Month: May 2010

Let us pray: Dear Savior, once long ago, You promised the disciples and Your Holy Church that they would receive power from on high. At Pentecost You poured out that power upon them and upon us. Today give us a new dose of that power. Cause us to recognize its strength. And move each of us to use it wisely. Amen

GRACE MERCY AND PEACE ARE YOURS FROM CHRIST, THE SOURCE OF ALL TRUE POWER

TEXT: Acts 14: 8-18

Fellow Redeemed Sinners:

During the average Sunday sermon pastors talk a lot about humility, love, kindness and compassion. Hopefully, every pastor especially stresses the forgiveness of sins, which presupposes a humble, repentant heart. But, we seldom discuss power. However, the Bible is replete with examples of Godly power. Think of Elijah hovering over that dead boy in Zarapheth and raising him to life. That was raw, Godly power in action. Think of the miracles of Jesus. Raw power there, too. Or how about the dying Jesus turning to that thief on the cross and promising him Paradise? Well, that is a bit different than we might expect, but since that promise came from God’s lips, it was power-filled.

We usually view Godly power in human terms. We see it in terms of externals we can sort of understand. Miracles, resurrections, physical healings, or the Pentecost ability to speak in tongues come to mind. But such a narrow view of Godly power would be a mistake. The exact same God Who created the earth from nothing, caused the Red Sea to part through Moses, and led His people to the promised land in that visible pillar of fire; that God employs His exact same power today in the seemingly mundane.—Causing the rains to fall and the seasons to come and go isn’t flashy, but it breeds life. And using the simple water of baptism, the humble elements of bread and wine in communion, and the common words of Christians: “I forgive you all your sins”; well, behind the mundane stands the sublime! Behind such things stands Godly power, even though most refuse to acknowledge it. In fact, God has chosen to use the mundane of this world to really show forth His power. We see that especially in the cross, an instrument of torture and death, which through Christ brings eternal life. Why does God use such things to bring us His power? The answer is: He’s not into dazzling us or preying on our emotions. No, He’s into saving us. To do that, He wants to elicit and work faith into our hearts. And only humble, rejectible vehicles of His grace which seemingly hide His power, can cause a person to hold onto Christ and His forgiveness, even when the world says: “It’s all rubbish.”

There’s another reason behind using the “common and ordinary” to convey His power to us. It’s to keep us humble. If we were given the power to hurl lightening bolts at others or zap out miracles, our egos would become inflated rather quickly, we’d become corrupted by our gift of Godly power, and ultimately we’d do what Satan did so long ago in eternity, we’d try to, or at least believe we could supplant God Himself. Likewise, those viewing such displays might believe, but it would be through fear or coercion rather than through love. And none of the above would honor God.

Today, we are confronted with an amazing lesson in Godly power and we see the human dilemma of both faith and dazzled acceptance resulting from it. One honors God, one does not. Since you and I have been given the hidden, hooded power of God—the Gospel—to use and employ, this lesson is most instructive. And it really teaches us to:

ALWAYS USE GOD’S POWER IN HUMILITY

I

As I’ve stated, most of the time Godly power is unseen. That’s because it focuses upon changing people from the inside out, whereas our eyes only view the outward appearance. Here both aspects are combined. The result is: the townspeople of Lystra are quite jubilant! They view Paul and Barnabas as greek gods, Zeus and Mercury, the supposed patrons of their city, all because they healed this middle-aged man of his birth defect—the inability to walk. However, the greater power was found in their preaching of Christ crucified and the forgiveness of sins which implanted and worked faith into that poor beggar’s heart. That power saved his soul. That power saved his life eternally. But the townsfolk are oblivious to that miracle, aren’t they? The razzle-dazzle, the healing miracle, was but a fruit given to this man on account of his faith. The faith was all important. But the townsfolk are blinded to real power because it just doesn’t overly excite their senses.

II

When the local priest of Zeus’ temple puts together a parade to honor Paul and Barnabas, brings a couple of laurel-wreathed oxen to sacrifice to them, and calls them: “gods”—well, Paul has had enough! He refuses to accept their accolades. He refuses to violate the 1st commandment. Instead, he launches into a sermon about how they are only men, how they have come to bring something far better than razzle-dazzle, how the living God—Christ—made everything, sustains everything, gives us signs of real power in keeping the rains and seasons going to sustain life, and how like this healed man, God now wants to heal their souls through the blood of Christ. Luke then adds: “Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.”

St. Paul knew all about Godly power. He had experienced it during his conversion on the road to Damascus. He had used it in many ways during his life—even raising a dead man in one instance. But most of all, he knew that the Gospel, the good news of salvation in Christ, was the real dynamite, the real power of God. In fact, in Romans 1:16 Paul writes about this: “I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe.” Paul had been humbled by the power of God’s gift of eternal life. Nothing he did before his conversion had so gripped his heart and changed his life for the better. Nothing before had worked peace with God into his very soul. So, Paul here uses that power wisely and humbly to attempt to dose these Lystrians with Godly power. Through his actions and words, Paul mimics what St. John the Baptist said to his disciples when they asked him about Jesus: “He must increase but I must decrease.” Yes, Paul is living out what Christ said in John 15:5 when it came to using Godly power: “Without Me, you can do nothing.”

III

I’d like to give you a happy ending to this story. But I cannot. For in the verses following our text we see the fickleness of people who focus on the razzle-dazzle but refuse to listen and experience true Godly power—the power of the Gospel. Rabble-rousing enemies of Paul and Christ appear in the city. Within a few days they totally turn the townsfolk against Paul and the entire group is forced to flee from Lystra for their lives. Kind of reminds you of Palm Sunday and Good Friday, doesn’t it? Hosanna one day and crucify the next.

Baptism, communion, Sunday’s absolution, Sunday school, confirmation classes, Bible studies, sermons—none of them are filled with much razzle-dazzle. And so, it’s easy to conclude that none of them contains Godly power. Don’t make that mistake, my friends! Don’t do what these Lystrians did. Instead, expose yourself to true power, recognize it, rejoice over it, and use it in humility, awe, and thankfulness. Amen

Let us pray: Lord, You have told us: “Whoever confesses Me before men, him will I confess before my Father in heaven.” Today inspire and renew our confession of You and keep our eyes always fixed upon Your wonderful, welcoming, heavenly greeting. Amen

GRACE MERCY AND PEACE ARE YOURS FROM CHRIST, WHO ALONE IS THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE!

TEXT: Acts 13: 44-52

Fellow Redeemed in Christ, and Especially You, Kelly and Melissa:

Confirmation is your public confession and renewal of your infant baptism. It is your opportunity to speak to the world about the faith the Spirit generated in your heart even before you could formulate understandable words. It is also your entrance into spiritual adulthood—the two years of study mimicking the 3 years spent by the disciples before Jesus’ feet. And like them, now that Christ is physically absent from this earth, you are to spend the rest of your life “speaking the truth in love.” You are to spend your lifetime walking the walk and talking the talk of God’s eternal salvation in Jesus Christ.

I speak from experience when I say: “This won’t be easy.” People will brand you as bigoted if you politely speak of the 10 commandments. When you walk away from temptation, your sinful nature will tell you: “Just go with the flow, everyone else is doing it.” Friends will look at you as a bit weird if you actually go to church on Sunday morning instead of hitting the mall for that early sale. And if you truly remain committed to Christ, as you pledge to be today, you’ll have people who will be verbally and even physically abusive towards you. I’ve had my life threatened twice in my ministry. I’ve had doors shut in my face. I’ve had neighbors and even relatives shun me. Ah, there will be those who view having you revolve around their sphere of influence akin to possessing a rabbit’s foot. Some will view you as their “good luck” charm. But when you actually stand up for right vs. wrong they will tune you out and perhaps even berate you openly.

Why does this happen? After all, all we Christians are trying to do is keep people away from hurtful evil, provide them with a peaceful conscience, and show them the way to heaven. Well, you know why people will brand these attempts as hate-speech. All people are sinners who reject any attempt by God to rein-in their sinful nature. And most of all, down deep they really don’t like Christ. His free gift of forgiveness for sins won on the cross for all is an affront to their ego and their pride. Christianity means they cannot boast about what they’ve achieved on their own. Christ’s sacrifice for them on the cross hurts their sinful self-image and thus they will walk away from Him—keeping their heart for themselves.

St. Paul traveled throughout Asia Minor, today called Turkey, trying to save souls. To do that, He preached both Law and Gospel. He showed them exactly how they could not measure up to God’s standards, but how Christ had lived in their place, died for their failings, and lovingly handed out His forgiveness to all who wanted to embrace Him in faith. Today we find him in the city of Antioch doing exactly that. And unfortunately, many people, Jewish worshippers who wanted to boast before God about their human achievements, rejected Paul’s message. But then, Paul announced to the heathen background Gentiles present the truth about Christ: “He has made him a light for the Gentiles, that he might bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”

Up til now, these Gentiles, these non-Jewish worshippers, thought they were excluded from God’s grace and blessing. They thought: “It isn’t meant for us, but we can hope.” However, upon hearing Paul’s message: “they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.”

You and I were born to Gentile families. And by the love of God showered upon us and proclaimed to us, we have had our hearts gladdened. Thus, we, too, honor God’s Word of comfort and peace. We, too, believe and thereby all fears about our eternal future are taken away by our living Lord Who triumphed over our graves.

Thinking back over the years, I recall my own confirmation class. Out of the 13 young folks who confessed their undying faith and allegiance to Christ that day in May 42 years ago, only about half of them still go to church. Two, who left God behind early in life, are dead. Another 5 could care less about Christ as evidenced by their life of rejection of His truths. It’s very sad, but true.
Meanwhile, the others have forged ahead with their lives, been blessed by God every step, been empowered to cope with the tough times that always seem to come our way, and are basically happy and content. What you do with you faith in future years will determine which group you end up in.

Sometimes, like Paul in our lesson, even though you really care about others and try to pull them out of their rebellious lifestyle against God, your attempts will be rejected. Sometimes you, too, will have to walk away in sadness from them, just as Paul and Barnabas did in our lesson. But, but, every time you point out to others how Jesus helps you, how Jesus uplifts you when you’re depressed and lonely, how Jesus shows you the right way to go in His Word and it works, how Jesus fills your soul with love and compassion for others who hurt inside; well, that kind of confession will touch others, uplift others, bring them to faith, and ultimately save their souls! Such times are heady; you’re on top of the world! During such times you realize just how special it is to be able to make an eternal, lasting impact upon another human being.

When I look back over the years I’ve lived, when I overview my own confirmation confession to the world, I see both successes and failures. I recall times when I doubted God’s power and His plan for my life. I remember the inner hurts I’ve felt. But, Jesus keeps working on me and keeps giving me successes which overwhelm the hurts. And so, today I find myself at peace with God living a fulfilled life. I know I’m forgiven in Christ. I know I’m loved in Christ. I know I’m blest in Christ. I know I’m safe with Christ. And I know I’ll always be happy deep down inside because of Christ.

Ignorant people often characterize Christians as sad, brooding, dictatorial, and negative. They often categorize non-Christians as carefree and upbeat because they don’t brood over their sins. In actuality, it is reversed! Non-Christians hide their inner fears behind a veneer of trying to have fun; whereas as believers really can have fun and be filled with ongoing joy because we know that Christ took all our fears and in Him they were nailed to a cross and died then and there. In fact, that’s the reason why upon leaving Antioch, instead of brooding, “the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”

Today that same Spirit comes to you and fills you with joy, too. Each of you is special to God Almighty. Each of you is His daughter made holy by Christ. Each of you is rich beyond any compare since eternal life has become your baptismal birthright. Knowing those things, how can you not tell others and share with them the blessings God has given to you? How can you not “let your light shine?” And when you do, your inner joy at being one of God’s eternal family, will increase exponentially.—That is His ongoing confirmation gift to you! Ame