Blog Archives
Visions of Fire and Brimstone are Needed Still, But Who Needs It Has Changed.
Thoughts which carry me to Jesus, and to the cross.
“Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up and causing trouble, and through him many become defiled.” (Hebrews 12:14–15, NET)
““And you, son of man, groan with an aching heart and bitterness; groan before their eyes. When they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you will reply, ‘Because of the report that has come. Every heart will melt with fear and every hand will be limp; everyone will faint and every knee will be wet with urine.’ Pay attention—it is coming and it will happen, declares the sovereign LORD.”” (Ezekiel 21:6–7, NET)
Those who saw them, however, were greatly amazed that they differed from all others by their habit and life and seemed almost like wild men. In fact, whenever they entered especially a city, estate, town, or home, they announced peace, encouraging everyone to fear and love the Creator of heaven and earth and to observe the commandments.
I think it was Moody who came up with the idea that having people put in hell for a minute would drive them to the cross. At least he had the first half of preaching law and gospel correct!
But perhaps there is another who needs to visualize, and even experience the wrath of God, to contemplate its horror.
I am talking about those who minister to others. It might be a pastor or priest, a deacon or even and internet apologist. It would include the Bible Study leader, and also the Christian who could make an impact in their community.
How much would it change your heart to share the experience of Ezekiel, who pictured people so overwhelmed by the wrath of God that their hearts melt, their hands can no longer hold or lift anything, and quite colorfully, they can’t control their bladders. (other translations say their legs become like water-attempting to clean up the mess!) To observe people experiencing that furious a revelation of God, delivering the punishment they deserve should change how we minister, and how we are motivated to minister.
That kind of ministry is what Hebrews describes, this passion to share with people a peace that doesn’t make sense. To work that people can see God, and approach Him boldly, for they have not rejected the grace of our Lord. I love the thoughts, just as I would love to be described as the two men St. Francis described! To seem like wild men, as we passionately seek to be at peace with others, a peace only possible in Jesus.
To know what people face if we fail, and they come short of the grace of God. That will tame the zeal and focus it on ministry. It will stop us from being condescending–and focus us on serving. It will change our attitude that we are battling those sinners, and remind us we are on a rescue mission to save them.
True revival will begin, the more we realize what God is rescuing us all from…as will the most incredible worship. May we
Pasquale, G., ed. (2011). Day by Day with Saint Francis: 365 Meditations (p. 269). New City Press.
The Harvest is about the Harvest: A sermon on Acts 16:9-15
The Harvest is about the Harvest
Acts 16:9-15
† In Jesus’ Name †
May the grace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Chirst strengthen and guide your work in His harvest!
I wonder if I would have the same reaction as Paul did to the vision of the man pleading for him to come help.
I mean Peter had a vision last week and went to a Gentiles house, Paul has a vision this week and leaves the country he’s in, both 100% sure that they are, to quote the blues brothers, on a Mission from God.
And both see the results of that mission , as Cornelius and his household, and Lydia and her household are baptized and are born again!
So how do we know where we will be sent to work in the harvest…or maybe, we already have been!
But how do we know with such certainty that we are on a mission? How do we know when we’ve reached the field that is ready to be harvested?
Do we need to have a vision? How would we recognize it if we did?
How do we know, to use Luke’s words from Acts, “that God was calling us to preach the Good News there.” ?
- The Law -Neglecting so Great a Salvation
I started the sermon wondering if I would have the same reaction to a vision as Paul did.
To be blunt, that is the wrong question to ask!
Peter and Paul’s visions were there to redefine their mission—not just start one. They were working in this field, sharing the gospel and God said, time to move fields—He didn’t change the mission, God just changed the location they were working in…
So we all work in the field where we are planted, LA and Orange County. We look for the people who are calling out for help, as the man in the vision from Macedonia did!
Who is calling out for help in your life? A family member? A co-worker? A long lost friend? Someone with major health issues, or family issues, or whose work place is toxic. Someone you thought had it all together, only to find out their lives were like a house of cards, and the base was starting to slip. Where are the broken people around you, even the ones you see crushed by the consequences of their sin!
Perhaps especially those…
We can’t neglect their great salvation, any more than our own.
- How do we reach them?
If you look in the north-west corner of my office, the top two shelves have books about Envanelish, about church planting, and how to grow a church. Some where written in the 70’s and some in the 90’s, and some recently. All of them seem to “guarantee” people coming to know Jesus, if you only follow what worked for them.
We’ve used a couple of those books here in the last 17 years. Joining Jesus was one, There have been others. There have been Bible Studies and still are, and we’ve tried various outreach programs, but they all have one thing in common. We go, as Jesus went, we become part of people’s lives, as Jesus did…
And that is what Paul did. This is how he reached them.
- He heard their cry – he had gone to wear they were, and listen to their cry, even if it was only heard from observing their body language (or looking at their FB page to see if they went thrift shopping this week!)
- Next be ready to pray for them – offer it, and pray with them aloud if possible. (This means you needed to listen, to know how to pray!) Give them the hope you have, knowing the Lord’s presence, and knowing His mercy and love
- If the Holy Spirit opens their heart, have some kleenex ready… there may be a flood of tears – good, joyful tears..
Remember – other Christians need to be reminded of God’s presence and grace often.
SO that all may know God’s peace, which is there for them, the peace that like God’s love, goes beyond all understanding, but in which we are guarded by Jesus!
Amen!
More Blessed to Give than Receive (what actually?) A sermon on Acts 20
More Blessed to Give (What actually?)
Acts 20:17-35
† In Jesus’ Name †
May the grace and peace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ descend upon you, enabling and causing you to give Jesus to the world!
The Temptation
Did you ever have a thought that was, at least in your opinion, quite brilliant, and in many ways it still is, but then you realize it is not quite the thought you were looking for?
It was oh so close, and then you realize, it doesn’t just quite fit the context!
I did that this week as I read a key verse, and the basis for our sermon, from the Acts reading this week. It says there, “‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
And my brilliant, first reaction was, was a great text to preach on, for mother’s day!
At least from my perspective, I see this as true in many of your lives, as you light up when you tell me all the things they do well, and I know part of the reason is all that you did over the years, to make it happen.
You ladies know the truth of this statement in general. I can say that because I have seen you do it, and have seen you worry and try to figure out how to do what is best for you children- biological, adopted, or just accepted as part of the family!
Great idea – combines several things together, lets me praise some great examples of sacrifice (yeah your kids may never know)
Except I was wrong.
While the idea is true, there is one specific issue that this is talking about – not just sacrifice in general, but a very specific context, a very specific thing to give…
And we are called to learn this lesson, as we continue to work in the harvest with our Lord and Master Jesus Christ.
The Threat
As the Apostle Paul is talking to the church leaders that he poured a lot of time and effort into, several words caught my eye…
26 I declare today that I have been faithful. If anyone suffers eternal death, it’s not my fault, 27 for I didn’t shrink from declaring all that God wants you to know.
28 “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.
Paul sees the truth of the “it’s better to give” concept in the fact that what he gave to the Ephesians was that which saved them from eternal death. What He gave them was Jesus.
It’s like me saying that no member of Concordia doesn’t know that the Lord is with them, than because the Lord is risen, you are risen, and no deacon, vicar or pastor I have supervised can say that they don’t know what the purpose of this place is…
Heck – Bob sent me a quote from the new pope that even he knows this, as he talked about “our first talked is to teach what it means to know Jesus Christ! (Maybe he knew a few Lutherans growing up in Chicago. BTW Bob, his brother said the one thing he didn’t understand about their new pope was that he was a packers fan)
But Paul’s comment is that he gave away what was most priceless, and yet costly, the knowledge that God loves us, that Jesus died as the remedy that saves us from Hell, eternal death.
The message
That’s where we are all heading, if we don’t know and depend on Jesus for what he’s done for us.
And it wasn’t Paul’s fault if they didn’t know it, just as hopefully its not my fault or Bob’s if you don’t know it. Of everything we could give you….that is the most valuable.
Aand if we don’t—we are partially at fault for your destination… you see, the message of Jesus’s love, of His presence in your life, of His saving you and forgiving all your sin is that important in you life.
Hearing and trusting it is the difference between eternity in God’s presence, and eterniny in that eternal death known as hell.
And the Blessing
And this is what is even more blessed to give, than it is to receive.
I’ve seen it, but I’ve also seen two lives change because they were part of giving eternal life and faith to people.
The first is our beloved former deacon Chuck. He did everything he could to fix everything he could try when I arrived. But he was a bit fatalistic about it, and sometimes a little grumpy.
Until the day I made him stand right here while I baptized two girls from our school, Kay and Rachel. All he did was hold my book open.
And a speed faster than a softball pitch, Chuck was blessed by helping give someone the gifts or repentance, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection and live everlasting.
It was so transformative for him that he got a bit possessive of the role of standing next to me when I baptized someone!
The other is his sidekick Tom, and I wouldn’t tell you this if he was here. But Tom becoming a elder didn’t hit home, till I asked to visit Margaret’s son Teddy in the hospital. He brought a communion kit, and for the first time, gave someone communion at my request.
And then Ted’s dad, and then and then… it’s like something in him snapped as he did this. As Tom realized the blessing it was to share with something the Lord’s Supper – and see their faith come alive, his did even more.
I could toss Debbie and Tom in here, as they cared for and made sure their moms could find Christ’s peace.
I could toss Jim in with them, as he wrote me last summer on his “mission trip”. He was more excited about sharing the gospel with some folk than seeing all the beautiful places he stayed. And his emails and texts described the conversations, and the hopes he had for there people, that was a blast to read.
Or Sue, who takes many people back and forth to this doctor, that test, and stays with them, wanting them to know God’s peace in the middle of challenging times.
There is a list in Hebrews, that I could duplicate here, people that made a difference because they trusted and were empowered to by God. Each on named starts off with… by faith they…Manny and Lili, Dane and Gerry, Lissa and sandie, Colleen and Ben,, and we have a similar group here. We are blessed – because we give Christ…
We have the ability to help people gain eternity, and peace, and a perspective that comes from knowing there are forgiven, they are loved, they are important to God himself, who wants to share forever with them…
And when they hear this…and respond… you will know how Paul felt. For it is even more to share you faith with someone who gains eternity, than it is to receive it yourself…
So be blessed, knowing the peace that is yours in Christ will be theirs as well, even if it is beyond words!
We Had to Do This Horrible Thing… and Learned to Worship!
Thoughts which carry me to Jesus, and to the Cross
“So the men cried to the LORD, “LORD, please don’t let us die because of this man’s life; please don’t think we are guilty of killing an innocent person. LORD, you have caused all this to happen; you wanted it this way.” So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea became calm. Then they began to fear the LORD very much; they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made promises to him.” (Jonah 1:14–16, NCV)
DEAR Heavenly Father, in Thy Name let me bless my parents, my brothers, and sisters, my pastor and teachers, and all my friends. Hear the blessing I pronounce upon them, and even at Thy Heavenly Throne confirm it. Send them all help out of Thy Holy Temple and give them strength out of Zion. Blessed be they who bless them; and turn away evil from them, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
I can’t imagine the challenge facing the men who crewed the ship Jonah was on, as they had to offer him to the Sea to possibly save their own lives. Even with Jonah telling them he was the reason for their problems, they were in fear of killing him. Yet it was the only way to save their lives, and perhaps Jonah’s soul.
They had no choice
They sacrificed him.
Move forward a couple of hundred years, to Jerusalem, to a prophetic statement by the high priest. “49 Caiaphas, who was high priest at that time, said, “You don’t know what you’re talking about! 50 You don’t realize that it’s better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed.” John 11:49-50 (NLT2)
Jonah’s being tossed overboard to his death would not only save the people in the ship, but it would save a nation. Jesus’ death would not only save the nation as prophesied, but people of the entire world. Their lives would be sacrificed, only to be freed from the fish and death three days later.
This isn’t history, we have to make the same decision, we have to learn to depend on this sacrifice of Jesus, we have to learn to own the nail scars, the wound in His side, we have to proclaim the Lord’s death for us until He comes again. Not to be saved – but to learn that this salvation is ours.
We had to kill the innocent man, and we have to learn that’s why He came. We have to learn that this was done out of love and care for us, not just us as in my and you, but us as in the human race.
The more we realize this, the more Loehe’s prayer makes sense, that God would give us the ability to leave our home, and go to our Nineveh’s (maybe they are in our home) To bring blessings to those who need to know God’s blessings, to turn those who would see evil done to us. You see, this is part of where we imitate Jesus, who helped people come to repentance.
Even if we have to be tossed off the ship to do so…
Even if we have to learn to love the unlovable…
this is the nature of servant ministry… to be willing to lay down our lives, sacrifice them, so others can come to repentance…
For He loves us all.
Lœhe, W. (1914). Seed-Grains of Prayer: A Manual for Evangelical Christians (H. A. Weller, Trans.; p. 610). Wartburg Publishing House.
An Odd, Blessed, Understanding of “Family”
Thoughts which drive me to Jesus, and the cross, and then to the world..
18 As Jesus was getting back into the boat, the man who was freed from the demons begged to go with him.
19 But Jesus would not let him. He said, “Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you.” 20 So the man left and began to tell the people in the Ten Towns about what Jesus had done for him. And everyone was amazed. Mark 5:18-20 NCV
This is why, as a Christian sets out on his way of uninterrupted dealing with our Lord, his interior life grows and becomes more strong and secure. And he is led to engage in the demanding yet attractive struggle to fulfill completely the will of God. I might add that his not a path for a privileged few; it is a way open to everyone.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel: For He hath visited and redeemed His people,
And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us:
In the house of His servant David; As He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets:
Which have been since the world began;
That we should be saved from our enemies:
And from the hand of all that hate us;
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers:
And to remember His holy covenant;
The man, rescued from the clutches of pure evil, is told by Jesus that he has graduated from seminary, and now is being sent to his home, to share with what God (for that is what the reference Lord means here) has done, and the compassionate, intimate mercy shown to him. The man complies, with an odd twist, he redefines the term family in the widest possible way! He goes and share with them, the population of 10 very diverse cities of primarily non-Jewish peoples. People that moved there because of business, because of the military occupation, because of a thousand different reasons. It awaw san area so diverse, the people named it using a Greek name, not a Samaritan name, nor a Hebrew name,
Such is the kind of praise that wells up within us, that both St. Josemaria and William Loehe note (Loehe quoting Zacharias in Luke 1) as they consider the work done in the lives of the people of God. There is nothing abnormal about spending time with God, and then desiring that others find they are able to share in such a blessing.
St. Josamaria describes it as an observer, (but it was his experience as well!) Zacharias/Koehe see it as it happens, even though it hadn’t fully happened yet, but the response is the same as the man going to Decapolis – look at what God has done! It is not a forced evangelism program, as they embrace the “demanding yet attractive struggle to fulfill compactedly the will of God.” Again, we have to realize where our desire comes from–it is not an obligation it is not something the pastor can manipulate, or program into his people. It come from them seeing God, talking to Him intimately, allowing Him to show you that you are loved. As you realize that wonderful love, as you realize the demons God’s rescued you from, hear his voice telling you when it is time to go…for this is what we are all called to do.. to live in Christ and go to our “family” and completely fulfill His will.
A will explained simply by Jesus, “go tell them what God has done..to you.”
So go spend some time with God – and let me know what happens next… as He surprises you with people who need to hear!
Josemaria Escriva. Christ is Passing by. (New York, Scepter, 2002( no. 199
“the Song of Zacharia Benedictus”, William Lœhe, Seed-Grains of Prayer: A Manual for Evangelical Christians, trans. H. A. Weller (Chicago: Wartburg Publishing House, 1914), 91.
Before the Harvest! A Sermon on Psalm 67
“Before the Harvest”
Psalm 67
† In Jesus Name †
May the grace of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ be evident in your life in the Harvest field!
- You are that answer to Prayer
For the next 11 weeks we are going to be talking about God working through us, turning us into an answer to prayer—a prayer Jesus taught us to pray. It comes from Matthew 9:38, There, we find written:
36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. 38 So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Matthew 9:36-38 (NLT2)
And so we pray, and then we find that we are the answer to pray – each one of is not just sent into the harvest fields once in a while, God has called us to live in the midst of the field that He has planted.
As we look at this, there are a number of lessons to learn experientially, before we get to the reading of Revelation 7, and the final eternal celebration of the Harvest:
We will hear that description on Reformation day,
“9 After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. 10 And they were shouting with a mighty shout, (have everyone read this part) “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” Revelation 7:9-10 (NLT2)
I can’t wait to hear you say that in heaven!
Today’s reading from Psalm 67 talks about it… we see the promise of the harvest, 6 Then the earth will yield its harvests, and God, our God, will richly bless us. 7 Yes, God will bless us, and people all over the world will fear him.
So what happens before that…
- Before the harvest
Is prayer – a prayer that God’s blessings be known, not just to us, or to the Israeli people, but to everyone. Hear it again!
2 May your ways be known throughout the earth, your saving power among people everywhere. 3 May the nations praise you, O God. Yes, may all the nations praise you. 4 Let the whole world sing for joy, because you govern the nations with justice and guide the people of the whole world.
5 May the nations praise you, O God. Yes, may all the nations praise you.
I still wish Bible translators knew of the existence of exclamation points!
People throughout the whole earth, people everywhere, need to know what God is doing! How He is using all His power to save people everywhere! We need to know, everyone needs to know God is there, to the point where their reaction is simply to praise Him.
Which means to know what it means to be saved.
We need to explore that – because to just say, “hey, you were just saved.”—especially without a exclamation point…. Doesn’t inspire a lot of praise and adoration.
Our salvation – yeah that does. Or it should!
- Justice and Guidance
So to understand salvation – we have to look deeper into the passage, to where it talks about God governing the nations with both justice and guidance.
The first is justice – everyone thinks they want justice in this world, until you really think about what it means. I had two instances where I had to think about what justice truly is this week. One situation has played out in the news, the other was regarding something I witnessed.
The first case, I urged patience in, the details of the court case was only given by one side. And the other side is only beginning to be heard. Rumors abound, which doesn’t help anyone, it just divides people. The second case, I thought I wanted what I thought would be justice… and then, when it didn’t go quickly or easily, I became uneasy, and when the dust settled – my thought was the accused got way too light of a sentence for the suffering he caused.
And then I looked at my sermon notes again…
If anyone of us got the sentence that justice demands for our sins, the sins we commit in our thoughts through our words and what we do, not one of us should be here. Not one of us should be allowed to receive communion, in fact, Bob and I should be struck dead as we approach the altar…
So God’s justice cannot be what we call justice. It must be something more…
It has to be God’s justice, or to use the other word that is translated as–His righteousness. God governs us, which is about judging us and our lives.
And in His righteousness, He sees us as righteous.
His level of righteous…for in Christ’s death and resurrection, Jesus was credited with our sinfulness, as He credited us with His complete righteousness. So, God is completely just, His judgment is unquestionable.
After judging us as righteous, God does something even more phenomenal. He invests in our lives. He guides us and takes responsibility for our lives.
This is why we praise Him! He makes us His own, caring for us, cleansing us, walking with us through life, simply because He loves us.
These are His ways that need to be made know throughout the earth, the effective way He will save everyone who depends on Him..
- The Harvest that is now – and not yet
As we spread that message, as those seeds are planted, they grow until the harvest at the end of time. We heard it from the Psalmist earlier, but let’s hear it again,
5 May the nations praise you, O God. Yes, may all the nations praise you. 6 Then the earth will yield its harvests, and God, our God, will richly bless us
Or as Jesus said it
13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come. Matthew 24:13-14 (NLT2)
So its simple – we work in the fields we live in, sharing the work of God, knowing His presence, and then, the harvest happens, and we are all brought before the throne of God. Until that day, God governs us and guides us, His people as we dwell in His peace…doing His will, sharing His love with the world. AMEN!!
Where is “the” Church FOcusing its Efforts?
Thoughts that move me towards Jesus, and the The Cross
He helps us in all our troubles, so that we are able to help others who have all kinds of troubles, using the same help that we ourselves have received from God 2 Cor. 1:4 GNT
I think we can say that most Christians have no clear end toward which they are striving.
The first and highest work of love a Christian ought to do when he has become a believer is to bring others also to believe in the way he himself came to believe. Here you notice Christ begins and institutes the office of the ministry of the external Word in every Christian; for he himself came with this office and the external Word.
Psalm 119:59 tells of a time of self-examination, a time where the Psalmist looked at his life and probably sight, stood up and began the journey again. It is a hard course of action to take, but one that we each need to do, and perhaps, need to do as congregations as well.
But 30-30 years after Tozer originally noted that we strive without a true direction, we still don’t find it. We get caught up on crusade after crusade. THe latest is to fignt human trafficking, prior to that there were battles on both sides of the CRT issue, and the LGTBQ issue, and this political issue and that one. It’s nothing new, I remember the church being directed to strive against rock & roll, promiscuity, divorce and greed growing up.
And in all of this, we’ve lost what it means to be the church, to have Jesus revealed to us, to believe, trust and depend on the work of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in our lives.
and then to share that work with those who need it. Which is everyone we encounter. That’s the basis of what Paul is telling the church in Corinth. We need to strive to maintain the hope given to us in the life, death, resurrection and eventual return of Jesus–and then we need to share that with all who are broken.
I need to do this, but so do you. Luther’s clear about this being the work of both those called to shepherd the church. and those who are the church.
This needs to be our focus, our life, this hope of being a relationship with our creator, who loves us.
To strive after anything else, to think spiritual warfare is about anything else, is vanity
A. W. Tozer and Gerald B. Smith, Mornings with Tozer: Daily Devotional Readings (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2008).
Martin Luther and John Sander, Devotional Readings from Luther’s Works for Every Day of the Year (Rock Island, IL: Augustana Book Concern, 1915), 255.
The Risen Body of Christ: A sermon on Acts 2:42-47
The Risen Body of Christ
Acts 2:42-47
† I.H.S.†
May the grace of God and the Lord Jesus Christ encourage in us a sense of awe as we serve alongside each other; helping each other find healing in Christ Jesus.
- What did the Risen Church Do?
I want you to imagine a conversation that the disciples had, about 3 weeks after Jesus shows up, “no longer dead.”
Peter gets them back in the upper room and says,
Alleluia! Christ is Risen!
And the disciples respond, “He is risen, indeed!”
Peter comes back with, “and therefore…”
And the disciples are ready, the shout out “we are risen indeed! Alleluia!”
And Peter looks around the room, and wonders,
“Uhm… What do we do next?”
Well, we know from scripture they will replace Judas, and then wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit to come open them.
And as they baptize 3000 people, they begin to do things…. And that is where we get to today.
What does a bunch of people who have risen with Christ do?
What they did then, maybe is what we should be doing now…
- What they did…
Well scripture is pretty clear about what they did,
They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, to the study of the word of God as it showed the promises that came true because of the cross.
They had fellowship events together, where they came together as one—like the women’s luncheon yesterday.
They shared in meals, including the breaking of bread in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper.
They prayed together. The word there in Greek is to ask, even beg God to interact in their lives, but to do so, knowing He is listening.
And they shared everything they had… meeting each other’s needs,
It was special.
So much so that, “43 A deep sense of awe came over them all!”
That was before all the signs and wonders!
God was at work!
- Why did they do it?
So why were they so involved?
Some churches talk about being purpose driven, setting out a purpose such as saving the world. Others create Vision Statements and Mission Statements with core values. Very similar to that which a corporation would create.
They speak of getting people to buy into the vision of leadership, and therefore everyone is motivated to work towards that vision. Programs, events, everything has to serve that vision, or it falls apart. Consultants and coaches make a lot of money helping churches discover that vision.
Except that in the places where the church explodes, there usually isn’t enough time or leadership to spend time on the vision statement! They certainly didn’t have one at Pentecost!
At its best, the church is beyond our control.
That’s uncomfortable!
That’s okay – our mission statement here is a little uncomfortable.
Concordia is the place where broken people find healing in Christ, while helping others heal!
Wait! That means each and every person here is broken in some way!
Yes! We are in a long line of people broken by sin, that do incredible things as God works through us to help others. Gerry did that yesterday, as she invited Shelly to come to the luncheon. Maureen, a new person among us, came and brought her teenage daughter! And I saw a bunch of ladies I didn’t know – what a wonderful outreach, that God did!
God at work! Creating a fellowship meal where people got to know people, where they laughed together!
Just like at Pentecost!
Half the things I do it seems, are not for who I originally meant it to bless, but it blesses other people.
Not just about the church, but about everything. We have our vision, and we don’t always ask God if it resonates with Him!
I’ll give you another example. I thought we wouldn’t make it this year financially as a church and school without the ERC money. Yet, as of last month, we haven’t touched it. Concordia was in the black —as a whole.
God has provided!
- The results—great joy, generosity, goodwill and the Lord added…
The effects of the church spending so much time dedicated to God’s word, to the sacraments, and to prayer were four-fold.
They lived in awe of God.
They experienced great joy
They were generous, spending not only money, but time investing it in each other’s lives.
And those around them recognized God at work and looked upon them favorably.
I would share with you something someone told me about our Easter service,
“I watched your service live as it was happening rather than later on as I had planned. There was something very special about the whole thing, including a very peaceful yet joyful atmosphere that I detected.” Jim
I’ve had other people tell me similar things about our church, including a pastor who I took to lunch on a Monday a few years back. He asked what happened on Sunday, as there was a residual feeling of holiness, as if everyone experienced the presence of God.
And others just know they fit in, this is where God wants them…because God was tangible here, that they felt God’s peace in the midst of their brokenness. Even a couple of weeks ago, as we watch James get baptized, where His mother was baptized. And as saw another group of youth get confirmed.
God slowly, surely adds to our number…He places people here, where they become part of our family…
God is at work here, in this risen body of Jesus.
This is the church, where we see God invest His word and His precious Body and Blood in us, and we invest in each other…
And together, we find that God pours out His peace upon us, our hearts, our minds, as we realize we are united with Christ.
AMEN!
His Church: Marketing or Talking with God?
Thoughts to encourage us to spend time with Jesus.
Please listen, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph’s descendants like a flock. O God, enthroned above the cherubim, display your radiant glory 2 to Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh. Show us your mighty power. Come to rescue us! 3 Turn us again to yourself, O God. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved. Psalm 80:1-3 (NLT2)
He told me, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your gifts to the poor have been noticed by God! 32 Now send messengers to Joppa, and summon a man named Simon Peter. He is staying in the home of Simon, a tanner who lives near the seashore.’ 33 So I sent for you at once, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here, waiting before God to hear the message the Lord has given you.” Acts 10:31-33 NLT
Listening to someone personally beats hearing about that person second hand. Yet strangely when it comes to the mission of the church we settle for the latter. Too much of what passes for gospel mission is second hand information; it may be factual and instructive, but it’s not personal. It resembles advertising more than anything else.
Then he [Martin Luther] was asked whether the sacraments have a spiritual power in themselves, so that baptism would be consecrated water which by its own strength could wipe out sins, even in case the water were drunk by an ass. He replied, “Because the spiritual power of God doesn’t comprise corporeal, inanimate matter, baptism doesn’t accomplish anything at all as water existing by itself. But as an action (which would be in its use) baptism has power, so that if anybody sprinkles an infant with water together with a recitation of those words of Christ by which he instituted baptism and promised the forgiveness of sins, that action, and not the water, has divine power.
The experts that study the church have told us for years a simple thing about why people come to church. It is because a friend, relative or co-worker invited them to come, and made sure they knew they would be welcome. Maybe it is because we are tired of trying to motivate our people, or we’ve seen too many “invite-a-friend” Sunday fail that we fall for the glamour and hype modern marketing and business planning offers us. Mission statements, goals and objectives, strategic implementation all geared to help us sell our faith…
BUt we aren’t in the business to sell our faith. We are ind the ministry to share why we have hope.
Sharing why we have hope, giving the reason for it means that we have discovered a reason to have hope—God revealed it to us, It is an overwhelming hope, as God guarantees us an eternity free of guilt, shame, resentment, pain, sorrow. It is a life where His presence brings us peace during the trials and traumas of life. This is hope at its best, and assurance of God’s love and presence in our lives–a presence that is available to everyone.
What if our efforts were teaching people to pray like those who wrote the Psalms did, expectantly begging God to make Himself known to all of us?
What if we realized He desired to turn us and draw us to His side, to smile at us, to save us all?
Senkbeil mentions the importance of hearing from someone directly, and he is talking about hearing from God. Both Cornelius and Peter did, and responded to what the message God had given them. Luther takes it another step–it is listening to God’s promises in the words of Christ that make a sacrament a sacrament.
If the people who are the church hear God, hearing His word will transform them. That transformation will cause their hearts to break as they see people suffer without Him, and they will want them to know His peace.
That causes revival, the knowledge of God’s love and His work rescuing us…
Or, as we say at my church – we are the broken people finding healing in Jesus, while helping others heal.
Lord Jesus, reveal to us today more of the work you are doing in our lives, turn us again and draw us closer to You. Then Lord, help us see others as You do, and use our lives to draw them through You to the Father. AMEN!
Harold L. Senkbeil, The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor’s Heart (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2019), 226.
Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Vol. 54: Table Talk, ed. Jaroslav Jan Pelikan, Hilton C. Oswald, and Helmut T. Lehmann, vol. 54 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1999), 358.
The Call Never Changes: A sermon on Isaiah 6 and Luke 5
The Call Never Changes
Isaiah 6 & Luke 5
† I.H.S. †
May the grace of God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ sustain you, as you are formed for the works God has planned for you in the future, as you walk with Him through this life!
- Called to Train
Andrew Murray, a 19th Century Missionary from the Netherlands to South Africa, wrote,
“Let the Church awake to her calling to train the feeblest of her members to know that Christ counts upon every redeemed one to live wholly for His work. This alone is true Christianity, is full salvation.”*
While we need to carefully unpack that statement, it is quite true. Every person part of this community, young or old, is called to live for Christ.
Each of you is called to do God’s work, no matter what else you do, no matter where you do it.
The challenge is not to think that serving God is what saves you. Instead, salvation looks like these men’s lives: a relationship like Isaiah and Peter enter into with God. An intimate relationship resulting in a joy found in walking with Jesus throughout life.
And as you are called to walk in this journey, you are following in Isaiah and Peter’s footsteps, for the call never changes…
- Called into God’s Presence
The first part of the call is finding ourselves in the presence of God. For Isaiah, that was the incredible vision of heaven, seeing God in all His glory. It must have been overwhelming, to say the least, to see the angels ministering to God, praising God, seeing how God’s glory envelopes the entire world.
Peter and Andrew’s call was somewhat different. Their call happened at the end of a long night of fishing- long because all their hard work resulted in nothing but sore bodies and frustrated attitudes. As Jesus taught, and then the miracle – catching fish when and where you aren’t supposed to catch fish, led Peter to the same conclusion as Isaiah. “I have been called into the presence of God….”
- Called into God’s grace
Once called into God’s presence, both Isaiah and Peter had the same reaction,
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.
8 When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.” 9 For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him.
To me, that they could talk while seeing God’s glory is amazing!
They were both aware of two simple facts…
The first is that God is so incredibly holy and righteous.
The second was how they described themselves.
for I am a sinful man. And I’m such a sinful man.
But that is where the second part of the call comes into play.
For these men were not sinners in the hands of an angry God, they were in the presence of a God determined to be merciful, a God who loved them, a God who had a plan for their life….
And even as they are called into God’s presence, they are called into His grace…into receiving His forgiveness and pardon. Hear that clearly….
He touched my lips with it and said, “See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven.”
Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid!
God doesn’t call us in this life to punish us. He calls us into His presence to purify us, and so both Isaiah and Peter are calmed, and their sin dealt with…so that they can see the last part of their call into the presence of God
- Called to Minister to Others
What happens to Isaiah and Peter next is important.
Not because it happened to them… but because the call of God never changes.
Remember Murray’s statement?
“Let the Church awake to her calling to train the feeblest of her members to know that Christ counts upon every redeemed one to live wholly for His work. This alone is true Christianity, is full salvation.”*
Peter is told he will become a fisher of men, so he will. Isaiah responds to the same call that brought him into the presence of God, saying, Here am I – send me! I often hear that like this…
Send me! Send me! Please send me!
For that is the response. One early church describes it this way,
“The Lord does not say unequivocally whom he is sending. He leaves the matter vague so that the prophet might respond to the call voluntarily. When Isaiah responds, he does not do so out of rashness or overconfidence but out of trust. For his iniquity has been removed, and he has been cleansed of his sins”[1]
And Luther adds, “But to offer one’s service is to say, ‘I’ll be glad to accept if you can use me in this place.’ If he is wanted, it is a true call. So Isaiah said, ‘Here I am. Send me’ [Isa. 6:8]. He went when he heard that a preacher was needed. This ought to be done.”[2]
Sharing God’s love is always a matter of faith – of trusting that God has sent us into that place, using whatever gifts, whatever knowledge we have – no matter whether we are 9 or 90, a preschooler or a Ph.D. A fisherman, a tax collector, a student, a pastor, a financial guru, it doesn’t matter… We are called into this relationship… something so incredible, we need to bless others by bringing them into it.
Most of us will be like Peter, just fishers of men called where we live. As we live, called in the presence of God, saved by the cross of Christ, the end result is fantastic… sinners end up in heaven.
Just like we will be…. So my friends… when you are in the presence of God… hear His call… and go where He sends you…trusting in Him. For you dwell in His presence. AMEN!
* Andrew Murray, Working for God!: A Sequel to Waiting on God! (New York; Chicago; Toronto: Fleming H. Revell, 1901), 35.
[1] Wilken, Robert Louis, Angela Russell Christman, and Michael J. Hollerich, eds. 2007. Isaiah: Interpreted by Early Christian and Medieval Commentators. Translated by Robert Louis Wilken, Angela Russell Christman, and Michael J. Hollerich. The Church’s Bible. Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, UK: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[2] Luther, Martin. 1999. Luther’s Works, Vol. 54: Table Talk. Edited by Jaroslav Jan Pelikan, Hilton C. Oswald, and Helmut T. Lehmann. Vol. 54. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.
