7-7-2024

Good Morning All,

        Mark 10:45; “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

    There is a psychological phenomenon which is called “the Stockholm Syndrome.”  It was first named after four bank employees who were held hostage in a bank hold up for six days.  At the end of the six days, these hostages started to sympathize with the robbers even to the point of asking the government to not rescue them and to let the robbers go free.  In the United States, probably the most famous example of this was Patty Hearst when she was kidnapped by a group that called themselves the Symbionese Liberation Army.  After a few weeks, she participated in a bank robbery with them.

    There are many factors which way in but there are two to look at.

 

    · The captive's perception of small kindnesses from the captor within a context of terror

     · Isolation from perspectives other than those of the captor

 

These two things represent the relationship that sinful man as with the devil.  Sinful man is so terrorized by the devil that any form of good is seen as coming from him and anything from God is seen as punishment or hatred.  The devil also seeks to separate you from God in order to isolate you from God’s thoughts and ideas.  So, we live as kidnap victims who are sympathizing with our captor the devil.

    This is why we are called enemies of God.  This is why we hate God.  We are so ingrained by our true captor the devil that we miss out on God’s true mercy.  So, when Christ came as the ransom for us; we resisted and in many ways we still do.  Our sinful nature always tries to reject God and flee back to the devil.  Even though we were reluctant to be saved, Christ saves us anyway.  Even though we turn on him in our time of victory, Christ continues to give the ransom for our soul.  Our salvation is given to us freely; yet we still oppose and fight against it.  We continually turn back to sin as if it were the answer.

    So, God calls us back again and again.  He keeps calling to us with his words of forgiveness and his words of hope.  He keeps returning to us in order to restore us to his family.  This is our hope.  Christ’s ransom for us is ever present and always ongoing.  Our sins are continually paid for, and the ransom is paid.  We need to trust in the Lord and his promises.  He gives us the certainty of hope that we need.  It is through his ransom that we are saved.

Gracious Father, we give you thanks for the blessings of today.  Your ransom for us continually renews us.  Be with those who are still trapped by the devil’s lies.  Give them the courage to walk away from him into your loving arms.  Let your grace overflow us like a river.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret    

7-6-2024

Good Morning All,

         John 5:7; “The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.”

    “Brother, can you spare a dime?”  This was a song from the depression era that sort of became the anthem of the Depression.  It was a song about a guy who had it all and was successful and now is standing in a bread line or a soup line looking for any kind of help he can get.  It reflected the almost overnight drastic change which often took place in people’s lives at the time of our history.  The number of people who went from fairly rich to flat out broke is amazing.  There were families who were split up because parents couldn’t afford to feed the whole family so some of the older ones were sent on their way to fend for themselves.

    How do you help all the people?  That is often a daunting question.  Whenever a church sits down and tries to be some sort of social support system, whether a food bank, or a place to sleep, or a counseling center; it can very easily be overwhelmed.  This can cause a great panic among the members of the church as they consider a project or program.  It can cause enough problems that those members may simply back away.  We don’t have nearly enough to do any good, so why try?

    Our verse and the portion that proceeds it has always been a fascination to me.  This account told by John involves the healing of a man on the Sabbath and the reaction of the Jewish leaders.  The man in our verse was one of many people who were waiting by this pool of water that many believed brought healing.  There were five roofed colonnades where multitudes of the sick lay waiting to get into the water.  There were multitudes and Jesus healed one.  All those people and Jesus only healed one. 

     In a different portion of Scriptures, Jesus tells us that we will always have the poor.  There will always be the poor and there will always be the sick; as long as there is sin in the world, sickness and poverty, injustice and unfairness will exist.  But we should never let that stop us in living our lives as God’s redeemed children; trying to reconcile the world to God.  We will not and cannot reach everyone; a broken and sinful world will prevent that.  We are not God; we are only man, but we are God’s redeemed children and, while we may not be able to help everyone, we can help someone.  We can make a difference in someone’s life.  We can’t help everyone, but we cannot let the devil use that to stop us from helping someone.

    Every good work of the church or believer shows the glory of God and reflects upon their faith.  It doesn’t matter how big or small; God’s Word at work in the world is a light to the world even if it is only a match.  So be a match and trust God’s Spirit to make it shine brightly.

Gracious Father, the task is so daunting that we tremble at even the thought of it.  Give us the strength and the courage to reach out to one person and be that light to them.  Help us to go forth in confidence.  Guide us towards those who are in the greatest need of your grace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

7-5-2024

Good Morning All,

       Luke 6:37c; “forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

   “Quid pro quo.”  This is a Latin phrase that gets a lot of use and misuse.  It means a transfer of goods or services where the transfer is contingent upon the other, huh?  Basically, you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.  If you watch Congress work, you vote for my bill, and I’ll vote for yours.  You give a little, I give a little and we all make something.  It is a way of life for many.  Our verse sounds like that but in our faith, we understand it differently.  We tend to look away from these verses that make us struggle. 

    This is always one of those “struggle” verses.  We tend to struggle with understanding them.  We teach that you are forgiven, by God, without condition.  Remember the verses, “God who is faithful and just will forgive your sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  “As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.”  That sounds like unconditional love, unconditional forgiveness.  So, when we read verses like the one, we have today we struggle.  It sounds so conditional so quid pro quo.  If you forgive then God forgives yet that goes against the rest of the Bible.  We know that Scriptures interprets Scriptures; there are no errors or mistakes. But what do we have; well, we have a struggle.

    Forgiveness is the core of Christianity.  God forgives us of our sin.  He wants us to then forgive others but why?  Partly because he wants us to do this; it is part of the reconciliation that God wants for us.  This reconciliation allows us to live in harmony with each other; part of God’s plan.  Forgiveness also relieves pain and suffering in our heart and soul.  Holding onto another’s sin keeps us angry, hurt, sad and lonely.  It separates us from one another.  Forgiveness frees us from that pain.

    We also see that if we refuse to forgive; it means that there are some things that cannot be forgiven.  It means that we see things that we do that cannot be forgiven by God.  We reject God’s forgiveness because we don’t believe it can be forgiven.  We lack faith so we don’t cling to God’s promise to forgive.  We cling to a lie that there are just some things that cannot and will not be forgiven.  When we forgive, truly forgive, we are stating that forgiveness of all sins is possible; we believe it.  We once again have faith.

    This may or may not be a conscious decision but what it does is show us how a “struggle’ verse can work.  It is not an action but faith.  We receive forgiveness because we cling to God’s promise of forgiveness.  The forgiveness is there but only if we cling to the promise, only if we believe.  Faith moves us to receive God’s forgiveness and faith moves us to forgive others, just like we are.

Father of all mercies, move us by your Spirit to forgive.  Forgiveness frees us from the pain and loneliness of this sinful world.  Give us the courage to forgive.  Give us the faith to forgive so we can boldly forgive others.  Guard us by your Spirit.  Be with those who struggle to forgive.  Grant them your peace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

7-4-2024

Good Morning All,

       2 Samuel 12:13; “David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.”

     In the early to mid-1970’s, there was a variety comedy show called “The Flip Wilson Show.”  He had many different characters that he would play in the sketches that they did.  One was when he would dress up as a woman, her name was Geraldine Jones.  She was flamboyant to say the least.  She would get into some sort of fix or trouble and her retort would always be, “the devil made me do it.”  If she was late getting home from a party, well the devil made me do it.  If she backed her car into somebody else’s, well the devil made me do it.

    It was kind of funny because for a while it was kind of a catch phrase for a lot of people.  In many ways it still is.  It is handy to say, and it solves a lot of problems.  It also shows what is wrong in human society.  If something is wrong, it is not my fault.  The devil made me do it.  I had no control.  It was as if some force had taken control of my body and made me say those cruel things, made me steal those items, made me get drunk or high, after all, the devil made me do it.

    We like to blame the devil or anyone else for that matter.  It makes us the victim.  The victim is always the oppressed one who suffers at the hands of others.  The events that occur to a victim are beyond the control of the victim.  Someone who is robbed at gunpoint can do little to stop the perpetrator.  The victim is always at the mercy of circumstances and situations which are beyond his control.  He cannot stop it; he has no control; the devil made him do it.

    The problem with thinking we are the victim is that it is untrue.  The devil did not make me do it; I made a choice to sin.  I actively opted for sinning.  I decided which path to follow.  The devil may make suggestions, but I choose the path.  Our answer is not what Geraldine Jones said, our answer is what David said, “I have sinned against the Lord.”  I did it, I made me do it not the devil.  My sin is my sin, I caused it, I did it.  It wasn’t someone else’s fault.  That other person didn’t make me sin, I sinned.  That other person didn’t make me do it, neither did the devil; I did it I chose to sin.  I chose it because I am weak.  I chose because my sinful nature makes it impossible to choose otherwise.

    But God has mercy on us.  He says to us what Nathan said to David, “The Lord has put away your sin.”  God has taken your sin and forgives you.  This is the only way it will work.  We are too weak to fight it on our own, so God does it for us.  Now he gives us the power to say “no” to the devil.  Because of his grace the devil did not make me do it.  His grace will lead us away from sin if we follow.

Father of grace, we are before you as broken sinners.  I have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed.  But I find refuge in you and safety in your arms.  Protect and strengthen me from the devil’s attacks.  Be with those who are most vulnerable at this time.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,                 

Pastor Bret   

7-3-2024

Good Morning All,

        John 15:4; “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

      There once was a branch on an apple tree.  It always produced the largest, sweetest apples on the tree.  The apples were always plentiful and easy to reach.  One day a group of moths landed on the branch and began speaking to the branch.  The moths told the branch how important he was.  They told him that the tree would be nothing without him.  No other branch produced as good fruit as he did.  (Meanwhile, the moths laid their eggs on the branch where it was hooked to the tree.)

    The branch began to think that it was very important.  The moths were right, it thought.  None of the other branches produced near the fruit that this branch did.  Without him this tree would not produce much fruit at all.  (Meanwhile, the eggs had hatched, and the larvae were beginning to eat through the bark.)

    So, the branch began to demand that the tree listen to what it wanted.  It wanted to choose what other branches were part of the tree.  It wanted to decide which type of apple it produced.  It demanded to produce apples when it felt like it.  It wanted to go its own way.  It began to think that it didn’t need the tree.  After all, its fruit was the best of the tree.  (Meanwhile, the larvae had burrowed most of the way through the branch.)

    Soon the branch didn’t want to be with the tree.  It even wondered if the tree could possibly survive without the branch being attached.  Then one day a storm came along.  The wind blew harder than ever.  The tree stood tall, and the other branches waved in the wind.  But the branch that had the best apples snapped and fell to the ground.   No big deal though the branch; now we will see who needs who. 

    Soon the leaves on the branch began to wilt.  The apples that were on the branch began to rot.  The branch dried up and soon was tossed in the fireplace to heat the house in the cold of winter.  Meanwhile, the tree stood tall and strong. 

    In the spring, many different branches began to produce large and sweet apples.  The tree stood tall, and the apples were sweet and large on all the branches.  The tree really didn’t need the branch, but the branch became ash without the tree.

    We are the branch.  God feeds and gives us the nourishment to produce fruit.  Think of all the great things that God has given you.  Think of the talents and skills you have; all are gifts from God.  Without God, we are but something to be thrown into the fire.  We need to be connected to God just as the branch needs the tree.  His love and grace are our only hope.

Dearest Father, without you we are lost.  All that we have is from you.  Through you we produce all the fruit that we have.  All that we are, all that we receive, all that there is, is a gift from your benevolent hand.  Guard us with your Spirit.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

7-2-2024

Good Morning All,

   John 11:6; “So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.”

    “I’m late, I’m late, for a very important date!”  This was the start of a song from “Alice in Wonderland.”  The White Rabbit was always running around and always lost or late getting somewhere.  Many of us have had that experience.  There are often times when we run late and feel tired and worn to a frazzle because of it.  We are late to an appointment, or late on a payment or late getting to work or school but have you ever been late on purpose?

    I remember talking to a school superintendent about a student that wanted to transfer to his school.  It seemed that the student had argued with a teacher more than was necessary.  It also seemed that the parents were on the side of the student.  The student was quite an athlete and the parents assumed that some school would want him really quickly.  The father left a message for the superintendent to call before one of the other schools did.  After the superintendent heard the phone message, he waited a few days to call the father back.  The father told him it was too late, they were already going to school “B;” the father didn’t see the superintendent’s smile over the phone.

    You may have been late, but have you ever been intentionally late?  Have you ever delayed an action in order to avoid it all together?  Have you ever made a call too late to go to the dinner party you wanted to avoid?  Most of us have done it and it is probably rude to do so.  Yet we excuse ourselves by claiming we are sparing the feelings of those whom we avoid.  Yet sometimes the delay may be more painful than the truth or it may even cause further trouble.  That can be human nature but what about Jesus, why did he wait two days?

    Jesus knew Lazarus was sick, deathly sick.  He knew Lazarus would die.  Yet he waited two days before going to see him, why?  Was Jesus uncaring about Lazarus; no because when Jesus was told Lazarus had died, he wept.  So, what was the purpose?  The purpose was so that God would be glorified.  Even though Martha and Mary had asked Jesus to come, he waited for a couple of days so that God would be glorified.

    This can give us some comfort when we feel at times that God isn’t listening.  Sometimes we pray but it seems that God isn’t listening.  God hears you and he answers you but, in his time, and in his way.  Sometimes what we ask isn’t always the best for us or according to his will.  We do not always understand God’s ways, but we do know that He is a God of love and whose desire is for us to live with him in his kingdom; he has demonstrated this.  So even if he waits a couple of days, his grace is there.

Father of all grace and truth, sometimes when we come to you, we do not hear the answer we seek or in the time we seek it.  Give us the strength to wait; to wait in joyful expectation that your grace will see us through.  Be with those who are waiting and wondering now.  Comfort them and guide them.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

7-1-2024

Good Morning All,

            Genesis 3:5; “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

     “Be all you can be” that was an advertising slogan for the army a few years ago.  It was to encourage the new enlisters to see the army as a way to accomplish their goals in life.  That is something that we encourage our children, and adults, to do.  Seek out our goals and try to accomplish them.  But this can be a dangerous time.  The young man or woman who dreams of being a professional athlete and uses steroids or other drugs to accomplish this is going the wrong way.  Sometimes a dream can go too far.

     We encourage people to “be their own man or woman” or we tell them “you are the captain of your own life.”  We do this so people will be active agents in their lives and willing to take responsibility for their actions and willing to work for what they need and want.  There is nothing wrong with this; it is even worthwhile.  But sin puts a dark spin on this if we are not vigilant.

    When the devil tempted Eve, it wasn’t with gold or silver, or even with the sweet taste of a forbidden fruit.  The devil’s temptation was that Eve would be like God.  Eve could have even thought she might be greater than God and so the long-time battle within man’s heart began.  In a way it is interesting when we look at it, the age-old question; who sits on throne in your life, God, or you?

    Luther saw this as the crux of sin.  The First Commandment is first because it is the prime commandment.  When Luther wrote his catechism, he took a portion of the First Commandment from Exodus 20 and made it the close of the Commandments.  He did this by design.  All of the Commandments are in the First Commandment.  Who sits on the throne of your life, God, or you?  If it is God, you will honor his name and his worship.  You will honor your parents and not kill or commit adultery or lie about your neighbor.  If God is the God who occupies the throne of your life, these will be easily kept.  But when you place yourself on the throne, then selfish desires arise.  You see yourself as more important than God or your parents.  If others get in your way, get rid of them.  If you want something or someone, just take it any way you can.

    The age-old question, who sits on the throne of your life, God, or you?  God’s mercy calls you to see that God’s benevolence and love is far better than our own selfish desires.  God’s mercy calls for you to repent and see that God is truly the God of our life and through Him we have life.

God of grace, far too often we place our self on the throne of our life and when we do we destroy so many things, lives, relationships, your creation. Forgive us when we do this.  Keep us mindful that you are our king.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret