Monday, December 16, 2019

December 13-15, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Matthew 11:2-6 “IS IT ALL REALLY TRUE?”


ADVENT 3

December 13-15, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Matthew 11:2-6



“IS IT ALL REALLY TRUE?”



Matthew 11:2-6 (EHV) While John was in prison, he heard about the things Christ was doing. He sent two of his disciples to ask him, “Are you the Coming One or should we wait for someone else?” Jesus answered them, “Go, report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the gospel is preached to the poor. Blessed is the one who does not take offense at me.”



          Has something like this ever happened to you? You have a loved one coming in on a flight. You check the airline to make sure it is on time. You head to the airport and wait as close as you can get to where the people come out of the terminal. The Arrival Board says that plane has arrived. You see the lines of people coming down the walkway, but not yours. You note the business flyers and the leisure flyers. You see the people walking quickly and chuckle because you know they are just going to have to wait at baggage. You see the people who move a little more slowly but don’t see the one you are waiting for. The trickle ends. No one. You had asked the last group what flight they were on. Yup, 1514 from Timbucktoo. You text. No answer. How are you feeling? Now you just have been waiting really for 15 or 20 minutes but anxiety sets in. Flight mix up? Something happen? Fear and doubt set in when you wait and things don’t happen the way you expect them to.

          That’s what happened to John the Baptist. If Topps made Bible trading cards a signed John the Baptist would have to be at the top of the list. Listen to what Jesus said about John, “I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist.” And then remember this description of John the Baptist from the angel Gabriel in the pre Christmas story? “He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. 16Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” John was filled with the Spirit and it showed. Out in the desert. Wearing a cloak of camel’s hair. Eating locusts and wild honey. He didn’t care what people thought. He prepared people for Jesus. He called them to repentance. There was no PC mouth on this guy. He’d look you in the eye and call you a brood of vipers. And then Jesus came by. John pointed to Him. “Look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” By the Spirit John knew Jesus was the Messiah. It must have been fulfilling to see his life’s work come to coming to pass before his very eyes.

          So John watched and waited as Jesus quietly taught people. He heard of Jesus doing miracles but seemingly not wanting the extra attention it gave. He watched and waited for something great to happen. John kept up the work of making ready a people prepared for the Lord. He had the same message for prince and pauper and eventually his non PC mouth (also known as a faithful to the Lord mouth) caused this. “But when John rebuked Herod the tetrarch because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and all the other evil things he had done, Herod added this them all: He locked John up in prison.” (Luke 3:19-20) And John waited, eager to see what Jesus would do. And he waited and still the unjust imprisonment continued. He waited for Jesus to do what John expected Him to do as Messiah. Swing that ax at the root of the unrepentant people. Cut them down and throw them into the fire. Make it really hot for Herod! But that’s not what Jesus did. Jesus preached and taught. Sometimes big crowds. Sometimes just one person. Mostly the group of 12 guys. John waited and watched and you know what’s going to happen. Fear, doubt. Is it really true? Is Jesus really the Coming One, the Messiah?

          Finally he had to do something about it. While John was in prison, he heard about the things Christ was doing. He sent two of his disciples to ask him, “Are you the Coming One or should we wait for someone else?” Doubt. Fear. Worry. Waiting will do that to you. Waiting when things aren’t happening the way you expect them to. I’m guessing the answer Jesus gave wasn’t quite what John the Baptist was expecting either. “Jesus answered them, “Go, report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the gospel is preached to the poor. Blessed is the one who does not take offense at me.” Now I’m guessing what John wanted was, “Yes, I am. And don’t worry. I’ll take care or Herod.” That wasn’t how Jesus answered. Did you pick out how he did? Basically Jesus said, “Go back to God’s Word, John. What does it say?” John knew the prophecy of Isaiah you heard today. He knew it told of what Messiah, the Coming one would do. “Strengthen the weak hands, and make the shaky knees steady. Tell those who have a fearful heart: Be strong. Do not be afraid. Look! Your God will come with vengeance. With God’s own retribution, he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unplugged. The crippled will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy.” “If you want to know it’s all true, John, go back to the Word. God’s not asking for blind faith. He’s proven it to you. Careful prophecies. Prophecies you have seen me fulfill. Get your nose back in the Word John and you will see it’s all true.”

          Can you relate at all? Now I don’t think it’s a stretch to say if they made Bible trading cards on us signed ones wouldn’t go for much. But we too are children of God and it also happens at certain points in our lives where we wonder, is this really all true? It might happen when you visit a zoo and see there are some ways that monkeys and people are alike. It may just strike you when you start thinking too hard or try to make God fit in your box. Is this really all true? It’s mostly likely to happen when you have a John the Baptist moment, stuck in the prison of a trial or heartache, waiting for God to make it right. Like when a child or spouse dies young. Like when things go wrong for those who stand up for what God says. Like when those faithful to Jesus continue to struggle economically and those who are not seem to roll in the dough. Is this really all true?

          Then, like John, we may be looking for or expecting God to answer in a certain way. Some people might say God just says trust me. Recently Chris and I were doing some car shopping and I found one we really liked at a good price but there was a warning light on. I told the guy at the dealership, “It’s under warranty. If you get it fixed we can talk.” He called me later and said the dealership would sell it to me and then get it fixed under warranty. “You can trust us!” he said. God isn’t like that with us. Even though we have no right to expect it He proves Himself in His word.  He doesn’t just say trust me but powers our trust through His word. Find if you can anything in the Bible that you can prove is untrue. It won’t happen. God’s word is truth. People accept all kinds of things as true in history about Julius Caesar, or Genghis Kahn, and there is only oral history, next to nothing of the time written down. Yet the Bible has lasted from its first books written in 1500 BC to its last one in 100AD and kept going to this very time. Look at how God loves you to give you Baptism as proof you are His child, to give you the Lord’s Supper as proof you are forgiven. You know, Jesus could have chastised John. What are you thinking? You have the Holy Spirit. How can you doubt? But He didn’t. He firmly but gently pointed John to the Word. You too, child of God. When you have your doubts or worries, when you get tired of waiting, your Lord knows your struggle. He firmly and gently points you back to the Word. Is it all really true? Yes it is.

          Jesus’ last words in our text bear repeating. “Blessed is the one who does not take offense at me.” By take offense here Jesus means, stumble in your faith or trust. Blessed, means made happy, filled with joy. Do you want that? Get your nose in God’s Word because it’s all true. Amen.

Thursday, December 5, 2019

December 4, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 1:11-17 “DO NOT BE AFRAID! THE LORD HAS HEARD YOUR PRAYER!”


MIDWEEK ADVENT 1

December 4, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 1:11-17



“DO NOT BE AFRAID! THE LORD HAS HEARD YOUR PRAYER!”



Luke 1:11-17 (NIV 1984) “Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. 16Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”



          Fear is a powerful motivator. Startle a rabbit in a garden and watch how quickly it takes off and how fast it runs. Kids, you should see Mrs. Spaude’s face when I “accidentally” startle her at home. She jumps so high you’d think she was going to dunk a basketball! Fear has led to people doing amazing feats of strength like fighting off bears and mountain lions and lifting heavy cars when a person was stuck underneath. Fear is a powerful motivator. But it’s not a good one. Did you ever stop to think about why there is even fear in the world? It’s because of sin. Do you remember how that went? After Adam and Eve sinned against God in the Garden of Eden, God came to them and they hid. When God went after them Adam said, “I heard you in the garden and I was afraid.” Before sin there was no fear and nothing to fear. No animals threatened. There was no pain to be afraid of. But now there is fear.

          It’s interesting to me then that when the angels of Advent appear the first thing they say is, “Do not be afraid.” Angels are always all around us doing the work God gave them to do. Rarely have they appeared to people as angels. In the Bible that happens when something important for salvation is happening. It’s no surprise then that we see angels appearing to people as Jesus is about to come into the world the first time. This year as we prepare to celebrate the first time Jesus came and be ready for him to come again we’ll let the advent angels guide us. Today’s angel says, “Do not be afraid! Your prayer has been heard.”

          “Yeah, easy for you to say,” poor Zechariah must have thought. You heard in the portion of the pre Christmas story read a few minutes ago how Zechariah was going about his business as a priest burning the required incense when all of a sudden the angel Gabriel appeared. No sinful being can be in the presence of a holy one without fear so of course Zechariah was afraid. But the angel soothed his fears.  13But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.” What prayer? From the information provided it is clear what Zechariah and his wife had been praying about. They wanted a child. For many years I’m sure they prayed. I’m sure they wondered if God was hearing their prayers, if He was answering them. I’m also sure that when they thought about why God wasn’t answering their prayers the way they wanted and when they wanted that that sin thing came up again. Why should God answer? As a priestly family Zechariah and Elizabeth would know the full extent of God’s laws better than most. They would know how far short they fell of what God demanded. It’s not a stretch to say they would think the same way we sometimes think. God’s not answering because of my sins.

          Do not be afraid, the angel said. Your prayer has been heard. Despite what Zechariah and Elizabeth thought or felt, all along the Lord had heard their prayer. He had not refused to because of their sins. In fact, part of God’s “now is the right time” answer was that their son, John the Baptist, would prepare the way for God’s Son, Jesus, who would pay for their sins. “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. 16Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

          Do not be afraid, the Lord has heard your prayer too. While Zechariah and Elizabeth were waiting for the Savior to come the first time we find ourselves waiting for Jesus to come the second time. We too have things that bother us, things that we want. Like them we go to the Lord in prayer. Sometimes God reveals His answer very quickly. Sometimes it takes a long time. Sometimes it is not in the way we want. Sometimes it is in a way we could never imagine. Always God hears and answers in the right time and the right way. Recently I was talking with a man who was concerned about his daughter who from all outward appearances seems to have strayed away from her faith in Jesus. He said, “You know this really takes a lot of faith. I keep praying for God to turn her around but nothing seems to have happened yet.” Children maybe you have prayed to the Lord for a pet that was sick or to find something lost. In every case when we don’t get an immediate response fear can creep in. Maybe God isn’t listening. Maybe He hasn’t heard. Maybe he won’t because of my sins. Don’t be afraid. The Lord has heard your prayer. In love He waits to reveal the answer that is the best for you.

          I mentioned at the beginning that fear is a powerful motivator and it is. It can cause rabbits to run fast and people to jump high. It can motivate feats of strength and heroism. It also is evidence of a ruined relationship with God and can cause us to doubt God and hold back from doing the right thing. There is a better motivator: love.  Listen to what the Lord had the Apostle John write to us in his first letter chapter 4:16-18. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17 In this way love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: because in this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”   God is love. He loves you. His love for you motivated you to give His Son for you so you know you are forgiven and your prayers are heard. God’s perfect love for us drives out fear. And when Jesus comes back we get to have confidence, not fear. And as we wait and pray we get this confidence. The Lord has heard your prayers. Amen.

Monday, December 2, 2019

November 27-28, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Genesis 32:9-12 THANKSGIVING HAPPENS…


THANKSGIVING

November 27-28, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Genesis 32:9-12



THANKSGIVING HAPPENS…

1. When You Realize Why You are Blessed.

2. When You Remain God Dependent.



Genesis 32:9-12 (NIV 1984) “Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. 11Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12But You have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’”



          To me Thanksgiving is one of those things in life, like teaching your kids how to handle their mistakes and sin. What do we tell them? “Now say you’re sorry.” “I’m sorry!” Are they? You are teaching them but the fact of the matter is either they are sorry or they are not. Your kid gets a gift. “Say Thank you.” “Thank you.” Are they? You can usually tell. “Thank you for the socks grandma.” “A new Xbox! Are you kidding me? Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” You see, when you are thankful no one has to tell you to be thankful or say “Thank you.” You are. Thanksgiving just happens. There were times in our country’s history, maybe in your history, that a gift of socks would elicit heartfelt thanksgiving. If it does not today it is because we have been affected by a pernicious gratitude stealer we will talk about later. I know all of us are gathered here today because we are thankful to God and to help us maintain and grow that attitude of gratitude let’s learn from the life of an Old Testament believer named Jacob.

          There are certain points in life when the gravity of your situation forcibly reminds you of how little you are in the big picture. It may be something like getting caught in an earthquake and being flung around like a rag doll. Or think of you would feel if you fell overboard in the ocean with no boats in sight. Or maybe how a husband feels while his wife is in labor, cognizant of all the things that could go wrong. Or how you feel as you wait for the test results and you are not expecting them to be good. You are not in control. You feel what is always the case. You need your God.

Jacob found himself at such a point in his life. He was about to have a family reunion with his brother Esau. What was on Jacob’s mind? All the good times they had had playing as boys? The bond they shared as brothers? Yeah, no. He was remembering the time Esau came back from hunting super hungry and Jacob made Esau “sell” his birthright for some stew. What a nice brother! He was remembering the time he and his mom tricked dad, Isaac, into giving Jacob the blessing Isaac wrongly wanted to give to Esau so Esau got very little. That had angered Esau so badly he said he was going to kill Jacob, so Jacob ran away. Many years had passed and Jacob was coming home. Esau was coming to meet him-- with 400 men. Jacob had his family and his servants. He turned to God in prayer. “Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ 10I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness You have shown Your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups.” Jacob was a wealthy man in his day. Some would say his shrewdness got him there, his wise business dealings. Jacob said otherwise. He was unworthy of the blessings God had given him. He didn’t deserve them because of his many sins. Jacob knew why he was blessed. Not because he was so good but because God was so good. So thanksgiving happened.

The same goes for us. I mentioned earlier that there was a time in our country when the gift of new socks would evoke heartfelt thanksgiving. Your smiles told me not so today. What’s changed? An insidious and pernicious attitude has infected the people of our country and that means us too. It’s best described as entitlement. And while we are probably more comfortable talking about other people’s sense of entitlement it is better for us to look into the mirror of God’s law and see we have it too. God has put us in a time of affluence. We get used to it. We think we deserve it. We are entitled. Why should I be grateful for socks? I should have many socks. That is my due. Don’t give me presents I need which is my due, give me what I want! Why do I have more money than others? I work harder. I am smarter with my money than they are. I deserve to have nicer things than they. I am entitled! How we Americans have fallen! Look on page 9 of your service folder. 1777. Look at that underlined portion! That at one Time and with one Voice, the good People may express the grateful Feelings of their Hearts, and consecrate themselves to the Service of their Divine Benefactor; and that, together with their sincere Acknowledgments and Offerings, they may join the penitent Confession of their manifold Sins, whereby they had forfeited every Favor; and their humble and earnest Supplication that it may please God through the Merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of Remembrance; There is no entitlement there. Forfeited God’s favor. They knew why they were blessed. Only because of God’s goodness. So Thanksgiving just happened. Brothers and sisters, let’s grab that back. Why are we in easy to live times? Why aren’t we living in a third world country? We came into life naked and with nothing and look now what we have. We don’t deserve God’s blessings. Like Jacob we have plenty of sins in our own past to own up to. We don’t deserve anything put punishment so thank you God, for socks and shoes and food and heat and Jesus and all our other gifts.

And thank you God that we can continue to depend on you. When you give up your sense of entitlement, when you are as painfully aware of your sinfulness as you need to be and when you come to a point in your life that you are painfully aware of how desperately you need your God to survive then you might wonder how God will deal with you. Again we learn from that Old Testament believer Jacob. His prayer went on. “Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. 12But You have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’” Jacob’s scheming and conniving and deceiving is done. He had done what God had put into his hands to do. He had reached out to brother Esau and sent him gifts. But he knows the truth. He is at one of those points in life when he realizes how little of his life he is in control of. But he knows who is in control. The Lord. And he knows why he can go to the Lord. God had made promises. God had promised to make Jacob prosperous and give him many descendants. Since God had promised Jacob would rely on Him.

That we remain God dependent people is another way Thanksgiving happens in our lives. Again as American Christians we are disadvantaged. One of our core values is, or used to be, independence. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Be a self made man. We don’t have to live hoping just to get enough food for the next day. And it is true that like Jacob we are to do things God has given us to do. Financially we are to work. We are to spend wisely and save frugally. We are to eat well and get sleep to take care of ourselves physically. But in the end our best planning and our best efforts will not provide for our future health or wealth. God does. Best eating and exercise does not stave off cancer or accidents. We are God dependent. Thanksgiving happens when we remain God dependent people, praying to Him and trusting Him for our future well being.

And can we? Yes, we have promises to rely on. God has promised to give daily bread, to never leave nor forsake, to work all things for the good. And every promise He makes is yes, in Christ Jesus. While Thanksgiving time does remind us to count our blessings and the physical ones are the easy ones to see, it’s the ones we can’t see that matter most. In Jesus we have forgiveness of sins, we have the proof of God’s love, we have the sure hope of heaven. Now, does anyone really have to tell us to say “Thank you!” Never. For us thankfulness happens. Amen.

Monday, November 18, 2019

November 16-18, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: 2 Kings 2:1-12a “WELCOME HOME!”


SAINTS TRIUMPHANT

November 16-18, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: 2 Kings 2:1-12a



“WELCOME HOME!”

1.     That’s what the death of a believer is.

2.     That’s not what it always feels like.

3.     But that is what it is!



Children here today, has it happened in your family that you can remember that one of your grandpas or grandmas died? Do you remember kind of how that went? I’m guessing it went something like this. So one of your parents got a phone call and you could tell they were upset. Maybe they started crying but they didn’t tell you what was happening or why. Then maybe a little later your parents talked to you and told you that Grandma or Grandpa went to heaven to be with Jesus. And of course you were happy for them. Maybe you even said something like, “Well that’s good!” before you went back to playing or whatever it was you were doing. Then later you noticed that Mom or Dad was still sad or crying so you were trying to figure out. Why were they sad when something good has happened like Grandpa or Grandma getting to go to heaven? Well that’s what we are going to talk about today, how the death of our loved ones who die believing in Jesus is something we are happy about and sad at the same time.

Probably one of the best illustrations of that in the Bible comes at a special point in the lives of two well known Old Testament prophets, Elijah and Elisha. Elisha was the prophet that God had picked to replace Elijah and we are the point where it is time for Elijah to go to heaven. The job of a prophet was to tell people what God said, kind of like a pastor today. “People of God, this is what God says.” So both of the prophets were daily using God’s Word. What a blessing that was for them! The Holy Spirit worked through that word just like He does today. The Holy Spirit was strengthening their faith daily just like He strengthens the faith of everyone in this room who studies and meditates on God’s word. That’s important to remember because we are going to see two different responses to the upcoming death of the prophet Elijah.

Now some of you are now thinking, “Hey, wait a minute! I know that story. Elijah doesn’t die. He gets taken right to heaven in a whirlwind!” You’re right. But maybe we need to understand death a little better. The Bible uses the word death for separation. When Adam and Eve sinned, they died immediately. Not physically but spiritually. They were separated from God and it showed. Before sin they walked and talked with God. After sin they hid from Him, made excuses and played the blame game. A separation had taken place. At physical death a person’s body and soul separate. The body goes back to ground from which God originally made Adam and the soul goes to heaven or sadly for those who reject Jesus, Hell.  When people die they are separated from their loved ones. So keeping that in mind let’s look at how both prophets, Elijah and Elisha, deal with separation as Elijah gets to go to heaven.



When the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; the LORD has sent me to Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.”  Now if you are following along here Elijah knows he is going to get to go to heaven. This younger prophet, Elisha, whom Elijah mentored, knows it too. Elijah is trying to make it easier by not letting Elisha see the separation. But Elisha wants to hold on. “So they went down to Bethel. 3The company of the prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and asked, “Do you know that the LORD is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” Elisha replied, “but do not speak of it.” Ah, this is so classic! This time we meet some objective observers. They are not emotionally tied to Elijah. Did you know Elijah is going to heaven? They are able to talk about it factually. But look at the one who has the heart strings attached, Elisha. “Let’s not talk about it!” It happens again.  4Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha; the LORD has sent me to Jericho.” And he replied, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So they went to Jericho. 5The company of the prophets at Jericho went up to Elisha and asked him, “Do you know that the LORD is going to take your master from you today?” “Yes, I know,” he replied, “but do not speak of it.” Interesting. Elisha is a strong prophet of God, but even for him, death, separation, was hard. I don’t want to talk about it! “Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; the LORD has sent me to the Jordan.” And he replied, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them walked on. 7Fifty men of the company of the prophets went and stood at a distance, facing the place where Elijah and Elisha had stopped at the Jordan. 8Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up and struck the water with it. The water divided to the right and to the left, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground. 9When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me, what can I do for you before I am taken from you?” “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit,” Elisha replied. 10“You have asked a difficult thing,” Elijah said, “yet if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be yours—otherwise not.” 11As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. 12Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more.” No matter how much Elisha wanted it not to happen, it did. But wait, what about Elijah? Did you notice how he kept going? He was eager for that separation. Why?

          Welcome Home! Friends, that is exactly what happens when a believer in Jesus dies. Many of you have seen this or a similar picture and it helps us to understand why the death of believers is something to celebrate and be happy about. Elijah was an Old Testament believer. He got a miraculous ride to heaven in a whirlwind. The chariots and horsemen sound like angels to me. We don’t need to figure out the details of Elijah’s body and how God separated his sinful nature from him. That’s God’s business. What we can see and understand is how happy Elijah was to be home. His life had many struggles with Ahab and Jezebel and all the other ungodly kings. How good it was for him to be home in heaven. No wonder he kept marching toward it. He wanted to be home.

          Welcome home is exactly what will happen to you and me and has happened to our loved ones who died in the Lord. We too celebrate. Elijah believed in the Messiah that would come. We and our loved ones believe in the Messiah who has come. We know His name is Jesus. We know how He undid the sin of Adam. We know He lived perfectly for us. We know that His death paid for our sins in full. Welcome home! That’s what the death of believer is. Now think of how good it feels when you have been away from your earthly home and you get to get back. Heaven is so much better. Peace, joy, happiness, full knowledge. Let’s pause now to remember the St. Jacobi members who got that welcome home since the last time we celebrated Saints Triumphant. James Ortiz, Rayleen Schultz, Ursula  Arney,  Maynard Wagner, Otis Krebs, Terry Wegner, Pat Bauknecht, Judy Wantuch, Lucille Henning, Robert Zirbel. All of us know the names of many more from the past or other loved ones who died in the Lord.

          They got welcomed home. But for those left away from home, those on earth, the death of a loved one does not always feel like it. Children, that’s why Mommy and Daddy still cry even though they know Grandpa or Grandma are in heaven. That’s why Elisha didn’t want to talk about Elijah going to heaven. Remember death is a separation. Separation hurts. Separation is a consequence of sin. That’s why Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus. He saw the hurt caused by sin. Sometimes it seems even our wearing down bodies don’t want to give up because they seem to know God did not create them for that purpose. Sin is the reason we may not always be able to celebrate a believer’s death. Sin is why it may not feel like a welcome home.

          But it still is a welcome home. Jesus proved it. Remember when He died in our place? After He had finished defeating sin by paying for it in full, what did He say? “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” He was going home. You will too. That’s why the death of a believer really is something to celebrate. Like Elisha there will be times when we won’t feel like it or someone else won’t feel like it either. But that doesn’t change the fact that it is. The little ones with the true child like faith know it. That’s what got me thinking a few years back after we had observed a Celebration of Life Sunday. I said to Pastor Waldschmidt, “You know life is a great gift from God but death is too. It’s how God takes us to heaven. Why don’t we have a celebration of Death Sunday?” So here it is. Maybe more accurately it’s a celebration of eternal life Sunday. The time when God says, “Welcome Home!”

Monday, October 28, 2019

October 26-28, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Matthew 11:28-30 “THE YOKE’S ON YOU!”


PENTECOST 20

October 26-28, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Matthew 11:28-30



“THE YOKE’S ON YOU!”



Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”



          Some of you will remember a few weeks ago I told an angel joke that just had you rolling in the pews. You shouldn’t have done that. You should know that would just egg me on to do another. So I have. Today the yoke’s on you. I appreciate you holding it in but while that was really punny it’s actually not meant to be funny but true. You heard Jesus moments ago talk about a yoke, his yoke. He urges us to put it on and as the Word of God reveals you want that yoke on you!

          Standing before Jesus as this time were crowds from the cities of Galilee the northern part of the nation of Israel. Men, women and children, singles and families from all walks of life who had come to listen to Jesus. They had heard  John the Baptist point to Jesus as the Messiah. They had heard and perhaps seen Jesus do miracles. Likely in that crowd would be a little Jewish girl like Miriam, there with her father because Mom was home very sick. She wanted Mom to get better. She could tell by the way the adults were acting something bad was happening. She had prayed to God over and over again. Nothing had happened. She knew why. The rabbis, the teachers of the law had said that God only rewards the righteous. Only obedient children got their prayers answered. She had tried so hard to obey but her little brother made her so angry, always picking and following her. He wouldn’t leave her alone. Surely God understood how hard it was to be nice. But she must not have been nice enough. Mom was still sick. Miriam’s heart was heavy and burdened.

          In that crowd there was likely a man like David, a fisherman all his life. He worked hard to feed his family but lately the nets were mostly empty. He tried every trick and nothing worked. He knew why. God was mad at him and for good reason. The teachers of the law had made it clear that if you did not bring the full tithe to them as offerings God would not listen to your prayers. He’d been dumb last year when the fishing was good. Drank too much. Gambled a little. Didn’t have enough left over to give to God the full tithe. He was going to make it up this year, pay God back, but now, how could he with empty nets? It seemed his debt would never be paid and now his family would suffer. David’s heart was heavy and burdened.

          Perhaps also standing by hoping to catch Jesus in some mistake of the law was Simon, a teacher of the law. This Jesus was telling people that the Messiah they needed was a Savior from sin. Didn’t he know that God expected people not to sin? Did he not see from that only by keeping the covenant of the law he would be blessed. Simon knew this first hand. He was respected. People looked up to him. His house was one of the nicest houses in town and everyone wanted to be invited to his banquets. And with reason. He observed the Sabbath religiously. He fully tithed. He even gave extra to help the poor. He prayed five times a day. He was living proof of how God is pleased by holy living and rewards it. But his smug demeanor fell off of his face when the servant came with the awful news of the white blotches that had appeared all over little Moshe’s skin. Why? Could it be true as Jesus said that God expected perfect thoughts as well as actions? Was God now mad at him? Suddenly Simon’s heart felt heavy and burdened.

          And then Jesus said it. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” And as the Holy Spirit did his work and rode these words of God into the souls of those there a glimmer of understanding and hope crept into the heart of Miriam and David and Simon. Rest. That’s what Sabbath means. Your relationship with God was not based on you working harder and harder to please Him but on resting, doing nothing. Who then would do the work of pleasing God? Jesus! Be yoked to Jesus.

          Most of us have not spent significant time on a farm and if we did we most likely saw tractors doing the work of pulling heavy burdens not oxen. So let’s make sure we know what a yoke is. Here is a picture. A yoke helped two animals share  a burden. Notice in this picture how a smaller ox is paired with a bigger ox who will lead and do the majority of the work. If we want to think about being yoked to Jesus maybe this is a better picture. Too often we can exhibit the characteristics of an donkey in our relationship with Jesus. Stubborn. Like a two year old trying to pour a glass of milk. “I can do it myself!” as the milk spills all over the table. And then the pouting with no acknowledgement that he can’t.

          There is a better way. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,” Jesus said. The circumstances of people listening to Jesus in the cities around Milwaukee are different from the circumstances the people from the cities of Galilee but the hearts and needs are the same. We have an extra obstacle in our way. Affluence. Good times. When modern medicine is apparently curing your ills you can forget how badly you need Jesus. When you have enough money to live comfortably each month you can forget how badly you need Jesus. When you don’t have teachers of the law pointing out your sin but rather teachers of Satan saying there is no sin, no God, no one you have to please but yourself you may not feel your need for Jesus. But it’s there. God has his voice in your heart. You hear it most loudly when death knocks at your door. It speaks again when you have an accident or a financial loss. You aren’t good enough. You’ve sinned against God. You don’t deserve His help. He’s angry at sin. Even when you are fully yoked to Jesus it’s there. You’re going to screw up your kids, your marriage, your job. You’re no good. You are selfish. You don’t deserve anything good from God. And the voice speaks truth.

          So does this one. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,” Jesus speaks. We listen. He offers rest for souls that lose sleep worrying over problems out of their control. He offers rest for souls who worry about kids straying away from Jesus. He offers rest for souls that can’t forget that sin of the past that set the course for your current life. He offers rest for souls that can’t fix a broken marriage and that struggle against a sin they can’t shake.

          “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” It’s that word picture. When you are connected to Jesus he does the work. Are you tired of trying to always get it right? You don’t have to. Jesus already did. He has perfectly obeyed our Father’s commands. You can count on God’s love and help because yoked to Jesus all God sees is a perfectly obedient child. When you are yoked to Jesus there are no sins to be punished for He has paid for them in full. Your sins don’t cause Mom to get sick and die and God is not refusing to answer your prayers. Her sickness and even her death comes from God’s loving hand and serves for His glory. Your job problems are not God punishing you for past sins but rather guidance from a God who loves you, knows what’s best for you and is helping you to see you need Him. Yoked to Jesus even those sins you keep falling into, that burden your soul, that you try to keep hidden, they serve to keep you clinging to Jesus so you don’t try to throw of the yoke with a two year old’s cry, “I can do it myself!”

          “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I remember times when my girls were little and they wanted to help me do some project, maybe carry a heavy table or lift a big log to the splitter. They would grab on. I did all the work. It was nice that they wanted to help me. Serving God is like that yoked to Jesus. Trying to live right, working hard to obey God’s laws is important for all of us but not because we have to, because we want to please our Father in heaven. He doesn’t need our help but is happy to have us. We get to obey without the burden of having God’s help dependent on our performance. Life really is easy when you live the confidence that God will work all for the good, even my sins and bad decisions, that Jesus is always in control no matter what it looks like to me, and that my past neither controls me nor defines me and my future is safely in the hands of the Lord who loves me.

          Brothers and sisters, all that happens when we are yoked to Jesus. And that yoking then looks a little more like this, where, as family we are yoked together to help, love and bless, to work hard for our Lord Jesus who has already done and is really doing all the work Himself. So even though it’s not all that funny it does make one smile to know, because of the gift of faith granted you by the Holy Spirit, the yoke’s on you and you are connected to Jesus. Amen.

Monday, October 7, 2019

October 5-7, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 15:1-10 WELCOME HOME!


PENTECOST 17/WELCOME HOME

October 5-7, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 15:1-10



WELCOME HOME!

AN EFFORT TO FOLLOW JESUS…

1.     In caring about the lost.

2.     In seeking the lost.

3.     In rejoicing over the found.



Luke 15:1-10 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”



          Last weekend we had a wonderful hymnfest service prepared by Pastor Waldschmidt that helped us observe the Church year Festival of St. Michael and All Angels Sunday. With hymns and the word of God he reminded us of so many of the things God has angels doing. I couldn’t help but notice that he didn’t answer all the questions we might have about angels like, “How many angels can fit on the head of a pin?” “Or how do angels greet each other?” You know that one, right? No? How do angels greet each other? With a “Halo!” Okay, bad joke. I also don’t remember him telling us what makes angels happy. And that’s OK because the Word of God you just heard told you, didn’t it? What makes angels happy? Why do they rejoice? When the lost are found. When sinners repent. Today we begin an emphasis throughout our synod to welcome home brothers and sisters who have strayed from a weekly worship pattern, maybe haven’t had the blessing of Lord’s Supper, the announcement of forgiveness for their sins and the Lord’s Blessing for a year or more. It’s important that we do so with the right spirit. With a spirit that follows Christ. That’s what our Welcome Home effort really is: an effort to help us follow Christ by caring about what He cares about, by doing something about it and by finding joy where he finds joy. And we don’t have to guess the answers to any of the questions. They were answered by Him in His word.

          What Jesus cares about is the lost. Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” There are three very different players in this part of God’s word. First there are the tax collectors and sinners. It’s important to acknowledge that the people in this group had done wrong and they knew it. The tax collectors used their position to regularly steal from their own people. The “sinners” mostly likely refers to women who had turned to prostitution, probably out of desperation to feed children when they lost their husbands. No matter what the reason though, sin is sin. And these people knew they had sinned because others in their society let them know. Hopefully some let them know out of love so they would repent. They were excluded from their churches and since God’s word always works I have to believe not every Jewish synagogue was bad. Some followed the intent of God’s commands. But not everyone. That brings us to the next group. The Pharisees and teachers of the law. They were upset that Jesus was hanging around people who they didn’t want back. If the Pharisees and teachers of the law had simply told the tax collectors and sinners that what they were doing was wrong they would have been at least partially right. But what they told them was what they were doing could not be forgiven. There was no coming back. The lost were just plain lost. And that takes us to Jesus. Why was He hanging around these people? Let’s let Him tell us again.

          Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ 10 In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

          Some parables you have to work to figure out. These are easy. When you lose something precious to you, you want it back. You try to get it back. You are happy when you get it back. It doesn’t mean you don’t care about the 99 sheep who weren’t lost. The shepherd didn’t leave them hanging. He left them in a safe spot. The woman didn’t leave the other nine silver coins out to be stolen. Both shepherd and woman were happy to have them. It’s just that they ached for what they lost. The message is clear. Jesus cares about the lost. He cares for every soul. He is so glad when believers are with Him and following Him. And at the same time his heart aches for those believers who have slipped away from Him.

          Follow Jesus. Welcome Home. Those phrases remind us to work to care like He does for the lost, those of the family of faith of have strayed from Him. Honesty is needed. It’s easier to care about things that don’t really matter. There was likely more caring done about the Brewers’ loss Tuesday night than about people we know who have left the Lord. More angst. More disappointment. So repentance is needed. Lord, don’t let us become the Pharisees and teachers of the law. Don’t let us get to the point we don’t want the lost back. Do help us change our priorities. Do help us keep the things of this life that provide momentary escape and distraction like sports in their proper place and help us care more about people.

          Do help us seek the lost. Jesus did some things only Jesus could do. Only Jesus could live a life of perfect righteousness to cover over the imperfect lives of the lost and the found. Only Jesus could take the full punishment for sin so the lost and found can be free. We can’t do that. But Jesus did some things we can do also as we follow Him. He modeled caring for all people. He assured people that God loved them and forgave them. He said the same to crowds and to individuals. He prayed for people. Welcome Home. Follow Jesus. Those phrases remind us to work to seek the lost like He did. There are many different ways. You will need to figure out what is appropriate for you. Will you pray? Is it time to have the conversation you have been avoiding? If you have been having the conversation too often so that they shut you off is it time to look for someone in their life who might be the better seeker than you? None of us can do everything. All of us can do something as we follow Jesus.

          And then we can rejoice like Jesus. Do you really think there are 99 who don’t need to repent? We all need to. And Jesus loves it when we do. The angels love it. They rejoice. They are happy.  And so are we. The Pharisees and teachers of the law didn’t want to let repentant sinners back in. In the reading from Corinthians it’s clear those believers struggled to let a sorrowful sinner back. May the Lord prevent that from happening among us. Instead no matter what the sin our family members, our church family members, have done let’s always be happy when they repent to say, “Welcome Home!”

We have three weeks to go before our Welcome Home weekend. Let’s all make an effort to follow Jesus in caring, seeking and rejoicing. May the Lord help us get back as many as we can so that the heavens are filled with a joy filled Jesus, rejoicing angels and some day a whole bunch of Jacobians. Amen.

Monday, September 16, 2019

September 14-16, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 13:22-30 (NIV 1984) “MAKE EVERY EFFORT!”


PENTECOST 14

September 14-16, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 13:22-30 (NIV 1984)



“MAKE EVERY EFFORT!”

1.     The Feast is ready!

2.     The entrance is narrow.

3.     There are no second chances.



Luke 13:22-30 (NIV) Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, 24“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26“Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27“But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28“There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 30Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”



          It’s one of those really important questions that you kind of hesitate to ask because of the answer you might get. Like, “Is it cancer?” As Jesus continued to teach on His way to give His life in Jerusalem an unnamed someone asks, “Lord, are only a few going to be saved?” I don’t know why this man asked it but I hope it weighs on each of our hearts. We want everyone to be saved. Will they? While He does not answer that question here Jesus certainly did in His Sermon on the Mount where in Matthew 7 He said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”  Sad! Here though Jesus turns the man’s question back to where it belongs, to his heart and so to each of our hearts. He doesn’t answer how many will be saved but instead looks the man in the eye and says, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.” This man, it seems, was making an assumption, that he was one of the saved. Was he? That depends. Where was he placing his hope? More importantly, where are you placing your hope? Today let’s listen carefully as Jesus looks us in the eye and says, “Make every effort.”

          Make every effort because the feast is set. “People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.” God uses the picture of a feast or banquet many times to help people think of and look forward to the joys of heaven. When I hear the word feast I think back to growing up in Watertown where a restaurant called Amber Lantern had a $2.99 pizza smorgasbord, a buffet. We would make sure to go in hungry and oh the offerings! Or I think of Thanksgiving dinner that’s a feast. Or at Bible Class there is the feast of God’s word and then the people bring cheese and sausage, and deviled eggs and Danish pastries and ham and rolls and yeah some that fruit stuff too. It’s a feast you don’t want to miss. Heaven is pictured as a feast. It’s all set go. It’s happening. Only good things. No sin. No pain. No death. Happiness. Joy. Face to face with Jesus. Life eternal with every other believer, yes, all our loved ones who have died in the Lord. Of course we want to make every effort to be there.

          Jesus has a warning though. The entrance is narrow. “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26“Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.” Again we return to the picture of a great feast. There is an owner of the home where it is held. There is only one entrance, a narrow door. Now remember we are really talking about heaven here so the door is the way to heaven, how people get there. You know as well as I do that most people think the way to heaven is by being good. Good people should get to go to heaven. We feel that pressure too. You probably know someone in your life that does not profess faith in Jesus Christ but they are so nice and so good and the thought of them not being in heaven just doesn’t make sense. But you know what? What you think and what I think and what others think does not matter. There is an owner of the house of heaven and what He says goes. What does He say? The door is narrow. It’s only through Jesus who testified “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Most of you are probably familiar with John 3:16 which is known as the Gospel in a nutshell. Have you ever read the verses right after? The full context of what Jesus said there is this, “For God so loved the world He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because He has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” Only through believing in Jesus is the way to heaven open. The people of Jesus’ day who could say, “Hey, I saw you once. I liked some of what you said,” didn’t enter through Jesus. People in our day who say “I knew Jesus once. I used to belong to a church. I try to be a good person,” have not entered through the narrow door.

          And there are no second chances. “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28“There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 30Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.” This is a picture of the last day. People who thought they were going to heaven aren’t. They plead but it’s too late. There is weeping and gnashing of teeth because those on the outside don’t just stay on the outside looking in. Their fate is hell. How it must have hurt the people around Jesus to hear that others, non Jews, would be welcome into heaven and they would not. Those who had the Good News of Jesus first were last. Those who got it later became first. Why? They believed. I don’t know what would top your list of vile and offensive sins but the top of God’s, the ones He calls evildoers, are those who reject His Son as Savior. There are no second chances then.

          But there are now. That’s why Jesus spoke to the crowd and why He speaks to us today. Remember what Jesus’ first response to the man’s questions was. “Make every effort.” He’s not asking us to do what we can’t. He’s  not asking us to save ourselves. He is urging us to do what we can do and what He has given us to do, to feed and guard our faith in Jesus. He’s urging us to look at our lives to see if we have become spiritually lazy or apathetic. He’s making each of us do that gut check and answer the question “So why do you think you will go to heaven?” What’s your answer? “I try to be good.” “I’m WELS.” “I go to church—not as often as I should but…” None of those are the narrow door. How about  “Because Jesus died for my sins.” There it is, the narrow door. The efforts we can make include things like daily repentance, prayer and devotion. The efforts we can make include weekly worship and Bible Study. The efforts we can make include tuning out the false messages so prevalent where people make God out to be what they want Him to be rather than what He says He is and carefully and humbly accepting only what God says instead.   “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” a certain someone asked Jesus. To which He replied, “Make every effort.” Are you?

Amen.

Monday, August 26, 2019

August 24-26, 2019 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:18-26 (NIV 1984) THE MEANING OF LIFE


PENTECOST

August 24-26, 2019

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:18-26 (NIV 1984)



THE MEANING OF LIFE

                                  1. Without Christ It Is Meaningless

                                  2. With Christ Everything Has Meaning.



Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:18-26 (NIV 1984) “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” 2:18I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? 23All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless. 24A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, 25for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? 26To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”



          I begin with an apology to anyone familiar with British comedy group, Monty Python. You saw the sermon theme “The Meaning of Life” and it took your mind to where you did not want it to go. So wipe it away and realize that long before that group existed the Book of Ecclesiastes was written to carefully expound the meaning of life here on earth. And a good thing. It’s one of the basic needs of all people to know that their life has meaning. That is why philosophers new and old spend so much time trying to figure it out. What a waste. Their work is already done for them contained in this book of the Bible we call Ecclesiastes. Now if you have read that book of the Bible recently or choose to soon you might come away feeling down or depressed. It does a good job of demonstrating how meaningless life can be. And yet Pastor Martin Luther wrote this about Ecclesiastes. “It is a book of comfort.” How does that work? Let’s find out.

Ecclesiastes was written by Solomon. Remember him? He’s the son of David that asked for and was given by God great wisdom for ruling the nation of Israel. He’s the one who told us the fear of the Lord is beginning of wisdom. It seems later in life he left the Lord out of his life. Ecclesiastes seems to be his fruits of repentance, his teaching to others to help them learn from his mistakes. What had he discovered? Without Christ life is meaningless! "Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless."  That’s how the book starts. Solomon calls himself the teacher and goes on to describe how he had tried to find happiness, meaning in life, by pursuing the best knowledge the science of his time could provide. But when he learned it all, he was still feeling empty. Meaningless. Then he tried to find meaning by pursuing pleasure. First he tried neutral pleasures, laughter and entertainment, building projects and gardens and parks. Still his life was empty. Meaningless. He amassed great wealth. Still he felt meaningless. Then he tried sinful pleasures of all kinds. He summed it up this way in chapter 2:10-11 I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. 11 Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.”

In this part of Ecclesiastes Solomon Teacher contemplated something that takes up a good portion of our lives, working and acquiring things. “I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless.” I guess that about sums it up. You work hard all your life. You save and take care of your things. You die and someone else gets your things. They may not value them like you do or take care of them. You can be frugal and save money and your heirs might waste it. That's it. What good did all that saving do? Meaningless.

Now we probably haven’t gone down all the roads to meaningless that Solomon did but you can recognize the times we have been heading there. You know how when you make a purchase and you got a great deal and how good you felt? But that feeling doesn’t last. Kids, remember that toy you had to have for Christmas, or that video game you had to have? Still using it? Oh yeah and how about that work thing. If all there is to life is an endless cycle of working to pay bills and keep your head above water and stress about things all night, life is meaningless. Working hard and saving up and building things only to have the next generation ruin and waste it all is meaningless. What did Jeffrey Epstein find with his pursuits? Meaningless. If that’s all there is to life then let us eat and drink and try to be merry for tomorrow we die life has no meaning. Meaningless!

But that isn’t all there is Solomon went on. “A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, 25 for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?” Did you catch it? “Without him who can find enjoyment.” Without whom? The Savior God. The Lord. In Old Testament times the Teacher, or Solomon, simply knew their Savior as the LORD, the powerful God how saves and promised to send a Savior. We know that Savior is Jesus Christ. While everything really is meaningless without Jesus everything becomes meaningful with Him!

With Him, with Jesus in our life we can find enjoyment now and know the best is yet to come. With Jesus in our life everything has meaning. Let’s take some of the things Solomon pursued and found meaningless. Knowledge and learning. Science. With Jesus in your life you are led to an awe and amazement of how wise God is putting this world together. That may lead you to a vocation where you will use your knowledge to help people in the medical field realizing God loves people and wants certain things cured or healed. You see that there is good entertainment and things that make you laugh and often the best laughter is at yourself. Laughter can really be the best medicine because it is a gift from God. There are pleasures in this world that aren’t sinful. Whether you eat drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. You can thank God for chocolate or coffee a good tasting wine or beer. None of that have to be used sinfully. Think of the gift of friendship as a gift from God. With Christ even amassing wealth is meaningful. A nice home or vacation home can be enjoyed with a grateful heart. You can use money to do the work Jesus gave you to do not only now but when you go to heaven with your will. With Christ my job is a gift from God, a mask He wears to provide for me. With Christ the job lost is an opportunity gained, the house offer that fell through a needed guidance from God who has something better for me. With Christ I realize that the people I am coming into contact with every day are there for a reason and who knows but I am the one through whom God will work to reach them. Think of what it would be like to deal with a sickness or hardship without knowing it too is guided by the hand of  a loving God. How can you deal with those things without being able to look at Christ on the cross to know your sin are forgiven and God has a good plan. Some people ask me how do those who don’t know Jesus as Savior deal with death and I say I don’t know. Without Christ it is meaningless. With Him the door to heaven.

With Christ everything is meaningful because with Christ the best is yet to come. No matter how hard I work at taking care of this body it will be destroyed. No worries. I’ll get a new one. A better one. A perfect one. All things amassed on earth will not only go to someone else but will ultimately be destroyed. I’ll lose this home and get a better one. The meaning of life then is to know Christ and to make him known to others. Because only with Christ does this life matter. Your job is to cling to Him above all else so you can share Him with others at all times. Amen.