Saturday, November 26, 2011

THANKSGIVING
November 23, 24, 2011
Pastor Timothy J. Spaude
Text: Daniel 4: 4-5, 24-25, 29-31, 33-37

“THANKSGIVING TIPS FROM NEBUCHADNEZZAR”
1. Don’t be a turkey.
2. Do thank the LORD for turkey.

Daniel 4:4-5, 24-25, 29-31, 33-37 (NIV1984) “I, Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying in my bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me. 24 “This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes. 29 Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 The words were still on his lips when a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 33 Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird. 34 At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. 35 All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?” 36 At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.”

Nobody knows it all. Everybody needs help. Those who are wise regularly listen to others to find better ways of doing things. That’s why you have longstanding newspaper columns like “Hints from Heloise.” If you run into trouble making that Thanksgiving Turkey or just want some ideas on how to make it the best you can call the Butterball Turkey Talk Line. How about Christians for thanksgiving? Who could we turn to for Thanksgiving tips? I’m sure there are several obvious ones you could think of but today we turn to a not so obvious tipster. King Nebuchadnezzar.
You probably know him as the Babylonian king who conquered Jerusalem around 600 BC. He’s the one who carried off the brightest and best of the Jewish people to Babylon. If you haven’t connected the dots yet he is also the one who built the 90 foot tall and 9 feet wide image of gold and commanded all the people in Babylon to bow down to it. He’s the one who then had Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego thrown into the fiery furnace. That’s all in Daniel chapters 1-3. Then you get to chapter 4. It reads like a signed confession from Nebuchadnezzar. He had had a dream, a very terrifying dream. No one could tell him what it meant. No one, that is, except the prophet Daniel who had also been carried off to Babylon. He said, “This is the interpretation, O king, and this is the decree the Most High has issued against my lord the king: 25 You will be driven away from people and will live with the wild animals; you will eat grass like cattle and be drenched with the dew of heaven. Seven times will pass by for you until you acknowledge that the Most High is sovereign over the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes.”
Now why was this all going to happen? Well as it turns out Nebuchadnezzar was acting like a turkey. We have that phrase. If someone is being, well a jerk, proud, just kind of strutting around not thinking of anyone else, he’s a turkey. Here it was the Lord who had raised up Babylon and given the empire to Nebuchadnezzar for the purpose of chastening Judah and Jerusalem and Nebuchadnezzar was acting like he had done it all. He was proud and boastful, a turkey.
That leads to our first Thanksgiving tip from Nebuchadnezzar. Don’t be a turkey. On Thanksgiving Day, yes all year long, don’t be a turkey. Don’t become boastful and proud about your accomplishments, the things you have, the job you hold, your place in society. On Thanksgiving and always recognize God as the giver. Don’t be a turkey spiritually. We all have to fight that aspect of our sinful nature that really does think we are better than other people, that it’s just a little understandable why God would love and save people like us rather than other sinners. Don’t be a turkey.
Nebuchadnezzar was and so the Lord treated him that way. “Twelve months later, as the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, 30 he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?” 31 The words were still on his lips when a voice came from heaven, “This is what is decreed for you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Your royal authority has been taken from you. 33 Immediately what had been said about Nebuchadnezzar was fulfilled. He was driven away from people and ate grass like cattle. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird.” Hair like feathers? Nails like claws of a bird? The turkey looked like a turkey. God was humbling him.
Now listen to how Nebuchadnezzar responded. “At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. 35 All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?” 36 At the same time that my sanity was restored, my honor and splendor were returned to me for the glory of my kingdom. My advisers and nobles sought me out, and I was restored to my throne and became even greater than before. 37 Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven, because everything he does is right and all his ways are just. And those who walk in pride he is able to humble.” Nebuchadnezzar thanked the Lord for turkey, for humbling him.
That’s our second tip from him. On Thanksgiving Day and always thank the Lord for turkey. Obviously it is an easy and natural thing to thank the Lord for your Thanksgiving turkey just like it is an easy and natural thing to thank the Lord for other good things in life. It’s good for us to do that. If you have good health, more than you need, loving family and friends, good things happening in your life, thank the Lord for that. Those are blessings. They come from Him. But thank the Lord for turkey too.
Nebuchadnezzar’s kind of turkey. God’s humblings in life. We need them. Just like Nebuchadnezzar when God fills our lives with good things we can tend to take them for granted. We want to take credit for them or at least share the credit with God. If you read Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving proclamation made during the Civil War you see that the nature of man has not changed. We don’t want to admit to our complete dependence on God. But we are completely dependent and need to live that way. Lincoln looked at the Civil War as a humbling chastisement from God. Nebuchadnezzar saw his turkey episode as a humbling chastisement from God. We can and should do the same. Thank the Lord for turkey, for any humblings. They are for our good. They keep us reliant on Him for our earthly needs. They keep us trusting in Jesus for our salvation. That’s the worst form of arrogance, isn’t it? When we think we merit heaven on our own or help Jesus in some way. So much better to be humbled by having our sins exposed by God’s righteous laws so we know how much we need Jesus, believe in Him and are saved eternally.
That becomes the bottom line. We have learned some Thanksgiving tips from an unlikely source. Nebuchadnezzar. What we don’t know is if we will see him again in heaven. His confession isn’t clear. Did he simply acknowledge God’s sovereignty or know Him as the Lord who showed mercy and would send a Savior? We don’t know. Don’t do that to the people who will follow you. Let them know by what you say and do that Jesus is your Savior and have a blessed Thanksgiving. Amen.

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

November 20/21, 2011



November 20/21, 2011, Christ the King, sermon by Pastor Paul Eckert

Sermon text - Ezekiel 34:1-2, 10-26, 30-31

1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?" 10 "This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them." 11 "For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice." 17 "As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?" 20 "Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep." 21 "Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another." 23 "I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. 24 I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken." 25 "I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety. 26 I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing." 30 "Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD."

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Picture this. You are living in your comfortable home. Bad guys come, yank you out of your home, march you to a location a long distance away. After being there for a while, a report comes to you that the bad guys went back to your home area, leveled to the ground St. Jacobi church, the church you used to go to, burned down and completely destroyed the house where you had lived and had all your memories. But then you also hear that in the future your area and home would be rebuilt, and that you would end up with what would be better than anything you ever had or could dream of.

Yes, picture that. If that were you, do you think you would have reason to be thankful for that end result, and thankful not only one day, like a one day Thanksgiving Day this week? I think that I sure would be thankful. With that in mind let’s turn to our text and to our theme.

GIVE THANKS FOR OUR SHEPHERD KING

I THE NEED (1-2,10,17-22)

1. There were bad shepherds. (1-2)

The word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?"

a) Picture Israel like a flock of sheep. Israel had shepherds, or leaders, that included judges and kings. Reading their history you have to conclude that most of their shepherding kings were bad guys.

b) The flock also had spiritual leaders. You know the good guys, like Isaiah and Jeremiah. But there also were bad spiritual shepherds who went along with the paganism that was all around them.

2. There was a problem also with bad sheep. (17-19)

"As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?"

a) Definitely yes, there were good sheep, true followers of the true God. The clear water of the truth was there.

b) But that clear water of truth was muddied up, mixed with false teaching. Some sheep liked that more than they liked God’s truth.

3. God would not overlook this. (20, 10a)

"Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep."

a) God would judge between the true and the false sheep.

b) And He would also judge the false shepherds who were more interested in serving themselves than in serving the sheep.

"This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves."

4. And God would not forget His true flock. (21-22,10b)

"Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another."

a) There weren’t only human sheep and shepherds. There also was the over-Shepherd, God, who saw everything that was happening.

b) He knew His flock then as He knows His true believers today.

"I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them."

c) Yes, the good Shepherd would take care of His flock in its difficulties. That was His promise then as it is His Promise today.

II THE PROMISE (11-16)

1. God had made a promise about the land of Israel.

a) All of history started with Adam and Eve. That was in the area where the Prophet Ezekiel now was, Babylon, or present day Iraq.

b) But the Prophet Micah pin-pointed a spot way east of there, near Jerusalem, where something of importance for the whole world would happen. He prophesied: "But you, Bethlehem Ephratha, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times."

2. At Ezekiel’s time that promise seemed to have failed.

a) The church he had gone to, the temple in Jerusalem, had been destroyed. His house he would never see again.

b) You see, Ezekiel had been carried away into exile by the bad guys, and the nation of Israel no longer had any authority or power.

3. But God reminded him that God was still in charge. (11-16a)

"For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays."

a) Do you know what? This happened! God brought Israel back from the Babylonian exile to the land where Bethlehem was. b) But why? Could this picture have anything to do with God’s promise of a birth in Bethlehem, of an earthly descendant of the great King David, of a ruler who would be Immanuel?

4. Could God be pointing to the Shepherd King? (16b)

"I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice."

a) There were so many bad kings and shepherds in the past.

b) Would there really be a good Shepherd King for God’s flock?

c) That question God answered with fulfillment.

III THE FULFILLMENT (23-26, 30-31)

1. Was David the fulfillment? (23-24)

"I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken."

a) David was a shepherd king. But that was way back, many years ago. David had been dead about 400 years already.

b) Then who is pictured here by David? Listen to what the Apostle Peter once said, "I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ ---." (Acts 2:29-31)

2. Yes, God’s Son, Jesus, is the promised Shepherd King.

a) David stayed dead and buried; Jesus, his descendant, did not.

b) Scripture records David’s family line that headed straight to Bethlehem, to the one who would be acknowledged as the Son of David, the one who was to sit on a throne that would be eternal, as an angel had announced to Mary about Jesus, saying, "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."

3. From this Shepherd King come showers of blessing. (25-26)

"I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety. I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing."

a) Think of how the blessing of the forgiveness of our sins was showered on us with the waters of Baptism. Think of how, when we so easily fall into sin, our Good Shepherd comes to His penitent people and showers on us in His Word and in the Lord’s Supper His forgiving peace that transcends all understanding. Think of how at our last hour He will assure us that we can depart in peace, showered with His forgiveness and grace, knowing heaven is our home.

b) That is what Ezekiel pictures for us when in our text he speaks of showers of blessings in a perfect land, even as John also did in the last book of the Bible when he pictured Jerusalem the Golden as the fulfillment of God’s promise when showers of blessings will be eternal.

4. All of this is because of our Shepherd King. (30-31)

"Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD."

a) Israel would experience that God would do what He promised.

b) Jesus, Immanuel, the Son of God and Son of David, our Shepherd King, would carry out His mission. He said, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." Jesus did that. He died for us. He arose for us. He lives for us. He showers His blessings of grace and forgiveness on us every day.

c) And one day He will take us from the exile of our earthly existence and shower blessings eternal on us in the real promised land of glory with Him.

Picture this? Yes! Enjoy the picture. It will be a reality. On Thanksgiving Day, and every day, don’t forget to GIVE THANKS FOR OUR SHEPHERD KING. Because of Him we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever!

November, 13, 2011



Daniel Waldschmidt
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
St. Jacobi Lutheran Church
11/9/2011

13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. 14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.

Grace and peace to you from the God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Last week, we heard Pastor Spaude say that Judgment Day will be one of the happiest days in a believer’s life. The Christians in Thessalonica would have definitely concurred with that. “How awesome will it be,” they thought “to see Jesus appear in glorious majesty!” They were so looking forward to the Last Day. But they had a problem. Something was bothering them. “What about believers who die before Jesus comes back? Does that mean that they will miss out on the happy events of the Last Day?”
The apostle Paul heard about this problem and wrote to them, “Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep” (4:13). They had apparently taken a “snooze, you lose” mentality toward death. They were afraid that if you didn’t make it until the Last Day that you would miss out on the party.
That’s a thought that has probably never bothered you. But what does bother you about those who fall asleep? Maybe what bothers you is not that they will miss out on the Last Day, but that they are missing out on weddings, birthday parties, graduations. Are they missing out? Is it true that if you snooze, you lose?
Sometimes it bothers us that believers who die very young miss out on what could have been the best years of their life. College, hanging out with friends, getting married, having children, aren’t they missing out on all those things? Don’t believers who die at 40 or 50 miss out on the chance to enjoy the things that they have worked so hard for? You establish a home for yourself, you build up a bank account and you finally work your way out of debt, and you die before you can enjoy the fruits of your labor. Or believers who die right after they’ve retired. You work your whole life and you don’t get the chance to enjoy the golf courses of America. Isn’t it true that if you snooze you lose?
Worst of all (if we dare to think any further about this), you miss out on family events: weddings, birthday parties, graduations. The Thessalonians struggled with the thought, “This person that died was persecuted for his faith in Jesus. He endured it. He kept strong in the faith looking forward to that Last Day, but then the Lord took him away before he could see the Last Day!” We are struggling with the thought, “A man has such a promising future. He has so many good things left to experience in this life but then the Lord takes him away!”
But where does the Lord take him to? We have been looking at this all wrong! We have been thinking about all the things that those who have fallen asleep in Christ miss out on. What we should be thinking about is what they are experiencing. Today is Saint’s Triumphant Sunday. This is the Sunday when we remember that those who have fallen asleep in Christ are right now enjoying eternal glory, bliss and happiness in heaven! A bliss won for them by Jesus: “We believe that Jesus died and rose again” (4:14). Jesus wanted so badly for us to experience heaven forever with him that he came down as man and experienced death in our place. He took all of our sins on himself and paid for them all with his death. But he didn’t stay dead. He rose to life three days later to guarantee that everyone who believes in him would have life too. And when you fall asleep Jesus will take you to enjoy the bliss that he has won for you.
It’s still very sad and tragic when a person dies before they have lived a good long life, I don’t want to minimize that at all. But the fact is those who have fallen asleep in Christ, no matter what age they were, are not feeling sorry for themselves. They are not thinking about all the rounds of golf that they never got to play or the money they never got to spend or the sights they never got to see. They are thinking about the beauty of Christ, because they see his face. Paul said “I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far.”



So then why do Christians grieve? It’s a perfectly legitimate thing to do. Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus. Abraham grieved for Sarah. King David grieved for his best friend Jonathan. Christians cry at funerals and many go through a deep grieving process. They know that their loved one is in heaven. They don’t “grieve as those who have no hope” but they still grieve. Why? You tell them that their loved one is in heaven and that helps but it doesn’t take all the sadness away. Why? Because even though they know that their loved one is in heaven. They are still missing them. As we think about it we discover that those who have fallen asleep are not the ones who are missing out. We are. We are missing them.
All the more reason to look forward to the Last Day; and ask Jesus to come quickly. “We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and we also believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him” (4:14). When Jesus comes back he is not coming alone. He is bringing our loved ones back with him. The Thessalonians didn’t need to be afraid that their loved ones would miss the Last Day. Paul says, “They’ll be there; they’ll just be on the other side.”
And then Jesus will raise their bodies to life. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep” (4:15). It’s hard to tell exactly what Paul means when he says those who are still alive will not precede those who have fallen asleep. It could mean that Jesus is not going to come and take us to heaven with him and leave their bodies in the ground. Or it could simply mean that there is no advantage to being alive on the Last Day. Jesus is going to bring dead believers back with him and he is going to raise them from the dead.
Paul describes what will happen on the Last Day, “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first” (4:16). Maybe when your loved one died, you pleaded with the Lord to give her back to you. Or maybe if you didn’t say those exact words it was certainly the desire of your heart. You wanted your child back. You wanted your mother back. On the Last Day Jesus is going to answer that prayer with an emphatic “Yes.” You will have your loved one back. Fully alive.
Maybe your believing-loved one who died had a battle with Alzheimer’s. And at the end he just wasn’t himself. When Jesus raises him up at the Last Day his mind will be fully restored in a glorified resurrection body.
One reason the Last Day will be such a happy day is because it will be a great reunion with all the believers who went before us. “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds” (4:17). But the focal point of this reunion will not be ourselves. It will be Jesus. “Caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (4:17). No matter what your family didn’t get to experience together in this life because you were separated by busy schedules or geography or even death, one thing that you will for sure get to experience together is this meeting with the Lord in the air.
And remember from last week this is when Jesus will say, “I was hungry and you fed me. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink.” If your grandfather did not get to hear your name called at graduation, he will get to hear Jesus call your name and say, “well done, good and faithful servant,” and your grandfather will say “that’s my girl!”
“And so we will be with the Lord forever” (4:17). The story of the Christian life is the only one that is truly happily ever after. When I served as a vicar last year there was a shut-in in our congregation whom I would visit regularly. Even though she was in a lot of pain because of neuropathy and a host of other things, she was one of the most joyful people I had ever met. And what really made her light up was thinking about Jesus coming back on the Last Day. Whenever someone mentioned Jesus coming back she would exclaim, “Won’t that just be wonderful! I just can’t wait to see him.” It will be a happy day when Jesus comes back. You will be reunited with your fellow believers and we will all be with Jesus in life never-ending.
“Therefore comfort each other with these words” (4:18). You might want to mark this section of Scripture as a great one to turn to when you are with someone who has just experienced a loss. Of course, we want to be careful not to run roughshod over their grief. We want to mourn with those who mourn even as Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus. But at the appropriate time we do have real hope to offer them. The sure hope that their loved ones are enjoying bliss with Jesus and that when Jesus comes back he will bring their loved ones back with him and they will be reunited and they will enjoy the Lord’s presence together forever. And so we joyfully pray come quickly Lord Jesus, and bring our loved ones with you. Amen.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

November 6th, 2011




LAST JUDGMENT
November 6/7, 2011
Pastor Timothy J. Spaude
Text: Matthew 25:31-46

“JUDGMENT DAY!”
1. What you do matters.
2. Why you did it matters.
3. Jesus matters!

Matthew 25:31-46 (NIV1984) “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. 34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ 40 “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ 44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ 45 “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ 46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

For some people it doesn’t even exist. It’s not on their radar screen. They don’t believe it will ever even happen. For other’s it’s kind of like the boogey man. Something that parents or fear mongering pastors can use to manipulate the behavior of their children or people. I’m talking about Judgment Day. But unlike the boogey man, Judgment Day is real. What do you think about when you hear about Judgment Day? Is it something scary? Something to look forward to? What do you think it will be like for you? Let’s revisit the words of Jesus and find out.
The first thing we notice is on Judgment Day there are only two eternal futures for all people. “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.” Jesus draws our attention to the glory of Judgment Day. He comes in glory. All the angels are with Him. Then there is a separation. Like a shepherd separates sheep and goats, Jesus separates the people. No matter what people believe about the afterlife there are only two types of people, those who go to heaven and those who go to Hell. What’s the basis?
Here Jesus points to the things people have done or not done. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” To those on His right Jesus gives the welcome into heaven. He points to things they did. Apparently on Judgment Day what you do matters. What things? Well, kind of normal things. There’s no mention of martyrdom or building of huge church bodies. No, instead it’s normal things that take care of needs like feeding the hungry, giving a drink to someone who is thirsty, clothing to those in need, kindness to strangers, taking care of the sick or visiting someone in prison.
It’s a different story for those on the left. “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.” There is no welcome into heaven. There is only hell, eternal fire, for these people. Why? Jesus points to things they didn’t do for him and they’re just the same as what the ones on the right did do, normal almost every day tasks.
Now some of you might be thinking, “Hey, wait a minute, pastor. You are going to turn me into some kind of Lutheran lunatic. Last week we reemphasized the truths of the Lutheran Reformation that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone. This week you’re telling me it’s what I do that matters. What gives?” Jesus gives. Did you notice how both those on the right and those on the left were basically clueless as to what Jesus meant? The ones on the right couldn’t think of times when they did these nice things for Jesus. The ones on the left couldn’t think of times when they had failed to. That brings us to the second point of Judgment Day. Why you do things matters. The key phrase that Jesus the judge repeats is “for me.” “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” And again, “He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” Who is it that lives their lives for Jesus? Who is it that does not? Now it becomes clear. Now it all fits together. We are not Lutheran lunatics after all. On Judgment Day Jesus will point to fruits of faith or the lack of them. Only believers in Jesus can and will do things for Him. Only those who belong to Him deliberately live their lives striving to follow God’s holy will for Him. Only those who know they have received forgiveness want to thank Jesus for their forgiveness. And all the things that unbelievers do that look the same as believers, feeding the hungry, providing clothes to those in need, the difference is they can’t be done for Jesus. Why you do things matters.
But really the bottom line is on Judgment Day, Jesus matters. Look at the ones Jesus welcomed into heaven. Jesus calls them “the righteous.” He calls them the blessed and says they are receiving an inheritance. That’s something you don’t work for. And did you notice what was missing as Jesus talked with them? Their sins were missing. God is not lying when He says that His forgiveness means that He removes our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. Jesus made that happen. He paid for those sins. He took them all away, nailed to the cross, buried in the grave. Whatever picture you want to use, God assures you that there will be no scandal sheet read, no public unveiling of all you secret sins. Jesus matters. Oh the joy of believing in Him! You don’t have to worry about whether you’ve done enough. As we’ll sing about later it’s Jesus righteousness that covers us. Instead our jaws will drop as Jesus praises us for things we can’t even remember that we did for Him. You see, it’s not fear of Judgment Day that is to motivate Christian living but the joy of seeing Jesus instead.
Maybe that’s why one pastor described Judgment Day as one of the happiest days in a believer’s life. Think about it. You get to see Jesus in all His glory. All His enemies are banished to Hell forever. Your faith in Him is publicly vindicated. You are about to enter, body and soul, eternal glory, and if that were not enough Jesus, Jesus is going to praise you. I don’t want to spoil the surprise for you but do you want to think a little bit about what He might say to you? Children, “I was crying on the playground and you put your arm around me. I was feeling left out and you invited me to come along. I was being teased and you didn’t laugh, you spoke up for me.” Adults, fellow members of St. Jacobi. “I needed to learn about my Savior and you taught me. You made sure money wouldn’t keep me from learning about Jesus in school. You provided safe water for me in my homeland of India and then I learned about the water of life. You gave me a food basket at just the right time, a food card from your almoner’s fund, a warm coat. You encouraged me at work when everyone else wanted me gone. You saw me straying from my salvation and you came after me. You helped me praise God through music. I was a helpless baby and you cared for me. I needed a good neighbor and you were there for me.” I could go on and on. I think it’s going to be like Christmas with absolutely no idea about what you are going to get.
It’s kind of neat to think about, isn’t it? And maybe it helps our waiting time pass a little more nicely. Because I belong to Jesus, the things I do matter. The things you do matter too. They may look like nothing special in the eyes of other people. They might not seem all that special to you. But they are because of Jesus. So have fun doing them. Amen.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

October 23rd, 20111



PENTECOST 19
October 23/24, 2011
Pastor Timothy J. Spaude
Text: Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32

“REPENT AND LIVE!”
1. Repentance is necessary.
2. Repentance is possible.
3. Repentance is living!

Ezekiel 18: 1-4, 25-32 (NIV 1984) “The word of the LORD came to me: 2 “What do you people mean by quoting this proverb about the land of Israel: “‘The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. 4 For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son—both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die. 25 “Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear, O house of Israel: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust? 26 If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin, he will die for it; because of the sin he has committed he will die. 27 But if a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life. 28 Because he considers all the offenses he has committed and turns away from them, he will surely live; he will not die. 29 Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Are my ways unjust, O house of Israel? Is it not your ways that are unjust? 30 “Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. 31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!”

Can you empathize a little bit with the House of Israel? At the time this word of God was written, the people the prophet Ezekiel was serving were living far from their homeland. They were in Babylon, modern day Iraq. What were they doing there? How did they get there? Their parents, their fathers, had sinned. Despite all of God’s warnings through other prophets they had chased after the idols, the fake gods of the people around them. Why? Worshipping them was more fun. They had drinking parties and orgies in their church services. To chasten them God let the Babylonians conquer Jerusalem and carry the people into exiles. So the parents had worshipped idols and now the children were living in exile. Does that help you understand the proverb the people were quoting about the land of Israel? “‘The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? Normally if someone eats something that tastes bad, like sour grapes, they experience the bad taste in their mouths. But the Israelite people felt like their parents had done wrong and they were paying for it. And you know, you know what comes next. That’s right, the age old complaint, “That’s not fair.” Children you can empathize for every time the teacher has given a classroom punishment. Maybe the talking got to be too much and it was the last straw and everyone stays in for recess and you feel if not say, “That’s not fair.” Or maybe adults you live in a city that foolishly combined the sanitation and stormwater sewer lines and now you have to pay for new laterals from your house and you surely think and feel “That’s not fair.”
And so we can empathize with the Israelites stuck in Babylon seemingly for the sins of the parents. But now listen, listen to God’s response. “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel. 4 For every living soul belongs to me, the father as well as the son—both alike belong to me. The soul who sins is the one who will die. 25 “Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear, O house of Israel: Is my way unjust? Is it not your ways that are unjust?” And again a little later, “Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall.” The first thing we can learn from this word of God, brothers and sisters, is that repentance is necessary for everyone. The people of Israel felt God was being unfair. They felt they were being punished for their parents’ idolatry. But they ignored their own sins. It’s just like it is in class, kids, when the classroom punishment happens and you think it’s unfair because you weren’t talking—that time. What about all the other times you were and there was no punishment? God points out that all people are accountable to Him. And sin deserves punishment. The soul that sins is the one that should die. And remember the death of sin is separation from God. And so repentance is necessary. The house of Israel in Babylon needed to repent for their sins against God and so do we. If anyone claims to be without sin he deceives himself and the truth is not in him. You know your hearts. You know your lives. You know what you are hiding that you don’t want anyone to know about. God knows it too. “That’s not fair,” needs to be replaced with “I have sinned.” Repentance is necessary.
Thankfully repentance is possible. “If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits sin, he will die for it; because of the sin he has committed he will die. 27 But if a wicked man turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will save his life. 28 Because he considers all the offenses he has committed and turns away from them, he will surely live; he will not die.” Like the parable Jesus told of the two sons the Lord presents two people who changed. One is someone who turns away from righteousness to wickedness and dies in rejection and so dies forever in Hell. Another lived a life of wickedness but later repents, turns from that wickedness and lives, lives into eternity. The point is the same. We have a God who looks at the heart. He does not judge people by their past but by their present. He does not judge them by their parents but by themselves. He gives to every sinner a hope and a future and says as long as you have the breath of life on this earth repentance is possible. God can say that because He did everything to make repentance possible. He promised and sent Jesus. Jesus lived the perfect life ready to be credited to all who believe. He suffered and paid for all sins so forgiveness is granted through faith. Repentance is a possible.
It’s there for everyone. It’s there for you and me and how happy we can be because repentance is living. It is real life. “Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” Here we get a look at the heart of our Savior God. He wants the best for all people. Enforcing the consequences of sin on people was never God’s first choice. It’s not what He wants. That’s why His first choice was to punish Jesus. And now repentance is real living while we wait to go to heaven. God knows that each one of us finds it easier to get upset about other people’s sins than our own. He knows that’s a trick of the Devil to distract us and keep us miserably mired in a life of resentment and bitterness toward God and others because “That’s not fair!” He also knows that sin is like illegal drugs. It promises happiness but does not deliver. Instead it likes to hide in your body, making you crave more and more until just like a drug junkie isn’t herself anymore, doesn’t realize how ugly she’s become and has alienated those who love her most, the unrepentant sinner is dragged down further and further into uglier and uglier sins and pushes away the One who loves them most, the Father in heaven. That’s no life.
There is a better way! Repentance. Real living. What is this repentance? It’s taking ownership for your own sins. Being bothered more about your own sinful nature and sins than those of others. I have done it. It’s being repulsed and ashamed of those sins, regretting how dirty they have made you. It’s turning to Jesus for forgiveness and away from those sins we’ve confessed. The result is real living. God promises to give a new heart and a new spirit. Think of it. How would you like to live with no past? Now you can’t do that with people. They remember. But God doesn’t. Because Jesus paid for those sins God forgets! That’s what His forgiveness is like. He remembers your sins no more. There is no adultery there to regret. No lies to haunt you. Know stealing to be uncovered. Instead a new heart and a new spirit. A fresh start every day.
Repentance is living. Perhaps that is why Martin Luther in the first of the 95 Theses he posted on the church door wrote, “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said “Repent!” He willed the entire life of a believer to be one of repentance. See repentance is not something you do in order to become a believer as too many Christians have been misled into believing these days. Nor is it a one time action over a certain sin. Rather repentance is a way of living every day for those who already believe. It’s necessary because daily we fall into sin. It’s possible because God is a God of mercy and Jesus has already been punished. It’s real living. For only when we are peace with God, in unity with Him, without our sins standing in the way, only then does life make sense and have peace and joy regardless of outward circumstances. Now God brought you here today. There was something He wanted you to hear. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Repent!” He willed the entire life of a believer to be one of repentance. If that doesn’t describe the state of your heart today, listen to God who says, “Repent and Live!” Amen.