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WEEKLY DEVOTION
SEPT 26
Tuesday, SEPT 26, 2023
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“It’s a Small World”
READING: Colossians 4:10-15 – My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him.) Jesus, who is called Justus, also sends greetings. These are the only Jews among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and they have proved a comfort to me. Epaphras, who is one of you and a servant of Christ Jesus, sends greetings. He is always wrestling in prayer for you, that you may stand firm in all the will of God, mature and fully assured. I vouch for him that he is working hard for you and for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis. Our dear friend Luke, the doctor, and Demas send greetings. Give my greetings to the brothers at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.
As I am writing this I am looking forward to my visit to a former congregation I served as a teacher and youth director from 1980-86. St. Paul, Royal Oak, Michigan, is celebrating their 150th year and invited me to come back to preach. Becky and I both taught there, and our daughter Christa was born in Royal Oak. We have wonderful memories and some good friends with whom we’ve kept in touch. It will be wonderful to be with them.
The current pastor there is one Rev. Jakob Andrzejewski (an-jee-ef’-ski). The first time he contacted me with an email, I immediately knew how to pronounce that name. I recognized it immediately, and I wondered how I knew that. Then another name came to me, Darryl. I had known a Darryl Andrzejewski somewhere along my path. I couldn’t remember if he was someone I met in college, or someone from St. Paul, but I vaguely remembered him.
A couple of weeks ago I exchanged emails with Jakob and on a whim I asked him if he happened to know someone named Darryl. Was he perhaps a relative of his? He returned an email that read, “Ha! He’s my dad, and he’s the senior pastor at Historic Old Trinity in downtown Detroit!” What a laugher! I sent back a brief email that said, “It’s a small world -this LCMS of ours!”
Now two more connections can I make: The pastor at St. Paul when I served there was one Rev. Ron Guettler. When he retired, he joined Historic Old Trinity as an assistant there, volunteering his time. The second connection is to our congregation! Trudy Wehrenberg’s son Bruce and his wife Sharon are members at Historic Old Trinity! It’s a small world – this LCMS of ours!
In our text this morning St. Paul gives us a glimpse of the size of the Christian church in his day. During his three-year stay at Ephesus St. Paul had converted and instructed Epaphras who in turn had founded the church in Colosse. When heretics showed up there and began to cause controversy, Epaphras had come to see St. Paul which prompted this letter. What’s interesting is how many of Paul’s companions also are known to the Colossians, and how many of the Colossians are known to those with Paul. It was a small world – the early church.
There were just a dozen or two congregations across Greece and Asia Minor. They were in the minority among the Gentiles and Jews that surrounded them. They sought comfort and encouragement from one another. The Church was still in its infancy, so they either had met along the way, or at least they had heard of each other as leaders and teachers of the faith.
We have about 1.8 million members in the Missouri Synod and about 8000 pastors. There’s a lot of those people I DO NOT KNOW, but along the course of attending three different synodical schools and serving four different congregations as a teacher, principal, and pastor, I have met a lot of folks. I would imagine that might be true for you in a more local sense. You may know a number of people from the congregations around Louisville and maybe even Seymour and Colombus.
What is truly good to know is that all of us in the LCMS share a similar faith with doctrines, liturgies, and church workers who know the Lord Jesus, trust in the word of God, and look forward to eternal life with him. We don’t know all of them, but I believe that one of the great joys of heaven will be getting to know and share time with countless Christians from all walks and all ages who are one with us in Christ Jesus our Lord.
I still haven’t quite placed Darryl Andrzejewski yet. I think I may have run in to him at the Ft. Wayne Seminary while I was there. I’ll have to give you the details after I get back. But I’ll bet when he and I first met neither one of us was thinking we’d meet as pastors someday. God had a plan for both of us. Now he has a son who is pastor at his home congregation and an old horse named Kischnick that he (hopefully!) remembers fondly. It’s a small world – this LCMS of ours, but thanks be to God for all its blessings and connections!
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) Don’t forget that this THURSDAY at noonish we’ll enjoy a GOLDEN SAINTS LUNCHEON. Bring a dish to pass, I’ll have meat, beverage, and table service. We’ll enjoy each other’s company and some excellent eats as well.
2) WE’RE GOING TO BUC-EE’S!!! Buc-ee’s is one of the biggest and most amazing convenience stores in the country. They have everything and anything and things you’d never think of. They have amazing BBQ brisket and all sorts of eats, drinks, and treats. We’ll leave at 8:30, drive by bus to the Cultural Centre in Berea, KY, and after some time there, it’s off to Buc-ee’s for lunch and a look-see in Richmond. We should be back between 3:30 and 4:00. Sign up at the office or call Karen. 25 seats available.
3) Introducing to you Seminarian Josh Bieri and family. We are adopting them this school
year. We’ll help them financially, support them with our prayers, and keep up with his progress at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN. One of these months we’ll also have them come down for a visit. Stay tuned.
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/IAxe9tp9Y94
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept26.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
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WEEKLY DEVOTION SEPT 25
Monday, SEPT 25, 2023
Pastor Matthew Woods from Grace Lutheran Church in New Albany, Indiana
“An Organized Faith”
I have some friends, who moved to Portland, Kentucky with the sole purpose of transforming a community in Christ. To that end they have done some amazing things. I appreciate the total commitment that they have made and all that they have set out to do. Sadly, both the Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church in that area were unwilling or unable to be as effective and are long closed for many reasons. Both congregations closed but their buildings are being utilized to become a school and preschool for an impoverished area of the city. Perhaps this history of the local churches are why my last few visits with my friends have included them sharing their lack of faith in “organized religion.” To date I have listened politely because each time I was in the company of others besides myself. Making such a point to mention the topic has each time made me feel like the target of some unknown complaint. I am sure that when it is discussed it will be a good conversation when the appropriate time is offered and something meaningful will come of it with my friends.
I have heard these sorts of things before. I have also heard many responses to the distaste of organized religion. It has been my experience that this statement is spoken because of a bad experience in the church, or because of disappointments in life that the church could not or did not help with, or because the ones saying it just need an excuse not to go to church. None of these excuses do anything constructive. Any time one is away from an organized worship one is more vulnerable to false ideas, selfish pursuits, and a forgets that the Lord Himself says we need it. So, who are we to tell Him we don’t.
To start with I would argue that word ‘religion’ mistakenly lumps every faith into one. The Christian faith stands out from all others in that it stands on grace not works (Ephesians 2:8-9). John Lennox often speaks of uniqueness of the Christian faith. It is grace that separates us. He uses the illustration of being married to his wife. He states that she makes an apple cake for him not as some extended interview to earn the marriage. He didn’t say in the beginning of betrothal to follow a set of instructions to follow and after many tries of making the apple cake will let her know in 40 years if he makes up his mind if its enough. He makes the point that no one starts off a relationship like that. On the contrary, Mrs. Lennox makes the apple cake because the relationship is already in place. Likewise, the Christian faith is unique in that the assurance of forgiveness and salvation come at the beginning of our relationship with Jesus. The cross and the resurrection are offered first to establish the saving relationship with Jesus and all the while with the reassurance and hope that this relationship results in Everlasting life with Jesus. No, ‘religion’ is the wrong word for Christians because it denies the uniqueness of Jesus.
But let us talk about the idea of organization. The Lord is extremely organized. From creation to the Passover to the very crucifixion of Jesus the Lord is very specific. The Passover Lamb, for example, is to be a year-old male without spot or blemish. Its blood is to be painted on the door of the house. The Passover is to be celebrated every year at a specific time and in a specific way. Jesus then turns the Passover meal into the Lord’s Supper and is Himself referred to by John the Baptizer as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World.” All the festivals of Israel have elements that point ahead and find fulfillment in Jesus. Jesus Himself comes at a specific time and place under specific conditions laid out over centuries with over 300 hundred prophecies speaking about Him (Galatians 4:4). The Lord did not just wing it. No, in fact, He literally structured history in a fashion where all the details come together in a set way with a set result, namely to establish a relationship with all human beings by grace alone.
And let us think on the idea of Christ’s fulfillment a moment. Everything worthwhile is organized. My friends did not become successful in their efforts in Portland, Kentucky without lots of research, planning, and specific efforts. Meetings had a purpose. Goals were set. Specific people were hired to fulfill specific functions that contributed to the over all plan. Why all the organization? Because they are passionate about the people in their community.
Closer to home, I am getting ready to conduct a wedding. If you have ever planned a wedding, you know just home much organization goes into it. The Dress. The Tux. The Colors. Cake tastings. Food tasting. DJ and music. What song to dance to. On and on. We plan such things not just because its important but mainly because the people involved are important. A relationship is being celebrated and a covenant is being made.
Very soon we will celebrate the first birthday of my Grandson. It is still months away but already I am hearing about plans for that day. We do this for graduations, reunions, and even Thanksgiving dinner. We do this because the people in our lives are important. We want to give them the best we can give. So, organizing is instinctive. If we know how to give such things to loved ones then we have a taste of why the Lord is so completely organized when it comes to worshipping Him and knowing Him more and more in worship.
Organized Worship leads to organized faith, meaning a faith that structures each week around a relationship with the Lord. Because of this more of our thoughts and ambitions end up shaped and organized by our faith. As was our example. Mrs. Lennox makes an apple cake as one expression of love for Dr. Lennox. Worship grows the relationship and therefore inspires more action that reflects that relationship. An organized worship also offers accountability and a specific time of fellowship with other Christians where I take a break from the secular. Each week I know that I am going to be hearing the Word of God. Each week I am going to hear that my sins are forgiven in the absolution of the Word. I am able to receive the Lord’s Supper and celebrate baptisms.
The Structure of Worship has been around since the beginning. Abel offered a specific sacrifice to the Lord. Noah was given specific instructions after he landed on how to build an altar and what animals to sacrifice and for what reason. Under Moses the Sabbath was codified but the Sabbath had been around since the seventh Day when God rested. He assigned priests and Levites and High Priests all with specific duties focused on worship. We know from 1 Corinthians 13:33, “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace.” This was part of a rebuke of the Corinthian church where their worship services were out of control, chaotic, and even offensive to unbelievers who visited. The point is simple there is too much about order and organization from the Lord to make any case to avoid a godly congregation. Organized worship leads to an organized faith which learns, grows, appreciates, and welcomes Jesus and His teachings more readily. Our God is the God of an organized faith. By the grace may we worship the Lord and grow in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Pastor Matthew Woods
John 3:30
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept25.PDF
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/UZ09YKm-Cis
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
SEPTEMBER 19
Tuesday, SEPTEMBER 19, 2023
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“Who Are You?”
READING: Luke 13:22-27 – Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’”
Recently one of our insurance companies informed us that they had had a breech of their computer system. They had taken steps to correct and protect our information, but they admitted that they had no idea whether our information had been taken, nor could they guarantee that some crook wouldn’t make use of it for nefarious purposes. As a result they had made arrangements with a credit monitoring service and were offering us two years of free credit monitoring. I decided to take them up on the offer.
I went to the website for the service, entered my membership number, my name, and my zip code. That got me into another page that asked for email information, social security numbers, date of birth, etc. (It felt a little funny to be giving them my personal information when we were trying to keep it all secure, but the insurance company had sent us multiple mailings about it so okay.) Then I came to a page that was called “VERIFICATION”. The information there said that I would be asked a series of questions based on the information they had found in my credit history. I had fifteen minutes to answer the questions, and I would only have three attempts to get it all correct. After that I would be locked out and have to deal with a customer service rep. Ugghh!
The page came up and it was only five multiple choice questions. Some had a right answer listed. Some had no right answer and a choice that read, “Not applicable or not available.” It took me all of a minute to answer all five and I was all correct on the first attempt. I answered questions that only I could answer, and the program accepted my identity and my authority to set up the monitoring. The program said, “Who are you?” I gave answer, and the program said, “I know who you are and where you’ve come from. I accept you.” Hurray!
In our text for today someone has asked Jesus if only a few people will get to heaven. This one probably is thinking that only the most religious of the Jews will find God’s grace because Jesus warns his listeners that while Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will sit at the Lord’s banquet table, they may find themselves on the outside looking in. He says that only those who enter the “narrow door” will find salvation. Those who stand outside knocking will hear the most tragic words possible, “I don’t know you or where you come from.” In other words, “Who are you?”
The “narrow door” is indeed the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is salvation that comes by God’s grace, through faith, in Jesus alone. Jesus doesn’t say only a few will get in but he does say that only those who trust in him will be saved. For after naming the patriarchs and the prophets of the Old Testament he goes on to say that people will “come from the east and west, from the north and south and sit down at the Lord’s banquet table.” Those are the Gentiles who will believe in Jesus and also be saved.
You and I can rejoice that already in our baptisms God wrote our names in the Book of Life. He knows us intimately. He knows our hearts and faith. He knows our weaknesses and sins. He forgives us for Jesus’ sake, calls us his children, and promises us life eternal. Because Jesus is the “gate for the sheep”, because Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life”, because Jesus is “the name above every name”, you and I are known by the Father, and we know that “heaven is our home.”
I had to verify my identity to a company that did not know me until I proved it. Until they verified who I was, they would not open the account or let me in. Thanks be to God that when the day comes when I come to the Master’s house, he will open the door, call me by name, embrace me as his own, and welcome me into his sanctuary. You will have the same welcome because you believe that the Son is your Redeemer. We need not fear those terrible words, “I don’t know you or where you come from. Go away from me, all you evildoers.” He won’t have to ask, “Who are you?” because he’ll know us because he already loves us. Thanks be to Jesus. Amen.
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) LOOKING AHEAD: September 24 – Elders BBQ
2) St. Paul Lutheran Church, Royal Oak, MI – 150th Anniversary Year. PK to preach there 9/24
3) Introducing to you Seminarian Bieri and family. We are adopting them this school year.
We’ll help them financially, support them with our prayers, and keep up with his progress
at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN. One of these months we’ll also have
them come down for a visit. Stay tuned.
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/INuXjaHOkMs?si=V3iPxlnpH0HzOR2R
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept19.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
SEPT 18
Monday, SEPT 18, 2023
Pastor Matthew Woods from Grace Lutheran Church in New Albany, Indiana
“Milestones”
By now most of us understand what a milestone is. According to the lower Merion Historical Society website it all started with the Romans. The Latin “milia passuum,” means a thousand paces. The Romans also erected stone markers at mile intervals to notify the passerby of distances covered or the number of miles to go to reach their destination. These markers were conveniently called milestones.
According to the website, early in American history, Philadelphia was a major city in Pennsylvania. Roads radiated in all directions like a spider’s web to the surrounding towns. The Old Philadelphia Court House was the starting point. Benjamin Franklin, the Colonial Postmaster, had milestones erected to help the mail be more efficient. The milestones became the initial beginnings of our addresses. For example, the Merion Meeting House was listed at the address of 7-5 (7 miles and 5 furlongs). Franklin invented the odometer which he attached to a carriage wheel to measure the distances.
We all know that a milestone usually marks a moment or an event that marks an important stage in development or a significant change. History is full of milestones like the first man on the moon, or the invention of penicillin. But the ones that we remember most are the milestones that are much closer to home. The milestones that have a personal impact upon us are the ones we remember most. For example, just recently, my 9 month old grandson, took his first steps. In the video you can see him walking toward his dad giggling and laughing as his little unsteady legs carries him along. Very exciting and fun to watch.
Usually, we can think back to significant events where our lives pivoted because of an event. Crawling to walking is one case. One of the most vivid milestones in my case was when our family started going to church after my Grandpa Woods passed away. It was a huge pivot point that led me here talking to you as a Pastor of a Lutheran Church 38 years later. I was fifteen at the time and knew nothing of the church life back when we started. It was like moving to a foreign country where I had to learn the history, learn the language, and the culture. I had no idea how our family going to church would shape the rest of my life.
That first visit to church led me on a path to becoming a pastor. And along the way another significant milestone occurred my Vicarage, what the secular world would call an internship. About eight months into Vicarage I met my wife, Tricia. From there I had two sons, and now we have our first grandson who just started walking.
The point of bringing up milestones today is that the true milestones cannot be compartmentalized. The milestones in my life were as much spiritual as they were life happening. I can see now looking back how those events literally shaped my life and how the Lord turned them into places that transformed who I was along the way.
Probably the most notable example of a milestone for Saint Paul was his conversion. In Acts 26 Paul has to defend himself to Agrippa. As he speaks of his mission and purpose who makes it a point to explain milestone made him the person he was and how it shaped everything afterward. He says,
9 “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. 11 Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.
12 “On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13 About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions.
14 We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’
15 “Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’
“ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied. 16 ‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me. 17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them 18 to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’
Paul, once known only by a reputation for persecuting the church intensely and trying to destroy it eventually became a reason to praise God. Paul gives all credit to his conversion and his work to the grace of God. Paul gives all focus to the Lord, Jesus and uses himself as an example of how incredible the grace of Jesus Christ is. It brings Paul new purpose in his life, namely the preaching of the Gospel. For Paul is was all about the cross and resurrection. Paul’s life and purpose become intermingled with the Gospel for which he willingly endured all kinds of trouble. But Paul was so transformed by his faith in Jesus that everything even being unfairly imprisoned in Rome was considered a milestone. He even gives thanks for being in prison because it allowed him to preach the Gospel to Roman Praetorian guards.
So, what are the milestones in your life? There may be many. For some, one of those milestones may be a Damascus milestone, a moment that changed everything and shaped everything that led to where you are now. As you look back on your milestones my hope today is to take note of how the Lord may be blessing those moments to bring you closer to himself. In my case the Lord turned a huge loss in my life into a kind of reset for our family that led us to church. For anyone experiencing loss this is an unhappy and unwelcome milestone in life. Yet the Lord who turns death into resurrection can use even tragedy and loss to bring us closer to Himself. Thorns become opportunity for grace. Weakness becomes an opportunity to lean into the Lord for strength. Blessings become opportunities to give thanks. First steps become an opportunity to savor a moment and give praise to the Lord even as I celebrate those steps. May the milestones in your life be marked the Lord’s hand to draw you closer to Himself. When they come, good or bad, lean into Your Lord.
Pastor Matthew Woods
John 3:30
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept18.PDF
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/IH2nJoRCS4I
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
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WEEKLY DEVOTION SEPT 12
Tuesday, SEPT 12, 2023
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“We Don’t Want You Here!”
READING: Nehemiah 4:1-5 – When Sanballat hear that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble – burned as they are?” Tobiah, the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building – if even a fox climbed up on it, he would break down their wall of stones!?” Hear us, O our God, for we are despised. Turn their insults back on the own heads. Give them over as plunder in a land of captivity Do not cover up their guilt or blot out their sins from you sight, for they have thrown insults in the face of the builders.”
One morning last week as I was drinking my first coffee, I stepped into the dining room to look out the window there, and I saw movement on the ground just below the window. I stepped forward slowly until I could plainly see a new visitor to our humble abode: a young, fat woodchuck preening himself. He didn’t notice me in the house above and behind him. I watched him for a few moments, then I tapped on the window. Quick as a wink he ran under out front stoop. “Great,” I thought, “another unwanted guest.”
Over this past spring and summer I think I have told you about the rabbits who wanted to eat all of my Asian lilies, the deer who ate my day lilies, pepper plants, and sunflowers, the racoons who made their home in my attic, and the young skunk who drowned in our pool. Now there’s a woodchuck thinking about setting up shop under my front entrance. What’s next? A bear sleeping on our deck?
Now I know why I am seeing so much wildlife around the place: they’re all refugees. In this past year alone developers have taken down at least 10 or 15 acres of woodland and field within half a mile of our home. They’ve built homes, patio homes, apartment buildings, and offices. The poor critters have been pushed out of their own places and are looking to move in with us. We say, “We don’t want you here!” We do everything we can to keep them out.
Thinking on that reminded me of the returnees from the Exile in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. For 70 years the cream of Judaism had been scattered throughout the Babylonian Empire. For 70 years Jerusalem had lain abandoned and decimated. A wasteland where jackals and foxes raised their kits. The neighboring nations of Edom, Samaria, and Moab had rejoiced in the defeat and destruction of their ancient enemies the Jews. They took over their abandoned fields and their trade routes. Things were good.
Then Babylon fell. The Persians gained supremacy and their king, Cyrus, had decreed that any Jew wanting to return to Jerusalem and Judea was free to do so. Ezra had led hundreds of refugees back. Nehemiah was given the task of seeing to the restoration of the city’s walls and the Temple itself. The people worked with all their hearts. The walls began to rise…and the neighbors were incensed! They were fearful that with the walls rebuilt and the Temple reestablished, Judea might once again make itself felt in the region. At first they only hurled insults at the Jews. Later it was arrows and spears that flew at those trying to regain the life their parents and grandparents had known in Jerusalem. The neighbors said in numerous ways, “We don’t want you here!”
For many of us of German extraction we know that in many places our forebearers were not welcomed. They were immigrants. They spoke a language other than English. They ate “funny” foods and played “weird” music. They were clannish and clung to the customs and folkways of the “Old Country”. In many places, including Louisville, their were anti-German riots and persecutions, especially during the World Wars. The same was true for the Italian immigrants, the Irish immigrants, and other people-groups who came to American to find a new life. Those who were already here (all of them from immigrant stock) said, “We don’t want you here!”
For 10 and more years Mexican and South American immigrants have looked to America as a great hope. The poverty and the drug-culture of their homelands has driven them to great trials and great dangers in an effort to find a home where they can work, raise their children, and live in peace. Mostly America has said, “We don’t want you here!” Yes, I agree, they should enter the country legally, but we make it so hard and allow so few that many in desperation do so illegally.
I’ve watched close-hand this summer as one of those apartment complexes has been going up near my home. The cement workers were all Latino. The carpenters were nearly all Latino. The roofers – all Latino. The masons – all Latino. The dry-wallers – all Latino. And those men worked in all conditions, six days a week, and did marvelous work. Many of them have families here. Some have families back in the Old Country. They’re doing exactly what our forebearers did when they came to these shores: work, pray, love, and live. The woodchuck has to leave, but I think I should be more caring and welcoming of the others.
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) LOOKING AHEAD: September 24 – Elders BBQ
2) St. Paul Lutheran Church, Royal Oak, MI – 150th Anniversary Year. PK to preach there 9/25
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/kSoesGYctMM
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept12.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
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WEEKLY DEVOTION SEPTEMBER 11
Monday, SEPTEMBER 11, 2023
Pastor Matthew Woods from Grace Lutheran Church in New Albany, Indiana
“Giving the Right Impression”
Ever get the wrong impression about someone or something? I have. I know this may be a shock to some but sometimes others get the wrong impression about us. So, how do we overcome it? That’s a bit of a challenge. But there is a way that may make it possible to get the right impression after starting with the wrong one.
Let’s have some fun first. I found a list of classified adds from newspapers that was on the internet I’d like to share with you today.
1. Wanted. Man to take care of cow that does not smoke or drink. –I didn’t know cows smoked and drank.
2. Try us once, you’ll never go anywhere again. — Sounds dangerous.
3. Dog for sale: eats anything and is fond of children. –Not sure I want a dog that snacks on children.
4. Illiterate? Write today for free help.—I’m not sure how to respond to that one either.
5. Stock up and save. Limit: one. –Sounds like a minimalist add.
6. Man wanted to work in dynamite factory. Must be willing to travel.—Sounds like a blast.
7. Semi-Annual after Christmas Sale. – Doesn’t Christmas come once a year?
8. For sale: antique desk suitable for lady with thick legs and large drawers.—I guess its not sold until the fat lady sings.
9. We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand.—Yea, better to go slow rather than be in a rip/tear hurry.
10. Used Cars: Why go elsewhere to be cheated. Come here first.—Well, at least they are honest about cheating customers.
Each of these adds more than likely left something out or worded it in a way that communicates an unintended message that could give the wrong impression. That’s what wrong impressions do. The information is incomplete or it is inaccurate, or it is exaggerated in some way and that inaccuracy gets stuck in people’s minds. The wrong impression can come in a number of ways and for a number of reasons. The problem with starting with a wrong impression is that the message itself gets skewed or the person doesn’t get a fair chance. Such is also the case with the Christian faith with many.
Last week I attended the annual conference on Disaster recovery for the LCMS. One of the presenters who worked in a flood area in Missouri mentioned that some flood victims thought that his LERT (Lutheran Early Response Team) group were scammers. So, when help was initially offered, many neighbors refused. The LERT team started with the five houses that belonged to fellow Lutherans and little by little others began to ask for help too. As the months went on and work was getting done free news began spread. As the neighbors witnessed the efforts of volunteers, many of whom came from out of state just to help, those neighbors changed their minds. The HOA president was in the beginning extra skeptical but also heard the reports of the work, saw the daily volunteers, and investigated the work being done. The HOA president eventually softened and talked with the Coordinator and they became friends. In fact, it was discovered that that HOA president was a Lutheran who had wandered away from the church. When Easter service came around the HOA president was sitting in the pew next to the Coordinator. Great outcome.
Consider another example. In Acts 9 the Apostle Paul was met by Jesus on the road to Damascus and eventually Paul came to faith in the Lord and began to preach boldly. Ananias whom the Lord assigned as the first person to meet Paul was a bit nervous because of dangerous reputation Saul had earned for himself. In Acts 9:13-14 we hear, “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
The lord would go on to explain that Paul was “God’s chosen instrument to proclaim His name to the Gentiles and to the people of Israel.” Later in Damascus Paul would preach a powerful message with courage and conviction. We are told in vs. 21 that the people were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” His reputation that preceded Paul began to change. After Damascus Paul preached in Jerusalem and tried to join the disciples but we are told they were afraid of Paul. At this point Barnabas advocated for Paul and the disciples welcomed him. And what’s interesting is how former allies tried to kill Saul. Once in Damascus and even in Jerusalem some tried to kill Saul because of his faith in Jesus. And the very people who once feared him, ended up protecting him.
The wrong impression of the church and of Christians happens for many reasons. The LERT volunteers who came only to provide free help to any who wanted it were at first believed to be scammers. But they took no one’s money. In fact, they paid for all the materials and provided all the labor and stayed until everyone who wanted help got it. They took Matthew 5:16 to heart. “Let your light shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven.” Each day they would pray out courtyard. Each day their trucks full of material would come in. Each day the volunteers would work with smiles and gratitude for the opportunity to help. Each day the neighbors were watching and some came to glorify the Lord.
For Saul his conversion shook Israel. Once the greatest champion for the high Priest and greatest enemy of the church his reputation preceded him in all Christian circles. After Saul’s conversion his reputation preceded him in a different way altogether. As an apostle for Christ Saul would no longer be ashamed to use his Greek name of Paul and seemed to prefer it. And because of Paul many came to believe in Jesus.
The bottom line is this: For us to give the right impression of our faith it must be visible and it must be real. Minds and hearts have the best chance of getting the right impression of us as Christians by our examples; by the way we love others. Of course, not everyone came to believe because of Paul’s conversion nor did every neighbor warm up to the efforts of LERT. But neither could deny that they saw it or heard about it.
Here’s my point today. The hope is that by having the right impression as Christian people others gain the right impression of our Savior, Jesus. Being a witness is a high calling. On our mission trips to help others I always tell our groups that if we do it right Jesus will be the one that they give thanks for. Same is true for each of us every day. May the Lord bless the impressions we make on others for the sake of Jesus.
Pastor Matthew Woods
John 3:30
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept11.PDF
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/IIPsBBej9qc
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
SEPT 5
Tuesday, SEPT 5, 2023
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“Do You Need a Miracle?”
READING: Galatians 5:22-26 – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying others.
In my devotion last week I mentioned that a couple of Saturdays ago while I was working in the study on the second floor, I saw a lady walking in our cul-de-sac and stopping at every door. In her hands she carried something that she seemed to be handing out at each address. I thought perhaps she was soliciting for some campaign or other. When she came to our door, I saw that she had door-hangers in her hand. After she left and went on her way, I went down and retrieved what she had hung on our door. It was bright red with writing only on one side. In bold letters it asked a single question, “Do you need a miracle?” Then there was a QR code that I could have uploaded on my phone to get more information. In small letters below that there was the name of the church. I was not surprised. Since that church first opened its doors, on its electronic sign and its marquee it has touted miracles.
Over the years they have advertised for “Healing Services” and they have claimed a number of miracles as well. One I remember exactly. It read, “Damaged hip healed last Saturday.” They can be very specific about the miracles they claim. What bothers me most about their signs is in all the years I’ve driven by them I do not once recall seeing the name of Jesus. Not once, to the best of my recollections. That bothers me.
In our text for today St. Paul lists all the fruits that come from those who belong to Jesus: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I don’t see a thing about miracles of healing. The “Holiness” and “Full-Gospel” churches look for proof of the Holy Spirit’s presence – in the church and in the individual believer. They believe that if they really try hard enough, pray hard enough, believe hard enough, the Holy Spirit will give them what they ask for. If it doesn’t come, then someone didn’t try, pray, or believe hard enough.
What I do see in Paul’s list are words that point us to caring for and helping others: patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and most importantly – love. What I see there is an understanding that we can exhibit fruits of the Spirit whatever our current situation: love, joy, faithfulness, patience, and self-control. These are the fruits that come because the Holy Spirit indwells his people and spurs them to be like Jesus, whom we love.
Does the Holy Spirit do miracles? Absolutely! But he does them when and where HE wants. He is not bribed into granting them by our “trying hard”. He does not tie himself to a particular church or a particular rite or a particular method. He does them in accordance with the Father’s will. Period. We may ask. We may supplicate. We may even cry before the Lord but we must always end our prayer with the words, “Not my will, but yours be done.”
Most of the churches who tout miracles also rely heavily on speaking in tongues. Again, they see this as a sign that the Holy Spirit is present. They have a simple formula: if you speak in tongues, you have the Spirit. If you don’t, there is doubt, often considerable doubt, as to the presence of the Holy Spirit in you or in the church. Again, does the Holy Spirit sometimes give the gift of tongues? Yes. Our own missionaries have reported such occurrences when the Word is first preached where Satan has long held sway. But again, the Spirit does this when and where HE wills. Tongues can be learned just as assuredly as a foreign tongue can be learned by being immersed in it for a time.
What the Scriptures have always encouraged is faith in the Lord Jesus. The Pharisees asked for miraculous signs and when they got them, they still doubted Christ. Miracles are like Lay’s Potato Chips – no one can stop with just one. If our faith has to be supported and propped up by miracles, then it stops being faith. Paul said, “We live by faith, not by sight.” Rather, let us put all our trust in the death and resurrection of Jesus knowing that in him we have an absolute promise of salvation AND the presence of the Counselor he himself has sent to us. Do you need a miracle? Perhaps I or someone I know could USE a miracle, but what we all NEED is the joy of being God’s child through the merits and mercies of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. In him we trust. Amen.
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) LOOKING AHEAD: September 13 – Cave Hill Cemetery Tour
September 24 – Elders BBQ
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/bQbj3ZPiS68
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept5.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
SEPT 4
Monday, SEPT 4, 2023
Pastor Matthew Woods from Grace Lutheran Church in New Albany, Indiana
“Hard Teachings”
In preparation for an upcoming Bible Class on Jeremiah I have been reading Dr. Lessing’s book on Jeremiah, Overcoming Life’s Sorrows; Learning From Jeremiah. In the chapter on surrender, Lessing brings up the inability of Israel to accept that Babylon was coming. Under the false hope that Egypt’s new Pharoah in 597 BC, Pharoah Psammetichus II would rally to push back on Babylon Israel’s leaders somehow convinced themselves that Babylon would retreat. They believed that those who were already deported would be returned. They wanted to believe that all the temple vessels would be returned. They wanted to hope. They wanted their deported King Jehoichin to return to his throne (Jeremiah 28:4). But they were placing their hope in the wrong picture. Hope would come but after a long 70-year captivity in Babylon. A false prophet, Hananiah led an obstinate group of other false prophets, representing the highest offices and most of the people, in the idea that God would save the people from Babylon. But this was not Jeremiah’s message. Hananiah preached a false optimism. Jeremiah preached God’s message, which was a very hard teaching to the people of Israel.
In Jeremiah 28 Jeremiah puts on a wooden yoke bar across his shoulders to illustrate that all the lands would fall under the yoke of Babylon. Hananiah rips the yoke off Jeremiah’s shoulders and breaks it to symbolize what God is going to do with Babylon. This is wishful thinking. Just to make the point Jeremiah returns with yoke of iron (Jeremiah 28:13).
Message: “No, this is a yoke you will not break. Babylon is coming to destroy everything, take everything, and no amount of wishful thinking will change the reality.” Again, a very hard teaching. Rather than come to terms with the reality of God’s Word and with the reality that Israel’s sin has brought this about, the leaders of Israel would choose to live in a manufactured fiction that keeps the status quo. “After all,” some may say today “is not our God a loving God. He would not do this to Israel.” Jeremiah is saying God would do this to Israel in order to save Israel from its pride and its idolatrous sin. Israel needed a reboot to clear out all the viral teachings of its day.
Lessing describes it this way: “Hananiah embodies what we all want—a return to the ‘good old days.’ None of us wants angst and brokenness to stay. We just want to forget the trauma and pretend it did not happen. That is why we try to create a more pleasant, comfortable world that conforms to our daydreams…. Hope involves telling the truth. Hope means letting go of the old. Hope surrenders to God’s plans and God’s timing” (page 191). I would add that we also try to refashion the Lord Himself to a comfortable and acceptable place.
Such is the case in John 6. Jesus teaches about Himself being the Bread of Life. He teaches things like, “Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood, you have no spiritual life in you” (v. 53) and “He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I live in him” (v. 56). Quickly the crowds turn on Jesus. Vs 60 informs us of their reaction. “This is a hard teaching; who can understand it?” Some of them even “complained” about what he said (v. 61). Finally, many of them stopped following Jesus altogether.
Jesus eventually asks the twelve disciples in vs 67; “Do you want to leave as well?” Peter famously responds, “Lord to whom shall we go. You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the holy one of God.”
The twelve didn’t disagree that Jesus was sharing a hard teaching. In fact, there were many things that the disciples were slow to understand, especially about the cross and the resurrection. Peter would have to be straightened out on this very important teaching above all. “Get behind me Satan…” Peter did not like the idea of Jesus being crucified. It was a hard teaching that Peter struggled with. Yet, the disciples made up their minds to trust Jesus, to listen and learn His Word, to continue to follow Him, and eventually give their lives for Jesus.
Hard teaching become hard because sinful logic and emotions cannot or will not accept the Word of God. A simple example is how many Christians do not accept that Jesus turned water into wine at Cana or that Jesus would have used wine at the Last Supper, which was a Passover feast. John 2:1-12 provides not only several uses of the word wine but also gives a strong context for wine being used—a wedding celebration. Many Christians say that the water turned to wine was not fermented, was instead new wine, or simple grape juice. Wine makes many Christians uncomfortable for a variety of reasons. Yet a word that is plainly “wine” is wine. The Word of God says what it says. Would a loving God make wine? The answer from the text is yes.
Some of the hardest teachings today seem to circle around personhood, gender, and sexuality. Genesis 1:27 describes personhood in terms of being made distinct from all animals in the image of God. One is not evolved but created. Personhood is also not determined by Gender. Gender is not assigned at birth but in fact one is either created male or female. Yet in a world complicated by sinful reason and emotion have skewed what is a very basic picture presented in Genesis 1 and 2. Marriage also falls into this very emotionally charged arena. In Matthew 19 in a discussion about divorce Jesus quotes the definition of marriage. He states, “Have not your read that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female and said, ‘A man shall leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and the two will become one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together let no one separate’” (Matt 19:4). In this one passage Jesus steps on a lot of toes regarding divorce, gender, the definition of marriage, and that we are created not evolved. Such things become very hard teachings when confronted by emotion and human agendas.
Perhaps the phrase heard the most is that “God is love.” True. Jesus has certainly shown his compassion in his death and resurrection. Yet, God is also just. Also reflected in the punishment place upon Jesus for our sin.
In John 8:1-11 a woman caught in adultery is dragged before the Lord. First, Jesus could see through the trap being set by the religious leaders who dragged this woman into the conversation as bait and the sinful jealousy behind it. These same sinful motives eventually condemn Jesus. Matthew 27:18 tells us that Pilate knew it was out of envy that the religious leaders handed over Jesus. This is the nature of those who do not accept Jesus. They will either walk away like they did in John 6 or try to ruin the messenger like the did with Jeremiah or in the case of Jesus, crucify them. Within this trap is a sinful refusal to accept the teachings of Jesus as truth. Secondly, Jesus acknowledges that the woman caught in adultery did in fact commit a sin. Jesus saves her life when all the rocks hit the ground but it is clear that she must change when He says, “Go, and sin no more.” This may have been a hard teaching for her depending on her lifestyle at that time.
Many hard teachings present themselves in scripture. Many challenge our comfort zones and shake our status quos. Some of the hardest are in the Sermon on the Mount. Hard teachings are hard because sin causes confusion and divides loyalties. The good we want to do we do not do but often surrender to the sin living within. We may care very much for a person in a lifestyle that conflicts with the Word. Good. But love is never separated from the truth of God’s Word. God is not only love but God is truth expressed in Jesus who refers to Himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. I do not deny that Jesus has many hard teachings. The disciples certainly would have agreed. Regardless of our ability, emotionally, or in our reasoning, I pray that our faith would respond as Peter did; “Lord, You have the words of eternal life.”
Pastor Matthew Woods
John 3:30
PRINTABLE PDF: WDSept4.PDF
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/jXdy3XUqroo
[email protected] — (502) 523-9327
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WEEKLY DEVOTION
AUGUST 29
Tuesday, AUGUST 29, 2023
Pastor Bruce Kischnick, Grace Lutheran Church, New Albany, IN
“Rub Some Bacon on It!”
READING: Matthew 22:8-14 – Then he said to his servants, “The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.” So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. “Friend,” he asked, “how did you get in here without wedding clothes?” The man was speechless. Then the king told the attendants, “Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are invited, but few are chosen.
If you want to have a good laugh, ask your Alexa or Google to play the song, “Rub Some Bacon on It”. It’s a nonsense song that starts out with a 9-1-1 call. The caller says he has accidentally nailed his finger to a birdhouse he was building. The 9-1-1 attendant asks if he has some bacon in the house. The caller says that yes in fact he had some left over from dinner the night before. The 9-1-1 attendant tells him to rub some bacon on his wound. “That’s it?” asks the caller. “Just do it,” says the man. From there the caller begins to present all manner of scenarios to the 9-1-1 guy, and he responds EVERY time, “Rub some bacon on it!” There are questions about meeting one’s clone, his cat exploding, being attacked by a narwhale, the Apocalypse happening, and numerous others, and every time the response is the same, “Rub some bacon on it!”
Of course it’s all nonsense. I think it’s a parody aimed at any of the many panaceas you can find on the Internet. It reminds me of the movie, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” when the bride’s father believes Windex will heal any injury. On the Internet there are “knowing” claims made for vinegar, for malt extracts, for Vitamins B-3, B-12, C, D, E, X, Y, and Z! And many other home, holistic, and herbal remedies of dubious value. One must be very careful to study and vet any of these things before ingesting them. Many of them have no more value to them than rubbing some bacon on it!
In the spiritual realm there is much the same. There are 100’s of religions, denominations, cults, and “Christian Science” congregations out there, and each one offers enlightenment and some sort of salvation. Last Saturday one of our local church neighbors put a door-hanger on my front door with one simple question, “Do You Need a Miracle?” and then a QR code that I could have uploaded that would have told me all about the miracles that regularly happen at their church. If you start searching around the Internet, you will find hours of claims, counter-claims, interpretations, explanations, sermons, Bible studies, and treatises about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, Krishna, Buddha, Allah, Mormonism, and every manner of mish-mash and misleading nonsense. You might just as well rub some bacon on it, for all the good it will do you!
The Bible is God’s word, period. It is not some mysterious, unknowable, unsearchable screed that cannot be fathomed or believed. It is a book that tells us about our Creator, about the fall into sin, God’s gracious promise and the people to whom he gave his word, his promise, and his law. Then it follows the fulfillment of his promises through human history right up to the birth of a baby in Bethlehem that carried the full presence and authority of God in the flesh. That One lived, taught, suffered, and died for the sins of all mankind. Though he was really dead, he really rose to life, returned to his Father, and promises us eternal life in his name when he returns on the Last Day. It’s not rocket science, nor is it bacon. It is God’s word and there is life in it for all who believe that Jesus was and is the fulfillment of God’s plan and promises to a sinful humanity that would die forever without God’s gracious gifts.
Still there are those who try to stand on their own merits. That’s what our text refers to. The King in his gracious kindness dresses every guest in fine wedding clothes, but there is one guy who believes his own marvelous suit will be most presentable. When the King sees him, he realizes at once that this guest is not worthy, for he has passed up the King’s grace, refusing the white wedding garb offered him, and instead flashes his own tastes as though these are good enough. The King has him bound and forcefully removed from the wedding banquet. He is thrown into the darkness of condemnation.
No one can fix their own sin-broken condition. No one can stand before God arrayed in their own stained righteousness. No one can turn to anything but the righteousness of Christ Jesus obtained by faith in him. Look elsewhere, anywhere, and you might as well rub some bacon on yourself because all of it will be futile. We trust in the One Scripture tells us is the Son of God and our Savior. Nothing nor no one else will do. Amen.
PRAYER:
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
1) LOOKING AHEAD: September 13 – Cave Hill Cemetery Tour
September 24 – Elders BBQ
Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/0u8gJKfk0ic
PRINTABLE PDF: WDAug29.PDF
[email protected] — (502) 797-7407