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Grace Lutheran Church
Mission Statement
To ANSWER the CALL of our Savior.
To CONNECT with people in their everyday lives.
To ADVANCE the Gospel through God’s Word and fellowship.
To LEND ourselves in service, so that we may become instruments.
that LEAD others to salvation..
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
OCTOBER 15
Tuesday, OCTOBER 15, 2024
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“What’s on the Inside?”
READING: Matthew 23:25-28 – “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
Lately I have had some medical testing and imaging going on. Seems I have a leaky heart valve of which I knew nothing until recently. The first experience was with an echo-cardiogram. It was rather fascinating to go through the results with my cardiologist as he pointed out the atria, ventricles, and the various valves into and out of my heart. I watched my own heart beating, could see the blood rushing through it, and I could see where the blood was back-tracking through the leaky mitral valve. Next came the TEE (that is a trans-esophageal echo-cardiogram ). Again in viewing the result I could watch my own heart working away, this time from a different angle.
Most of you have probably had X-rays taken at some point in your lives. Those don’t do much good for the soft tissues, but they show bones and joints clearly. Any pins, plates, or screws you’ve had surgically added also show up well. And, if someone swallows a coin or a spring or any other foreign item, the X-rays will pinpoint its current location in the body. MRI’s and CT scans show soft-tissue details that help doctors decide what might need to be corrected, removed, or dealt with. All of these procedures can show what goes on inside the body.
In Jesus’ day such procedures weren’t even dreamt of. The ancients had only a rudimentary idea of what was inside a person and how those things worked. Most of their information came from the slaughtering of animals for food and sacrifice. They could only approximate what their own insides might look like. No, mostly they could only look at the outside of a person.
Jesus makes clear that the outside of people was often misleading. He specifically targets the teachers of the law and the Pharisees because these two groups of men prided themselves on their status amongst the Jews for their righteousness, knowledge of the law, and their integrity. They were admired by many because from the outside they looked like holy men. They tithed regularly, some of them even tithed their herbs, sacrificing a tenth of even their mint and dill. They kept the appointed fasts, but even fasted on a weekly basis, often moaning “involuntarily” from their hunger pangs. They wore long tassels and phylacteries (boxes containing Scripture passages) on their foreheads and right arms to show their steadfastness to God’s word. They looked so moral – on the outside!
But Jesus knew what many could not see – some of these men were hypocrites. They made an outward show of keeping the law, but inside and secretly they were guilty of many sins. Their pride, their arrogance, and their envy were sinful in and of themselves. Their desire for adulation caused them to strut and preen and look down on those they considered “sinners”. They used the law to swindle widows, avoid obligations, and enrich themselves. Worst of all, many felt no real need for repentance. As Mac Davis famously sang, “Oh Lord, it’s hard to be humble when you’re perfect in every way!”
Jesus calls them out publicly because their self-delusion needed to be confronted. Jesus holds up the mirror of God’s perfection and omniscience in hopes that these men would recognize their own sinfulness and their dire need for a savior. They resisted Jesus because they saw no need to be saved. They were pleasing God every day in every way, or so they believed. No need for his salvation. They had their own!
You and I can see their foolishness and blindness. But can we see our own? We good church-going, Bible-believing, hymn-singing, Scripture-quoting Christians – do we recognize our fallen natures? We confess it freely, but do we truly know and believe it? That’s where God’s word becomes a “scanner” of our insides. It shows us what we need to know about ourselves: we deserve nothing but God’s judgment. It also tells us that for Jesus’ sake, we are forgiven and accepted as God’s children. Let us do all we are able to walk humbly in his way, aware that God sees directly into our hidden places. He sees our spiritual hearts and all their workings. Nothing is hidden from him. And still he deigns to call us his own. Thanks be to God through Jesus our Lord. Amen.
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) MARY MILLER CRUISE through the Locks is set for October 19. Interest was such that the bus filled immediately. We are also taking the van. The cost of the cruise is $38 per person. If you are signed up, please send or bring a check made out to “Grace Lutheran Church” to the office or in an envelope in the offering plate.
2) The PRESCHOOL is holding their “School Carnival” on Saturday, October 26, from 10-2:00. Games, prizes, food, and surprises for kids from 3-99. Bring your little ones and your middle ones. They’ll have a ball!
Youtube Video:
PRINTABLE PDF: WDOct15.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
OCTOBER 14
Monday, OCTOBER 14, 2024
Pastor Matthew Woods from Grace Lutheran Church in New Albany, Indiana
“How Do You Know You Are Ready?”
Much of life is spent getting ready for something. We get ready for church. We get ready for exams. We get ready for our weddings. We get ready to build, for vacation, for the birth of a child, and for numerous other things. But how do you know if you are ready for bigger things like, marriage, career choice, or buying a house. And how about the spiritual things? How about witnessing, or leading a team at church, or just volunteering for something? Well, truth by told, we know sometimes when we are ready but not others. Sometimes it’s hard to know for sure if we are ready. And sometimes we know we are definitely not ready.
Let’s consider Gideon in Judges 6. We meet Gideon in a time when the Amalekites bullied Israel and stole anything that wasn’t nailed down. God calls to Gideon as he is threshing wheat in a wine press in order to avoid any Midianites, Amalekites and eastern peoples from seeing what he is doing and then coming along and stealing it. No doubt Gideon was frustrated by this kind of cowering lifestyle. No doubt he wanted something to change and someone to do something but never imagined himself as the one to do it. Often a sense of readiness starts with something nagging at us. We sense something more is needed, and we sense we should do something, but often we don’t know how or where to start. Yet, what we soon discover with Gideon when He is called, is often times to explore that nagging feeling. This nagging feeling made Gideon ready and more open to the Lord’s calling.
The Angel of the Lord greets Gideon by saying, “Greetings mighty warrior.” Perhaps that’s an important ‘tell’ to know if one is ready for something. Someone who knows us will see something in us that we do not see in ourselves. Gideon’s reaction in verse 15 is one of uncertainty. “Are you talking to me? Our clan is the least of the tribes and I am the least in my family.” Hidden within that response is self-doubt but also a curiosity. But the Lord sees something in Gideon; character, wisdom, a building desire to fight back perhaps. I know how powerful an outside view can become and how it can impact. Our first pastor at our first church we ever attended as a family suggested that I be a good pastor. Later a DCE at our second church saw in me the potential of a pastor. The Lord seems to work this way at times. I remained hesitant but I couldn’t seem to ignore their observations. The rest is history. Perhaps someone has seen potential in you. You might have a bigger role to play in the ministry of Grace Lutheran. Someone may convince you to sell the house due to health. Maybe you are a hands-on person and more aligned with a trade rather than college and someone suggested that. Sometimes family members will see something in a potential spouse that we also need to see, perhaps second guessing your choice. Like Gideon the Lord speaks through others to point out our potential. Often getting the perspective of someone we trust helps bring objectivity.
Gideon’s reaction also signals a readiness. He has a willingness to follow the Lord’s instructions. In the verses that follow Gideon welcomes the conversation with the Lord and a willingness to prepare an offering to the Lord who gladly accepts it confirming the credibility of the Lord. The Lord patiently works with Gideon enduring many tests from Gideon to confirm his calling as legit.
Definition is usually the biggest obstacle. What exactly what am I ready for? A lot of times we already know what the topic is if we are honest. As we said, that something will nag at us but it seems to lack definition. The harder question is what exactly am I supposed to do? During VBS volunteers often come in knowing that they are helping with VBS but don’t know exactly what to do so I show them and they go to work. I will team them up with a veteran and they get a lot done. Often times though what comes next is more instinctive than distinctive; meaning there may be many ways to accomplish a goal. We are free to use our God given gifts as best seems to us. Here Gideon he was given specific instructions but he was also instinctive in that he devoted himself completely to the cause.
A warm up. Before the Lord calls Gideon to lead the army he first instructs Gideon to stand up to his own relatives including his father. In verses 25-31 Gideon is instructed to sacrifice his father’s second bull; to tear down his father’s altar to Baal, and build a new altar to the Lord, and then burn the Asherah pole for the fire. In the morning the town’s members discover what Gideon had done and threaten to punish him for it. To his credit his father defends Gideon, effectively saying, “If Baal is a god why doesn’t he defend himself? Why does he need your help?” Gideon’s father understood that Gideon was right in what he did. The incident earned Gideon a nick name, Jerub-Baal, ‘Let Baal contend with him.’ It was a big win for Gideon. In that moment Gideon showed a willingness to follow the Lord’s instructions.
That’s an important point before we go too much further. Spending a lot of time in the Word letting it saturate your thoughts is good and always provides important insights. Please do not misunderstand what I am about to say though. Just like faith without action is dead, so too readiness necessarily means some activeness. The danger is to passively wait for something to hit us. Doing nothing is not going to make us ready. Better to discover what isn’t working than to do nothing at all. Just think: It took Edison a thousand tries to get just one lightbulb. In a similar way “trying something” may also be a step toward something else. Sometimes in the real world we first to have a job or do a lot of training before we get where we want to be.
What we learn from Gideon is that He not only interacted with the Lord but Gideon took the necessary small steps in becoming ready for becoming a leader of the people. Pastors likewise study the Bible but need to practice preaching, actually make hospital visits, and learn how to interact with people in order to become truly ready. Teachers go through similar training. Likewise, doctors need to practice on real patients to be ready as a doctor. However, sometimes in the practice is a revelation we may need a new direction. If, I am a teacher and while student teaching I discover I don’t really like being around kids I can change gears. This happens all the time. Assuming one remains motivated (Motivation itself is a whole other topic)…Assuming one remains motivated readiness will find its definition and direction. With each step that Gideon took he was growing more defined and ready for leadership.
How do you know you are ready? Note what grabs your attention and emotions. Listen to those who know your strengths and who care about you—they may set you on a path that you didn’t foresee. Accept criticism and correction as well—we are not always objective about ourselves or our wants. Be ready to put in the hard work and the time. Be prepared to make sacrifices and make mistakes. Be active in being ready. Most things in life require activeness on our part. Finally, be ready to get out of your comfort zone. In high school I never saw myself as a public speaker. Now I can’t quit talking. Readiness is a result of sifting through many things, more than we can necessarily cover today. I just hope that you know that by the Grace of God readiness is within reach in whatever form that may take us. Gideon is a strong witness to this. May the Lord make us all ready for the call of our Savior in whatever form we are led.
Pastor Matt Woods
John 3:30
PRINTABLE PDF: WDOct14.PDF
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/xrDJxVt5CtA
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
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50TH BUILDING CELEBRATION
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WORSHIP SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19 — *5:00 PM
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 20 — *8:00 & 10:30 AM
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26 — 5:00 PM
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27 — 8:00 & *10:30 AM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2 — TURKEY SUPPER NO SERVICE
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 3 — *8:00 & 10:30 AM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9 — *5:00 PM
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 10 — 8:00 & *10:30 AM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16 — *5:00 PM
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 17 — *8:00 & 10:30 AM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 23 — 5:00 PM
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24 — 8:00 & *10:30 AM
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 30 — 5:00 PM
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 1 — *8:00 & 10:30 AM
* = Communion
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NEWS & TIDBITS at the top right box
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For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works so that no one can boast. — Ephesians 2:8-9
Welcome to the Grace Lutheran Church and School web site. There is a variety of information here regarding our congregation and our beliefs. Lutherans are Bible-believing, sacramental Christians who trace their roots back to Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation. There have been Lutherans since 1517, particularly in Germany and Scandanavia. Lutherans in America followed large immigrations from Europe in the 1840’s and 1850’s.
The congregation at Grace was founded in 1927 in a small room over a pool hall on State Street in New Albany. The congregation moved to Tenth and Oak, then to Charlestown Road, before building its current facilities on Klerner Lane in 1974. The congregation now numbers just over 1100 souls. We worship at 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Sundays and at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday evenings. The pastors are Rev. Bruce Kischnick and Rev. Matt Woods.
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50TH BUILDING CELEBRATION
Grace Lutheran Church
Mission Statement
To ANSWER the CALL of our Savior.
To CONNECT with people in their everyday lives.
To ADVANCE the Gospel through God’s Word and fellowship.
To LEND ourselves in service, so that we may become instruments.
that LEAD others to salvation.
Rev. Bruce Kischnick, Senior Pastor
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
Rev. Matt Woods, Associate Pastor
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
Rose Ebling, Part-time Interim Youth Director
[email protected] — (502) 442-1474
Mitzi Lyon, Family Life Director
Helen Bohannon, Music Director
Georgianne Weathers, School Administrator (812) 941-1912
E-Mail: [email protected]
[email protected]
www.gracelutheran.school
Karen.Meredith, Church Secretary