Tag: Grace of God

PRAY FOR THE PEACE OF OUR NATIONAL “JERUSALEM”

Sha’alu Shalom Yerushalayim (“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem”) is a Hebrew exhortation and blessing from Psalm 122 of the Holy Bible. In this Psalm, God both exhorts us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem and promises us a blessing, saying, “May they prosper who love you.”

However, the question on my heart right now is what about the peace of our American homeland? What about the peace of our “one nation under God”? What about the peace of our national “Jerusalem” here and now?

Well, the Bible gives us guidance about our calling to pray for the peace of our nation and for the peaceable life of all its citizens. Of course, the Bible was inspired and written down at a time long before the inspiration and establishment of our liberal republican democracy (a.k.a. libertarian democratic republic). Nevertheless, the Word of God within the Bible firmly speaks to our Christian vocation to pray for and seek a peaceable society for all people.

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, including kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

FIRST TIMOTHY 2:1-4

“It is God’s will that by doing right you should silence the ignorance of the foolish. As servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a pretext for evil. Honor everyone. Love the family of believers. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”

FIRST PETER 2:15-17

In addition, there is clearly a God given and honorable role for our duly appointed governing authorities, law enforcement and armed services to act as peace-keepers (see Romans 13:1-7). However, our Lord Jesus highlights the role of peace-makers, calling them “children of God” in Matthew 5:9. After all, he is the Great “Prince of Peace” in Isaiah 9, that wonderful title that we celebrate every Christmas.

In fact, with everything that’s going on right now, I say (in the words of Auntie Mame) “We need a little Christmas right this very minute!” So, here’s a little Christmas in June from Luke chapter 2:

“Do not be afraid; for see — I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David [Bethlehem] a Savior, who is the Messiah,the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

LUKE 2:10-14

This is good news indeed! It fuels our inner joy and peace, just like Simeon of Jerusalem, who was devout and looked forward to the consolation and restoration of Israel. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. So, guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the Jerusalem Temple, and when Joseph and Mary brought in the child Jesus to do for him what was customary according to the Torah, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying the following:

“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”

LUKE 2:29-32

Like Simeon, may we also be filled with this inner peace at this very difficult time. Furthermore, even in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, even as our society wrestles with the grave injustice of the murder of George Floyd, and even as we deal with the terror of the violent demonstrations, let us pray for peace and for equal treatment under the law — and let us pray for the Spirit to fill our hearts and minds with Christ’s grace, peace and love as we seek together to form a more righteous, equitable and peaceable society for our exceptional nation.

Love & Grace & Peace! Pastor Tim

GOD’S LIVING TEMPLE

Recently during our online Bible study of the Book of Ephesians, hosted on the Zoom video conferencing platform, we discussed the “holy temple” of Ephesians chapter 2…

So Christ came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

Ephesians 2:17-22

As I shared with the other Bible study participants on Zoom, this image of the Church of Jesus Christ as one living temple is a favorite biblical image for me. Of course the Bible uses several other images to describe the Church, such as one living body with many different members, or as one living tree into which we (many different branches) are grafted by God’s grace. However, the image of a living temple speaks to my heart a little bit more than these others.

As a lover of architecture, the living temple image of the Church in Ephesians allows me to imagine the various interrelated structural parts — including how we might imagine our relationship with the Holy Trinity of God. Therefore, with the apostles and prophets of the New and Old Testaments as the foundation of this great spiritual temple, and with ourselves as its living interconnected stone blocks, let’s focus on the three most notable pieces of stonemasonry: the Cornerstone, the Keystone, and the Capstone.

The cornerstone (or setting stone) is the first stone placed in a masonry construction, and all the other building stones will be set in reference to this first stone — thereby determining the overall position of the entire structure. Likewise, Jesus Christ is our divine Cornerstone, the chief stone set in place for us to base our individual orientation within the overall temple structure. In other words, our Lord Jesus’ life, teachings, death and resurrection give us the exact spiritual dimensions that we use to set and position our faith and spirituality.

The keystone (sometimes doubling as a capstone) is the central wedge stone at the apex of a masonry arch, or it’s the circular wedge stone at the apex of a vaulted structure. In both cases it’s the final stone that locks all the stones of an arch or vault into position, allowing the arch or vault to bear the weight of the surrounding structure. Similarly, the Holy Spirit is our divine Keystone, the central wedge stone that unites and binds all the other stones into one load-bearing temple structure. Consequently, due to the open but solid archway of the Holy Spirit (or Holy Keystone) we are strengthened and kept in true faith by the Holy Spirit’s power and spiritual gifts, bestowed upon us through the Word and Sacraments of God.

The capstone (sometimes doubling as a keystone) is a stone placed at the pinnacle of a masonry construction, typically on top of a wall or a monument. In addition, the capstone is an architectural feature that is often found at the very top of religious, memorial and governmental structures. As a result, capstones on such structures as these are often detailed artistic features placed at the highest point in order to indicate the purpose or meaning of the entire building. Furthermore, the capstone can be circular or conical or pyramidal in shape.

On both governmental and religious buildings, the capstone can often have some kind of decorative orb centered on top — and this orb can also have a symbol or statue on top of it.  For example, there is an ornate capstone at the pinnacle of the dome of our United States Capitol Building, and it’s a conical-shaped capstone supporting an orb (etched with the words “E Pluribus Unum”) that also has the Statue of Freedom standing upon the orb. Or for another example, centered on the capstones of many Church cathedrals there are orbs with either cross symbols or angelic figures (or both). Likewise, just as it is with these beautiful capstone structures on top of large governmental and religious buildings, our Heavenly Father is our divine Capstone, the pinnacle stone that indicates our highest purpose and meaning, and our highest exultation and destiny.

As we are physically isolated during this global Coronavirus pandemic and national quarantine, it is deeply important that we remember our spiritual togetherness as stones in God’s living temple — securely interconnected with God and each other forever by God’s amazing grace. With the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (our divine Capstone, Cornerstone and Keystone), and with the apostles and prophets as our foundation, we shall stand firm throughout it all. 

Lastly, with all of this in mind, I’m reminded of the first part of the third verse of the great Christian hymn “Built on a Rock the Church Shall Stand”…

Christ builds a house of living stones:

we are his own habitation;

he fills our hearts, his humble thrones,

granting us life and salvation.

Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW), Hymn #652, Verse 3

A blessed Pentecost Sunday to all of you in May and a wonder-full Holy Trinity Sunday in June!

Together in God’s Living Temple, Pastor Tim

LAVISHLY MANAGING GOD’S RICHES OF GRACE

In my sermon on Sunday, September 22nd, I discussed The Parable of the Dishonest Manager from Jesus’ discourse in chapter 16 of the Gospel of Luke. In this sermon, I stated that this is arguably Jesus’ most provocative parable, ranking right up there with The Parable of the Day Laborers.

In his shockingly backwards Parable of the Dishonest Manager, Jesus tells a story about a man who scams his employer and is then commended for it by that same employer. In this parable, we hear about a dishonest financial manager who knew that he was going to be dismissed by his employer, so he began to slash the debts of his employer’s debtors in order to make some friends for himself and secure his future. If it had not been bad enough that the manager had cheated his rich employer for some period of time, the manager then proceeded to cheat him even more by destroying the old bills and writing ones for lesser amounts for the employer’s debtors. The manager reasoned that, when he left the rich employer’s service, he just might secure a position in one or more of the households whose bills he had altered. Then to conclude this parable, Jesus completely throws us a curveball with the most bizarre twist. Very strangely, the manager in this parable is lauded and commended by his employer for being so shrewd and resourceful.

On a fundamental level, this seemingly crazy Parable of the Dishonest Manager simply does not make sense to us at all. It seems to go in stark contradiction to our basic sense of what’s right and just and true. Of course, it really is upside down, unrighteous and unjust if we literally apply this parable to our financial matters and business practices. However, if we understand this parable in a strictly spiritual sense, then it makes abundant sense.

Our Lord Jesus Christ gave the perfect and ultimate offering for our sins, in order to redeem us and restore us to full fellowship with God. Through his perfect compassionate life and his ultimate sacrificial love, our debt to God is completely canceled! PAID IN FULL. No cosmic bills hanging over our heads. No spiritual shut-off notices to worry about.

So the great question is the following: What can we give back to The One who loves us and forgives all our sins, who continually gives new life in Christ, who imbues inner peace and joy, and who grants eternal hope?

On the one hand, we cannot give anything — for anything we could give is as nothing compared to so much infinite divine grace. But on the other hand, we give absolutely everything. In response to the complete self-giving of God to us through Christ our Savior, God wants our whole being (heart and soul) in return.

Very truly, our beloved Lord desires our whole being in return for the infinite-all that he gives to us. And according to his Parable of the Dishonest Manager, God wants us to be as shrewd, clever, resourceful and urgent in spiritual matters as are secular people in financial matters. This is what Jesus means when he says in Luke 16: “For the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes” (verses 8-9). In other words, Jesus stresses the urgency to be shrewd and resourceful in our management of the spiritual riches of God’s grace, and to do this by lavishly disseminating and extravagantly disbursing the great riches of his grace.

Almighty God passionately desires us to shrewdly, resourcefully and urgently share the riches of his grace and truth with everyone everywhere! And God promises that we will be commended for it and welcomed into our eternal home through this very same grace and truth that we’ve so lavishly shared with others.

Together in Christ’s Mission! Pastor Tim

THE ISRAEL OF GOD

After our Lenten journey of penitential contemplation and intensified spiritual devotion, we come to the pinnacle of the Church Year known as Holy Week.  It is the time of year we focus on the events of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, his last supper, his torture, his crucifixion, his sacrificial death and his glorious resurrection.  So as I reflect on the sacred events of Holy Week, I find myself drawn to the following words of the Apostle Paul from the Book of Galatians:

“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that counts is faith made effective through love.” 

The Holy Bible, Galatians 5:6

“For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything!  As for those who follow this rule – peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.”

The Holy Bible, Galatians 6:15-16

The Apostle Paul wrote these words to the Christians in Galatia in order to remind them of the New Covenant of God through Christ, based on God’s universal grace, not on religious works prescribed by the laws and ordinances of the Old Testament (as it says in Galatians).  He reminded them (and us) that the New Testament of Christ fulfills all the promises and covenants of the Old Testament for all people everywhere, not just for Jesus’ fellow Jewish people. 

As a result of this, God’s promises and covenants to the Hebrew People (which are still in effect for them) are now also universally extended to all people by God’s grace in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.  So, while there is still the literal People of Israel (the Jewish People), there is also an expanded spiritual “Israel of God” (the universal Israel in Christ Jesus) which is everyone who trusts in the Lord: including Jew and Gentile, male and female, black and white, Democrat and Republican, liberal and conservative, rich and poor, and so on (see Galatians 3 and 6). 

In both Galatians and Romans, the Apostle Paul writes that all people are “heirs” of God’s covenant promises to Abraham by God’s grace through faith in Christ.   From Galatians 3 and Romans 3, we hear that all people are “descendants of Abraham” and “heirs according to the promise” by “the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ for all who believe.” 

Therefore, even the promised blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant are now extended to everyone everywhere by the Christ/Messiah of God, Jesus (or Yeshua in Hebrew for Joshua, meaning “God Saves”), and not by our own religious works prescribed by the law.  In other words, the Abrahamic inheritance given to the Hebrews is now renewed and broadened to include every single one of us by faith in Christ!  Thanks be to God!  Consequently, the Apostle Paul declares that all distinctions (circumcision and uncircumcision, Jew and Gentile, etc.) are nothing, and they count for nothing.  All that matters now, he says, is the “new creation” coming into being by the unconditional love and all-encompassing grace of God revealed to the whole world in and through our Lord Yeshua (Jesus), the only begotten Son of God.  And St. Paul adds that the only thing that now counts is our loving response to this free grace of God in the form of charitable service — or as he calls it, “faith made effective through love.”

Like Joshua in the Old Testament who led the ancient Israelites into the land of Canaan through the waters of the Jordan River, our Lord Jesus is the New Joshua who leads us into the universal promised land of salvation and the Kingdom of God through the waters of Holy Baptism where we are born again from above by his Holy Spirit within us. 

Yes, as Christians, our faith is all about the New Inclusive Covenant, heralded and set in motion by the New Universal Joshua (Jesus).   And just as God empowered the People of Israel with the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, God has given us the Word and Sacrament of Christ to empower us in Christian faith and life.  Just as God’s Shekinah Presence (Glorious Presence) mysteriously and uniquely dwelled between the wings of the cherubim on the Ark, so also God’s Holy Shekinah Presence is uniquely and powerfully made available to us and for us through the Sacrament of Holy Communion so that we may abide in the faith, hope and love of our Lord and Messiah, Yeshua (Jesus).

Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will return!  Almighty God — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — bless us (the members of the expanded “Israel of God”) now and forever!  Amen!

Blessed Holy Week & Happy Easter!!!

Pastor Tim