It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1

You might read that and think, “This doesn’t apply to me. I am not a slave.”

That word slave can trigger a lot of emotions for a lot of reasons. Saint Paul uses these words because they reflect what Jesus says to every one of us in the gospel of John.

As a matter of fact, Jesus is responding to a bunch of people who had the same thought as I wrote above… “This doesn’t apply to me. I am not a slave.”

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. John 8:34

Until we wrap our hearts and minds around the idea that we are slaves to sin, we have no real need for Jesus. With that mindset, attending church is just window dressing to a carefully manicured life.

Sin is a big category, and one size does not fit all. There are all sorts of sin. Sins of omission (things we overlook when we shouldn’t) and sins of commission (things we participate in). There is hate, jealousy, cruelty and the list goes on and on. Sin is what happens when we stop looking to God for direction.

We are slaves to sin; we are in bondage. We need help. We need rescue. We need a savior to free us from our captivity.

Until we see that need for ourselves and in our own lives, we will remain unknowing captives and miss out on the grace of freedom.

After viewing the ugliness of this world this week in the news, I know that I don’t want to be captive to racism and hate. I don’t want to commit the sin of omission by turning a blind eye to those who have exploited children and worse. I don’t want to add to the pain of this world; I want to be free of it and help others find freedom.

Next Wednesday, we turn the corner and enter the season of Lent. A time to reflect on our own condition and to make a clear choice. Are we going to be the children of the light or children of the dark? (see Ephesians 5:8)

Lent prepares us to remember the death and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus is the only one who can free us from our captivity but only if we truly see we are in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves.

It is time to open your eyes to the reality of our own situation and the ugliness of the world. Until that happens, you are bound.

The invitation is real because Jesus is real and he is sovereign. Jesus will never force himself on you. The ball is in your court.

Take time this Lent to find the freedom and love that Jesus is offering.

Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but God sent me. Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. John 8:42

Open your ears and hear that the savior is calling you to freedom.

God bless,
Pr. Ben

Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Matthew 6:19–21

Where is your heart today? Is it full of earthly things or is it pondering the eternal things of God’s Kingdom?

To put it a different way, what are you holding on to? Things of life or things of heaven. Temporary things or eternal things?

Jesus reminds us (from the Sermon on the Mount) to know the difference between everlasting and temporal.

I said on Sunday we often latch on to things we can see and forsake the unseen (spiritual). After all, “Seeing is believing.” But don’t forget what Jesus said about that very phrase to Thomas the disciple who needed to see the resurrected Jesus before he would believe in him.

Then Jesus told Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Blessings (God’s favor) rest upon those who believe in what they cannot see. There is blessing for those who are storing up treasures in heaven because they are getting ready for what is ahead.  Those folks don’t need to see God’s Kingdom to know it is very real.

Since we can’t take our stuff with us to heaven, what are those “treasures” that Jesus talks about?

Paul tells us, that the things of life will eventually pass away except for three things…

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1Corinthians 13:13

Those are our treasures.

Faith (trust) in God. Trusting in the forgiveness Jesus gave us from the cross.

Hope in the future promises made by God in scripture. Hope is knowing God keeps his promises.

Love. Love for God, Love for other people.

Those are the treasures we cultivate and grow today. One day, in heaven, we will see the dividend of those riches in the people we shared them in this life.

God bless,
Pr. Ben

Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount…

“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder (Exodus 20:13), and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell. Matthew 5:22

These are Jesus’ words not mine. To make sure everyone understands what Jesus is saying, let me summarize.

Murder is bad and subject to judgment of God.
Anger is bad and subject to the judgment of God.
Insulting others is bad and subject to the judgment of God and human authorities.
Calling someone a fool is bad and subject to the judgment of God.

Are we on the same page? Do you see how clear this instruction is?

If this isn’t clear, then God responds clearly through the words of Isaiah…

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight. Isaiah 5:20-21

God is very transparent in the words of Jesus (who is God) and through Isaiah the prophet. This is God’s Word for the ages (which includes us).

Now let’s apply God’s Word to our lives.

I have witnessed the ugliness of people’s words regarding the killing of the single mom in Minneapolis this past week.

As people of faith, this death should break our hearts because it breaks God’s heart. Using limited and flawed legal arguments as well as words like “justified” are distasteful.

Are these the same arguments and words one will use when facing God to explain their hardness of heart or even glee at this tragedy?

Unneeded loss of life or unneeded cruelty (according to Jesus) is subject to judgment.

I encourage everyone who reads this article to check their heart and see if it aligns with God’s will? Do you have a heart of stone or a heart of flesh? (See Ezekiel 36:26-27)

It is a time of mourning in God’s Kingdom.

There is a reason Jesus calls people to repentance… to change. He calls us to let go of hate, ugliness and cruelty and step in the light of love.

God bless you,

Pastor Ben

164 years before the birth of Jesus, the temple in Jerusalem was purified and rededicated after Israel expelled the Seleucid army through the leadership of Judah Macabee. The miracle of Hannukah occurred during the rededication of the temple.

When the temple was being purified in 164BC, the priests discovered only one day’s worth of holy oil to burn in the candle lampstand (menorah) but that oil continued to burn for 8 days. A miracle from God!

The word Hanukkah means “dedication.”

The miracle gave hope to the people of Israel! But 101 years later, another army occupied all of Israel: The Roman army.

I am sure, many hoped for another miracle that would rid Israel of this new occupying force.

Then another 60 years and Jesus the Son of God was born to Mary. I bet people were still talking about the miracle of Hannukah at that time too… and hoping God would raise a warrior like Judah Macabee to fight against Rome.

Instead of a warrior, God chose to send the “prince of peace.”

Instead of oil that lasted for 8 days, God sent “the Light of the world.”

Instead of regime change, Jesus came to change hearts.

God knew it was the right time to reveal the greatest gift to humanity. The Gift that keeps giving because Jesus lives, even today.

The miracle of Christmas lives on! The light of the world came and His Spirit stayed!

The gospel shares that a star pointed the way to the Christ-child so that the wisemen could come and worship.

Light bears witness to light. The star shone down on the “light of the world”.

Shine the light of your love on others this season so that others “may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Happy Advent and Merry Christmas,

Pastor Ben

“ ‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah. “ ‘In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David’s line; he will do what is just and right in the land.’” Jeremiah 33:14-15

The days of Jeremiah the prophet were grim. The immediate hope of relief in the short term was negligible. The end of Jerusalem and Judah was at hand.

Yet, despite all the poor choices made by the leadership of Israel and the divided loyalties of the people, God didn’t give up on the people.

When life is hard for us and some of the bad decisions we make are self-inflicted, God doesn’t give up on us either.

Not only did God want to give his chosen people hope, this future promise would also change the world too.

The promise of king for Israel (and the world) would be related to the great King David of Israel’s past.

This king will be righteous. He will do the right thing, He will be in relationship with God, and he will lead all of us towards God.

God made a promise to Israel and to us and it came to pass. Jesus, son of Mary and Joseph was born. Both the gospel of Matthew and Luke show the connection to King David through a list of descendants.

Jesus became the most untypical king to ever live. He came to serve and not be served. Jesus showed the extent of his divine and royal love by dying for the people and then coming back to life!

Because of his resurrection Jesus is still our reigning King!

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas, let us also prepare for our King’s return!

Joy to the world; the Lord is come;
Let Earth receive her King;
Let ev’ry heart prepare him room,
And heav’n and nature sing.

God bless,
Pr. Ben

Jesus said, “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he (the Christ) is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:26-27

This weekend we will remember the last weekend of the church calendar: Christ the King Sunday. As it is the last weekend of the church year (Advent begins the new church year) we also take time to remember that at the end of time itself, Christ will return to earth.

It makes sense to remember Christ’s return on the last Sunday of the church year! We come to the end of the year and symbolically jump forward to the end of time.

This is not up for debate. We declare this promise in our historic creeds.

He (Jesus) will come again to judge the living and the dead.- Apostles’ Creed

And…

He (Jesus) will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. – Nicene Creed

This will happen one day. When Jesus makes a promise, he keeps it.

As you know, many Christians over the centuries have tried to predict Christ’s return to no avail. It is a fool’s errand to ever think we can control God or somehow know when or why God acts.

Even Jesus told us (more than once) that predicting his return is a mistake on our part.

Jesus said, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.” Matthew 24:36-39

No one means, absolutely no one. Any prediction of Christ’s return is guesswork.

However, we should not doubt the return of Christ or even his existence. God is real and his kingdom is more real than the world we live in. Whether by our own death or Christ’s return, one day, we will be invited to go live in his Kingdom forever.

Until that glorious day (for the faithful), let us live as through Christ is coming back in a few hours.

For me, this life is getting me ready for eternal life. I want to “practice” my faith (trust in Jesus) now and, live according to God’s will (love God and love my neighbor). Why? So that when I am called to my true eternal home, I fit in and don’t have regrets like Ebenezer Scrooge.

I am getting ready for my eternal tomorrow, today. I hope you are too.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.” Matthew 24:42

God bless,
Pr. Ben

Acts 8:32-35

The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture (from Isaiah 53): “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”

The eunuch asked Philip (a Christian), “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

The eunuch, an Ethiopian man, was leaving Jerusalem and heading home. He decided to do some Bible study on the way. Like a lot of people, he started reading the Bible and it didn’t make sense. (Who hasn’t been there before???)

Jesus knew this was going to happen, so he sent Philip to be on that same road at that very moment to lend assistance. Philip tells the eunuch that the person he is reading about in Isaiah 53 is none other than Jesus who recently died, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven.

Philip most likely told the eunuch that Jesus loved him too and wanted to be in relationship with him.

This man’s heart was so moved by that message that the minute he saw some water, he asked Philip to baptize him. (That was his way of saying “yes” to what Jesus was offering.) And that is exactly what happened, the man was baptized and welcomed into the family of faith.

It is simple. Jesus reached out to the Ethiopian eunuch through the scriptures (Isaiah 53) and Philip. When that man received what Jesus offered (a relationship, forgiveness and eternal life) he responded by being baptized.

The Ethiopian Eunuch said yes to what Jesus offered to him (and to all of us). He said, “yes” when most of the world says “no”.

He responded to the gift that was offered. That is how we live our lives as Christians. We respond to the gift already given in Christ Jesus.

This is true the first time the gift of faith is offered and it is true if you’ve been a lifelong Christian, all of life is a lived response to the grace of Jesus.

The first time is an invitation to respond!

We are reminded of the words of Saint Paul, “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17

The man heard the message of God’s love in Jesus through both the Bible and Philip’s words.

That is how we share the good news of God’s love… by speaking. We tell others that Jesus loves them. We respond to God’s grace in our life by sharing Jesus with others. That is our response!

If we never open our mouths and speak the name of Jesus, others will never hear.

Saint Paul knows this!

How, then, can anyone call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have never heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? Romans 10:14

I pray the grace of Jesus has moved you to respond to what you have been given!!! Keep saying “yes” to Jesus and keep responding in love!

God bless,
Pr. Ben

One of the most compassionate moments in Jesus’ life happened while he was dying on the cross.

The criminal crucified next to Jesus pleaded for God’s mercy when he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Luke 23:42

At the moment this man begs for grace, he had already admitted to fact that he was guilty of the crime he committed, and the crime was worthy of a death sentence. In other words, he was not a very nice person by his own admission.

Yet he dares to ask Jesus for mercy knowing he deserves nothing.

Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43

Even in the depths of painful suffering, Jesus offers this man a future.

This is a touching moment. I can see myself in that criminal asking for an eternal lifeline and Jesus responds by essentially saying, “I will see you later today at my house.”

This moment shows us the heart of Jesus for all people, not just the criminal.

Remember: For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:17

Yet there is a hypocrisy within some circles of Christianity that see their salvation as secure but then question the sincerity of other people’s faith. The hypocrisy of being forgiven by Christ but denying that same forgiveness or even grace to others.

I have witnessed the hate and judgment of various groups of people by Christians! This should not be! Not now, not ever.

The truth of God’s love is this: For God so loved the world…

Not some of the world.

Not a few people.

Not the people who live like me.

For God so loved the world…

There is no one that we lock eyes with that does not matter to Jesus.

You can’t claim the love of Jesus when you hate others (or groups of others) for any reason.

If you have received the grace of Jesus’ love, share it with others.

God bless,
Pr. Ben

There are some good reasons I love serving at Community Lutheran Church in Las Vegas, Nevada…

1. First and Foremost: We are faithful to Jesus. We trust him to lead us as a church and as individuals.

See, others are puffed up; their desires are not upright— but the righteous will live by God’s faith— Habakkuk 2:4

We live by faith. Not by hate or anger or cruelty towards others.

2. We are regular people with everyday troubles (like everyone else). We don’t pretend to be better than anyone else.

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Romans 12:3

We remain humble and point to Jesus for all things.

3. We know that bad things happen in life because we live in a broken world but we also know that God doesn’t cause bad things to happen to anyone.

God causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:44

Simply, God cares for all.

And…

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. Romans 8:35-37

Jesus doesn’t cause bad things to happen, he died and rose again to forgive us from the bad things we have done to cause harm.

4. We live with joy at Community Lutheran Church. We don’t base our joy on external circumstances. We have internal joy because of Jesus and the support of each other.

Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. Nehemiah 8:10b

Joy is our secret weapon against hate!

5. Deep down we know Jesus and others within our church family care for us.

Cast all your anxiety on Jesus because he cares for you. 1Peter 5:7

And…

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Galatians 6:10

I love our church for these reasons. If you have never been to Community Lutheran Church in Las Vegas, NV… come see for yourself.

God bless you,

Pastor Ben

Last week we started a new sermon series on Prayers of the Bible. We are using the petitions of sections of the Lord’s Prayer guide us to look at different prayers that reflect the same themes from the Old Testament.

For example, in the opening line of the Lord’s Prayer, (“Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name) King David prays a prayer that reflects the theme of God who is like a loving parent and the acknowledgment that God is holy and special.

We will continue doing this for the entire Lord’s Prayer in worship over the next month. I hope you will join us online or in person to expand your understanding of the Lord’s Prayer and be exposed to other prayers in the Old Testament.

Besides the Lord’s Prayer, are there other prayers found in the New Testament? YES!

One of my favorite prayers in the New Testament is a prayer of Saint Paul written for the church in Ephesus. Paul’s prayer expresses the desire for everyone to grow in their faith and knowledge of God.

Saint Paul prays,

I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. Ephesians 1:16-18

There it is! Paul wants the church to grow in “wisdom and revelation”. Not only to apply God’s word to their life (wisdom) but see Jesus more clearly (revelation) in their daily lives. We all should want that!

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. Ephesians 1:18-19a

This is where the song “Open the Eyes of My Heart” comes from. Paul desires all Christians to be able to see life through the lens of faith and not just with our eyes. To be able to make sense of the world with our heart (with Jesus help). Why? So we can have hope in the present moment about what awaits us: heaven.

Knowing there is more to life than this life gives us hope to persevere and keep the faith until the end (which is really a beginning)!

That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. Ephesians 1:19b-21

Having faith and hope to move forward in life is powerful! It is the same explosive power that raised Jesus from the dead! That kind of power rules the universe! Therefore, do not diminish or downplay faith or hope. That is the power of God at work in you. Pray for those two gifts to increase in your life!

I am praying for that too… for you!

God bless,
Pr. Ben