We begin a new series in the season leading up to Easter. We will look at the ancient story of Abraham and Sarah and ask this question: Where is God Leading you? We see that God works through all. There is no retirement from the Kingdom of God.
Here is something no Christian wants to talk about: Sacrifice. Oh sure, we don’t mind talking about what Jesus did for us on the cross but personal sacrifice not so much. We prefer our faith walk to be tame if not easy. We live in a consumer driven society where the customer is king…and we are royalty.
I understand that the first rebuttal to what I just wrote is this, “What about grace? Jesus gave it all so that I don’t have to do anything but believe in Him.”
I do not deny the grace and forgiveness of Christ at all! God always takes the first step towards us. Jesus did exactly that when he took on all of our shortcomings, jealousy, anger, self-deprecation and uncontrolled behavior. There is nothing that can prove our worth to God other than Jesus loving us and claiming us as God’s children. Our value is found in what Christ did for us.
What I am getting at is our voluntary and willing response to the love of Jesus. We can’t earn anything as it relates to our connection with God, but healthy relationships are a two-way street. Beneficial bonds are reciprocal. Vital connections always involve give and take.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying you need to sell your house and give all your possessions away. No, I am asking if following Jesus is the most important thing in your life or is it something else? Does the love of Jesus inform how you treat others, what you spend money on and even vote? (After all it is an election year.) Or do your opinions and comfort take precedent in important decisions?
I absolutely believe that I will spend eternity with Jesus. I will only gain admittance because of what Jesus did for me on Good Friday. Not even being a pastor gets you in the door up in heaven. I am getting ready for what comes next. Let me tell you, I want to fit in when I get there. The best way to do that is to respond to the grace Jesus already extended to me. That sometimes means saying no to things that gratify me…yes, that’s right sacrifice and self-denial.
Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 1Peter 2:11
We are bombarded with messages from culture that can be summed up in the popular advertising campaign of Nike athletic shoes: “Just Do It.” Do whatever you want as long as it doesn’t hurt others, yet some of these things diminish our faith in the One who loves us the most especially when we indulge ourselves rather than building the Kingdom of God right here and right now.
I want to let you in on a little secret… there is joy in sacrifice.
God bless,
Pr. Ben
I take a new look at the moment Jesus was transfigured in front of Peter, James and John. There is a reason Jesus did this and it has meaning for our life today.
When Saint Paul wrote a letter to the church of Galatia, he reminds the Church of the essence of the message he preached: Grace. This reminder was necessary because Paul was receiving reports that the church in Galatia had added something to the free gift of love that Jesus gives to all who believe, but it wasn’t a helpful addition.
How did this happen? After Paul left to go plant other churches, traveling preachers came to Galatia and convinced these Christians that the grace of God was not enough. They needed to do something too—this is when the erroneous notion of “works” or “acts” began to muddy the promise of the grace of Christ.
Paul, wanting to correct the misguided and heretical teaching of these itinerant preachers, wrote the letter we know as “Galatians.”
In chapter 3, Paul asks a pointed question, “I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard?” Galatians 3:2
Folks–we can’t earn God’s favor! The nicest, purest, most gracious thing you or I have ever done pales in comparison to God’s holiness and compassion. Paul totally gets this and so does the Old Testament prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah writes, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” Isaiah 64:6
We have a deep need for God to come to us (thank you, Jesus!) and there is nothing we can do to climb our way to God.
Our relationship with God is all about the love God has for us and it is free—this is grace!
Yet, we are reminded that our actions in this life have consequences. We may be forgiven and loved but our decisions still carry weight. Here is how Paul puts it, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A person reaps what they sow.” Galatians 6:7
This spiritual truth is lived out in two ways. One cannot say they follow Jesus and then live contrary to the command to love without God taking notice. Also, a person who expect others to love and respect them while treating people poorly will be sorely disappointed; a person reaps what they sow.
However, if you sow love and kindness wherever you go, you will receive a harvest of the same. My life shows abundant proof of this. I am humbled by the love and support shown to Rachel and me in the past few months. If you are one of those people, thank you.
God bless,
Pr. Ben
We continue on in our sermon series on the most important things in the church. I take on another taboo subject… giving. It is never about the amount one gives.
We continue in our “Dear Church” sermon series and this week we hear why sharing the love of Jesus with others is one of the primary things we do as a church and as Christians
There is one thing we do every week as the church… we worship. It may be the most important activity we engage in. For some of us, it may be the only church related activity we participate in all week. Why is worship so important?
Theologians of every age have defined the act of worship in different ways. Here are a few…
Bruce Leafblad: Worship is that process in which we make God first in our lives.
Mark Tittley: Worship is becoming aware of God’s presence and responding to His presence with verbal or active expressions of love and devotion.”
Krister Stendahl: Worship is being confronted with a sense of wonder, a sense of our sin, a seeking of purging and purification and a summons to service.
Clement of Alexandria: Worship is celebration. All of life is a festival: being persuaded that God is everywhere present on all sides, we praise him as we till the ground, we sing hymns as we sow the seed, we feel his inspiration in all we do.
Anonymous: Worship is response to God resulting in service to people.
See? Everyone has an opinion! Even I have a definition for worship.
I define worship as an act of surrender.
When I come to worship, I come with the mindset to surrender my will to God. I often think about the words John the Baptist spoke when Jesus began his ministry, “He (Jesus) must increase, but I must decrease.” John 3:30
Although we are created in the image of God, I still see the need to have more of Jesus in my life and less of me. You know what I am saying…”thy will be done” and not my will be done.
Worship is the place where I surrender myself to God’s love through music, prayer, scripture and even the message.
However, the attitude I bring to worship affects how I worship. If I am not open to God’s love in that moment, I won’t let my guard down. If I come in looking for things to complain about, I will find them. If I come seeking entertainment, I will be entertained (but I won’t be worshipping). If I come in looking for Jesus to connect with me, I will find connection. The attitude we bring to worship matters.
The act of surrendering myself to Jesus at worship will then spur me into faithful living and serving the rest of the week.
Do you surrender yourselves to God when you come to worship?
Oh and more thing…
Christian worship is communal. We also come to connect with others. So many people have said, I can worship God on the golf course, lake, mountain, park, etc. I believe that is partially true.
I am also skeptical of those who say they actually worship by themselves in those places. In all my travels, I have never encountered a person in nature actually worshipping God. OK, rant over!
We worship as a community to be strengthened by others. We are fortified by the voices of others as we sing and pray. We are reminded that we are never alone in the voice of the person sitting next to us.
Come and surrender yourself this weekend whether online or in person. We need more of Jesus in our lives and we need each other.
God bless,
Pr. Ben
We continue on in our sermon series and we tackle a tough issue… justice and advocacy. What does it mean to be a voice for the voiceless and does Jesus even care about such things? Listen in and find out.
We begin a new sermon series called, “Dear Church…” where we will spend time looking at the most important things the church should be about. We begin with love. Everything we do is informed by love. Note: the first few seconds were cut off but you’ll get what I am talking about.
Here we are in 2020. My does time fly! In 1998, Community Lutheran Church was engaged in a strategic planning process called “Vision 2020” and here we are. Now I don’t remember the conclusions of that report but that doesn’t matter now. What does matter are the plans we make for the coming year.
Maybe not our plans per se…
May I suggest we turn our hearts toward asking, “What are God’s plans for us in 2020?” I am reminded of a verse in the book of Proverbs that the wisest king who ever lived once wrote, “Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21 We all have things we want to do or even need to do but do we ever take the time to ask God what He has planned for us?
All you need to do is look at the Bible and see that God has plans. Plans for the world, plans for nations and plans for individuals. Where is God leading you in 2020?
I know that some view God as silent or even disinterested but I disagree. Jesus established the church knowing we need each other. That was a great plan! At the end of our lives we won’t be talking about: the degrees hanging on the wall, the cars we drove or even the homes we have lived. We will reflect upon the deep and lasting relationships in our lives. The church is the place where we can grow in our relationship with Jesus and with others. God has a plan for us to be connected but there is so much more Jesus wants to accomplish in your life.
Let me ask: What about you? What is God leading you to in 2020? Have you prayed about this very question?
I can certainly see how God led me in 2019. I didn’t seek to come to Las Vegas. I was open to the possibility but I didn’t “orchestrate” the process. I decided early on if this was God’s will, it will unfold the way God intends. I didn’t need to do anything other than be myself through the interview process.
In 2020, I believe God has set me on the path to help our congregation discern who we are and how we will do life together in the coming years. This won’t happen overnight because it is a process of discovery. I often see God working in my life as steps and not giant leaps. I am content to take one step at a time.
I try to live by Psalm 37:23-24 as it relates to the most important things. “If the Lord delights in a person’s way, God makes their steps firm; though they stumble, they will not fall, for the Lord upholds them with His hand.”
I try not to make reactive decisions. I aim to be deliberate so that my path forward is sure. Even the Psalm reminds me that even with good intentions, I will occasionally stumble. Yet, I am reminded that God will be there to help me catch myself (if I am open to His leadership in my life).
Where is God leading you in 2020? If you haven’t asked yet, maybe you should.
God bless,
Pr. Ben
