Pastor Thoughts from Wheatland Wyoming

On Tuesday I had my bimonthly MRI. Thanks be to God, there is no change! I am still tumor free (though will never be cancer free.) God has been very gracious to me and my family, and I look forward to attending my daughter’s wedding, and doing some projects around the house this summer.

Here is my monthly treatment schedule for the foreseeable future:

Week 1: Chemo week! 5 days of chemo pills at nearly 3X the dose I was taking in January. Like taking a punch to every functioning part of my body.

Week 2: Recovery. Slowly getting back into the swing of things.

Weeks 3&4: Getting all my work done while I feel good and wait for my blood to recover so we can do it again.

I’m actually thankful for the Chemo. It’s not easy to find medicines that can treat the brain. The brain is created by God to block any sort of foreign substance. (It’s called the Blood-Brain Barrier.) That’s a good thing. But finding drugs that can cross it and effectively treat diseases of the brain is tough. And smart people dedicate their lives to figuring out medicines that will do it. I’m thankful someone figured this out. And relatively, the side effects are minor. A lot of cancer treatments are much worse. For the most part, I can handle ministry and household tasks even while on the Chemo. I just feel lousy doing them.

But I am still thankful for everyone who has been praying for me, and showing love in a thousand small and large ways. It really makes a difference. So keep up the prayers, and God willing, my next scan in August will be as positive.

Next week: Round of tests. MRI to see if I’m still clear, and blood tests to make sure I can continue with my Chemo treatments.

I’ve been absolutely humbled by the number of people including me in their daily and church prayers. Visitors to my congregation used to sometimes say, “My pastor told me to say ‘Hi'”. Now it seems, every visitor starts with “We’re praying for you at our church.” Where is the church? Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Texas, and I think Virginia. It feels as if the entire nation is praying for me.

And I am so thankful. Not only for the love and prayers, but also for the response so far to those prayers. God has been super-abundantly gracious thus far. Things are getting back to as-much-normal-as-possible for now.

So, keep the prayers coming, especially for favorable results next Wed!

UPDATE: Forgot Wisconsin! And Ohio! If you are praying for me and I haven’t listed your state, message me and I’ll include it.

UPDATE 2: Michigan. That’s my fault. So many family there. Should have remembered!

The Holy Spirit descends like a dove

(You can listen to this week’s sermon on our Spotify Podcast! https://open.spotify.com/episode/6gVQF8rJQ8LRnzPHzcpzWg) Or read along here:

Do we give enough attention to the Work of the Holy Spirit? Honestly, Lutherans are not the most excitable group of Christians. We don’t have a lot of whooping in our services. We have a script, we stick to it. It is clear from the history of the church that this is the usual pattern of doing things. Paul tells us that God a God of order, not disorder and that our services need to be orderly. The book of Revelation lays out worship in heaven far more orderly than anything we would hope to arrange on earth. But on a day like Pentecost, when the apostles are so full of the holy spirit that their heads are on fire, the Spirit moved through the crowd as Peter preached and 3,000 were Baptized, Prophecies from Joel about dreams and darkness are fulfilled, and here we sit quietly singing our 500 year old hymns out of the book at the designated time, we look around and maybe think more exciting things are happening elsewhere, and our minds wonder, “Are we missing something?” Are we just a group of boring doctrinalists, who pour over our ancient texts, but miss the forest for the trees?

First of all, Pentecost was extraordinary even among the extraordinary lives of the apostles. They performed miracles, traveled to the ends of the earth, they had heard Jesus teach during his ministry, and were witnesses to his death and resurrection. And even they only had Pentecost happen the one time. It was not repeated – not in Jerusalem, not in any of the cities visited by the Apostles. The rest of Acts indicates that the crowds went back home to Parthia, Pamphylia, Cappadocia, and so on. After Pentecost, If the apostles wanted to speak to someone in a different language, they had to learn the language or find an interpreter. The church in Jerusalem struggled mightily. The members were persecuted by the religious leaders – not just harsh words, but beatings, locked out of jobs, Paul took a collection for them on more than one occasion from churches elsewhere – churches that could only be considered wealthy if you compared them to the church in Jerusalem.

But doesn’t it say that the Lord added daily to their number? Yes. Multiple times. At the end of this chapter, then again in chapter 5 right before the Apostles are imprisoned, and in chapter 11, 4 verses before it says James was killed by Herod. The book of Acts records an exciting, and dangerous time in the church.

All times in the church are exciting and dangerous. It isn’t only in Acts. The church is exciting because even when the church is losing in the world – either through active persecution, or through indifference and a seeming loss of inertia , God’s word is being proclaimed, and there are still some sinners  being forgiven. Even if it’s one of those times where the church seems to be fading , God’s Spirit is still working where and when he wills it. Sinners being saved is exciting – a miracle. We can’t do that, it’s God’s work. And it’s always a dangerous time because the world will never accept the church. And, being Lutherans as we are, anytime we mention the opposition of the world, we also mention the devil who fights against everything God does, and our own sinful flesh that wants nothing to do with God, and we struggle with that each day. We need a revival – not just in the land, but in our own hearts. “Create in my a clean heart O God!” The drought is not just physical lack of water. There is a serious lack of hunger and thirst for the things of God. In the church and especially in the world, God’s Word does not have the place of honor it should. Any judgment brought by God against us would be just and right.

That’s why it’s such good news that the Lord is patient and loving, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. Because there is plenty of reason for him to be angry and to send his wrath against us. Instead, he gently calls us back time and again. And this is the work of the Spirit among us.

The Spirit’s work is to go where the Word is preached, where the sacraments are given out, and through them, bring people to faith according to the will of God. In a way this is very public work. We have the office of the Holy Ministry to publicly preach and teach the Word, we advertise our services to the community and invite our friends and neighbors to join us in hearing God’s Word. We meet publicly to do that. But the work of the Spirit is also a hidden work in a way. As Paul says, one plants another waters, but GOD gives the growth. The work of the Spirit in the heart is something we can not see. We aren’t weaving threads into a garment where the more we work the longer the fabric. Instead we plant the seed of God’s word into the hearts of our family, friends, co workers, as we share the hope that is in us. And then we must wait for God to bring growth. Sometimes it can happen quickly. Other times it may take many years. Some ground is so hard packed that there is never growth. But in God’s time, according to his work, faith is created even many times in dedicated sinners, who often fight against God all the way, but still find themselves in the kingdom at the end.

Sometimes the Spirit works through miracles and signs and wonders. Those tend to be in areas where the Gospel is newly introduced. The pagan worship of earthly elements or animals goes up against the Spirit of the living God, and missionaries can tell many accounts of miraculous events, and demonic activity that tries to destroy the Gospel but is overcome by the name of Jesus. But there is no guarantee of miraculous signs. Oftentimes – most time – the Spirit works through simple and mundane everyday sorts of things – like a parent instructing a child, a family struggling to get to church and learning about God’s Word. Reading the bible in the home, family devotions between meal time and running off to activities time – which may only be a few minutes. But precious minutes if spent teaching and learning the Word of God.

The Spirit never promises to always give miracles, to speak in and untangle others tongues and so on. The untangling of tongues happens only the one time that’s recorded in our Epistle. But, again it being Pentecost, it’s worth asking: Are we still neglecting the work of the Spirit.

For us to answer that, we need to know what the work of the Spirit is. And we need to understand how he works among us, what God desires the Spirit’s work in the world to look like, and what he promises he will do to preserve his church.

In the Gospel today, Jesus promises the Holy Spirit. What does he say the Spirit will do? It’s actually kind of un-impressive at first but when you think about it, it’s a great comfort. The Holy Spirit is the Comforter. He provides comfort to us in times of trouble. Two weeks ago, Jesus promised the Comforter, and said, “In the world you have trouble, but do not be afraid, I have overcome the world.” Today it’s “Peace I leave with you, do not let your hearts be troubled. I am going away (His death), and I will come to you (His resurrection)” Jesus sends us comfort by his death and resurrection – that’s how he overcame the world, that’s where he is going to. It’s why we hear the passion and Easter account each year as we come through the springtime. Because the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead changes everything. It has to. As CS Lewis wrote, “One must keep on pointing out that Christianity is a statement which, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.” The Resurrection is either true, and changes everything, or it is false and is worth nothing. This isn’t actually original to CS Lewis. Paul says the same thing in 1 Cor 15. “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.”

And the Spirit’s work is to bring us into this new reality – into the life of God himself. Jesus says the Spirit will do it in this way: “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

The primary work of the Holy Spirit is to bring to their remembrance all that he has said. We’ve talked before about what it means to remember in the scriptural sense. It’s  not just thinking about, or looking back, or nostalgia for times gone by. Remembering is calling up the works of God which he has done as the proof that he will continue to work among us and has not abandoned us. When the Psalmist begins to despair, he says, “How long oh Lord how long, will you forget me forever?” Sometimes we feel that way. As if we are forgotten by God. But he remembers his promise, his grace and mercy, and he teaches us each day to look only to him for help and comfort, and to trust in his merciful goodness. Not only as he cares for and sustains us in our life in this world, but as he brings us his word of salvation. And the Work of the Spirit – the main work of the Spirit among the apostles, wasn’t the miracles. It was giving them the words to write down in the Holy scriptures, so we are promised, and can be certain that what was written about Jesus is what truly happened. All of it – the Virgin birth, the miracles, the crowds, the betrayal, the suffering, the death, and most importantly, the resurrection.

The Holy Spirit caused the disciples to remember all that Jesus said and did, so they could record it for us, so that we would know that it is inspired of God, inerrant in every detail. The one absolutely trustworthy book in all of creation. Holy Scripture is not a work of man’s devising, it is a work of God. He gave the apostles the specific words to write down. And he has given that precious word to us so that we would learn his works among us, from the moment of creation all the way through to the redemption on the cross, and the empty grave. Many scoff at this, mock this. Say that Jesus couldn’t have done what scripture says, that he could not have been born in such a unique way. Or that he could not have been raised from the dead because that’s not how death works. To which we say again and again, We know death doesn’t work that way. Which is why we think it’s such a big deal that Jesus broke the rules about death, not just for himself, but for all who believe in all times and all places.

The Spirit’s primary work is through the preaching and teaching of the Word. And Jesus promises that in his church we find his word of promise taught so that we would know and believe. Many try to look around on their own, in the stars for signs and wonders, in the world, through all sorts of mystical experiences, or strange happenings, or personal insights, or some sort of emotional moment that becomes important to us because of how we felt. But the truth is, with so much on the line and the promise Jesus gives being so clear, it’s dangerous to look for the Spirit where he has not promised to be. And he hasn’t promised to be in some deep look inside ourselves, so some emotional outburst. He has promised to be where Jesus is preached. We preach Christ Crucified, says Paul. Because it is what the Spirit brings to us: Jesus dying for your sins and being raised again to a new life.

God desires all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. Salvation for all. That’s why God wants. And God works – often through tough times – to break up the stony ground of our heart so that the soil is good and the word can be heard and implanted, and can finally begin to grow in us. Everywhere Jesus or the Apostles in the bible talk about Spiritual growth, they talk about patience. The list of the fruits of the Spirit is “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” These are long-cultivated fruits. They do not come quickly. And they are opposed to the things of the flesh. Paul says it, that we look to the fruits of the spirit, not the passions and desires of the flesh. Those, he says, are crucified with Jesus – Baptismal language. In our new life then, we carefully cultivate, Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”

If God is interested in your eternal salvation (which he is), in bringing you into the reality of resurrection, the life of God, and the patient cultivation of spiritual fruit, that’s a totally different goal than a God who wants to give – as one heretic said, “Your best life now.” God isn’t all that interested in a life of leisure and ease for you right now in his world. Instead, God gives us all that we need to be a part of the new life he offers in Christ Jesus.

What does a Spirit-filled life look like? We come to church to hear and learn God’s Word, we respond with prayers, praises, thanksgiving. We sing hymns and canticles with gusto, joining together our voices to make a joyful noise to the Lord. When we are done here, we go out and live boldly in the world, showing love to our neighbor in all that we do. We pray morning, evening, throughout the day. We confess sins to one another, and forgive the sins committed against us, as Jesus does and teaches.

In Luther’s day, they thought the Spiritual folks where the ones who abandoned the world, left family and neighbors and cloistered themselves, closed themselves off, to pray silently on their own and earn forgiveness for themselves by their prayerful, silent, closed-off life.

The Lutheran theologians say – no. That’s not what Jesus teaches. That’s a life of isolation and ultimately selfishness. Trying to earn my own way in secrecy. Jesus already earned it. And Jesus teaches us to be in the world – though not of it – showing love to our neighbor. And one of Luther’s great friends wrote this about the Christian life, and the princes and pastors signed onto it as a pure summary of what scripture has to say about the Spirit filled life of the Christian. On Pentecost, as we celebrate the Spirit working among us, this is a good conclusion to our meditation on what Jesus has taught.

True Christian perfection is to fear God from the heart, to have great faith, and to trust that for Christ’s sake we have a God who has been reconciled. It means to ask for and expect from God His help in all things with confident assurance that we are to live according to our calling in life, being diligent in outward good works, serving in our calling.

There’s never been a better description outside of the Bible of the Spirit filled Christian life. We live in peace according to the work God gives us to do, and trust in him for salvation.

May the Lord grant such a spirit filled life to all those who hear his word, and may many more hear and believe and be saved.

In Jesus name.

Amen.

God has gone up with shout! The Lord with the sound of the trumpet!
When Elijah was taken to heaven, there were fiery horses and a chariot. Elisha crying out “My Father, My Father, The chariots of Israel and her horsemen!” God chose Elijah to bring his word to the kings of Israel, a word that was repeatedly rejected. His life was a constant struggle – he lived much of it with a death sentence for him or anyone who helped him. When the time comes to put down his earthly burden Elijah gets to do it without going through the pain of death. Instead he gets a flaming escort into heaven. It’s Scripture’s most dramatic exit.
And then we have our Gospel. When Jesus ascends, the disciples see him, they’re talking to him on the Mount of Olives, and then he just sort of starts moving upwards, he ascends, they see him go until a cloud moves in front of him. They don’t even realize he’s gone. It’s not until the angels announce it to them that they realize what has happened. It’s pretty low key, given what’s really going on. Jesus is being placed back into his position at the right hand of the Father. He now rules and reigns over all things. He is the Son of the Living God, and he sits enthroned in the heavens, with a flaming sword coming out of his mouth. You might expect a flaming chariot or heavenly charger for this one. But the disciples don’t get to see what Elisah did. They spend a couple minutes just kind of staring into space wondering if the cloud is going to keep moving by and there he’ll still be just floating. The angels have to let them know: This Jesus, whom you have seen go into heaven… You just watched him ascend to heaven. That’s what happened here. He’s not going to be locally present with you anymore. As Saint Leo said in a sermon about the ascension, “What was visible in Jesus has passed over into the Sacraments.” This is now how Jesus comes to us. His final words to the disciples in Matthew are about Baptism – this is how you take someone away from Satan and put my father’s name on him. He becomes part of the family of God. And so it is. Jesus is still active in the church through his promise in Holy Baptism. The Voice of the Holy Trinity sounds from the font making sinners righteous, and giving them the salvation Jesus earned for them until he returns.
And someday, the clouds will part and there Jesus will be again. That was the promise of the angels to the disciples. He we will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go into heaven. And much like what just happened – it will be when you least expect it. Jesus tells the disciples several times they will not know the time. That it’s reserved as heavenly knowledge. The angels let them – and us – know that when he returns it will be just as sudden. Clouds moving aside, and Jesus suddenly revealed to us. Unexpected, and then the end of all things. But the next time it won’t be subtle. There will be angel hosts attending him. There will be trumpets sounding from East to West. The business of the world will come to a sudden halt, because the world will come to a sudden halt. And when that happens, every knee will bow before him. Those who looked to his death on the cross as their salvation will bow in honor of his name. Those who reject him and his death for the forgiveness of their sins will bow in fear – though it will be too late. And so Ascension day pre-figures the return of Jesus at the end of time. It’s the only promise of scripture still unfulfilled. Our Lord Jesus returns – in the same way we saw him go – and the dead are raised, we move into the final judgement. (In that judgment, those who look to Jesus are declared eternally saved, so the judgment is nothing to worry about for Christ’s church). And then after that, into the life of the world to come.
Structurally, conceptually, it’s all easy. We have all these promises about how great it turns out, and we just need to wait for the Lord’s timing.
In practice, it can be uncertain, difficult. That’s to be expected. The disciples were sort of confused and staring at the sky for a bit. Took them a while to adjust. There were still ten more days of them hiding out until Pentecost came. In the first few years of the church there were some who thought Jesus would return in a few days or weeks, and got confused about what the ascension and return really meant. John includes a little epilogue in his Gospel to explain it to them. Jesus never said John wouldn’t die before he returned. He said “It’s not your business IF John doesn’t die.” It’s generally assumed this bit was included by John shortly before his death near the year 100 AD to clear up any confusion that still existed. Paul has a few lines in his Epistles for those who figured they could stop working, just sit around wait until Jesus comes back in a few weeks. Not how it works. As we heard two weeks back, all times are a little while to God. We’re now 2026 years since Jesus was born into the world. We shouldn’t assume there will be a 2027th year. But neither should we assume there won’t be. The Lord’s timing, not ours. The church has been slowly learning to trust that timing since Adam and Eve were promised a Savior in the garden. Abraham was first promised a Son when he was 75. When the promise was repeated 24 years later, Sarah laughed. It would take an act of God for her to have a child at that point. When God acts, things happen. Isaac is born a year later. So, also when the fullness of time had come, a Savior was born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law. When Jesus hour had come, Jesus was raised up from the earth, glorified on the cross, where the weakness of God was put on shameful display for the whole world to see. Not only the weakness of God – which is stronger than man’s strength. But also the mercy and love of God, which is the true glory of the Father. Our heavenly Father is loving and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. This is why Jesus calls the cross the hour of his glory. This is why he endures the cross and scorns its shame. Because the cross is where Jesus shows the mercy of God most clearly. There is no mistake in the cross. It isn’t that Jesus got confused or lost the plot. It is a grim holocaust offering before God, such that the sun and moon themselves fail. It is the blood offering for sin that had to be paid. And in love for you, Jesus paid it. He submitted himself to the will of his heavenly Father and went into death in order to break the power of death. Having rested in the tomb, he is raised again the third day from the dead. Now, he has returned to heaven, where he doesn’t rest, but instead rules and reigns over all things at the right hand of the Father. A position of power and glory, so that we might have an advocate with the Father, one who intercedes for us on our behalf and pleads our cause before the Lord God. We no longer need to wonder how God feels about us, whether he loves us or cares for us. We see this in the work of Jesus – the ultimate act of love. Jesus giving his life in exchange for ours, and then being raised up so that we would also be given life. The Father does truly love us, even when our road in this world is dark, confusing, when we are unsure. Whether like the disciples we’re just sort of looking around waiting for what happens next, or whether we are confused, scattered, going through times of shadow and grief.
We are not abandoned by Jesus return to the Father. Rather, we now have a friend in the highest place. He is a true friend. One who gave himself into death for us – while we were yet sinners – and now offers us forgiveness life and salvation in his name. Now, we have one who has opened to us the path to life. He has ascended above all things, and promises to lead us there as well. We wait here for now. We have the chance to hear about Jesus and believe and so receive the salvation of the Lord. This is why God patiently waits to return – so that we would have the chance to hear the Gospel and believe it and so receive salvation. And through the washing of water and word, We are children of our Heavenly Father because of the work of Jesus. And now, there is nothing in the world that can separate us from the love of the father. We are grafted into the family, and we are promised the eternal inheritance which Jesus earned for us.
Jesus is enthroned above all things, and his will is being done on earth as in heaven. It doesn’t always look like it to us. A lot of times that reality is hidden behind a cloud. Just as it happened for the disciples. Jesus was hidden from their sight. And often the world tries to hide Jesus from our sight as well. And we are tempted to let the world do that. To take away Jesus from us. To think we are on our own. To give into despair when the road gets rough, and when we struggle to see the glory of the Father. But the hiddenness of God at times should not dissuade us from the reality of salvation.
Yes, there are times of hardship, or persecution, of deprivation. There are dark nights when Satan whispers in our ears to try to get us to just give up on Jesus and on the salvation he won for us. To go our own way, to try to do it without that hope of resurrection and eternal life.
This is when we must return to the Lord, hear again of the love he has for us in Jesus. The real battle is over. That was the cross. The world since the death and resurrection and ascension is through aftermath. That’s what we endure now: Satan raging and fuming because his power is destroyed by Jesus resurrection, Death roaring and raging and trying to frighten us when its sting has been lost, the victory already handed to Jesus. Our own doubts creeping up to try to get us to say no to Jesus, to turn away from his salvation, as if there is another hope we can find out there, as if we’d be better off without him. But the promise of Jesus is sure and certain, it rings out from age to age, come to me all who are weary and heavy laden, an I will give you rest. And for those who place the burden of their sin on Jesus, there is rest, there is redemption, there is salvation. And it’s so powerful that death itself has lost out. We feebly struggle in this world, we still fight, even against our own sinful flesh. But Jesus has the victory, and he gives it to you freely without cost. That’s what we’ve been on about the last six months – the salvation of the Lord. And Jesus has shown us where we are eventually going in him. Into glory that never fades, never diminishes, never wears out. And we will be raised to a life that never dies, just as he has been. So you will be.
May God grant it to every person, that they hear and believe the promise and so receive the salvation of the Lord, now and into eternity, world without end. Amen.

Every year at this time the church spends a day learning about Prayer. This year, it happened to also fall on Mother’s Day. Both get mentioned in the sermon. For those who could not attend, here it is.

Today the topic is prayer. The people pray to God for deliverance in the wilderness. In James we have a warning to use our tongue for good, not for evil.  And in John, Jesus preaches to the disciples about prayer, before giving them a word of encouragement for when the sorrows of the world threaten to overcome them.

Late spring, planting or calving are winding down, we have a day of prayer. We commit to our plans for the next year in agriculture. And it’s the time of year when things can start to go either right or wrong. We’ve already had a dry winter. We’re still in need of rain. So, we continue to pray for rain. Today we add extra petitions. Each year, right about this time of year, we have Jesus instructing us about prayer, just as we are planning for the summer and the next year, and trusting that God will provide for us.

So, what is prayer, and what can we expect from it?

We have a classic example of prayer in our Old Testament reading. God provides food every day for 40 years. The people complain. God sends snakes as a judgment against them. The people repent and ask Moses to pray that God would take the serpents away. They don’t pray directly. They know they have sinned. They ask Moses to pray on their behalf.

When we pray we are coming into the presence of the most high God. That’s not something to take lightly. In a country built on equality, it’s hard to come up with  analogies to it. In an earlier time we might have said “It’s like coming before the king.” This year is the 250^th anniversary of no king. How to describe coming into the presence of God in a way that clicks for us?

John comes into the presence of Jesus in the book of Revelation, and he says he looked and then fell down as if dead. Just looking at Jesus is enough to knock him out. We need to recognize that coming into the presence of Almighty God is not a small thing. When the people originally got to Mt Sinai, Moses invited the leaders of the people to come onto the mountain with him. They said, “No thanks, we don’t want God to kill us for touching the mountain when we shouldn’t.” And God told Moses “They’re right.” Only Moses went up to the holy Mountain.

Now, the people ask Moses to pray that God deliver them from this judgment – snakes that bite them and they die.

And God does deliver them. But not from the snake bites themselves. Just the deadly consequences. If anyone is bit and looks at the Bronze serpent, they won’t die. That’s the deliverance. The snakes are still there, still biting. But the deadly sting is gone.

Of course, Jesus uses this as an example of his work on the cross: As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so much the Son of Man be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.” God offers deliverance from sin. Not that we are suddenly sinless – we chose sin for ourselves. Not that there are no consequences to sin. We still struggle in this world, we are weak and we stumble often. We still face death in this world. But the eternal consequences are taken away. All those who look to Jesus are delivered from death and the grave. That’s the theme of the whole Easter season. Beginning with Easter when we hear death has lost it’s power, it’s sting over us. We hear death’s hold is broken forever because of Jesus work on the cross. And this happy news continues through Easter until we hear – next week – of Jesus ascension, and then the coming of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. It’s all good news for the 50 days of Easter. We are saved! God has given us a great salvation in Jesus. We only need to look to him, and we will have salvation. This is the season of our Alleluias!

Today as part of the comfort of Easter, Jesus also tells us we can now pray to our heavenly Father.

And listen to the conditions: We can pray directly (Which is how Jesus teaches us to pray ‘Our Father who art in heaven’). Because of his work on the cross, and our being brought into that work through Baptism, we can now call God Father. What a close and personal name we are given. Father immediately tells you about the relationship. It is a family, and because we were not, but now are his children, it means he has claimed us. Paul calls it the adoption of sons. It isn’t something we work, but that he does for us. And now, he is our Father. Earthly Fathers – at their best – try to be kind and loving and caring toward their families. Even the best fail at it. No earthly father is perfect. And some seem intent on abusing the position as much as they can. This is less than God desires for us. He gives family, places us into family, so that we would know what Father should be, so that when he calls himself Father we would understand – loving, caring protective, desires only the best for us, and gives us all good things that we need. This isn’t always the way it works in the world. But we see the imperfect version so that when God presents the perfect to us, we would at least have an inkling of what is going on. God also gives mothers to us, and this is the day even the world recognizes the value of mothers. Parents are a gift to us from God. God uses them to show us the relationship that God wants to have with us.

Jesus wants us to know how much the Father loves us. We can pray directly to him. Some teach we’re better off going through various intermediaries. That it’s better to pray to heroes of the faith and ask them to try and take our requests to God. And we’d be tempted to believe that – the example of Moses kind of pushes us that direction – if Jesus didn’t say point blank that we should go to the Father directly. This shows how much things have changed in the death of Jesus. We now have direct access to his father, because of his work for us.

The Father has always loved humanity – it’s why he created us, and why he sent Jesus to redeem us from our sin. But before Jesus had paid the penalty on the cross, we couldn’t come directly. There was a veil, a curtain. Jesus tore that curtain by going into the holy place with his own blood for us.

And now we can ask the Father for whatever we have need, and know that he will give us according to his gracious will. But that’s not the same as “He will always grant our request.” And the difference between the two can be difficult. We may pray with earnest and sincere hearts and what we think are pure intentions, and the answer may still be no. But that doesn’t mean God doesn’t hear our prayer, and respond to it in love.

Does prayer make a difference? Of course it does. We have examples throughout scripture. But we do not put the Lord to the test in our prayers. “You must do this or that, I’ll believe if you give me this…” That’s not for us to do. Our task is to obey his command. And he does command us to pray. To bring before him every need we have, every good thing to give thanks. And if we evaluate truly, we find that God is more gracious than we deserve. We are given far more than we need, far more than we have earned. And he continues to shower us with blessings in this world. New blessings each day. We have so much to be thankful for – beginning with our life in this world, then the salvation of Jesus, and finally the eternal life we will receive in him.

Jesus tells the disciples that they will be scattered, troubled, because of him. “In the world you have trouble. But do not be afraid, I have overcome the world.” He says this right before he is betrayed and crucified. Jesus is about to suffer greatly. Is that really overcoming the world? Yes! It looks like the world got him, because we don’t understand how things really work. In Christ we are given new life by his death, and we have access to the Father by his work. And now, we are beloved of the Father, with full access to him in prayer.

So how do we pray? The prayer Jesus teaches us is a good start – Our Father… And when we study that prayer, we see every good thing we can pray for contained in it. That God would keep us in his word and faith, provide for us each day, forgive us our sins, and keep us safe until the end. These prayers we know are pleasing to our heavenly Father, because he says, “Pray in this way for these things.” So every prayer we have is just a variation on it. But we do include the details of our life and needs when we pray. Help this person who is sick, send us rain, and so on – according to your gracious will. Because it shows that we trust our heavenly Father to give us every good thing. It is a training in righteousness, so that we do not become ungrateful, complaining about the food the Lord provides. We keep the Lord’s name holy, reserved for prayer and thanksgiving, and this is a good use of the tongue, as James teaches. And we do as our Lord Jesus commands and promises – praying to our Father who hears us and answers our prayers each day. Knowing that, in the end, he desires to take us out of this vale of tears to himself in heaven. Grant this Lord unto us all.

I recently described a professor as “desiring confessional integrity in the church, but open to post-modern methods of doing theology.” The problem is that post modernism is incompatible with the incarnation of Jesus. I wrote a post on it a while back, with cool quotes from Augustine.  But here is a simplified version:

Post Modernism says words have no meaning, unless we give it meaning as we hearit.
Jesus is the Word.
Jesus has specific meaning (given by his heavenly Father) regardless of how we hear him.

The fundamental problem is that Post-Modernism wants the hearer to be the one to determine meaning. But God sends his word, which inherently has meaning. The Word has power by virtue of being the Son of God, and that does not depend on whether I acknowledge him or not. The meaning is entirely independent of us. God wants His Word to have meaning for us. But the meaning must be on His terms as speaker, not on our terms as hearer.

Post Modernism rejects this. And so it is contrary to Holy Scripture’s own self understanding.

There are other problems with post-modernism. Chief among them is post-modernism’s inability to reject error. In logic we might say it this way:

If A is the same as Not B, and A is true, then B is not true.

To put it in plain language. If I will only drink milk with chocolate, and you will only serve milk without chocolate, then I will not drink the milk you give. Post Modernism will not allow me to reject the unchocolate milk.

Theologically, it comes out like this: The Holy Supper must use wine for the blood of Christ. A church uses Grape Juice. But they are both fruit of the vine. Can we really say that… (and so on.)

Post Modernism loves to ask “Did God really say…?” Which is why I reject it a priori as a legitimate method of theological inquiry or discussion.

“Your scans look great!” Thanks be to God! The doctors and radiologists agree: The initial post-treatment scans are about as positive as they can be. No recurrence at this point. What a blessed Easter gift for my family and me. We celebrate the resurrection of our Lord, and the continued gift of good health.

I’m now ready to start the follow-up chemo (Radiation is done – too much can cause the very thing we’re trying to keep away!) The new regimen will be 5 days of pills (at twice the old dose), followed by 23 days of recovery. We will do up to 12 cycles (one year), depending on how my blood handles things, with MRIs every other month.

I’m also being treated with the latest technology: Optune. It uses electrical fields to disrupt the cancer-cell division. In theory (and practice) it delays recurrence and slows growth of the cancer. I’m connected to a battery pack full time. But it’s portable and not that hard to get around with. (I’ve even ice skated with it!)

We don’t know what the future holds – it’s in God’s hands. We’re learning to trust him a little more each day, and not to worry about tomorrow. We’re also learning to ask for prayers – God has been answering them so far. Long term, the chances of recurrence approach 100%. But there are some who do well for many years, and so far, things have been on a good track. Please keep the prayers coming. God has heard the prayers of his faithful servants who have been interceding for me from across the country. And he has answered them favorably so far. If that changes at some point, we will continue entrusting my life into the hands of our merciful Heavenly Father, whatever the outcome. But for now, he has stayed the verdict, and announced that I have work to do yet in this world. That is a mercy, and I give thanks for it every day.

I also give thanks for everyone who has called me to check in (I confess to being slow with my return calls. Apologies if I haven’t gotten back to you. It wasn’t intentional.) Chemo/Radiation/return to work for Lent, etc. have been a bit whelming for me. But I’m starting to feel myself again, (just in time for round 2 of Chemo! Let’s pray it goes well.

And also join me in giving thanks to God every day for his mercies.

Yesterday I wrote a little something encouraging use of the Holy Week daily services. Here’s perhaps my favorite part. The Litany of the Crucifixion:

P:  By the mystery of Thy incarnation; By Thy most holy life and conversation; By Thy most bitter Passion and death; By Thine agony and bloody sweat; By Thy thrice-repeated prayer; By Thy bonds and stripes; By Thy sacred body buffeted and smitten; By the spitting upon Thy pallid face; By the false judgment pronounced on Thee by Caiaphas; By Thy being set at nought by Herod; By the shameful stripping off of Thy garments; By Thy painful crown of thorns; By Thy purple robe of mockery; By Thy most unjust condemnation; By Thy bearing Thine own cross; By Thy footprints to the place of death; By the tearing off of Thy garments; By the cruel straining of Thy sacred limbs; By Thy dread crucifixion; By the upraising of Thy cross; By the anguish which Thou didst suffer; By Thy prayers and tears; By the insults which Thou didst endure; By the shedding of Thy most precious blood; By Thy patience and humility; By the love wherewith Thou didst love us to the end:
C:  O Jesus, deliver us.

I think it prepares the heart for Maundy Thursday and Good Friday better than anything I’ve else I’ve seen.

And for those who asked if we livestream, sadly no. But here is my sermon for today, if you want to read through it (after the jump)

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Years ago I found myself struggling with Holy Week. It seemed to come too fast. There was too much going on. I couldn’t wrap my head around the themes of the week, and I spent my time frustrated that I was never prepared spiritually and mentally for the Triduum and Easter.

The solution was as obvious as it was counter-intuitive. I added services Monday through Wednesday of Holy Week. A 30 minute Divine Service over lunch hour. Time enough to get to church,  hear the Gospel and a brief homily, and receive the Body and Blood of the Lord. I have a couple of members who attend faithfully. It’s a small crowd. But the greatest benefactor is the pastor. It has focused me in a way nothing else could. Now I look forward to Holy Week and the slightly increased workload during my busiest week. Now I always have time to get everything done. My focus is where it needs to be. And the frustration is gone, replaced by a love for the Word of God and the Ministry which I am honored to be a part of.

If you are a pastor and struggle with Holy Week, try adding brief services for Holy Week each day. I can’t recommend it enough.

And if you’re in Wheatland during Holy Week, stop by Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday at noon for a brief meditation and prayer about Jesus sacrifice.

This year for Lent we’ve been studying 1 Thessalonians. At first glance, it doesn’t seem like Paul is saying much. A lot of “Keep up the good work.” But there is a deep background to his encouragement.  There is a through-line that gets to the heart of our salvation. Our final service was last night, and the sermon was on chapter 5. The entire book is a comfort and encouragement for the church in a time of suffering. Chapter 5 is the final word Paul offers. And it doesn’t disappoint. We are redirected to Jesus at all times, and in very specific ways.

On a lark, I recorded it. My daughter said it was good, so I thought I’d share it with you. Here it is, as a Spotify podcast. It’s only 12 minutes. Well worth your time.