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Pop quiz…Can you name all of the 7 dwarfs?  The ingredients in a Big Mac?  The kids on the Brady Bunch?  Santa’s reindeer?  What about the Ten Commandments or all of the books of the Old Testament?  We live in a world of lists.  There’s no avoiding them.  In 2007, one thousand people were polled on their recall of the Big Mac ingredients vs. the Ten Commandments.  Care to guess the result?  Eighty percent of Americans knew the Big Mac had two all-beef patties while just over fifty percent knew, “Thou shalt not kill”, was a commandment.

So, the Ten Commandments.  What does this mean?  Basically, God asked for a prenup.  It was God’s first official words to a new nation.  They identify God, tell us about the character of His followers, and establishes a relationship between the two.  He’s saying, “Here’s our arrangement, our covenant.  I promise to uphold my end and here’s what I expect from you.”  He had just freed them from slavery so the Egyptians were no longer a threat.  It was time to sit down for a “Come to Jesus” meeting.  God said, “Alright, here’s the deal.  I freed you, I saved your lives, pay attention.  Rule #1 – You shall have no other gods before Me.”… and so forth.  This was nothing new to the Israelites.  Look back in Genesis; it’s all there.  It isn’t that we don’t know better, we just don’t do better.  These commandments are God’s way of communicating His love, hopes and protection for us.  We don’t get any extra credit for following them since Jesus did that for us.  Instead, we have the knowledge that if we try to follow them, we are people of faith.

“But they’re too hard to keep.”  Really?  Over time we were given the opportunity to make laws to “keep people safe”, and what did we come up with?  (Yes, these are actual state laws…)  It is illegal: to wake a sleeping bear for a selfie; for a donkey to sleep in a bathtub; to eat chicken with tableware; to be ugly in public; to be a cannibal.  In addition, you CANNOT exceed the speed limit for horses, have a picnic in a cemetery, or get false teeth for a woman without her husband’s permission.  Oh, and my personal favorite; it’s against the law for pickles to not bounce.  Really??  How can we be put in charge of anything?  It’s embarrassing.

In May, 2024, Louisiana passed a law that a poster with the Ten Commandments be posted in every public school classroom.  While this seems like a good idea, it will likely be considered by most people as a waste of time.  If children don’t hear about God from their parents, how big of an impression will a poster make?  Probably about as much as that, “Hang in there” poster from the 70’s.  Kids aren’t stupid.  How can we punish them for cheating on exams when they see their parents cheat on each other; cheat on their taxes; steal things from hotels and work; etc.?  And not just the parents; politicians and presidents cheat and lie and because we expect it of them, we’re OK with it. 

A poll was once taken among people 15-35 years of age.  Most were unable to name more than two commandments and weren’t happy to hear about some of the ones they didn’t know.  The Ten Commandments are not a moral charm that will ward off evil, curb the crime rate, eliminate school shootings and teenage pregnancy.  Instead, if they are taught in the home and practiced by all, it’s beneficial to the health of not only families, but also schools, communities, and nations.  Posting them is not enough.  We have to live them as well.

We need to live the Ten Commandments.  What does this mean?  We should fear and love God so that we go beyond the topical meaning and delve deeper.  Just because I didn’t hold up a liquor store or shoot anyone doesn’t mean I didn’t break a commandment.

1st – Who do I turn to for emotional support?  Who do I trust for financial security?

2nd – How often do I curse?  Do I pray often and sincerely?

3rd – How often does my mind wander during church?  Do I pray for my pastor?

4th – Do I obey all the posted speed laws and pay my taxes?  Have I been ashamed of or disrespected my parents, employer, or authorities?

5th – Do I hate or am I angry with anyone?  Do I hold a grudge?  Have I not helped someone that needed it?

6th – Am I guilt of lust, indecency or viewing pornography?

7th – Have I made an illegal copies of printed material, audio/video tapes, or computer programs?  Do I care for what I have and return what I borrow?

8th – Do I gossip about the mistakes of others?  Do I judge someone without all of the facts?  Have I said everything in the best possible way?

9th – Do I envy people that have more than I do?  Do I neglect my family or church and do what I want to do?

10th – Am I unhappy with what God has given me (spouse, job, etc.)?

Did I hit a little closer to home?  How often to you associate going over the speed limit with breaking a commandment?  It’s something to consider before asking for forgiveness in your next prayer.  It always helps to know what you’re asking forgiveness for.

Isn’t life complicated enough without having to look for more things to confuse us??  Apparently not.  Example 1: My friend asked me the other day if I knew that a tomato was a fruit and not a vegetable.  I did and told her that last year, there was even a front page story about it in the newspaper…must have been a slow news day.”  I then asked her if she knew that raspberries, blackberries and strawberries are not berries at all, despite the name.  If you want to eat a berry, you have to eat a watermelon, banana, or eggplant. 

Example 2:  Have you seen the internet lately?  “15 facts about the Bible that are actually true.”  “21 Beliefs about the Bible that are actually false.”  “15 Christian practices that don’t align with the Bible.” 

Example 3: Mr. Petersen taught me in elementary school that you never put a comma before the word ‘and’ in a sentence.  Spell-check disagrees with Mr. Petersen.  Pluto used to be a planet and still is, if you ask me. 

Example 4:  The gene-pool decides if you are male or female.  You play the cards you’re dealt.  You don’t need to wake up every morning and decide what gender you want to be that day. 

Example 5:  Women used to ‘belong in the kitchen’ but now 75% of the chefs are men.  High heeled shoes were originally worn by male aristocrats until women got hold of them in the 1800’s. 

Example 6:  Eggs are good for you…no, wait, they’re bad….no, they’re good again….no, only the whites are good…no, wait…  “AARRRRRGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!”  Why can’t people just leave well enough alone?  I can’t swim but it wouldn’t take much to convince this world that I was once a Navy Seal.

In a world that’s so confusing, it’s no wonder we can’t understand God.  He’s too simple because He’s the same now as He was eons ago and will be eons from now.  We feel like we must make up rules and regulations to understand Him because that’s all we know.  In reality, all God said was, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No man comes to the Father but through Me.”  Simple.  But no, that’s too easy for our way of thinking.  Surely it can’t be just that.  We have to make it more complicated.  God knew we’d make things so complicated for ourselves that we’d never make it to heaven on our own.  But, more on that next week. 

This attribute of God is called the “immutability of God.”  He does not change.  Ever.  Period.  “And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind” (1 Samuel 15:29).  Samuel had to set King Saul straight here.  Saul only partially obeyed God’s instructions and then thought God would lighten the punishment for doing it partly right.  God always takes His Word most seriously.  He will follow through with His judgment for sin and He will also follow through with His plans for salvation.  Only He is immutable (unable to change or be changed).  This trait was also used to prove that Jesus is God.  In Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.” 

Some might say, “But sometimes God changes His mind or relents.”  That seems to be the case in some instances when you take passages out of context.  You have to take in the whole story.  Let’s look at a few.

1.        Jonah.  You know the story.  God told him to tell the city of Nineveh that they would be overthrown in forty days.  They were ‘scared-straight’ so to speak.  “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, He relented and did not bring on them the destruction He had threatened.” (Jonah 3:10).  In relenting here, God did not change His mind but stayed consistent with His character and His Word.  “If that nation against which I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent concerning the calamity I planned to bring on it.” (Jeremiah 18:8)  This was the hope of the king of Nineveh, that God would be immovable in His Word.

2.       The Jews were God’s people first and then He changed His mind and added the Gentiles.  Umm..no.  In Romans 9-11, Paul tells how all of history is part of God’s eternal plan, including the failure of the Jews and salvation of the Gentiles.  Early in His ministry, Jesus reminded the Jews that God’s purpose to bless Gentiles as well was included in the covenant with Abraham back in Genesis 12. 

3.       In Acts 2:22-27, Peter proclaims that Jesus’ resurrection from the dead was not only an historical fact, but also a fulfillment of the Scriptures, AND further proof of God’s immutability.  He said “it was impossible” for Jesus to NOT rise from the dead.  Acts 2:27 and Psalm 16:10 proclaim the same thing, “nor allow thy holy one to undergo decay”.  Decay is a downward change in state.  Since God cannot change, He cannot decay.  Lazarus tomb may have had a stench after three days but Jesus’ tomb did not because again, He… cannot… decay. 

God’s Word is never out of date or irrelevant to our lives.  Fellowship with Him, trust in His Word, living by faith, etc. are the same realities for us today as they were for the people mentioned in the Bible.  This is an amazing comfort to me because it means I can’t get in any trouble that God hasn’t dealt with before.  Regardless of my mistakes, He’ll help me and not say, “Huh, this is a new one on me.”  God’s immutability is an assurance for us as well as a standard we can rely on.  We are the ones who need to change and turn TO Him.  The wickedness in our hearts tells us that because God wants us all to go to heaven, there will be no judgment keeping us away.  The truth is that sometimes God’s judgment doesn’t come in a form recognized as such.  We can’t out-think God.  Consider this, God never forgets, BUT, He never learns either.  He knew 8,000 years ago you’d be reading this right now.  MIC DROP!

One word you hear often in the church is the word, “Covenant”.  I’ve often asked Pastors to explain these in a way that I could understand.  Every time I ask, I get a terrified look and the phrase, “Well, there are many books that explain covenants.”  When I ask for a title, I hear, “I’ll get back to you.”  I don’t hold this against them in the least.  I think it’s one of those topics that could be discussed for a lifetime.  I don’t need a lifetime, just a general idea, which means it’s time to go hunting for answers.  Please don’t take the following as “gospel”.  It did not come from a pastor but was the result of my hunt.  I cannot swear to its validity (except for the Bible passages that are referenced).  That said, the word “covenant” comes from the Latin word, “convenire”, which means to “come together” or “to agree”. 

A covenant in the Bible refers to a partnership/agreement between God and man.  This word is not used specifically in Genesis 1, but the details are similar.  God invited Adam and Eve to represent His rule on Earth.  They could enjoy His blessings if they continued to trust Him.  The “terms of the agreement” included not eating of the forbidden tree.  At first test, FAIL.  The rest of the Bible therefore, is how God repaired this broken relationship with mankind and the use of covenants play a central role in this plan.  They are not mere contracts but sacred agreements that reflect the commitment, faithfulness, and love of God towards His people as well as the call for obedience from humanity.

Noahic Covenant – After Adam and Eve are exiled, things went from bad to worse.  Cain kills in cold blood; Lamech brags about out-doing Cain’s death toll; chapter 5 repeats “and he died” eight times to show how death reigned over humanity; chapter 6 tells about the strange advancement of evil and the whole world is in chaos.  To fix things, God makes a formal relationship with Noah and all living creatures, promising to never again flood the entire earth.  His covenant with Noah is unconditional and his promise is accompanied by a rainbow to remind future generations of this covenant.

Abrahamic Covenant – Evil continues to ruin the world so God’s rescue plan continues as He makes a covenant with Abraham.  He promises Abraham a huge family that will inherit a piece of land in Canaan and bring a blessing to all of humanity.  Like the rainbow, this covenant is also accompanied by an outward sign.  God commands the men to be circumcised.  This symbol will set Abraham’s family apart and show that their fertility and future lay in God’s hands.  This time, God and Abraham both have a part to play in the covenant.

As a side note, I can’t leave this yet without an explanation of Genesis 15:17 because it’s fascinating!  At this time in the world, when two people made a covenant with each other, they would cut a large animal, like a cow, in half and they would walk together between the two halves while reciting their part of the agreement.  It basically meant, “If I go back on my word, may what happened to this cow, happen to me.”  In this verse, God had Abraham arrange the animal halves.  When the sun went down, Abraham saw a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch pass between the pieces.  In this, God is finalizing the agreement between Himself and His people through Abram.  What’s fascinating is that Abram does not pass through the halves – only God does through the symbolism of the pot and flame.  The promise God has made here is entirely dependent on His will and His work. 

Mosaic Covenant – Abraham’s offspring multiply rapidly which threatens the new Egyptian Pharaoh’s ego.  God sends Moses to bring His people out and lead them toward the land promised to Abraham.  As the representative for Israel, Moses ascends Mt. Sinai to hear the terms of God’s new covenant with the people.  God promises to make Israel a holy kingdom of priests to spread His blessing to all nations.  If they obeyed the laws given to them (10 Commandments), they would receive His blessings, if not, His curses.  Their allegiance to God would be reflected in the way they live.

Davidic Covenant – The people enter Canaan and demand a king to be like other nations and already losing sight of their promise to God.  David eventually becomes king and restores order.  God responds by making a covenant with David.  He promises to make David’s name great and raise a descendant from his line whose throne and kingdom will last forever.  The people must remain faithful to God by keeping the laws.  Despite their failures, God keeps His promise of a descendent.

Listed this way, it’s easier to see how the covenants build on each other: world preserved (Noah), initiated redemption (Abraham), established Israel (Moses), promised eternal shepherd-king (David), and fulfilled them all through Jesus.  They serve as a roadmap for God’s people, continually guiding them towards righteous living and a deeper relationship with the divine.  Through the Bible there are covenants made between individuals (1 Samuel 23), between kings and nations (1 Kings 5), etc.  Entering into covenants was a major part of what it meant to live in the ancient Near East, so God used a structure they were already familiar with.

New Covenant – Jesus is the new covenant because He succeeded where everyone else failed.  He is the offspring of Abraham who trusted God to the point of death and became a blessing to all nations.  He leads us out of bondage to sin and perfectly follows the laws of God.  He is the royal son of David who combined God’s Kingdom to one people through His life, death, and resurrection and now sits at God’s right hand forever as the one, true King.  We see His position proclaimed: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” (Luke 22:20); “For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.” (Hebrews 9:15). 

So, that’s the way I understand covenants in the Bible and I hope it helps you better understand or better yet, urges you to research it for yourself because there’s so much more that can be said. 

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when I say, “bread”?  Olive Garden’s breadsticks?  Croissants?  Grandma’s homemade bread or hot, buttery, yeast rolls?  I’m getting hungry.  Maybe you think of the qualities…bread has positive values like fiber, iron, B vitamins, etc.; it fills you up, gives you a boost of energy and helps with digestion.  It also has a few negative qualities like leading to weight gain, a spike in blood sugar or digestive issues if you’re allergic to gluten, and it often contains unhealthy additives.  Regardless, I’d bet your first thought is not “Jesus”. 

Dieticians tell us that bread provides the foundation for a healthy diet but much more is needed.  Jesus calls Himself bread, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35) but the Bible also says, “Man does not live by bread alone” (Deuteronomy 8:3).  So we need more than Jesus?  Yes, actually, we do.  Dieticians and Jesus are telling us the same thing.

First, we cannot live on bread alone.  Jesus never intended to be all we ever need.  (That one sentence kinda rocked my world because I grew up hearing the opposite.)  Faith in Him is the foundation for spiritual health but we need a “complete meal”.  From early on, Christians met together for fellowship and worship to encourage and provide for each other in love and good deeds.  Second, we cannot be healthy by eating NO bread of life.  It’s possible to be a spiritual person (not Christian) without the bread of life but it’s not productive or healthy.  Third, sometimes we eat so much junk food that the bread of life stops being our basis for a healthy diet.  We don’t deliberately avoid bread but fill up on empty calories so there’s no room for nutrition.  We can give lip service to our faith but if we don’t bother with things like praying, Bible reading, giving to the church and participating in Sacraments, we’re not getting any healthier.

Remember the bread that rained down from heaven for the Israelites in the desert?  The word, “manna” means “What is it?”  The word then became the name for the bread sent from heaven.  They were told to collect only enough for that day.  Any extra would rot.  We need to trust Jesus, every day, for our needs like it says in the Lord’s Prayer, “Give us this day our daily bread.”  In other words, all that we need to support this body and life.  We can’t spend two days reading the Bible and then think we’re good until next month.  It doesn’t work that way.  

In John 6, beginning at verse 22, we read that people came across the sea to search for Jesus.  They were respectful but He knew they only looked for Him because He fed them the day before and not because of His teachings.  How many people only attend church for what it can do for them?  Some things never change.  He also tells them to not work for the food that perishes.  This doesn’t mean we should not work for our daily needs; instead, it refers to wealth, honor, glory, and other things of this world that we make our chief care and concern.  What good does your money do for you in the end?  Nothing. 

Christ is the bread for our soul in that He nourishes and supports our spiritual life like bread does for our physical life.  He is our peace, our righteousness, our Redeemer, our mediator before God and by these things do we live.  Jesus is our solid foundation that we build our lives with others on.  On that note, I heard a joke the other day.  Q: Did you know that Jesus is divine?  Pause   And we are di-branches.   (This is the part where you giggle.)

One problem this world always has had (because Adam and Eve were the first to get evicted) and will forever have, is the homeless.  You know what I’m talking about.  They’re on so many street corners and alleys and under bridges and overpass roads and you feel a little pang of guilt deep in your stomach every time you see one.  After all, Jesus said, “Give to everyone who begs from you…” (Luke 6:30).  So what should you do?  Believe it or not, there are dozens of books that have been written on how to help the homeless.  These methods apparently don’t work because we still have homeless…and 9 out of 10 of them have a dog.

First, you should not take the above passage out of context.  It’s right in the middle of a section on loving your enemies and how they should be treated.  We need to remember that people in the first century AD were in much more desperate need than those who claim to be needy today.  The needy people of Jesus’ day had no way to earn money, no welfare system, no assets.  “Charity” today often means giving whatever relieves feelings of guilt or responsibility in the easiest and quickest way.  What most of these people need is time to work with them to correct the problems that made them this way.  This is time-consuming, usually requires a great personal investment, and is how to truly love one’s neighbor. 

Police officers deal with these people often and have more practical ways that we can help.  They have been quoted as saying, “There are fantastic, non-profit organizations that can better discern the needs and provide quality services for the homeless population; services such as food, clothing, shelter, financial assistance, job placement, domestic violence assistance, and addiction recovery.  The majority of homeless utilize these services and have a chance of overcoming their situation.  However, there are others referred to as ‘chronically homeless’, who refuse to improve their situation.  They are usually the ones on the street corners and alleyways.  They often struggle with substance abuse, mental disorders, or both, and giving them money just furthers their addiction.  The repercussions of their abuse negatively affect the community through unsanitary conditions, increase in infectious diseases, and criminal activity.  By giving them money, you could be preventing them from seeking assistance from an agency that could help them long-term.”

OK, but what about the other Bible passages?  “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” (1 John 3:17)  Who is really ‘in need’ and how do we know?  Discernment must be practiced because some of these “beggars” have been seen getting into cars at the end of the day and driving to their home.  I’ve personally seen them with professional nail jobs.

“The poor you will always have with you…” (Matthew 26:11)  We will never eliminate poverty.  We cannot meet all the needs of every poor person. 

“For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.’” (2 Thessalonians 3:10)  If someone is given the opportunity to work and refuses, we are not helping them by giving them something for nothing.  We rob them of the dignity and self-esteem that comes from earning the bread you eat.

“Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from wineskins until they are drunk…” (Habakkuk 2:15)  It’s wrong to contribute to the addictions of another.

“Therefore as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galatians 6:10)  The needy in church should be given priority.

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)  The ultimate goal of giving to the needy is that Jesus Christ is exalted and the hurting come to know Him as Savior and Lord.  He is the bread of life. 

There is no blanket rule that covers every situation and there’s no one, right answer.  Each person should consider the following for themselves: 1. Followers of Christ should be generous with their resources.  2. Christians should also be wise stewards of their money.  3. Another option is to trust the judgment of credible organizations that specialize in helping the poor and donate your money to them. 

Sometimes youth groups will make care packages for the homeless in gallon Ziploc bags.  You keep a few in your car and give them out as needed.  I have shared a few of these myself in the past.  The important thing to remember is what NOT to put in them: hand sanitizer and mouthwash (they have an alcohol content which is not good for addicts); gum, nuts, or anything difficult to chew (many don’t have enough teeth or have dental issues); cans without a pop-top; or cash (other than a few quarters for a laundromat).

It's not just the homeless or beggars on the street.  God calls us to help each other out in ways that you might have never seen or thought of before.  (See 6/28/19’s post)  It’s a dangerous, sinful world we live in and we can’t know another person’s heart or their whole story.  If we did, it would make us their judge and that’s not Christian either.  We need to prayerfully ask God to use us and then be open to whatever God wants us to do for those in need.

Because it’s Mother’s Day weekend, that means naturally, that this blog is about balloons!  Balloons have existed in various forms for a long time.  Recently balloon art conventions have been growing in popularity.  A few years ago, my sister and I took a hot air balloon ride and it was a memory of a lifetime.  Admit it, if you were in a room where hundreds of colored balloons were dropped on you, you couldn’t help but smile no matter what your age, gender, etc.  Balloons are cost effective and very colorful so they get your attention.  Maybe that’s why car dealers use them so much.  Their temporary nature makes them feel special but they can be fragile and require care.  This can add to their appeal as being unique.  There are many other plus factors to them but I digress from my point. 

The topic is moms.  Mothers hold onto their children like a child holds a string of a balloon.  They let the child rise and go with the wind, to an extent, and at the same time they watch for dangers like sharp tree limbs or anything pointed that could harm.  They keep a tight hold on the string so the child does not float away to unknown parts.  The time will come when they must release the balloon (easier said than done), but once children become adults, they must be freed to follow the air currents they choose to follow.  (Are you still with me here?)

When we think of God, our heavenly Father, we often picture him in a hot air balloon because He’s always hovering over us, quietly, watching our every move….like Santa Claus.  He is judgmental and training a spotlight on us to point out every mistake.  Of course, that thought is backwards because He’s actually just like mom, holding our string from below us and giving a tug every now and then.  He doesn’t micromanage our lives.  Instead, there will be a tug on the string every now and then; just the lightest of tugs, so you remember that He’s still there.  Sometimes the tug is harder because you’re in trouble or temptation and He needs to remind you to not wander off because you have a relationship with Him but He will NEVER let go.

As a child, you loved doing things with mom.  It felt special when she put you in charge of something or needed you for a specific job.  Even though you exasperated her on many an occasion, you were never away from her love.  Likewise, nothing can separate us from God’s love.  He also needs us for specific jobs.  One of these is to share His love with those around us.  Sound familiar?  “Play nice together…share with your brother…take your sister with you…” – Mom. 

Relationships are very complex.  The older you get, the more you understand what God, and mom, were trying to get through your head because it does, yes, take years to do so.  When you’re tied to that string as a child, you want nothing else than to be free.  When mom lets go, you want nothing else than for her to grab it again so you know she’s always close by WHEN, not if, she’s needed.  Thanks MOM!

PS – a balloonist joke:

A man is flying in a hot-air balloon and realizes that he's lost. He reduces height and spots a man down below. He lowers the balloon further and shouts:

"Excuse me - can you tell me where I am?"

The man replies: "Sure - you're in a hot-air balloon, hovering 30 feet above this field."

"You must work in Information Technology," the balloonist says.

"I do," the man replies. "How did you know?"

"Well," says the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but it's of no use to anyone."

The man below says, "You must work in business."

"I do," the balloonist replies, "How did you know?"

"Well," says the man, "you don't know where you are, or where you're going, but you expect me to be able to help. You're in the same position you were before we met, but now it's my fault."

Spring break is over.  Easter is over.  What do we have to look forward to next?  Summer vacation!  Vacation means packing; what to pack, how much to pack, how heavy to pack, the list goes on.  Will the hotel have a washer/dryer?  Remember to put some socks, underwear, and all necessary medications in your carry-on.  How many shoes do we need to take?  What can I buy when I get there?  There’s a definite art to it.  While these questions are all important, we need to stop every once in awhile and assess our other luggage that we carry around every day; baggage we were never meant to carry.

Among this luggage might be suitcases full of resentment, duffel bags of regret, backpacks of guilt, trunks of animosity, etc.  Exactly how much does a grudge for an unforgiven act weigh?  Getting rid of all this excess luggage is a good way to lose weight.  As it says in Colossians 3, because we are God’s chosen ones, we should put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience.  It’s hard to clothe yourself with kindness and patience if you’re holding a suitcase full of revenge.  This is when you need your WWJD bracelet.  Paul tells us how to accomplish this by, “forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven you.” 

Forgiveness is not an option, neither is it something we “owe” each other.  It is not something that we can give someone until we receive it from God first.  So where do we go to get God’s forgiveness?  The cross?  No.  There’s no forgiveness there.  Does that surprise you?  It did me.  Christ achieved forgiveness of sins on the cross but He did not distribute it to us from there.  Remember the Last Supper?  He said, “…”Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”  His blood was shed for our forgiveness but He gave it to us in the sacrament.  The distribution of it takes place continually, from the beginning of time to the end of the world.  It is distributed through the Word and in the Gospel where it is preached along with the Sacrament.  God knew that we would be sinful so He said from the beginning how He would fix that.  The fact that He said it, make it a reality before Jesus even came to earth. 

The forgiveness itself is not found in the bread or wine, in the body or blood, but the Words “given and shed for you”.  In this sacrament, we find comfort from God’s forgiveness and can then forgive others from our heart. 

This then makes the forgiving of others an act of worshiping God and praising Him.  Forgiving others is not the same as forgetting but instead, we choose to not actively remember.  We don’t say, “It’s OK”, but instead, “I’m OK and I am willing to let you and God deal with what you did wrong.”  There might still be pain, but with God’s help, we can let go of their involvement in our pain and let Him help us heal and move forward.  This is the preferred way to let God help you ‘lose your luggage’.

I’ve had a few long blogs lately so I thought I’d make this one a bit shorter.  How did you like it? 

I’ve realized over the years that many Bible passages seem easy to understand but you can’t truly understand them until you break them down.  For example, Isaiah 9:6, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”  It’s a shame we only mention this passage during Advent and at Christmas because it means so much to us every day of our lives.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.  This did not come from the New Testament after the record of Jesus’ birth, instead, it was Isaiah and approximately 700 years before the incarnation.  So why does he say, “child is born, son is given”?  God promised to send a Savior back in Genesis 3.  If God says it, it’s so much a certainty that it’s like it already happened. 

And the government shall be upon his shoulder.  Jesus will not only wear the badge on His shoulder (the key of the house of David – Isaiah 22:22), but also bear the burden of it.  He will ‘set His shoulder to it’ and not complain like Moses did of being given too much to handle.  Isaiah goes on to speak more about the government in the next verses as well.  It has been established and will be upheld with justice and righteousness and last to eternity.  People of Bible times expected Him to rule over earthly kingdoms but for right now, His kingdom is invisible in that He rules over those who trust and obey Him as Lord. 

And His name shall be called.  His people will know Him and worship Him by these names; submit to Him, and depend on Him.  Jesus is known by many names throughout the Bible because we need as many adjectives as possible to help our human minds understand the vastness of our God and Lord. 

Wonderful counselor.  He is ‘wonderful’ partly because He is both God and man and partly because He is incomprehensible to us on earth.  This same word, wonderful, is used in Judges 13:18 when Samson’s father asked the angel of the Lord (Jesus) what His name was.  He responded, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is wonderful?” (i.e. beyond your understanding).  His love is the wonder of saints and angels.  He is the counselor because He was intimately acquainted with the counsels of God from eternity.  Through Him, God gives us counsel.  In ancient Israel, a counselor was portrayed as a wise king, such as Solomon, that gave guidance to his people.  He is qualified in ways that no human is.  In Christ is “hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3).  He knows what we are going through and is the best one to ask for advice.

Mighty God.  As He has wisdom, so also He has strength to go through with His undertakings.  He is able to save all of mankind; a work that no one less than the power of God could have accomplished.  “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14)  He brought order out of chaos at the time of creation and He will bring order again at the Last Day.

Everlasting Father.  This phrase means, “Father of Eternity”.  The Father gives Him an incontestable right to govern the world because He made it.  We are told this in Hebrews 1:10. Nothing is too difficult for the Creator and Sustainer of everything.  We have governments that live to create things more confusing and complicated.  Jesus, however, is simple and uncomplicated because He rules from beginning to end as the Father of Eternity.

Prince of Peace.  As King, He offers peace from God (Romans 1:7) to all who receive His grace; brings peace with God (Romans 5:1) to those who have faith in Him; and the peace of God (Philippians 4:7) to those who walk with Him.  Did you catch those?  Receive His grace, faith in Him, walk with Him.  We often let things like that slip by.  Does this sound familiar?  Luke 2:14, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace…” , among men, right?  No.  “peace among those with whom He is pleased!”  Other works of God are for His glory but the redemption of the world is for His glory in the highest.  This peace was given to us by Christ because if God is at peace with we who worship Him, all peace results from it; peace of conscience, peace with our fellow man, etc. 

There are so many Bible passages we take for granted and don’t focus on.  When you take a little time to dig in further, they can portray much more meaning than you ever dreamed.

A short time ago, the Pastor at my church did a short seminar on the power of prayer.  Part of that seminar was a homework assignment followed by an interview of our prayer habits and progress.  During that interview, he asked me, “In your prayers, do you ask for forgiveness of your sins?”  I admit, my jaw kind of dropped on that.  I know I should, but I truthfully answered, “No.”  Don’t get me wrong, it’s not because I don’t think I sin, my reasoning was that I sin so much, there was no way for me to keep track and even if I could, I still wouldn’t get them all.  God knows what I did, and He knows I’m sorry about it.  I didn’t know a good way to put that in words.  After all, the church service always includes the words, “I, a poor miserable sinner…”.  But, that shouldn’t exclude me from including it in my daily prayers.  I need to verbally recognize that I sin daily and need God’s forgiveness.  That’s where my hiccup is.  Over the years, my sinfulness gets to be so overwhelming that my mind begins to believe the situation is hopeless.  I’ve been sinning every day for over 21,000 days.  Like I said, hopeless.  How can God believe that I’m really sorry if I just keep doing it?  This was a real problem.

Then I read a couple of writings by Martin Luther that completely changed my outlook.  It was if God said, “I know you’re stressing over this…read this.”  The first is in John 8:1-20, we read the story of the adulterous woman that was brought before Jesus to be stoned for her sin.  Jesus said, let the person that is without sin cast the first stone.  Everyone left.  He then forgave the woman and told her to go and sin no more.  (Yes, technically she did continue sinning because she was a sinful human and we can’t stop.  He was telling her to quit doing what she was doing and try to do better.)

Martin Luther said:   

“The kingdom of Christ is not one of condemnation.  I am not here to condemn you, but to remit the sins of those who, like you, are where death, the devil, evil consciences, accusers, and judges have come to plague them.  The slogan in My kingdom is: I forgive you your sin; for in My kingdom no one is without forgiveness of sins.  Therefore you, too, must have forgiveness.  My kingdom must not be in disorder.  All who enter it and dwell in it must be sinners.  But as sinners they cannot live without the forgiveness of sins.”  If I am a sinner, the matter is not ended there, the sins must be forgiven.  Thus none but sinners come into this kingdom.  But do not let this prompt you to say: “Well, we will remain in sin.”  No, you must learn to feel and recognize your sin. 

These Pharisees did not have to become sinners; they were sinners already, and they became even greater sinners when Christ uncovered their sins with the words: “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”  A sinner is a person who feels his sin.  The Pharisees, these rogues, were not sinners; but they became sinners when Christ said: “Let him who is without sin, etc.”  Now they became sinners.  But they despaired and slunk away.  In their arrogance they hid their sin and would not await Christ’s second statement: “Neither do I condemn you.”  Thus only those sinners belong in the kingdom of Christ who recognize their sin, feel it, and then catch hold of the Word of Christ spoken here: “I do not condemn you.”  These people constitute the membership of Christ’s kingdom.  He admits no saint; He blows them all away; He expels from the church all who lay claim to holiness.  If sinners enter, they do not remain sinners.  He spreads His cloak over their sins and says: “If you have sinned, I remit your sins and cover them.”  To be sure, sin is there.  But the Lord in this kingdom closes His eyes to it, covers it, forgives it, and does not impute it to the sinner.  So a living saint and member of Christ stands here, made out of an adulteress who had been infested with sin but whose sin is now forgiven and covered.  Even if sinners are knaves and criminals, their sins will be forgiven, as long as they feel them, repent of them, and ask God for forgiveness.  If you have tasted the Law and sin, and if you know the ache of sin, then look here, and see how sweet, in comparison, the grace of God is, the grace which is offered to us in the Gospel.  This is the absolution which the adulteress receives here from the Lord Christ.”

The second writing of Luther is one that I’m summarizing for the sake of time.

After man becomes aware of his sin, he must watch that sin does not remain in his conscience.  This would lead to despair.  Just as our knowledge of sin flowed from Christ and was acknowledged by us, so we must pour this sin back on him and free our conscience of it.  Beware that you don’t do as others and torture your heart with your sins and then run from one good deed to another to do penance for them.

You cast your sins on Christ when you firmly believe that his wounds and sufferings are your sins, to be borne and paid for by Him. (Is. 53:6, 1 Peter 2:24)  We must stake everything on these and similar verses.  The more your conscience torments you, the more you must cling to them or you will never have peace of mind.  If we look at sin in our heart and allow sin to remain in our conscience, it will be too strong for us and live forever.  But if we see it resting on Christ and overcome by His resurrection and believe it, it is dead and nullified.  Sin cannot remain on Christ because it is swallowed up by His resurrection.  Now He has no wounds, no pain, no sign of sin.  (Rom. 4:25)

It’s like being born with a disease.  The disease of sin.  It’s incurable while on earth but that doesn’t mean we don’t keep trying to cure it.  It is impossible for us to understand how Jesus would love us enough to take every bad thought, lie, sin, etc. as a whip across His back in our place.  God tells us, “I know you’re stuck with this condition of sinfulness.  I can fix it if you admit it and ask for help but you’ve got to take that step.  If you don’t, you’re trying to handle it on your own and you can’t.”  We are God’s children.  As stubborn children, we have the never-ending attitude of, “I do it myself!” and, as stubborn children, we’re wrong.

I’ve been asked many times, “Where do you come up with your blog ideas?”  I explain that the ideas are God’s and that I do my best to share them with the world.  God talks to me but not in words.  I don’t ‘hear voices’.  He tells me what I need to know in a way that even I can understand it.  After all, it doesn’t do any good to speak to someone in words they don’t understand.  Explain an internal combustion engine to an infant and then hand them a wrench.  They just put it in their mouth. 

Let me explain what happened to me this past week.  I haven’t been able to breathe well for about a year now.  I need minor surgery but it won’t happen for another month or two.  Until then, I have two nose sprays.  One morning, I ran out of one and decided it wasn’t making that much of a difference and was expensive so I just wouldn’t buy another even though the doctor said to use it twice a day.  That afternoon, I saw a woman that I only see for maybe 30 seconds at a time, twice a year.  She started commenting on how everyone was sick.  Out of the blue, she says, “Now, Flonase, you have to use that twice a day, you can’t stop.”  I hadn’t told her that I use Flonase and just that morning had decided to stop.  Was that God talking to me through her?  I had no idea.  It was quite the coincidence.  How do you know when something is a coincidence and when God is intervening in your life?  (By the way, if anyone has an answer to that question, I’m listening…)

This was still in the back of my mind the next day when I got another message.  I came home from work and watched a sitcom.  This was a new episode that contained a devout, Christian woman that left the church (for various reasons).  She was watching a televangelist proclaim how God would reward you and give you back 10-fold if you sent the televangelist some money.  She immediately wrote a check for $50 and sent it in.  That was an entire week’s worth of groceries for them and her husband was furious.  He and her mother both told her she was being scammed. 

The next day, there was a check in the mail for $800.  Sure, it was their tax refund, but in her mind, it solidified the fact that if you give a little, you will receive mountains because God wants us to be happy.  Her family was still angry but she yelled at them, “Don’t you think I know a ‘sign’ when I see one?”   She stormed outside to her prayer garden and thanked God for acknowledging the fact that He wanted her to be happy.  While she is praying, a bird flies by and poops in her eye.  She cleans it out and tries to go somewhere in her car but it won’t start so she kicks the tire and ends up breaking a toe.  Still not convinced, she rises from the sofa and gets hit in the butt by a stray firecracker that comes through the open window.  In the next scene, she is telling her pastor that she’s coming back to church.

So what did I get from that?  Does God want me to keep using Flonase?  I have no idea, but I’m going to.  For a woman that continually reads the Bible, you would think the woman in the sitcom would realize there’s nothing in there that says God wants us to be happy by being rich with material possessions.  (Yes, I know it’s only a TV show.)  God loves us but we only know what He wants by reading what He told us and not how we interpret it for our benefit. 

Paul explains this in chapter 2 of 1 Corinthians: “My message and my preaching were not wise and persuasive words, but a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. … The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.  For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them?  In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.”  We must have true faith in order to understand what God is telling us but that faith is not constant because we are continually assaulted with the sinfulness around us.  In Mark 8, Jesus reminds the disciples that they saw Him feed 5,000 people with five loaves and 4,000 people with seven loaves and each time they picked up basketfuls of leftovers.  Jesus asks them, “Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?...Do you still not understand?”  (Anyone else would be saying, “DUH??”)

No, we are human and we continue to see what ‘we’ want to see.  I heard someone once tell his wife, “We’re barely holding on, go pray for some God-money.”  He believed that if his wife prayed harder and went to church more, God would bless them with more money to make bills.  God, the Almighty Creator and Savior of the universe, is NOT an ATM.  It reminds me of when my husband and I were only married 5 years or so.  We were living paycheck to paycheck and just barely squeaking by.  We agreed that no matter how tight money got, we would give our donation to church weekly.  We got through that period but to this day, I have no idea how.  We had money for groceries, gas to go to work, daycare for the baby, and money to pay the mortgage and utilities, but no extra.  We could make the bare necessities but that was it, and that was enough for us.  I tried looking at the numbers several times and it should not have worked out.  We should have been in the red every month, but we weren’t. 

God tells us what He wants: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37, 39)  Quit being greedy and thinking God wants you to be rich.  God wants your complete love for Him; not fancy clothes, cars, and diamonds for you.  To answer my original question about coincidence versus God intervening in your life, I think that if it is to God’s glory, it’s God’s actions.  He has to continually remind us to love Him and remember Him and trust Him because we are so distracted by the sin and ritz of this world.  God loves us and just wants us to love Him back.

The final parable speaks of the Last Day when Christ will come and separate the just from the unjust.  He’s the perfect choice to do the job because He is fully human, like us, but also fully God.  I love where it says, “All nations will be gathered before Him…”.  That’s ALL people from the beginning of time until the Last Day from ALL nations, ALL over the world…billions upon billions, and each will be placed in one of two groups.  And you thought the lines at Disney World were long.  The Bible refers to the two groups as sheep and goats.  There’s really nothing wrong with goats or really good about lambs.  Both can be stubborn, both give milk, and both can be hard to tell apart.  Generally, in the Bible, sheep are descriptive of the faithful (Psalm 23, Jeremiah 23, John 10:28-29) and the goats are usually the unfaithful because more often than not, they are contrary and aggressive (Deut. 8:5, Proverbs 30:31).  Back in those days, any goats in a herd of sheep would often stray off and sheep would follow, dividing the flock.

Here’s where I think it gets interesting.  Like actual goats and sheep, we will not have a clue which group we will join until Jesus puts us there.  Note that both groups are equally clueless as to when, exactly, they saw the Lord hungry, thirsty, etc.  This separation also stresses the importance that sins of omission (what you should have done but didn’t) are just as important as sins of commission (what you know you did wrong).  What we don’t do can be just as much a reflection of our commitment to God – or lack of – as what we do.  The separation will be done before works are even discussed because your works will not get you into heaven.  James 2:18 says, “Show me thy faith by thy works.”  Our good works are not a passkey into heaven but the result of our faith wanting to show our love for God through helping our neighbor.  Christ has a high regard for works of charity and is pleased with kindness done to others for His sake. 

God wants everyone to be saved.  It says so in verse 34, “…take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.”  Unfortunately, God’s not going to get His wish because there are many that refuse His gift; hence the two groups.  This next part is important.  He tells the righteous their kingdom was prepared for them since the beginning of the world.  He doesn’t address the wicked, “Inherit the punishment prepared for you…”.  Instead, He says, “Depart from me…into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.”  God never meant for humans to go to hell, that was solely the destiny of Satan and his followers.  From the very beginning, God’s intentions were that all humanity would live in eternal fellowship with Him.  No one was predestined for hell; so for those that go there, is their own choice.  You choose Satan over God, you get eternity sharing Satan’s punishment.

We start with the sheep.  The Good Shepherd who once spoke with tenderness and care now is the King who speaks with authority and power.  He first pronounces them ‘blessed by the Father’.  We are cursed by the world but blessed by God.  He then tells us to come to Him.  We can boldly approach the throne of glory because it was prepared for us, personally, by God.  Jesus will judge the world with the same rule He uses to govern it; how we show our faith by our works.  First by self-denial and separating yourself from the sinful world by; second, showing love to each other out of; third, a love for God.  Christ is among us in the world more than we know.  Our acts of love for each other often don’t seem grand enough to be considered by God but none will be overlooked; not even a cup of cold water. 

Then it’s the goats’ turn.  They are told to depart from God ‘ye cursed’.  They turned a deaf ear to Him in life so they cannot be with Him for eternity.  No blessing for them but the cursed life they brought on themselves.  To be sent into the eternal fire prepared for them.  Not some little flame, nor to be just ‘passed through’, but an everlasting fire kept burning by the wrath of an eternal God originally intended for just the devil and his angels.  Note that the righteous saw both sides of the judgment, hungry were fed and the thirsty given drink, etc. while the unjust saw only the situations and didn’t consider the consequences (hungry, thirsty, sick, etc.).  They cut it short because they know their guilt and can’t bear to repeat the charge.  Jesus explains that when others around them were in need, they were taken up so much with their pleasure and so hesitant to part with their money, they did not minister to others as they should have.  Those that showed no mercy will be judged without mercy.  Jesus wasn’t shown mercy when He went through these struggles either.  He was hungry when tempted in the wilderness, thirsty on the cross, a stranger because His hometown rejected Him, naked because the soldiers stripped Him bare before crucifying Him, and sick because He bore our sins and infirmities.  He was never in prison, but He was in the custody of guards that beat Him before His death.  He didn’t want any help through this.  He had to endure it all for us so we could show that mercy to others around us.

So, have you figured out the common thread to these three parables yet?  I admit that I didn’t see the connection until it was explained.  The New Testament has 260 chapters and over 300 references to Jesus’ second coming.  While we are waiting, how should we live?  Jesus returned to heaven and what we do until He comes back makes all the difference and is the purpose behind these parables.  Do we grow lazy and let our faith get weak or hide the talents given to us to use or not show mercy to the less fortunate?  The first parable deals with our inward character (how we watch in readiness for His return), the second, with our outward exertion (how we work toward it while we watch), and third, with our responsibility while here.  The time is now everyone.  If you haven’t thought about it yet, the clock’s ticking.

“People aren’t coming to church anymore.”  “The churches are getting emptier and emptier.”  “What is happening to our churches?”  The Bible says, “But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5) My friends, we are in the last days and have been for a while now.  Those types of people are growing in numbers by leaps and bounds.  Christians with faith are becoming the minority more and more each year.  Sure, the churches led by televangelists are filling stadiums; but are they churches?  They are anxious to take your money because the more you give them, the more God will bless your life…so they say.  That’s not what a church is about.  I don’t have the answers, but I do like to think about what my answer would be if it came up in conversation.

I Googled: “reasons people don’t go to church”.  17,300,000 results.  I only picked a few.  You’re welcome.

Their stmt: “There are things Christianity can’t explain: quantum field theory, ultralight bikes, why my I-Phone stopped working.”

My reply: So if the Bible can’t tell you how to get your neighbor’s dog to quit barking, you scrap it as no use at all?  Scripture never claimed to speak about all things in all circumstances, but it does claim to speak with authority and without error concerning the things it addresses.  The things it addresses just happen to be the only things of real importance; like how to care for your soul and not just your body.

Their stmt:  “Churches are not religions, they are political institutions.  We should judge things by their function, not presentation.  If it has a bank account, it is not a religion.”

My reply:  Guess they never heard of the separation of church and state.  I want to live where they are.  “Churches should not have bank accounts” so the electricity and utilities are free, supplies and repairs are free, people work for free.  They don’t need to be paid because when they go to the store, they just say, ‘I’m not paying for these groceries because I work for the church.  I don’t have to pay taxes or bills for my home because I work for the church.’  By the way, the church HAS a function: to teach the Word of God, administer the Sacraments, send out missionaries and help the poor.  Check, check, check, and check.

Their stmt:  “People fear the unknown. Scientists haven’t figured out the answer yet, so they’ll (Christians) believe anything that gives them piece of mind.  They aren’t persecuted for it because millions of other people believe the same thing.  The church is just a coping mechanism that became real to them.” 

My reply:  This is just sad because we know what their ‘unknown’ is and scientists are very slowly figuring it out as well.  We know what’s waiting for us after we die.  It sounds like they are the ones that are clueless and looking for a coping mechanism like waiting for someone else to verify the answers for them.  We don’t need human verification.

Their stmt: “Jesus was a martyred victim.  The Apostles were liars.  The Bible is a history/myth collection, a propaganda book.  Hidden in it is the true story of the victims of Rome; a guide to surviving imperialism written by the oldest slaves who could write.” 

My reply:  Hello history majors, tell us how you really feel.  By the way, science and archeology have ALSO proven all of that to be hogwash.  I wish I had an imagination like that occasionally.

It’s never-ending… “The whole idea that God is everywhere and creates all things is literally impossible.”  “Christians claim to follow God, but they discriminate and exploit even though Jesus called people to love each other.  What I see among Christians is self-aggrandizement.”  (Wow.  Someone got a new thesaurus for Christmas.)  People automatically assume that if you are Christian, you are homophobic, transphobic, misogynist, racist, conservative, and against anything progressive. 

What NONE of these people, or the million others like them, understand, is that we are Christian: we are not Jesus, we are not perfect.  There’s a difference.  We don’t walk around with bright halos, giving all our money away to everyone that asks for a hand-out and letting people walk all over us.  We are sinful human beings, just like them.  The only difference is that we have faith in a loving God who forgives us despite our egregious sin. (Yes, I also know a big word or two.)  People like those above are also the first ones to run to a church when they need gas money or can’t pay their rent or light bill.  I’ve heard it dozens of times, “But the church is supposed to help people, Jesus said so.”  Sigh…. They have “…eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear” (Romans 11:8) Unfortunately, there’s no talking to them because their minds are closed to the truth, and they only believe the parts of the Bible that it is convenient to quote ‘at that time’.  There are other cards in that deck, people.  Play one of them sometime.

So how did it get this bad?  There is nothing new under the sun.  It’s been this way since Bible times.  However, we are likely to be seeing changes in things recently for several reasons. 

·         Society values individualism over tradition.  With social media and the internet, you can tell the world anything and be popular.  What a rush to the ego. 

·         The rise of secular humanism – you can lead a morally upright life, value kindness and ethics without being tied to a church.  Going to church is an outdated thing our grandparents did.

·         Disappointed by Religious Institutions.  Churches have problems like everywhere else and when you see moral guides falling short, it’s tough to hang in there.

·         Chasing material success.  We want everything and we want it now.  We don’t have time for spiritual pursuits and get no personal, instant gratification from going to a worship service.

·         Celebrity influence.  We live in a complex world and copy the decisions of others that we respect so we don’t have to think for ourselves.  Advertisers use this method because they don’t need to persuade us that a product is good, only that millions of others think so.

·         Parents are putting extracurricular activities ahead of church in their children’s lives.  “No, we weren’t at church because Junior had a basketball tournament or Sally had cheerleading camp.  They can’t be in confirmation or Youth Group because it interferes with their dozens of other extracurricular activities.  Playing sports is more important than God.”  Just because there’s no immediate consequences for this doesn’t mean the children won’t suffer for it eventually, and possibly eternally.

There are a hundred more reasons, but you get the idea.  It seems like an insurmountable problem, doesn’t it?  Sometimes thinking about it is so depressing, I don’t know if I should laugh, or cry, or sit in a corner and suck my thumb.  When I begin to be overwhelmed, I google Christian Youth Group conventions to be inspired by how many young people are participating and giving us hope for the future; I watch “We Believe” by the Newsboys.  Talk about music filling your heart.  It beats "I'm a believer" by the Monkees.  The task overall is certainly too much for one person alone or even a small congregation.  It would take a miracle.  Fortunately, I know a God who’s an expert at miracles.  Let us pray…

A tradition is a mode of thought or behavior followed by people continuously from generation to generation.  Traditions rule us unconsciously almost every day of our lives.  Christmas and Easter traditions are individualized by families, food traditions (ex: grandma’s dressing is made every Thanksgiving; sausage and raisin bread on Christmas Eve; black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day, etc.), clothing traditions (ex: no white after Labor Day – this isn’t in effect any more by the way), celebrations (ex: blowing out candles on birthday cake and singing, father/daughter dance and wedding march at weddings, etc.), the list goes on and on.  (As a side note: I thought my husband and I followed many traditions in our wedding but we missed a popular one from Germany.  The night before the wedding, the bride and groom have an informal gathering with friends, family and neighbors.  They break china and porcelain dishes to bits – NO GLASS because that’s bad luck.  This tradition is called “Polterabend”, which means ‘eve of making a racket’.  In addition to preventing bad spirits, it represents that while dishes may break, the marriage never will.  Once the smashing is over, the bride and groom clean up the mess as a symbol of how they will need to work together for the rest of their lives.  Awwww….)  There are many traditions in the church also which often have the appearance of wisdom.  This is appropriate BUT our human reason often translates these ‘church works’ into ‘actions needed to make us right with God’. 

One of these church traditions is fasting.  Granted, we don’t do it that often anymore.  They were quite fond of it in the Bible but with all our potluck dinners, fasting is not in our vocabulary.  Fasting is meant to be viewed as a spiritual exercise brought about by fear (respect) of God and faith.  It restrains our flesh to help us avoid our appetites overcoming us and making us fat and lazy.  It should never be viewed as something that must be done to achieve righteousness (being ‘right’ with God).  It is an approved discipline to prepare for partaking in the Holy Supper but, the only preparation that is absolutely necessary for communion is to admit that you are a sinful human being and have faith in the words, “given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins”. 

There were many controversies in the church over traditions and practices.  Romans 14 summarizes some of the problems that came about when Jews converted to Christianity.  They had grown up on a specific diet and held certain festival days as holy their entire lives and so couldn’t just ‘turn off’ their previous beliefs.  God declared that ALL foods were good and Jesus’ resurrection made festivals like Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles a thing no longer necessary.  Some Christians followed the new rules but others couldn’t just ‘do a 180’ so easily.  In these passages, they are both urged to treat each other with respect and not to judge because each does it to worship God in their way.  Traditions should give us comfort when we need it the most but it should never be placed above the beliefs and happiness of people affected.  This is much different from the Pharisees and leaders in the church at that time that invented new ceremonies and fasts daily that must be performed to receive God’s grace.  Over and over in the church, bishops imposed numerous traditions on the people while ‘the teachings of righteousness through Christ’ was put on the back burner. 

Paul emphasizes this to the Colossians when he tells them that their past traditions (i.e. not touching a dead body or not eating anything offered to an idol) were only shadows.  A shadow is just a reflection of something real.  In this case, the ‘something real’ was Christ.  Because Christ kept the laws perfectly, we can worship God in spirit and truth and not by ritual observances. 

One of the most important things to remember in retaining our traditions is WHY we do it.  Many traditions in the early church came from imitating the actions of saints and apostles when they should have come from the teachings of the apostles.  I’ll say it again, Christ’s death and resurrection fulfilled ALL of the laws so that at the revelation of the gospel, all Mosaic ceremonies could be omitted.  This means we no longer had to keep the Sabbath and all the laws that went with it.  Instead, the church declared Sundays (the day of the week Christ rose from the dead) to be the day of the week we gather to worship.  Must you only worship on Sunday?  No.  It was done so people would know when they should assemble for worship.  There are likewise many traditions that make up our services.  Liturgical services are often viewed as a way to create a sense of order, harmony, and reverence through prayers, readings, and hymns.  Contemporary worship involves a more modern style of music, technology and visual aids.  There is a more relaxed atmosphere and focus more on a personal experience with God rather than a strict ritual.  Private worship allows us to worship the Lord in a unique way.  It doesn’t have to be a specific time, date, or place but should be a source of comfort, inspiration, and enlightenment.  It should deepen your relationship with God.  (This DOES NOT include worshipping at St. Mattress as some of my family members call it.)  The final way is worship in service to others.  Putting our faith into action is mentioned as worship several times in the Bible:  “I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me something to drink…”. (Matthew 25:35-40); “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress…” (James 1:27); “As we serve others, we reflect the character of Christ, who came not to be served, but to serve” (Mark 10:45).

Worship should never be a performance, something you’re pretending to do or putting on.  It has to be an overflow of your heart.  It’s about getting close to God and letting Him get close to you by sharing His Words and body and blood with you to forgive and strengthen you for the outside world.  Both Word and Sacraments are gifts given to God’s church on earth and we should take advantage of them as often as possible. 

In my first pregnancy, there were several times when my condition was deemed “dangerous”.  I had to be monitored closely and made several trips in and out of the hospital.  Needless to say, I was stressing, so I asked my pastor at the time for words of comfort.  All he had to say was, “Say the Serenity Prayer”.  Really?  That’s it?  You know what it says…it’s pretty basic and what I immediately deemed as ‘no help what-so-ever’.  I’ve only recently found out there’s so much more to it.  So Pastor ….(unnamed), here’s what I wish you would have told me. 

The original prayer, written by Reinhold Neibuhr reads: “O God and Heavenly Father, grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other through Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.”  The official prayer is much longer and there is so much more to it than what first meets the eye. 

“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.  Living one day at a time; enjoying one moment at a time; accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; so that I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever and ever in the next.  Amen.”  

One of the best parts of this prayer is the beginning.  It starts out correctly – “God”.  He is the first and only place we can go when we need help.  He directs us as it says in Proverbs 20:24 so when we get far off-track, guess who’s at fault?  True serenity (calm & peace in mind and heart) comes from focusing on Him rather than the crazy, sinful world around us.  Sure, we can sometimes find partial serenity in ocean waves, sunsets, waterfalls, staring at the stars, etc. but those all come from Jesus as well.  In fact, the stars should be in awe of us as the angels are, for in all of nature’s beauty, only humans were given God’s breath of life.  Isaiah 26:3 says, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.”  The trust we have in God must be always maintained because through it, we receive the peace that sees us through the rough times.

Once we have that trust, we are to focus on acceptance.  Not acceptance of God; but letting go of things that are not in our control.  As someone once said, “Worry is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum.”  Worrying does not solve any problems.  It does nothing more than raise our anxiety so that our imagination spins out of control.  That’s when it takes control of you rather than the other way around.  We need to face the fact that there are some things that cannot be changed (Titus 3:9).  We cannot change the past, predict the future or the weather, etc. so worrying about unchangeable things only results in confusion and stress.

Next, is courage, which means having the strength, wisdom, and determination to do what is within your control.  For example, your boss’ words or actions make you angry enough to complain about it to others.  This keeps you focused on what you can’t control – his/her behavior.  You can’t control their actions, but you can control your response to them.  By not taking any action, you are allowing your life to be dictated by circumstances and others.  If you get cancer or any medical issue for seemingly no reason (i.e. it doesn’t run in your family), you are not responsible for the problem, but you are responsible for dealing with it and searching for a solution for yourself.  It may be God’s will that we battle an illness but the power to deal with it and overcome also comes from God.  There’s nothing wrong with asking God to help with courage.  An alcoholic raised in a family of alcoholics may believe their situation is hopeless.  Technically, it is because we cannot control our sinful urges under our own power alone.  We need the Holy Spirit’s help.  No situation is hopeless for God, because for Him, all things are possible.  God may not have the same solution that you had in mind, but you know His will be the right one.

With God’s help, we receive wisdom we need to address our issues and know what is and is not in our control.  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”  (Proverbs 3:5-6) Our wisdom is often clouded by anxiety, pre-conceived ideas, or black-and-white thinking.  For example, using the words ‘never’ and ‘always’.  These two words should be avoided as often as possible.  One way to help wisdom is to be able to look at the situation from a third-party perspective or stepping back to see the entire picture.  Because our ego, or thousands of small details, so often get in the way of what we believe we can change, they need to be set aside in order to see the truth. 

I recently read an excellent example of this in a Journalism 101 class.  The class was to write the lead of the following newspaper story: “Kenneth L. Peters, the principal of Beverly Hills High School, announced today that the entire high school faculty will travel to Sacramento next Thursday for a colloquium in new teaching methods.  Among the speakers will be an anthropologist, college president and California governor.”  All of the leads submitted by the students, re-ordered the facts and condensed them into a single sentence, “The high school faculty will be educated in new teaching methods next Thursday in Sacramento, blah, blah, blah.”  Everyone in the class failed, because the real lead was, “There will be no school next Thursday.”  It’s not always easy to see the forest because of all the trees in the way.  What you deem to be a priority will greatly affect your wisdom when making decisions.  Putting God first can help clear out the unnecessary fluff and focus your vision where it needs to be.  I could not change my situation of medical problems with my pregnancy, but I could pray and get God’s guidance on breaking down the treatments into something I could accept and/or manage.  Let go of your attempt at control and let God take over for you.

The month of January takes its name from one of the first the Roman gods, Janus, a two-faced being, with one face looking forward and the other looking back.  His job was to guard crossing places and thresholds, beginnings and endings, and act as intermediary between gods and mortals.  In other words, he was the god of doors, gates, and transitions.  January is a transition month -- a vantage point from which we can still see back into the past year and yet can also face forward and look expectantly at the year that lies ahead.  But what are the pros and cons of each option?

The act of looking back is not always a bad thing.  What makes it bad is what you focus on, and how that affects you moving forward.  Looking back at the past year and remembering good times with family and friends can bring you closer together and help you feel as if you are part of something “bigger” in the world.  Looking back and focusing on what you didn’t want to happen is not so good.  So you didn’t win the lottery; you didn’t get that job you wanted; you didn’t lose 20 pounds.  Focusing on ‘non-accomplishments’ can also hurt your spiritual life if you’re not very careful.  (Note that I didn’t call them ‘failures’.  It’s not a failure until you quit trying.)  “It’s God’s fault that I didn’t get what I prayed for.”  “God doesn’t care about me if He won’t give me what I really want.”  Pity party – table for 1.  Time to go to Ephesians 1 - I’ll summarize.  God chose YOU before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight.  In His love, he predestined you to be adopted, through Jesus Christ, as His child and heir.  He let you know His will and when you believed, you were marked with the Holy Spirit, guaranteeing your inheritance.  Does that sound like a God that doesn’t care about you?  Holding on to the good that God did for you last year is baggage you want to keep.  It will help you get through troubling times in the future and in general, make you a happier person. 

But be careful of that well-used phrase, “Those were the good old days.”  That’s actually paraphrased from Ecclesiastes 7:10 and immediately followed with, “That’s a stupid thing to say.”  (again, paraphrased).  Why?  It’s pointless to complain about the bad times we live in now.  We’d do better to complain about the evil in men’s hearts that got us here in the first place.  It also negates the good things that God is doing in your life right now.  God has always been good and men have always been sinful (bad).  In some ways, the past may have been better but only because we can see the entire picture looking back.  In other ways, now is better.  Regardless if you look back to last year or as far back as your childhood, no one generation is perfect.  We don’t have to impress how life was for us on today’s kids.  Everyone should enjoy their own time.  Remember the happiness you had and keep it going to make this generation’s time something they’ll remember 30 years from now.

Looking forward would be more exciting if we didn’t also have the baggage from last year that comes with it.  We still have the same bills, mortgage, and disagreement with that cousin/neighbor/whoever.  We are told many times in the Bible to not look back.  This does not mean Job’s wife turning into salt.  That’s physically ‘looking back’.  Instead, “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old.” (Isaiah 43:18).  This is an easy passage to take out of context.  It’s a form of throw-back to when Gideon was called in Judges 6:12-16.  His first question to God was, “Where are all the wonderful things God did for our fathers?  He brought us out of Egypt and then turned us over to the Midians.”  God was promising the Israelites that He would do greater things for them than He did in the past.  They should not focus on past actions, looking for repeats, because times and situations are different.

Then there are the people that said they’d follow Jesus, but first I need to….  That didn’t cut it either because Jesus’ reply was, “…No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62).  But you say, “Hang on, Elisha was plowing and Elijah let him go back and kiss his parents goodbye.” (1 Kings 19:19-21)  That was different.  They were prophets, and here was Jesus in physical form.  The ministry of the gospel is preferable to the prophets so it was allowed then, but not here.  Here we have a man in Luke 9:61 that wanted to say goodbye to those at home first.  Why?  Did he think he would die and wanted to get his affairs in order?  Did he hope that they would tell him not to go?  He already told them goodbye when he left that morning, why do it again?  He was focused more on what he had back there than what lay ahead with Jesus.  That’s not really looking ahead. 

Paul said it best in Philippians 3:13-14, “…But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  When he says “forgetting”, he means to not dwell on it to the point that it interferes with your current progress or efforts.  Next, he’s referring to looking back at memories or failures or temptations, or anything that might take his focus on the call of Christ.  He pictures it as running a race and the heavenly prize of eternal life with Christ is at the finish line.  A runner knows that our bodies tend to move automatically to where our eyes are directed.  If you keep turning around, it will slow your progress or stop it altogether.  Even holding on to bitter emotions can slow you down.  Nothing good comes from being locked in the past.  God doesn’t hold those sins against us so we shouldn’t either.  They won’t get us to heaven any faster.

Since the beginning of the earth with Cain and Abel, siblings have had rivalries.  From Jacob and Esau through James and John (two of Jesus’ disciples, a.k.a. Sons of Thunder), rivalry between brothers often led to bloodshed.  However, even military strategists have nothing on sisters.  Sisters can be the best of friends, supporting each other through the dramas of life or they can be the most bitter of rivals.  They know how to push each other’s buttons and how to manipulate mom or dad for attention. 

One of the most popular sister rivalries in the Bible comes from Martha and Mary.  (Read Luke 10:38-42 if you need a refresher.)  I believe each of us has a Mary and a Martha inside of us so there’s no reason to say that one is better or worse than the other.  No one would doubt that we live in a “Martha” world, but we can be a ‘Mary’ too, it’s all a matter of timing. 

Martha opened her home to Jesus but not JUST Him.  We need to remember that He always traveled with his 12 disciples and a full entourage of other men and women.  There were quite a few people and they all needed to be tended to.  (Picture 20 or so relatives coming for Christmas dinner….there you go.)  When Jesus entered the house, instead of waiting to be waited on, He sat down and started teaching.  Mary realized this was an opportunity not to be missed so she plopped down in front of Him and paid attention.  Not to belittle God by any means, but just to give you a reality visual: What if Elvis or Billy Joel or Aretha Franklin walked into your front door and started singing, would you leave them to go clean the bathrooms?  I don’t think so.  You’d want to appreciate every minute you had with them.  OR  Let’s get even closer to reality…you have family show up that you haven’t seen all year.  You know they don’t go to church.  It’s Christmas Eve and the Candlelight Service at church is starting in 30 minutes.  What do you do?  Martha would probably stay home and visit and entertain because, it’s just one service.  Mary might invite them to go with her and if they refused, she’d leave them there and go by herself.  Who knows, maybe the “I’d rather be with God for an hour before I visit with you” example will have a positive affect on them.  If not, you still did what God wanted you to do. 

But back to the Bible story, Martha felt overworked, misunderstood, and unappreciated.  Doesn’t that sound like our reality, especially in a house full of guests?  Our fallen, human nature takes the act of serving others in love and changes it to self-pity and works righteousness.  That’s not the way things were meant to be and certainly not the way we want to feel.  The church tells us to beat the pavement for the mission of the church, serve, respond to our calling and gifts, volunteer in the nursery, bake for the potluck, donate to the food pantry, serve on a committee, etc.  Of course, that’s in addition to grocery shopping, working a full-time job, driving kids to ??? practice, cooking healthy and nutritious dinners, doing laundry, scout meetings, birthday parties, etc.  Did I miss anything?  “Overworked” doesn’t begin to describe us.  Is it any wonder that she became so overwhelmed that she broke the cardinal rule of hospitality and focused on herself?  She even fussed at Jesus as if He was also falling short of what was expected of Him.  Sometimes we’re so busy trying to do EVERYTHING right that we can do nothing right.  Story. Of. My. Life.

So is it possible to be a Mary in a Martha world.  Yes.  Step One: It’s OK for your house to be messy because we are saved by grace, not works.  (That’s a Lutheran joke.)  Seriously, it’s OK to say “Yes” to the mess.  (I’m not including hoarders here, because you need serious help if you only have one path to go through your house.)  I’m talking about those that must have the dinner table set perfectly with pressed, cloth napkins and candles, etc. for every holiday.  They must have a decorated Christmas tree in every room of the house, even the bathrooms, (different themes for each, of course) along with lights and decorations and nick-nacks galore.  Hair and clothes always perfect.  (Yes, I know someone that does this.)  Many of us are juggling so many balls in the air at one time, working on a to-do list that never ends, we don’t take time for ourselves.  Remember the first rule of caring for others – take care of yourself first or you won’t be any good to anyone.  That’s what we do when we put Jesus and Bible study first.  Our soul gets fed and our empty and exhausted lives get refilled with what they need to continue.  This is the selfishness God approves of.  Remember, God created us for work and led by example with the creation of the universe and then taking a rest.  True, He only rested because there was nothing else to do but hey, He’s God, so we don’t have the luxury of being finished.  We need to take a rest and recharge our batteries with words from Him. 

We have to find a way to say “Yes” to the mess in our lives and balance our faith with our day-to-day.  How?  You have to answer that one for yourself.  I have no clue how you could do it in your life.  My ‘yes’ is to go to bed at a decent hour, stopping for prayer time first, even if the laundry isn’t folded and the dishwasher isn’t loaded.  We often get so pre-occupied with serving God, we don’t take time to know Him better. 

God wants everyone, even siblings, to live in harmony and love each other.  You know, “Love your neighbor as yourself”?  One of your ‘neighbors’ is your siblings.  “Love covers all wrongs” (Proverbs 10:12), even battling siblings.  These rivalries can come from just about anything from jealousy to selfishness and even parental partiality (real or imagined).  Who knows, Cain might have just been having one of those ‘I can do nothing right weeks’.  (I’ve had more than my share of those.)  Abel’s better offering might have been just the straw that broke the camel’s back.  We’ll never know.  Regardless, the causes can be overcome with kindness, respect, and love rather than revenge and violence. 

Jesus was really worried about Martha and how stressed she was.  He wasn’t happy that she thought He had to have the best food and entertainment and was driving herself crazy trying to do it all.  She did at least one thing right though, she went straight to Jesus with her problems.  Sure, she blamed Him partly but it’s OK, God can take our anger.  He understands it more than you realize.  Now, I have to put a word in here about Mary.  Martha is made out to be the ‘bad guy’ that messes up but what about Mary?  They’re SISTERS!  Why couldn’t she run to Martha and say, “Hey, come here a minute, you’ve got to hear what Jesus is talking about.”  The story makes her out to be all innocent but if you put yourself in their place, sometimes a different view isn’t a bad thing.

Serving others as well as caring for our families, pay bills, etc. are all important parts of life, but spending some time with God’s Word is more important.  Your relatives will understand if the baseboards aren’t dusted and you only have chips and dip to snack on.  Focus on the reason for the season now and let the feeling continue through next year.  If you listen to Jesus first, your good works will be the fruit of your faith.  God has given us one wild, precious life that is filled with comfort, challenge, love, and purpose.  It may be messy sometimes, but it is always filled with meaning.  Focus on the meaning.

This is the season of Advent in the church.  It’s the time when we both wait for Christ to come again and celebrate His birth.  I understand patiently waiting and looking forward to something.  I also understand wanting to put off something for as long as possible because I just don’t or can’t deal with it.  This is what a friend of mine termed: ‘swallowing the frog’.  It’s anything you don’t want to do but have to do; tackling your most challenging task.  You do it first and get it over with so you can enjoy other things.  I am anxiously waiting for Christmas because it’s the one time of the year I get to see most of my family.  I am also anxiously waiting for my 2024 vacation.  I have been planning and saving for it for the last 10 years and it’s almost here!! 

We hear the same Christmas story every year in church but I have to admit, I never REALLY thought about it.  The story of Mary getting the news she would be Jesus’ mother is in Luke 1:26-38.  I’ve heard it over 50 times but never took time to really think about it.  Here’s Mary, planning her wedding, dreaming of a life with Joseph, making her dress, etc. and an angel appears and says she’s going to be pregnant.  WAIT?!  WHAT?!?!  She has to tell her parents, Joseph, etc.  Who’s going to believe her?  The town will talk about her like she’s a tramp.  No one would blink an eye today but things were different 30 years ago, and much more so in Bible times.  She’ll have to face ridicule during the entire pregnancy.  No wonder she runs to Elizabeth’s house and stays there for three months.  She’s not ready for that frog yet.  She’s going to need to be around family members that understand and will support her in order to make it through the false assumptions and ridicule she’s up for.  She told the angel she agreed to cooperate but didn’t fully understand what it meant for her in the meantime.  Then there’s poor Joseph.  She gets back home after three months with her cousin and he finds out she’s 3 months pregnant and it’s God’s child.  Talk about timing.  The trials of life that test our faith rarely come when we are ready to face them.  They come when God is ready to turn our face toward Him.  Apparently, ‘frogs’ aren’t always ‘things to do’, but sometimes appear as ‘things to believe’.  Joseph had quite the frog as well and he didn’t even get an angel like Mary and Zachariah did, he just got a dream.  There’s an example of a strong faith for you.  It’s a shame he doesn’t get more credit in this story every year.

God’s timing sometimes doesn’t match with ours.  Some say that “man plans and God laughs”.  I don’t believe that.  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)  Sure, we pray, “Thy will be done” but do we really mean it or do we say it without thinking like the above paragraph?  After all, we get our hearts set and when things change and we don’t know why, it’s a hard pill, er...frog, to swallow.  God loves us and wants us to be happy AND to trust Him to know and do what’s best for us but His timing is not always the same as ours.  Until then, we have to be patient, and patience comes from: giving God thanks in all situations for His support and love; seeking His purpose because sometimes our trials are to teach us to depend on Him; and remembering that God works for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28)

In the Bible, He spoke through people more often about what was to come in the future; what they could look forward to, and what disasters to prepare for.  ‘It’s going to rain for 40 days and nights, build a boat.  You will wander in the wilderness for 40 years.  You will enter into slavery, but I’ll get you out one day; until then, get married, have kids, enjoy yourselves.  You’re going to have 7 years of plenty followed by 7 years of famine, don’t say you weren’t warned.  Etc.’  We don’t have that option in the same way today.  The thief on the cross didn’t look forward to eternity in heaven, but he got it.  Sometimes our plans don’t work to our satisfaction and sometimes they turn out better than expected.  In the meantime, we should love one another and live in harmony with each other.  “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”  (Romans 12:12)  Hope is a fine thing to have but it should be joined with prayer.  God knows what you want to happen, and why but He still wants us to ask for it and tell Him about it anyway.  If things don’t go your way sometimes, you can pray to understand, pray to help you get over the disappointment, pray to see the better alternative God had in mind and trust that His way is the best.  Does the heart still hurt?  Sure.  Those frogs aren't chocolate like in Harry Potter.  There’s no way to avoid heartaches on this sinful earth.  Thankfully, we won’t be here like this forever and to make it even better, Jesus swallowed the frog for us when he took ALL our sins and paid for them.  Did He really want to go through all that?  I’m guessing His human side didn’t or else He wouldn’t have asked God to take the cup from Him if it was God’s will.  I wish I had at least some of the answers in life, but I don’t.  I’ve been praying for many years to have peace in my heart to accept His way instead of mine.  The only advice I have, is for you to do the same. 

*[Disclaimer:  In this blog, I suggest telling fellow church members something that Christians don’t (shouldn’t) say.  I merely add this ‘expression’ in order to make a point and it is NOT to be taken literally.  To do so will most likely lead to therapy, bad blood, and gossip extreme.]*

I’ve always been attracted to the idea of using shock to draw people to a topic.  I’ve done it with several blogs in the past, like, “there are things that God can’t do”, and my personal favorite, “hey God, thanks for nothing!”  It gets your attention, right?  You want to know more.  You want to understand where this idea is coming from because it goes against everything you’ve ever been taught…or so it seems.  This is going to be another one of those gems.  Ready??  We should all turn to the person next to us in church and instead of sharing the peace, we should tell them to go to hell.  Do I have your attention?

One of the most dreaded parts of a worship service for many people is the Ritual of Friendship or Sharing the Peace.  The service is stopped and everyone puts on a fake smile, turns to those around them and shakes their hand, wishing them ‘God’s peace be with you’.  Some churches choose to not do this even though the tradition is steeped in Biblical history.  I don’t care what anyone says, it’s awkward in this day and age to be forced to tell someone ‘peace be with you’ if you’re not an ordained minister.  It’s just not an expression we use very much these days.  “God bless you” would be a more comfortable saying. 

Let’s look at the Beatitudes as they are written in Luke 6:17-26.  “Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied.  Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.  Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets. “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.  Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.  Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.”

Jesus is surrounded by a multitude of people.  He heals all of them, regardless of their disease, and then places blessings on those in a ‘material hell’ like the poor and the hungry, as well as those in a ‘spiritual hell’ like those who cry and are despised.  There is a future for them in the kingdom of God where these problems will no longer exist.  He then addresses those in seemingly good circumstances like the wealthy, well-fed, carefree, and popular.  Their prediction involves more dire consequences down the road.  It’s easier for those that are meek or impoverished to appreciate God’s strength and support in their lives now.  Those who enjoy good health and easy living now don’t see God’s hand in their lives as necessary.  They already have what they want.  The devil has them in a comfortable cage and they see no reason to leave.  One day though, the door will close, and they’ll be trapped forever.  Scary thought. 

For most of us, sometimes we fall into one category and sometimes the other, but we can’t allow God into our lives only when it’s convenient for us.  We spend considerable time and energy making our lives as safe and comfortable as possible.  Jesus turns this blessed existence upside-down and warns us of the dangers of being complacent.  So how do we break out of this shell that we surrounded ourselves with?  We follow Jesus’ example. 

Where did He go those three days before the resurrection?  He went to hell to proclaim His victory over sin and death.  As the continuing presence of Christ’s body on earth, we need to go find the neediest souls, those farthest from God and closest to despair…in hell.  That’s what hell on earth is after all.  It’s being separated from God’s love and mercy and grace.  To not know God is pure hell and you can be there even if you live in a big, fancy house and drive an expensive car.  People live in hell all around us.  It doesn’t always have to be a poverty-stricken, drug-plagued neighborhood or the homeless living on the street and in alleys.  Go into a mall and watch the well-off consumers that think they have no need for God.  Visit a homeless shelter or retirement complex where the residents have become ‘inmates’.  Ask your doctor or therapist the next time you go, because you will go again, if he or she is a Christian.  Start a conversation with the tellers at the bank while you’re waiting for them to process your request.  Say something to the person behind the counter at the gas station you always go to.  Even as much as a “God bless you” is getting a toe in the door and a place to start.  Reaching out into the world is uncomfortable at the very least, and can be dangerous, but it is the mission and message of the Church.  We don’t go to hell to join those who are there.  We go to hell to bring the lost back home to their Father’s eternal kingdom.  We have to remind ourselves to not stay safe in the bubble of friends and family that know Jesus, and reach out to others that might not fully know Him or understand His love and mercy. 

When Luke reports Jesus saying, “Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation,” it’s a very unusual Greek word he uses for “consolation.” It’s a commercial term that literally means, “having received what is due.” It’s the rubber stamp impression at the bottom of an invoice: “Paid in full.”  The self-satisfied high rollers, in other words, have been paid in full. They’ve been given much in this life, but they won’t receive a penny more.

Oscar Wilde once quipped: “In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants; the other is getting it.”

When Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor … the hungry … and those who weep,” he’s bearing witness to the truth that God is in charge of creation, and that God isn’t finished with us yet. God may bless us some day with what we most desire. Or, perhaps more likely, God may bless us through what we desire but don’t receive.  It’s not counting our blessings that’s important. It’s the blessing itself that counts: God’s blessing, that sojourns with us through wealth and poverty, health and sickness, laughter and tears. Praise to God, for knowing us better than we know ourselves, and for blessing us in every circumstance!

“You do you.”  What does that mean?  The general consensus is that we are each in complete charge of our own lives and can do whatever we want.  The person saying “you do you” probably does not agree with our decision and is therefore not responsible for the outcome but they think we’re making a mistake all the same.  Reminds me of childhood.  Kids want to be able to make all of their own decisions about their lives and parents “sometimes” let them but only because it’s a life lesson they have to learn.  Personally speaking, I would sometimes like others to make decisions for me now but not have ALL power over me.  You can’t pick and choose what you want control over however.  No one has any power or ability or even life, unless God grants it.  “John answered, ‘A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven’” (John 3:27)  “…apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5b). 

We think we’re so smart and have such control over our lives.  Humph.  We know, because the Bible says so in Revelation 1:18, that because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, He holds the keys of death and hell.  That means He has authority over death.  It cannot control Him or us.  So what do we do…we allow the devil to continue to hold the power of death over us through deception.  First, he makes us think our life can be improved by contradicting God’s design rather than living according to it.  (I have the power to control my life regardless of what God wants me to do.)  Next, he makes us think there is no remedy for our failure.  (It didn’t work out…I’m hopeless…)  Finally, he holds people in bondage by making them afraid to sacrifice their physical life in favor of the spiritual one.  (If I go to church and read my Bible and talk to others about Jesus, I won’t have time to do what “I” want to do.)  Jesus said only those who lose their lives can save them (Luke 17:33).  That means lose your desire to only serve yourself. 

Our focus is usually on the physical life in the material world rather than our eternal soul in God’s kingdom.  In other words, we focus on having treasures on earth rather than eternal treasures in heaven.  See Matthew 6:19-34 for more on this.  Sure, I talk the talk but do I walk the walk?  No; same as you.  Like you, I know what I need to do and how I should be, but still have a difficult time actually doing it.  So many things in this world are easier said than done but that doesn’t mean they’re not worth doing, or at least, trying.  Growing up, every time I was around my cousin who was an active ‘goer-doer’, I’d ask, “Where are you going?”.  Her answer was always, “To hell if I don’t change my ways.”  The thought of hell is where a lot of people get confused, I think.  They are taught, or given the impression, that if you do bad things now, you go to hell later.  If you do good now, you go to heaven later.  That’s not right though…see the picture for this blog.

Remember when you were a kid and your parents put you up against the wall to make a mark to show your growth?  They didn’t measure you against your siblings, the neighbor kids, or the kids on TV.  You measure yourself now against your previous self.  If you compare your relationships, successes, or anything against someone other than yourself, you’re not being fair to you.  We all progress at our own speed and have different paths to walk, different challenges to face, different God-given gifts to use.  If you are moving forward, you’re always learning new ways to improve yourself and your relationship with God. 

One Sunday in church, the pastor asked the congregation to look at the wall of stained glass the building had.  There were hundreds of pieces in all sizes, shapes, and colors.  We were asked to pick out one piece that would be “ours”.  The glass represented our presence in church.  He then asked us to imagine that all of the pieces of glass were there except for our one.  How ‘complete’ does a church wall of glass look with one section of white light shining through?  What if there were more than one?  That’s how one missing person should look to the congregation.  Do you have to go to church to improve your life and grow your faith?  No, but it makes things a lot easier because you’re not by yourself.  Do you have time to make your life easier?

Have you ever put together a model airplane?  Before you start, you have all these little pieces of wood.  You can throw them, but they won’t fly.  It’s not until you put them together and have each part doing what it’s meant to do that you have success.  Likewise, you have all these people attending church but until they assemble themselves, doing what they were created to do, you have no flight and the church will crash.  What would our lives be like if we did what God wanted us to do?  If you can find your place in the church, you can grow in faith more quickly.  God will not bottle-feed us forever.  This is not a new concept.  Paul wrote to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 3:1-15) and reminded them that he fed them as infants in the faith because they were not ready.  They still have jealousy and strife among them so their growth is slow.  In Hebrews 5:12-14, it says, “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.”  We need to learn to eat solid food in order to grow into the people God created us to be.  You only have this life to live up to your potential so what will it be… apple juice or apple cobbler? 

Stress, pressures, worry, anxiety.  The list goes on and on.  Is it any wonder that we need sleep aids?  That we sleep like babies?  (You know.  Wake up every 2 hours.)  Unfortunately, it’s impossible to turn off your brain.  Yes, you can do things to wind-down but it takes more than yoga, low lights, music, and warm milk to be successful.  Your brain will still focus on what you did right or wrong that day; what you wish you would have done or said; what you have to deal with tomorrow; etc.  1 Peter 5:7 tells us to “cast all your cares upon Him because He cares for you.”  Is that easy to do?  NO!, and I’ll tell you why.  It’s like wanting your husband to go to the doctor.  They don’t ‘need’ to go because they know what the doctor will say OR they don’t know what he’ll say and they’re afraid that what’s said won’t be what they want to hear.  Don’t we do that with God as well?  Worry that God won’t handle it the way we want or expect?  The doctor is going to listen to you and then do what he thinks is best for you.  God does the same – He’s the Great Physician.  We know God hears our prayers but we need to take it one step further and trust His timing.  He knows what He’s doing but we want God to take care of our lives, in our way.  Stupid, I know, but that’s the way humans are.

There’s an old story of two Japanese monks.

         Traveling a muddy road, a downpour only added to the difficulty of walking.  Around

         a bend in the road, they met a lovely girl in a flowing silk kimono, unable to cross the

         intersection.  One monk, Tanzan, immediately took the girl in his arms and carried her

         through the mud and onto more secure ground.  The two monks continued their hike,

         but the other monk, Ekido, spoke not a word until they reached their temple lodging

         that night.  Then, he restrained himself no longer: “We monks never go near females,”

         he challenged Tanzan, “most particularly not young and pretty ones.”  Ekido had to

         say more: “It is dangerous, it is tempting fate.  Why did you do it?”  “I left the girl

         there,” replied Tanzan in a quiet spirit.  “Are you still carrying her?”

We do that.  We continue to carry our nerves, worries, and regrets with us everywhere we go, even to bed.  We do what people tell us to do; we ‘sleep tight’.  What would it be like to ‘sleep loose’?  In 2 Corinthians 13:11-13, Paul is facing persecution, arrest, and death, yet he still takes time to tell the Corinthians how to ‘sleep loose’ through holy living.

“Strive for full restoration” – Put things in order.  Prioritize.  Focus on what’s important and let go of the junk that clutters your mind.  Let the Holy Spirit guide you.

“Encourage one another, be of one mind” – Don’t just tolerate each other, but celebrate each other, differences included.  Lift them up when they make a mistake.  Bearing a cross that isn’t yours is more Christ-like than nailing others to theirs.  Emphasize the positives and ‘Bless their heart’ in a good way.

“Live in peace” – Celebrating those you don’t like is an extreme challenge.  As you work toward that, live in peace.  God wants to help us, strengthen us, and encourage us.  Let Him.

“And the God of love and peace will be with you” – Receive God’s love.  This is easier for children.  Adults keep their vulnerabilities locked away tight behind the expectancy and pre-conceived notions.  This makes it harder to accept God’s peace and love for us. 

We tend to focus on what keeps us from God, mistakes and sins, rather than His forgiveness and peace.  This anxiety eventually leads to a decrease of faith because our trust in God’s control over our lives is reduced by the whisperings of Satan, the world, and our own conscious.  When stress dominates our life, it doesn’t mean we don’t trust God anymore, it just means we have a battle to fight.  If you think about it, stress is a battle that we started with ourselves.  So, are you going to fight yourself, or are you going to trust what God says in Isaiah 41:10, “Fear not, for I AM with you; be not dismayed, for I AM your God.  I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”?  I have found that the older I get, the more I realize that things I still hold myself accountable for and feel guilty about have been completely forgotten by those that knew about them back when.  I’m the only one still carrying a torch for my past mistakes; I’m still ‘carrying the girl’.  When I have a problem with the term, ‘forgive myself’, I decide to put it in God’s hands and let Him worry about it for awhile.  I write it all out on a piece of paper and then put it in a small, wooden box on my dresser.  Anything in that box is for God to deal with.  That takes it off my mind and oh, look!  There’s my bed!!

The whole idea here is to relax and accept the love of God that surrounds you.  He’s got this.  Get out of His way and let Him work.  There’s not enough room in your mind for both worry and faith.  You have to decide which one gets to live there.  Pick, pray, and then sleep loose.

Are you a left-brain, right-brain, or bird-brain?  Back in the 1960’s, a neuroscientist suggested that people have a ‘more dominant’ side of the brain that determines their personality, thoughts, and behavior.  The left-brain/right-brain term never fails to remind me of the Christian comedian, Jeanne Robertson, because she explains this concept very well. 

“Left-brain people are analytical people, they like things in order, they want details.  You know the box, people always talk about, ‘thinking outside the box’?  They’re happy in the box.  They take their Craftsman tape measure and measure the box to be certain it’s the same on all 4 sides.  Right-brained people don’t know where the box is.  We went to early service one Sunday and I said, “Wasn’t a big crowd in church”.  Left-brain (husband) said, “47, when they came down for communion there were 23 upstairs”.”

To speak about it more practically, a left-brained person is more likely to remember facts about past vehicles, tell you to the minute how long the sermon was, map every detail of a vacation including mileage, and feel the need to tell you what you’re doing (while you’re doing it).  They will focus on laws, truths, and tradition.  A right-brained person is the one to say, “pack a bag, we’re leaving for the weekend” and have no idea where you’ll end up.  They will look ahead for different possible outcomes because they accept that there may be more than one.  They are artistic, spontaneous, comfortable with mysteries and focus on the love of God.

Is one side better or worse than the other?  No.  More recent studies show that people use both sides of their brain but it depends on what they’re doing.  For example, the left side processes the language heard while both sides are necessary for comprehension.  They must work together.

God gave us brains with two sides so we should use both of them and not focus on one or the other.  We insult people by calling them bird-brains but that’s just as wrong as focusing on left or right.  That term has come to mean someone that is an idiot, imbecile, etc. but we couldn’t be more wrong.  Scientific research shows that some birds have episodic memory; something previously believed to be unique in human beings.  This means that they can recall memories relating to past events like where and when they hid food (similar to us retracing our steps to remember where we put our car keys).  Other birds grow brain cells to store information on where to find food.  When that information is no longer needed, the brain cells are discarded, producing constant rejuvenation. 

This leads us up to the best brain in the world; King Solomon.  When God told him to ask for anything, he asked for wisdom and understanding instead of power, riches, or any other instant gratification.  Many might call him a bird-brain for doing this; and they’d be right.  The first thing he did was remember past events: what God did for his father, David; what God did for Israel; what God did for Solomon, himself.  Solomon was already wise enough to know that he lacked experience so he asked for understanding to guide God’s people the right way.  (1 Kings 3:3-14)  He wanted to ‘be good’ more than ‘be great’ and serve God’s honor rather than advance his own.  God was so impressed that He gave Solomon what he asked for along with the riches, etc.  Remember Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  Solomon was blessed with the understanding of a clear head and solid judgment so much so that no one to this day can equal it.  Here we must remember that wisdom is not the same as knowledge.  He probably couldn’t measure the force of gravity or solve algebraic equations but he was blessed with more wisdom than we could ever fathom. 

What do I mean?  Today, we are drunk with knowledge but we’re starving for wisdom.  Example: Jurassic Park.  They had the knowledge to create but didn’t have the wisdom to not do so.  With wisdom, knowledge is a blessing that can draw us closer to God.  Without wisdom, knowledge will get you into more trouble than you can imagine (and possibly eaten).  Knowledge is the accumulation of information and facts about people and the world.  Wisdom is the ability to apply this information based on experience, evaluation, and lessons learned.  That’s what Solomon had and what we need.  Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs which contains more mentions of wisdom than anywhere else.  Clearly, this is a case of “do as I say, not as I do”, since he had 700 wives and 300 concubines.  His wisdom kind of failed him there.

If we are low on wisdom, there’s hope in James 1:5, “If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”  We are surrounded by moral issues that cry out for wisdom, but we forget what God has done for us and who He is.  We fall back on our knowledge of what we want the world to be like because we like to be in control.  So here is our choice: go forward, secure in our knowledge and ignoring the fact that our brilliance will be our destruction OR go back, and remember the God that created this world and has a plan for it and for us even though we’ve rejected Him and need His forgiveness.  Remember the things God has done for you and blessings He’s given you.  Pray for wisdom and let God lead your actions to show Him to the world; not for your glory, but for His.

I recently went on a vacation in the mountains of North Carolina.  For a girl from the flatlands of south Texas, the roads (up and down with twists and turns) were an adventure.  They reminded me of how driving on them was similar to being a Christian.  On July 23, 2021, I wrote about the Bible being similar to rafting down a river.  Like the river, the roads have so many twists and turns, you never knew what was coming at you from the other direction most of the time.  If you were lucky, you could see ahead three to five car lengths before you hit the next turn.  Thankfully, most of the time they were two lane roads.  I repeat, MOST of the time. 

Like the river, the mountain roads have two sides but here, one side of the road is the mountain going straight up and the other side, straight down.  The mountain side has solidity (a.k.a. trees and rock), which stands for the Gospel.  The other side has a small, rail border (rarely) with trees that go down 50+ feet below the road and another 50+ feet towering above it.  You can’t see the bottom so you don’t know if there’s ground, water, anything.  It’s an abyss which represents the Law.  Not just the law of gravity, but the reminder that breaking the law brings certain death.  No “Dukes of Hazzard” happy landing here.  God gave us both Law and Gospel to guide us on our journey to eternal life.  The problem here is that the Gospel is safe and sure; Christ took on human form to take all sins upon Himself and pay for them so we receive forgiveness through faith and are saved eternally.  Since we must do nothing, we often take it for granted.  The Law, on the other hand, is confusing because we feel the need to make up laws to follow.  The laws God gave us just aren’t enough.

Back in Exodus 20, God give us 10 Commandments but these are only part of the Law.  God also gave instructions pertaining to the altar because the Law and altar go together.  The Law shows us that we need a Savior so there must be an altar on which to make the sacrifice.  There must be a shedding of blood to pay for sin.  Jesus made this payment for us so we keep altars in church to remind us.  I wonder, is there anything more common that we could use as a reminder of the Law?  After all, Texas is a little short on narrow ledges to drive on.

In the Small Catechism, we learn about the Law being seen as a curb, a ruler, and a mirror.

Curb – restrains sin in three ways: 1. Written law – has consequences for breaking them  (speeding – ticket, murder – prison, etc.).  2.  Peer pressure – societies’ laws that we must abide by to not be alienated or shamed.  3.  Conscience – built-in, God-given curb.

Ruler – increases sin.  A guide to show us not only how to live but also what is pleasing to God.  “If you love me, keep my commandments.” (John 14:15)  But how does it increase sin?  It brings to light more sins that we didn’t realize were there.  A glass shows the spots but doesn’t cause them.  Sun through a window shows the dust in the air you didn’t realize you were breathing.  A wound must be searched to find the cure.  Etc.

Mirror – reveals sin.  Where do we most likely find a mirror in our home?  The bathroom.  The mirror reflects our dirt (sin) exactly as it shows our reflection.  It shows up especially well with the light turned on over it.  (Light = Jesus.  OH THE SYMBOLISM!!)  You don’t wash yourself with the mirror, it only reveals the dirt.  But what is under the mirror?  The sink.  “There is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins; and sinners plunged beneath that flood, lose all their guilty stains."  Think about that the next time you cut yourself shaving.

Let’s play devil’s advocate now:  If Jesus fulfilled the Law completely, why do we still have it?  To realize the abundance of it and the terrors it brings makes the Gospel’s comforts all that much sweeter.  You are more grateful for the grace of having your sins erased if you understand how many there are and what put them there in the first place.  “Now the law came in to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.” (Romans 5:20).

So, we go down this road of life.  We have the solid wall next to us of God’s grace, mercy, and forgiveness.  It’s assured, unmovable, so we should be not used to it, but always grateful for it.  We go down the road of twists and turns of obligations: go left (go to work), go right (feed the kids), go left (visit family), go right (pay taxes), etc.  At the same time, there are tempting dangers in this world coming at us that we need to avoid.  Huge dump truck taking the whole oncoming lane (attitude of “it’s my body so I can do what I want with it”…drugs, tattoos, sex changes, etc.), a motorcycle riding the center line (adultery opportunity), falling cows (I’m getting a divorce because I deserve to be happy.)  

We need to keep our focus on the road and our minds on where we’re going.  Thankfully, we have the church as our pull-over spot so we can get out once in awhile, rest from life’s worries, and better appreciate the view. 

In the course of Bible studies, I’ve been seeing the appearance of triangles more and more.  This goes beyond the obvious Triune God or even the previously mentioned ‘trinity of trinities’ of the world (solid, liquid, gas; past, present, future; length, width, height).  I’m talking about three things mentioned together that support each other and compliment each other without being very obvious.  Some thought is definitely needed to find them.  Here are three that I’ve found recently:

2 Corinthians 1:3-7

In the phrase, ‘Father of all mercies and God of all comfort’, the term “Father” implies mercy because we receive mercy (lack of punishment) from the discipline figure.  God of all comfort tells us comfort comes from God (triune God) because He speaks peace which comes from our remission of sins due to Christ and the influences of the Spirit.  That’s all well and good but that’s not the triangle. 

The relationship between suffering, comfort & salvation is the triangle:  suffering –brings a need for comfort and is a necessary part of salvation; comfort – a gift of God, received from salvation, to be shared with those suffering; salvation – arrived at through suffering and gives comfort   All suffering points to Jesus who gives us comfort through our salvation. 

Ephesians 4:1-16

This section has a double triangle.  In verses 1-6, “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism” is important because it’s another triangle of teaching.  God, faith, and baptism are each a point on the triangle.  God gives us faith and makes us His through baptism.  In baptism, we confess our faith that we are a child of God.  Our faith in the one, true God is confessed in our baptism.  

Just a side note on the second half (v. 9-16), Paul was making a point in the ascension and descension of Jesus.  The descending into lower regions was not just going to hell to proclaim His victory but the also the conclusion of the self-humiliation of coming to earth in the incarnation. Then when He ascended, it was not just, “Oh, He’s leaving”, but He ascends to leave gifts with us; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one Holy Spirit, one unity of the children of God in the calling, etc.  Everything links together, regardless if it's obvious or not.  Heaven - earth - hell.  Jesus came from heaven to earth as needed for our salvation.  Died on earth and went to hell to proclaim His victory.  Left hell to return to His throne in heaven.  Currently in heaven with the keys to death and hell.

Finally...

2 Timothy 1:3-7

Paul gives thanks with a clear conscience.  Paul’s conscience might possibly be troubled because he started out on the wrong path but he now serves God as he was meant to.  Faith can help in dealing with the conscience if you see it as a triangle answer: Word brings about faith which helps calm a conscience.  When our conscience is troubled, we turn to the Word to help strengthen our faith.  The Word that we read works on our conscience to justify our faith (in other words, you’re going the right way).  It helps with fear because faith brings calm in the face of chaos if you can put it in God’s hands and really trust Him to take care of it. 

I’ve taken many classes that focus on the triangle relationship of God with us, God with others, and us with others.  That’s a pretty common one.  Triangles are scattered all throughout the Bible.  You don't have to look for them but once you start seeing them, you'll see them more and more.  It's like buying a new car.  As soon as you do, that's all you see on the road.

As a rule, I don’t follow, participate in, or DO social media.  I don’t care what you had for dinner, don’t want to see your vacation pictures, and I can love God just fine without forwarding the post.  However, sometimes, I come across things that are actually meaningful and important.  Rare, but it happens.  It did so the other day when I came across a Facebook post of a debate between an atheist and a Christian.  Before I get into that though, I found arguments in my notes of how we can even know there is a God in the first place. 

9 ways we can know there is a God:

1.  The very order of nature itself (it had to be made intentionally in order to work)

2.  The nature of the human mind (different from animals)

3.  The difference between honorable and shameful (the fact that we understand right and wrong)

4.  Truthfulness of natural knowledge

5.  The terrors of the conscious (feeling guilt)

6.  The structure of human society (1 male, 1 female to reproduce, no other genders)

7.  The orderly process of cause and effect

8.  The signs of future events (we can predict things like high tides and cooler weather)

9.  There is a purpose that drives things

So, what do we do with this information?  I have no idea.  I just like the fact that they are reasonable arguments to encourage discussion with someone who believes there is no God who created everything and is in charge of everything.

To really understand something, you have to put the pieces together in your mind.  Sometimes, even after you have all the pieces, the puzzle doesn’t make sense.  That’s OK where God is concerned.  After all, if you could fully understand everything about God, you’d be on equal terms with Him.  That, we definitely are not.  But we still try to do the best we can and that’s OK with Him.  He wants us to know Him so that we trust, love, and fear Him.  (fear is not ‘afraid’ but ‘a healthy respect for’)

I really wish I could have seen the entire debate between those two I mentioned earlier, but they only posted one question/answer.  The answer was so amazing that I copied it down word-for-word to share with you.  I know my own beliefs and faith but often, I don’t have the exact words to express them to someone.  This gentleman had the words alright.  And he used them.

Atheist:  “Where did God come from and how can a spiritual force have an impact on a material universe to create it?”

Christian:  “The fact that you ask ‘Where did God come from?’ displays that you’re thinking of the wrong god.  The God of the Bible is not affected by time, space, or matter.  If He’s affected by time, space, or matter, he’s not God.  Time, space, and matter is what we call a continum.  All of them have to come into being at the same instant.  If there were matter and time, where would you put it?  If there were matter and space, when would you put it?  You cannot have them individually, they must come into existence simultaniously.  The Bible answers that in 10 words.  “In the beginning (time) God created the heavens (space) and the earth (matter).  So you have time, space, and matter there, a trinity of trinities because time is past, present, future; space has length, width, height, and matter is gas, solid, and liquid.  The God who created them has to be outside of them.  If He’s limited by time, He’s not God.  The God who created this universe is outside of it, above it, beyond it, in it, through it, He’s unaffected by it.  The statement that a spiritual force cannot have any affect on a physical body doesn’t explain things like emotion, love, hate, envy, jealousy, and rationality.  If your brain is just a random collection of chemicals formed by chance over time, how can you trust your own reasoning process and the thoughts that you think?  Your question, “Where did God come from?” is assuming a limited God.  And that’s your problem.  The God that I worship is not limited by time, space, or matter.  If I could fit the infinite God in my brain, He would not be worth worshipping, that’s for certain.”

DUDE!!  Mic drop!  God bless you!  One of the comments in the section below the post was a person that said, “He never answered the original question of where God came from.”  Seriously?  You are a tiny human being with a tiny human brain.  You want the truth?  YOU CAN’T UNDERSTAND THE TRUTH!  God has told us this over and over but we think if we’re smart enough, we’ll find our answers.  Some things are taken on faith and just flat none of our business. God said, “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:9) and of course we can’t forget the ‘beat-down’ Job got in Chapters 38-39, ending with, “Shall a faultfinder contend with the Almighty?  He who argues with God, let him answer it.”  We are ‘the creation’ and have no reason to expect the creator to explain Himself to us.  Let’s just focus on what He did give us (the Bible).  Even understanding that can take a lifetime so you’d better get started. 

I’m realizing I spend a lot of time in Genesis but that was the start of literally EVERYTHING and it has more well-known stories than any other book in the Old Testament.  Also, there is such a depth to things mentioned here that understanding background or how things go together makes Bible study so much more meaningful. 

Adam and Eve sinned and to cover their sin, they sewed what?  Fig leaves together to make coverings for their bodies.  Have you ever seen a fig leaf?  It doesn’t cover so much as the palm of your hand.  Didn’t they have elephant ear plants back then?  Maybe a philodendron?  Nope.  Fig leaf.  In doing this, their bodies were somewhat concealed but not completely covered.  I wonder what parts they covered up?...  Anyway, like their attempt at literal coverings, they didn’t confess their sin to God but just tried to cover it up by blaming someone else.  What would the world be like today if they had sinned but confessed to God what they did and came clean?  I wonder….

Actually, we’re still doing this today.  We never learn.  We use religion to cover our sin.  We get confirmed and go to church and do what we’re supposed to do but do we really go to God and confess?  Confess all our sins?  Or just ask Him to do things like protect us and our family, give us the job promotion, win the lotto, etc.?  How much of your prayers include you saying that you’re repentant for specific sins?  Be honest with yourself now.  I admit that I don’t do it.  I don't recall my daily sins.  I focus on thanking God for what He has given me and asking for needs of others.  I need to work on that. 

That’s not where the fig tree stops though.  It kept going, and going, and going.  The fig tree in the Bible is symbolic first of the nation of Israel itself.  It often symbolized the health of the nation both spiritually and physically. 

“When I found Israel, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the early fruit on the fig tree.”  (Hosea 9:10)

“Judah and Israel lived in safety, every man under his vine and his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon.” (1 Kings 4:25)

Later still, following the minor prophets we can see warnings to the nation of how God would bring destruction and failure of crops as part of His judgement against them, specifying empty fig trees that were stripped bare and fruitless. (Joel, Habakkuk and Haggai) It’s almost as if the fig tree was something of a barometer of the health of the nation – taken away as punishment and flourishing in times of restoration.  Throughout Scriptures, the fig tree becomes a symbol of prosperity, wellbeing, and security.  Along with the vine, to sit under the plentiful shade of your own fig tree is the epitome of safety, peace, and wellbeing in many Biblical passages.  John 1:47-48 describes the calling of Nathanael who was “sitting under a fig tree” like a “true Israelite”. 

Another significant example is found in Matthew 21:18-19 and Mark 11:12-14.  We set the scene: Jesus had just left the city of Jerusalem after turning over the money-changer tables in the temple and He will be crucified in a few days.  As He leaves the city, He comes across a fig tree with no fruit and curses it so that it immediately withers and dies.  OH, the symbolism here!  The people that had just praised Him as He entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday had no real faithfulness.  The fig tree which covered Adam and Eve to an extent, will once again suffer as an illustration of the failure of man.  Like the master of the parable of the fig tree, Jesus had been looking for the fruits of faith (ANY shred of evidence of faith) from people for the three years He had been ministering to them.  His time is about up. 

This poor tree is also used as a metaphor of the end-times warning system in Isaiah 34:4 and Revelation 6:13.  “and the stars of the sky fell to the earth as the fig tree sheds its winter fruit when shaken by a gale.”

We go full circle, back to the beginning and learn four lessons from the fig leaves.  1. Man must have adequate covering to approach God.  You can’t come on the basis of your good works but just as you are – a sinner.  2. Fig leaves are unacceptable because they are homemade.  God does not take a homemade garment.  You can’t save yourself by anything you do.  3.  God must provide the covering.  Ref. Matthew 22:1-14, the parable of the wedding feast.  The host provided the wedding clothes, but one man refused to wear them.  4.  The covering is only obtained through the death of Christ.  Like the animals were killed to make clothes for Adam and Eve, Christ also sheds His blood to cover our sinful bodies.  Only through Christ can we approach our heavenly Father.

…and figs taste really good when they’re canned.

If someone were to mention the name Cain to you, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?  Three little words I’d guess: Cain killed Abel.  That seems to be the only thing he’s known for.  What’s confused me since childhood is why God approved of Abel’s gift and not Cain’s?  They don’t tell you that in Sunday School so I have to go looking for it.  I realized there are really two parts to Cain’s life.  That with his brother and that of his life afterward.

God established from the beginning that we needed a purpose on this earth.  He instructed Adam to rule the animals and tend the garden and fields.  His sons followed in his footsteps, Abel cared for the animals and Cain tended the gardens and fields.  Even though they were no longer in the Garden of Eden, they must have still spoken with God and had a special place set aside to worship Him.  “In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”  (Genesis 4:3-7)

Normally, we wouldn’t look at God’s reasoning so hard.  After all, there’s no way we could know God’s mind (it’s none of our business anyway) but we are curious to know what was so bad about an offering that was yet another major turning point in human history.  What can we learn from this?  The Bible shares many hints throughout it as to the reasoning, so I think we have all the answer we’re going to get.  “Her merchandise and her wages will be holy to the Lord. It will not be stored or hoarded, but her merchandise will supply abundant food and fine clothing for those who dwell before the Lord.”  (Isaiah 23:18)  Basically, God gives us purpose and opportunity to provide for ourselves.  Our gifts should not be hoarded but given back to God and our neighbors in thankfulness.  Cain and Abel were raised by Adam and Eve and were taught what happens when you go against God’s will.  Like parents today, we should teach our children the right way to live but that’s not always ‘their’ choice to abide by our rules.  Let’s look at each of the brothers:

Cain was wicked and did not follow God’s laws with the respect they deserved.  He was under the influence of Satan like his parents were.  How do we know?  “[W]e should love one another, not as Cain who was of the wicked one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his works were evil and his brother’s righteous.”  (1 John 3:11-12)  We aren’t told why he was wicked, only that he was.  AND, he was evil before the sacrifices.  Huh… His heart must have been unrepentant as well because we see that in his attitude while speaking with God.  If you look at the last verses in Genesis (shown above), God was giving him an “out”.  He was reminding Cain that the evil life is the opposite of the life he was meant for but he had to now work for it because sin was in the world.  This option was obviously rejected because right after God tells him this, he kills Abel.  When God confronts him again, he gives God back-talk, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  He obviously had little regard for his brother or God…or he was a teenager at the time.  Hard to know exactly but does it really make a difference?

Abel is called “righteous” in Matthew 23:35 and Hebrews 11:4.  This means his heart was upright and he led a life that was God-pleasing.  It is our duty to make sure that our hearts are in the right place when giving back to God.  This means humbly giving from the first-fruits (which God deserves) with a cheerful heart and the understanding that our gifts do not save us from rebuke of our sins. 

Cain’s offering was not given in faith but was a result of the works of his hands and acknowledgement of the gifts they had been given.  Abel’s offering was a sacrifice of atonement with a young animal (before it had a chance to grow, reproduce, and give back).  It showed his faith in God to provide for the future and it was a blood sacrifice which was necessary as a sinful human being.  His parents were clothed in the skin of an animal who died as a sacrifice and his offering is in light of this.  He has respect for what had taken place between his parents and God.  Meanwhile, Cain brings something from his own works that came from the cursed earth.  It denies the separation between God and man and implies that our actions can save us.  This is not to say that we shouldn’t care for the earth and produce, well…produce.  Vegetables are great but when giving back to God, they need to be exchanged for something more proper.  God went looking for Adam and Eve after they messed up.  They didn’t go to God and confess what they had done; even after confronted with it.  Likewise, God goes after Cain and confronts him with his wrongdoing and like his parents, he refused to be repentant when confronted. 

Cain is given his punishment to no longer work the earth and prosper but also to be a fugitive and wander the earth.  Instead of confessing and trying to make amends, he whines that it’s “not fair!”.  Yet again, there is nothing new under the sun.  A child is told what to do.  He refuses and then when punished, claims it’s not fair!  Still, God has mercy on him and says that He will protect Cain so no one will kill him.  God’s protecting a murderer.  But here’s the loophole.  He’s a sinner but not a transgressor because there’s been no law given about murder.  His sin so far is that he didn’t bring an acceptable gift to God when he knew better.  His evil manifested itself into killing his brother.  Unless it is curbed, evil will continue to grow and become worse than before. 

Cain leaves God’s presence and lived in the land of Nod.  This is not the same “land of nod” that many visit during a particularly long sermon on Sunday morning; but another area around the Garden of Eden.  He establishes a civilization that also removes itself from God’s presence and becomes city-life.  As we said, evil continues to grow unless stopped.  Cain’s great-great-great grandson, Lamech was the first person to commit polygamy (more than one wife at a time).  This hardly makes up for the fact that his children were the first craftsmen: Jabal (first housing contractor [tent maker] and rancher), Jubal (first musician), and Tubal-cain (brass & iron craftsman). 

So, does it matter if we know the exact reason why Cain’s gift was rejected by God?  No.  What does matter is that God’s Word gives us what we need to know about Him and our duty to Him is to accept not only the instruction but also the correction and rebuke we deserve when needed.  Cain was not ignorant of God’s righteousness, neither are we.  He chose to ignore it and go his own path.  Which way do you go?

I think I’ve discovered the 5 words that you can use at any time, among people of almost any age, to start a long…. debate.  “Do humans have free will?”  If you think about it, you could probably ask 100 people what free will is and get 100 different answers.  I’ve heard the phrase, “We have God-given free will”…but do we, really?  I’m ashamed to say that I’ve said this myself without really thinking about what it meant.  I had no idea how truly controversial this topic was until I started looking in to it.  Let me just clear it up for you now.  The answer is “Yes” and “No”.  Let’s look at both sides and see if that helps any.

YES:

1.  As long as technology does not allow people’s brains to be manipulated so that their decisions are controlled by others, we have free will and are morally responsible for our behavior.

2.  If our choices are determined by what we identify with.  In other words, my taste and my preferences are my decision.

NO:

1.  Science tells us that our subconscious mind is shaped and constrained by our environment, genes, and experiences in our upbringing.  This subconscious makes our decisions for us and then tells our conscious mind what they are.  Our conscious mind (“will”) has no say in the matter because we are at the mercy of our experiences and genetics.

2.  Psychologists say it doesn’t exist because of determinism (i.e., everything in our lives is caused by external factors, therefore, we are not morally responsible for our actions).  The fact that you chose strawberry ice cream instead of chocolate for a snack last night was a result of something that happened possibly hundreds of years ago.

I don’t know about you but I’m even more confused.  Let’s go to the Bible. 

We’ll start with Romans 7:18-20 - For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

I believe that mankind was originally created with free will.  God did not want puppets to control.  Adam and Eve were given the rules of life and it was their choice to abide by them.  They chose to make a poor decision that affected mankind for all eternity.  No big (sarcasm).  It shows that when we make choices in ignorance of the consequences, they are usually the wrong choices.  However, many times we cannot fully understand the consequences until we are living them.  (Tell me you don’t think differently about your parents after you become one yourself.)

So, God does not control us BUT every decision we make is saturated with our sinful nature.  O joy.  “Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.’” (John 8:34)  Because we are sinful, we prefer to satisfy our greedy, self-righteous, sinful natures rather than focusing on what God would have us do. 

Do we really want ‘free will’ with a sinful nature?  If so, we would be condemned from our own choices automatically.  Being sinful was not our decision.  Thankfully, being saved from sin was not up to us either.  We are justified by Christ’s blood.  It cannot be undone and is not our decision to accept or reject.  It goes much deeper than that.  Side Note:  this blog ties in with the one on March 6, 2020 about us being able to reject Christ but not accept Him.

Think on this: if we have free will, why are there addictions?  It’s one thing to enjoy doing something in moderation and another thing to lie to friends and loved ones in order to protect our addiction, knowing full well it could cost our lives.  Why are there regrets?  If your actions are YOUR choice, why do you sometimes feel guilt over them? 

We are of two natures, the sinful one that we made ourselves and the holy, forgiven one that we became when Christ died and rose again for us, paying for those sins.  On the one side, we have the devil, the world, and our flesh controlling us through sin and on the other side is the Word of God fighting for our attention among it all.  Whichever presence we focus on more in our lives, the world or the Word, determines which nature is more dominant.  While we are on earth now, sin is the hand that controls us as the picture shows.  By God’s grace, we are also redeemed by Christ and sanctified by the Spirit so it is God that is able to work His will in our lives regardless of how we are controlled.  God doesn’t give up, no matter how hard we fight against Him.  He can direct our lives for His purpose no matter what our “will” is.  We’re trying, God!!  Thy will be done.

Still in Luke 15, this parable of the Prodigal Son has the father and both sons intertwined.  To straighten it out a bit, I’ve got a section for each person.  This will just give you different ways to compare it to what you remember and maybe see it in a different light.

The Father

The heavenly Father is represented by the earthly father in this parable.  As a true father does, he shows grace and mercy to both sons; the younger son by going above and beyond the welcome the son expected (The father had forgiven him before he even made it all the way home.) and the older by personally going out to find him and not sending a servant to do it.  Despite their actions, he loves them both equally.  He embraced both sons.  God calls us to recognize that His mercy is for all people.  It’s ironic that the father called the younger son “lost” but only went looking for the older one.  He waited for the younger without physically searching for him but instead running out to meet him and treating him like he never left.

Jesus pictures the grace of God as ever ready to pardon the repentant sinner.  As if he were constantly watching the road, the father sees the son while he is yet in the distance.  The first glance fills his father’s heart with compassion.  This compassion alone is the sinner’s hope.  The entire action of the father displays the fact that the son is already pardoned before he utters a single word of confession.  The father interrupts his son’s words before he can complete them.  The son is spared his humiliating petition.  God doesn’t wait just for the lost ones and those who squandered His gifts.  He waits patiently for us to also rejoice that all who repent from sin will join one day at the heavenly banquet. 

The Younger Son

Jesus built His parable on an ancient custom.  By Jewish law, the oldest son received two-thirds of the inheritance, the rest was divided among the other children (Deuteronomy 21:17).  The parable permits only the younger son to ask for his share of the estate because the older son was expected to keep the home place and carry on.  The first wrongdoing is that in asking his father for his part now, he was basically saying he wanted his father dead.  Children did not have a right to ask for inheritance until after the parent’s death.  It is likely that the wealth of the father was part of the economy for the whole village.  If that was the case, everyone suffered when he took off with his wealth.  Prodigal means reckless and wasteful.  His character here is designed to represent that of sinners, all of us, in our natural state. 

He begins with, “Father, give me…”.  This is a demand and shows great stupidity for two reasons: 1.  It shows that we regard God’s gifts to us as debts that are owed to us and payable upon demand.  2.  It is a waste to only look at the things that are seen on earth now which satisfies our present gratification without a care for our future happiness.  He had pride and thought much of himself.  If only he had a lot of money, he could manage it better than his father did and be more important than everyone else.  Our first parents, Adam and Eve also ruined themselves with a foolish ambition to be independent and not beholden even to God.  I guess it’s appropriate to say here that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.  (That’s a joke.)

After the inward separation comes the outward.  The sinner leaves his Father’s house, represented now by the church, the communion of saints.  The “far country” is the world with its promise of pleasure and glitter.  He squanders all of God’s gifts, because there are always people ready to help you be stupid, and then the famine sets in.  He is now in want not only because he’s broke but because he had nothing to fall back on.  When men reach this stage, the devil often reaps his harvest and they commit suicide.  With no money, pleasure, or friends, they think there is nothing left to live for.  Jesus might have had the son return home at this point but He goes a step farther.  He introduces one of the “citizens” there – men who were completely adjusted to life apart from God.  The son is given the assignment to feed the pigs.  Sin makes man a companion of swine in more ways than one.  To herd and pasture swine is not merely degrading; to the Jew it represented moral defilement and shame.  Now not only feeding the swine but feeding himself the swine’s food, he has sunk to the level of the beasts. 

The food is little, sickle-like pods of the carob tree, the goat’s-horn tree, which is still common in Palestine and around the Mediterranean.  The gelatinous substance in the pods has a sweetish taste.  Used as feed for hogs, these pods also contain small, shiny seed kernels.  The pods were eaten by the poor but not as regular food.  Here, they symbolize the empty, unsatisfying food that is offered to the starving souls of men by the world. 

“But when he came to himself” implies that he was converted in that instant and was previously not in his right mind.  Conversion means to become rational, right-minded, properly balanced again.  It is a sound, rational act to turn from sin and its curse and doom, to God’s pardon and salvation.  He realizes that he is starving while his father’s men have plenty of food to eat.  God enlightens the sinner – he begins to see things as they actually are.  The Law and Gospel thus begin to work in the sinner’s heart.  Jesus separates the elements in the sinner’s heart.  “Father, I did sin” – confession and admission of guilt.  “Against heaven” – includes God and all that is holy.  “And in thy sight” – implies the father saw his son’s sins and must judge him guilty.  ‘No longer worthy” – this humility gives up every claim of its own righteousness and past rights of sonship.  The sinner goes back to the Father, still calls him “Father”, dares to ask him at least to take him back to the lowest place in his house.  That is trust or faith which is inspired by what he knows of his Father (knowledge derived from the Gospel).

We have a God-shaped void in our hearts and we try to fill it with money, our job, hobbies, etc. when we really belong at home.  Adam and Eve left the garden and we’ve been trying to get back ever since.  Upon his arrival, his father greets him with a robe (The Talar is a long robe worn by nobles on state occasions.  It also represents the robes we have waiting for us in heaven (Revelation 7:13).), a ring (means honor because letters were sealed with wax and a signet ring pressed in it), sandals (meant belonging to a family, only slaves were barefoot), and a banquet.  The fatted calf and the feast were absolute opposite of the son sitting in rags among swine, longing for their food.  The father claimed his son was dead and came back to life just like God rejoices over the conversion of the sinner who was dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). 

The Older Son

The older son returns from the field and finds out his brother has returned.  He refuses to join the celebration because of his own self-righteousness, so his father goes after him.  In his little speech to his father, he sounds just like the Pharisees talking to Jesus…“We’re your favorites.  We are the chosen people.  We are Abraham’s descendants.  They are nobody.  They do everything wrong and you’re showing them favoritism.  We’ve been with you this whole time and never got any special treatment but now we want the recognition we deserve and we want it in front of them and we want more than what they received because we’re better and more loyal and more dedicated and it was promised to us first…”  They both sound like whiny, spoiled children that don’t want to share so they’re throwing a temper tantrum.  

They never spoke much about the older son in the Sunday School lessons but he was just as rotten as his brother.  He talks back, showing no respect.  He doesn’t reprimand his brother earlier for speaking like he did to their father.  If you read verse 30, he knew what his brother was doing the whole time but lets his father suffer by not knowing where he was.  He lets all his selfishness boil to the surface.  Not once does he say “father” or “my brother”, it’s just “you” and “son of yours”.  He throws it in his father’s face that he slaved for years and never messed up and was never appreciated.  He turns from boasting about himself to blaming his father. 

He thinks nothing of the time that he’s had to spend with his father.  His focus was solely on what his brother did wrong and the fact that he wasn’t being punished for it.  If his father hadn’t killed the fattened calf for his ‘good-for-nothing’ brother, he may have never complained about not having a party with his friends.  Once jealousy starts flowing, the thoughts of all your blessings just don’t matter.  Even today we don’t recognize the blessings we have right in front of us until they are taken away.  I don’t know if I could have kept that cool, but the father responds to the ranting by calling him “Son”.  There is no anger, only tenderness. 

Comparison

Neither son really wanted to spend time with their father because they were focused on themselves.  The younger son realized the value of time spent with him over the value of possessions but only after he lost everything.  The older son never really lost anything and still didn’t appreciate the time he had with his father.   Both turned their back on their father’s love.  Sons = us; father = God.  See any connection?

The younger son had a guilty conscience and returned to his father’s loving arms.  The older son felt no guilt because he didn’t understand it.  If you never have to deal with a guilty conscience, you can’t really understand what it means to be forgiven.

Both sons are lost because the older represents those who are outwardly in the church but inwardly have no faith.  The younger represents the sinners that turn and run from God into the sinful world.

If you think about it, the younger son partied before and still gets the party when he gets home.  God promises a future party of eternity to all believers but doesn’t promise us a party now, so it’s easier to associate with the older brother.  “I’ve gone to church all my life, done what I was raised to do, helped, and served.  Why should someone who’s done nothing but sleep in on Sundays and live for themselves be allowed the same eternity?”  Like both brothers, we squander God’s love and treat it as if it was our due and possession to give out.  The older brother wasted God’s mercy by not appreciating the fact that his spoiled little brat of a brother was loved just as much as he was.  What are you doing?

If you went to Confirmation Class as a young adult, you know what Sermon Notes are.  For those that never had the pleasure, Sermon Notes are a weekly assignment in which you attend church on Sunday and on Monday, turn in notes that you took regarding the message of the sermon, the text, the Law/Gospel, etc.  Somewhere around 2004, the Holy Spirit put in my heart that I need to begin taking notes again, in sermons, Bible Studies, college classes...etc.  I have about a 2-minute memory, so I write down everything for accuracy.  That’s where most of my blogs come from.  Right now, I have over 520 pages of notes from the Old and New Testaments.  

I would like to take a minute and thank the ladies of the White Oak Zone, LWML Tx. District, for allowing me to lead a Bible Study with them last weekend.  In my talk, I spoke about the importance of sermons and how fascinating it is to hear a sermon over the same text you’ve heard before but expressed in a completely different light.  I’ve heard the parable of the Prodigal Son told in different ways from different points of view and it never ceases to amaze me.  I’ve been wanting to write on it for awhile and now seems like a good time.  BUT.  It’s one of three parables that go together.  In order to do it justice, we have to look at them all which means the entire chapter of Luke 15.

Quick background.  A large crowd is following Jesus and as always, the pharisees and scribes are trying to catch Jesus doing something wrong.  They were angry that ‘heathens’ were called to repent and encouraged to hope for pardon.  After all, only Jews were the chosen people.  They couldn’t condemn Him for preaching because that would shame them.  Instead, they reproached him for eating with them. In reply, they get three parables. 

Although the last one gets more attention, they really should be regarded together.  Combined, they are an image of how God looks at each of His children with the same amount of love but reaches out to them personally in a way that they most need.  Each is lost and celebrated when it is found, but each situation emphasizes a different viewpoint regarding the one lost and the one searching.  For one thing, there is a steady increase in patience that is shown.  In the first, the shepherd vigorously (quickly) seeks the lamb because it is only getting further away and in more danger by the minute.  The woman has somewhat more patience because she knows the coin is not going anywhere.  Still, she won’t stop until she finds it.  Finally, the father looks down the road daily to wait for his son.  Again, doesn’t stop looking, but has the most patience because he doesn’t run off willy-nilly, looking for him.

The three stories emphasize the value and importance of "one".  In each story, the ratio of the lost is proportionate to its value.  1:100 lambs, 1:10 coins, 1:2 brothers.  Coins are worth more than lambs and brothers are worth more then both.  

Lost Lamb

The lamb that is lost is in definite danger.  If the shepherd doesn’t hurry, the lamb will only go farther from home.  The wolves will come.  Night, hunger and thirst surround this lamb.  The lamb itself is unaware of the danger and is going faster away from the shepherd.  He’s not making a circle and won’t be coming home with his tail wagging behind him.  He’s booking it out of here as fast as he can.  The longer you wait, the further he’s getting.  Why?  Well, because he’s a lamb which means he’s stupid.  When the shepherd finds it, he breaks its leg so it can’t walk.  He must carry the lamb everywhere now until the leg heals.  In doing so, the lamb will not remember how his leg broke, only that the shepherd is carrying it to food and water when needed, building trust with love and compassion to encourage it to not run away again.  How many times have you heard the phrase, “hitting rock bottom”?  You’ve gone as low as you can; nothing could be worse.  That’s the lamb when Jesus finds it.  That’s us when we run so far from Him, we’ve forgotten His love and can’t find our way back.  He comes and finds us.  Sometimes the rock bottom can be our ‘broken leg’ that will remind us of how much He cares for us and gives us something to return to.  Our empty churches remind us of the great number of missing lambs.  Each one is important.  Note how Jesus says, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.”  My sheep, not my stray.  He calls us by name, we are His.

Lost Coin

A woman has ten silver coins.  Why a woman?  Maybe because she will grieve for her loss more passionately and rejoice more than a man would, just a guess.  In the last parable, there was one in a hundred that was lost, now it is one in ten.  It is made of silver which means it has intrinsic worth and value.  It was lost in the dirt, a soul plunged into the world and overwhelmed.  A bit melodramatic maybe, but you get the image.  While the lamb is responsible for getting lost, the coin is lost by carelessness.  She takes a great deal of trouble to look for it, the expense in lighting a candle even though it’s not night, looking behind doors and under furniture and sweeping diligently.  These represent the various means that God uses to bring lost souls back to Himself.  He lights the candle of the Gospel; not to show Him how to find us, but to show us how to find Him.  Sweeps the house by convictions of the Word and seeks diligently, with His whole heart.  Again, just as much rejoicing.  

To put it in more modern terms, sometimes it's the churches fault when someone is "lost".  This is why the church must be diligent in seeking out the lost and returning them to the fold.  In this story, the woman is the church, the light is the Gospel and the broom is the Law.  We can't use one or the other.  Both must be used to bring people back.

Parables can have so many different meanings but they will all lead us back to God.  The lost items could be seen as faith.  The sheep wandered away out of curiosity, while the coin is someone who is so passive about their faith, they can be pushed into following the wrong person and so paralyzed by it, they believe they have to remain where they are and finally, the son is the one that deliberately, willfully walks away.  The Triune God works in all aspects of our lives but we can easily see Jesus as the Shepherd, the woman as the Holy Spirit that works through the church to save and the Father is the father with His abundant love.  

Next week….Lost Sons (yep, plural)

The other mountain we rarely hear about is Mount Gerizim even though it had three really important things happen on it. 

We start back in Exodus 19:11-13, 20:19.  The people of Israel have just been released from slavery and God has been caring for them in the wilderness where they repeatedly don’t follow His instructions and guidance.  Imagine that.  They arrive at Mount Sinai where the people and animals are warned repeatedly to not touch the mountain.  This, they actually listen to and only speak to ask that God not communicate with them directly or they’ll die.  Moses and Aaron talk to God and the result is the 10 Commandments.  This is one generation.  The next generation of Israelites comes after 40 years and is about to cross over into the Promised Land.  Before they do, however, God makes a separate covenant with them.  Each generation’s covenant is designed to suit their particular needs. 

Now we’re at the covenant at Mount Gerizim found in Deuteronomy 11:26-29 and Joshua 8:33-35.  Before they enter, God wants them to clearly understand the blessings and curses they would incur for obeying and disobeying His law.  The formal reading of the law in the people’s presence and with their participation represented a renewal of the covenant.  But first, a little geography.  (I don’t like it either but it helps.)  Mount Gerizim has a twin, Mount Ebal, to the north which might explain its name, meaning “mountain cut in two”.  Mount Gerizim was considered the ‘blessed’ and Mount Ebal, the ‘cursed’, because it was north and the Northern Kings of Israel were always more evil.  Between the two mountains lies the Valley of Shechem.  According to tradition, Mount Gerizim was lush and fertile while Mount Ebal was rocky and barren.  This clearly portrayed our choices; follow God and lead a rich, fruitful life or embrace evil which leads to an empty and barren life.

The tribes of Israel are divided up by God, six on each mountain with the priests with the Ark and the Levites in the valley between them.  The covenant made with the previous generation had them not touching the mountain but now they stood boldly on each mountain.  When the priests face Mt. Gerizim and recite a blessing, they are facing the fruitful mountain and also Jerusalem which lies to the south of Mt. Gerizim.  When they recite a curse, they face the barren mountain of Ebal and turn their back on Jerusalem.  (Remember that the ‘curse’ was not evil, but a consequence of not following God’s law.)  After each pronouncement, everyone would respond, “Amen.”  This showed that they heard, understood, and agreed because Amen means, “Yes, yes, it shall be so.”  Gone is the generation that escaped Egypt with God’s intervention and lived by His protection and sustenance.  Enter the new generation that will conquer the land, utilizing military ingenuity, and farm it.  On Mount Sinai, the focus was on the laws themselves.  Here, it shifts to the consequences for observing or violating those laws. 

The second event to happen on Mt. Gerizim was Jotham and the parable of the trees as found in Judges 9:7-15.  I have to say in all my years, I’ve never come across this parable before but it’s the first one recorded in Scripture and like the ones of Jesus, it has much to teach us.  After Gideon died, one of his sons, Abimelech (uh-BIM-uh-leck), talked the leaders of Shechem into making him king.  His first order of business was to kill all his brothers.  The only one that escaped death was Jotham, the youngest, because he hid.  Jotham went to the top of Mount Gerizim and told this parable to the people of Shechem.  The trees wanted someone to rule over them so in turn they asked the fig tree, the olive tree, and the grapevine.  All refused.  The bramble agreed if they took shade from him but if not, they would be destroyed by fire.  OK Lutherans, say it with me, “What does this mean?”   

Rather than be ruled by God, people wanted to shelter themselves under the influence and responsibility of leaders of their own choosing.  The ones they chose, fig, olive, and vine, refused because it was contrary to their purpose in life which was to be individual and fruit-bearing.  The trees (people) wanted to put the responsibility on one person instead of working together for the common good and being led by God.  This way, if something went wrong, they weren’t responsible.  For the good of everyone, we should all be willing to suffer some personal inconvenience.  Each of the fruit-bearing trees would have to sacrifice their purpose in life to take over, ruling the forest.  For this reason, the world would be better off having them do what they were made to do rather than rule.  God is not glorified by our fame or rank but by our fruitfulness (John 15:8).  Because the bramble thorns had the lowest nature, it strove even harder at greatness.  We need to be wary of someone who eagerly seeks a post because they may be the least fit for the position. 

The final event is described in John 4:3-24.  Jesus went from Judea to Galilee through Samaria.  Now, Jews didn’t go that way because they didn’t associate with Samaritans; but that’s another story.  It says, “And he had to pass through Samaria.”  There were other ways He could have gone but Jesus had to go this way to meet the woman at the well.  During His conversation with her, He mentions her past husbands and the man she’s living with now.  To change the topic, she asks Him why Jews say Jerusalem is the only place to worship when they have worshiped on Mt. Gerizim for generations.  This leads to Jesus teaching her, and us, four lessons about worship.  It’s not about a place, it’s about a person.  Samaritans didn’t fully understand who they worshiped but Jews did.  If you want to have a Spirit-filled worship with God, it’s more about how much you know about God that will affect how you worship Him.  It’s also not about a specific day.  Worship should be a way of life.  You can’t be spiritually in shape if you only work out on Sunday.  Next, worship must be rooted in truth.  We cannot worship God if we base it on something that sounds good but is not based in the Word.  Also, worship should be God-centered.  Our music and worship should be focused on who God is and not “man-centered”.  Music writers focused on God are trying to teach you about God.  Songs with lyrics like “Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, I want to see You” are focusing on us, not God.  Finally, worship must be Spirit-led.  God is Spirit so our worship must be Spirit-led.  If we go to church and go through the motions and sing the songs we’re supposed to, we’re not fully engaged in what’s happening.  We need to feel it in our heart to be God-pleasing.  Amen.

I wish I was more like a Minion.  Yes, those little round and pill-shaped, yellow creatures.  Watching Minions in a movie is pure magic, so let’s break it down. 

Looks: They all look very similar.  To tell them apart, some are more round than others, some have one eye instead of two, some have more or less hair and fixed in different ways.  They are engineers and workers so they are always in denim coveralls with boots and gloves.  They wear goggles for several different reasons.  (Personally, I think people have spent way too much time thinking about this but…) The common thought is that they wear goggles because A. their eyes would float around their body if they didn’t; B. they have no eyelids so their eyes need to be protected; and C. they all have poor eyesight and need corrective lenses. 

Language: Although there are many species and things in movies that speak English (toys, fish, cars, monsters, dogs, rats, feelings, etc.), Minions have always had their own language and no subtitles.  I feel comfortable with this even though I have no idea what they are saying and their actions are speaking for them.  Forget about German, Italian, and Spanish.  I’m talking about professions that have their own language.  Have you ever spoken to a musician, computer analyst, post office worker, grocery store manager, scientist, etc. and didn’t have a clue what they were saying?  It happens all the time but doesn’t completely block communication. 

Personality: Here’s where it gets interesting.  Minions are the best and worst things about children and childhood, painted in the brightest colors.  We can relate to them because even though they seem simplistic, they can be a mass of contradictions.  They are pure joy, prone to distraction, extremely smart, very devoted, and don’t handle boredom well.  They are selfish but easily work together for a common goal.  They are driven to serve someone even though they are easily distracted and sometimes inept.  Sometimes they console someone who is sad and other times, they laugh at that person’s misfortune.  They are not bothered by anything that happens to them physically.  They just roll with the fact that they are turned into evil, purple things or they are floating off into space forever while eating a banana.  Oh, that I could have that temperament.

How closely can we relate to them?  Because they all have the same job, they speak the same language and wear the same clothes.  We vary in that respect because God made male and female.  No matter how we treat our bodies or what we call ourselves, the gender we are at birth holds more than just our looks.  God made us unique in that the two sexes compliment each other in a way that surgery can’t change.  There are no female Minions.  When asked about it, Minions creator and director, Pierre Coffin, said simply, “I never made any.  Seeing how dumb and stupid they often are, I couldn’t imagine Minions being girls.”  Wow.                                          

But can’t you see how closely this mirrors being a Christian?  Maybe I should say, how closely it SHOULD mirror being a Christian?  We are children of God.  He gives us a purpose in life and wants us to find joy in it along the way.  “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psalm 16:11).  “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” (Romans 15:13).  Likewise, we should be driven to serve Him even though we are easily distracted and sometimes inept.  “Let your heart therefore be wholly devoted to the Lord our God, to walk in His statues and to keep His commandments, as at this day.” (1 Kings 8:61)  “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Colossians 3:17).  We should show the same fierce loyalty and dedication to our Creator’s visions as they do.  No matter how we mess up, He still loves us and calls us each by name.  “But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” (Isaiah 43:1).  “…He calls his own sheep by name..” (John 10:3).  Are you catching this?  Old Testament, New Testament, Old Testament, New Testament.  God keeps repeating Himself trying to get it through our thick skulls.  He loves us beyond our understanding and wants to help us when we have problems.  Why don’t we let Him?  Why don’t we make a bigger effort to share with others what He does for all of us in our lives?  Where is our devotion and loyalty?  Review the steps…

Step one is to separate yourself from those who are not loyal to God.  Even Moses had to deal with this back in Exodus 32:25-29 at the scene of the golden calf.  Moses didn’t play around.  God backs it up in Matthew 12:30, “He that is not with me is against me…”  and Matthew 6:24, “No man can serve two masters…”.  Step two is a declaration of loyalty.  Do you stand before others and confess your faith?  My husband and I did that one Christmas in the mall when we were approached by a group of people taking of survey of what Christmas was really about.  We let them know the truth.  Step three is your association with your loyalty.  When you stand for God, being with others that share your faith will strengthen you and be healthy for you spiritually. 

So, children, are you with God or not? 

I’d like to keep going with my science theme for one more post.  Although my knowledge of science is limited, I taught a few classes on it years ago and they fascinated me.  Last time was the “Big Bang” so this time, it’s life on other planets as well as ours.  Let me stress first of all; my opinions are my own and you are entitled to yours. 

1.  Dinosaurs:  “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep…” (Genesis 1:1-2a)  I have heard theories that between these two verses, God created the dinosaurs and they roamed the earth for millions of years.  Their reason being that God makes everything perfect, so an earth without form and void must describe the destruction made when dinosaurs went extinct.  Since “One day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8) I’m not saying this is not possible.  I toured an archeological dig this past weekend and there were plaques recording that such-and-such animal roamed the earth 23.8 million years ago.  Really!?!?  Point 8???  Why would God create an earth with only animals knowing He wanted children (humans).  It’s more likely that when He created the earth, He put the bones in it for us to find and speculate…gave us something to do, so to speak, along with exploring the oceans and the universe.  But that’s just my opinion.

2.  Sun:  So, the study I taught explained the “anthropic principle” - certain unique conditions exist that make Earth sustainable, but these conditions fail to exist anywhere else.  For example, hydrogen is necessary for the sun to sustain life.  If the sun consumed hydrogen too quickly, the sun would burn out.  Any slower, or weaker, and the sun would not burn at all.  It is exactly right to support a slow, continued burn rate to sustain life on Earth.  The same thing can be said for the speed that the Earth spins at, the distance from the sun, etc.  So many conditions had to be EXACTLY right for us to have life.  Did that just spontaneously happen?  I think not.

3.  Other planets & moons:  Jupiter and Saturn are the cosmic vacuum sweepers.  Without Jupiter, Earth would be struck by comets and asteroids 100 to 10,000 times more frequently and over time, human life would end.  Closer to home, our moon keeps us from tilting too close to the sun or too close to Jupiter.  One result would be us roasting, the other, a permanent ice age.  Even Stephen Hawking admits that the universe design is delicate.  If the expansion of the universe had been one in a hundred thousand million times smaller, it would have collapsed in on itself.  In addition, had it expanded one part in a million more than it did, it would have been too quickly for planets and stars to form.  It seems that God knew exactly what He was doing at creation.  How people don’t get that is beyond me.

4.  Life on other planets:  In the year 1600, a monk was burned at the stake for suggesting there was life on other planets.  400 years later, many agree with him, including Carl Sagan, M. Night Shyamalan, Bill Gates, etc.  In 1794, Thomas Paine claimed that beings on other worlds would render Christianity unbelievable.  Roland Puccetti agreed and said that approximately 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 (1018) sites of possible extraterrestrial life exist in the galaxy so Christ could not have redeemed all existing creatures, earthly and extra-earthly.  But do that many sites exist?  Astronomer Hugh Ross took into account 40 conditions that were necessary to sustain life.  He said the probability of all these occurring on a single planet was one in 1,000,000,000,000 (1012).  Frank Drake, the father of SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) developed a mathematical formula, also known as “The Drake Equation” that measures the potential number of intelligent alien civilizations: 

N = R* x Fp x Ne x Fl x Fi x Fc x L. 

Let me just break that down for you: 

N (number of galactic civilizations releasing signals into space) is calculated by taking

R* (the average annual rate of star formation in the Milky Way galaxy) times

Fp (the fraction of those stars that formed a planet) times

Ne (the average number of those planets that lie in a habitable zone) times

Fl (the fraction of those planets that actually develop life at some point) times

Fi (the fraction of those life-bearing planets that develop intelligent life) times

Fc (the fraction of those planets that have civilizations that are capable of technology that can send signals into space) times

L (the length of time it takes to do all this). 

Basically what this whole paragraph is based on is assumption after assumption which will never equal FACT. 

What does the Bible say about it?  Nothing.  It doesn’t substantiate or deny the possibility of life on other planets.  Why?  Because it’s not important to our eternity.  Are there unidentified flying objects?  Certainly.  Are they spaceships containing little green men with huge heads and three fingers on each hand, looking for someone to kidnap?  Doubtful.  Regardless, it doesn’t matter.  The Bible has many things in it we cannot understand because of our limited intelligence.  Likewise, there are many things on Earth we cannot understand.  None of that is important to our salvation.  After Jesus’ resurrection, He walked with two of His followers to Emmaus.  He explained how all of the Scriptures testified to His appearance on Earth and His death and resurrection (Luke 24:25-27, 44-46).  That is what is important.  This should be our focus when studying the Bible and it should guide our interpretation.  God put Job in his place by asking where He was when the world was created.  We likewise should remember our place.  We can’t read what we want to in the Bible and move things around to fit our ideas. 

Look at Colossians 1:15-20.  “15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.” 

In these six verses, Paul asserts the supremacy of Christ’s person and work.  Jesus is called the firstborn, not because He was born after God.  That wouldn’t make Him part of the Trinity.  Verse 16 starts with “For” because Paul’s telling us why Jesus is the “firstborn”.  It’s a title because He created all things and holds all things together.  He is the Reconciler of all creation – visible and invisible, earthly and extraterrestrial.  Should extraterrestrial life be discovered, Christian theology would stand firm.

It certainly gives us something to think about but it also should not be our focus or our life’s pursuit.  As I stated earlier, Jesus should be our only true focus because His work and resurrection is most important for our eternity.  If you’d like to read more on this, because I’m giving you the Cliff Notes version, get a copy of “Off the Edge: Faith on the Edge Series” from Concordia Publishing House.

I was going to write about something else today but my week has been so crazy, I’ve changed directions.  This is yet another one of my weeks where I can do nothing right.  I don’t have days like that, I have weeks.  Yea me…  When work gets crazy, I think of it like a tree.  I start out on one project, the trunk, that sometimes leads to something else I have to do first, branch, which reminds me of something else important, smaller branch, but first I’ve got to, twig, etc.  You know how it goes sometimes.  It takes a lot of work, focus, and concentration to work your way back along the path, finishing things as you go, to get back to that tree trunk; provided you can stay on the same path.  So in my brain all week is ‘making mistakes’ and ‘tree’.  That got me to thinking how much I have in common with the first mother, Eve. 

So she and Adam are hanging out, enjoying the good life, when she goes by the tree of good and evil.  We don’t know if Adam told her to avoid it or not.  We’ll never know.  Let’s say he did; but she’s curious.  God gave us free will and that includes curiosity.  So she’s standing there, looking at it and this snake starts talking to her.  Now, I’m not a quick thinker either so she’s probably thinking, “What in the world?!!”  Satan, performing as ‘the snake’, starts going over the pros and cons with her of having a snack.  Let’s stop right there.  If you have to think and make a list of pros and cons….you probably shouldn’t do it.  He starts her thinking about it.  Now, thinking can be a dangerous pastime.  I tried it once, didn’t much care for it.  He starts applying logic to his argument.  We know we can logic anything into something else if we want to, the devil taught us that.  Then he taunts her with, “Oh, you’re not good enough to eat from this tree.”  And she’s like, “Nope, can’t do it, forbidden.”  So far, so good.  He then tells her a lie she wants to hear.  “You won’t die but you’ll be like God.”  See, just the thought of ruining themselves would not have been enough if he hadn’t suggested a probability of bettering themselves to go with it.  This is where we all learned, ‘If it seems to good to be true, it probably is.’  Apparently, living in paradise, in perfection with God was not enough for her or Adam.  There must have been some discontent if they wanted to make things seemingly better.  After all, Satan was one of God’s angels with all the perks and benefits that come with it and he ruined himself by wanting to be God.  This ruined him so why not ruin God’s other creations with it too?  The devil still does his trick with us today.  He gives us misleading thoughts about God and stresses the benefits we’ll get by sinning.  Even the fact of wanting more than we need will partly turn us from God when we don’t get it. 

She’s looking at this fruit and thinking it looks just as good as all the other trees.  It doesn’t look like death or danger.  HELLO!?!?!?  You’re in paradise, how would you know what danger looks like??  Just because there’s no foul smell or skull and crossbones hovering above it doesn’t mean it’s not a bad idea.  We are often betrayed by having a desire to have our senses gratified.  Or, it was desired because it was forbidden.  Tell a child to not do something and see how fast they’ll do just that.  Let me lay a little Latin on you here… Nitimur in vetitum (NEE-tee-muhr in VAT-tee-numb) – We desire what is prohibited.  The important part to remember is that Satan can tempt but he cannot force.  The devil did not make you do it.  She took the fruit of her own free will and there was no going back.  She then took over for the devil and probably gave the same argument to Adam to get him to eat. 

So, she’s not a quick thinker, she’s easily deceived and guided by her own wishes, she probably would have been an impulse buyer too.  We have so much in common.  True the sin came from Adam but she was not innocent by any means so she shared in the punishment.  She was given pain in childbirth.  As one who also has that in common with her, I think she got the better end of the deal.  I’ve been watching a lot of Secrets of the Zoo lately.  These are shows about the ‘behind-the-scenes’ of some of the larger zoos in the country.  In the episodes, we see births and deaths.  I’ve seen chimps, elephants, giraffes, rhinos, and wild dogs give birth.  You never hear a peep out of them.  It’s like a few pushes and the baby comes right out, no muss, no fuss, no changed expression on their face.  We, on the other hand, scream our bloody heads off (gives new meaning to "I am woman, hear me roar") and nearly crush our husband’s hands.  Guys, give a forearm, not a hand.  (And diamonds for "Push Presents" are not necessary....don't even get me started.)  Again, we have the better end of the deal because we don’t have to lick the baby clean and possibly have to eat the placenta.  Gross, I know but it’s the nature of the animal world; I've seen it.  And it REALLY makes you thankful you’re a human.

So, I’m very hard on myself when I make mistakes even though you’d think I’d be used to it by now.  I have to remember that mistakes mean learning; I’m not alone; don’t jump into something that looks good at first; and, there is always forgiveness when asked for in faith.  Happy ending!!

The interesting thing about the Bible is that it never changes.  The words are always exactly the same because they are God’s Words.  The uniqueness comes in the way we see them at work in our lives.  That’s why pastors are never at a loss for sermons.  There is always another way to look at a passage or paragraph and apply it to our lives, right now.  The verse that is in the foremost of my mind right now is, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5)  It’s one of the more common Bible passages but I’m seeing it lately in a different light.

I start with the end…lean not on your own understanding.  This can easily not only apply to the Bible but to our daily lives.  You’ve heard it before, “The only person you can trust is yourself”, “Focus on what you can control and don’t worry about what you can’t”, “We cannot control what others do to us but we can control the way we respond”, etc.  But can you really trust your own understanding?  Our emotions have a great deal to do with our “understanding” from minute to minute but there is no real control for emotions.  Society puts a lot of pressure on people to ‘be their own person’ and rely solely on controlling themselves as they see fit.  Unfortunately, that may not always be the best thing for you.  God did not put us on this earth to be solitary people.  We were made to interact, help those in need, and ask for help ourselves when needed.  When my children were young, we had a family doctor that lived by the belief that you must care for yourself for at least two weeks before going to see him.  Not for broken bones, of course, but things like a pulled muscle, or a cold.  Give yourself a little TLC instead of going straight to the heavy drugs.  Ever heard this before, “I don’t need to go to the doctor, I know what he’ll say”?  For most of the population, doctors say we need to lose weight.  We understand that.  We know what will work for our body to get healthier.  Doesn’t mean we’re going to do it, but we know.  Now here’s a crazy thought, instead of trying crazy solutions, go straight to the source.  When the doctor says, “lose weight”, reply back “help me”.  When you feel that the world is too dangerous to live in and all hope is lost, find someone you trust to help you see the positive side of life.  Most importantly, remember that God is the first source, not a last resort.

Speaking of the first… Trust in the Lord with all your heart.  What does this mean?  One definition of trust is the belief that someone or something can be relied on to do what they say they will.  It’s the cornerstone of any relationship and involves a degree of vulnerability.  It’s solid as a rock.  It’s also as fragile as a spider’s web.  It can be easily broken with just a word and once this happens, it will take a long time to rebuild and will never be the same again.  Fortunately, God can be relied on because

1.  He knows what will happen next and we don’t.  He also knows what’s best for us because we sure don’t.  The situation you’re in may be beyond your understanding but it’s not beyond God’s.  He knows all the hows, whens, and whys. 

2.  Jesus never changes.  He is the same yesterday and today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)  His power and His promises don’t change either.  He’s the same Savior that transformed lives and performed miracles in the Bible.

I like to think of it like this…I remember LOTS of really stupid mistakes I’ve made and decisions I’ve flubbed over my years.  Do I really want to put myself and my future in MY hands???  I’m smart enough to say NO.

Are you spiritual?  Why?  How do you know?  The term ‘spiritual’ can mean many different things to many different people.  The words ‘spiritual’ and ‘religious’ are often intertwined and thought of as the same thing but they are not.  Being a Christian myself, I’m going to stick with Christianity for this blog and not go into other beliefs and faiths.  A person’s faith could be said to be their religion.  When we speak of the Christian Church on earth, we refer to the entire (group) body of believers in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, regardless of their denomination, and not just those that attend services once a week in a large building with a cross on the top.  Spirituality then, is the outworking in real life of a person’s religious faith.  It’s what a person does with what they believe.  No matter what situation we find ourselves in, our core, spiritual beliefs will govern our behavior. 

There are those however that are under the belief that spirituality is a personal thing only. 

Some believe what is called moralism.  This is an attempt at a relationship with God through your conduct.  “I have to attempt to please God and make up for my failings through good behavior.”  God is not Santa Claus.  Yes, He is always watching but we cannot pay for our sins and failings with our actions, prayers, etc.  With this line of thinking, we attempt to establish our relationship with God based upon our own perfection.  Our deeds are our route to God.  WRONG!

Some believe in speculation.  This is a relationship with God through knowledge.  “If I can recite the appropriate passages and say enough of the right prayers, I have a relationship with God.”  By this route, we try to establish a relationship based on the acquisition of a secret, special, or hidden knowledge.  Our mind, and its memory, is our route to God.  WRONG!

Finally, others believe in mysticism.  This is the attempt at communication with God by becoming one with God.  This method could be through silent meditation or a constant repetition of a mantra.  We can try to form a union or oneness with God through “spiritual” practices like meditation, fasting, or the use of mind-altering drugs.  Another route would be things like standing on a mountain and viewing the wonders of creation.  This gives a peace and makes one feel as if they are one with God.  WRONG!

Instead of moralism, speculation, or mysticism, Biblical spirituality begins with recognizing our human sinfulness.  We are born sinful and nothing we can do, say, or feel, will help us link up a relationship with God.  The Bible says we are born dead in sin.  A dead person cannot do anything.  We need God to come to us and bring us to life with His grace, mercy, and forgiveness that brings true peace that surpasses all understanding.  God, through His great love, has established a relationship with us through His Son, Jesus Christ, who took our sins upon Himself.  Because He paid for them, we can go straight to God without worrying that we are not doing enough.  Amen.

The story of Easter is the story of our Lord’s passion, death, and resurrection.  Full and complete payment for our sins by suffering unspeakable pain, humiliation, and suffering.  It’s during this time of the year that the TV stations run the Mel Gibson movie, “The Passion of Christ”.  This is supposed to be a highly accurate portrayal of what actually happened.  I have never seen the movie myself.  I have wanted to, I’m just too scared to.  The blood and horror doesn’t bother me in movies because I know it’s all fake.  Since it was on while I was flipping channels on Easter Sunday, I thought I’d give it a try.  I watched about 15 seconds before I had to flip to something else.  I went back a few minutes later and watched for about a full minute before I had to change the channel.  I couldn’t take it.  Sure, I knew the blood was fake and I had seen interviews with the actor that played Jesus.  He told several interesting “behind the scenes” stories of the making of that movie.  The problem was that this happened for real and not just for the movies…and it was my fault.  The fact that Jesus was put on that cross to suffer, just because I was alive and sinning, was something I couldn’t take thrown in my face no matter how true it is.  I’m not worth having someone go through hell on earth just for me but He did it anyway.  Each one of us ever born put Him on that cross, regardless if we accept that fact or not.  His love and willingness to do whatever was needed for us to receive salvation is that powerful.  Unfortunately, our fear, pride, etc. keep us from being the children we were meant to be because of it.

We sin, and in our lives, we focus on that sin.  I did a Bible Study in my first book on the movie, “Seven”.  It was a movie about the seven deadly sins: greed, pride, envy, anger, sloth, gluttony, and lust.  They are like the commandments of sin.  If you’re doing one of these, you’re sinning.  While these actions are sinful, Christians should remember that ‘any’ sin could be a ‘mortal’ or ‘deadly’ sin if we refuse to repent and we reject Christ’s forgiveness.  These could be sins of commission (ones we know we commit) or sins of omission (failure to do what is right or abide by the law).  Examples of omission?  Failure to pay your taxes (the law) could get you some jail time.  To omit honoring your parents is to fail the law of the 4th Commandment, “Honor your father and your mother”. 

For generations, Christians have tried to rank sins and identify which ones are worse than others.  Regardless if you speak of “little white lies” or “the ultimate sin”, common, everyday speech betrays the widely held belief that individual sins can be weighed, measured, compared, and contrasted.  Common sense and notions of justice recoil at the thought of making deeds equal even though they have vastly different consequences.  (I hope no kids are reading this…)  It seems incredible to consider the sins of pedophiles and serial killers with well-meaning moms that tell their children stories of Santa, the Easter Bunny, and having eyes in the back of their heads to see what their little angel is doing at all times.  Fortunately, Scripture does recognize distinctions between various sins, their results, and the temporal penalties they deserve.  See Exodus 21-22 for examples.  Sin affects more than human society so it is not judged solely by its effects on society.  By its very nature, sin is a transgression of divine law, so it affects the relationship with the divine lawgiver.  When viewed from this perspective, the effects of all sins are indeed equal.  Breaking even one point of God’s law makes one guilty of breaking the whole of it (James 2:10).  So, are all sins equal?  YES…..and NO.  While on this earth, our sins must be judged and addressed individually against our fellow man.  When referring to eternal life and our relationship with our Creator, we cannot downplay the significance of even the most minor transgression.  We repent in the knowledge that even though our smallest sins separate us from God, those tiny sins through the greatest sins are forgiven through the death and resurrection of His Son. 

*As a side note, in the Middle Ages, the seven deadly sins were often depicted as deserving a very specific punishment in hell.  For example, one guilty of gluttony would be forced to eat rats, snakes, and toads in hell.  I’m assuming without the marinade or special sauce.

The topic of death has come at me several times and in several ways in the past weeks; so I address it.  Not the fact that we will all die, or how we will live forever in heaven or hell afterward, but what happens in-between. 

After death, the body that remains is usually either buried or cremated.  Both of these methods have Biblical precedence.  Jesus died and his body was buried in a tomb.  Mankind was created from the dust of the ground and will return to dust after the soul leaves it.  Cremation speeds up this process.  That second method is abundantly clear and often repeated.  “God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” (Genesis 2:7)  “…, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust and to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:19)  “All go to one place. All are from the dust, and to dust all return”  (Ecclesiastes 3:20)  The body, no matter the method, will return to dust while the soul continues on.

So, what then?  What problems can arise with the physical remains of the body that is buried?  There are some cultures and faiths that believe that the body must be buried whole in order to go on to paradise.  In some cases, an amputated limb will be buried in the grave that the person has prepared for themselves in the future.  Unfortunately, there are many times when this is not possible such as war overseas, explosions, etc.  My question with this thought is, “Where do you draw the line?”  Does it have to be a limb?  What about a finger or appendix or tooth?  Most of us will go into our graves ‘as is’ and stay there.  Sometimes though, even that’s not possible.  There have been times when cemeteries must be moved or the family wants a loved one previously buried in another state or country moved closer to them.  Even though the person’s soul is no longer in the casket, we continue to visit the gravesites to feel a connection to them still.  And there is nothing wrong with that, either the moving of the body or the connection you feel.  Even Joseph in the Bible had his bones carted around after his death.  He made sure of it.  In Genesis 50:25, he speaks to the heads of the tribes and tells them that he will die soon in Egypt but when they are delivered in the future and go on to Canaan, they better take his bones with them.  Moses does this in Exodus 13:19 and Joshua 24:32 tells where they put him to rest again.

Then we have cremation.  What to do with the ashes?  After a little research, a.k.a. Googling, I discovered what I once believed as placing the ashes in an urn and putting it somewhere is grossly outdated.  You will probably say, “Sure, you can scatter them to the wind off a mountain or across the ocean.”  Nope.  These days, people are much more adventurous with their loved ones remains.  There are companies that will take some of your loved ones ashes and place them inside jewelry for you to wear or inside teddy bears for you to cuddle.  They can be made into diamonds, placed in bullets (so you can take them hunting with you), placed in fireworks, mixed with ink that you can have tattooed into your skin or mixed with paint that will be used to paint a picture of your loved one.  You can even have their ashes, thanks to our bodies being made of carbon, turned into 240 pencils with their names engraved on them.  (Don’t worry you won’t have anything left.  The sharpener is in the side of the box so when you’ve used them all, their remains will be a box of pencil shavings.)  To some people, this may seem very disrespectful but to others who are grieving, it is a way to help them work through the process of grief.  Again, they are only the body’s remains.  The soul, what actually makes up a person, has gone on.  The soul created for God, by God, will not rest until it rests in God.

So, do either of these methods, burial or cremation, make a difference on the Last Day when we will rise again?  Nope.  1 Corinthians 15:35-49 speaks very frankly about this.  “What you sow does not come to life unless it dies”.  Here, they are comparing a dead body to a seed planted in the ground.  Sometimes, you don’t know what plant will come up from a planted seed because many look alike.  God determines what body we will get in heaven.  We are of the dust of the earth now, and look it.  When we are in heaven, our bodies will be made of heaven.  Exactly what they will look like, we don’t know.  We do know that we will recognize each other and that’s good enough for me.  What God is basically saying here is that it doesn’t matter what happened to your earthly, physical body.  It will rise, because God will raise it from wherever it is, regardless if it’s the original burial site or tiny pieces scattered to the winds.  He can do that because if each of our hairs are numbered, each of our cells after our death can be found on His GPS if need be.  Who knows?  Maybe our bodies now won’t make a difference and He’ll make us all new bodies that look like these.  Anything is possible with God.  Our comfort comes with the fact that our loved ones that believed in Jesus as their Lord and Savior are now with Him and what happens to their dusty remains has nothing to do with their eternity in paradise.

Fun fact – there are two men in all of history that did something even Jesus could not do.  They did not die.  Jesus had to die to pay for the sins of all humanity, and He did in the most horrible way.  There was no other option for Him.  On the third day, He rose from the dead and physically floated up to heaven 40 days later.  Enoch and Elijah were taken by God to heaven but never died.  “Enoch walked faithfully with God, and he was no more, for God took him away” (Genesis 5:24).  “As they [Elijah and Elisha] were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind” (2 Kings 2:11). 

It’s strange how everyone focuses on life in heaven but not the method of transportation.  All in all, we’d probably rather not think about it because the ways to die are limitless and we have no choice in the matter.  Personally, I attribute it to being a kid and falling asleep in the back seat of the car and waking up in bed.  We will fall asleep or lose consciousness here and wake up immediately in heaven.   No waiting room, no purgatory…done and done.  

Continuing on with our heavenly study, we are often confused about the workings of heaven.  For example, what will it look like?  First, it will be paradise.  What does this mean?  Well, it depends on who you ask.  A small child might say mommy’s lap; a teenager would reference Mall of America.  For adults, it might be a golf course or a Caribbean island.  The dictionary says it’s a place of great happiness where everything is what you want it to be.  On the cross, Jesus tells the criminal, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.”  We will be with Jesus in person.  Does it really matter then what the surroundings look like?  Like a comedian once said about psychics who claim to speak to be able to speak to the dead.  If they try to contact her after she dies, her response will be, “I am in the presence of the Lord, LEAVE ME ALONE.”                           

Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions, if it were not so would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”  Our minds picture huge mansions.  In the time of the Israelites, the head of the house would have his children build their houses onto his when they started their families.  Regardless, it really isn’t something we need to worry about.  We will have a place in heaven and should focus on dwelling with Jesus rather than a structure.

Rest.  Such a wonderful word.  Rest in peace.  They went to their eternal rest.  The only problem with that is the fact that we give that word the same meaning after we die as we do now.  True rest is being free of all earthly troubles and does not refer to inactivity.  Humans were meant to be active.  Adam and Eve didn’t spend their days in hammocks.  They worked in the garden.  Likewise, in heaven we will be able to sing and worship God just like the angels do now. 

Crowns.  A crown of righteousness, a crown of glory, a crown of life.  Regardless if they are actual crowns or not, we will in some way be ruling with Christ.  We will know the answers to all of our questions.  God will share His knowledge with us.  WOW.

Despite all of this, we are only given glimpses into our future with Him.  There is no way our earthly experiences and understanding could comprehend what we are in for.  We know there will be activity; there will be special places made just for us; there will be worship and food (heavenly banquet); relationships, etc.  Although we will have glorified bodies, we will still recognize each other and love everyone the same.  That will be quite a change since we don’t do that now.

Special places in heaven.  How often we use the term, there’s a special place in heaven for people that put up with ….. or deal with …..  But is that true?  I don’t think so.  The Bible says that we will all reign with Jesus as kings.  There’s no honor system or extra credit then for anything you do now.  If there are honors to bestow, God will give them in His way at His time.  It’s like a pastor explained it to me once, heaven is like Disneyworld; it doesn’t matter if you’re by Space Mountain or the Tea Cups.  You’re THERE!! 

Finally, the biggest question most people have.  Will my pets be in heaven?  The Bible doesn’t say specifically.  Because animals don’t have souls, there is no dog or cat heaven.  The Bible does speak of animal-like creatures being around the throne along with a lamb, horses and birds.  In the original paradise, man and animal lived together in peace and after the Last Day, it will be like that again.  God can do anything and understands our love for His creatures.  It’s not unrealistic to think that He will recreate our old pets for us to live with along with the lions, tigers, bears, etc. that will again once again roam the earth in peace with mankind.  Just a little something to look forward to.

             In my blogs, I sometimes share things I’ve learned in the Bible or about church.  At other times, it’s something funny that reminds me of God’s relationship with us.  Still other times, I hear the same phrase mentioned at least three different times and all from different sources.  I take this as God trying to get my attention.  This past week it has been the idea that everything we are going through is God preparing us for what we asked.  Because what is life?  It’s HARD!  Everything, regardless if it’s tying your shoe, an algebra assignment, or trying to understand your spouse’s moods, is hard until you learn how to do it.  It can be extremely frustrating but it’s part of the process that God created to move us on to do what He needs each of us to do.  Sometimes the process is done so smoothly, we aren’t even aware of it until it’s over.  Sometimes, we are all too aware and wonder why God is picking on us.

             The most important thing to remember is that we are not alone in our growing frustrations.  Here’s where I quote the Bible.  Adam and Eve had one of their children kill the other.  Joseph was sold into slavery and later put in jail only to end up ruling Egypt.  Job had a rougher life than pretty much anyone and in the end had twice as much as before.  Note: don’t focus on the wealth here.  The point was to keep your faith despite what is happening around you and to you.  Moses had an identity crisis and could have used some anger management classes but his story came out ok.  The list goes on.

             Unfortunately, our struggles don’t stop with physical things in life; we also struggle with our faith.  And by ‘we’, I’m including myself.  I admit that sometimes the thought pops in my head, “What if there is no heaven and when we die, that’s just it?”  That thought terrifies me and I know it’s not true but it comes to me just the same.  I’m not alone in this either.  John the Baptist proclaimed that Jesus was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world but later, while in jail, sent his disciples to ask Jesus if He was really the One.  Peter confessed that Jesus was the Son of the Living God and later denied even knowing Him.  Elijah killed false prophets but when Jezebel threatened to kick his butt, he took off like a coward.  Thomas had one of the strongest faiths of all but needed proof when Jesus appeared to him after Jesus’ resurrection.  No, we are not alone in our struggles by a long run.

             Thankfully, God sees something beyond our own understanding of our skills, traits, and talents.  He knows our heart better than we do.  Sometimes we pray to Him with our head and sometimes with our heart; either way, He hears us regardless if we thank Him or grumble to Him.  And we do.  As followers of Christ, we are promised troubles; troubles that will test and strengthen our faith.  “Do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.  But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (1 Peter 4:12-13)  Because of this, we should not be surprised when troubles come into our lives but we repeatedly are shocked.  Why me?  Trials will come regardless of who you are.  What we make of them shows what we are really made of.  You must persevere even if you don’t understand and that’s how we learn wisdom.  After all, if our lives, our families, the weather, were always perfect and exactly the way we wanted, would we really express our constant gratitude?  I think not.  The good life does not connect us spiritually to God; it connects us to ourselves and our wants.  We need troubles in our lives to keep our focus on God. 

I think Ron White is my favorite from the Blue Collar Comedy team.  I don’t remember the exact joke but the punch line from one of his jokes is his wife poking an index finger at him and saying, “Let me tell YOU something about YOU that YOU don’t know.”  I’m going to do the same here.  I’m going to tell you something about you that you don’t know.  You study theology.  Didn’t know that, did you?  If you read my blogs, you are studying theology.  I took classes in theology so I know what I’m talking about.

Christian theology is defined as the study of God as he reveals Himself.  It includes all His actions toward his creation and specifically His purpose, plan, and will for His children.  In other words; who God is, the human condition, God’s response in Christ, and the Christian life. 

So what’s the purpose?  The purpose is to further understand what God has chosen to reveal to us and how this revelation applies to our lives in this world and the next.  It’s goal is to proclaim the Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ faithfully.  It points to the Savior and is not a list of things God said, a biography of Christ or the history of the church.  Every teaching relates to our salvation in Christ.  That’s what I’ve been trying to do all these years; communicate the saving Gospel and nurture faith.  So the first purpose is faith and salvation.

We can never know it all but if things are explained in different ways, we have a better chance of remembering them and making them a part of our lives.  Ron White says, “You can’t fix stupid.”  Forrest Gump says, “Stupid is as stupid does.”  A teacher will tell you there’s no such thing as a stupid question.  So many opinions about the word, stupid.  This brings us to the second purpose of theology.  We grow in our knowledge and understanding of Him and His Word; we learn to read and better understand the Scriptures; and we grow in our understanding of His will and ways.  Just because we don’t know everything about God does not mean we’re stupid.  There was only one guy in all of history that knew everything and even He had a 33 year lapse when He set His godhead aside.  (hint: Jesus)  As we learn more facts, ideas, and concepts found in the Bible, we will at the same time learn to know God better. 

So, is this task simple or difficult?  Both actually.  It is so simple that even a child can share that Jesus died and rose for them.  That is Christianity.  But, there are many more topics and themes to learn and we cannot neglect them just because we know the very basics.  If we avoid opportunities, like Bible Studies, to learn and grow, then the problem doesn’t lie with Christianity but with our ignorance of the richness of God’s Word.  There are complex and complicated teachings in Scripture that we need to attempt to understand.  Some things we will never understand because we don’t have God’s knowledge but we shouldn’t give up trying.  Because we are sinners in a sinful world, the heavenly realm is going to be a challenge to grasp.  Fortunately, God has given us a lifetime worth of things to study.  Let’s get started…

Many years ago, I made Christmas presents for some of my co-workers.  Because he didn’t get me anything in return, a co-worker ran to Walgreens at lunch and bought a small Christmas tree ornament and gave it to me as a gift.  I didn’t expect or want anything in return but he was one of those people that had to pay you back for any kindness shown.  As Christmas comes again, I’m reminded of that event.  If someone gives me a gift, I don’t feel obliged to give them one in return.  I feel gratitude for the thought and not guilt that I didn’t get them anything in return.  That makes me unique in yet another way, I guess.

Think of it this way, a gift is only useful when it is delivered.  Someone gives the gift and someone receives it.  God has given us an amazing gift in the person and work of Jesus Christ yet many don’t know about this or benefit from it.  No, this is not another evangelism blog.  Our heavenly Father wants us to receive these benefits of Christ’s work so He’s very clear on how these gifts become available.  God did not ask our help or advice but made the ultimate ‘executive decision’.  He knew exactly what we needed to be saved and provided it.  Likewise, He did not ask us how we wanted to receive the gifts Christ won for us but decided that the means of grace would do it all and we would not have to give anything in return.  Through the means of grace, the Holy Spirit gives us forgiveness of sins and creates and strengthens our faith.  These means are specifically the Gospel (Word) and sacraments (Baptism and Lord’s Supper).  When God works through means, He allows Himself to be rejected.  In this way, grace comes to us as a gift, freely given but not forced on anyone.  We can reject or ignore His gift if we choose, but it is given to everyone regardless. 

Despite God’s promise, some Christians are skeptical and believe that we need to do something to earn our salvation.  They can’t accept the gift without feeling like they have to give something back.  Of course, God appreciates our gratitude and praise but receiving His grace is not dependent upon it.  Martin Luther explained it this way: First, the forgiveness of sins is attained or acquired and second, it is distributed or given to us.  Christ acquired it on the cross but did not distribute it from there.  It is given through the Word and Sacraments.  So if I seek forgiveness of sins, I do not run to the cross because it’s not there.  Instead, I turn to the Sacraments and Gospel that presents, distributes, offers, and gives me what Christ acquired on the cross. 

God is not limited by the means of grace and can work through other means if He chooses to.  As Psalm 135:6 tells us, God can do anything He wants to.  Some people believe that what He has chosen is too limiting so they seek to find their ‘personal means of grace’ or a way to ‘improve’ what God has chosen to do.  When this happens, human works attempt to replace Christ’s perfect work.  People seriously think they can do a better job than God.  God is free to do whatever He wants but we are not.  He has promised to bless us in only through Jesus in this way for our benefit.  “For in him (Jesus), every one of God’s promises is a ”Yes”. (2 Corinthians 1:20a)

Means of Grace

Gospel – NOT the Bible.  The Bible contains Law and Gospel.  Yes, they are both the inspired Word of God but through the Law comes a knowledge of sin so the Law is not a means of grace.  The Gospel is not just stories about Jesus but the “power of God for salvation”.

Sacraments – In order to be a sacrament, it must meet this definition: a sacred act instituted by God; gives God’s grace or forgiveness; and is connected to a visible element.  By this, Baptism is a sacrament because it has a visible element (water), gives God’s grace and forgiveness and is a sacred act instituted by God (see Matthew 28:19).  This makes it different from regular washing.  Most Lutherans say there are only two sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) but if you look back into the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, there is another, Absolution (the forgiveness of sins).  Holy Absolution belongs to all Christians.  After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His disciples and gave them the gift of the Holy Spirit and said, “If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld” (John 20:23).  He also told them earlier, “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19, 18:18).  It is therefore a sacred act instituted by God and gives God’s grace and forgiveness.  Note that confession is not included here, just the absolution.  The absence of a visible element makes it different but no less advantageous or true.  The main issue is not how many sacraments there are but the meanings behind the sacraments and what makes them effective.  This is yet another part of God that we find difficult to understand but accept through faith...no strings attached.

Every worship service that offers communion begins with our pastor explaining the reason for participating and who should participate.  He points out that if any are unworthy, they could take it to their damnation.  Of course, growing up in a parochial LCMS school, I’d heard this my whole life.  Sometimes though, I have to wonder why?  I mean, why would it lead to my damnation?  I did a blog on communion back on August 28, 2020 but did not cover this aspect. 

Christian churches practice either open or closed communion.  Closed communion is the sharing of the Lord’s Supper by those of the same confession of the Lord.  Open communion means that everyone is freely admitted to the Lord’s Supper and the articles of faith are not treasured or recognized.  Each church is different of course and even those of the same denomination can practice this sacrament differently.  For example, I am a member of the LCMS (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod).  I’m familiar with three other denominations in the Lutheran Church (LCMC, ELCA, & WELS) but in fact there are 39 total active Lutheran denominations in the US.  That’s just Lutheran.  This was somewhat mind-boggling to me because I was taught the term “denominations” to mean faiths like Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, etc.  We’re going deeper into the rabbit hole now. 

If you were to go to services in these different denominations, you would most likely see similar, if not exactly the same, practices regarding the administering of communion.  It’s easy to believe that if it’s done the same way you’re used to, it’s OK to participate.  In truth, the act of the Lord’s Supper in any congregation is directly related to their beliefs about its meaning and significance along with their other beliefs.  So, if another denomination believes as I do that the Lord is present ‘in, with, and under’ the bread and wine, it’s OK to commune?  NO.  If they are another denomination, they have other beliefs that I may not agree with.  These other beliefs are also tied to the Lord’s Supper because when you participate, you are saying that you agree with everything those around you believe.  You can’t confess Christ in one article of the faith and deny Him in another.  For example, even though it’s a Lutheran church and I’m a Lutheran, if I would take communion at an ELCA congregation, it’s the same as saying that I agree with pastors, or anyone, being homosexual because that is part of their beliefs.  All Lutherans do not believe the same.  The Lord’s Supper brings Christ to us but it also unites us with our fellow communicants.  That comes from 1 Corinthians 10:17, “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.” 

Now for the scary part, ‘anyone taking part unworthily, will do it to their damnation’.  What does this mean exactly?  We find the answer in three parts.  1.  Historically, the church has never admitted anyone to the Lord’s Supper who has not been baptized.  The Lord’s Supper does not bring someone into the kingdom of God like Baptism does but strengthens and confirms the faith of those already in the kingdom.  2. A person should examine themselves before they take the Sacrament.  This involves faith (What do I believe?) and an examination of sin.  The church will not commune someone who does not know why they are there or what the true purpose is.  3.  Understand that those who partake yield themselves to Him.  It is done in remembrance of Christ to keep fresh in our minds his dying for us, as well as remembering His pleading for us at God’s right hand.  We don’t just remember what He has done but also celebrate His grace in our redemption.  His death is our life and we glory in it which means our lives should show this even after we leave the church.  You can’t renew and confirm your covenant with God when you immediately return to keeping the covenant with sin and death. 

I’ve been asked to commune in other church denominations.  I work for an LCMC church and have been asked a couple of times to take Holy Communion.  Both times I politely declined.  My husband and I also visited at his parent’s church (Church of the Brethern) a few times.  We politely refused to participate in communion there again which greatly upset his mother but we stood our ground explaining that it went against our faith.  Whatever Christian faith, denomination, or synod you’re a member of, it’s just better for you, and less confusing, to stay there.  Different churches have different beliefs.  Some even change their beliefs to fit the times to attract the young and get butts in the seats.  Like the photo for this week, people often update the old things which works sometimes but should not be tried on everything.  When we take God’s Word and tweak it to mean what we want it to, it’s not God’s Word anymore.  It’s ours.  We have freedom of faith but I prefer to stick with what the Bible says as my pastors explain it.  If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

I sometimes wish I was still writing Bible Studies from movies.  I can’t explain why but it fills me with excitement, energy, purpose, and understanding like I’ve never known before.  It’s not easy, but in the end, I have a sense of satisfaction and joy that makes it worthwhile.  The same can be said of many other things in life from a daily job to having children.  Raising children is hard and the bad part is that when they’re grown, it’s still hard.  You lose the control you once had and have to step back and watch them stumble and fall.  Sometimes they accept your help and sometimes, they have to do it themselves when you so badly want to do it for them.  If you’re a parent, I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know. 

I saw a website recently that allows you to look up a celebrity and learn what faith they are.  It surprised me at first to learn that Tyler Perry is a Christian.  His Madea movies are full of drugs and cursing but I still enjoy watching them.  If you pay attention, you can see his Christianity among the drama and curses.  One of my favorites on Netflix is A Madea Homecoming.  It’s a story of a large family with each part of the family going through their own personal struggles.  At the head of the family is Madea (Tyler Perry dressed as a woman).  Although the character Madea is not a real person of faith, the advice she gives her family members are worthy of any sermon I’ve ever heard.  There are six in total, and I’d like to review them, in order, one by one along with Bible passages that support them.  They speak to me because I can relate to them.  Maybe you can too.  (The red words are quotes from the movie.)

“When somebody love you, it don’t matter if you gay or not.  They gonna love you anyway.”  (This was said to her great-grandson when he told his family he was gay, not realizing they had known it for years already.)  “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)  A person is not defined solely by a sin they commit or the food they eat or the medical conditions they have.  We are all made up of many parts, put together by God, and deserving of love.  “[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:7)  The power of love can rise above any given situation.

God always sends you a sign.  People look for an oak tree and God dropped a little acorn.  You got to pay attention to the acorn.  “This will be a sign for you: you will find the baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:12)  A baby Savior was definitely different than the people had been expecting.  They expected a full-grown man, riding on a war horse, coming into Jerusalem to take over.  Sometimes the sign was visual like in Isaiah 38:7-8 when God turned back the shadows on the steps.  Or when Moses’ staff turned into a snake like in Exodus 4:1-9.  God sends all kinds of signs but they are rarely what we expect.

These children got their own lives to live, you gotta let them live their life.  They gonna do it whether we want them to or not.  So you can either stand there and be against ‘em or you can stand there with them while they make their mistakes or see if they gon’ make a mistake and then help them.  (These words of advice were given to a friend that wanted their adult nephew to return home after college to work on the farm in order to pay back his family that sacrificed so much for him and felt that he owed them for the sacrifices they made.)  Once a child becomes an adult, the parent-child relationship changes and the child is now an adult that is accountable to God Himself.  A parent should treat their adult child as a fellow brother/sister in Christ.  “Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.” Ephesians 5:21.  “…all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (1 Peter 5:5b). 

You gotta take chances on love.  And if you get your heart broke, have the courage to try again.  And if you get your heart broke again, have the courage to try again.  Keep taken chances until you find that heart surgeon that’s going to fix all those breaks you been through.  When you get hurt, you build walls.  Stop building walls and build some fences to look through and see if that’s who you want to see or not.  “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11.  The hurtful moments of your life are not meant to destroy you.  God’s plans aren’t always obvious but are meant to benefit us in the long-term.  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7.  No matter how devastating the situation seems, it is important to keep faith and turn to God in prayer.  “Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up” (Psalm 71:20).  Troubles and problems are a given in life.  God being there with you during them is also a given.

When you get married, make sure you say “I do” to more than one person.  “I do” to one person ain’t gonna work.  You gotta say “I do” to several people.  That’s why so many people get divorced.  They just say “I do” to one person.  When you marry somebody, ten years later, that person gonna be somebody else.  Ten years after that, somebody else.  People evolve.  They change.  You got to say “I do” to them all; who they are now and who they gonna be.  This is why so many people renew their vows.  In doing so, they say “I do” to their spouse as they are now, and not as they were then.  “Be devoted to one another in love.  Honor one another above yourselves.”  Romans 12:10.  If two people can both do that, there will be a happy marriage.  “Do not let loyalty and faithfulness forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” Proverbs 3:3.  Love takes work and commitment on both sides. 

Parents are not perfect.  Parents make all kind of mistakes.  People think, “My mom or dad should’ve been better”.  They did the best they could.  Just growing up, raising children, nobody tell them how to do nothing.  Sometime people just doin’ the best they can.  A good parent will not only work hard and sacrifice for their child/children but also teach and discipline them, bringing them up in the way of God.  It’s not easy and since each person is different (sometimes daily), there are no rulebooks.  Parents just have to figure it out as they go along.  As long as there is love on both sides, it will all work out in the end.  As I’ve been reminded many times over the years when I wish I would have done things differently…”you did the best you could at the time”.  That’s in the past.  Let it go.

We’re not perfect and neither are our lives.  As my mother-in-law is fond of saying, “You have to excuse me, I’ve never been this old before.”  Age brings some wisdom but mistakes will always be made and we have to own ours.  Thank God that that’s where it ends.  We claim them but we don’t have to pay for them since Jesus already did that and has the receipt.  No refunds.

Apparently, I have a thing for parables.  They make you see yourself, and God, from a different perspective.  There are three main ways of learning something: visual (seeing it), auditory (hearing it), and kinesthetic (doing it).  I think there’s a fourth way, understanding it.  Jesus often said, “Him who has ears, let him hear.”  That meant, “don’t just hear the words but listen and pay attention”.  I think we hear.  We go to church for the purpose of hearing but many times we don’t listen.  There’s a difference.  I see ‘hearing’ as understanding the words and ‘listening’ is understanding the meaning.  If we are told something that we’re not ready for or don’t believe yet, we hear but choose to not listen.  Why do you think you have to repeat things to your children constantly?  They hear you but don’t listen.  In general, people of all ages don’t listen until it’s something they want to hear.  But back to parables…this one is too cute.

In a land inhabited only by ducks, all the residents waddled to church one fine Sunday, with ducklings following behind their parents. They entered the Duck Church doors, got situated in their proper pews, sang from the Duck Hymnal and then listened to Duck Minister preach from the Duck Bible (yes, even ducks have their own preferred version of Scripture). “Ducks, God has given you wings!” the preacher shouted. “With wings you can fly like eagles! You can soar into the sky! No walls can confine you! No fences can hold you! God has given us wings, and we can know the utter euphoria of unfettered freedom! Do you believe you can fly?” In response, the duck congregation all shouted, “Amen!” Then they left their pews … and all waddled back home.

This just really hit home to me.  Maybe because I’m getting older and my attitude about things is changing.  Who knows?  What do we hear in church?  God loves me (and you).  Yeah, yeah, heard that before…but did you listen?  God loves me, exactly as I am, exactly as I look, no matter how poorly my brain or body works or how many mistakes I make.  If I was the only person on earth that was not saved, Jesus would come back and go through hell again JUST FOR ME.  That’s how much God loves me.  Did you hear that or listen to it?  Is it something you want to hear?  He loves everyone that much.  That’s hard to let sink in, isn’t it?  Why would He love me?  I’m a screw up.  News flash!  Everyone is a screw up.  Mistakes we make are called sins and Jesus died for every single one of them.  God’s not going to punish us for sinning like He did in the Old Testament with the world at Noah’s time.  Jesus took that punishment.  It’s gone forever.  So why do bad things happen to me?  Listen…bad things are happening all over the world every millisecond.  Sometimes it’s your turn to get caught in the crossfire but that doesn’t mean it’s your fault or happening to you because of something you did.  That’s our life, for now. 

So when we get down because of the world, we’re doing nothing more than waddling back home.  God has given us amazing powers that we never use because we refuse to listen.  “…if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”  (Matthew 17:20)  That’s a promise of God to us and the only thing holding us back is ourselves.  Our minds can’t fathom such power that we are blessed with because we focus on the negative in our lives.  Thankfully, it won’t always be this way.  As I said, this is our life…for now.  The best way to get through it is to listen to the man in charge, Jesus.  He knows everything so who better to depend on?  Every day is a struggle in our minds, in our lives, in our world.  Thank God it’s not in our hands.

We continue with our tour of the Ark.  The first room I was amazed to see was the library.  Yep.  Think about it, there were documents that needed preserving I’m sure.  Since I first heard about the ark as a small child, we know there were animals and people and food on the ark.  That’s it.  That’s all the focus was on, so that’s all we thought about.  We don’t think about them being on this ark for more than a year.  It rained 40 days and 40 nights but the waters didn’t go down for a long time.  Fun fact: you might not realize that Noah, his family, and the animals all went into the ark a week before it started raining.  We have the impression from movies that as soon as the door shut, the sprinkles started.  Nope.  They had a week to live in the ark and get organized and, if they’re like me, go back for anything they forgot.  (Genesis 7:1-4)

So, from the library we go to the workshop.  Woodworking on the ark was a necessity.  Tools, wagons, cages would most likely need maintenance and repairs.  Makes sense.  In addition, they may have done woodworking to prepare for life after the flood or just to have something to do to relax.  Next to that was the blacksmith shop.  This is a bit of a stretch for me since metal-working takes fire with high heat and the ark was made of wood.  They might have had sturdy clay ovens.  Who knows?  Along with these was a main living room (see photo above) and each couple had their own bedroom.  It was a floating house after all.  Come to think of it, the only room they didn’t recreate was an outhouse or washroom.  Somebody missed that.  One thing I thought was fascinating though was how they got rid of poop.  Don’t turn up your nose, you know you’re curious too.  They had a video of the process so I’ll try to explain.  In the middle of the ark was an open shaft that went through the bottom of the ark.  Think of an elevator shaft with the bottom open to the ocean.  There were three floors in the ark and this shaft was closed in on all sides for the two lower floors.  This allowed the water to come up partway but not all the way.  The shaft was open on the top floor so they could throw the poop into the shaft where it would land in the ocean and just float away.  Awesome, right??

Of course they had to have a kitchen (see pictures below).  Something I often forget is that Noah and his family were vegetarians.  They had gardens in the kitchen to grow their food.  God did not allow them to eat meat until after the flood was over and they were back on dry ground.  There was a clay oven, I guess for baking, and plenty of spices on one side of the kitchen and what looks like window boxes on the other for growing vegetables and herbs. (see photos below)

Let’s take a quick look at the people themselves.  We know from the last blog that the animals carried many genes that showed themselves in different ways to form the variety of breeds we have today.  Likewise, people carry a wide range of genes that show themselves differently from generation to generation.  If Noah and his wife had ‘middle brown’ skin, their children and descendants would have exhibited a wide range of skin tones from light to dark because skin tone comes from more than one gene.  In addition to this, we don’t know the races of Noah’s son’s wives.  This would definitely be a factor in the appearance of future generations.  If, I said IF, one wife was ‘European’, one was ‘African’, and one was ‘Asian’, it would certainly have speeded things up in the genetics department.  We’ll never know for certain because it’s not important.  It happened the way God wanted it to and what we have now is what we have. 

Please keep in mind that the information stated here is not all Biblical but only “may” have been the way it was.  We will never know for certain until our last day and we can add that to our list to ask God about when we get to heaven.  I don’t know where the architects got their information but it’s fascinating to speculate.  If you do get a chance to go, my only advice is: A. wear comfortable shoes (LOTS of walking) and B. get there when it first opens.  After a couple of hours, the busses show up and you’re facing wall-to-wall school kids and families.

The exact way of their life doesn’t matter in the end.  The only thing that does matter is that God kept His promise and saved humanity.  It’s a waste of time to spend it wondering about “what might have been”.  In this case, building the ark was not a waste of time because those that are visual learners would get a much better understanding of the miracle that took place.  I know I did.  I’m sure this was meant to bring people to faith and I pray that it will do so for decades to come.

Several years ago, my husband and I went to the Ark Encounter in Kentucky for our vacation.  (see Mar. 17, 2019 blog for outside picture)  If you’ve not heard of it, I’m here to say it’s an amazing sight.  Not only is it the exact proportions as explained in the Bible so you can understand the magnitude, it also has three floors of rooms and exhibits to help you understand what life might have been like at the time and how the ark might have actually looked.  Overall, it answered more questions for me than I knew I had and was a wonderful experience.  Because many will not be able to travel for themselves, I wanted to take a blog or two to share what I learned. 

Let’s begin with the outside of the ark.  How did freshwater fish survive?  Fresh and salt water don’t necessarily mix so there may have been freshwater layers or areas that existed for those fish.  In addition, because the oceans become saltier each year, the water during the Flood was not as salty as today.  Then there are many fish, like salmon, striped bass, and Atlantic sturgeon that live in both fresh and salt water in their lifetimes.  Finally, in most families of fish, there are both freshwater and saltwater varieties which may imply that back then, the original creatures were more capable of tolerating both types of water. 

As we go inside, we’ll look at the animals first.  According to Ark Encounter researchers, there were 1,398 animal kinds on the Ark that fit in 22 extra large cages, 186 large cages, 293 medium cages, 308 bird cages, 174 small cages and 415 amphibian pots.  Pots?  Yes.  What else would you put snakes, lizards, bugs, frogs, turtles, etc. in?  There were rows of shelves that held pots with fabric covering the top, a plugged hole at the bottom and a tube-like piece that connected from a central box.  In these boxes, moths reproduced and eventually made their way through the tubes to be a renewable food source for the reptiles and amphibians.  Fresh water would be poured through the cloth at the top and stale water drained out of the plug at the bottom.  That’s a lot of effort for a lizard if you ask me.  The picture shows this set-up with part of the jar cut away so you can see the hole coming from the moth box, the cloth covering it and the snakes nestled inside.

There were up to 85 kinds of dinosaurs on the ark including 2 tyrannosaurids, 2 stegosaurids, 2 ceratopsids, and 2 brachiosaurids.  Were there really?  I don’t know but there’s a sign posted that I got this information from.  I personally like to believe that it’s true.  But those animals are huge, you say.  True.  So are many of the land animals we’ve seen in the pictures as children.  That image has trained our minds to believe that the ark was packed end-to-end with animals and nothing else.  How deceptive those pictures are.  In reality, many of the animals were probably smaller than you’d expect.  Many of the dinosaurs for example, are as small as a bison, even as adults.  For the most part, God most likely took baby or very young animals of each kind.  This only makes sense because they take up less space, eat less, create less waste, are easier to manage, are more durable, and would have more time to reproduce after the flood.

All these animals had to be fed so what did the carnivores eat?  God did not permit man to eat meat until after the flood.  We don’t know when animals began to eat meat but it was probably before.  So how were they fed?  There are several options that might have worked.  One, God put them to sleep and kept them alive without eating.  Two, some carnivores may have not eaten meat for that time period or three, they were fed meat that had been preserved by drying, smoking, salting, or pickling.  Certain fish can pack themselves in mud and survive for years without water so they might be an option, and mealworms and other insects can be bred for both carnivores and insectivores.  Hope you had lunch already… LOL.  One idea they built was an interesting thought.  Walkways were built over the tops of cages for many of the animals so the food and water could be dropped down through the open top without a person having to enter the cage with the animal for feeding purposes. 

Sad to say one of my biggest questions was what breed of dog and cat were on the ark.  They had an answer for that as well thankfully.  When we refer to ‘kinds’, we’re talking canine, feline, bovine, etc. and not beagle, hound, chihuahua, tabby, leopard, bobcat.  Each ‘kind’ of animal carried an extensive DNA, like we do, so all post-flood felines, canines, etc. came from the one pair that Noah had on the ark.  We don’t know what it looked like but odds are it was nothing like we have today.

Next week I’ll address the other areas of the Ark, because there were many.  I ashamed to say I never dreamed of the like but they make perfect sense.  I chalk it up to yet one more thing we are taught or shown as children that is never corrected in adulthood.

I was wondering what to post next and I keep seeing a commercial for University of Phoenix that claims, “The clues are all around us”.  So what has been around me?

This past week, I’ve been watching a Netflix series that included “web sleuths”.  These are people that use the internet to attempt to help solve real-life mysteries.  While they mean well, they sometimes do more harm than good.  Because they are not privileged to all of the information the police have in their reports, they spend hundreds of hours surfing the web and use their imagination to make sense of what they do see.  Sometimes, this leads to false accusations which sets off the imagination of others and can sometimes ruin people’s lives. 

Then I read this passage that Paul wrote in 1 Timothy: “I am grateful to Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because he judged me faithful and appointed me to his service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a man of violence. But I received mercy because I had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.  But for that very reason I received mercy, so that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display the utmost patience, making me an example to those who would come to believe in him for eternal life.  To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”  (1 Timothy 1:12-17) Paul didn’t deny that what he did in the past was wrong, but he had good intentions.  God knew that Paul believed he was acting on God’s behalf.  He was seeking righteousness but acting in ignorance.

So what message do these two clues give me?  It reminds me of the readings during the worship services in church.  The Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel readings seem to have nothing what-so-ever to do with each other…until you hear the sermon.  Then they make perfect sense.  In these two examples, I believe the message is that people mess up even though they have good intentions.  No matter how well-meaning you might be, sometimes it can be the wrong way to go about it.  When you realize your mistake, you should admit it and try to make amends or at least try not to do it again.  In the first example, thousands of people were convinced that one man killed a young girl.  They cyber-bullied him mercilessly until his life was ruined.  After the police proved it to be an accident, not one person contacted him to apologize for the wrongful accusation much less tried to repair some of the damage done. 

In the second example, Paul had a good start and is an example we too should follow.  He was educated “at the feet of Gamaliel” (Acts 22:3), a highly respected rabbi in Jerusalem.  Likewise, we should be continually educated by our learned pastors and teachers because you can never know it all.  Where Paul went off-kilter was when he took his knowledge and became a persecutor and man of violence.  It had to be his way or the highway and anyone that believed differently was in for a world of hurt.  When God had had enough of his nonsense, Paul was treated to a real “come to Jesus meeting”.  After that, Paul realized God’s grace and taught others that Jesus came to save sinners, including himself, and not beat people over the head until everyone did things His way.  No matter what horrible things we’ve done in the past, however well-meaning they were, nothing is beyond God’s abundant grace.  God saves sinners only and we can’t hope to be a part of that until we admit to being a sinner and a worm. 

There’s a hymn by Isaac Watts: “Alas, and did my Savior bleed?  And did my Sovereign die?  Would He devote that sacred head for such a worm as I?”  Some hymnals are trying to replace the ‘worm’ with ‘sinner’.  Why?  Psalm 22 tells of Christ on the cross.  If Jesus called Himself a worm when He bore our sins, who are we to say we’re better than that?  Oops.  Got off-topic. 

Back to well-meaning screw-ups.  How often do I do that?  Tell people what to do or say because I have good intentions but am ignorant of all the circumstances.  More often than I’d like to admit.  It doesn’t just have to be about God.  Have you ever told someone they need to work harder for a promotion?  Start a family?  Take a different street or route?  Try the diet that worked for so-and-so?  Buy a hybrid vehicle?  All of these claims have good intentions, but we may cause more harm than good in them because really… no one wants to be told what to do and how and when to do it no matter how well-meaning it is.  Then again, how often do we even take our own advice?

So I think the lesson here is…continue to learn and grow in faith; check.  Admit to being a sinner and needing God’s grace; check.  Tell others of what God has done for me and will do for them; check.  When it comes to me wanting to give advice when not asked for it, my mantra must be “not my circus, not my monkeys”; a.k.a. not my business.  If it’s not something life-threatening, my advice should stay my little secret.  It's a never-ending work in progress but in the end, I believe it’s more good than harm.

             I believe that most of the time, pastors know what they’re talking about.  After all, they went to school and were God-inspired-driven to do His work.  However, they are also human so sometimes I have to respectfully disagree.  It may be that I heard it wrong or they did not explain it fully.  Regardless, there are two points I want to address. 

             First, I have heard several times from the same pastor that if you look at an attractive person, just look mind you, and you are married to someone else, you break the 6th Commandment and commit adultery in your heart.  I have a lot of problems with that statement.  First, everyone finds certain features more attractive in some than others.  Second, you don’t know that they are considered attractive to you until you see them.  It sounds like we should all be staring at the ground permanently and never look at anyone.  Don’t like that.  Martin Luther says, “We should fear and love God that we may lead a chaste and decent life in words and deeds, and each love and honor his spouse.”  That leads us to the third, what’s the age limit?  I have seen attractive children, teens, young adults, and even older adults.  Just because I find them attractive, doesn’t mean I want to have sex with them.  There’s no lust in my heart if I see an adorable 4-year old boy or girl.  Ewwww……

             Second, I refer to the sermon I heard last Sunday.  The pastor went from ‘proof that Jesus is God walking among people’ to ‘the sins of the LGBTQIA+’-xyz-m-o-u-s-e people. (Seriously...can we get any more letters???)  It was impressive.  He said that if you are not speaking out about the wrongness of it, then you are participating by not-participating.  Kind of a ‘if you’re not part of the cure, you’re part of the cause’ kinda thing, I think.  OK, so I can see how not speaking out might seem to be condoning but where does it end?  There are more sins in the world than just this one.  How can we possibly speak out about each and every one of them?  That’s all we would ever talk about. 

             So, in an effort to CYA, I will speak out about homosexuality.  We begin with Bible verses: “Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and you are not your own” (1 Corinthians 6:19).  “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22).  Romans 1:18-32 (you can read this for yourself).  There are other references but I move on….  God teaches us through His Word that homosexuality is a sinful distortion of His desire that one man and one woman live together in marriage as husband and wife.  God created man & woman with individual characteristics that compliment each other.  Where one is weak, the other is strong (and not just physical).  Before a man and woman marry, they should be able to express how they compliment each other and not just say, “We’re in love!!”.  The church deals with the issue itself and does not worry about it being “nature or nurture” (nature = born that way vs. nurture = something learned).  A person who persists in homosexual behavior stands under the condemnation of God’s Word.  Being homosexual is not a sin but some who persists in that act, sins.  It is but one of many sinful situations that we encounter in this life like being a habitual gossip, chronic liar, kleptomaniac, etc.  We all need God’s mercy and the salvation given us through Christ because we are lost and condemned sinners.  The movement claims tolerance of homosexual behavior because we are free to be our individual selves.  The church battles this sin because it goes against God’s Law and as a result, is considered a persecutor and ostracizer.  For this reason, we should treat each other with love and concern, ready to help whenever possible.  After all, we all sin differently and no one is above another.  If you completely reject someone because of their actions or lifestyle, they will have no choice but to go somewhere that they will be accepted and you will miss out on your opportunity to help them change.  Jesus didn’t avoid sinners but lived with us and loved us and showed us how we should love each other.  He forgave and gave us the power to forgive each other.  We should use that power.  We are not alone.  Just as there are help groups for those addicted to alcohol or drugs, there is help for those that are lost and confused about their identity.  https://keysministry.com/program/   is a Biblical program that helps same-sex attracted, minor-attracted and transgender people draw closer to Jesus and experience victory over temptation. 

             In conclusion, I’m proud to say I’m a HMaGhCW (Hetersexual, Middle-aged, German-heritage, Christian Woman).  Can I get a website for that??  A telethon??  A t-shirt??  I don’t scream my business out to the world but maybe I should.  I declare August to be Christian Pride Month!!!

It doesn’t matter if you are new to the faith or have attended church every Sunday of your life; there are seven words that strike terror in the heart of every Christian, “Who would like to open with prayer?”  Dead silence.  Cue the crickets to chirp.

Why this happens has always been a mystery.  We have no problem praying to God on our own and we have no problem talking to each other about a new restaurant we tried or bragging on our family.  It’s the combination of the two that causes anxiousness enough to render us mute.  It should not be this way, because prayer is simply communicating with God who loves us and wants us to talk to Him.  Jesus set the example often for this and even told us exactly what to say.  With this in mind, let’s look at the parts of prayer.  Side note: I did a blog on prayer in Sept. 2020 but this is looking at it in a different way.  It always strikes me as funny that when adults pray, we pray to the Father but when we teach children to pray, we pray to Jesus.  When I was younger, I would pray to the Spirit because I didn’t want His feelings to get hurt that he wasn’t prayed to the but the Father and the Son were.  Kid logic.  Today, I sometimes pray to the Holy Spirit because most of my requests deal with His specialty.

Who do we pray to?  Regardless who we address our prayers to, they go to the Holy Trinity because They are the only proper object of prayer.  We don’t have to mention each member of the Trinity in our prayers because they are One and there are no hurt feelings to worry about.  That’s a human thing.  God gave us His name so we can call on, pray to and give thanks to Him.  Many religions teach that you need a mediator because it is inappropriate to pray straight to God.  We are taught that we can pray directly to God without a mediator but we have one nevertheless, Jesus, so there’s no excuse.  The Bible says, “There is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:5-6).  Jesus himself says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6)  We do this by closing our prayers with “in Jesus’ name” or “for Jesus’ sake”.  Prayer in His name invokes His authority and we’re covered. 

What is its purpose?  When we pray, we share our thoughts, wishes, thanks, and hopes with our heavenly Father.  Since He is omniscient (knows all), He knows these things already but still likes to hear us ask, because by asking, we are showing that we recognize Him as the giver of all gifts.  Some people think they must pray with exactly the right words in order to get what they want.  WRONG!  Prayer does not manipulate or force God to do anything.  It’s a communication with Him that comes from our faith.  We ask for what we want but recognize that ‘His will’ will be done.  In all prayers, the Spirit fixes the words our heart says and the Son delivers the message to the Father and helps bring about the Father’s will from it.  All three work with each prayer given.

What should we pray about?  The parts of a prayer basically come down to two things, thanksgiving and supplication (making requests).  Thanksgiving is most important and I believe it should come first so it’s not forgotten later.  It’s our acknowledgement that everything we have and are comes from Him.   We are grateful for His spiritual as well as physical blessings and can repeat our thanks for the same things over and over if we want.  God never tires of hearing it.  As far as supplication goes, if we’re completely honest with ourselves, we tend to pray more when we face a crisis or really want or need something.  There are three types of supplications:  Spiritual requests would be things like an increase of faith, guidance in understanding Scripture, the spreading of the Gospel, etc.  Physical requests might sometimes sound like we’re greedy but even in the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus tells us to ask for daily bread (physical, daily needs).  Physical requests should be made with the understanding that God’s will, not ours, will be done.  The third is intercession which includes praying for others; not just family and friends, but government officials, pastors, fellow Christians, the sick, and even those who persecute us.

What freedoms do we have in prayer?  Location – we don’t have to be in any specific place to pray or assume any specific posture like hands folded or held up or out; standing or kneeling; eyes open or closed, etc.  Some faiths teach that this is vital.  We sometimes forget that praying is a freedom.  The position we are in and place we are is not important, but sometimes these things help us focus on what we’re saying and remind us of the reverence and humility we should show before our Creator.  Words – while it’s true that Jesus told us exactly what to say, we are not limited to these words alone.  We are free to use formal prayers or prayers made up on the spur of the moment.  Established prayers are helpful because they remind us of things we may have overlooked.  One must be careful with these, like mealtime prayers, so they don’t become mindless repetition.  That brings us to the final freedom, Timing.  As I just said, mealtimes might remind us to pray but these prayers should still be heartfelt and not done out of habit or tradition.  Timing can also be a good thing because it reminds us in our busy world to stop and talk to our Creator.  

Through prayer, God is not forcing us to do something difficult or giving us a set of laws or commands.  He’s simply inviting us to communicate with Him; sharing ourselves with Him as He shares Himself with us.  With that in mind, let us pray…

I’ve been praying this week for God to tell me what I should write about.  Nothing ‘Bible related’ has come to mind so I’m going to write about what’s on my heart.  I’ve done this many times before in hopes that it might help others that have similar issues.  This week it’s the song, “Rose Colored Glasses” by John Conlee.  Not the entire song, I’m going to do like some do with the Bible and just pick and choose what’s important to me at this time.  (It’s funny cause it’s true.)

The refrain, “But these rose colored glasses that I’m looking through, show only the beauty ‘cause they hide all the truth.”  This phrase relates to our lives more often than we care to admit.  Most of us are constantly dealing with a concern, worry, personal crisis if you will, all of the time but we rarely show it.  We keep it bottled up because to let it out would mean we can’t get it back in the bottle and there would be consequences.  Maybe consequences that we’d rather not happen or maybe the problem would be solved.  It’s hard to take the chance when you’re not sure of the outcome.

It doesn’t matter if you’re getting married or starting a new job or increasing your family.  Every new part of life begins with rose colored glasses and everything is wonderful with the world.  Over time, those glasses start slipping down your nose.  It could take weeks or even years, but it happens.  Take a marriage: You begin seeing things in your spouse that were always there but you either ignored the signs or flat didn’t see them.  It can be disheartening to not have them on a pedestal anymore but people change and that’s the way of life.  The best advise I’ve ever heard to give a new bride is to say “I do” not just to her husband but to all the men.  Not the men at the wedding but the men that her husband will become.  It goes both ways because the groom should say “I do” to all the women his bride will become.  We all change over time and we must daily say “I do” to our spouse as they are, changes and all.  Like Luther says in the explanation of the 8th Commandment, “put the best construction on everything”.  Likewise, that new job soon becomes a routine that you’re bored with and you begin to look for something different even though that employer depends on you to do the same job, every day.  That baby that was so adorable will grow into a teenager and beyond to a place where you no longer have any say over what they do.  Parents never stop telling themselves, this is ‘the hardest it will ever be’ raising their children…and it keeps getting harder.  One minute you’re forcing them to take a bath and eat their broccoli and the next minute you hope they’ll come visit once in awhile.  God deals with that too.  He has to watch over us being stupid and making mistake after mistake and rarely asking for help.  When we do finally ask for help, He’s always there to lend a hand.  That’s how parents should be too.  I never said it was easy, I said that’s how it should be.

God has his rose-colored glasses on as well.  The rose color in His glasses are made from the blood of Jesus.  Through the sacrifice that Jesus made in paying for our sins, God always sees us in the best possible light.  The best part is that God has a strap around his head so His glasses will never slip down his nose.  (That’s a joke people – again, it’s funny cause it’s true).  For all eternity, God will view us as perfect because of what Christ did on our account.  By viewing us this way, He’s being an example in how we should view each other.  Yes, imperfections are there but they should not outshine the glory that God created each one of us to be.  He sees the best in us so we should likewise look for the best in each other instead of focusing on the changes here and there that are the result of living in a sinful world.

So, when the world looks bleak, too many changes we don’t want are happening, and our life just sucks…push your glasses back up on your nose.

You hear ‘the book of Exodus’ and think, “Oh, here we go with the 10 Commandments again…blah, blah, blah.”  Not so...kinda.  I wanted to say something about the prep work that went into it beforehand.  Have you ever heard the phrase, “Your faith can be personal but it’s never a private thing.”?  That’s kind of deep.  Any other personal aspect of your life would be considered private; your space, thoughts, feelings, etc.  Not so with your faith.  This is the first thing established at Mount Sinai in Exodus 19.  The people were bound together in one community.  Side note:  They came to Mt. Sinai here and didn’t leave again until Numbers 10:11. 

Exodus 19:5-6a – “Now therefore, if you obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession out of all the peoples.  Indeed, the whole earth is mine, but you shall be for me a priestly kingdom and a holy nation.”  This is the first time God made a covenant with a group of people instead of just one person like Noah or Abraham.  This covenant was more important than the 10 Commandments.  It was so important that the people had three days to prepare for God to come to them to give them the Commandments.  There were three things on their “to do” list for those three days.  1. Wash your clothes.  2. Don’t go up the mountain or even touch the edge of it (boundaries people!).  3.  “Do not go near a woman.” (Exodus 19:15b)  That verse just cracks me up for some reason.  You don’t often hear it that bluntly and never hear men today taking that one verse out of context, do you?  Now, it was reasonable to have as a rule here.  After all, they needed to give themselves over to prayer and abstinence for preparation so they could only focus on God (also see 1 Corinthians 7:5).  This included not only a strange woman or someone not your wife but your wife also.  What was lawful had to be abstained from so the occasion would become more solemn. 

Now that they were prepared, God began in Chapter 20, verses 2-3.  “I am the Lord your God, (this is who I am) who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery (this is what I did) you shall have no other gods before me.” (This is your response to what I did.)  So the 10 Commandments are a response to the covenant that God gave us in Chapter 19.  We respond to God’s gift of being His people by following His Commandments.  Remember that they are commandments, not threats.  If you do them, you will be blessed.  If you don’t, you will be cursed.  Your choice.  God’s commitment is, “I will do this no matter what you do.”  Our minds twist that into, “You have to do this because I did that.”  But that’s not right.  The commandments are God’s fence around His playground for us.  We are fine as long as we stay in the boundaries.  If we go outside the fence, break a commandment, we have God’s forgiveness but still have to live with the consequences. 

Also keep in mind that there are more than 10 Commandments.  I’m not referring to the 11th commandment – happy wife, happy life.  I’m talking about loving one another; forgiving one another (see Lord’s Prayer); the Great Commission; etc.  God promises His steadfast love to those who keep His Commandments.  We are not promised what we envision as a ‘perfect life’ but God will always be with us and give us what we need to live.  Many think they “deserve” God’s love because they follow some commandments.  Likewise, if bad things happen to you, it’s because you didn’t live good enough.  Neither of these statements are true.  We don’t keep the Commandments to get a good life out of it.  We keep them out of love and respect for our heavenly Father.  That’s an important reason and worth living.  You’ll be glad you did.

I still take sermon notes.  Not every Sunday but when a sermon touches me, you bet I’m writing it down and it’s going in my hundreds of pages of notes.  Just like my pictures don’t always seem to match right away with my blogs, sometimes the text of a sermon doesn’t seem to match the message expressed.  I was looking through my notes and found one of my favorites.  The text was from Amos 5:11-15. 

“11 Therefore because you trample on the poor and you exact taxes of grain from him, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not dwell in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine. 12 For I know how many are your transgressions and how great are your sins— you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate. 13 Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time, for it is an evil time. 14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. 15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”

So, you hear what he’s saying, right?  The people were trampling on the poor and stealing from them.  Their sins were many.  They were taking bribes and pushing aside the needy.  The list goes on.  OK, now here’s the jist of the sermon.  Picture this: it’s 7:00 p.m.  You’re in comfy clothes, next to you is a drink and a snack, you’re in your recliner with a book in your lap and the remote in your hand.  Lots of options here… an hour later, you wake up.  The snack is gone, the book is on the floor with the bookmark gone, the spouse has the remote and the drink is warm and flat.  Is that all we’re living for?  Do we spend our days waiting for the work to be done so we can relax and spoil ourselves?  Amos says that if that is all we focus on, we might fall asleep before those days come.  If we settle in for “all about me”, we could fall asleep (die) and miss out on real life.  To get more out of life, we need to focus on others.  Revised picture: when the commercial comes on, pick a chore – fill up your spouse’s car with gas, empty the dishwasher, fold a load of laundry, etc.  Doing these things won’t take long, will help others, and you can still see most of the program you wanted to watch without falling asleep.  Live today with something other than your comfort in mind.  God has our future planned out so we can be useful and help others while we wait to see what He has in store for us. 

Maybe you can see the connection between the two; I can’t.  Regardless, I thought it was a wonderful message.  Now you need to remember that this is a sermon.  That means it won’t apply to every single person that hears it, because different people need different messages.  If you're one of those people who are constantly doing for others and neglect yourself, this will not apply to you.  Sermons are like garage sales.  What may be junk (common knowledge) to someone may be a treasure (new revelation) to someone else.  That’s why you need to keep going to church…and garage sales.  You never know when a sermon meant for you will come up.  I’ve left church unaffected by the message and I’ve left with my ‘tail between my legs’ because of sermons I’ve heard.  Apparently, the “tail” message didn’t stress the Gospel enough.  Or what's more likely - I was so busy focusing on the Law that I didn't hear it; because I left focusing only on the Law and all sermons should have both Law and Gospel.  I look at my blogs the same way.  I may be talking about something you already know or I may have a viewpoint you never thought of before.  Who knows?  Regardless, I’m very blessed that you are reading this and hope you continue to do so.  And if you let someone else know about them….all the better for everyone.  Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but this is God’s Word so it WILL be a blessing to you somewhere down the line.

I am extremely blessed in the fact that I have so many pastors (friends and family) that I can turn to when I have questions.  Side note, just because you leave a church, doesn’t mean you can’t stay friends with the pastor there.  I’ve been studying the Scriptures for many years now.  I wish I could retain the information but because my brain will not, I write it all down.  I have hundreds and hundreds of pages of notes that I’ve accumulated over the years, and it keeps growing.  You can never know too much about the Scriptures.  I believe pastors are like doctors.  They are trained very well in their field and are there to help you but sometimes they have a difference of opinion, and you need a second opinion to help you understand.  I found this out in college when I had to answer the question, “Did Jesus perform miracles on earth or did the Holy Spirit do them through Him?”  Do you know?  I was personally stumped, so I posed this question to three pastors and got two different responses.  One said the Holy Spirit and two said, Jesus.  Interesting, isn’t it?  So, we dig….

The first pastor that responded claimed the miracles were done by the Holy Spirit through Jesus.  For his reasoning, he cited several Bible passages:

Luke 1:35 - And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 

Luke 3:21-22 – “…when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove…”

Matthew 12:28 – “But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

Romans 8:11 – “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

To get a better look at the above passages, we dig some more…

Luke 1 – Jesus was conceived by the Spirit (we know this from the Apostles’ Creed) and begotten of the Father, not the Spirit (Nicene Creed).  The Holy Ghost is of the Father and the Son (Athanasian Creed).

Luke 3 – on Him in bodily form, not “in” Him.  The Spirit is mentioned here to emphasize that the entire Trinity was present to reaffirm Jesus as the true Messiah.  He did not need the gift of the Holy Spirit like we do in our Baptism, but He had to be baptized to place Himself alongside us to fulfill the Law in our place. 

Matthew 12 – Here, the Spirit is called the “dynamos” of God.  Dynamos means ‘power’ in Greek and is where the word dynamite comes from.  The Spirit is the power of God used by Christ.

Romans 8 – So by whose power was Jesus raised from the dead?  Jesus always possessed this power because He is God.  During His humiliation (time on earth as a human), He set aside His godly power, but it was never gone.  It’s like two boards that are glued together.  They don’t add or take anything away from the other but are combined as one.  He says so Himself, “All power on heaven and on earth is given to me.”  This is His divine power that He’s always had since He is begotten of the Father.  We know that God the Father raised Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:20), and Jesus raises Himself (John 10:17-18) at the command of the Father.  This power to do so could be the Spirit (see Matt. 12 again).  Apparently, all of the Trinity is involved in the Resurrection.  But we don’t need to focus on exactly who did what.  It’s done and it’s done right, and it counts and that’s all we need to concern ourselves with.

On the flip side, we can also reference the passages where it speaks of Jesus’ part in the miracles.  John 2:11 – His signs that He did at Cana to manifest His glory.  Luke 8:24-25 – He awoke and rebuked the wind, He commands, and they obey Him.  Matthew 9:1-8 – The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.  The examples go on and on.  Jesus was never separated from His divine power.  (see the April 22, 2022 blog for more information)

As another pastor pointed out, the passages quoted first are technically correct because the Trinity does everything together (in union) with the exception of Christ’s death.  BUT we cannot deny the power of Christ’s work, place, and title as Savior which He would not be if He, Himself did not accomplish such things.  If we gave all the miracles that Christ performed to the Spirit, we take the work of Redemption away from Christ and we are not saved.  This is unacceptable because we are promised salvation by the Father.  The miracles are the proof of the Son’s position as God and Messiah.  The correct answer, as always, is JESUS!

The whole 13th chapter of 1 Corinthians is written to tell us that the greatest thing is love.  Paul’s description of love in verses 4-7 is wonderful because one could substitute the word Christ everywhere Paul writes love and the attributes describe Him perfectly: “Christ” is patient and kind; “Christ” does not envy or boast; “He” is not arrogant or rude. “He” does not insist on “His” own way; “He” is not irritable or resentful; “He” does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. “Christ” bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  No human being can do these things.  Paul paints an amazing picture of a God whose love is perfect and will never leave us.

Paul concludes the chapter with a very well known verse, “So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love”.  These are three things that Christ establishes in us.  Faith, hope and love.  Faith – to bring us closer to Him.  Hope – for everlasting life with Him.  Love – for God and for our neighbor.  Faith and hope are for us.  Love is for our neighbor.  It’s the greatest of the three because others get the benefits.  That was the true work of Christ – For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…  Love that knows no bounds or limits.

We know these verses.  We’ve probably had them memorized for most of our lives.  What really touches me is when God gives me a deeper meaning for them than what I see them as.  My simple human mind cannot fathom God’s will, so occasionally, He has to point it out.  How?  This past weekend, I went to the installation of my brother-in-law, Rev. Larry Knobloch, as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Riesel, Texas.  During the sermon, the visiting pastor told a story about his GPS.  He decided one day to drive from his home and put his home address in the GPS and see how long it would tell him, “Turn around – recalculating.”  He assumed it would stop after a time but it never did and of course, outlasted his patience for hearing it.  This is what God tells us when we run away from Him with our sinful life.  “Turn around”, “come back to Me”.  The voice never sounds frustrated or angry.  It stays the same, calm instruction regardless of how long we make Him repeat it. 

Love God and love our neighbor.  This point was emphasized the very next day when I went to Dollar Tree, Big Lots, and Walmart, looking for goodies to fill Easter bags for the ladies in the women’s group at the church I work at.  They are so wonderful to me, I wanted to make them treat bags for their Easter meeting Thursday to show my appreciation.  I waited for my turn at the register in Dollar Tree with my purchases on the conveyor belt.  There was a gentleman in front of me, just finishing his purchases.  He told the cashier to add mine to his.  I protested but he insisted.  After she rang up my 20 or so items, she said, “$98.00”.  He said, “Add the next guy too”.  He was paying for all of our items.  When I was able to close my mouth, I looked up at this 6 foot, black gentlemen, stuck out my hand and said, “That was not necessary but thank you very much, my name is Susan.”  “He looked at me, shook my hand and said, “Wallace Wills, you’re welcome.”  Right after that, I went to Big Lots.  After wandering around, I saw a cell phone lying on one of the couches displayed.  No one was in sight so I picked it up and turned it in to the manager.  I know how stressful it can be losing your phone in a big store.  It happened to me once but the person that found my phone didn’t bother to turn it in.  This entire night was out of the norm.  What really struck me is that it wasn’t Christmas time.  I can’t count the number of times that I’ve pulled up to McDonald’s drive thru in December and the cashier tells me the car in front of me paid for my meal, and said, “Merry Christmas”.  I then pay for the car behind me and repeat the request, “tell them, Merry Christmas”.  This wasn’t December.  It was April.  So why are we conditioned to only contribute to the food banks at holiday times?  Why do we go out of our way to show love to our neighbor depending on the date on the calendar? 

With our world being so upside down right now, our minds so confused, and our hearts not knowing what to do, the best message God can give us is, “Turn around…come back to Me”.  He doesn’t need to ‘recalculate’ or re-consider changing His mind.  He has but one message that is given to us as many times as we need to hear it, in the same calm, loving voice our Father has always had for us.  So... where are you headed?

I’ve written Bible Studies about finding Jesus in the most unlikely things.  But what about finding the most unlikely of things in Jesus?  Let’s explore the other side of this coin.  I’ve talked before about Jesus being the Shepherd and the Lamb (and I’ll go over that again next time); but He’s also the cornerstone and capstone.  These are two very different stones that were used in building. The capstone was the last stone put in place; the cornerstone, the first.

The Cornerstone is a concept that comes from the first stone set when constructing something, building, bridge, whatever.  All other stones are set in place in reference to this first one.  It determines the stability and position of the entire structure.  The Capstone is the wedge-shaped stone at the top of an arch which is the final piece placed during construction that locks all the other stones into place, allowing the arch to bear weight.  The arch cannot be self-supporting until this stone is in place. 

Psalm 118:22 tells us, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone”.  This means mankind has rejected Christ due to sin.  We must have Him as our foundation but so often refuse to follow, worship, or serve Him with the respect He deserves.  It’s interesting that in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus quotes this passage directly as referring to Himself.  He uses it as a challenge to the Chief Priests and elders trying to goad them out of their hypocrisy. 

In Luke, Jesus asks them the meaning of the Psalm passage and then proceeds to tell them in the next verse.  “Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.” (Luke 20:18)  In the first part, stumbling on a stone, Jesus is referring not only to Himself but also to the doctrine of the Christian faith that centers on His atoning death and sacrifice on the cross, His burial, resurrection, and ascension into heaven.  We ‘stumble’ over this when we fail to believe.  The second part is obviously a different stone because a cornerstone is already on the ground and cannot fall.  This is the capstone.  It will ‘crush’ the person who persists in unbelief to the point where they die without belief in Christ and spend eternity in hell.  You can’t get more crushed than that. 

Those that refuse to believe, lead others away from Him, and are offended by Him, (shall be broken) will do so to their destruction.  Likewise, those that reject Him, hate and persecute Him, will be crushed.   The condemnation of spiteful persecutors will be greater than careless unbelievers.  This reminds me of Genesis 3:15 – He will crush your (Satan’s) head and you (Satan) will strike His (Jesus’) heel.  There is no power imaginable that can match God.

In short, Jesus is the Cornerstone because He existed before anything else and holds all of creation together.  He is also the Capstone because His resurrection from the dead is the final piece of God’s arch of salvation.  Remove Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and the whole universe crumbles in the dust, along with our eternal security.

As I mentioned in the third paragraph, Jesus is called the cornerstone in Matthew, Mark, and Luke.  John has many other names for Jesus; seven in all.  These will be looked at next week.

Hey, God!  Thanks for nothing!!!  (…see picture on the right…)  No, I’m not being sarcastic, I’m being truthful.  In our world today, this phrase, “thanks for nothing” has come to be used to show you are annoyed when someone has failed to help you in some way or you are unhappy about something.  It’s a dismissive way of telling someone they were no help at all.  Ever feel that way about God?  It’s a human thing to do because we’re not perfect but when we say it to Him, we’re not looking at the whole picture.  75% of the world has only 1/10th of the blessings we do.  Think about that for a minute.  The amount of things we take for granted daily is mind-boggling.  God wants us to be thankful for what we have but He also wants us to be thankful for what we don’t have AND He wants us to be thankful for nothing.  (Did I lose you yet?... time to dig deeper)  Please remember that not all of the first two categories will apply to everyone.  I’m speaking generically. 

Thankful for what we have = easy.  Blessings, health, family, friends, job, etc. etc. etc.

Thankful for what we don’t have = requires deeper thought.  Poverty, cancer, pain, loss, etc. etc. etc.

Thankful for nothing…..here we go.

Jeremiah 32:17 – Nothing is too hard for God.  Our God is all-powerful so there is nothing in this world or any other that is too difficult for Him.  He can and does do things we could never begin to imagine.

Matthew 17:20 – Nothing is impossible for us because all things are possible with God.  He will willing and able to help us in time of need.  We can rely on Him when the going gets tough to get us through it.  (see #1 above)

Romans 8:38-39 – Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.  Here, I have to quote Romans because I can’t explain it any better than that, “…neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor power, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus”.  (BOOM…mic drop) 

Side note:  We can try to separate ourselves from God because we are selfish and we think we are all-knowing and all-powerful BUT we CANNOT separate ourselves from the love God gives us.  Even if we think we refuse it, we still receive it.

Hebrews 4:13 – Nothing is hidden from God’s eyes.  All of our deeds, struggles, kindness, compassion, drama, problems, worries, etc; things that no one else knows about, God sees and helps us deal with.

Psalm 8:6 – There is nothing that is not subjected to Christ.  Whatever we fear most; whatever troubles or worries we are dealing with; whatever ______ (fill in the blank); can be put under Jesus’ feet.  He can conquer it because He is above all.

Philippians 2:6-8 – Jesus Christ made Himself Nothing.  He set aside the honor and glory that was rightfully His and humbled Himself for us and our benefit so we could live forever with Him.  Would you have done that for some of the people you see on the news every day?  I didn't think so.

So, even God’s ‘nothings’ are things that we should be grateful for, so say it with me… “Hey God!  Thanks for nothing!!”

It will soon be a new year and so our minds turn to resolutions.  The practice of making New Year resolutions goes back over 3,000 years to the ancient Babylonians.  There’s really no difference between Dec. 31st and Jan. 1st.  Nothing mystical occurs at midnight to change our lives one way or the other.  The idea is to start the new year fresh and live your lives the way you imagine you should instead of how you really do… lose weight, manage money better, exercise, eat healthier, spend more time with family, quit smoking, etc.  These sudden and drastic changes are not so easy when we’ve lived our lives a different way up until then.  I guess that’s why resolutions are rarely kept.  Personally, I think it’s the time restriction we put on them that throws us off.  It’s like starting a diet.  “I can eat whatever I want now because my diet starts on Monday and after that I’ll never have chocolate or French fries again.”  You’re already setting yourself up to fail.  I started my ‘life change’ on a Saturday because I went to the doctor on a Friday.  There was no thinking about it.  It had to be done so I did it and I’m still going strong eight months later.

The Bible says nothing about new year resolutions so what kind of resolution should a Christian make?  Looking at the list above (what most people choose as resolutions), most of them are physical things.  Many times, Christians will resolve to read the Bible more, go to church more often, and pray more.  While these are worthwhile resolutions, they too often fail.  Most often we set ourselves up for failure because the proper motivation behind doing something is not there.  Do you want to read the Bible in a year just to say you did it?  Do you want to lose weight to honor God or to honor yourself when you look in a mirror?

John 15:5 reads, “I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”  Pay close attention to that last part.  If God is the center of your New Year resolution, it has a chance for success, depending on your commitment to it.  God will help you fulfill your wish if it is His will.  If it’s not God-honoring…you’re on your own and will most likely fail.  “If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. But ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind; for the doubter, being double-minded and unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.”  (James 1:5-8)

So, how do you pick a resolution?  Step 1 – PRAY.  Pray for wisdom regarding what resolutions, if any, He wants you to make and pray for the wisdom on how to fulfill the goals He gives you that you may not have thought about.  Step 2 – RELY on God’s strength to help you and find someone He gave you in your life that can help you by encouraging you and holding you accountable.  Step 3 – ATTITUDE.  Don’t be discouraged by or focus on occasional failures.  They will happen in the process because they are small battles, and you are fighting a war.  Also, don’t be vain but give God the glory.  You can’t do anything by yourself so don’t hog all the credit. 

Why is it so hard to set aside time,

To find solitude and pray for a sign,

Why do we struggle with boredom each day,

Yet not bother taking ten minutes to pray,

So many hours are wasted each week,

When we could be praying for answers we seek,

So let’s make a plan at the start of each day,

To make time for God, and in that time, PRAY.  Amen.

May God bless you and your family in this new year.

In a fit of nostalgia, I was looking at toys that I had as a child to see which, if any, were still being made.  I found the Fisher Price Chatter Phone.  You remember it.  As I was looking through questions and answers on it, I found a parent that wanted to know if the phone came to life at night like it did in the movie, Toy Story.  They were afraid that a toy that came to life would scare their child.  That amazed me.  Of course, the answer people were very polite in explaining that Toy Story is just an animated movie and the toys don’t actually come to life when kids aren’t around or at night.  Still, it makes me wonder how someone, a parent, could believe something they saw in a cartoon and wonder if it was real. 

This led to the thought of other things seen in the movies that people accept as the truth.  Currently, I’m watching the Netflix Series, Lucifer.  My son got me started watching it and it fascinates me to see what parts are true and which are completely false.  I can see where it would be hard for a person that didn’t believe in God to trust, or maybe hope, that this show is more truth than fiction.  It makes the devil sound like a really nice angel that was treated unfairly by God for no reason.  Regardless if you’ve seen the show or not, I’m compelled here to clear up some misconceptions about angels and their leader, the devil.  

(underlined statements are implied by the show)

1.  The devil walks the earth. – True.  The Bible says that the devil was cast down to earth after his rebellion (Revelation 12:7-9).  We must remember, however, that he is not everywhere at the same time.  He is not God.  He can only be in one place in the world at any time. 

2.  The devil always tells the truth. – False.  John 8:44  Satan is the father of lies.

3.  The devil is good at finding out our greatest desire. – True.  He uses our desires against us in order to lead us away from the Truth.  Matthew 4:3 & 1 Thessalonians 3:5  The title of ‘tempter’ here is a present participle in the Greek which indicates a continuous and characterizing activity.  This is his job.

4.  God has an ex-wife and the angels are his children. – False.  God has never been married and there is no ‘Goddess of Creation’.  This is creative license by the movie industry.  The angels were created by God as a separate species from mankind, like animals, for a specific purpose; and are therefore NOT His children.  Jesus died to save God’s children, us, and not the angels.

5.  The devil can die. – False.  Angels, good and evil, cannot die, marry, or reproduce.  Their number remains constant.  Luke 20:36

6.  Angels have free will. – True.  They were created to do the will of God.  Satan rebelled against God with 5 assertions or statements of “I will” (Isaiah 14:12-15).  With unexplained origin, evil thoughts of pride influenced Satan to exercise his free will and try to overthrow God.  Once all angels chose sides, their decision became permanent. 

The study of angels is fascinating.  I have attended several studies on them and have over 20 pages of notes on the subject.  (See the post on May 14, 2021 for more details.)  However, angels should not be our focus in life.  They are separate beings, created by God, for a specific purpose and should be respected as such, but not worshipped.  Our reason for studying them is to be more prepared for the lures and methods of the devil and evil angels; to avoid the traps that they set to destroy our faith.   

It’s important to remember where our information comes from when deciding what to believe.  We must always remember that movies are just movies, TV shows are for entertainment only, ALL commercials want our money, the newscasts are biased, reality TV is scripted, and most of what we see on the internet is someone’s opinion.  How then do we know what’s real?  Simple.  We read and we study.  If you have time and money to go back to school, great.  If not, there’s a place that will teach you for free.  It’s called church.  We can read the Bible on our own but it can be confusing at times.  Lutherans believe that Scripture interprets Scripture.  This is most easily understood and related to real life when heard in a sermon.  Strangely enough, this was explained to me in a different way once by a pastor.  He said that while attending church is important, attending Bible Study is more important.  About 10% of the people that go to church will stay for Bible Class.  These numbers should be the other way around.  (mind blown!)

Finally….

7.  If I do something bad, I’m automatically going to hell. – False.  We are all sinful and do and think bad things.  This is not a one-way ticket to hell.  Likewise, doing one really good deed does not guarantee our ascension into heaven.  The only guaranteed way to go to hell is to reject the Holy Spirit.  The only guaranteed way to go to heaven is to believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. 

So, how many of the True/False did you get right?  Need some clarification on this to make sure your eternity is going the way you choose?  Go to Bible Study.  You’ll be glad you did.

It’s mid-November and even though Hobby Lobby had their Christmas Trees up in July, it’s still too early to think about it because we have to go through Advent first.  However.  This is my blog and I can talk about whatever I want.   (smile)

On March, 16, 2011, The David Letterman Show hosted Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers singing a song from their new album, “Rare Bird Alert”.  Steve introduces the song this way: “You know, religious people have such beautiful music and art and atheists really have nothing…until now.  (waves a single sheet of paper)  This is the entire atheists hymnal right here.  A little song called, ‘Atheists Don’t Have No Songs’”.

Athiests don’t have no songs

Christians have their hymns and pages

Hava Nagila's for the Jews

Baptists have the rock of ages

Atheists just sing the blues

Romantics play Claire de Lune

Born again sing He is risen

But no one ever wrote a tune

For godless existentialism

For Atheists There's no good news

They'll never sing A song of faith

In their songs They have a rule

The "he" is always lowercase

Some folks sing a Bach cantata

Lutherans get Christmas trees

Atheist songs add up to nada

But they do have Sundays free

Pentecostals sing, sing to heaven

Gothics had the books of scrolls

Numerologists count, count to seven

Atheists have rock and roll

Catholics Dress up for Mass

And listen to Gregorian chants

Atheists  Just take a pass

Watch football in their underpants

Atheists... Atheists... Atheists

Don't Have No SONGS!

It’s a wonderfully sung tune and very accurate.  If you want to hear it, hold down Ctrl and click here:  Steve Martin - Atheists Don't Have No Songs (Live on Letterman 03-16-2011) [HD] - YouTube

Being a Lutheran, I have always had a Christmas Tree but never thought of them as Lutheran concepts.  When this was mentioned in the song, I had to wonder, “why us?”.  All Christians have them so why are Lutherans singled out?  Research revealed that long, long ago, plants and trees that remained green all year had a special meaning for people in the winter.  Just as we decorate our homes with fir, pine, and spruce, ancient people hung evergreen boughs over their doors and windows.  It reminded them of the green plants and new growth that would come again in the spring.  Of course, they also did it to worship their gods, Ra, Saturn, Balder, etc. and ward off evil spirits, ghosts, witches, and illnesses.

OK, so what does the Bible say about Christmas trees?  Nothing really.  Many people tried to use Jeremiah 10:2-3 to support the claim that they are prohibited.  “For the customs of the peoples are false: a tree from the forest is cut down, and worked with an ax by the hands of an artisan; people deck it with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move.”

Now, a closer look at the passage, in context, (that’s very important), shows that they aren’t referring to Christmas trees.  ‘Cut a tree from the forest’ – check.  ‘Work with an ax like an artisan’ – no.  Have you ever carved your Christmas tree after bringing it home?  I don’t think so.  Continuing… ‘Deck it with silver and gold’ – check.  ‘Fasten it with hammer and nails so that it cannot move’ – No.  That sounds like something being nailed to a wall.  You can’t pick and choose what you want the Bible to say.  This passage has nothing to do with Christmas trees and everything to do with idol worship.  They made wooden idols to pray to and worship.  We don’t worship Christmas trees.  There’s no connection between them and the Christmas trees we decorate these days. 

So, back to why Lutheran?  Martin Luther is credited with changing the ideas people had about evergreens and introducing the Christmas tree.  It’s said he was walking home one winter evening and was so awed by the brilliance of stars twinkling among the evergreens, he placed lighted candles on a tree in his main room to recapture the scene for his family.  He told his family it reminded him of Jesus and later wrote a sermon about the experience for his church.  This led to the spread of people decorating the trees with candles as a symbol of letting Jesus into their homes and being the light of the world.

Taking it one step further, you’ve probably noticed that Christmas trees decorated in church have different decorations than you do at home.  These are called Chrismons (CHRISt MONogram).  Coincidentally, they also were created by a Lutheran.  Mrs. Frances Kipps Spencer, a member of Ascension Lutheran Church in Danville, VA, in 1957 made them from early symbols of faith.  They were and are still made of white and gold to symbolize the purity of our Lord (white) and His glory (gold).

Based on that information you could say the Christmas tree has a distinguished Christian pedigree and definitely Lutheran. 

It’s a difficult world.  There is pain and suffering and death.  I’ve had several good friends die in the past two weeks so for comfort, I went back to my notes from the Christian Care Giving class I took.  I admit that I was very nervous about that class, so my professor went right to the heart in his comment to me, “I can sense your anxiety about this course. It really does present us with things we cannot fix; and yet not being able to fix something doesn't mean we are powerless. In fact, the course will emphasize that we are especially powerful as believers in Jesus Christ in the presence of the very things we cannot fix.”   As someone whose nature it is to fix everything for other people, this really struck me.  Obviously, I can’t summarize the entire class here, but I can point out different ideas that can help get a bigger picture and better understanding.

As comedian, Mitch Hedberg, was fond of saying, “Alcoholism is a disease, but it’s the only disease you can get yelled at for having.”  Every person you come across is dealing with some or many issues of pain and suffering.  I am now at the age when I don’t know what a day without pain is like.  We often forget the fact that others suffer too, which is unfortunate, because many times a person’s behavior is based upon what they are going through.  We can’t really fault them for that.  Look at pain and suffering.  Pain is a greater or lesser degree of physical discomfort while suffering is the anxiety, fear, worry, or hopelessness that may or may not accompany pain.  Suffering can be a reaction to pain or to something else. 

Attention to suffering is the focal point of pastoral care.  It becomes our focal point as well when we try to see past the pain and discover the real reason for the suffering.  When this is discovered, we can help the injured person see God in the midst of it all.  Knowing that God is involved with their care can deepen faith and provide hope.  Sometimes, healing is prayed for but the pain persists.  Over time, it’s easy to assume that God wants us to be sick or that it’s our fault we’re sick.  Maybe it’s a punishment for something we did.  This could not be further from the truth.  Look at John 9:1-3.  “As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth.  His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’  Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned; he was born blind so that God’s works might be revealed in him.’”  Jesus himself said, pain does not come from a person’s sin.  Pain comes from sin in the world.  Sometimes good things come from pain and suffering and sometimes they do not.  God wants what is best for us and sometimes what is best comes through pain.  Even though God does not give us the pain, He can use it for His good. 

We see that this is what happened with Paul.  “a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. 8 Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, 9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.”  (2 Corinthians 12:7b-10)  Paul was forced to come to terms with his own conceit and pride.  He was God’s chosen messenger so why should he suffer?  God was using him for a higher purpose and did not have to explain himself to Paul. 

Often, it seems like our suffering has no purpose and God is not listening to our pleas for help.  When we try to come up with a reason for our suffering, it is our way of looking for someone to blame for what is happening to us.  This quality is as old as time.  Remember Adam?  “The man said, ‘The woman YOU put here with me…’” (Genesis 3:12)  Adam blamed God.  Then we have Aaron in Exodus 32:22-24.  Aaron had just made the golden calf and basically tells God, ‘They wanted a god, but You were gone on the mountain.  What else was I supposed to do?’  Going on to Ruth 1:21, “I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty; why call me Naomi when the Lord has dealt harshly with me, and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”  The examples of people blaming God never end.  Even closer to home, all you have to do is watch daytime TV talk shows to see person after person blaming their parents or their childhood or their spouses, etc. for their mistakes.  They are suffering because of someone else.  Boo, freakin’ hoo.  When we blame God, we fail to see Him for who He really is, a loving God that wants to see us stop blaming and start living our lives.  Just as Paul accepted His suffering, so we should learn to accept ours.  As the saying goes, build a bridge and get over it.  There is no one to blame because we all live in sin and will continue to do so until Judgment Day.  Sometimes it seems that suffering has no purpose but to invent a reason is to place blame.  Instead of that, if we suffer, our focus should be not on ourselves but those around us that we can love and support.  If someone around us is suffering, rather than making up an excuse or reason, sometimes the best we can do is just sit with them and help them cry.

“Finding God in the Movies Too” is the name of my latest book now available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble.  It’s a Bible Study for teens which allows them to see God in a different light…the light of their everyday.  With your heart in the right place, you are often able to see a deeper meaning in things that may not have been planned that way, like movies.  Even Bible stories are like that sometimes, but they are called parables.  Parables are bridges from the known to the unknown.  Sometimes they are a way for us to see what heaven is like while we’re still on earth and other times they are used to take a better look at ourselves and our actions.  I must emphasize here that they are NOT to be confused with fortune telling or crystal ball gazing or tarot cards, etc.  Parables are not foretelling the future, which is against God’s will, but telling the same story in a different way. 

In 2 Samuel 12:1-7, we read of Nathan telling King David a story about two men and a little ewe lamb.  Turns out, that story was a parable because the rich man was David.  It showed him, like no other words could, how wrong he was to do what he did.  Other parables we’re more familiar with are ones like the mustard seed found in Luke 13:18-19, Matthew 13:31-32, and Mark 4:30-32. 

The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed - The seed is the Gospel of Christ.  It’s nothing ostentatious with flashing, neon lights – just the honest, simple truth. 

That a man took – This implies a conscious action on our part.  The Gospel is ours for the taking but we have to take it.

And sowed – Again, a conscious action.  If you leave the seed in the bag, nothing’s going to happen to it.  It will never reach its full potential.

In his garden – We don’t have to go to far away lands to spread the Good News.  If you talk to your neighbors or teach a Sunday School class, you’re planting a seed in a world that is familiar to you.

And it grew and became a tree – The Holy Spirit takes that seed and makes it grow into a strong faith.

And the birds of the air made nests in its branches. – This faith would be a comfort to others who are also looking for something strong to believe in.  The Gospel will lead them to become God’s children in His Kingdom.

These are the seed images that Jesus uses about Himself later in John 12:23-24 when He refers to His death and resurrection and also the images of seed death and resurrection used in 1 Corinthians 15:35ff.  In all uses, there is the transformation and growth from what was forgotten and small.  Some commentators have also noted that the mustard seed is interesting not only for its size but also the strong taste of the mustard it produces.  This indicates the potency of the Gospel as well.

Parables make up about one-third of Jesus’ teachings for a reason.  They are not just general stories but given specifically for us to think about and more importantly, learn from.  For example: “Which of you, having 100 sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the 99 in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?” (Luke 15:4)  Which of you…not, what if.  He wants each of us to apply the lesson to our lives and what we’re doing.  Something to think about.

“You can’t see the forest for the trees”.  “When you are a giraffe and you receive criticism from turtles, they are reporting the view from the level they are on”.  “If a fish views its worth by how well it can climb a tree, it will spend its life believing it is worthless”.  There are so many cliches and quotes that all say the same thing – what is your point of view?  I’ve done this topic before but it bears repeating.  So often, we are so focused on the problem, like this cat in the picture, we fail to see any other solution.  Are there other solutions?  Yes.  There are always options and other ways to view things.  We may not always like the options, but they are there nonetheless.  It reminds me of when my daughter was young.  We were in the front yard and heard an ambulance go by with its sirens blaring.  She said she hated that sound because it meant someone was hurt somewhere.  I told her that I loved that sound because someone was hurt, but there were trained people speeding their way to help them.  Two points of view.

I freely admit that I have spent not months but years of my life focusing on things that frustrated me to no end.  No amount of praying or life changes would make any difference.  I wanted what I wanted.  It was not unreasonable so why didn’t God answer my prayers?  This is the same dilemma that has plagued man since the beginning of time.  How did it work out for others??  Adam and Eve – banned from the garden and punished; Jonah – swallowed by a fish; David – lost his firstborn son; the Israelites – plagued with snakes, etc. 

I’ve always loved the story of the blind man that Jesus healed in Mark 8:23-25.  “He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when He had put saliva on his eyes and laid His hands on him, He asked him, ‘Can you see anything?’  And the man looked up and said, ‘I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.’  Then Jesus laid His hands on his eyes again; and He looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.”  So did Jesus mess up the first time and have to fix it?  No.  He healed the man’s sight because he could see.  The problem was that he didn’t understand what he was looking at.  The second healing was the connection between the man’s mind and his eyes so he understood what he saw.  He could have done it all in one shot but He did it this way for a reason.  Jesus heals us in different ways.  Sometimes those ways are not what we would like or expect but they are for our best.  It doesn’t even have to be something that drastic either.  Look what comes next in Mark 8: Jesus asks His disciples, “Who do you say I am?”  Peter answers him, “You are the Messiah.”  Seems like he had his eyes open, doesn’t it?  Right after, Jesus talks of His upcoming death and Peter rebukes Him.  Peter’s idea was that the Christ would rule them as king, bring Israel together, and bring peace.  But he was still blind.  The core of Peter’s beliefs were that the Messiah didn’t suffer, he didn’t die.  He was the conqueror, not the conquered.  The hero never dies in the first part of the movie.  Like the blind man, Peter could see but his mind didn’t match was his eyes saw. 

It’s like a sight-impaired person looking at the world without their glasses or contact lenses.  I'll never forget the drive from LaGrange to Giddings when I was 11 years old.  I could see as mom drove me to the eye doctor.  After all, I had been wearing glasses for 7 years.  After getting contact lenses at the doctor's office, I could not only see but see every leaf on the trees.  I had never been able to do that before.  Everything was in so much focus that I saw things that were always there but I could never see before.  Without glasses or contacts, you can see, but don’t know what you’re looking at.  The glasses and contacts do for you what you cannot do yourself.  Rather than focusing on the blessings we receive, we are without glasses and focus on our wants and needs.  Why doesn’t this person feel this way about me?  Why can’t I do things I used to do?  Where did I go wrong?  Why won’t God answer my prayers?  Sometimes we’re blind to how things really are but the people around us see it clearly.  I’ve had many times when someone suggested something so obvious, I couldn’t believe that I didn’t think of it.  Sometimes it takes people around us to point out something to get us back on track.  We don’t have to make all of life’s decisions by ourselves.  God gave us people in our lives who care about us to help us.  If we can trust them to be our glasses and let go of our focus of what we want, we take one step closer to being who God made us to be - someone who sees God’s love for us and working in our lives every day in ways we never imagined.

Here’s another quote to consider: “The same boiling water that softens the potato, hardens the egg.  It’s about what you’re made of, not the circumstances.”  What are we made of?  We are children of God and the circumstances of our sinful world can never change that.  Amen.

I’m not a fan of snakes but seriously, look at this cute little guy with the hat on.  This is proof that anything can look harmless and approachable with the right accessories.  I’m personally a fan of sunglasses.  Put sunglasses on any animal and I melt.  But that’s not what I wanted to talk about.  Last week I talked about the most popular snake in the Bible and this time, I want to give some attention to the other famous snake in Numbers 21:4-9.  Go ahead, look it up and read it.  I’ll wait.

The snakes God sent in verse 6 were most likely either the carpet viper or saw scale viper.  They generally stay away from people but are easily angered.  They also live together in large colonies of 100 or 200 for warmth and protection.  When bitten, you feel as if you’re burning inside because of the nerve damage caused by the poison.  The poison will liquify the liver, kidney and spleen.

This is what the Israelites were up against because of their stubbornness, short-sightedness and stupidity.  God did everything for them and gave them everything they needed but they still complained because life wasn't perfect.  They spoke against God & Moses and then took it further and went after God’s gift.  They loathed the food God gave them.  They said that they detested it.  That was like throwing God’s gift back in His face.  They could have pigged out on free food every day.  If you ground up manna and mixed it with water, you could make bread out of it.  If you mixed it with honey, it would make the honey better, like chocolate mousse.  If you roasted it over a fire, it would taste like popcorn.  It was that wondrous of a food.

When the Israelites got their wake-up call and repented, God had Moses make a bronze serpent so when the people were bit, they could look at it and live.  Did you catch that?  When they were bit.  When the pole was put up, the people still were bitten and their livers were still damaged and their bodies still burned.  They still had to live with the snakes.  Likewise, we are still dealing with our challenges, pain and suffering.  We have a pole, Jesus on a cross, that reminds us of the sin that God conquered but we still suffer from.  We may be bitten and suffer in this world but we will not die.  We don’t need all the physical poles to prove that God destroyed sin for us.  No need for poles of polio, Corona, politicians, etc.  But wait a minute! This bronze serpent violates the First Commandment, doesn’t it?  You shall have no other gods before Me.  That means we cannot have an image to honor or worship that is not the true God.  Jesus talks to Nicodemus about this in John 3:14.  Jesus compares His position on the cross with the raising of the serpent by Moses.  The position only; not the means of salvation.  Believing in Christ is not the same thing as believing in something inanimate hard enough to make it beneficial.  Jesus is actually doing something on the other end of our belief while the bronze serpent is as inert as a doll.

Even though the Israelites moved from place to place, this serpent pole stayed with the people through the years, everywhere they went; to remind them. When Hezekiah ruled, he destroyed the pole and broke the bronze serpent the Moses had made into pieces (2 Kings 18:4).  Why?  The people named the serpent, “Nehushtan” (from the Hebrew word ‘nehoshet’ meaning bronze) and had begun to worship it instead of God.  (2 Kings 18:4).  See Lutherans?  Sometimes, (I said sometimes), just because you’ve “always done it this way” doesn’t mean it’s still "right".

Fun fact: in the days of Moses the production and processing of bronze was the highest form of technology and was nothing short of miraculous. 

I know I’ve been doing a lot of “biographys” lately but this is the last one.  Promise. 

Paul was not an apostle but he did write many of the books of the New Testament so I believe he deserves some attention.  What most people know about Paul is his conversion and his letters to churches.  Let’s start at the beginning with his conversion.  Luke records the conversion of Paul three times in the book of Acts.  Why?  I believe it’s described the first time to be a matter of record. 

Luke is describing Paul’s life beginning with Stephen’s stoning, on through Paul’s persecution of the church and his conversion by Jesus and the Spirit.  Paul then begins his missionary journeys and ends up in Jerusalem where he knows nothing except that he will be imprisoned.  In Jerusalem, Jews from Asia see him in the temple and stir up the crowds against him.  He speaks to the crowd in Aramaic to get their attention as the guards are taking him away.  As the crowd listens intently, he tells them of his conversion and adds to Luke’s version of Ananias’ part.  He’s then imprisoned for two years until he is brought before King Agrippa.  He knows the King is familiar with the religious groups among the Jews.  His recount of his conversion to the king however is yet different again.  He does not include Ananias’ part, his own blindness, or the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was speaking.  Instead, he adds things that would appeal to this Roman audience.

Through all three versions, we get a complete story.  The second and third telling by Paul are told in different ways because of the audience listening to it.  He takes into account who they are and what they believe.  We can learn from this.  It sometimes helps to know who your audience is before you start speaking to them about your faith.  If you start right off and insult what they believe, you won’t get anywhere.  As he was being taken away to prison, Paul knew he had one shot at the crowd so he started off with an exciting story that would get their attention, his conversion.  He did a good job with the crowd until he said the word, “Gentile”.  That reminded them of why they wanted him arrested in the first place and it fell apart after that.  When speaking to Festus and King Agrippa, he used parts of the story and terms that they would be able to relate to.  If something makes sense to you and is easy to relate to, it’s easier for you to accept.  Paul did not convert everyone he spoke with, but he said everything God told him to.  He took advantage of every opportunity available to him regardless if it was two men on the road, a mob or a king.  It’s the same for us.  When we are confronted with an opportunity to share our faith, we should first say a quick prayer for the Spirit to put the words in our mouth and then go with it.

That happened to me once and I’ll never forget it.  I had a friend that was a Mormon ask me what I believe.  WOW!  No pressure!  I said a quick prayer and started talking.  Thinking back, I’m not crazy about what came out of my mouth so I have to assume that he wasn’t really interested anyway or the Spirit would have worked to help him.  Regardless, I didn’t back down and am glad I can say that.

Paul has just about all the credentials you need to be a first rate evangelist and was the best possible example of Christian faith:

·         He could speak in Greek to the Romans and in Aramaic to the Jews

·         He appealed to both 'white collar' and 'blue collar' by being a highly regarded Pharisee and also a tent maker (everybody needs a backup plan)

·         He was knowledgeable of Jewish Law as well as Jesus' plan to include Gentiles, so he was comfortable and credible in witnessing to both

·         His passion for Jesus and his ministry exceeded his fear of imprisonment or death

·         He used a network of people to maximize his mission work

·         Who better to see and hear of a conversion to Christianity than someone whose position was polar opposite?  If Paul could be converted, anyone could.

·         His Roman citizenship was to his benefit because several times it deferred persecution.

Paul began life with the name, Saul, but God changed it after he was converted.  The difference between the two names could not have been anymore clear. Saul, a Hebrew name (Sha 'ul) means "asked for or prayed for." How many people do you think prayed for Saul as he persecuted Christians? It would be easy to say not many. However, I must believe that there would have been some early Christians who might have lifted up prayer on his behalf that he may be touched by the Holy Spirit. (Of course, he was more than "touched," he was knocked off his high horse, literally.)  What is interesting about his new name is that Paul, now his Roman name (remember he was both a Jew and a Roman citizen), means "small or humble." Who better to carry Jesus' message that the great shall become small and the small, great?  When you think about it, it makes perfect sense.  God sees us as great when we share His message with others, no matter who we are.