November 25-26, 2015 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: James 1:16-17 “OH GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD!

THANKSGIVING

November 25-26, 2015

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: James 1:16-17

“OH GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD!

1.     For He is good!

2.     For His mercy endures forever!

James 1:16-17 “Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

          Oh, give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good. For His mercy endures forever. If you are like me and was raised in a family and live in a family that regularly uses those words from the Psalms as a mealtime prayer and if you eat your three squares a day then each year you have about 1095 opportunities, 3 more in leap year, to pray that prayer. That means you also have the same number of opportunities to just say that prayer without meaning it. We can do that can’t we, just go through the motions. We can do that with Thanksgiving too. Happy Thanksgiving. I can say that without meaning it. I can live the day without a thankful heart. So can you. But it’s not what we want. Let’s look at God’s Word then with a prayer to the Holy Spirit that He enable us to have a truly happy Thanksgiving as we join to give thanks to the Lord!

          The Apostle James helps us with that today. His letter is filled with spiritual wisdom. Listen to it again. “Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.” Every good and perfect gift is from above, from God. That’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? You would think. Why does James start by saying, “Don’t be deceived.” God had him write that because the Lord knows it happens—to Christians. Christmas is just around the corner. A long time kids’ favorite is Dr. Seuss “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” He tries to steal Christmas joy. There’s a Thanksgiving Grinch as well. Two of them actually, which the Devil uses to try to steal Thanksgiving thankfulness. Those Grinches are arrogance and entitlement. Don’t be deceived by arrogance. God had Moses warn his people way back into 1500 BC. You heard about it in the Old Testament reading from Deuteronomy. “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’” That’s arrogance. Surely we would never do that? How about it, kids? Do you do well in school? Why is that? Is it because you are so smart and do things so much better or is it because the Lord gave you abilities to do well? To be sure, you still needed to use them but hard work alone doesn’t cut it. God must bless. The same is true if you are good at music or sports or anything else. Good thing we adults know better, or do we? Did you have a good year wealthwise? Did you make good decisions on investments or spending? “But remember the LORD your God,” Moses wrote, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.” He, not me. Arrogance! Any time we do well and have obvious blessings the Devil and ourselves fall for the deception. We feel we are so good at what we do, so smug and self satisfied instead of thankful. That’s one Grinch, arrogance.

          There’s another. Entitlement. Kids, as I mentioned Christmas is coming up. Do you think you are going to get any presents? Why would you think that? Because you’ve gotten them before? Because your parents have to?Thinking that you deserve or are owed certain privileges or blessings is called Entitlement and we Americans have gotten very good at it. Children think they are entitled to their presents and so if they don’t get what they want they may be disappointed. For adults the bonus at work can be an entitlement and if workers don’t get it they may get mad. Waiters and waitresses can look at a tip that way. American Christians can look at God’s blessings that way. We are good. We ought to get blessings. At the back of the service folder I’ve included some of the history of Thanksgiving from a description of what’s often called the first Thanksgiving in America in the Plymouth Colony to various proclamations of Thanksgiving from Congress and US presidents. I’ve underlined some words. How the first thanks givers saw good weather coming as a result of God’s mercy, how Sam Adams acknowledged that sins forfeit God’s favor, how George Washington begged for pardon of transgressions, how Abraham Lincoln admitted that no human counsel or hand had worked their blessings. None of them thought they were good. They acknowledged that God was good. Oh give thanks to the Lord for He is good!

          God is good. Although He needs nothing He created this world and showers it with His love. He set in  motion and keeps going the laws of nature that provides for all living things. He is good and puts things in our life for our enjoyment and ease. God is good. He’s good when He gives us the job promotion, right? Is He still good when our job is taken away? God is good when He grants good health to us and our loved ones. Is He still good when He allows a serious illness? God is good when He blesses us with savings. Is He still good when the unexpected car repair drains our savings? God is good when He freely forgives us our sins. Is He still good when He forgives the one who has hurt us?

          James helps us to have a deeper Thanksgiving than the unbelievers. Even pagans and those who are deliberately rejecting Jesus as Savior feel good and grateful in a way for those things that most people will view as blessings: good health, more money, things. James helps us be thankful for those things that don’t look positive like unexpected repairs and health problems. He does so with a simple reminder. “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” God does not change like shifting shadows. Have you ever really looked at shadows on a warm sunny day as the sun is shining on a tree on a breezy day? Watch them shift and move. They’re never the same. People are like that too. They change. They (read we) can be happy and joyful and then be grumpy and cranky and complaining. They (we) can be kind and nice and mean and cruel. They (we can be giving and selfless and then be selfish and self centered. People change.

          God is always the same. If we go back to the common thanksgiving prayer one of the things we are thanking God for is that His mercy endures forever. Now if you compare the King James translation of the Bible with the New International Version of the Bible you will see that while the King James translates “For his mercy endureth forever” the NIV translates “for his love endures forever.” That’s because the actual Hebrew word to describe this attribute of God is too big for one word. Others have tried lovingkindness, faithful love and abundant kindness. It’s the characteristic of God that describes how God is faithful and generous in doing good things for His people. It’s this abundant mercy of God that moved Him to plan and carry out justice for sin on His Son instead of on us sinners. You know the details of that plan: How Jesus became one of us. How He gained the status of righteous in the eyes of God for us by His perfect obedience and how He experienced an awful pain we can’t imagine and will never know, that agony of separation from God in our place.

          That’s how we know God is good even when we experience hardships in this life. We can thank God for them like the Apostle Paul whose thorn in the flesh was actually a grace from God to help Paul from becoming conceited and the other Apostle who rejoiced that they could endure hardship for the name of Jesus and like so many brothers and sisters some of whom you know saw failing health as a blessing to pull family together, bodies wearing out as the preparation for heaven, low income or loss of income as an opportunity to grow in trust, loss of a loved one as a chance to proclaim the Gospel. The list can go on. Because God doesn’t change, because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever we know what God allows is not Him punishing us but actions of a Father who really does know best, a Father whose mercy endures forever.

          If you are like me and my family and regularly use the common thanksgiving you do have about 1095 times to just say that prayer or to really pray that prayer. You get one Thanksgiving Day a year. Let’s reject the grinches of arrogance and entitlement. Join me and let’s pray that prayer! O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever. Amen.

November 14-16, 2015 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Daniel 12:1-3 “GOD’S TIMING IS ALWAYS JUST RIGHT!”

SAINTS TRIUMPHANT

November 14-16, 2015

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Daniel 12:1-3

“GOD’S TIMING IS ALWAYS JUST RIGHT!”

1.     Distress Time.

2.     Deliverance Time.

3.     Judgment Time.

4.     Party Time!

Daniel 12:1-3 (NIV 1984) "At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people--everyone whose name is found written in the book--will be delivered. 2 Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. 3 Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.”

Timing is so important. You watch your favorite football team and see how a quarterback’s timing makes the difference between a touchdown, incompletion or interception. Successful business decisions are often a matter of timing. Oh to have perfect timing all the time. We do. Not of ourselves but because of the awesome God we are privileged to serve. His timing is always just right. We see that in the words of God we look at today. They come from the prophetic portion of the book of Daniel. Many Bible readers are familiar with the historical portion that tells us of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego surviving the fiery furnace as they stayed faithful to God. Daniel safe in the lions’ den as he stayed faithful to God. The second half of the book deals with prophecy. Like Revelation it uses visions to comfort God’s people, to help them stay faithful to God in trying times. Daniel was shown the “Cliff’s Notes” version of what would happen in the world to the end of time. In this last chapter God revealed what would happen right before the end of the world.

God would allow a Distress Time. “There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then.” God doesn’t tell us everything we want to know about the ending of this world like when or how. He does tell us what we need to know so if we are around at that time we will not freak out or be scared but will look forward. He tells us here to expect a time of distress. Pretty much every generation looks back at how life was like as they grew up, compares it to what is happening now and says, “What is this world coming to? How much worse can it get?” As terrorism escalates around the globe we are asking that question. Well right before the end it will get a whole lot worse. So much worse that believers alive at that time will know what God is talking about. But remember if you are alive at that time that God’s timing is always just right. He knows about this distress. In fact He has planned it. It’s all under His control.

He comforts us with the knowledge that for believers there will also be Deliverance Time. "At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people--everyone whose name is found written in the book--will be delivered.” The Bible tells us there are countless ranks of angels. We aren’t told many of their names. Michael is one of the exceptions. He’s called an archangel or a chief angel. Picture him perhaps as the general who leads the army of angels God uses to protect His people. They are doing that right now. In the last days they will go into action for God’s people, those described as having their names written in the book of life. Believers in Jesus. People like you and me. All believers will be delivered from the distress. The good news here again is that this is all part of God’s timing. He tells us ahead of time so we can fight off fear and worry at that time and can know Deliverance Time is coming.

As is Judgment Time. “Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.” God tells us ahead of time that at the end of the world the bodies of all people will be raised back to physical life and reunited with their souls. There are only two eternal existences: everlasting life or everlasting shame and contempt. Normally we call that heaven and hell. Hell is something we should fear because we belong there, every one of us. When God declared the wages, just desserts of sin, to be death He was talking about Hell with its everlasting shame and contempt. I deserve that and so do you. We all have defied God by sinning and way too often those sins are not done out of ignorance but willingly. Daily we live with ourselves as our gods instead of God Himself. We should fear Hell. But we don’t. We have Jesus. The Scriptures have made us wise unto salvation and with Jesus as Savior Judgment Time is something we look forward to because our faith in Jesus will be vindicated, proven to be true. Those who rejected Jesus, who in effect said to God, “Thanks but no thanks, I’ll do salvation my way,” sadly will realize way too late what eternity without Jesus is like.

But there’s a different eternity for us. God’s timing is just right when He declares it to be Party Time! “Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.” It’s picture language of course, shining like stars, shining like the brightness of heaven. Imagine the happiest you ever been and multiply it times a billion, the best you’ve ever felt and multiply times a billion, the closest to Jesus you have ever felt and multiply it times a billion. If you compare light on earth to that of the stars in the heaven that’s what you’d do. You’d magnify it. Heaven is an incomprehensible magnification of the joy and happiness we are able to have here. Party time. Joy, celebrating. Heaven with Jesus. That’s what’s in store for the wise and those who lead many to righteousness. Wise in God’s eyes means trusting His way of saving us. Not the human reason way of be good, try harder, do better. God’s way is so loving the world that He gave Jesus into death so that those who believe in Him will be saved. Those who believe then use their influence, their teaching, their modeling, their time, their wealth to lead others to believe the same, to lead them to righteousness. And they will shine like stars at Party Time.

In the Church year today is Saints Triumphant Sunday. The readings, the hymns get us thinking about those of our brothers and sisters who’ve made it, whose battle is over, who left the Church Militant, believers still on earth, and joined the Church Triumphant, those already in heaven. What Daniel saw for all at the very end times they experienced individually. Think about it. Distress Time. When bodies are broken and wear out there is a time of distress before the earthly end. Deliverance Time. When God’s time was just right Jesus came for our Triumphant Saints just as He promised He would in John 14. He delivered them from their distress. Judgment Time. There is no purgatory or limbo or waiting place. Immediately God knows the heart and judges the believers in Jesus as ones whose names are written in the book of life. And then Party Time. Joy and happiness beyond our ability to handle so God has to use picture language. Shining like stars. If you look at that party in heaven you are going to see some new people there, the saints of St. Jacobi who triumphed in the past year. We honor them now and give thanks to God as we read their names: Robert Beltrone, Delmer Barts, Kaleb Fredrich, Esther Block, Kerry Hackbarth, Carolyn Schaser, Marcella Slang, William Berger, Roland Kiefer, Dalores Pritzkow, LeRoy Hertig, Delores Werner. I’m sure you know some more as well who weren’t our members. I’m sure for all of you who were there for distress time it was hard. I’m sure you miss your loved ones as I miss mine. But there’s something you need to remember. God’s timing is always just right. Their battle was over, their work was done. God wanted them to have Party Time. So they do. Stay faithful to Jesus and you will too! Amen.

October 17-19, 2015 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Mark 10:17-27 “WHO THEN CAN BE SAVED?”

PENTECOST 21

October 17-19, 2015

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Mark 10:17-27

“WHO THEN CAN BE SAVED?”

1.     With man this is impossible (though we sometimes act like it is!)

2.     With God all things are possible (though we sometimes act like it’s not)

Mark 10:17-27(NIV 1984) “As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"  18"Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone. 19You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.' " 20"Teacher," he declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy." 21Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 22At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth. 23Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!" 24The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 26The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, "Who then can be saved?" 27Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."

          So at our Mission Festival we were reminded of Christ’s compassion for souls. The Spirit has worked in our hearts and we too have a compassion for souls. Like Jesus we want them all saved. All of the sudden the Lord drops this opportunity in your lap. Bill Gates, the richest man in America, whose net worth is reported to be over 79 billion dollars, comes to you with a question. “What must I do to be saved?” He is sincere. He’s had one of those scares, like Martin Luther did, that made him think about meeting his maker. What would you do to help him? Remember this is a man who has been very successful, he’s used to making decisions, doing things his way and being right. He’s tried to accomplish good for people with his foundation. What do you say?

          Now while my little scenario is made up God’s word points us to one that really did happen. Jesus is walking on His way. A young man runs up to him and falls at his knees. From what we know of him he is the type of son every mother would love to have. He is humble and respectful. He tries really hard to do everything right. He has been successful in earthly terms. He has amassed great wealth. His question, "Good teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"  He calls Jesus good. Right away Jesus sets the stage to help the man. "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good--except God alone.” He needs to see Jesus as God and Savior, not man and teacher. Back to his question. “What must I do to be saved?” Well if you want to be able to do it…”You know the commandments: 'Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother.” Now you and I know the real meanings of all those commandments. Right there our faces would fall. But this young man did not have the blessing we have. He hadn’t been taught correctly. He responds. "Teacher," he declared, "all these I have kept since I was a boy." I don’t think we have to call this man’s sincerity into question. He had been taught an outward keeping of the law was good enough. But he was wrong. “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” There’s that compassion of Christ. He wants this man saved. For that to happen he would need to know he needed to be saved. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." There you have it. If you want to do something to earn heaven, if you want to earn and be deserving of God’s love and blessings being good isn’t good enough. You have to be perfect. And this young man was not. “At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.”

But he’s not the only one with that problem. “Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!" 24The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, "Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! 25It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God."  Kind of sounds like Jesus is picking on the wealthy. Money is a thing. It can be a blessing from God. Whatever God gives as a blessing the Devil tries to turn into a curse. The more you have the harder it is to truly rely on God and see yourself as totally God dependent. The more you have the harder it is to give it all up. The less you have the more obvious it is that you are God dependent. It’s easier to give up a little. The Bible does tell us of someone who gave all she had, a widow who offered her one little mite. Could Bill Gates give up everything? Could you? The disciples of Jesus who had left their previous professions to follow Jesus understood his point that no one can perfectly love God and neighbor.  You can tell from their response. “The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, "Who then can be saved?" And Jesus responded. "With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God."

Who can be saved? With man this is impossible even though sometimes we act like it is. We do that that with all the different ways we give into the Devil’s urgings that we are somehow in control of this process. For example are we regular church goers better than those who don’t go? Well it’s true that we are better off, but that doesn’t make us better. You ask a Christian why they believe they will go to heaven and they answer, “Because I believe that Jesus is my Savior.” Now it’s true that the gift of salvation is received through faith but I didn’t do that and neither did you. Or how about those times when you really want something? Maybe it’s to get that job or for your team to win or kids some toy or game you want and you find yourself trying really hard to do what’s right so that God is more likely to help you get that job or through that surgery. Then there’s the other side. When something bad happens, an accident or disease, or you don’t get that job you wanted and you think well that’s because I did this sin or that. We’re acting like it’s possible to be deserving of God’s love to earn His favor. And it’s not. With man this is impossible.

But not with God. With God all things are possible, even though sometimes we act like they’re not! Let’s start with what’s most important. Who then can be saved? By myself I cannot and neither can you. With God I am and so are you. Because what is impossible for man God already did. This young man came to the right person, Jesus, with the wrong question, “What can I do?” The right answer is to look at what Jesus did. Live perfectly, never sin, God’s law demands. Good isn’t good enough. Only perfect will do. Jesus was. For 33 years as our substitute He successfully resisted every temptation that came His way. He perfectly obeyed. And He has given His perfect obedience to you. While the widow of widow’s mite fame gave all the money she had, Jesus gave more than money. He gave Himself. Not with gold or silver but with His holy precious blood and His innocent sufferings and death. He did the impossible and paid for every single sin.

With God all things are possible even though we sometimes act as though they are not. You are saved. Remember that when shame of sin rolls over you and the Devil is tempting you to believe that Jesus came for everyone but you. Remember that when you face death and your firm belief that heaven is yours through Jesus that you have when you are young and healthy is leaning to “I hope so.” With God all things are possible. Whatever your problem, whatever your worry for every chicken little sky is falling situation you face hold on to God’s truth that nothing is impossible with God. He’s doing miracles all the time and perhaps the greatest of these is this. Chief of sinners though I be Jesus shed his blood for me. And you too! Who then can be saved? We are! Amen.

Pentecost 17 September 20th, 2015 Pastor Waldschmidt

Mark 8:27-35

WHEN MR. SATAN KNOCKS AT MY HEARTS DOOR

I JUST SAY "KNOW","NO", "KNOW"

In the name of Jesus, the Lord and Guide of our lives, dear fellow redeemed children of God;

     One of the blessings of going to Sunday School and a Christian Day School is the treasure trove of songs and prayers a person picks up over the years.  Maybe you remember some of the ones I learned too. “Here is the church, here is the steeple, open the doors and see all the people.”  Or remember, “There is a green hill far away without a city wall, where our dear Lord was crucified, he died to save us all.”  One of the little songs or plays my mom taught her Kindergarten classes was, “When Mr. Satan Knocks At My Hearts Door I Just Say No, No No!” 

     That littler sentence taught to little ones is a big one for us to think about this morning as we hear Jesus give a stinging rebuke to Peter.  It was at a spot where Satan was not just knocking at the door of Peter’s heart but instead was sitting at the kitchen table having a cup of coffee.  Jesus rebukes Peter and teaches us what to do when Mr. Satan knocks at our hearts’ door.  We just say Know, No, Know!  I.  Know that Jesus is the one God promised.  II.  No,  to what I want.  III.  Know,  that following Jesus brings crosses. 

   The first quizzes and tests of the new school year are probably happening this week in many of the schools.  So it fits right in that in this part of God’s Word we hear Jesus giving a quiz to his disciples.  This quiz only had two questions.  The first is easy.  Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do men say that I am?”  To answer that question, all the disciples had to do was repeat some of the rumors that they had heard about Jesus.  The disciples quickly pointed out that some said he was John the Baptist.  This rumor was started when King Herod heard about Jesus and the wonderful things he had been doing.  Herod thought that Jesus was John the Baptist come back from the dead. Herod’s conscience was bothering him that he had beheaded John at the whim of his wife and stepdaughter.  Other people thought that Jesus was the prophet Elijah or one of the other prophets.  God had not sent a prophet to Israel for over 400 years.  So now when the people flocked to hear Jesus, they were thinking that the line of the prophets had resumed.  Many of these people were on the wrong track about Jesus- all underestimating him.  They failed to realize that Jesus was the one John the Baptist, Elijah and all of the other prophets had been talking about.  Jesus was the One God promised.  Jesus came to be the Savior for us God had promised-the Savior who would bring us into God’s family through his suffering and death.

     Now Jesus asked His disciples the most important question of the test.  “Who do you say that I am?” Did you ever have someone in your class who didn’t wait to be called on, they just blurted out the answer? Peter the self appointed spokesman for the group doesn’t wait to be called on.  He blurts out the correct answer.  “You are the Christ.”  It clicked in Peter’s mind and heart that Jesus was the One.  He was the Savior God had promised. Jesus was the one Isaiah was talking about when he wrote, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulders and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

     So God keeps His promises.  When Mr. Satan knocks at my hearts door that is usually one of the topics he shouts about.  Except he shouts through the door that he doesn’t think God will keep His promises.  And so often that old devil gets me to believe it-maybe you too.  He gets us to thinking that God has forgotten about us.  He wants us to think that God is big liar who makes all these promises about how everything is going to work for good and then forgets about them and forgets about you and me. I’m sad to say that sometimes he even gets me to shout along with him and Adam and Eve that God isn’t good that he doesn’t do what He says. When Mr. Satan knocks at your hearts door, just say that you know that God keeps His promises.  Look at the Jesus standing-the Word of God-the Promise of God made flesh.  He is the Savior God promised.  If He has kept the greatest of promises, do you really think He is going to forget His other promises to you.  “I will be with you.”  “I will hear your prayers.”  “I will provide for you.”  “I will take you to be with me in heaven.”

     Wouldn’t you think that Jesus would have wanted everyone to hear that he was the one God had promised to send?  But we read, “Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him.”  This might seem strange at first, but then again we have to remember that many people had mixed up ideas about what the Christ was going to do.  Many were looking for the hero on the war horse who was going to drive out the Romans.  Jesus tells the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ because he did not want people coming to him for the wrong reason.  That brings us to another thing to say when Mr. Satan knocks at my hearts door, a “No” to what I want- the way I think things should be.

   Even Peter had a mixed up idea about what the Christ was going to do.  Peter passed Jesus test but then he got in trouble in class when Mr. Satan knocked at His hearts door.  “³¹He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. ³²He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him.”  When Jesus began to speak plainly about his upcoming suffering and death, Peter gets off the track of following Jesus and gets lost.  Jesus was talking about suffering and dying and not about revolting and conquering.  Jesus’ words made Peter uncomfortable and he begins to scold Jesus, as if to say, “Don’t talk like that Jesus, that’s not what we want to hear.”  Jesus has to step in and get Peter back on track by calling Peter’s words what they were, the work of Satan. “³³But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. "Get behind me, Satan!" he said. "You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."  God’s plan of salvation was different than Peter’s.  Out of love for Peter and the other disciples, Jesus quickly steps in and reminds Peter that it wasn’t about what he wanted.  It seems like maybe Peter saw in Jesus a new governor for here on earth who would get rid of those Roman soldiers on the corner and maybe Peter could have a nice office in Jerusalem next to Jesus’ throne room.  But here is Jesus talking about suffering and dying.  “Ish” “Don’t talk like that Jesus!”  “That’s not how I picture things going.”  Satan was knocking at Peter’s heart’s door but he was really talking to Jesus.  “Let’s forget about all this suffering and dying talk.”   
     But the Savior didn’t listen to what Peter wanted- to what Satan wanted. Jesus knew that the way to heaven for us was that “The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son purifies us from all sin.”  The part of God’s plan that Peter wasn’t seeing was that God would punish Jesus instead of Peter and you and me.  Because of Jesus’ sufferings and death, we read in Rom. 8:1, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”  Jesus opened himself up to the thunderbolts of God’s wrath crashing his heart so that we would never have to feel them crashing through our hearts.  Love like that makes you want to follow him-to pick up the crosses in our own lives and carry them with a heart that is grateful for what he has done for us.  That brings us to another thing for us to “know” when Mr. Satan knocks at our hearts door.  Know that crosses will come when we follow Jesus. 

      After this private rebuke of Peter, Jesus calls the crowd around him and makes clear the cost of following Him.  “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it and whoever loses his life for me and for the Gospel will save it.”  With these words Jesus was preparing the disciples for the persecution which they would endure after He ascended into heaven.  Peter and the other disciples would learn that being tied to Jesus meant that their lives didn’t belong to them anymore.  They belonged to someone much better.  Their lives belonged to Jesus.  The early Christians gladly denied themselves and lived for Jesus.  When they were persecuted we hear, “The apostles left the Sanhedrin rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the name.  Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.”  Their lives belonged to Jesus.  When people looked at them they saw Jesus.  Paul had to remind Peter of that later when Peter was treating the Jewish Christians better than the Gentile Christians.  When people see you, they see Jesus.  If you are wondering about that, think about how easily it happens that when you say or do something you should not do that people say, “I can’t believe Christians act like that.” Mr. Satan will be right there knocking.  “Being a Christian is weird.”  “You are missing out on something!”  Let’s know that the crosses will come.  No longer living for ourselves means that we will bear whatever abuse and scorn comes our way because we are Christians.  Let’s carry the scorn of an unbelieving world and all the abuse Satan heaps on us when he knocks at our heart’s door.  Like Peter and the other disciples let’s rejoice that we were counted worthy to be scorned for the sake of the Gospel. 

     Let’s not let the devil stop by for a cup of coffee in our hearts anymore.  When Mr. Satan knocks at our hearts door, let’s just say, “Know”, “No”, “Know”.  Amen.