CREDIT: Wally Gobetz

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

“Today is the first day of the rest of your life.”  After two years of instruction at First Lutheran, Confirmation students confirm their faith in Christ. But Confirmation Day is not the end. It’s “the first day of the rest of their lives of faith.”  Today is also the first day of the rest of all our lives of faith. 

Last week, we celebrated Jesus’ Ascension. Jesus told His disciples, “You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:48-49) Ten days later, that power swept down upon the disciples as promised. The Holy Spirit enabled the Apostles—simple, working-class men from Galilee—to clearly proclaim the gospel of Christ to people from around the world in their own language (Acts 2:1-13)! This “1st century United Nations” heard the good news that “Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Acts 2:21) Pentecost signaled the beginning of a new life of faith for God’s creation. “Clothed with power from on high” the disciples would never be alone as God worked through them to reach all mankind. They became the world’s first “Confirmation teachers” by instructing all mankind in the essential elements of the Christian faith.

Confirmation provides Christians with knowledge and insight to faithfully proclaim their faith to all who ask about Jesus. But this instruction from God is only a continuation of the rest of our lives of faith. Each of us are called by Jesus to a life of continuous learning to continue to grow in His word through regular worship—hearing His word, receiving His grace. We’re also called to show His love in our words and deeds to those He brings into our lives. Then, one day, when Jesus Christ returns as promised, He’ll find a world filled with His disciples whom He’ll joyfully bring into eternal life in His glorious kingdom.

                                                                                        In the Love of Christ,

                                                                                        Pastor Jim

CREDIT: Ryk Neethling, 2010

Dear Easter People,

Name the four biggest days of the church year. I’ll give you a moment … 

I’m sure you thought of Christmas and Easter. Perhaps you thought of Pentecost. How about Ascension? Ascension is the day Jesus returned to His Father in heaven. It’s among the church year’s most important days because we celebrate Jesus going ahead to prepare a place for us to live forever and His gift to us of the Holy Spirit (John 14:1-3, 26).

Jesus departed physically, but it didn’t mean He has disappeared from our lives. In fact, immediately after ascending, His disciples went to the Temple to be with Him (Luke 24:50-53). They prayed for His guidance in selecting a new Apostle (Acts 1:24-25). They prayed to Him as they organized their new community of believers (Acts 2:42). They prayed for His help as they proclaimed His gospel to others (Acts 4:29-30). Whenever they needed to hear from Jesus – they prayed, and He answered them. What’s more, Jesus continually spoke to His disciples as they recounted His gospel to everyone they came in contact with. Jesus was never far away from His faithful people then …

Nor is He far from us today. Through the Spirit, received in Baptism we believe Jesus and His promises. Through the Spirit, whenever you open His word and read it, or hear it spoken, you know Jesus is right there with you – speaking to you in those words. Whenever you open your heart and lips in prayer, He is near to you – speaking to you through His answers. Whenever you come to worship, He is present in His word and in His Sacrament of Holy Communion. He is never far from you. And one day, He promises to return. When He comes back, He will return to judge all the living and the dead. Then He will bring all who believe in Him back to His Kingdom to dwell in the places He has prepared for us. Jesus is never far from us. He’s here right now.

                                               In Our Risen and Ascended Savior’s Love,

                                               Pastor Jim

Dear Easter People,

Happy Mother’s Day! We all have one thing in common – we have a mother. As I ask God to bless and keep all our mothers – the ones who bore us, the ones who cared for us, the ones who love us, I know not everyone’s “mother experience” is the same. No matter who you consider to be your mom, I hope you appreciate their help – their teaching, their comforting, their encouraging, their presence along the way. In these and many other ways, our moms have helped us get to where we are today.

I understand our experiences with our own mothers are all different – and for me personally, I’m more thankful than you can imagine for the help and support mine has given me throughout my life. But as much as I know she helped me in my life, there’s another who has helped me … who has helped all of us … even more. God tells us He won’t leave us alone, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.” (John 14:18) He gives us another Helper, the Holy Spirit to be with us forever; to dwell within us all the days of our lives (John 14:16-17).

It is this gift of the Spirit that enables us to live as God’s own children, His sons and daughters. The Holy Spirit, given in baptism, takes up residence in our hearts. He helps us to live our lives in accord with God’s Commandments, loving Him and loving our neighbors – the people we like – who look, act, and agree with us, as well as the people we don’t like – who don’t look, act, or agree with us. Keeping the Commandments perfectly is impossible. But that’s where the Spirit helps us most. He helps us see how we fail to keep God’s commandments. He helps us turn back to God to ask for His forgiveness – which He gives. Then He helps us continue on, loving better than we ever could without Him. It’s the exact help we all truly need.

ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN!

Pastor Jim

Dear Easter People,

I follow my favorite sports teams closely. My favorite football team struggled somewhat last year. They had many good skill players – those making the flashy plays, scoring the points, getting the headlines. But the team struggled because they lacked equally good “behind-the-scenes” players to help the skill players excel at what they were drafted to do. So, in the draft of new players, they selected some behind-the-scenes players to help the skills players perform better. Hopefully success will follow next season!

Long before anyone ever even dreamed of a thing called the NFL, the early church’s first “skill players” had a problem. The Apostles were God’s skill players, chosen by Jesus as His representatives in the world. Jesus called them to “make the flashy plays” by preaching and teaching everyone about Him to “score points” by bringing more to faith through the Holy Spirit. They had a problem though; they were also responsible for taking care of all the behind-the-scenes work needed to care for those who already believed (Acts 6:1-2). To address the problem, they held a “draft” to select a team to take care of the work of the church within the church. This allowed them to focus on proclaiming God’s word outside the church. The draft was successful as “the word of God continued to increase, and the number of disciples multiplied greatly.” (Acts 6:7)

God is still increasing His word, growing the number of His disciples. He does this through His church – the gathering of all who believe in His word and promise that Jesus suffered, died, rose from the dead, and will return one day to gather these believers into the kingdom of God. Until that day, God has drafted us to use the gifts He’s given us – some to be proclaimers of His word, others to work behind the scenes. But all of us are drafted to do something. Therefore, prayerfully consider how you might use your gifts to serve God and His people in some way to increase His word and grow more disciples.

ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN!

                                                                    Pastor Jim

IMAGE CREDIT: freeimageslive.co.uk

Dear Easter People,

Fruits and veggies are major parts of a good diet. We’re thankful for farmers who grow them for us. But where do farmers get their seeds? Some farmers actually produce their own seeds. They’ll sow extra seeds to ensure they have enough to grow new produce to sell – while having enough to produce new seeds for next year’s crop.

Paul uses this fact to illustrate the use of our gifts of time, talent, and treasure. He says, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” (2nd Corinthians 9:6)

In 2nd Corinthians 8 and 9, Paul addresses the Corinthian church in one of the church’s first stewardship drives. Paul’s been appealing to churches around the Mediterranean to help fellow Christians living in poverty and oppression in Jerusalem. Some of these churches are very wealthy. Others are quite poor. Whether wealthy or poor, Paul reminds them their gifts are to be used “according to their means,” not only on themselves, but also “for the ministry of this service … supplying the needs of (fellow Christians) … overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.” (2nd Corinthians 9:3,12) Of course our gifts help people with physical needs. But they’re also signs of faithful worship of God. They’re a sign of thanks for God’s past and present provision, as well as trust in His future provision.

God continues faithfully providing for our needs. He’s the source of all we have, not because we deserve it, but because He loves and cares for us. We can trust His continued provision – whether through our hands or the hands of others. But God also provides so we can, in proportion to what He provides, give to others. Some receive more, some less – but all receive something. And God calls us to follow Him in faith by sacrificing a portion of the time, talent, and treasure He’s given us toward His mission to provide for and redeem all mankind. And one day, through us, God’s harvest will be abundant … it will be overflowing!

ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN!

                                                                   Pastor Jim

Dear Easter People,

Ever try explaining a church topic, like baptism, to someone unfamiliar with God’s word? We know the waters of baptism cleanse us from sin and restore us to life in God’s family. But explaining that to someone outside the church isn’t easy. However, using an example they understand to illustrate the concept can help. For example, someone interested in Star Wars might better understand it if you say, “It’s like the Mandalorian. He enters the Living Waters of Mandalore which cleanses him from his transgressions and restores him back into ‘the Way’.” Or you could visualize baptism showing how water cleans a dirty white shirt.

Jesus often uses parables, stories based on common experiences, to explain Himself. The Parable of the Generous Father (Luke 15:11-32) shows God’s generosity and mercy through a generous, merciful father and his two sons. The youngest son represents those who misuse the gifts God has given them and fall into sin – tax collectors and sinners (Luke 15:1). The eldest son represents those who think their good behavior warrants extra favor from God – Pharisees and scribes (Luke 15:2). The father, whose young son returns to him and repents of his sin, welcomes him into a banquet – representing the kingdom of God – with no strings attached! He also longs for his older son to repent of his sins of self-righteousness and unforgiveness toward his brother so he can join the banquet. 

God speaks to us in this parable. He gives us our gifts – time, talent, and treasure – not to waste on satisfying our own desires (like the younger son), nor trying to earn God’s favor (like the eldest son). Like the two sons, we often misuse God’s gifts to us. When we do, He longs for us to recognize our failings and return to Him. Because of Jesus, His Son, God forgives us and welcomes us back into His family, no strings attached! Then He calls us to use our gifts in the family business, growing the kingdom of God, showing His love to others through our gifts.

ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN!

Pastor Jim

CREDIT: pcgs.com via Picryl.com

Dear Easter People,

ALLELUIA! CHRIST IS RISEN!

There’s a saying, “Every coin has two sides.” In the stories of the Rich Ruler and Zacchaeus the wealthy Tax Collector, we see two sides of the coin of wealth and entering the kingdom of God. We learn how to use the wealth God has given us as we live in His kingdom.

Along His way to Jerusalem, Jesus meets two rich men. 

First – the Rich Ruler – blessed with power, wealth, and possessions. To him, it’s proof he’s one of God’s people. Seeking validation, he asks Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 18:18) Jesus tells him to follow God’s commandments (Luke 18:20). He’s relieved, “I’ve done all this!” Then Jesus says, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (Luke 18:22) The Ruler left sad because he didn’t trust God enough to let loose the security blanket of his wealth. Jesus says, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” (Luke 18:25)

The coin’s flip side is the wealthy Zacchaeus. Jesus calls Zacchaeus and invites Himself to dinner.  Zacchaeus, honored by Jesus, immediately repents of his wickedness saying, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” (Luke 19:8) Jesus let’s everyone know Zacchaeus, responding to God’s love by generously giving away a portion of his fortune, has passed through the needle’s eye into God’s kingdom.

As we think about the wealth God has given us, are we more like the Rich Ruler – holding tight to what we have for fear we won’t have enough? Or Zacchaeus – recognizing all God has done for us and trusting He’ll continue to do more and then joyfully giving in proportion to how He’s already blessed us? I pray we can all be more like Zacchaeus.

                                                                                                     HE IS RISEN INDEED! ALLELUIA!

                                                                                                     Pastor Jim