“The fact is that whoever becomes a servant does not and cannot take anything, but only gives of Himself and even gives Himself into servitude.” 

–Martin Luther–                                                                                                                             (LW, 76:419)

“Can I have a waffle and some juice?”

These are the first words that I hear every single morning around 6:30 am from my two young boys. 

One of the lessons that I had no choice but to learn when children arrived in my home was this: to be a parent is to be a servant.  Parenting and serving are inseparable.  

During the younger years of a child’s life, much of the service that we provide to them is similar to being a waiter or waitress at a diner.  We listen to the wants and needs of another, we disappear for a few minutes to find the requested items, and then we deliver the wanted or needed items into their possession.

The internal struggle that arises within me once the sun begins to show itself in the early hours of my day, is that there is nothing I would rather do than sit in the recliner, have a warm cup of coffee brewed for me and brought to me, and watch the news without interruption. I don’t get out of bed wanting to serve, but to be served.

This internal struggle between serving my family and being served by my family is not the only arena in my life where humility battles exaltation.

This same internal struggle exists in my relationship with God. 

Martin Luther puts it this way, “All Adam’s children are the same: we ought to be God’s servant, but we want to be God Himself.” (LW, 76:417)

I am awakened every day with strong desire to be the God who is served and not the one who serves God.

But then, by the grace of God alone, I am reminded of the humility of Jesus Christ, the One who came to serve me His body on the cross.  

In his letter to the church at Philippi, the apostle Paul describes Jesus’ internal understanding of God-centered serving with this exhortation,

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus 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 2.5-11)

“[Jesus] was God, and all the divine works and words He did were done for our good. He serves us as a servant and does not have Himself served as Lord, as He has every right to do. He seeks neither honor nor profit in it, but our benefit and salvation…He became less than all people, lowered Himself, and served all people with the higher service: that He gave His body and life for us.” (LW, 76:421)

I am thankful that God’s mercies are new every morning and that I can once again go to Him in confession and repentance asking, “Can I have Your body and Your blood.” And, just like I often do with my own children, the Father in Heaven, gets up off His chair, His throne in Heaven, and brings me what I need—His Son, Jesus, to forgive me of my self-exaltation, lack of humility, service laced with grumbling, and my many attempts to sneak onto His throne. 

It is here, in God’s grace towards me in Jesus’ serving me that I am made new and strengthened to serve my family, my friends, and God’s Church.

Amen.

My younger son has recently come to believe that he does not need help.

I will say, “Ben, let me get your coat for you.”

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

I will say, “Ben, let me zip your coat for you.”

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

I will say, “Ben, let me open the front door for you.”

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

I will say, “Ben, let me hold your hand down the stairs.’

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

I will say, “Ben, let me pick you up into your car seat.’

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

I will say, “Ben, let me buckle your seat belt.”

And, Ben will respond, “I do! I do!”

Ben denies the help being offered to him.

The one interesting thing about Ben’s attempt at self-sufficiency is that almost every single time Ben denies the help offered to him, by responding emphatically, “I do! I do!,” he ends up frustrated and in tears.

In the apostle Paul’s letter to the churches in the region of Galatia, he is writing to a group of people in the church who were emphatically proclaiming the self-sufficient motto, “I do! I do!”

Paul says to them,

“O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” (Galatians 3.1-9)

A few weeks ago, I attended the 11^th annual Mockingbird theology conference in New York City.  Nick Lannon, one of the speakers, was talking about what it looks like, on a daily basis, to live life as a Christian.  At the center of his presentation was the reminder that “Holiness does not lead to grace.  But, grace leads to holiness.”

What the speaker was telling us was that we do not live good, holy, God-like lives, in order to earn the reward of God’s love and grace.  That is simply not how it works.

The truth is that God’s love and grace, already present in our lives through faith, transform us and empower us on a daily basis to live good, holy, God-like lives.  We live good, holy, and God-like lives because of God’s grace that saves us and also sustains us and works in us day after day after day.

Holiness does not lead to grace. Or, doing does not lead to God’s acceptance of us.

Grace leads to holiness.  Or, God’s active love in our lives leads us to actively love Him and others.

This truth is the same truth that the apostle Paul is reminding the Galatian Christians of in this letter.

The Galatians, receiving Paul’s letter, became Christians when they rejoiced in the truth that Jesus does everything perfectly for them because they are unable to do anything perfectly.  Jesus loved God perfectly and Jesus loved others perfectly.  Through God’s grace, Jesus’ all-around perfection was credited to their account before the throne of God.  Through God’s grace, they received the gift of God’s presence in their lives every minute of every day through the Holy Spirt making itself at home in them.

However, when it came to living life as a Christians on a daily basis, they slipped back into believing that they were alone, having to live good, holy, God-like lives to keep God’s love and grace upon them.

The Galatians forgot the truth that, when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:4–7)

God puts Himself in your life, through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, to help you.  You did nothing to earn God’s presence in your life.  His presence through the Holy Spirit is a complete gift to you.  Through the Holy Spirit, God is present with you every day.  God is present to help you every day.  God is present to guide you everyday.  God is present to lead you every day. God transforms you to love. God empowers you to love. God enables you to love.

God put me in Ben’s life to help him.  Ben did nothing to earn me as a parent.  I am a complete gift to Ben.  I am present with him every day.  I am here to help him every day.  I am here to guide him every day.  I am here to lead him every day.

But, Ben looks at me, denies my help, while insisting, “I do! I do!”

O foolish Ben! Who has tricked you?

The problem with my son and his, “I do! I do!” attitude is that he is almost always left frustrated and crying because he cannot do what he believes he can do.

He cannot get his coat. He is too short to reach the coat rack.

He cannot zip his coat. His hand/eye coordination isn’t developed enough to attach the two pieces of zipper together.

He cannot open the door. He isn’t tall enough to reach the door knob.

He cannot walk down the stairs. His legs aren’t long enough to reach from one step to the next.

He cannot buckle his own seat belt.  His arms aren’t strong enough to snap the pieces together.

At Ben’s age, he could sit and play with his toys and do nothing else with his time.  His diapers would be changed. Food would be prepared and brought to him. He would be dressed. He would be carried up and down the stairs. Ben would be put into and taken out of the car. He would be placed in his crib at bed time and recovered from it in the morning.

Truthfully, God’s desire and design for your life is for you to rest and play with the time you have.

But, you look at God, deny His help, all the while insisting, “I do! I do!”

God says to you, “Jesus has loved me perfectly for you.”

And, you respond, “I do! I do! I will show you how much I love you!”

You deny the help offered to you.

God says to you, “Jesus has loved others perfectly for you.”

And, you respond, “I do! I do! Wait until you see how good I am to others!”

You deny the help offered to you.

God says to you, “Jesus has perfectly kept all of my commandments for you.”

And, you respond, “I do! I do! Look at my checklist! I am following your commandments one by one!”

You deny the help offered to you.

God says to you, “Rest. The work of being connected to God is finished for you.”

And, you respond, “I do! I do! Rest is for the dead! I have work to do to prove my worth to you!”

You deny the help offered to you.

The problem with your, “I do! I do!,” attitude is that you are always left frustrated and burdened because you cannot do what you believe you can do. You cannot ever do enough to earn the love of God.

You have tried and come up short.

But, there is good news!

The truth is that Ben needs help and help is always offered to him from a parent who loves him, cares for him, and wants the best for him.

The truth is that you need help and help is always offered to you.

God sees your weakness.

God sees your frustration.

God sees your tears.

God sees your burdens.

God sees your inability to love Him.

God sees the selfishness that holds you back from loving others.

God sees your attempts at self-sufficiency and your desire to take credit for being forgiven of your sin.

God hears you knocking on the gates of Heaven while crying out, “I do! I do!”

God sees the corruption in your heart and mind that hinders you from living Biblically and following His rules for life and love.

However, after seeing all of that, God still offers you help in the crucified and risen Jesus Christ!

When you receive the help that God offers to you, you are saved from the wrath of God is poured out upon sin.

When you receive the help that God offers to you are washed and the dirt of sin that corrupts you.

When you receive the help that God offers to you, you are regenerated, you are made new, you can now love God and love others because God lives in you, through the Holy Spirit and strengthens you, and enables you to do so.

When you receive the help that God offers you, there is rest.

While you look at Jesus hanging on the cross, shouting at him, I do! I do!,” asking to be hung there yourself, Jesus looks down at you and says, “I do! I do! For you!”

While you foolishly stumble around, tricked into believing you don’t need God on a daily basis, God continues to do work in you to make you more like Himself.

It is by God’s grace that you are saved.

And, it is by God’s grace that you are daily sustained and strengthened to love God and neighbor.

The promise you have is this, “[God] who began a good work in you will bring it completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1.6).

Remember the last thing the apostle Paul said before confronting the Galatians, “I do! I do!,” attitude:

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” (Galatians 2:20–21)

Be at peace today.  Jesus has done for you and continues to do for you what you cannot do for yourself—make you holy in God’s sight.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

May 6, 2018

Once again, we are overwhelmed with the news of a school shooting.

Once again, we hear the all too familiar tale of an aggravated young man taking the lives of innocent children in their regular learning environment.

Every time this happens, and it happens more often than we would expect, we are left asking the question, “Why do school shootings happen?”

Let’s consider the intentions and thoughts that are piled on top of each other in planning a school shooting.

I imagine it goes something like this:

• I am so angry.
• I have been made fun of enough. No more!
• People deserve to die.
• I will be the one that makes sure they get killed.
• I need a weapon to kill.
• My Dad owns some guns that will kill.
• I will sneak his guns out of his room while he is at work in order to kill.
• I have to hide the guns on the way out of the house so that my Mom doesn’t stop me from killing.
• I will wear my long trench coat so that I can get the guns out of the house to kill.
• I have to conceal the guns as I enter the school so that I can kill.
• My trench coat will ensure I can get the guns into the school to kill.
• Once I am in the school, I will have to pull the fire alarm to create a distraction so that I can kill.
• While everyone is running in panic, I will kill.
• After I kill others, I will kill myself.

As the story unfolds after each mass killing, we often find out that weeks or months of planning and plotting went into devising a less than 5-minute shooting spree.

For a notable and lengthy period of time, the intentions and thoughts of the school shooter’s heart were focused only on the act of murder.

In the text of Genesis 6.5-8, the answer to the question, “Why do school shootings happen?,” is answered.

The Scripture says:

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. And the LORD regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, man and animals and creeping things and birds of the heavens, for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. 

These words are first and foremost describing the men, women, and children that lived thousands and thousands of years ago during the days of Noah.

One example of who these words were be describing would be the descendants of Seth, Adam and Eve’s third son. These men, woman, and children had forgotten all that God had done for their family.  They forgot that God promised to forgive and rescue Adam and Eve after they turned their back on God by disobeying His Law for life and love.  They forgot that after their ancestor, Cain, killed their other ancestor, Abel, God marked Cain as His own so that no one would seek revenge on him for what he had done.  God rescued Cain after he transgressed God’s Law for life and love.

Another example of who these words were describing would be the descendants of Cain. These men, women, and children, followed in the ways of their ancestor who killed his own brother.  This family line continued to act violently on the earth toward one another and toward outsiders.

The Bible often makes statements like, “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.” It is easy to believe that proclamations such as this are an over exaggeration or a complete mistruth.  After all, things can’t be that bad, right?

But, when we turn on the news and have to weep in sorrow while exclaiming, “Not again!,” our eyes are opened a bit wider to the timeless truths contained within the pages of God’s living and active Word, the Bible.

Even though these words were spoken thousands of years ago about a specific people in a specific place a at a specific time, this description of humanity continues to reveal the truth of how the heart and mind continue to work inside every man, woman, and child, to this day.

Here is the truth, we are the descendants of Seth and Cain.

We are Friday’s school shooter.

Every intention of the thoughts in our heart is evil continuously.

We spend our time thinking about, as well as plotting and planning the worst, even if we don’t always follow through with it in actions.

Let’s examine some of the deep and dark places our thoughts take us.

• We spend excessive time thinking about what we want and how we are going to get it. After we have planned and plotted our next move to increase our personal happiness, we may think about God but often we will not.  Our thoughts and the intentions of our words and actions do not give priority to God on a regular basis.
• We spend time during the week thinking about and planning the stuff we are going to do and the places we are going to go on Sunday morning during the time that we are called by God to be at church giving thanks to Him and praising Him for His love for us.
• We obsessively think about ways to get revenge on those who have harmed us. We think about ways to hurt those who have spoken badly against us.  Sometimes, in our thoughts, we even ponder murder.
• We think about cheating on our spouse or future spouse by thinking about and planning sexual contact with a neighbor, a co-worker, a friend, or even a fellow church goer.
• We plan to lie on our taxes to steal money from the government.
• We plan the lies we can tell to keep ourselves from getting in trouble.
• We dwell on the possessions that others have that we do not.
• We obsessively think about what it would be like to have that bigger or newer house with the landscaping and interior that looks like the pictures in magazines. We spend a lot of time thinking about what we don’t have instead of what we do have.
• We think about what it would be like to have that attractive and in shape wife that looks good in yoga pants or that attractive and muscular husband that looks good with his shirt off. We spend a lot of time thinking about what we don’t have instead of what we do have.
• We think about what it would be like to have a nanny, housekeeper, or landscaper like our friends have. We spend a lot of time thinking about what we don’t have instead of what we do have.

If you are honest, you know the truth that evil overflows out of your heart and mind.  Even if that evil never enters into the light of the day, it is there, it is undeniable.

There isn’t one person who has lived or who is living now that would be comfortable having every single one of their thoughts and intentions spoken out loud for others to hear.

With a heart and mind that creates and imagines all kinds of ungodly and evil scenarios on a regular basis, there is no hope for you.  You deserve the same punishment that the men, women, and children in Noah’s day received.  You deserve to be blotted out from the face of the earth.  You deserve to be swept away in the flood of God’s anger and wrath.  You deserve to hear that God is sorry that he made you!

But, God does not treat you like the men, women, and children of Noah’s day.  He treats you like he treated Noah.  He favors you!

Noah wasn’t special by any means.

He was in the same boat as all of the other men, women, and children of his day.

Let’s follow the logic. God saw that all men had ungodly evil intentions and thoughts.  Noah was a man. Therefore, Noah was also guilty of having ungodly intentions and thought.  Noah deserved to be blotted out from the face of the earth with all of the others.

But, God looked at him and had favor upon.

God’s favor wasn’t earned by Noah. He wasn’t a good and holy man who deserved to be rewarded by God.

But, God lovingly looked at Noah and said, “I am glad I made you!”

Noah’s response was probably to look over his should to see if God was speaking to someone else.

Noah would have responded, “Who me?”

And, God would lovingly look at him and repeat, “Yes, you dummy! I am glad I made you.  You are my child. I will forgive you.  I will cleanse your mind and heart of the evil that is created and overflows from them.  I will call you perfect!”

God looks at you and says the same exact thing.  He says to you, “I am glad that I made you! You are my child. I forgive you.  I cleanse your mind and heart of the evil that is created and overflows from them.  I call you perfect!”

He is so glad that he made you that He freely forgives you of the evil intentions and thoughts that have driven your heart and mind up until this day.  His love is so great and all-encompassing that He even forgives you in advance for the times that your heart and mind will slip back into creating and dwelling on evil intentions.

And, all of this is accomplished, the forgiving, the favoring, the loving, through the gift of Jesus Christ who had perfectly pure thoughts every second of every day that He walked this earth.  God, your Father in Heaven, exchanges Jesus’ perfectly pure life on the cross for your continuously evil life.  Instead of blotting you out from the face of the earth, God, your Father, in Heaven, blotted out Jesus Christ from the face of the earth instead.

Why do school shootings happen? Because apart from a relationship with God, the Creator and Redeemer, the intention of the thoughts of the heart is evil continuously.

Why did Jesus die on the cross? Because the intention of the thoughts of your heart are evil continuously.

Jesus’ death on the cross in the place of sinners means that God’s favor can fall upon Adam and Eve, Cain and his descendants, Seth and his decendants, Noah, school shooters, and you!

Your thoughts are evil continuously.  But, Jesus’ thoughts were perfectly pure for you.

God’s favor upon Noah him made him a good and holy man.

Listen to the description of Noah after God’s love, grace, and mercy chose him to be forgiven, rescued, and saved from the flood.

“Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God.” (Genesis 6.9)

The apostle Paul, who wrote much of what we call the New Testament, in the Bible, encourages the church, in the city of Philippi with these words:

“Brothers [and sisters], 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. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Philippians 4:8–9)

This is first a description of what the thoughts and intentions of Jesus Christ looked like.  Jesus’ heart and mind were always set on what was true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise.  Nothing else ever flowed out of Jesus’ thoughts.  He thoughts were continually centered on loving God and loving you.

Here is the really, really good news:

The Bible tells us that through faith in Jesus’ perfectly pure thought life and then death on the cross that blotted Him out from the face of the earth, we are first forgiven of our evil thoughts and intentions, and, secondly, transformed by the Holy Spirit to have the mind of Christ.

That means, we are already given credit before God in Heaven for a perfectly pure thought life and then enabled on a daily basis by the continual working of God’s Spirit within us to have a heart and mind that are set on what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise.

The apostle Paul writes to you, knowing that you who have faith are made, and are being made, into a good and holy person.

Therefore, pray this week that God, though the Holy Spirit that lives within you, will motivate you in your heart and mind to seek the things of the Kingdom of Heaven first, trusting that what you need will be provided for you.

And, pray this week that on a daily basis you would be driven to think about what is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and worthy of praise.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

May 20, 2018

In my home right now, my two young boys find the building of walls to be a favorite activity.

Brick by brick, blocks are used to build a barrier between the good guys and the bad guys.

Brick by brick, cardboard walls separate the Jedi from the Sith.

Brick by brick, plastic Lego walls separate Captain America from Red Skull.

At the beach, brick by brick, sandcastle walls separate the Autobots from the Decepticons.

The walls in all of these scenarios create a tension that any active imagination can turn into a cosmic battle between good and evil.

When we are young, we like building walls.

As we get older, nothing really changes.

We continue to like the task of building walls.

However, after years of education and experience, our building material becomes more sophisticated.  Instead of cardboard, plastic building blocks, and sand, we use history, philosophy, ideology, and theology to build walls, sometimes invisible and sometimes visible, to separate one group from another.

If we look at the architecture of the world, our metaphorical walls have often led us to build physical walls to separate those on one side from those on the other side.

Examples such as The Great Wall of China and The Berlin Wall both have their foundation in separating one group from another.  China built a wall, brick by brick, to separate themselves from the nomadic tribes of Eurasia.  The Eastern Bloc built a their wall, brick by brick, to separate themselves from the western Germans who rallied against their Communist ideology.  Currently, the Amercian government is trying to build a wall, brick by brick, to separate themselves from Mexico in an attempt to control immigration.

These barriers, along with many others constructed throughout the history of civilization, separated people both physically and ideologically.

On an individual level, we find ourselves building walls between ourselves and others using politics, race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, wealth, social status, history, philosophy, ideology, and theology.

“My skin is white.  I cannot be around non-whites.”

The wall goes up.

“I’m Republican.  I cannot associate with Democrats.”

The wall goes up.

“I have.  I cannot be be seen with the have nots.”

The wall goes up.

“I believe. I cannot hang out with non-believers.”

The wall goes up.

“I am pro-gun.  I cannot converse with anti-gun lobbyists.”

The wall goes up.

“I am pro-life.  I cannot be around pro-choicers.”

The wall goes up.

“I am heterosexual.  I cannot be around homosexuals.”

Brick by brick. The walls go up.

We are experts at building walls.

We are actually so good at building walls that we have even built a wall between us and God.

Because of Sin demonstrated in ungodly things like the building of walls between us and others, we end up building a wall between ourselves and God.

In the apostle Paul’s letter that he wrote to the churches in the region of Galatia, we hear about the human drive to build walls.  He says:

We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor.

(Galatians 2.15-18)

Paul’s concern for the church was rooted in the fact that the apostle Peter was building a wall between himself and the Christians in the region of Galatia.

The problem with Peter was this–He was preaching and teaching that through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, the wall between us and God was torn down.  The wall was completely demolished for us by Jesus Christ. Through Jesus’ death for us, the wall destroying death, we could now cross over into God’s presence.

However, after telling that good news to all who would hear it, Peter began building the wall between humanity and God, back up, brick by brick.

Peter’s actions spoke that:

Jesus’ death was not good enough to earn God’s acceptance. Brick.

God will only accept you if you are circumcised. Brick.

You have to make yourself clean. Brick.

You have to stay away from those that are not clean. Brick.

You have to obey God’s commandments. Brick.

Brick by brick, the wall went up.

And before Peter knew it, the wall was back up separating humanity from God.

By rebuilding the wall that Jesus tore down for us by His death on the cross, Peter was denying the message that he preached—that a person is accepted by God through faith alone and not through works of law because by works of the law no one will be saved.  Justification before God can only come through faith in Jesus’ wall tearing down death for you.

Here is the thing about the building of walls that goes on with my two young boys:

After the wall is firmly built and everything is set up and separated, my younger son gets a big smile on his face, looks me in the eyes, and then swings his hands and arms completely demolishing the wall until not one brick is left standing.

And, here is the thing about the wall that is built between you and God:

After the wall is firmly built and everything is set up and you are separated from God, Jesus gets a big smile on His face, looks you in the eyes, spreads his arms out and opens his hands to receive the nails that will pin Him to the cross until the moment of death, completely demolishing the wall between you and God until not one brick is left standing.

Brick by brick, Jesus takes the wall down for you that separates you from God.

The good news that you have is that while you were busy building a wall between you and God, Jesus died to tear down the wall for you.

Sin builds a wall between you and God.  But, Jesus tears the wall down for you.

You do not help.

You cannot help.

You only build, you cannot take down.

Jesus does it all for you.

This is the love of God toward you.

Have faith today. Place your hope in Jesus’ wall destroying death for you.

Brick by brick, the dividing wall between you and God has been removed.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

April 16, 2018

When I was much, much younger, someone in my household owned a label maker.

I am not talking about the label makers of today.

I am not talking about high-speed computers hooked up to photo quality printers that are capable of producing beautiful signage used to inform the world what an object is, where an object is located, or to whom an object belongs.

The 1980s label making system I am referring to was a handheld device that resembled a plastic hand gun.

On top of the gun-shaped label maker was a circular dial that had the alphabet, the numbers 0-9, and a few punctuation marks emblazoned around the circumference.  In order to have a letter, number, or mark appear on the thin plastic strip that was the printing surface, the dial had to be turned to the desired character and the trigger had to be pulled.  Those actions forced the letter through the thin plastic strip resulting in a raised marking on the soon to be finished label.

I can still hear the click, click, clicking of the dial as it passed every character and the snap of the trigger being pulled to force the letter onto the label.

In essence, this label maker was a hand-held type writer.

Being young, I didn’t have much use for a label maker, but the device was so intriguing and fun to use that it resulted in me making as many labels as I could before the owner of the tool realized that I had it and was using up all of the precious plastic label strips.

The labels began with the simple printing of my name.

Click, click, click, snap, F.

Click, click, click, snap, R.

Click, click, click, snap, E.

Click, click, click, snap, D.

After many labels were made with my name on them, I decided to type out labels naming objects.

Click, click, click, snap, B.

Click, click, click, snap, E.

Click, click, click, snap, D.

And, words like book, table, and kitchen came next.

After many labels were made with the names of everyday objects on them, I decided to get a bit more creative, and a bit rebellious, with the labels that I made.

Click, click, click, P.

Click, click, click, O.

Click, click, click, O.

Click, click, click, P.

And, words like fart and butt were not far behind, pun intended.

I enjoyed spending my time creating labels and attaching them to people, places, and things.

My youthful zeal for labeling people, placdes, and things is patterned in society today.

Each human sees it as their duty, their personal responsibility if you will, to create labels and attach them to people, places, and objects.

The labeling in our world today has become very specific and very emotionally charged.

Click, click, click, snap. You are Right or you are Left.

Click, click, click, snap. You are Republican, Democratic, or Libertarian.

Click, click, click, snap. You are pro-life or pro-choice.

Click, click, click, snap. You are pro-gun or anti-gun.

Click, click, click, snap. You are pro-cop or anti-cop.

Click, click, click, snap. You are White, Black, or Asian.

Click, click, click, snap. You are male, female, or transgender.

Click, click, click, snap. You are straight, gay, bi, or pan.

Click, click, click, snap. You are young or you are old.

Click, click, click, snap. You are thin or you are fat.

Click, click, click, snap. You are hot or you not.

Click, click, click, snap. You are smart or you are dumb.

These labels are just the skim on the surface of the deep waters of the world’s labeling system.

When one person or group places labels upon another person or group, the result is hurt, pain, tension, and division.

In the apostle Paul’s letter to the churches gathering in the region of Galatia, we hear of a situation in which one group was creating and attaching labels to another group with the result being hurt, pain, tension, and division, inside the church.

Here is the first-hand account of that event:

When Cephas [also known as Peter] came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he was eating with the Gentiles; but when they came he drew back and separated himself, fearing the circumcision party. And the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him, so that even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all, “If you, though a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you force the Gentiles to live like Jews?”

We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

The quick summary is this:

Peter was eating and enjoying time with his Christian brothers who were not of Jewish descent.  Peter’s Jewish friends come on the scene and Peter leaves the table where he was previously eating and enjoying time with the aforementioned friends.  Standing with his Jewish friends, he now refuses to go near his non-Jewish friends because he and his Jewish friends are placing the label unclean on the non-Jewish group eating and enjoying their time together.

Peter’s Jewish friends labeled the non-Jewish Christians as unclean because they believed that only those who were circumcised had God’s acceptance.  Since the mennthat Peter was previously with were not circumcised, the reasoning of the Jewish men led them to believe that the non-Jewish men were not accepted by God and therefore, they were unclean.

Paul’s Jewish friends were teaching by their words and actions that obedience to God and holy living lead to the freedom of forgiveness from God.

However, as the apostle Paul knew to be true and as Pastor Steve Brown writes,

“The message of the gospel is a message of freedom. Obedience and holiness are the result of that freedom, not the cause of it.”[1]

It is easy for us to take our our label maker and screw things up by falling into the trap of legalism just like Peter and his Jewish friends.

We like to see evidences of faith.  For example, some might feel Christians will vote in a certain way.  If we find out that an individual voted for a party or candidate that we disagree with, then that individual’s faith is suspect.  We might feel strongly that alcoholic drinks are dangerous and should be avoided.  If we find out that an individual has an alcoholic drink, then that individual’s faith is suspect.[2]

We often find ourselves believing, even after finding ourselves believing in Jesus, that obedience to God and holy living lead us to a place where God will finally accept us and set us free from the burden of trying to make Him happy.

However, the truth is that the freedom we have through faith in Christ, the freedom that comes with knowing that all things requiered for God to accept us have been completed for us as a gift, enables us by the working of the Holy Spirit to be motivated to obey and seek a holy way of living.

Paul believed, taught, and defended the truth that it didn’t matter if someone was circumcised or uncircumcised, all that mattered was the presence of faith in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

The labels of circumcision and uncircumcision were useless.

Even though the labels that man creates and attaches to people, places, and things are useless in defining who you really are, there are 2 labels, and only 2 labels, that have weight in your life.

Those two labels are God’s labels of condemned and justified.

The first of those labels is condemned. Sin pulls out it’s label maker and you hear click, click, click, snap, and the label placed on you reads condemned.

This label that every human being starts out with, means you are separated from God.  It means that you will receive the full punishment that you deserve for living in disobedience to God’s rules for life and love.

We are like Peter. We enjoy spending our time watching the actions of others, becoming prideful, and attaching labels to people, places, and things.  We like the feeling of superiority of being the label maker.  It feels good to have the power to define the identity of another.

But that disobedience to God leads us to hear click, click, click, snap, condemned!

Now, here is the good news for you.

In sin you are labeled condemned but through faith in Jesus Christ you hear the click, click, click, snap, and receive the lable justified placed on you.

This second label is means that you have been made right with Him.  It means that you are forgiven.  It means that you are restored to a place at God’s eternal table.  It means that through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, for you, your relationship with God is healed and you are therefore fully accepted by God yesterday, today, and forever.

That reconciled relationship with God and eternal acceptance by Him only happens because Jesus trades his perfect life for yours.  On the cross, after living a life in perfect obedience to God’s rules for life and love, Jesus received the full punishment that you deserve for living in disobedience to God’s rules for life and love.

On the hilltop outside of Jerusalem, the place called Golgotha, you hear the click, click, clicking of the nails as they passed through Jesus’ hands and feet forcing Him onto the wooden cross.

The purpose of such a death was to create signage to inform the world that you are God’s son or daughter, that you are eternally located in God’s eternal kingdom of Heaven, and that you belong to Jesus Christ who bought you by paying the price for you that was His life.

Sin labels you condemned but Jesus labels you justified.

For you who have been hurt or are hurting because of the labels placed on you by others, I want you to know that Jesus fully understands.  He was an innocent man labeled a liar, a drunk, a thief, a cheat, a criminal, a friend of prostitutes, a God-hater, useless, poor, homeless, no good, from a unimportant family from an unimportant town.  Jesus knows the pain of the world’s words and labels.  Because of that experience, Jesus knows your thoughts, your doubts, your desire to end it all, and your loneliness.

But, the labels of the world had no effect on Jesus’ true identity.  He is the Son of God regardless of what the world labels Him.  And, the same is true to you.  Through faith in Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection for you, you are a son or daughter of God regardless of what the world labels you.

For you who have caused hurt or are currently causing hurt because of the labels you put on people, I want you to know that Jesus forgives you.  While you were labeling others unloved by God, or condemned, Jesus was labeled condemned for you.  He forgives you of the hurt you have caused others, go therefore and seek forgiveness from those you have hurt.

This is the Word of the Lord.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

April 8, 2018.

[1] Brown, Steve. When Being Good Isn’t Good Enough . Lucid Books. Kindle Edition.

[2] The Lutheran Study Bible, 2005.

If Christ has not been raised,

your faith is futile

and you are still in your sins.

— 1 Corinthians 15.17 —

If Christ has not been raised, He is not the Son of God.

If Christ has not been raised, your faith is useless.

If Christ has not been raised, you are still separated from God.

If Christ has not been raised, you are still under the power of sin and death.

If Christ has not been raised, your life is futile, a striving after the wind.

If Christ has not been raised, you are just waiting around to die.

If Christ has not been raised, your suffering is meaningless.

If Christ has not been raised, you are wasting your time in church on Sunday morning.

However, Jesus was not abandoned by God, nor did His flesh see corruption.  This Jesus, God raised up.” (Acts 2.31-32)

Jesus’ resurrection has purpose.

The purpose of Jesus’ resurrection is to defeat the power of sin and death for you.

The purpose of Jesus’ resurrection is to reconnect you to God, your Father in Heaven.

The purpose of Jesus’ resurrection is to give you life everlasting.

The purpose of Jesus’ resurrection is to open the gates of Heaven for you.

Jesus’ resurrection has purpose.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, He is the Son of God.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, your faith saves you.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, you are restored into a relationship with God.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, you are no longer under the power of sin and death.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, your life is valuable, love God and love others.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, you are just waiting around for Heaven.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, your suffering connects you to Jesus’ suffering.

Jesus has been raised from the dead, you are using your time wisely on Sunday mornings, you are celebrating the truth of God’s working to give you eternal life.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter morning fulfilled God’s promise to provide a way for you to live forever with Him in His Heavenly Kingdom.

Upon existing the tomb, Jesus says to you, “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)

This is the purpose of Jesus’ resurrection for you.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

April 1, 2018

I do not nullify the grace of God,

 for if righteousness were though the law,

then Christ died for no purpose.

— Galatians 2.21 —

If you could always put God first, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always tell the truth, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always make promises and keep them, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always rest one full day a week, refraining from all work, in order to attend church, read Scripture, and meditate on God’s blessings of life and love, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always obey your parents, bosses, and government leaders, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always think well of others, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always speak well of others, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always be pleased with your spouse, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always speak about the opposite sex with honor and respect, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always think about the opposite sex with completely pure thoughts, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always respect the property of others, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always tell the truth to protect others, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always be content with what you have, Jesus died for no purpose.

If you could always be grateful for what others have even though you do not also have it, Jesus died for no purpose.

However, you can do none of those things perfectly.

With each of those statements, you can respond, “I cannot always do that.  It is impossible for me.”

God’s rules for life and love are non-negotiable.

According to this short list of God’s rules for life and love, it is easy to see that we are experts at breaking them all.

And as law breakers, we are subject to punishment for our law breaking.

The punishment for breaking God’s law is death.

The purpose of Jesus’s death on the cross is to provide a substitute for you so that you do not receive the punishment that your disobedience to God’s law deserves.

The cross of Christ has purpose.

On the cross of Christ, His body is nailed along with your sexual immorality, your impurity, your sensuality, your idolatry, your sorcery, your enmity, your strife, your jealousy, your fits of anger, your rivalries, your dissensions, your divisions, your envy, your drunkenness, your disobedience to your parents, your love of money, your love of yourself, your pride, your arrogance, your abuse, your heartlessness, your lack of thanksgiving, your slander, your gossip, your love of evil, your recklessness, your lying, your cheating, and your stealing.

Your law breaking is nailed to the cross with Jesus and it does not come off.

Your sin is eternally imprinted there with Jesus’ blood, to never see the light of day again.

It is paid for.

You are forgiven.

Righteousness is yours through faith in Jesus’s death for you.

It cannot be achieved or earned through your human effort.

The cross of Christ has purpose.

You have not always put God first, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always told the truth, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always made promises and keep them, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always rested one full day a week, refraining from all work, in order to attend church, read Scripture, and meditate on God’s blessings of life and love, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always obeyed your parents, bosses, and government leaders, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always thought well of others, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always spoken well of others, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always been pleased with your spouse, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always spoken about the opposite sex with honor and respect, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always thought about the opposite sex with completely pure thoughts, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have note always respected the property of others, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always told the truth to protect others, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always been content with what you have, Jesus died for that purpose.

You have not always been grateful for what others have even though you do not also have it, Jesus died for that purpose.

Jesus died for your disobedience.

The cross of Christ has purpose.

The purpose the cross is to show you the seriousness of your sin.

And, the purpose of the cross is also to show you the greatness of God’s love in providing a substitute to be punished for you.

This is why the Friday of Jesus’ death is called Good.

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

March 30, 2018

Recently, my oldest son has been learning about storytelling.  He has been learning that every story has order.  Each story has a beginning, a middle, and an end.

Both in school and out of school, he is given assignments to help him understand and process the flow of a narrative.

One homework assignment from this week asked him to look at 3 pictures and decide on the proper ordering of those pictures that would make sense.  After he figured out how the 3 pictures properly told the story, he then had to paste the words, first, next, and last, under the corresponding drawing.

Another assignment, this time an in-class assignment that he completed during school hours and then brought home to show us, had 3 empty boxes on the page.  Each box had a word printed underneath it.  The words, in this order, were, first, next, and last.  My son had to develop and write his own original story by drawing pictures in each of the blank boxes.

My son is learning is that storytelling is important.

Albert Mohler, who currently serves as the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and who has been called, “the reigning intellectual of the evangelical movement in the U.S.,” has this to say about storytelling,

“Literary critics often point out that trouble lies at the heart of a good story.  Something needs to happen—some problem needs to be solved, someone needs rescue, a battle must be fought.  The story has power because it tells us how the trouble was resolved, how the child was saved, how the battle was won.  We read books and watch movies largely in order to lose ourselves in someone else’s story.”[1]

Albert Mohler is telling us that storytelling is important.

With similar understanding of storytelling, Eugene Petersen, American pastor, scholar, author, and poet who has written over thirty books, reminds us that,

“First, there is a beginning and an ending.  All stories take place in time and are bounded by a past and a future.

Second, a catastrophe has occurred.  We are, in other words, in the middle of a mess.

Third, salvation is plotted…a plan develops to get us out of the trouble we are in…

Fourth, characters develop.

Fifth, everything has significance…Every word connects with every other word in the author’s mind, and so every detail, regardless of how it strikes us at first, belongs – and can be seen to belong if only we look long enough at it.”[2]

Eugene Petersen is reminding us that storytelling is important.

Have you ever thought,

“I am a nobody,”

“Nobody cares about me,”

“I am not important,”

“My life doesn’t matter,”

“My story doesn’t matter.”

Well, God disagrees with each of those statements.  God fully believes that your story is important.

And, God fully believed that the apostle Paul’s story was important as well.

In fact, Paul’s story is so important, that we have it written down in God’s Word, the Bible, for us and countless other generations to read and hear.

Here is Paul’s story from Galatians 1.10-24 (my paraphrase):

I serve God, not man.  I am a God pleaser, not a people pleaser.

 The good news that I share with you is not man’s version of good news.

No man taught me what I have shared and will continue to share.  Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, taught me the good news that I have shared and will continue to share with you.

You know my past.  I used to cause trouble for those who believed in Jesus in an attempt to destroy the Christian Church.  Through those actions and many more, I was quickly climbing to the top of the Jewish ladder.

But, when God, who chose me and called me to come to Himself only through His grace, happily came to me and made His love and mercy known to me through Jesus’ presence and words, my life was completely changed.  I now found it to be my responsibility to share the good news of the forgiveness of Sin, rescue from evil, and eternal life in Heaven, with those who did not yet know this good news.

When this change happened, and I found myself believing in Jesus as my Savior, I did not go to other men to see if what I believed was true because God spoke it to me personally in the flesh of Jesus.  Neither did I go to the apostles who had previously worked with Jesus.  In fact, I went away for a couple of years.

 After 3 years away, I spent 15 days in Jerusalem with Peter and Jesus’ brother James.  That was it.  I did not see anyone else. (With God as my witness, this is true. It is no lie!)

Next, I traveled to Syria and Cilicia for a while.

 At this point, no one in the Christian churches knew who I was by sight for we had never met.  However, the story of how God, through Jesus, changed my life had made it to their ears.  They heard that I, who used to live my life focused on destroying God’s Church, was now living my life to build God’s Church.

 When they heard the good news of Jesus Christ changing someone like me, forgiving someone like me, rescuing someone like me from evil, and giving someone like me a place in Heaven, they could not help but thank God, love God, praise God, and share the good news of Jesus Christ with others themselves.   (PFV [Pastor Fred Version])

Paul’s story is important.

Paul’s autobiographical story had a beginning.

Paul’s personal experience had a middle – where he found himself in the middle of a mess and salvation was plotted for him.

Paul’s memoir had an end.

Paul was born a Hebrew.  He was raised and trained in that tradition. He lived each day of his life awaiting a Savior, someone who would right all of the wrongs in the world and lead him into the kingdom of Heaven.  However, he denied God’s Savior, Jesus Christ, when Jesus was sent as a gift to the world.  Not only did Paul deny God’s Savior, he also focused his attention on killing those who believed in Jesus, in an attempt to fully destroy the Christian Church.

Paul’s character changed dramatically, a complete 180 degree turn, in fact, from one who used to live his life focused on destroying God’s Church to one who now lived his life to build God’s Church.

This happened when God intervened and met Paul personally, through Jesus Christ.  In that encounter, Jesus confronted Paul in his sin and spoke to him the good news of the God’s love that forgave him and rescued him from the path of personal destruction and separation from God that he was on.

The Bible does not tell us when or how Paul died.

However, a handful of historians recorded Paul’s death and cited government sponsored decapitation as punishment for his preaching and teaching about Jesus.

The one thing about Paul’s death that we can be certain about is that it was a glorious moment for him as he who once persecuted God’s earthly church was welcomed into God’s eternal Church in Heaven through his faith in Jesus’ death which forgave him of his Sin.

That is why Paul wrote these words to the Church gathered in the city of Philippi,

“For me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1.21)

For Paul, death, was the end of struggle, pain, tears, rejection, and suffering.  It was also the beginning of the life that God had planned for him—a life that never ends, never fades, never hurts, all in the presence of the One who created him, forgave him of his sin, and rescued him from evil.

Your story has sections labeled, first, next, and last. Or, in other words, beginning, middle, end.

The beginning of your story is labeled, “I was.”

The middle of your story is labeled, “God intervened.”

The end of your story is labeled, “I am.”

When the apostle Paul writes a letter to the church located in Colasse, he tells your story.

At one time you were separated from God. You were his enemies in your minds, and the evil things you did were against God. But now God has made you his friends again. He did this through Christ’s death in the body so that he might bring you into God’s presence as people who are holy, with no wrong, and with nothing of which God can judge you guilty. (Colossians 1.21-22, NCV)

United with Jesus Christ through faith, your character changes dramatically, a complete 180 degree turn, in fact, you move from one who used to live your life denying Jesus’ work on the cross and spends your time trying to earn God’s love to one who now rests in Christ work on the cross to forgive you of sin and rescue you from evil.

Why is Paul’s story important?

Paul’s personal story was important because it told the good news of God’s love, God’s grace, and God’s mercy in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Paul was a sinner.

God intervened to save Paul through the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Paul is now a saint.  He is one called perfect in every way before the throne of God in Heaven.

Why is my personal story important?

My personal story is important because it tells the good news of God’s love, God’s grace, and God’s mercy in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

I was a sinner.

God intervened having Jesus live the perfect life that I cannot live, die on the cross to take the punishment for my imperfect life, and walk out of the grave resurrected from the dead to defeat the power of sin and death for me.

I am now a saint.  Through faith in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for me, God calls me perfect in every way, yesterday, today, and forever.

Why is your personal story important?

Your personal story is important it tells the good news of God’s love, God’s grace, and God’s mercy in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

You were a sinner.

God intervened having Jesus live the perfect life that I cannot live, die on the cross to take the punishment for my imperfect life, and walk out of the grave resurrected from the dead to defeat the power of sin and death for you.

You are now a saint.  Through faith in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for me, God calls you perfect in every way, yesterday, today, and forever.

This morning, I want to tell you that,

You are somebody!

You are cared about!

You are important!

Your life matters!

Your story matters!

Go and tell the world that Jesus lives through your own story focused on Jesus’ story.

Prayer: God, the Author of life, thank you for Paul’s story.  Help us to tell our own story this week focused and centered on Jesus’ story.

[1] Albert Mohler, The Conviction to Lead, 38

[2] Eugene H. Peterson. Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastoral Integrity (Kindle Locations 1178-1179). Kindle Edition.

I write to you this morning as a very broken man.

There is not much left of me emotionally physically, or spiritually.

On Saturday, I was asked to officiate and preach at the funeral of a 26-year-old young man who was a good friend.

For the past 13 years, Jonathan’s body was plagued and ravaged by Intracranial Hypertension, an illness that brought him through 70+ surgeries over those years.

Jonathan’s father, a pastor in Staten Island, asked me to let him rest during his time of loss, grieving, and mourning, by taking over his church and the pulpit as we remembered who his son was, but more importantly who Jesus is.

I first met Jonathan when I was a volunteer youth leader at our sister church in Staten Island. At that time his family had moved to the island because Jonathan’s father excepted a call to lead a congregation not far from the church that I serving. Upon arrival to the neighborhood, Jonathan’s parents sought out our congregation to care for and love their four children.

As the years went by and I parted ways with Jonathan and his family to accept a call out here to Huntington, our relationship remained strong because of our shared issues with illness–his Intracranial Hypertension and my cancer.

The geographical distance didn’t stop us from meeting and texting each other. Our relationship became a point of refuge where we could speak and share thoughts and words with each other that we would never share with our family or friends.

The Baldini family has given me permission to share the sermon I preached at Jonathan’s funeral with you today.

——————–

We are gathered this morning in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit Amen.

Family and friends,

I am here with you on this day to share your loss as best as I can, but more than that, I am here with you to hear what Jesus has to say about life, and death, and resurrection.

In a recent conversation I had with Jonathan, talk of the latest superhero movies and what comedies we were currently watching and re-watching on Netflix eventually dissolved, as it always did, into talk about our shared hardships due to illness.

When we got to the place of discussing the specifics of pain, suffering, life and death, Jonathan questioned me saying,

“When you had cancer, did you ever think about dying?”

My response was a quick and easy, “Yes.”

Jonathan then proceeded to tell me that he wasn’t afraid to die because He knew God’s love would take care of him.

But, when he thought about his own death, the only thing he worried about was leaving his family behind because he knew they would experience great sadness and deep suffering once he left them.

In Jonathan’s last moments with us, he was deeply concerned for your welfare and he had a Christ like love for you.

The account of Jesus pain, suffering, and death is told to us by the Gospel writer John with these words:

So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” Many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and it was written in Aramaic, in Latin, and in Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but rather, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.’” Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier; also his tunic. But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom, so they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” This was to fulfill the Scripture which says,

 “They divided my garments among them,

and for my clothing they cast lots.”

 So the soldiers did these things, but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Jesus was not afraid to die. He knew His death would forgive the sins of many.

But, one thing Jesus worried about from the cross was leaving his family and friends behind because they would experience great sadness and deep suffering once he left them.

The text tells us that

“When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, [he is now] your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “[Friend, she is now] your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.” (John 19)

Deeply concerned for His mother’s welfare, Jesus entrusted Mary to a disciple’s care.

Even in the dark moments of pain, suffering, the light of the love of God shone brightly through Jesus onto Mary, His mother who was suffering from watching the brutal and humiliating death of her son.

Even while dying on the cross, Jesus has compassion on the ones who were grieving and mourning the loss of a loved one and makes sure they will be properly cared for after his death.

Jesus is deeply concerned for you.

In fact, he is so concerned for your eternal well being that he was crucified on a cross to provide the forgiveness of sins that you need in order to brought back into a right relationship with God.

From the cross, Jesus, God in the flesh, the Creator of all that exists, looks down and has compassion on you, who in this world are daily struggling to keep your life together in the face of challenges.

First, Jesus’ compassion has made sure you will be properly cared for through forgiving your sins and gifting you eternal life.

Secondly, just as Jesus’ compassion led him to take care of his mother and friends by entrusting them into the care of each other, Jesus will also continue to make sure you are properly cared for, here and now, through entrusting you into the care of your brothers and sisters in the church body.

This is a time of great sadness and deep suffering because Jonathan has left us.

In Jesus’s last moments with us, he was deeply concerned for your welfare and loved you with an eternal and never changing love.

A friend of mine recently introduced me to a song penned by the modern wordsmith and artist Wiz Kalifa. The lyrics to the chorus go like this:

It’s been a long day without you, my friend

And I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again

We’ve come a long way from where we began

Oh, I’ll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

Because of Jesus, we will see Jonathan again.

“Have you thought about dying?”

I know your response is quick and easy, “Yes.”

Know that in the person and work of Jesus Christ, God’s love has and will take care of you.

Go forth today and take care of one another, as Jonathan and you have already been taken care of by Jesus.

Amen.

Pastor Fred

September 11, 2017

What then shall we say to these things?

If God is for us, who can be against us?

–Romans 8.31–

“As if it weren’t enough that a monumental solar eclipse is one week away, the world is abuzz with ominous predictions of a looming nuclear war with North Korea. None of us might live to unwrap our Christmas presents this year. We might all be blown to smithereens. We might all die in nasty, horrible ways. The world might end in one gigantic kaboom.

What in God’s name are we to do?

Me—I’m gonna make breakfast.”

These words, shared yesterday, by one of my favorite current Christian authors, Chad Bird, offers a parallel statement to what was said many years ago by the British novelist, poet, academic, literary critic, lay theologian, broadcaster, lecturer, and Christian apologist, C.S. Lewis, when he gave this advice at the height of the Cold War,

“If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb when it comes find us doing sensible and human things—praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies (a microbe can do that) but they need not dominate our minds.” (“On Living in an Atomic Age”)

Who is against you?

Others are against you.

As we have been seeing on the news, there is a dictator that says, “Your life is worthless, and I have a missile with your name on it!”

How about a few examples of people often against you from a little closer to home?

• A husband that says, “You don’t meet my needs in this marriage!”
• A wife that says, “You don’t provide me with everything I want in this relationship!”
• A child that says, “I don’t like you and I am not going to do what you say!”
• A parent that says, “You have let me down with your lack of achievement.”
• A boss that says, “You have failed at the tasks I gave you and you have no value here!”
• A teacher that says, “You’re best work isn’t good enough!”
• A student that says, “You need to give me the grade that I want, I don’t care what I deserve!”
• A pastor that says, “You have no worth to God, me, or this church, unless you serve more, pray more, and give more.”

Who else is against you?

You are against you.

You are against you, with an inner and outer dialogue that speaks,

• “I am a failure as a husband and father.”
• “My roles as a wife and a mother leave much to be desired.”
• “I will never be successful.”
• “I will never look like those fashion models.”
• “I will never look like those guys working out at Muscle Beach.”
• “I will never make enough money.”
• “I can’t provide everything the people around me want.”
• “Life is meaningless and it is all going to end soon anyway.”

We live day-to-day in a world that seems to be easily against us, against all we think, against all we say, against all we do, and against all we believe.

Even though it is true that others are often against us, we are equally guilty of being against others in our daily life.

We are against our spouses when we act entitled and expect them to work for us, when we withhold the truth from them, and when we refuse to partner with them in the tasks related to family management.

We are against our kids when we ungraciously exasperate them with an abundance of rules, yelling, and strict punishment for the slightest misstep at home.

We are against our parents when we grumble against and disobey their rules that are set in place for our safety.

We are against our bosses when we do not do our best work every second of every day.

We are against our teachers when we do less than our best work but expect them to grade us as if we did our best work.

We are against our communities when we act entitled believing that one skin color is better than another.

We are against our churches when we expect to be treated with favoritism because of our last name, number of years attending, or amount of money donated.

When you examine the landscape of your life, including the lying, the cheating, the stealing, the sneaking, the hiding, the gossiping, the withholding of love from others, and the entitled attitudes, it is amazing to hear of a love so strong and focused that the Giver of that love will still say every moment of everyday, even in the midst of your failings, that He is for you!

We sing a song that says, “On the cross where Jesus died, the wrath of God was satisfied.” (In Christ Alone)

The cross of Jesus Christ clearly shows you that God is for you!

God’s love for you is so great that He gave His Son to die to forgive your sin of being against Him and against others.

By nature, you live against God and against others.

By grace, Jesus lived for God and for others, for you.

By faith, Jesus’ perfect life of obedience and love is credited to you before the throne of God in Heaven.

Even though others are against you and you are often against God and others, God, your Creator, is always for you who find yourself believing in Jesus Christ!

With God always acting for you, you do not have to fear ultimate destruction. The work that Jesus Christ did in life, on the cross, and at the tomb, secures for you an eternally safe place in the loving arms of your Creator in Heaven. You may face extreme circumstances in this world, but, right now, you have place being prepared for you in God’s Kingdom defined by the absence of tears, pain, and suffering.

One of the songs that the kids learned at our Fun Maker Factory Vacation Bible School this year, spoke the truth of God’s sovereignty, or in other words, God’s ultimate control of all things, with lyrics proclaiming, “He’s got the whole world in his hands….”

The love of God for you, in the person and work of Jesus Christ, in Jesus’ life, in Jesus’ death, and in Jesus’ resurrection, is your confidence when the world seems to hang on the brink of self-destruction.

The truth is that a monumental solar eclipse is one week away, and the world is abuzz with ominous predictions of a looming nuclear war with North Korea.

Therefore, you might not live to unwrap your Christmas presents this year.

However, you will never see God, our Father in Heaven, break out in a cold sweat over Kim Jong-Un, solar eclipses, demanding spouses, disobedient children, unfair bosses, or unjust teachers.

Do not let fear dominate your mind.

Find rest with God who is for you!

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8.35-39)

God is for you.

Today, be for others as God is first for you!

Amen.

Pastor Fred.

August 13, 2017