Fight

/ The Pastor

Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
[Jude 1:3‭-‬4 ESV]

My Twitter handle is “Feisty Pastor”. I don’t know where that came from; whether from me or someone else, but I think it is pretty descriptive. I have been known to be a little feisty from time to time; especially when I see the faith being attacked, watered-down, twisted, or perverted as the author of Jude alluded. It especially bothers me when people from within the Church are perverting the Word of God. They do this because they have been seduced by the world to conform – violating Paul’s admonition in Romans 12. They have crept in unnoticed and have lead many people astray. As a Christian and pastor/feisty pastor, I will not stand idly by and watch the perversion happen. I will contend for the faith, because the Word of God is Life and to water it down saves no one. Christian, will you contend for the faith? Will you fight for that which is of utmost importance? How do we fight you may ask? By staying true to the Word of God in the face of opposition; serving as an example to the world. Stand firm then – to contend for the faith is a hill worth dying on. Jesus did — all for you.

Amen.

Amazing Forgiveness

/ The Pastor

God’s forgiveness of our sins is amazing when you consider what we deserve. We deserve death and condemnation, but through faith in Christ there is forgiveness. Wow! But to go about one’s life, refusing to forgive others means you really don’t understand God’s forgiveness of your own sins. That’s why clear, consistent and frequent Gospel proclamations are so necessary, lest we forget what God has really done through Jesus Christ. With that, I present the following poem. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…

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The command is given
The sign is clear
Do not do this
and do not go amiss.

But yet I disobey
I just ignore
I disregard
the command I discard.

And now I deserve wrath
from God my Lord
I’ve disobeyed
For it’s God I’ve betrayed.

Punishment is certain
for my trespass
I deserve it
for that I must admit.

Oh God, please forgive me
in Jesus name
for my trespass
would Your wrath please surpass.

Your grace is amazing
Your love complete
my soul You’ve spared
even though I have erred.

So now may I forgive
and show much grace
as You have done
to show how You have won.

Oh God You’re amazing
Me a sinner
Jesus my King
Oh God, what a nice ring.

Praying the Psalms ~ Psalm 33:18-22

/ The Pastor

This prayer is titled, “Beautiful Eyes” and is from the Psalm that will be read in worship on Sunday, August 11. These closing verses captured my heart and I hope they lead you to deeper appreciation and worship of our awesome God. Let us pray…

Oh Lord my God,
what beautiful eyes You have,
to look upon me with grace and love,
to keep my soul and to give me peace.
Your eyes look off the advances of the Evil One;
keeping him at bay as a pitcher staring down a runner at first base.
With Your eyes lovingly gazing at me, I have nothing to fear.
Oh Lord my God,
Father and Creator, I give You thanks.
And now I wait on You, for I know that Your beautiful eyes are on me.
I know I am not forgotten.
I know I am not lost in the shuffle.
Your eyes are on me and thus my heart is glad.
My trust is in You for Your eyes will never depart from me.
You will never be distracted thus I can rest secure.
Your eyes won’t grow weary or tired.
Your eyes will not fail.
Because You are God almighty,
Sovereign,
Lord,
and Creator,
I will continue to place my hope in You, from this day forth and forevermore.
Amen.

Light and Dark

/ The Pastor

Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
1 John 2:9‭-‬11 ESV

A person who says they are a Christian and yet shows hatred towards someone is a person residing in darkness with nothing more than a burning wooden match. They see what is in their immediate vicinity but can’t see the whole picture. Eventually their match burns out and they have nothing left but darkness; walking and stumbling to their destruction. A person who truly follows Jesus; who has the Light of the Holy Spirit residing in them sees the bigger picture. Instead of shadows and outlines, they see their neighbor as a child of God. The one who truly walks with Jesus, the Light of the world, walks in the light where darkness has been scattered. Their destination is Life eternal.

Beware what your source of light is, the wooden match of worldly pride, selfishness and self-righteousness or the Light of Christ. One will be extinguished and the other is eternal.

Amen.

Don’t Deceive Yourself

/ The Pastor

If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:8‭-‬9 ESV

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One of the things that I am trying to teach my children is to be honest when they do something wrong. Too often, when confronted with their sin, my children are adamant in their denial. I didn’t do it. Even though it is obvious that they are guilty. I reassure them that I am not mad but rather I just want them to be honest. I reaffirm my love for them and say that there is nothing they can do that will change that. I remind them that I will always forgive them even though there may be consequences. But for a child, the fear of punishment is strong and thus their adamant denials and failed attempts to cover up their own sins.

But isn’t this a commentary for the Christian?

There may be sins in your life that you are afraid to admit. There may be sins that you are afraid to even voice in your own head when praying to God. You may bury the sin deep in your memory, hoping that time will heal and the wrong will be mended. Or…you may even deny that a sin is a sin, attempt to justify the sin or try to divert God’s attention to “worse sinners”. But daddy he broke your ________.

The fact of the matter is that we can not hide our sins, we can not deny our nature, and we can not divert God’s attention. God knows our sin, but God is a God is grace. His love is not diminished because of your sin. God is faithful and just to forgive your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness. If Jesus is your Lord and Savior, don’t be afraid of your sin, but confess your sin and know the forgiveness of your loving heavenly Father. Don’t deny who you are and don’t deny who God is. You are a sinner, but God is a God of grace. Let Him heal you and love on you.

Amen.

No Matter What, God Reigns

/ The Pastor / 2 Comments

Today, is August 4, and this nation is mourning after two deadly shooting sprees in the last days or so. Many are shaking their fists at heaven wondering where is God; and thus turning to worldly leaders for answers and action. But no matter the situation, God reigns. I have no explanation for this shooting sprees, I just know my God who holds my life in His hands and thus my hope is in Him. My prayer is that others come to know Him through Jesus Christ as well.

So with that in mind, I wrote the following Holy Communion liturgy for this morning. Let pray together, and instead of finger pointing, let’s raise all our fingers to God in praise and worship for being rich towards Him in Jesus Christ.

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It is indeed right and salutary that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, oh God, Father and Creator. We look around and grieve the violence and hatred. We listen to our neighbors and hear hate-filled words, fear and hopelessness. We live in a sin-fallen world that looks to worldly gods and leaders for their peace and security, but You reign, and thus we give You praise. Through Jesus Christ You and You alone have overcome this world. You have defeated sin, Satan and hate. No amount of violence can stop Your will from being done. No amount of rhetoric can bury Your Words of Life. No amount of riches can compare to You, for through Christ we are rich beyond our wildest dreams and imagination. And thus, as children in Your family; sheep of Your flock we have no fear in this world, for You and You alone reign. And therefore, with the Church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we join in singing Your unending praise…

Daily Bread

/ The Pastor / 1 Comment

When praying for “daily bread” in the Lord’s Prayer, we are not just praying for some good sourdough for supper (or dinner depending where you live). Daily bread is so much more than what we often think about. Martin Luther, in his explanation in the Small Catechism, offers a list of things included. To probe the depths of this petition requires more than a short post, but hopefully the following poem will begin to help you think more deeply about this petition when you pray, Give us this day our daily bread...

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Give me this day my daily bread.
All that I need to live each day.
You’re my Provider and my God,
Putting Your glory on display.

Food and water and air I breathe.
Home and clothing and family.
Work and income and friends with me.
All these blessings come happily.

But there is more than what I see,
Your holy gifts are more complete.
Your grace extends beyond my eyes.
Your blessings just can not be beat.

What I need is Jesus my Lord,
the true and only living bread.
Without this awesome grace from You,
I would most certainly be dead.

But this bread is not mine alone.
You bless that I may give and give.
Turn my heart to see more than me.
Oh God, my greed, oh please forgive.

So may I see Your holy gifts;
returning to You praise that’s due.
Without this holy bread each day,
My days would certainly be few.

Rest-filled Blessing

/ The Pastor

I post this evening blessing for you as a reminder as you prepare to retire for the day. I will be meditating on this shortly; before I fall asleep. There is so much swimming in my head by days end, that I just need something peaceful to reflect on as I drift off. May you find peace through this blessing.

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May the peace of God through Jesus Christ comfort your weary soul.
May it soothe all you hurts.
May it calm all your fears.
May Your heavenly Father hold the Evil One at bay;
fighting the fight as you rest your tired body.
As you close your eyes and drift off to sleep this night,
may your final images be that of your Savior:
– Cradling you in his arms,
– Gazing into your eyes,
– Whispering once again his promises to you.
May these images fill you with peace so that your body can be restored for another day of showing the world the love of God.
Rest assured, child of God, that your Savior watches over you.
You are loved by your Father in heaven.
Rest with the knowledge that you are filled with His blessing.
Amen.

Winning Side

/ The Pastor

God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered; and those who hate him shall flee before him!
Psalms 68:1 ESV

When you are in Christ, you are on the winning side. God’s victory and reign is not a yet-to-be-decided type of thing. It has been determined and settled. God has triumphed over the world through the cross and the empty tomb. Jesus’ resurrection means sin, death and the power of Satan have been defeated. And thus, those who oppose God will go by the way of Satan and his minions. They will flee defeated and eventually be judged and condemned. Those who are in Christ are victorious by virtue of Jesus’ love and grace. So stand firm in Christ and rest in the fact that as Christ was raised so you shall be also. Nothing can oppose those take refuge in God our Father. Spread the Good News. Jesus lives. God reigns forever and ever. Amen.

Babble

/ The Pastor

“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,”
[2 Timothy 2:15‭-‬16 ESV]

There is a lot of babble out there; rhetoric that makes one shake their head and roll their eyes. For me, I am grieved when I hear some of the talk. It’s polluting young minds, transforming experienced minds, threatening those who resist, coercing those who speak otherwise. The babble insists on tolerance but the babblers don’t understand their own babble as they act contrary to their talk.

The babblers call God-fearing, Bible-believing, Jesus-following Christians out of touch, intolerant, bigoted and racist – all because they stand for the truth of God. The babblers pressure them into submission and guilt them into compliance with the babble. And in doing so, God-fearing people have been transformed into man-fearing people and into ungodiness. I just sit here and shake my head.

But as God-fearing, Bible-believing, Jesus-following Christians, you have nothing and no one to fear. Present yourself to this world as approved by God through Jesus Christ. Present yourself as someone who doesn’t need the approval of man. Present yourself as one steeped, not in the babble, but in the Word of God – but be sure you handle the Word in a way that glorifies God and not yourself. And lastly, never be ashamed to stand for the truth of God.

Avoid babbling and don’t be influenced or seduced by the babble. Stand approved by God and God willing, the babblers themselves will be transformed into God-approved, God-fearing witnesses to the Truth.

To God be the glory. Amen.