"Hey, No Fair!"

Workers in the Vineyard - Matthew 20:1-16

Growing up the oldest of three, I am pretty sure my parents will agree with me when I tell you that “Hey, no fair” was one of my most popular exclamations of protest. I often felt like everything was not fair. From something as little as not sitting in the front seat, not getting as many M&M’s, or not getting to watch what I wanted to watch on TV to something as big as my siblings marrying and starting their own families before me. Life can feel unfair when I am earthly-focused and lose sight of God’s Heavenly Kingdom.

Reading Matthew 20:1-16 it seems like a lot of unfair moments. Why should someone who worked longer hours get paid the same as someone who worked less? Is Jesus talking about earthly work and earthly wages, or is He talking about God's sufficient grace and mercy? Does someone who asks Jesus into their life at a younger age get less of God’s grace than someone who finds Him at a later stage in life? Can God’s forgiveness be earned and if so, what does someone have to do to earn it? What about someone who’s dedicated their long life to serving others or a thief hanging on a cross? Luke 23. Do they both get the same pardon from God?

Jesus answers in verse thirteen, by saying “I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave the one who was hired first. Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous? So, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”  

Here we are reading the spoken word of Jesus Christ written by Matthew, a worker who was hired first to labor in the fields, sowing seeds of faith for the first Church. Here I am 2,000 years later, nowhere near laboring as long and diligent as Matthew. Yet we both receive the same from Jesus, eternal life, forgiveness, mercies, and grace sufficient for all. Is that fair? Luke 13:30

Carmen wrote last week; that we can forgive because we know forgiveness from Christ and have been forgiven. We can also happily celebrate each other when we come to Christ and see with heavenly-focused eyes how God’s kingdom grows! We can delight in the Lord for our neighbors, coworkers, family, friends, and foreigners across continents when they receive God’s gifts at any stage in life because there is plenty for everyone! God’s kingdom is everlasting, Daniel 7:27. From generation to generation, Psalm 145:13. Abundantly supplied, 2 Peter 1:11.

Coming face to face with our brokenness and Christ’s ability to save us opens our eyes to how amazing that grace truly is, and, in that love, we desire for others to have that too!

For He saved us, not based on deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. Titus 3:5. My prayer for us is that we all are washed and renewed by the Holy Spirit, coming to the Father with open arms through Christ Jesus so that we can rejoice in the abundance of God’s love and mercy! Hallelujah!  

-Nikki-

Jesus Paid the Debt

Do you truly believe that through Christ you are fully forgiven? Have you ever sat in silence and thought about what this really means?

In today’s parable, we hear of a servant who owes his master an unpayable amount. His master orders that him, his family, and all he owns be sold to make up for what he cannot pay. The servant begs for more time, promising that he will eventually be able to pay what he owes. The master compassionately forgives the servant of his debt, knowing that he will never be able to pay back the full amount.

After being forgiven of this great debt, the same servant goes out and finds a fellow servant who is indebted to him (note that this is a much smaller amount compared to what the servant had owed his master). He forcefully insists that the servant pay what he owes. Just as the servant had begged his master to be patient with him, this servant begs for more time, promising that he will eventually pay what he owes. Instead of forgiving his debt as his master did to him, the servant chooses to punish him by throwing him in prison until his debt is paid.

If anyone has a right to withhold forgiveness, it would be God. Throughout time, humans have constantly chosen sin over God. He offers us everything we could ever need. He knows what will hurt us and what will keep us safe, yet we turn away from Him time and time again. Every time we do this, God is patient with us, waits for us to run back to Him, and forgives us. He doesn’t do this because we deserve it, but because that’s who He is.

God sent His son to pay the debt that we couldn’t pay – forever forgiving us of our past, present, and future sins.

If God can so easily forgive us, knowing that we are going to turn away from him again, why is it that when someone hurts us, our natural response is to be filled with resentment? Just as what the servant owed the other servant was nothing compared to what the servant owed his master, the debt owed to us by others is nothing compared to the debt that we owe God.

Knowing that we are fully forgiven through Christ should change everything about the way we treat ourselves and others. We must remember the weight of what Christ did for us on the cross. We were forgiven of a huge debt and therefore have no right to hold onto the small debts that others owe us.

In times when we find it exceptionally hard to forgive ourselves or others, could it be because we don’t believe that God has fully forgiven us?

God, I pray that you help us never lose sight of what Jesus did for us. Help us to know and believe that, through Him, we are fully forgiven. Reveal to us the people in our lives who we need to forgive and give us the courage to forgive them as you have forgiven us, not just with our mouths, but in our hearts.

Carmen K

The Pouring Out Of A Spiritual Life

I am not interested in the past. I am interested in the future, for that is where I expect to spend the rest of my life. — Charles Kettering

Joseph's decision to take his young family to Nazareth instead of returning to the land of Israel, as directed by the angel, is a backstory in this parable by Jesus. Fleeing to Egypt to avoid the killing hand of Herod after Jesus's birth, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, directing him to take the family back to the land of Israel. But in Matthew 2:22, it said Joseph was afraid to go there after hearing Herod had died and his son, Archelaus, reigned over Judea. Instead, Joseph took his young family to Nazareth.

Why mention this account for this week's parable in Luke 19:11-27?

Archeleus was chosen by his father, Herod, as successor of his kingdom, but was rejected by the people, left for Rome to have his appointment confirmed, returned, rewarded his servants, and destroyed his enemies.

In this parable of the nobleman and the Ten Minas (also pounds), scholars think Jesus used Archelaus' recent history to awaken the imagination of those listening to what Jesus was teaching. Jesus was also warning the Jewish leaders they were about to do the same thing spiritually. Jesus, himself, is the 'certain nobleman' [v. 12], who will be rejected by the people, leave for a heavenly kingdom, and then eventually return. The ten servants given Ten Minas represented His disciples who were told to "Do business till I come." [v.13]

In this parable, Jesus uses the world of business and economics as a model for the lesson of investing in a spiritual life, increasing it, spreading the Gospel, and reaping greater rewards. The unproductive are rebuked, while the productive are rewarded—risk vs. reward. The risk and privilege of sharing the Gospel and representing Jesus Christ in a hostile world leads to greater reward and spiritual growth, as the first two servants experienced, leading to the advancement of Christ's Kingdom. The rewards for the first two servants' diligence were in proportion to the increase gained from their risk-taking. Or on the other hand, one can instead choose to cling to God's blessings and gifts, play it safe, which leads to a stagnation of one's faith and spiritual growth like the last servant who held onto what he had, was rebuked, and judged accordingly. Where one is not living in anticipation of the future promises that await and paying the discipline and sacrifice, but only interested in staying in yesterday's fading light stuck in the known.

Notice in the parable that those who do nothing with what they possess, will have what they had taken away and given to those who will steward the resources and gifts of God. It's a life lesson that the more we pour out in life and in self-expenditure, the more that life pours back into us. Even a full glass of water can be refilled by pouring out what it contains so more water can be poured back in. Verses 23-24 suggest we should seriously pour out our all in everything we have and do, and steward the gifts God blessed us with by serving Jesus Christ without measure or lack of accountability, or in short order, we will lose it, and our spiritual life will depreciate.

The header in J. B. Philips's translation of the New Treatment for this parable in Luke is an excellent reminder for us and the church:

Life requires courage, and is hard on those who dare not use their gifts.

-Dan Nickel

The Jesus Prayer

When you really know Jesus Christ, you can’t help but want to be in His presence. The problem for me is that I sometimes get confused on how this is achieved. When I think it’s about me and my self-righteous works, I am in a bad spot that keeps me from seeing Jesus for who He is and what He’s really done for me. But when I think about how undeserving I really am to be in His presence and look to Him for help, I am exactly where Jesus wants me to be so that I’m ready to experience His mercies in a fresh way for each moment of the day and point others to the same.

A few years into my experience of pastoral ministry, as I was looking for healthy disciplines that would support me spending time with Jesus, I came across an ancient practice some refer to as - the Jesus prayer. It is practiced by breathing in as you pray “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God…” and then as you breathe out “have mercy on me a sinner.” This prayer is repeated over and over as I breathe in the truth about who Jesus is and breathe out the reality of my need for His continued mercy to change things. The prayer only works well as a whisper in the sense that I can’t verbalize it loudly while breathing in. But the one part I can exclaim very loudly as I’m breathing out is my desperate cry “have mercy on me a sinner.” 

In our text this week, we see some of this prayer taught in Jesus’ parable as He describes the tax collector praying, “God, have mercy on me a sinner.” In that prayer, the tax collector is justified because he sees the truth that it is only by God’s mercy that he will ever be brought into life-saving communion with God. Jesus’ parable offers a powerful reminder for those like me that have a problem with sometimes trusting in ourselves and our own work. Jesus’ reminder is that it is only by God’s mercy that anyone will ever be able to come peacefully into His presence.

May we be a people that do not trust in ourselves but in the One who is Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God. May we urgently pursue the truth of the Gospel as much as we pursue the air we need for our lungs. And may we experience the peace and mercy achieved through Jesus by which sinners like us are now called saints in His Kingdom to the praise of His glory!

Grateful & Hopeful in Christ,

Jon

The God Who Gives

Earlier this week at Community Group we discussed the question “Are all gods the same?” So many other philosophical questions stem from this one. Do all roads lead to one God? Does it matter who or what we worship as long as we are honoring some sort of higher power? Are we “saved” by the strength of our devotion to a set of beliefs or are we saved by the object of our faith- Christ?

What do you think? Are all gods the same? What sets Yahweh- the trinitarian God of the Bible- apart from all other gods?

Over the past month, when I read my Bible I began to note how the Lord is different from other gods.

-He’s the God who promises his presence.

-He’s the God who pays attention to the suffering of his people.

-He’s the covenant maker, and he never forgets or goes back on his promises.

-He’s the God who shows mercy even in his righteous judgement.

-He’s a God who doesn’t exploit our weaknesses but shelters us.

-He’s the God who gives grace even to the grumblers.

-He’s the God who gives his people rest.

-He’s the God who carries us to himself.

-He’s a compassionate God who protects widows and orphans and cares for the poor.

-He warns us about what will hurt us.

-He calls us to celebrate.

-He’s not a God who is far off, but dwells among his people.

-He’s a personal God who knows and calls each of us by name.

-He’s the God who gives.

He’s the God who gives. Isn’t that the glory of what we celebrate this week? Every other god in history takes and takes and takes. With a wrath that demands to be appeased by good works, or offerings, how can we ever do enough to satisfy these gods?

We can’t.

We can never make it to God, so God came to us. He became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus showed us exactly what kind of God we have- a Father who loves us beyond measure. A Father who makes a way for us to be united to him, through the blood of Jesus. There is no god in history or our culture like Yahweh! None who rushes to save or extends mercy. None whose kindness, absolute kindness, leads us to repentance. What kind of God does that?!There’s only one!

This Easter, may our hearts break open wide in praise. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Because of his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for us. Though we have not seen him, we love him. Oh, how we love him! Though not seeing him now, we believe in him, and rejoice together with inexpressible and glorious joy, because we are receiving the goal of our faith, the salvation of our souls. Amen.

Joyfully,

Natalie

More Than Flipping Tables

So Jesus came to Jerusalem and went into the Temple. After looking around carefully at everything, he left because it was late in the afternoon.

-Mark 11:11

This coming Holy Week for the Christian faith is the week the Lent service points us to in our journey to Easter Sunday. This week starts with Palm Sunday, followed by the quiet and reflecting moments and prayers of Maundy Thursday, the somber day of remembrance of Christ's death on a cross on Good Friday, and the joyful celebration of Jesus Christ's resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Mark 11:1-19 records the start of this week when Jesus approaches Jerusalem riding a donkey (or colt) through a jubilant procession with cries of "Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” By the end of verse 19, Jesus has cursed a fig tree and laid waste to the merchants and their tables of merchandise in the Temple. The religious leaders were furious and sought a way to destroy him, and multitudes were astonished by Jesus's teachings. However, let us look at a verse often overlooked — verse 11.

Jesus entered the Temple, it was late in the day, and he looked around. He did nothing and left.

We forget that Jesus had already destroyed the merchants means of commerce established in the Temple a few years before this latest visit. John records Jesus’s visit to the Temple in his Gospel in the second chapter after the Cana wedding Miracle. After this recent visit, Jesus leaves the Temple, the following day he sees a fig tree —out of season for producing figs — searches for figs to eat, finds none, and curses the tree.

What's going on here?

May I suggest that when you weave together the events starting with the treatment of those hailing Christ as King in an outward, visible, and historical way who will also a few days later turn on Him and demand his death, the Temple where once again Jesus saw within its walls it was still perverted with commerce instead as God's house of prayer and worship, and a fig tree that was all show but no substance, Christ makes the point it is not one’s outer ward appearance but what is going on inside a person and his or heart and soul that matters.

The Temple looked grand and beautiful from the outside, but sin and corruption were prevalent inside. It's not a coincidence Mark notes it was late in the day. Late in the day, the sun was setting, creating elongated shadows and hints of darkness, shading the stones, columns, and people. It can be a foretelling too of the elongated shadows, and darkness of hidden sin shading one's soul and heart. At the same time, it looks like we have it all together outwardly, exchanging the pleasantries of our good self with our Temple of appearance, while the inward Temple - our heart — can be a different story. Malcolm Guite suggests that constant tension exists in exchanging the world's outward desires with our hearts' inward desires. It’s during this tension when we need to ask Christ, and the help of the Holy Spirit, to be the authority over our lives and rescue us from our sinful impulses —asking Jesus to flip our heart’s tables filled with the merchandise of sin.

In cleansing the Temple, Jesus, as Messiah, claimed greater authority over the Temple than the religious leaders and High Priest. A few days later, Jesus Christ did the final cleansing of the Temple in the Great Exchange of dying on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins and took on our sins and lay upon us His righteousness so we became justified as righteous in God's eyes.

There is more going on here in the present events of Mark 11 than Jesus flipping tables. It's a foretelling of our salvation and the cleansing of our inner self — our sinful nature and heart.

Persistence Pays Off

"And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart." (Luke 18:1).

I got my first job when I was 16 years old.  I cut grass with a push mower around tombstones at Valhalla Cemetery in Godfrey.  Even though this job was not my "dream job" I was so excited to begin working and making money.  I wanted to do a good job, but on my second day sparks went flying under my lawn mower.  I accidentally hit a metal flower vase.  Metal on metal.  The lawnmower died.  I had a sinking feeling - I am going to get fired.  I did not know my boss.  I did not know what kind of man he is.  So - I decided not to tell him.  I had to pull the "starter cord" about 25 times before I got the lawnmower running again, but once the engine started - I was "back in business" - until a few days later when my boss asked me why the blade under the lawnmower was bent.

I took a deep breath and confessed everything.  He had one question - why didn't I tell him immediately what happened?  I told him, "I didn't want to get fired."  He laughed and said, "You won't get fired.  We've all done stuff like this.  I just need to know so I can fix it."  After that experience I had a different relationship with my boss.  I knew he was approachable.  I knew he would understand if I made some honest mistakes.  I knew he wanted me to succeed.  I was no longer slow to talk to him and I no longer avoided him.

In The Parable of the Persistent Widow Jesus tells of a widow who is in need.  Her need is much more serious than my fear of being fired on my second day of work.  She has been taken advantage of and there is no one to advocate for her, so she advocates for herself.  Unfortunately, she has to deal with a judge who neither fears God or cares about people, but she does not give up.  She continues to ask and plead and call and beg.  She knew this judge was not a good person, but she didn't give up and her persistence paid off.  Her request was eventually granted.

Jesus then reminds us that our Judge is different than the unjust judge in this parable.  Our Judge not only fears God, HE IS GOD.  Our Judge not only cares about people, He sent His Son to save people.  Our Judge is not only accessible, but He invites us to approach His Throne where we will receive mercy and find grace in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16).  Our Judge is not only our Judge, but also our loving Father who knows how to give good gifts to His children (Matthew 7:11).  

Jesus ends this passage with a question that "hangs in the air."  "Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8).  We all know not all is right with the world in the here and now.  There is injustice.  It is often hard to reconcile how a Just God would allow so much injustice, but Jesus exhorts us to keep on praying and not lose heart.  Help is on the way.  He is on the way.  Jesus intervenes and brings hope and strength and deliverance both in the "here and now" and perfectly in the "then and there."  

May we be a people who know we have the perfectly Just Judge.  May we be a people who trust His character and approach Him when we need help.  May we not grow weary or lose heart.  May we be those who when the Son of Man comes have faith in His faithfulness.

See you Sunday,

Steven

They Will Repent

In Luke 16:19-31, we are introduced to a nameless rich man who did not have any mercy or grace for a beggar named Lazarus, who was covered with sores. To fully understand his worthlessness, we are told that dogs licked his sores. Lazarus is nothing but food for dogs. Yet when Lazarus dies, he is not carried away by dogs, he is carried by angels to the side of Abraham. When the Rich man dies, he is buried in Hades, in torment and able to see Lazarus the beggar side by side with Father Abraham far out of the touch or reach from the Rich man’s grasp. He begs Abraham to send Lazarus with water on the tip of his finger so that his tongue might be cooled. Abraham tells the Rich man that no one can reach him for there is a great chasm preventing anyone from crossing to either side.  

So, then the Rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his family so that they would not end up where he is. To this Abraham says they have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them. One last time the Rich man calls out, “If someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.” Father Abraham then explains to the Rich man if they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.

Do you think the family members repented after all? Were the teachings of Moses and the Prophets enough? Is it enough for us or are we waiting for a person like Lazarus to rise from the dead before we accept what the Bible says?  We are loved and saved. Do we need to see angels for us to believe we are loved and saved? 

-Nikki Fiedler

The Loving Father

“I have loved you with an everlasting love;

I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” - Jeremiah 31:3

At the beginning of the Parable of the Prodigal Son neither son knew the Father’s love - even though the Father loved them.  At the end of the parable one son experiences the depth of the Father’s love and the other son stiff-arms the Father’s love.

What about you?

Do you believe your Father in Heaven loves you?

I mean - really loves you?

Read this letter slowly.  Meditate on these words.  Ask the Holy Spirit to awaken your heart to love the One who loves you.  Run to the Father.  He is waiting for you.

A love letter from God to you

My Child,

You may not know me, but I know everything about you. (Psalm 139:1)

I know when you sit down and when you rise up. (Psalm 139:2)

I am familiar with all your ways. (Psalm 139:3)

Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. (Matthew 10:29-31)

For you were made in my image. (Genesis 1:27)

In me you live and move and have your being. (Acts 17:28)

For you are my offspring. (Acts 17:28)

I knew you even before you were conceived. (Jeremiah 1:4-5)

I chose you when I planned creation. (Ephesians 1:11-12)

You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. (Psalm 139:15-16)

I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live. (Acts 17:26)

You are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14)

I knit you together in your mother’s womb. (Psalm 139:13)

And brought you forth on the day you were born. (Psalm 71:6)

I have been misrepresented by those who don’t know me. (John 8:41-44)

I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. (1 John 4:16)

And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. (1 John 3:1)

Simply because you are my child and I am your Father. (1 John 3:1)

I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. (Matthew 7:11)

For I am the perfect father. (Matthew 5:48)

Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. (James 1:17)

For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. (Matthew 6:31-33)

My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Because I love you with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3)

My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. (Psalm 139:17-18)

And I rejoice over you with singing. (Zephaniah 3:17)

I will never stop doing good to you. (Jeremiah 32:40)

For you are my treasured possession. (Exodus 19:5)

I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul. (Jeremiah 32:41)

And I want to show you great and marvelous things. (Jeremiah 33:3)

If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. (Deuteronomy 4:29)

Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4)

For it is I who gave you those desires. (Philippians 2:13)

I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. (Ephesians 3:20)

For I am your greatest encourager. (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)

I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. (Psalm 34:18)

As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. (Isaiah 40:11)

One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes. (Revelation 21:3-4)

And I’ll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. (Revelation 21:3-4)

I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus.  (John 17:23)

For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. (John 17:26)

He is the exact representation of my being. (Hebrews 1:3)

He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you. (Romans 8:31)

And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. (2 Corinthians 5:18-19)

His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you. (1 John 4:10)

I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love. (Romans 8:31-32)

If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me. (1 John 2:23)

And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. (Romans 8:38-39)

Come home and I’ll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. (Luke 15:7)

I have always been Father, and will always be Father. (Ephesians 3:14-15)

My question is … Will you be my child? (John 1:12-13)

I am waiting for you. (Luke 15:11-32)

Love, Your Dad.
Almighty God

May we be those who receive the Father’s love through Jesus Christ our Lord.  May we be those who “rise and return to our Father.”  May we feel His robe around us, His ring on our finger, His sandals on our feet.  May we celebrate because we were lost and now we are found, we were dead and now we are alive again.

See you Sunday,

Steven

The Parable of the Rich Fool

Lessons I can learn from the parable of the Rich Fool

• Do you know what a fool is? If you’d asked me to define what a fool is I probably would have said: “someone who acts silly or does something without thinking of the consequences.”  But if we look at the Bible we see an expanded definition.  The bible says a fool is “reckless and careless” (Proverbs 14:16), lacks knowledge (Proverbs 14:7), ignores instruction (Proverbs 15:5), walks in darkness (Ecclesiastes 2:14a) and does not know God (Psalm 14:1).  Our parable this week about the “Rich Fool” (Luke 12:13-21) tells the story of a rich man who God called a fool. The rich man became a fool when he failed to acknowledge that all good things come from God (James 1:7), when he lived as if he were the only one, having no concern for God or others.  His business may have been flourishing but spiritually he was bankrupt.  I don’t want to be a fool.

• Rich toward God.  The parable of the Rich Fool would be the antithesis of rich toward God.   The rich man never gave a thought to the things God values. Jesus tells us: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” And he continued, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:36-38)   If we are to be rich toward God we must not spend our time and talents on the accumulation of material possessions or wealth for selfish pleasures, but use those God-given riches to serve Him and our neighbors.  Philippians 4:19 says, “And my God will supply every need of yours…”.  God blesses us so we can bless others.

• Life is knowing God NOT things.  If I would spend the same amount of time in the Word of God that I spend researching a future purchase, how much better would I know God? Instead of going to Pinterest twenty times a day to see what I should make, bake or buy I would be better served going to the Bible app and seeing what God has for me.

What have you learned from the parable of the Rich Fool?  

-Brenda Wooff

Jesus Calls Him Good

If you were to use the phrase “good Samaritan” to describe someone, what would you mean by it? Maybe you’re ascribing to them some great act of heroism or just a small act of kindness. Let’s think about what the Jewish hearers of Jesus’ day would’ve thought about when they heard that phrase. Most likely, they would’ve thought that is an impossible pairing of words because they would associate Samaritans with the worst kinds of people.

In our text this week, Jesus uses this parable of a good Samaritan to answer the questions of an expert in Jewish law. The parable speaks to the heart of the man asking the questions. Through this parable, Jesus reminds the man how sincere love for God is reflected through mercy and compassion for one’s neighbor. The parable emphasizes the kind of love that originates from the heart of God for His people and that He wants the world to know.

So often when I read this parable of the good Samaritan, I see myself in the characters of the parable. But as I read it this time, I’m convicted about being the one to whom this parable is directed. Jesus gives this parable in response to the legal expert’s question. That man is looking for the qualifying actions that will allow him to be with God now and forever. Jesus’ response in this way of calling the Samaritan “good” is striking both then and now to anyone who is literally trying to be in good standing with God.

God alone has the ability to qualify us to be good with Him now and forever. To show mercy in deep and meaningful ways, each of us must know how mercy is shown to us through the covenant God has made with His people through the person and work of Jesus Christ. Like the Jewish legal expert, you and I are only qualified by God’s say so that we are good with Him.

Somehow, by God’s miraculous work, the knowledge of God’s mercy towards us must reach our hearts in a way that moves us to want to live and love like him. May it be so for us as His chosen ambassadors for His Kingdom in the world today. God please help us by the power of your Spirit to know your love deeply and show your love meaningfully to all people – especially those most despised! Afterall, you have given bad people like me a new identity in your Kingdom as you are calling us “GOOD” to the praise of your glory!

Grateful & Hopeful in Christ,

Jon

Rooted

I once had a garden set back by the woods. Over the years, it yielded a profuse variety of weeds but little edible produce. I dreaded preparing the soil each spring. Under the surface of the garden grew thick, yellow, vine like roots. I don’t know precisely what they were, or which forest tree they originated from but they became my nemesis. For the sake of my garden I knew they had to go. But those roots held on as though their lives depended on it. It was a battle between roots and zucchini. Dear reader, I’m sad to say, the roots won. Those squash didn’t stand a chance. I lost out on some home grown veggies but I really did respect the tenacity of those roots.

Jesus told a crowd of people a parable about a sower who went out to sow seed. His disciples asked him, “What does this parable mean?” Jesus explained it to them in terms of seed and soil. The seed is the word of God. The different types of soil are representative of how the word is received. Some seed is snatched away before taking root, some lands in rocky soil with roots that never go deep, and some are choked by thorns. In Luke 8:15, Jesus says “But the seed in the good ground-these are the ones who, having heard the word with an honest and good heart, hold on to it and by enduring produce fruit.”

Once we receive the word, how do we hold on to it? We need to develop roots; roots that go down deep. Colossians 2:6-7 says “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.”

The Spirit of Jesus works in us to cultivate the soil of our hearts. When the seed lands on good soil, it dies. And yet something new springs forth- something that can produce much fruit as we continue to grow in Christ. Friends, growing deep roots takes effort on our part. It doesn’t just happen.

As we prepare for Sunday, consider: Is the soil of your heart prepared to receive the word? Are your roots growing deep as your faith flourishes? What does Jesus want to prune in you? Do you know that he will work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure? He wants us to yield fruit, a hundred fold! Let’s continue growing in the grace and knowledge of our Savior all the days of our lives.

Natalie

Prayer of Deliverance

Psalm 42 and 43 are linked poems whose author is unknown, but perhaps it’s David. Some think Psalm 43 is an appendix to Psalm 42 or as one poem in the ancient manuscripts. The poem offers counsel for the disillusioned and depressed with three stanzas, and three repeated refrains of hope including one as the ending for Psalm 43:

Why are you in despair, O my soul?

And why are you disturbed within me?

Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him,

The help of my countenance and my God.

The Psalmist is disheartened and overwhelmed with disillusionment and despair. The low point of the poem is verse 2, where he mourns his personal state of affairs with God and his relationship with others who he thinks are ungodly and deceitful. In a downtrodden season in life, I too learned one tends to ask T.S. Eliot’s lament, “What happened to life while living,” where disillusionment leads to cynicism and a shrunken kingdom of one — me.

The Psalmist shows us the way forward out of the fog of despair and an inward gaze of the cynical self starting in verse 3. He says a prayer that turns the whole poem and renews and lifts his perspective, “O send out Your light and Your Truth, let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to your dwelling places.”[NASB] He then vows to go to God’s altar and praise Him in joy.

To deal with the despair, the Psalmist made three choices we can learn from in Psalm 43, which will help in overwhelming times when life is out of tune. He prayed to ask for God’s light and Truth; he chose to be with the people of God (church) by going to “Your dwelling places” and bringing himself to the altar of God, and the Psalmist joyfully praised God. Prayer. Participation. Praise.

Centuries later, Boethius wrote The Consolation of Philosophy under duress while sitting in his jail cell awaiting execution. Boethius imaginatively used a muse of Philosophy who consoled Boethius with questions, answers, and explanations that offered important arguments regarding human suffering. Philosophy told Boethius, “Fix your gaze on the extent, the stability, the swift motions of the heavens.”

The Psalmist, in the end, also did that very thing in Psalm 43 by fixing his gaze on the hope in God and the stability of divine guidance through prayer, participation, and praise to make spiritual progress while dealing with personal despair.

-Dan Nickel

911

I have always had trouble sleeping at night, whether from nightmares or sleep paralysis, or the fear that no one was awake to warn me of possible dangers. Sleeping during the day was easier, and even more so when basking in the warm sun. I shared my fear of sleeping with a good friend of mine, and she introduced me to the 9-1-1 verse. She told me to read it at night before going to sleep to remind myself that I dwell in the shelter of the Lord Almighty.

Since then, Psalm 91 is the verse I go to when I am afraid. It’s a reminder that God has me, no matter how frightening my circumstances. Those circumstances may not be removed, but He is my shield and fortress even in the trial. Sometimes we endure God-sized trials that threaten to overwhelm us, but in those trials we learn to see Him, rely on Him, and know Him. Sometimes God shields us and lifts us out of it and sometimes we are to endure it, but we know from Psalm 91 that God is there with us, providing shelter and refuge.

God says in verse 14 "Because he has his heart set on me, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he knows my name." We can have trust in the words of this verse that when we love God, God will be with us. He’s calling us to take up permanent residence in His presence, and we will have His power, protection, and provisions.

Yet we don’t deserve any of it. We get to speak to God by the righteousness of Jesus. Through the sacrifice of Christ, we can stand forever in the presence of God, and thank God for the ways he takes us under mighty feathers and places Angels to watch over us so that we may be safe from all harm. 

Beyond Please and Thank You

“I maintain that people—truly born-again, genuinely Christian people—often do not pray simply because they do not feel like it. And the reason they don’t feel like praying is that when they do pray, they tend to say the same old things about the same old things.”- Donald Whitney

Thank you and please. For a season of my Christian life, my prayers followed a pattern: Thank you for this day, this food, the hands that prepared it, the one who worked for it, and for Jesus. Please help me with this, heal someone I love from that, guide us in this decision, and bless this food to our bodies. Done. Signed, sealed and delivered with a hearty amen.

Prayer started to become boring, rote, and a tedious task. After all, I wasn’t telling the Lord anything I hadn’t already said before. It was like a long marriage. He knew all my stories, and I knew His. Prayer was only a formality on my part, exercised because that’s what good Christians are expected to do.

“To pray the Bible, you simply go through the passage line by line, talking to God about whatever comes to mind as you read the text.” One day I picked up the book Praying God’s Word by Donald Whitney. His words convicted my heart and led me to begin the practice of using whatever I read in the Bible to guide my prayers. No longer could I skim a passage to check a box for my daily reading. I would need to meditate on the words, in silence allow the Spirit of God to speak to my heart and only then, pray, as Whitney suggested, about whatever the Lord brought to mind. For years, the Father had daily spread a feast before me, and I had spent years merely grabbing a cup of coffee on my way out the door. Now, I was finally ready to sit down at the table. When you pray God’s Word, Whitney went on to say, “What you are doing is taking words that originated in the heart and mind of God and circulating them through your heart and mind back to God. By this means his words become the wings of your prayers.”

Whether your prayer life feels stagnant, or only a tiny bit dry, I commend this practice to you. I can think of few places in the Word easier to begin than the Psalms. Using this week’s sermon text as a template, spend time reading, meditating, listening in stillness, and praying God’s Word.

“May the Lord answer you when you are in distress; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion. May he remember all your sacrifices and accept your burnt offerings. May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.

Now this I know: The Lord gives victory to his anointed. He answers him from his heavenly sanctuary with the victorious power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm. Lord, give victory to the king! Answer us when we call!” Psalm 20

Can you relate to David’s feelings of distress? In what areas do you need His protection and support? Most importantly- what do these verses reveal to you about the nature and character of God? What are you tempted to trust in other than the Lord?

Using these verses to guide your prayer can be as simple as inserting your own name in the Psalm. But perhaps you’ll be inspired to write your own. I’m eager to hear how this habit revitalizes your prayer life!

As Christ’s people, called by His Name, may we ever be those who humble ourselves in prayer and seek His face.

Natalie

God Speaks

God speaks. In fact, He has always spoken. To some he spoke audibly. Through the person of Jesus, He spoke publicly. In Psalm 19, David rejoices in the way God speaks through nature and His law. Theologians refer to these respectively as general revelation and special revelation.

Without using any words at all, God’s creation sends a message to the world. Without speech or words, the expanse of the sky proclaims there is a Creator. The light of the sun that warms the earth is dim in comparison to His radiance. The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 1:20, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” From the flowers that break forth in spring clothed in splendor, to the intricacies of a snowflake, to the power of the ocean, creation testifies that there is Someone greater than us. And all are accountable before Him.

But creation alone is insufficient. Creation tells us He IS, but it can’t tell us WHO He is. To know Him, we need special revelation. Nature doesn’t tell us the story of the One who spoke it into existence. The One who created people, and then went to great lengths to show His love and mercy to them…that’s only found in the pages of Scripture.

Most of us are more than willing to revel in nature’s beauty and bask in God’s presence. Listen for His power as the waves crash? Sit in awe gazing at the vast heights of a mountain range? Yes, please! But read His Word, day in and day out, waiting for the Word to do its work in us? That seems far less thrilling.

David’s psalm reassures us that it’s worth it. His instruction renews our lives, makes our hearts glad, lights our eyes and makes us wise. It’s in the word of God that we find Him- and knowing the Creator is supremely better than viewing even the most stunning creation.

As we begin this new year, dreaming dreams, setting goals and making plans, will we make knowing God and the study of His word our highest aim? His ordinances are more desirable than an abundance of pure gold and sweeter than honey dripping from the comb. Do you believe it? Let’s find out together in 2024!

Trusting,

Natalie

Redeeming Love

The song says, “On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…”  We give gifts this time of year to express love for each other.  

What have you gotten?  Anything you really needed?

Another song says, “What the world needs now is love, sweet love.”  Each of us has different ways of expressing love toward each other so it doesn’t always feel so sweet and sometimes can feel like something wholly other.  

How have you been shown love?  What’s sweet about it?

In our text for this Sunday, we’re reminded of the true love expressed in Christ Jesus – love that drives out all fear.  We’re reminded that this redeeming love is shown and known through Jesus.  The love He demonstrates is sweet but also much more encompassing as it is a 1 Corinthians 13 kind of love.  The Bible teaches that Jesus wants His followers to know and show this same kind of sacrificial love toward God, our neighbors, and our world.

I like to remind people that there are twelve days of Christmas beginning on 12/25.  We can still make the most of it by remembering that God loves us perfectly and demonstrates perfect love through the person and work of His Son.  That kind of love is transformational for us and the world!  That kind of love is what all of us really need in order to be wholly secure!

While the holiday season will soon pass, the Spirit of Christmas is evermore before the church and leading us to love like Jesus as we proclaim the good news of great joy for all people through our words and deeds.  May it be so for you and me through Jesus Christ our True Redeemer.

Grateful & Hopeful in Christ,

Jon

Bowing Out Gracefully

During Rembrandt's last year, he painted his renowned painting Simeon In The Temple. The painting differed from Rembrandt's first Simeon painting when the painter was 25 years old, making a name for himself with burgeoning success. His last painting had no pageantry, the glitz and glamor, the panoramic scene with Simeon at the center bathed in light and luxury. Older, wiser, and nearing death, Rembrandt instead paints a more gritty-toned Simeon, frail, weathered, his aged face aglow, with a child-like awe-struck gaze as he held the Christ child in his arms with open hands. The new met the old at the intersection of life. It is a painting showing incomprehensible joy and, above all else, humility. Simeon's years-long wait was over, and a Holy Spirit promise was fulfilled before he died. The Savior of Israel and the world arrived.

In his Gospel, Luke details in 2:25-35 Simeon's Spirit-led encounter with Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus as they came to the temple. The Holy Spirit was with Simeon and revealed to him before the birth happened that Simeon would see Jesus Christ before his death. Simeon's patience was rewarded, holding the mystery of God Incarnate in his arms — the beauty of the Divine and earth within this baby. In verse 29, Simeon states, "now," which indicates the long-awaited Messiah had arrived with mercy for all mankind that lies within the heart of this child.

Holding Jesus, Simeon proclaims praise now traditionally known as Nunc Dimittis ("now dismiss"), where he speaks of Jesus as the source of salvation, a light to the Gentiles, and a source of glory for Israel. It's a prophetic praise of the Lord's redemptive purpose and salvation for all people. We were bought with a price for our sins through the life and death of Jesus Christ, who breaks sin and death for all.

Advent is a season of joy, chorals, get-togethers, and the lighting of candles, but not discussed often is Simeon's warning to Mary "A sword will pierce through your own soul” (v.35). It was a warning that Jesus would cause polarization and conflict with people and the world. And in doing so, during His ministry, Jesus will also reveal a person's state of their heart. Mary will become the suffering mother as Jesus dies before her on the cross in the great exchange of His life for our sins and salvation. It's the last words recorded from Simeon. We know nothing about his life or death after this encounter when he said God was letting him depart in peace.

I do not know who wrote the following, but along with Rembrandt's capturing of the child-like wonder and hope Simeon possessed and Luke's account of Simeon’s encounter, it nicely sums up a faith and life lesson:

Simeon’s words are a promise to all whomever yield to the temptation to wrestle their destiny out of the hands of the sovereign and merciful God. I, like Simeon, will come to the end of life with pride behind me, love around me, and hope ahead of me. That is bowing out gracefully.

Merry Christmas!

Dan Nickel

Oh, come all ye faithful, joyful, and triumphant. Oh, come ye, oh come ye to Bethlehem!

I recently gathered with a group of about 60 women, all dear to one another, to fellowship over dinner, worship and hear the story of Jesus' birth. What I wasn’t prepared for was how much I needed this time with my sisters in Christ. Even more so, I needed to hear the birth story, told by a teacher with a vast understanding of Biblical culture, so much so, it was as if a time machine took us all back to Bethlehem, to see the birth of Jesus.

When I think of the Christmas nativity and Jesus’ birth story, I always interpret it as sad and lonely. Two people traveling alone, one pregnant on a donkey, through the desert at night. Finally, they reached a town and went door to door, with no one letting them in for no one had room for a woman who was about to have a baby! What kind of town is this? Forcing her, with no other option, to give birth in a barn surrounded by animals.  

Yet what I learned as we traveled back to ancient days, to a foreign country, is that Mary and Joseph were not alone, but traveling in a caravan of 200 or more people on their way back to their hometown where everyone had to register for the Roman census in their home provenance. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the two-room homes were all full. However, each home had a cave cut out, where they would keep their flocks at night. 

During the reunion of visitors, they moved the flocks outside so there would be room for all the family members. There in the manger, in the basement of their family’s home, Mary gave birth to Jesus with Joseph by her side, not alone, but surrounded by family- and more of their family than they would have been around had they been anywhere else. Can you picture all the aunties and uncles, cousins, and distant relatives side by side celebrating the birth of Jesus?

This birth story sounds more like God’s character. For God created family. God created a God-sized family as we are all adopted in Christ! God does not desire anyone to be left out of the celebrations and joy He has prepared for us. For on that night, even shepherds in the fields were invited to celebrate the birth of Jesus.

In Luke 2, shepherds were in the fields nearby tending their flocks. Now there is some debate on who these shepherds are. Some say due to season they may be shepherds who were preparing the flocks for the Temple in Migdal Eder, but they also could have been those who had moved the sheep out of the mangers so that there was room for the many travelers back to Bethlehem. We may never know exactly who the shepherds are, but, we do know, an Angel of the Lord delivered them a message. 

God does not leave out anyone! Shepherds were considered unclean and not allowed in the Temple, yet an Angel visited them.

God’s character is revealed- He invites the unclean to be clean. No one is forgotten by God! Not only that, but the Angel tells them that this is their sign, that a baby will be wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. God gives them the play-by-play to the gamebook! Faithfully the shepherds run to Bethlehem to see the newborn baby just as the Angel had described.

When I arrived at dinner, my heart was heavy. Faithful women around me stood to worship and began to sing, encouraging my soul. I listened to the voices praising God around me and as we sang "Oh come all ye faithful", I stopped, took it all in and saw God’s faithful.

As the world buzzes around us, may we continue to be God’s faithful and may our hearts be joyful and triumphant with the knowing that Jesus is our savior!

Love you my dear Church family!

Nikki Fiedler

Mission Impossible

How do you respond when God asks you to do something totally outside your comfort zone?  Do you run away like Jonah did when God asked him to go to Nineveh? Or maybe you’re like Peter, who, while attempting to walk on water, started to see all the potential problems and lost his faith that the Lord would provide.  Or do you have the “May it be” courage of Mary, mother of Jesus?   

What does it take to have her “May it be” courage?  Was Mary some kind of superstar teenager who possessed special abilities?  No.  By worldly standards, Mary was hardly the ideal candidate to be the mother of Jesus. She was an ordinary, young, unmarried girl with no experience in bearing or rearing a child.  We do know that she had a relationship with God (“O favored one, the Lord is with you!” [Luke 1:29 ESV]) and knew him as her Savior (“and my spirit rejoices in God, my savior.” [Luke 1:47 ESV]).  If we want to have “May it be” courage we must know the One who provides it.

When Gabriel told Mary about her mission, she didn’t run, she didn’t start thinking about what people would think, she didn’t worry about the gossip and the unkind things people would whisper as she passed.  She merely wondered how the process would work. Once Gabriel explained, Mary was quick to accept her mission.  “And Mary said, Behold I am the servant of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38 ESV).  Are you quick to follow the Lord in humble obedience?  Because Mary had a relationship with God, knew his Word and the things he had done for His people (Luke 1:50,53,55 ESV), she could trust that God would take care of all the details.  She was willing and available to be His servant.  Are you?

A courageous faith is not always comfortable.  Jesus didn’t say if you want to follow me, pick up a feather.  He said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross …” (Matthew 16:24 ESV).  A cross is not easy to carry, it’s heavy and burdensome.  If we are to have Mary’s “May it be” courage to carry our cross and answer "Yes!" when He calls us to do the impossible mission we must remember it’s not our skills God is after, but our love, devotion, a humble obedience, and a willingness to serve Him.  

Brenda Wooff