Monday, March 27, 2017

March 25-27, 2017 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Matthew 20:20-28 “CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?”


LENT 4

March 25-27, 2017

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Matthew 20:20-28



“CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?”

1.     Not when we focus on ourselves.

2.     Only when we focus on Christ.



Matthew 20:20-28 (EHV) Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to him with her sons, kneeling and asking something of him. 21He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Promise that in your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right hand and one on your left hand.” 22But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are.” 23He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not for me to give; rather these places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” 24When the ten heard this, they were angry with the two brothers. 25But Jesus summoned them and said, “You know that the rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26It will not be that way among you. Instead whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first among you will be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”



          It seems to be building every year, this polarizing of America. From presidents and politics to policing and moral issues it seems more and more that it is impossible for people to have a civil discussion, to be able to disagree without getting disagreeable. And so a husband and wife divorce over the results of an election. And a fitness center in Scranton, PA bans its members from watching national news programs while working out.” Why?” you ask. Too many fights had to be broken up. You find yourself asking, “Can’t we all just get along?” But this nastiness isn’t always just out there on the news, is it? There can be angry yelling and nastiness in the workplace, with our classmates and in our own homes. “Can’t we all just get along?” Sad to say lack of civility and common kindness is nothing new. The sinful nature of human beings is hardwired to inhuman behavior. We see it in the word of God today with Jesus’ disciples. But we also see the solution.

          If any group on earth was going to be able to get along, you would think it would be a group of people led by Jesus. Throw out all your books on leadership and management styles, you cannot improve on Jesus. He is God. He is perfect. His example is flawless. But what do see among His followers? They can’t get along. “Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to him with her sons, kneeling and asking something of him. 21He said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Promise that in your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right hand and one on your left hand.” At first glance this does not seem very egregious. A mother wants what’s best for her sons. Is there any mother here today who does not look out for her children? Of course you do. It’s your privilege and your job. But this goes beyond taking care of the needs of children. What the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee, wants comes at the expense of others. Give them more honor than the rest of the disciples.

          The response of the other disciples is sadly predictable. “When the ten heard this, they were angry with the two brothers.” Angry. Indignant. Mad. Why? You wanted better for yourselves than us? You think you are greater than we are? Hey, wait a minute. Can’t we all just get along? No. Not when you focus on yourself. Not when your view greatness as having more power, control and prestige than others. Not when your guiding principle is “What’s  in it for me?” Not when your measure of what is good and right or should happen comes through the filter of only if it’s good for me and mine. The sinful nature is hardwired to be selfish, self-centered and focused on self.

          God had a different James tell us plainly (James 4:1-3) “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”  This is why people can’t get along. This why we can’t always get along. By nature we are focused on ourselves.

          But we don’t have to be that way with Christ in our lives.  Look at how Jesus answered the original request. “But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are.” 23He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not for me to give; rather these places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” James and John wanted to be active in Jesus’ kingdom. Jesus reminded them that following Him means drinking his cup. Naturally, especially at this time of year, we think of Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane for His Father to take the cup of suffering away from Him. No one else can drink that cup but the God man Jesus Christ who suffered for the sins of the world. There is another way we can think of this cup, a cup that refreshes. While Jesus suffered greatly the Bible tells us in the book of Hebrews that for the joy set before Him Jesus’ endured the cross, scorning its shame. In other words, the cross was awful but it gave Jesus such joy to save sinners that it was worth it to Him.

          Perhaps that’s why Jesus said what He did next. “You know that the rulers of the nations lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 26It will not be that way among you. Instead whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first among you will be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Here’s how we can all get along. Focus on Jesus. Jesus’ disciples needed to learn that greatness in the kingdom of God does not come from grabbing power, authority or prestige for yourself. It doesn’t come from looking out for number one. It comes from serving the needs of others. Like Jesus did. The number one need of all people is to be rescued, ransomed from the eternity in Hell that everyone earns for themselves by sinning. Only Jesus could fill that need. Only He is the perfect Son of God whose loving sacrifice is enough to pay for the sins of the world. So he did it, even though it was not easy, even though the thought of it caused Him to pray in agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.

          Can’t we all just get along? Yes, when we focus on Jesus. When we see what He did for us, His love, His sacrifice our selfish hearts get changed into selfless hearts. Me first is replaced with you first. Please self is replaced with a eager desire to please Jesus and you find you can get along. I see that here at St. Jacobi. Some of you know that thousands and thousands of volunteer hours are put in. For a Bible Class last fall I did a quick count and discovered that 343 different communicant members were serving here in some way. Recently we got almost 9000 pieces of mail ready for three different mailings. That’s a lot of serving. Sometimes when I see you serving I actually remember to say Thank you. Do you know what the most common response that I get when I thank members for serving? No, it’s not “You’re welcome.” It’s “No. Thank you. It’s my privilege.” Now we are talking about work here. You’re drinking the cup. You are keeping your eyes on Jesus. I think that’s why for the most part, we all get along.

          But this isn’t something for us to limit to our church life. We can do it in our home lives and our work lives, our school lives and our play lives. Think of the joy set before you that comes when husband serve the needs of wives and vice versa, when parents serve children and children serve parents. Imagine the difference in a workplace where employers are sensitive to the needs of employees and employees to the greater good of the company. And there was a president many years ago who said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” Can’t we all just get along? Yes, when our eyes are on Jesus.

          You know that tells us what our most important task is. If we want our homes blessed, our workplace blessed, our country blessed, then we need the people there able to keep their eyes on Jesus. For your homes make sue Jesus is present daily in devotion and prayer. For your workplace, let your light shine. Pray to be used as a witness. For our country we need to fund and carry out as much Gospel ministry as we can. Only believers can keep their eyes on Jesus. You are. You will. Let’s pray and work for many more. Amen.

Thursday, March 16, 2017

March 15, 2017 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 23:35-43 REPENT! TURN TO JESUS HE HOLDS THE KEY TO HEAVEN!


MIDWEEK LENT 3

March 15, 2017

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 23:35-43



REPENT!

TURN TO JESUS

HE HOLDS THE KEY TO HEAVEN!





Luke 23:35-43 (NIV 1984) “The people stood watching and the rulers even sneered at him.  They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”  36The soldiers also came up and mocked him.  They offered him wine vinegar 37and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”  38There was a written notice above him which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.  39One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ?  Save yourself and us!” 40But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?  41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.  But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  43Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”



            “Beware the Ides of March!” Those of you who like history or Shakespeare not doubt recognize that famous line from the Shakespeare play Julius Caesar. In the play, and in legend, a seer warned Julius Caesar about his upcoming assassination on March 15th, the day known to the Romans as the Ides of March. If that were true Julius Caesar certainly should have expected an attempt on his life and yet when it successfully came it was unexpected. March 15th, that’s today, the Ides of March and we are gathered to talk about the assassination of someone much more important than Julius Caesar and whose initials are also JC. Jesus Christ. As we gather at the foot of His cross we see what we would expect and what is unexpected.

          First some things we expect. Crucifixion was meant to be a public matter. Rome wanted conquered people to know that defying the Roman empire was not a good idea. You died and you died badly. When violent criminals were crucified the public could watch a measure of justice being served. So it’s not surprising that many people were watching Jesus’ crucifixion. That is what was expected. What was unexpected was the presence of the religious rulers and their reaction. “The people stood watching and the rulers even sneered at him.  They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” The rulers here are the religious leaders. Did you notice they acknowledged that Jesus had done good. “He saved others.”  One would have expected them to speak up for someone who had done good for others. But that’s not the case. They sneer and mock. Maybe that’s not so unexpected. Sinful human beings have a nasty tendency to turn on and hate those who do good. “What’s the saying? No good deed goes unpunished.

          The soldiers also turned on Jesus.  “The soldiers also came up and mocked him.  They offered him wine vinegar 37and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.” Well that’s not unexpected. While there were good Roman soldiers history records more brutality. I’m going to guess that the kindest and gentlest did not get crucifixion duty. They join in the jeering. That’s not unexpected because sinful human beings have a nasty tendency to prey without mercy on those who appear weak.

          Pilate also mocked Jesus. “There was a written notice above him which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.” This is not unexpected. Pilate had let himself get bullied by the Jewish leaders into pronouncing a death sentence he knew was undeserved. Like a little kid though he showed them. You  made me crucify your king. That’s not unexpected because sinful human beings have a nasty tendency of doing or allowing wrong and blaming others for it.

          It goes on. “One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ?  Save yourself and us!” This is maybe unexpected. Shouldn’t there be a little honor among thieves? Some empathy? No. More mocking. But maybe we should expect that. Sinful human beings have a nasty tendency to throw others under the bus to take the attention off of themselves.

          But then there is that other thief. “But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence?  41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve.  But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  This is unexpected! In the midst of his own pain this criminal confesses his sins and turns to Jesus. He utters a memorable prayer. “Remember me.” And in a way the thief was not expecting Jesus does. “Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Today. That very day Jesus gave this criminal heaven and He could do that because He holds the key to heaven.

          Brothers and sisters in this whole account we have seen the expected and the unexpected. We were not surprised to see people turning on someone who had done good, preying without mercy on those who were weak, doing wrong and blaming others and shamefully throwing another under the bus. We aren’t surprised at that because we see people doing that all the time. We see ourselves in the same sinful behavior. But that is exactly why Jesus came and why Jesus stayed on the cross. He was urged to save himself but He didn’t so that He could save others. He made sure the one thief on the cross knew it. He’s made sure in your life and my life that we know it too so we would turn to Him.

          “Remember me,” was the unexpected prayer of the repentant thief who turned to Jesus. But with what we know of Jesus “remember me” is a prayer Jesus can expect to hear from us. “Remember me,” we can pray when death has claimed a mom or dad or spouse and hearts are hurting. “Remember me,” we can pray when sickness has lasted so long we no longer remember feeling good. “Remember me,” we can pray when our lives are in turmoil because of the hurts from the ones who are supposed to love us. “Remember me,” we can pray when loneliness seems to be our only companion. “Remember me,” when guilt from sin overwhelms. And when our own death is imminent what a comfort to know we can turn to Jesus and plead “Remember me.” In each and every case Jesus will and Jesus does. He holds the key to heaven. He is the key to life right now. Turn to Jesus. Amen.








Monday, March 6, 2017

March 4-6, 2017 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 ON HANDLING TEMPTATION


LENT 1

March 4-6, 2017

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7



ON HANDLING TEMPTATION

1.     Know the Word.

2.     Love the Word.

3.     Use the Word.

4.     When you fall, Run!!!



 Genesis 2:15; 3:1-7 (NIV 1984) The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” 4“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”



          Into the lives of all people comes the temptation to sin against God. It happened to perfect people named Adam and Eve. It happened to the perfect Son of God and Son of Man, Jesus Christ. It happens to you and me too at every age. In 1 Corinthians 10 we are told, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” That’s God’s truth. We will be tempted. We will have a way out. Let’s go to God’s word now and see how to handle temptation.

          God had created a perfect world filled with perfect plants and animals. He made a beautiful garden and called it Eden. Into that garden God placed two perfect people, Adam and Eve. The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. 16And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; 17but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” Commandments from God are ways of showing love. God showed love to Adam and Eve by forbidding them to eat what was bad for them. Adam and Eve could show love to God by obeying. It was a beautiful setup.

          But into that perfect Garden in the perfect world that had only perfect people slithered temptation. We don’t know everything we want to know about the Devil. We do know what we need to know. The Devil was originally a created angel. At some point after Creation and before what we are talking about today Satan led an angel rebellion against God. Pastor Waldschmidt and I like to repeat the phrase, “Sin is stupid.” It just doesn’t make sense. Imagine the Devil as a created angel pausing to take in the fact that God has just created him and all things and then somehow going on to think, “You know, I should be in charge here. I should be God. My fellow angels, God has just created us with a word of His mouth. He is that wise and powerful. I think we can take Him!” Sin is stupid. Satan and the angels who followed him were cast away from God’s goodness and love forever.

          Sin is stupid. Evil does evil. So Satan slithered into the garden of Eden in the form of a serpent to tempt Eve and Adam to join him in rebellion against God. “He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” Look at how Eve handled the Temptation. First she knew God’s word. Satan came at her with an attempt to get her to sin and started with confusion. “Did God say you can’t eat from any tree?” Not true and Eve knew it. She knew what God said. “God did say, you must not eat from the tree that is in the middle of the garden.” She knew God’s word.

          She also loved God’s word. Some people get a little nervous about the fact that Eve went on to say, “ and you must not touch it,”  Hey, wait a minute. Isn’t she adding something to God’s Word? She’s perfect yet. Sinless. To me her words show respect. They show love for God’s word. Mr. Serpent. That is forbidden fruit. We are not to eat of it. Why would I want to do anything with it? Eve knew God’s word and she loved God’s word. But Satan didn’t back off. He didn’t go away. He kept on tempting.

          “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. 5“For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” There’s the lie. There’s the insinuation that God is holding out on you. God doesn’t want you to have fun. He does not have your good in mind. You need to disobey Him.

          At this point we would love to have seen Eve jump up in righteous indignation and say. “No! You don’t talk about my God like that. He loves me and knows what’s best for me.” But she didn’t. “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” Temptation entertained is temptation indulged. Eve sinned. Adam sinned. They fell into temptation and they ran.

          When I was a younger boy, my brothers and I discovered early some of the laws of physics and science. On the campus of what is now Luther Prep School were some beautiful crabapple trees. They had apples on them that were somewhere between golf ball and tennis ball on them. What we discovered is that if you took a stout stick about two feet long and stuck an apple on the end you could fling that apple a lot farther and a lot harder than you could throw by hand. And then one of the brothers the Lord gave me got the idea that we could hide behind a bush and launch said apples at cars driving down Western Avenue never suspecting we might actually hit one. The memory is a little fuzzy on who that was but one such apple got launched at one aforementioned cars and hit it square on the side panel.  Thunk went that apple. Screech went the brakes. Run went the boys. The wrong way. We ran away from the driver of the car instead of to him to express our sorrow over a foolish childhood prank. Adam and Eve did the same. You know the rest of the story. How they ran from the God who loved them and blamed each other and God for their own sin.

          Now what can we learn from this about handling temptation? Because remember, God won’t let you be tempted beyond what you can bear but will provide a way out. First, know the Word. You have to know what God says. Do you have your daily habit of reading God’s words yet? Secondly, love the word. Like Eve, have such respect for what God says that you want God’s approval and know He has your best interest in mind. Third, use God’s word. Keep using God’s word. The Devil doesn’t automatically give up. Where we wanted Eve to keep going and sticking to God’s Word, that’s where we need to. Use that word of God as shield that blocks the Devils temptations with a No, Father knows best. And use that word as sword. Get away from me Satan. Resist and he must flee.

             But the most important thing we need to remember is that when you fall, Run! Run the right direction. Not away from God but to Him. Temptations will keep coming. They will be different at different ages. During this Lenten season as we are reminded of what Jesus went through to pay for our sins we will respond with love for Him. We will want to fight hard against temptation and remove pet sins from our lives.  The fact is we will not defeat them all. In weakness that shames us we will fall. And when that happens, Run! Run to Jesus. You will not successfully defeat every temptation but Jesus did for you. You heard about that in the Gospel reading. You heard in the God’s Word in Romans how Jesus’ perfect obedience makes us righteous. When you fall and feel guilt don’t stay away from the Lord and church and the Lord’s Supper, run to the Lord, to worship, to Lord’s Supper. There you will hear God say again. I love you. I forgive you.  Go and sin no more. But when you do, when you fall. I will catch you because I love you.” What an awesome God we get to serve! Amen.