Author: TechCommittee

Sermon Text 1.5.2020 — We Have Come to Worship Him

January 5, 2020 – Epiphany                                                                     Text:  Matthew 2:1-12

Dear Friends in Christ,

            As we celebrate Epiphany today let’s continue to debunk a couple of myths about this day.  First, this is one you hear me talk about all the time – we do not know the number of wise men who visited Jesus.  We just sang “We Three Kings” but that is just a number in a hymn.  There could have been an entourage of men or very few.

            The second myth perpetuated by manger scenes and greeting cards is that the wise men worshipped Jesus in the manger.  Verse 11 of our text tells us they went into “a house.”  No barn or feeding trough.  Just a nice bi-level for the carpenter and his wife and their new baby.  Oops, let’s not create another myth – nobody knows what style of home the first family lived in.

            What is clear is that these Magi from the East have come to worship Him.  The Christ Child – Jesus by name.  So do we.  With the Wise Men, on this Epiphany…

“WE HAVE COME TO WORSHIP HIM”

            Why?  Well along with the mistaken ideas about Jesus’ coming there are some even stranger ones that have circulated throughout the years.  Ever hear the one about Jesus turning mud into doves.  How about bringing a dead playmate back to life?  My favorite is this one – Jesus zapped dead a buddy who cheated in a game. 

            What we do know is that the first miracle Jesus performed was turning water into wine at a wedding in the town of Cana.  This did not happen until he was 30.  Jesus’ miracles were always acts of kindness.  He wasn’t zapping people dead.

            The biggest misconception of Jesus has been the one that has now gone on for centuries.  He is a great religious teacher and prophet who espouses love to one another.  That is partly true but does not reach into the realm of who He really is.  The Bible says there is so much more.  There would be no need for worship and our gathering here today if he were just a prophet that is here today and gone tomorrow.

            What did the Wise Men think of Jesus?  “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?  For we saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him.” (v. 2) 

            Word of their arrival quickly reaches King Herod.  He is a descendant of Esau and more than a little edgy about a legitimate “king of the Jews.”  When Herod gets edgy people die, including many in his own family.

            The other thing that upset Herod is that these Wise Men have come to worship Him.  Not only was He the crown prince of Israel, but the crown prince of heaven as well.  They have come to worship Him because they know who He really is.  Christ deserved to be worshipped then.  He deserves to be worshipped today.

            Why?  Why worship Him?  Because in His birth He took on human flesh, and his death he took all the sins of human flesh to the cross.  When he died, the sins remained there on the cross.  Now he lives, having arisen from the dead.  He is to be worshipped.  That baby is the Savior of the world.

            Herod couldn’t bring himself to worship Jesus.  He hated Jesus.  To acknowledge Jesus means we have to admit that we are sinners.  Can we do that?  Can you and I admit we are horrible human beings and we deserve death and hell on Judgment Day?

            Yes, we can do that.  We did it this morning in our confession.  We do it daily in our prayers.  You confess.  Jesus forgives.  The Holy Spirit lives in you and works in you.  He inspires your prayer life and your worship life.  Like the Wise Men you have come to worship Him.

            There in the home they fell down and worshipped Him and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.  One day Jesus would hang on a cross robed in a glory gold can never show, sending forth into heaven a prayer that frankincense could never carry, buried as a sacrifice myrrh could never make sweeter.  They are grand gifts to be sure, but they do not compare to the greater gift Jesus would offer.

            Jesus has a gift for you.  It is the gift of forgiveness.  It is the gift of salvation.  It is the gift of eternal life.  All for free.  A gift paid for by His sinless death on the cross and His glorious resurrection from the dead.

            So we come to worship and we also bring our gifts.  We offer up our prayers.  We lift our voices.  We bring our offerings in joy.  In the eyes of Jesus these gifts are as precious as gold and frankincense and myrrh. 

            In humbleness Lord, accept our worship this day.

                                                                                                            Amen.    

Stewardship Corner January 2020

Our God is a God who works through means. He can and has worked immediately without agency, as the Bible testifies, but primarily, on the whole and for the most part, our God works through means. He does this not only for all of our earthly needs but also for all of our spiritual needs. And He does this for our benefit.

He provides for all our needs of this body and life through means. He gives us fathers and mothers to care for us when we are young. Through them, God provides house and home, food and clothing, education and training in the arts and work of this world.

He gives us good government to protect us from harm and danger; He gives us faithful neighbors and good friends to help in times of need and lack. He gives us employers who trade our work for income so that we may acquire the needs of the body. He gives us brains and brawn so that we will have something to trade with those employers for that needed income. This work, which we are able to do only because of what God has provided to us, redounds to the benefit of others. And so, the cycle of God giving through means continues.

He provides for all our needs of our souls. He sent His Son into the flesh to be our Savior. In that body, our Lord Jesus Christ lived the life that God demands of us all – a life we have failed to live because of our sins – and, in that body, He made payment for those sins on the cross, once and for all.

God delivers this forgiveness through the means of His Word and Sacraments. He calls pastors to proclaim, in His stead and by His command, that our sins are forgiven for Jesus’ sake. Through these same pastors, God Himself claims us as His own in Holy Baptism, placing His own name on us in water and Word, igniting faith by the gift of the Holy Spirit. And He gives us His life-giving body and blood to nourish us in this same faith until the end. Our God is a God who works through means.

This is true also of stewardship. This is what St. Paul wrote in Philippians:

“I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:18–19).

The gift St. Paul received from the Philippian church is a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. They gave to God. God provided for St. Paul through the Philippians. And the God who loves both Paul and the Philippians will supply their every need according to the riches in Christ Jesus. Our God is a God who works through means.

“For all the promises of God find their Yes in [Jesus Christ],” St. Paul tells us in 2 Cor. 1:20. This is true also of you. Trust in the God who provides for all that we need in body and soul through means. And not only will you find His “yes” to you, but others will find it, too, through you. “But as you excel in everything – in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you – see that you excel in this act of grace also” (2 Cor. 8:7).

Celebrating January 2020

Birthdays

Carin Henson   1/1
Nicholas Hitch   1/2
Bud Kessler   1/4
Mary McEleney   1/6
Cathy Cloyd   1/9
Robert Hanner   1/9
Nancy Thomas 1/19
Greg McNeely 1/20
Linda Dirks 1/28
Jill Holland 1/31

Baptismal Birthdays

Charles Nottingham   1/1
Shirley Potter   1/1
Chloe Hitch   1/2
Jackie Kwasny 1/11
Jessica Isaac 1/12
Bud Kessler 1/21

Sermon Text 12.29.2019 — According to Plan

December 29, 2019                                                                     Text:  Matthew 2:13-23

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Toni needs your prayers.  For those of you visiting Toni is my wife.  I am a planner.  I come from a lineage of planners.  I do not like it when things don’t according to plan especially when I vacation.

            After last year’s winter, I know it is hard to remember it after this week of beautiful weather, I told Tone that this winter we needed to go south for my mental health.  What was especially hard last winter was all the ice/snow we got on Sunday mornings.  I knew coming into this January/February time period I would need a break.  Other than the week we are going we are not making plans, yea, it’s true.  We are going to drive where it is warm.  We don’t know where we will lodge.  We don’t know what activities are on the agenda.  We do know we are going together and it will be south of here even if North Dakota hits 80 degrees that week.  Thank you in advance for your intercessions.

            Joseph and Mary had plans.  After the visit of the wise men, they planned to return home to Nazareth.  The Lord sends a dream and the plans change.  Will it be for their good?  Let’s travel along and see if God knows what He is doing.

“ACCORDING TO PLAN”

            The plan as revealed in a dream is for Joseph and Mary and baby Jesus to travel to Egypt, which is 175 miles southwest of Jerusalem.  Instead of heading north to Nazareth they are sent another direction.  This is no small change.  Going this far on foot is going to take days and weeks.  What is the reason, Lord?

            According to plan God has a reason – Herod is searching for the child to destroy him.  They need to get out of his jurisdiction.  They need to get to safety.

            Have you ever had to go miles out of your way?  I don’t like to go one exit out of my way, how about you?  How about in your life?  Does the Lord ever send you down a road you had no plan to go down?  A job shift.  An unexpected birth.  The death of someone close you didn’t see coming.  A diagnosis that ruins your plans?

            Herod’s plans changed when he heard from the wise men about Jesus.  His rage got the best of him and he knew Jesus had to die.  The thing is Herod was right but not according to his plan.  Jesus had to die but not because Herod willed it or because of a schedule Herod made.  It wasn’t until the fullness of time that it all happened.  It was God’s time.  It was God’s plan.  He had to die because of our fear when things don’t go the way we want.  He had to die when we suffer anxiety because our plans get messed up.  He had to die because of our unbelief when life goes off in a direction we just can’t comprehend.  Our lack of trust in God’s plan can lead us to some dark places.  Go to Egypt, come on Lord!

            Joseph trusted.  Joseph trusted the Lord.  Joseph trusted the plan.  The text is hard to read when we know of all the male children who were killed.  That was also part of the plan, even if we don’t understand it.  Why Lord?  Why let those young men die? 

            The blame does not fall on God.  Herod caused the anguish and death.  God was there.  God saw what happened.  In the midst of Herod’s wickedness the Lord was working on his plan of salvation for the world.  God is not the author of evil – man is – but God is always working to turn what is meant for evil into good.

            According to plan, the family makes it to Egypt.  According to plan, they eventually end up back in Nazareth.  According to plan, Jesus was saved because of God’s intervention. 

            We too are saved by God’s intervention.  His intervention led Jesus to the cross.  He allowed Jesus to die so that you and I might live.  His intervention led to a glorious resurrection.  His intervention has given us a plan for salvation.  His intervention has given us faith and an eternal future.  God is still active in human history.  He continues to lead babies and adults to the safety of His church through Holy Baptism.  He continues to feed and nourish His Church with His Holy Word and with the precious body and blood of His Son.  He continues to announce and give His forgiveness to all who confess their sins and seek His mercy.

            We do not always know where God is leading us, but we can be sure that He will be with us and His plans are for our good.  When Karson was 1 ½ we vacationed with my family on Cape Cod in Massachusetts.  Remember again it is in the Lueck genes to plan.  We did.  We planned to take a day trip with my parents up the coast to Maine.  Seeing a part of the country we had not been to.  That night, Karson cried the whole evening.  In the morning, we had to take him to the doctor.  He had an ear infection.  After a dose or two of antibiotics, he was fine, but there would be no trip to Maine.  Plans changed.  We decided instead to spend the afternoon on Martha’s Vineyard. We had a glorious rest of our day.  We enjoyed the island and you couldn’t even tell that K-man had been sick.

            Lesson learned.  According to plan, we must be ready for things to change.  Why can we be so confident?  Because the one leading the way has given us the promise.  His plan of salvation through Jesus always gives us hope and direction.  May we all see daily where the Lord is leading us – according to plan.

                                                                                                                        Amen.