“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!