Author: TechCommittee

December 13, 2015                                                              Text:  Zephaniah 3:14-20

 

Dear Friends in Christ,

 

Baby showers and bridal showers are celebrations before the celebrations.  The actual event has not yet occurred; that is, the baby is not yet born, and the couple is not yet married.  So the real celebrations are yet to come.  Still people bring gifts in anticipation of what is coming.  Even in a sin-corrupted world, where tragedies such as miscarriages and stillbirths cut short an otherwise joyful pregnancy, and called-off engagements end hope-filled wedding plans, people nevertheless come seemingly without any thought of these possibilities.  They celebrate, believing the joy will happen and they are sure of it’s coming.

The prophet Zephaniah wrote some six centuries before the birth of Christ – and at a time of impending judgment on God’s people.   Yet already he writes as if there’s a reason to celebrate:  “Sing aloud!”  “Rejoice!”  “Exult!”  Already he writes that the Lord has taken away his judgments against the people.  Why?  Because even during those centuries of the “first Advent,” Zephaniah was certain that the baby, the Messiah, was coming.  We know what is coming so we can celebrate that . . .

“CHRIST IS OUR JOY, NO MATTER THE SORROW”

It would seem we have many reasons not to celebrate.  We have rebelled against God and His commandments just like the people of Zephaniah’s day.  We live in sin-stained world.  We fight daily against evil.  Our relationships – family and work – suffer from the brokenness of our sinful world:  marriage challenges, conflict among children and parents, power struggles between co-workers, the stress of dealing with the public.  Then comes Christmas and we have our own lists we are trying to fulfill.  Oh, it can be a struggle.

This is where the church lives.  The church is our sanctuary in the midst of the challenge.  We live in a world that wants little or nothing to do with the Triune God.  Because of that the church suffers in the midst of that!  Sorrows in the midst of that!  Cries out to God in the midst of that!

And look at what God is once again impressing upon us this season of Advent; from our text:  “On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:  ‘Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.  The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.  I will gather those of you who mourn for the festival, so that you will no longer suffer reproach.’” (vs. 16-18)

Jesus “is in our midst” through his Word and Sacraments to forgive your sins and “quiet you by his love.”  We are calmed from our everyday stresses by Christ’s coming and his strengthening presence.  He rejoices and exults over us.  God is celebrating with us and sharing our joy.

Then look at what God says to the church regarding that Final Moment – the Day:  “Behold at that time I will deal with all your oppressors.  And I will save the lame and gather the outcast, and I will change their shame into praise and renown in all the earth.  At that time I will bring you in, at the time when I gather you together; for I will make you renowned and praised among all the peoples of the earth, when I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” says the Lord. (vs. 19-20)

A Pastor wrote, “As God gathers us, there are joys we celebrate.  The birth of a child.  A positive response to chemotherapy.  And there are sorrows we mourn.  A divorce.  A grandmother developing dementia.”  And you are probably thinking, “Yea, that is just the beginning!”

Most of bring certain sorrows into this sanctuary on a regular basis.  An event that has disappointedly altered the course of life.  A family member in trouble.  An affliction that has no real cure.  The loss of a loved one.  The loss of meaning for life.

And that doesn’t even take into consideration the regrets that dog us; the offenses we commit over and over again even after promising we are done with them.

The world can remove Christ from the public square holiday, but it cannot remove Christ from our hearts, from our lips, from our hopes.  The fact is this – in the midst of all earthly sorrows there is joy for the child of God.  There is Jesus who has loved us all along and will continue that love into eternity.  There is joy in that even when the earthly tears roll down our cheeks.

There is that wondrous promise the Holy Spirit inscribed across the forehead of His church; the one we hang on to:  “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

Thus Advent is a forward look.  And this Advent we once again look at the past to prepare for our celebration of Christ’s birth and the Day when He returns.  The world can have its holidays.  It can spend billions to celebrate.  But what?  Celebrate what?  A holiday for what?  And that’s just like the world and its wisdom.  Concocting something that leaves everyone spent – physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally and financially – spent with nothing left but some memories – good or bad.

But we have Jesus.  The One who promised, “Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” (John 11:25-26)  We have Christ the Savior.  And He is our joy, no matter the sorrow.

Amen.

Dec. 6, 2015                                                                           Text:  Philippians 1:2-11

 

Dear Friends in Christ,

 

The Rev. Dr. C.F.W. Walther lived from 1811 to 1887.  He was the 1^st President of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.  Because of his faithfulness to the Word of God he has been known as the “American Luther.”  Back in 1987 Glen Reichwald wrote an essay titled, “If Walther Were Alive Today” . . . listen to a portion:

“Were Walther alive today, he would find himself addressing the same issues that he faced one hundred years ago.  The scholarly Saxon would be debating theologians who desire to be called Lutherans, although they refuse to submit to the Holy Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions…He dealt with the Holy Scriptures, notably the doctrine of inerrancy; he agonized over the doctrine of Church and Ministry; he addressed the topic of Altar and Pulpit Fellowship and the liturgical life of the church.”

We are over 125 years removed from this time in the church’s life but the challenges remain the same.  They were the same during the time of Luther and they are the same as when Paul wrote to the Philippians.  Paul warned this Roman colony about people who spread the Gospel from bad motives and those who were enemies of the cross.  He encouraged them to defend and confirm the gospel and through knowledge and discernment to . . .

“APPROVE WHAT IS EXCELLENT”

What is excellent?  What counts as excellence in the long run?  Paul starts his letter by telling the Philippians how thankful he is for them.  They supported him and partnered with him in the Gospel.  They were God’s gift to him.

Did you ever stop to think that we are God’s gifts to one another?  The church isn’t like a bowling league or political organization where we get together because we like the same things.  No, God brought us together around Jesus.  He has given us to one another to support and encourage.

And we do need that, don’t we?  In our time, the devil is breaking in, bursting through the door, dropping in from the roof and doing his best to put out the gospel light.  He has made everything in our lives important except doctrine and the study of God’s Word.  He has created within our flesh a desire to make the church just like the world.  The devil works to replace the means of grace and the presence of Christ by filling us up with ourselves.

Thank God for giving us this church and the members you see around you today.  We gather in the name of Christ and are strengthened for the devil’s challenges by the inerrant Word of God.  We work together to share the gospel and we come together at the Lord’s altar to share a foretaste of the feast to come in heaven.  In my prayers I thank you for your partnership in the Gospel.

Another point of excellence is the confidence that comes in knowing Jesus.  It’s easy to lose confidence when churches close, people tell pollsters more and more that they have no religious affiliation and going to sporting events is more important than going to worship.  But still, Paul calls us to be confident that Jesus will bring it to completion on the Last Day.  Jesus will do it.  Jesus is our confidence.  How so?  Because of how he began the good work in us.

Music is one of the few activities that involve the whole brain.  When we listen to music, both sides of the brain, its many lobes, go into action.  Listen to this music in our ears – “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”  And what happens?  We welcome a new member into God’s family, a child of the heavenly Father.  Jesus began that.  On a cross, where forgiveness was won.  Leaving behind an empty tomb, Jesus lives again to live in our lives.  In Baptism, we are buried with Christ in his death and raised to new life in his resurrection.  What a wonderful good work he began in our lives.

At the end, Jesus will bring it to completion.  He will hold on to us.  He will keep us in the faith.  He will come back for us and bring our bodies out of their tombs to live forever in his glorious presence.  Paul is confident because Jesus is behind it all.

Another point of excellence is love.  Love is a verb.  Love does what benefits someone else.  Love does what God wants done.  Love seeks what is excellent, pure, honorable, just.  What does love look like for us?  Our love wipes away a tear with an embrace, a comforting word, a prayer.  Love bandages a wound with a bandage or simply being there for a person.  Love visits, sends a card, or makes a phone call to the lonely.  Love protects when it may put you in danger.  Love flows from Christ.

Paul calls for us to be faithful and to approve what is excellent.  As we give thanks for partnering in the gospel at this congregation, we can continue because of the confidence given us by a Savior who lives.  He loves us into eternal life that he will complete in his time and place.  Until then, we shine this gospel love to combat the forces of Satan.  Approve what is excellent every day of your lives.

Amen.