Thursday, March 22, 2018

March 21, 2018 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Matthew 26:36-46 “ONLY JESUS WOULD LET SOMEONE ELSE DETERMINE HIS DESTINY!”


MIDWEEK LENTEN SERVICE #6

March 21, 2018

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Matthew 26:36-46



“ONLY JESUS WOULD LET SOMEONE ELSE DETERMINE HIS DESTINY!”



Matthew 26:36-46 (NIV)  “Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there and pray." (37) He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. (38) Then he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." (39) Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." (40) Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. "Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?" he asked Peter. (41)  "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak." (42) He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done." (43) When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. (44) So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing. (45) Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. (46) Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!"



          Giving up your independence, letting someone else be in control is not something we like by nature. Senior saints deal with those feelings when it comes time to give up the home you raised your family in to go to assisted living or maybe even bigger when it’s time to give up the car. You feel it at a job interview for a job you desperately want and think you need when you hear the interviewer say, “We’ll call you tomorrow and let you know what we decide.” It’s out of your control. Wouldn’t you much rather have the job offer and then you decide whether to take it or not? Of course you would. The fact of the matter is we all like to be in control or at least think that we are. Even as we mouth the words, “Let go and let God,” or pray “Your will be done,” there is a part of us that rebels and screams against it or really means “As long as it is what I want.” We don’t like it when we are not the ones in control when someone else makes decisions for us. Perhaps that is why Americans struggle so much with the Bible’s beautiful teaching of submission. But Jesus didn’t. Only Jesus would let someone else determine His destiny. He let someone else do that even though doing so meant He would have to go through Hell--literally.

          Why? The first reason was His love for His heavenly Father. Did you know that the Book of Revelation, which looks not only to the future but also to the past calls Jesus, “the lamb that was slain from the Creation of the world?” (Revelation 13:8) What do you think that means that He was slain, killed, already at the Creation of the world? It means dear friends, that our all knowing, all loving God had a plan. He knew Adam and Eve would blow it and we would be no better. Yet He loved them and us so much He went ahead with Creation even though the only way He could redeem them and us was for His Son to die. God had a plan.

          It was Jesus’ plan too. He also wanted to crush Satan and win you and me for God. That’s why something we heard Jesus say tonight might have surprised you. Jesus said, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." (39) Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will."  Jesus was in agony as he looked to what would happen on the next day—beatings, torture, thorns, dried and cracked lips, thirst, pain. Remember, Jesus was human too. And just like none of us look forward to pain, especially the closer it gets, neither did Jesus. None of us tell the dentist, “Don’t use pain killer. Please drill closer to the nerve. Yeah that’s it. Really grind it.” Jesus didn’t look forward to the pain. We can understand that.

          But there was more pain in store for Jesus. Pain we can’t understand. We can’t understand what it means to be holy and pure and sinless and then have the vileness of sin piled on you. Think of the agony the Holy and pure Son of God felt when the guilt burden of rape and murder and blasphemy was tied to Him on the cross. We understand why He pleads that there be some other way. And yet how does He close His prayer? “Not as I will but as you will.” Jesus was willing to let someone else determine His destiny. He loved His Father so much He was willing to submit to His will.

          And He loved us too. We can see that in the progression of Jesus’ prayer. The first time Jesus prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." Then he went back to His disciples, His friends, Peter James and John, the three He was counting on for support. The three He had asked to watch with him for one little hour. And what were they doing? Sleeping! Can you imagine Jesus’ disappointment when He had to say to them, "Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?" he asked Peter. (41)  "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak." How weak they were!

          But let’s not blame them too much. It was late. They’d had a full meal. They’d had the Passover wine. From our Thanksgiving Dinners we know how they felt. And we’ve been weak too, haven’t we? It is a display of our weakness when we start praying in the morning and before we’re two minutes in our mind has wandered. It’s a display of our weakness when we proclaim with our lips that Jesus is the Lord of our lives but can’t even live the 16 waking hours of one day in a way that proves it. It’s weakness when we let our children watch a few more minutes of TV rather than read them a Bible Story. It’s weakness when we spend two hours a  night watching sitcoms but can’t find the time or energy for God’s Word. It’s weakness when can only complain to God about the things we don’t have rather than thank Him for what we do.

          When Jesus saw the weakness in His disciples what did He do? He went back to praying. Now look at how this second prayer differs from the first. This time Jesus prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done." Do you hear the difference? It’s as though Jesus were saying, “I see this is the only way. I see the weakness of these ones I love. I’m still not looking forward to it but I’ll submit, not just because I love you, Father. I love them too.” Could it be that Our Savior saw the sleeping disciples and said, “If I leave it to them they’ll never make it.” Could it be He saw us with our minds wandering prayer? Did He see our misplaced priorities, our short sightedness, our doubts? He did. And He loved us. And His love for us gave Him the resolve to let someone else determine His destiny. And willingly suffer in our place. Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. (46) Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!"

          Sometimes love gives you no choice, doesn’t it? Ask the father who dashes into the burning home to save his baby daughter from the flames. Does he think of the pain? Does he think of the scarring, the endless hours of agonizing recovery? Does he ask if someone else will go? NO. Love determined his destiny. Just like love determined Jesus. Roman soldiers did not force Jesus Christ to the cross. Nails did not hold Him there. Love did. Love for the Father. And love for you and me. A type of love only Jesus has! Amen.

Monday, March 12, 2018

March 10-12, 2018 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Ephesians 2:1-10 AMAZING GRACE!


LENT 4

March 10-12, 2018

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Ephesians 2:1-10



AMAZING GRACE!

1. The Reason We’re Saved.

2. The Reason We Serve.



Ephesians 2:1-10 (NIV 1984) “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”



          So how many times do you think you have sung or heard that hymn we just sang, Amazing Grace? A hundred, a thousand? Depends on your age. It’s been around a long time. Its simplicity and catchy or haunting in a good way tune is hard to forget. It’s difficult to avoid an emotional reaction when your hear the bagpipes playing Amazing Grace at the funeral of a police officer or fireman. Amazing Grace, a great hymn. My question for you today is “Are you?” Amazed at God’s grace that is. In the Bible we hear a common reaction to a great thing God has done, a miracle or a teaching of Jesus as this, “And the people were amazed.” Are we? Are we amazed at God’s grace? Today as we dig into a word of God that highlights God’s Amazing Grace we do so with the prayer that the Holy Spirit would build up or restore if necessary our appreciation for God’s Amazing Grace.

          Amazing grace is first of all the reason we are saved. “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.”  Do you consider yourself a wretch? One online dictionary uses this definition: “a base, despicable, or vile person.” Do you own that description? I’m reminded of one of the corporate confessions of sins we used when I was younger. Some of you will recognize it. “O almighty God, merciful Father, I, a poor miserable sinner confess all my sins and iniquities with which I have ever offended Thee and justly deserve Thy temporal and eternal punishment.” Do you consider yourself a poor miserable sinner, a wretch that has offended God? Those are powerful words. And they describe me to a T. You too.

          God put it this way. “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.”  God uses powerful words here. Dead. Helpless. Unable to do anything for ourselves spiritually. Dead in another way. Dead to God like when you say someone is dead to you. We’ve offended him. By nature, objects of wrath. We’ve all seen the pictures of our military with the laser sights on the target, the house, the tank, the truck and then boom. God’s laser sight is on us, targeted for wrath, anger over sin. And just in case we are smirking instead of squirming who would you say has a greater degree of culpability, guilt? Someone who breaks a law they didn’t know about, out of ignorance, or someone who breaks a law they know very well. Of all the people on this planet most of us in this building know far better than most what they ways of the world are and that Devil is behind it. We know that the cravings or our sinful natures are wrong. And yet I’m guessing we would consider a drug addicted prostitute who has never known Jesus Christ to be a worse sinner than we are. Do you think she would be amazed to know that Jesus wanted her in heaven so much He died for her?

          And yet even though we have greater guilt than a drug addicted prostitute who has never known Christ we are saved. God says so! “But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—9not by works, so that no one can boast.” Did you hear that? It’s grace, all grace. Note the adjectives. Because of God’s great love. Rich in mercy. That’s why. We were dead. Needed faith is not our decision, not our work. It’s a gift from God, a grace. Something given to someone who has not earned it and does not deserve it. That’s not how we act. Think of what you would do with someone in your life who made promises but broke them often, who repeatedly did the opposite of what was right even though they expected others to do right, who hurt you, mistreated you, offended you, daily? And instead of letting us remain objects of his wrath, pushing us out of His life as we deserve, God saves us. That’s amazing. That’s how great His Grace is.

Grace goes on. “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages He might show the incomparable riches of His grace, expressed in His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” Did you hear what it moved God to do? He raised, (past tense, done deal), us and seated us with Jesus to share in heavenly riches. Picture it this way. At the heavenly banquet that has joy beyond all measure there is a seat reserved with your name on it. Some day you will take your place. What do you do now? Some of you may remember me talking about my farmer friends, the Eberts, that I worked for growing up. Dairy farmers, hard daily work. I remember times when they had to go to an event for their grown daughter who lived in town. But first we have to do the chores. They understood that as dairy farmers before the fun there was a responsibility and purpose.

That’s us too. No we are not dairy farmers but before we get the glory and joy of a heaven we don’t deserve as ones saved by grace we have responsibility and purpose. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” That little word “for” connects what God is about to say to what he just said. Because grace is the reason we are saved, it’s also the reason we serve. Have received the gift of faith, having been made alive with Christ, until we take the place that Christ reserved for us have responsibility and purpose. Grace is the gas in our tank. It’s the reason we want to do what we are created to do, good works. We’ll get to them in a minute but before we do savor the fact that you are God’s workmanship, think handiwork or hand crafted. God in grace has made each one of us just like he wants and knows is best. He has given to each one of us the right gifts and abilities and circumstances for what He has planned for us.

What has he planned? Good works prepared in advance. God knows, shapes and directs our lives. He does that daily for each one of us. Good works are things God says are good. They are done out of love for Him appreciation of grace. They serve God and help others. Don’t think about big things like ending world hunger or establishing world peace. Think of things Jesus pointed to as great. Giving a cup of cold water to a fellow believer who was thirsty. Taking care of those who can’t care for themselves, like babies or aged parents, like the widow’s mite. What will it be today, tomorrow? A hug for mom when she’s said? Inviting a classmate to play at recess? A kind word to a down co-worker? These and more each according to the way God hand crafted you, all prepared in advance, just waiting for you. “Do or do not, there is no try,” someone once said. Grace leads us to do.

God’s grace is amazing. It’s the reason He saves us. Nothing we do helps or contributes. It’s the reason we serve, our motivation. Grace is unearned. There are two things people tend to do with what they have not earned. They will either consider them worthless or an entitlement or they will cherish them as a precious gift. What’s your plan for God’s amazing grace? Amen.

Thursday, March 8, 2018

March 7, 2018 Midweek Lenten Worship


Only Jesus Can Tell Us To Look Up On The Last Day
Luke 21:25-28 "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
Experts in body language will say you can tell a lot about a person by their chin.  They say that the neutral position of the chin is the horizontal position. If the chin is lifted above the horizontal, it means the person is displaying superiority maybe even arrogance. Some say that by lifting the chin up, the person is trying to increase their height so that they can ‘look down through their nose’ at someone. 
When the chin is positioned down below the horizontal, it can signal that the person is sad or dejected. It's an unconscious attempt to lower one’s height and status. This is why our heads 'hang' in shame and don't 'rise' in shame.   Tonight in God’s Word Jesus tells us to lift our chins- to lift up our heads when we see the signs of the end of the world around up.  Sadly there will be plenty of people hanging their heads on Judgment Day. Only Jesus can tell us to lift up our heads on the last day. 
I have to say that my alarm sounds pretty harsh when it goes off in the morning.  But it is telling me that it is time to wake up.  Jesus’ words to those who were making plans to kill him might sound harsh to us but they are meant to say wake up!  On the Tuesday of Holy week, Jesus announced the judgment to come for those who were lifting up their chins to look down their noses at Jesus and at other people.  Jesus said, "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! . . . You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?" Jesus wanted them to wake up. Jesus made it clear that a day is coming when chins raised in rejection of Jesus and noses in the air to look down on others would come crashing down.   If they remained in their unbelief, there would be no escape from condemnation.
After sounding the warning to the religious leaders, Jesus and his disciples left the temple. As they were walking away from Jerusalem to go back to Bethany for the night, they must have come to a spot where they could take in the beauty of Jerusalem and the temple. His disciples marveled at the beauty of the and the architecture of the temple.  Jesus chose this moment to tell his disciples about some traumatic days ahead included in His words was comfort for Jesus about the Last Day.  They could and should keep their heads up. 
"There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken.”   But Jesus has given us signs to watch for. Those signs can be put into three categories. First, there are signs which remind us that Jesus IS coming. Second, there are signs which remind us he is coming SOON, and finally, there are signs which will tell us HE'S HERE.
Jesus gives us the signs that remind us he is coming in Luke 21, "When you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away"  The Lord Jesus also speaks of earthquakes, famines, terrible plagues, and fearful events in nature.  Reading history books and watching the news tells us that all of these prophecies have been taking place-from the time Jesus ascended into heaven down to the very present.
So if things things have been happening right along we might ask ourselves, “Why did Jesus speak of these signs?” He gave us these signs so that when we see these terrible things happening in the world, not only to others but also to us, that we wouldn't lose hope and despair. "Stand firm!" Jesus says. "Hang on!" Jesus says. "Because I will not forget you. I will come again. I will come for you."
These signs certainly tell us Jesus will come, but they don't tell us when- in other words Jesus does not give us a timetable. There are other signs that tell us he will come soon. Matthew 24:14 says, "This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." ls there a continent or nation where Christ has not been preached? On our WELS connection videos, we hear about the good news of Jesus being preached all around the world.  Again in Matthew 24, Jesus says, "Then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now-and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. "  Some days we might wonder if the world can get any worse.  Perhaps it will.   But it sures seems like God will not put up with the evil much longer and Jesus must be coming soon.  All these signs say Jesus is coming soon.
Then there is the third set of signs in our text- signs that will say, “Jesus is back!   "There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (vv.25-27). I cannot point to these signs, because we have not seen them. Those alive on earth will see them on that last day, when Jesus comes again in all his glory.
      Have you ever thought about what you want to be doing when Jesus comes again?  Will I be able to lift up my head?  Or will it be like that time when mom told you she did not want you eating cookies before dinner and when came walking back up the stairs unexpectedly there you munching cookies with cookie crumbs on your shirt?  I’m not able to say, “I will lift up my head when Jesus comes because I’m always in the right place or always doing the right thing or always thinking the right thing or always saying the right thing.”  I can’t lift up my head because I know the truth about me and the truth about you.  God’s law forces our chins down to look at our dreadful sinful hearts where bitterness too often simmers, it forces our chins down to see the hearts we have stepped on by careless sinful words and actions.  We heads would rightly hang in shame when Jesus comes again.
      But Jesus who knows all of these things says, “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." He knows our sins because he carried them-carried.  The Bible says, “"He himself bore our sins" in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; "by his wounds you have been healed."  Jesus bowed His head in death so that we could lift up our heads on the last day.  Our own actions, our own righteousness brought us nothing but “chins down” on the last day.  Only Jesus could do that only Jesus could tell us to lift up our heads on the last day.
     What a comfort!  We don’t have to worry about what will happen to us on Judgement Day!  "Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him". Our Jesus has made things right with God, so Judgment Day will be a chin up day for us rather than a chin down.  So now what do you want to be doing when Jesus comes again?  Let’s lift up our heads.  See the people God has put into our lives- our friends, our families. Let’s be about serving them when Jesus comes again.  Let’s lift up our heads and see the work God has given us to do and when Jesus comes again let’s be about “Serving wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people.”  Let’s lift up our heads to look above this wicked world, remembering the words of the little songs we learned long ago, “be careful little feet where you go, be careful little feet where you go cause the Father up above is looking down in love, o be careful little feet where you go.” 
     Are there gloomy things in your world right now that have you down?   Chin up!  Only Jesus can make us look up on the Last Day. Jesus and only Jesus shed his blood to wash us from sin. Live today aware that he is coming soon.  Carry in your hearts his forgiveness and his righteousness and give it away to others.   And be ready-ready to look up when he comes! Amen.