North Star News 12/29/2011

As we come to the end of the calendar year, it is time for some retrospectives. Newspapers and magazines are producing accounts of the major events of the last year along with lists of top news stories, personalities, and trends as well as events of 2011. Others write humorous articles about the great collapses of 2011: Herman Caine, the Minnesota Vikings, that Kardashian marriage. Recalling predictions made at the end of 2010, it is easy to poke fun at the prognosticators. The future is impossible to predict.

When the year Jesus was born came to an end, his mother Mary thought about all the remarkable things that had taken place over the past twelve months. Luke 2:19 says that Mary “kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.” She remembered back in March when the angel Gabriel startled her with his unannounced visit and his astonishing statement that she would conceive and bear a son whose name would be Jesus. She remembered the warm embrace of her kinswoman Elizabeth whose child leaped for joy within her when Mary approached bearing the Christ child within her own body. Those three happy months in the hill country of Judah went by all too quickly. Then it was time to face reality. She remembered the unexpected kindness of Joseph who did not call off their engagement when she told him she was “with child,” but he said that an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream to tell him of the messianic fulfillment this child would bring. There was the long arduous trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem in her ninth month which they made safely despite the dangers. And finally, in the City of David, filled with strangers, the kindly old innkeeper found them a warm and cozy stable for the night when the birth took place.

When the year began, Mary thought it would be an ordinary year with an ordinary wedding for an ordinary girl. But when she looked back, there were twists and turns she never imagined would take place. At every point where there was danger or fear, the Lord provided for her and Joseph and the precious child growing within her. Perhaps in moments of quiet reflection she recalled Psalm 23 which says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want….though I walk through the valley….I will fear no evil for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

For many of us 2011 has brought some real surprises and maybe even brought us to a place we don’t want to be. But in the year 2011, just like in the year 1, the Lord has been there to guide, direct, comfort, and inspire. The well known poem “Footprints in the Sand” by Mary Stevenson speaks to the truth that in the most difficult and dangerous moments of life, the Lord is the one quietly holding up his people. The closing line of the poem, when the Lord explains why there is only one set of footprints in the sand at certain times, says that “is when I carried you.”

He who carried us through all the ups and downs of 2011 will surely carry us through whatever 2012 may bring. As the angel Gabriel said to Mary, and again to the shepherds on the hillside, “Fear not!”

North Star News 12/22/2011

Before the English popularized the practice of singing Christmas carols, before Martin Luther wrote “From Heaven Above to Earth I Come,” even before St. Francis created the first crèche, the Church celebrated the story of the incarnation of the savior in chant. One of those ancient chants was written in Latin by Aurelius Prudentius around the year 405 and begins “Of the Father’s love begotten, ere the worlds began to be” and continues on to tell the story and sing the praises of Jesus Christ in a hauntingly beautiful melody. Although it is not the sort of music easy to sing while Christmas caroling, this chant is still heard in concert halls and churches and on the radio at this time of year.

The birth of any child is a story of love. There is the love of a man and a woman that began the process that led to the birth. There is the story of the intense bond between a mother and her child, a love quite unlike any other. But the birth of Jesus is a unique love story. It is the story of a God who loves people like you and me despite our many flaws and imperfections and, at times, our open rebellion against the God who created us. The Gospel according to St. John does not contain the story of the birth of Jesus but it does contain the verse that most perfectly summarizes what the stories about Jesus’ birth in Matthew and Luke mean: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that whoever believes in him may not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Christmas is the time to revel in the love of God, a love that is wholly undeserved which makes it all the more precious.

People in love love to give gifts. Many people this year have searched for just the right gift to put under the tree to show just how much they love the recipient of the gift. A young man shows his love for his bride-to-be with the gift of an engagement ring, which, in turn, is a sign of an even greater gift, the pledge of lifelong love and faithfulness which is made on their wedding day. The gift of Jesus, born in Bethlehem, is both the sign and the reality of God’s love. In 1st John 4:9 it says, “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins.” The song of the angels, the chatter of the shepherds, and the reverence of the wise men are all in response to what God did to show his great love, as are the carols sung in Christian churches late on the night of December 24 or early on the morning of December 25 each year.

There is another Christmas hymn not sung so often and no longer in very many hymnals that was written by Christina Rossetti in the 19th century. It is simple and elegant and gets to the point of Christmas:
Love came down at Christmas,
Love all lovely, Love divine;
Love was born at Christmas,
Star and angels gave the sign.

North Star News 12/15/2011

“Merry Christmas” is the greeting of the season. Through much of the year people say “have a good day” or “enjoy your weekend” but this month it’s “Merry Christmas” or some variation of it. Everybody wants to have a happy holiday. More than just wishing for it, most people are actively working for it by buying presents, sing songs, and planning meals. As the song sung by Andy Williams says,
“It's the most wonderful time of the year
With the kids jingle belling
And everyone telling you "Be of good cheer"
It's the most wonderful time of the year
It's the hap-happiest season of all.”

But this most wonderful time of the year will come to an end. Those who drive around on December 26th will see Christmas trees stripped bear and set outside. If not that day, then soon after, decorations will come down and be put away to sit in a dark attic or basement until next year. And what of that holiday cheer? Will it also disappear from view along with all the Christmas decorations?

If the joy of the season is based on well lubricated parties, once-a-year family gatherings, and the mound of presents under the tree, then yes, the joy of the season will disappear with the decorations. But if the joy of the season comes from God’s gift of a savior in the person of the babe of Bethlehem, then no, joy will not come to an end in the long slog through the cold days of January. Jesus was born to bring joy to every season of the year through his gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation which are granted to all who believe in him.

In John 15:11 Jesus said, “These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” In John 16:22 he said, “….I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” And in John 17:13 he prayed for his disciples, “But I am coming to you [Father], and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.”

Jesus came into the world to bring joy to all people, just as the angel said when he announced to the shepherds, “Behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be to all people.” Jesus comes into human hearts through faith to bring a joy that does not fluctuate with the seasons or with the contingencies of life because through it all, the one called “Emmanuel” really is “God with us.” For that reason, St. Paul wrote in Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I will say, rejoice. Let everyone know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand!”

May these busy days of December be filled with the joy of the season, but even more important, may all the days of every season be filled with the joy of knowing Jesus Christ as savior and lord.

North Star News 12/08/2011

“What do you want for Christmas?” is the question being asked in many homes at this time of year. Beyond the gifts that fit under the Christmas tree, one of the great gifts of Christmas is peace.

Among the prophecies of the coming of the Messiah is this one from Isaiah 9:2 “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end…..”

This prophecy has been fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the child who was born in Bethlehem to be the savior of the world. His mission in the world was to bring peace with God to people who have been alienated from God by their sins. Since “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) that includes all the people of the world, every last one of the 7 billion people who currently inhabit this planet, including you and me. Through faith in Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice on the cross, sinners are forgiven and find true peace. Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 2:14 says, “He [Jesus] is our peace….” And Jesus himself said in John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” The gift of peace is given by God and received through faith in Jesus Christ, who is aptly called the Prince of Peace.

But the prophecy of Isaiah 9:2 has not been fulfilled yet in terms of conventional world peace. When Jesus was born the world was experiencing the Pax Romana engineered by Caesar Augustus and his successors which meant that there were only minor wars and insurrections going on in the Mediterranean world for about a hundred years. But this was just a pause in the vast sweep of history where wars and rumors of wars have been constant. 2011 is no different from other years. War planes and drones fly as men hatch plans for violence in many corners of the world. Those who have put their faith in the Prince of Peace are called to work for “peace, goodwill toward men” in every season of the year. Romans 14:19 says, “Let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.” And Hebrews 12:14 says, “Strive for peace with all men….” This means trying to encourage reconciliation between people coming to your home for Christmas dinner, on the one hand, and trying to influence the government toward a peaceful resolution of world conflicts, on the other.

As we move through this month of buying gifts and giving presents, may you receive the greatest gift of all, “peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,” and may you give the gift of working for peace as you remember the beatitude, “Blessed are the peace makers for they shall be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9)

Newsletter December 2011

On All Saints’ Sunday, November 6, I was sitting in a pew at a church in Minneapolis singing “For all the saints who from their labors rest” when I was overwhelmed with powerful memories of my father, who died in 1998. For the first 18 years of my life he and the rest of my family worshiped together Sunday after Sunday. But now he is a part of the family of God that is in heaven. Nobody called him a saint while he lived – or a great sinner either, for that matter – but he was on my mind that All Saints’ Sunday.

As I looked down the pew there were my wife, my daughter, and my sister beside me, while the boys in the family were elsewhere, one at Eidsvold in Halma and the other on business in Kansas City. And I felt again that powerful sense of family that I first experienced as the eldest of five children who filled an entire pew on Sunday morning. It is one of the great joys of my life to worship together with my family. Even though I know that as one of the ordained, my proper place is in the pulpit on Sunday morning, I still feel get a special feeling when I am in the pew with my family. Maybe because it is a rare event it is all the more special for me.

A frail elderly woman came to sit on the outside end of the pew in front of us. Right behind her came an usher with a cushion for the pew bench and another cushion for the pew back. She sat when the rest of us stood to sing, and the pastor came down to her pew to give her communion. I have no idea who this woman is, but I was touched by the extra care and consideration that was extended to her by the regulars in the congregation. They clearly know her well. Then I started to think that she, too, is a part of the family, the family of God, that is. She is precious in his sight, frail as she is.

A mother, daughter, and two grandchildren came to sit two pews ahead of us. The granddaughter was about 6 or 7 and settled in. You could tell she worshipped here often. But the grandson, who was maybe 2 years old, kept his mother and grandmother busy through most of the service. It started with the organ prelude when he stood in the pew, looked back at the balcony where the organ is, pointed, and said in his loudest voice “Papa! Papa!” I thought his father was in the choir, but my wife, who remembers people so much better than I, said “no, his grandfather is the organist.” The little boy repeated this several times and was as full of action as a two year old boy should be, until he fell asleep toward the end the service. I watched this rambunctious child and his family struggle to keep up with him, and I thought that he, too, is a part of the family, the family of God, that is, and belongs right here with all his uninhibited behavior as much I do. He is precious in God’s sight, young as he is.

In Mark 3:31 it says that Jesus was teaching in a crowded house when his mother and his brothers (or cousins, depending on your translation) were outside asking for him. Jesus replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And then he looked around at the people listening to him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. Whoever does the will of God is my brother, and sister, and mother.” In this passage Jesus is not denigrating his relationship with his relatives nor is he abrogating the fourth commandment, “Honor your father and your mother…..” But he is pointing to the reality of a great family of God that is more important than any ties of blood, clan, race, or nationality.

This last Thanksgiving we heard in the media a great deal about how Thanksgiving is a time for family. We will hear it all again at Christmas. Gather in the clan! But Christmas, which centers on the Holy Family, is about looking beyond relatives and friends to all the children of God (John 1:12)

Earlier this fall there was a letter to the advice columnist in the newspaper from a woman complaining that her nieces were bringing their boyfriends to Thanksgiving dinner. They’re not family yet, she complained. Thanksgiving week the columnists printed several responses she received to that letter, and one of the best was this. A woman wrote that everyone is welcome at her Thanksgiving table. And then she said that one year she sent her husband out for more milk on Thanksgiving morning and he came back with a carton of milk and four young soldiers he met at the convenience store who were buying hot dogs because they were far from their relatives for the holiday. The woman said it was the best Thanksgiving dinner they ever had, even though she had to stretch the food a bit.

Isn’t that in the spirit of Christ and his family?

First Sunday in Advent 2011

KEEP AWAKE Mark 13:24-37 Advent 1B November 27, 2011
Today is the beginning of the season of Advent, the time before Christmas when the Church thinks about the coming of Christ into the world. His coming into the world is divided into three parts.
First is the coming of Jesus as the child born in Bethlehem to be our savior, which we will celebrate on December 25th. In the Nicene Creed we say “For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary and became truly human.” This is a past event.
The second is the return of Christ at the end of time when he will be judge and ruler over all. We say in the Nicene Creed, “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.” This is a future event.
The third emphasis in Advent is the coming of Christ to us in the present time in the Word and in the Sacraments, as we worship and pray and call on his name. The emphasis is on the here and now, our present reality. It is this third aspect of the coming of Christ that I wish to speak about during each of the Sundays of Advent this year - 2011. And today I would have you think about this under the heading of today’s over all theme: “keep awake.”
In our gospel from Mark 13 for today, Jesus is clearly talking about his second coming at the end of time when he tells his disciples in verse 33 “Beware, keep alert…..” and in verse 37 “…what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.” Taking these words and placing them in the context of his coming to us in the present time, they are telling us to be alert to the ways that he is present for us in the here and now, so we do not miss what he is doing among us and fail to participate in it. For Jesus Christ is not just a historical figure from 2,000 years ago, nor is his coming only a future event for which we are waiting. He is among us now. He is working in the lives of his people today.
In Matthew 28:20 Jesus concluded his first coming among us as the Man from Galilee with the words, “and lo, I am with you always, even to the close of the age.” And in Matthew 18:20 Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” And in John 14:18 Jesus said, “I will not leave you desolate; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me; because I live you will live also. In that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me and I in you.” That last quotation from John is a bit complicated, I will grant you, but the point that is being made is that when Jesus ascended into heaven, he did not forsake you and me for all the years between when he first came to this earth as a child and when he will come again as a judge. “I will come to you….” Jesus said.
In today’s gospel we are advised to be awake and alert to his coming. One of the things we are to do is not be distracted by other things in this world so that we miss seeing where God is at work. It is easy to be distracted.
In November’s WELCA Bible study we read the Parable of the Seed and the Sower. In that parable the seed, which is the word of God, falls in many places as the sower sows: on a hard path, on rocky ground, in good soil, and among thorns. In Mark 4:19 Jesus says that the seed that is sown among the thorns is like when the word of God is proclaimed but (and here I quote) “the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.” This, to me, seems to be the great danger of this frantic and frenetic time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We might paraphrase by saying the “demands of the season, the delight in presents, and the desire for other things obstruct the ability to see God at work around us.”
In my confirmation class we had a little skit that I dealt with twice this month, once with the regular class and once in a make-up class with those who missed the regular class. Our subject was the 9th commandment “you shall not covet your neighbor’s house.” The skit was about a boy and a girl who were sitting in the stands beyond center field at a baseball game. The boy was all excited because his favorite player, a terrific home run hitter, was going to come up to bat soon. He had high hopes that a home run ball would be hit right to him so that he could catch it in the stands. As they settle in for the first inning – the home run hitter is going to bat 4th or 5th – they sit with a box of popcorn and cup of soda pop. But then someone else comes in with a bigger box of popcorn, and the boy begins to covet that bigger box of popcorn. Soon he goes out to get the bigger one, enough for two or three people. But then in comes a family with a huge family-size bucket of popcorn, and the boy begins to covet again. He takes his eyes off the game that is now in progress and has eyes only for the bucket of popcorn. He is one of those kids who has to have the biggest and the best. So pretty soon he is up again and off to get the biggest bucket of popcorn and largest cup of soda pop the concession stand sells. And then he sits down with this huge bucket in his lap and this huge cup in his hand, just when his favorite player swings the bat with all his might. Yes, it is a first inning home run, hit right at the place where these people are sitting, but now he can hardly move without spilling things all over everyone. So he misses see the swing because he is trying to balance all his food, and it is his friend who reaches out to catch the ball hit into the stands. He missed the whole thing because he was distracted by all the stuff he had to have and went home without a souvenir baseball.
Jesus would not have us miss his coming to act in our world today because we are too distracted by things around us or too sleepy from doing too many of the things that aren’t really that important in the long run. He would like us to pay attention, be alert, and see that he is working in the world around us today. Keep awake!
Here is a free verse poem by a woman who was awake to God’s presence.
1. I saw God at work today
In my daughter as she cared for her two babies.
I sawn His gentle Hand reach down, filling her with peace and grace.
I saw God working today, when my daughter spoke to me words of wisdom.
I saw God working today on my behalf, when the tides began to rise in my heart
I heard Him say, "Peace, be still"
Not a poem, just grateful.

Here is a testimony from a man who was awakened to God’s presence in his life when he was anxious and worried. He said:
The other day, I met a man for lunch that I had only met briefly a couple of months ago. We had serious business to talk about as our respective organizations were in the middle of a dispute. Although we greeted each other cordially, I must admit that my stomach was in knots anticipating that each of us would spend more energy protecting our respective positions and not enough time listening. We ordered food and it was delivered to our table quickly. I picked up my fork and looked up at him. “Do you mind if we say grace first”? he asked. I looked around the crowded restaurant. “No, of course not”, I replied. Aloud, he thanked the Lord for the food, for friends, family and colleagues. He asked the Lord to bless our food and our conversation. Suddenly my apprehension departed. We ate, chatted and managed to find a resolution in short order. I left the meeting thanking God for sending me such a wise lunch companion who reminded me of what I needed most.
Today, I would ask if you are alert to the work of Jesus in the world today? Take a moment and think about where you have seen the hand of God at work this week.
In the verse of scripture that touched your heart.
In the words of a friend that lifted your spirit.
In the forgiveness extended to one who sinned against you.
In the cup of water given in Jesus’ name.
In the prayer that was answered.
AMEN.

Newsletter November 2011

“No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any public office or public trust under the United States.”
- Constitution of the United States article VI

“I’d rather be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian.”
- attributed to Martin Luther

On October 7 a Baptist pastor from a Texas mega-church endorsed Gov. Rick Perry of Texas in his bid for the Republican nomination for president over his Mormon rival, former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts on the basis of Perry’s evangelical faith. His remarks caused quite a bit of ink to be spilled in the press when he used the inflammatory word “cult” to describe the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which commonly goes by the name “Mormon.”

The issue of whether or not the Mormon Church is another Christian denomination is one that has been debated for years. The Mormons usually assert that they are not just another Christian denomination, but the true Christian Church on earth. Close to all evangelical Protestants as well as Catholics and Orthodox would not agree that they are a Christian denomination at all, but a significant deviation from Christianity. This is an issue for Christians and Mormons to debate among themselves.

The bigger issue as America holds local elections this November and a national election next November is whether a candidate’s religion should be a factor in deciding for whom to vote. This was an issue in 1960 when John F. Kennedy, a Catholic, ran for president, as it was in 1928 when New York Governor Al Smith ran against Herbert Hoover. It was even an issue early in Abraham Lincoln’s career when he was accused of being an atheist because he did not belong to any church. Those charges are often forgotten today because of the many Biblical references in Lincoln’s speeches and his deep sense of Biblical morality. From the beginning America’s constitution has been clear on the issue of religion. No citizen of this country shall be barred from office on account of religion. The founders of this country had a deep fear of religiously based politics.

The sometimes questioned but often cited quote from Martin Luther makes the Lutheran position clear. Whether Martin Luther really said it or not, this quote embodies his thinking on the issue of politics and religion. The Turks were advancing toward Vienna during Luther’s lifetime. Their Moslem faith was a real challenge to Christian Europe. And yet Luther said that he would take a smart Moslem over a dim Christian for his ruler any day. The test of leadership is wisdom, courage, and compassion, not religion per se. Lutherans have not always lived by this ideal as they should, but it is pretty much the Lutheran position.

Minnesota has a proud tradition of voting for the candidate and not for the church. For decades one of the two U.S. Senators from Minnesota has been Jewish (Boschwitz, Wellstone, Coleman, Franken) and yet religion has not factored into their successive elections. Two are Republicans; two are Democrats. Two are religious; two are secular. Although Minnesota is one of the least diverse states in the nation, the first – and so far only - Moslem member of congress was elected in Minnesota’s 5th district (Minneapolis). The state has had more Lutherans and Catholics in office, of course, but this state has not put a religious test to the candidates who run for office.

When a voter enters the voting booth, the questions that should be uppermost in his or her mind should be whether the candidate holds the positions and advocates the policies the voter wants, whether the candidate can be trusted to carry them out with integrity, and whether the candidate will deal wisely with those unforeseen events and crises that will surely arise. Some of the positions a candidate takes may flow out of religious conviction, and that is to be expected. True faith is a foundational aspect of life and affects all aspects of a person’s life including politics. But in the end, it is public policy and not personal piety that should matter the most. Religion, like race, ethnicity, and gender, should not be a determining factor in an election.

Pastors are not called to endorse candidates. They are called to preach the gospel and teach basic moral values, as well as encourage everyone to vote according to their own consciences.

Newsletter October 2011

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Psalm 119:105
Psalm 119 is an acrostic in the Hebrew language with each of the 22 stanzas beginning with a different letter of the alphabet and each of the eight lines in each stanza beginning with the same letter in the Hebrew. It is a very clever devise for those who can read it in the original language and probably a handy tool for memorizing the psalm. Our hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, points to this acrostic when it puts both the Hebrew letter and the English spelling of the letter at the head of each stanza from “alef” to “tav”. But like most of you, I do not read Hebrew other than a few common words like שלם so I cannot appreciate the pattern of the psalm as the people of the Old Testament did.
What I can appreciate in the psalm is the exuberant love for God’s word that fills every stanza. Unlike the perception that the Bible is a dry and dusty old book, Psalm 119 says “lead me in the path of your commandments for I delight in it” (verse 35) and “Oh, how I love your law! It is my meditation all day long.” (verse 96) and “your decrees are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart” (verse 112). The author of Psalm 119 had a deep emotional and joyous relationship with the written Word of God. Read it or listen to it or recite it from memory and his heart was filled with joy and delight.
When I was much younger Psalm 119:9 was a verse often in my mind: “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to thy word.” I did not want to be angry or carry a grudge or easily take offense, and it was so helpful to remember the words of scripture in this psalm and the high standards Our Lord set in the Sermon on the Mount and even more helpful to see Our Lord’s compassion and mercy toward the sinner. In particular, Jesus’ words to the paralytic lower by ropes through the roof of the house in Matthew 9:2 “Take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven” were powerfully reassuring in moments of guilt.
Now that I have reached an age where I see how old temptations never cease and new ones pop up from time to time, passages from the epistles are more on my mind, like Philippians 3:12 “Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own” and that wonderful passage in Hebrews 12:1 “Therefore since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” At this stage of life perseverance and continuity are on my mind, as the world continues to change and the old battles with sin and suffering continue unabated. The “age of Aquarius” that dawned when my generation came of age in the 1960s has not been as bright as we once thought it would.
The day will come when I hope to be able to say with St. Paul in 2nd Timothy 4:7 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” I just hope I have a few more laps to run.
There are passages in the Bible for almost any situation, passages which come alive when we have a lively knowledge of them. The writer of Psalm 119 came to find delight and joy in God’s Word because he meditated on it often. He read the Word, he listened to the preachers, he thought about what he read and how as it related to his life. The use of the whole Hebrew alphabet in Psalm 119 points to how the Word of God relates to the whole of human life, whether it is understood as from A to Z or alpha to omega or alef to tav. The scriptures are just as important to the old man reading a passage for the umpteenth time as it is to that new young reader with her brand new Bible reading a story for the very first time.
In September our parish gave Bibles to the third graders so these new young readers could read for themselves the stories that their parents and teachers have been telling them. Our fifth graders are preparing for holy communion by reading what the Word of God says about this life-giving sacrament. Our 8th and 9th graders continue to meet with me to explore further the Word of God. And the women of our church are working through the Gospel of Mark in a new WELCA Bible study. Most important of all, the Word of God, read and proclaimed, sits squarely at the center of every Sunday worship service. My younger pastoral colleagues sometimes say to me, “Gary, you’ve preached for 35 years so this passage has come before you as a sermon text at least ten times. What do you say?” And I find there is always something new and fresh, because God’s Word is “living and active” as Hebrews 4:12 says. It continues to be a “lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.”

Newsletter September 2011

The tenth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks falls on the second Sunday of this month. Most of us can remember exactly where we were and exactly what we did on that terrible day. “9-11” has become one of those dates that summons up powerful memories, much like December 7th (Pearl Harbor attack) and November 22nd (John F. Kennedy assassination). The tenth anniversary of 9-11 gives us an occasion to pause and reflect, -- and remember that my incoming confirmation students this year were only 3 and 4 years old in 2001. They regard the stories about September 11, 2001 the way I do the stories my dad told me about where he was and what he did on December 7, 1941. Time is moving on and so must we, but few of us will ever forget that cloudless September day.

After the initial shock and sorrow that enveloped the nation in September 2001, there came anger and a desire for revenge. “The men who did this will hear from us soon enough!” President Bush said as he stood at Ground Zero with his arm around a fire fighter. It was probably the right thing to say at the moment, given the mood of the country. But now, ten years later, it would be good for us to reflect on the nature of evil and the responses we make to it.

The attacks of 9-11 were not just attacks on the United States of America, they were attacks on civilization by men who wanted to change the world by the use of violence and terror. It was barbarism as the men involved, including those who supported or cheered the hijackers, thought that they could change the world by the use of sheer terror.

Since then the world has witnessed a series of events predicated on the same principle, such as the 2004 Madrid train bombings and the 2005 London subway bombings. In attempts at ever more horrific attacks there was the attack on the Beslan elementary school in Russia by Chechen rebels and, most recently, an attack on teens at a youth camp on Utøya Island, Norway by a right wing extremist. The perpetrators have different causes, but they all share the belief that terror, violence, and bombs will win the day for them, or at least begin the process of transformation they seek..

Terrorists will accomplish something of their goals only if the people of the world respond in kind to them with violence, war, bloodshed and retribution, and the world descends into the darkness where evil lurks. They will be thwarted only if most people decide that they will not be consumed by the hatred and fascination with violence that fueled these terrible events.

In the second reading for worship on August 28, it says “Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ No, if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink…..Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:17-21) The Christian response to evil acts is to do good deeds. The Christian response to hate is to love. The Christian response to calls for revenge is to say, “now, wait a minute.”

At the new Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial in Washington D.C. one of the quotes inscribed on the wall of quotes is from a sermon he delivered in 1963: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.” Martin Luther King, in his day, gave powerful voice to the ethic of Jesus which says, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew 5:44)

This September, ten years after the terrible events of 2001, it would be good to reflect on how we can be agents for peace and reconciliation in this world. It would be good to use this anniversary to reach out to someone who is on “the other side.” Find something good to say about someone in the other political party. Praise an admirable practice in another religion. Shake hands with someone who has been cold or hostile. Take a Moslem to lunch. And pray for peace. Here is a good prayer:

“Most gracious God, you have made us in your image and given us over to one another’s care. Hear the prayers of you people, that
unity may overcome division
hope vanquish despair and
joy conquer sorrow;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
(ELW occasional services page 366)

Newsletter August 2011

As Eidsvold celebrates its 125th anniversary on July 31 this year and First Lutheran Church begins to think about its centennial in 2016 – just five years from now – our thoughts go back to those early settlers of this region who felt so strongly about the evangelical Lutheran faith that they sacrificed time, energy, and money to begin these congregations. At the time they had their hands full just setting up their homes, farms and businesses. Travel was difficult, communication was slow, and daily chores were really a chore. But these men and women were deeply committed to their faith and to the idea that this faith would be lived out in congregational life. So in the midst of everything else they had to do, they worked hard to establish these two congregations in Kittson County.

Once the congregations were established and the church buildings erected, the challenges were not over. Both congregations suffered the loss of their buildings and had to start over again. In 1900 a prairie fire swept across the land consuming Eidsvold Lutheran Church and a newly built parsonage at Beaton (south of Halma). In the afternoon before the Christmas program in 1945 a fire consumed First Lutheran Church and all its contents. In both cases, the members of the congregations rallied to the challenge of rebuilding. That generation, the one that came after the founders of the congregations, was equally committed to the life of the church. Their finest qualities shone forth through the fires of adversity.

Today we worship, study, and fellowship together in the church buildings that rose from the ashes of these fires. Many modifications and a few additions have been made to the buildings, but right now, in 2011, we are enjoying the fruits of the labors of these men and women, as well as those who have maintained and improved our churches over the years. We have been given much by them.

The fires that consumed our buildings reminded us that a congregation is not a building; it is people who believe in God, trust in Jesus Christ, are guided by the Holy Spirit, and want to work together for the good of all. These congregations existed in the years when they had no roof over their heads as much as they do today when we have beautiful sanctuaries in which to worship.
The Augsburg Confession in article VII says, “The church is the assembly of all believers among whom the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy sacraments are administered according to the gospel.” I have quoted this article often over the last two decades, and I still believe it needs to be heard. While the article is speaking about the whole church, what it says applies to each congregation as well. The most beautiful church in the world is not a thing of beauty to the Lord if it is not a place where people gather to pray. The oldest houses of worship in the land are not fulfilling their purpose if they are not places where Word of God was proclaimed this week.

I have toured many beautiful churches (my wife and children have learned to endure this) including the National Cathedral in Washington D.C., Nidaros cathedral in Trondheim, Norway, the Crystal Cathedral in Anaheim, California, and most recently the $70 million Shrine of Our Lady in La Crosse, Wisconsin, but the places which evoke the most emotion from me are the places where I have blended my humble voice with others in song or listened to a truly powerful sermon or received the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament. In other words, they are places where I have felt the presence of the Lord in addition to seeing a place of beauty and history. Among them are First Lutheran Church of Karlstad and Eidsvold Lutheran Church of Halma.

1st Peter 4:8 says, “Above all, hold unfailing your love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins. Practice hospitality ungrudgingly to one another. As each has received a gift, employ it for one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks as one who utters oracles of God; whoever renders service as one who renders it by the strength which God supplies; in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.”

As we celebrate Eidsvold’s anniversary and anticipate First’s anniversary, let us renew our commitment to be the people of God today, sharing his love with one another and with a world full of conflict and sorrow. Let us resolve to be the kind of people the founders were when they came together as a congregation and built the church.

Sermon for July 17, 2011

WHEN A SEED IS PLANTED Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Lectionary 16A – Proper 11A July 17, 2011
Today’s gospel reading is the second of a series of three readings from Matthew 13 that use the example of seeds to speak about the Kingdom of God. Last Sunday it was the parable of the sower whose seed fell on shallow ground, on rocky ground, weedy ground, and on good ground. Next Sunday we will hear Jesus compare the kingdom to a mustard seed. And today it is the parable of the weeds in the wheat – or the parable of the wheat and the tares, if you prefer the language of the King James Version of the Bible. I am well aware that last week you heard from a master gardener and farmer speak on the Parable of the Sower, so I speak about today’s parable with a bit of humility since I am neither a master gardener or a farmer.
In listening to the second reading from Romans 8 and then the parable in the gospel reading from Matthew 13, I hear words encouraging us to live with patience and hope. Both readings have something to say about patience, and both readings have something to say about hope. Let’s start with patience.
In the parable of the weeds among the wheat, the hired men on the farm are eager to get out into the field as soon as they see an abundance of weeds in the field. They are ready to rush out there and trample a lot of wheat to get rid of the weeds. But the farmer counsels patience. There is a time to separate the weeds from the wheat, but it is not right now. The day of harvest will come – and in that day of harvesting by hand, the weeds and the wheat can be separated. For the time being, they will have to live with a wheat field with an embarrassing number of weeds.
This reminds me of a sign that hung in a beautiful public garden. It had a quote from Thomas Fuller on it that read: “Many things grow in the garden that were never sown there.” [internet] That is something I want you to remember today, whether you are looking at a beautiful garden, or a bunch of weeds or thinking about your community or your church. “Many things grow in the garden that were never planted there.” Our garden has a few potato plants and several flowers that reseeded themselves from last year. They will probably do better than the ones we planted deliberately, if we are patient with them. It also has more than a few wees, not planted and not welcome, but growing - well, growing like weeds.
Now Jesus’ parable is clearly aimed at his disciples, who are the servants of the master. The master is Jesus. And the weeds are the wild ones in the kingdom, the ones who are not as good as they should be, who are not as devout as you would expect, who do not fit in very well. Jesus is counseling patience with them.
Let me share with you the old story about the congregation that took "weeding out sinners" so seriously that they purged their own congregation, down from one hundred families to 75, and then to 50, and then to 25, and finally to only the pastor and his wife. "Only John and I are left," said the pastor's wife. "And you know what? I'm not even so sure about him." Jesus' parable reminds us that we are in no position to judge one another. God does not make us the gardeners of anybody else's soul. That's God's job. Ours is but to serve God with joy, scattering with love the Word of God in those around us. [internet]
It is hard to do sometimes, when the weeds are making the field look bad – and when some of our fellow believers embarrass us. But such is the good counsel that Jesus gives today. Patience, people, have a little patience with your fellow believers.
And then there is hope. Patience and hope go in hand in hand, because we can be much more patient when we have hope. As it says in Romans 8:25, “For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.”
There are two kinds of hope. One is a hope that has no basis in fact or promise but is akin to wishful thinking. There is another sign that has been hung in a garden that quotes Thomas Cooper – are you ready for this? – “A garden is never so good as it will be next year.” Well you and I know that there is no telling what next year will be like. Next year’s better garden is a image in the gardener’s head. He may learn from some of his mistakes and have grand plans for next year, but who can count on the weather? No one knows what next year will bring. I know that feeling well “a garden is never so good as it will be next year.”
There is another kind of hope that is built on a promise that we can trust. It may be something that we cannot see, as Romans 7 says, but it is something that is based on a promise that can be trusted. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Assurance and conviction are a lot different from wishful thinking.
In today’s Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds, the disciples of Jesus are given the assurance that there will be a day of reckoning when everything will be put right. In terms of the parable, the harvest season will come and the wheat will be separated from the weeds. While we have to live in a world of good and evil, of kind people and rude people, of those who work for the betterment of their fellow man and those who think only of themselves, Jesus says there will come a day of judgment. “And he will come to judge the living and the dead,” as we say each week in the Apostles’ Creed.
We can all be a little more patient with the mixed up way this word operates when we have a sure conviction that evil will not triumph over good in the end. We surely work for the good and sometimes become discouraged when it seems like the wrong trends seem to be on the rise, but we have the assurance of Jesus that there will come a day when everything will be judged rightly. I love the phrase in the last verse of our gospel reading, “Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” What a glorious image that is. Indeed, “let anyone with ears listen!”
When you get a little discouraged about the state of affairs around you, listen to this parable so that you can have patience and hope. Not the patience that sits in a corner or the hope that does nothing, but the faith that moves you to live as one who is confident that right will win over wrong, that joy will replace sorrow, that hope will vanquish despair.
I would like to conclude with a story about a little girl who had a very noxious weed in her neighborhood. He was a bully, and his name was Todd. His parents were divorced and he was left to fend for himself. He was rude and for an 8 year old he could swear pretty good. When he came over to Heidi's house the quiet surroundings turned quickly into chaos with fighting, crying and disobeying rules. But Heidi didn't cut Todd out from her circle of friends. Instead, if Todd swore, she told him it was wrong. God doesn't like that. If he started a fight, she told him he'd have to go home. And on Sunday morning, she would collect 2 children's bulletins and takes one to Todd. She's even invited him to Bible School.
Heidi did not weed out the bully. And today Todd tries hard to be good. He's more joyous now, more alert and he plays wells. He has more fun playing that fighting. He and Heidi have even talked about Jesus and Bible stories. Todd needed someone who was willing to care for him, not in a judgmental way, but in a loving caring way. Todd is less of a weed now among the children on his street, though he is still growing like a week – physically. He has begun to blossom into the youth God wants him to be. All because one little girl had patience and hope.
Oh, that we all had a little more patience and hope. Amen.

Newsletter July 2011

At a memorial service recently a pastor spoke about a woman’s reading of the Bible and then went on to say that she not only read the Bible faithfully, but that she was careful about which translation of the Bible she read. As I heard those words I thought to myself that I had never heard this particular compliment paid to a Christian man or woman before. And then I wondered what concern was behind the pastor’s remarks.
There are many translations of the Bible available for use today. Some of them are good, some not-so-good, and a few very poor. But for about 350 years there was one translation of the Bible that was used in the English speaking world, and it was the King James Version of the Bible, sometimes called the “authorized version.”. This year, 2011, is the 400th anniversary of the publication of the KJV. King James I of England called for a new translation of the Bible at a conference in 1604. A committee of 47 scholars worked at Oxford, Cambridge, and Westminster until the publication of the Bible in 1611. All were members of the Church of England and all but one were clergy. Over time the translation they produced became the standard Bible for all English speaking Protestants around the world.
According to an article in Wikepedia, the King James Version of the Bible has been called "the most influential version of the most influential book in the world, in what is now its most influential language", "the most important book in English religion and culture", and "the most celebrated book in the English-speaking world." It has contributed 257 idioms to English, more than any other single source, including Shakespeare; examples include “feet of clay” and “reap the whirlwind.” Although its use has diminished in the last 50 years, it is still the most popular version of the Bible sold in the English language.
The KJV was produced because of problems with the other translations of the Bible into English in the early days of the Reformation. When English replaced Latin in the liturgy and the Bible, several translations were attempted. Some reflected the theological bias of those doing the translating. One of several ways the KJV translators tried to overcome bias was to use language that was formal and somewhat old fashioned, even on the day it was first published. They succeeded in their primary task of producing a Bible that people of many religious leanings all admired. This was a result of both accuracy and artistry.
Today the language of the KJV is very much out-of-date. But no modern translation compares with the majestic language of Luke 2, “And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn” or the opening line of 1st Corinthians 13 “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or tinkling cymbal.”
And yet, 400 years after these lines were published, there is a need for new translations for people who do not find Shakespearean English understandable, as beautiful and elegant as it can be. Thus the many translations in use today.
In choosing a Bible to read, the first thing one needs to know is the difference between a paraphrase and a translation. A paraphrase is a free attempt to state what the translator thinks the passage means. A translation is much more literal and may at times be much more difficult, but it is much more accurate. For the serious Christian, a translation is always to be preferred over a paraphrase. For the Bible to speak to modern man, the translator needs to stand as far in the background as possible and let the Bible speak.
The direct descendents of the KJV Bible are the Revised Standard Version of 1952 (RSV) and the New Revised Standard Version of 1989 (NRSV). Both of them have a few problem areas – as do all translations including the KJV – but both of them quite accurately translate the original texts.
As I think about the 400th anniversary of the KJV Bible, I think I would like to be known as one who was careful about which translation of the Bible I used and accurate when I quoted a passage of scripture. I would be pleased if someone said about me what that pastor said about that woman at that memorial service.
But whether you read the KJV or the latest newest translation, whether it is on Kindle or on parchment, I encourage you to read the Bible today.

North Star New 06/30/2011

One year on the fourth of July our family visited historic Lower Fort Garry, north of Winnipeg. As I bought our tickets at the entrance gate a smiling Parks Canada employee said, “so you decided to spend your holiday with us, eh.” I winced just a little bit at the words, thinking that any red-blooded American would want to be on American soil for Independence Day. But there we were in Canada, and we had a wonderful time on a warm and sunny day. The children learned a great deal about the history of our part of the world. I like visiting outdoor historic sites much more than indoor museums. And I enjoy the occasional trip across the border.

Friday is Canada Day (Fête du Canada). Monday is American Independence Day. Both nations will be celebrating their national heritage and their gaining independence from Great Britain. Our independence was declared in an “in your face” declaration, which John Hancock signed in big bold letters so “King George can read it without his spectacles,” followed by a long war. Canada’s independence was gained through a peaceful act of parliament after long negotiations with Queen Victoria’s government. Together we share this continent, as well as many of the same ideals of freedom, equality, and justice.

Like most, but not all, of the nations of the world we seek divine favor. Psalm 33:12 says, “blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” We may sing with gusto the song “God Bless America,” but north of the border they sing “God keep our land, glorious and free!” in their national anthem. And across the pond they sing, “God save the queen.” We all want God’s hand of blessing to rest upon us, and we should pray for this often.

But we should not only seek blessings from heaven but also divine wisdom and guidance. Much as we might like to think that our nation is exceptional among all the nations of the earth, God looks on all the nations of the world and judges them all by the same standards, looking for real freedom, true equality, and justice for all. No nation, not even Israel, is exempt from divine judgment, nor is any nation exempt from divine favor. 2nd Chronicles 7:14 can rightly be interpreted to apply to all nations when the Lord says, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

As the fireworks color the sky this weekend and the star spangled banner passes in parade, let us celebrate our national heritage with humility, seeking God’s face and trusting that he will hear from heaven as we pray. “God bless America! Land that I love! Stand beside her and guide her through the night with a light from above. From the mountains to the prairies to the oceans white with foam, God bless America, my home sweet home.”

North Star News 06/23/2011

Earlier this month my family took a drive through the countryside. As we drove along we saw beautiful lush foliage, a huge eagle’s nest, goslings following their parents, delicate lady slippers, and hardy lilac bushes. With the wet and cool weather we have been having this year, everything looked so rich and full – and full of life. June is a beautiful month, when the woods and meadows seem to be bursting forth with the energy of new growth. We looked around and thought, “it is good.”

The newness and vibrancy of June are a little reflection of the newness and vibrancy of the first days of creation. Genesis 1 says that after each day of creation, God looked out over what made that day and saw that it was good. The chapter concludes with this statement after the sixth and final day of active creation, “And God saw everything he had made, and behold, it was very good.” On a beautiful day in June, before the mosquitoes have come out in full force and after the trees have leafed out and the first flowers of spring have bloomed, we, too, can look at the fields and forests and see that it is very good.

In Genesis 2 it says that on the seventh day of creation, God rested from all he had done. In my mind, I see him sitting back and simply enjoying the beauty and vitality of all that he had made like a man sitting back and watching the sunset after a hard day’s work. In Genesis 2 it also says that God blessed and hallowed the seventh day. For the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and the animals on the land it is just another day, but to God and to the human beings he created in his image, it is a day to sit back and reflect on all that God has done for us and give thanks and praise to God. Only the human species is expected to follow the divine example and take time apart for reflection and praise on a weekly basis.

But the wonderful creation God has made is ever singing his praises. Isaiah 44:23 says, “Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done it; shout, O depth of the earth; break forth into singing, O mountains, O forest, and every tree in it!” And, indeed, the whole creation is always praising its creator. Every flower that blooms in the meadow is part of a bouquet for the Lord. Every bird that sings its morning song is praising the One who said “let there be light.” Even some of those parts of nature that we think less wonderful are singing their creator’s praise. Psalm 148:8 includes “fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command” in its invitation to praise the Lord.

During this beautiful month of June won’t you join in the song of all creation and praise the name of the Lord? The last verse of the last psalm invites us to do just that with the words, “Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Hallelujah!”

North Star News 06/16/2011

When I was a youth my home congregation sang the hymn “Holy, Holy, Holy” at the beginning every service all summer long. Summer was the Trinity season, as it was called in those good old days, when every service every Sunday was pretty much the same. Since my family never missed a Sunday morning service, it was not long before I had memorized all four stanzas of the opening hymn. It begins “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty! Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee. Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty! God in three persons, blessed Trinity!” And it ends in verse four repeating that phrase “God in three persons, blessed Trinity!”

June 19 is Trinity Sunday this year, so in many of our churches we will be singing this old Trinitarian hymn. The word “trinity” does not appear in the Bible, but the doctrine of the Trinity is found throughout the New Testament, especially in the teachings of Jesus in the Gospel of John. In John 16:12 Jesus said, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.” And so, the doctrine of the Trinity was gradually developed to explain what Jesus said about himself (the Son), the Father, and the Holy Spirit. It is reflected in the structure of the Apostles’ and Nicene creeds, and extensively developed in the Athanasian Creed. But its origin is in verses like Matthew 28:19 where we are instructed to baptize “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

The imagery for the hymn “Holy, Holy, Holy” is largely from Isaiah 6 where the prophet had a vision of God in all his majesty and glory. This threefold sanctus rang out as cherubim and seraphim and presumably ordinary angels, called out to one another. The voice of the Lord thundered, and when the foundations of the threshold shook, Isaiah’s knees buckled. This was truly shock and awe on a scale such as the prophet had never experienced before. His response was “Woe is me! For I am lost….for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” What a far cry this is from the common image of God as a kindly, old, and - dare I say - feeble grandfather figure. Yet this is the image of God in the Bible, right through to the Book of Revelation. He inspires awe-filled worship and reverence.

There are beautiful new songs that can bring us into a spirit of reverence and awe. Among my favorites are “Our God is an awesome God; he reigns from heaven above with wisdom, power and love; our God is an awesome God” by Rich Mullins and “Majesty! worship his majesty! Unto Jesus be all glory, power and praise! Majesty, kingdom authority flow from his throne, unto his own, his anthem raise” by Jack Hayford.

In songs old and new, this Sunday will be a great day to worship the Lord God Almighty.

North Star News 06-09-2011

A few years ago my wife and I attended the opening worship service at the Lutheran World Federation assembly in Winnipeg. There were people there from all over the world, many in the festive garb of their country or culture, at St. Boniface Cathedral. This being Canada, the service was largely in French and English, but other languages were used, too. When it was time for the Lord’s Prayer the announcement was made, “please pray the Lord’s Prayer in the language you first learned it.” What followed was a cacophony of sound as everyone prayed out loud in the language of their hearts: English, French, German, Norwegian, Swahili, Spanish, Mandarin, and many, many more.

This is what Pentecost must have sounded like. June 12 is Pentecost Sunday in the church. It is the day when we remember what happened in Jerusalem fifty days after Jesus rose from the dead. Acts 1:5 says that there were “devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem” at that time. Many of them no longer spoke Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament, and many of them spoke no Greek, the language of the Old Testament translation called the Septuagint. But they each spoke a language of the heart, the language they first used for prayer at their mother’s knee and the language to which they will revert on their dying day. On Pentecost day they heard the good news of Jesus Christ in this language. They heard it in their native tongue.

The reason for this was not just to make sure they clearly understood what was said, although that was important, too. The reason for this was to speak to the hearts of those who heard. The work of the Spirit is to take words that are heard by the ear when they are spoken or seen by the eye when read and have them touch the heart. The Spirit did this in spectacular fashion that first Pentecost day. After the apostles were done speaking, Acts 1:37 says “now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said…. ‘brothers, what should we do?’” The answer, of course, was to repent and be baptized.

The Lord is speaking to you today through the words of the Bible and the preaching of the gospel. The Spirit is still taking those words and touching the hearts of those who hear or read. When the Spirit does this work, faith is born, hope renewed, and peace restored. In Romans 10:10 it says, “For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.” When you hear the gospel, pray that more than your ear drums are touched by the vibrating air waves. Pray that the Spirit will cause the words to touch your heart so that you truly hear the voice of God speaking to you.

Ascension Day Sermon

THE TIME BETWEEN Acts 1:6-14 Easter 7A June 5, 2011
Last Thursday was Ascension Day, exactly 40 days after our celebration of Easter and 10 days before our celebration of Pentecost, which will be next Sunday by the way. Ascension Day marks the events we just read about in our first reading from Acts 1. As verse 9 says, “as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.” And they never saw him in the flesh again. As we say in the creed, “he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.”
But before he left, he promised his disciples that the third member of the trinity, the Holy Spirit, would soon come to them. In John 14:16 he had promised them, “I will ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth….” And so on Ascension Day he was taken out of their sight. On Pentecost Sunday the Spirit of truth came upon them in all his fullness. But for the moment they were in the time between. The time between when Jesus bodily left them and the time when the Holy Spirit came to them. And what were they to do during this time? First of all they were to wait. Acts 1:4 says that “he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father.”
It must have been hard for them to wait to see what God was going to do next, as it is for all of us who are in one of those times between. It is tempting to want to “jump the gun” but Jesus knew they were not quite ready to begin witnessing about him. The time was not quite right for them. So they were simply to wait.
But they didn’t sit around a table playing cards as they waited. Acts 1:14 says, “All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary, the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.” This is an important thing to note. They were engaged in prayer before they were engaged in preaching. They were spending time with the Lord before they spent time evangelizing the city. They were certainly an example of patience and prayer, waiting for the time to be right before beginning the project Jesus had for them. That project, by the way, is spelled out in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” That’s a tall order – a very big job, and some of them might have thought, “we’d better get cracking” but Jesus told them to wait and they knew enough to pray. God had this all planned out. When Pentecost came and the city was filled with pilgrims from all over the world, the time would be right, and they would go out and preach in the power of the Spirit.
Is there something for us to learn here? Is there a time to wait and pray before we begin a big task or make a big decision? Do we recognize the value of that “time between” when a promise is made and an activity begins? We might ask ourselves if we are in a “time between” like the disciples were those ten days between the Ascension Day and Pentecost Day.
Well, there is one sense in which we are all in a “time between.” We are all living in the time between the first coming of Jesus as the “Man from Galilee” and his second coming as judge and lord of all. In Acts 1:11, it says that two men in white robes spoke. We can infer that they were angels, or messengers, from God himself. In any case, here is what they said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” So we are all living in the “time between” when he was taken up into heaven and the time when he will come back from heaven.
And when will that glorious second coming be? It is not for us to know. You don’t know. I don’t know. No one on the earth knows. There are many passages in the Bible that speak about this, saying he will come like a thief in the night – that is unexpectedly – that as in the days of Noah people will be going about their daily business right up to the moment he appears. But for today let me just quote from today’s reading from Acts 1:7 where Jesus said, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.”
This past month we all saw what happens when people try to find out what the Lord has chosen to keep hidden from us. A California radio preacher named Harold Camping announced that he had decoded the Bible and discovered that the end of the world would come on May 21 – at 6:00 p.m. no less. But of course, it did not happen. He thought he had discovered what the Bible plainly teaches no man is to know. The Bible is not a code book with hidden messages that no one in the 20 centuries before us had been able to find. Jesus said, “it is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.”
There were two sad results of what this radio preacher said. One is that a number of people quit their jobs or sold their homes, thinking that there was no point to planning for anything after May 21. One news report about one of these people reads like this:
On Sunday, a dejected Ramsey [follower of Camping] said he faces a "mixed bag."
He has to find a new job. So does his mother. His 19-year-old brother, who had quit high school the year prior ("It's pointless to graduate," the brother had said), is thinking of re-enrolling or finding employment.
What a sad situation this is.
But this prediction also led many pundits and comedians to lampoon Christians who believed in the end of the world in May 2011 and thus, by implication, to diminish the reputation of all Christians. We do believe that Christ will come again. Read Matthew 25 or Philippians 2 – or even today’s Acts 1 reading. We do believe that there will be a judgement day. But events like what happened in May cast a shadow over it all – at least in the eyes of the secular world. We do live in the time between Christ’s first appearing and his second.
The emphasis we should have on this time is going about doing good where we can and giving witness to our faith in Jesus Christ. When those two men in white robes appeared to Jesus’ disciples after he ascended into heaven their first words were, “why do you stand looking up toward heaven?” The clear implication is that now it is time to get to work. For those disciples, plus St. Mary and the other women, it was to begin with this ten day period of prayer, and then on Pentecost Sunday to go out into the streets and preach the gospel in many languages, and finally move out to the places where those languages are spoken with the good news of God’s love in Christ Jesus.
Christ has ascended into heaven, but we have his work to do here on earth. The physical body of Christ may have gone up into heaven, but the Body of Christ - that is the church – is here and has his work to do today. Despite what those disciples lost, they have so much still, and so much yet to do.
I would like to conlude today by reading something I came across on the “Living Lutheran” website about people who are living in the time between, but have a sense of purpose and of perseverance. One of the building that was destroyed in the tornado that hit Joplin, Missour on May 22 was one of our ELCA congregations, Peace Lutheran Church. This is what their pastor has written:
The Monday morning after the storm, as a number of us were walking through the rubble of the church building, we wondered: “Where are we going to hold worship on next Sunday (May 29)?”
We decided to meet in the parking lot to let the world know what the people of Joplin already know: We are still a congregation.
God is, and will always be, with us.
The service was chaotic, and it was spiritual. A number of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations — local and national — came. I was wired up to six different stations. I don’t even know who they all were, although I knew ABC, NBC and CNN were now part of my body.
The rains had finally left, so the weather was beautiful except for the 35-mile-an-hour winds.
But most importantly, God was there. You could just feel it among the 100 people who attended worship that Sunday morning.
The service itself, along with music (we had a flutist and a keyboard loaned to us, which was hooked up to battery), the prayers, the sermon and Holy Communion gave people a chance to celebrate and weep over lost homes, lost jobs, lost friends and families.
God was there.
Peace Lutheran Church of Joplin, Missouri is in a time between – between when they worshipped in the building that was destoryed by the tornado and the time when they will worship in whatever building they erect in the future. Through this experience they learned what the disciples learned when Jesus ascended into heaven. No matter what they lost, God is still here. And I want to tell you, that no matter what you may have lost in your life, God is still here. AMEN.

North Star News 06/02/2011

My daughter and I visited the King Tut exhibit at the Science Museum of Minnesota in early May. After 90 minutes of looking at ancient hieroglyphics and 3,000 year old artifacts from the tombs of the Pharaohs we came to the final exhibit, an exact replica of the mummy of the boy king, Tutankhamun. (The Egyptians won’t let the real thing out of the country for any reason.) One of the things we learned as we progressed through the exhibit is that as soon as a Pharaoh took power, work began on a burial site. The ancient Egyptians were obsessed with preserving the bodies of their leaders and providing elaborate burial places for them.

Thursday, June 2, is Ascension Day in the church, exactly forty days after Easter and ten days before Pentecost. Ascension Day is all about the body of Jesus. While he lived, Jesus lived a simple life. When he died, Jesus’ body was quickly placed in a borrowed tomb, simply because it was close by and the Sabbath was fast approaching. When the Sabbath was over, the women who came to the tomb discovered that this tomb was borrowed only for a little while. Jesus was raised from the dead, and for forty days he appeared to his disciples in various places: in Jerusalem, on the road to Emmaus, and by the Sea of Galilee. Then he ascended bodily into heaven.

This is what Luke 24:50 says, “Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them, and was carried up into heaven.” There is no place today where people can visit the body of Jesus. People go to Egypt to see the mummified body of King Tut or to Moscow to see the embalmed remains of Lenin, but Jesus “ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father” as the Apostles’ Creed says.

Before all this happened, Jesus said in John 14:3 “And when I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” What that verse promises is that all of Jesus’ disciples are headed eventually to heaven to spend eternity with him. The body of the deceased may be embalmed and viewed after death and then laid in a grave with a tombstone that will sit unchanged for centuries, but that body is one day headed for heaven. “I believe in the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting” says the Apostles’ Creed. This will not be the tired old body that is laid in the grave, but a new and glorious body full of vitality. As it says in Philippians 3:21, “But our commonwealth is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power which enables him even to subject all things to himself.” What a transformation that will be!

In England there is a country cemetery where one tombstone reads, “As you are, I once was; as I am, you will be.” But the wonderful promise of Jesus is that those who believe in him will not end up “a-mouldering in the grave” (“John Brown’s body”) forever, but will one day ascend to be with Jesus forever in glory. As bodies age, sag, and creak, what a wonderful promise to remember.

Newsletter June 2011

My wife, Ruth, and I were pleased to attend the Northwestern Minnesota Synod’s annual assembly again this year. It is always a wonderful experience to worship in a congregation of 500 or 600, most of whom are giving full voice to their songs of praise and close attention to the preaching of the Word. It is uplifting to hear what God is doing in other parts of the synod and comforting to know that we are not alone in some of the challenges we face. We also learn something new about the work of our church at every assembly we attend. As is true at conventions of any kind, there are reports that are tedious and sessions that seem overly long, but nevertheless, I would commend the experience to you and hope that next year more members of our parish will be willing to attend.

In his report to the synod, Bishop Larry Wohlrabe said “it’s been quite a year!” It was clear from the outset that those attending the assembly wanted to put this year’s contention behind them and affirm the leaders that have taken the brunt of the tensions in the church. A pre-assembly event was a “town hall meeting” with Presiding Bishop Mark Hanson and ELCA staff member (and former New York bishop) Stephen Bouman. The latter was delayed by plane connection problems so Hanson did this 2 hour session alone - brilliantly. Before he spoke he received a standing ovation from the overflow crowd of people at Trinity Lutheran Church.. Two hours later they did it again. I do not believe this means the people agree with everything he or his staff says and does, but people simply wanted to affirm their elected leaders during difficult times.

A resolution from one congregation requesting the ELCA to reconsider the sexuality issue was over-whelmingly defeated. I believe most people have heard enough about this subject for a while. Every-thing that can be said about it has been said in the last few years. Enough already. A resolution challenging the representative democracy by which decisions are made in the ELCA, much like in the USA, was also overwhelmingly defeated. Congregations will not be ratifying churchwide assembly or synod assembly actions. And a resolution asking for an end to producing social statements was also defeated, but this was in part because a moratorium on social statements has already be proposed by a task force of the ELCA church council. But, of course, because we are democratically governed, if the synods or the churchwide assembly ask for social statements there is no choice but to produce them.

One of the joys of synod assemblies is connecting and re-connecting with people from across the synod. We had chats with three former pastors from Hallock (Losch, Tobin, and Copeland) and greatly missed our annual lunch with the former pastors from Lake Bronson (Strug’s) since they have retired to Illinois. We sat at business sessions with Lake Bronson and Ross people and at worship with Middle River and Thief River people. At the town hall meeting we sat at a table with a large delegation from Lancaster. We had a long conversation with former Karlstad residents Paul & Dorothy Suomala. And we were delighted when the pastor and wife from Wannaska asked us to watch their children (age 2 and an infant) for a while during breakfast. We realized we haven’t lost all our parenting skills. Former synod vice president Patti Swanson of Kennedy says the synod assembly is like a family reunion, and that it was.

But there is more to it than just connecting with people we know and like. The synod assembly reminds us that the church is more than our parish or our congregation or our county. The church of Jesus Christ is made up of people from many different places with many different complexions and many different opinions about the hot topics of the day. The church is, as St. Paul put it in 1st Corinthians 12:27, one body with many members. All the members do not have the same function but all the members are called to work together in harmony with one another.

On the last day of the assembly the synod bishop and others on the stage wore the daily garb of people from India, like members of our companion synod, the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church of southern India. It was strange dress for the Red River Valley but it was meant to remind us of our brothers and sisters in Christ on the other side of the world, some of whom will be coming for a visit in September. What did Jesus say in John 10:16? “And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.”

Confirmation Sermon

THOMAS’ CONFIRMATION John 20:19-31 Easter 2A May 1, 2011
There are two main parts to a confirmation service. The first one is a confession of faith. The second is a prayer for the Holy Spirit. These two things are the heart of the confirmation and what we are gathered here today to do. A lot of other little things come along with it: wearing the white robes, this year creating and wearing the red stoles, the certificates, the dinners with special guests, the two years of study of the Bible, and of course, most memorable of all, memorizing the five chief parts of Luther’s small catechism. Confirmation is a tradition and a rite of passage. But at its heart are these two simple things: a statement of faith and a prayer for the Holy Spirit.
This year our confirmation coincides with the Sunday after Easter when we read the account of what happened so long ago in Jerusalem on the Sunday after Easter - centering on that most phlegmatic of disciples: Thomas. There are some parallels between what happened to Thomas then and what is happening to these young confirmands now.
First of all, Thomas was a disciple, which comes from the Latin word for student. Thomas was a disciple of Jesus learning from the master what was right and wrong, what was good and bad, and what the Bible says. Most of his disciples were there when Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount and explained what the word of God really taught in contrast to some of the human traditions of the day. All the disciples listened as Jesus explained to James and John the kind of servant life they were to lead after they had asked for places of honor and privilege in the kingdom. They were all there at the Last Supper when Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, teaching by example more than by words that night.
For three years Thomas listened to Jesus. He walked with him; he watched him; he studied him. Our young confirmands have spent two years coming to a class each Wednesday, reading the Bible, thinking about what the Word of God says, and growing in faith. Of course, we must remember they have been learning about Jesus from the day they were baptized. Their parents and grandparents have been teaching them by word and, even more importantly, by deed what faithful Christian living is. Sunday School teachers and Bible school experiences have helped them grow. But in preparation for confirmation, there are two years of Wednesday classes where their pastor hopes they have learned more of what the Bible says.
But for Thomas those three years were leading up to the day when Jesus would come to Thomas and say, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!” This was Thomas’ personal statement of faith. It was his personal testimony in just five words, but they were the most important five words he ever spoke. “My Lord, and my God.”
I’ll bet some of the confirmands today are wishing their personal statement of faith could have been only five words long. At the annual confirmation banquet they were asked to put in their own words what they believed, who helped form their faith, and how they saw their future as a confirmed Christian. I told them five words wouldn’t cut it. We wanted more, and we got some beautiful testimonies to God’s work in their lives. But Thomas spoke just five words on the Sunday after Easter, and they were enough that day.
The words of Thomas make me think of the promise of Romans 10:9 which says, “if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved….For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Here is the promise behind what is happening today. These confirmands are asked to confess with their lips what they believe in their hearts. Today they do it by reciting the ancient and venerable words of the Apostles’ Creed along with other believers in Christ. At their confirmation dinner they were asked for a faith statement that put it into their own words. Both of these are important: giving your own personal testimony and joining the church of all times and all places in the words of the creed.
During his time on this earth, Jesus repeatedly challenged people to make a faith statement. In John 9 Jesus gave sight to a man who had been born blind. And then in John 9:35 Jesus asked him: “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The man who once was physically blind still did not see clearly who Jesus is, so he asked “And who is he, sir?” Jesus said, “You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he.” To which the man replied, “Lord, I believe!” And then John adds, “he worshipped him.”
In John 11 Jesus came to Bethany to console Mary and Martha over the death of their brother, Lazarus. In John 11:25 Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me though they die yet shall they live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” And then Martha said, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”
In Matthew 16 Jesus asked his disciples about the opinions people had about himself. The disciples reported that some thought he was really John the Baptist – that’s really confusing. Others thought he was a great prophet like Elijah or Jeremiah. Then Jesus asked for their own faith statement by asking: “but who do you say that I am?” On that occasion Peter came forward and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
So you see how important it is that people make a faith statement. As Romans 10 says, it is the way to justification and salvation. But it is also the way to witness to those who have not yet come to believe. At the end of our gospel reading for today, John says that the whole reason he has written this 21 chapter faith statement about Jesus is to encourage others to believe and to say that they believe, whether it be in the five words of Thomas or the 21 chapters of John. Here is what John said, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.”
Now, let us take a moment to talk about what believing in Jesus means. Thomas said, “my Lord and my God,” and with that word “Lord” he was indicating that Jesus was an active, lively part of his life. One of the important points I want to make today is that believing in Jesus is not just an intellectual assent to a doctrine that Jesus is divine. Neither is a faith statement just words that are written to be spoken once and then filed away somewhere never to be seen again. Believing in Jesus is walking with Jesus, continually listening to Jesus, coming to the table of Jesus, and living for Jesus. It is a lively, ongoing relationship.
Sadly, there are many people who do not understand this. They think if they just say the right words once or twice, that’s all there is to it. That is not what Jesus is looking for.
Let me use a sports analogy. Suppose there is a person who says that they are a Minnesota Twins baseball fan, despite their poor performance this spring. “I love the Twins,” the person says, “I am all for the Twins.” But then it comes out that this person never watches a game or listens on the radio. They don’t even know how bad the Twins record is this spring. And when someone asks what they think of Joe Mauer, they say, “now let’s see, is he the catcher or the first base man? Is he the one from Canada or from St. Paul.” Pretty soon someone is going to ask, “are you really a Twins fan if you don’t follow any games, you don’t know anyone on the roster, and you don’t ever talk about them?” To be the fan of any team, the Twins, the Yankees, or the Northern Freeze is to follow the team and get involved. It’s not necessarily to know all the ins and outs of everything and be able to spout statistics, but it is to be following the team through the season.
That is a humble example from sports. But it points to what I mean to say. Making a statement of faith involves more than a few words that travel through the air and disappear. It is saying something about what is real in life and what is important day after day after day.
When Thomas said, “My Lord and my God” it meant that his faith was restored and that he was going to continue to live for Jesus. He was going to keep on learning from Jesus as a disciple and speaking up for Jesus as an apostle. He was going to get to know the team that surrounded Jesus even better and not be AWOL when Jesus showed up, as he was on Easter Sunday eveing. His faith statement was not the end, but a new beginning of an even more lively and active relationship with Jesus and with the rest of his followers.
So when we get to the confirmation ritual, I will be asking these confirmands if they intend to continue in the covenant God made with them in baptism. And all of us who are not getting confirmed today, are invited to renew that covenant in our own hearts.
As Jesus said to Thomas, “Do not doubt but believe.” And as Jesus said to every disciple he called, “Follow me.” AMEN.

Newsletter May 2011

Our churches teach that those who have fallen after Baptism can receive forgiveness of sins whenever they are converted and that the church ought to impart absolution to those who return to repentance.”
Augsburg Confession article 12

On the Sunday after Easter every year we read in church about the Lord’s appearance to the apostles on the evening of Easter day. The account in John 20 says that Jesus “breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” This is a great responsibility given to the apostles – the power to loose and to bind sins. The next question is how does a man, even an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ, decide whether to loose or to bind those sins in any particular case?

The short answer is that the apostle does not make that decision. It is the task of the apostle to know the mind of Christ as best he can and to announce the forgiveness that Christ grants to those who repent and believe in him. The distinction that the Lutheran church makes is that the pastor who speaks a word of forgiveness today is not deciding who is worthy of forgiveness or whose repentance is sincere, but is simply announcing what Christ has commanded the pastor to announce.

Every Sunday in church we hear “As a called and ordained minister of the church of Christ, and by his authority, I therefore declare to you the entire forgiveness of all your sins….” (ELW page 118) The important word here is the word “declare.” The pastor is speaking on behalf of Christ who is the one who accomplishes salvation and grants forgiveness. Even in private confession when the pastor’s words are “___name____ in obedience to the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins…..” (ELW page 244) the emphasis is on how the pastor is speaking for the one - the only one - who truly brings forgiveness.

And yet, when the pastor declares that sins are forgiven for Jesus’ sake, this is to be taken as gospel truth. In Luther’s Small Catechism it says, “we receive absolution or forgiveness from the confessor as from God himself, by no means doubting but firmly believing that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven.” The great scandal of Jesus’ ministry was his forgiveness of sins. In Mark 2:7 the astonished reaction of some people to Jesus is recorded in the question “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” True enough. Jesus is divine, the Son of God. But God has appointed certain ordinary mortals to declare his divine forgiveness.

The first week of Easter along with my Karlstad Assembly of God colleague, I have been reading Eric Metaxas’ new biography “Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy” in which he recounts Bonhoeffer’s valiant efforts to roust the church to oppose the Nazi movement. Part of that effort was writing a paper in the spring of 1937 in which he said, “Christ has given his church power to forgive and to retain sins on earth with divine authority (Matt. 16:19, 18:18, John 20:23). Eternal salvation and eternal damnation are decided by its word. Anyone who turns from his sinful way at the word of proclamation and repents, receives forgiveness. Anyone who perseveres in his sin receives judgment. The church cannot loose the penitent from sin without arresting and binding the impenitent in sin.” (page 292). In the context of the church struggle of his day and his well known criticism of what he called “cheap grace” this was a call to condemn sin as well as to preach forgiveness. The Nazis mercilessly persecuted Jews, Gypsies, Slavs, and homosexuals, and this must not be forgiven until there is repentance.

But when there is sorrow over sin and a sincere desire to amend a life, forgiveness must be spoken just as Jesus spoke during his earthly ministry. To the adulterous woman in John 8, Jesus said, “neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” To the paralyzed man in Mark 2, Jesus said, “take heart, my son, your sins are forgiven.” And Jesus’ charge to the church in Luke 24:47 is that “repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in [Christ’s] name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

This is as much the mission of the church today as it was on that first Easter, during the Reformation, or in the 1930s. As the saying goes, the church is in the forgiveness business.

Palm Sunday Sermon 2011

JESUS ENTERS IN Matthew 21:1-11 Palm Sunday April 17, 2011
On Palm Sunday Jesus entered Jerusalem in triumphant and glory. On Good Friday Jesus exited the city in shame and humiliation. As Jesus entered the city on Palm Sunday Jesus heard shouts of “Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.” As Jesus passed out of the city gates on Good Friday they were weeping for him and crying out in anguish. When he came into the city a donkey was carrying him. As he left the city he was carrying a heavy wooden cross. Upon entering the city they hailed him as the Son of David. When leaving the city the soldiers carried a plaque that said “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” that would be nailed to the cross along with him.
You might say that Jesus moved from triumphant to tragedy, from the highest adulation to the lowest condemnation. And all the while, he simply wanted quietly to enter the hearts of people to free them from their sins, their fears, their sorrows, and their suffering.
In the prologue to the Gospel of John (1:11-13) it says, “He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.”
This was the human tragedy of the life of Jesus. When he was born King Herod tried to trick the wise men and kill Jesus. When he spoke in his hometown synagogue in Nazareth, they were so angry they took him to the brow of the hill and threatened to throw him over. When he told the rich young ruler to give all he had to the poor and follow him, the rich young ruler turned away. As Isaiah 53 says, “he was despised and rejected, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief….”
But Isaiah goes on to say that this was all part of God’s great plan of salvation, that his Son should be rejected and become an offering for the sin of the whole world. The suffering and rejection that Jesus experienced was not for nothing. It had a purpose and a meaning that those who rejected him could hardly fathom. In Isaiah 53:5 the prophet says, “But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.”
Just as Jesus entered into Jerusalem so long ago, he wants to enter into our hearts and lives today as our lord and our savior. In Revelation 3:20 Jesus says, “Behold, I am standing at the door and knocking; if you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to you, and eat with you, and you with me.” Remember that in John 1 it says, “but to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God….”
This Holy Week, as we remember how Jesus entered Jerusalem and ultimately was rejected, let us open the door to him who is knocking and let him enter into our hearts and lives as the savior who paid the price for our sin on the cross and as the lord who rules our lives. Let us be something more than cultural Christians who go through the ceremonies, but be disciples of Jesus who day by day let him enter into our lives.
A few weeks ago my confirmation class finished watching a movie about the life of Jesus. At the end of the movie there is an evangelistic segment which invites people to welcome Jesus into their lives. Viewers are invited to pray this prayer:
"Lord Jesus, I need You. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive You as my Savior and Lord. Thank You for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of the throne of my life. Make me the kind of person You want me to be."
One of my bright young students immediately asked “Pastor! did you pray that prayer?” And I said, “I certainly did. And I do it every time I show this film to a class.” Because every day, I want Jesus to enter in. Every day I need forgiveness. Every day I need help to be the kind of person I ought to be. Every day I need the assurance of God’s love. And don’t you, too?
Let us pray. Come into my heart, come into my heart, come into my heart Lord Jesus. Come in today. Come in to stay. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus. AMEN.