The Power of Story

Stories are powerful. It is easy to get caught up in a good story. Have you ever read a book that you could not seem to put down? You had to keep turning one page after the next. Our maybe you saw a movie that afterwards you had to tell everyone you saw about it. Because you were captured by the power of the story.

Stories allow us to become participants in events that we were not necessarily there to experience ourselves. They can become part of who we are and form how we see ourselves and our world. Stories can illustrate a point or teach us a valuable lesson. Stories can be true, I could sure tell you some stories from our trip to the national youth gathering. But they don’t have to be true either. Did I ever tell you about the one that got away that last time I went fishing, it was this big?

It seems that whenever we get to the end of the year we find ourselves doing some reflection on the days past. For some it is a sense of relief as this was a pretty crummy year. This year was so bad that the next year can only be an improvement. For others it was a year full of joys and firsts and wonderful experiences. I hope that this next year will be as good as the last one.

We reflect on classes that we have taken, projects that we worked on at work, things we accomplished around the house. We receive grades and performance evaluations. As we look back on the days past we write more of our own personal stories. The story of me and what has happened to me in my life during the year of our Lord 2010.

Our text in Isaiah not only is about a story, but it takes place within a story. You see, a long time ago, in a land far way, there was a tiny nation populated by a small group of people. But these people were a special people, because they were chosen by God to be his people. They would live in a special relationship with him that was different than the way any of the other people around them lived. In living their lives this way, they would bear witness to who God is to the nations around him. Because there were many nations that surround this tiny special one, but none of those other nations knew who God was. This was part of his plan to bring them into relationship with him.

However the people of this special nation forgot this important fact. They would look at the other nations around them and say, “we want to be like them. We want to do what they are doing. We want to worship the gods they are worshipping.” So God allowed the enemies of this special nation to come in and remove them from their homes and take them to a foreign land that was far away. It was terribly sad and discouraging. And questions began to arise. Why did God allow this to happen? Is it because he was powerless against the gods of our enemies? Is it because he no longer loves us or wants anything to do with us? What does this mean?

This is the situation that Isaiah speaks to. It is with these questions in mind that Isaiah pens the beautiful and amazing words that happen to be our text for today. “I will recount the gracious deeds of the Lord, the praiseworthy acts of the Lord, because of all that the Lord has done for us, and the great favor to the house of Israel that he has shown them according to his mercy, according to the abundance of his steadfast love. For he said, ‘Surely they are my people, children who will not deal falsely’; and he became their savior in all their distress. It was no messenger or angel but his presence that saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.”

Now notice that these words did not actually answer the questions that were being asked by the people. Instead what they do is provide an action plan for dealing with some of the most horrible, difficult, and troubling situations that life can throw at us. This action plan works well for times of being exiled, that is being forced to leave your home and relocated by your enemies, but it also works in smaller, though sometimes just as painful struggles that we face in life. This strategy is one that works well in the face of bad grades or not passing a class, the loss of a job or the end of a relationship. It works well as there is struggle with sin and addiction and even in the face of death.

This action plan is simple, but it is powerful. It is to recount the gracious deeds of the Lord, the praiseworthy acts of our God, because of all that he has done for us, and the great favor to his people, the house of Israel that he has shown them according to his mercy, according to the abundance of his steadfast love.

For this special nation, as they face the worst possible situation that they could have ever imagined. In the face of all their questions, they are not given deep and complex theological treatises that require advance degrees to understand. Instead they are pointed back to the gracious, praiseworthy actions of God that are done out of his gracious love. Love that is like super love, love that keeps in mind the promises that God made to his people, love that does not end or is removed, love that is beyond words. Love that is beyond, that is greater than the sins of God’s people. They are pointed back to a story, and the power of that story.

The story here that Isaiah is referring to is the events of the Exodus. The special nation was not a sovereign people, but they were slaves. Living a horrible life where it was ordered that any boy babies born were to be thrown into the river. And so God himself shows up to save them. He does not send an angel, but he does the job himself, and in so doing the people of this special nation are given freedom, and life and a relationship with God.

This is our story too. We too celebrate and give thanks for God’s gracious acts and dealing with the people of that day. So we tell this story so that it can inform our world views and how we see ourselves and how we see our God. We tell of his praiseworthy acts and gracious deeds that flow from the abundance of his steadfast love. So that we can share in that story and in that identity of God’s people.

Having the benefit of hindsight, we also know of another occurrence of the gracious deeds of our Lord, and acts that are praiseworthy that flow from the abundance of his steadfast love for you and me, and that is this;

“Because God's children are human beings -- made of flesh and blood -- the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying. We also know that the Son did not come to help angels; he came to help the descendants of Abraham. Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. Then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people.”

Lest you think that this story be reserved for only sad and seemingly hopeless situations, know that it is a story for all times of life. Because when we experience joy, the gracious and praiseworthy acts of our Lord are even sweeter. When we experience the corruption and brokenness of sin, the gracious and praiseworthy acts of our Lord are powerful source of strength and comfort, and so we rejoice and give thanks in them.

As a community, these gracious and praiseworthy acts bind us together as members of the same family. It is a special relationship that we have with one another. It also calls us to carry out the mission and work of our God in this word, and that is this, Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you, and surely I am with you to the very end of the age.

And so these stories move us to share them with the community around us. To do that requires that we be creative in how we communicate. We live in a world that sees Christians and Christianity in a negative light. They think the church is only after money, and that life in the community of faith is only about being told what to do and not to do. Yet we know that that is not the case. So how do we make our neighbors aware of this? I don’t have the answers, but I am willing to try to figure it out. And I would invite you to join me. If you are interested in being a part of this jot down a little note on the back of your yellow sheet, and I will be in contact with you.

There is a lot of ministry to do around this place. But what an adventure it will be. Spend some time in prayer and ask God how you can become part of the work of recounting his gracious and praiseworthy acts that flow out of the abundance of his steadfast love in this congregation. And supplement that prayer with time reading that story so that it can fill your minds, hearts and lives.

May you always find a great source of comfort, joy and strength in this story, in sharing this story and in the recounting of the gracious and praiseworthy acts of our God that flow out of the abundance of his steadfast love. Now and into the year 2011 and beyond. Amen.

Matter of Perspective

Sometimes, how you understand something is a matter of perspective. Consider the mayor of a small town. One day he was going through the city square. This was a beautiful place. The grass was rich and green. The flowers were in bloom and sported rich colors. The trees provide many places of shelter from the hot summer sun. It was truly a gorgeous place. And such a wonderful place required lot of work to keep up.

The mayor happened to notice a couple of workers going up Main Street. Each one carried a shovel. One would go and dig a hole and then the other would come up right behind him and would fill the hole back in. The mayor observed this spectacle for quite a while until his curiosity finally got the best of him and he went up to workers to inquire about all the digging and filling that was going on. The one who dug the holes, leaned on his shovel, wiped the sweat off his forehead and said. “We are the city tree planting crew. But the guy who plants the trees called in sick this morning.”

Sometimes, how you understand something is a matter of perspective. Now consider our text for this morning from Isaiah. This text about Immanuel is one that we love dearly. It is a text that we associate with this time of year and all the good stuff that goes with it. That is our perspective on the text. And it is a good perspective to have.

But that wasn’t the case for King Ahaz. For him the promise of Immanuel was a judgment against him. Ahaz was facing some pretty difficult times. His neighbors in Syria and Israel had formed an alliance against him and laid siege to Jerusalem in an attempt to destroy the entire kingdom. And while Ahaz had Yahweh the one true God, king of the universe on his side, Ahaz was an unbeliever. And instead of looking to God for help he went to the Assyrians.

In the face of this turmoil God sends Isaiah to the king with a message of hope. Be careful. Be quite. Do not be afraid and do not let your heart be faint. The plan of your enemies will fail. It will not come about. It will not happen. Stand strong, put your faith in God and he will save you.

But Ahaz refuses to believe. God tells him to ask for a sign to confirm the word of God. Ask for anything. Let it be has deep as the grave or as high as heaven. And Ahaz arrogantly refuses. “I will not put the Lord to the test.” He says. This was because he preferred his own plan with the Assyrians. He wanted nothing to do with God or God’s plans because they didn’t fit with his plans.

So God chooses his own sign. The virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. There is in this sign good news and bad news. The good news is that Syria and Israel will be gone before the boy is old enough to know right from wrong. The bad news is that Ahaz will face even greater trouble than Syria and Israel in the form of the Assyrians. If you have ever heard the phrase about the cure being worse than the disease, well then this is the perfect example of that.

Sometimes, how you understand something is a matter of perspective. Consider what this news about Immanuel meant for Joseph and Mary. They were living through some scary times. The occupation by the Romans was no walk in the park. Mary was pregnant, and they weren’t married yet. Joseph was even considering divorcing Mary.

But God sent an angel, and that angel gave him hope. The baby that is growing inside of Mary is the son of God. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit. In fact, his name will be Jesus because he will save his people from their sins. This is the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy. Jesus is God in the flesh. He is God with us. This comforts Joseph and he takes Mary home as his wife.

Sometimes, how you understand something is a matter of perspective. What does the promise of Immanuel mean for you? We live in a time of fear and doubt. There are wars raging in our world. There is the threat of wars as well. The economy is a mess. There is lots of anxiety and fear as we face all the uncertainties that are out there in our world.

But for us, Immanuel is a word of hope and encouragement. Jesus is God with us. And he is with us always, even to the very end of the age. Therefore we have hope. So do not be afraid. The price of peace gives us peace. Therefore we have peace with God, and peace with one another. We have a peace that surpasses all human understanding.

Jesus saves us from our sins. He takes all our sin, and all our fears, all our conflicts and brokenness and imperfection on himself. He paid the price for them on the cross. So that for his sake we have forgiveness and life that never ever ends. Those things are removed from us as far as the east is from the west.

Sometimes, how you understand something is a matter of perspective. The promise of Immanuel is fulfilled in Jesus. And because this is true, then no matter what we are facing, we will have hope. Not just the hope that we will get through the tough times, although we do have that. But hope that God will see us through those times and will always be with us. And that one day he will return and restore all of creation back to its glory and splendor and perfection that it had before the fall. It is a hope that moves us to share God’s love with others around us. It is a hope that moves us to pray, “Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly. Amen.”

Active Waiting

Waiting is not a fun thing to do. Do you enjoy waiting? We wait in lines at six flags. We wait to turn left on Pine Grove. We wait for the phone to ring. We wait for Christmas. If you deal with the government at all you well know the meaning of hurry up and wait. And we’ve all heard that good things come to those who wait, but who enjoys waiting? I sure don’t. I want what I want right now. And I know that I am not alone. At the very least six year old Calvin agrees with me.

After consuming four boxes of Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs breakfast cereal. Calvin finally has obtained enough proof of purchases to send in for an Official Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs Beanie; complete with a battery-powered propeller on top and a big star on the front. He proudly shows off his accomplishment to his best friend Hobbes. When Hobbes informs Calvin that he will have to wait six weeks for the Beanie to arrive in the mail, Calvin laments, “I’ll be OLD then!”

Calvin waits for his beanie. What are you waiting for? In the breathtakingly busy hustle and bustle we find ourselves doing a lot of waiting. You can tell how important something is to someone by whether or not they choose to wait for it. But waiting can be difficult. It is not always a fun thing to do. This doesn’t mean that it is a bad thing for us to experience, it just isn’t always that easy.

As you know Advent is a season of waiting and expectation. And not just waiting for Christmas to get here so that we can open our presents, or simply be done with the rush of the season, depending on how you look at it. Advent is a season of waiting and expecting. It is a time for us to take a step back and inventory all the ways that God comes and breaks into our world, with the light of his grace and mercy and forgiveness into our lives and community. Which he accomplished with his first coming, and with the gifts that he gives to us in his church.

Advent is a season of waiting and expecting Jesus to return in all of his glory that from that day on we would experience life with our God as it was meant to be experienced; a new creation with no more sin, sickness, suffering, injustice, death, evil. Everything that is wrong with our world will be made right. It will be better than anything we can imagine. It is something that we are to look forward to with great anticipation and expectation and hope. But it is also something that we have to wait for.

The Old Testament lesson from Isaiah paints a beautiful and wonderful picture. The wilderness shall rejoice and it shall blossom. Now the wilderness here is basically a dessert. It is a dry place where there is very little life. Being in the wilderness is a difficult place to be. Israel wondered in the wilderness for forty years. Jesus fasted in the wilderness for forty days. In the ancient world the wilderness was the place where demons lived. It wasn’t exactly a great vacation get-a-way.

So, for the wilderness to blossom with life. Well that is pretty significant. That is kind of a big deal. And this is the image that Isaiah paints for us. Good news is announced. The effects of this news is that weak hands and knees can be strengthened and firm. Anxious hearts will be calmed with the words, “Be strong! Fear not! Behold, you God will come and save you.”

Just as the desolation of the wilderness will be undone, so too will the brokenness in this creation be undone. The blind will see. The deaf will hear. The lame will leap like a deer. The mute will sing for joy. The wilderness, the dessert will have water, and not just a little bit of it, but pools of it. There will once again be life. And God’s people will return home in safety and joy never again to be trouble or sadness.

This is certainly a great day to look forward to. It is what John the Baptist was looking forward to. He knew that the Messiah would bring it about. But we see an interesting story in our gospel lesson. John sends his disciples to ask Jesus a question. You see, John knew that Jesus was the Messiah. He knew that life was about to get much, much better. The injustices from the Romans were going to be dealt with. Life was going to be the way that it was supposed to be. God has finally showed up to save his people from their plight, because life was pretty rough for them.

But things weren’t going as he expected them to go. Things weren’t going according to plan. Can you relate to that? Do you know what that feels like? It is a terrible feeling. It is an awful feeling. John is experiencing this feeling. Things are not going exactly the way that he expected them to go. Because the entrance of the Messiah should bring about the exit of the Romans, it should be the removal of the corruption and injustice that is going on all over the place in that society.

John is experiencing this feeling because he is in prison. Wait a minute here; that is not the way this is supposed to work. That is not what is supposed to happen. John is a great man here. He is a prophet. He speaks for God, and he is thrown in prison. Why? Because the king didn’t like his message. So John begins to scratch is head and he sends his disciples to Jesus. “Are you the one to come, or shall we look for another?”

John is not trying to be disrespectful or anything like that here. It is a good legitimate question. Is this the moment we have been waiting for, or do we need to keep waiting? Because in the moment that we are waiting for this kind of thing doesn’t happen. The way that Jesus answers this question is absolutely awesome. He points John back to this picture of Isaiah. It is a much bigger picture than what most of the people of Jesus’ day were looking for in the Messiah.

Jesus tells them to go back to John and report what they have seen and heard. The blind see. The lame walk. Lepers are cleansed. The deaf hear. The dead are raised. The poor have the good news preached to them. The creation is being restored. The effects of sin are being undone. This happens wherever we see Jesus go. This is what he does. In the presence of our God the creation is made right. Brokenness is gone. People are made whole.

This is bigger than getting rid of the Romans or corrupt rulers. This is God restoring his creation. This is the healing of our God coming directly into our world. This is a pretty big deal. As big as the wilderness suddenly being full of life and blooming. In Jesus the effects of sin are undone. And this is the message that he sends back to John.

The wait was over. Jesus, God in the flesh, truly God and at the exact same time, truly a human being has come to live among his people. Through his life, death and resurrection he gives to us forgiveness life and salvation. And he undoes for us the effects of sin, death and the devil in our lives. This means we can live in freedom, hope and peace. And let me tell you, those things are pretty rare in our world.

Of course while we do get to experience those things, and we certainly do, we do not yet have them in all their fullness. That day is coming. The cereal box tops have been sent in, now we just have to allow the time for delivery. So while we can live in the confidence of knowing that for Jesus’ sake we live as God’s dearly loved and forgiven daughters and sons, we are still waiting to see the creation be restored in all of its fullness and glory.

We are still waiting for that great and awesome day when Jesus will come back and make everything right, where he will make everything whole. We are still waiting for that day where we will get to experience life as it was meant to be lived. So what do we do while we are waiting?

This is where James’ words come in handy. Be patient and endure. Now I know that being patient is a virtue, but that doesn’t make it fun. And yet what we are waiting for is well worth the wait. But I would also like to suggest that waiting and patiently enduring are not passive activities either. We know that our Lord is coming back. We know the glory that awaits and how awesome these things will be. We know that we have life and forgiveness and salvation for Jesus’ sake. As we talk about waiting, then, we are not talking about a passive activity. We are not talking about sitting around, staring up at the sky and not doing anything. As God’s people, waiting is a very active activity.

For us as a community of faith we wait actively as we carry out the work of ministry together. This is something that we all need to do together. It doesn’t work if we leave it to just a handful of the people. But everyone in this congregation has gifts and talents that are needed for the people of Faith Lutheran church to carry out work that God has given us to do.

So we support the ministry with our prayers. We study and learn God’s word together as we participate in small groups and education classes. We worship together. We give our offerings and tithes and pledges. We support the ministry by serving as leaders in the congregation and taking part in voters meetings. We support the ministry by reading the news and notes and being aware of what is going on in the congregation.

Now I do not say these things to induce guilt. Because life motivated by guilt is not true motivation. But I say these things so that you will see that not only are they important, but they are simple ways for us to serve, and we serve because as we do this, we are taking and proclaiming the gospel, the good news of God’s love in Jesus to our world.

So for us as Christians, waiting is not a passive thing, but a very active thing. It is my great joy, blessing and honor to be here as your pastor and to wait with your for the return of our Lord. As we prepare to celebrate his first coming, may we also look forward to his second coming with great joy, anticipation and waiting. Amen.

The Invitation

Generally speaking, an invitation is a good thing. When you are having a special occasion, and you want those special and important people in your life to come and participate and share in the joy of that day with you, you send out an invitation. We invite people to be a part of all kinds of milestones in life. There is the wedding invitation, the shower invitation, the confirmation invitation, graduation open house, birthday party, 50^th wedding anniversary. The list goes on and on.

For the most part, responding to an invitation is relatively simple. We may have to RSVP or return a card indicating whether we want beef or chicken. We may have to bring a little gift to the event. But for the most part all we, as the recipients of the invitation, have to do is show up and celebrate. It’s actually a pretty good deal. The person throwing the party carries the brunt of the responsibility here.

But not all invitations work that way. Some require a little more of a commitment. Some have a little bit of a higher price. Consider the call that Jesus makes to anyone who would follow him. “If any would come after me,” says Jesus, “let them deny themselves. Take up their cross and follow me.” However, we also know that even though this may be a difficult invitation to follow, it is also the greatest invitation we could ever be extended. Life lived in this way is true life. It is a life filled with meaning, purpose, and significance. In denying ourselves, in giving up our lives, we actually find true life. We find life the way that it was meant to be lived. For whoever would save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for Jesus’ sake and for the sake of the gospel will save it.

This invitation that our Lord extends to us, and by the power of the Holy Spirit enables us to accept, is possible because of another invitation that was accepted a little before Jesus extended his.

Savior of the nations, come, - Virgin’s Son, make here Your home! – Marvel now, O heav’n and earth, - That the Lord chose such a birth.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, made everything that there is, everything that we can see, and everything that we cannot see. This creation was beautiful and perfect. There was no sin, there was no death or sickness or suffering or injustice. There was perfection. There was harmony. There was the right relationship with God, and with one another. It was very good.

The Father invited the Son who is the Word in which all things were made and without which nothing was made. And in this loving and awesome act of creation there is vulnerability. Not for the creation but for God. Because the creation could turn against the one who created it. The self-giving love of our Triune God could never coerce the creation, and would never manipulate it for self-satisfaction.

You know how this all turned out. The creation fell. And when it fell, the darkness of sin came into the creation. It corrupted it, broke it, twisted it and destroyed it. In the midst of this very bleak and sad picture, God’s love for the creation is not outlasted. And the Word through whom all things were created, then became the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ.

Now the Father invitees the Son to come and live among the creation, not just there as a visitor, but as God in the flesh. There is a human being living among sinful human beings in order that this Word made flesh might speak light and life into the creation.

With great humility and love the Son accepts this invitation and leaves his throne in heaven and becomes the son of the virgin. In this amazing and wonderful act of love, he became one of what he created.

More amazing than the work of creation that God has done is the fact that he would become one us. He is like us in every way, but without sin, and because he came, we are righteous, we have God’s approval because of him and for his sake.

Wherever he went we see the creation being healed. Diseases are cured. The dead are raised. Sins are forgiven. Eternal life is granted. And each time he does these things with his words. Through his perfect life, death on the cross and glorious resurrection, Jesus forgives, heals and restores us. He puts us in the right relationship with our God, and allows us the privilege of being a part of the work of reconciliation that he is doing right now, as he is restoring his creation back to himself.

Advent is a time for us to bring back to mind all of these wonderful things that our God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit has done and continues to do in our lives. It is an opportunity for us to be reminded of the invitation that Jesus gives to us to live in his Kingdom and to follow him. It is an invitation for us to share, speak, and live the Gospel to the very ends of the earth.

Someday, in the near future, the Father will extend another invitation. When this one goes out the Son will return in all of his awesome glory. On that great day the creation will be restored. Sin, death and the devil will no more be a part of the creation. And we will live forever with our God. It is a day to look forward to with much excitement. It is a day to hope and trust for. It is a day that moves us out into the world to extend an invitation to others that they too might know of its joy and hope.

And while we wait for that day with great anticipation, living in the grace of our God, we too extend an invitation as we call out to our Jesus, “Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly.” Amen.