The Lutheran Review

Purple on White

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

Purple on white. A Minnesota Vikings fan might think I’m about to write something about their favorite Norse themed team. Well, I’m not. I’m a Green Bay Packer fan and ne’er the twain will meet.

Purple (or near purple) on white is what I’m seeing around my neighborhood in Sunset Hills, Mo. As I walk throughout the neighborhood, I noticed that in some yards either a magnolia tree or a redbud is placed in front of a white blooming pear tree. The pairing makes a wonderful sight.

As we move through lent we are still in the season of purple. But the purple, with the black of Good Friday squeezed in between, stands in the overwhelming presence of the resurrected Lord, accompanied by the angels in dazzling white.

I am longing for the purple to be removed from the altar. I look forward to singing “The Feast of Victory to our Lord,” on Easter morning. But I do not regret the 40 days of lent nor the three days of from Maundy Thursday to Holy Saturday. For Lent and Holy Week will make the Feast of Easter all that much tastier.

(I thought I should write about the purple and the white, because by Sunday morning the predicated rain and snow will likely have done in those blossoms for another year. However, I am confident that the yellow and green daffodils will survive, after all they are the colors of my favorite team.)

He did not Hide His Face

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

Two passages from Isaiah struck me during Wednesday bible class. Isaiah 50:6c, I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting. Isaiah 53:3c, One from whom men hide their faces. I would also add 50:7c, I have set my face like a flint.

Luke tells us in 9:51 When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. Jesus, God’s Messiah, was sent on a mission in which He must suffer many things and be rejected…and be killed, and on the third day be raised. He is so resolute in fulfilling his purpose that the citizens of a Samaritan village refuse to welcome him. Nor will he be delayed by James and John offering to call down a little fire from heaven to teach those Samaritans a lesson.

In athletics we call Jesus set face, “putting on his game face.” With resolute determination Jesus does not twist away from the lash, the crown of thorns, the reed nor the spitting. Upon the cross he faces those who taunt him as he tells the thief that he will be waiting to welcome him that day in Paradise; as he calls out to his Father; and as he places his mother into the hands of his disciple John. Jesus faced suffering and death so that we might not have to face eternal death and suffering. He faced it all once and for all.

Then why do people continue to hide their face from him? Isaiah 53:3c says that men still hide their face from him. A person hiding their face from Jesus will remain in the darkness until he looks on the face of Jesus Christ and there sees the glory of God in the light of the gospel. Only the Spirit of Christ can turn our face toward his. Then a person is able to sing with Paul Gerhardt,

“O sacred head, what glory

And bliss did once combine;

Though now despised and gory;

I joy to call You mine!

March 25, the Annunciation

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

In the sixth the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin…The virgin’s name was Mary.”

Early in the history of the church March 25 was designated as the day for the appearance of the angel to Mary announcing that she would be the mother of the Savior. St. Augustine writes in the fourth century, the Lord is believed to have been conceived on the 25^th day of March, upon which day he also suffered. So the womb of the Virgin in which he was conceived, where no mortal was ever begotten, corresponds to the new grave in which he was buried, wherein no one was ever laid.

Thomas J. Talley believes that the early Christians began including themes relating to Jesus birth during the celebration of his passion. “With that, then, the incarnation…came to be understood as the conception of the Lord … and that in itself defined the date of the nativity.” In other words, early Christians counted ahead from March 25^th to determine that December 25^th was the date of the nativity. In the development of the church year Christmas comes relatively late.

March 25^th actually had three interconnections for ancient scholars. Some also believed that God began the creation on that day.

The Annunciation and the Passion fell on the same day in 1608. John Donne wrote a lengthy poem on the connection. I will select only a couple of lines.

He begins, Tamely fraile body abstaine today, today

My soul eates twice, Christ hither and away.

Donne will be fasting because it is Good Friday; however, his soul will dine twice as it celebrates the coming of Christ into Mary’s womb and Jesus being laid in the tomb.

A sixteenth century Latin carol carries the message of the day.

Gabriel’s message does away

Satan’s curse and Satan’s sway,

Out of darkness brings our day:

So, behold, all the gates of heaven unfold.

He that comes despised shall reign;

He that cannot die, be slain;

Death by death its death shall gain:

So, behold, all the gates of heaven unfold.

Weakness shall the strong confound;

By the hands in grave clothes wound

Adam’s chains shall be unbound:

So, behold, all the gates of heaven unfold.

Like a Serpent

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

From somewhere in my memory I recall a Sunday school picture of a bronze serpent hanging on a pole-cross. Moses had put it there at the Lord’s direction. Snake bitten Israelites were looking up at the effigy of the serpent trusting in God’s promise that they would be healed. When we consider the serpent in the Garden of Eden and the effigy on the pole, we see both the source of death and the source of life. The serpents that sank their fangs into the Israelites in the desert were the instruments of God’s punishment on a populace demonstrating the sin into which all mankind fell in the Garden. The serpent Moses fashioned and put on the pole was the instrument through which God saved His people from His judgment on their lack of trust.

The irony that the cause of our spiritual death, and our eventual physical death, becomes even stronger when Jesus compares himself to the serpent Moses lifted up on the pole. For Jesus must be lifted up like that Moses’ effigy in the wilderness, in order that whoever looks to Him may have the curse of death removed and receive life in eternity.

Jesus is the One who came not to condemn the world but to save it.

In Genesis three, God promises the serpent that one of Eve’s offspring will stomp on his head and that in the process of crushing and killing the serpent, the serpent will sink its fangs into the heel of Eve’s descendant resulting in his death. However, by absorbing the deadly effects of the serpents poison he removes those same deadly effects from us. The fulfillment of that promise is found in Paul’s taunt recorded in I Corinthians 15, “O death, where is your sting?” Death will still bite us, but it’s no more lethal than a garter snake.

In Rev. 20: 1-3, promises that “that ancient serpent, who the devil and Satan” will be bound and thrown into the pit, shut in and sealed there. Don’t worry about that it says “for a thousand years.” We may be getting used to thinking in trillions but for the people 2,000 years ago a thousand was as good as forever, and that’s what it means.

Spring

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

On this first day of Spring I found a poem by Robert Frost that well describes those of us who have a passion to be about gardening.

You come to fetch me from my work tonight

When supper’s on the table, and we’ll see

If I can leave off burying the white

Soft pedals fallen from the apple tree

Mingled with these, smooth bean and wrinkled pea….

How Love burns through the Putting in the Seed

On through the watching for that early birth

When, just as the soil tarnishes with weed,

The sturdy seedling with arched body comes

Shouldering its way and shedding the earth crumbs.

It’s easy in winter to forget and even despair that spring will ever come. Gregory of Nyssa (c,. 335 to after 394) reminds us that, “the Sun of Justice rose in this cruel winter, the spring came, the south wind dispelled that chill, and together with rising sun’s rays warmed everything that lay in our path. Thus mankind, that had been chilled into stone, might become warm again through the Spirit, and receiving heat from the rays of the Word, might again become as water leaping up into eternal life.”

Gregory’s statement, “Mankind, that had been chilled into stone,” reminds me of C.S. Lewis book Lion, Witch and Wardrobe in which winter is broken with the coming of Aslan and the creatures turned to stone by the White Witch come back to life.

Just Musing

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

In July of 2002 I stood with the chaplain of the House of Representatives waiting for Speaker Dennis Hastert to convene the session after which I would have the opening prayer. My dad, Becky, our son Aaron and his wife Melissa and Dale Meyer’s daughter, Elizabeth were in the gallery. I said to the chaplain that my life had taken some amazing turns for a kid who grew up on a farm a half mile down a gravel town road in northern Wisconsin.

After eight years of synodical boot camp, Becky and I were married the night after I graduated from the seminary. I had a call to be assistant pastor at St. Martin’s, Winona, MN. Then after another three years it was on to Zion, Albert Lea, MN for eight years. I had never heard of either place before being called to those locations. Nor had I heard of Immanuel, Marshfield, WI., where we spent 11 years. Holy Cross, Collinsville, IL had never been on our radar screen either, though we passed through it often going to and from Becky’s home in Desoto, Mo. Nevertheless, Clay School Road was our address for over 13 years.

It’s nearly 7 years since that prayer in the House of Representatives, thanks Cong. John Shimkus. But life didn’t stop there. The Lord keeps leading into new and exciting ministries. Since I had served in larger congregations during my entire ministry, I began to think that I might like to do ministry in smaller parishes. And has happened so many times, the Lord said, “Okay, Ron, whatever you want.” Places such as Pinckneyville and Conant, Il; Walkersville, Maryland; Elk Prairie, MO; St. Clair, MO and Otto, MO. have left me with fond memories. This doesn’t even include all the “running around and preaching” opportunities I have. Heaven, forbid, that I sit in the pew with my wife on Sunday morning.

Perhaps what has gotten me thinking along these lines this evening is that “call day” at the seminaries is about a month away. Seminarians are anxiously waiting to see where the Lord will send them. The folks at Otto are wondering whom the Lord will send to them. When they started the call process and asked me to open a call meeting with prayer, I reminded them that they were asking me to prayer for someone to come and take my job. Thus seminarians and calling congregations are not the only ones wondering what future the Lord has in mind for us.

Joseph, Guardian of Jesus

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

Only in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke do we hear of Joseph. Mark and John don’t mention him. Even in Matthew and Luke he gets no lines to speak. Nor does he get to sing a song. Zechariah sings, Mary sings, the heavenly host praise God at Jesus birth and Simeon sings of the salvation he is holding in his arms. In more than one way, Joseph is an unsung hero.

A verse that might sum up his life is Matthew 1:24a, When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. I see Joseph as one of those behind the scenes doers that every congregation needs. If something goes haywire at church, a toilet won’t flush, the furnace needs looking at or a door is malfunctioning, we know who to call. Joseph was one of those people. He didn’t mind getting his hands dirty.

Thus in the story of birth of God into flesh he went ahead and married Mary despite her questionable pregnancy. If he was dutiful to the Lord, he was also dutiful to the civil authorities. In returning to Bethlehem at the behest of Caesar he satisfied the plans of both God and government. He was present at the birth of Jesus for whom he would act as guardian. He saw to Jesus circumcision at 8 days of age and the sacrifices ordained for the first male child born into a family. Joseph protected his family by fleeing with them to Egypt until it was safe tom return. The last we hear of Joseph is when he and Mary find Jesus in the temple after a three day search.

Psalm 89:1 certainly applies to Joseph on the day aside to remember him, Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways!

Almighty God, from the house of Your servant David You raised up Joseph to be the guardian of Your incarnate Son and the husband of His mother, Mary. Grant us grace to follow the example of this faithful workman in heeding Your counsel and obeying Your commands; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives, and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Patrick, bishop, missionary to Ireland (389-466)

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

The Lifestyle section of March 15 Post Dispatch asked the question “Do You Feel Lucky?” The writer commented, “We could all use a little more luck in our lives.” Then they offered “some of our favorite good luck charms.” There were lucky horseshoes. One could buy a pink bag with a four leaf clover for $120. Guess who was getting the luck if you bought that bag. A place called The Purple Pickle was selling a glass ornament for $60. “These glass spheres, known as witch balls, have been hung in windows for more than 300 years to ward off evil spirits and ill fortune.”

Actually, I liked that glass sphere, but for 60 bucks? I’ll wait for the 90% clearance sale.

I probably shouldn’t be too hard on those folks. When I was at the Seminary we usually we went out for corned beef and cabbage accompanied by green beer.

However, none of the above has anything to do with St. Patrick who at age 16 was captured and sold into slavery in Ireland. At that point in his life he cared little for God. However, during his six years feeding hogs he was converted to Christ. He escaped, made his way to a monastery in the south of France. Though he had a strong yearning to carry the gospel back to the Irish, he studied for 14 years in preparation. In 433 he was ordained a bishop and returned to Ireland where he spent the rest of his life proclaiming the gospel. He wrote an autobiography, and several of his prayers and hymns are used in the church today.

Patrick didn’t believe that we could all use a little more luck in our lives. What we needed and he offered was Christ with us, in us, behind us, before us and beside us.

He was a strong defender of the doctrine of the Trinity as reflected in his hymn, “I bind unto myself today” (LSB 604). It’s also known as St. Patrick’s Breastplate and has 8 stanzas.

Stanza 5

I bind unto myself the name,

The strong name of the Trinity

By invocation of the same,

The three in One and One in Three,

Of whom all nature has creation,

Eternal Father, Spirit, Word.

Praise to the Lord of my salvation,

Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Lenten Spring

By Rev. Ronald Jansen

summer, when plants were on sale, I planted a peony along the backyard fence.  I’ve been growing one for a few years in front of the shed next to the garage near our front yard.

 

On Saturday I noticed my backyard peony blooming with a most unpeony looking flower.  Furthermore, my front yard peony shows no signs of life yet.  In fact, the dark purple blossom reminded me of a plant I had when we lived in Collinsville, IL.   I checked on the internet and sure enough.  My backyard peony was no peony at all.  It had been mislabeled or the tags were switched at the nursery.

 

What I have is a Lenten rose, which like its cousin, the Christmas rose, is no rose at all.

But there it is in my backyard, its modest purple flower reminding me that we are still in lent and repentance is still on the agenda before joy bursts out like the showy Easter lily.

 

Vigen Guroian writes in his book of meditation on gardening, Inheriting Paradise.

 

With prayer and fasting in the Lenten spring, the Christian clears the self’s soil of stony sin and makes rooms within for the pierced heart and bleeding flesh of Jesus….The flower of repentance, however, grows only in the soil which has been enriched by the death of the old self that we have let die in it.  The Son of God took our sins into the tomb with him and his body that was planted in a garden bore the fruit of eternal life.

(Pp.24-25)

Bev's Recipes: “Singing in the Kitchen” Homemade Clay

         
             Mix :
                1 c. flour
                1/2 c. canning salt
                1 tsp. alum
            Add:
                3/4 c. boiling water
                1 T. vegetable oil
            Separate and add desired food coloring.

            * I find it is as much fun to have the grandchildren
            help stir and prepare this recipe as it is to play with  play
            dough on a cool day.