Text study

Text study – Matthew 3:13-17 (The baptism of Jesus)

/ The Pastor

"the one thing that encourages me in this whole thing is seeing how deeply vested we all are in the church and her practices. Everybody contributing to this discussion here and on other blogs are doing so because we care so deeply. That is a very good thing!" (Luther Punk)

Well said…and yes…thank you for all the energy and wonderful dialog around the issue of lay presidency.  I am by no means cutting off or finished with this lively and healthy dialog.  There is definitely some deep seeded beliefs about lay presidency.  I do see what Luther Punk is saying about calling and gifts and I will be exploring that some more, but right now it doesn’t change my belief about lay presidency.  The openness that has been shown is quite amazing and and for that I am thankful.

But now I would like to move to the Gospel text for Sunday from Matthew 3:13-17 and maybe get into a discussion about the other sacrament — baptism.  According the the lectionary, this Sunday (January 13) is called "The Baptism of our Lord".  Since Epiphany is about revealing who Jesus is the text seems very appropriate as God announces from heaven after Jesus is baptized, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17)

But the questions I want to ponder are ones that always seem to come up when we deal with the text about Jesus being baptized.  The questions are this:  Why did Jesus have to be baptized? and When Jesus says that this must be done to fulfill all righteousness…what does he mean by "all righteousness?  Both are very good questions and of course I have my own thoughts about what is going on.  And…has always…feel free to "correct" me if you feel I am "wrong" 🙂

When I think about baptism I go back to Romans 6 where Paul says that "if we have been united with him in a death like his we will certainly be untied with him in a resurrection like his."  Baptism here then is about being identified with Jesus or joined to Jesus.  Therefore, since we are identified with Jesus; what is his is now ours…not because of anything we have done but because Jesus first identified with us.

Now to Jesus’ baptism…

…if John’s baptism was for repentance for the forgiveness of sins, then why did Jesus need to be baptized?  Jesus was sinless and had no need to repent.  The way I see it is that by being baptized Jesus identified himself with sinners.  If Jesus was going to bring us to righteousness, he needed to identify with sinners…he needed to identify with us.  And because Jesus identifies with sinners Jesus understands very intimately what we need.  Jesus understands what must be done.  Jesus understands that he must die and rise so we can live.  So therefore it all comes down to identification.

What do you think of that?  What are your thoughts?  (Of course I still invite you thoughts on the issue of lay presidency which is posted below.)

Thank you again for you contributions and I look forward to many more lively conversations.  Take care and God bless!

-edh-

Text study – Luke 21:5-19

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

"Then he said to them: ‘Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.  There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven…" (Luke 21:10-11)

The text for Sunday comes from the 21st chapter of Luke where Jesus talks about the signs of the end of the age.  Really upbeat and happy stuff 😉 … (especially the text I started with today).  But I do have a point so hang on a second.

As I was pondering this text I started thinking about Christmas…Yup that’s right…Christmas.  Next Thursday is Thanksgiving – the unofficial start of the Christmas season (or as far as I am concerned…THE official start of the Christmas season).  For the past couple months I have been wanting to shout out at the likes of Wal-Mart and Target for putting out Christmas stuff already and playing Christmas music.  "Christmas hasn’t started yet!!!"  But of course no one would listen to me.  But once Thanksgiving is here…watch out.

For many people this means the "unofficial" start of Christmas shopping (even though my wife has been Christmas shopping for months now).  For my wife and I Thanksgiving weekend means putting up the Christmas tree, decorating the house and loading the CD player with Christmas CDs.  It means starting to plan for our holiday open house, thinking hard about Advent and pulling out my Santa hat.  Thanksgiving weekend is a HUGE sign for me and for many people that Christmas is coming.

But the problem comes in when we focus too much on the signs and not enough on what the signs are pointing to.  We focus too much on finding the perfect gift, planning the perfect Christmas party, planning the family gathering at grandma’s house, and running the kids to Christmas program practices.  Many people experience stress, depression and maybe even anxiety.  The signs of Christmas are there, but what are the signs pointing to:  The coming of the Christ Child.  God’s love in the form of a little baby.  God coming to live among us.  God hearing the cry of creation.  Thanksgiving weekend is more than a sign to begin preparations, it "unofficially" points us to the greatest gift of all…JESUS CHRIST.

"All people will hate you because of me.  But not a hair on your head will perish.  By standing firm you will gain life." (Luke 21:17-18)

After all those signs Jesus tells the disciples about…in the end is life everlasting.  Our thoughts, words and actions should be focused on that.  Our LIVES should be focused on that.  People have been saying for centuries that the signs of the end are here so repent and believe.  That is fine and dandy, but focus not on the signs but on the gift of life we have in Christ; the love of God and eternal life.  As for me signs can come and go, but I will life for Christ and see that as many people as possible know Him.

Begin, continue or whatever, your preparations.  But know this…Christ is coming and that is GOOD NEWS.  Let’s celebrate THAT!

Praise be to God and Amen!

-edh-

Text study – John 8:31-36

/ The Pastor / 5 Comments

Greetings one and all.  I know I am a little late this week, but I guess better late than never.  Being gone most of the week really threw things off for me.  Posting text study posts really help me to get focused in writing the sermon God wants me to preach.  This week I had to make some adjustments.  So instead on pondering on what I might preach, today I will be pondering on what I am 99% sure I will preach on (you just never know what God will do between now and Sunday.  See Monday randomness for more on that).  So anyway…barring a "1% incident" here is what I am pondering…

The Gospel text for this Sunday (Reformation Sunday) comes from John 8:31-36.  Allow me to include that text for you:

"To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." They answered him, "We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?"  Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed."

The word "free" really stands out for me.  Last year I talked about truth, but this year the word "freedom" stands out.  Questions that come to mind are: (1) What is freedom? and (2) What does freedom mean for you?  I think freedom means different things for different people.  It all depends on who you are, when you lived, where you live and the circumstances surrounding your life.  I think freedom sounds different with a 19th century slave as opposed to a 21st century middle aged parent.  Freedom for a low income family living in the Phillips Neighborhood of Minneapolis looks different than for a high school senior.  Freedom carries with it a variety of definitions.

For people living in the early 16th century, freedom was something far different than we can imagine today.  When Martin Luther came along, people were in bondage to human traditions made by a Church that ruled with an iron fist.  No grace, no mercy…unless of course you were of the upper class, royalty or clergy.  The common man knew nothing of THE Truth…until Luther came along.

Now for the first time people were hearing a Truth that simply blew them away:  Put your trust in God’s love; we are made righteous through Christ; you are saved by grace through faith; Forgiveness is yours, no matter who you are or what you have done, when you confess.  The grace of God through Jesus Christ is all encompassing and all accepting.  Wow!  That is indeed Good News.  The Truth…it set people free, much to the chagrin of the Church at the time.

What does this mean today?  I think there are a number of things to think about: (1) As Christians today we too often take freedom for granted.  We don’t really ponder WHAT Jesus did and therefor we don’t praise and thank God as we should. (2) Too many people don’t know about this freedom.  The greatest gift of all time, a Truth like no other.  If we know this Truth, how can we keep it to ourselves. (3) As Christians we often take freedom too far.  "I don’t have to go to church.  God will forgive me".  We live by the mantra of "Cheap grace" not realizing how costly this grace really was – the very life of Jesus Christ. (4) Or…we know about this freedom, but choose to embrace bondage.  After the Civil War the slaves were set free, but many of them choose to stay put.  They would rather stay "slaves" than to embrace the freedom they were given.  They didn’t know what to do with that freedom.  I wonder if, as Christians, we like our bondage to sin because sin is more fun and freedom is "scary".

There is a lot to think about when it comes to freedom.  But one thing we need to do as Christians is to keep proclaiming this freedom AND keep listening and learning about this freedom.  We may have good memories, but they are often very, very short.  Through Jesus Christ we have been given the greatest gift of all.  Embrace your freedom and praise God always and forever.  Amen!

-edh-

Text study – Luke 18:1-8

/ The Pastor / 5 Comments

The Gospel text for this Sunday (21st Sunday after Pentecost) is from Luke 18:1-8.  This is a parable told by Jesus about a persistent widow and an unjust judge.  It is also a parable that contains a haunting question.

We have a judge who neither feared God or cared about people.  Basically, he was in it for the money; looking out for number one.  We also have a widow who is experiencing an injustice of some kind perpetrated by another.  So the widow goes to the judge, but the judge does not want to be bothered with petty things.  But unfortunately for this judge, this widow is feisty.  She keeps bugging him until finally he grants her the justice she is looking for; just to get her off his back.  Jesus then tells his disciples to notice what the UNJUST judge does.  Now…how much more will God give justice to His children who cry out to God day and night?  "I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly." (18:8)

Now comes the haunting question – one that has always bothered me:  "However, (don’t you just hate it when you hear that word) when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (18:8).  I hear this nice parable about prayer and not giving up.  I am reassured that God does hear my prayers and that they don’t fall on deaf ears.  Justice is proclaimed to God’s children.  "However… (there’s that word again) "…when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth."  Now what?  Is this a warning not to give up?

I am wondering…

In the Old Testament text, Jacob is wrestling with God and in the end, his persistence is rewarded with a blessing.  Had Jacob given up after his hip was "wrenched", I am willing to bet he would not have received the blessing he was looking for.  In the Gospel text, the widow is experiencing an injustice, so she cries for help.  Had the woman lost faith and given up, the justice she was seeking would not have been given.

So…

Is this a statement about persistence in our faith, not just prayer?  I think it might be.  Hear me out here.  It has been 2000 years since Jesus died and rose and promised to return again.  People have prayed and waited for Jesus.  But now, are we growing too complacent?  Have people grown tired of waiting?  Have we grown sick of praying for world peace only to see wars and conflicts escalate?  Maybe this text is a reminder that God has not forgotten about us.  God has and is granting justice for us through Jesus Christ.  And in due time, will we receive the ultimate blessing that has been promised to us.  But when Jesus returns, will he find people waiting for him, or will he find people who have given up; who have stopped being persistent?

As Christians we are to continually pray for peace and justice.  "Pray without ceasing" we are taught.  Seek God.  Be still and know that God is God.  Don’t grow tired of waiting, but rejoice in the promise.  Rejoice in the blessing.  This life is but a fleeting moment compared to eternity with God in heaven.

"However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" — I sincerely hope so.  This haunting question is now beginning to serve as a proclamation of Good News.  Jesus IS coming.  God HAS NOT forgotten about us.  So…be persistent and know that God is listening.  Justice is indeed on the way.  Praise God always and forever!  Amen!

-edh-

Text study – Genesis 32:22-31

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

The first lesson text for this Sunday (21st Sunday after Pentecost) comes from Genesis 32:22-31.  This is the story of Jacob wrestling with God.  At the beginning of the story we are only told that a "man" engages Jacob in a wrestling match, but later we figure out that the "man" is God (vs. 26 is out first hint and then vs. 30 confirms our suspicion).

In verse 26 Jacob is wrestling with this "man" when the "man" asks to be let go.  Jacob refuses until he receives a blessing.  I wonder if Jacob is not only wrestling with God but wrestling with some inner "demons".  Earlier in Genesis, Jacob steals the blessing from his older brother, Esau, by tricking their father.  In fear of his brother, Jacob flees.  Now Jacob is faced with seeing his brother for the first time since his deception.  Jacob stole a blessing early on now he wants a "real" blessing from God Himself.  Is this Jacob seeking forgiveness and validation from God? 

In verse 27 God asks for Jacob’s name and then changes his name to Israel.  At this point God has not blessed Jacob/Israel.  Next Jacob wants to know the name of his "opponent", but I wonder if that deep down inside, Jacob knew.  After God refuses to reveal His name, He blesses Jacob/Israel.  Israel then limps on his way – ultimately to face Esau.

So the question is, "What do we take from this text for today?"  A few questions/thoughts to ponder:
(1) If the "man" wrestling with Jacob is indeed God, why could He not over power Jacob in verse 25?  Was this God’s way of seeing how serious Jacob was about reconciliation?

(2) Why was Jacob so intent on receiving a blessing?

(3) What would have happened if Jacob honored the request of the "man" to let Him go?

(4) Is the point of this text the wrestling match?
Three years ago I preached on this very text.  At the time I focused on the fact that even though we like to jump to the end and experience the joy of the blessing, its the wrestling match that changes us.  Maybe this text is not so much about Jacob/Israel receiving a blessing, but that Israel was willing to wrestle with God and not give up.  Israel was ready to make a change.  Israel was ready to do things the right way, instead of receiving good things the wrong way.

Through faith we know the end of the story through Jesus Christ.  Through faith we know that Jesus won the battle over sin, death and the power of the devil.  Through faith we know that this life is not the end.  Through faith we know the "blessing".  But maybe we need to focus more on the wrestling match, because it is through the wrestling that we are changed.  Through the wrestling we are refined, strengthened, encouraged, tested, encouraged some more, etc, etc.  This is not to see whether we are worthy; whether we will give up or not; whether we should receive the blessing, but rather to help us endure until the ultimate consumation of the blessing through the death of our bodies.

What are your thoughts on this?

-edh-

Text study – Luke 17:11-19

/ The Pastor / 4 Comments

The Gospel text for this Sunday (20th Sunday after Pentecost) comes from Luke 17:11-19.  This is the story of the ten healed of leprosy. 

Jesus is traveling along, on his way to Jerusalem, along the Galilee/Samaria boarder, when he comes across 10 individuals suffering with leprosy.  Unlike Naaman in 2 Kings 5, these lepers had to keep their distance and shout out to get Jesus’ attention – "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" (Lk 17:13)  Being a leper, you were an out cast.  If anyone came close by you had to shout out, in warning, that you were a leper.  To come in contact with a leper would make one "unclean" whether you contracted the disease or not.  So people kept their distance.

Upon hearing these ten lepers call out to him, Jesus says (maybe from a distance – we don’t know) to "Go, show yourselves to the priests."  This was to be in compliance to the Jewish law.  If you were unclean, and were healed or made clean in someway, you had to show yourself to the priest and "officially" be declared clean.  So…the lepers did what they were told…or least 9 of them did.

One of the healed lepers came back.

Upon coming back, this healed leper (who had not been "officially" declared clean) threw himself at Jesus feet.  [I like that phrase, "threw himself" — I picture Jim Carey grabbing himself and throwing himself to the ground in a comical, Gumby-like style :)]  Anyway…the leper threw himself at the feet of Jesus to thank him (praising God in a loud voice while on his way to Jesus).  At this display Jesus wonders where the other 9 are.  "Were not all 10 cleansed?" (Lk. 17:17)  After Jesus finishes pondering he says to the healed leper, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." (Lk 17:19)

Thoughts from my pondering brain:
(1) Didn’t the other 9 do exactly what they were told?  Yet Jesus is saddened by the fact they did not come back to praise God.

(2) In Matthew 8, Mark 1 and Luke 5 Jesus came across a leper but this time he touched him in order to heal him.  In this text there is no indication that Jesus came close to the leper, but rather gave an instruction (Naaman was healed in a similar way).  This seems to indicate something significant to ponder…hmmm…

(3) The healed leper who returned to praise God and thank Jesus received an additional healing: "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."  I think this healing took place as soon as his physical infirmity was healed; as soon as he realized that it was God who healed him.  Jesus just affirmed that fact and sent him off as a disciple (I say disciple because I am willing to bet this healed leper went out to tell people about this Jesus).

(4) I think Luke is going after the Jews of the time.  Of the ten lepers that were healed, a Samaritan (foreigner) come back to praise God and thank Jesus.  In Luke 10 it is a Samaritan that shows mercy to the beaten traveler.  In Luke 4 Jesus says that during Elisha’s time there were many people who had leprosy, but only Naaman, a foreigner, was healed.  I see this as Luke’s way of saying that God’s gift of faith is for ALL people – not just for a select few.

What are some of your ponderings?  What did YOU hear in this text? 

Common threads (Between 2 Kings 5 and Luke 17:11-19)
(1) Naaman and the 10 lepers were healed through a word and obedience.
(2) The gift of healing came to two people who "should not have been healed" – "foreigners".  God’s grace is for all.

These two texts give us a lot to think about.  But what ever you come away with, know this:  God’s grace is sufficient FOR YOU.  Have a joyous and blessed day.  Amen!

-edh-

Text study – 2 Kings 5:1-3 & 7-15c

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

Wow…two weeks in a row that I am starting with the Old Testament text.  Hopefully this is something I will do more often.  After all, in the three year Revised Common Lectionary, the Old Testament text and the Gospel text often have a common thread running through them.  I am not sure what text the sermon will come from this week, but I will start here and continue with the Gospel text later this week.  With that…let’s spend some time with good ole Naaman in 2 Kings chapter 5.

Naaman is a powerful and successful military commander for the king of Aram.  But Naaman had a little problem…he had leprosy…normally a death sentence (depending on the kind).  Obviously Naaman is not an outcast as we often see in the New Testament.  Naaman is still commanding his troops and is allowed to go and speak with his master.  Whatever the strain of leprosy that Naaman had, it was serious enough to go into enemy territory to seek healing.

After making the appropriate preparations, Naaman heads out to find this prophet, Elisha, who resides in Samaria.  Upon arriving at Elisha’s house, Naaman is greeted by one of Elisha’s servants who is carrying an important message, "Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed."  Wow…this sounds like good news.  Jump in the river and all will be well.  But Naaman doesn’t see it that way.

Naaman is offended and angry and leaves in a huff.  "How dare he, Elisha, to not even come out and heal me himself."  But one of Naaman’s servants sets him straight and Naaman eventually does as he is commanded.  Naaman returns to Elisha to offer his appreciation and thanks for being healed.

What is at the root of Naaman’s problem early on?
(1)  He feels deserving.  After all, he ventured into enemy territory to seek this healing.  Granted, he came under the banner of peace, but nothing is guaranteed.  Naaman went hoping and expecting this man of God to do something incredible.  If he didn’t feel deserving, he wouldn’t have gone through the trouble.

(2) He expects a "light show".  When Elisha does not come out, Naaman is angry.  He wanted (and expected) Elisha to come out and wave his hand, and do something impressive to conjure up a healing spirit (Naaman had no idea about this God of Elisha’s).  Once again, Naaman felt deserving and wanted to see Elisha "do his thing".

(3) He doesn’t trust the power of the promise.  When he is commanded to wash in the Jordan he is offended because the rivers back home are much cleaner and more appealing.  "Certainly those rivers would be better."  But it has nothing to do with the water.  Maybe there is a baptismal connection here.  I know of people how bring water back from the Jordan River to use in a family member’s baptism; thinking that the water is somehow more special or holy.  But it is not the water that does the work, but the promise with the water.  If the pastor decided to baptize a baby with Coke (though not advised) I believe God would still "do HIS thing".  It’s the promise.  Naaman missed this.

(4) (On the lighter side — Naaman is not Lutheran) — He does not believe in the Priesthood of all Believers.  Once again he is angry that a SERVANT came out to deliver this message of healing.  He felt Elisha should do it, after all ELISHA is the prophet.  The power of the promise and the Good News does not come from us…it comes from God.  Elisha did not heal Naaman, God did.  Something Naaman figures out after he is healed.

____________________

So…what are some possible preaching/teaching points:
(1) Connection with baptism.  The power of the promise is in the Word that comes from God.  It is not who does it or what is used or how it is done — it is the promise – the Good News.  God can not be limited.

(2) If a servant can carry a "healing message" then you can too.  God has a healing message for all His children and we are the servants who are to deliver it.  We have the power and authority to do so through Jesus Christ — the priesthood of all believers.

(3) The gift of healing is free.  Following this text, Naaman tries to offer Elisha some gifts, but Elisha does not accept.  The message of Good News, through Jesus Christ is offered to ALL people.  This is AMAZING GRACE "…how sweet the sound…".

(4) A healing service would be very fitting this Sunday (as it would anytime).  Anointing with oil and praying with people for healing in anyway God sees that the person needs.  For healing comes in a variety of ways.

____________________

Stay tuned for thoughts on the Gospel text coming up later this week.  In the mean time (and in all times), seek the Lord and know the healing power of the Good News — Jesus Christ has risen that we may have New Life.  Amen!

-edh-

Text study – Habakkuk

/ The Pastor / 7 Comments

I have decided that I shouldn’t be prejudiced against the Old Testament.

Actually…I am not really prejudiced against the Old Testament, I just don’t preach on it all that often.
You pastors/preachers out there…how often do you preach on the Old Testament? 

Looking through the scripture I have preached on over the last 3+ years I have been here (yes…I actually keep track of all the texts I preach on) I figured that I preach on the Old Testament about 12.1% of the time.  I preach on the Gospel text about 68% of the time.  I have only preached on the Old Testament text three times this year so far.  Maybe this week Habakkuk will make an appearance as the preaching text.  Perhaps…

Anyway…I thought I would jot down some thoughts about the Habakkuk text assigned this week by the "almighty" lectionary.  It’s a book we don’t open too often and I am willing to bet, a book that many people have not heard of or are not familiar with at all.  So here it goes.

Habakkuk was a prophet in the nation of Judah around the year 607 b.c.  The people were a wicked and perverse people.  They had long forgotten the God who brought them out of Egypt; lead them to the Promised Land; gave them years of prosperity and blessed them with His presence.  Now they were doing what pleased them and them alone.  Habakkuk, seeing the depravity around him, calls out to God wondering how long God is going to let this perversion last – "How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen?  Or cry out to you, ‘Violence!’ but you do not save?" (1:2)  Habakkuk has had it up to here (picture my hand at my forehead).

[Now this is where I need to interject something.  The lectionary assigns 1:1-4 and 2:1-4 and that is it.  But if that is all you read, you miss a lot.  Habakkuk is a short book — 3 chapters — so read the whole thing.  The ending is beautiful.  I am not sure what I will do on Sunday, but context needs to be set up.]

Now back to our program…

In verses 5-11 of chapter 1, God responds to Habakkuk by telling him that He is well aware of the perversion and is preparing something big — the Babylonians are going to come in and kick some butt and haul the people off into exile.  Well…this doesn’t sit well with Habakkuk because the Babylonians are even more perverse than the people of Judah.  Why would God even turn His eyes in the direction of the Babylonians? 

God once again responds (chapter 2).  God understands the sins of the Babylonians and they will certainly not escape judgment, but the people of Judah are guilty of greater sins.  God then goes into a diatribe of a series of "Woes" after a great verse (4) where God says, "See, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright – but the righteous will live by his faith…"

Habakkuk follows this up with one of scripture’s most beautiful psalms and the verse (19), "The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer. he enables me to go on the heights."  Habakkuk’s faith shines through even though he does not fully understand what God is doing.

The Gospel text (Luke 17:5-10) speaks of faith to move a mullberry tree.  Here we see an example of faith in the midst of trials.  We struggle with understanding why God does the things God does (or does not do).  We wrestle with what God’s will is.  We pace across the floor of our faith and wonder how long we can last.  But God calls us to be patient and in due time our reward will be here.  We don’t understand God (that’s not our job)…all we need to do is trust God; trust that since God is indeed Almighty, that God has everything under control – Remembering: "The Sovereign Lord is my (our) strength; he makes my (our) feet like the feet of a deer. he enables me (us) to go on the heights."

Hmmm…I think I am liking this book more and more.

Peace be with you and Amen!

-edh-

Text study – Luke 17:5-10

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

The 19th Sunday after Pentecost brings with it the scripture texts from:  Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4; Psalm 37:1-9; 2 Timothy 1:1-14 and Luke 17:5-10.  I am not sure what text I will be preaching on but a number of questions and thoughts came to mind this morning in reading (and discussing) Luke 17 at text study.  I am sure others will pop up during the week but for now this is what I am pondering.  Please leave a comment and let me (and everyone else who stops) know what you are pondering in relation to Luke 17 or the others listed above.

First let’s read the text from Luke 17:5-10:
"The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" The Lord replied, "If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. "Who among you would say to your slave who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here at once and take your place at the table’? Would you not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, put on your apron and serve me while I eat and drink; later you may eat and drink’? Do you thank the slave for doing what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’" "  (Citation: Luke 17:5-10; NRSV)

(1) "Increase our faith" — This is a curious request by the disciples.  Right before this request Jesus is talking about forgiveness.  Jesus says, "If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.  If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent’, forgive him." (Luke 17:3-4)  I wonder if the disciples were thinking, "Forgive him?  I don’t know if I can do that.  Hey Jesus…help us out and increase our faith".  I mean…an increase in faith would definitely help in forgiving a person who sins against you seven times in ONE DAY.  Right? 

I wonder though…do we really want Jesus to "increase our faith"?  On the Crossmarks Christian Resources website, Brian Stoffregen comments on this request from the disciples (page to the bottom of the page).  What would happen if Jesus were to "increase our faith"? We would be more dutiful servants; more dutiful in attending worship; more generous in giving, etc.  Do we really want that?  Do we really want our lives to change that drastically?  Its an intriguing thought.

(2) Jesus response to the disciple’s request.  Jesus said that if they had the faith the size of a mustard seed (the smallest of all seeds) then they could uproot a mulberry tree (a tree with strong roots and nearly impossible to uproot) and toss it out in the sea.  So I am wondering:  If we had even a little faith, does that mean we could easily forgive our neighbor if they sin against us seven times in a day?  Does this indicate that our faith is not big enough; that our only hope is to rely on the grace of God in Jesus Christ?  Maybe if we had faith the size of a mustard seed we would not need to rely on Jesus – we would be able to handle the requirements of the Law on our own.  Hmmm…any thoughts on this?

(3) So you also, when you have done all that you were ordered to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!’"  The question that was asked this morning is this — What do we really expect for being faithful to Christ?  This got me thinking:  Are there people around us (maybe even ourselves) that serve Christ expecting a reward of some sort?  This would imply that discipleship is a choice of some sort and if you choose to "do it" then a reward will be given to you (eternal life, maybe a corner room in God’s mansion, or a life time membership at the Holy Heaven Links and Country Club).  But Jesus says, "Do what you are commanded to do. You are unworthy, but guess what, that’s fine because I have done the hard work for you already.  I have died and risen from the grave so you can have eternal life.  Now…go out there and "Just do it".

Maybe it is not a matter of wishing we had more faith but just doing what we have been commanded to do; living in the knowledge that nothing we do will ever be good enough to merit salvation.  But that is fine because we live with a God of grace.  Our faith does not need to increase to the size of a mustard seed because we have Jesus.  We will slip and fall.  We will make mistakes.  We will hold grudges.  And we will turn away from Christ.  But in the end…God still loves us and offers us forgiveness.  God’s grace is indeed sufficient for us.

So…maybe the phrase for the day is:  Just do it and place your hope in Jesus.  Hmmm…

Those are just my initial ponderings.  What are yours?

-edh-

Text study – Psalm 146

/ The Pastor

Psalm 146 is the Psalm assigned for this Sunday (18th Sunday after Pentecost).  It is a Psalm praising God for being in control.  And I for one am glad GOD is in control because as we all know things hardly ever go as we plan.  The Psalms reads as follows:

Praise the LORD!

Praise the LORD, O my soul.
   I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
   I will sing praises to my God all my life long.

Do not put your trust in princes,
    in mortals, in whom there is no help. (emphasis mine)
When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
   on that very day their plans perish.

Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
   whose hope is in the LORD their God, (emphasis mine)
who made heaven and earth,
   the sea, and all that is in them;
   who keeps faith forever;
who executes justice for the oppressed;
   who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
   the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
   the LORD loves the righteous.
The LORD watches over the strangers;
   he upholds the orphan and the widow,
   but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

The LORD will reign forever,
   your God, O Zion, for all generations.

Praise the LORD!
(Citation: Psalm 146, NIV)

Maybe you have hear this phrase: "We make plans and God laughs".  I think there is a lot of truth in that statement.  Does that mean we shouldn’t make plans in life?  No way!  Making plans is fine…the troubles comes when we put our faith in such plans and them alone – when we put our faith in this world alone.

How many times have we made grand plans for something and have things "fall apart".  We stress and worry.  We fret and maybe blow up at someone.  We say something we regret and why?  All because OUR plans did not work out.  We get angry because we have lost control.

But then…in the end…everything works out…and sometimes for the better…and…in a way you never thought possible. 

GOD is in control!

In those moments I think back and hear a chuckle coming from God’s direction.  "If only they knew.  If only they would trust me".

Do not put your trust in princes,
    in mortals, in whom there is no help.

But…

Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
   whose hope is in the LORD their God…

There is a great song by contemporary Christian artist, Twila Paris, and currently re-recorded by Avalon titled, God is in Control.  I more than really enjoy that song but I love that title.  God IS in control.  And when our trust is put in God, then we can rejoice in no matter how our best laid plans work out.  Because when God is involved, then it HAS to be great, awesome and perfect.  And I for one am all for that.

So go ahead…make plans…prepare for the future.  But remember…GOD is in control!

Praise the Lord!

-edh-