Sermon for March 27th (Stewardship of Money)

Let’s look at the gospel story from the gospel of Luke that was read earlier this morning. It is the story of the rich young ruler, “A certain ruler asked Jesus, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

In the gospel of Luke, this is the second time that someone has asked Jesus this question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” The first time was back in the 10th chapter when an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. In that story, Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan.

How are these two passages similar and how are they different? The same question is asked, “What must I do to inherit eternal life, but there is a difference between these two passages as well, namely, where Jesus ends up sending each person. With the teacher of the law, Jesus calls on him to be merciful. Why? Perhaps it is because, as a teacher of the law, this man would have been focused on justice and righteousness and easily would have lost track of love and mercy.

So when a lawyer comes to Jesus asking how to inherit eternal life, Jesus knows where this man’s treasure lies: in keeping the law, in fairness, in justice! So, of course, he calls on him to seek not simply justice but mercy, not only fairness, but love. Have you ever been angry after hearing the story of the Good Samaritan and said, “How unreasonable! To have to help out my neighbor even though they might not deserve it! That’s impossible!” I’ve never heard a reaction like that. We all understand that necessity of mercy, the importance of taking care of those less fortunate even if it’s difficult. So then, why is today’s story met with a different reaction?

In today’s story, the person asking the questions is not a lawyer, but a rich young ruler it says. He’s got youth, he’s got money and he’s got power. This time, Jesus does not call on him to be merciful. Is it because mercy is no longer important to Jesus? Well, no, that’s not why. For the rich young ruler, Jesus understands that his treasure lies in those very things that even our society today still looks at as beneficial: youth, money and power. If Jesus had sent this man to take care of his neighbors, like he did with the lawyer, I bet that it would have been simple to do. He would have had the energy, since he was young. He would have had the time to do it, since he had the power and he would have had the funds to give a lot away and still have some left over since he had so much money. So Jesus asked him to do that which would have been the hardest for him: “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give it to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Just a quick question before we move on: How would you feel about being asked to do that? To sell everything you have and give it to the poor in order to inherit eternal life? Doesn’t that seem utterly unreasonable?! Impossible? Doesn’t it seem inherently wrong to ask so hard a thing? I want you to ask yourself this question, “Who are you more like? The lawyer? Or the rich young ruler?

Back to the story. Isn’t interesting how Jesus starts his statement about selling everything to the poor by saying, “You still lack one thing.” LACK one thing. What could this guy lack? He’s got youth. He’s got power. He’s got money! What else could this guy need? Well, look in the mirror. What do YOU need? You’ve GOT everything. I know, I know. Not EVERYTHING. Not EVERYTHING you want. You have to work hard for your money. You need a new car. The kids need braces. You barely make ends meet. I understand that. But let’s be honest.

I looked up some statistics. Our average income in Adair county is a little under 43,000 a year (pretty low compared to the rest of Iowa which is around 48,000). Some of you are no doubt higher and some lower. The poverty level in America at this time, for a family of four, is a little over 22,000. That means that, making less than 22,000 a year, you would have trouble meeting your basic needs according to the federal government. What about compared to the rest of the world? Comparing the whole of humanity and trying to keep a similar basis of the dollar, it would be as if 80% of the world’s humanity was living on less than 10 dollars a day. That would be $3650 a year. I know, I know, we all could use a new car and gas prices are really tough right now but who are we like in the eyes of 80% of the world’s population? The rich young ruler. So, what do YOU lack in your life?

Still not sure? In another reading from today in proverbs 23 we hear this, “When you sit to dine with a ruler, note well what is before you and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony”. What does that mean? Gluttony means to just eat without noticing the food or the consequences of eating that food. Think about a buffet, where you get to eat as much as you can eat just because it says you can (even though you weren’t that hungry in the first place). Gluttony doesn’t simply mean eating a lot, it’s a matter of not paying attention to the blessings God is feeding you with.

And this can happen with money too, “Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.” Sometimes, we believe that just because we CAN get money that we should do so and, in so doing, we find ourselves turning into people we do not like. For example, a good husband and father finds that he has a knack for working longer and harder than the rest of the people in his business and, thus, can make more money than all of them. By making more money, he can buy his wife the clothes she wants and his children the toys they want. On the down side, he is never home to enjoy his family which isn’t really want he wanted either. But, he never noticed what the consequences were, he just thought about it like an “all you can eat buffet”. If I can make more money, therefore, I should. He thought that he valued money more than time with his family. Possessions over experiences. Money over meaning. And despite everything he has, he still misses a lot.

God says, “Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.” What is this talking about? How about our most recent economic downturn? How quickly did your retirement accounts “fly off to the sky like an eagle?” or shall we say drop into the bottom of the sea like a 100 pounds of deadweight. Was it because you didn’t work as hard? Probably not. Was it because you invested poorly? Well, I guess if you did, so did everyone else in America, right? If the stock market crashed or you lost your job. If you lost your wealth and your money, would your good mood fly away too? Will your peace leave as soon as your money does? Like the rich young ruler in today’s story, maybe you have misplaced your treasure. What do you still lack?

Among all the treasures of this life, the rich young ruler lacks one singularly precious treasure—the treasure of heaven. Jesus tells the young ruler to get rid of those things that he thought were so important, his possessions and his money and, instead, become rich in meaning, become rich in experiences, become rich in faith. Do you notice that Jesus doesn’t just send the kid away and tell him to sell all he has and live like a hermit in a shack on the outskirts of town? No, he says, “Sell all you have and then come, follow me.” This is an opportunity like none other! We might have been talking about the 13th disciple here had the rich young ruler done what was asked of him. Instead, he became very sad because his possessions, his money, his youth and his power were more important to him than anything else. Even more than a once of a lifetime experience with Jesus. What would you have chosen?

We have choices in our lives. We can use money to buy safety and possession or we can use money to create meaning and purpose for our lives and for the lives of others. I had a choice today. I could have tried to convince all of you that you should just give a little more than what you have been giving. I could have explained to all of you that God has blessed you with abundance and you had extra to give. And if I had made that choice, it might have worked. You would have given more. You would have tried harder. You would have felt better.

But that isn’t what Jesus asked the rich young ruler in this story and it’s not what he would ask you or I were he standing here face to face with us. We are the rich young rulers in this world and, while that is a great blessing, we’ve taken and taken from the all you can eat buffet and haven’t realized how hungry we are for meaning, purpose, joy and faith in our lives. That’s why my friends from Ethiopia and Tanzania would say that Americans are rich in material things but poor spiritually. That’s why they felt they needed to send missionaries here to America to help us even though we thought we had everything we needed because they know, like Jesus, that we still lack one thing. Jesus doesn’t want your money, he wants your heart. He wants a full relationship with you.

Giving is a privilege. It’s not something that we are forced to do, it’s something that we have an opportunity to do. In 2nd Corinthians, chapter 8, the Macedonians are said to have urgently pleaded to have the privilege of giving. Nobody wants to be known as being bad at making money in America and yet so many of us accept mediocrity in giving. Giving is not a command, it is an opportunity. Don’t miss the opportunity to become rich in meaning, in purpose and in faith by giving. If you’ve ever given a gift that cannot be repaid, you know how rich it makes you feel.

When you look at money, what do you see? I pray that you see opportunities. Opportunities to use all of it—all of it!—for God’s sake in order to create a life full of meaning and purpose. You’ll still buy food for your family and go to baseball games with your kids (God still wants you to love and cherish your family) but you’ll also be aware that, instead of buying a bigger car, or a newer technological gadget, you’d probably be more happy by using that extra money to sponsor an impoverished child, buy groceries for another family in need, or maybe save up and buy a car for someone who doesn’t even have one. God doesn’t want you to be chained to wealth by your love of money—he wants you to be free to use it as creatively as your love can imagine.

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” Jesus never asked for somebody else to die instead of him so that he could keep the riches of divinity. Jesus never asked if he could just give you 10% of eternal life—if that would be enough to make his Father happy. He gave all he had to make you rich. Maybe you’ve put your treasure in the wrong place up until now. Hear this: every dollar you have right now is a new opportunity to create a life full of meaning, faith and purpose. So that your life on this earth isn’t just blessed with the abundance of God’s blessings, but so that heaven is full of your treasure as well. Amen.

Sermon for March 20th (Church Discipline : How?)

“Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” Last week, I talked to you about the importance of having boundaries even in a faith community—especially in a faith community. I showed you how, in the Bible, God’s discipline is considered a necessary part of life to reflect his love and concern for His children. We were encouraged, through readings by the apostle Paul, to follow God’s call to hold people in our faith community accountable for actions that go against the clear commands of God. Why? Because our actions as a Christians can either lead others TO Christ or lead them AWAY from Christ and our community is called to love both God’s holy name and the well-being of our friends and neighbors.

Today, the question is not “Why?” is there church discipline but instead “How?” How does a church effectively discipline a member? How might you, as an individual, privately confront a Christian friend, family member or acquaintance while at the same time not being tempted to sin yourself. Finally, we need to understand how we might respond ourselves if we are ever disciplined by someone else or even by the church itself.

Jesus explains the first step in how to do church discipline in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 18, “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.” Let’s just stop there. Do you hear the hope in these words? That hope is the point of all this talk about church discipline. It is the good news in all of this. In Ezekiel, God maintains that forgiveness and reconciliation are always His main goal in the life of every person, “Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? Declares the Sovereign Lord. Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and life?” We should all be pleased, thrilled and overjoyed when a sin is pointed out and then stopped. Jesus said, “If they listen to you, you have won them over” but I’d say that whenever a person stops sinning and repents we ALL win.

Jesus explains what to do when you see or experience another Christian in your community acting sinfully in a public way (especially if it has happened more than one): Confront the person privately and gently. Understand this: if you are more interested in talking ABOUT a person’s sins with others and have no intention of going to them face to face, you are under the same judgment as they are. Church Discipline is always—ALWAYS—about creating peace and harmony again within a community rather than belittling someone, making someone feel guilty, putting them down before others or making oneself look better. Paul points out in Galatians chapter 6, “you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you may also be tempted.” Church discipline is done for the good of the person being confronted, so that they might find themselves back in a good relationship with God. It is not done in order to pit the church against someone or one group against another.

It is a temptation to become prideful, arrogant and judgmental of a person when you are confronting them about a sin so WATCH OUT. If you are out for revenge or to “make an example of them” you’d be better off to leave the discipline to someone else rather than be a divisive influence on your community. In the book of Titus, we read, “Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that have nothing to do with him. You may be sure such a man is warped and sinful; he is self condemned.” My internship supervisor always said that when you point the finger at someone else, there are three fingers pointing back at you. With that in mind, if you care enough about someone else that you feel the need to confront them about a sin, do it gently and with great humility as one broken down sinner speaking to another. Remember this: the only hope either of you have lies in the blood of Jesus on the cross.

It is also important that we are graceful with people and do not start calling everything a sin. Let’s take gossip for instance. This sin can be very destructive in a community and we want to be careful about it. However, I want you all to understand that it is important to be able to confide in other people. We have a need, as human beings, to tell our problems to other caring individuals as well as to seek advice and counsel from other Christians. That’s what friends and family are for. Maybe you’ve been upset with someone for something that they have done to you. Telling you spouse, or pastor, or friend is not gossip as long as you are not trying to tell everyone you see. We must be careful to discern what is a sin and what is not. However, if you are the hearer you have a responsibility and a warning.

You are responsible to hold these feelings, this hurt, this anger, this frustration and this helplessness confidentially. “Carry each other’s burdens,” Saint Paul says, “and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” If someone comes to you hurt and angry with another person, don’t immediately judge them. Listen to them, pray with them, counsel with them if you desire, but explain that, while you will share their burden, you will not give it away to others. Gossip only occurs when people are not willing to carry burdens, but want to spread it around. In that case, gossip becomes a very infectious disease. It’s difficult not to want to take a shared burden and turn it intojuicy gossip that others are interested in. It’s hard not to find yourself burning in anger after hearing one side of a story that seems unjust. But if you are not willing to carry someone’s burden confidentially, tell them so, so that you do not risk falling into sin. Sometimes church discipline means self-discipline.

After confronting a person about a sin one on one, Jesus says to “take one or two others along, so that every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.” What is the purpose of this step? To present the opportunity for reconciliation again! We must always hold out hope for repentance and forgiveness even when all things seem out of control. Having another person in the room holds all accountable for their words and having another person there to mediate can sometimes make all the difference. Once again, don’t do this to gang up on someone. In fact, don’t do it at all if your goal is not reconciliation and restoration.

Jesus says, “If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.” First of all, can you see that any public church discipline wouldn’t happen until more private actions have failed? Remember Saint Paul’s words, “If someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.”

This is an especially important point to make clear: a faith community is not a police state. Do you understand this? We are sinners, not perfect people. Mistakes will be made, morals compromised and sins committed over and over again both in private and in public by all of us. We aren’t looking for a community of tattle-tales or whistle-blowers who care more about their own self-righteous pride than good relationships with others. Jesus talks about this kind of church in the second chapter of Revelation, the church in Ephesus, “I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” In our efforts to hold one another accountable, it will be easy to forget to love one another. In our efforts to judge one another, we might forget to forgive and, thus, miss the entire point.

Saint Paul says this another way in the book of 2nd Thessalonians, “If anyone does not obey our instructions in this letter, take special not of him. Do not associate with him, in order that he may feel ashamed. Yet do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.” Do not regard each other as enemies, but as brothers and sisters in Christ even if you believe that your brother or sister is sinning against you! Church Discipline must be done out of love, respect and compassion and never out of anger, self-righteousness or revenge. “Watch yourselves or you will be tempted to sin.”

Finally, I must briefly talk about how to deal with church discipline if you are the one disciplined. We all come under God’s judgment for our sins, both known and unknown to others. (Examples of Adam, Cain and Judas)

On the other hand, King David was famously confronted by the prophet Nathan after having an affair with a woman and then killing her husband. After Nathan called him out on his sin, what did the most powerful man in the nation do? You see, David didn’t have to listen. He could’ve gotten angry and killed or imprisoned the prophet for his judgmental words. I mean, David was king! He could do whatever he wanted! But, instead, what did David do? First, he confessed his sin before his friend and admitted his wrongdoing, “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.”

King David repented of his sins. He was punished for them by God, just as you and I sometimes bear the consequences of our sins years after we have stopped doing them, but his relationship with God was right again. If you feel God’s conviction on your heart right now for something you have done, or not done, for someone you have hurt or abused, the time has come to repent. Don’t wait for someone to call you to be accountable for it, confess your sins to God right now. He is slow to anger and abounding is steadfast love. And don’t just do it silently saying, “Well, God’s forgiven me!” Confess your sin before the ones you have hurt and do all you can to restore the relationships. Ask for their forgiveness. Turn away from this sin and turn back to life. Jesus came not for the righteous but sinners. Today, you are free to leave the darkness behind you and come into the light of Jesus Christ. We don’t come into church as perfect people, we come in broken and crippled with sin. Listen to the words of the son we are about to hear: (This is where the Healing Begins verse 1) As the song points out, you don’t come into a church already healed, but this place can be where your healing begins. Amen.

Sermon for March 13th (Church Discipline: Why?)

Who were the lights in your life that lit your way to follow Jesus? What do you remember about them? Was it your Father who came to church every single week? Your grandpa who always treated his family with love and respect? When did you learn what being a Christian meant? Was it from a friend or a pastor? No one comes to faith by themselves without someone planting the seed, lighting the path, setting the example or leading the way. That’s why so many of the Bible’s laws are relational—referring to the necessity of good relationships with one another. We are all a part of the same community of faith. Jesus says, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good works and praise your Father in heaven.” Your example glorifies God! Your example leads people to Christ.

Unfortunately, since we are always in relationship to one another, we can also have a very negative effect on those we come in contact with. If good deeds shine like a light before others resulting in the praise of God, imagine what dark deeds done out of evil desires create . . . blasphemy of God? The cursing of God? Unbelief?

Most new parents understand quite quickly how much of an impact they have on their children. After 2 or 3 years of hearing Daddy swear at traffic, the same words are used quite freely from the backseat. Why? “Well, Daddy says it!” In the church, the same predicament occurs but more insidiously, because while Daddy can punish his child for her profane outburst, it’s hard to tell who is watching us in the community. How can we know who our actions affect?

Today’s message is about Church Discipline. What is church discipline and what is it’s purpose? Should we ever risk judging another person’s actions as “wrong”? It’s a free country, right? “Judge not, lest ye be judged” so the Bible says. But is that ALL the Bible says? Paul points out in 1st Corinthians chapter 5, “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?” Christians are commanded to judge other Christians, or as it’s usually put, we are supposed to hold one another accountable.

Church discipline is a church’s response to some perceived wrong in terms of action or doctrine by one of its members. It is the process by which a church agrees to hold someone, or a group of people, accountable in some way to speak and act according to the set of values they have previously professed to believe in. Church discipline might mean being lovingly confronted by a friend about a sin. Other times, it might mean being asked to step out of leadership, for a time, because of bad behavior. This happens most often when pastors are asked to step down from their positions because of unchristian indiscretions. Church discipline could even mean breaking fellowship with another member because of their continued and persistent sinful behavior despite numerous warnings.

In our church Constitution here at Emmanuel, there is a section describing when discipline is needed, “Denial of the Christian faith as described in this constitution, conduct grossly unbecoming a member of the Church of Christ, or persistent trouble-making in the congregation are sufficient cause for discipline of a member.” Well, great. But why would we ever risk doing it!? Risk hurting someone’s feelings or being called judgmental? Why does it matter? Why is it so important? Shouldn’t we be open and welcoming and forgiving and tolerant of all behaviors? Isn’t this a place for sinners? Yes, it is. A place for sinners. But if we cannot openly hold each other accountable for our sins, then who will want forgiveness for those sins? This is NOT just another sinner’s hangout. This is the forgiveness place.

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful.” The writer of Hebrews says, “Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:5-11) “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.” We know we are truly God’s child when He opens our eyes to see when we have done something wrong.

That’s why discipline is important. It can produce righteousness and peace in our lives. When we are given boundaries, they help us feel safe in our surroundings and help us live in harmony with the rest of humanity. Who would want to come to a church if they perceived the great likelihood that they might be publically slandered if they got on the wrong side of the wrong person or family? But if they knew they would be protected from such actions, that there was a moral code, that there were consequences for such unchristian behavior, maybe they’d take the risk.

The Bible says that one day God will judge all of us for what we have done in our lives. But, in the book of Ezekiel, we also read that we all have a very personal responsibility as people of faith to hold one another accountable for acting according to what we believe, “When I say to a wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself.” Yes, God will judge everyone some day, whether we say anything or not, but he promises that he will judge us negatively if we do not say anything to protect others from their harmful choices.

In the book Boundaries by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend, they write, “In reality setting limites on others is a misnomer. We can’t do that. What we can do is set limits on our own exposure to people who are behaving poorly; we can’t change them or make them behave right. Our model is God. God sets standards, but he lets people be who they are and then separates himself from them when they misbehave, saying in effect, ‘You can be that way if you choose, but you cannot come into my house.’ Heaven is a place for the repentant, and all are welcome. But God limits his exposure to evil, unrepentant people, as should we. Scripture is full of admonitions to separate ourselves from people who act in destructive ways. We are not being unloving. Separating ourselves protects love, because we are taking a stand against things that destroy love.”

Why do we have to set boundaries in the church? To protect love. Have any of you ever lived through abuse or known someone who has? You think, you believe, at first, that you are being loving, tolerant, forgiving by allowing the abuse to continue when, in fact, you begin hating—HATING!—the abuser. Not setting up a boundary doesn’t nourish love, it creates hatred. Without boundaries, limits and discipline put in place, love cannot grow out of such evil soil.

In the fifth chapter of 1st Corinthians there is this odd little phrase that really captures the predicament we are in in our modern churches. Paul explains, “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: a man has his father’s wife. And you are so proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who did this?” And you are so proud! Doesn’t that seem like an odd statement?

And yet, aren’t we proud that we are welcoming, tolerant and loving congregation? I am. I want to be a pastor who is seen as loving. It hurts me, I grieve, when I have to point out someone’s sin to them because I feel judgmental, like they won’t like me, like I might hurt their feelings. It seems a lot easier to just accept the wrongdoing and go on with life. But Paul says here that we have got it all backwards. We should be loving enough as a congregation to call people accountable for what they say they believe in.

Now if they don’t confess to be Christians it’s not our job. Maybe you are just here visiting Emmanuel and checking out what this Christian thing is all about. You are not under any obligations to follow some code you know nothing about. The apostle Paul says that God is your judge, but we can’t be. But we are to hold people accountable when they say that they believe in something but then don’t live in accordance with that believe. And if we don’t do this, we shouldn’t be proud, we should be grieving because people might think that we don’t really believe what we say we believe in.

In the notes of my NIV study Bible, there is an excellent explanation of why church discipline is so important. This is what it says, “Calling oneself a Christian while continuing to live an immoral life is reprehensible and degrading, and gives a false testimony to Christ. If the true Christian has intimate association with someone who does this, the non-Christian world may assume that the church approves such immoral, ungodly living and thus the name of Christ would be dishonored.”

This world has many people who do not know the truth of Jesus Christ. They do not believe that he is the way, the truth and the life. They cannot believe that they could be loved by another human being let alone by the Lord of Heaven and Earth. We can’t expect someone to walk through our doors and live according to God’s laws? They may not even believe God exists! But, if you are going to say that you believe in Jesus Christ, you should expect to be held accountable to that confession. If you publically worship at a pagan shrine, you should expect to be questioned about that. If you confess that you believe in the commandments within the Bible, and yet, in public, you are sexually immoral or greedy, or an idolater, or a slanderer, or a drunkard or a swindler, you should expect to be lovingly called away from your sins. Now none of us are perfect people. And a person can only see those sins that are public. Only God knows all the awful desires swimming around in all of our hearts. But if you display these sins for all the world to see, you should expect to be confronted by people who love you and love the God whose name you carry.

During this season of Lent, it is time for all of us, from the youngest to the oldest, to accept responsibility and discipline for our sins. There are no perfect people here, just sinners like you and me, struggling to follow God’s will in an imperfect way. The goal of God’s discipline is ALWAYS repentance, not separation. God wants us all to admit our sins, try to stop doing them and ask forgiveness for what has been done. When we refuse to do this on our own, God might call on the church to intervene until we are ready to repent, but the goal is still ALWAYS repentance and forgiveness. Maybe today, you feel the weight of your sins. Maybe you fear that the church has a good cause to discipline you. Have no fear. When you confess your sins, God is faithful and just and forgives your sins, cleansing you from all unrighteousness. Because Jesus died on the cross for you, your sins are forgiven no matter how many times you have failed before and may fail again. Church discipline is only a tool that God uses to hold us accountable to live as lights for the faith of others. Repentant, forgiven sinners, like you and me, make the best lights, you see, so that others might see how gracious and merciful God can be and give glory to our Father in heaven.

Sermon for March 6th (Praying in the Spirit)

What does it mean to speak in tongues? I’d bet you that most people don’t have a clue. But what is distressing is that a great number of Christians don’t know either. Why is that a problem? Because it is written about, in several places, in the Bible! That’s right! Our Bible. Not some OTHER church’s Bible, it’s written about in every single Bible out there. And yet, speaking in tongues has gotten a really bad rap in many mainline Christian denominations. When I hear people talk about speaking in tongues, it’s often done in hushed tones as if they don’t want anybody to know that they are involved in any such thing or even thinking about it. Lutherans often give off the impression that they are too “cultivated and realistic” in their Christianity than to give speaking in tongues too much thought. We leave it to those wild and crazy Pentacostals (who, by the way, own the fastest growing Christian denomination in the world).

My goal today is to do two things: First, to help you see that speaking in tongues is NOT some abnormal spiritual gift. It is no worse than any other gift of God spoken about in the Bible such as hospitality, evangelism, prayer or artistic ability. Second, I want to impress upon you all that speaking in tongues in no better than any other spiritual gift. You are NOT saved by speaking in tongues and it does not PROVE that you are a Christian any more than a Christian is proved by their ability to evangelize, but, just as true, speaking in tongues is not a “weird” gift . . . it should be considered normal for the Christian life. In fact, this spiritual gift is part of our armor, the protection that God provides for us to fight the Devil’s schemes. So, we should not only know about it, we should desire to do it.

Paul says as much in the 14th chapter of his first letter to the Corinthian church. He points out, “I would like every one of you to speak in tongues.” Now, were you all aware of that!? That Saint Paul wants you speak in tongues? Does that surprise you?

Speaking in tongues can mean one of two things based on what we read in the Bible. First, it means speaking in a language that someone else understands but you do not, another earthly language you might say. This happened most famously at Pentecost according to the book of Acts (2), “When the day of Pentecost came they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language.” In other words, the Holy Spirit might give the ability to communicate the gospel message to someone in a language you cannot speak. This would be a sign for an unbeliever, according to Saint Paul, that God was truly real and active in this world. You can’t fake speaking another language that you don’t know.

A second understanding of speaking in tongues is to speak in a language that perhaps only God understands. Paul says it this way in Romans, “We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express”. In 1st Corinthians 14, Paul writes that “anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his spirit.”

I was not always comfortable with the concept of speaking in tongues. In fact, it’s only been in the last several years as I became more and more focused on prayer and healing prayer that I really encountered people who would talk about this with me. I knew that speaking in tongues was somewhere in the Bible but, honestly, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you where. It was like this mysterious activity that I didn’t think good little Lutheran boys like me messed around with. But someone asked me once if I had what they called a “personal prayer language”. What was that? I asked. Well, they explained, do you sometimes pray to God in a way that no one else would understand if they were sitting right there in the room. When you are praying about something very difficult or heart-wrenching, do you sometimes feel like you don’t have the words to say and wish you could keep going and just keep praying anyway knowing that God understands? I thought about it and, yes, there were times where I prayed and just couldn’t express myself with words, but I still wanted to pray and (sometimes) I did. But was that speaking in tongues? That wasn’t THAT big of a deal was it?

They encouraged me to try it out some time. The next time I got to a difficult prayer where I was just so sad, or so happy or so confused that I didn’t know what to say, they encouraged me to stop worrying about saying the right words and keep praying anyway. So, when I got back to my office, and the door was closed, and I knew that nobody was listening except for God. I started praying. I asked God to help me to trust him enough to feel silly. I asked God to keep me faithful to His Word and not rest on my own understanding. And then I took the risk and just started making what I would call sounds. Just sorta babbling. I wondered if I was just making them up at first and, who knows, maybe I was, I don’t know, but, as I continued, it was just so freeing to express the feelings I was feeling to God without worrying about saying just the right thing.

I don’t always know what to say to God. Sometimes I’m so grateful that a simple thank-you just doesn’t seem to cut it. Sometimes I get the feeling that I need some extra strength but I don’t know for what. So, I trust what the scripture says, “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Nowadays, when I don’t know what to pray, I let the Spirit pray for me.

“Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Prayer is a necessary part of this armor. There is too much that our humanity just cannot bear in this world. We are welcoming today a group from Lutheran church of Hope in Des Moines who we joined for a mission trip to El Paso Texas two weeks ago. While El Paso is the safest city in the country, just across the border is the most dangerous city in the world in Juarez, Mexico where they average 8 murders a day. 8 murders a day! Where can you start in praying for something like that? What do you say? How can you express the feelings of fear, anger, frustration and even hope in a situation like that?

What about when you are in love with someone who is dying, whether it is from cancer or some other dreaded disease, you see them suffering and you wish that they could just go to be with God, but you cannot imagine a moment of your life without them. What words can you say to pray about that? When we come up against some great evil, against hopeless situations, against a God who is hidden in the suffering of this world, it is a great comfort when you can trust the Holy Spirit to pray for you, to ask God for those things that only God knows you need. Sometimes, it is the only armor, the only defense, the only weapon that you have against despair. Speaking in tongues is a wonderful spiritual comfort at times like this

God equips us all to pray in his Spirit, to speak in tongues, as part of our armor, but that doesn’t mean that we all have the GIFT of speaking in tongues though. Do you understand the difference? We all have Christian responsibilities, but we may not have gifts in those areas. For instance, there is a gift of evangelism. Some people love to share Christ’s love with others and are successfully leading people to faith while others aren’t doing that much; but everyone is called to defend their faith before others even if they don’t feel they have a “gift” for it. We are all called to pray as well, whether or not we feel like we are “gifted” pray-ers; however, some will pray much more often and find that their prayers often bear much fruit—that is the gift of prayer. If you try to speak in tongues this week and find yourself wanting to speak in tongues all the time, you may have a gift for it. Let me know.

This is the last week of the Armor of God series. Next week, we will send Jeffrey, our little mannequin here, back home. But please don’t forget what you have learned. This armor is something that we have all been given to defend ourselves and our church against the Devil and His schemes. But there are two roads that we can take when we use these things. A glory road and the road to the cross.

Speaking in tongues is a wonderful and normal part of the Christian life, but it is no better than any other gift; in fact, Paul says, “I would like every one of you to speak in tongues, but I would rather have you prophesy.” What does he mean by that? He explains, “Anyone who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God. Indeed, no one understands him, he utters mysteries with his spirit. But everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement, and comfort.” Prophesy means to speak God’s truth to people. In one book I read, it said that someone with the gift of prophecy can “serve as the vehicle for a divine message regarding a concrete situation.” Remember that spiritual gifts are meant to strengthen the community above all else and not just to simply comfort ourselves. So, in other words, while speaking in tongues often doesn’t make sense to people (unless they can interpret), prophesy is a gift that make God’s will very clear to people and that is what’s most desired. Because speaking in tongues is such a different experience for most of us, those who have this gift can become prideful towards those who don’t have it. But the apostle Paul says that God’s glory is much more important than our glory.

We must follow the cross road and not the glory road. For instance, the breastplate of righteousness is meant to protect us from ourselves. We live a righteous life to keep us from sin, but we put on Christ’s righteousness to keep us from being self-righteous before God. We aren’t doing the right thing to make us look good, but to be a good witness to God’s glory. The sword of the spirit, the Word of God, the Bible, is a weapon to use against the Devil as he attacks us to accuse and condemn . . . it is not meant to use as a weapon against those whom you disagree with in the church or community. When we put on God’s armor and when we speak in tongues, we must remember that these are gifts from God for the upbuilding of the church, not for our own glory. They do not bring us glory, they are meant to bring God glory. God’s armor protects us on our road to the cross.

There is a story in the Bible, about a time when Jesus walked up a mountainside with three of his disciples and his clothes turned shining white, whiter than lighting, and God’s glory shone all around them. The disciples wanted to stay up there on that mountain, where they saw God’s glory, forever. But Jesus said that they had to leave, to go the path of suffering to Jerusalem where he would be crucified. By the time I see most of you again, we will have begun Lent, a time of repentance. We will focus on Jesus’ road to the cross and on how we are called to suffer with him in our lives by carrying our own crosses. If you can remember nothing else about the armor of God, about speaking in tongues, rember this: Putting on the full armor of God, praying in the spirit, these things do not keep you from suffering in your life or from experiencing persecution, they give you the protection and strength to follow God’s call through suffering so that you might carry the cross in your life. God is calling you into a world full of temptations and suffering, but when you put your trust in Him, in His protection and in His gifts—in your daily life and even in your prayer life—you are not walking alone. You are living under the power of God himself. The Armor of God is yours. It is a gift of God.

Sermon for February 12th (Shield of Faith)

This Sunday, the topic is the shield of faith. But what is that? You see, I come up with these sermon topics like two months ahead of time and I know that God is calling me to preach on the armor of God, but then I get to this week and I’m like—what was I thinking! I didn’t know what a shield of faith was exactly and I’m supposed to tell you. You trust me to do that. To read the Bible and to give that message to you. That’s my job. So let me take you where I went this week and I pray that God’s Holy Spirit works in your heart like it did through mine from what I found.

Ephesians 6, “Take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.” What is Paul trying to tell us by calling faith a shield? A Roman soldier didn’t just carry around a shield on his back to look pretty, he had to be able to use it. Soldiers were not simply trained on how to use their swords, but they were trained on how to use their shields as well.
Think of all the things you can use a shield to do: You could push an enemy back with it, block swords with it or deflect arrows. The outside of the shield was made of leather which a soldier could douse with water so that not only would it protect from arrows, it would put them out if they were burning. You see, an arrow lodged in your chest, well, that would hurt. But enemies would sometimes wrap an arrow with a rag dipped in oil and light that rag on fire so that you were not only cut if you were shot at but then your clothes might catch on fire! These battles weren’t jokes and neither is the battle with the devil. He’s not just out to hurt you, but to destroy you.

I’ve explained what shields can do, but what can a shield of faith do? For that answer, we need to look at scripture. Faith gives life according to Romans, “The righteous will live by faith.” Faith frees us according to Galatians, “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” Faith actively heals according to the gospel of Matthew, “Take heart daughter,” Jesus said, ‘your faith has healed you.’ Faith can also be used to heal others: “Then Jesus answered, ‘Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.’ And her daughter was healed from that very hour.”

In Matthew chapter 17, the disciples were given authority to drive out demons, but they found one that they couldn’t drive out. Jesus says that they couldn’t do it, “Because you have so little faith” he says. Because according to scripture, “If you believe (if you have faith), you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up.” The Devil attacks us with guilt, doubt, demonic oppression, sickness, disease, and the accusation of hell. But the shield of faith promises us protection from these deadly attacks.

But here’s the thing. Do we do all that stuff? Do we use our faith to do these things? I have to ask myself: do I ever USE my faith or just thank God I have it and leave it at that. What about you? Have you been carrying around a faith that might be “dead” as James calls it. A shield of faith that just hangs around your neck and never gets used. A faith that you hold onto like a binky, a pacifier, for comfort, but you never even think to take it out for a spin? We go off to work and say yeah, I’ve got faith, my shield of faith is lying on the floor at home by my bed. I got that when I was confirmed or baptized—I’m sure I’ll be protected. But is that what the Bible says about faith? James says, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has not deeds? Can such faith save him?” Faith MUST be living and active—it’s the definition of faith. To be used for protection, it needs to be practiced with and developed and used.

In 1st Corinthians, Paul says that there are some who say that they have faith, but that there is no resurrection of the dead. What!? He says, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” You’ve heard this before. Yeah, I’m a Christian. I go to church. But I don’t believe EVERYTHING in the Bible. Jesus might not be the ONLY way to eternal life. I don’t HAVE to pray. I don’t HAVE to read my Bible to be a Christian. Really? Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles? Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me you evildoers!” Is your faith in your own faith or in your relationship with God?

Do you reflect your faith in your actions? Do you have faith in a God who hates sexual immorality, but continue looking at pornography or living with your girlfriend or boyfriend? Do you have faith in Jesus who DIED to forgive you, but still can’t forgive your friend, your spouse, or your enemy? Do you have faith in a God who gave you all that you have, but you throw in a five dollar bill every single week for the offering? Is your faith in Jesus Christ, or is your faith in what you’d prefer Jesus to look like?

It’s really easy to think of faith as a way of thinking, a way of thinking about things, a set of rules and doctrines, a common set of beliefs, but it’s not. It’s not really about thinking or about “feeling” something is right or not. It’s about a relationship. Faith isn’t a substance, it’s about trust. If you asked me why I love my children, I could tell you logically why: Sophia is so loving, smart and creative. Malachi has a terrific laugh and he is so kind and compassionate. Micah is a lovable little boy who is just the best behaved little baby ever. But, when Micah screams and cannot be consoled. When Malachi is thoughtless and whiny. When Sophia is selfish and rude, there is no logical reason to love them . . . but I still do because I’m their dad. This is a relationship that I cannot fully comprehend.

Faith means to put your trust in Jesus Christ and to have an ongoing relationship with him. There are some days when this may very logical: Well, if God really did create heaven, earth and me, then I should love him . . . he deserves it. Or, Jesus died for me, that was pretty nice, I will love him back. Or, I would have never survived that car wreck had it not been for the grace of God. Those kind of statements involve our thoughts, our mind and our reason. That’s great! But there are other times when faith doesn’t always make sense. When despite all the suffering you’re going through, you just know that God still loves you or when you don’t have time to go to church, but if you don’t, you know the rest of your week just won’t be right. Ephesians says that faith is a gift from God. Just like my kids are a gift from God. If I don’t continue developing my relationship with them, I’d still be their dad, but I’d be useless to them. You may have also been given faith, as a gift, but are you a Christian in name only?

Psalm 33 says, “We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.” This shield of faith is about a relationship, putting your trust in God. Scripture says that faith can grow just like any relationship. In fact, if it’s not growing—it’s dying. From what I have read, there are two specific ways that you can better develop your shield of faith: through serving and through suffering.

1st Timothy 3:13, “Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.” This statement is referring to someone called a “deacon” which simply means “one who serves”. A translation of this for our church might mean someone who serves on the council, or on a ministry team, or the altar guild, or our secretary, or the ministry coordinator or ushers or readers. I believe that the pastor of a church should not do everything that needs to be done for many reasons. It’d be way to much work for one person first of all and I don’t have all the gifts that are needed, but most interestingly, because it would be greedy.

When you serve, you are given greater assurance of your faith in Christ Jesus! When you step out of your box and make a difference in the lives of others, you find that God gives you the strength that you need to do it. It not only gives your life meaning, but it brings you into a deeper relationship with God. And the more you serve, the stronger your faith can become. There’s an old saying that says that adults don’t create children, children create adults. Well, faithful people don’t become servants of the Lord, when you begin serving on behalf of God, you often find yourself becoming more and more faithful to Him. On your card this week, maybe you’ll want to commit to serve.

Finally, suffering and persecution also encourages faith. We read this in 2nd Thessalonians, “your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.” At a Natural Church Development Summit in South Africa, a man named Eddie Leo, shared about a spiritual revival in Indonesia. One church had added 1,600 believers in the last six months! Other churches wanted to know what they could do to experience a similar revival. Eddie said, “You want revival? Then pray for persecution.”

In the book of James we read, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” When you face suffering, you are forced to put your hope and your trust in something, and when you place it in Jesus Christ, you find your shield of faith strengthening. You start praying more, longer and more passionately because God is the only one who can understand what you’re going through. You find yourself reading your Bible because, as the disciples once said, “Lord, where else can we go? You alone have the words of eternal life!” Suffering will come, you don’t have to seek it. But if you are suffering right now, instead of trusting money, or drugs or even another person for hope, imagine how your faith might grow by turning to God right now when the times are the toughest.

Pastor Francis Chan tells a story of a group of Korean missionaries to Afghanistan who were arrested and detained in prison by the Taliban for their gospel ministry. Chan had dinner with one of the missionaries who told him about the conditions of the prison. As the story goes, one woman managed to sneak a Bible into the cell and they tore it into as many sections as there were people, so that they could have the Scriptures to read whenever they had the opportunity. It became apparent that some of them were going to be put to death and the senior pastor of the group announced that he would die first. Another man told him that he could not die first, because he was their shepherd, and that the second man must die first as he was an elder. They argued back and forth, with the senior pastor eventually winning. It was however the elder who died first and it was the senior pastor with whom Francis Chan spoke.

The senior pastor told Chan something that I will never forget. He said that since the incident members of that group kept coming to him privately and saying, “Don’t’ you wish you were back there! In prison!” They wished they could go back to the prison cell, with the looming threat of death and torture ever upon them, because the fellowship with Jesus brought them so much joy. Faith felt real! It was alive! The group unanimously agreed that they had never been so close to Christ as they were in that cell, completely dependent on Him as to whether or not they carried on in the flesh or went immediately Home to Heaven.

I believe that most all of you have faith in Jesus Christ or else you wouldn’t be here. But if your faith isn’t growing it’s dying. It’s a relationship that needs constant care. Maybe you are new to this whole Christian thing or don’t think you’ve ever had faith and never had a relationship with Jesus. Maybe you just feel guilty for your lack of faith, for your lack of interest and your lack of passion. . . but hear this: “God’s love for you does not depend on your effort or desire, but on God’s mercy.” He has imprisoned us all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all. God is in the business of bringing the dead to life, dead bones, dead people or even a dead faith. So hear this: in the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. God continues to desire to have a relationship with you. Put on the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness and the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. And in addition to all this, take hold of the shield of faith—it’s yours again today because it is a gift of God. Amen.

Sermon for February 6th (Sandals of Readiness)

Get ready. Get set. Go! What do those words make you think of? It makes me think of racing. Lacing up my shoes to run the mile for track or preparing for football practice. It seemed like, during high school, I was always having to get ready for something. My freshman year of high school, I came back from the summer vacation at my Grandma and Grandpa’s in Kansas a couple of weeks early in order to participate in two-a-days for football. Since my dad was still working at the Rennaisance Faire in Chicago until school started, I stayed for those last two weeks of summer at my Aunt Deb’s house downstairs in her basement. I’d wake up for the first practice of the day, come home and walk beans in the early afternoon and then go back for the second football practice in the late afternoon. You know how some little events in life make a big impact even though they are really not that big of a deal in the scheme of things? Well, that summer I experienced one of those.

On morning, my cousin Jeremy was at home (he must have been back from college) and I knew that he had been up late the night before. It was really early, about 4 o’clock, when I was awakened by my Uncle Gary calling down the stairs, “I’m going!” Jeremy got up out of bed, put on his clothes and shoes and left in a matter of about 2 minutes. I asked my Aunt later about it and she explained that Jeremy just knew that, no matter what time he came in the night before, if my uncle needed help in the fields he’d call down once and Jeremy had better be ready to leave or else he’d be left behind. He wouldn’t be told about it the night before. He just had to be ready.

The apostle Peter writes this in a letter, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” When I read that statement, I think about my cousin Jeremy who got up at a moment’s notice to go and do his work on the farm. When Jesus Christ comes again and calls you to eternity, will you be ready to go? What if he just asks you to confess your faith in Him before another person. Are you ready to do that? What if another person calls and asks you what you believe? Are you ready today to give an answer for the hope that you have? And if you are not prepared, does it really matter?

I went in to talk with a professor at seminary because I was really bothered by something. I was so excited about telling people about Jesus, but I felt like everyone I knew was already a Christian. All my circle of friends were seminarians. I worked grounds crew with them. I ate with them. I went to the park and played with them (well, their kids played and I talked with them). I had class with them. But I never had the opportunity to share my faith with someone who wasn’t a Christian and that bothered me. I wondered if I should just go to the local mall and start preaching. I knew that it would get some people upset, but who knew if it might make a difference, you know? So, at this meeting, I brought up my dilemma. As usual, he told me a story.

He liked to walk to seminary from his house a mile or two away. He did this, he said, because he always seemed to run into people and have conversations he never expected. One day, he was walking along and passed by a woman. Suddenly, just as she was walking by him, she started falling over and fell into him. He grabbed hold of her, held her up, and started realizing she was having a heart attack. And as she died, right there in his arms, he preached to her the gospel of Jesus Christ. He gave her the good news of salvation. He told her how much Jesus loved her, how faith in his forgiveness was all she needed to think about right then, right there with her breathing her last breath. His point? Be ready. You don’t always need to go out and find someone to preach to. When God is ready, he’ll often give you the opportunity.

Please sit back and listen to the words of this song, (Play the CD through the first chorus) “So maybe this time, I’ll speak the words of life, with your fire in my eyes. But that old familiar fear, is tearing at my words, what am I so afraid of. Cause here I go again. Talking about the rain. And mulling over things that won’t live past today. And as I dance around the truth, time is not his friend, this may be the last chance to tell him that you LOVE him, but here I go again.” What are YOU so afraid of?

I’m afraid that I’m going to be seen as one of those freaky Christians I see on TV, who don’t seem to be able to talk about anything but when they were saved and whether you are or not. I’m afraid that I’ve already known a person almost my whole life and never said anything before, what are they going to think of me? What if something in our relationship changes because of what I say? What’s worse, what if I start and really don’t know what to say? What if I don’t have answers for their questions? So, here I go again, talking about the rain, and mulling over things that won’t live past today . . . like who will win the Super Bowl. Or how about the weather? Cold, isn’t it. And so I dance around ever having to talk about Jesus or what he means to me . . . or what he might mean to them.

Remember, we are studying the armor of God again this week. Ephesians chapter 6, “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” Some translations say sandals, or battle shoes, but, really, it just says that your need to be ready to go. For me, that means putting on my shoes before I head out the door.

When you are lying in bed on a Sunday morning and the alarm goes off, but you stay in bed . . . well, the Devil only needs to work for about one hour on that morning to destroy the rest of your week and keep you from hearing God’s Word. The Devil blinds us to the opportunities in our lives to tell others about Jesus. We know that we are not saved by our works and yet if we know someone that “acts” nicely we assume that they must go to church and so we never bring it up . . . what a clever scheme! We can never find time to read our Bibles and so we leave it on the bookshelf, but every free moment we’ve got, we read a little bit on ESPN about how our favorite team is doing. The Devil is a sneaky guy isn’t he?

If you are tried Sunday mornings, fit your feet with readiness . . . go to sleep earlier on Saturday and be prepared Sunday morning. If you believe that EVERYONE you know is already a Christian, prove it and invite them to come on Sunday morning. Come prepared with the worship times, a visitor’s brochure and maybe even a time to pick them up on Sunday morning. Don’t have time to read God’s Word? Take the Bible off the bookshelf and put it by the computer . . . see what might happen with all your free time. Prepare for the opportunity and make the best use of the time you are blessed with.

Put on your armor. Being unprepared doesn’t seem like a big deal does it, but the devil is counting on you not speaking up, not showing up and not preparing yourself. In the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life” George Bailey experiences all kind of hardships in his life. He helps other people, but it always turns out badly for him. When life finally gets the best of him, he attempts to commit suicide because he believes he would be worth more dead than alive. Clarence, the angel, stops George and shows him what the world would be like without him.

A boy would have died because George hadn’t been there to catch a mistake by a pharmacist. George’s brother, Harry, would have died without George to save him when he was just a kid and, therefore, Harry would have never become a fighter pilot and save the lives of hundreds of other soldiers. George’s wife would have never been married and would have lived a long and lonely life. What would this world look like if Christians always stayed silent, stayed in bed and hoped someone else would read the Bible for them? Where has the devil gained a foothold in this world and in your life because you have lived unprepared to speak the gospel of peace.
Be ready, Jesus said. But what should we say? Jesus told his disciples, “Make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.”

When I was in North Dakota at a synod convention, the director of Evangelism for the ELCA told us a story. He was leaving his house one day when he saw his neighbor topple over a trash can full of pop cans. He wanted to just get going, but he decided to help her instead . . . she had seen him anyway and he didn’t want her to think badly of him. After they’d picked everything up, she thanked him and he was about to leave. But, he’d been teaching a class about how to connect faith to actions and, though he was embarrassed to say it, he quickly responded in a mumble, “Your welcome. I’m a Christian and that’s what God calls me to do.” Then he left.

A few weeks later, this speaker’s wife, a nurse, came in and told him an amazing story. While she was treating a patient, they got to talking and the patient asked her where she went to church. The patient explained that his family was having some trouble at home. His wife had come home a few weeks back after having a conversation with a man who had helped her pick up some cans. The woman had returned to her house and talked for about an hour with her husband about what being a Christian was. They were interested in seeing if having faith in their lives might help their struggles. Can you say wow! You don’t need all the answers. Just put your shoes on and get ready to follow the Holy Spirit.

Every single week here at church, we could just get together and talk about the rain and mull over things that won’t last past today. But, I pray that each week, I am prepared to deliver the words of life to you with God’s fire in my eyes, despite my fear that you won’t like what I must say, despite my fear that this message will fall on deaf ears. Why? Because it’s the best defense I know against the devil in your life and in mine. Get ready. Get set. And through the power of the Holy Spirit maybe this time, maybe this week, you will GO and speak the words of life. Amen.

January 30th (Breastplate of Righteousness)

“Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place . . . .” A breastplate was a shirt of metal bands held together by leather to protect the vital organs, most notably, the heart. Without the breastplate, any attack not batted away by a shield or parried by a sword would mean a deadly blow in most cases. You can have your belt on, your helmet on, your shield, your sword and your shoes, but that breastplate often means the difference between survival and death.

John 3, starting at verse 7, “Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as He [that is Jesus Christ] is righteous. He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” What does it mean to put on the breastplate of righteousness? It means to do what is right. To walk as Jesus walked. To commit to living your life in accordance with His truth—a life of upright behavior— a life of righteousness.

Does that mean following the commandments? Yes. All of them? Yes. All of them. To love your neighbor as yourself? Yes. Even if it hurts? Yes. Even if they hurt me? Yes, especially then. Living a life in accordance with the will of God is to live a righteous life. Paul calls a righteous life a breastplate of righteousness to show how living your life with integrity and purity guards your heart from the devil’s deadly attacks.

The Devil loves to take down a good Christian witness and this cannot be done easily unless that Christian has taken off their breastplate of righteousness by hiding naked in the darkness of sin. There have been many wonderful Christian pastors and leaders who have lost their jobs, their credibility and their pride not because they weren’t great at what they did, but because they stopped living a righteous life and thought they could battle temptation unprotected. Money laundering schemes done out of greed and jealousy. Affairs brought on by poor boundaries and temptation. Arrogant leaders who drive others away so they can feel important and keep control. These Christians often live very righteous lives in many ways, but the devil steals the show when they let their guard down.

You must protect yourself from the Devils’ schemes. When you follow God’s commands, when you walk according to God’s laws, the Devil cannot find a chink in your armor. That’s what putting on the breastplate of righteousness means for your life. This means that you will have to turn off the TV, pick up your Bible and start following the guidelines set forth in that book. This means that you will need to learn to pray and ask for God’s guidance when you feel tempted. This means that you’ll need to recommit yourself to hearing God’s Word at church and integrating the messages into your daily life. While the breastplate of righteousness is an amazing defense against the devil, it involves much hard work and dedication to Jesus Christ. The alternative is to walk across the battlefield exposed to danger at every turn.

But there is more to the breastplate of righteousness than simply a life lived according to God’s commands. Isaiah 64:6 points out our dilemma, “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” All our righteous acts? Yes. All of them. Ezekiel 33 puts it even more clearly, “If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but then he trusts in his righteousness and does evil, none of the righteous things he has done will be remembered; he will die for the evil he has done.” Paul writes in Galatians, “If righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”

There is no doubt that the breastplate of righteousness is put on by living uprightly and standing as a child in the light of God. But when you are standing in the light of God you see the truth: you cannot live a perfect life. By yourself, you cannot defeat the Devil. You should do everything in your power to live a life worthy of Jesus Christ, but the truth is that your righteousness, your best works, your highest virtues look like filthy rags in the eyes of God. All have and all will fall short of the glory of God except for Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In fact, some of our greatest sins are caused by what we think are our greatest assets. And so the hardworking Christian CEO refuses to tithe because he thinks his church doesn’t “deserve” his hard earned money. The big shot pastor doesn’t have time to visit the sick because he’s working on his new book deal. I heard of a terrific farmer once who skipped church so he could be the first one in town who got the harvest in. We begin trusting ourselves, our work and our righteousness and lose sight of God.

And so when we Christians stand up here in church singing away, listening to the Bible readings, quiet and very holy looking, the devil enters our hearts and says, “I know what you did last summer. You aren’t really as good looking on the inside as you pretend to be on the outside. If only they knew, you’d be ashamed.” And when a leader stands up here the devil attacks, “Who are you to act so high and mighty? You are no better than anyone else! If only people knew you like I do.” While a righteous life can protect you and I from temptation and much harm in this world, it cannot protect us from the horrible truth—we are still sinners who deserve nothing but punishment.

Hear now how the apostle Paul deals with this dilemma: (Philippians 3:7) “But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”

The breastplate of righteousness is more than an upright life, it is knowing the difference between an upright life and a life lived by faith alone. “The righteous will live by faith.” Paul writes in Romans. “Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness.” We must put on more than our good works, we must put Jesus Christ in order to protect ourselves from the devil’s schemes. (Romans 13) “Let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Clothing yourself with Jesus and his righteousness, trusting in His work on the cross rather than your own work in this world, doesn’t take away the need to live a righteous life, it gives you the strength to do just that. “For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (Philippians 2:13)

You are called to live your life according to all the commandments of God and walking in the light of Jesus Christ in order to protect yourself from the devil’s schemes. You are also called to trust not in what you can do, but in Christ who works all in all. Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17) He offers you his love and protection not as something that you earned, but as a free gift. When you have done everything that you are called to do, humbly clothe yourself with Jesus Christ and trust in His protection alone. Every morning. Every day.

None of us can stand against the devil’s schemes and temptations on our own. Our most righteous acts are filthy rags. But you may fight the battle against the devil’s schemes wrapped in the righteousness of God, with the full armor of God. This next week, don’t walk into your day unprotected. Stand firm, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist and the breastplate of righteousness in place. . . .” Amen.