Indeed, the greatest need of all is to pray for our civil authorities and the government, for chiefly through them does God provide us our daily bread and all the comforts of this life. Although we have received from God all good things in abundance, we cannot retain any of them or enjoy them in security or happiness unless he gives us a stable, peaceful government. For where dissension, strife, and war prevail, there our daily bread is taken away, or at least reduced.

It would therefore be fitting if the coat-of-arms of every upright prince were emblazoned with a loaf of bread instead of a lion or a wreath of rue, or if a loaf of bread were stamped on coins, to remind both princes and subjects that through the office of the princes we enjoy protection and peace and that without them we could not have the steady blessing of daily bread.
-Martin Luther, from the Large Catechism

Is it me or is this year’s primary season full of weird sound-bites and angry talk aimed at other candidates and groups of people? If it’s just me—then stop reading now. Maybe I am turning into a “cranky old man.” My wife’s been warning me that it is going happen. Maybe it happened one night in my sleep.

If you are still reading then maybe you are feeling the same way. This isn’t about the issues. This is about the incivility of presidential politics. I am not inclined to vote for a person who is the loudest, angriest, meanest and most divisive. I would not want to have someone like that in my own house let alone leading our country. Even more disturbing is that all but one candidate identifies as Christian. That’s a lot of angry and mean talk among Christians.

As Christians, do we give exclusions for conduct if you run for higher office? Not the last time I checked. Would you want your children, spouse or even your pastor to act like that? (Please don’t say yes.) It seems to me we give a “pass” to all who run for elected office when it comes to campaign season. We take on this Darwinian mindset of only the strongest survive and we are ok with that.

Once again this is not about the issues. This is about how we treat one another. If we condone this type of behavior for those running for governor, senator and President, then, we too, are condoning it for ourselves. Don’t get me wrong, nobody is perfect and I don’t expect that in myself or anyone else. For me, how we treat each other is important. If our candidates are not respectful of each other how we can we even expect them to be a leader that truly represents all people within their constituency?

Martin Luther reminds us in the quote above that we should pray for our leaders and our government. Without a stable government- abundance, security and happiness are diminished if not completely “taken away.” I guess I agree with Pastor Luther on this. I need to pray more for our possible presidents and our current government.

Jesus says, “By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 7:16-21

God bless you in this time of discernment,

Pr. Ben

I recently read an article that made me shake my head in agreement from a periodical named the Christian Century. The Christian Century is a well-respected Christian journal. No fly-by-night operation here. They do good work. This article is by William Willimon. William Willimon is an American theologian and bishop in the United Methodist Church, who served the North Alabama Conference. He is currently Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry at Duke Divinity School. He is former Dean of the Chapel at Duke University and is considered by many as one of America’s best-known and most influential preachers. In other words, he is no slouch and he knows his stuff.

When I am challenged to think, act and lead differently I am reminded of the words from James 3:1, “Not many of you should presume to be teachers (or master, or leader), my brothers and sisters, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

I understand that I am not only responsible for myself but also for the people of Bethel Lutheran Church. The Bible tells me that I will be judged more strictly when it comes to the position I hold. I am absolutely saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ—but I also know that I am accountable because of my position. That is why articles like this get my attention.

This article is entitled “Why Leaders are a Pain.” Willimon describes the challenge of churches in the 21^st century as it relates to the pastor. I am going to quote some of the article because I think it is important to ponder these things no matter where you attend church.

“This may be the first generation of pastors in centuries to whom God has given the intimidating assignment of not only loving but changing the church. When the San Damiano crucifix spoke to Francis of Assisi, it didn’t say, ‘Love everybody, particularly the birds.’ Christ told Francis, ‘Rebuild my church.’”

The story goes that St. Francis was praying in an old church when he heard the voice of God telling him to “rebuild my church.” Francis at first thought God meant for him to fix up the church in which he was praying. No. God had bigger plans for him. Francis came to the realization that the Church body needed more than just a face-lift.

There is a big difference between loving and caring for people and engaging people for ministry in the 21^st century. We need both. We need God’s love of course but we also should love others while taking seriously the mission to make Christ’s name known in our community. Without love we have nothing. Without mission we will eventually have nothing.

“In a class on clergy leadership, one of my colleagues asked the students, ‘What is the most important thing pastors offer congregations?’

A seminarian replied, ‘Just to be present with people—listen, love, and stand with them.’

‘That’s not good enough,’ snapped back this professor of pastoral care. ‘You must have the courage to be a Christian caregiver. You can’t do that without being a truth teller. Individuals and congregations can’t get better unless somebody cares enough to help them hear and respond to the facts.’”

As a pastor, it would be much easier just to love people. Who doesn’t like to be liked? I know it sounds a tad co-dependent but that is the path of least resistance. Let’s just all get along and I will be there for you when you need it. But you and I both know that is not the sole calling of a Christian. I can hear Jesus calling from the recesses of mind saying, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” How we do that has changed over the past 2000 years, but the call to do that has never been rescinded or amended. We absolutely have to love, but there is more to being the church than just that.

“A church told Willimon about the time they met with their bishop, Janice Huie, to discuss the profile of their next pastor. They reported how much they appreciated their current pastor. ‘We love him and he loves us,’ one member said. ‘We hope that our next pastor will be as good.’

The bishop asked, ‘If he is so beloved, why has your attendance slipped by 20 percent in the last two years?’

They replied, ‘We didn’t know that.’

She said, ‘And you are the church’s leaders? You must have worked hard not to notice.’ Then the bishop whipped out charts that showed the congregation’s rising age, declining giving, and lack of diversity.

‘When she got through rubbing our noses in those stats,’ said one member, ‘we were on our knees begging her to send us a pastor who knew not only how to love us but also how to help us.’

I admire Bishop Huie, who has taken on the difficult task of episcopal truth telling.”

Don’t get me wrong, I am not trying to stir the pot or cause alarm or predict that the sky is falling. At the same time, business as usual has led the American church to where it is at now.

Life for me would be so much easier if I were a universalist. A universalist is someone who believes that Christ saves everyone regardless of belief, action or attitude. If I believed that my job would be so much easier. As Lutherans we do not believe in universalism because it is not to be found in the Scriptures. I am left with the words of Peter when facing the very men who convicted Jesus and handed down the death penalty. “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.” That name is Jesus.

I won’t conclude with answers. I will end with a question. How will the church reach children and youth with the message of God’s love so that they can get to know the One who has loved them since before their birth?

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Romans 10:14-15

God bless us in the struggle,
Pr. Ben

The complete article can be found and read here: https://www.christiancentury.org/article/2016-01/why-leaders-are-pain

Faith is such a personal thing we don’t like to talk about it to just anybody. Anymore, conversations regarding faith are limited to the closest of friends and family. Discussions of theology are much safer in a crowd. Faith, not so much.

I get it—I often use the false statement of “my faith.” The trust I have in God is so a part of the fabric of my life that I falsely believe it is “my faith.” I know what you are thinking…if it is not my faith then whose is it?

The ability to trust in God comes from God. Dr. Luther rightly says this in the Small Catechism, “I believe that by my own reason or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him. But the Holy Spirit has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in true faith.”

Faith in God is a gift from God. We certainly do have the strength to reject that gift but the gift of faith is still a present from God through Jesus Christ. There is no such thing as “my faith” unless there is an acknowledgment that it was given to you.

Yet the fact remains that some in this world have this gift and some do not. I can only rely on the words of Jesus in John 3:8 when he says, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” For us, it is a mystery why some accept this gift and some do not. I know that is not satisfying to hear, but that is what we are told. Yes- pride, control and power do affect our ability to receive the gift of faith but there are others to whom this does not apply.

The truth remains that faith is a gift to be received and not taken or re-created from within. St. Paul says as much in Ephesians 2:8, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

St. Paul knows better than anyone that faith in Christ is a gift and not something you find on your own. God literally brought St. Paul to faith in Jesus on the road to Damascus by blinding him and knocking him off his horse. (See Acts 9.) St. Paul was an enemy of Christ and His Church. On his own, St. Paul would never, ever believe in Jesus. Not only did God give St. Paul the gift of faith, God had to force it down his proverbial throat.

St. Paul understood that faith only comes from God. I would imagine most of us did not need to be force-fed belief in Jesus. Even so, it is still a gift.

Once it is given, it must be nourished and strengthened not unlike a houseplant. If you don’t water, fertilize and give a houseplant sunlight—it will eventually die. Faith too must be nurtured or it will lie dormant like a seed in the ground- full of unrealized potential.

Worship, pray, connect with others, study and serve are things necessary to grow the gift God has given you. Yes, you are free to do whatever you want, but if you wish to grow, it will require effort. Devoting yourself to growing closer to God is a worthy endeavor.

God bless you!
PB

¹¹ For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. ¹² If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, ¹³ his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. ¹⁴ If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. ¹⁵ If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames. 1 Corinthians 3:11-15

 I am intrigued by these verses by Paul. He wrote to a church he planted in Corinth. After he left Corinth to plant another church in another city, Paul would write letters to all the churches he started across Asia Minor (mostly in modern day Turkey). The church in Corinth was troubled. If you read 1^st and 2^nd Corinthians you can tell that people are contentious, even with their founding pastor.

We do not have the letters that the church in Corinth wrote to Paul but we do have his responses in 1^st and 2^nd Corinthians. You can sense the trouble and tension between Paul and the church in his reply.

In chapter 3 Paul is clarifying that there are no factions in the Church of God. We all follow God through the person of Jesus Christ. Back then some of church folks were saying things like, “I follow Paul” and others saying, “I follow Apollos.” Paul and Apollos were friends and not competitors. Neither of them tried to attract disciples. They both pointed to Jesus. It is a little odd that people within the church of Corinth were picking “non-existent” sides within Christianity.

Paul writes to correct this by saying we are all in this together and everyone has his or her assigned task, but we are all on the same team. It is just like building a house. It always begins with the one foundation. As Christians our foundation is Jesus Christ.

The question becomes—what do we build upon the foundation (faith and trust in Jesus Christ)? Clearly there are lots of choices. We see the gamut of choices just through the variety of Christian denominations in the world today. All of them build upon the foundation of Jesus Christ. Yet, it is more than that.

As individuals, we too build upon the foundation of faith God has given us. Some of it is strong and other parts wouldn’t pass a building inspection. Paul gives a list of things that we should build upon this foundation in Galatians 5:22-23: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Yet in the world we have brothers and sisters in Christ who try to justify hate, selfish ambition, idolatry (of all kinds), rage, exclusion and racism. Some Christians even claim that is the Christian thing to do. Some people in the media spotlight who claim to be Christians and Christian leaders have said some very outlandish things over the years.

Paul’s response to that is this: God will test whatever you build on the foundation of Christ. If it is worthy of the foundation it is built on it will stand. If it is not, it will burn to the ground like dry firewood.

Imagine that for a moment. At the end of your life and you get to see a building of faith that you built with your actions and beliefs. A building made of everything you did that you gave God credit for. This building is also built with every stance on every issue that you took for God. This same building is constructed with how you treated everyone, including the least of these. It is quite a building!

Then the ultimate building inspector comes to see how worthy the structure is and this is what happens: It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.

Does your life’s work as a Christian stand or fall? I am not talking about sin. Our sins are forgiven. I am talking about all things we attribute to God or we believe are from God, including our mindsets and attitude towards others. Do those things survive the “refiners fire”? We can fireproof our life’s work as Christians when we seek forgiveness and live by the “Fruit of the Spirit” that I mentioned earlier.

I am also not talking about salvation here. Because of the foundation in Jesus Christ, salvation is assured to both the person whose life’s work (spiritual house) stands up to the “refiner’s fire” and to the person who life’s work (spiritual house) goes up in flames. The grace of God abounds to the person who rightly follows God and the grace of God abounds to the person who wrongly follows God.

Yet, I don’t want to get to the end of my life to discover that my life’s work was not worthy of the foundation it was built upon. I don’t want to enter the Kingdom of God by the “skin of my teeth” as if I was jumping from a burning building. I want my actions, attitudes, and service to be tested and found worthy of the foundation that it was built on. What about you?

Lord, help me to be the person you want me to be. Help me to build upon the gift of faith that you have placed in my heart. Help me to love others as you have loved me. Help me to reflect your gentle kindness to this hard-hearted world. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

¹² But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. ¹⁴ And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. ¹⁵ More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. ¹⁶ For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. ¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. ¹⁸ Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. ¹⁹ If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
²⁰ But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead…

This is a reading from 1 Corinthians 15. Paul, a church planter and pastor wrote at least two letters to the church in Corinth that he started a few years earlier. The church struggled with many things including the bodily resurrection of Jesus. Usually you will hear this read sometime around Easter and definitely not in the season of Christmas, let alone me writing about it on New Year’s Eve. However, I have my reasons.

Yesterday, I ran across an article on a website written by a Presbyterian pastor and then shared on Facebook by a classmate of mine. The Presbyterian pastor wrote a somewhat snarky article stating that he is going to hell for not believing in the bodily resurrection of Jesus.

He writes, “In my hard-heartedness I asked one of my accusers if, instead of being a one time magic trick, the resurrection might not be understood as a poem about the whole life process. Like Jesus before Pilate, my accuser was silent. I asked, if the virgin birth and resurrection were essential to Christianity, why the earliest versions of Mark’s gospel had neither.”

 Yes, it is true that there is no birth story in Mark, but there is a resurrection story! The tomb is open and empty and the angel tells the women “But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’ ” If this was made up, we wouldn’t be talking about Jesus today. There would be no Christianity. Mark’s gospel reminds us that Jesus is out ahead of us and we should go out and look for Him!

Back to the point, I am sad when I hear a Christian pastor stating that he does not believe in the literal resurrection of Jesus our Lord and Savior. I don’t condemn him nor am I proclaiming eternal damnation upon him. I am sad that he only follows the philosophy of Jesus’ teachings. I am sad that a Christian leader doesn’t believe the one thing that our faith depends upon. Don’t believe me? Go back and read Paul’s words above.

Paul wasn’t an eyewitness to the resurrection but he encountered Jesus in such a profound way that he experienced radical life-change (see Acts 9). After that experience, Paul became the most dedicated Christian pastor/church planter/theologian/apologist the world has ever known.

Paul states clearly in his first letter to the church of Corinth that if the resurrection of Christ is a fabricated story we Christians a sorry lot. Paul says it this way, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all people.” In other words, if we see Jesus as someone to emulate in this life only as if having a philosophy of living, then we are missing the point and people should feel sorry for us.

Through Paul, the Bible addresses the uncertainty if not the un-believability of Jesus Christ rising from the dead. Even the disciples doubted the women who reported that the tomb of Jesus was empty. Jesus reportedly said this to the doubting Thomas in attempts to bring comfort those who would read the gospel of John throughout the ages, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

The resurrection of Jesus is Christ is not an outdated shibboleth of conservative Christianity nor is the denial of a bodily resurrection a badge of honor for progressive Christians. The resurrection of Jesus is good news for all!

The resurrection is not a poem or an allegory; it is an event that changed the world… even if it defies the natural order of things.

As for me, I believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus. I take comfort in knowing that Christ came back to tell the world that not even sin and death have the final word.

I pray that everyone who reads this understands the depths of God’s love for the world to send Himself in the person of Jesus to live, die and rise again to tell us that the best is yet to come.

God bless you now and forever,

Pr. Ben

Maybe you have seen this online recently… but if you haven’t I wanted to share this with you. What I am also saying is this was not an original thought! Honestly I am not that sharp to catch subtleties like this. Maybe that is why I like magic shows, I can never figure out how they ‘do it.’

This is the 50^th anniversary of “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” A lot of us remember anxiously waiting for CBS to air this show every December since its debut. Many of us also waited expectantly for “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” and “Frosty the Snowman” long before “A Christmas Story” came out in 1983.

“A Charlie Brown Christmas” was different than the rest of those shows. This is the only Christmas special that told the Christmas story from gospel of Luke in the New Testament.

About 2/3s into the show Charlie Brown laments that he can’t do anything right and that he really doesn’t know what Christmas is all about. At this instant Linus seizes the moment to explain the meaning of Christmas by telling the Christmas story from the Authorized King James Version of the Bible (AV).

If you are not familiar with Linus, he is the boy who always carried a blue security blanket with him wherever he went. He always had his blanket.

When Linus gets to the part of the gospel story when the angels visit the shepherds in the fields surrounding Bethlehem, Linus drops his security blanket when the angel says, “fear not.”

Like I said earlier, I never noticed this in all the years I watched the show. It took someone else to point this out to me. However, this is a poignant moment. The boy who always carries his security blanket drops it when the angels say to the shepherds, “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.”

 Why is this so important in 2015? Fear-mongering is at an all time high. There are many dispensers of fear that are telling us to be afraid of this that and the other thing with a caveat… vote for “me” and I’ll keep you safe and don’t vote for them, they will not keep you safe. Many candidates in this election cycle are using fear to scare you into voting for them. (As a side note: I am not talking about political platforms or agendas, I am talking about METHODS. Please don’t read into my comments!)

One of the things I discovered after moving to California was that many things are labeled with signs that tell you that something might be “cancer causing.” When I went to park at Disneyland in October there was a warning sign in the parking garage that essentially told me “Disneyland causes cancer.” (I wish I would have had the forethought to take a picture of the sign.)

Where are my going with this? I believe we need to choose how we approach life in this big, bad world of ours. One tactic is to be fearful: Circle the wagons, play it safe, be suspicious of everyone and avoid cancer-causing Disneyland. In other words, let fear rule over us. Just so you know, fear when directed at others eventually morphs into hate. (Please don’t hate Mickey Mouse.)

OR…

We can listen to the words of the angel and “Fear not.” Both the Authorized Version (AV) and the New International Version (NIV) of the Bible tells us that the phrase “Fear not” and “Do not be afraid” shows up 70 times throughout scripture. The angel’s declaration was not a new one for God’s people. Over and over again God reminds us to “fear not.”

One of the starkest reminders of this phrase happens in Deuteronomy 1. Moses sends spies into the ‘promised land’ to scout out the land God had promised them hundreds of years before this moment. God told Moses that the people of Israel should “fear not” because God is in control. Long story short, the people chose fear over faith and God sent them back to do laps in the desert for 38 more years.

Fear will only hold us back from living into the love and the promises of God. Fear will keep you far away from Bethlehem this Christmas and fear is what caused a modern day wall to be built around Bethlehem to keep people some people in and some people out.

Don’t allow a wall of fear to be built around your heart this Christmas.

Yes, love is risky. It cost the baby of Bethlehem his life. But he would tell you that it was worth it.

God bless you and Merry Christmas,

Pr. Ben

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
-Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount

 Our society is falling apart. Our nation is more than divided there are many fractures. Smarter people than myself will write on this subject. I am sure there will be books and dissertations that will plumb the depths that I cannot in this short article.

It is clear if you read or watch the news, we as a nation are not united. I am sure there are many reasons for this but as a pastor I think about such things theologically. I believe that when individuals and groups value ideas and ideologies (and theologies) over people- there will be division. In today’s world the notion of being ‘right’ trumps any other value including community and the inherit peace that comes with living in community.

That is not to say that we should avoid conflict or pretend to not disagree all to portray a 1950’s “Father Knows Best” or “Leave It To Beaver” sort of existence. Today we can no longer disagree and leave it at that. We must demonize the other who does not see things our way. We must shout it from the rooftops that ‘they’ are the reason the world is falling apart. If we are ‘right’, then everyone else is wrong AND evil. Maybe you don’t do those things or believe that, but if you watch the news you can hear these things implied or said by many talking heads.

Peace is not the absence of war. Peace is something that must be waged or conducted. We should pursue peace and community over ideas if we ever want to see the end of extremism of any ideology political or religious (of any brand, including Christianity). Extreme points of view that value the idea of being ‘right’ over people often leads to hate and violence against those who don’t agree.

Jesus encountered the practice of ideology over relationship quite a bit. The Pharisees (the religious leaders of Jesus day) continually advocated for people doing things their way (according to the Mosaic Law) or there would be literal hell to pay if they did not conform. The Pharisees threatened and used scare tactics to get the people of Israel to do what they thought was the correct ways of living and believing. Most people were afraid of their authority because they wielded it like a sword versus using their power to bring people together. Jesus openly challenged that kind of leadership and fear mongering.

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them. “Everything they do is done for others to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’ Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” Jesus from Matthew 21:1-7,13

 Jesus tells us that peacemakers are blessed. To put this a different way, God favors those who bring people together.

God needs the church to be peacemakers and bring reconciliation to a broken world. If we mimic the world, we will only bring more division. It is not a contradiction to disagree with someone and still like them (or at least be civil). I believe spiritual maturity in this day and age might look like this: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (and others), that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

 If you are reading this and thinking I am making a political statement, I am not. This is one aspect of my faith relationship with Jesus. However, my trust in God affects all aspects of my life including how I view world events and the news.

May God bless us all,

Pr. Ben

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Paul the great church planter, pastor and theologian wrote these words to a church in Thessalonica in the middle of the first century AD. Most likely the first letter to the Thessalonians is the earliest writing of the New Testament.

Depending upon how we read it, it might come off as a trite saying or words of advice often found in fortune cookies. It is much more than that. Paul’s preaching and deep faith caused him to be persecuted, beaten and arrested. He lived a ‘hand to mouth’ existence and relied upon the kindness of Christians to house and feed him. Paul was on the move and far from home. The people of Thessalonica oppressed and jailed Christians. The church in Thessalonica whisked Paul out of town to save him from further persecution. When the townspeople heard that Paul moved onto Berea to preach; they sent people down there to stir up trouble for him and the message he brought. (Acts 17)

Yet in the face of all that trouble, Paul writes (and lived out), “give thanks in all circumstances.” Paul encouraged the church to do something he continually lived out.

Job (from the Old Testament) lost everything: family, fortune and health… circumstances that would break the spirit of most people. However, after all the tragedy Job endured he proclaimed, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb,

and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” Job 1:21 

Paul and Job could say these things because they lived that message out in their lives.

I however am not telling you to be grateful. By all accounts I live a privileged life. Not only because I live in California in a National Park. Compared to Paul and Job my whole life has been easy. Even the hardest moments in my life don’t compare to what they went through. I don’t feel comfortable telling anyone to be grateful. I do feel comfortable asking people to consider why we as Christians should be grateful.

Gratitude must come from within. It cannot be imposed or commanded from the outside. Considering the example of Job and Paul, I am ashamed when I think of the times that I am upset and ‘put out’ by the minor inconveniences of life. Most of these instances can be truly called “1^st world problems.” In other words, people in truly dire circumstances (in other parts of the world) would be THANKFUL to be in my shoes.

As I said, thankfulness can’t be forced. It should be cultivated from within. Yes, we should be thankful when good things happen and we should say “Thank you” to people who do nice things for us, however Paul and Job show us where our gratitude should be directed: at God and for God.

We all will experience moments of great joy and inexpressible sorrow. That is the human condition. Yet it is God who breaks into our world and says to us, “I will always be with you. No matter what happens, I will be there.” Circumstances will change, but God and the promise of God does not. That is where my thankfulness lies. Knowing that life will have its ups and downs, I cannot place my trust or my gratitude in ever-changing situations. For me, I can only be thankful for the one thing that doesn’t change in my life: Jesus Christ.

I am reminded of the words of Isaiah 43. Truly they are God’s words, Isaiah wrote them down.

“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.

When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.

 For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…”

May you have a blessed Thanksgiving. Give thanks to the One who walks beside you.

Pr. Ben

If I asked a 100 people, “What is the Church?” I might get 100 different answers. Everyone has an opinion. There is nothing wrong with a personal view on any subject. Regarding questions related to God, ‘what I think’ doesn’t really hold a lot of weight. When questions like these arise, I have one place to go: The Bible.

Why am I even asking the question, “What is the church?” Isn’t it obvious??? Yes and no. We can all see the things the church does, but is that the true definition? If it is not, are we really living into God’s intention for the church? No, this isn’t a ‘witch-hunt.’ I have been burdened with this question. I sense that God is pushing me to answer this for myself so that I can clearly communicate that truth to others, especially at Bethel Lutheran Church. Yes, this nagging is different than other types of questions that I have to answer. The nagging tells me that this is important for God, for me and for our church. (I am explaining this to you so that you understand that I didn’t just pick a topic and started writing about it. For some reason this question is bouncing around in my heart and head and I am making an attempt to answer it!)

Here is what I have so far…

The Church is an extension of the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ the Son of God.

In other words, the Church should be doing the same things that Jesus was doing as recorded in the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

First: How do we know the Church is an extension of the earthly ministry of Jesus? Let us see what the Bible says.

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
1 Corinthians 12:27

 So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Romans 12:5

And Christ is the head of the body, the church.
Colossians 1:24 

The mission statement of the ELCA (of which we belong) is “God’s work, our hands.” I believe that reflects the biblical thinking about the nature of the church.

Both in Colossians and Ephesians state that Christ is the brain of this operation. Jesus is in charge of his body the same way our brains (both consciously and unconsciously) manage our bodies. The Church is the body of Jesus in the world today.

Martin Luther in his Apology to the Augsburg Confession affirms this when he writes, “This church alone is called the body of Christ, which Christ renews, consecrates, and governs by his Spirit, as Paul testifies when he says (Ephesians 1:22- 23), “And he has made him (Christ) the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness,” that is, the whole congregation “of him who fills all in all.”” Article VII and VIII of the Apology

Second: If the Church is the Body of Christ on earth, what should we be doing?

Once again we need to go back and see the things that Jesus did and make sure we are doing those things.

In everything that Jesus did while He was on earth, he always brought the Kingdom of God. It stands to reason that wherever the Lord is, so is His Kingdom. In Jesus’ first words that marked the beginning of His public ministry, Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” Mark 1:15

We represent the Kingdom of God to each other and to the world as Christ’s body. It will never be the fullness of the Kingdom until Jesus returns; however we still represent the Kingdom of God none-the-less.

What else did Jesus do besides bring the Kingdom of God?

Gave the Church the sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion) and instructed us to use these means of grace to experience the presence of God in our lives.

Jesus talked about God. There are sermons, teaching moments and conversations in the gospels with anyone who would listen or engage in discussion. Jesus:
                   Preached,
                            Taught,
                                   Led Bible Study formally and informally,
                                                     Had informal discussions about God with both small groups of
people and one-on-one.

Jesus prayed. We don’t have the contents of all Jesus’ prayers but not only did He pray to the Heavenly Father but also gave us the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus also prayed quite extensively in John 17.

Jesus mentored others. Jesus mentored the disciples and others. Jesus prepared them for future ministry and news ways of thinking about God.

Jesus addressed the needs of others. Whether it was a healing, a conversation or even a meal, Jesus showed compassion by helping others.

Jesus welcomed others. Jesus embraced people from all walks of life including those who were excluded by the religious leaders of His day. The Kingdom of God is for everybody.

Jesus embraced community and relationships. Not only does Jesus live within the perfect relationship of the Trinity, but Jesus also lived in and taught the importance of community.

Jesus loved. In all the things mentioned above, Jesus did those things in love. About the only thing Jesus didn’t love were demons and the religious authorities that prevented people from connecting with God and God’s love.

Yes, there are probably things I missed. I am hopeful I touched upon the major activities of Jesus’ ministry and therefore our ministry too.

How we do those things and do them better is a different conversation for a different day.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. May God bless you.

Pr. Ben