”  (2 Corinthians 1:20). That means promises of forgiveness, adoption by God, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and eternal life. No matter what the world believes, the truth of Easter can never be taken from us, for what God has promised, he will fulfill.

May you have a happy and joyous Easter celebration! Christ has risen; he has risen indeed!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.

Read:  Matthew 28:1-10; Luke 24:1-12; John 20:1-18.

It’s In the Blood

This past week I began dialysis treatments. For those unfamiliar with dialysis, it is a procedure which cleans the blood of people with advanced kidney disease. In effect, it uses a mechanical device to do what the kidneys usually do, which is remove the waste materials which the body normally produces. While not pleasant to go through, after three sessions I have already felt some improvement in my energy level and overall condition.

During one of my treatments, a nurse came and drew blood for testing. As she did, I thought about how significant blood really is. Not only did my blood need to be cleaned, the sample she took would give vital information about many aspects of my health. By such samples, they have a window into my body’s functions. A verse from the Bible came to mind: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood.” (Leviticus 17:11).

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood.”

How true! For not only is blood needed to route oxygen and nutrients to keep cells alive, it also removes those cells’ waste products. If a person is cut and loses too much blood, he or she will die. If a person has too little blood, a transfusion of someone else’s blood will restore their life. And as I said above, a person’s blood will reveal a lot about that person’s condition. As it says in Leviticus 17, the life is truly in the blood.

Of course, if you have read any of my blogs, you know I haven’t said this just to discuss biology or medical practices.  And you would be correct. The connection between life and blood is also a spiritual one, one which is declared in the last part of the same verse from Leviticus. That verse continues and says, “for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.”

How can blood make atonement, that is, atonement for one’s sins? This verse refers to the blood sacrifices which the Old Testament commanded. Hebrews 9:22 explains that, “under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” A guilty person would either pay for their sins with their own blood, or provide the blood of a sinless animal to take their place. Thus, by such sacrifices, the blood of innocent animals was shed to pay for, or cover, the sins of the person offering the animal. This practice actually began back in the Garden of Eden, when God himself provided animal skins to cover the naked and sinful first couple. It continued until the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in A.D. 70.

Although God commanded and honored this practice throughout the Old Testament, there is one verse which reveals that the blood of animals is not the end of the story. Hebrews 10:4 says, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” The blood sacrifices which God ordered were but a foreshadowing, a preparation for the one true blood sacrifice which was coming, and that is the sacrifice of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ. By shedding his own blood, Jesus provided the one, true, complete, and final sacrifice to atone for all of our sins. While our sins condemned us to eternal death and separation from God, Christ’s death brought us full forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. Hebrews 10:14 concludes, “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” And 1 John 1:7 affirms, “the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”

In the words of Charles Wesley’s great hymn, O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing, “His blood can make the foulest clean, His blood availed for me.” But how do we gain the benefit of Christ’s great blood sacrifice? How do we know his blood avails for us?

“His blood availed for me.”

The answer is very simple. It is through faith in the One who died for us. Just as God provided the covering for Adam and Eve, so he provides the covering for us through the gift of his Son. It is by God’s grace, and not by any of our works that we are forgiven. As John 3:16 proclaims, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Finally, as Christians, we have the privilege of participating in Christ’s blood by the sacrament of Holy Communion. Jesus offered his body and blood at the Last Supper when he said, “This is my body; take and eat” and “this is my blood; take and drink,” (1 Corinthians 11:24-25). Likewise, in  John 6:53 Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.” Whenever we receive Christ’s body and blood in Communion, we are strengthened in our faith and “transfused” by the life-giving blood of our Savior.

Our life is in the blood – in the blood of Christ.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Hebrews 9  and 10.

Sackcloth and Ashes, Part 2

In my previous blog, I talked about this season of Lent, its meaning, and some of the ways Christians observe these somber weeks. The overall theme is God’s call on us to repent of our sins, sins for which Jesus died to bring us forgiveness and eternal life. I illustrated this call to repentance with the story of Jonah, the reluctant prophet whose half-hearted warning to the people of Nineveh still resulted in their repentance and forgiveness. Their story is important to know, but how does that affect us and God’s call on us to repent?

Let me suggest that our repentance can be described with the following, all beginning with the letter, “C”.

  1. Conviction – This is about recognizing and admitting that we are sinners and stand before a holy God, deserving of his punishment. This, the very beginning of all repentance, is probably the hardest for many people to accept. In our own hearts and minds, we are basically good people. Sure, we occasionally mess up, but it’s not really our fault, and besides, we don’t do that badly, right? After all, we’re not bank robbers or murderers or terrorists, are we? Like the Pharisee in Jesus’ parable, we thank God we are not like those sinful tax-collectors over there!

Even when we know our actions don’t match up with God’s commands, we often find excuses by which we rationalize what we do: “I took it because I deserve it; I gossiped because everyone needed to know what happened; I cheated on my taxes because the government was just going to waste it anyway, I cheated on my spouse because he/she doesn’t really understand me, etc.” We try to justify ourselves in order to keep our self-esteem high, because to admit we actually did something wrong may make us look bad to others – or to ourselves.

But scripture is clear that we are all sinners who stand convicted and guilty before God. In our weekly services we hear the words of 1 John: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” We read in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And both testaments affirm “there is no one righteous, no not one.”

At the Last Supper, Jesus promised the coming of the Holy Spirit. He said that the work of the Holy Spirit would be to convict the world of sin. When we truly know in our hearts that we are sinners and have sinned, it is because the Spirit has convicted us of our guilt through the hearing of God’s commandments in his word.

This is what hit the Ninevites so hard: they heard God’s word spoken by Jonah, and God’s Spirit convicted them that they were truly guilty and deserved God’s wrath. Likewise when we hear what God expects from us and what he forbids us to do, we become convicted that we have sinned and deserve the same wrath God almost poured out on Nineveh. That prepares us for the second part of repentance.

  1. Contrition – This is sorrow for what we have done – against God and others. It comes from the Latin word, contritus, which means, “ground to pieces,” as in being crushed by guilt for what we have done. It goes beyond just admitting our guilt – contrition is sincere sorrow, regret, and remorse for sins we’ve committed.

We feel sorry when something bad happens to us and our loved ones, but do we ever feel sorrow for the bad things that we do? How many public officials and politicians hold tearful press conferences about how sorry they are for their bad behavior before their sin is exposed by someone else? They seem more sorry to have been caught than to have done it in the first place. Likewise, are we more sorry for the consequences of our acts than we are for our sinful desires and attitudes that led us to do them? Are we truly sorry that we have thumbed our noses at God and his commandments? Are we just “sorry” because we know we should do better, or do we feel true contrition, that is, heart-felt sorrow for “our failure to live as God’s people in this place”? When the Ninevites put on their sackcloth and ashes, they were expressing the change in heart they felt for their sins: they were showing outwardly the contrition they felt inwardly.

True contrition leads to a “sackcloth and ashes” level of repentance, in which we grieve our sins and throw ourselves on God’s mercy. Gone are our excuses and rationalizations. Gone is our self-justification. We now depend totally on God and accept his judgment. David expressed this contrition in Psalm 51, following his sins of adultery and murder: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

  1. Correction – The mark of true remorse is to correct what we are doing wrong. How sorry do we really feel for doing something wrong if we keep on doing it? Do we cry “crocodile tears” when we are caught, only to go back to it when we think no one is watching? Repentance is turning away from pursuing sin and instead turning toward God and his ways; it means a change in the way we live. God saw this in the Ninevites, who did more than just dress and eat differently because of their remorse; they also turned from the violent and evil ways they had been living, and cleaned up their act. They showed in their more righteous living what Matthew 3:8 later commanded: “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance.”

As Christians, we know we are not saved by our works. We can live a moral life, give generously to the needy, serve the church night and day, and even become a wonderful pastor, but all our good actions will not undo even one of our sins. We depend totally on the grace and mercy of God, and yet having been saved, we are called to live differently than the world lives, to live better and more in keeping with God’s will and commandments. And the same Spirit who convicted us also empowers us to desire God and his will for our lives, and to do it.

  1. Christ – the fourth “C” involved in repentance is Christ, for without him and his sacrifice for us on the cross (is that the 5th “C”?), all the conviction and sorrow and change of behavior would not satisfy God’s call for repentance. Conviction does not save us – it just shows we’re guilty; contrition does not save us – it just shows we’re sorry; correction doesn’t save us – it’s what we should be doing anyway. Only Christ provides the forgiveness we need; only faith in his atonement on the cross is sufficient for salvation. That’s because true repentance involves both turning from sin, and turning to God through faith in his Son, Jesus Christ.

So let us move forward through Lent, repenting of our sins, all the while looking forward to the day when Christ himself shall trade our sackcloth for his robes of righteousness, and our ashes for his oil of gladness. And let us give thanks that Jonah was right about one thing: for God is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Jonah chapters 1-4 again!

 

Sackcloth and Ashes

Today begins the 40 day observance of Lent, the somber season in which we Christians traditionally consider our sins as the reason Christ died. Our observance often includes wearing ashes on our foreheads (hence the name, Ash Wednesday), worship with confession and repentance, fasting, and service to others. In our liturgy, we replace the singing of the “Alleluia” with what is called the Lenten Sentence, which calls us to “Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.”

These Lenten practices have their basis in Scripture, especially, if surprisingly, in the Old Testament book of Jonah. We would do well to consider his story as we journey through Lent toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb.

Jonah was not happy, for he was having a bad week. It all began when God called him to go preach a warning message to the huge city of Nineveh, which happened to be the capital of Israel’s mortal enemies, the Assyrians. Then when Jonah tried to get out of the task by sailing in the opposite direction, God sent a violent storm, and he was thrown into the sea by the pagan sailors who realized Jonah’s God was angry at him for something. Jonah almost drowned, sinking down to the depths of the sea and being entangled in seaweed. But even as Jonah’s death seemed imminent, along came a great fish that swallowed him whole and kept him alive for three days and nights in its belly. Not a pleasant experience for sure: even if you like seafood, the term, “sleeping with the fishes” is not something you really want to do! Finally, the fish spit Jonah up onto land.

Again, this was not a good week for Jonah, because even though he survived that ordeal, from his perspective, things were about to get worse. God came to him a second time and repeated his command for Jonah to go preach to Nineveh. This time, Jonah obeyed: he proclaimed to the city a simple message, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” and then he sat down and waited for God to pour his wrath upon the Ninevites and destroy them.

But something dramatic happened. The people of Nineveh, from the king on down to the lowliest peasant, believed God, and turned to him in repentance for their sins and violent ways. They fasted and wore sackcloth – think burlap bag. The king himself took off his royal robes and put on sackcloth and sat down in ashes to mourn what he and his people had done and what was likely to happen to them if God did not forgive them. The king ordered that man and beast alike must fast and wear sackcloth, in hopes that God would spare them.

And then, to Jonah’s dismay, God accepted their repentance and forgave them. Jonah complained to the Lord, saying why he fled from God the first time: he didn’t want Nineveh to be spared, and was afraid they might repent and be forgiven. He said to the Lord, “For I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster.”

So why did God spare Nineveh, when centuries earlier he had destroyed other wicked cities such as Sodom and Gomorrah? Jonah 3:10 tells us: “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”

Now did you notice what was missing from that explanation for the Lord’s mercy towards Nineveh? It does not say, “When God saw what they did, how they put on sackcloth and ashes and fasted, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them.” What it says is, “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them.” It was not a change of clothing that saved them; it was a change of heart, which showed itself in their new, more righteous way of living.

The main effect of sackcloth and ashes back then, and of all the Lenten disciplines of prayer, worship, service to others, and fasting today, is not on God. He already loves us; he already is by nature gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love; and we cannot manipulate him into forgiving us by what we wear or what we eat. Instead, the main effect of the Lenten disciplines is what those disciplines do to us.

We are the ones who need to be changed. We are the ones who sin and stand in danger of God’s righteous judgement; we are the ones for whom Christ died, and we are the ones called to turn to God in faith and repentance. Lenten disciplines remind us of these facts, and help us to focus on them more than we usually do in our daily lives.

Repentance is what the Lord desires from us. 2 Peter 3:9 says the Lord is patient toward us, “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” Matthew 4:17 tells us that from the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, his message was, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Then, just before Jesus ascended to heaven, Luke 24:47 says he taught “that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” And on the great day of Pentecost, Peter told the crowd, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. . .” (Acts 2:38)

God’s word clearly says so many times that he desires us to repent. But what does that actually mean? In Part 2 of this blog, I will suggest four things that are essential to true repentance. In the meantime, see what you come up with on your own.

Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Jonah chapters 1-4

Who Do You Think You Are?

One of the few shows Karen and I watch on TV is called, “Who Do You Think You Are?” In each episode, a celebrity searches for his or her family history with the help of historians and genealogists. They usually learn amazing and surprising things about their ancestors, including one who was tried as a witch in 1600s Salem, another who was a refugee from the Nazi holocaust, and still another who was sent as a “Daughter of the King” (Fille du Roi) to French Canada in the 1600s to wed a French settler. The show is fascinating, and often very moving for the celebrities when they discover their history.

I find the stories fascinating for a couple of reasons. First, because of the history involved. I have always enjoyed reading about history, and here are people who lived that history and helped shape it. Second, I have always been fascinated by my own family history, ever since doing a school project back in junior high. This has especially been true the last two years, when I inherited my parents’ family journals, records and old photos. Karen and I have been researching and building our family trees, filling the gaps with new information and stories we never heard while growing up.

So, if you asked me, “Who do you think you are?” I could go back several hundred years to a Scotch-Irish immigrant in 1630 or a German widow who sailed to America in the 1860s, to survivors of the Great Chicago Fire, to pioneers living in a sod house on the Kansas prairie, to a Civil War soldier captured by the Confederates at the Second Battle of Winchester, and to a Methodist circuit riding preacher in the Dakotas.

I have enjoyed learning these things about my family, but really, they are not who I am. If you asked me who I think I am, my answer would be very different. Not that I reject my family history, nor am I ashamed of it. Like every family mine has had both heroes and scalawags (hopefully, I will be counted among the former and not the latter!) Also, I know that what has gone before has shaped who I am today – both genetically and regarding my beliefs and values; for these I am indebted to my parents who raised me and taught me about life. And yet, regardless of what has gone before, I do not find my identity in such things.

Nor do I find my identity in current cultural fads which try to group everybody into sub categories based on race, ethnicity, language, social status, and gender. Oh sure, I could attach a bunch of labels to myself to show how “woke”* I am, (I am a cisgendered, white, English-speaking Anglo-Saxon male whose pronouns are me, myself, and I), but those don’t really identify who I am. So who or what am I?

I am a Christian. When it comes down to the one identity that really matters, that is it. That one identity changes everything and is more important than anything else that could be said about me, or by me. In that identity, I have faith, hope, love, and life itself. In that identity I have the knowledge of worth, the assurance of forgiveness, and the hope of eternal life to come. In that identity I find meaning, strength, and direction. In that identity, I have a relationship with the God of the universe. What other identity could possibly be greater than that?

I am a Christian, not through birth or inheritance, but through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Romans 10:9 says, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” And we have the well-known promise of John 3:16, which says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” My family certainly played an important part in teaching me the Bible, taking me to church, baptizing me, and modeling the Christian life, but it was my own faith which God required of me.

As Christians, there are other identities which follow and help identify and explain who we are. Consider the following:

  1. We are children of God. My confirmation verse was John 1:12, which says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” This means several wonderful things. It means we can call God, “Father” or “Abba” (Daddy). There’s a personal relation-ship, in which we can call directly on him. Second, as his children we share his only-begotten Son’s inheritance (Acts 20:32, Ephesians 1:11a – “In him we have obtained an inheritance,” and 1 Peter 1:3-5). As his children, we are freed from our natural bondage to sin, to become sons who remain in God’s house forever (John 8:35).
  2. We are saints. By faith, our sins are removed from us. The filthy rags of our own attempts at goodness are stripped away and replaced by Christ’s own glorious robes of righteousness. Isaiah 64:6 says, “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.” In Philippians 3:9, Paul explains the basis for his hope: “not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ —the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.” In turn, Paul addressed his fellow believers as “saints” in his letters to them (Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:2, Colossians 1:2, etc.).
  3. We are sinners. Ouch! You would think this part of our identity would just go away with our adoption as God’s children. Unfortunately, though, this condition, though temporary, does continue to plague us in this life. We continue to sin, though we don’t want to. We fall to the same temptations too often, and do things we know are forbidden by God – whether outwardly or in our hearts and minds – such as lust, pride, jealousy, and greed. We also sin by failing to do what God commands us to do. Jesus told us the greatest of the commandments was to love God with our whole heart and mind and strength, and to love our neighbor as ourselves; who of us can say we have truly done that? That’s why, even as Christians, we confess in our weekly worship, ” We have sinned against you in thought word and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart, we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.” Thanks be to God that our sins are forgiven, even when they are too numerous to mention in a single prayer!
  4. We are new creations.  As Christians, we are not just “modified” by our faith, but rather we are made new. Paul wrote, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).  Whereas, in our first birth we were subject to sin and death, in Christ we are reborn children of God and inheritors of eternal life. Christ breaks our original bondage (Romans 8:21) to sin and sets us free (John 8:36) to live as we were unable to do before. The old self dies; the new self will live on. If you are like me, you probably wish you could get a few “do-overs” in your life, to correct mistakes, avoid hurts, and make things right; in Christ we get more than that – we get a new life.
  5. Finally, we are Christ’s disciples, called by him to follow him wherever he may lead us. While it is faith alone which saves us, the new life in Christ calls for us to:
    • follow (John 12:26 “If anyone serves me, he must follow me.”)
    • serve others (Matthew 5:16 “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”)
    • obey his commandments (Matthew 28:20 “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”)
    • make other disciples throughout the world (Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations”) so that people of every nation, tribe, and language will receive their new identities in Christ.
    • and be willing to give up everything, even our lives, for Christ’s sake (Matthew 10:38 “And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.)

When a Christian lives out his or her new identity, it honors God and blesses the Christian who does the things which God desires. As Luther said, “Good works do not make a man good, but a good man does good works.” We do not earn our place in God’s kingdom; God gives us our new identities by his grace through faith. But we get to serve him with our lives, How great is that!

So who do you think I am? The more important question is, “Who does God think I am?” He calls me his beloved child, and that is good enough for me!

Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Romans 7:21-25; Romans 21:1-8; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21.

*See my blog from October 6, 2020, “Are You Woke,” for more comment.

A Marked Man or Woman

This past Sunday I had the privilege of baptizing a young child. As part of the traditional ritual accompanying this sacrament, I made the sign of the cross on his forehead with my finger, and pronounced, “Child of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit, and marked with the cross forever.”

That statement is both a promise of  the current reality of being welcomed into God’s kingdom (John 1:12) and the promise of eternal salvation to come (1 Peter 3:21). But of course, although making the sign of the cross has strong spiritual reality, it does not physically appear like a tattoo, visible for all to see. But what if it did?

I once read about a nurse who participated in a baptism in her hospital’s neonatal ward. The newborn infant had a condition called “dermographia” or “skin-writing,” in which the skin welts up, forming red marks and lines when it is touched. As the nurse watched the baptizer make a sign of the cross on the child’s forehead, suddenly red lines appeared leaving a sign of the cross on the skin. The nurse was moved by the visible sign of an eternal reality. Eventually, of course. the welts subsided and the cross went away. But what if they had remained? What if the cross had remained permanently visible?

And what if that were true of every Christian, that at our baptism or at the moment of our conversion, a permanent cross appeared on our foreheads for all the world to see, and for us to be reminded of our faith every time we looked in the mirror? It would be awesome to know our true brothers and sisters in Christ at first sight, and to know who were phonies. We could separate the true sheep from those wolves in sheep’s clothing, the true pastors from those out to fleece the flock, and the politicians who claim religious faith and say, “God bless you!”, from those who say it and actually mean it. It would be awesome if we could become men and women marked for Christ.

The Bible say that believers on earth now receive such a spiritual mark: “When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit” (Ephesians 1:13), and that eventually those in  heaven “will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads” (Revelation 22:4). Such Scriptures provide the basis for our statement that in baptism we are “sealed by the Holy Spirit” and marked with the cross of Christ forever.”

But unseen spiritual realities and future manifestations of those realities don’t show themselves visibly now, so how can we see that someone is a true Christian in today’s world?

Some people think they can identify Christians (or show they are ones themselves) by looking holy:

  1. By wearing Christian jewelry, such as crosses. That may be true, but some gang members wear crosses, and some people like wearing pretty “bling” no matter what it represents. Besides, you can remove the jewelry when it is dangerous or unacceptable to wear it.
  2. By wearing message T-shirts that bear Bible verses or clever sayings. Not bad, but anyone can wear a shirt and then take it off. And some messages are not so biblical.
  3. By wearing Christian symbols as tattoos. But Leviticus 19:28 says, “You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the Lord.” Does that still apply to Christians,or just to the Israelites?
  4. By dressing nice for church. I appreciate that, but looking nice may depend more on one’s finances than on the treasures of their heart. Besides, 1 Samuel 16:7 says that “man looks on the outside appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
  5. By becoming a pastor, missionary, or other leader in the church. Those are good and holy professions, but don’t guarantee a true faith or  holy life.
  6. By charitable good works. Even rank unbelievers or adherents of other religions can do good and laudable things, and we should commend them for doing so, but their motivations may have nothing to do with Christ. For example, Muslims make alms-giving a pillar of their beliefs.
  7. By memorizing or quoting Scripture, but even Satan quoted Scripture when tempting Jesus. And how many activists quote the Bible when it seems to support their cause?

So, it is not by dress or appearance or social positions in a church that we prove our identity as Christians, because anyone can mimic Christian behavior and seem good in a moral sense. Instead, consider the following clues, not as absolute proof of the true faith, but when taken together, can be visible signs that people are marked with the cross of Christ:

  1. They love God in Christ (Matthew 22:37), and proclaim it gladly to others.
  2. They seek to love their neighbors (Leviticus 19:18 and Matthew 19:19) and their enemies (Luke 6:27) as themselves.
  3. They confess that Jesus is Lord, that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9), and that he has come in the flesh (1 John 4:2).
  4. They continue to profess Christ even under persecution, when to do so is costly or deadly (James 1:12).
  5. They worship God regularly and seek fellowship with other believers (Hebrews 10:25 and Acts  5:42).
  6. They turn the other cheek and return good for the evil done to them Matthew 5:39).
  7. They seek to keep God’s commandments because they love and fear God (John 15:14).
  8. They delight in God’s Word, even when challenging (2 Peter 3:16).
  9. They  meditate on God’s law, day and night (Psalm 1:2).
  10. They recognize their own sinfulness, while forgiving others (Matthew 6:12-15).
  11. They put the best construction on what others do and say (Luke 7:37-50).
  12. They don’t judge people (Luke 6:37), but extend mercy to them (Matthew 5:7).
  13. They pray always (Luke 18:1).
  14. They seek what is best for others (Romans 12:10).
  15. They give thanks in all things (Philippians 4:6).
  16. They think on things that are good and holy (Philippians 4:8).
  17. They are reconcilers and peacemakers (Matthew 5:9).
  18. They are cheerful givers, to God and to those in need (2 Corinthians 9:7).
  19. They are humble (Psalm 51:17).
  20. They abhor and avoid the fruit of the flesh – “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.” (Galatians 5:19-51)
  21. They exhibit the fruit of the Spirit – “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;” (Galatians 5:22-23).

Whew! What a list! But I offer it with four caveats: First, it is not a complete list; I’m sure you could think of other signs of true Christians. Second, this list is impossible to follow perfectly. Third, doing these things does not save us; they are works which follow salvation and are empowered by the Holy Spirit. And finally they are not a checklist for us to evaluate others, but rather to examine our own hearts before God, asking whether we truly love God and others as ourselves – the greatest commandments.

If we do show such love for God and our neighbor, then we won’t need a cross etched on our foreheads, for we will bear the true marks of one who is “marked by the cross of Christ forever.”

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Galatians 5, and all the verses cited above!

P.S. In reference to point 11 above, Luther’s Small Catechism explains the Eighth Commandment as follows: “We should fear and love God that we may not deceitfully belie, betray, slander, or defame our neighbor, but defend him, [think and] speak well of him, and put the best construction on everything.”

The One Essential Member

Colossians 1:15-20

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

The One Essential Member

I. Who is the most important, even essential, member of any church? Is it:

The Council President? This is the lay leader chosen by the congregation to shoulder responsibility for everything that happens. He or she must make sure the church is staffed, bills are paid, and legal matters followed. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it! The person who does it must be the most important person in the church, right? No; important, yes, but they’re not the most important.

The Head of the biggest family? Especially in the Midwest, some of the  small town churches are built around one key family. They provide the members, the workers, the council leaders, and much of the offering. Without them, the church would evaporate. So their matriarchs or patriarchs must be the most important members! But, no, it’s not them.

The Leader of Altar Guild? How can you have worship, the core activity of the church, without people to set up communion, clean and change the paraments, light the candles, etc.? Surely, they are the most important! No.

The Leaders of the Men’s and Women’s groups? – These are popular, respected, and loved, and active in service. Yes, they are very important and a blessing to the congregation, but not essential to the existence of the church.

The Wealthiest member? You need money to run the church these days. Just fixing our parking lot costs hundreds of thousands of dollars. You want to have the money people on board. So if there are no wealthy members, you need to go out and start recruiting them! It’s that important, but not the most important!

The Biggest giver? Maybe the biggest giver is not the wealthiest, but the one who gives like he or she is. That’s the one you want; without them the church would be in financial trouble, unable to meet its obligations and needs. Utilities get turned off, staff go unpaid, benevolences are dropped. Surely this is the most important? No.

The Custodian? Who keeps the buildings clean, safe, and open? Who makes sure equipment operates safely? If the buildings and grounds deteriorate, where would we meet? It must be the custodian, right? No.

The Friendliest, most outgoing? When visitors come to church, if they are greeted and made to feel welcome and valued, they may come back and want to be part of your friendly church. They provide much needed warmth and loving kindness. Why wouldn’t such people be essential? Granted, they are wonderful and important, but they are not the most important.

The Pastor? Now we’re to the category that’s near and dear to my heart! Who ever heard of a church without a pastor? Who will preach and teach, visit the sick, conduct worship and funerals? Who will perform the sacraments, except a pastor? Yep. We must be the most important people in the church! But, sad to say, we’re not.

So then, if none of the preceding people is the most important to the church, who is? And what are the criteria for deciding who is most important? The criteria are: 1. Whose presence is indispensable; and 2. Whose absence would cause the church to crumble or disappear, or die?

The one, most essential member of the church, obviously, is Jesus Christ.

     Without him, there is no Gospel – no good news for the world (and we of       all people are most to be pitied, according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:19).

      Without him, the Spirit is absent.

     Without him, the sacraments are hollow rituals. No body or blood with             the bread and wine.

     Without him, our organization may be called a church, but it’s really just       another non-profit organization which, though well-intentioned, would       be dependent on human strength and the wisdom of flawed, self-                       centered sinners.

     Without him, we would have the appearance of holiness or religiosity,             but would lack what is needed: 2 Timothy 3:5 warns against those                      “having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.”

How do you seek his presence, and keep Jesus as the central focus of the church?

1. We gather in his name – For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” (Matthew 18:20)

2. We pray in his name – “My house shall be called a house of prayer.” (Luke 19:46); and at the Last Supper, Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.” (John 16:23)

3. We treasure and revere the Scriptures as the word of God – “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,” (2 Timothy 3:16)

4. We pray and submit our will to God’s in all church matters – “Thy will be done” (Matthew 6:10)

5. Lutheran Confessions: The definition of the Church: The gathering of believers where the Gospel is preached in its purity and the sacraments are rightly administered.

6. Forgive as we have been forgiven, and seek unity in the Spirit with each other – Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)

The truth about the essential nature of Christ in the church is proclaimed above in the passage from Colossians 1:18, “And he is the head of the body, the church.” It is also celebrated in the hymn, “The Church’s One Foundation.”

The Church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ, her Lord;
she is his new creation by water and the Word.
From heav’n he came and sought her to be his holy bride;
with his own blood he bought her, and for her life he died.*

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Matthew 16:17-19; Colossians 1

*Lyrics written by S.I. Stone, 1866. Public Domain.

Whose Church Is It, Anyway?

In November 2002, I attended an administrators’ luncheon at a Christian school convention. The speaker was Walt Wiley, who spoke on the topic, “Whose School Is This?” His remarks had such a beneficial effect on me that I have preserved a card with his outline for twenty years – and keep it on my home office desk. In plain sight, to keep me from forgetting what he said.

He made three main points about Christian schools, but his remarks are equally applicable to Christian churches. His points were the following, with the word “church” substituting for “school”:

  1. You know you don’t own the church, so stop worrying. Let God be God.
  2. You know you don’t own the church, so stop controlling. Get your hands off!
  3. You know you don’t own the church, so stop bragging. Give God the glory.

Mr. Wiley’s theme verse was 1 Corinthians 4:7, ” For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” The point of the verse, and of his presentation, was that the church is God’s, and that the church, and our roles in it, are given to us by God.

As a pastor, I found that my role seemed to be to worry about everything our church* did, and everything it faced. I worried about our members, about the visitors who were checking us out, about our staff, about the offering, and about what I was going to preach any given week. I worried about the church leadership, our community reputation, and whether we were properly serving and honoring God. I worried about our missionary work.

It’s not that I didn’t enjoy the work or find it rewarding and fulfilling. I did. It’s not that I didn’t enjoy my relationships with members, staff, and the public. I did. But it seemed at times that if I didn’t worry about making sure everything was right, no one would, and the church would fall apart. I felt responsible for everything that happened.

Which is why Mr.Wiley’s words, “you don’t own the church, so stop worrying,” were so impactful and important for me to hear. They reminded me that it wasn’t my church, but God’s. He formed it, he called its people together, he sustained it, and he gave it  its purpose. Although he calls pastors, lay leaders, and the members to serve the church and its work, ultimately, the church belongs to him. It is his responsibility.

The church is not just an organization, a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. It is an organism, a living body created by Christ for his glory and for the saving of many souls. The Bible makes it clear that the Church is the body of Christ here on earth. We are his hands and feet, ministering as he would, going where he would go. The same Spirit who was in him, now resides in us, leading, empowering, and protecting the Church.

This is not to say we don’t make mistakes or fail sometimes in our mission, but another biblical metaphor comes into play: the Church is the bride of Christ, which he loves, in spite of its shortcomings, and forgives freely.

The knowledge that our church belongs to God, and is both the body and bride of Christ, is important for me to keep in mind, because though I am no longer the pastor, I still worry about what is happening to our church and about the challenges that lie ahead.

Some of these challenges will probably always be there, due to the nature of society and its people: increasing secularism, government interference, crime, social divisions, inflation, and personal sins of pride, lust, and greed. Then there’s outright opposition and “cancelling” by the media.

But the problems are not only external. While I believe God’s Church will endure persecution as it has for 2000 years, the work and life of any one congregation can be weakened or destroyed by internal factors. These can include heresies – spread by false teachers; conformity to the errors of the culture around us; and divisons that tear us apart. Scriptures warn about all three of these dangers:

  1. Heresies: False teachers are called “wolves” who come in and tear apart the flock (Acts 20:29-30). Peter warns, “there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies” (2 Peter 2:1). And Jesus warned us, “For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect” (Mark 13:22).
  2. Conformity: Romans 12: 2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” James 4:4 warns, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
  3. Divisions: The early church in Corinth found itself ripped apart by schisms based on which teacher or apostle the various members followed. There arose parties within the congregation, which so threatened the witness and survival of that church, that Paul had to write to tell them to stop it. He pointed out that neither he nor any of the other apostles or teachers had died to save them from their sins. There was only One to be followed and that was Jesus Christ himself. He condemned their actions in 1 Corinthians 3:3, saying, “For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?” His definitive command is found in 1 Corinthians 1:10, “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” And his conclusion is in 1 Corinthians 12:24-26, “that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.“

Of these three church-wreckers, the one that most concerns me right now about our church is #3: divisions. Long-simmering tensions among our staff and between some members have led to declines in attendance and giving. Members have left for other churches. Staff have quit and the joy of the Lord is dampened. Things came to a head in recent months, culminating in the resignation just last week of our senior pastor.

Pastors leave for various reasons: a new call, sickness, retirement, scandal, or death; no pastor is permanently in that office forever. And the pastor who left has served us for ten years – longer than the average of 3.6 to 5 years. The issue is that his departure was due to a schism in the congregation and staff – highlighted by the reactions of various members to his resignation. Some celebrated, others cried. Some threaten to quit. The situation is not healthy. It is too similar to the picture Paul painted of the Corinthian church.

What we need now is healing and forgiveness all around. We have much work and a difficult road ahead, but our hope is not in our cleverness or abilities, but in the fact that the church is not ours. It belongs to God in Christ, who bought the Church – and our church – with his blood. At his departure, Paul reminded the elders of the church in Ephesus, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.”

My human self worries about what will happen; it’s only natural to do so, since my eyes and ears tell me we are in trouble. But this is God’s church, and my faith calls on me to “trust in the Lord with all my heart, and lean not on my own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5 paraphrased). That faith reminds me that God has promised in Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” And so, I will try not to worry, but lean instead on the true Owner of the Church, that One whose purposes are beyond our knowledge, whose foolishness is wiser than the wisdom of men (as in 1 Corinthians 1:25), and who is able to do the impossible (Matthew 19:26).

Trusting in God, let us lift up our prayers, privately and together for this church and its God-given ministry and mission. Let us pray for our leaders and for all member who feel hurt and disaffected. And let us pray for the reconciliation of all, that God may be glorified in his Church.

And remember: you don’t own the church, so stop worrying. Let God be God!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen

Read: 1 Corinthians 3

*When I spell church with a small “c” I am referring to our local church. When I use a capital “C” I mean the Christian Church in general: the Holy and Apostolic Christian Church.

 

 

 

 

Ball and Chain

I had a dream the other night, a nightmare of sorts. In it, someone took a heavy chain and fastened it around my left leg. Attached to the other end of the chain was a heavy iron ball, the kind you see in old prison yard movies, where the convicts are weighed down to prevent their trying to escape while breaking rocks with their sledgehammers.

I woke up in a cold sweat, screaming in horror at my bondage (actually, I just woke up and chuckled, relieved to know it had been just a dream). But then, when I went to get up, I remembered that part of the dream had been true, for my left foot was indeed shackled with a plastic tube connected to a portable vacuum device called a “wound vac,” something I had jokingly referred to as my “ball and chain.”

The device creates a mild suction on wounds, keeping them clean and stimulating a healing blood flow to them. For three months, 24/7, the device had been attached to my right foot, but now after I lost my left little toe, it was switched to that foot. Everything seems to be improving, which is the purpose of this device. Still, I can’t wait to be done with it and finally be free from my “ball and chain.”

Of course, the inconvenience I have with this healing device is nothing compared to what so many other people have suffered wearing real chains. Throughout history, and even today, people with power have used chains to control, enslave, and punish others. Just about every tribe and nation has put somebody in chains. From slavery imposed on Africans brought by force to our land, to Romans parading conquered enemies in chains in what were called “triumphs,” to Arab slavers capturing Europeans for their slave markets (our word “slave” comes from the word Slav, referring to the many slaves captured from Eastern Europe), to present-day slave markets in Libya, to convicts being transported to prison, chains have been used to bind literally millions of people.

The Bible records numerous examples of people being chained. In the Old Testament, conquerors chained the losing kings to show power over them, and to publicly humiliate them. The book of 2 Kings 25:7 tells us that the Babylonians blinded the Judean king, Zedekiah, “bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.” Likewise, in 2 Chronicles 33:10-12, the king of Assyria “captured Manasseh with hooks and bound him with chains of bronze.” Psalm 149:5-9 prophesies that the godly will triumph in vengeance over the nations, “to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron.” 

Moving to the New Testament, we see that chains have not become obsolete. Luke 8:29 tells of a demoniac who broke the chains that had restrained him. Then, in Acts 12:6-7, we read about Peter being arrested and put in jail, bound with two chains and guarded by soldiers and sentries. (Not a problem: an angel appeared, the chains fell off, and Peter walked away, a free man.) Similarly, Paul was arrested and bound with two chains after his arrest in the Jerusalem Temple (Acts 21:33). Later, Paul wrote about his chains in several epistles, calling himself “an ambassador in chains” for the sake of the gospel (Ephesians 6:19-21). Finally, in the great “faith chapter” of Hebrews 11, the writer commends the saints who “suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment” (11:36).

So you see, chains have always been part of the human story, and God’s people have not been immune to their oppressive restraint.

While we are certainly familiar with the reality of chains, captivity, and slavery in human affairs, we must also recognize the existence of another, more dangerous kind of bondage: spiritual. The Bible calls this other form, being a “slave to sin” (John 8:34). Even though we don’t drag around iron chains (or wound vacs), we all have to contend with the bondage to sin.

In John 8, Jesus had an exchange with some of the Jews. He expanded their understanding of physical bondage to include the danger of spiritual slavery, and their need to be freed from it. He said,

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:31-36).

Of course, his audience did not take kindly to such a statement, and neither do we. We would rather go along with the popular attitude that people are basically good. Sure, we have some flaws, but look at all the good that people do. Doesn’t that count? I’m glad that much good is done, but even when intents are right, too often sin gets in the way and corrupts our efforts. Having phone connections with most of the world is great, so why are most of our calls from scammers? The internet is a real boon for information and communication, but we can’t use it without security software due to man-made malware (viruses, bots, ransom ware, etc.). Advances in medicine are wonderful, if you don’t count experiments done on unwilling or unknowing test subjects – or the creation of viruses in labs. And how much of the money given to alleviate suffering here and abroad goes to the needy, and is not siphoned off by corrupt officials?

The Apostle Paul saw the effect of sin’s bondage in his own life. In Romans 7:14-20,  he laments:

For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?

How often can we say the same things about ourselves? As one form of our liturgy of public confession proclaims, “We confess that we are in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves.” We see this not only in others, but in many of our thoughts, words, and actions. Anger, insults, curses, gossip; all are evidence of our natural slavery to sin.

But the good news is that we don’t have to let sin control us. So how do we break free? What can we do? Well, nothing. Our liberation from sin’s control comes only one way: by God’s power through faith in Jesus Christ. Right after Paul lamented his sins and asked, “Who will deliver me from this body of death?”, he answered his own question, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25). Or as Jesus said of himself, “So if the Son sets you free, you are free indeed” (John 8:36).

The wonderful part of the Gospel is not only that our desire to sin is lessened, but also that the sins we do commit, the sins of omission, and even our basic sinful nature, are all forgiven. By God’s promise, we can rejoice that the ball and chain of sin has been overcome. We can at last find peace and celebrate the words of Jesus in Luke 4:18,

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,”

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Isaiah 61:1-3; Romans 7; Galatians 5:1

Deliver Us From Evil

There is a famous line from Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar, in which Marc Anthony speaks at the recently murdered Caesar’s funeral. He begins his eulogy with the words:

Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones;

In his speech, Anthony cleverly turns what he says about the evil that Caesar had done, to a condemnation of the evil that the murderers had done in killing Caesar. No one is free of guilt; all are evil in one way or another.

Though probably not on purpose, Shakespeare’s lines echo what Scripture claims: “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. . .” (Romans 3:23). Sure, we all sin, but what about real evil? Does it really exist, or is it just the clever wording of a long-dead poet whose works were not “interred with his bones”?

Let me see. . . is there evil in the world today? How about Russian troops attacking Ukraine, bombing its cities and killing its civilians? Or, what about our country killing babies before they’re born, in the name of “reproductive rights”?* Or the U.S. droning an innocent man and his son during the pull-out from Afghanistan? Or elected leaders who lie and enrich themselves at the expense of those who elected them to office? Or drive-by shootings that kill bystanders along with their targets? Or mobs that loot stores with impunity? Or insurance companies that find loopholes to not pay claims? Or businesses that gouge their customers with inflated prices? Or people who abuse children, spouses, or the elderly? Or gangs who sell drugs that kill or leave users homeless? Or. . . or. . .or. . .

I could go on, and so could you. There is much evil in the world today, as there has been since the first humans took that bite from the forbidden fruit so long ago. We are reminded of the words of Genesis 6:5,”The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

Evil is real, and its effects do live on after the evil has done its worst. People are harmed, societies crumble, and even nature is diminished by what people do. God warned Adam not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil; before Adam and Eve ate of its fruit they knew good, but ever since they ate, they and we have known evil as well (Genesis 2:16-17).

 The Bible does not shy away from the reality of evil. It speaks of it some 539 times, including in the prayer our Lord Jesus taught us to pray, “. . . and deliver us from evil.”

What is the evil of which the Lord spoke? I can think of three ways our prayer for deliverance applies:

1. It is a prayer for protection from the bad things other people do to us, whether intentional or not, and from the dangers of the natural world. It could be a robbery, an assault, a car accident, infidelity, a flood, tornado, or earthquake; in other words, anything that would harm us. Just because we didn’t cause what hurts us doesn’t mean we won’t be harmed. We look to God to deliver us from all such evil events.

2.  The word “evil” in the Lord’s Prayer can also be translated, “evil one,” meaning we are praying for God to protect us from Satan. Evil is not just a term we use to refer to unhappy events; it also applies to a spiritual being, to the one who first tempted Eve and Adam to sin and who desires our destruction. Satan has been active in the world since the beginning, destroying people’s lives through his lies. In fact, Jesus called him “a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). Peter says of him in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” Fortunately, Satan and his demons are not omnipotent gods; they can only do what God allows them to do, so we pray for God to protect us from them. (See Job 1:6-12, where Satan needed Gods permission to afflict Job.) Satan tempts us to do evil, beginning with separating us from God’s Word (Luther).

3.  Unfortunately, there is another source of evil, and that is us. As fallen, sinful creatures, we don’t need the devil to harm us or lead us astray. We can do that quite well all by ourselves. We are especially adept at rationalizing our evil actions – “I deserve this,” or “They have insurance,” or “They had it coming!” or “It’s just a white lie,” or “No one will know.” Jeremiah 17:9 proclaims,  “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” Or as Walt Kelly put it in his 1970 cartoon, Pogo, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” That’s why the Lord’s Prayer also contains the petition, “And lead us not into temptation”; we are asking God to keep us from doing evil ourselves by giving in to our wrongful desires.

This three-fold problem has been called, “The world, the flesh, and the devil,” first described by Thomas Aquinas in the 1500s as “implacable enemies of the soul,” though also seen in the temptations which the devil threw at Jesus in the wilderness: 1. gaining the kingdoms of the world by tempting God (the world); 2. satisfying his hunger by turning stones to bread (the flesh); and 3. worshiping Satan (the devil). See Luke 4:1-13. Jesus refused to give in to any of  those temptations, preserving his sinless nature and thus his ability to take our sins upon himself at the cross.

Jesus remained sinless, but we are inherently sinful, so what do we do about sin and the evil it causes?

1. As Jesus told us, we pray for deliverance from evil, and from the temptations to think and commit evil ourselves. We need God’s help!

2. We resist Satan. James 4:7 says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

3. Read the Scriptures, so you know what God considers right and wrong. This makes it harder to rationalize our actions as “not so bad.” or “I’m only human” when we see that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23).

4. Remember the promise of 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.” When you feel tempted to do wrong, look for the way of escape God provides you.

5. Psalm 34:14 says, “Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” Don’t put yourself in situations where you know you will be tempted; seek what is good and wholesome. Guard your thoughts: as Philippians 4:8 tells us, Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” In other words, get your mind out of the gutter!

But what if we do these things, and evil still comes our way? Romans 12:21 says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Our Lord said, “But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:39) and also “But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44), a lesson repeated by Paul: “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all” (Romans 12:17). This is not to say we must let evil have free rein in the world, it does have to be opposed and stopped; the point is that we are not to stoop to the level of the evildoers, but to recognize them as people who are also loved by God.

Ultimately, our deliverance from evil has been provided for us by Jesus Christ, who died on the cross so that the evil we have done will not “live after us” into eternity. We not only have the strength of the Holy Spirit now in this life to resist sin, but also have full forgiveness of all our sins and the evil they cause, for all eternity. That is our hope, and we look forward to the day when evil is banished and only good remains.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Job 1; John 8:34-47; Romans 12:9-21. 

* 41.9 million since the Roe v Wade decision in 1973.

Have They Come For You?

Recently, I posted a blog which spoke of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and his opposition to Adolf Hitler, a stand which cost him imprisonment and finally, execution, in a Nazi concentration camp (see The Era of Stupidity, November 14).  Today, I’m going to refer to another German Lutheran pastor who likewise opposed the Nazis and who also suffered imprisonment for his stand. Also, like Bonhoeffer, this other theologian had important things to say which are as relevant today in America as they were in Germany during the 1930s and 1940s.

Martin Niemöller (1892-1984) was a German Lutheran pastor and theologian who opposed Hitler’s Nazification of the German Church. At first, before Hitler took total power, Niemöller approved of the leader for opposing the atheistic Communists, and actually met with him. During their meeting, Hitler assured Niemöller that the Nazis would respect the freedom and autonomy of the Church. However, when Hitler became chancellor and began asserting control over the churches by appointing Nazi-approved bishops and limiting what could be preached and taught, Niemöller joined other objectors in denouncing Hitler and his party.

Of course, this didn’t sit well with the dictator, so Niemöller was arrested and imprisoned in the Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps for seven years, from 1938 to 1945. Fortunately, he survived the ordeal.

Niemöller’s most famous quote, and the one most pertinent to today’s situation, is this one which he wrote in 1946:

“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”

His poem was a confession of the fact that he, and many others in the Church, did nothing when the government targeted various groups as being undesirable, a burden on society, or non-conforming to its orders. Out of cowardice or complicity, many Christian leaders kept quiet as Jews and others were arrested and persecuted, because it didn’t affect them personally. Even if they didn’t like what was happening, they justified their silence as preserving their own ministries.

What struck me in reading Niemöller’s statement about the costs of remaining silent, was its applicability to today’s “cancel culture” in our country.  We’ve watched as many people have been attacked by various social media, or fired, or “cancelled” from speaking publicly. People are shunning other people – former friends and even relatives – who voice anything they dislike. Even worse, some are attacked just because they don’t agree fervently enough with the attacker. And yet, though we don’t like what is happening, how many of us actually speak out and actively defend those who get cancelled?

This phenomenon is not new. In a sense, warfare and murder itself are forms of cancelling people (permanently). But even when people set out to shut up others peacefully, there is an inherent violence in the attitude that often comes out in actual violence against those being cancelled. Some historical examples illustrate this point of people who were once allied but suffered because they fell out of favor or were deemed not enthusiastic enough for “the cause”:

  1. Following up on the violence perpetrated by the Nazis, Hitler turned on one of his earliest fervent friends and supporters, Ernst Röhm, murdering him and disbanding his pro-Nazi militia in 1934.
  2.  In the Soviet Union, Josef Stalin denounced and executed some of his allied communist leaders, including Leon Trotsky, who had served in the Russian revolution with Lenin. He conducted what is called the Great Purge (called by the Russians, “The Great Terror”), dividing people by their class and ideology before executing literally millions of them. He then executed his leaders who had conducted the purges for him.
  3.  Another Great Terror took place in France during and following their revolution. Again, social class and fervency for the cause were criteria for whether someone lived or died. Eventually the revolutionary leader, Maximilien Robespierre himself, died on the guillotine in 1794 after being denounced by his fellow revolutionaries.
  4. Following our own revolution, numerous Americans who had remained loyal to the Crown were harassed. Some 80,000 of them fled to Canada or back to Britain for safety.
  5. Lest we find the Church faultless in this area, consider the Inquisitions conducted by the Roman Catholic Church for four hundred years, which purged the Church and its territories of people considered to be heretics or Protestants. The accused lost jobs, positions, families, and even their lives. The number of executions is estimated at some 32,000 people.

Beliefs do matter, and the impetus to ally with those of like mind and purpose is a powerful and important one. I certainly would not have called any non-believers to serve as my associate pastors. Our church body does conduct thorough reviews of all candidates to make sure they know and believe the Bible and the Lutheran Confessions. But the difference is, we don’t execute those who don’t make it!

But now, our society is tearing apart as people group themselves and others into “acceptable” and “unacceptable” categories. What race are you? How old are you? Who did you vote for? What did you post on social media? What did you tell a friend twenty years ago in private, that now became public? What belief did you espouse that was once popular, but now is considered offensive? What are your preferred pronouns? Vaccinated or unvaccinated? Which computer system do you use, Mac or PC?

As you can see, there is an almost infinite variety of categories which can divide us. Unfortunately, once divided, it becomes easy to hate the other group and rejoice at their misfortunes, or desire their cancellation. It also prevents us from seeing the other person as an individual who probably has the same needs, wants, and hopes that we do. As people whom God loves and for whom Christ died.

So, how do we react to this current “cancel culture”?

  • We speak against it, in love but forcefully. Whenever anyone is cancelled, we could be the next in line, just as Niemöller warned. Even if we aren’t targeted, we are diminished by the loss of others’ ideas and works.
  • We avoid cancelling other people we may disagree with. The French philosopher, Voltaire, famously said, “I may not agree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
  • When we disagree, make sure we are hearing the other person accurately. Avoid overreacting to what we think they mean, or what their critics tell us about what they mean. Read and think for ourselves. We should follow Martin Luther’s teaching on the Eighth Commandment: “We should fear and love God that we may not deceitfully belie, betray, slander, or defame our neighbor, but defend him, think and speak well of him, and put the best construction on everything.” When we give the other person a chance, we may actually learn something!
  • We obey Christ’s command to love our neighbor as ourselves (Luke 10:27), a command echoed explicitly throughout Scripture in both Old Testament “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 19:18), and New: “For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’.” (Galatians 5:14). Therefore, even if we completely disagree with what another person says or does, we still treat him or her with respect and love. And if they hurt us by words or actions, we still forgive them, as we have been forgiven (Matthew 6:12-15).
  • We see other people as people, and not as representatives of groups at odds with our particular group. As I stated above, God loves that person just as he loves me, and does not desire that either of us perish. John 3:16 is our guide here: God loved the world (that’s everybody) and gave his Son that we should not perish but have eternal life. If God did that, who am I to decide otherwise?
  • Finally, I remember the poem written by Edwin Markham, who wrote:
          • He drew a circle that shut me out
            Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
            But Love and I had the wit to win:
            We drew a circle that took him in.*

This is hard to do, to take in those who insult and hate me. But I seem to have heard about Someone else who did just that, enduring the hatred, mocking, brutal beatings – and yes, even death by crucifixion – out of love for those he came to save. Our Lord had every reason to cancel all of us, but his love took us in, even when we deserved only his wrath. Let us strive, in love, to cancel the cancellations.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Matthew 5:43; Mark 12:30-32; Luke 10:27; Romans 13:9-10; and James 2:8.

*Edwin Markham, The Shoes of Happiness, and Other Poems, 1913

You Are a Chimera!

A faithful reader of this blog responded recently to my article, “Male and Female,” which I published on September 25. Having worked in the medical field, she had witnessed individuals who were born with both male and female organs, and wondered how that fit in with God’s creation of us as male or female (or pertinent to her question, male and female).
 The condition she spoke of is called a  chimera (kī-ˈmeer-ə), named after a mythical beast that was part lion, part goat, and part serpent. It happens (the human condition, not the mythical beast) when fraternal twins begin forming in the womb, but one dies and the other absorbs its DNA. The result is a person with two sets of DNA, which can mean both a female and a male in one body. (I first heard of this on an episode of the TV  show, House, when a female cheerleader came down with testicular cancer.) This can certainly cause social and emotional issues for an individual who has two sets of sexual organs. But spiritually, I think the concerns are the same as for any person. As with all people, a chimera is a sinner in need of forgiveness, and Christ died for him/her as well as for you and me.
Several things came to mind when I read her question. There are the sayings of Isaiah 29:16 and 64:8 and Romans 9:21, which speak of God as the potter and us as the clay, and that he has the right to make us as he wishes. We are all different and yet are all his workmanship (Ephesians 2:10), and all in his image (Genesis 1:26-27). Also, we know that God loves each of us, no matter how we are born, and therefore we must in turn love each other. No accident of birth, or defect, can change God’s love or our duty to love and respect. Certainly, we must be especially compassionate to people born as chimeras, for they will face social and physical challenges. Another reality is that we live in a fallen world where we all suffer, all  have handicaps (some visible, some hidden), all face illnesses and injuries, and all die. We also know from Jesus’ own words that someone born with a defect is not being punished by God for his or her (their) sins. neither the twin that died nor the one who was born is being punished (John 9:3).
At this point you might by thinking, “Okay, this is interesting, but what has it to do with me? I’m not a chimera.” To which I answer, “Oh, yes you are!”
Maybe not a chimera in the medical sense (or mythical sense), but there are two ways that anyone can be considered a chimera in the spiritual sense.
1. First, all people incorporate in their one being, two opposite natures and sets of characteristics. On the one hand, we were created in the image of God and retain much of the glory which he instilled in us: the ability to love, to create, to give, to help, and to fellowship with God and with each other, among other lofty traits. Unfortunately, because sin entered into the world and into us, we suffer under its curse, and therefore embody all that is bad in human thought, attitudes, and actions: we hate, steal, harm, kill, cheat, and deny the God who created and loves us. Because of this, everything we do is tainted; even the most altruistic acts can carry the blemish of pride and self interest. (I’m especially proud of my humility!)
I’ve seen this many times in our modern world, though this is not a new phenomenon. There is no invention or development so wonderful or beneficial that it can’t be turned by sin into something harmful. Had any spam calls, email scams, or identity theft lately?  This goes beyond the unintended negative consequences that good intentions can have, such as wind turbines chopping up birds that get too close, or oil drilling that leaks oil and damages wildlife along beaches. It involves people willfully using technology to harm others. For example, think of the amazing development of airplanes for long-distance travel, only to see them used for bombing, drug-smuggling, and crashing into buildings.
This dual nature of mankind is clearly seen in today’s “cancel culture,” when people who otherwise do admirable things get caught saying or doing something that is either unacceptable or outright terrible. A sports announcer says something insensitive in the heat of an exciting play; a great teacher loses his or her temper at a student, a pastor butchers Martin Luther’s reputation by dressing up like him and speaking in a fake German accent*. Every person we respect or admire is capable of, and has already done, something that is cringe-worthy. Think of Kate Smith, who inspired millions of Americans over the decades with her rendition of the song, “God Bless America”; but also recorded several blatantly racist songs. Or of Martin Luther himself, who both restored the true Gospel to the Christian Church, and advocated burning synagogues. Two natures, indeed.
The problem is that everyone does things that are good and things that are bad. If we cancel everyone who has ever said or done something stupid or nasty,  there won’t be anyone left. Even Robespierre, a leader of the French Revolution, went to the guillotine when the mob turned against him.
So then, all people struggle with this dual identity as both exalted and fallen beings. But what about us Christians? Does this struggle also apply to us? Or are we better than that?
2. This brings us to the second way in which even Christians are chimeras. As believers in Christ we are reborn children of God and inheritors of eternal life (Romans 8:6-7), but while we are still in this body, we retain our fallen natures as well. We are both saint and sinner. We have been redeemed by Christ and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, yet we cling to the old sinful nature, even when we abhor it. The Apostle Paul lamented this duality in Romans 7 when he said,
” 15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.”
Paul does not use this as an excuse to go on sinning. He doesn’t give the lame excuse, “Well, I’m only human, after all!” No, instead he admonishes us not to keep on sinning, even though God forgives us by his grace. He wrote in Romans 6:1-2, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?”
The Apostle John put it this way, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God” (1 John 3:9). See similar teachings in Hebrews 10:26 and 1 Corinthians 15:34.
The point is that even as Christians who are born again of water and the Spirit (John 3:3), we struggle to be faithful to the new spiritual life which God has given us in Christ. The old nature clings to us, tempting us and going against what we know God desires for our lives. We backslide into the old ways, due to social pressures or our own sinful desires, and fall short of God’s will and the new man or woman God has created in us. Then we get discouraged, with Satan whispering in our ear that we are failures, and that all this “God stuff” just isn’t for us.
So, what do we do about this chimeric split personality within us? First, we recognize it exists, so we don’t get blind-sided when we or someone else disappoints us. Second, we thank God for his grace, by which the sinner in us is forgiven, and the saint in us is proclaimed by his righteous decree. Third, we study the Scriptures to know what behavior and thought is consistent with God’s nature and the image he desires in us. Fourth, we seek out others who also strive to be faithful disciples of Christ -in church, Bible studies, charitable ministries, and other common places. Fifth, we pray for God’s strength, knowing that he has given us his own Holy Spirit to convict and guide us, to strengthen and comfort us for our life’s journey. He has promised to provide us a way out from the temptations to sin (1 Corinthians 10:13), even if it means giving us to the strength to run away from it! (1 Corinthians 6:18).
So, my fellow chimeras . . . let us thank God for blessing us with his own image, and for forgiving that other side of us. For in Christ, we are all being made whole again.
Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
Read: Romans 7 – 8:11; 1 Corinthians 10:12-14
*Hypothetically, of course.

Three Score and Ten

Three score and ten years ago . . . No, those aren’t the opening words of the Gettysburg Address; Lincoln’s famous 1863 speech began with, “four score and seven years ago,” and referred to the founding of our country in 1776. So to what major event does “three score and ten” refer? Why, to my birth, of course!  Yes, in a little over a week from now, I will celebrate my 70th (three-score and tenth) birthday. It’s hard to believe that I’m now that old, though I’m even older according to Native American reckoning – 71 – since many of those tribes counted the time in the womb as the first year of life.

In most respects, 70 is just another number, and my birthday will be just another day. I will be just another day older and won’t feel much different from the day before. No church bells, sirens, fireworks, or parades to mark the occasion (though there should be!). No, I will just go to bed at age 69 and wake up the next day at age 70.

But in one respect, seventy is a significant age, and that is because of its use in Psalm 90 – the only Psalm ascribed to the great prophet and leader, Moses. This Psalm describes the Lord as being “from everlasting to everlasting” (verse 2), and says that to him, a thousand years are like one night (verse 4). Then it asks the Lord to teach us to “number our days” (verse 12) because unlike God, our time on earth is limited. How limited? According to verse 10, “The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty . . . they are soon gone, and we fly away.” In King James English, that’s, “threescore years and ten; or fourscore years.”

It’s interesting that despite our advances in nutrition and medical care, in 2020 our life expectancy in the U.S. falls right in the biblical parameters set over 3000 years ago: 75 years for males and 80 years for females. (Maybe I should follow the trend and change genders – and thereby extend my life another five years?)

Whatever my own personal “expiration date,” I think that reaching the three-score-and-ten-year milestone does call for me to number my days and evaluate where I stand.

First of all, I have come to realize that there are just some things I will never accomplish. I will never win an Olympic gold medal (or silver, or bronze); I will never be a billionaire and fly into space; I will never win an Oscar, or an Emmy, or a Grammy; I will never  climb Mt Everest; I will never win a Medal of Honor; I will never run in the Boston Marathon; I will never swim the English Channel (though I did once pass underneath it!); I will never again sing a solo in church; I will never raise water buffaloes; and I will never become President of the United States (though, based on the last two elections, I’m barely old enough to run!).

On the other hand, I have done a lot of amazing things in my three-score and ten years: I have been on the radio, on TV, and in several national journals; I have published a book and written two others; I was a national Merit Scholar and graduated third in my high school class; I once did sing a solo in church, backed up by an all-Black Gospel choir; I have been to 12 countries on four continents (inadvertently invading one of them*); I rode on a Soviet tank and swam in a river in Siberia; I sailed in France, petted reindeer above the Arctic Circle, and preached a sermon in Spanish in Peru; I won my division in my city’s tennis tournament; I earned a Bachelor’s Degree and a Master’s Degree summa cum laude; I served in the pastoral ministry for 22 years; I read the Scriptures during a worship service in Martin Luther’s  church in Wittenberg, Germany; I have learned (and am still learning) several language; I have a blog (duh!); and, last but not least, I have been married for 47 years!

But of all the important things I could say about my life, there is one above all others: I am a Christian, redeemed by Jesus Christ, forgiven of all my sins, and written in the Book of Life for all eternity (Revelation 3:5). This is ultimately the one that matters, for as Psalm 90 says, my years “are soon gone, and we fly away.” As wonderful as my blessings in this life have been, they will all pass away, and only one thing will remain: eternal life in Jesus Christ.

Other passages in Scripture also emphasize our mortality. 1 Peter 1:24-25 proclaims, “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.” Genesis 3:19 says, “for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Ecclesiastes 3:20 lumps us with the animals, saying “All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return.” Psalm 90:3 says, “You return man to dust and say, ‘Return, O children of man!'” Psalm 39:4 says, “O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!” In the New Testament, James 4:14 says, “What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” And Hebrews 9:27 reminds us, “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment. .  .”

By now you’re probably thinking, “Rich sure has gotten morbid now that’s he’s turning 70!” But that’s not the case, because my – and all mankind’s – limited lifetime is not the whole story; as Christians we know that our lives have really just begun. Not only do our spirits go to the Lord at our death, we can look forward to our bodily resurrection, when we will rise to new life in a new heaven and new earth (Isaiah 65:17 and Revelation 21:1). For as Christ has by his own death and resurrection conquered death, so we too shall live: Paul tells us beautifully in 1 Corinthians 15:51-55,

“Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be  changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. or this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?'”

In the book of Job, that ancient, suffering saint proclaimed joyously in the Bible’s earliest reference to resurrection,

“For I know that my Redeemer lives,
    and at the last he will stand upon the earth.
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,
    yet in my flesh I shall see God,
whom I shall see for myself,
    and my eyes shall behold, and not another.” (Job 19:25-27)

The most well-known statement of eternal life is John 3:16, which says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

In the words of the contemporary Christian song, 10,000 Reasons, the last verse reads, “And on that day when my strength is failing, The end draws near and my time has come, Still my soul will sing your praise unending,  Ten thousand years and then forever more.”

You may have one more question at this point: Do I consider my eternal life to be my greatest accomplishment?  Well, no, because like Paul I cannot boast in anything except in Christ my Savior: “Let the one who boasts,  boast in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:31). Why? Because my salvation is not my accomplishment, but the gift of God and by his grace alone. Remember, we are saved by God’s mercy through faith in his Son, Jesus Christ:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

“For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law” (Romans 3:28).

Therefore, my greatest “accomplishment” was not done by me, but by God working in and on me. It is to him I turn in thanks for the three score and ten years he already granted me, and for how many years there are still to come. But most of all, I look forward to his greatest gift of all: eternal life in his presence, given by his mercy and love.

Seventy years old? No, not old. Based on God’s promises – which I believe – at 70 years I’m just a new-born babe!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Psalm 90; 1 Corinthians 15; Revelation 21. 

*I invaded Canada in high school  when the bus I was in failed to check in properly at the border. On the way back to the U.S. the Canadian border agent couldn’t admit an entire bus had gotten past him and entered his country illegally, so he let us go.

 

The Empty Manger

As I mentioned before, Karen and my decorating for Christmas has been pretty sparse this year. Our outside lights are up, but our main tree has just one ornament besides its built-in lights. There are one or two snowmen in view (not the melty type), and one nativity scene. Without company coming, and us still dealing with my sister’s stuff, the idea of getting out bins of decorations for a couple weeks just didn’t do much for us this year.

And then there’s the little wooden stable I made years ago for my sister. It sits in full view in our family room, but what’s left of the balsa-wood figures I made for that nativity scene are still wrapped up somewhere. So it sits empty: empty stable, empty manger.

One day, Karen looked up at it and said, “The manger is empty. Jesus isn’t in it.” To which I replied, without even thinking through what I was saying, “He’s not here; he has risen!” I hadn’t meant to quote Luke 24:6 (or its parallels in Matthew and Mark), but as soon as I said it, I realized how profound a statement that could be. Jesus is not here in the manger anymore; the manger is empty, as is the cross and the tomb. All are empty, because after they fulfilled the purposes which they played, Christ went on to fulfill his purpose, and provide us forgiveness and eternal life. Each played a part in his journey, but though he spent time in each, none could hold him forever.

Note that all three were man-made objects which were fashioned for earthly purposes: the manger as a feed trough for animals (and the stable to hold and shelter them), the cross as a brutal execution device to kill criminals and terrorize the population into obedience, and the tomb, as the burial chamber for a dead person. Man-made and -purposed, yet God took those objects and used them to fulfill his plan of salvation for you and me, and a multitude of other believers.

The manger. Do you realize that if God had wanted Jesus to be born in more comfortable surroundings, he would have made sure there was room for Mary and Joseph in the inn? But he didn’t; he chose the stable for their shelter and Jesus’ birthplace, and the manger for the newborn’s bed. It was part of God’s plan that Jesus would be of humble birth and childhood; not a social celebrity well-connected to the wealthy and influential of his day. He would be welcomed by humble, unclean shepherds in a stable, and grow up the son of a carpenter, eventually to not even have a home of his own. (Matthew 8:20 -“Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”)

In addition, I think that the manger was significant because it was where food was placed for the animals to eat. Jesus said of himself, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”  (John 6:51) As in Holy Communion, Jesus offers up himself as our life-living bread from heaven – his flesh for our salvation. Again, in God’s working all things for his purposes, Bethlehem was not only the “City of David” and home to an ancestor of Jesus, who happened to start out as a humble shepherd named David; the name Bethlehem literally means, “House of Bread.” Appropriate for the first earthly home of the living bread come down from heaven to give us life.

The manger fulfilled its purpose: to cradle the Christ-child with earthly and symbolic shelter, but it couldn’t hold him forever; if that child had not grown up and gone on to die on a cross and rise from the dead, we wouldn’t be celebrating just another child born into poverty in some obscure back-water of a country, over 2020 years ago. If that manger still exists, it is now empty.

The cross. While we feel all warm and fuzzy looking on scenes of the babe lying in a manger, surrounded by Mary, Joseph, shepherds, sheep and cattle (and an angel hovering overhead), the cross hits us with horror and revulsion. Especially if we consider what happened there, and not think of the cross as a nice, symmetrical piece of shiny jewelry. Echoing what the ancient patriarch Joseph said to his brothers who had sold him into slavery in Egypt, “You meant it for evil, but God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20). So it was with the cross: something contrived to be evil, and the placing of Jesus on it an act of even greater evil; yet God intended and used that evil act for our good.

As is so often the case, people think they are in charge, and do things for their own purposes, but even their evil intentions fulfill God’s plans. They wanted to get rid of a trouble-maker; God allowed the death of his Son to atone for the sins of the world and provide us a way to forgiveness and eternal life. Without the sacrifice of the innocent Jesus, we would still be lost in our sins and doomed for eternity. But because Jesus went to the cross and willingly paid the price for our sins, we have hope – and a Church called by his name.

There has been some debate among Christians as to whether crosses should be bare, showing Christ is risen, or adorned with images of the dying Christ (in what is called a crucifix). I think both carry important messages, one a reminder that Jesus did suffer and die on the cross, and the other that Christ died once and for all time at Golgotha, and never again. I have no issue with either form, for we do not worship the cross, but the One who died on it.

One more thought about the cross: notice the differences between the birth and death of our Lord: in the one, Jesus was held and sheltered by a wooden box; in the other, he hung and died on a wooden cross. During the one, a supernatural light appeared, both with the angels and from the star; during the other, a supernatural darkness covered the land. One a celebration of joy, peace, and goodwill; the other of sadness and evil. And yet, like the manger, the cross couldn’t hold Jesus; if it had, we wouldn’t call that day, Good Friday.

The tomb. Finally, we come to consider the tomb in which Jesus was laid. It, too, had a human intention, a purpose for which it had been hewn from the rock.  Specifically, it belonged to a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea, but when Jesus was killed, Joseph offered his unused tomb for the Lord’s burial. (I wonder if he knew he was only lending it to Jesus for a couple days .  . .).

The tomb fulfilled God’s purposes as well: first, by providing visible proof that Jesus was dead; second, by providing a situation where Jesus’ enemies guarded the body under their watch to make sure the disciples didn’t steal the body; and third, to prove Jesus had bodily resurrected from the dead in a miraculous way, attended by angels and an earthquake (Matthew 28:2). When the disciples rushed to the tomb and found it empty except for Jesus’ grave clothes, they knew he had risen. (Thought: Jesus had been wrapped in swaddling cloths and laid in a manger; now he had been wrapped in burial cloths and laid in a tomb. You could say he “outgrew” both!)

Well, we know the rest of the story about the tomb: though closed by a stone, marked with a seal, and guarded by soldiers, the tomb was empty on the third day. Jesus appeared alive to the women, to the disciples, and to 500 followers at one time (not to mention to Paul, “as to one untimely born” – 1 Corinthians 15:5-8). The empty tomb was one proof of Jesus’ resurrection, and the sign that he had overcome death, our final enemy.

Because the tomb was empty, we can celebrate the empty manger and the empty cross; if the tomb had remained filled with Jesus’ lifeless body, there would be no celebration of Christmas, Good Friday, or Easter. There would be no Christian Church, no hope of life after death, and no promise of forgiveness nor proof of God’s love. And no Pastor Eddy’s blog, but that’s the least of our worries!

I hope you celebrate Christmas, keeping in mind the life journey of our Lord Jesus Christ, who came into the world, humbling himself to a manger, a cross, and a tomb, only to rise triumphantly, leaving them all empty behind him, ascending to heaven and awaiting God’s appointed time for his return. Only this time, he won’t need a manger, a cross, or a tomb.

We hope you have a very blessed and Merry Christmas!

Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you ad give you peace. Amen.

Read: Luke 2:1-21; John 6:22-51; 1 Corinthians 15; Matthew 27:45-66 

 

More Than Just Halloween

Today is October 31st, known everywhere as Halloween. But this day is much more than a day for kids to dress up and go out to gather candy and other goodies while yelling, “Trick or treat!” Much more. For today is the 503rd anniversary of one of the most important days in Church history and in the history of Western civilization: the day that Martin Luther posted a notice on the door of his church in Wittenberg, Germany, challenging the teachings and practices of the Church (and government) of his day and starting the Protestant Reformation. But what happened, and just as importantly, why did it happen? Rather than me trying to tell you, let’s hear from Martin Luther himself . . .

Guten Morgen! Meine Name ist Martin Luther, ja? You may know me as a monk, a priest, a doctor of theology, a professor, or a pastor . . . but did you know that I am now also known as a “wild boar?” It’s true; according to this proclamation of the Pope  I am . . . well, hear for yourself: “Exsurge Domine . . .” oops, sorry, it’s in Latin. Let me translate: “Arise, O Lord, protect your church, the vineyard which the wild boar from the forest seeks to destroy.”

How is it that the Pope himself wrote a proclamation against me, with the title, “Condemning the Errors of Martin Luther?” What happened that I should be so condemned? To explain, we must go back to another October 31, in the Year of Our Lord 1517, when I nailed my own proclamation to the door of a Church in Wittenberg, Germany.

Like today, it was All-Hallowed Eve, and I knew that the next day, All Saints Day, many people would be in church to remember all those believers who have gone before us into heaven. I wanted to be sure that many would see this poster, because I hoped the 95 questions, or theses, which I had written on it would cause serious discussion about some of the beliefs and practices of the Christian church of my day

Well, I got my wish – and then some! But, let me explain how it all came to pass, and what happened because of it . . .

I was born in Eisleben, Germany, in the year of our Lord 1483. My parents, especially my father, Hans, were very strict with me, but they made sure I got a good education. And so at the age of 5 I learned Latin. I also learned about God  and Jesus Christ, but mostly I learned about God’s punishment of sinners. Because  I knew I too was a sinner, I feared God greatly. If you would say Jesus’ name, I would shake and tremble, for I knew that Jesus was an angry Judge, just waiting to punish me for my sins.

As I grew, it came time for me to go to the university in Erfurt, where I studied law, as my father wanted me to do. But though I was a good student and advanced very quickly, I still was not happy, because I had no peace with God. For though I was now educated, I was just an educated sinner, waiting for God’s judgment.

Then came the day that everything changed, when I thought my time of judgment had arrived.

I was walking to Erfurt one day, when a terrible storm arose, more terrifying than any I had ever experienced. I hurried along, looking for shelter, but found myself out in a field as the wind and rain hammered against me. Finally, in the midst of peals of thunder, a bolt of lightning struck me to the ground. At that instant, I thought I was about to die, and all my fears of death and judgment and God filled me with horror!

I cried out for God to save me, “If you let me live, I will become a monk!”  The seconds went by, I got up and felt myself to see if I was still alive, and I was! So I hurried on to Erfurt, quit my law studies, gave away all my possessions, and joined the nearby monastery. I became a monk. Now, I thought, I shall certainly lead a far more God-pleasing life than I ever did at the university.

Of all the professions in my day the monk was considered the most pleasing to God. Certainly a man who gave up the world and its pleasures and wealth, to live a life of prayer, worship, poverty, and self-denial would earn salvation! And if anyone could have been saved by his monkery, it was I! I worked hard all day long. I fasted by going without meals; I slept on a cot in the winter with no heat or blanket, I whipped myself with ropes whenever I had sinful thoughts, I prayed and attended services every day, but still I could not find peace with God. Had I done enough? Were my motives good enough? I went to confession many times a day, searching my heart and mind for every sinful thought and action, until I wore out the abbot from hearing me. Finally he told me, “Martin, go out and sin so you have something to confess!” But he did not know how I felt inside, that I was a sinner standing in judgment because I might have missed confessing even one sin. And had I confessed my sins fervently enough, or had my mind wandered? Was I really sorry I had sinned?

Soon, I was ordained a priest, able to celebrate Holy Communion. But for me, it was not much of a celebration, because I so feared touching God with my sinful hands that the first time I held the cup, I shook with fear and spilled the wine.

Even as I wrestled with my sins before a holy God, I was given the chance  to go on a trip to the holy city, to Rome, the home and throne of the Pope. I thought, surely, this would be the one place I would find forgiveness and peace with God, at the center of his church.

When I got there, I did all the things a good Christian pilgrim is supposed to do – I attended many masses, visited shrines and looked upon the bones of saints, and I climbed the Sancta Scalia – the Holy Stairway – brought to Rome from Jerusalem, and the very stairs upon which Jesus climbed to be tried by Pilate. It was said that you could assure salvation for someone if you crawled up the steps and kissed each one, while reciting the Lord’s Prayer. And so I did – but when I got to the top, I looked down and asked, “Who knows if it is true?”

When I finally left Rome, it was with a heavy heart. After seeing the riches and corruption of the church, and failing to find the assurance of forgiveness I needed,   I despaired. My works had failed me, my church had failed me, what was left? I had nowhere left to turn, but to the Bibel, the Holy Scriptures. And there I found what I had been seeking. I was appointed as a professor of the Bible to the new university in Wittenberg. But to teach the scriptures, I had to study them more carefully.

The more I studied God’s word, the more convinced I became that we are forgiven and saved, that is justified, by God’s grace alone through faith alone, totally apart from our works. Only in this way can we be sure of our salvation, because Christ’s death on the cross for us is totally sufficient to pay for all our sins. When I trust in him and in his forgiveness, freely given, then I am saved. I read Ephesians 2 which says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and not by works…” and in Romans 1, I read, “The righteous shall live by faith.” When the truth of this finally sunk in,  I felt as if I had been born again, and entered that moment into paradise through gates which were flung wide open!  The burden of salvation was off of me – I could not be perfect enough to be accepted by God – but I was accepted by the merits of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ!

When I realized this great truth of the Gospel, I began to look more closely at what we were doing and teaching in the Church, and I saw that we had strayed from the Bible’s teaching into the traditions of men. The Holy Bibel must be our only source of faith and life. If the Pope and church say Ja, but the Bibel says “Nein”, then the answer is “Nein – no.” And as for popes and councils, they can err, but as for scripture, it can never err. It is the trustworthy word of God himself; it is the cradle in which Jesus is found.  It is also important that everyone be able to read the Bibel, so I have been laboring to translate it into the language of the people – German – so you can all read it for yourselves.

But what led me to write these 95 Theses was the church’s practice of selling indulgences. Let me explain – the church has taught that there is a special place of punishment called purgatory. We were taught that when Christians die, we don’t go straight to heaven, but rather must spend time in purgatory being tortured for our sins. Of course, no one wants to be tortured, so the church offered a solution – buy an indulgence. To get one, you pay money to the church. An indulgence promises the pope will forgive you of the need to go to purgatory. You, or a loved one. So, when I crawled up the steps in Rome, and paid my fee, I was given an indulgence for my dead grandfather, to get him out of purgatory. At the time I was sorry my father wasn’t dead yet, or I would have gotten him out of purgatory too!

The church uses relics of the saints – their bones or something belonging to them – which it puts on display, and then charges people to see them, in exchange for an indulgence. People are told they will be forgiven by their good works of looking at the relics, whether they repent of their sins or not. But what lies are told! One church claims to have a feather from the angel Gabriel, another has flame from Moses’ burning bush, and how is it that there are 18 apostles buried in Germany, when Jesus had only 12?

There was even a priest named Johann Tetzel going around germany with a large money chest, collecting payments for indulgences. He announced to the crowds, “Sowie das Geld im Kasten klingt, die Seele aus dem Fegfeuer springt.” Which means,  “As in the box the money rings,  the soul from purgatory springs.”

Das ist nicht gut! The Bibel says nothing about purgatory; it does say that our sins – and the punishment for them – are taken away completely by Jesus Christ, that his death is sufficient for all our sins. Nothing I can pay, or look at, or obtain from the church can add to what Christ has already done for me.

That was when I decided I had to raise questions about indulgences to the church, so I wrote out 95 questions on a poster, and on October 31, 1517, I nailed them to the door of the Castle Church. And you now what happened next? Boy did they get mad! Ach, I was called a traitor and a heretic! My books were burned! The pope called me a wild boar in the vineyard of the church – and then he excommunicated me – twice! So I excommunicated him back!

Later, I was put on trial before the Emperor himself, at the Diet of Worms. When I entered the hall I saw a table with my books spread out on it. I was asked if I had written them, and I said yes. Then I was ordered to take back what I had written. But how could I deny the grace of God and the truth of the Gospel? How could I take back what the Bibel says? My answer was, “If you can show me by reason and the scriptures where I am wrong, then I will recant. But if not, then here I stand! I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen!” After that, I had to flee from the city of Worms, and hide out in the Wartburg castle for almost a year. Many are those who would destroy me, but God’s protective hand has been around me – and a mighty fortress is our God!

Since then, much has happened. There was my return to Wittenberg as pastor and leader of what has now been called the Reformation. There was my marriage to a former nun named Katherine von Bora – my dear Katie I call her – and the birth of six children – I called them our little heathens! I have finished the Bibel translation into German, and have written many other books.

But the Reformation is not my work, any more than salvation is a human work. Both are works of God, though God does use sinful people like the apostles (all 18 of them!) and me to spread the good news of what Christ has done for all of us. In my day, the church had lost its way, and had forgotten the truth that sets us free from the law of sin and death. God used me to reform his church, but in every age he uses his faithful people – like you – to keep the truth alive and spreading.

So stand firm in the faith, and never give up no matter what the difficulties. Never forget that you have been saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.  The church does not belong to us. The good works we do are not for our glory. It is all God’s doing, and therefore we can trust in him and in the final outcome, according to his timing.

Speaking of timing: my time is up. I must follow the advice I give to young preachers – “Tritt’s frisch auf, offn’ Maul auf, hoer bald auf.” – “step up lively, open your trap, and close it again soon!”

So for now, Auf Wiedersehen, from the wild boar in the vineyard!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be grateful to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Ephesians 2:8-10; Romans 1:16-17 and 3:21-31                 

Just Plain Nuts

Just plain nuts!

No, I’m not ordering a snack of cashews, almonds, or peanuts; nor am I doing a little maintenance on my car, and asking Karen to hand me small threaded metal pieces to go on the end of some bolts. No, when I say, “Just plain nuts!” I’m referencing an old Far Side cartoon* in which a psychiatrist is writing “Just plain nuts!” in his notebook while listening to his patient ramble.

I used that cartoon a few years ago during a training session I taught to our church’s new Stephen Ministers, to emphasize that their work as Christian caregivers was not to diagnose or treat psychological problems. But now, I have found a new use for that cartoon’s phrase: for I have come to the conclusion that the words, “just plain nuts,” apply to me.

Oh, I wasn’t always this way (though there are some who might disagree with that assessment); I used to be rational and level-headed, a “rock” of stability and calmness, a living fulfillment of the phrase,”If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs.”** Yes-siree, I was the poster-child for mental stability and common sense (not to mention, humility). But then something happened: eight months (and counting) of coronavirus shutdown have driven me nuts.

Now, I know that many people are suffering mentally, as well as physically and financially, from this pandemic and the ensuing shutdowns across our country. What I am saying in no way is meant to minimize or mock their very real sufferings. But in my case, I find that my sense of humor has always helped me deal with many of life’s stresses. Such as:

  1. The time I went in for a colonoscopy, and the nurse came to the waiting room to fetch me. She apologized for the delay, saying that “the doctor is a little behind in his work.” You can guess my reply. We walked another ten feet before the nurse got it and started laughing.
  2. The time I rode in a tow truck while my car was being towed. The chatty driver went on and on, telling stories laced with profanities, until he asked what kind of work I did. I smiled and said, “Pastor.” We rode in silence for the next five miles.
  3.  Or the times when I was in my wheelchair, and would look for down-ramps where I could let it roll while singing out, “Wheeee!”

Now, after all these months of shutdown, I see similar signs that I am indeed becoming, “just plain nuts.”

  1. I thought of pasting photos of the coronavirus on my face mask to ensure six feet (or more, maybe a lot more) of social distancing.
  2. Among my late sister’s belongings we found a Christmas tree ornament, a little nurse doll complete with stethoscope and face mask. I wrote 2020 on the face mask and set it aside for this year’s tree .
  3. I want to wear my Darth Vader mask next time I go to the store.
  4.  I got the idea of giving out oranges for Halloween. Not so crazy, except I wanted to stick golf tees in them sticking out in every direction.

I have had other, even more wonderful ideas, but fortunately, cooler heads (i.e., Karen) have prevailed, and I have behaved myself. But you get the idea: sometimes we just have to laugh at our troubles to prevent being over-whelmed by them. I am not alone in this view: The American novelist, E.W. Howe, said, “If you don’t learn to laugh at troubles, you won’t have anything to laugh at when you grow old.” So, knowing that I will one day grow old, I am learning to laugh at my troubles while still young.

The problem with my laughing during times of trouble is that other people think I’m not serious about life, that I take things too lightly, or don’t care that others are hurting. I might even be considered a fool, someone with no idea of the seriousness of a situation. You may agree, and think this about me because of my (sometimes) slightly warped sense of humor. You may be right. But, in my defense, let me offer the following:

  1. Humor and laughter can be escape valves to relieve the natural stress that builds up in us when faced with difficult situations. Like the safety valve on a hot water heater that can prevent a catastrophic explosion when the pressure gets to be too much, it’s better for us to “let off a little steam” by laughing than to “blow a gasket” in anger.
  2. Sometimes, if we step back and look at ourselves as others see us, what we see can be genuinely funny.
  3. Mistakes, injuries, and embarrassing situations just show we are human and that we share the same challenges of life with every other person who has ever lived. It is a humbling check on our egos to recognize our short-comings and to be able to laugh at them. (That doesn’t mean it’s good to laugh at other people’s problems; that can be just plain mean!) Also, the ability to laugh at ourselves and not take ourselves too seriously is one of the traits which humans share, something that sets us apart from other creatures.
  4. Why be miserable, dwelling on every problem, real or imagined, when our lives can be so much more enjoyable? Shakespeare wrote, “A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once.” (Julius Caesar, II, 2).
  5. God has a sense of humor. Where else did we get our sense of humor than from the One who created us in his own image? The Scriptures have numerous examples of humor, for example:
    • When Elijah mocks the priests of Baal after nothing happens in response to their calling upon their pagan deity to send fire from heaven; Elijah tells them to yell louder, in case their god is sleeping or busy relieving himself in the bathroom (1 Kings 18:20-40).
    • Or when the non-believing seven sons of Sceva try to exorcise a demon in Jesus’ name, only to be overpowered and run away naked from the encounter (Acts 19:11-17).
    • In Jonah, the reluctant prophet refuses to go overland to the east to Nineveh, instead fleeing to the west by sea to escape God’s call, even though Jonah admits that God made both the land and the sea! (Jonah 1:10).
    • According to 2 Chronicles 21:20, “Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. He passed away, to no one’s regret, and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.” I think we get the not-so-subtle message: Jehoram was not popular!
    • In Job 40:15, God gives Job an example of his majestic creative power when he says, “Behold, Behemoth, which I made as I made you.” When I behold the platypus I see an example of God’s sense of humor as well.

There are plenty of other examples, such as 89-year-old Sarah laughing when she heard that she would have a child, only to have the child a year later, a boy whose name, Isaac, means “Laughter” (Genesis 18:10-15). Some of the Bible’s humor is more evident in the original languages, due to puns and other plays on words. And much of it comes when people try to take themselves too seriously.

I think one source of our taking everything too seriously is the devil, who constantly tries to accuse, frighten, distract, and ruin our lives. He tells us to forget all of God’s blessings, and focus on the judgment we deserve. Or, he turns us against each other and builds up our own pride so that we take offense at everything and everyone who we think degrades us. With such attitudes, how can we laugh at misfortune?

The cure is not to give in to such spiritual temptations and fears, but to have the right attitude regarding our problems. That means to trust in God, to believe his promises, receive his grace and forgiveness, and to look for the many blessings he gives us even in this fallen world. This is more than just looking for the silver lining in the dark clouds; it is about having a truly biblical perspective that ultimately, God is in charge, and that we will spend all eternity with him in a heaven when “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4). That should encourage us, no matter what we are going through during this pandemic, or afterwards.

And if the devil still won’t leave us alone, remember what Martin Luther said: “The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn.” So shall I laugh in the devil’s face, even if the rest of the world thinks that I am “just plain nuts!”?

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Acts 19:11-20, 1 Kings 18:20-40, Job 40, Jonah 1

*(c) 1990 by Gary Larson

** From the poem, “If”, circa 1895 by Rudyard Kipling

 

The Rescue Mission

Looking around at everything going on, especially in California, with numerous deadly wildfires, a pandemic, and social unrest, I thought the following sermon I first preached in 2011 was appropriate for today in 2020:

First a powerful earthquake, one of the most powerful ever recorded, slams the country and shatters buildings and infrastructure, trapping people in the rubble. Then comes a devastating wave of water as a tsunami crashes across the coastal lands, obliterating entire villages and sweeping thousands of people into the ocean. But that’s not all: the double blow damages a series of nuclear reactors and disables safety systems – causing the release of some radiation and the likelihood of much more to come. It is a disaster.

But now imagine you are one of the survivors of that catastrophe; you are buried under the rubble of your house, trapped by a beam and unable to pull yourself out. You are cold, hungry, and very thirsty. You’ve been buried for days, waiting desperately for someone to save you.

It seems like you are alone and abandoned. Will no one come to save you? But then, just before you’re ready to give up, you hear someone coming: a team of firefighters, guided by a rescue dog, has found you and has begun pulling away the debris over your head. You are excited; help has finally arrived! It won’t be long now and you’ll finally be safe!

Only . . . your rescuers suddenly stop in mid-rescue. The beam has been left pinning you down; “Come on! Don’t stop!” you cry out. But then you hear the rescuer’s voice amplified by a bullhorn:

“Before we rescue you, there are a few questions we need to ask you:

  • Are you a good person?
  • Have you paid your taxes? These rescues are expensive, you know!
  • When was the last time you rescued someone else who was in trouble?
  • Are you polite and friendly to other people? Are you honest?
  • Have you ever committed a crime, been arrested or parked illegally?
  • Are you the right age, gender, social class, ethnicity, or citizenship?

You see, we need to make sure you are worthy of being rescued.”

The voice continues: “If you meet these criteria, there’s one more thing we require of you and that is that you participate in this rescue. After all, we can only help those who help themselves. So, you under the rubble: push harder and lift the beam yourself. It isn’t too much to expect that you exert some effort if you really want to be saved! And one more thing: you’re looking pretty dirty and wet right now; better get yourself cleaned up first.” As the voice fades, you are left dumbfounded; what kind of a rescue is this?

Well, the answer of course is that it isn’t very much of a rescue at all. I think we would be shocked to hear of any rescue team acting in this way; we would demand an investigation and make sure it didn’t happen again.

And yet, though we wouldn’t put up with that kind of rescue from flawed, sinful human beings, we seem perfectly happy to attribute that same kind of rescue to the perfect, loving, and sinless Savior of mankind, Jesus Christ. If so, we are slandering him.

Understand clearly that Jesus came to earth on a rescue mission. Humankind, the highest of God’s creation, made in the image of God to know God and have eternal fellowship with him, had suffered a disaster, a catastrophe unparalleled in history. This disaster has led to the death of every man, woman, and child ever born, not only in this world and life but also for the world and life to come. This disaster was the rebellion of mankind against God, our disobedience and fall into sin. Ever since that day when our first parents broke God’s one commandment, all mankind has suffered the consequences and penalties to which our just and holy God sentenced them. You and I are no less affected by sin’s consequences – suffering and death – than are the people of northern Japan by the natural and man-made catastrophes that hit them.

It was into this disaster-affected world that the Rescuer, Jesus, came. It was because of the disaster that Jesus came, for only by him coming and suffering in his body and soul the full effects of our great disaster, could Jesus rescue us from its deadly consequences. But it’s one thing to accept that Jesus came to save us; it’s another to understand how we receive that salvation.

For some reason, many people believe that Jesus acts like the horrible rescue team I described earlier: that Jesus has come to make sure we get ourselves cleaned up so that God can accept us. If only we wear the right clothes, eat the right foods, join the right churches or think happy and loving thoughts; if only we keep the Ten Commandments perfectly – then we are worthy to be saved. And of course, since “God helps those who help themselves,” we must participate with God in our rescue from sin and death. Don’t we have to do something to show we’re worthy to be saved? He saves good guys, right?

Even if they accept that Jesus died so others would be freely forgiven, they still believe that the free forgiveness somehow doesn’t apply to them. Their sins are too great; or they think they have to get their lives cleaned up before Jesus would accept them. But that’s the whole point of Jesus coming to save us: we could not save ourselves or get cleaned up enough for God. “Just as I am without one plea” is a true statement. “God helps those who help themselves” is not – which is why it’s not in the Bible!

Listen to what the Bible does say about Christ’s rescue mission:

  • Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”
  • Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
  • Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
  • And there’s the last two verses from today’s Gospel, John 3:16-17, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

Those verses are full of rescue language. Jesus Christ did not come to lay down another set of laws for us to follow, or to ensure we kept all of God’s commandments. Christ did not come as a policeman to enforce the law, but as a rescuer to save us from the law’s judgment and condemnation. He came to fulfill those commandments perfectly himself, and then to offer freely that perfect gift of righteousness to every person who would believe in him and trust him for their salvation. If you are in Christ through faith, then you have already fulfilled God’s laws perfectly.  He has rescued you!

This gift is given by grace – that is the undeserved love and mercy of God – apart from anything we could do. As John 1:17 says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.” And Paul sums it up in Romans 3:22-24 “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

Imagine once again that you are pinned under the rubble of your home. The bogus rescue team has gone away; the beam is still pinning you down. You are no better off than you were when they first showed up; in fact you are hungrier and thirstier than before and more discouraged. What you thought would save you has proven to be a false hope. And as for your own strength, there is no way you can lift the beam and free yourself. Is this it? Is this the end? You close your eyes and begin to weep silently, whispering almost without knowing it, “Dear Jesus, help me!”

Suddenly, the air around you seems brighter. You look up to see one set of scarred hands grab a hold of the beam and begin to pull its weight off of you. You cry out to this new rescuer, “Are you sure you want to rescue me? Others are more worthy to be saved, and I’m all filthy and worn out!” In reply you hear a firm but kind voice: “Hush; I’ll have you out soon. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it!”

Now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: John 3:17; Luke 19:10; Romans 3: 22-24; Romans 8:1

You’ve Been Erased

Last week, I erased my sister.

In the 1996 movie, Eraser, Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a US Marshal who protects people in Witness Protection by giving them new identities and “erasing” everything in their old identities that would betray them to the bad guys who are looking for them. His tag line was, “You’ve been erased!”

Well, last week I thought of that line as I went through my sister’s personal effects and finances following her death on July 18th. As I shredded old financial records, disposed of her jewelry, cookware, electronics, and furniture, I was hit with the sad thought that I was “erasing” all the things that had been part of her life. This feeling hit hardest as I came to her I.D.s, her RN nurse insignias, and photos of her with her friends and our family. By the time I was done, it was almost as if she had never lived – though I just had to hang onto a few of the most personal items.

I also thought of the passages from the Book of Ecclesiastes, in which King Solomon laments the futility of life when it ends so soon and all that our striving and gathering accomplished must be left to those who follow us.

Ecclesiastes 1:3 “What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun? A generation goes, and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.”

Ecclesiastes 1:11 “There is no remembrance of former things,  nor will there be any remembrance of later things yet to be among those who come after.”

Ecclesiastes 2:18-19 “I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity.“

After all these thoughts, I was hardly cheered up. Added to sadness over my sister’s passing was a sense of my own mortality, in which I realized that even those few remembrances I saved of her will likely be tossed when people sort through my stuff some day. And, after the incredibly hard work my wife and I did in cleaning up my sister’s things, Karen and I began more earnest talks about doing our own house-cleaning and what the funeral home directors euphemistically call, “pre-planning.” For the day will come when someone will have to go about “erasing” our lives, too.

This would all be depressing, except for a greater reality that sees beyond our current lives here on earth. For God has revealed to us in his word that as believers in Christ (which my sister was, too) we have eternal life. What we experience here in this life is very important, but it’s just the beginning of the story. We have much, much more ahead of us. Jesus said,

“I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).

And Jesus comforts us in John 3:16, even during times of loss, with this promise:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

In Revelation 21:4 we read,

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Romans 6:23 says,

“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In other words, for those who are in Christ, death is destroyed and eternal life takes its place. Therefore, though aspects of our lives may be “erased” when we die – specifically our material belongings – we cannot be erased, for God has given us eternal life. At the deepest and most important level, who we are – our souls – will live on. For now, the spirits of those who died in the Lord are with him in heaven; one day, when Christ returns as he promised he will bring with him those who are with him and reunite them with their resurrected, perfect, and immortal bodies.

1 Corinthians 15:51-55 reads,

“Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’ ‘O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?'”

This thought was especially comforting, as my sister had lost both her legs, her teeth, and much of her vision before the final crisis which took her life. In the final days she had expressed to me that she was looking forward to the day when she would be whole again. Karen and I pictured her dancing before the Lord, and expressed it in the song about heaven we played at her burial: I Can Only Imagine. The song’s chorus goes like this:

Surrounded by You glory
What will my heart feel
Will I dance for you Jesus
Or in awe of You be still
Will I stand in your presence
Or to my knees will I fall
Will I sing hallelujah
Will I be able to speak at all
I can only imagine
I can only imagine
There are those who say that a person who dies lives on in the hearts minds, and memories of those whose lives they touched. That’s a nice thought that may comfort us, and certainly, memories of my sister will continue for me. But this saying has never really resonated with me. If a person’s continued life depends on others’ memories of him or her, what happens when those people die? And by this reasoning, people like Hitler, Stalin, and Mao will live forever, while some poor, humble, and unknown saint in some little village will perish without anyone grieving or even knowing about them. That doesn’t seem right at all. And fortunately, God’s Word has told us that the key to eternal life is not that many people knew of you and your accomplishments, but rather that you knew Jesus and believed in his accomplishment: his death on the cross and the subsequent forgiveness of your sins.
The only things that are ever truly erased are sin and death. 1 Corinthians 15:25 says, “The last enemy to be destroyed is death.”
Therefore, no matter how many papers I shredded, or what I did with my sister’s belongings, I really couldn’t erase her even if I tried; God has promised her, and us, an unending life full of love, life, and relationship, with all the inheritance that heaven can hold. And that is far greater than anything we leave behind, or any feeling of loss. Thanks to God for his gift of life, now and forevermore.
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.
Read: Ecclesiastes 1, 2; 1 Corinthians 15; John 3

Still in This Together

In the previous blog, I lamented the fact that although the common sentiment these pandemical* days is that “We’re all in this together,” our society is anything but “together.” We are divided and set at odds with each other over many issues and identities, causing much animosity and even violence. I responded by suggesting several biblical approaches to mending our divisions, beginning with these four: 1. Remember that we are all related; 2.Remove the log from our own eye; 3. Don’t judge the heart or motives; and 4. Speak the truth in love. Now we continue, with three more ways to help bring us together:

5. Walk together and find common cause. How do we overcome feelings of division? By working together with someone and accomplishing a common purpose. Whether it be in our job/career, in sports, in school projects, in family emergencies, in combat, or just about any common endeavor, when we stand and strive side by side with someone, we create a bond that can overcome real (and artificial) barriers. When you have identified someone as your teammate or helped each other do something, or come along side in times of difficulty, you have in some way become one person.

I think of past barriers and prejudices that have fallen when previous opponents have come together to work in common purpose. Former enemies become allies when a new threat emerges; shared resources provide for common needs, and a shared sense of accomplishment breeds good will. Rather than sitting around and airing grievances, why not work together and celebrate what you have done? After all, “We’re all in this together!” As Amos 3:3 asks, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” If we do agree to walk together, have we not begun to share a common experience and done so peacefully? And will that sense of agreement not grow and bless our relationship?

There is an Arabic expression: “There are salt and bread between us.” It refers to a bond of friendship forged by acts of hospitality, when two or more people have shared a meal. As a proponent of potlucks (and other buffets, but I digress) I have seen the enjoyment and commonality people have when they share their bounty and eat with each other. It’s interesting that after Jesus’ resurrection, two disciples who walked with him on the road to Emmaus didn’t recognize him until he broke bread with them (Luke 24:30-31). How many divisions could we mend by working hard together and then sitting down to share a meal? I think that would help a lot.

6. Forgive as we have been forgiven. An absolutely vital step in breaking down barriers is to forgive the wrongs the other person has done to you. Refusing to forgive not only hardens the wall between you, it also hardens your heart and diminishes your soul. Unforgiveness grows a bitter root in you that colors all your relationships and makes them awkward, painful, and unrewarding. Just seeing the other person causes your stomach to tighten and your mind to close down; you anticipate more conflict and dread what could happen. But when you forgive, you free yourself from the hurt that was caused you. As one of my pastors once wisely said, “When you forgive someone, what that person did loses the power to hurt you.”

While going through a painful divorce, one of my relatives was understandably angry at her soon to be ex-husband. He had in truth done some horrible things to her, for which she was very bitter. As we talked, I asked whether he was unhappy the way things had turned out, and she said no, that he was probably out having a great time. So I asked her how she was doing. She said she was miserable. Then I asked, “So, why make yourself miserable when he was happy?” A few days later, she was able to forgive him and found the spiritual release that forgiveness provides.

In his Sermon on the Mount, our Lord taught us how to pray, giving us what we call the Lord’s Prayer. After saying, “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. .  .” he continued with, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:12, 14-15). Jesus sure made it sound like our own forgiveness depends on our willingness to forgive others, a point he later made explicit in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant. In the parable, a servant who owed his master a huge, unpayable amount was forgiven his debt, but then went out and refused to forgive a tiny debt that another servant owed him. When the master learned of his unforgiveness, he reinstated the first servant’s debt and threw him into jail (Matthew 18:21-35).

Colossians 3:13 says, “bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” Can’t say it much plainer than that; not only are we obligated to forgive, we are the primary beneficiaries of the forgiveness we give, both for God’s forgiveness of our own sins and for the effect it has on us. There is a genuine freedom we experience when we let go of the anger we harbor and the regrets that go with it, and knowing at the same time that we have likewise been forgiven.

One of the most moving stories of the power of forgiveness is in the book, The Hiding Place, by Corrie Ten Boom. If you get the chance, find and read her story (It was also excerpted in Guideposts; you can easily find it online). The short version is that Corrie was talking to a group about her experiences as a prisoner in the Ravensbruck concentration camp for hiding Jews from the Nazis. At the end of her talk, one of the former guards at the camp came up to her and asked her to forgive what he had done. Her struggle and what happened next, are so authentic and powerful, I would cheapen it by trying to summarize it here. Please find it and read it yourself.

7. Pray for the other person. By that, I don’t mean that you should pray that the other person gets hit by a bus or suffers some other horrible fate. You are, after all, to pray for that person and not against him or her. You pray that the Lord touches that person’s heart, whether to open their eyes to the mistakes they are making, or to turn to the Lord for forgiveness, or for restoration of your relationship with them, or for the Lord to bless them and keep them (Not quite what the rabbi prayed in Fiddler on the Roof, “May the Lord bless and keep the Czar – far away from us!”). Not only may God answer your prayer and actually bless the other person, he will also bless you by softening your heart toward that person. God works in your heart, growing your love for the other person to be like his own love: a love that is forgiving, patient, and desiring good for even an enemy.

Jesus addressed this, saying that our prayers are not just for our friends and family. In Luke 6, he said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” You may think, “That’s easy for him to say; those pastoral types always say nice things, but what happens when they are attacked? How do they respond then?” Well, we know exactly how Jesus responded: when they crucified Jesus – after torturing and mocking him, he prayed for his tormentors, saying, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). He who could have called down legions of angels to save himself and destroy his enemies, prayed instead for their forgiveness. That is the same forgiveness the Father gives you and me inspite our our sins which out Jesus on that cross.

There you have it: seven suggestions for helping each other to heal the fractions in our society, so that we may truly be in this “together.” While these steps are all scriptural, they would help anyone and everyone come together and overcome the problems that divide us. And it’s high time we did something, for as Benjamin Franklin once said about the need for unity among the states at the signing of the Declaration of Independence: “We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Matthew 18:21-35; Luke 24:13-35; Luke 6:27-36

*Yes, pandemical is a word.

Blessing the Cursers

Over the past couple weeks, as social unrest has run rampant in our country, people have expressed their anger publicly through demonstrations and even riots. Triggered by the killing of an unarmed African-American man in Minneapolis by a police officer, the protests have grown and morphed into violence, fueled I believe by a combination of simmering angers, political agendas, and covid-19 consequences – such as long-term isolation and job losses. Unfortunately, much of the vitriol against injustice has been directed against people who had nothing to do with the triggering act, such as first-responders, shop owners, and complete strangers.

I received some of the hate this week myself.

It started about 3:15 one morning when my cell phone woke me with a call from a Louisiana number. When I answered, a little girl’s voice asked to speak to Stephanie. Since there is no Stephanie in our home or family, I told the girl that and said she must have the wrong number. She said okay sweetly and we said, “Bye, bye” to each other. No problem; simple error. A few seconds later the same number called, and figuring she had redialed the wrong number, I answered again. I did not expect what I heard this time: an older woman’s voice telling me, “I hope you die and go to hell!” I guess next time I should say, “This is Stephanie” in a high voice.

Over the next couple days I had several more calls and texts from Louisiana, Virginia, West Virginia, Arizona, and even British Columbia. While two were hang-ups, one voicemail was so foul and obscenity-laden I would never repeat what the young woman said. The fact that she was addressing her rant to someone named Katie only made her choice of wording that much worse. Maybe I should have said, “This is Katie” in a high voice to spare the real Katie from such abuse!

The fact other names were used makes me think the callers had the wrong number, but the number of calls and the wide range of caller locations makes me suspect a coordinated political effort.

As I heard each call or read each text message, I couldn’t help but think about how I should respond. Should I mimic voices like I joked above, just hang up, or yell and insult the caller back, telling them to “Get the —- off my phone!”?

While I did toy with playing games with such callers, such as I once did with a phone solicitor wanting to sell me solar panels – I told him no, since solar panels use up sunlight and there’s only so much sunlight to go around – I decided the best thing was to ignore the insults and just hang up.

There were practical reasons for doing so: 1. As my parents taught me, if you engage in a fight you’re only giving the bully what he or she wants: a reaction from their victim; 2. Some of the calls were aimed at others, not me; 3. “Sticks and stones, etc.”; 4. I doubt the callers were open to a calm and logical discussion seeking harmonious agreement; and 5. I don’t know enough nasty words or how to use them to hold my own in a cussing match!

But the real reason not to engage in a dispute, or to bear any grudge against the callers, is even deeper, and that is what our Lord taught us through Scripture.

1. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught us, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:43-45).

2. Likewise, in Luke 6:27-28 Jesus said, “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”

3. Paul wrote in Romans 12:14, “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.”

4. Even more generally, the command of both testaments, old and new, is that God commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves. Therefore, if I truly love my neighbors, I will forgive them their angry outbursts, even as I would appreciate them forgiving my sins. Martin Luther picked up on this and expressed it in his Small Catechism when explaining the Eighth Commandment: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.” Yelling back at a caller is not speaking well of that person, who, though misguided, is still my neighbor.

God’s command that we respond with love to those who harm us or curse us does not mean we sit back passively and approve of everything that anyone does. I have to admit that much of what I saw on TV was unsettling and even angering: how can I condone smashing windows, burning cars, and looting goods from stores with smiles on the looters’ faces? Or for that matter, kneeling on a person’s neck until he dies? I felt anger rising in me toward everyone involved because much of what I saw was just not right! But then, I realized I was in danger of my “righteous” anger becoming a sin and recalled Paul’s words in Ephesians 4:26 “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil,” and in verses 31-32, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

Therefore, I refuse to be goaded into an attitude of hate. Instead, I prayed for the people who called, that their hatred be healed and released, and that they come to know the peace which passes understanding in Christ, through whom we can endure all things (1 Corinthians 13:7) and do all things: “through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

May you and I keep that peace foremost in our hearts ad minds, and in our words and actions!

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Matthew 5, Philippians 4, Ephesians 4:26-32

In These Certain Times

There are two disciplines of study that are important to us as we continue to face the current pandemic and the consequent shut-down of our society and economy. The first of these is the study of history –  what has happened in the past. The second is the study of theology – specifically what the Bible says about what has happened in the past and what will happen now and in the future. To these could be added a third: the viewing of funny cat and dog videos to keep us from taking everything, including ourselves, so seriously.

Why do I say these are so important? I say that because I think history and theology help us to keep our current situation in a proper perspective, especially when just about every media story, government decree, and commercial advertisement uses phrases like, “these uncertain times” and “these unprecedented times” as part of their pronouncements. But are the times in which we are now living really uncertain and unprecedented?

No, they are not.

While our current situation in America is unprecedented in our lifetimes, and there is a degree of uncertainty regarding the virus’ final medical and economic impacts, history and theology teach us that there is nothing new (or unprecedented) in what is happening. Instead, we learn that disease and social disruption have been the norm, and that mankind has suffered war, pestilence, famine, and death (the Four Horsemen of Revelation 6:1-8), as far more certain than peace and prosperity. It seems, rather, that our recent past has been a “bubble” of prosperity, a condition which itself has been unprecedented when compared to the historical reality of human struggle.

So let’s look briefly at what history and theology teach us about today’s difficult times:

1. Pandemics are not unprecedented. The corona virus is nasty and has killed lots of people so far, and will certainly continue to claim lives. But, it’s not the first, nor the worst, of widespread and deadly plagues throughout history which have killed millions and devastated entire nations. The most famous are the bubonic plague outbreaks of the 1300’s that killed up to 200 million people, including one-third of Europe; London’s Great Plague of 1665 that killed 20% of the city; the  Spanish Flu of 1918-20, which killed 50 million worldwide and 675,000 in the US; the Asian Flu of 1957 (1.1 million globally and 110,000 in the US); the 1968 Hong Kong Flu (1 million worldwide and 100,000 in the US); the H1N1 “Swine Flu” of 2009 (500,000 total and 18,000 in the US); and HIV/AIDS which has infected 65 million people and killed 25 million worldwide. And these don’t count seasonal flu epidemics or  unrecorded diseases from ancient and prehistoric times. Simply put, contagious diseases have always been a threat to mankind, and likely always will be, in spite of medical advances and victories over certain threats, such as smallpox.

2. Economic hardships are not unprecedented. This point seems hardly even necessary to state, let alone elaborate. Again, while we’ve become accustomed to being financially strong as a society, the opposite has been almost universally the case until the last century in the West. Only recently have Third World countries been able to rise out of poverty, and even so, many have much further to go. And in our own country, as wealthy as we have been, we have faced multiple recessions and depressions, including the Great Depression (1929-1939); the Savings and Loan crisis of the mid- 1980s; the dot-com bubble; the stock market crash of 2000; the Great Recession (2007-2009); and the sub-prime mortgage crisis of 2008-10. Of course, for most people throughout history, the idea of investment losses is irrelevant, since they had little or nothing to spend and nothing to invest.

3. Shortages of food and supplies are not unprecedented. Right now, stores are posting signs at their entrances saying which in-demand supplies are out, or limiting the number of each item which may be purchased. Some say, “Out of toilet paper” or “Out of hand sanitizer,”  and others, “Limit one gallon of milk per customer.” That’s a new thing for us, but I remember seeing my parents’ ration books from World War II, in which there were tear-out coupons for purchasing such basics as flour, sugar, and butter. Other situations have been worse: consider the Irish Potato Famine of 1845 to 1852, in which at least one million Irish starved to death (and another million emigrated to the US). Even more tragic (and recent: 1959-61) was the Great Famine of China, which saw the starvation deaths of 45 million people, due to the communist government’s enforced policies. So far, at least, we still have plenty of food and other supplies during this pandemic (except for the Charmin*).

4. Uncertainty is not unprecedented. As Ben Franklin once said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Beyond those two things, just about everything else carries with it uncertainty: our health, our jobs, our friends, families, financial situations, and even our marriages. Our longevity, our safety, and our security cannot be surely established, as much as we try. Our reliance on institutions, including our governments and leaders, can be misplaced. Even churches with familiar names on the door can betray our trust that they will teach and preach scriptural truths.

Once again, history shows us the folly of thinking we have a certain future. From villages being overrun by enemy tribes, to droughts and floods, to storms, volcanoes, and tornadoes, to fickle and oppressive rulers, to attacks by animals, to plagues and the depletion of arable lands, people have always faced uncertain futures. Add to those crises the problems caused by greed, theft, adultery, violence, and other sinful behaviors, and mankind has always lived on the brink of survival – and never with a certain future. Besides death and taxes, the other certainty is change, which by its nature ensures uncertainty. Therefore, everything we now consider as being uncertain, have always been uncertain; that uncertainty itself is all that has been certain.

5. So then, where can we find answers to the uncertainties of life and the cycles of danger, disease, destitution, and death? The answer is the Word of God, the Scriptures, and what they reveal about the world: past, present, and future. The good news is that God has made known to us what we need to know about all this.

The Bible is not some magic talisman that we can wave around us to banish all life’s problems. But it does teach us what we need to know to rightly understand what we’re going through: that we were born into a world which is cursed because of sin, both from our first parents and ourselves. God told Adam and Eve that their sin brought a curse upon the world:

“Cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:17-19)

The New Testament affirms this: “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned” (Romans 5:12), and “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). And “just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). As our buddy Ben Franklin told us, death is a certainty – whether from Covid-19 or some other cause.

Because of sin’s curse, we should expect the problems that hit us in life, and find comfort that they are not new to us individually, nor a sign that we are being punished for some specific thing that we have done. We might just be experiencing what is common to mankind: the bad along with the good.

Now, I’m not saying we should ignore the coronavirus or accept life’s harms fatalistically; God’s word compels believers to ease suffering and help bring healing to all who suffer. Christ compels us to feed the poor, bind the wounds of the injured, and clothe the naked. Therefore, we should fight this illness with medicines, smart lifestyle behaviors, and hopefully, vaccines. What we learn now will help us fight the next disease that comes along.

But there is something else we learn from the Scriptures, that there are other things, wonderful things, that are even more certain than death and taxes: God’s love, God’s promises, God’s forgiveness, and eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ. Because “there is no variation or shadow due to change” in God (James 1:17), and “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases” (Lamentations 3:22), his promises will not change nor end. “God is not a man that he should lie” (Numbers 23:19), so we can trust what he has promised.

Therefore, though mankind has endured tribulations in the past, though we go through tribulations now, and though people will face some horrible tribulations to come in the future, God’s promises will not change. The prophet Isaiah tells us, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8).

Thanks to our Lord, Jesus Christ, and to his birth, death, and resurrection, God’s greatest promise has already been fulfilled, and we can look forward to eternal life, when God will “wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).

So then, what’s this about our living in unprecedented and uncertain times? Not so much, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and in the end he will stand upon the earth!” (Job 19:25).  Of that, I am certain! Amen, come Lord Jesus!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give your peace. Amen.

Read: Revelation 21; Genesis 3; Lamentations 3:1-24

 

* No endorsement of this particular brand is intended, nor money received.

Borders and Bridges, Part 2

In my last blog, I introduced the idea of “Borders and Bridges” and spoke to the necessity for the first half of that phrase: borders. As I pointed out, from the separations established by God at the beginning of creation (light separated from dark to be day and night, for example) to the structure of cells within a defining and protective membrane or cell wall, to national boundaries, we saw that borders play an important role. We also saw that borders exist in spiritual matters, such as those between God and man, and between the lost and the saved. We read in Jesus’ parable about Lazarus that there is a great chasm (border) fixed that no one can cross between those in paradise and those in Hades who suffer in anguish  (Luke 16:26). Even non-believers establish behavioral boundaries to require permission and respect when it comes to interactions between people. But borders are only half the story. What about bridges that transcend those necessary borders?

Part II. Bridges are Necessary

As necessary as borders, boundaries, and walls are to separate, protect, and identify different individuals, places, and other things, they can also be a problem. If there is no way for anything to cross the border for a good and needed purpose, the barrier can prove to be harmful or even fatal.

A cell wall will cause the cell to die if there is no way for needed nutrients to get into the cell and waste products to get out. An example is type 2 diabetes which I have: the cell membranes become resistant to the insulin needed to transport glucose (sugar) into the cell, where it provides energy. Instead, the sugar remains in the blood above proper levels, where it causes damage to other tissues. Treatment usually begins with medicines which reduce that resistance to allow the insulin to pass into the cell and do its work. In essence, the medicine builds a “bridge” across the cell membrane to bring in what’s needed.

You see the same thing in other contexts. A prisoner locked in solitary confinement is essentially in a cell (duh!). If no one brought food and water through that cell wall, or removed waste, that prisoner would die (and go crazy in the process). A city under siege has its supply lines cut off, sealing it off from the outside world and preventing both reinforcements and any resupply of basic food supplies; the city has to surrender or starve (read Lamentations 4:1-10 about the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem and its consequences). A more recent siege took place when the Soviets blockaded West Berlin from mid-1948 to mid-1949. The city was left in dire straits without food or coal for winter heating until the U.S. and its allies formed an airlift, which over an entire year flew in 2.3 million tons of supplies, saving the city and causing the Soviets to lift their “siege.” The airlift created a vital bridge which preserved the freedom and lives of the Berliners.

Wealth and prosperity come from trade across borders. One person or company or country produces more of one item than it needs, and trades with another entity for what it produces, and now both are richer. For example, our orange tree produced over 100 oranges this year. We couldn’t eat that many, so we gave some away, which prospered more people with good food from our tree. Other people have shared with us their walnuts, lemons, limes, plums, and pomegranates. We were all enriched by the trades. But without such trades, if non-bridegable borders had forced us to keep everything to ourselves, there would have been rotting produce in all our yards and we would have all been a little poorer for it.

Trade was so important to our nation’s founders that they prohibited tariffs between states. The Constitution essentially established a trade bridge across all state boundaries.  When it comes to countries, trade treaties form bridges to allow the transfer of goods and services across boundaries. Both countries are benefited by those cross-border exchanges. That’s why the terms of trade treaties are such big news these days: the prosperity of the trading partners is at stake. The fact that we do have trade around the world is a blessing to everyone: just check out the food can and produce labels in your kitchen to see how much our diet is enriched by having economic bridges with the world.

Cross-border movement of people is important too. Besides international business and tourism travelers, there are those who cross borders to escape persecution or seek a better life. Immigration has been the life-blood of our nation for 400 years; the issue is not whether there should be borders or bridges across those borders, but how easy or difficult it should be to cross those bridges legally. I wouldn’t be here in America if my ancestors had not crossed some borders on their way from the British Isles. By the way, I still have the actual travel papers used by my great-great-grandmother when she emigrated from Germany to Chicago in the 1860’s. Once again, I am glad such a bridge existed for her to do that.

So far, you can see the benefits, and indeed necessity, of bridges in various areas of life. But there is ultimately an even more important area for there to be a bridge, and that is the spiritual. As I showed in the previous blog, our sin created a border between us and God, between us and the joys of eternal life. We were shut out from the earthly paradise in which God placed us, and remain excluded from heaven from birth. No matter how we try, we cannot cross that border by our own strength or goodness. That is what Christ did for us by his death on the Cross; the effect of his death was shown in that the Temple curtain (a border wall) which closed off the Holy of Holies from the people, tore from top to bottom, showing that we now had access (a bridge) to God.

When I consider the interplay between borders and bridges, I see the scriptural, Lutheran doctrine of Law and Gospel at work.

1. God’s Law defines the border between what God accepts and does  not accept. It shuts out those who sin and disobey God, and sets boundaries for our behavior. “Thou shalt not” and “thou shalt” command our obedience and threaten us with harm if we trespass them (a word which means “to step over,” and is perfect border-violating language.). The Law divides the sheep and the goats, the wheat and the tares, and speaks of burning the chaff with unquenchable fire. This is the Law, and God is righteous in establishing and enforcing all such boundaries.

2. The Gospel proclaims that in spite of our sin, the boundaries which would separate us from God and consign us to hell have been breached by God’s mercy. Because God loves us and does not want us to be separated from him or see destruction, he has provided a Savior in his Son, Jesus the Christ. All are invited through faith in Christ to cross over the bridge into eternal life. Now, the way is narrow and not everyone will cross it, but the way is there. Jesus proclaimed he is the way (John 14:6), and Ephesians 2:14 joyously proclaims, “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.” The way is open through faith in Jesus Christ.

There are more things that could be said about borders and bridges, about how they impact life itself and the way we relate to the environment, to each other, and to God. But for now, it’s important to see that both are necessary to order and freedom, to Law and Gospel, to you and me. May we always thank God for his righteousness and his mercy and for the borders and bridges his love provides for us.

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Luke 16:19-31; Lamentations 4; 2 Kings 25; John 14:1-6

The Crux of the Matter

While checking the offerings of an online movie service, I noted that a number of James Bond movies showed up as currently popular. I didn’t watch any, opting to go to bed instead. But as I lay there, before falling asleep, my mind mulled over some of the movie titles, and I remembered that the movie, The World is Not Enough, was based on the supposed motto of Bond’s family: Orbis non sufficit, (Latin for, “The world is not enough”). Interestingly, the motto actually did belong to a real Bond, Sir Thomas Bond of the 1600s.

From there, my mind roamed through other mottoes I knew:

      • Honi soit qui mal y pense. The motto of the British Order of the Garter, which means, “Shamed be the one who thinks evil of this.” Supposedly spoken by King Edward III when he put his nieces’ garter on his own leg, sparing her embarrassment when it fell down from her leg during a dance. It also appears on the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom.
      • Dieu et mon droit. “God and my right,” said to have been Richard I’s battle cry. Also on the UK royal coat of arms.
      • E pluribus unum. A little more familiar to Americans, our national motto proclaims we are “out of many, one.”
      • Novus ordo seclorum. The second US motto, found on our dollar bills and on the Great Seal of the United States, it means, “New world order.” Okay, maybe that’s a little scary, but the designers meant well.

Finally, my mind being exhausted by the exercise, I fell asleep, but not before wishing my family had a cool Latin motto, too.

But as I remembered when I woke up, we do. The Eddy family has an official crest, registered in English books of Heraldry. Our crest is this:

Related image

What’s really cool about the coat of arms is that it is very Christian in nature. First, there are the crossed sword and cross above. Then there are the three aged pilgrims on the crest (I used to tell my dad they represented him; now I find that they represent me). But most exciting of all is the Latin motto underneath: Crux mihi grata quies, which means, “I find welcome rest in the Cross.”

What a wonderful family motto to have! For what could be more true? Just consider all that this proclaims – which is true for every Christian, and not just the Eddy variety:

1. Crux – “Cross” When we say something is the “crux” of the matter, we are saying it is the all important point, the essential issue on which the matter hangs. A different way is to say it is “crucial” to the matter, another word which derives from the word, “crux.” To all Christians, the cross is the essential point of our faith, for we know that it was on the cross that Jesus died to atone for all the sins of the world. Without his sacrifice on the cross, we would still be in our sins, unredeemed,  unforgiven, and lost forever. Scripture tells us that God nailed all our sins to the cross with Jesus  (Colossians 2:13-14) so that they are canceled. The cross is the symbol of our faith, because it is the basis for our hope and joy. The burden of the Law was lifted from us and put upon Christ; by his death, our debt was wiped clean, and by his resurrection, we know that we too shall rise again. It’s interesting to me that religions that deny the Christian faith reject the cross: Jehovah’s Witnesses say Jesus did not die on a cross, but on a “torture stake”; Mormons reject the cross as “idolatry”; and Muslims claim it wasn’t Jesus who was crucified, but Judas. What Christ did on the cross is essential, it is central, and it is crucial to what we believe, and to who we are.

2. Mihi – “I” This personalizes the message of the Gospel for me, and by extension, for each individual.  Christ died not only for the world in general, as in John 3:16, but also for every person in that world. 2 Peter 3:9 tells us that the Lord is “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” This speaks to me, not only telling me that God loves me personally, but also that all my sins, no matter what they are and how much I regret them, are forgiven. There is no thought that God may forgive others who are holier than I am, but my sins are greater, or are too numerous, or still crop up too often for him to wipe away. The message of the Gospel is that all sins are forgiven, and that includes all my sins. This personalized message means that by faith in Christ I have become a child of God (John 1:12), and have a restored relationship with him. His Spirit dwells within me, and not just in a distant Temple somewhere; indeed, I am now a temple of the Holy Spirit, a Temple made by God himself (1 Corinthians 6:16-19). God has assured me of his presence with me through thick or thin, even to the end of the age. You can’t get more personal than that.

3. Grata – “welcome” We have all heard the expression that certain people are “persona non grata,” meaning that they are not welcome somewhere. It is usually applied to diplomatic personnel who are kicked out of a country for some breech of behavior or protocol. But in Christ, we who were estranged from God by our sins have now been welcomed back, just as the Prodigal Son was welcomed home by his father. We know that the entire mission  which Christ had was to reconcile us to the Father, which we could not do ourselves. We read, “in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:19). Because of Christ, we are now welcome guests at the great wedding feast of the Lamb to come, and welcome in heaven forever. There’s a second sense of being welcome, and that is this: in Christ and by his cross, we find what is truly welcome for us, including relief from sins, hope for the future, love and acceptance, and as we will see in the final word of the motto, rest.

4. Quies – “rest” If you’ve noticed, certain old gravestones have the initials, “R.I.P.” on them. We understand them to mean, “Rest in Peace,” though they originally were for the Latin phrase of the same meaning: “Requiescat in Pace.” You can see the root word, “quies” in the middle of the first word. The phrase is a Christian message, praying that the deceased will rest in peace until the day of the resurrection. Certainly, we believe that those who die in Christ will be at peace and will blessed with eternal life and heaven to come. But there is also the sense that we Christians still find rest in Christ even while we are still alive. As pilgrims in this world (like the pilgrims on my crest) we struggle and search on our journey through life. We encounter good and bad, joy and sorrow. We strive with great efforts at times, whether with problems or just with the labors that life demands. We seek to know God, and our purpose in life. We can search high and low, near and far, but until we find God through his Son, we remain unsure and restless. As St. Augustine of Hippo put it in his book, Confessions, in 400 AD, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” When we find God, when we know he welcomes us with love and forgiveness, we can finally have true rest, now, in this life. We don’t need to wait till it’s inscribed on our grave stone. We have true rest.

So there you have it. No need for me to invent some new motto; besides, my Latin’s not good enough. I’d probably come up with something like, “sus sit mihi rosea” (my pig is pink) or “vaccasque inposuerunt super lunam salire” (cows jump over the moon). Nope; better I stick with the motto handed down to me by wiser generations than mine. But as much as I love the Eddy family motto, it doesn’t really matter what Latin motto I inscribe on a coat of arms; what matters is the faith that Christ has inscribed on my heart. In that faith, by the cross of Christ, we find true rest. And that is the crux of the matter!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, Hebrews 4

Say to the People

If you’ve been reading my blog for any time at all, you’ve certainly noticed that I close each time with a benediction that starts with, “May the Lord bless you and keep you . . . ” And if you attend church, you’re familiar with that benediction, because we always close our worship services with the pastor saying those same words.

But why those words, and not something else, like “Y’all take care now,” or “See you later, alligator!” or “That’s all, folks!” or even some other actual biblical parting phrases, such as, “May the Lord watch between you and me when we are absent one from the other” (Genesis 31:49)?

That’s the question a pastor named Mal, who was visiting from Australia, asked me one Sunday morning after the service. He knew the answer, of course, but was curious what I would say. I could have told him, “Because that’s what’s written in our book of worship for us to say,” but I knew he was probing deeper: he wanted to know what I thought about why we use that particular benediction. I answered, “Because that’s what God told us to say,” and he smiled in agreement.

God indeed did give his people that blessing. In the book of Numbers, we read,

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,”Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, “The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”‘ So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them” (Numbers 6:22-27).

n 1979, archaeologists excavating a tomb near Jerusalem discovered two small silver scrolls that recorded this priestly blessing. The scrolls were dated to the 7th century B.C., making them the oldest written Scriptures found so far.

Because the Lord commanded that Aaron and his sons give that blessing, it is called “The Aaronic Benediction.” That’s its origin; but why do I choose to use it, other than by force of habit from 22 years of pastoral ministry? I’ll get to that in a moment, but first, let me share some thoughts I have about the benediction itself.

1. What is a benediction? The word comes from two Latin words bene (good) and dictio (speaking), so a benediction is a good saying, or speaking something good, a blessing, to someone. The opposite is malediction (bad speaking = curse). This use of these words can be seen in Luke 6:28 where Jesus tells us to “Bless those who curse you”; the Latin version reads, “Benedicite maledicentibus vobis.” Or, as I would translate it, “Benedictize those who maledictize you.”

2. Second, notice who created that blessing: God himself. It was not just some nice-sounding greeting that Moses or Aaron thought up to score points with the people; rather, God himself composed and commanded the  actual words of the blessing. This makes it a “God-authorized” blessing.

3. The text says that “the LORD” gave the command and included “the LORD” in each part of the blessing. When the word, “LORD” is written in all capital letters in English, it signifies that the original Hebrew word was YHWH (Yahweh), the four-letter word which signifies the revealed and personal name for God. Modern translators follow the Jewish tradition, which substituted LORD for Yahweh in the reading of the text, to avoid the possibility of using God’s name in vain. But the text shows us that God is putting his personal identity into his blessing. It’s not some vague, impersonal “May the Force be with you” kind of well-wishing; God has invested himself and given his personal promise of good for his people.

4. The command was given to Aaron who was Israel’s first high priest, the one authorized to offer sacrifices to God for the people, and to proclaim God’s forgiveness in turn back to the people. Therefore, he was the one to properly proclaim God’s blessing on his people. The Book of Hebrews in the New Testament teaches that Jesus Christ is the new and final high priest forever, the one who offered himself as the sacrifice for our sins, and who proclaims to us forgiveness of our sins and eternal life. In Christ we become God’s people (whether Jew or Gentile) and receive God’s own benediction. By faith, all believers become God’s priests, and therefore we are authorized to pass on this special benediction to each other.

5. The blessing proclaims that God will bless you and keep you. To bless is to pronounce and deliver good for someone; to keep is to watch over, protect, and save from bad or evil. When we pray in the Lord’s Prayer, “deliver us from evil,” we are basically asking God to protect and keep us from danger, from death, and from “the evil one,” or Satan himself. While everyone is susceptible to earthly dangers, hardships, and death, God’s promise and blessing is eternal, for he will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5) and nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39).

6. To make one’s “face” to “shine upon you” is to be present with you, to look upon and see what you are going through, and to be favorably disposed toward you. It denotes power applied in your favor and to your benefit: for example, in Deuteronomy 4:37, Moses tells the people that God’s face brought them out of Egypt. The phrase is paralleled later in the benediction when it says, “The Lord lift up his countenance upon you” (or “look upon you with favor”). Hebrew often uses parallel statements for emphasis, as we do in our mealtime prayer, “God is great, God is good . . .”

7. God says he will be gracious, which in ancient times meant be will be protective and will include you “in the camp,” that is, where food, shelter, and the tabernacle (God’s presence) were found. As Christians we recognize that we too were lost in the desert until God, by his grace, delivered us, and brought us by faith “into the camp,” that is, into Christ. In him we have provision, safety, and God’s presence. As Lutherans, we understand the distinction between God’s Law (what he commands and what we must do, and what the consequences of our sin will be), and Gospel (what God has done for us to benefit us); in fact, the entire benediction is a Gospel message. There is nothing in it that requires anything from us nor that warns anything against us. It is pure blessing that announces from start to finish what God will do for us. Even the act of giving this benediction to Aaron was a sign of God’s grace. Sure, God gave plenty of laws in other places, but here he tempers it with merciful grace (as per Habakkuk 3:2).

8. The benediction concludes with, “and give you peace.” Most Christians and Jews recognize that the word here translated “peace” is shalom. While the Hebrew word can be a pleasant word of greeting or parting (sort of like aloha in Hawaiian or wassup? in American slang), and mean the opposite of war (milchamah in Hebrew), its full meaning is much deeper. To wish someone shalom is more than hoping they don’t get drafted. It means absence of strife, but also contentment, joy, well-being, wholeness, and so on. You are wishing them safety, security, soundness and health. All told, shalom is a powerful blessing that extends to every area of life, including one’s relations with other people and with God himself. The wonderful blessing here, is that the God of the universe wants all this for you!

Earlier in this blog I said I would tell you why I use Aaron’s benediction at the end of my articles. There are several reasons. First, it is a God-ordained way of blessing his people. Second, it was something I said thousands of times as a parish pastor, and I felt the connection with what the Church has proclaimed in God’s name ever since it was given some 3500 years ago. Third, it keeps me from having to come up with my own ending each time! But fourth, primarily, it is because I am actually praying and asking God to extend his blessings to you, for your benefit. As a priest of God (by faith, rather than by official ordination), I am reminding all believers who read my blogs of the gracious promises of God fulfilled in Jesus Christ for them. And for non-believers who may happen across one of my articles, I want them to know there is a God who has done everything for them, that they may have the joy of knowing true shalom through faith in the only one who can make it possible, Jesus Christ, or Lord. I want to say to the people, what God wants them to hear.

For all these reasons, I therefore pray for you:

The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Numbers 6, Hebrews 4:14-5:10, 7:23-26, Isaiah 9:6, Romans 15:13

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cross-Words

One of the new activities I took up after retiring was doing crossword puzzles. I don’t know why I didn’t do them “all these years” before retiring, since I do enjoy working with words and language, unless I was just so busy with other word puzzles such as writing sermons and Bible study materials. Not until retiring did I have enough free time to just sit and work a puzzle.

I have been doing two or three a week, depending whether the local paper has one in it; the most enjoyable ones come weekly, especially the New York Times Sunday puzzle. The Times puzzle is usually hard but very clever, using ambiguous clues and phrases following some theme. My favorite one was called, “Advice to Writers,” in which several long answers broke the rules which they were advising. For example: “Don’t use contractions,” “Avoid redundancy. Avoid redundancy,” “Sentence fragments are not,” and so on. I always feel a sense of accomplishment when I write in the final words to such puzzles.

Which is why I was disappointed this week when the Sunday paper didn’t arrive. (Note: I didn’t call it the newspaper since I only read the comics and the puzzles!) What was I to do?

Fortunately, I have plenty of other things to work on, but as I thought about the missing puzzle, the word, “Crossword” stuck in my mind. I began to think about the different meanings it might have in various contexts.  So, after deep study and contemplation, I came up with the following:

1. The first use is to describe the kind of puzzle I’ve been talking about, in which answers to “Across” clues and “Down” clues intersect each other. This use is so obvious and understood that I don’t need to say much about it, except for one life lesson that I have to relearn every time I work one of such puzzles. The lesson is this: it is dangerous to jump to conclusions based on limited evidence. Too often I think I know the answer to a clue because it seems to answer the clue in the right number of letters to fit the right squares, only to be wrong. It isn’t until other words fill in that cross it that I realize my error; since I write my answers in ink, it gets awkward having to cross out my wrong assumption to put in the right word. Only when all the letters are finally in place do I see that the clue fits the word the puzzle designer was looking for.

This is such a good life lesson about the dangers of jumping to conclusions (especially about other people) based on insufficient information. We hear or see one thing, only to find out later, when more facts come in, that our initial idea was wrong. Too many people have been judged, scorned, or harmed by those who make such judgments. Of course, since none of us knows all the facts about anyone or the situations they are facing, it’s always dangerous to assume things about other people. Only God knows all the facts about a person, and he is the perfect Judge. (“Shall not the judge of all the earth do what is just?” Genesis 18:25).

I fell into the error of uninformed judging early in my ministry, when I noticed one of our members sitting in the back pew. It was during my sermon, and I saw that he had a cord hanging from an earplug. I was a little irked, figuring that he was listening to some ball game instead of my preaching. Imagine how ashamed I felt when the service ended and the man got up, took out the earpiece, and turned it in to the sound technician, along with the hearing-assist pack it was connected to. Not only was he listening to the sermon, he had taken efforts to hear it better!

2. The second use of “crossword” could be better written as, “cross words.” By this I mean the nasty things we say to each other when we get upset with something that someone says or does (or doesn’t do when we expected them to do it!). We get cross with them, and say things that belittle, insult, or dismiss. Things like: “You idiot!” or “That was stupid!” or “You never listen!” or “You’re worthless!” or . . . you get the picture. Often, such comments come out when we jump to conclusions about the other person’s actions (see the first use of “crossword” above), but usually they say more about us than about the person we slam.

When we belittle others we are judging them (“Judge not” Luke 6:37) often by harsher criteria than we use to correct ourselves (“Remove the log from your own eye” Matthew 7:3-5). We are trying to puff ourselves up by bringing others down, but such nastiness only reveals the smallness of our own character. Such insults also can crush the other person emotionally, or cause an equal reaction in them by which they become hateful and angry back at us (or the next person who upsets them). How many children have grown up under emotional and verbal abuse, who then treat their own children the same way, perpetuating the hurt and estrangement?

This is not to say we cannot ever criticize an action or attitude; we are to call sin, sin. But it’s far different to correct a sin than to condemn the sinner; Scripture tells us the purpose of calling out sin is to win back and restore our sinning brother or sister by correcting them gently (Galatians 6:1).

Jesus spoke plainly about our duty to speak well to and of each other. He told us to bless those who curse us, for what good is there in loving only those who love us? He also warned us that insulting others was a sin similar to murder: ““You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire” (Matthew 5:21-22).

The command not to speak ill of each other goes back to the Decalogue, or what we call the Ten Commandments. Command number eight tells us not to bear false witness against our neighbor. While at first glance, we might think that bad-mouthing a person is not the same as lying about them to others, Martin Luther captured the full sense of that command in his Small Catechism. He explained the command this way: “We should fear and love God that we may not deceitfully belie, betray, slander, or defame our neighbor, but defend him, think and speak well of him, and put the best construction on everything.” Not much room there for name-calling! Cross words are not appropriate language for a Christian.

3. Now, the third use of “Crosswords.” Whereas the first two uses are about the Law, that is, what we should do and not do, this third use is about the Gospel. And the Gospel is about what Jesus Christ has done for us, to save us from condemnation for our failure to live up to the Law and all its demands.

These are the Words of the Lord spoken to us by the Cross on which Jesus died, bearing the judgment and punishment of all our sins, including our failure to keep the Law regarding not judging and insulting our neighbors. These “Cross-Words” were both literally spoken by Christ and written by his apostles, and shown to us by the very death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Consider just some of the words recorded for us by Scripture:

1. “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Spoken from the cross by Christ.

2. “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,” (Ephesians 1:7).

3. “And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:27-28). Spoken by Christ at the Last Supper.

4. “The blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

5. “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18).

6. “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (Colossians 1:19-21).

7. “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.” (Colossians 2:13-14).

Now those are the cross-words that really matter! For by his death on the cross, and through the promises made by God to us on behalf of his Son’s sacrificial death for our sake, Jesus has reconciled us to God, forgiven all our sins, and opened the door to eternal life. Therefore, I don’t need to get a new crossword puzzle each Sunday, when each Sunday I can hear the real Cross-words, proclaimed as they have been since that day when our Lord and Savior died to give us life. To him be the glory, now and forever!

And now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Luke 6:27-42 and Colossians 1

 

Don’t Get Stung!

Over the past few weeks, Karen and I have been under assault by swarms of paper wasps that have taken up residence all around our house. And I mean, all around. They have built nests on every corner of our roof line, under the front porch overhang within three feet of the door, and even in our outside electrical box. Now, normally, I have a “live and let live” attitude toward all God’s creatures (except the ones with tasty meat on them), so I wouldn’t object to bees and wasps doing their thing.

But this summer has produced so many wasps, the risks of getting buzzed and stung have greatly increased. That, and the fact we have house painters coming over next week to do their thing, means we had to get the flying stingers under control. We could hardly have painters getting stung and falling off their ladders and scaffolds.

Since two of the nests greatly impeded our movement in and out of the house, I attacked them first. Under cover of darkness, when the temperature had dropped to where the wasps would be sluggish, I bravely sprayed the two most dangerous nests, and then quickly ducked back into the house. Each nest had over 20 adult wasps in it, which the spray took care of. Unfortunately, that was but a small portion of the total population, so I called in a professional exterminator. And stayed inside while he worked. Just to be safe. We did unlock our doors so he could duck inside in case he was attacked.

Which he was.

He sprayed all the affected areas, but the last we saw of him was him running from the wasps, spraying back over his shoulder as he ran. And the last we heard was him yelling when he got stung. In the days since then, the situation has much improved; the few wasps we’ve seen seem to be flying in from other locations. It’s just too bad the exterminator got stung.

When I thought about getting stung, a passage of Scripture came to mind. I thought of 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul writes about Christ’s resurrection and ours. After proclaiming the day will come when our perishable and mortal nature puts on the imperishable and immortal, Paul says, “. . . then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory?  O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.”

The more I considered stinging as a metaphor for sin, the more I saw an analogy between what we were experiencing with our wasps and the dangers of sin. Some of my thoughts were the following:

  1. Infestations of wasps can start small. Likewise, sins can start small and be hardly noticeable in our daily lives: a small indiscretion here, a well-meaning lie there, a fudge of taxes here, an “innocent” flirtation there. It may all seem normal and harmless (it’s not – see James 2:10, “For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.”) but just as the few wasps produced hundreds more until we could no longer ignore the consequences, so one small “peccadillo” can lead to more and worse trespasses. One lie leads to another; coveting leads to theft; anger leads to violence.

2. A live and let live attitude may be good in many ways, but when it comes to sin, we can’t ignore it and hope it goes away. What doesn’t seem to bother us or be our business does have a ripple effect on our lives and on our society. Hearts are hardened and sin is accepted, even celebrated. The more sin is winked at or openly condoned, the more it flourishes, building nests and strongholds which make it hard to root out. Even if there are not immediate practical consequences to us from other people’s sins, the fact we accept it cannot help but sear our souls. When we excuse sin or call it “victimless,” we are “calling evil good” (Isaiah 5:20) and earning a “woe to you” from God.

3. Another part of the wasp analogy to sin is the fact that our home was not immune to their invasion. Sin is not just something that happens to other people out there somewhere, but comes crouching right at our door (see Genesis 4 and God’s warning to Cain before he murdered his brother), ready to come in and infest our homes themselves. If we don’t address sin when it first shows itself in our lives, we will suffer its consequences. As believers in Christ, I don’t believe we are lost because of our sins (after all, we all continue to sin even when we detest doing so – see 1 John 1:8 and Romans 7); Christ came to redeem us from the eternal consequences of our sins. But there are still earthly consequences from our sins, affecting ourselves and other people and hurting and even ruining lives. We can lead and cause miserable lives here due to sin, even as we look forward to heaven.

4. When you sin, you get stung. Those earthly consequences can be devastating to us and those we love. Relationships suffer or are broken completely, people are hurt, and our lives can be overturned. Divorce, estrangement of children, criminal charges and punishments can change our lives for the worse.

It’s interesting that police conduct what are called “sting” operations to catch criminals. My favorite story is of investigators in New York who suspected a man in Washington State of being a murderer. They even had the killer’s DNA, but not enough direct evidence to warrant testing him directly. So, the police invented a phony lottery, and mailed the man a notice that he had won a huge prize. He just had to return the enclosed envelope accepting the prize and show up to claim it. The suspect sent back the acceptance letter and showed up on the designated day – only to be promptly arrested. When he licked the return envelope, traces of his DNA appeared on the glue, providing the needed evidence. The man sinned against God and man, and got stung for his actions.

5. Sin leads to death. In the case of the wasps, probably dozens, if not hundreds, of them died. If enough of the wasps had stung one of us or the exterminator, we could have died. So also with us and sin. The only way to finally deal with sin is through death. Romans 5:12 teaches, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned. . .” Likewise, Romans 6:23 begins: “For the wages of sin is death.” Paul continues in Romans 6:23 by adding, “. . . but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Fortunately for us, God loved us enough to provide us with someone to bear the punishment of death that our sins have earned. Christ is the Great Exterminator, who though he suffered the sting of sin for our sake, won the victory, eliminating sin and its eternal consequences. Thank you Jesus!

6. We must remain constantly vigilant, lest the wasps (and sin) take hold once again. One victory does not mean the war is over. We may resist one temptation, only to be hit with another when we think we are safe. We must respond quickly to the first signs of either problem. How do we do that?

In the case of the wasps: “Let us spray!”

In the case of sins: “Let us pray!”

Ultimately, we have the victory over sin only in Jesus Christ. When we are found in him, we are victorious. We share in his victory. Our sins were nailed to the cross with him, and forgiven totally by God. We are reconciled to our Creator, and can look forward confidently to eternal life without sin or death. When we trust in God’s Word, we read not only that our sins are forgiven, but that Christ understands our temptations and that he will provide us a way out of every temptation to sin. His Holy Spirit guides and warns us about the sins which are trying to build nests in our hearts and minds; only through him can those inroads be cleared out.

This life will not always be easy, but we need not live it alone, for God is with us, and promises never to leave or forsake us. May you always rest assured in that!

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: 1 Corinthians 15, Romans 7, Hosea 13:14

P.S. This is my 100th blog since I started in January 2017! Thank you to everyone who has commented and encouraged me to continue!

The Hearing

The big news this week has been the Congressional hearings in which Special Counsel Robert Mueller was grilled by members of Congress regarding his findings in his recent investigation into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election. I’m going to leave opinions on the content of those hearings to others; but I wondered as I heard the grilling by the two opposing parties, what it would be like to have to face that myself. Then I had an even better thought: what if you had to face such a hearing?

Only, in your case, the hearing is not before the US Congress, but before a special committee formed to judge you and decide your eternal fate. Similar to this week’s hearings, there will be two groups of committee members: one side wants to throw the book at you, while the other wants to let you off easy. But just to avoid any connections to our political system, I’m going to call the two parties the Apples and the Oranges*. The two don’t get along, but that’s just what we would expect, because we’ve always been told, “Don’t mix apples and oranges.”

So, how would it go? Maybe, something like this:

You enter a room set up almost like a courtroom. There is a long, semi-circular table facing you, behind which are seated the committee members. In front and facing them sits a small table with two chairs. You make your way forward to the table, when the committee chairman, who is the leader of the Apples, scowls at you and barks a gruff command: “Sit down!”

You take your seat in one of the chairs, and the committee chairman continues, “Frankly, this is a waste of time: we all know you’re guilty, but we have to go through the motions. So let’s begin, shall we, and get this over with . . .” You gulp hard and start to dread what lies ahead.

“Not so fast!” comes a shout from the rear of the hearing room, and a man walks forward, stopping right by your table. “Esteemed committee members,” he says, “I am here to represent the accused as Attorney, Advocate, and Counselor.” The stranger takes a seat beside you. The committee chair groans. “And what credentials do you have to be this person’s Counselor” The man, your self-appointed Counselor, opens up a briefcase and pulls out a thick stack of papers, and lays them on the desk. “Here are my credentials,” he answers, “sixty-six books full. You can read them if you like . . .”

The Apple leader shakes his head and says, “No, we only have about 1400 words to go in this blog, so let’s just get this over with.” Now the grilling begins.

One Apple member asks you, “Do you remember that time when you were a kid and you sassed your mom and made her cry?” You search your memories and the incident comes back to you. You were ashamed of what you said, and you never apologized to her. But before you can answer, one of the Oranges butts in and says, “Look, what do you expect when a kid – just a kid! – gets scolded for spilling a little milk and eating some pie that mom made for a bake sale? It’s perfectly understandable!”

You like the Orange member’s reasoning, and are about to affirm it when your Counselor leans over, covers the mic, and whispers to you: “Don’t worry; I got this. Just tell the truth.” You aren’t so sure, but your Counselor seems absolutely sure, so in spite of your fears, you hear yourself reply, “Yes, I did sass my mom and I am ashamed of it.” The Apple team smile at each other, while the Oranges frown.

The second question follows almost immediately”: “And do you remember that time you were at the store and saw a candy bar you wanted, but didn’t have enough money to buy it? So you slipped it into your pocket when no one was looking and stole it!” Once again an Orange jumped in. “Are you serious? It was just a candy bar that cost maybe 50 cents! [substitute a higher or lower price based on how old you are]. The store had theft insurance, so they weren’t really out anything!”

Again, you like the Orange’s argument. That’s exactly what you had thought back then, when you took it. You really wanted it, and no one would miss it. So you are about to defend yourself when your Attorney once again reaches over and whispers, “Just admit it. I’ve got your back.” Again, you speak into the mic, “Yes. I’m guilty as charged.” This time the Oranges shake their heads, while the Apples grin widely and wink to each other. This is not going well for you.

A third question comes to you from the Apples: “And what about the time you cheated on that final exam, and blamed another student by slipping your answer key into her desk? You cheated and discredited another student. That was just wrong!” Before you can answer, the Orange side speaks up. “Really? Who wouldn’t try to gain some advantage in that situation? The whole grade depended on that final, and the grade determined whether our defendant here would be able to get into a good college! And as for the other student? She was always the top grade getter; she deserved to be knocked down a peg or two.”

You look at your Counselor; please let me defend what I did; please?  But he gives you a look that cuts through your excuse, so you meekly admit, “Yes, I did that. And the other student flunked when the teacher found the key.” Now the Apples were high-fiving each other and the Oranges were hanging their heads in defeat. “How can we help you,” one cries, “when you don’t take the lifelines we keep throwing you?!” But the Advocate whispers to you again, “Just keep telling the truth. I have your back all the way.”

And so the questioning – or should I say, interrogation – continues, and it is not a pleasant day for you. As the charges pile up (how did these guys find out about all these things?) you begin to sweat profusely, maybe in anticipation of your eternal destiny. No charge is omitted, no fact forgotten, no stone unturned. One after another, like the blows from a jackhammer, your life is laid bare for all to see. The Oranges try to explain away your moral failures, but their reasons melt like snow under the heat of the charges.

You hear about that time you swore using God’s name, the time you used Christ’s name in a joke, the time you wished someone would get sick and die, the time you broke your wedding vows – or wanted to, cut corners on your taxes, visited some places that were inappropriate, and so on, and so on. The charges and the evidence are so overwhelming that the Oranges finally give up and start clipping and filing their nails. One falls asleep. But the Apples are radiant with their certain victory; you are going down, and there is nothing you can do about it.

You hang your head in despair as well, as the chair of the committee stands and with a snide grin on his face, delivers the committee’s judgment – or at least, starts to: “We have considered all the charges and affirm they are true. Shame on you! We recommend an eternity in hell with no chance of parole. May God have mercy on your soul!”

Your Counselor jumps to his feet, and shouts in a loud, commanding voice: “God has had mercy on the defendant’s soul. Every one of those charges has been forgiven, and the penalty you would inflict has already been paid . . . by me!” At that the Attorney holds out his hands and you see massive, deep scars on each of them. He reaches down and lifts up the papers from the desk and says to the committee, “You should have read these books before you passed judgment. If you had, you would have known that this poor person, a guilty sinner to be sure, trusted in me for forgiveness and therefore belongs to my Father. This sinner is clothed in my righteousness and no longer faces condemnation. This sinner is also a saint by faith; would you condemn a saint to hell?”

At this the Apple chairman squirms and looks around for help, but his team is all looking down. “No,” he mutters weakly.

Your Advocate continues. “Remember that I came to call not the righteous but the sinner to repentance. I came to seek and to save the lost – which this person, and all of you, by the way – certainly is. And yet by faith, any sinner can be saved. As far as the East is from the West, so far have I removed this person’s sins. I will remember those sins no more. Therefore I declare this saint and sinner to be free, and when I set you free, you are free indeed!”

“And as for the committee, all of you need to examine your own lives. To the Apples I say, ‘Judge not, lest you be judged,’ and ‘Let the one who is without guilt cast the first stone.’ And as for you Oranges, ‘Woe to him who calls evil good and good evil.’ Prepare yourselves, admit your own guilt, and come to me for the same forgiveness I have given to this person before you. For one day, you too will all sit there; pray that I am your Advocate when that day comes!”

A wave of relief, joy, and love sweep over you. The hearing has ended, and you enter into the joy of the Lord which he has prepared for you since before the world began. And that deserves an Amen!

And now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Psalm 103:12, Hebrews 8:12, Luke 19:10, Matthew 9:13, John 8:7, Isaiah 53:5

* Not to be confused with current political parties or with “Apple and Android” a topic clearly not addressed here.