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The Not-so-Grim Reapers
The “Not-so-Grim” Reapers…
Luke 10:1-9
† In Jesus Name †
May You find your lives reflecting God’s glory into the darkness, as you are sent out with the Father’s grace, mercy and peace, proclaiming God is really in control.What we Jesus tell you, that you couldn’t take?
Looking at the picture on the bulletin cover, of the two men reaping a harvest, and the simple lives of the Amish, a thought began to develop.
If Jesus was sending us out today, as we heard Him send the 12 out a few weeks ago, as He sent the 72 out in today’s gospel, what would He tell us we couldn’t take with us?
No cash, no credit cards, no ATM cards, probably not even scrip cards for gasoline or restaurants! He might even send us out walking, telling us for this journey we don’t need our cars!
He even might ban our electronics, no computer, no tablet computer, no {gulp} smart phones…
He’d instruct us to stay on task, not to get bogged down in texting each other about what we see and experience, no stopping at Starbucks to enjoy a Venti latte froze espresso cappuccino with pumpkin flavoring, while chatting with friends No suitcase full of clothes and spare shoes – just you and your partner, hitting the pavement,
Move along now…..
If He sent us out with the Message, but forbade us to bring anything besides what we were wearing.. how would we react?
Why should our Load be Lightened?
It is quite easy to get the wrong impression as to why Jesus would separate the disciples from that which our minds think would benefit to their ministry. We usually see this as a matter of sacrifice and obedience. Are the seventy-two willing to suffer for Jesus, are they willing to demonstrate their faith by doing without? I’ve read commentaries where this is hailed as a mark of the disciples devotion, as standard for those who would serve God. Indeed, there is a sense of pride that can become involved, as people compare what they are willing to give up, what they were willing to endure. Some even went as far as seeking pain, suffering, and embracing poverty, in order to prove they were holy…
We do not need such suffering to prove our holiness, any more than the young man last week had to sell everything he had, to gain eternal life, to be in fellowship with God. We, like the young man, find ourselves in God’s presence, now!
But those things Jesus directed them to leave behind, if the reason isn’t to prove their faithfulness, why would He ask them to leave them behind….
unless they would get in the way of the harvest?
unless the disciples would depend on what they had, more than depending on who was with them.
God doesn’t ask us to give up what we need, as much as He would see us freed from what holds us back, as He would free us from what compels our dependence upon His providence.
If we are always looking to our credit cards statements;
if we are considering why our lunch bag is empty;
if we are wondering how far we can get on the nearly empty gas tank;
if we are distracted from our work by less important text messages;
then does the reaping, the harvesting get done? Or do we focus on our grim situation, and become “grim” non-reapers?”
It is not really about the items we leave behind, it is the anxiety that they can cause, the stress of caring for what we have, or the concern caused by focusing on what we lack…that takes simple things and turns them into idols, into what we count on, more than we count on God
Yet – in Jesus commanding us to leave it behind, in recognizing that the work of the Harvest is His as our Lord, He is taking responsibility to make sure we have all we need.
Just as when He brought us to faith, and granted us repentance, we need to learn to depend on His care, on His Lordship. It is as much about depending on Him, as it is about obeying Him.
Why do we have to depend on others?
The seventy two found the same challenge, when it came to where they would stay.
Many here would rather serve in the kitchen, then be the one hosted. Part of it is how we are brought up, how we are trained – especially in the church. The laws of hospitality, whether rigid in Jesus day, or the more rigid ones around today, are explicit. We take the idea of being servants, and relegate it to the physical world, to preparing food and doing that which we think we must do, to appease our guests, to entertain them, and in doing so, sometimes we think we’ve done well…
So did Martha, and it was because Mary wasn’t holy enough, that Martha went to Jesus to complain!
While the 72 were sent to serve, they were just as much to depend. There was to be a relationship here – where they were to feed these people spiritually, even as they were being fed. They were to bring God’s blessings to these people, who would respond by blessing them.
It is not unlike our relationship with God – who brings us incredible blessings through the work of Christ, then gladly receives our worship and praise and yes – our sacrifices in response. Each brings something to the relationship – not one party taking advantage of the other, but each being a blessing to each other!
It’s like the command to eat what is put in front of you – what if the host, the one to whom you are bring the word of life, give you a portion that is significantly larger, is noticeable better? Can we receive blessings, even if people sacrifice greatly to give them to us?
It is about dependence, about being thankful; whether we are offered steak, or hot dogs, or just a piece of bread, whether it is a glass of the finest champagne, or a cup of water. For if God led us to bring them the gospel and the hope of knowing Jesus, could He not lead them as well? It is a difficult lesson, is it not? It requires wisdom, and humility, for I think it takes more humility to be served, than it does to serve.
There is of course, another advantage to this – if we have no money, no food, no ability to sustain ourselves on the journey, neither can we simply run away when the journey gets too tough. It’s hard to run, when you have no way to get away, no sustenance of your own? There may be a time to leave – but surely that comes to both the one sent, and the one they were sent to, and the providence becomes something they work out together…as they abide together in Christ Jesus.
Provide therapy and ministry and tell them……
After helping the seventy two get focused on being sent, and ensuring that they brought nothing that would cause them stress and anxiety, but instead encourage their dependence on the Lord Jesus’s ability to provide for them, Jesus tells them what they are to do, as they bring God’s peace to households, and to people.
9 Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’
While that phrase is often translated, “heal the sick”, it by no means is referring just to physical illness. The verb “heal” is from the word we get “therapy” from, and the word for ill is used not only for sick, but for any trauma that causes one to be weak, helpless, unstable, unable to stand on one’s own.
The disciples were to minister to whoever was broken, to serve whoever needed God’s love, and more importantly, God’s peace. It was about assuring them that God was in charge, that He still reigns, that He does care and is present in their lives. It was about sharing with them the lesson that they were learning more and more on this missionary journey.
That to have faith, to trust in Jesus, is about depending upon Him.
To depend upon Him for fixing that which is broken,
To depend on Him, even as we pray as Jesus taught, for what we need daily…
To depend on Him to forgive our sins, and the sins of those who sin against us.
To depend on God to give us a way to escape temptation and to protect us from evil.
For that is what it means that the Lord of the Harvest has gathered us in His harvest, even as He sends us out to gather others.
For even as the 12 sent out include the clergy today, the pastors and leaders of the church, so the 72 represents all of us, the family of God, sent to serve, to gather, to reap, not grimacing, but rejoicing, for even if we go with nothing in the world’s eyes… we know what the Lord of the Harvest provides… what He tells us to bring people…
Our reaping, our work in the harvest field is never grim, no matter what we lack in the world’s view. Rather, it is rich, for we dwell in and gather others into a peace that is beyond comprehension…
His peace.
AMEN?
Three Sermons, Three Servants, One Passage:
On Sunday, three of the men I get to work with, two vicars and a deacon served people by proclaiming the Gospel. All three wrote solid sermons, and I couldn’t pick one over the other two, so here are all three. Enjoy and be blessed!
From Vicar Mark:
Mark 10: 17-22
Greetings brothers and sisters in the name of Christ who considered it pure joy to go to the cross for our sin and in whom we now live forever!
Alleluia, amen!
You ever have one of those days that seem like a perfect day and nothing can go wrong?
You think you’ve got it all figured out. Everything is firing on all eight cylinders, the coast is clear. All systems are go!
In the words of Marsha Brady, “The birds are blooming and the daffodils are singing!”
Then things hit the fan and you realize you have locked your keys in the car and your not in it or that perfect dessert you made for the church potluck and are so proud of is now face down on a street somewhere because you left it on the roof of the car and forgot to load it.
Maybe you crammed and studied like crazy for that test and you know that you are going to ace it until you realized when you get to class that you studied the wrong chapters.
You sound like that young, wealthy ruler who thought he had everything in his pocket and under control and then meets Jesus on the road and asks Him,” Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
What must I do?
You, you, you. Me, me, me. I.I I.
Between this account in the Gospel and you and I it appears to be all about us! Tell me what to do and I’ll make it happen, I think. Did he really want to know or did he want confirmation that he had already done it by his own accord?
Jesus answers this self-confident young wealthy ruler by saying, “ Why do you call me good? No one is good but One-God.”
Right away Jesus keys in and tells this guy that no one is good except for God! Only God is righteous and Holy. No matter what this guy says or thinks he falls short in his ‘goodness’.
Jesus tells him, “ You know the commandments: do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, don’t defraud and honor your father and mother.”
I’m sure at hearing this; the wealthy, powerful young man had to be thinking, “Not a problem, I got this. It’s a homerun!”
He answers Jesus, “ Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.”
Well this is where things go bad for the rich guy in his way of thinking. After what Jesus says next, our boy’s day is going to be a dreary dismal day for sure in his eyes!
As Jesus looks at him, Mark tells us something else that is incredible. We learn that not only did Jesus look at him but Jesus loved him as He says, “ You lack one thing, Go and sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have your treasure in Heaven. Then come, follow me!”
Jesus didn’t look at him with scorn and ridicule or sarcasm but instead looks at him with love in the same way that He looked at those who hung Him on that cross and said, “ Father forgive them.” He looks at him the same way he looks at us when He says, “Follow me!”
Upon hearing this Mark records that He was disheartened, he was stunned by what Jesus tells him and he went away grieving because he had many possessions.
So in order for you to follow Christ, you must sell everything and give it to the poor.
Is that what Jesus is saying here?
Yes and no.
Three things really come to the forefront in this account.
- A. Goodness. As the man raced to ask Jesus, he called him Good Teacher and Jesus responded that only God is good.
Only God is perfect, righteous, holy and good. No matter how good and how hard we try to be good by what we think we do and by trying to keep the commandments, we are not righteous, holy and good by and on our own.
Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Thus young ruler thought that he had kept the commandments since he was a youth and maybe he did in deed or action but throw in thought and word and he like us was not able to keep those commandments. He wasn’t good and neither are we.
So that brings us to the second thing.
2. Idols.
An idol is anything that becomes your god, a false god and takes the place of and prevents you form seeing God. It can be anything from football or your job or your kids or pride in yourself and your accomplishments. It can be things even at church.
For the young man it was his possessions and his wealth. Basically it boils down to Jesus telling him and us that if anything gets in the way of your view and focus of God, dump it, get rid of it. It’s garbage! For the real treasure, follow Christ.
Matthew 6: 20 says, “But lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
This brings us to the third point and the most important part.
The relationship.
Did you notice in our Gospel today that something was missing? When the young man asked Jesus and Jesus quoted the commandments back to him, he left the first three out. Jesus quoted what is commonly referred to as the Second Table or the Commandments for living and dealing with your fellow man. Why would he do that being God and all, did He forget them?
No, not at all!
You see the first three Commandments or the First Table tell of our relationship with God. They confront our basic belief and structure about God. They talk about the perfect relationship that God created for His children. It’s an invitation to a give and take relationship. Don’t we see that in the Sacraments? “Take and eat and take and drink.” He willingly gives us forgiveness of sins, salvation and eternal life through this gift given to us through His Son as we gatheris SonH and we as His called and redeemed children thank, praise and glorify His name calling on Him for everything because He is our loving Father and because He is God.
This rich man’s relationship was lacking in this because he was focused on the idol of himself and his idol of wealth and fortune. So Jesus told him to dump it and follow Him in that perfect relationship of grace, peace and love bought and paid for with His holy blood. Jesus tells us that exact same thing and we hear it and read it in His Holy Word. Our relationship with God has been rewon and regained and taken back from the sin that we caused to break it in the first place. Through our High Priest who is the Christ, perfect atonement and fulfillment of that priestly sacrifice we are now made His. It is only through Christ that we can ask Him to smash those evil and unholy idols that prevent us from the very relationship with Him. It is only through Jesus that we have the strength given to us in our Baptisms and shared with us in the foretaste of the feast to come found in that meal of Holy Communion.
It is only through the glory found at the cross that any of this is possible and that we are now counted as righteous and holy and good enough to be in the sight and presence of God.
Think about what’s been done for you. God says call him by His name, YAHWEH, then we Have Jesus tell us and His Father that he is not ashamed to call us brothers and we because of YAHWEH’s plan of redemption through Jesus are now heirs of Heaven.
The rich young man didn’t get it that when Jesus called him to follow, He ws calling him to inherit gifts far beyond the measure of a mortal man.
Instead he went away dejected, stunned and disheartened because he couldn’t let go of his idol while the Good Teacher set His face like flint and proceeded to walk that path to the cross, “ Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:2.
He walked that path in complete obedience knowing what was waiting for Him.
Was it death and destruction? Yes, through Jesus dying for our sin and idol worship it was the destruction of death and the grave and through Jesus dying for all it was the death of the power that sin had on us. We now have abundant life that no idol could ever give us but only through what God can give us and keeps on giving to us.
So I guess the final question again comes down to this. Do you have to get rid of everything you have to follow God?
Quite simply yes, if it has become an idol to you and prevents you from seeing God and His goodness, grace and love for you.
We can only truly trust and have faith in He who claims us as His knowing with certain hope and confidence that we who confess Christ as King and Savior will all gather at the throne with Him for eternity and that will be the perfect day where only things go perfectly right!
“Come and follow me!”
Alleluia, amen!
From Vicar Eddie
Sermon 10-14-12
Mark 10:17-22 (using HCSB)
Concordia, Cerritos
The story of the rich young ruler causes some to pity the man…he was so close…if only he had trusted Jesus more…if only he knew. But perhaps there is more to this story if we scratch the surface…if we scratch the surface we might see that we are more like the rich young man than we would like to admit.
Right from the start this story is different than most accounts in the Bible of people coming to Jesus…usually those that approached Jesus were looking for healing either for themselves or a loved one…or they were trying to find fault with the teachings of Jesus. But this man asks a completely different question…maybe one you yourself have contemplated during your life…he approaches Christ, calls him “good teacher” and then asks how he might attain eternal life…AND, he is not asking what he has to do…he is not asking where he can buy it…but how should he align his life, what should his purpose in life be so that he might inherit eternal life…inherit eternal life. How do I get this gift that can only come from God? How do I get eternal life? Jesus knew this young man was on to something, so He asks him, “Why do you say I am good?” Only God is good…are you saying I am God? Are you saying I can give you the gift of eternal life? And then Jesus skips the commandments that have to do with God and lists the commandments that have to do with other people, and the young man says he has kept all of them close to his heart. Jesus accepts this… He does not call him a liar but instead hits him right between the eyes…very well then… sell everything, give the money to the poor and follow me. Stunned…shocked…flabbergasted… he realizes Jesus is asking him to give up the one thing he knows he cannot give up… his treasures! Why did it have to be that? Why couldn’t it be spending more time at the synagogue? Why couldn’t it be helping out those less fortunate? Why couldn’t it be spending more time in scripture? No… he asked the young man for his wealth…a dark cloud comes over the man and he went away dejected, sorrowful, he went away grieving. It is indeed sad…some might say that the young man rejects Jesus, that he turns his back on Jesus, but the young man was seeking God, the young man was looking for a closer walk with God, and yet there was a barrier…a barrier so large that it kept him from fully experiencing the grace and mercy of Christ. A barrier so large that it kept him from the inheritance he so desperately sought… and so that begs the question…What barrier have we created? What keeps us from fully experiencing the grace and mercy of Christ?
You see this story is not just about a rich young man… this story is about us…each one of us has put up barriers that keep us from fully experiencing the love and grace of Christ; we have all created barriers that keep us from having a closer walk with God and maybe that is why Jesus skipped the 1st commandment when He spoke to the young man. Jesus knew that this young man had other gods…as Luther explained the first commandment in the Large Catechism; a god is something on which we set our whole heart. Jesus knew that this man had placed his wealth ahead of God, he trusted in his wealth above trusting God…and so what have we placed before God? You see it doesn’t always have to be wealth…it can be anything that we treasure in our hearts above God. And it can take a numerous of forms – it can come in a bottle that we desperately need after another rough day; it can be the football games that keep us from worshipping God with our brothers and sisters on Sunday mornings, it can come in the form of a keyboard; a keyboard that logs us into facebook for hours on end instead of spending time in scripture, or it can be staying up late to view adult material and feeling ashamed that we do, so we draw away from others for fear they might discover our dark habit. Really we can fashion anything into a barrier between is and God; even something we would find good, like family, exercise or even work. These things that God has given us to bring us joy, relaxation and a sense of accomplishment can become so important in our lives that they interfere with our relationship with God. They draw us away from God.
I worked for many years with a company that had such an outstanding president of sales. We used to say that she could sell ice to eskimo, and we knew she worked hard, but we didn’t realize to what extent. During a sales meeting in New Jersey, her husband called and told her that he wasn’t feeling good…that he really wanted her to come home. This was very odd behavior on his part – they talked often when she would go away on trips, and as president of sales, she traveled extensively, but he had not once ever asked her to come home. She said, she couldn’t leave…this sales meeting was too important and that she would be home the next day. Well, he didn’t make it the next day and she never forgave herself for not going home. Work had become her god, above family, above her own health and even above God.
Certainly we know we are going to have activities outside of church, certainly we know we will have other interests and certainly we know that we can’t keep all of God’s commands perfectly, but it comes down to priorities. Is God a priority in my life? Or is God an afterthought…a parachute we grasp only when we run into problem; when our life seems to be spiraling out of control? In Luke 9:23 Jesus tells us “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” This is not to say that we need to try to bear the weight of our sins and thus by our own power overcome our sinfulness, but instead we are to daily surrender our sinful and lustful desires to Christ…and follow him.
But our story of the young man does not end there. Yes, the young man goes away dejected, lost and maybe even ashamed, but what about Jesus? We know that Jesus was on His way to the cross of Calvary and we know that in His death and resurrection we find the very thing that young man sought…life everlasting…eternal life. And Jesus did this with JOY! Hebrews 12:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
You see God knows that we cannot of our own accord lift ourselves over the barriers we have created; He knows that we cannot overcome the sin that keeps us from Him. At the cross which is meant for torture and death we find life…at the cross we find the gift of eternal life. And this gift is not just for that young man, it is not just for those of us that showed up this Sunday morning…no this gift of eternal life is a gift God has given to the whole world. Just as Jesus invited the young man to leave behind those things that hindered Him from fully experiencing the love, grace and mercy of God, Jesus extends that offer to the entire world even today. Jesus stands ready to walk with you, each and every day of your life. With joy Jesus went to the cross, knowing He was breaking the bondage of sin that impeded this man from fully experiencing the love, grace and mercy of God. So, we have a choice…we can either walk away with our baggage…those things that bring us shame and draw us away from God, or we can leave them at the foot of the cross and walk with Jesus…Jesus invites you to walk with Him each and every day of your life…will you walk in the JOY of Jesus today?
and from Deacon Don
A Challenge to Leadership in the Church…sacrfice
Today’s Devotional/Discussion thought…
A quote for leaders… (of every kind)
11:1 And you should imitate me, just as I imitate Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1 (NLT)
This verse ends a chapter which requires great humility, as we hear Paul talk about not giving offense which would inhibit another’s walk with Christ. As a pastor, and one who works with broken churches, ( every church is broken, some brokenness is simply more visible) I hear these stories all the time. A former pastor who may or may not have cared, a phrase uttered in the midst of a longer conversation, but that stuck with those who heard it. Pains that are decades old, but still as tender, and then something rips the scabs off, releasing a flow of blood that may cleanse the wound, or may allow for infection, given the way it was treated.
That is where imitating Christ needs to become a focal point for leadership – where we put aside what we desire, and sometimes, yeah – what we need. We set aside ourselves that we can be there to nurse the wounded to strength, to encourage their trust in Jesus, to bring them to the altar – not drive them out of the church because we were irritated by them.
That is Christian leadership. I like how I came across Christ’s leadership in this manner in my devotions this morning.
Our Lord is on the Cross saying, I am suffering so that men, who are my brothers, may be happy, not only in Heaven, but also—as far as possible—on earth, if they really embrace the most Holy Will of my heavenly Father. (1)
To my friends in leadership, whether in the church, in government or business, to those who lead from an office, or simply have influence which people follow – please lead sacrificially, lead in such a way that people can embrace God’s embrace of them, in such a way that God’s will is made manifest, and they can rejoice. Serve, not command. Be willing to suffer, in small and large ways. As one who tries to live this, and is occasionally successful …. the rewards of seeing people embraced by God is more than worth whatever inconvenience, or pain.
Imitate Christ, that others may imitate you…..
and when you struggle to make that sacrifice…cry out to Him, and He will have mercy.. AMEN!
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 1123-1126). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Respect the Office and the Person
This will be a controversial topic. Oh well, it needs to be said. I ask you to read this, pray about it, pray some more and think it through. Do not just react – that is part of our problem these days… Be still, know God is God… then look to His wisdom.
As the elections come closer, I have been noticing a lot of hatred spewing forth, the kind of stuff that will cause our nation to rot unless eradicated.
We aren’t the first nation to have leaders whose actions and policies are questionable. Nor is it the first time the church has felt herself attacked by those leaders. (that is a different subject, but I believe those who have reduced the pro-life debate to who pays for it through their insurance to have given up too much ground in the discussion.) Compared to the much of the world today, the US government is still comparatively friendly to the church. We haven’t had government sanctioned burning of our churches, pastors and evangelists are not tossed in jail, no beheadings etc.
And please understand – I am all for a straight out discussion on the issues, that people can make up their mind, not based in fear, but based in true positions. I think we need to appeal to more than just fear, to more than just emotion.
Even more, I think those of us who claim we trust in Christ need to demonstrate that trust – by acknowledging and heeding the teachings of the commandments, and specifically the fourth commandment. When Luther explains the “honor your father and mother”, he expands the group to whom we owe respect, by noting that they are simply extensions of paternal authority. Simple terms – they assist the parents in keeping their children safe, healthy and in a relationship with God.
Interestingly – Luther – whose government wasn’t the best either- extends that authority to civil government. Even if we don’t agree with them, we owe them the same honor we owe our parents. Don’t really see that much of respect these days. That doesn’t mean we have to tolerate their error – we need to work with them on it. But we still need to show them honor, respect, and yes, even love.
Not this “respect the office, not the person” excuse I’ve heard a lot recently. That simply gives license to our sinful nature to attack, to react in fear, to allow sin to reign. It allows us to excuse sinful behavior, and strike out in fear. And it goes against the words of scripture, that see something more at stake. This is what Peter wrote:
2:13 For the Lord’s sake, respect all human authority—whether the king as head of state, 14 or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right. 15 It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. 16 For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. 17 Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, and respect the king.
1 Peter 2:13-17 (NLT)
Peter wrote that – when he was facing death for his witness…
Maybe we should open our eyes, and hear with our ears, and keep the way of life God has commissioned… then perhaps… we will realize the healing He is doing in this land. For it is not a candidate that has the strength to do so, it is only God.
So work hard – make you voice heard, but do it in accord with God’s word, and pray and honor those in authority…
And look and see what God is doing! He is having mercy on us!
Amazing Love… How can it be…
Thought of the Day:
“What have I done to you, Jesus, that you should love me so? I have offended you… and loved you. Loving you: this is what my life is going to be all about.” (1)
A few days ago, I wrote about the nature of sin, not just individual sin, but the kind of environment in which sin is not just temptation, but seems the only option. Most of this boils down to a lack of trust. Not just a lack of trust in each other, but a lack of trust in God. For if we trust in Him, then indeed, we can risk to trust in others, knowing that even if that trust is betrayed, that God can use what was meant for evil, for good.
That has been the modus operandi of God since the garden, what has been meant for evil becomes that which works for good. The greatest example of this of course, is the cross, where we put to death God, where we brutally killed Him… yet, we didn’t, He chose to embrace death, that He could embrace us, that He could love us.
We have been taught this, but do we know it? Do we grasp this amazing love? This magnificent mercy, this overwhelming grace?
Do we live in the peace that passes all comprehension, in which we are kept, guarded, in which our hearts and minds are protected in Christ Jesus?
if we struggle with that – may we think thoughts like this:
“In the sacrament Confession and Absilution, (2) Jesus forgives us. Christ’s merits are applied to us there. It is for love of us that he is on the Cross with his arms stretched out, fastened to the wood more by the Love he has for us than by the nails.” (3)
Lord, have mercy, and help us to comprehend the power of that mercy and share it with those who need it as much as us.
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 898-900). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
(2) Original said “Sacrament of Presence” – edited for the understanding
(3) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 863-866). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
The Sacrament of Confession & Absolution/Reconciliation: Finding the Freedom from Masks the Suffocate Us…
Discussion thought of the day:
In our Bible Study last night – we talked of a description of some religious leaders in Israel’s history who “whitewashed” that which was being built, before it was completed. They made it look pretty and nice and completed. The problem, they whitewashed everything without checking to make sure the job was done write. In our Bible Study this morning, ( a different group) we were in Hebrews 6, where it talks about the difference between believers and others, one produced a crop that was a blessing, the other produced thistles and thorns (my paraphrase – roses) that might have nice flowers and an incredible smell, but were not just inedible, but would actually injure a person.
At the end of devotions today, I came across this quote: You asked me to suggest a way for winning through in your daily struggles, and I replied: When you lay your soul open, say first of all what you wouldn’t like to be known. In this way the devil will always end up defeated. Lay your soul wide open, clearly and simply, so that the rays of God’s Love may reach and illuminate the last corner of it! (1)
It is one of the mysteries of life why we hide that which needs healing, and why that which is broken we cover. Having a five year old – it seems that this isn’t something we learn, but something that is part of our DNA. We don’t like going to doctors or dentists or auto-repair shops or having our houses or workplaces inspected, never mind having a review done. And in hiding the the broken in us that needs healing,, we must hide our hearts, our souls, we must cover them, and put on a mask that has a bright smile. That mask can, and does suffocate us, the false front we have to put up will slowly cause us to fade out, to expire.
The answer is simple – in Ezekiel – God will tear down the walls, or as St. Josemarie describes it – “laying open your soul”. St Peter talks of this as the Holy Spirit cutting their hearts open. For surely the strength to be honest and to deal with sin comes not from our internal instinct. We would continue to hide, to continue to pretend we are okay, covering up our brokenness with false smiles and quick, “I’m fine”.
The answer seems painful, it may cause anxiety the first dozen plus times, yet.. the freedom of letting those things be dealt with by God is amazing, it is wondrous, it breaks bondage and washes away anxiety and drives away the darkness, leaves us knowing God’s peace. To hear the words, yes, God forgives you your sin, you are cleansed, you are healed – to know that what was broken – God has put back together. If it seems to good to be true – remember this is God’s desire, as St Peter tells us:
3:9 The Lord is not being slow in carrying out his promises, as some people think he is; rather is he being patient with you, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 (NJB)
and as St John tells us, it is His promise
” If we say, ‘We have no sin,’ we are deceiving ourselves, and truth has no place in us; 9 if we acknowledge our sins, he is trustworthy and upright, so that he will forgive our sins and will cleanse us from all evil.” 1 John 1:8-9 (NJB)
and one more promise for good measure, from St. James:
5:16 So then, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you will be healed. The prayer of a good person has a powerful effect. James 5:16 (TEV)
So open your lives, find a pastor ( I know where one is waiting in Cerritos) or a priest- and hear for yourself – regarding those sins you don’t even want to admit to your self – that they are forgiven.
Lord have mercy, and show us that we can open up out hearts – that the mercy will cause us great joy!
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 644-647). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
The Secret to Loving and Serving Others
Devotional thought for the day:
“When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments again he went back to the table. ‘Do you understand’, he said, ‘what I have done to you? 13 You call me Master and Lord, and rightly; so I am. 14 If I, then, the Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you must wash each other’s feet. 15 I have given you an example so that you may copy what I have done to you.” John 13:12-15 (NJB) (
Consider listening to this song –http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4I47c29GvFY while reading this blog
The church has been designed to be a community, a place where people have learned to lay aside their wants and desires, and serve others, to nurture others, to imitate Christ’s life, and the blunt clear lessons like the one in John 13 – where he washes the cracked, dry, smelling feet of men who hadn’t learned yet to love, to be in a relationship – not just with their Lord, but with each other. THe lesson is harsh, and convicting, how often are we willing to get down on our knees, and deal with the muck those we are called to love have walked through?
It cannot be done, not in our own strength at least. Their burdens are too heavy, their pains too deep, the crap in their lives can, indeed cause us to turn away, spiritually and physically nauseated, disgusted. Or we wonder why, as Michael Card sings, we have to do this day after day, after day…..
So where do we find the strength to obey? Where do we find the power to live lives in this holy manner?
A catholic priest once wrote:
“When you start out each day to work by Christ’s side and to look after all those souls who seek him, remember that there is only one way of doing it: we must turn to the Lord. Only in prayer, and through prayer, do we learn to serve others!” (1)
That’s the answer – through prayer – through intimate conversation, through communion/fellowship – through letting Christ wash our feet,through letting him, remove our burdens, through letting Him still – clean up those parts of our lives that have gotten dry, broken, blistered, smelly….. through letting Him be God. It is the only way, as St. Josemarie told us, to find the strength to serve, to be there for people, to bring healing and love to their lives. We don’t have the strength
We have to let Jesus do that to us….cleanse us, heal us…
and then, the Holy Spirit will work through us to do the same for others.
And oh the joy, oh the inexpressible joy that comes from seeing others cleansed, and counted holy and righteous.
It sends you right back in prayer, to the throne of God, to praise and glorify Him!
Lord, show us Your mercy… even as You work through us to bring that mercy to those we serve around us!
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 474-476). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Love your neighbor and your enemy, actively
Discussion/Devotional thought of the day:
5:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
Matthew 5:43-45 (ESV)
It is challenging enough to love one’s friends, one’s neighbors. Yet Jesus calls us to love as He does – to love even our enemies – as we love ourselves. Some may hear this as law – noting the impossibility of such love, and use that as an excuse for not fulfilling this law – or even trying to fulfill it, citing Christ’s fulfillment of the law. They dismiss the command, and seek a cheaper form of grace – one that is reactive, not proactive.
St Paul in Romans 6 would highly disagree – noting that we shouldn’t continue in our sin, that grace would abound more. Instead we should strive to obey and love our enemies – asking God to turn their hearts toward Him. A challenge indeed. I love how one of my favorite authors put it.
440 When you have finished your work, do your brother’s, helping him, for the sake of Christ, with such finesse and naturalness that no one—not even he—will realize that you are doing more than in justice you ought. This, indeed, is virtue befitting a son of God! Escriva, Josemaria, The Way (Kindle Locations 1083-1085). Scepter Publishers.
Love results in action, it’s not just “being nice” or feeling good about someone else. It brings a cup of cold water to someone working, then takes their place while they work. It goes two miles with the person who demanded (fairly or not) that you go one with them one.
Love your enemies – this will not only take the mercy of God, a true level of realizing how much you are in Christ and depend on His strength, but it will give you a new appreciation of His love for you!
Lord have mercy! And as you do, help us show your love and mercy to our enemies and our neighbors,
( by the way – this includes those politicians you’ve been complaining about recently!)
Deliver us, from our complaining and judging!
Devotional thought of the day:
5:9 Do not make complaints against one another, brothers, so as not to be brought to judgement yourselves; the Judge is already to be seen waiting at the gates. 10 For your example, brothers, in patiently putting up with persecution, take the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s name; 11 remember it is those who had perseverance that we say are the blessed ones. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and understood the Lord’s purpose, realising that the Lord is kind and compassionate.
James 5:9-11 (NJB)
In my devotion today ( i read some scripture – and then one of several devotional books) I came across this quote:
“Many false apostles, in spite of themselves, do good to the masses, to the people, through the very power of the doctrine of Jesus which they preach—even though they don’t practice it.
But this good does not compensate for the enormous and very real harm they do by killing the souls of leaders, of apostles, who turn away in disgust from those who don’t practice what they preach.
That’s why such men and women, if they are not willing to live an upright life, should never push themselves”forward as leaders. “(Escriva, Josemaria . The Way (Kindle Locations 1024-1028). Scepter Publishers.
I have to confess, I have my own list of such false prophets, men who do preach Christ crucified that people come to know the love of God, but then whose lives are filled with things that don’t quite resemble the God-man who gave up heaven to come down and live humbly among us and die, that we might live. Or those that encourage us to try and obey God, and then call for the stoning of those who don’t live up to the expectations they have placed on others. Such hypocrites (the greek for judge is krites btw) do, as Escriva points out – cause much damage – even as God uses what they planned for evil, for good. (see Gen. 50:20 for the first time someone planned evil and God used it to bless others- the cross is another example)
To me it is amazing that God can and does use their words to bless people. But hear Paul’s words about this:
1:15 It is true that some of them are preaching Christ out of malice and rivalry; but there are many as well whose intentions are good; 16 some are doing it out of love, knowing that I remain firm in my defence of the gospel. 17 There are others who are proclaiming Christ out of jealousy, not in sincerity but meaning to add to the weight of my chains. 18 But what does it matter? Only that in both ways, whether with false motives or true, Christ is proclaimed, and for that I am happy; [19a] and I shall go on being happy, too,
Philippians 1:15-18 (NJB)
What really begins to get me – is when I realize – that when I condemn those I consider hypocritical, i am acting exactly as St. Escriva describes. That is, my judgment and condemnation simply is living very inconsistently with the message I preach – for I proclaim clearly that the hope of sinners is found in Jesus’ love, in His cleansing them, and that there is hope. Yet when I condemn these men, (not just warning them, or warning others to stay away from them and why) when I bitterly judge them, when I gossip about them, or even compromise and do not confront them (if such is my responsibility) then I have become the kind of pastor I loathe most. It was once said that we need to preach about real sin – not the sin of those unlike me, but the sins that assault and tempt me and mine. And condemning those who preach and are hypocritical – in a way different than mine, doesn’t bring healing of my own sin-wracked life.
It is then, i need to hear what every hypocrite does – what every false prophet does. That there is no reason to delay our repentance, that God is willing to forgive and does. Then, refreshed by His forgiveness, encouraged by His love – we can return to preaching about Him, and living in Him. ANd perhaps, knowing my own hypocritical nature is forgiven, I can help others find that same forgiveness,… and peace!
“Lord Have mercy!” we cry! To our great relief, even as we cry it, we realize He promised to… and has!
Broken People Healing in Christ..one step
Thought of the day….
Earlier this week, my devotional/discussion thgouth included the mission statement of my church. “where broken people find healing in Christ, while helping others heal”
It had more hits than any other devotional blog I have written, and some pretty nice comments came to me. (By the way – feel free to comment and discuss what I right about here). It made me think about the need to discuss what it means to be broken, and what it means to be healed, and how this happens when we find ourselves gathered with others in God’s presence….
The first step is a challenge in our society is difficult – it is not only admitting we are broken people, but mourning and being mortified that we are. Isaiah demonstrated this sorrow and pain this way…
6:5 Then I said, “It’s all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.”
Isaiah 6:5 (NLT)
Have you ever, when someone asks you “How is it going”, really wanted to be honest. To let them know that your heartbroken, or anxious about finances, or challenged, and cannot find any reason for hope? That you are struggling with depression, or worried about what you might hear at that next doctor’s visit? That you don’t know how to deal with the issues your kids misbehavior, but it scares you none the less? But of course you say, “It’s going fine!”
Or what about us as a people, do we take great pride in our country, and pretend that everything is okay? That families are being ripped apart, that children are growing up without any sense of ethics or morality? Do we grieve about a country that is so calloused by sin that we don’t notice that most television shows include adultery as the norm? Do we realize how many people live in great need? Do we realize we are more concerned about having to pay for abortions, than the fact that 50 million lives have been tossed away?
The first step? It’s not admitting we are broken people living in a broken world.
It is realizing it.
And realizing – that no matter how much we try…. we can’t fix what is wrong…
We can’t do miracles on that magnitude. There is only One who can… the One who created us, and can re-create us. We can trust Him, depend on Him, know that He will fix, heal, repair and make it all new.
For that is why he came…even as He explain in his first sermon – as He quotes Isaiah,
4:18 “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.” 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Luke 4:18-21 (NKJV)
As your heart cries out, about your own brokenness, or the brokenness of this world, my you realize that for you as well… today this scripture has been fulfilled… as Christ heals your brokenness, and mine, and the worlds….
