September 21-23, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Mark 9: 30-37 “WHO IS GOD’S G.O.A.T?”

 

PENTECOST 18

September 21-23, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Mark 9: 30-37

 

“WHO IS GOD’S G.O.A.T?”

1.     The Lamb!

2.     Followed by the sheep.

 

Who is the greatest? The question is not new. In centuries past pharaohs and emperors and kings wanted to be known as the greatest ruler that ever lived. In our times that debate has been held almost exclusively in the sports arena. Muhammed Ali proclaimed himself the greatest. In sports everyone wants to be the GOAT, the Greatest Of All Time. Who is the GOAT, the greatest of all time for NFL quarterbacks? Is it Tom Brady or will he be surpassed by Patrick Mahomes? The word of God from the Gospel of Mark deals with the issue of greatness. In it we see one who really is the greatest of all time and some who want to be. Some questions need to be answered. Just what is it that makes someone great? Who gets to determine what makes someone great? Do you want to be great?

Last week Pastor Langebartels told us of a time when Jesus cast a demon out of a young boy. It was shortly after Jesus had taken three of His disciples, Peter, James and John to witness His transfiguration. The time is nearing for Jesus to complete His earthly mission with His sacrifice on the cross and resurrection from the dead. He doesn’t want to attract crowds at this time. He wants to teach His disciples privately and so Mark tells us, “They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know this, ³¹because he was teaching his disciples. He told them, “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill him. But three days after he is killed, he will rise.” ³²But they did not understand the statement and were afraid to ask him about it.”

          Here we get an answer to one of our questions. What is it that makes someone great? Humble service to others. This is not the first time that Jesus spoke plainly to His disciples about the real nature of His mission. This is not the first time that the disciples remained clueless even though Jesus told them plainly. Jesus’ determination to carry out His mission as Savior shows He is the GOAT! He is the greatest of all time. Even though He is King of kings and LORD of lords, the maker and sustainer of all things, the Holy, Holy, Holy, I AM he humbles Himself to become man. He allows Himself to be betrayed and crucified. Why? It’s what people needed. A solution to the problem of sin. The only way God can remain just and punish sin without punishing the sinners is for Jesus to come and be the perfect substitute, the Lamb of God who will take away the sin of the world. He did. Jesus is God’s G.O.A.T. because the real measure of greatness is not how many points you score or who much money you have or how much land you control. It’s the number of people you serve humbly, without expecting anything in return. Jesus served all. The Lamb of God is God’s GOAT.

Who gets to determine what makes someone great? The word goes on. “They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” ³⁴But they remained silent, because on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.  ³⁵Jesus sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he will be the last of all and the servant of all.” ³⁶Then he took a little child and placed him in their midst. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷“Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me, welcomes not just me but also him who sent me.” Jesus’ disciples wanted to be considered great. I guess we can take a little bit of comfort, some schadenfreude, that those who got to follow Jesus in the flesh still were thick in the head, had misplaced priorities and got right things so wrong just like we do. It is shameful, though, when grown children of God act like spoiled little kids. The disciples were arguing about which one of them was the greatest among them all. From their shamed silence it’s not hard to guess what standards they were using and how they were acting. Peter says, “I am the greatest! Jesus let me see Him transfigured.” “You’re not so special,” says James and John, “he took us too!” “I’m the one He trusts with our money,” says Judas. “I’m better than you.” Like little boys on the playground they went back and forth arguing, embellishing, trying to make their pitiful little accomplishments bigger than they were because the standard of greatness they were using was wrong. They used the world’s way, power, prestige, money.

But the world does not get to establish what makes a person great. Oh, it tries. It will list the Forbes most wealthy, and Time’s person of the year. The sports world has developed their own awards for their own people picked by themselves, just like the entertainment world has done the same, Emmys, Oscars, Golden Globes, Tonies. Seriously. How many do they need to boost their fragile egos? I’ve offered before, but no one has taken me up on it. I’ll host The Platinum Preacher award, an award developed by pastors for pastors awarded to the pastor whose golden tongued delivery can keep the most people awake. Foolishness. For the followers of Christ there is only one whose standard matters. Jesus. He gets to tell us what makes a person great. And He has. Humble service. Serving the needs of others without expecting something in return like little children who are by very nature takers, not givers, and in no position to repay us. This is what makes a person great in the eyes of our Lord. Humble service. Humility. Not thinking less of yourself or poorly of yourself. You dare not. God made each of you fearfully, wonderfully and well. Rather thinking more of the needs of others. Service, trying to meet those needs.

So do you still want to be great, great in the eyes of God’s GOAT? Jesus’ disciples had to wrestle with that question after He sat them down. And from their history recorded in the Acts of the Apostles, every one but Judas said, “Yes. I desire your approval Lord, more than anyone else’s.” What’s your answer? How will you pattern your life? Jesus, the Lamb of God, the GOAT, is our leader. He’s perfect at it. How is our following? When I was a child I wanted to be great at what I did. I was really good at ping pong. I won every grade school tournament I entered. Got some really cool plastic trophies. I even held on to them when Chris and I got married. I’m sure she didn’t roll her eyes. They are all gone, broken trashed. Didn’t mean anything anymore once I matured. I understand now that when I meet my Lord Jesus He is not going to ask me how many ping pong tournaments I won, but rather if I took care of His sheep and His lambs. And after I give report I just want to hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
          Will you join me brothers and sisters, and seek to serve rather than be served? Will you do so for the joy of serving the Lamb who has served you so well? This weekend we as a congregation will thank some of those who have served us in this past year. But winning our thanks not why they served. They saw a need and filled it. You can too, through faithful praying, words and acts of kindness to neighbors or those who live in your senior living center, giving rides to church. A special appeal to you parents to serve your kids. What they need is their heart tied to Jesus. I want you to think about how zealous you are in getting your kids to every sports practice and game and musical practice and concert and every other extra they are in. That’s great if you can make it work without stressing the family. The honest truth is none of them are going to make it to the pros. But they will make it to Hell if their faith in Jesus is not fed. They need you reading Bible stories and devotions at home. They need you to get them to church. Do you want to be great? Serve the needs of a child. “Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me, welcomes not just me but also him who sent me.” So says the Lamb, God’s GOAT. You are His sheep. Will you follow? Amen.

August 10-12, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Exodus 16:15-31 “GOD’S WORK, GOD’S WAY!

 

PENTECOST 12

August 10-12, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Exodus 16:15-31

 

“GOD’S WORK, GOD’S WAY!

 

This weekend we are installing teachers for this coming school year. It’s important that teachers know how students learn. One way that people learn is to go from the lesser to the greater. You show how something is true for something small and easy to grasp to teach how something is true for something that is bigger and harder to grasp. God knows how people learn and Het taught that way. In the book of Hebrews, the Holy Spirit had these words written, “For every house is built by someone, and God is the one who built everything.” He teaches from the lesser to the greater. Everyone admits to the truth that if a house exists, someone built it. So the greater is true. The universe has to have a builder, and that builder is God. That’s why God calls those who say there is no God, fools. They are ignoring obvious truth. Another way to teach is to use something simple and visible to teach about something you can’t see. God does that too. Think of Baptism. He has us use water. It’s everywhere and necessary. What do we mostly use water for? To clean and sustain life. So if we think about it, every time we wash dirty dishes or dirty hands or enjoy that cold glass of water on a hot, humid summer day it can teach us that our Baptism that connects us to Jesus washes and cleans dirty sinners and gives spiritual life.

          A similar thing was done by God for the Old Testament people and us with the sending of manna. You heard about it in our first reading. In Hebrew “What is it?” sounds like “manuh, manuh?” Manna, bread from heaven. A quick catch up on the background. God had rescued the Israelites from slavery in Egypt with the miraculous plagues. Now they were wandering the wilderness. They grumbled and complained that God had rescued them because they had no more food. These former slaves had a lot of learning to do, most of it spiritual, to trust in the Lord with all their heart and lean not on their own understanding. Instead of punishing the Israelites for their lack of trust God graciously provided manna, bread from heaven that had a honey taste to it. There were specific instructions that came with this food from the Lord. “This is what the Lord has commanded: All of them are to gather as much of it as they need to eat”…and “No one is to leave any of it until morning.” 

          God was teaching. God’s work must be done God’s way! Trust God. He will provide for you. Daily bread. Now if they would follow their own understanding they would gather as much food as they could. “What if it didn’t come the next day? Better to store up plenty for yourself. God’s way doesn’t make sense.” Let’s see how that worked for them. “However, they did not listen to Moses. Some of them left part of it until morning, and it became full of worms and stank.” Ooh, gross! Maggots. Smell! It does not turn out well when God’s people trust in themselves with all their heart and lean not on the Lord who loves them.

          Then God switched things up. “They gathered it each morning. All of them gathered as much as they needed to eat. When the sun grew hot, it melted away. ²²On the sixth day they gathered twice as much food, two omers for each person, and all the leaders of the community came and reported to Moses. ²³He said to them, “This is what the Lord has said: Tomorrow is a complete rest, a holy sabbath to the Lord. Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil, but set aside for yourselves all the rest of it to be kept until morning.” ²⁴So they set it aside until morning as Moses commanded, and it did not stink, and there were no worms in it. ²⁵Moses said, “Today eat whatever is left over, for today is a sabbath to the Lord. Today you will not find any around the camp. ²⁶Six days you will gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will not be any.” Again, God was teaching them. He knew their needs. They needed rest for their bodies and rest for their souls. The seventh day would be a day to find rest from their regular physical work and to worship and find rest in God’s word. The manna they saved on the 6^th day would not rot. It’s just like Jesus told us, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added to you as well.” And what about those who didn’t listen? “On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather it, but they did not find any.” Students! They had to learn.

          So do we and God knows how we learn. From the lesser to the greater and from the visible to the blessings we can’t see. His lessons for Old Testament Israel are there to teach us just as Paul alluded to in his letter to the Corinthians. Let’s start with the lesser and the visible. We need food for our bodies. God provides. It’s His work. It must be done His way. If you can’t get a job or are unable to work, He will provide. Trust in Him and don’t lean on your own understanding. Trust Him when you are past your working years. He will provide. If we are able to work and can get a job in our working years, we should. And God will provide for us. If we don’t work, we shouldn’t expect to eat. It’s God’s work to provide for our physical needs and His people need to do that God’s way. The lesser and the visible are our physical needs.

          The greater and the blessings we can’t see are the spiritual ones. Once again, this is God’s work. Only He knows what we need spiritually. Only He can provide what we need spiritually. His work. And His way? Through the word! Specifically, through the Gospel messages that points us to all the blessings we have in Jesus. What we need is the forgiveness of our sins. What we need is the righteousness we lack. What we need is the ability to trust what God says. Only Jesus gives us this. The manna in the desert was a set up to point people to Jesus, the Bread of Life you heard about in the Gospel lesson. The way He chooses to be found is in His words and the Gospel of the Sacraments. How foolish the Israelites were who did not gather the manna God provided. How foolish they were to put physical needs above spiritual. And how much more foolish we are if we don’t use God’s word. How much more foolish we are not to gather for public worship one day a week. Because we know better than they did. We have their example to learn from. It’s God’s work. It must be done God’s way.

          And for you new teachers to St. Jacobi and teachers taking on new duties, remember that truth as a warning, and as a comfort.  St. Jacobi operates a school to proclaim the Gospel. That is the work God has given to us as a congregation. You have been called to do God’s work. It must be done God’s way. God’s way relies on the power of the Gospel in God’s Word. So, if you excel in teaching reading, writing and rithmatic but do not excel in feeding Jesus’ lambs, doing what you can to feed their faith and tie their hearts to Jesus, you are going to stink up God’s classroom, school and church. It will smell worse to God than rotting manna did to the Israelites. On the other hand, when you seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness in your classrooms, all the other things will be added to you as well. You will be able to sleep good every night you can say, “I gave them Jesus!” It’s God’s work, God’s way!

          For most students and teachers a new school year will begin soon. Every teacher’s goal, hope, prayer is that their students learn what is taught, grow and become productive members of their families, their communities. God’s goal for us is the same. Learn, grow and be productive with His work until He takes us to the glory of heaven. To that end may He bless His teaching and our learning. Amen.

 

 

Sept. 7-9. 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Isaiah 35:3-7a “BE STRONG!”

 

PENTECOST 16

Sept. 7-9. 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Isaiah 35:3-7a

 

“BE STRONG!”

1.     The Lord has come to save you.

2.     The Lord will come to save you.

 

Isaiah 35:3-7 EHV “Strengthen the weak hands and make the shaky knees steady.
⁴ 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.

⁵ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unplugged. ⁶ The crippled will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy. Waters will flow in the wilderness, and streams in the wasteland. ⁷ The burning sand will become a pool, and in the thirsty ground there will be springs of water.”

 

          Bad news. It comes into everyone’s lives. Our world is not just tainted by sin. It is ruined. And that means people, all people, even God’s people, will get bad news. The unexpected death of a loved one. A bad result on a medical test. Job loss or rejection. The car accident. Being cut from the team or left off the invitation list. Bad news. It’s all bad news. When God sent the prophet Isaiah to the people of Judah he delivered some bad news. Really bad news that would affect a whole nation of people. The people of Judah as a whole had forsaken God. They were worshipping idols of the nations that surrounded them. As a consequence God had Isaiah tell them that they would be conquered by the Babylonians, who lived in the area of modern day Iraq. Their land and homes would be given to foreigners. They would be forced to march into exile, a journey of over 700 miles, on foot. Small children. Pregnant women. Seniors. This was some really bad news. Now for the people who did not believe in God they likely did not care. But there were still people faithful to God in Judah. This bad news fell on their ears just like ours does on our ears. A punch to the stomach. Legs shake. The heart races. Sleep is hard to come by. They needed some Good News. That’s what they got!

          God had Isaiah tell them. “Strengthen the weak hands and make the shaky knees steady. ⁴ 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.” “Buck up, little trooper. Don’t cry, it will get better. Hang in there. This too shall pass.” We have all kinds of nice little phrases that we use to encourage our children, our friends, ourselves. God’s phrase of encouragement is “Be strong!” Ours and God’s are meaningless though, if there is no reason, no power behind those encouragements. The encouragement Isaiah brought was backed with a reason and with power. God will come and save you.

          How could they be sure? I want you to notice something important about the way God works. Everything is tied to His Son Jesus. To put it another way, your salvation for life’s many problems is directly tied to your SALVATION from life’s biggest problem, sin. Did you catch that? For the Old Testament believers of Isaiah’s time when he talked about God coming to save them, he immediately followed with, “Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unplugged. ⁶ The crippled will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy. Waters will flow in the wilderness, and streams in the wasteland. ⁷ The burning sand will become a pool, and in the thirsty ground there will be springs of water.” God had the people look ahead to a time when blind people would miraculously see. Deaf people would miraculously hear. People who were lame and unable to walk would immediately be able to walk and jump. People previously unable to speak would sing. It would be like a desert land suddenly having plenty of water blooming and growing and thriving. Do you know of a time when that happened? When someone opened the eyes of the blind, the ears of the deaf and the mouths of the mute, when paralyzed people were able to walk? Of course you do! Jesus did all of that. You heard one example in the Gospel lesson. There are many more. But Jesus did not make all the mute speak or all the blind see or all the lame walk. The purpose of those miracles was to demonstrate that He really was the promised Messiah and to gain opportunities to talk about why He really came, to be the Savior from sin for all people.

          When God came to save the people of Isaiah’s time from Babylon, that was a little salvation. It was God’s proof that their bigger SALVATION was coming, the Messiah, the Savior from sin. Jesus. We are on the other side of the Savior so it works for us in the other way. The fact that God sent Jesus who lived and died in our place, whose work accomplished our SALVATION is His proof for the little salvations we need for the bad news that will inevitably come our way living in a sin ruined world. We can “Buck up, little trooper. Don’t cry, it will get better. Hang in there. This too shall pass. And Be strong” because there is power behind it, God’s power.  He has come to save His people means He will come to save His people. SALVATION is proof of salvation.

          That’s the good news God wants you to take away today. All of us have or are dealing with some bad news. Because we and our world are ruined by sin we can expect more. All of us k now people who have received or will receive bad news. What we all need is good news. We have it. God will come and save you. I don’t know how and I don’t know when. I do know He will. Jesus is His proof.

Maybe one thing we could all learn to do a little bit better though is to value our salvations in the right order. In the Gospel lesson the people were amazed and said Jesus did everything well even making the deaf hear and the mute speak. In the reading from Acts the people were filled with wonder and amazement when the apostles used Jesus’ power to make a lame man walk. Were they just as amazed that Jesus went to the cross for sinners like them? Were they amazed that Jesus rose from the dead so that the next time they heard the bad news that a loved one had died they could hold on to the Good news that those who die in Christ actually live just like He does? I don’t know. I don’t know if they even knew of their SALVATION. But we do. We are followers of Christ and followers of Christ know the true purpose of Christ’s power. It is not the temporary healing of a body that will at some point die anyway. It is the eternal healing of soul destined for Hell. So be strong. With whatever you are dealing with, be strong. God has saved you so in the most important way, He’ll take care of these other ones too. Amen.

 

 

July 20-22, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Mark 6:30-34 “THE COMPASSIONATE CHRIST BLESSES US!”

 

PENTECOST 9

July 20-22, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Mark 6:30-34

 

“THE COMPASSIONATE CHRIST BLESSES US!”

1.     With work.

2.     With rest.

 

          Last month I had a chance to talk with Darlene Brosseau who served as our church secretary for many years. She is laid up and can’t put any wait on her foot. If you know Darlene, that is a challenge for her. She made it pretty clear she was tired of doing nothing. Now this was right before Chris and I went on vacation and I said that doing nothing sounded pretty good to me right now. We both kind of laughed. She wanted what I had, to be able to be busy with work. I wanted what she had, the opportunity to do nothing, to rest. Thankfully our Lord Jesus, who is actively involved in all of our lives, is watching over us and out for us and He knows what we need. He blesses us with work and rest.

          We see that encouraging truth presented to us in our Gospel lesson. If you have a really good memory and can remember last week’s Gospel lesson Jesus sent His disciples out to work. This is the last part of last week’s reading. “They went out and preached that people should repent. ¹³They also drove out many demons. They anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.” Jesus blessed them with work to do. And they did it. “The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all that they had done and taught.”  Can you imagine their excitement? Thomas, “Lord I don’t have any proof so don’t doubt me, I healed sick people!” Peter, “Lord no one can deny what I did. I told demons to leave and they did. Three times!” James and John likely came in with the report that some people were not receptive and what was Jesus going to do about that? Judas, “People gave me money to support you. How about I hold on to it until we figure out what to do?” and all the rest, eagerly telling all that had happened and how they had told people the Messiah had come. Jesus had blessed them with work, meaningful work to do for Him.

          Just like He blesses you with meaningful work to do for Him. “Now wait a minute,” you might say, “I’m not an apostle, a pastor or a teacher. Jesus hasn’t given me any meaningful work to do.” You are wrong. Our Lord Jesus cares about the spiritual needs of people. Our Lord Jesus cares about the physical needs of people. Our Lord Jesus cares about the emotional needs of people. As you have heard me say before, people are God’s true treasures. He uses other people to provide for the needs of His treasures and give them joys in this earthly life and so there is not a job or vocation a role you can fill that I can think of except, the sinful ones, that is not in one way or another, working for Jesus. Police and fire. Yup. Doctors and nurses. Yup.  Lawyers and judges. Yup. Babysitters and lawnmowers. Yup. Pastors and teachers and janitors. Yup. Retiree—which means you do all kinds of work without pay. Yup. Builders, contractors, plumbers, electricians, bankers, yup, yup, yup and yup and it does not end. “But,” you may counter, “mine really isn’t that important, that meaningful. I’m just a mom. I’m just a kid.” Really? Was a hammer, just a hammer when Jesus wielded it as a carpenter? Was a chisel just a chisel, a saw just a saw? Not in the hands of the Lord Jesus it’s not and you are in the hands of the Lord Jesus. So don’t fall into the me and Darlene trap of wishing to have what the Lord has given to another. Let’s each thank the Lord for the work He gives us. And then follow the encouragement given so that whether we eat, drink or whatever we do, do it all for the glory of God. It’s why we are told in Colossians 3:23-24 “Whatever you do, keep working at it with all your heart, as for the Lord and not for people, ²⁴ because you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. Keep serving the Lord Christ!” The compassionate Christ blesses us with work.

          And with rest. Look again at our Lord in action with His disciples. “He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” For there were so many people coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat. ³²They went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. ³³But many people saw them leave and knew where they were going. They ran there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. ³⁴When Jesus stepped out of the boat, he saw a large crowd. His heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. He began to teach them many things.” Jesus had compassion on his disciples. They had worked hard at the work He had blessed them with. They were tired. So Jesus blessed them with rest. But as is so often the case, rest can be elusive. Many people made sure they were waiting for the weary disciples and their master, Jesus. So Jesus told His disciples to take care of the situation and tell the people to go away. No, He didn’t. He had compassion on the people and the disciples. Jesus did the work. His disciples had a chance to rest.

          Same thing happens in your life and my live. You likely all remember what Jesus promised in Matthew 11:28. “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” That particular rest is the rest from trying to be perfect, the rest from being in a performance-based relationship with God. The rest from guilt over sinning. “You are forgiven,” says Jesus. “You are perfect in the sight of God because of me,” says Jesus. This is the same Jesus who was there at creation when God blessed His creation with physical rest too. Jesus blesses you with rest as well. The question is, will you take it? Will you take the physical rest He has given you or will you fill every waking hour with some scheduled activity so there is no time to enjoy God’s creation or the blessings of people He has placed in your lives or the things that He has placed into your care? Will you take the spiritual rest He has blessed you with, waking up each morning knowing that you are a forgiven sinner with no past and live just today as a present to live to God’s glory or will you listen to the Devil’s voice continually telling you that you are not good enough and all the bad things happening in your life are really God’s just punishment? Will you take the emotional and spiritual rest Jesus blesses you with and stay in your lane, only concerning yourself with those things Jesus has given you to rule over, casting all other cares on Him or will you see yourself as the fixer of all things, the world’s, the country’s, the family’s next Savior? Jesus blesses you with rest! Take it!

          And remember what Jesus is like. Every once in a while, when you are going through one of those tough times that the sin messed world throws at you a well-meaning friend or family member will console you with the words, “I know just how you feel” or “I know how hard this is for you.” Please take those with the intent expressed. Love and concern. The reality is that no other person actually does know how you feel or what you are going through because they are not you. Jesus does.! Jesus knows you better than you know yourself. He has compassion on you. His heart goes out to you. He knows when you need to work. He knows when you need to rest. Whatever He gives and whenever He gives it, work or rest, take it. It’s a blessing to you from the compassionate Christ. Amen.

July 6-8, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Ezekiel 2:1-7 “THEN THEY WILL KNOW THAT A PROPHET HAS BEEN AMONG THEM!”

 

PENTECOST 7

July 6-8, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Ezekiel 2:1-7

 

“THEN THEY WILL KNOW THAT A PROPHET HAS BEEN AMONG THEM!”

(Or how you continue to be a blessing to the USA!)

 

          So, every so often I get asked this question: “When did you know you wanted to be a pastor?” My very quick and honest response is, “After my first year as a pastor.” That surprises people, maybe you too. See I always thought I wanted to be a pastor. My parents held up being a pastor as a noble way to live. Not realizing what a sheltered life I had I thought, “What could be easier than being a pastor? You tell God’s people what God says and they do it because that’s what God’s people do, right?” And then I became a pastor. And on the very day I was ordained I became embroiled in the most messy marriage counseling disaster I have ever experienced. I met with him. I met with her. I met with them. I told them what God said. But they didn’t do it! I was shocked. I was flabbergasted. So I kept meeting with him, with her and them. Nothing I tried worked. On top of that her dad was breathing down my neck constantly. He was a strong, aggressive gun toting native Texan. What was I going to do about that bum of a husband? When would there be relief for his sweet little darlin? It got to the point I dreaded seeing him on Sunday and did not look forward to checking my messages or answering my phone. I wasn’t sleeping well. I perseverated on this problem constantly. I remember thinking, “I didn’t sign up for this. All that time in school and now I don’t want to be a pastor if this is what it’s like.” And then God did His God thing. He dropped some information that had been hidden into my lap. I found out that not only do God’s people not always do what God says, they will lie to you too. The marriage was broken. And I learned something that day. I learned to stay in my lane. God had made it clear that He had never asked me to fix marriages other people had broken. He had called me to proclaim His word to those who like it or like it not. And from then on I knew I wanted to be a pastor. And for any of your boys here that God might use as pastors some day, I get paid good money to do this. I feel like I’m double dipping, getting paid earthly treasures while I store up heavenly ones. It’s a fun way to live--as long as you stay in your lane.

          That was something the prophet Ezekiel needed to remember and will be a great source of comfort and peace for you as you continue to be a blessing to your country. Let’s revisit God’s marching orders for Ezekiel. “He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the people of Israe^] to disloyal nations, who have been disloyal to me. They and their fathers have rebelled against me to this very day. ⁴ These children of mine are brazen-faced and hard-hearted. I am sending you to them, and you are to tell them that this is what the Lord God says. ⁵ Then, whether they listen or do not listen—for they are a rebellious house—then they will know that a prophet has been among them.” And to think I was throwing myself a pity party! Up front Ezekiel was told that the people he would serve were disloyal, rebellious, brazen and hard hearted. His job was simple. Tell them what the Lord said. And did you notice the goal? It didn’t matter whether the people listened or did not listen. God had one goal. Then they will know that a prophet has been among them. The people would know what God had to say. It was not Ezekiel’s job to make the people listen. He would not be the one to work repentance. That was God’s work. He needed to stay in his lane, do the work God gave him to do, no more and certainly no less. Tell them that this is what the Lord God says. Pretty simple. If he caught on, I’m sure the work of being a prophet was fun. If he didn’t, like the early version of me, he was frustrated.

          Brothers and sisters, a similar thing is true for each of you and what we do together as a congregation. I’m sure the heart of every person here is the same. We love our country. We are saddened as we see the direction it is going. We want better for her. Also like our good and gracious God, we want souls saved! All of them. We especially want our loved ones, our family members, our friends, those people we actually know, to be saved. But we can’t do that. Only God can save. Only the Holy Spirit changes hearts. That’s not our lane. But we so want it to be, so we get frustrated. We train our children in the way of the Lord, we have the home devotions, we bring them to church and then they stray. They don’t care. They start talking like Americans instead of Christians and the loyalty to Jesus does not seem to be there. We wonder “What was the use?” Our youth get pulled into to thinking they should be a different gender, or explore same sex relationships. That’s not what they were taught! We get frustrated. Pastors try to fix broken marriages. It doesn’t work. Teachers try to clean up the messy homes and poor parenting of their students. It doesn’t work. We get mad. We get frustrated with others, with God. Why? We are out of our lane. We have stepped on God’s toes and told Him, “Move over, let me take care of this, my way.” What is our lane as individual Christians, as a Christian congregation? Same as Ezekiel’s! “You are to tell them that this is what the Lord God says… You are to speak my words to them whether they listen or they do not.” It glorifies God when, you His people, faithfully proclaim His word, His truth, to your family, to your friends, and when a congregation like St. Jacobi continues to proclaim His truth in this community. It gives glory to our God and shows His grace that He has his message of sin pointed out to people and salvation freely given through Jesus to those who listen and to those who don’t.

          And here, friends, is how you are a blessing to our country and will continue to be if you don’t frustrate yourself. Stay in your lane! It is not your job to change the behaviors of your wayward children or grandchildren. It is not your job to make your fellow American citizens love Jesus like you do. You can’t make people believe. You can’t save them. Only Jesus does. Stay in your lane! Maintain a faithful presence to God and His word where you are at. Every family gathering does not need to include a discussion of the blatant sins going on in the family. Somewhere along the line a loving conversation expressing concern and pointing to Jesus needs to happen. After that your very presence will be reminder of what God says and they will know that a prophet has been among them. God is glorified by you. You are a blessing in those people’s lives whether they listen or do not listen.

          And the same thing is true for this congregation. You, the people of this congregation, need to insist adamantly, that we hold to God’s truth in all its parts and proclaim it whether people listen or not. The dwindling desire to be in a right relationship with God that we see in our country is not a reason for us to hunker down and fortress up but all the more reason for us to be bold about being the happy people the Lord has chosen, to be examples of people who rejoice in each day that the Lord has made, in showing people by our words and actions and weekly worship habits that we follow Jesus because we want to, because He loves us, because we are forgiven. That’s what this nation needs. You, your presence as the faithful people of God. Then they will know that God has sent prophets among them. And that is how you will continue to be a blessing to the country you love.

          And who knows what the Lord will do with our faithful presence? That marriage that I told you about failed. I don’t know where those people are anymore. But that strong Texan man, Dad, who kept pressuring me, breathing down my neck with veiled threats and constant questioning? He became one of our greatest friends and biggest supporters and is now enjoying the lasting peace of heaven. We’ll have a great reunion and laugh about our first relationship some day. God can do the same for you, your family that you are worried about and for our country. Don’t judge by what you see happening right now. Be faithful, not frustrated, and you will continue to be a blessing to our nation. Amen.

 

June 8-10, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Revelation 20:1-6 “CHRIST’S COMPLETE CONTROL OF SATAN”

 

PENTECOST 3

June 8-10, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Revelation 20:1-6

 

“CHRIST’S COMPLETE CONTROL OF SATAN”

 

          This is going to be hard for you young people to understand but there was a time when you could only watch cartoons on Saturday mornings. Most kids who could get away with it would get up early to watch those once a week treats. As an adult you wonder why. They always ended the same. Dick Dastardly would try his worst but in the end be forced to say, “Curses, foiled again!” Wile e Coyote would always be caught in the traps he set for the Roadrunner. Tweety and Sylvester. Popeye and Bluto. The list goes on and on where the plot lines are the same. Good beats evil. And we loved it. And there is a reason for this. But it goes beyond cartoons and movies. I’ve told you before about my wife, Chris. She’s a cheater. When she gets a book, she reads a few pages to see if it is interesting and then reads the last chapter to make sure it turns out the way she wants. It’s unAmerican, but I understand why she’s doing it. It gets worse. We like to watch Packer games but don’t like watching commercials so most of the time we record them so we can skip the commercials. Once we get started watching the recording all of the sudden she has to go to the bathroom. And she goes upstairs and I’m thinking, “Why is she doing that when we have a perfectly good bathroom downstairs about 20 feet away from the family room.” You know what she’s doing. She’s checking the score real time to see if she wants to watch. It’s not funny. It’s mean. I can tell from her body language and interest or lack thereof in the game how it’s going to end. I don’t like it, but I understand why she does it. Good must triumph over evil. That Packers must beat the Bears!  But you know in one way or another we are all like that. We all love a happy ending. There’s a reason for it. It’s part of the natural knowledge of God. Ever since the Fall into sin in the garden of Eden part of the natural knowledge of God tells people that there is evil and there is good and they want good to win.

          That’s why the book of Revelation is such a wonderful part of the Bible. It’s the last book because almost every picture or symbol used there has already been used by God earlier in the Bible. It’s important to read Revelation the way God intended it to be read. How is that? He tells us right away in the first verse of Revelation (1:1) “The revelation from Jesus Christ that God gave him to show his servants the things that must soon take place. Christ expressed this revelation by means of symbols sent through his angel to his servant John.” In Revelation God uses symbols and pictures to communicate truth. You are reading it as intended then when you do not take pictures and numbers literally but as a picture that communicates God’s truth. The second thing God said right off the bat is this in Revelation 1:3 “Blessed is the one who reads the words of this prophecy and blessed are those who hear it and hold on to the things written in it, because the time is near.” You are blessed, made happy, when you read Revelation and hold to what it says. So if you read Revelation and it makes you scared or unhappy, you are either reading it wrong and need to reread verse 1 or you are a follower or Satan who should be scared.

          You are no followers of Satan so let’s see how a right reading of Revelation makes us blessed and happy! The Apostle John who received the Revelation tells us, “Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven. He had the key to the abyss and a great chain in his hand. ² He seized the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, bound him for a thousand ears, ³ threw him into the abyss, locked it, and set a seal on it, so that he could no longer deceive the nations until the thousand years come to an end. After this he must be released for a short time.” It’s a picture. What do you see? A great beast that would be scary except it is chained. Controlled. No new pictures here. The Bible already has identified Jesus as the Angel of the Lord who controls Satan and the abyss as another name for Hell. The 1000 years is not a literal time period any more than Satan is literally a dragon with a literal chain. It signifies a long but already determined timeframe controlled by the Lord. It’s a picture designed to give the Apostle John and every other believer until Jesus comes back comfort. Christ is in complete control of Satan.

          But what about when Satan seems to be having his way? What about the times we know from history where Christians were persecuted and many even killed for their faith? What about what we know is now happening with in Nigeria and other parts of Africa where Christians are being killed for their faith? What about when you live in a country where evil seems to win? Back to the book that you are blessed when you read it! “Then I saw thrones, and those who were sitting on them were given the authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshipped the beast and his image, and they did not receive his mark on their forehead and on their hand. They lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. ⁵ (The rest of the dead did not live until the thousand years came to an end.) This is the first resurrection. ⁶ Blessed and holy is the one who has a share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them. Instead they will be priests of God and of Christ. And they will reign with him for a thousand years.”

          Remember. Pictures. Symbols. Nothing new in the book of Revelation. The 1000 years is not a literal number but the long time period from the time John received the revelation until Jesus comes back. The beast is a picture of Satan. The mark of the beast is not literal. What is it that signifies someone is following Satan? Rejection of Christ. That’s the sign or mark of the Beast Satan. All of us who were originally dead in our trespasses and sins and made alive in Christ as stated in Ephesians 2 know that the first death is from sin and unbelief and the first resurrection is being brought to faith and when that happens the second death at the end of your life has no power over you. You don’t cease to exist. You are not separated from God. You continue to live reigning with Jesus until He comes back at the end of the world. And when that happens the second resurrection for believers will be when Christ raises our mortal bodies and makes them like His glorious body and the fun really begins. The meaning of this vision is clear, simple and comforting. Christ is in complete control of Satan and everything else and He has set the time when He says enough and blows this world up and makes everything new. Until that time, He is in complete control over Satan and his followers. They are chained, controlled, only allowed to do what the Lord will use for His plans and for good. And even death is nothing to fear for the followers of Christ.

          And now look how we are blessed for reading this! We know what’s going on. Satan is behind the evil in our world, our country our homes. And no matter what he tries, like my dear wife, we have peeked at the last chapter and we know what happens at the end. Jesus wins! So Satan, try your worst. Mess up our country by blinding the minds of unbelievers so that they take pride in defying God and parade their defiance for all to see. Go ahead and twist people’s morality so that they call sin good and God’s good evil. Trick them into thinking the kind of love that is permissiveness of sin and tolerance of perversions is really love when it is actually a kind of hate that keeps people from experiencing the true love of God. We may shake our heads but we will not wring our hands because Jesus has you leashed and you’re going to have to say “Curses! Foiled again!” Satan, try your worst and persecute and murder believers around the world. Try it here. All you do is start the reigning of God’s people early. And they rule over you! Satan, try your worst, trick us into messing up our marriages or destroying our families, put us through hardships, afflict our bodies with diseases like you did with Job, we know what’s going to happen. Our Lord Jesus is going to string you up by that leash he has you on and then make everything new for us.

          Christ is in complete control of Satan. This is good news God wants you to know so you can have comfort and confidence no matter what you see or experience. He wants you to know this so that you will stay faithful even to the point of death. So be faithful even unto death and Jesus will give you the crown of life. Amen.

 

May 18-20, 2024 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: John 15:26-27 “HARVEST TIME!”

 

CONFIRMATION/PENTECOST

May 18-20, 2024

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: John 15:26-27

 

“HARVEST TIME!”

1.     The Holy Spirit does His work.

2.     We do ours.

 

John 15:26-27 (EHV) “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me. ²⁷ And you also are going to testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.”

 

          It’s a big weekend for the St. Jacobi church family. We are celebrating Pentecost. Pentecost is often called the birthday of the Christian Church. As you heard in the reading on that first Pentecost day the Holy Spirit gave special gifts to the Apostles so the Gospel message could be heard by people in their own language. Many were added to the Christian church that day. It’s also Confirmation weekend here at St. Jacobi. 18 more young people will be added to the communicant membership of our church as they make their public promises to faithful to Jesus. Lots to celebrate.

          Now if we were Old Testament believers, we would still be celebrating on Pentecost but something a little different than we are today. We would be celebrating a Harvest Festival. Kind of like an old time Thanksgiving. Because of the affluent times we live in we don’t always realize just how important a successful harvest is and how thankful we can be for a good harvest. Back in Jesus’ time they found it much easer to be thankful that they’d gotten another year’s harvest in safe from drought, insects and raiders. They could live another year.

          It strikes me that the harvest, Pentecost and Confirmation have some similarities. There is work only the God can do and there is work for us to do. Jesus words in John 15 remind us of that. He was with His disciples in the upper room. It was the night he was betrayed, the night before He gave his life on the cross. He was building up those disciples and us, praying for them and us and providing them and us what we need. The Holy Spirit. This is what He told them, “When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father—he will testify about me.”

          Can you imagine how Jesus’ disciples must have felt? Jesus had told them He would be leaving them. All the details of what would happen that night, on Good Friday and Easter were too much for them to absorb. The leaving part they probably could. Jesus told them that they would be the ones who would go throughout the world teaching all the things He had taught them. How would that work? How would they know what to say? No worries. The Holy Spirit, called here the Counselor, would do His work. And there are some things only God can do. Just think of harvest time. While there is plenty of work for farmers to do, only God controls the weather, the rain, the temperature and the sunshine. Only God controls the path of the locusts. Only God makes photosynthesis work. So He does His work.

          Same thing for Pentecost and Confirmation. So on Pentecost the Holy Spirit gave the Apostles the understanding of Scripture that they needed. Peter who had poorly wielded a physical sword thinking that was what Jesus needed when He didn’t, all of the sudden is an expert at wielding the sword of the Spirit which is God’s word, making all the connections between Old Testament prophecy and what was happening. Peter’s boldness, which had so often been used to promote self now promotes Christ. The other Apostles speak in the foreign languages they were immediately gifted to speak and are no longer concerned with an earthly kingdom but connecting people to Christ and His eternal kingdom. And there was a harvest of souls for the Lord. Harvest Time! A time to celebrate.

          Just like today is a time for us to celebrate. The Holy Spirit is doing His work among us. Your very presence here today in a church which holds to all of the Bible’s teachings is evidence of that. In case you haven’t noticed being with an only Christ as Savior church and only God’s morality as right and wrong will not get you elected to public office or make you the talk of the workplace in a positive way. Yet here you are. You are here because the Holy Spirit has been working in you, adopting you into God’s family through Baptism, feeding your faith every time you have heard the Word. Now you are part of the harvest of souls for Jesus He has made.

          And you are part of harvesting souls for Jesus too. Just like in a harvest of crops. There is some work people need to do as well. They plant seeds. They cultivate. They weed. They fertilize. They gather in the crops that they didn’t make grow but now get to enjoy. Jesus told the disciples there was some work for them to do for His harvest.  ^“And you also are going to testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.” The job of Jesus’ disciples on Pentecost was to testify, to be witnesses that Jesus is the Messiah, the world’s one and only Savior. They did their job, not just on Pentecost, but also for the rest of their earthly lives until Jesus took them to eternal life they did their work.

          Today on this Confirmation weekend it’s good to remember there is work for us to do. All of you here either were confirmed at one point or are looking forward to it and if you know nothing about it please speak with me after service.  It took work to get to that point, hours spent learning God’s Word. All the time the Holy Spirit was doing His work. Now, like the Apostles of Jesus we have ongoing work to do. Testify. Tell the truth. God’s truth. That all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. That Jesus is the only solution. We don’t have to convince anyone of these truths. We do need to testify. Our families need us to. Our community needs us too. Our country needs us to. And then look forward to Harvest Time!

          Like a pebble dropped in the center of a pond the Gospel message proclaimed at Pentecost caused a ripple that has spread and grown and continues to grow. The Holy Spirit does His work. We do ours.  An Old Testament Pentecost was a cause for rejoicing. There was a new harvest. God had done His work. His people had done theirs. And it was time to enjoy. On this Pentecost and Confirmation day we do the same. We thank God for a new harvest of young people that will join us in testifying. We rejoice and celebrate. And we look forward to the time when we will know just how much harvesting God got done through us. Amen.