Reflection: Naming God's Promises (December 22, 2013)

The 4th Sunday in Advent
Isaiah 7:10-17; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25

There’s a persistent false teaching among Christians (primarily in America) that that believers can shape God’s promises by “naming it and claiming it.” Like many false teachings, this one has enough truth in it to make it seem legitimate. It starts by pointing out that God has made many promises to His people (true) and that when God makes a promise that He will certainly keep it (also true). But then it makes the believer, rather than God, the source of crafting the promise (false) by instructing the believer to “name” the promise and making it specific to what they are seeking from God even if God’s promise is not as specific as what is “named.” At the core of this sinful exploitation is turning the naming of God’s promises upside down and backwards. What we learn from His Word is that God, not we, name His promises.

God’s promises are certain because He makes them, not us. Very rarely does God leave it up to someone to name a promise. King Ahaz is one of those rare examples. God offered Ahaz the opportunity to “ask a sign of the Lord your God” so that God could prove what He was revealing through Isaiah. When Ahaz foolishly refused to name a promise, God made and named one of His own: “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Like all of God’s promises, the promise which He named “Immanuel” (which means “God with us”) was kept in due time. Long after Ahaz and the kings that he feared had passed from the scene, God announced to a virgin named Mary that she would give birth to His Son. It wasn’t something that Mary had asked for, let alone “named” and “claimed,” but she was willing to receive it along with the difficulties that it brought her. Among those difficulties was that of explaining to her betrothed husband how she had become pregnant as a virgin. From our perspective, Joseph acted reasonably and justly when he decided to name Mary on a divorce certificate and end their relationship. But God had other plans for Joseph. He revealed that He had chosen Joseph to play a special role in the life of Immanuel and then revealed the full intent of the promise made to Ahaz, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

The promise that God named first to Ahaz and then named again more clearly to Joseph is the very promise that we are preparing to celebrate on Christmas: God coming to be with us in order to save us. God named His promise to rescue us from sin, death, and everlasting punishment; and the name of His promise is Jesus.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Naming God's Promises" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: The Violence of God's Kingdom (December 15, 2103)

The 3rd Sunday in Advent
Isaiah 35:1-10; James 5:7-11; Matthew 11:2-15

The prophet Isaiah described the coming kingdom of God as a time in which “everlasting joy shall be upon their heads” and when we will “obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away” (Is. 35:10). Based on that description of God’s kingdom, we might expect it to be a kingdom of peace. But Jesus painted a very different picture for us. He described God’s kingdom as coming with violence. Either Jesus is contradicting the Old Testament or we’re missing something. So, what are we missing?

What we find described in Isaiah is the end state of God’s kingdom. One day, when Jesus comes again in power and glory, the kingdom of God will be a peaceful kingdom in which we will experience and enjoy everything in today’s Old Testament reading and more. We have to wait for this. This is why our Epistle lesson calls us to “be patient … until the coming of the Lord.” We’re encouraged that “the coming of the Lord is at hand,” but we’re also reminded that until the Lord returns that we will endure suffering and need to “establish our hearts” in order to rise to the challenges that come with the kingdom here and now — the very challenges to which Jesus was referring when He said that “until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force” (Matt. 11:12).

The violence that Jesus was referring to is not reflected in the violent actions of people, but in the driving forces of nature. As a violent storm drives the waves the ocean and a violent wind presses against structures to the point of their collapse, those who understand the nature of the kingdom of God are driven to it. Contrary to what others have tried through the ages, the violence of God’s kingdom does not take hold of people, but “violent” (i.e., driven and desperate people) take hold of the Kingdom. Martin Luther described it this way: “Since John [the Baptist] showed the people their sins and shortcomings, which all pastors should do, they longed so for the kingdom of God and its help that they immediately and forcefully pressed toward it and seized it. God loves such guests; they who are thus hounded by their sins and transgressions are welcome to him.”

We live in the Kingdom of God now while it is in its “violent” state. It’s challenging and it’s dangerous. It brings us to the Cross and calls for the patient endurance that comes from establishing our hearts with the hope that one day all the struggling, suffering, and violence will cease and we will live in peace. That day is coming soon.

Click here to listen to the sermon "The Violence of God's Kingdom" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Endurance, Encouragement, and Hope (December 8, 2013)

The 2nd Sunday in Advent
Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12

“It’s a marathon, not a sprint” describes many of life’s challenges and opportunities. This saying conveys the understanding that whatever it is that we are getting ready to undertake will take a lot of time and energy to finish. Whether it’s something that we are pursuing as a life goal, like working toward a college degree or starting a new career, or it is something that has happened to us without our choosing it, like recovering from an injury or illness, the marathons in our lives require us to have stamina and drive. When we know what is coming our way, we can prepare for the challenges of the marathons in our lives. Even then, we often find that our endurance and resolve isn’t enough to run these marathons. We also need the encouragement of other people in order to keep going when we feel like giving up. Without both endurance and encouragement, we would lose hope.

Like running marathons and living out the marathons of our lives, we also need endurance and encouragement to meet the challenges of living our lives faithfully before God. Our life in Christ is also a marathon that calls for serious preparation. Beginning in Baptism and continuing to the day we enter into Christ’s presence through physical death, our journey in the Faith is all encompassing. It is the most challenging marathon that we can experience. We would quickly lose heart and give up running the course of faithfulness to Christ if it were not for the endurance and encouragement that He provides.

John the Baptist shows us what it takes to be prepared for our spiritual marathon with Jesus. John’s ministry was a ministry of preparing people through the preaching of repentance and then either baptizing those who were penitent for forgiveness or rebuking and warning those who were impenitent. He calls us to prepare the way for the Kingdom to come into our lives through repentance. Unfortunately, we often think of repentance as a sprint rather than as a marathon. When we do, we’re likely to lose hope when our lives are not immediately conformed to Christ and we continue to struggle with sin and the effects of sin in our lives. When we understand that a life of repentance is a marathon we are far more prepared to meet the challenges of living out our Baptisms in a fallen world. With the endurance and the encouragement of God’s Word, we live each day in repentance knowing that when we stumble God will hold us up (or pick us up) and see us to the completion of the race that He has set before us. With His endurance and His encouragement we will abound in hope.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Endurance, Encouragement, and Hope" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Our Hour Has Come (December 1, 2013)

The 1st Sunday in Advent
Isaiah 2:1-5; Romans 13:8-14; Matthew 24:36-44

After France fell to Nazi Germany, Winston Churchill delivered one of his most famous speeches to prepare his nation for the Battle of Britain. He called on his countrymen to rise to the challenge of turning back the Nazis and then to liberate Europe. He put before them the very real threats that they would face as well as the potential of achieving what he said history would recognized as Britain’s “finest hour.”

As Jesus prepared to go to the Cross, He explained to His disciples the very real threats that they would face from His enemies. He also shared with them what would come about when Satan unleashed all of his power and might in a final
assault on the Church. Jesus told them that “No one knows that day and hour, not even the Son, but only the Father only“ so that instead of focusing on a date they would understand that Jesus was giving them (and us) a calling. His statement, “Stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming,” is His way of encouraging us to be ready to meet the challenges of what is meant to be our finest hour.

We struggle with this call because we look at and experience time in a very different way than God does. The psalmist explains that “a thousand years in Your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as a watch in the night” (Ps. 90:4). We, on the other hand, live our lives with precise measurements of time. So when God tells us that “the hour has come” we think in terms of a clock rather than in terms of our circumstances. Yet if we look around and take Jesus’ teachings to heart, we quickly recognize that the time to wake from our spiritual slumber and rise to meet our oppressive enemy has certainly arrived. We do know the time, that is, the times in which we live. And these times are filled with all of the indications that the day of the Lord is fast approaching.

That great and terrible day of the Lord has been fast approaching for nearly two thousand years. If we think about that with our idea of time we will have no sense of urgency. But when we realize that it is like two days to God we start to understand that time is very short indeed. “The hour has come for you to wake from sleep” is an urgent appeal to rise to the challenges of our time, “cast off the works of darkness,” “put on the armor of light,” “make no provision for the flesh,” and, above all, “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” Time is running out and there is much work for us to do while it can be done. The stage is set. The time has come for us to shine as we “walk in the light of the Lord.” In Him, through Him, and by Him this will be our finest hour.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Our Hour Has Come" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: What a King! (November 24, 2013)

Christ the King Sunday
Malachi 3:13-18; Colossians 1:13-20; Luke 23:27-43

“What a King!” the people of Israel might have said as a complaint about how the Lord was dealing with the evil people in their midst. They knew God’s warnings that He would not tolerate those who rebelled against Him. But they also knew that people doing evil things weren’t facing God’s wrath but were prospering. They questioned why they should serve and obey Him when those who did evil “not only prosper but they put God to the test and they escape” (Malachi 3:15). What kind of King puts up with such insolence and arrogance?

“What a King!” captures the disgust and disappointment of those who gathered at the Cross of Jesus. Mocked, beaten, and crucified, Jesus didn’t look anything like a king — and certainly not the king that they wanted for themselves. They were looking for a warrior king who would destroy their enemies and free them from the Romans. But the words “This is the King of the Jews” were posted over Him by the Roman governor to mock the Jewish people, who, in turn, mocked and insulted Jesus. “If you are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!” they screamed. What kind of king would allow such abuse?

“What a King!” is the underlying attitude toward Jesus in our culture. Immersed in self-centeredness, entitlement, and excessive freedom, we have no place for kings in our lives. But if we did, we’d choose a far better king than Jesus; one who would promise what we desire, tell us what we want to hear, and guarantee our prosperity. In contrast, Jesus calls us to suffering and sacrifice, to deny ourselves, serve others, and live in humility. What a king!

Jesus is not the king that the world wants, but He is the King that it needs. “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col 1:13). The callous inscription above Him on the Cross was ironically true, but not the whole truth. Jesus is not only the king of the Jews but He is the king of all people, even those who mock, ridicule, and reject Him. He holds the keys to death and hell as well as the keys to His Kingdom of Grace. When He returns in glory “every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Phil. 2:10–11). In fear or in joy, every person, every ruler, every world leader from every age of humanity will bow down to Jesus. What a King!

Click here to listen to the sermon "What a King!" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: This Will Be Your Opportunity ..." (November 17, 2013)

The 26th Sunday after Pentecost
Malachi 4:1-6; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; Luke 21:5-28

Thomas Edison once said "The reason a lot of people do not recognize opportunity is because it usually goes around wearing overalls looking like hard work." Jesus would probably find a lot to agree with in Edison's comment. However, Jesus didn't describe opportunity in terms of hard work but of hard circumstances. As He explained to His disciples how terrible things would get when the world’s resistance to the Gospel grows more and more intense as the Last Day approaches, He gave them (and us) His perspective of those terrible days. “This will be your opportunity to bear witness,” Jesus said. Time has proven Jesus to be right. Whenever the Church has faced great hardship and persecution faithful disciples of Jesus have used the opportunities to share the Gospel. Many were put to death for bearing their witness. But, as the early church leader Tertullian (160-225 AD) wrote, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.”

Why is it that Christians under persecution, even facing death for the Faith, can see in their hardships opportunities to bear witness to Jesus while we consistently and habitually miss those opportunities in our safe and protected circumstances? Even though our religious rights are eroding through legislation and court actions, we are free to speak of Jesus in our everyday lives with little or no risk of persecution. And when we do face some hardships for bearing witness to Jesus, our troubles are trivial compared to Christians in different eras and believers in other parts of the world today. We’re not very good at recognizing opportunity in hardship. But, given that the hardships of being believers in our culture are only going to grow more widespread and more intense, we need to get better at it.

The inevitability of the hardship, suffering, and persecution of Christians is found in God’s Word. “The day is coming” Malachi declares. “The days will come” Jesus plainly states. “You will be delivered up” He warns us. It’s only a matter of when and where these things will happen to His Church. He tells us to be ready, to “not grow weary in doing good,” and to “straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” And our redemption is drawing near and through us it is also drawing near to those who do not know the love, joy, and peace of Jesus but can and might if we take to heart that in these things will be our great opportunity to be witnesses of Jesus.

Click here to listen to the sermon "This Will Be Your Opportunity ..." (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Approaching Jesus (November 10, 2013)

The 25th Sunday after Pentecost
Exodus 3:1-15; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-8, 13-17; Luke 20:27-40

As our culture’s celebrities try to outdo one another in exposing themselves through revealing clothing, it’s clear that we’ve let our casual attitudes go too far. While our culture once held to the axiom that “clothes make the man,” there seems to be little regard today for what was once accepted as proper dress. One example of this is how people dress for court appearances. While lawyers still dress up their clients to make a good (if misleading) impression of defendants, many others see no problem coming before the court wearing whatever’s comfortable. In some cases such people have been sent away until they can present themselves in attire suitable and with an attitude appropriate for approaching the court.

It’s the underlying attitude, rather than the outward clothing, that is the real problem we have in our culture. People see themselves as perfectly worthy of approaching whomever they care to (or have to) in whatever manner they feel like. If such an attitude is not tolerated by human judges, how much more harshly should such an attitude be dealt with by the Judge of all creation? Yet people continue to approach Jesus as though they are entitled to come into His presence and He should be happy that they’ve made any appearance at all. They approach Jesus just as smugly and confidently as the Sadducees did when they came challenging Him with their silly question about the Resurrection. What a contrast to the way that
Moses approached God when he saw the burning bush on Mt. Horeb. Once Moses understood that he was in the presence of the Almighty, he covered his face and turned his eyes away to keep from looking upon our holy God. Moses realized that he  had no business being in God’s presence and no right to approach Him. It was only by God’s Word and through His mercy that such a sinful man could come into the presence of the Lord.

How are you approaching Jesus? Do you have the attitude of the Sadducees and the people of our culture? Or do you shy away from God’s presence out of fear and shame? Actually, Jesus is inviting you to approach Him in an altogether different way: as one whom He considers worthy to attain the Resurrection, chosen by Him to be saved, and who can approach Him in the confidence that comes through His forgiveness. By His grace you can stand firm before Him now and in the day of judgment which is coming with the approaching Jesus.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Approaching Jesus" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: It's a Love/Hate Relationship (November 3, 2013)

All Saints Sunday
Revelation 7:9-17; 1 John 3:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12

We know about love/hate relationships. Some are between us and our possessions, especially our devices. We love our mobile phones and all of the amazing things they can do; and we hate them when they malfunction, drop a call, or make us feel inept. We also have love/hate relationships with our sports teams. We love them when they’re winning and when they make it into post-season play, but we hate them when they have losing streaks or blow an important game. The more difficult love/hate relationships that we experience are the ones we have with the people in our lives whom we love even though they do or say things that anger, hurt, or disappoint us. But the one that is most destructive to us is the love/hate relationship we have with the world.

We love the world. We embrace its ideas of success. We pursue the goals that it says are important. We seek worldly comfort and security. We expend our time, money, and energy trying to win the favor and blessings of worldly people. As much as we love the world, the world hates us. But we won’t admit that the world hates us. And even if we do realize that the world hate us, we don’t understand why it does. We've forged a dysfunctional, co-dependent relationship with the world and live in a dangerous denial. We adjust and adapt to the world’s mistreatment in order to get what we can out of the hate-filled object of our affections. When we do, we’re missing out on the greater blessings of living in active opposition to the world.

When Jesus said, “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account” He was calling us to end our love affair with the world and live as the children of God. As the children of God our first and only love is Him who has shown us the extent of His love by suffering and dying for us — and for the world that still hates Him. When we reject the self-serving advances of the world and find our hope, peace, safety, and security in the arms of the God who unconditionally loves us, the world reviles us. When we seek to share His love to liberate those who are captive to the  lusts of the world, the world persecutes us. When we model the love of Jesus in our lives, the world speaks all kinds of evil against us. Why? Because we are His saints, we are His children, and even though He loves the world the world hates Him. The world hates us because it hates Him. When we see this we find in Jesus the strength to ending our love/hate relationship with the world. Jesus has given us His Kingdom and freed us to rejoice and be glad in the loving relationship we have with Him — a love no hate can overcome.

Click here to listen to the sermon "It's a Love/Hate Relationship" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Compared to What? (October 27, 2013)

Reformation Sunday
Revelation 14:6-7; Romans 3:19-28; Matthew 11:12-19

When Jesus wanted to compare the generation of people who lived during His time to something, He chose  a familiar image to use for the comparison. Although it is obscure to us, His reference to “children sitting in the marketplace calling to their playmates  ‘We played the flute for you, and you id not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn’” struck a chord — and a nerve — with His audience. He was telling them that they were impossible to please and that they used double standards. He was calling them judgmental and unreasonable. In other words, Jesus was telling them that they were the ones who were forcefully resisting the Kingdom of Heaven.

Forceful resistance to the Kingdom makes up a significant part of the human story. It isn’t unique to the generation of Jesus’ time, but does characterize it. The Jewish people who lived as Jesus ushered in the New Covenant were particularly opposed to the Kingdom, because they were entrenched in a religious system that was based on good works and self-righteousness. The people who felt as though they had earned God’s favor through their efforts didn’t want to hear that “by works of the law no human being will be justified in His sight” (Rom. 3:20). And they especially wouldn’t accept Jesus’ teaching that He had come to do what they could not do under the Law.

The generations that have followed that of Jesus’ time haven’t fared much better. By the 16th Century, God’s grace was so obscured that the church had become a heartless institution. But God used that generation to restore the Gospel through the Reformation — a restoration of the Kingdom that was met with great violence. Faithfulness to Christ, even in the face of death, characterized that generation of believers. But what best describes our generation? To what shall we be compared? We’re a selfish, self-centered, and cynical people who have done great violence to the Gospel. We could be compared to a hurricane or tsunami because of our heartless, destructive ways; or to farm animals because we have become so crude as a society; or even to barbarians because of how we have trampled on the sanctity of human life. But Jesus compares us who have been washed in His blood and adopted into His family through Baptism to something altogether different — something altogether undeserved: We are His Bride, pure, spotless, and deeply loved by the God who has given us His Kingdom.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Compared to What?" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: WWJF-What Will Jesus Find? (October 20, 2013)

The 22nd Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 32:22-30; 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5; Luke 18:1-8

After Jesus told a parable to encourage His disciples “always to  pray and not lose heart,” He asked, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” While we can answer that question with a confident “yes” (after all, Jesus said elsewhere that not even the gates of hell can overcome His Church), we can’t answer with the certainty that He will find faith in our society. We live in a culture that encourages people to turn their hearts to false gods, celebrates false teachings, and rejoices when the Church falters. Our time has been called “post-church” and “post-gospel” and now even “pre-churched,” but it is by any name a rebellious, faithless time. But it is far from a unique time. Jesus’ first disciples faced a similar situation, one which Jesus addressed with the parable that was meant to encourage them … and us.

Unfortunately, people have twisted this parable so that it not only fails to bring us any encouragement but it puts a burden on us. Commonly used to prop up an unbiblical view of prayer, teachers in and outside of the Church have stripped away the main point of the parable and, in the process, made God out to be something that He isn’t. Worse yet, people actually prefer this corrupted understanding of the parable over it’s actual meaning! Why? Because it promotes prayer as a power (or tool) that we possess and can use to get God do what we want Him to do. And getting God to do what we want Him to do appeals to our human nature. The twisting around of this parable is just one example of how the warning found in today’s Epistle has come to fruition in our experience: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, having itching ears they will accumulated for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.” Is this what Jesus will find when He comes?

It all sounds so hopeless. But there is another question that Jesus asked that reminds us that God is faithful even when we are faithless: “Will not God give justice to His elect, who cry to Him day and night?” Here’s the key to finding comfort and encouragement in this parable. God is grossly unlike the judge who boasted “I neither fear God nor respect man.” Instead, God is kind, gracious, and loving to those whom He has called to eternal life, i.e., His elect. Confident of this, we “cry to Him day and night,” including the age-old, heartfelt prayer “Come, Lord Jesus,” because we know that by His grace He will find faith in us when He returns.

Click here to listen to the sermon "WWJF: What Will Jesus Find?" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Point of Return of of No Return? (October 13, 2013)

The 21st Sunday after Pentecost
Ruth 1:8-19a; 2 Timothy 2:1-13; Luke 17:11-19

There are no universal rules about returning things. Returning a favor can take place long after the initial kindness, but returning a borrowed car is likely to happen very much sooner. One shop may have a liberal policy regarding returning merchandise while another may have a “no returns” policy. Turning the car around on a trip can happen at any point, but after a space vehicle is launched it quickly reaches a point of no return, that is, a point at which it’s too late to turn around. While life is filled with points of no return, our walk with Jesus is more about points of return.

Today’s Old Testament is filled with calls to return. As Naomi prepared to return to her homeland she pleaded with her two daughter-in-law to leave her and return to their own people. One did, but the other, Ruth, didn’t. Ruth knew that there was ni going back for her. She had come to believe in and worship the true God and she recognized that she could not return to her roots because they involved worshiping false gods. “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God,” she told Naomi. She had reached a point (i.e., a reason and purpose) of no return.

The flip side of having a reason and purpose for not returning is found in today’s Gospel lesson. After Jesus healed ten men of leprosy, nine did not return to Him to thank and praise Him. Their point of not returning was evident: despite having been healed by Him, they did not have faith in Jesus as their God and Messiah. For them, there was no point in going back to Jesus. Instead, they were intent on going to the priests and doing what it took to comply with the legal requirements of being ceremonially clean. They looked to the Law for their righteousness. The faithlessness of the nine is highlighted by the return of the one. Recognizing that he had been delivered from the condemnation of the Law along with his physical healing, the Samaritan leper returned to Jesus. The point of his return was to thank and praise Him as his Savior and God.

How have you responded to Christ’s call to return? Do you think that it is too late for you to turn back, that you’ve reached a point in your life from which there is no way back? Or do you hear in His call God’s very point, His reason and purpose, to turn back from the sinful ways that you are pursuing in order to return to His mercy and grace? In Jesus there is always a point to return and never a point of no return.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Point of Return or of No Return?"

Reflection: Not What We Want to Hear (October 6, 2013)

The 20th Sunday after Pentecost
Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4; 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:1-10

If we could playback the soundtrack of our lives we’d all have segments in which we were told something that we didn’t want to hear. The phrases stick with us and even now cause our hearts to sink. “I’m afraid that the test results show cancer ...” “This just isn’t working out …” “I’m sorry for your loss ...” “Based on your credit score we can’t approve your mortgage application …” “Do you know why I stopped you …” As bad as these are, they can’t compare to the things that Jesus says to us that are not what we want to hear.

In today’s Gospel lesson Jesus says things that contradict the values of our culture and challenge the way that we’ve learned to live in this world. In contrast to our view that it isn’t our problem when a person takes offense at what we say or do, Jesus says that it’s better to be drown in the depths of the sea than to cause offense to those who are weak in faith. He then calls us to reject the “live and let live” attitude of our culture and actively intercede when a fellow believer sins — even when we think that the sin has nothing to do with us. Then He makes it personal by telling us that we must repeatedly forgive a brother or sister in Christ who sins against us and then repents. So much for the “hurt me once, shame on you; hurt me twice, shame on me” mentality of our culture. Finally, Jesus uses a story to convey what our attitude should be about shunning the world’s ways and doing what He is teaching us to do. He calls these extreme actions our duty and then says that after we’ve done what we’re told to do we should see ourselves as “unworthy servants” who “have only done what was our duty.” No praise, no thanks, no reward. Definitely not what we want to hear.

What we want to hear from Jesus is that we’re doing well and we’re fine just the way that we are. We want to hear promises of ease and prosperity, not a call to sacrifice and hardship. In other words, we want glory not the cross. But the cross is what we hear when we listen to Jesus. Certain temptation, confronting people in their sins, forgiving others without conditions, sacrifice as duty, and a call to “share in suffering for the Gospel” aren’t what we want to hear, but more than call us into these things Jesus joins us in them. He faced certain temptation, confronted sin, forgave freely, and sacrificed Himself on the Cross. Through His blood we are declared “the righteous who live by faith.” A proclamation that far exceeds everything that we once wanted to hear.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Not What We Want to Hear" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Hold On for Your Life (September 29, 2013)

The 19th Sunday after Pentecost
Amos 6:1-7; 1 Timothy 6:6-19; Luke 16:19-31

Action movies often include life-threatening situations in which the main
characters have to defy the odds to stay alive. Whether it’s being vastly outnumbered by zombies, rushing out of an exploding building, shooting it out with a superior fighting force, or defeating alien invaders, somehow the heroes of our movies find a way to live through it all. If they also are trying to save the lives of other, less capable people, they typically have to yell out to them in one scenario or another to “hold on for your life.” Following this advice is a certain way to survive against all odds, at least in the movies.

Anyone interested in surviving the challenges of real life is going to need more than the movies can offer. Very little of what saves lives and brings people through catastrophes in the fantasies of Hollywood can help people in times of actual crises. And nothing in this world, fictional or real, can bring us through the threats against our souls. More than the living dead and the supernatural destruction of movies, real spiritual forces are creating real havoc on the souls of people all around us. Unlike the action of popular movies, the spiritual destruction of those with whom we work, live, study, and play is very subtle. So subtle, in fact, that it fits in with the routines of daily living. The powerful deception that we are not in any spiritual danger has lulled many people into a complacency that makes God’s call to “hold on for your life” seem like nonsense. But it is the only way for us to take hold of life.

The call to “take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” is made in the context of rejecting the things that the world values in order to find contentment in true riches. It is a call into the most epic of battles, one which has caused far more destruction than any Hollywood writer, producer, or director could imagine. Unlike the fanciful adventures of the action movies that hold our attention, no one can escape from this destruction. Instead, we had to be rescued from it and now have to hold on for life to the grace and mercy of God in order to remain safe. Not only that, but we must cling firmly to His grace and mercy as we reenter the fray in order to bring the hope of rescue to those who are perishing. We may never be action figures or super heroes worthy of Hollywood’s attention, but as instruments of God grace we bring the real and only hope for people to “take hold of that which is truly life.”

Click here to listen to the sermon " Hold On for Your Life" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Being Shrewd with Unrighteous Wealth (September 22, 2013)

The 18th Sunday after Pentecost
Amos 8:4-7; 1 Timothy 2:1-15; Luke 16:1-15

The parable of the dishonest manager presents us with some real challenges. The most difficult part of understanding and applying this parable comes when the master commends the manager for doing something that seems dishonest to us. Whether it was or not isn’t the point of the parable. In fact, trying to determine whether he was being honest or not is likely to distract us from what Jesus is teaching. Without answering that ethical question, Jesus drives home His point by saying “the sons of this world are more shrewd” in how they make use of “unrighteous wealth” than we believers are. The message of this parable is that we should be the shrewd ones.

It’s no accident that the central character in Jesus’ parable is a manager, or, more accurately, a steward. As a steward, this man was responsible for making proper use of what belonged to someone else. He was entrusted with the “unrighteous wealth” (literally unrighteous “mammon”) of his master. His problems began when he acted unwisely and used what belonged to someone else as though it had belonged to him. When he was called out for his unfaithful stewardship, he quickly sized up the situation and acted wisely in his final acts as the steward of his master’s accounts.

Like the character in this parable, we are stewards. However, we are not stewards of “unrighteous wealth” but of the resources that belong to God which have been entrusted to us for His purposes and to His glory. Jesus’ point stings … greatly. If the people of the world are shrewd with “mammon” to gain power, riches, influence, etc. for themselves, we whom God has entrusted with money, time, abilities, and the Gospel should be all the more shrewd in making use of them for righteousness. We should be, but, too often and in too many ways, we’re not.

Our poor stewardship is the focus of this parable. But Jesus did not tell it to condemn us. Rather, He shares this parable with us as a call to rethink how we are making use of His gifts and, in sincere repentance, turn back from our unfaithful use of God’s wealth to pursue what the pagans seek after in their use of “mammon.” It’s a pointed reminder that everything that we have and are is not ours, but belongs to God. And it’s an challenging invitation to share in His joy and in His glory by being profitably shrewd in our use of “unrighteous wealth” — so shrewd that the “mammon” in our lives ends up becoming “righteous wealth” in eternity.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Being Shrewd with Unrighteous Wealth" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Sharing God's Joy (September 15, 2013)

The 17th Sunday after Pentecost
Ezekiel 34:11-24; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-10

There was once a time in which you made a career choice in high school and that was that. If you chose to skip college and enter the work force, the chances that you would (or could) go to college later in life were very slight. If you entered college after high school you declared a major during your freshman year and stuck with it (or were stuck with it). But now we have all kinds of education and career options. Colleges have retooled to appeal to adult learners, both in the
classroom and on-line. In place of the worker who spent a career with the same employer, the average person changes jobs eleven times during his career. It’s so common for college students to change their majors that some schools don’t permit their students to declare a major until their sophomore or junior year. And if it turns out that someone ends up with a major in a subject that they dislike, they can always go back to school and get a different degree. With so many options available to us it can be difficult to decide what to do with our lives. As a result, some people are aimless, many are restless, and few actually end up feeling like they’re doing something meaningful with their lives. As Christians we have an advantage over other people. But are we any more clear about what direction to take with our lives?

In today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus speaks two parables that offer us insight into living out the purpose that God has designed for us. In these parables you won’t find a code for unlocking which major you should declare in college or a “Magic Eight Ball” answer to whether or not you should take a job offer. Instead, this purpose transcends college majors and job titles as an integral part of whatever our vocations in this world may be. In fact, God makes use of our education, training, careers, and every other aspect of our earthly lives to carry out this purpose in and through us. What is this amazing purpose? To share in His joy.

In order to share in God’s joy we must first understand what brings Him joy. People have a lot of ideas about what brings joy to God, but, as these two parables highlight, the Bible only speaks of God rejoicing when the people whom He has chosen to be His own are gathered into His fellowship by His grace. In whatever place in life you have now or will have in the future, God is inviting you to bring His love, mercy, and grace to the people with whom you study, work, play, live, and socialize — and, through those relationships and with all that He has entrusted to your stewardship, to share in His joy.

Click to listen to the sermon "Sharing God's Joy" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Devotion: The Reason for Mercy (1 Timothy 1:12-17)

Click here to listen to an audio file of this devotion (or right-click to download).

12 I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, 13 though formerly I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, 14 and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 16 But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 17 To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

It's not unusual for people to question God when something bad happens in their lives. Even people who don't confess faith in God will question Him when they have to suffer through hardship or loss. But it's a rare occurrence to find people questioning God when good things happen to them.  While crying out "Why did this happen to me?" in difficult circumstances is accepted and understood by us, we would think it odd for someone to cry this out when something good happens in his life. Yet, if we don't take the time to question why God has been so gracious and kind to us we're likely to misunderstand or miss altogether His purpose in showing us such favor. When we fail to consider God's reason for filling our lives with good things we are prone to take His mercy, grace, and love for granted -- or even squander them.

The Apostle Paul deeply reflected upon the mercy that God had shown to him. He recognized that he was a sinner. He even thought of himself as the "foremost" of sinners, that is, the worst kind of sinner. Paul was convinced of this because, in addition to all of the sins that he had in common with us, he had persecuted the Church as "a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent." Paul questioned why God would show mercy to him after he had sinned against Him in such terrible ways. Then Paul came to understand God's purpose. He said "I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in Him for eternal life."

The reason that God showed mercy, grace, and love to Paul is the same reason that God shows mercy, grace, and love to you. He has chosen you and called you to be His instrument so that others "would believe in Him for eternal life." The mercy, grace, and love that God has shown you by blessing you with the things that you possess have been given to you for this purpose. The mercy, grace, and love that God has shown you by giving you your talents and abilities have been given to you for this purpose. The mercy, grace, and love that God has shown you in providing you with family, friends, and other caring people have been given to you for this purpose. Whether you are rich or poor, important or insignificant, popular or shunned, young or old, married or single — whatever ways God has shown you His mercy, grace, and love — you are what you are and you have what you have so that others can know and receive the incomparable riches that Christ has won for them.

The reason for God's mercy is clear and simple. It's the same reason whether you are enjoying life and not questioning God or if you are struggling in life and pleading with God for an explanation. Whatever your circumstances may be, you have received God's mercy to make use of His mercy for His glory. Whoever you have been and whatever you have done, you have received the mercy, grace, and love of Christ. Why? That in you, a sinner who has fallen short of God's glory but are now redeemed and reconciled through the forgiveness purchased with His blood, Jesus Christ might display His perfect patience as an example to those people in your life -- past, present, and future -- whom "the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God" has chosen to believe in Him for eternal life. This is His reason for mercy.

Reflection: Discipleship - It's Going to Cost You (September 8, 2013)

The 16th Sunday after Pentecost
Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Philemon 1-21; Luke 14:25-35

The internet is a great tool for people who like to shop for bargains. From books
to automobiles, clothing to houses, the savvy shopper can compare the cost of just about anything through the right web sites and search engines. Seasoned on-line shoppers know how to research products, choose what they want, and find the best values. They know that through their searching they’re likely to find the same product at a better price. But they also know that some web sellers don’t disclose the full cost of the product or add to it with handling fees or inflated shipping charges. If you aren’t paying attention when shopping on the internet it’s going to cost you.

When it comes to the full disclosure of costs, no one can accuse Jesus of trying to hide anything from us. In today’s Gospel lesson, He tells a couple of pointed parables about the cost of discipleship and then plainly tells us that unless a person is willing to hate his own life, bear his crosses, and renounce all that he has he cannot be His disciple. As plain as this is, we still want to shop around to find a lower cost for following Jesus. In our bargain shopping we try to explain away what Jesus says here. We want to believe that He is exaggerating to make a point or that He is just trying to rattle people. We also try to justify ourselves and insist that if He meant what He said here that it only applies to other people, not to us. But there’s nothing in this text that indicates that Jesus meant anything other than what He clearly says. And there’s nothing here that gives us a pass. Jesus is making it very clear that if you are going to be His disciple it’s going to cost you.

But a closer look at what Jesus is saying shows us the true cost of being His disciple. It’s not in the relationships that we lose, the sacrifices we make bearing crosses, or the worldly goods that we renounce. None of these payments come close to the price that had to be paid for us to be His disciples. What Jesus is telling us here is that the cost of discipleship was far too much for us to pay and that no one could ever have been His disciple if He, the King, had not been willing to pay the cost it took to defeat the prince of this world. He wants us to know that whatever we sacrifice in this life to be His disciples is not a payment but a privilege; a privilege because we are His disciples, but not a payment because He has paid the full cost for us to belong to Him with His blood. In other words, being a disciple of Jesus may involve sacrifice, hardship, and loss, but it’s going to cost you … nothing.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Discipleship: It's Going to Cost You" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Reflection: Just Watching Jesus (September 1, 2013)

The 15th Sunday after Pentecost
Proverbs 25:2-10; Hebrews 13:1-17; Luke 14:1-14

If you were invited to have dinner with a group of people who didn’t like you and were looking for reasons to justify being your enemies, you’d probably decline the invitation and avoid the people involved. But if you were Jesus you’d accept the invitation and then make sure you did something that forced the issue. That’s exactly what happened when Jesus dined at the house of a leading Pharisee where the guests, including other Pharisees and teachers of the law, “were watching Him carefully” in search of something to use against Him. It didn’t take long before a severely ill man was in front of Jesus seeking healing — on a Sabbath day, of course. Turning to those who were carefully watching Him, Jesus questioned them about what was lawful. Even though they were experts on such matters, they remained silent. After healing the man, Jesus questioned them once more. Again they were silent. They had come to just watch Jesus, not to speak with or learn
from Jesus.

There are a lot of people today who take the same approach with Jesus. They allow Jesus into their worlds only to watch and assess Him. They analyze His teachings, consider His example, and weigh His promises, but in the end they have nothing to say to Jesus — neither in repentance nor in confessing Him as Lord. This problem of just watching Jesus isn’t only a problem among unbelievers, it’s a growing issue within the church. More and more people are attending churches that allow, encourage, and even facilitate  people being spectators rather than participants in the Faith. They gather anonymously in weekly services that resemble concerts or night clubs with large crowds to watch the band, the videos, the light shows, the polished speakers, and the other spectators. Some are moved to learn more about Jesus, but most of them, like the guests at the dinner Jesus attended, remain silent and just watch.

Just watching Jesus is not enough to be His disciple. In His encounter with those who “were watching Him carefully,” Jesus spelled out what it takes to be one of His followers: “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” His call to active humility isn’t a call to earn His favor through pious acts, but a call to go beyond just watching Him to “go to Him outside the camp and bear the reproach He endured,” that is, to join Him in the humility of the Cross and live as humble servants in this life in joyful anticipation of the resurrection when the just will be watching Him receive them into His eternal presence.

Click here to listen to the sermon "Just Watching Jesus" (or right-click to download).

Reflection: Known and Unknown (August 25, 2013)

The 14th Sunday after Pentecost
Isaiah 66:18-33; Hebrews 12:4-29; Luke 13:22-30

A popular model for risk management in business is referred to as “SWOT,” in which the “T” stands for Threats. The challenge of assessing threats is that some are known and others are not. Dealing with known threats is rather straightforward. But how does one deal with something that is unknown? One approach is to divide the unknown threats into two categories: known unknowns and unknown unknowns. While there’s little one can do about the unknown unknowns, processing the possibilities of threats from past experiences, current trends, the failures of others, etc. can go a long way toward mitigating the risks of known unknowns.

Spiritually speaking, we encounter known unknowns every day in the people who may or may not believe in Jesus and who may or may not be receptive to hearing the Gospel. We don’t have tools to measure whether a person has faith and we don’t have any techniques that will ensure that they will be open to the Gospel. When  we speak God’s Word we face unknown reactions and consequences. Understanding the spectrum of possible reactions (i.e., the known unknowns) prepares us for responding to the ones that we end up encountering. These known unknowns won’t be resolved until the Last Day when people come before Jesus to be judged. Instead of using SWOT to sort things out, the Lord will look into the hearts of those gathered before Him. He tells us what will happen on that day when He says that “some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” In so many words, Jesus is explaining the known unknowns of Judgment Day. Through Isaiah God’s Word declares that “I know their works and their thoughts,” but when people stand before Him in their own righteousness He will send them away saying “I do not know you.” The known unknowns will be sent to everlasting destruction where there is “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

What a difference faith makes! There is nothing unknown about us and nothing unknown for us when it comes to facing God’s judgment when we “come to Mount Zion and to the city of the Living God” to be welcomed by the Savior who knows and loves us and who has secured our future as “the mediator of a new covenant” with His blood —  the very covenant through which He has brought us life and forgiveness, secured a place with Him forever, and removed all of the threats against us, known and unknown.

Click to listen to the sermon "Known and Unknown" (or right-click to download the MP3 file).

Devotion: All Knowing Jesus (Luke 13:22-30)

Click here to listen to an audio file of this devotion (or right-click to download).

22 [Jesus] went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” 

In Genesis 4:1 we are told that Adam knew his wife Eve. While many teachers of the Bible explain with a wink that this is a sexual reference, the context of this verse and the word that is used in it go beyond knowing as something physical to knowing as experiencing another person emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually in an open and intimate relationship. This is not usually what we mean when we say that we know a person. Instead, we're more likely to mean that we know something about that person rather than that we actually are close enough to him to know his habits, thoughts, likes, dislikes, fears, joys, secrets, etc. — the knowledge of another person that comes with knowing him intimately.

The Hebrew word meaning "to know" is yadah, which has several shades of meaning including "to know by experience" and "to perceive and see." This is the sense of the word that Jesus used in Luke 13:25 when He said that on the last day He will send people away by telling them, "I don't know you." On the surface, Jesus' comment seems to contradict what we understand about Him and His abilities. We understand that, as True God, Jesus is omniscient -- that He is all knowing. He knows everything and everybody and everything about everybody. He knows the present, the past, and the future for each one of us. He knows our hopes and dreams, fears and failures, joys and sorrows. So how could Jesus possibly say "I don't know you" to anyone? Ever?

What Jesus means by saying "I don't know you" goes beyond having information about someone to experiencing an intimate relationship with a person. He will know all about the people whom He will send away on that great and terrible day. And while a number of them will have known something about Jesus, maybe even a lot about Jesus, they will not have had enjoyed an intimacy with Jesus. And some of them -- perhaps many of them -- will be quite surprised about this. They will be the people who gained all sorts of knowledge about Jesus by studying the Bible and learning its words without ever taking those words to heart. They will include people who will have served in the Church, maybe even as leaders in the Church, but weren't actually servants of Christ. They will protest that they were familiar with Jesus through their own versions of eating and drinking in His presence and having Him teach in their communities. But it won't be enough. It will be too late. To their destruction they will know about Jesus without ever having known Jesus.

We learn from God's Word that on the Judgment Day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. The judgment will take place with all knowing Jesus as our rightful judge. But not all will know Him as merciful. only those who, by faith, know Jesus' heart and will, His desires, His joys, His compassion, His love, grace, and mercy — those who know Jesus, not just know about Him — will be saved. They will know Jesus intimately because they will have walked with Him, served Him, suffered for Him, and given themselves sacrificially for His Name's sake. They are those who will have spent their lives in loving response, imperfect as it may be, because they will have known the love, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness of Jesus — and, by His grace, be intimately known by Jesus.

Those who know Jesus know that His greatest desire is that all people would have an intimate relationship with Him through which they would truly know Him and be known by Him. We know that He genuinely and fervently calls all people to "strive to enter through the narrow door" wanting them to enter their Master's house before it is too late. And we know that His purpose for coming into our world, bearing our sins, and dying our death was to rescue those who were heading to that place where "there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." What we don't know and can't know is who will respond to His call to take off their masks, despise their pride, and humble themselves before their Lord and King in order to have that kind of relationship with Him. What we do know is that He has called us to share His life-giving and life-changing Word with the people in our lives in the hope and with the desire that they would be included with those counted among all knowing Jesus on the last day.

Reflection: Understanding the Signs of Our Times (August 18, 2013)

The 13th Sunday after Pentecost
Jeremiah 23:16-29; Hebrews 11:17-31, 12:1-3; Luke 12:49-56

Sometimes we can take a look around at the things that are taking place and know what’s coming next. It’s as though the events are road signs telling us what’s directly ahead of us. But there are other times when the signs are there but we don’t see them for what they are. Jesus took people to task for that. He pointed out that, while they could determine the weather based on the signs around them, they didn’t see what was about to happen in their lives spiritually even though He had laid it all out in front of them. “Why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” He asked them. He could ask the same question of us.

Like the people of Jesus’ time, we tend to miss what Jesus is making clear when it doesn’t line up with our expectations. In their case, they were glossing over the “baptism” that He was speaking about undergoing and looking for Him to bring peace to the earth (or at least to Israel by restoring the nation to its former glory). His response rattled them: “Do you think that I have come to give peace to the earth?” He challenged. “No, I tell you, but rather division.” While we have come to expect the topic of Jesus to divide people, we’re more inclined to think of that division as an unintended consequence of sharing the Gospel in a fallen world than Jesus’ purpose for coming into the world. But Jesus said plainly that He had come to bring division. While we may not like or understand this division, He tells us that it is a sign for us — and calls to understand what it means.

Within and outside of the church we’re divided politically, culturally, racially, economically, and spiritually. These divisions often keep us from recognizing a far more dangerous division: dividing truth from God’s Word. Many signs point to this problem. If we miss these signs we end up reacting to all sorts of issues that spring up when truth is divided from God’s Word and we lose sight of the meaning, power, and purpose of the baptism that Jesus was baptized with and the fire that He has kindled on the earth. Without that baptism and fire we have nothing to bring to our dying world to heal the worst division of all: people divided from their Creator and Redeemer. Jesus has healed that division for us as a sign of His grace and mercy. From that sign we know what comes next: our own baptisms of fire while we deal with the brokenness of our fallen world and then the peace that Jesus has made — not for a time on earth, but with our Father in heaven for eternity.

Click to listen to the sermon "Understanding the Signs of Our Times" (or right-click to download it).

Reflection: God Is for the Birds ... and for Us (August 11, 2013)

The 12th Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 15:1-6; Hebrews 11:1-16; Luke 12:22-34

After teaching His disciples to pray, Jesus spent a little time explaining the proper perspective of worldly possession to them. He summed it all up by telling them to not be anxious and not to worry about their needs while in this world. “Seek His kingdom,” He said, and the things that we need for this life will be taken care of. There’s no point to worrying about them and being anxious about them is counterproductive. He reminds us that it’s all beyond our control anyway. He puts it in a simple and straightforward statement: “Do not be anxious about your life.” But anxious we are.

Wouldn’t it be great to embrace Jesus’ call to set aside our anxieties about earning money, paying bills, providing for the needs and wants of our families, achieving financial security, maintaining health insurance, saving for education, and the host of other things that loom large in our lives? Sadly, we’re more likely to think of His call to not worry about such things as idealistic and impractical than we are to see it as a genuine call to the life He has crafted for us. We are so captive to the world’s perspective that we must make our own way in life and the philosophy of “if it’s going to be, it’s up to me” that surrendering control over our well being to the providence of God strikes us as bordering on irresponsibility. We can’t see how simply trusting in His provision is going to take care of things. We are people, as Jesus put it, “of little faith.”

In contrast to our illusion of being in control of our lives and circumstances, Hebrews 11 sets before us the reality of having all that we need for this life and for eternal life. Over and over again, this passage punctuates that it comes to us “by faith.” Through the examples of those who have taken God at His promises and lived by faith, we are encouraged to set aside our impotent, worldly ways and take hold of the power of the faith that lies dormant in us. Jesus shows us the key to unleashing that power by pointing us away from our possessions, our money, our abilities, and, especially, our very selves to the object of true faith. “Your Father knows what you need,” He assures us. Then He explains, in so many words, that “the God who is for the birds and who crafts the flowers is the God who has crafted you and is for you.” He assures us that we are of greater value to Him than the birds of the air or the flowers of the field, so much so that He Himself took on human flesh to live and die in order to provide us with our greatest need. “It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom,” He announces with joy. Anxiety and worry must flee in light of this, for the God who is for the birds is also and so much more for us.

Click to listen to the sermon "God Is for the Birds ... and for Us" (or right-click to download).

Reflection: It's All In Whom You Ask (July 28, 2012)

The 10th Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 18:17-33; Colossians 2:6-19; Luke 11:1-13

Children quickly learn which of their parents to go to when they want something. Depending on what it is that they are asking for, either mom or dad will be targeted. They know that who they ask is just as important as what they ask and how they ask for it. And, of course, they know that if all else fails that they can ask grandma!

When Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, He taught them the prayer that we’ve come to know as the Lord’s Prayer. After teaching them to “pray this,” He went on to explain that when we pray we can be certain that our prayers will be answered favorably — maybe even more favorably than we asked — because of who it is whom we’re asking. “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to you children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” He proclaims to assure us that our prayers are answered because of who God is. Martin Luther captured this understanding of prayer when he explained that the opening words of the Lord’s Prayer “encourage us to believe that He is truly our Father and we are truly His children in order that we may approach Him boldly and confidently in prayer, even as beloved children approach their dear father.”

When we consider who it is to whom we pray we begin to understand prayer very differently from those who use prayer as a tool to pry blessings from God’s hand. We know that there is no need to gather large numbers of prayer warriors to
“storm the gates of heaven” with prayer, but that the prayer of a little child is welcomed by our Heavenly Father and answered with favor and grace. And it is as little children that we are called to come to our Lord with our concerns, hurt, requests, praise, petitions, and supplications confident that all that we bring before Him is pleasing because of who He is and who we are to Him.

The strange ideas people have about prayer aren’t harmless. Many Christians have all but abandoned prayer because of false expectations about it and a sense of failure resulting from them. Thankfully Jesus’ answer to His disciples request to teach them to pray provides us with the key to experiencing the joy, peace, comfort, and confidence of prayer: it’s all in Whom you ask. Beloved child, your dear Father awaits your prayer.

Click to listen to the sermon "It's All in Whom You Ask" (or right-click to download).

Reflection: Distracted by Many Things (July 21, 2013)

The 9th Sunday after Pentecost
Genesis 18:1-14; Colossians 1:21-29; Luke 10:38-42

A recent Harris Interactive survey of American adults about their use of smartphones showed that many (75%) are within five feet of their devices most of the time and that about one-third use their smartphones in movie theaters, on dinner dates, and while attending functions for their children. However, the level of our distraction by (addiction to?) smartphones is a bit shocking when 19% admitted using their devices in worship services and 12% while taking a shower. But the most disturbing part of this report is that nearly one in ten (9%) admitted using their phones during sex. We have a problem: we’re distracted.

Our problem with distraction isn’t new. While technology has increased the ways and extent of being distracted from more important things, people have struggled with being anxious and worried about lesser matters throughout history. Today’s Gospel lesson includes a woman who was so distracted by preparing a fine meal for Jesus that she wasn’t paying any attention to His teachings — a sort of ancient world equivalent of using your smartphone during worship. More than being distracted herself, Martha was irritated that her sister had chosen to set aside everything else and focus on what Jesus was saying and insisted that Mary take up her distractions. But Jesus wouldn’t let Martha’s distractions keep Mary from the more important matter at hand. “Only one thing is necessary,” He said to her. “And Mary has chosen it.”

How have your distractions in life kept you from choosing “the better portion?” What issues, activities, and priorities have filled you with busyness, worry, or anxiety to the point that you don’t have any place in your life to sit quietly at Jesus’ feet and learn from Him the real purpose and priorities of your life? How have your distractions robbed your spouse, children, or friends of knowing Jesus’ peace and love? We justify our distractedness by calling it “multitasking” and we laugh it off by labeling it “adult ADD,” but being distracted to the point of chasing after the pressing things of this world in place of the lasting things of Christ is destroying our culture, our families, and us. Jesus comes inviting you to set aside the many things that are distracting you, find His peace in the “one thing necessary,” and to know without doubt or distraction the joy of living in His love.

Click here to play an audio file of the sermon "Distracted by Many Things" (or right-click to download).

Devotion: When Things Are Too Hard for God (Genesis 18:1-14)

Click here to listen to an audio file of this devotion (or right-click to download).

And the Lord appeared to [Abraham] by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing in front of him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth 3 and said, “O Lord, if I have found favor in your sight, do not pass by your servant. 4 Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree, 5 while I bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” 6 And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah and said, “Quick! Three seahs of fine flour! Knead it, and make cakes.” 7 And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to a young man, who prepared it quickly. 8 Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them. And he stood by them under the tree while they ate. 9 They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” 10 The Lord said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” 13 The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” 

Abraham's wife Sarah must have known the promise that God had made to her husband. How could he have kept such amazingly good news from her? After being childless her entire life — and enduring the pain of the stigma that her culture attached to being barren — Sarah was going to have a son. What wonderful news for her! But it was as improbable as it was wonderful. She was very old, well past the point in life when women can have children. As far as everything that she knew from her knowledge and experience in the world, it was impossible for her to conceive and bear a child — and she had a lifetime of evidence to prove it.

It certainly didn't help Sarah have confidence in God's promise when what He had told Abraham would happen didn't come to pass right away. As the days faded into months and then into years, the promise became more and more unlikely for Sarah. As the improbability of conceiving a child grew in her mind into an impossibility, she decided to give God some help. Convinced that it was too hard for God for her to bear her husband's child, Sarah offered Abraham her servant as a surrogate mother, a temptation that Abraham found too appealing to resist. But the child born to Hagar was not the child whom God had promised.
In time — His time — God visited Abraham and Sarah to let them know that He was about to fulfill His promise. Years had passed, hope had faded, and circumstances had validated Sarah's doubts. Her dismissive laugh brought God's stern rebuke, "Is anything too hard for the Lord?"

We know Sarah's heart. We share her faith. We rejoice in the promises of God when they are fresh in our hearts and minds. We are confident that God is greater than our circumstances and  that He can do what is impossible for us. But as time wears on and the situations in our lives are so different that what we understood His promises to be and all of the things that we see, hear, and experience testify that those promises will not -- even cannot -- come to be, we lose heart. We give into the temptation to think that God isn't going to do what He said He would do. Weak in faith and challenged by the world, we convince ourselves that our problems, challenges, and dilemmas are not only too much for us to resolve but that making something good out of them is even too hard for the Lord.

While we don't often share in Sarah's laughter in the midst of our disappointments with God, we do share the same doubts, confusion, and lack of confidence that she experienced when God's promise seemed cruelly ridiculous. Like her, we have our own ways of giving God some help when we convince ourselves that His promises are really to hard for Him to keep for us. And like her, when we lose patience with God and take action on our own we end up making a mess of things. Yet, despite Sarah's unworthiness, God gave her the son that He had promised. Isaac's birth is a beautiful demonstration that God's promises are not only real but that they are kept according to His faithfulness, not ours. In the fulfillment of His promise of a son to Abraham and Sarah, God was picturing for us the fulfillment of another promised Son. In an even more unlikely way through a more unlikely woman, the Seed promised long before Sarah laughed at God's impossible promise was born into our world. Because we struggle with firmly believing God's promises, have failed to live according to His Word and His will, and had no hope of doing the impossible work that was necessary for our salvation, God gave us a Son, His Son. The culmination of all that God had promised -- in the Garden, through His covenants, and by His prophets -- this Son has proven that nothing is too hard for God.

Reflection: God's Answer to "Why?" (July 14, 2013)

The 8th Sunday after Pentecost
Leviticus 18:1-5, 19:9-18; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37

While we may have questions that we’d like to ask God one day, the questions that we actually end up asking Him are almost always “why?” questions. From the simple “Why me?” to the challenging “Why do bad things happen to good people?”, we have a long list of “why?” questions for God. Looking for answers to our “why?” questions outside of the Bible is pointless, but what answers does searching the Scripture provide? Interestingly, God does answer our “why?” questions in His Word. However, He doesn’t give us “why” answers. Instead, God answers our “why?” questions with His “who” answer: “I am the Lord your God.”

Having rejected God’s Word, people in our culture have started asking a different kind of “why?” question. Convinced that God does not have any concern for them or that there is no God at all, they question the concept of absolute truth and morality. Those who desire to live out their lives in open immorality — whether sexually, ethically, or materially — refuse to accept that someone else’s “truth” has any voice in their lives. “Why should I accept your truth?” is a common response to those who speak God’s Word of Law in our society. But it doesn’t stop there. “Why do I need your religion?” is an equally common response to those who would speak the Gospel in our culture. For those who reject the truth of God’s Word, “I am the Lord your God” is not only an unconvincing answer; it falls on deaf ears.

We shouldn’t be surprise that the people of the world reject God’s “who” answer to our “why?” questions when we often find His answer unsatisfying. In challenging circumstances we demand to know more than God has revealed and insist on judging whether or not His Word is sufficient. Like Eve in the Garden, we want to know the things that God has kept from us convinced that He is holding out on us rather than trusting that He is serving us well. We can’t accept that the answers to our “why?” questions may not be good for us or that they could even harm us terribly. But God’s “who” answer breaks through our unfaithful insistence. Because
we know the love and character of God through His Son, we find comfort, hope, peace, and confidence in hearing Him remind us when we come to Him with our “why?” questions with “I am the Lord your God.” Why would we want any other answer?

Click to play an audio file of the sermon "God's Answer to 'Why?"" (or right-click to download).