The Lutheran Review

Michael and All Angels

St. Michael and All Angels Day, September 29

 

Michael is an archangel called a “great prince” in Daniel 10 & 12. He fought for the people of Israel in a time of trouble. According to Revelation 12, he led the heavenly army against the dragon, that ancient serpent, also known as the devil and Satan. Satan had deceived Christ’s followers and accused them day and night before God. But now he has been cast out of heaven. However, he has landed on earth in great wrath, for he knows his time is short.

The only means we have to conquer him is by the blood of Christ and the Word of the Gospel. Therefore, when the seventy two returned to Jesus in Luke 10 they rejoiced over their power over demons in Jesus’ name. Jesus said that he had seen Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Nevertheless, the fall of Satan is not a time for Schadenfreude. The true cause for rejoicing is that our names are written in heaven where they are backed and guaranteed in Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Everlasting God, You have ordained and constituted the service of angels and men in a wonderful order. Mercifully grant that, as Your holy angels always serve and worship You in heaven, so by Your appointment they may also help and defend us here on earth; through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

October in the Garden

 

There isn’t much to do in the garden right now.  Plants are recovering from our mini drought in July and August.  My tomato and pepper plants are having a resurgence of production.  The only things that didn’t suffer from the heat and dryness were the invasive plants.

A couple weeks ago my older brother in northern Wisconsin emailed that ahead of a September frost he had picked his tomatoes.  The floor in part of their house was covered with ripening vegetables.  The garden is done up there.  He and my sister in law are on a bus trip to the Canyons of the SW.

My second oldest son in Maryland told me the other day that the abundance of rain and clouds in the east had left a low part of his yard in a grass killing soggy condition.  He was thinking about what to plant there that would not cost an arm and a leg.

 Vigen Gurion writes in a section entitled leaving the garden, in his book, “The Fragrance of God,”   “Often times Christian poets have opined that each and every earthly garden is an emblem of Eden and a reminder of Jesus’ promise to the repentant thief that that day they would be together in Paradise. “  Gurion continues quoting Sir William Temple, “If we believe the Scripture, we must allow that God Almighty esteemed the life of a man in the garden the happiest he could give him, or else He would not have placed Adam in that Eden” (Fairbrother, Men and Gardens, p. 4)

Gurion then writes, “When she gardens, the true garden recollects the joy of Adam and Eve in Paradise.  She seeks to replenish the earth with its pristine beauty and “useless” abundance.

We are coming to that time of year when the Sunday lessons will point us toward the return of Christ.  I’m not a big fan of the fiery end.  But if that is what must happen then perhaps the groaning creation will re emerge as a great new Eden.  After all, Jesus prayed in a garden and after his death he was buried in a garden.  “Now in the place where he was crucified there was a GARDEN and in the garden a new tomb” (John 19:41).  After his resurrection Mary saw Jesus and supposed him to be the gardener.

I think I may have a Maundy Thursday to Easter sermon series for 2012.  Hope I can remember then what I thought of today.  Better put a note in my lectionary book.    

Pardon My Guilt

 

Psalm 25 is an alphabetical acrostic.  It is one of nine such Psalms.  Each verse of the psalm begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet.  V. 1 = aleph, v.2 = beth, v. 3 gimel,  and so through the alphabet.  Psalm 25 omits two letters.

Robert Alter translates v. 1, to "You, O lord, I lift (up) my heart.”  That is, my essential self or life breath, the life God gave when he breathed into the man of clay the breath of life and the man became a living being (Gen. 2:7).

In the service of the sacrament the pastor urges, “Lift up your hearts.”  The people respond, “We lift them to the Lord.”

“Well,” the pastor, in as much says, “(Then) let us give thanks to the Lord our God.”

The pew folk sing their agreement, “It is right to give Him thanks and praise.”

The psalmist continues askingthat God, “Inform me, instruct me in your paths.”  The psalmist is aware that he missed the path that the Lord wants him to follow.

A couple of weeks ago my second oldest son said he had ridden in a 100 mile bike ride that Saturday.  The course went over and through a couple of peaks in the Appalachian Mtns west of Frederick, Maryland.  Near the end of the ride he missed a turn and rode up an energy sapping detour and then had to backtrack.   This is what the psalmist is talking about.  He took a wrong turn and now needs God’s guidance to know the course he should follow.

In verse 6 he asks God, “Recall Your mercies…and your kindnesses-they are forever.”  He does not ask God to recall the authors’ mercy and acts of kindness, because they are insufficient and certainly are not a consistent way of life for him.

In verse 7 he asks God to not recall the offenses of my youth nor my crimes.  A heavy sense of guilt over past sins still hangs upon the psalmist.  These are not necessarily sins of his childhood, but those when he was a young man, when he still knew everything. 

He’s gained some wisdom since the days of his youth.  Now all he knows is that only the Lord is good and upright.  Now that he is older he is teachable.  He is confident that God will lead him in learning his ways even if he is an offender.

Finally in verse 11 he calls on the Lord to forgive, not because the psalmist is faithful, but because God is faithful to his promise.  On the basis of his name, as Creator, Sustainer and Savior God will follow the path of kindness and truth and will forgive his sins, great they may be.   

 

Reflections

 

As I wrote last week, I needed to take some time to let a neck and shoulder problem ease up before I could get back on the computer.  I think the culprit was that I was doing a lot of online reading on a screen that was set too high and strained my neck etc.  What has led to is that we moved all my files to another computer.  That has led to me move some of my material that I use regularly to a new location.  To accomplish that, I sorted through books etc that I will take down to Goodwill later this morning.  Stuff that I’m pretty sure that I will never get around to reading.  Truth be told, I’ve still got a lot of that sort of stuff left.  In the face of my wife saying that when I die she’s just going to rid of it all.  Nobody in the family wants the books; one son does want the bookshelves which my father made for me.  So I’ve left directions to call someone from the seminary library to come and look things over.

I missed not being at my computer for a week.  I had to take a break from researching and writing about my grandparents.  What I thought would be a story is turning into a book.  The more one gets into it the more there is to get into.

We have come to depend on technology.  Later this week, I will write some vision thoughts for Immanuel Chapel.  I will send them to the person who is working with us, who is currently on a three week mission trip to Malaysia.

Until I was in my teens we didn’t have a phone.  The line stopped at my aunt and uncle’s farm, about a quarter mile down the road.  When the phone company went from the crank phone to dials they ran the line past our farm.  Even then making a long distance call took careful consideration in terms of cost and was it really necessary.  It was about the same time that the school bus started coming to the end of our driveway and mail delivery came down our town road.

My wife and I still aren’t up to speed.  We aren’t on Face book or Twitter.  We don’t have text messaging on our cell phones.

Well, enough of meandering reflections.

I’ve been pondering the saying in from Ezekiel 18, “The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”  If it sounds familiar, it’s likely because you heard it in the Old Testament lesson yesterday.  Something to think about along with my grandfather growing up in Berlin in the 1860’s as the son of a shoemaker and then working on excursion boats on the Elbe, followed by a stint in the German merchant marine before coming to this country.                

 

A Pain in the neck

I haven't been writing much this week, because I have developed a pain in the neck, literally.  Plus a pain in the shoulders and upper back.  So I'm taking a break for a couple of days.  Even doing what I am doing isn't pain free.  So why don't I stop doing it?  I'll try to get back at it on Saturday evening. 

Ron Jansen

Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

 

The gospel of Matthew is bracketed by two passages assuring us that in Jesus Christ, God is present with us.

The messenger of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.   “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name, Immanuel (1:23).”  As Jesus is about to take his leave of the disciples after the resurrection, he assures them, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  In Jesus, God is Immanuel, God with us, from the beginning to the end, whether we are speaking of the gospel, this age or our life.

By the second chapter of Matthew’s gospel three things are revealed.  First, the good news of Jesus is for everyone.  Pagan gentile star readers come from the east to worship the new king.  After His death a Roman centurion declared, “Truly this was the Son of God (27:54).”  During his ministry Jesus healed a centurion’s servant.  He freed two men of their demons on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee.  Jesus took his message north to Caesarea Philippi, a center of pagan worship.  

Second, though they misread the star map, they know that a king has been born.  After a study of the scriptures, they head to Bethlehem where they “fell down and worshiped him.”  At his trial the soldier’s of Pontius Pilate dress him in a scarlet robe and place a crown on his head(of thorns) and kneel down before him saying, “Hail, King of the Jews.”  Their mockery does not negate the fact that Jesus is a king.  His kingship was posted on the cross, “This is Jesus, king of the Jews.”  In Galilee, after his resurrection, the disciples fell down and worshiped him.  Then Jesus declared, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”  He sends them out into the world as his ambassadors.

We also learn by the second chapter of Matthew’s gospel that there will be opposition to the good news of salvation coming in Jesus.  Herod, another gentile, plots to eradicate this latest threat to his throne.  Thus he sends his troops into Bethlehem and the surrounding area to kill all the infant boys.  However, it’s not only the secular authority that opposes him.  The religious authorities, his own people, eventually capture, condemn and demand his execution.  The opposition even invades the inner core of his followers.  Judas is bribed to betray him for a few dollars.  Even as he is about to ascend back to the heavenly Father, Matthew notes that among the eleven disciples, “but some doubted.”  Nevertheless, the church was sent out, doubters included, to disciple, baptize and teach.  For the authority rested not on the disciples,  but on  Jesus Christ who has all authority.

Prayer for St. Matthew’s Day

O son of God, our blessed Savior Jesus Christ, You called Matthew the tax collector to be an apostle and evangelist.  Through his faithful and inspired witness, grant that we also may follow You, leaving behind all covetous desires and love of riches; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. 

 

 

God's Treasured Possession

Pentecost 14, 2011, Immanuel Chapel, Exodus 19:2-8

The great event of God, through Moses, leading the people of Israel through the Red Sea, is told often in numerous ways in the bible.  Listen to this creed to be recited whenever a Jew brought a sacrifice to the temple, “A wandering Aramean was my father.  And he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation, great, mighty and populous.  And the Egyptians treated us harshly and humiliated us and laid on us hard labor.  Then we cried to the Lord…the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression.  The Lord brought us out…with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with signs and wonders.”

In our text today the people have arrived at the mountain where God appeared to Moses in the burning bush.  The people were still setting up their tents when Moses rushed up the mountain.  We can almost him calling out, “God, here they as you directed.”  God calls out to him, “Tell the people…you yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagle’s wings and brought you to myself.”

  What images.  Visualize, God the mighty warrior with outstretched arm socking it to Pharaoh.  Picture God, like a mothering eagle, swooping in to rescue Israel, shredding Egypt with gashing beak and piercing talons.  

We too have our creeds describing God’s mighty feats of salvation.  We believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; of all things seen and unseen.  We believe in Jesus Christ, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God.  For our salvation he tore open the heavens and came down to us, born of the Virgin Mary.  He suffered, was crucified, died and was buried.  He rose again on the third day.  He ascended into heaven.  He sits at the right hand of the Father.  He will come to judge the living and the dead.  We believe in the Holy Spirit, Lord and giver of life, who spoke by the prophets.  We believe in the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sin; the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.

A refrain that ran through much of the remembrance of 9/11 urged us to never forget.  Yet we do forget.  Israel forgot how God had thrown the Egyptian horse and rider into the sea.  In Jeremiah God laments, “What wrong did your fathers find in me…they did not say, ‘Where is the Lord who brought us up from the land of Egypt and led us in the wilderness?’”   In Hosea God laments,  “When Israel was a child, I loved him and out of Egypt I called my son…It was I who taught Ephraim to walk; I took them up by their arms…I bent down to feed them…(Yet) My people are bent on turning away from me…How can I give you up…How can I hand you over…I am God and not a man, the holy One in your midst and I will not come in wrath.”

Though we speak our creeds and declare our faith, do we turn away from the Lord?  Do we find fault with our Savior for not carrying out our will?  Is God for us a refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble?  Yes, like Israel we forget.  

God said to Israel and to you and me, “You shall be my treasured possession.” God’s kingly personal treasure is not gold and silver.  Being the God that God is, He chooses people.  Not powerful people, but a downtrodden-given to complaining and whining people.  People like you and like me.  He chose Israel to be his holy nation; his sanctified people.  More than that, he chose them to be his royal priests; they will be a kingdom of priests.  When the whole nation is a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, then the parish is the whole world. Can you imagine it; every person is a priest, a minister, pastor?  Where is their seminary?  It’s located out in the wilderness of Sinai, where bushes burn but don’t burn, where God will speak from the midst of an earthquake shaking-thunderstorm booming-lava belching volcanic mountain.  And their lecturer is an 80 something year old, who by his own admission is a lousy public speaker.

You would think that god would have learned and made a better choice in the future.  Well, guess who he chose?  The church, you and me.  He ransomed us from a futile life that was heading pell-mell toward a dead end.  He did not pay for our ransom with gold or silver, but which the treasured blood of Jesus Christ, who like a perfect lamb was sacrificed to rescue us from slavery to sin and the dead end life.

We are his chosen race.  He chose the human race.  Speaking in human terms, it doesn’t matter what race we belong to or what our ethnic background may be, or country of origin.  We are a chosen race, a royal priesthood.  Like Israel of old gathered around smoking Mt. Sinai, we, all of us, are priests of King Jesus.  We are a holy nation, holy not because we are holy in and of ourselves, but because Jesus lived and died a holy life in our place.  Do we doubt that?  All we need to do is take stock of ourselves at the end of the day and see how far we are from holy.  But we are a holy nation, because in baptism we were washed clean.  We who were documented aliens to God’s kingdom; through Jesus death and resurrection were added to God’s kingdom gaining the benefits of our citizenship in baptism.

However, just as there are responsibilities to being a citizen of a country, so God has given responsibilities to those whom he has chosen to be part of his kingdom.  Israel was called to obedience and covenant keeping.  They responded saying, “All that you say we will do.”  Here is what obedience and covenant keeping looks to us.

God calls us to conduct ourselves as God conducts himself.   That is, love one another as God has loved us.  Act in an honorable way even if someone speaks against us.

And praise God for what he has done in Jesus Christ and does for us every day in keeping our body and soul together.  A couple days after our scene at Sinai, god gave Moses Ten Commandments.  Their summary is very simple, but takes the effort of our heart mind and body for the rest of our days.  Love God.  Love One another.  Know that the Lord is God, Creator, Savior and daily sustainer. 

          

      

 

Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, Martyr, 258

 

Cyprian, who cared for Christ’s people in North Africa, emphasized the unity of the church during the persecution of Emperor Valerian.  He opposed those who refused to receive back into the church those who had denied their faith under duress.  He taught that to insist on their rebaptism was heresy.  Instead, he believed they should be welcomed back into full communion after a period of penance. He also organized a program of medical care for the sick during a severe epidemic.

Cyprian describes an edict of Valerian sent to the Senate in Rome in July, 258, “That bishops, presbyters and deacons should forthwith be punished…if when deprived of their possessions, they should still continue to be Christians, then they should lose their heads.”

The proconsul Paternus had already sent Cyprian into exile on August 30, 257 after the following exchange.

Paternus: “All those who do not observe the religion of Rome, shall make profession of their return to roman rites.”

Cyprian: “I am a Christian, and bishop; I know no other gods beside the one and true God, who made heaven and earth, this God we Christians serve.   To him we pray day and night, for ourselves, for all mankind, and for the health of the Emperors themselves.”

P:  “Do you persist in this purpose?”

C: “That good purpose, which knows God, cannot be changed.”

In 258 Galerius Maximum succeeded Paternus as proconsul in Carthage.  He ordered Cyprian to be brought back from exile.  On September 14, Cyprian appeared before Galerius.

G: “The most sacred emperors have commanded you to conform to the Roman rites.”

C: “I refuse.”

G: “You have long lived an irreligious life, and have drawn together a number of men bound by an unlawful association, and professed yourself an open enemy to the gods and religion of Rome; and pious, most sacred and august Emperors. …whereas, you have been apprehended as principal and ringleader in these infamous crimes, you shall be made an example to those whom you have wickedly associated with you; the authority of the law shall be ratified in your blood.”

C: “Thanks be to God.”

The account concludes, “The most blessed martyr Cyprian suffered on the 14^th day of September under the Emperors Valerian and Gallienus, but in the reign of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom is honor and glory forever and ever.”

The Treasury of Daily Prayer contains the following prayer for this day,

Almighty God, You gave Your servant Cyprian boldness to confess the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ before the rulers of this world and courage to die for the faith he proclaimed.  Give us strength always to be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in us and to suffer gladly for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.       

Holy Cross Day 2011

 

Missoni?  Really?  The super hot item as of this week is the Missoni designed zigzag patterned everything you can think of at Target.  I had been wondering what those enigmatic ads that seemed to come from Target were all about.  Not being on twitter, I seemed to have missed out.  Maybe it wasn’t aimed at my demographic.  I figure a good place to shop for Missoni designed everything in 2012 will be at Good Will stores.

What I think of the whole Missoni craze is what many think of the cross.  The epistle for Holy Cross Day is I Corinthians 1:18-21.  In verse 23 Paul writes, “We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles.”  In other words, it was the first century’s Missoni craze to many who were skeptical about the preaching of those who came proclaiming Jesus as the way.  What kind of god would save people through the cruelty of a crucifixion?  Really?  It’s ridiculous.

However, for us who believe in the foolish and bloody crucifixion of Jesus, the cross speaks volumes about god who always seems to pick the most difficult means of accomplishing his purpose.  Wouldn’t it have been easier and more popular to have a superhero savior who at the last minute freed himself from the cross, pulled it out of the ground and used it to pulverize his enemies?  Wouldn’t Communion be more appealing with a cup of coffee and a crème filled chocolate covered doughnut?  Wouldn’t it be more appealing to hear that deep down inside we’re all okay after all?

But God has made the cross the thing.  In a display of foolishness and weakness God showed his power and wisdom through Christ crucified.  An instrument of death is become an instrument of life.

This evening when I am singing as part of a Holy Cross Day celebration at Holy Cross, Collinsville, Il. I’ll also be checking the congregation for any zigzag patterns.

       

Forgiveness is Tough

 

I’m suspicious of people who are able to forgive easily and quickly.  Their father is killed, their daughter murdered and that evening they are standing in front of a TV camera saying they forgive the person who took their loved ones life.  Forgive me, but I find that hard to believe.

Forgiveness means to let go of something that someone has done to us.  Drop that something at the cross and don’t go back and pick it up again. 

In the gospel lesson from last Sunday, Matthew 18:21-35, Peter wants to be a forgiving person.  But how many trips to the cross must I make with the sin that my brother sins against me?  When is enough, enough?  Peter wonders if the perfect number of seven is enough.  If you think about it, that is a lot of forgiving to give to another person.  The problem is that if you are counting the times before you are permitted to whack the other person, then have we really been forgiving the other person?

The other side of forgiveness is guilt.  Am I really forgiven?  In Genesis 50:15-21, Jacob has died.  And now the brothers are wondering whether that forgiveness Joseph had pronounced several years ago, when they first came to Egypt and discovered their brother alive, was done out of respect for their father.  Now that dad was dead, Joseph just might get his revenge on them.

The text is a little confusing.  First they sent a messenger (Benjamin?) to remind him of what dad had said.  Dad commanded Joseph to forgive his brothers for their sin. But then Joseph weeps when they speak to him.  Maybe, they are standing in the back of the room, while the message is delivered.  There seems to be some conversation missing.

In any case when they did speak to him he wept.  He had also wept in connection to revealing his identity to his brothers.  At that time Joseph had invited his brothers to “come near to me…do not be distressed or angry with yourselves.”  Now he tells his brothers, “Fear not.”

Forgiveness is difficult to give and difficult to receive and believe.  The gospel lesson ends, “if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”  Forgiveness begins with the heart, the heart of God.  On the cross Jesus called out for God to forgive.  Jesus carried all our sins against God and one another to the cross.  He left them there.  In the Lord’s Prayer we ask for the same forgivingness toward our brothers and sisters that God gives us.  In our struggle to be forgiving people we look to the cross and see our sins heaped high.  In thanksgiving for His forgiveness, we ask God to give that same spirit and heart.