Photo: Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Dear Easter People,

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Good news travels fast! … or it should. For example, if anyone were to suddenly find a vaccine or cure for COVID-19, what would they do? My guess is they’d spread the news of this life-giving, life-saving discovery as fast as they could! And imagine the joy this would bring!

As bad as COVID-19 or any other disease is or ever will be, we all face an even more deadly disease. Sin. The infection rate is 100%.  Sin isn’t just “bad” … it’s eternally deadly. Untreated, it leaves all mankind permanently separated from God. Permanently evicted from the kingdom of heaven. We’re unable to cure this truly horrible disease on our own. However, if there was such a cure … wouldn’t we run into the world shouting this incredible news!?

And there is good news to shout! God our Father sent His Son Jesus down from heaven to bring us the cure for our sins. To bring this cure required Jesus to pay the ultimate price – death. Our sins nailed Him to the Cross. There He died, bringing us – through His death – the cure for our sin. 

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary showed up early Sunday morning to see the tomb. When they got to there, it was opened. And an angel of the Lord told them, “I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He has risen from the dead. (Matthew 28:5-6)” Hearing this good news – that Jesus had risen to new life –  they immediately ran off to tell everyone!

Because of Jesus’ resurrection, all who believe in Him are cured of sin … we are forgiven all our sins and, what’s more, given the gift of eternal life! What joyful news this is! It’s news “The Mary’s” ran off to share with the world. And having received the same cure – a life-giving, life-saving gift from God – let’s join them! Let’s run into the world shouting the joyful news, “Christ is risen!” for all to hear.

                                                                  In Christ’s Love,

                                                                  Pastor Jim

Photo by Grant Whitty on Unsplash

Dear Children of God,

While the current isolation caused by the virus impacts us all in many negative ways, one of the neatest things I’ve seen is how teachers have tried to help their students get through this by forming parades through their students’ neighborhoods. For these isolated youngsters, seeing their teachers has provided them comfort … bringing joy into their difficult existence. It’s a nice side to the other side of the same coin which caused the parades to be necessary in the first place.

On Palm Sunday, we see a similar sort of situation. On one side of the coin is Jesus riding into Jerusalem in a parade of sorts. The massive crowds, who’d heard about Jesus’ raising of Lazarus from the dead, shouted joyful hosannas to the one they believed had the power to become their new king. Anyone powerful enough to raise someone from the dead could also deliver them from the tyranny of Rome (John 12:12-18). They were correct to think Jesus was powerful enough would deliver them from tyranny, but it wasn’t the tyranny of Rome … it was the tyranny of sin, Satan, and the eternal death they wrought.

On the other side of the coin is Jesus’ reaction to both the crowds and the Pharisees. Yes, Jesus came into Jerusalem for the Passover to exert His power. But, He would do it in a most unexpected way. He foretold what would happen in the strange parable of a grain of wheat, falling to earth, being buried, and then bearing much fruit. In this example, Jesus tells His disciples that He will die, be buried, and rise to new life. (John 12:23-24) 

By His death and resurrection, Jesus exerts His ultimate power. He has the power to deliver you, me, and all who believe in Him from the devil’s tyranny of sin and death. Then He leads us in a joyful victory parade into eternal life with Him and our Father in the kingdom of heaven.

                                                                                        In Christ’s Love,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

Photo by Aarón Blanco Tejedor on Unsplash

Dear Children of God,

In these times of uncertainty, it’s easy for fear and anxiety … or maybe boredom … to take over. Each of us have different solutions to navigate these generally unprecedented times. My thought on this is to pray … ask God to help us all respect the differences of opinion among us, see and help those around us who are in need the best we can, and strengthen and protect all of us, especially those in the front-lines – healthcare providers, first responders, scientists, and leaders – who are all gifts from God whom He has provided to get us through this time. Trust God fully and completely to lead us through this time.

Even as we’re unsure of when “normal” will return, Jesus reminds us of the one truth we can all rest assured about. One of Jesus’ good friends, Lazarus, died unexpectedly. In His humanity, we Jesus’ reaction, “Jesus wept. (John 11:35)” But Jesus in His divinity has these words of assurance for Lazarus’ sister Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. (John 11:25-26)” 

Jesus never promises there will be no adversity in our earthly walk of faith. However, He does promise that when this walk is finished, there is still more for all who believe in Him. We shall all live forever with Him and all who believe in Him. Martha trusted Jesus to help her in her grief. You and I can also trust Him in our trials. He is with us always … in His Word when we read and hear it, when we call on Him in prayer, and in our time of worship. Go to Him … trust Him … He will bring you through your fear and anxiety … and your boredom.

                                                                                                In Christ’s Love,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

CREDIT: Faithlife

Dear Children of God,

This "blog" usually contains my thoughts on a part of God’s Word we’ll hear from during worship.  This week, however, I received some encouraging words from Rev. Mark Schroeder, a part of the Southeastern District staff. In this time of great uncertainty and fear, I found his thoughts to be an encouraging and comforting reminder of God’s work in His creation … even today.

Pastor Schroeder writes of God’s perfect love and how that love drives out any fear we might have. God’s Word reminds us that “God is love …  There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment (1 John 4:16b,18).”

“There is much fear circulating. The coronavirus is at pandemic proportions around the world and the death toll is rising. Economic uncertainty is at pandemic proportions also. The media reports are just as infectious at causing heightened anxiety.

“Most of us have given some thought to addressing the fear of the virus by resorting to physical precautions—proper handwashing, face masks, avoiding crowds by staying at home, passing around hand sanitizer.

“Of course, for us Christians, we have the Lord and his good will for our lives to calm our fears. But that begs a question. Is the Lord the cause of this? In all honesty, he could be. It would be just for him to send this plague to the world to punish it for sin—you and me included. Some folks are claiming just that. We all deserve a plague and its life ending result.

“But Saint John in 1 John 4:18 reminds us—those who are in Christ—that is not the case. We have been ‘sanitized’ completely by the work of Jesus on the cross. As a result of his work, there is no punishment for us for our sin. Jesus took that upon himself because he didn’t want you and me to bear it. That work was perfect love manifest. And because that is true, John says, it is the solution for managing our fear—both physical and spiritual.

“So, in these uncertain times, continue to hold on to the truth that in Jesus we experience perfect love. His love ‘sanitized’ us completely. The Lord is not out to get us with this virus. It is just another profound way for him to open people’s hearts to know that he loves both us and them perfectly. And it is a profound opportunity for us to reflect that perfect love by demonstrating in word and actions that we can live fearlessly since we know full well that he is caring for us perfectly.” – Rev. Mark Schroeder, Southeastern District (LCMS)

The “living water” Jesus speaks of as He encounters the Samaritan woman at the well is faith and trust in God and His Word. There we find hope as His Word helps us to endure in times of suffering (Romans 5:1-5). Trusting God’s perfect love, we come to Him first. In prayer, we ask Him to protect us and guide those He has gifted with abilities to care for us and find new ways to protect us. In prayer we trust, “Thy (not my) will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.”

                                                                                        In Christ’s Love,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

Dear Children of God,

Sometimes when I’m struggling to understand something, it’s helpful to see an illustration to explain the concept. It helps if it’s something that connects with personal experience. So, if you’re trying to explain something to me, and I have that “deer in the headlights” look, see if you can put into a different context I’d understand. Things that work best for me … an illustration using sports, military, or gardening. 

Jesus often used illustrations, called parables, to get His point across. Generally, people had little idea what He was talking about. So, Jesus might use a parable to illustrate a greater truth through a common experience they could understand. 

One night a Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus under cover of darkness to avoid detection by the other Pharisees. He knew Jesus was a great teacher because of all He’d been doing. Unfortunately, Nicodemus didn’t understand who Jesus truly was. First, Jesus tried explaining through the illustration of being “born again.” Nicodemus, though born of woman, couldn’t get the idea that when you’re born, you receive life. To be “born again” would mean to receive “new life” … to have new life by believing in Jesus and His work to save mankind from sins by bring them into the kingdom of God. All Nicodemus could see was reentering his mother’s womb …

So, Jesus, knowing Nicodemus was among the most educated of the religious elites, steeped in God’s Word, adds to the illustration. Jesus recounts the story of when the Israelites, complaining incessantly about God’s provision of manna in the wilderness, were bitten by a swarm of fiery snakes. The people were dying for mocking God. Realizing it, they repented and asked Moses to save them. God said, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live. (Numbers 21:8)” All who looked on the serpent, raised on a pole, and had faith in it’s healing powers were saved. Referencing this incident, Jesus says to Nicodemus, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life (John 3:14-15).” Surely, Nicodemus could see what Jesus was saying to him through this illustration … Jesus, the Son of Man, would one day be lifted up … and all who look on Him in faith would also be saved.

This encounter must have had some effect on Nicodemus. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we next see Nicodemus defending Jesus’ rights to a fair trial against the accusations of the temple authorities. Then, after Jesus’ crucifixion, Nicodemus, along with Joseph of Arimathea, takes Jesus’ body for burial. 

We, like Nicodemus, can’t grasp the truth of God’s Word by on our own. However, by the power of the same Holy Spirit, God gives us understanding. And illustrations can help us too … as we learn and as we seek to help others understand God’s Word. What’s crystal clear is the gospel proclaimed after Nicodemus’ encounter with Jesus, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)”

                                                                                        In the Love of Christ,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Dear Saints and Sinners,

I was in the military back in the “Cold War” days. In those days I was responsible for defending the nation serving as a Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile launch officer. Fortunately, I never had to do what I was trained to do. Though I spent hours and hours over the years practicing for my mission in the simulator, I never had to execute it. One could argue that through our nation’s preparedness, we were able to deter this horrible conflict from ever happening.

Preparing is something we often do to be ready for some event we hope never happens. For example, we prepare for hurricanes by stocking up on food, water, and, in my case, propane so I can still make hot coffee in the morning. We prepare for serious injury or illness by trying to stay in shape, eating right, and taking out insurance to pay expensive medical bills. These kinds of things happen because of sin which entered the world the moment Adam and Eve disobeyed God. They are part of the curse Adam and Eve brought upon all mankind (Genesis 3:17b-19a). The deception of Adam and Eve came about because they weren’t prepared to face evil. Have you ever thought about how you might prepare to encounter the face of evil itself?

God tells us the best way to prepare … Paul in his letter to the Ephesians urges us to “put on the whole armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11) to include “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17).” Jesus demonstrates in vivid fashion as, accompanied by the Holy Spirit,  He encounters the “face of evil” himself, Satan, up close and personal. After 40 days and nights fasting in the wilderness, Jesus was hungry and, I would imagine tired and thirsty too. Satan tempts Jesus to turn rocks into bread to feed Himself. Jesus, counters Satan by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then Satan tempts Jesus to test His Father’s promise to protect Him from harm by quoting from the Psalms. Jesus reminds Satan, there’s more to God’s Word than cherry-picking a few verses here and there quoting Deuteronomy 6:16, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Finally, Satan offers the ultimate temptation to Jesus. He tries to trick Jesus into worshiping him in exchange for something he actually can’t give, God’s creation. Again, Jesus fights back with God’s Word, quoting Deuteronomy 6:13, “‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.’” In the face of the sword of God’s Word, Satan flees!

Evil certainly exists in the world today, looking for targets to turn against God and His will.  The best defense against Satan’s attacks is the strong offense of God’s sure, certain, and truthful Word. Satan cannot stand against it. It takes constant preparation to be able to fend off Satan’s vicious attacks. Through regular study and devotion over God’s Word in groups and on your own, as well as prayer, you can be prepared, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to stand firm against Satan’s attacks too. 

                                                                                        Your Fellow Saint and Sinner,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

Photo by Mitchell Gaiser on Unsplash

Dear Faithful Followers of Christ,

It’s a cold morning and the alarm rings. You stretch and begin to move your foot to the floor … “Wow! It’s cold out there!” But, it’s warm and cozy under the covers. You know you need to move to begin the day, but … it’s so warm and cozy under the covers. It’s hard to move when we’re comfortable … maybe it’s the comfortable bed in the morning … or the recliner in the afternoon. The problem with “comfortable” – nice as it can be – not much gets done. You can’t get the day going if you stay in bed. You can’t make progress on the “to-do list” if you stay in the recliner. It can be easy to get trapped in comfort.

There’s an account in the Bible we might be able to relate to when we’re trapped in our comfort. The Transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1-9), in some ways, might’ve been a pretty comfortable place for Peter, James, and John. Jesus took them to the top of a high mountain. Suddenly Jesus was transfigured, “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as light (Matthew 17:2).” And if that wasn’t enough, Moses and Elijah, representing the Law and the Prophets, the entirety of Scripture at the time, also appeared! While it may not have been as comfortable as a nice recliner, Peter was eager to stay up there, basking in the glory of the Lord while in the presence of Moses and Elijah. Peter said, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If You wish, I will make three tents here, one for You and one for Moses and one for Elijah (Matthew 17:4).” But Jesus had other plans … having enabled Peter, James, and John to be eyewitnesses to this amazing event and hearing God the Father proclaim Jesus as His Son (Matthew 17:5) … it was time for them to descend from the comfort of the mountain into the world. 

In the world, Jesus embraced sinners of all kinds. He engaged the antagonistic temple leaders. And ultimately, He went to Jerusalem where He endured another mountain top experience, the excruciating agony of death on a cross … earning for us what we can’t possibly gain on our own. Then He rose to new life. Through Him, we receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life. We who believe in Jesus are the beneficiaries of these amazing gifts. 

We’ve been forgiven. We live in the promise of eternal life. So, it’s tempting to get comfortable. As we enter the Lenten season, consider stepping out of your comfort zone. We can do this is by sacrificing some of our comfort (and remembering His sacrifice as you crave comfort throughout Lent). Then pray for strength to help you fight off Satan’s temptations to give in to your cravings.  Another idea – expand your comfort zone by spending more time in concentrated prayer, reading His Word, and listening to Him – pick up an “Our Daily Bread” devotional in the lobby and meditate on His word each day. Putting aside some comfort during Lent might help you experience more fully the Easter mountain top where Jesus proves He is who He said He is, the Son of God. 

                                                                Following Him in Faith,

                                                                Pastor Jim