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God defined Marriage National Association of Evangelicals

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marriage2

LETTER/STATEMENT

God Defined Marriage

JUNE 26, 2015

God designed marriage for humanity. As first described in Genesis and later affirmed by Jesus, marriage is a God-ordained, covenant relationship between a man and a woman. This lifelong, sexually exclusive relationship brings children into the world and thus sustains the stewardship of the earth. Biblical marriage —­­ marked by faithfulness, sacrificial love and joy — displays the relationship between God and his people.[1]

While commentators, politicians and judges may revise their understanding of marriage in response to shifting societal trends, followers of Jesus should embrace his clear vision of marriage found in Matthew 19:4-6:

“Haven’t you read,” Jesus replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

Nothing in the Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges opinion changes the truth about marriage. What has changed is the legal definition of marriage, which is now at variance with orthodox biblical faith as it has been affirmed across the centuries and as it is embraced today by nearly two billion Christians in every nation on earth.

In its role as a moral teacher, the law now misleads Americans about the true nature of marriage. Evangelicals and other followers of the Bible have a heightened opportunity to demonstrate the attractiveness of loving Christian marriages and families. Evangelicals should renew their commitment to the sacrificial love and covenantal faithfulness to which Jesus calls all husbands and wives.

As witnesses to the truth, evangelicals should be gracious and compassionate to those who do not share their views on marriage. Those who continue to embrace biblical teaching on marriage will increasingly appeal to the First Amendment protection not just for abstract belief, but for the practice of their faith. The National Association of Evangelicals calls on Congress to enact laws, on the president to implement policies, and on the courts to render judgments that uphold the freedom and human rights of all Americans.

[1] Theology of Sex (Washington, DC: National Association of Evangelicals, 2012), 10.

Download a PDF version of this statement.

We are of good courage as His children 2 Corinthians 5: 1-17 First Saint Johns June 14, 2015

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[For the audio version, click on the above link]

We make our beginning in the Name of God the Father and in the Name of God the Son and in the Name of God the Holy Spirit and all those who are courageous in the Lord said … AMEN

“At our daughter’s high school graduation, I couldn’t help noticing a young man sporting a long bleached blond ponytail sprouting from the top of his otherwise shaved head. A heavy link chain hung around his neck, and one ear displayed several earrings.

I had to smile when I heard him say to his friend, “Man, I feel so out of place. I’m the only guy here not wearing a tie.”

There is such a thing as clueless courage, hey God bless him, frankly, it seems to me that there’s a lot of clueless courage in the world. It’s somehow “courageous” to be in favor of things that the Bible clearly calls sin, but because it’s what everyone else does, it’s somehow courageous.

When I was a boy, we moved a lot, seemed I was always the new kid on the block. Well you know how the “new kid on the block”, gets treated. I always found it amazing how these guys would pick a fight and think they were being courageous picking on me with six of their friends standing around. There’s just a whole lot of that today, everyone likes to think they’re a tough guy until they look and realize their posse isn’t around them.

Paul put up with a lot of bullies, people who would abuse their authority by abusing Paul, or people who would just try to bully him into shutting up. There’s a lot of that today. Those in the world love to think that they are so marvelously open minded, it’s rather shocking how rigid and close minded people are today. They will criticize anything a Christian says as “judgmental” and then turn around and judge them by telling them how judgmental they are. There is one big difference between a Christian and those in the world. When I say something and tell someone what they’re doing, or teaching or selling is wrong, I’m not making it up, or at least, as a Christian, I better not be. Anything I say to anyone better be something I can back up in the Bible. Part of the problem in that is that even those who are regularly part of the church, really don’t know the Bible. For most, they may have a knowledge of the Bible, but not sufficient to feel confident about sharing it with someone else.

Much as I’d like to think that I’m an absolute expert, I’m not, and there are times when I am witnessing to God’s will and I feel like I’m on shakey ground. I have to trust that the Holy Spirit put me in front of someone in order to witness to them. Matthew 10:19: “When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.” Jesus is, of course, saying, that the Holy Spirit will guide you in what He wants you to say. It does take courage, we often summarize courage in that Christian word we call “faith”. Permit me to give a little longer quote from Dr Luther, because what we as Lutherans think of as faith is very different from what those in the world think of and actually, even most Christians: “Faith is not what some people think it is. Their human dream is a delusion. Because they observe that faith is not followed by good works or a better life, they fall into error, even though they speak and hear much about faith. “Faith is not enough,” they say, “You must do good works, you must be pious to be saved.”[1]

It’s interesting how we think in terms of being “pious” to have “faith”, whereas both Luther and Paul say, it’s not so much being somehow so humble, bashful, even restrained, sure we aren’t called to be obnoxious, but when we are witnessing to God, we are called to be assertive, positive, uplifting, but in no way bashful or pulling our punches. Many might see being reserved as being somehow so much more “Christian”, but I have yet to have anyone show me in the Bible where Jesus, Paul, Peter, John the Baptist, the Old Testament prophets were somehow piously quiet or bashful. Plenty of people thought they were more than sufficiently obnoxious. But they weren’t, they were being courageous.

I even hear Christians say this: “Well you don’t want to impose your beliefs on others.”????? Let’s understand this right off the bat, I’m not imposing my beliefs on anyone! If I can’t back up something I say in a very straightforward and unambiguous way from the Bible, then I should not be saying it. If I am faithfully and yes, courageously, speaking and witnessing for God, if I’m being led by the Holy Spirit to share Christ with someone else, how is that imposing “my beliefs” on someone else? They are “my” beliefs to the extent that as a temple of the Holy Spirit, I am faithful to Jesus Christ my Lord and I certainly have been imbued with those beliefs, but where did those beliefs come from? Me? No! They are what Jesus taught, God the Son, they are what He expects us to live by and to actively share and live by with others. Just like my faith, how I know to live and serve as a Christian is because the Holy Spirit has guided me and you, to live and serve and speak that way to the world. We need to faithfully follow what Jesus tells us and to stop living by the world’s uninformed opinion. More often than not when I am sharing Christ with someone, they don’t even know why they believe what they believe or even what they believe. They’ve heard someone else say it that criticizes Christians and they simply accept what they’ve heard.

We are called to “always be of good courage”. Paul goes on to say, “we walk by faith, not by sight”. That does make us very different from those in the world. They have no faith, they have no discernment, they accept what the world imposes on them and they expect others to just shut up and listen. If what you say is opposed to them, you’re wrong and will be slapped with however many nasty, intolerant labels those in the world will impose on you. While the Holy Spirit guides you to speak, Matthew 10:19 ; “When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.”  While we have the word of God in the Bible to tell us God’s will, while we have the preached word, teachers who are there to help you understand God’s will and word, the world has only what’s been made up. The world will ignore God’s word, tell you what the real “truth” is, and has no basis for telling you anything.

Faith is the courage the Holy Spirit gives us in order to stand against a dark, sinful, ignorant world, the courage to tell the world what God’s will is. The world likes to think it’s will is important, in the end those opinions change, are proven wrong and are just ignorant of the facts. God’s will has been what matters and has been consistent for eternity. The world’s opinion lasts for a season and then is completely different a short time later. The world’s “truth” can’t be counted on for more than a few months, God’s truth has been and will be forever. Luther says: “Faith is a living, bold trust in God’s grace, so certain of God’s favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it. Such confidence and knowledge of God’s grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures. The Holy Spirit makes this happen through faith. Because of it, you

freely, willingly and joyfully do good to everyone, serve everyone, suffer all kinds of things, love and praise the God who has shown you such grace.”[2] These aren’t your words or actions, they’re God’s, you’re not “imposing” anything. God is giving you the faith and courage to tell those around you the truth. If they want to treat you rudely, bully you, impose their groundless beliefs on you, that becomes their problem. You have courageously, faithfully and strongly pointed to the truth that God Father, Son and Holy Spirit guide us in. You’ve done your part courageously, not imposing, now we leave it to the Holy Spirit to do His part. If that other person can’t, won’t accept it and continues to act like you’re wrong, they’re the ones that will pay the price. You have been faithful and courageous in sharing Christ and He will tell you “’Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ (Matthew 25:21) Take out your journal, how can you be more faithful in the courage God gives you to share the truth of God’s will and with whom will you share it?

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amin and Shalom.

[1] Rev. Robert E. Smith Walther Library Concordia Theological Seminary

http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/wittenberg/luther/luther-faith.txt

[2] Ibid

Do you know Jesus as your Lord, or are you just a “fan”?

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Mr. Brodsky submits that enthusiasm is about something that happens outside of you, whereas passion comes from within. Ok. Mr Brodsky talks about going to a Rolling Stones concert and seeing Mick Jagger perform. You have to admire the fact that a man of his age and his wealth, he can still bring it. He doesn’t have to, but Norm suggests that Jagger’s music is his passion and so “he has to do it in order to feel alive…” Likewise Brodsky’s passion is building a business, that it really is about him, that is what moves him. I’ve preached about this before in terms of are you in love with Jesus, are you passionate about Jesus, or are you a fan, are you just enthusiastic? Do you live your life in Jesus because He is what moves you, what motivates you, is your reason for life? Or is He a “nice” interest, or maybe someone who meets some sort of “spiritual need”, a way for you to check that off your “how to live” list. Hey I’ve seen plenty of people at church that are there because they should be. No real passion, maybe not even really a fan, checking it off the list. There’s nothing wrong with passions, I have things that have driven me for years, that I am passionate about. But for Jesus to be Lord of your life, there needs to be a love, a passion, not just an enthusiasm or even this feeling of obligation. Are you a fan, are you enthusiastic, or is there genuine passion for Jesus as Lord and Savior? Since He is Lord of your life, do you go to Him and glorify Him as the source of life, now and eternal? How does that passion express itself in your worklife. To be truly passionate means that while we may have to temper that passion (can’t call your spouse twenty times a day from work, for example), but I will bet that you’re not hesitant calling your spouse at least a couple of times, tell him/her you love them and you look forward to seeing them when you get home. How can you express that in terms of Jesus?

Why Creeds? Why the Trinity? First Saint Johns May 31, 2015

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[click on the above link for the audio version of this sermon]

We make our beginning in the Name of God the Father and in the Name of God the Son and in the Name of God the Holy Spirit, and all those who know One God, in Three Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit said … AMEN!!

Today is “Trinity” Sunday, this caps off the Easter/Ascension/Pentecost part of the calendar, this is when we remember that there is One God, the Great Shema. The central prayer in the Jewish prayerbook, and we can say “Hear oh Israel the Lord is God, the Lord is One.” From the beginning there has been One God, but we know this as the “Godhead”, one God, made up of three person, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. As the Introduction in your bulletin this morning points out, the word Trinity, doesn’t appear in the Bible. Quite often when you get someone who wants to debate Christianity, they will throw that one up as some kind of a trump. This isn’t going to be terribly charitable, but if brains were dynamite that person wouldn’t have enough to blow his nose. Anyway, No! The word simply describes what we read in the Bible. Certainly we see the Trinity in the narrative of the Bible. We see God the Father, certainly as He is portrayed in our reading in Isaiah, high and lifted up. Many people like to play around with the idea that well, the Father was portrayed in the Old Testament, but not the Son or the Holy Spirit. We would make the case that there are many, what are called Christophanies throughout the OT, for example Wil Pounds describes in Joshua 5: 13-15 when a mysterious armed man shows up at the Israelites camp, who identifies Himself as the “captain of the host of the Lord”:  “Joshua immediately recognized the supernatural character of this visitor. Joshua was in the presence of God. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said to him, ‘What has my lord to say to his servant?'” (v. 14b).” As Pounds points out, this mysterious man removes any doubt of who He is, and we say this is a Christophany, because first “Joshua fell on his face and worshipped”.[1] We only “worship” God. Jesus in His incarnation often received worship from people. Remember when Thomas fell on his knees and said: “My Lord and my God!” (ESV) But the “captain of the host of the Lord”, also directed Joshua to; “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” What other episode in the Bible does that remind you of? … Yes, Yahweh telling Moses to do the same thing in Exodus 3:5. The “captain of the host of the Lord” is clearly telling Joshua that he is in the presence of God, the Incarnated Person of the Godhead and that would be … Jesus!

We see the Holy Spirit all through the Bible as well, Genesis 1:2, you can’t get much earlier in the Bible than that, says: “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (ESV) There are two other references to the “Spirit of God” in Genesis. King David in Psalm 139:7 writes: “Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?”

Then we have writings that we can readily visualize, Jesus’ baptism, Mark 3:16-17 “And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” Much the same again at the Transfiguration, where Jesus clearly appears as divinity, with the Father affirming that “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” The Holy Spirit becomes a very tangible presence, as the result of Jesus’ promise on the Day of Pentecost. Now that Jesus has died for our justification, now we are fit to be indwelt by God the Holy Spirit.

Another issue that is raised is about “creeds” in general. It has become trendy today to dismiss “creeds” and/or “confessions”, which is really the same thing except for some odd reason, people who should know better try to divide them. We are a “confessional body”, here, at First Saint Johns and in the LCMS as a whole. We confess the creeds, when you take your confirmation or membership vows, your vows are in the context of the Apostles Creed “Do you believe in God the Father Almighty” and it goes from there, you respond reciting the Apostle’s Creed. You promise to abide by the historical beliefs of the Christian Church. Many today, “oh we don’t need confessions and creeds” makes you wonder what the point is for them. Do they or do they not believe in God the Father Almighty, Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord and in the Holy Spirit and the Holy Catholic/Christian church. You are promising to abide by the fundamental precepts of being a Christian. If you’re not doing that, then you really have to ask yourself whether you’re in a Christian Church, whether you take the entire concept of Christianity seriously and what you’re really doing here. Today we remember the Athanasian Creed. For obvious reasons we don’t recite this creed every week, but we do take time to remember it at least once a year. The church has had to deal with heretical teachings since the beginning, people who have tried to undermine Jesus’ teachings with human rationalization. The early church especially stepped up to answer those heresies and didn’t worry about taking the hits from the contemporary society. The church is not here to be dictated to by the world, the church is to point to the truth in Jesus Christ and that is what the early church did in the Apostles Creed dated to about 200 AD, Nicean Creed 325 AD and then the Athanasian Creed about 500. All to answer heresies then, and certainly to answer them in this day and age. As the insert in your bulletin reads: “The Athanasian Creed declares that its teachings concerning the Holy Trinity and our Lord’s incarnation are the “catholic faith”…what the true Church of all times and all places has confessed.”

We subscribe to Creeds and Confessions in order to stay true and faithful to the one true catholic church, that church that was established by Jesus. If we want to commune with Jesus, then certainly that communion has to be with His Body, which is the church. These Creeds and Confessions unite us with Christians all over the world who truly know Jesus and His teachings, His Lordship and salvation in His church. We are one with Jesus’ martyrs through history and those who are being martyred at this very minute. We are one through the Creeds and Confessions with His disciples, His Confessors, His Missionaries, His teachers, all those who are His now and through history. The Holy Spirit has given us these Creeds and Confessions to give us our faith that points us to Jesus Christ as Lord of our life and our Savior to life eternal. If we forget these Creeds we set ourselves up to be our own teachers and disciples, to make ourselves the object of worship to decide how we worship and who we worship. Please take this insert home, take out your journal, read through the Creed and write about how this keeps you pointed to the One true God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amin and Shalom.

[1] http://www.abideinchrist.com/messages/jos5v13.html

The Holy Spirit gives us the Church to serve the world First St Johns Memorial Day May 24, 2015

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[For the audio version of this sermon click on the link above]

We make our beginning in the Name of God the Father and in the Name of God the Son and in the Name of God the Holy Spirit, AMEN

Today is Pentecost, the birth of the church, when the Holy Spirit descended on those who were chosen to establish the church and to bring it into the world. The church was given authority by Jesus through the Holy Spirit. This is why the church is important, because through Pentecost it was empowered to preach, teach, administer the sacraments, keep the keys and be representatives of Christ on earth. Nothing, no one, there is no other way that Christ’s ministry is conducted on earth than through His church. I emphasize HIS not mine, not yours, not the people who built it. This was built and has been maintained under the direct authority that Jesus has given it through the Holy Spirit. So when someone tells you they don’t need the church, about worshipping God sitting at the beach or on a mountain, that is just pure rationalizing nonsense. The church was authorized by Jesus, this is when the church was born, on Pentecost, the church is the ministry of Jesus Christ on earth, He is the Son of God which He demonstrated through His life, as Luke says at the beginning of Acts: “In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. To them he presented himself alive after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. (Acts 1: 1-3 ESV)

Today is also Memorial Day, which is an unusual juxtaposition of topics. The ultimate hope and promise of the world is in Jesus, that hope and promise ministered through His church. We take for granted, that the church is a constant reminder of Hope and promise, it is the church that is always there at those most important points in life; birth, being a part of the church, death, those times in our lives when we need more than the limitations and superficiality of the world, the empty platitudes of a shallow, sinful and hopeless world. We, in the church don’t dwell on the emptiness of this life. We focus on the hope and promise of eternal life. That hope and promise is in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and culminated in the appearance of God the Holy Spirit in the form of flames dancing on the heads of those who Jesus appointed to be the evangelists and ministers of His church, “on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18). That is our hope and promise, not what man does in the world, but what the Holy Spirit does in the church of Jesus Christ. It is only through Him who works through His church that we have the hope and promise of life eternal, real life, life more abundant in the resurrection.

Memorial Day is an important day, we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice, who remembered Jesus’ words when He said: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends.”(John 15:13 ESV) The beginnings of Memorial Day were right after the American Civil War, a war that has close meaning right here in York. Some local activity and especially west where the greatest battle in North American history took place, the Battle of Gettysburg. Men and women who died in a war to free those who had been kept in slavery, so that they would be free to live their life.

Memorial Day was instituted as “Decoration Day” in 1868. War often has many noble causes, and certainly those who died in serving their country have given their all, regardless of the nobility of the war, have without doubt served nobly to put themselves in harms way to serve their fellow man. But there is a sobering reality of war, in that nobility there is such terrible tragedy. Charles Oliver was a chaplain in the confederate army during the Civil War and wrote the following during and after the fighting around Chancellorsville, Va in May 1863: “War is such a strange thing. Here we are gay, careless, jocular, yesterday we ran for our lives across this very field, while death dealing shot were sweeping over its hills. Today some of us laid the shattered remains of our brave comrade T.E. Dillard in a soldier’s grave; at this moment though the sun shines so brightly, and the breeze kisses our cheeks so kindly; yet are we now in the midst of a great terrible battle … All this day I have been oppressed with the thought that it was the Sabbath.”[1] A man of God who willingly rushed to serve those in the midst of terrible tragedy, remembering amid tragedy that we all will kneel in worship of God.

Specialist Emily Thompson wrote the following while serving in Afghanistan: “There is a numbness inside that I can’t seem to figure out. I miss home. Yet, I think about those who gave their lives before me, those who are dying right this instant, and I miss home for them even more. Such a sense of guilt is present when I think about home. I wish to leave so badly, yet I do not feel worthy of leaving this place. Going home leaves a part of me behind, one that I will never get back. A piece so lost, like those who have fallen and given their all for someone like myself. Six feet under and remembered as a memory; I pray for peace. I swear to live for them, to drink and celebrate the greatness that they are, and to breathe in the life that they have lost. For each and every one are my blood and my heart, the reason behind my tears, and the intense encouragement to face another day with nothing but sheer gratitude.”[2]

The world is never going to be an easy place for the genuine Christian. For those of us who understand that there is death in living, we are baptized and the old man is put to death, we are reborn in the Holy Spirit and become true sons and daughters of God the Father, He is our Father, He is the Father of Jesus Christ, God the Son and from the Father proceeds the Holy Spirit. To be His son or daughter means to be a part of the sacrifice of the Son. It also means to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit as Christians have been since the Holy Spirit became part of the disciples and then guided them to build the church of Jesus Christ and has been guiding Christians since then to build the catholic and apostolic church. Without the church who will reach out to the lost, who will serve a hurting world, who will be there when you need guidance? There is no one else who will be there to show you true salvation and eternal life in Jesus. You can come to this church, you can call me, and I will talk to you, I will listen to you, and sometimes, yes, that might be at a difficult hour of the day or day of the week. I would hope that in times of crisis, tragedy, genuine struggle that you would call me and want me to help you. That is what the church is there for and not just from me, but other brothers and sisters in Jesus. Tell me, where else are you going to be served like that? Who else will come out and minister to you in times of genuine need? Christ’s church is to be there in times of genuine need. There is no one else who will be there for you when you face times of doubt, desperation and tragedy. That is why, among other vital things, that Jesus established His church. That is why the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples and led them into the world to proclaim the Lordship of Jesus and to be a beacon of light and hope in a desperate and sin filled world.

Dr Martin Luther gives us the best way to reconcile Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit, the establishment of Christian discipleship in the world and the mess of sin and tragedy in the world: “It is not enough simply that Christ be preached; the Word must be believed. Therefore, God sends the Holy Spirit to impress the preaching upon the heart—to make it in here and live therein. Unquestionably, Christ accomplished all—took away our sins and overcame every obstacle, enabling us to become, through him, lord over all things. But the treasure lies in a heap; it is not everywhere distributed and applied. Before we can enjoy it, the Holy Spirit comes and communicates it to the heart, enabling us to believe and say, ‘I too, am one who shall have the blessing.'” [3]

Finally I ask you to remember fellow Coast Guardsman Petty Officer Nathan Bruckenthal who was killed in action and made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq on April 24, 2004.

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amin and Shalom.

[1] Brinsfield, Davis, Maryniak and Robertson  Faith in the Fight quoting Charles J Oliver pp 103-104

[2] Emily Thompson  Face Book post May 22, 2015

[3] Martin Luther, about Pentecost, from his 1523 church postil

There’s a demand for real worship, there is real worship out there

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Ya, I’m going to keep up this drumbeat, the evidence continues to mount and I intend to do my best to genuinely pastor a genuine Christian church in response to that evidence. I submit that all the iterations of the Christian church have done a lousy job, fussing at people doesn’t work, patronizing people doesn’t work, setting up phoney hurdles doesn’t work, wishy-washy liberalism doesn’t work. What works is Law and Gospel, seriously presented Law and Gospel of the Bible.

When I say that the evidence continues to mount, I refer to more research by David Kinnaman of Barna Research. Kinnaman has been added to my list of “I’d read his grocery list if he published it”. Barna Group’s recent research shows that while there is a move away from the church, it’s not because of a disbelief or rejection of God, or of Christianity. More and more the evidence points to the rejection of the church. It’s time to for the end of the phoney-baloney liberal church, it’s time for the end of the “feel-good” church, whatever goes church, the legalistic church, the palsey church. It  is time for the genuine Christian church and all the indicators point to the need for the genuine church to reassert itself. For too long the church has worried and fussed about being popular, that’s not what it’s supposed to be, it’s supposed to be Christ’s church and His Voice, not the world’s, not a popularity contest and filling the position and need that the world is realizing isn’t being met.

62% of unchurched people 2 out of 3, “consider themselves Christians.” Obviously what they need is not happening in the church as it is today, or not finding the right Christian church.

“About one-third (34%) …, describe themselves as “deeply spiritual.’ Four in ten ‘strongly agree that their religious faith is very important in their life today and 51% are actively seeking something better spiritually than they have experienced to day. One-third say they have an active relationship with God that influences their life and describe that relationship as ‘important to me’ (95%), ‘ satisfying’ (90%), and ‘growing deeper’ ( 73%).”

Clearly there is something missing, and too many, even among those in the church are realizing it and are searching for it and the church is failing to provide it. It’s time for genuine worship, Law and Gospel, it’s time for a strong, courageous church, that, empowered by the Holy Spirit, stands for Christ and His Word and not for the politically, socially and theologically popular. Worship is about glorifying God, praising Him, lifting Him up. It’s not about the pastor, he is there to point to Jesus so that people will leave that church knowing Christ better, not the preacher. It’s time for genuine discipleship, people want to “grow deeper”, and the church is treating it as if it’s just a social event. The church needs to grow in discipleship, prayer, genuine worship, genuinely lead as Christians, instead of competing for world popularity. The Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod does have genuine worship and truly preaches Law and Gospel in Jesus. The need is out there and the LCMS stands ready to provide, let’s show the world what the church of Jesus will be.

Acting Audaciously

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Audacity will usually be rewarded. We started here at First St Johns at what was probably its lowest point in a history that dated back to 1875. We still have a long way to go and it’s certainly all about God’s will. The question remains as to how we may or may not end up, we could still very well not make it, but this church would be missed.
There is no doubt that we have made a mark, the test is, will the church be missed if it closes tomorrow? Without qualification I would say yes, that FSJ would be missed. Jim McClure the editor of the York Daily Record identified FSJ as a community outreach church, we have made a mark with the Food bank, employment group, Grief Share, NA, AA, prayer breakfast, workout area and of course the radio station has garnered an immense amount of attention.
Regardless, God has used us for His purposes, but it doesn’t mean He has to keep us here. I have learned that acting audaciously, doing things that appear to be over your capacity does get attention and does generate support. When things are happening, people will notice. They’re not going to notice a church that is just hiding behind its walls. When I started at FSJ I started walking around the neighborhood. When I told our neighbors who I was, they told me they thought FSJs had closed. Who is going to respond to a place they think is closed? But if they see activity, they see involvement, there’s at least a chance they will respond with physical and financial support. We’ve seen that happen at FSJs. If you are doing things to serve, to be a Christian disciple, people will provide money when they see that things are happening, that there is a level of excitement and we’ve seen that happening at FSJ.

It does make me wonder what so many churches are thinking when they seem to chose to passively conduct Christian ministry. Remember the “Parable of the Talents”? (Matthew 25:15-28 ESV) The “Master”, clearly God; Father, Son and or Holy Spirit (Matthew Henry says the Master was Jesus). The Master gives His servants 5, 2, and 1 talents to be used to enrich Him. A “talent” was about a 100 pounds of silver, in today’s value that would be about $2,000., certainly not an inconsequential amount, especially for the first servant who is given about $10,000. The first servant takes the $10,000, entrusted to him and what does he do? Brings another $10,000. Good job! Right? “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.'” (Matt 25:21)
The second servant takes the two talents he’s given, brings back $4,000. Not too shabby, I’d sure like to find out what they invested in. But the third servant just returns the one talent he was entrusted with???? Wha…. What’s the point? What good is that? And yet there are plenty of churches out there who somehow think that they are serving the Lord. They’re not, they’re just serving each other. Matthew quotes Jesus as saying: “You wicked and slothful servant!” Pretty strong! But was the servant there just to hide the money and return it to his Master? Anyone can do that, he was there to serve his Master and he was “afraid” and chose to just run away from his responsibility. So it is with so many of these dying churches.
There are the churches that are dying, the churches that aren’t going to burn out, but rust out. They sit around bemoan their fate, maybe do some bake sales, or find a few children to have a VBS for, then they go back, carefully count their pennies, agree that if they’re careful and no serious problems they may make it another year and then go and do the same uninspired, unexciting things they’ve been doing and only that. They sit around and wonder why no one else is interested in being a part of their church. How do they really expect that God is calling to call them “good and faithful servants”? Why on earth would God send someone there to be discipled? Discipled to what? Sitting around with a lack of faith and service and hope that you can hide from reality?  How are they really serving, except, maybe, each other, just returning to God what He gave them, in fact if anything, not even what they were given. Why on earth would anyone think that God is going to bless and encourage that kind of attitude?
The flip side, so it appears to me now, is that you do things that do attract attention, you get people involved in things. Sure they may not work out or are as successful as they should be. Servant 3 would take that as a reason not to do that activity, or anything else for the duration. FSJ takes that and says, “ok, how do we make it better? What should we have done before…” and we start again.
Now, the radio station thing? Pure nuts, right? But it has generated attention and even given us entree to people and groups that we would never have had any opportunity to go to otherwise. People have seen what’s happened, they have moved on faith to support us, encouragement, prayers, financially etc. They have been a part of something they’re proud of, that their neighbors see in the newspaper, hear about in other places, they hear exciting plans and opportunities. Hopefully they get involved and of course it generates more interest, support and activity in the church.
You know what? We may not be around in another year, wouldn’t be the first, won’t be the last organization not to make it. But if we don’t make it, there will be a lot of people who will say; “what a shame, they did a lot of good stuff… hmmm, what could we do to help them get back into the game?…”
Conversely Servant 3 closes the door and not with a bang, but with a whimper and nary a person notices. No one was served, no one grew or was encouraged. Nothing was done to get people excited or involved, just poof, no one showed up for worship the next Sunday and really no one else noticed or cared.
Could be compared to a human, the one who slowly kills themselves through selfishness and bad habits and the bad habits; cancer, obesity, cardio, pulmonary, diabetes, liver disease on and on and they finally die. And the person who pushes themselves in one more triathlon and gloriously just drops right there on the course. Both knew they had a chance to die and one chose to just keep to himself and die a lonely, miserable death. The other one decided, one quick blaze of glory. Who wouldn’t want the blaze of glory? You’ve served others, you’ve made yourself a better person for your spouse, children, family, friends and they will remember you and may even live by your example. You’ve lived and served as a true disciple of Jesus. There are plenty of Christian servants who maybe didn’t “succeed”, but the results of their service will be, is, known by God and will be rewarded. The other? Doesn’t inspire in the least, is really seen as just miserable and even pathetic and no one misses them for an instant.
When we are being Servant 1 and are doing great things for the Kingdom, being faithful, being audacious, faithful to God’s will but crazy to the world, we may not be around next year, but we will be missed. Yea I’d rather do it the FSJ’s way.

If you don’t confess Jesus as Lord, you’re not a Christian 1 John 4: 1-21 First St Johns May 3, 2015

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[For the audio of this sermon click on the above link]

We make our beginning in the Name of God the Father and in the Name of God the Son and in the Name of God the Holy Spirit and all those who confess Jesus as Lord of their life said … AMEN!

This is becoming an overwhelming issue for Christians in a pluralistic society. John’s words are more important today than ever. Many people acknowledge Jesus, but few really see Him as Lord of their life. John’s epistle is dated to the end of the first century, about sixty years after the crucifixion and resurrection. The church of Christ has grown, it is catholic at this point, that is universal, there are many kinds of people, in many different places that profess Jesus and worship with fellow Christians. The world today may be difficult in our post-Christian world, as compared to the world which until recently was at least culturally Christian. People in the world today often do not think of themselves as “Christian” as those of us who are in the Christian church. They may see Jesus as a “great teacher, etc”, but not as who He truly Is, that is the Lord of those who confess Jesus as He who died for our sins and was resurrected to give us the assurance of our resurrection into eternal life in the perfect New World. As much as the world has become very alien and antagonistic, or at least indifferent to Christianity today, it’s not hard to imagine how much more the world was that way to the church at the end of the first century. There was “gods”, beliefs, philosophies across the board, a supermarket of beliefs for anyone to choose whatever they wanted. With few exceptions, there was very little integrity in any of these beliefs, groups and teachings were organized to support anything you could want ranging from love of money, love of self, epicureanism a system that taught how to live the so-called “good life”, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die. And of course to beliefs that were entirely about us and our works.

John is the last of the original disciples. There are bishops, even some regional assemblies that guided the church, but if there was an ultimate head of the church on earth he would have been John. He is very elderly at this time, probably around 90 years old, very much revered as a teacher. Unlike most people at this point, John’s “been there, done that and certainly has the t-shirt”. He was the disciple who was closest to Jesus, unlike the rest he was right there at the crucifixion and was at the resurrection and was involved in the church for the last sixty year. At this point in history, there are many heretical beliefs that are creeping in to Christianity. You often see other “Christian” beliefs, today with churches, who question the need for Christian doctrine, “it’s all about love”, they claim, that’s all you need. It is doctrine that gives us what it means to be truly Christian and to counter all the false teaching out there which were there from the beginning and are out there today. As we’ve discussed many times, the word “love” is very subjective, the word we use today, has about four different words in the original Greek. John uses the word frequently in this epistle. He starts the letter with the word “beloved”, the Greek word is  avgaphto,j we’ve talked about the Greek word  avgapa,w In a Christian context it is the love that Jesus showed to us, it is a love that is to all and under all circumstances, that is self-sacrificing, concerned with the best welfare of those who God leads us to, to be in relationship with. Jesus’ words in today’s Gospel reading talks about us all being a part of the same vine. We are all branches, we have the same source, the same relationship, being part of the same organism. Jesus said I am the “true vine”, there is no other authentic vine, only Me and only those who are branches of Me, the true vine. We abide in Him as a vine, an extension of Him and because of that He abides in us. The Greek word me,nw not just to be a part of, but to wait with, endure with, and as Jesus says to bear fruit and of course part of that fruit is that selfless, sacrificing love that we have for Him and brothers and sisters in Jesus. We have that love toward all we encounter, all people who the Holy Spirit brings us in contact with. But especially means to endure and to enhance the vine. To be fruitful and faithful to the vine and all the branches. In today’s world, we too often see that as being a little too soft, lacking discernment.

John calls those he writes to beloved, those who are the favorites and we are favorites, we have been chosen to be part of the vine, so we are very favored, also dear, important, close, part of the same vine, the same Body. Also esteemed, since we are so highly favored, each of us who are baptized in Jesus, we should think of each of us baptized in Him as special and important. Edward Englebrecht writes: “One story says that the congregation asked John to say a few words to them. By then, the aged apostle could not put many words together, but he would say repeatedly, ‘Little children, love one another”.[1] We are all part of the same vine, the same body, our first priority, the great commandment is to love the Lord, the “true vine”, but to also love our neighbor. How much more of a neighbor can we have then the branches that we are a part of and surround us, the branches of the true vine of Jesus Christ?

But the world continues to push on us, which is spiritual warfare that John is warning us about. We are to test the spirits, and spirits can come to us in many shapes, forms and ways. What you see on the internet, the movie you watched last night, the people you encounter on the street, on and on. We are to treat them with respect, love, that they are dear to us, they are made in God’s image. But we are always to test those spirits, if they show themselves to be of Christ, that they are baptized and take the Body and Blood of Jesus, they are a brother or sister and should be esteemed and treated accordingly. But if they do not confess Jesus, if they do not produce the fruit of the Spirit, we need to remember that as we relate to them. The world claims there are a lot of things that are “truth” that do not have anything to do with Jesus. John saw many false prophets in the first century and it is no less today. People who are teaching things that either straight out reject Jesus, or just ignore Him and profess things that have nothing to do with life and life more abundant as Jesus promises us and as a part of that vine that is all about Jesus.

Take that journal out. How do you test the spirits? It is not difficult, when we interact someone, it’s all about how what they say fits with what Jesus tells us. If they make a claim that doesn’t result in Jesus being Lord of our life, as Dr Martin Luther wrote: “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.”[2]

If what you hear conflicts with what Dr Luther wrote, it’s not of Christ, it’s wrong. How do you address what you hear or see in faith to Jesus?

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amin and Shalom

[1] Edward Englebrecht  “Concordia’s Complete Bible Handbook for students” p 438

[2] Martin Luther’s Large Catechism

Luke 12: 22-34 Exegesis of the Greek

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TRANSLATION OF LUKE 12: 22-34

[Dug this out of my school archives, I graduated from seminary in 2010, so a lot is still, well, kinda fresh. Part of what we have to learn is Greek and Hebrew, Greek being the more complicated. We received an extensive amount of teaching in both languages. So I thought I’d publish this, unfortunately the actual “Greek” didn’t come out, if you see an odd word, it’s just a Greek word that didn’t “translate” from my paper into Word Press.]

James Driskell

July 18, 2007

 Luke 12:22 Ei=pen de. pro.j tou.j maqhta.j Îauvtou/Ð\ dia. tou/to le,gw u`mi/n\ mh. merimna/te th/| yuch/| ti, fa,ghte( mhde. tw/| sw,mati ti, evndu,shsqeÅ

He said to the disciples, on account of this I say to you, don’t be anxious, for life what to eat, not for your body or what you will wear.

merimna/te – be anxious, Present imperative active 2nd plural of merimna,w

 

fa,ghte – to eat, Aor subjunctive act 2nd plural evsqi,w  subjunctive is a negative command

evndu,shsqe –  to put on, clothe  Aorist subjunctive midd 2nd plur  evndu,w subjunctive is a negative command.

yuch/| – dative object of preposition

12:23 h` ga.r yuch. plei/o,n evstin th/j trofh/j kai. to. sw/ma tou/ evndu,matojÅ

For the soul is more than food and the body than clothing.

trofh/j – both are genitives, this is genitive absolute

evndu,matoj – both are genitives, this is genitive absolute

24 katanoh,sate tou.j ko,rakaj o[ti ouv spei,rousin ouvde. qeri,zousin( oi-j ouvk e;stin tamei/on ouvde. avpoqh,kh( kai. o` qeo.j tre,fei auvtou,j\ po,sw| ma/llon u`mei/j diafe,rete tw/n peteinw/nÅ

Observe the crows that do not sow and not reap who and have no storeroom or barn and God feeds them, how more greater are you than are the birds.

katanoh,sate – to observe aorist imperative active 2nd plural  of  katanoe,wspei,rousin – to sow Present indicative active 3rd plural of spei,rw

qeri,zousin – to reap Present indicative active 3rd plural qeri,zw

tre,fei – to feed Present indicative active 3rd plural  tre,fw

peteinw/n – genitive of worth

25 ti,j de. evx u`mw/n merimnw/n du,natai evpi. th.n h`liki,an auvtou/ prosqei/nai ph/cunÈ

Who out of you being anxious are able to add a single cubit to your life.

merimnw/n – to be anxious Present Participle active masc nominative singular  predicate causal

du,natai – to be able  Present Indicative Midd deponent 3rd sing du,namai

prosqei/nai – to add to aorist infinitive active   result  prosti,qhmi

26 eiv ou=n ouvde. evla,ciston du,nasqe( ti, peri. tw/n loipw/n merimna/teÈ

f then you are unable to do this lesser thing why are you concerned about other matters.

du,nasqe – to be able  Present Indicative Middle 2nd plur  du,namai

merimna/te – to be anxious Present Indic Act 2nd plur merimna,w

27 katanoh,sate ta. kri,na pw/j auvxa,nei\ ouv kopia/| ouvde. nh,qei\ le,gw de. u`mi/n( ouvde. Solomw.n evn pa,sh| th/| do,xh| auvtou/ perieba,leto w`j e]n tou,twnÅ

Observe the lilies how they grow they do not toil nor do they spin, I say to you not even Solomon in all his glory did not clothe himself like one of these.

Katanoh,sate – observe  aorist imperative active 2nd plur  katanoe,w

auvxa,nei – to grow  Pres Indic Act 3rd sing  auvxa,nw

kopia/| – to toil Pres Indic Act 3rd sing  kopia,w

nh,qei – to spin Pres Indic Act 3rd sing  nh,qw

perieba,leto – to clothe Aor indic midd 3rd sing  periba,llw

do,xh| – dative of respect

28 eiv de. evn avgrw/| to.n co,rton o;nta sh,meron kai. au;rion eivj kli,banon ballo,menon o` qeo.j ou[twj avmfie,zei( po,sw| ma/llon u`ma/j( ovligo,pistoiÅ

And if in a field God clothed the grass which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown in the fire, how much greater are you who are of little faith.

ballo,menon – thrown Pres participle passive masc accus sing  ba,llw  predicate causal

avmfie,zei – clothes Pres indicative act 3rd sing  avmfie,zw

29 kai. u`mei/j mh. zhtei/te ti, fa,ghte kai. ti, pi,hte kai. mh. metewri,zesqe\

And you do not seek what to eat and what to drink and do not be worried

zhtei/te – to seek pres imperative active 2nd plur zhte,w

fa,ghte – to eat Aorist subjunctive act 2nd plur  evsqi,w  purpose

pi,hte – to drink aorist subjunctive act 2nd plur pi,nw  purpose

metewri,zesqe – be worried present imperative passive 2nd plur metewri,zomai

30 tau/ta ga.r pa,nta ta. e;qnh tou/ ko,smou evpizhtou/sin( u`mw/n de. o` path.r oi=den o[ti crh,|zete tou,twnÅ

For all these things the nations of the world seek but your Father knows that you have need of.

evpizhtou/sin – to seek for, Pres Indic Act  3rd plur  evpizhte,w

oi=den – to know, Perf Indic Act 3rd sing  oi=da

crh,|zete – have need of Present Indic Act 2nd plur crh,|zw

ko,smou – genitive relationship

 31 plh.n zhtei/te th.n basilei,an auvtou/( kai. tau/ta prosteqh,setai u`mi/nÅ

But seek seek His Kingdom and these will be added to you.

zhtei/te – to seek Pres Imperative Act  2nd plur  zhte,w

prosteqh,setai – add to Fut Indic pass 3rd sing  prosti,qhmi

32 Mh. fobou/( to. mikro.n poi,mnion( o[ti euvdo,khsen o` path.r u`mw/n dou/nai u`mi/n th.n basilei,anÅ

Do not be afraid little flock because your Father thinks that it’s good to give you the kingdom.

fobou/ – fear Present Imperative Midd 2nd sing fobe,w

euvdo,khsen – to think it good  Aor indic act 3rd sing  euvdoke,w

dou/nai – to give  Aorist Infinit Act. di,dwmi purpose

33 Pwlh,sate ta. u`pa,rconta u`mw/n kai. do,te evlehmosu,nhn\ poih,sate e`autoi/j balla,ntia mh. palaiou,mena( qhsauro.n avne,kleipton evn toi/j ouvranoi/j( o[pou kle,pthj ouvk evggi,zei ouvde. sh.j diafqei,rei\

Sell your possessions (existence, to be) and give them as alms make yourselves purses that don’t wear out, in an unfailing storehouse in heaven where a thief cannot come near and a moth cannot destroy.

Pwlh,sate – to sell  Aor Imperative Act 2nd plur  pwle,w

do,te – to give  Aor Imperative Act 2nd plur  di,dwmi

poih,sate –  to make Aor Imperative Act 2nd plur  poie,w

palaiou,mena – be old, obsolete Pres Participle Act Neu Accus Plur  palaio,w  referent is balla,ntia predicate causal

evggi,zei – come near Pres Indic Act 3rd sing  evggi,zw

diafqei,rei – to destroy utterly, to corrupt, Pres Indic Act 3rd Sing  diafqei,rw

ouvranoi/j – dative direct object

34 o[pou ga,r evstin o` qhsauro.j u`mw/n( evkei/ kai. h` kardi,a u`mw/n e;staiÅ

For where your treasure is there your heart is.

verse 22 maqhta.j @auvtou/# {C}

In accordance with Lukan usage, a majority of the Committee preferred to adopt auvtou/, supported as it is by the overwhelming preponderance of external evidence, but to enclose it within square brackets in view of its absence from several important early witnesses (î45vid, 75 B).

From Textual Commentary on the New Testament Metzger

12:23 h` ga.r yuch. plei/o,n evstin th/j trofh/j kai. to. sw/ma tou/ evndu,matojÅ

On the surface, it may seem to be nothing more than another in a series of Jesus’ teachings about possessions, but Jesus connects the proper attitude toward possessions with the kingdom of God. This casts his teaching in an eschatological context. This passage is easily divided into three groups of imperatives surrounded by an introduction and conclusion.

This passage about possessions and the kingdom is catechesis specifically for the disciples (catechumens) and not for the crowds (12:22). The disciples here include the Twelve and the seventy (-two) as well as the larger group of followers for whom God is ‘Father’ (12:30, 32) and to whom the Father has given his kingdom (12:32)…”

“…Of these ten imperatives, eight have to do with material possessions (the two in 12: 29-30 deal with possessions in relation to the kingdom), and the remaining two are solely about the kingdom (12:31-32)…’Life’, Jesus says, ‘is more than food and body more than clothing” (12:23). Using two imperatives from the language of catechesis (12: 24, 27; katanoh,sate,, ‘consider’), Jesus instructs the disciples to study and ponder how God cares for the ravens and the lilies. He notes, ‘By how much are you more valuable than birds’ (12:24; similarly 12:28)”

“…Anxiety over possessions is a sign that one lacks faith. Jesus is so concerned about keeping faith strong that he reiterates his directive about food and clothing (‘do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink’) and employs a synonym of ‘worry’, which is the ‘catchword’ of this section: ‘Do not be upset’’ (12:29). The disciples are not to waver between hope and fear over ‘all these thing’ (12:30), for they they would be like the Gentiles, anxious about mere survival and indifferent to the kingdom… Did not Jesus teach the disciples in the Lord’s Prayer to petition the Father for the things that are truly necessary (11: 1-4) ? The real question here pertains to the disciples’ attitude: is what they ‘seek’ food and clothing or the kingdom of God? Jesus directs them with a strong command to ‘seek [the Father’s] kingdom, and all these things will be added to you’ (12:31). This may not always be obvious to them, and so in another command, this one intensely pastoral and appearing only in Luke, Jesus speaks as a shepherd to his sheep: ‘Do not fear, little flock, because your Father graciously willed to give to you the kingdom’ (12:32)…”

“…As Jesus’ ‘little flock,’ they need not fear, for they will be celebrants at the Table of the kingdom where God’s greatest gifts will be served through the Servant, who gives his body ‘on behalf of you’ and gives his blood in the cup of the new covenant (22:19-20). “

“Thus Jesus final imperatives to ‘sell [Pwlh,sate] your possessions and give [do,te]  alms’ (12:33) are simply ways in which the disciples/catechumens may show that they are servants of the one whose treasures are in the heavens, yet who also gives his flock the abundant treasures of the kingdom while they are journeying on earth…”

“…The treasure ‘brings for the good’ (6:45) of confessing Christ with the mouth. The next use of ‘treasure’ is in the parable of the rich fool where ‘the one who treasures for himself … is not rich toward God’ (12:21). Now in 12: 33-34, Jesus fills in the picture of that metaphor by describing the opposite of the treasure for oneself: it is heavenly treasure. In light of the parable of the rich fool, this section on possessions (12: 22-34) shows what it means to be ‘rich toward God’ (12:21)…To be rich toward God, then, is to be a recipient of Christ and his gifts, a member of his kingdom through catechesis, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper… The two-fold Gospel message of this pericope (12:22-34) is this: For those seeking the treasure of the kingdom, the Father will provide adequate earthly treasure as well to sustain them in their journey from earth to heaven, and even more precious, along the way while still on earth ‘the little flock’ (12:32) will be graced with eternal heavenly treasures through Christ, the Shepherd who washes his flock in Baptism, feeds his sheep with the new Passover Lamb – his body and blood in the Supper (Lk 22: 14-20; 1 Cor 5:7) – and tends them with the guidance of his Word.”[1]

[1] Just, Arthur Concordia Commentary Luke 9:51 – 24:53 (St Louis, Concordia Publishing House, 1997) 509-512

Our emotional responses

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I guess this is a follow up on the previous diatribe, it’s not intended to be, not as high minded but something I feel I should raise. Henry Blackaby (Experiencing God day by day p 19) “…discipleship … Is learning to give Jesus Christ total access to your life so He will live His life through you…” Okay, I’m not sure about Jesus “living His life through us” I would see it more as Him guiding our life to be more like Him.  Blackaby goes on to write:”when others see you face a crisis, do they see the risen Lord responding? Does your family see the difference Christ makes when you see a need? What difference does the presence of Jesus Christ make in your life?”

” God wants to reveal Himself to those around you by working mightily through you…” I will say that when it comes to genuine crisis that I respond pretty rapidly and effectively. Over twenty years of being in a U.S. Coast Guard boat station, responding to many cases I have had to deal with many life threatening situations and I can only remember one time when I had an emotional reaction and I did get that under control.  Business, church, I think I do well in that area. If I do get a little assertive I think it is for the right reasons. I’d like to say it’s always Christ like, conforming to His nature, but I’m sure you would be, at least dubious and rightly so. I do need to respond in a more Christlike way and set aside the emotion, except for compassion. But the areas I really need help in is the petty nonsense.  I just get so fed up with the selfish, lazy (intellectualy and physically) attitudes. I expect others to be Christlike because I try to be and when I see the failure in others prayI respond in a manner that is most definitely not Christlike. I end up shooting my self in the foot by exemplifying unChristian behavior to those in the world who are certainly never going to be Christlike.

I need your prayers to help me to respond in the highest manner. Sometimes that response does require an emphatic demonstration that shows this is serious and vitally important. But if the other person just doesn’t even get it, what’s the point of getting in a twist? Pray that I can properly respond. To remain composed in a crisis, to respond lovingly to those who just don’t know better and in those times, which will be rare to be emphatic, but to not lose my composure. I do have to be strong. We just had Good Shepherd Sunday. The point being that Jesus stays strong and vigilant to protect us and isn’t going to stand for Satan’s nonsense or the nonsense of the world, He is there to protect the flock, His church, from so many dangers. As a pastor I am an under shepherd and Jesus uses me to protect the part of the flock I’m responsible for.  Help me do it in a way that honors Jesus. So that the world knows I, in Christ, am serious, determined even to death. But still compassionate and welcoming. And also so that my share of the flock will feel safe and secure in Christ. Thank you for your prayers.