God Really Wants You to Know

Grace, mercy, and peace in Christ Jesus!

At a meeting of the American Psychological Association, Jack Lipton, a psychologist at Union College, and R. Scott Builione, a graduate student at Columbia University, presented their findings on how members of the various sections of 11 major symphony orchestra perceived each other. The percussionists were viewed as insensitive, unintelligent, and hard-of-hearing, yet fun-loving. String players were seen as arrogant, stuffy, and un-athletic. The orchestra members overwhelmingly chose "loud" as the primary adjective to describe the brass players. Woodwind players seemed to be held in the highest esteem, described as quiet and meticulous, though a bit egotistical. Interesting findings, to say the least! With such widely divergent personalities and perceptions, how could an orchestra ever come together to make such wonderful music? The answer is simple: regardless of how those musicians view each other, they subordinate their feelings and biases to the leadership of the conductor. Under his guidance, they play beautiful music. (Today in the Word, June 22, 1992)

When Paul described the church as the body of Christ, it was clear that Jesus is the head (Ephesians 4:15), and our mind is the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).  It is when we submit to His headship that we have unity and fulfill the purpose for which He called us – that we operate like the symphony in concert. 

How do we know the thoughts of the Head?  How do we know the mind of Christ? 

God’s mind and will are revealed to us in His Word.  The Bible is God speaking to us, communicating His Law and Gospel, revealing His attitude, will, and message.  This is one of the reasons it is so important for us to read (or listen to) our Bibles and hear for ourselves what God has said! 

If that is the case, why don’t all Christians believe the exact same thing?  Why is there so much division within the body of Christ? 

It is because of Sin.  Our sin and pride cause us to take the clear meaning of God’s Word and twist it to fit our own understanding of the world, preconceived notions, and personal preferences.  A good example of this is when Thomas Jefferson cut out all the references to miracles from his Bible, including Jesus’ resurrection.  In his mind these things cannot happen, therefore the text must be wrong.  And when there is not a clear meaning in the passages, people often insert their own opinions instead of drawing from the larger message of the Bible.

How, then, can we be confident that when we read the Bible we won’t, “get it wrong”? 

Faith. 

The Communicator desires to be understood.  God wants us to hear what He says, and wants us to know His mind.  (John 1:18, 1Timothy 2:4, Romans 10:17)  This is part of why Jesus came, to communicate God’s Word and love to us.  The Spirit still guides us and opens God’s Word and creates faith in us (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Our confidence in reading the Word is not rooted in our ability to understand, but in God’s ability to make Himself known. 

So take up the Bible and read, O Body of Christ!  Know the mind of Jesus, and be strengthened in faith, hope, and love. 

Questions to Ponder

-          How does God speak to us? 

-          Why can we be confident that we can understand God’s Word?

-          When we don’t understand something in the Bible, where can we turn to understand?  

-          What hinders or prevents you from reading the Bible? 

-          “God wants us to hear what He says, and wants us to know His mind.”  Have you ever considered this proposition?  How might this comfort us?  How might it challenge us? 

-          When have you read God’s Word and been comforted?  Challenged?  Confused?  Enlightened? 

You are invited to join me on a journey through the New Testament!  You can get the readings, read some explanations of the readings, and even ask questions at www.lotrittens.blogspot.com

Jesus Was Born With A Body. Rose With One Too.

Dear Fellow Redeemed,

Grace.  Mercy.  Peace.  Each of these is yours through the death and resurrection of Jesus, who was, “conceived by the Holy Spirit,” and, “born of the virgin Mary.”  In other words, from egg to embryo to birth, Jesus was conceived miraculously and born normally, spending nine months in Mary’s womb. 

Jesus’ incarnation is central to our salvation.  It was with His body that he bore our sins.  (1 Peter 2:24) He was fully human so he completely understands our weakness.  (Hebrews 4:15)  And even now He retains his humanity, for after his crucifixion, Jesus bodily rose from the dead.  (Luke 24:36-43)  And He never left His body, but ascending into heaven in the state of being fully human and fully divine.  And He will bodily return on the Last Day to judge the living and the dead.  (Acts 1:9-11) 

God gives us life in these bodies of ours, and the body matters.  In the normal course of things, it is while we are in the body that we are able to hear the Gospel and receive salvation.  It is with these bodies that we love, speak words of salvation, serve, do both good and evil, receive Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and so much more.  No wonder, then, that God chose to protect our bodies with one of the Ten Commandments, “You shall not murder.”  (NumberFive, as we number them.)  And Jesus extends the connection of this command to our entire selves – body, mind, and soul – saying that even anger and name calling violate God’s command.  (Matthew 5:21-22) 

Now, if you are keeping score, you have realized I just called you a murderer.  At least if you’ve ever gotten angry and called someone names you are. 

Actually, I didn’t call you a murderer.  Jesus did.  He called me one, too. 

This past Sunday was Life Sunday, and churches all across the U.S. remembered the 40^th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Roe v. Wade.  Since that date over 50 million babies have been aborted in the U.S. – a sad statistic at best.  That being said, Life Sunday, while begun as a focus regarding abortion and the sanctity of life in the womb, has expanded to deal with all sorts of issues dealing with human life. 

Life issues are a major dividing point in our nation.  They are issues that rile people up.  To be very forthright, the Church has not always handled these issues very well, and sadly the major message the world hears from God’s people is condemnation instead of God’s love for people and passion for life.  I confess that my words on this topic over the years have not always been a loving reflection of my Savior. 

This is our goal, however, as God’s people.  Living in Jesus’ forgiveness – even forgiveness for the sin of murder – we extend God’s love and forgiveness to everyone in the hope that they would believe in Jesus.  Dealing with people who are walking through the painful situations regarding unwanted pregnancies, suffering and terminal illness, guilt from previous life-ending decisions, and the like requires that we humbly recognize our own place in God’s presence – we are sinners saved by Christ’s death.  Ours is not the place of judgment.  God will handle that with far more wisdom than we are capable of.  Ours is the place of confessing God’s Word – both Law and Gospel.  Ours is the place of pointing to Jesus and saying that all sins are atoned for at the cross: yours, mine and all people in the world.  Ours is the place of loving God and neighbor by our actions, because God loved us by His. 

Questions to Ponder

-          Look at some of the verses sited above.  Why is it important that Jesus is truly human? 

-          How did Jesus demonstrate His physical resurrection to the disciples?

-          Jesus says that love is at the root of the Ten Commandments.  How does the Fifth Commandment demonstrate God’s love for you?

-          How do we know about God and His will for us?  How do you know that He loves you?  

Baptized as a Baby, and it Counted!

I was at a hospital in metro-Detroit to visit a man who was dying.  His son was a member of my congregation, but the man, himself, was somewhat disconnected from his Roman Catholic upbringing.  The son was distraught, concerned for his father’s health and salvation, so he had asked me to come.  So there I was. 

What I hadn’t been told was that the man had a daughter who was a born-again, re-baptized, non-denominational Baptist who was adamant that her father’s baptism didn’t count because he was an infant when he was baptized.  It was like stepping into a Cold War meeting of the U.S. and Soviet Union; thick with tension, each party waiting for the other to flinch, and my presence was just the spark needed to get things going. 

I began to speak to the man about God’s faithfulness and the gift God gave him in his baptism, and that’s when the daughter went off.  She began lecturing and saying that her dad’s baptism was invalid because he was a baby, he wasn’t immersed, and baptism can’t give faith or forgiveness.  I could see the questions and fear in the old man’s eyes, and I made a decision.  I excused myself and asked the children to come in the hallway with me and we had a stern talk about not upsetting their dying father. 

The daughter got in my face and cited this past week’s gospel lesson (Luke 3:15-22) to prove that baptism must be done by immersion and only for adults.  It was a militant stance, and as I stepped into the theological debate I knew two things:  (1) she would not be convinced, no matter what Bible verses I pointed her to because she had put human traditions over God’s Word and (2) this conversation was not going to serve God’s kingdom or the old man in the hospital room. 

Sigh!

Baptism is a great gift God has given us.   It is far more than a nostalgic moment where we offer our children to the Lord.  God places His name on those who are baptized and fills them with the Holy Spirit.  He creates faith, washes away sin, and gives us all His gifts.  (Titus 3) Baptism saves.  (1 Peter 3:21)  The reason it saves is because it delivers the benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection to us.  (Romans 6:3-7)  What is more, our Lord Jesus commands baptism as part of making disciples – not choosing to be disciples – but making disciples.  (Matthew 28:19-20)

Brothers and sisters, I urge you to cherish your baptism.  Turn there when you feel doubts about your faith, or have questions about your salvation.  You are baptized!  God has touched you to mark you as His own, and to give you all of the benefits of being His child!  Then share the good news of what God has done for you so others can know God’s love and blessings in their lives, too!  (And if you’re not baptized: why not?  Let’s talk about that!)

Questions to Ponder

-          Who did people wonder John might be?

-          How does John describe Jesus in Luke 3:16?  What does this mean for Jesus’ baptism?

-          Where do we see each person of the Trinity in Luke 3:21-22?

-          When and where were you baptized?  How old were you?  Who was there?  What do you know about that day?

-          How might knowing that God was at work in your baptism comfort you when you have doubts, troubles or struggles?

-          Which of the passages cited above is the most meaningful or challenging to you?  Why not memorize it and meditate on it?  

And the Christmas Season Comes to an End

Well, Christmas has come and gone again, but the Christ Child, who was born to save us from our sins, lives and reigns to all eternity and is still at work in our world!  This past Sunday, January 6, was the Feast of Epiphany – the 12^th Day of Christmas – and the, “12 drummers drumming,” bring the Christmas festivities to an end.  The decorations have come down from the sanctuary, and we have entered the Season of Epiphany which focuses us to see Jesus as the God-Man who came to save us.  The season kicks off with the visit of the Magi, which you can read about in Matthew 2:1-12. 

It is interesting how the visit of the Magi has been romanticized and sanitized.  Many a nativity scene shows these visitors from the Orient bowing offering their gifts at Jesus’ cradle, but the truth is Jesus’ family had moved into a house by the time the Magi arrived, and He was likely a year-or-two old.  Songs and legends refer to them as kings, but they were not.  Magi served kings.  We also tend to call them wise men, and this they were in a manner of speaking.  They were likely a mix of scientist and sorcerer, studying the stars and nature to predict the future and harness their powers. 

You might be wondering at this point, “What in the world are people like that doing visiting Jesus and worshipping Him?”  And if you are, I would argue that you have hit on the point Matthew is making as he records this event. 

The Magi were the worst kind of false religion practitioners you can find, and they come to Jesus.  Think through Jesus’ ministry.  Was it the priests, Pharisees and scribes who flocked to Jesus, or was it the tax-collectors, prostitutes, and “sinners”?  As Jesus, Himself, said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”  (Luke 5:31-32) 

Jesus comes for sinners.  He is the demonstration of God’s all-powerful love for people just like you and me who disobey Him, rebel against Him, and even pretend we don’t need Him.  The Magi are a living picture of the kind of people God redeems in Jesus. 

Here is the rub for us in this scenario.  Where do you want to be on the continuum between Magi and Pharisee?  Are you a sinner who needs Jesus to shed His blood for you?  Or are you basically a good person who just occasionally messes up a little? 

For my part, I am a sinner.  Apart from the blood of Jesus, I have no hope for salvation.  I hope that you will join me in that answer so that you can know the amazingness of God’s grace; that He welcomes people like us into His presence through Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection. 

P.S.  This reading also demonstrates the importance of reading the Bible to know what it actually says.  If you are not reading the Bible please join me in reading through the New Testament this year.  You can get the readings and a devotion based on the readings through the church web site – here.  Or you can follow through my web page here. 

Questions to Ponder

-          Somehow the Magi knew a King of the Jews had been born by observing the stars.  There is much speculation as to how they knew that Jesus had been born, but the text is clear as to how they knew where He was born.  How did they find out where Jesus was born?

-          What did King Herod say was his intention in helping the Magi to find the newborn king?  What was his real intention?  What important information did Herod get from them Magi in v. 7?

-          What was the Magi’s response at seeing the star after visiting Jerusalem?

-          If the visit of the Magi really shows that God welcome’s sinners, what is the significance of having confession and absolution in every worship service?  What is your response at hearing that your sins are forgiven?

-          Herod was not about to worship Jesus or acknowledge Him as a true king.  How do you resist Jesus’ lordship in your life?  Where do you try to remain “king”?

-          How might knowing the scandalous background of the Magi impact who you share the Gospel with?