Monday, February 22, 2010

February 21/22, 2010 sermon - Pastor Paul Eckert

February 21/22, 2010 - Pentecost 20
Pastor Paul G. Eckert
Sermon text: Mark 14:1-13
1 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert,
2 where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
3 The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread."
4 Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’"
5 The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
6 And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to.
7 So if you worship me, it will all be yours."
8 Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’"
9 The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here.
10 For it is written: "‘He will command his angels concerning you
to guard you carefully;
11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a
stone.’"
12 Jesus answered, "It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’"
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
+ + + + + + +
This Monday is observed as the birthday of George Washington, commander-in-chief in the Revolutionary War, and first president of the United States of America. I don’t know if he ever had anything to do with a desert which is where we find Jesus in today’s sermon text. But I can mention here a couple of contrasts to a desert.
For the contrast let’s go to something very cold, to winter. I’ll mention two memorable ones. The first winter is Valley Forge in Pennsylvania. Washington with his troops spent the winter of 1777-78 there under very difficult conditions. It was a waiting time. During that winter he never engaged the enemy. The second winter I mention was referred to as the hardest winter of the war. It was in Morristown, New Jersey, the winter of 1779-80. That was a very bad winter. After that winter came more battles, and finally victory in 1783.
Now let’s leave the winter locations and go to a desert where Jesus was. This location was not just a waiting place. It was a place where Jesus engaged the battle when he faced the commander-in-chief of the angels that had rebelled in the beginning, the commander-in-chief who had won the victory when he tempted Adam and Eve. But in the desert he failed. He did not win when he confronted God’s Son, Jesus, our Savior. From this battle in the desert let us now consider
WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM JESUS’ TEMPTATIONS
I TO EXPECT TEMPTATIONS TO COME (3,5-7,9-11)
1. They came to Jesus in three areas (3,5-7,9-11)
a) the first was to survive by following the devil’s directions: The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread." - the second was power, control, having everything: --- The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours." - the third was challenging God by distorting what God’s Word said: --- The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here. For it is written: "‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’"
b) basically all temptations were: listen to the devil, not to God
2. We need to expect such temptations
a) to survive, why not cheat and steal; to get ahead in business
and in the world, to gain power and the good things of this life,
why not forget morality and ethics and honesty; to be able to
have fun and do what we want even if God says it is wrong,
why not distort and twist His words (like what He says about
perversion) into permitting what God actually forbids?
b) then, the devil says, you’ll be more like the world around you
3. They come because of who we are (3,9)
The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God,---."
a) the devil went after Jesus because of who He was, God’s Son
b) in the same way the devil comes after us because of who we
are: through faith in Jesus we are members of our heavenly
Father’s family, children of God who are in the world but not
of the world
c) and the devil doesn’t like that; he wants us in his family, he
wants us to spend eternity with him in his home, in hell
II TO REALIZE WHAT FALLING WOULD MEAN (3,7,9)
1. Realize what Jesus’ falling would have meant (3,7,9)
The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God,---."
a) Jesus proved He was the Son of God by not doing the devil’s
will, but by doing His Father’s will: going to the cross to pay
for our sins, arising from the dead to conquer death and grave
b) had Jesus done the devil’s will, "So if you worship me, ---" -
and this is beyond our imagining - then we would still be
accountable for our sins, then heaven’s door would remain
shut and death would open up another door: hell
2. Realize what our falling would mean
a) there is no need to go through the door of hell and into eternal
misery since Jesus defeated the devil, covers those who believe
in Him with His forgiveness, with His righteousness, and is the
Resurrection and the Life for all who believe in Him
b) but whoever does not believe will be condemned; for whoever
does not believe, even one sin, one fall into temptation, is all it
takes to slam heaven’s door shut and open hell’s door wide
3. Realize that this could not be changed
a) do people worship the devil ("if you worship me") by putting
the devil’s will above God’s will, by seeing this world and what
the devil offers here as more important than what God did for
them, by scorning the price Jesus paid on the cross and the
victory He won over the grave?
b) if so, after death it’s too late; then hell’s door will be entered
and heaven’s door will remain forever shut
c) and the devil? - he’ll laugh and say "Gotcha"
III TO BE WELL PREPARED TO FACE TEMPTATIONS
1. Jesus used the Word (1-2,4,8,12) (1-2,4,8-12)
Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.
a) Jesus put Himself at the disadvantage of physical weakness
b) His strength - and let us learn this for ourselves - He showed
by turning to God’s Word, by faithfulness to God’s Word
Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’" --- Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’" --- Jesus answered, "It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’"
2. That Word can often be misused (9-11)
The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here. For it is written: "‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a
stone.’"
a) the devil misused Scripture by setting a promise of God’s
protection against a clear command of God not to challenge
God, like telling someone to jump in front of a bus because
God has promised to protect him; now certainly God can
protect, never doubt that; but He hasn’t told us to jump in front
of a bus as little as God told Jesus to jump from the temple
b) churches today too can be devilish, rejecting God’s Word by
saying you don’t have to pay attention to what God says about
the creation of the world, or what He says about unborn life
being life, or what He says is perversion in the area of sex; in
other words: challenge God, twist His Word to get what you
want and to set aside what He said! - to all of which Jesus says,
"Do not put the Lord your God to the test."
3. How can you be well prepared for this? (4,8,12)
"It is written"--- "It is written" --- "It says"
a) you are not prepared if you don’t know what God’s Word
says, if you stop learning after confirmation, stay away from
church, don’t grow in Bible truth at home or at Bible classes
b) instead show that you are children of the heavenly Father by
continuing to learn from Him, to hear His Word regularly, so
that you can contend with the wrong all around us
c) and try to help family and fellow church members do the same
IV TO REJOICE THAT JESUS OVERCAME ALL OF THEM
1. The devil did not rejoice here (13) (13,3,5-7,9-11)
When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
a) the devil was defeated here; but he did not stop here
b) he was also defeated at the cross, with any doubt about that
defeat being removed by Jesus’ victorious resurrection; but he
did not stop there either - now he keeps coming after us
2. Don’t give the devil a chance to rejoice over us (3,5-7,9-11)
a) remember the promises he made at Jesus’ three temptations? -
"listen to me and you will be taken care of; listen to me and
you will have power and all the good things of life; listen to
me and you can challenge God Himself by distorting or paying
no attention to His Word and doing what you want instead"
b) while some of these promises may seem to be fulfilled for a
while, the devil can give no true lasting blessings; instead he
will have the last laugh when all blessings are gone and he
ushers those who follow him into his eternal home which is hell
3. Instead let us rejoice in Jesus’ victory for us
a) through Jesus our eternal home is heaven with fullness of joy
and no more pain or suffering or death
b) the devil lied, as he lied in the Garden of Eden, when he said
people could have all kinds of good things by listening to him
c) Jesus’ victory over temptations and on the cross and over the
grave proved He speaks the truth when He tells us He is our
forgiveness of sins now and our Resurrection and Life - rejoice!
Who is your commander-in-chief? To whom will you listen?
 
 

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Transfiguration Sunday Luke 9:28-36

Pastor Waldschmidt
2-14-2010
Luke 9:28-36
About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.)
34While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 35A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." 36When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen.
A Glimpse Of Glory
I. It Shows Us Jesus’ Power.
II. It Shows Us His Upcoming Death.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Amen
In the name of Jesus who shows us things as they really are, dear fellow redeemed children of God,
Did you know that there is a spot on earth in Venezuala where there is a lightning storm on almost half of the nights of the year? Those cloud to cloud lightning storms over the mouth of the Catatumbo River last for more than 10 hours and flash over 280 times per hour. More ozone is created there than anywhere else on the planet. Apparently there are air currents that collide just right there over a swamp where there is plenty of methane gas and it causes the light show. It’s another way we can see the awesome power of the Creator. Though its flash is over in the blink of an eye, lightning can be a little scary, especially if it flashes anywhere near you. Imagine a bolt of lightning where there is a solid flash for say 10 or 15 minutes. That would be very un-nerving. That’s what it was like for Peter and the disciples on the Mount of Transfiguration where Jesus clothes became as bright as a bolt of lightning. Peter, James and John were a little un-nerved. In this event which must have startled and scared and amazed those disciples Jesus had some comfort for them. Jesus gave them A Glimpse Of Glory. I. It showed them Jesus’ power and II. It showed them His upcoming suffering and death.
Athletes and Olympic Committees having been working for years preparing for the Winter Olympic games we’ll be watching over the next two weeks in Vancouver. Now it’s time for the Olympics to begin. In God’s Word today, Jesus was preparing His disciples because the time God had been preparing for a long time was about to take place. The Savior was getting ready to go to the cross. Jesus is about two thirds of the way through His 3 year public ministry. It had been almost nonstop action for Jesus and His disciples during Jesus’ ministry. There had been thrilling times like Jesus feeding the 5000 with only a few scraps of food. There had also been moments of disappointment. John the Baptist, who had been especially close to some of Jesus’ disciples had been viciously killed. At first many people welcomed Jesus but now the Pharisees had convinced many people that Jesus could not be the long awaited Savior. Soon Jesus would go to Jerusalem and suffer and die. There were busy times in the past and busy times ahead so Jesus takes some time out with His disciples to pray.
“About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.” In this time of rest and prayer Jesus gave His disciples a glimpse of glory that would show his disciples His power. Jesus let his disciples see His power. This wasn’t a mask or a costume Jesus put on. Instead Jesus pulled back the veil so that his disciples could see the power that was His as true God. For that moment the disciples could glimpse what Moses saw there on the mountain. For that moment the disciples get a glimpse of the glory of the one who said in the beginning, “let there be light and there was light.”
Why would that glimpse of the Savior’s power and glory be so important for the disciples? Well even though Jesus had been talking about his upcoming suffering and death, judging from their actions when Jesus was arrested those disciples clearly didn’t know what was coming. In the days ahead, the fact that Jesus was true God was going to be very easy for the disciples to forget about in the coming days. Within a few months, Jesus’ disciples would see Jesus seized in Gethsemane. They would see His slapped in the face again and again by soldiers. People were going to spit upon Him and insult Him. A crown of thorns would be jammed into his forehead. They would see Jesus stagger under the weight of the cross. Blood would stream out of His nail wounds. The breath of life would even leave Jesus’ body. In advance of all of that, Jesus shows His disciples His power.
With His transfiguration, Jesus makes it clear that one whose voice tears the mountains apart was the same one whose voice would cry out “It is finished.” Jesus made clear that the one who designed and built human hands and feet would be the same one who would walk up a little hill outside Jerusalem and let his hands and feet be nailed to a cross. Jesus, the architect and builder of the streets of gold in heaven left all of that to come here so that we could live there with him. The miracles Jesus had done were not the work of a charlatan deceiving people with a magician’s tricks. No Jesus was indeed who He said He was, the Son of God. As Peter later wrote, "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty."
At this time when people are losing their jobs, their life savings and homes, we might be tempted to doubt whether or not Jesus is really in control of things. In the gleaming light of the transfiguration Jesus shows His power. No matter what forces may threaten us, Jesus is still the king to whom all princes and presidents will someday bow the knee whether willingly or by force. On that day of Judgment everyone will see Jesus’ power and glory.
My sister could always get the basketball to twirl on the end of her finger. When I tried it knocked over mom’s lamp. It was sort of a neat trick that she could do but I’ve never seen the ball twirled on the end of a finger during a real game. In other words, it’s a cool trick but not worth too much in a real game. Jesus was not showing off a neat trick He could do when He was transfigured. He showed His disciples His power in order to strengthen them for the times ahead. At the same time Jesus went on to show His disciples why He had come to earth in the first place. He didn’t just come to earth to show off what neat things He could do but He came to save you and me. That’s the second thing we see in this glimpse of glory. Jesus shows his disciples His upcoming suffering and death.
30Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. Moses and Elijah were regarded as two of the greatest prophets, who served the Lord at critical times in Israel’s history. Here God used their appearance as part of a carefully planned event to show His disciples His purpose for coming. God used the appearance of these two leaders to impress on the disciples that Jesus was the One that Moses and Elijah and all the prophets had been talking about.
In all that bright light did you hear what they were talking about? They were talking about Jesus’ upcoming suffering and death! In the midst of His sparkling power the suffering and death of Jesus come to the front of the stage.
It seems like the disciples may have been napping there on vacation and awoke to Jesus shining as bright as lightning."32Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. “ So it is clear this wasn’t a dream. “33As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.) Peter apparently hadn’t thought through his plan but that never seemed to stop him from blurting it out. Just like a child who doesn’t want to leave the county fair because he is having such a great time, Peter wants to build three shelters so that he can stay there permanently and never leave this great place and moment in time.
“While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him." Why would that have been so important for Peter to hear? Remember Peter didn’t always want to hear what Jesus said. He “shussed” Jesus when Jesus talked about his suffering and death before. That’s the this Jesus had said when our text began. Peter told Him, "Lord don’t talk like that!" Jesus had to sharply rebuke him and tell him that he did not have in mind the things of God. With His words, God the Father assured the disciples that the sufferings and death Jesus was talking about was all part of God’s plan.
The bright cloud and the voice of God the Father were almost more than the disciples as sinful human beings could bear and they fell to the ground frightened out of their wits. As Jesus always does when His followers need help, He comes to the aid of His disciples. He calms their fears. With His power as true God once again under the veil of His humanity, Jesus and His disciples leave the mountain to carry on His journey which would end on a cross in Jerusalem. There on the cross Jesus would fulfill His purpose by paying for my sins and your sins and the sins of the whole world.
When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone. The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen." Jesus had told them not to say anything. Many people were seeing the glimpses of Jesus’ glory and got the wrong idea about Jesus. They wanted a king who would fill up their bellies. Others only wanted Him because they thought He would get rid of the Romans. Jesus did not want this incident to add fuel to the fire of people coming to Him for the wrong reason. In the midst of this confusion about Jesus, Jesus shows us things as they really are. That He was the Son of God who came into this world to save sinners- to die on a cross so that we might live in heaven.
Those lightning bolts over the Catatumba River were often used by sailors to navigate. They can be seen for up to 100 miles out to sea. During the upcoming Lenten season, let’s let the light of the transfiguration light our way. Yes, we will see the Savior nailed to the cross. If we didn’t know better we might be tempted to think that Jesus was weak and helpless. When our view of Jesus is obscured by our doubts or worries, let's remember the glimpse of glory on the mountain. When we think that God could never forgive us for our sins, let's remember the Mt. of Transfiguration where God made clear that Jesus was His Son whom he sent to take away the sin of the world. When you are faced with troubles and everything around you seems to be against you, remember the power Jesus, showed on the mountain. Remember how he loves you. He left that mountain and went to a cross for you. Amen.
ASH WEDNESDAY
February 17, 2010
Pastor Timothy J. Spaude
Text: Mark 11:15-19

PORTRAITS OF OUR SAVIOR:
CLEANSING THE TEMPLE

Mark 11:15-19 (NIV) “On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: " 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.'" 18The chief priests and the teachers of the law heard this and began looking for a way to kill him, for they feared him, because the whole crowd was amazed at his teaching. 19When evening came, they went out of the city.”

“We would like to see Jesus.” That was the request made by some Greeks who had come to celebrate the Feast of Passover in Jerusalem. It was Holy Week. Plots were being hatched to betray and murder Jesus. People wanted to get rid of Him. And yet these Greeks came and said, “We would like to see Jesus.” Brothers and sisters we are preparing to observe Holy Week. It’s only 6 weeks away. There will be some in our country who will want to get rid of Jesus again. To make Lent about Mardi Gras or what they are doing. To make Easter about vacations and candy. Let’s strive to be different. Let’s try to be Greek and let our approach be one where we say, “We would like to see Jesus.” To help us in that our theme guiding our Lenten and Holy Week worship is “Portraits of our Savior.” We’ll follow Mark’s Gospel account.
The first portrait or picture we see is Jesus cleansing the temple. It’s important that we pause to look at the details. Why does Jesus do what He does? First we look at what He did. “On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts.” What Jesus did was to clear the Temple area of those who were buying and selling and exchanging money. You may wonder what they were there for. As part of Old Testament worship there were specific sacrifices that people were to bring. An unblemished lamb for the Passover. A year old lamb or turtle doves for purification. There were many more. Either you brought your own from home or those who came from afar had to buy them in Jerusalem. All the Jews were required to pay a “Temple Tax” as well. That had to be paid with coins worth a half shekel according to the Temple’s weights. You can see there was a need for someone to exchange foreign money for the Temple tax. There was a need for people to buy animals for the sacrifice. My guess is the old adage “Give ‘em an inch and they’ll take a mile,” came into play here.
First the merchants and moneychangers set up their booths where they could in the city, empty lots or storefronts. Maybe they tried to obtain property closer to the Temple. Other people probably owned that already. Then someone had an idea. Wouldn’t it be more convenient for everyone if they set up in the Temple courts? Then it would be easy for the buyers, easy for the sellers. Was there maybe a cut for the priests or the Temple? Now if you know anything about a large number of animals in a confined space or Eastern cultures and their haggling over price you can figure out what happened. Pretty soon the Temple area was filled with lowing, baaing, cooing, clinking, haggling. Then Jesus came and cleared em out. He stopped the buying. He stopped the selling. That’s what Jesus did.
Why? “And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: " 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.'" Here we see a portrait of our Savior. He is zealous for the worship His Father deserves. He is protective of the needs of His people. Remember the importance of the Temple in Old Testament worship. It was a special place that God promised to dwell with His people. It was a building that existed for the sole purpose of giving glory to God and filling the spiritual needs of the people. There God’s people could come and be assured their sins were forgiven as sacrifices of animals pointed to the sacrifice that would be made by God’s Son. There God’s people could show thankfulness to Him for blessings as they brought the firstfruits of their crops and their herds. There God’s people could be sure that as the forgiven children of God their prayers were being heard and answered in accordance with what was best. This portrait of our Savior shows us Jesus cleansing the Temple zealous for His Father’s worship and protective of His people’s needs.
Brothers and sisters we have the same Savior at work among us. He is still zealous for His Father’s worship, that He get the worship He deserves. We don’t have a temple but we do have this church. While we have the freedom to worship God wherever we want as a church family we have used this place to publicly worship the Lord. While there are not a whole lot of rules God has given us for worship in the New Testament times we live in, there are plenty of principles. God deserves to be worshipped regularly. He deserves to be worshipped in spirit and in truth. He deserves the priority of our time, not our leftovers. He deserves our full attention and devotion not that which is shared. In 1 Corinthians 14 when the Lord through Paul gave instructions on worship he talked about the unbeliever coming into a place of worship and seeing the believers there and hearing what was said and exclaiming “God is really among you.” That’s a goal for us to look at. Does the way we act here and talk here even sit here tell others we believe God is here? Jesus is here. If He were to show Himself visibly is there anything He would need to cleanse? Would He need to chase any of us out for distracting from His Father’s worship? If you would see Jesus, see a Savior who is zealous that His Father get the worship He deserves.
See a Savior who is protective of His people’s needs. We all have all kinds of needs. We have need of food and clothing. We have need of love and acceptance. We even recreational or entertainment needs. From every culture that we are able to gather history from you find the presence of games. It’s good for us to have something that diverts our attention, that gives our minds a break from reality. Entertainment does that. But let’s not seek to get our entertainment at church. Get that from reading a book or watching a good show, or sports or a video game. At church seek your spiritual need. We have the same spiritual needs that the people in Jesus’ day did. We need to know that God loves us. We need to know that He forgives us. We need to know that He will not treat us as our sins deserve. We need to know that He will listen to our prayers. We need to respond to our gracious and loving God with thankfulness in a way that is meaningful to Him.
Jesus is protective of those needs. He cleansed the Temple so God’s people’s spiritual needs could be met. He wants your needs met today so He has provided His word to tell you His truths. He has set up the church and the public ministry of the Gospel so you would hear forgiveness proclaimed. He has left a meal to be celebrated again and again which proclaims His forgiveness in a visible way. His assurance of forgiveness is His promise that He will hear your prayers. Jesus is protective of your spiritual needs.
When the religious leaders at the Temple saw the portrait of the Savior cleansing the Temple they looked for ways to kill Him. I doubt that will be the response of anyone here. Yet it’s good for us to see our Savior so we can check ourselves. The tumult in the Temple, I’m sure, started with man’s best intentions, trying to make things easier for the people. Gradually respect for God grew less and less important and what was convenient for people, what they liked, became more important than their spiritual need. As we see our Savior zealous for His Father’s worship and protective of His people’s needs may we strive to honor what He did by being the same. Amen.

Monday, February 8, 2010

EPIPHANY 5
February 7/8, 2010
Pastor Timothy J. Spaude
Text: Luke 5:1-11

“JESUS CHANGES…”
1. Your approach to obedience.
2. Your value.
3. Your purpose in life.

Luke 5:1-11 (NIV) “One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." 5Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." 6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" 9For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." 11So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.”

There’s something very satisfying about being the master of your craft. The woodworker, the carpenter who looks at the finished product and sees the joints are flush, the stain just right, feels pride in his accomplishment. The painter with straight lines, the mason whose wall is plumb. It’s good to take satisfaction in a job well done and be able to say, “God built me to do this and do it well.” It seems to me that Peter, James and John were masters of their craft. They’d gone to the school of fish on the Sea of Galilee. They knew how to read wind and waves, where the fish were likely to be for the best catch. They knew that you couldn’t catch them all. They knew to tend to their tools, keeping the nets in good repair, their boats too. I’m sure they felt satisfaction in a job well done.
Then Jesus entered their lives and changed things. Simon Peter lived in Capernaum with his wife and mother in law. Jesus had come to Capernaum preaching the Gospel, casting out demons and healing the sick. One of those healed was Peter’s mother in law. It was no coincidence that Jesus started an outdoor church service near the boats of Peter, James and John. The crowds were so large that Jesus used Peter’s boat as a floating pulpit. Already a lesson was being taught about service to the Lord.
But another one was needed. A lesson on obedience. “When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." 5Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." You can tell from Peter’s response that Jesus’ fishing philosophy seemed foolish. The experienced fishermen fished at night when the fish came close to shore to feed. The experienced fishermen did not fish in the deep water during the day. Now if you’ve ever worked in the trades and had someone who didn’t know your trade give you suggestions or orders on how to do things you know how this must have felt. Imagine the mason being told to double the water in the mortar for a better bond. You can imagine the looks, the smirks, from the fishermen on shore as Peter rowed out with nets ready. “What’s he doing? What a bonehead. That will never work!”
But it did work in a miraculous way. “When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.” Wow! What a powerful lesson on obedience to the Lord. Jesus’ command was unreasonable. It did not make sense. Still the Lord Jesus has the right to command anything and expect obedience. Basically there are two reasons for people to obey. Either you do it because you have to or because you want to. Did you notice what Jesus did with Peter? “Let down your nets for a catch.” The Lord led Peter to obey through promise of blessing. He taught the lesson for all by following through with a miraculous catch.
How about you? How do you approach obedience to God? Do you obey so that you don’t get punished? There is a better way. To show love and thankfulness to a Savior who turns even unreasonable commands into blessing. It may seem unreasonable to forgive the unforgiveable or love the unlovable or to return kindness for hurt. It may seem foolish to seek first the kingdom of God when physical needs are pressing, but we can do that because the Master says so confident in His blessing. Jesus changes things. He changes your approach to obedience.
He changes your value. “When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" 9For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners.” Peter responded appropriately as a sinner in the presence of the Holy God. He recognized his unworthiness. It makes me wonder what he was thinking about Jesus as he followed that command. He was not expecting it to work. Was he muttering under his breath? Burning inside at this waste of time and how Jesus was making him look foolish? Peter was right in assessing his value on his own. Worthless.
But Jesus changed that. You notice He did not follow Peter’s command. “You’re right, Peter! You are a worthless, sinful man. I’ll leave you to wallow in your sinfulness.” No, Jesus stayed right there with Peter because Peter had value. He was worth so much to God that Jesus was going to give His life in exchange for Peter’s sinfulness.
Brothers and sisters, I hope you can see the same thing is true for you. Jesus changes your value. There are a lot of people in life who can do a good job of putting you down, of reminding you of all the reasons you are worthless. Sometimes it’s someone close to you, a spouse or a parent. Maybe classmates at school. Maybe you are the one who looks at yourself and finds little or nothing of value. You are wrong. They are wrong. Jesus is right. Jesus values you. Like Peter we are sinful and yet God has put such a value on us that He sent Jesus for us. He sent Jesus for you. He would not do that for junk. He does it for you. He’s made you exactly how He wants you to be because He has a plan for you.
That’s the third truth this Word of God helps us see. Jesus changes your purpose. Peter, James and John thought they had their purpose in life figured out. They were fishermen and yet they didn’t just live to work, they were working to live. They were providing for their families. Peter had his wife and mother in law to take care of. That’s a noble purpose in and of itself. But Jesus changed things. “Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." Jesus changed their purpose. No longer fishermen but fishers of men, ones who would catch people for the kingdom of God with the powerful bait of the Gospel: free forgiveness in Jesus Christ.
You know it’s been said that if you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach a man to fish you feed him for a lifetime. That proverb needs to go on. If you lead a man to the one known as FISH, (Greek: ICHTHUS) Jesus Christ God’s Son Savior, you feed him for eternity. That is your purpose. Each one of you. Your purpose at your place of work is not only to do a good job working as unto the Lord and not your boss it’s also to catch men, other people, to be a light for Christ. Your job in parenting is not just providing for needs, establishing peace in the home and educating for a usefulness to society, it’s leading your family always closer to Jesus. You may feel like you have no purpose you may question why you are working where you are working, you may wonder as you get older why the Lord still has you hear but you must listen to the voice of the Master who changes things. From now on you will catch men.
For Peter, James and John that meant leaving their boats, and their nets and the occupation they had grown up with. For us there is no such command. But there is the call to follow, follow the Master who changes things, who leads you to obey out of love with promise of His blessing, who shows you your true value, so great you are worth dying for and who gives you an awesome purpose with results lasting into eternity. No wonder we want to follow. Amen.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Luke 4:20-32 January 31, 2010

Pastor Waldschmidt Luke 4:20-32
THIS PREACHER (JESUS) IS GOOD!
I. He says what needs to be said. II.His message has authority.
A couple of Sundays ago my cousin came to visit here at church. We talked for a while by the pastors’ office and as we were walking toward the church, he asked me if I was preaching that day. “No”, I said, Pastor Spaude was preaching …but don’t worry he’s good too!” As the words left my mouth I knew I was in trouble. They just sort of shriveled on the end of my tongue. That of course raised a smile and an eyebrow from my cousin. I tried to quickly say that I didn’t mean that I thought I was a good preacher but it just sort of came out that way. The more I talked the worse it got and then I turned and Pastor Spaude was right there and had heard the whole conversation. He laughed and said, “There’s no way you are getting out of that one.” I don’t fancy myself as Martin Luther or Elijah back from the dead in the pulpit. I’m just happy the Lord uses dust and ashes like me. But in God’s Word today we do hear a preacher who is good! It is our Lord Jesus. As we look at God’s Word we’ll see that this preacher is good. I. He says what people need to hear. II. His message has authority.

There are several nerve wracking experiences that a seminary student goes through. One is preaching for the Seminary chapel services in front of all the other students and professors. Another one is preaching in your home congregation. Last week in our Gospel lesson we heard how Jesus went into the synagogue and read from Isaiah the prophet, "The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." After Jesus had read these words talking about the Messiah, God's word tells us, "Then he rolled up the scrolled, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him and he began by saying to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
Seminary students don’t have too much to worry about because congregations are always generous and full of compliments. Last week in our Gospel lesson we heard the sermon and today we hear the reaction of the people in Nazareth to Jesus sermon there. “All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips."
It seems the people are all full of compliments but Jesus sort of pops the hood of the people’s hearts so we can tell what’s going on in their hearts. "Jesus said to them, "Surely you will quote this proverb to me: "Physician, heal yourself! Do here in your hometown what we have heard you did in Capernaum." The people were clearly expecting a different kind of Messiah. They were thinking in terms of a Messiah who would fill their stomachs and get rid of their enemies and do a few neat tricks for them. But Jesus says what needed to be said. Jesus points out that he was not an earthly Savior who was only going to do nice things here on earth for certain people. Jesus is the physician who heals souls. "I tell you the truth," he continued, "no prophet is accepted in his hometown. I assure you that there were many widows in Elijah's time when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine in the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon. And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed- only Naaman the Syrian." The people of Nazareth were thinking that somehow they deserved for Jesus to do his miracles among them- that somehow they had a right to have Jesus help them. Yet Jesus points out that God s help is not something that anyone has a right to and is not something that anyone deserves. It comes only by God s grace. Though God could have healed every leper in Israel and made sure there were no hungry mouths in Israel, God in his grace helped Naaman and the widow at Zarapeth. Though Jesus certainly has the power to heal every physical disease, he points out the God had something more important in mind when he sent Jesus. Jesus would be the physician who heals souls. We always need to remember that God s help is not something that we deserve but it is something that comes to us because of God s grace. That message from Jesus was wildly unpopular. “All of the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.”
There is a temptation for pastors today to steer clear of the things people don’t like to talk about and to say what people want them to say. There were examples of this is Israel’s history. In the prophet Amos’ time there was a man named Amaziah who told the people that things were great when God’s prophets had said clearly that God’s judgment was coming because of their sin. A king named Balak once hired a prophet named Balaam to try to curse Israel-to say what he wanted him to say. But as Balaam wound up to curse Israel like the king wanted, all that came out were blessings. This preacher is good! He can’t be bribed and tells the people what they need to hear instead of what they thought they wanted to hear.
Jesus wasn’t afraid to say what needed to be said. Maybe you can ask that about your pastors. Especially if the sinful nature part of you never gets riled up at all during the sermons or if never feel that pinch of the law, you might want to ask if your pastors are saying what needs to be said or if you are listening.
Jesus is a great preacher. He says what needs to be said. He points out the damage we have done to ourselves and others by our sins by our nasty words and thoughts. God’s Word points out the times we have pierced ourselves through with many sorrows with chasing after the things of this world. He talked about sin and then he provided the remedy. The Great Physician saved our souls from dying forever in hell by dying himself and taking all of our sins upon himself at the cross. The people were overlooking one of the greatest miracles that God had been doing in their midst for almost thirty years. For almost 30 years the Lord Jesus had lived a holy perfect life in this sin filled world. That s a miracle Jesus did for them and for you and for me. In a miracle of his love he gave us his holy perfect life and took the record of our sins upon himself. The people of Nazareth called for a miracle and they were missing one of the greatest miracles the great physician did.
Maybe you remember the old “Gunsmoke” show. It seemed like when Marshall Dillon spoke not only Festus, his deputy, but even the bad guys stood up and took notice. Maybe that was because of his height or maybe his voice or most likely because of the gun in his holster that he used to subdue the bad guys. We don’t have an audio recording of Jesus voice. We don’t have any u tube videos of him so that we would know what he looks like. He didn’t walk around with a six shooter to subdue the bad guys. Yet his words had authority.
With the rejection of Jesus by the people of Nazareth, the hub of Jesus ministry now moves a little closer to the Sea of Galilee, to the town of Capernaum. Capernaum is the hometown of Peter, James and John and some of the other disciples. “Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath began to teach the people. They were amazed at his teaching, because his message had authority.” The people of Capernaum had been used to listening to the Pharisees and elders like the one in the temple with the tax collector who prayed, “God I thank you that I am not like other men” and then in self righteousness sneered “or even like this tax collector.” The spiritual teachers of Capernaum could quote from saying after saying of the rabbis, but yet they missed what God was saying on the pages of His Word. Now Jesus came preaching and teaching about the Kingdom of God- about how God had now sent the promised Messiah and the people recognized his teaching as having authority behind it- the authority of the Word of God. Jesus the Word of God made flesh speaks with authority on the Word of God because He is the one who wrote the Bible.
Jesus’ words have authority for you too. When guilt over something you’ve down bears down on you, Jesus the teacher whose message has authority says to you, “I have come to seek and to save what was lost.” When you or your family is facing illness and even death wondering what will tomorrow bring, Jesus says, “Let not your hearts be troubled, trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms…. I am going there to prepare a place for you.” When our lives seems to be going nowhere and lacking direction Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life.”
Pray for your pastors that they might always be good preachers. Good preacher- not in the sense of being able to hold forth in an oration like Cicero, but good preachers in the sense that they share what Jesus, the great preacher, the Savior, said with you. Jesus is a good preacher, saying what needs to be said. His message had authority. Amen.