I will leave it to God

I Corinthians 6:9-11
“Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

In 1980, my mother in-law presented me with a Bible in honor of my adult baptism. She reminded me that this was God’s inspired Word and it had the power to change my life. At that time, I believed this because it was what our church believed and what I had been taught as a youth. Today, however, I believe this because of personal experience. What a powerful gift that Bible was! God’s Word truly has changed my life.

Now, twenty-eight years later, some believe the Bible needs updating. To safeguard against such changes, our church has stated in its confessional writings that the Bible is the inspired Word of God and the only authority in matters of faith and life. If this is true, why are we hearing so many strange statements about biblical changes?

Let me give you an example. One day a man, whom I have always respected, asked if I believe all people are saved. He was visibly upset and went on to say that his pastor told him that all people would go to heaven. I told him to read Jesus’ words: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me.” He replied that he had shared these words with his pastor and was told that there is more than one way to interpret this statement.

A few days later I was having coffee with a group of teachers when a woman asked me the same question. She told the group that her pastor, who has freshly progressive ideas, had told her that Jesus was not the only way to heaven. When I asked how she responded to his statement, she assured us that she let him know this was not what she had been taught and believed.

It saddened me to hear this woman, who was so disturbed that her pastor had openly denied one of God’s inspired truths.

Another way, in which we see some, clergy and lay alike, attempting to change the Word of God, is in the call to ordain practicing homosexuals, using code words like “a Reconciling in Christ Church” and bless same-sex marriages. If you ask them why they are departing from what Scripture says about these practices, their answer is simply that the Bible must be interpreted in light of its culture. In other words, we need an updated Bible.

Listening to today’s sermons, I ask, why less focused on sins by some and others preach on it routinely. Trying to avoid a debate from either side or being labeled as a sin phobia, I read I Corinthians 6:9-11, which reads, “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy, nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

I asked myself, haven’t the church dealt with all of these sins? None are condoned. We would not ordain a person who was living in adultery. I don’t believe we would ordain drunkards if we were aware of their problem. A person found guilty of stealing would be dismissed from the clergy roster, I pray.

In my mind none of us are without sin. But we can be forgiven if we repent and turn to Christ. Notice, Paul says to the Corinthians that this is the way they used to live, but they were washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. The practicing homosexual, on the other hand, does not want to repent; rather, he or she wants to remain in this lifestyle and still be ordained by the church. This is the difference.

It is one thing to fall in sin and be forgiven by God’s grace. It is quite another for the church to say that some behaviors should be looked on charitably because of modern cultural changes.

We cannot condone sin and update our Bible. What, then, shall we do? Listen to the words of Paul: “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.”

In other words, we use church discipline. Who does the disciplining? In most churches, the documents of the church tell us. Within the congregation, it generally falls to the leaders, people chosen by their brothers and sisters in Christ, When clergy are to be disciplined, the responsibility is with the bishops and those trusted people of God who are their counselors. But if the group or leaders has this philosophy and it is affecting your vision of life,"what are you to do?" At this point in my life because of my love for all, I will leave it to God.

The church is in serious trouble. Part of it is because we have given in to diluting the Scripture in order to satisfy the culture of our day “This is the easy way” and if you speak about it you are labeled or told they don’t understand you. however, Jesus never said that the way will be easy. Culture is not to shape the church; the church is to shape culture. We are the salt of the earth, according to the Word of our Lord.

Do we need an updated Bible? Definitely not, instead, we need to take the teachings of God’s word seriously.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

My Dream

Luke 10:25-29
On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered: “‘Love the Lord your God; with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”


I truly believe in dreams and that no dream in life is beyond a persons ability to accomplish. God would not plant a seed in your mind if he did not plan to give you the means to nurture and cultivate it into a beautiful flower. God is working with us and we can cherish our dreams as divinely inspired visions of our new life. We must hold firmly to our dreams especially during the moments of doubt and challenge. The key for my transformation has been to keep my mind and heart focused on my dreams in a positive manor by working hard and constantly seeking those moments of ah-ah for Christ.

Your dream is a sprouting creation that needs desire and support to develop to full maturity. Then it returns the care by nourishing the dreamer as well as those who promote it. Every great achievement begins as a dream. A vision of success is a decisive idea that must be cultivated and strengthened by the individual who believes in his or her dream to stand by it in moments of difficulty.

Are you willing to stand by your dream in times of opposition? Especially when someone says they don’t understand you. Are you willing to say yes to yourself and your thoughts (ideas) when others stand against you? For your dream is none other than God’s dream for you, His love”! If you believe you will obey your dream and if you obey you will believe! Sometimes we humans need to be faced up with reality, and that is what Jesus does in his Word. But remember, He does this in love.

My dream sometimes lacks in much understanding I have for Christianity. I like to emphasize in both faith and life in what we believe and how we live. To me if we place all the emphasis on Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection for our sins and never talk about the fruits of this faith, we have only told a part of the story. On the other hand, if we talk only about the kind of life that Jesus taught, and place little or no emphasis on our salvation, but Justice there is no power to live this life. Jesus then in that view is no more than another moralist, and with that we have little relationship with our Heavenly Father. A part of that Christian message is never adequate in my mind. We are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no way that we can even make a contribution to our salvation, but when Christ’s dream lives in us, this relationship produces fruits of good works, which means helping people plus trusting and walking with Christ. Sing these words to yourself. What does this song remind you of?
“Love and marriage,
Love and marriage,
Go together like a horse and carriage.
Dad was told by mother,
You can’t have one without the other.”

You can’t have just faith or just dreams without love!

God Bless You and This Ministry

“The Other Shoe”

Whether you agree with me or not here are some of my naive thoughts. What is Worship as a Christian Church today? And have we changed to far? After belonging to numerous congregations that were Lutheran (ELCA), the other day this thought came to my mind. What are Lutherans unique perspective on worship and Church issues period? That is one question I have never asked a Pastor with out feeling a little guilty and confused. So I decided to first discus this with a number of people. I prepared myself for the follow type of answers: Worship is praising the Lord" or "Worship is what human beings do to express their thanks to God" or "Worship is going to church," or something like that. Well, I didn’t exactly hear those same words but it wasn’t far from it though. While there is some truth to each of those answers, they did not adequately feed me spiritually, help with describing the main purpose of Lutheran worship today or understand what message I was hearing today. It only has made me wonder where is the Lutheran Church Today?

I thought to myself I know that God's Word and His holy Sacraments are His precious gifts to us and are the tools the Holy Spirit uses to give us forgiveness, life and salvation. Then is the main purpose of our worship and church life to receive these gifts from God? But how do we understand this during this climate of change? Hmm, I am not sure whether we have adequately emphasized this important truth or maybe we are limping with two different gospels. The one we all grew up with at the foot of the cross that is based on repentance, and another that follows a different gospel of acceptance that has been foisted on us. You see this new gospel is emphasizing, “God is love and God is only love, and since Jesus’ ministry was all about love, his followers were to love others in the same way.” Again, love is to be defined solely in terms of inclusion, acceptance and not to be reminded of our ungodliness. The result of this new gospel’s love is not repentance and death to ourselves, but instead love for and acceptance of ourselves because God has accepted and loved us. It has taken me a while to understand this second gospel but given such assumptions, that is why to me our gospel message has focused so much on social justice. (A reason found for the church to exist today). This second gospel mission cannot be proclaiming God’s justification of the ungodly, because the gospel of acceptance does not believe that people are ungodly, except to the extent that they exclude people. Instead, that is why the mission worship message of the church today as been dominated by social and political issues in my view.

But we cannot do both because it divides us.” My ears have been closed to it and it needs to be revisited. God gives His gifts. We receive them. He does this as His Gospel is proclaimed, as His Word is read, as His forgiveness is announced and sinners are absolved, and as we receive our Lord's body and blood in Holy Communion. In these wonderful ways, God is present with us, His people, drawing us to Himself and giving us what we need so much--His mercy, forgiveness, love, joy, peace, power and comfort! The purpose of worship, therefore, is to be gathered by God around His gifts. Then why is this today such a battle between the mind and the heart? Boy oh boy We need to take great care with change today help our visitors as well as ourselves appreciate and understand what is happening with changing things just so that every point is new guy but old perfectly clear.

Then it follows that our worship is Christ-centered from the heart or as we take a look at the liturgical orders of service now I understand why everything said and done is filled with His Word for the mind as well. Why? Remember what St. Paul wrote to the Galatians? “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one that called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to another gospel – which is no gospel at all (Galatians 1:6 - 7).”

Because our focus is on Christ and His work, that's why. The focus of church service worship is on Christ, not man. Who is present for us and with us in His Word and Sacraments? He is truly among us. We are not contemplating a far-off Christ, or meditating on abstract ideas. Lutheran worship is not like going to a self-help group or a therapy session. It is God who gathers us for worship around the gifts He gives to us through Word and Sacrament. But I would like to remind you that it is not really our church, it is the Lord's church. As long as the church tries to acknowledge two different gospels, we will never be united or have answer to those little questions, it will never be at peace, and it will never settle all the issues of today.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

Numbers in the Pews

READ: Luke 9:57-62

Luke records for us in this passage an account of three men whom Jesus met as He traveled along with His disciples. Two of these men declared that they wished to follow Jesus; to become His disciples. The other was one whom Jesus summoned to follow Him.

What immediately strikes me is the way in which Jesus handles these inquirers (and I think that this is Luke’s reason for recording the details of these meetings). Some think that men with a cause are busy trying to recruit as many as they can. Most preachers, council leaders and lay people are busy trying to get as many members for their church as they possibly can (and most have good intentions). I like seeing new members myself!

It’s natural. It’s what we expect to see. But Jesus is radically different in His approach I think. He seems to spend a great deal of His time trying to advise against men from following after Him - or at least that’s what it looks like.

It’s funny how I can remember advice that was given to me by an aging preacher when I was on church council; I was really concerned about numbers in the pew. This person whom I greatly respected would say to me, Ronnie “Son, always endeavor to keep the church as small as you can!” That’s strange talk isn’t it? And that was coming from a man who himself had pastored quite a large congregation. But what he meant was, preach the truth of God’s salvation, and the demands of following Jesus, clearly that only those who have counted the cost and are ready to give up ALL for Christ will join themselves to you.

Boy what an impact that statement made on me during a time in my spiritual journey when I thought church was only to be worked on, maintenance wise, it has been my desire to see as many as possible come to Christ - I pray to see them come in their hundreds and even thousands - BUT I DON‘T JUST WANT TO GET A CROWD . . . that doesn’t interest me at all! I want to see men and women, young people, boys and girls turning to Christ with whole hearts; becoming true sold out disciples committed to the fullness of Life in Jesus Christ for all. Hallelujah!

And so, it’s interesting to read of Jesus’ way of dealing with those who expressed a desire to follow Him; He seems to be trying to discourage them. But not really. In actual fact Jesus’ desire is that people will follow Him but He wants them to think it through first . . . to count the cost involved . . . so that once they do follow Him they’ll never turn back. Even as He spells out what is required in such clear, shocking terms, inside He is longing for them to accept it - He’s rooting for them - but the cost is the cost . . . it’s non-negotiable . . . and they/we MUST be prepared for it.

What can the call to discipleship, the faithfulness to the word of Jesus, mean today for us? What is his will for us today? Drawing on one of many of my summer readings, The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer. For me Bonhoeffer answers these timeless questions by providing an influential reading of the separation between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonhoeffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship.... Costly grace is the gospel, which must be sought again and again, the girl, which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know.... It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life.” Man’ these words are strong, aren’t they? Here is what it will cost you to follow after Jesus. In short, it will cost you EVERYTHING. He calls for us to commit ourselves completely to Him, and hold nothing back and help all in need. And that to me is the picture of the authentic numbers of Christian in the Pews.

Jesus said to the first man: “COUNT THE COST”. He said to the second man: “LEAVE IT BEHIND”. And He said to the third man: “DON’T LOOK BACK”. The bell to your heart's door rings today. There stands Jesus. He is recruiting you to join Him in the mighty job of “Building” numbers in the pews, and help those who are vulnerable, which is forever.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

This-ness

“This is My Father’s World”

This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears, All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres, This is my father’s world: I rest me in the thought of rocks and trees, of skies And seas; His hand the wonders wrought, This is my father’s world, the birds their carols raise, The morning light, the lily white, declare their maker’s praise. This is my father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair; In the rustling grass I hear Him pass; He speaks to me every where.

Can you believe I’ve sung that hymn a million times and never once stopped to consider what it was saying? Go figure. What does it mean to You?

Recently my wife and I were planning a trip to San Francisco. As we planned our trip, I learned a valuable lesson about mutual support from California majestic redwood trees. Redwoods are inclusive trees as they grow, they incorporate into their basic structure objects around them, including rocks and other plants. Although redwoods have shallow roots, they are noted for their strength and longevity because they share their roots with others. Each individual tree is invited into the whole and in turn helps support the entire group. This adaptation appears to have worked, for redwoods are among the oldest living species of vegetation on earth.

We as Christians could learn a lesson about inclusiveness and sharing from the redwoods during these times. Sometimes, I am a little embarrassed by how little I think about the relationship between my faith and the natural everyday world. What about outside the church building in a different context, do we really love to tell the story to our neighbor? To our unchurched friends, our family, our coworkers, or our fellow students? I suppose, if we are really honest about it, many of us would say, No, I guess telling the story about Jesus in public makes me a little uncomfortable at times.

I recently read a book entitled, The Embarrassed Believer, by Hugh Hewitt. The author writes, “Many Christians today can hardly make themselves say the 'J' word, pray in a restaurant, or invite a colleague to church. They cringe at anything that makes their commitment visible in this current environment. Every Sunday in the safety of the sanctuary, many believers sit and pray with sincerity and gusto, then vanish and go silent the next six days.” What’s the reason? Public expression of faith is not only unfashionable, but it is seen as slightly bizarre. No one likes to think people are looking at them, thinking they are bizarre. So they are discouraged into thinking that maybe their critics are right. 'Why should we bother? It won’t make any difference anyway.' Jesus instructs us to go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the ‘whole of creation.’ We must share our roots, heritage and faith with each other, to ask for encouragement and support when we need it, as we stand ready to give the same to all of creation. You and I have one life to live and many stories. This life has many chapters. What is He doing in your life today? How will this chapter read? And how will you share it with others! So, brothers and sisters in Christ, he who has ears to hear, listen: that seed is good and powerful! As you tell the story, remember, many people are ready to hear it, and the harvest will be great. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. That is our Good News.

As you go on your way, may Christ go with you;
may be go before you to show you the way,
behind you to encourage you,
beside you to befriend you,
above you to watch over,
and within you to give you his peace.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

If we build it they will come

Acts 8: 26-40
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go south to the road the desert road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. The Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot and stay near it." Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. "Do you understand what you are reading?" Philip asked.
"How can I," he said, "unless someone explains it to me?" So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture:
"He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, And as a lamb before the shearer is silent,
so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.
Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."

The eunuch asked Philip, "Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?" Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptized?" And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

This points out to me that Philip an ordinary man (not one of the apostles) like you and I, was taught how to minister not only to one man but to a nation who would be introduced to Christ by this new convert. Now one could say, three cheers for Philip! We thank God for his powerful witness which was fluent with words and had the personality which made it easy for him to talk with other people about Christ, but was Philip the exception.

Believers in Christ were not ashamed to tell others about Jesus Christ! The Christian witness was heard clearly in the New Testament Church. Is that witness as strong in the Church today? That's the question I ask in this message today? "How does the witness of the Church in the 21st century compare with the Church in the New Testament? Or is that a fair question?”

What made the Christian Church grow in those years? God was using great preaching to make Christ known. But more than that, the streets were filled with those verbal witnesses who used the opportunity to tell the story of Christ and the way of salvation.

It would be unfair and incorrect to say that there is little or no verbal witness in our churches today or even to suggest we need to go door to door in our witnessing. So, do we get an A+ for doing a good job in the department of witnessing within the church? No, especially when the Church is decreasing in membership, or even remaining status quo, it is evident that our message of evangelism does not have a high priority in our ministry, or have we loss touch today in teaching how to spread the message of Christianity in our time.
Just recently I read a book by Gustav Nelson, “Service is the Point” in the book it tells us that in the mainline churches there has been a major decline in membership compared to the Mega Evangelical Churches. Nelson says, "The disturbing part is that of those still in church, about one-third are not very active. They show up on the doorsteps of the church (guest) with surprising regularity. They are looking for the transcendent, and we give them an invitation to sit on a committee. This description, argues Gustav Nelson, demonstrates what is wrong with the model of church membership that has dominated in churches for quite some time. According to this participatory model, the principal responsibility of church membership is to participate in the programs and functions of the local congregation. While the participatory model has been successful in recruiting individuals to be there while the church doors are open, how well has it prepared those same individuals for Christian life apart from the church? What would happen if we really took seriously our rhetoric about service in the world as the focus of Christian discipleship? The answer, Gustav Nelson contends, would be a new model of membership, in which the church exists to empower believers for the ministries in the workplace and home to which God has already called us. Worship would become the central activity of the gathered congregation, the time when assurance of forgiveness is given, new life in Christ celebrated, and Christians are commissioned anew for the ministries of the week. The vision of the church would turn outward, with the purpose of training Christians to bear witness to Jesus Christ through service in the community throughout the week. The educational ministries of the church would focus on giving depth and vigor to our understanding of the vocations we fill daily.

It doesn't paint a promising picture for mainline churches today. And while some of our mainline churches are having success with change, we need to ask ourselves,” what are they doing? How can we model that change? And better yet how will you as a leader lead the change?” I know from experience that asking people to share their faith does not come natural for the average Christian in the congregation. Is the answer, to start yearly vision quests of encouragement in-which Christians teach some of the basic principles on “ how to share our Christian faith”; or do we engage in things like hospitality, prayer, studying scripture, knowing our church history with reflection, service and paying attention to people’s spiritual lives. This is serious, for Christ's mandate to His Church was to tell the story of God's love. If the Church does not do this on a one-to-one basis, it is not being faithful to the mission Christ gave us to do. Or do we continue to have the attitude if we build it they will come.

Yes, in the early Church lives were being changed and Christ's Body was growing. The question? And I quote,” If the old village and all the old answers have vanished, then how do seekers determine goodness, truthfulness and beauty?” by Diana Butler Bass,” Christianity For the Rest of Us “. (a great read for all!)

Is there a strong witness for Christ coming from our congregation and denomination? What are we called to be and is it God Honoring? These are questions that must be given much consideration, for the life of the Church to me depends on it.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

FUN

John 21:1-3
Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: Simon Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

“I’m going fishing.”

Those were Peter’s words spoken sometime between Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven. Why do you suppose Peter decided to go fishing? And why do you suppose six of the other disciples said, “We’re going with you.” I have a suspicion that they were getting bored. It was the same routine each day. The routine of just sitting there and waiting for Jesus’ next instructions was getting pretty long. Peter wanted action, and he simply could not stand just sitting around without an agenda to motivate him.
We are emotional people! We think and we feel. Often emotional thoughts are stronger than rational thoughts. Our emotions are never stable. Sometimes they are high, and other times they are low depending upon what is happening in our lives.

About a month ago, I was lying on the couch and saying, “I’m bored.” I was feeling sorry and hurtful for myself about everything. Life’s routine was affecting my job, thoughts about the church, friends you name it. There was nothing to do, it seemed and no one to entertain me. There was a workout to be done, a house to be cleaned; I could read, I could write down my thoughts or do whatever came to mind, I could do it but I was not motivated, I was having a pity party day. I had become excessively self-focused and that’s when I thought this was a warning sign from God that there was a “disease” in my heart that must be faced. Grow up! You’re not supposed to like your job every day. Perfect church, it doesn’t exist because it is made up of people. It’s not supposed to be fun all the time. That’s why they call it work. If work was supposed to be fun all the time, most places would be spelled F-U-N. Many days you won’t feel like going or being, and if you do, you won’t enjoy it. Big deal. Go anyway. Do what you have to do. And do it with all your heart. Put your passion into your existence your spirituality and see what happens.

A wise man once said, “All of life’s occurrences are to be either enjoyed or learned from.” This is a different perspective from the one we usually hold. We have been conditioned to believe that life is a combination of good and bad and that the price we pay for the good is the bad. Yet there is another way of looking at our life. During the boring times of life, God is working to instill His character in us; with that in mind boredom maybe our opportunity to experience the presence of the Lord.” And yet, it is so hard for some of us to be quiet and listen to what God’s plan is for us.

The hurts and sorrows that we as Christians feel in life are not punishments from our Creator; to me they are messages given to us by a loving God, who is showing us exactly what we need to change in order to grow. As with Peter we must learn the importance’s of quiet time. It is a gift from God. It was in one of those quiet times that God took Peter a step further in his understanding of God’s Kingdom by showing him that Christ had died for all. I used to think that boredom was my enemy but it is a friend. It is the driving force that pushes us out of our comfortable nest and forces us to learn to fly on our own. When times are darkest, we develop the fortitude to rally again and win if we understand the true nature of adversity and life’s challenges. Without it our growth is slow; with it we are transformed from fledglings into masters and that’s when we get those aha moments.

Who can lift you in those times of boredom? Jesus can, but first you have to know him. Do you? Is He yours? Empowered by the Holy Spirit, do you receive Him anew every day? Then He has a mission for you that will erase all boredom. Martin Luther said,” a man should live with the day of his death placarded before his eyes”. Luther managed to turn the world upside down. Life with the Lord taught Peter an important lesson. Nothing happens of importance in the life of a Christian unless there is a regular quiet time with the Lord. He will lead and guide us as to what His will is for our lives.

It is in this routine time of life with the Lord, that you meet your greatest challenges, and when the challenge comes from the Lord, life is no longer boring.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

“Who listens to them anyway?”

John 18:33-38
Pilate than went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?” Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “It was your people and your chief priest who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.” You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”
“What is truth?” Pilate asked.
We are inundated with questions on every conceivable subject, and with each question there are just as many answers. This leads to confusion, and with a great deal of frustration we ask, what is truth?

Do you remember what it was like as a child attending church every Sunday morning? My favorite hymn was “The Lord is on Our Side.” At the time the words to that song were just words. But today they fall upon my ears with new meaning and truth. After struggling for many years and encountering a host of belief setbacks, at times I have struggled to be consistent in my Christian witness. Have you ever had someone ask you where your Christianity is today, after you made some unkind, critical remark? Or have you ever been conversing with a good friend who reduced Jesus to an insignificant person? That is the perfect time to tell them that Jesus is more than a teacher - he wants to be their Savior. You could encourage them to make him a part of their life. Instead you keep silent, because you don't want to offend your friend plus it is here, that the world says, that Christianity needs to be changed. Reduce Christ to a great martyr and prophet, and the world will admire him; such a change for me is not an option.
That is inconsistency. I have come to the stark realization that the world is tough but simple and that life can sometimes be difficult to swallow, But I welcome the soothing words of that song from my past to help strengthen my beliefs for today and to become a person of action.

Our spiritual/religious beliefs are very important. What we believe controls our lives and provides correction to our lives. What we believe as children is important as well. Some truths (beliefs) never change. Gospel truth never changes. Biblical truth never changes. And these truths make a big difference in the way we live. Recently, I shared the following beliefs with a friend,” I believe that the Bible is still God's Word. It is God-inspired, God-breathed, and God-given. We need to read it, refer to it often, and rejoice in it. As we listen to it, lean on it, learn from it, and allow it to lift us up as we love our neighbors! God works through his Word the Bible, and the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion to empower us as new creations that no longer strive against Him, but are restored to fellowship with him, through Jesus Christ our Savior.”

Jesus says, “Everyone who is on the side of truth listens to me.” Our culture's response to this statement seems to be to take the parts of Jesus' teachings that people will accept and leave the rest for the theologians to write books and argue about. “Who listens to them anyway?”

The question the Christian must answer is this: How will we be seen in today's culture if we seriously follow the truths Jesus teaches us?

The Lord's love is old, but strong and powerful and ever new. The Lord's commission still stands. And the Lord's return is still promised; old truths, old songs, with refreshing gospel truths that are powerful and eternal. We to me are a Community of all Believers as long as the focus is Christ centered. Remember what Jesus said, “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.” Jesus neither taught, nor gave the impression, that the Church is going to be a cozy group, where each can believe what they want to believe, and they are not challenged because unity is all important. This to me is our witness, and it must be consistent. Tell it, sing it and model it whenever you have an opportunity at work or at worship, with Christians or with unbelievers, in all kinds of circumstances and conditions in your life.

The world needs to hear your consistent Christian witness. Where God's word speaks, the Christian is challenged to speak. As we speak, the Holy Spirit works. Love the Church. Christ does. With all of its imperfections, it is still the Body of Christ.

God Bless You and This Ministry!

“Whoop, There it is”

Corinthians 9:19-23
“Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.


I don’t know about you, but often the inner promptings I get from God to reach out in love to someone are difficult. I could be preparing a article, a lesson at school or I could be at a conference learning a new computer task or football technique and “Boom! There it is! Love that person!” Now let me poke a bit deeper and I confess that evangelism is frequently hard for me for a number of reasons. I find I’d rather talk to someone about sports or politics or even theology. Plus the statement that God loves you and has sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to die for you isn’t joyfully received by all people? It isn’t. It wasn’t received two thousand years ago in Corinth, and it isn’t received today by millions of people in America. Evangelism is not as easy as I’d like.

I want to suggest that our inconvenience with living out the Great Commission is tied to the Great Commandments. How so? The best evangelism, as nearly every statistic tells us, emerges from love and out of a relationship. Whatever we call it, the best evangelism is nurtured by love.

When Jesus was asked by a scribe what was the greatest commandment of all, Jesus recited a confession of Jewish faith which is called, “Schema” and then, rather surprising to the scribe, added an obscure command from Leviticus 19:18: “The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:28-32). Because Jesus amended the historic creed of Israel, the Shema, into a love God and love others command, we can call this “confession of faith” the Jesus Creed.

The essence of living before God is to love God; the essence of living with others is to love others. If we recite the Jesus Creed, as often as the ancient Israelites did it works into our Soul.

Now my ponder: What’s the different between those who let the Jesus Creed work into their DNA and those who let it work through their minds? For me the answer is rather natural: love of God and love of others, the kind of Great Commandments that make the Great Commission our delight that tremble my heart; not one’s based on fact, proof and given enough time, we will solve our problems only through our human intellect.

Those who live the Great Commandments discover themselves setting up Jesus Creed feeders for their neighbors. Well, Paul has a word for us: “To the weak I became weak to win the weak for Christ. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I might share its blessings.” In these words God is telling us to live with a sensitive ear. Without compromising your Christian convictions, learn what it is to be adaptable and be all things to all people that they might see Christ in you. When that unbelieving or confused person visits with you, he or she might not agree with your Christian belief, but they will know that you are different, for the Spirit of Christ dwells in you.

God Bless You and This Ministry!!

“Impacted by Impressions”

Mark 12:18-27

Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question,” Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and have children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. At the resurrection whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?” Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the scriptures or the power of God? When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. Now about the dead rising have you not read in the book of Moses, in the account of the bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

This text gives us an excellent example of how the Sadducees evade the big questions in their religious life and try to make the teaching of the resurrection look ridiculous. And today some are still avoiding the big questions of life by asking less important ones. I wonder is it because our society is governed by the power of impressions which can influence our spiritual lives. These impressions flow in a constant stream often times uninvited in ways that make me wonder by what authority it does comes from?

We create our friendships and relationships on them. Careers can be made or stalled depending on how a boss or manager views our work and ability. Politicians are often selected not by what they actually believe and represent, but what people think they believe, represent or what kind of inspirational speaker they are. To me our views of God, of spirituality, and of the church have all been impacted by impressions from our life experiences. So what’s the essential big question? Do we busy ourselves with the less important questions so that we do not have to face the big questions dealing with our relationship with God and the mission of the Church? There is that danger. Or is it we live in a society today that craves spirituality, but does not have an interest in religion?

We live in a time when people are seeking spiritual things, spiritual answers, and yet have no concept of or relationship with their Creator. I wonder if one of the main reasons for these problems lies in the impression that people have concerning Christianity and Jesus Christ today. There are many misconceptions about Jesus; there are a lot of wrong ideas. There are half-truths, and watered-down characterizations about Jesus. Some of those pieces may be accurate, others are not, but the end result is the same, “impressions”. So let me ask you the following questions: what is your impression of Jesus? What happens to our beliefs if Jesus is removed? What would our lives be like without a Jesus who is the way, the truth and the life? I come to the conclusion that it takes Faith to come under authority not faith in man but Faith in God who ultimately controls the outcome of our impressions. At times you might feel alone and uncertain about spiritual things in these times. The truth is; God is never far away and he is in control. Don’t be afraid to take steps of Faith, even if they seem to you to be giant ones. God will never let you down! Let’s learn from Jesus’ visit with the Sadducees and remember to talk about the big questions, “Where do I stand in my relationship with God.” Who do you say Jesus is?” and” Which is the greatest commandment”. The conversation is still relevant.

God Bless You and This Ministry

“Remember”

But when he came to his senses, he said, “How many of my father’s hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger! Luke 15:17

Memory can be the first step on your way back. In this verse the prodigal son suddenly remembered his home and is speaking to those who are in the inside but have lost their way. Do you feel you/we have lost our way?

The Bible says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee; and he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a city.” This is a great thought, but have you ever felt just a little frustrated with these kinds of words especially around the New Years when it’s so difficult to keep your mind focused on new objectives, goals or New Year resolutions based on faith? In my preoccupied and sometimes hectic life, I need the patience of a saint to “think on these things” all the time. But I must admit commitment to new goals every year is the engine that makes spiritual growth happen for me, it’s the key part of my heart that drives my being, purpose within this Christian life that seems like a marathon; one we’ll be running the rest of our lives but even in a marathon, you’ll find pit stops where you can have a sense of accomplishment and steps to a finish line.

A day after his checkup a man called his doctor to get his results. The doctor said he had bad news and worse news for him. Which did he want to hear first? The man decided he’d rather hear the bad news first. His doctor said, “The bad news is that you have only twenty four hours to live.” As expected, the man became distraught. He shouted into the phone, “Twenty-four hours to live? I can’t believe this it’s incredible! What could be worse news than this?” The doctor replied, “The worse news is I was supposed to tell you yesterday, but I forgot.”

So what’s the key? How do you stay focused in the midst of turmoil? How do you walk across that room and share your faith with all? Each morning I take just a few precious minutes to mentally visualize on an image from scripture that will set the tone for me the entire day. Jesus was a master at this. When he talked to fishermen he said, “Follow Me. I’ll make you a fisher of men.” They got the picture immediately. When he talked to a farmer, he said, “The Word of God is like seeds. They’ll grow 30, 60, and 100 fold.” He said, “I want to be your shepherd” to people who knew about sheep. Jesus had a way of giving people just the right picture to help them get to their next level of commitment. This mental conditioning helps to slow me down or buoy me up depending on my needs. These precious moments incite me to enthusiasm and calm me with tranquility. Just a few minutes each day can work wonders. By taking time to center ourselves we can approach life in a peaceful state of consciousness. Our faith teaches us that we must lean on our Savior for He alone is our strength and our security. Have you heard my words today? Do you believe it is true? If so the good news is the longer we walk, talk and mentally visualize the model of Christ in His Word, the stronger we become. The more we express our Lord’s faithfulness, the more secure we are. He makes all things new.
My visual picture for you today is, “Fear not. I am with you. I will comfort you and strengthen you. I will direct you.” God Bless You and This Ministry!