Roger's Postings

Saturday, March 29, 2008

John 20:19-23. "Peace be with you" 30/3/08

(19) On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" {20} After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. {21} Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." {22} And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. {23} If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven." {24} Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. {25} So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it." {26} A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" {27} Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." {28} Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!" {29} Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed." {30} Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. {31} But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

"Peace be with you!' That's the risen Lord Jesus’ message to each one of us here today. The Jesus who died on the cross for us has risen and now comes to us to assure us that his peace is now there for us all: forgiveness of sins, life and salvation is extended to us. What joy is ours! What encouragement this is to us as we live in difficult times for those who are Christians. Easter surely enables us to go forward with confidence and certainty, no matter how tough life may be.

Imagine it - locked away in fear for one's own life. Afraid that they too might be arrested and put to death for being associated with this Jesus. They have already lost the one great hope in life that they thought might be there for them; so now there was a very uncertain future ahead for them. And they were afraid and hiding away from the world.

This was the situation for the disciples on that first Easter day, before Jesus appeared in their presence. But isn't that so often our situation as well: afraid! Afraid of facing life and its hassles, sickness and death. Struggling with the fact God seems so far from his church today, as it becomes more and more liberal and as it focus shifts further and further from Christ and the importance of his death on the cross for forgiveness and life. So often we try to ignore and shut out the problems and threats that face us; not wanting to get involved; hoping that we will somehow survive it all. We close ourselves off from the rest of the world, in our own little self-righteous world; Walling ourselves in, with our work and other activities; closing the door of our life and our personality so that others can't get close. Very much, we look to the future with uncertainty;
Spiritually, socially, politically, financially and in many other ways.

I am sure that we all have our doubts and fears; sometimes even wondering if it is all for real. Perhaps the world out there is right after all; that this is just one big game of chance; that selfishness and greed, no matter what the cost is the way to go; put others down so that they can not a will not be competition. It is all there around us and within; and so often we are tempted to think that maybe that is the only way.

So we join those first disciples and Christians right down through the ages with their doubts and fears. We all struggle in this way to a greater or lesser degree; trying to shut ourselves off from those fears, doubts and uncertainties. Trying to close those threats out of our lives; push them away; whatever.

But when we think of those early disciples and ourselves, in this regard; closing ourselves off does not take the problems and dangers away. In fact it only increases our fears and uncertainties. If the soldiers wanted to get the disciples a couple of locked doors wouldn't keep them out. Trying to avoid sickness, death and most other threats will not overcome our fears and doubts. All we are doing is shutting ourselves off from the openings and opportunities that are there before us.

However the most surprising thing of all; despite the shut doors, fears, and doubts Jesus appears and speaks his words of peace. And this one who brings peace is not some airy fairy, distant and uncaring being. He is not an abstract idea, created in the pages of a book written by some novelist. No, this is the one and only God who came into our world to help humanity out of the dire situation it had gotten itself into. He came to do what was necessary for us to be brought back into God's family. To do this he had to suffer immensely; having nails smashed through his hands and feet and strung up on a cross to die: being punished by God for all our sin; so being totally forsaken by his Father, because of you and me. Then buried – presumably, never to be seen and known of any more.

But now this one has arisen from the dead and appears in the midst of his disciples and to us also. God's own Son - comes into our closed world and says; Peace be with you! My Lord and my God - our Lord and our God has come - bringing peace. Bringing forgiveness of sins, peace of mind and wholeness to us all.. Our Lord Jesus comes bringing peace between God and us. Bringing forgiveness for all that is wrong in our lives. Restoring our relationship with God here and in eternity. But as well as that he brings healing for our guilt, hurts, sorrows and desolation that we experience in this world of ours.

So yes, what joy is now ours? Our crucified and risen Lord Jesus now assures of lasting peace and eternal life with himself in heaven. And that peace is ours now in the midst of our doubts and our troubles; our hurts and our sorrows. We now know that he is here with us and for us even when the whole world seems to be against us. Because this Jesus who died and rose again for us and is truly God, assures us of this, we can go forward with every confidence and every hope. We know that everything will work out for good, because that is what he promises.

But Lord Jesus does not leave it there; for again he speaks his word - Peace be with you! a second time. Then he sends his people out into the world around them. He sends us out with that peace. He says; As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you. He sends us out to proclaim the same message that Jesus came with: The Kingdom of God has broken into our world. God has come into our sin-filled world to save us all; to assure us all of the forgiveness of sins and of the lasting peace which Jesus has accomplished through his death and resurrection. We are sent to let the people around us know this Good News. We are sent to point others to Jesus - our Lord and Saviour.

Remember he sends us with and despite our fears, doubts, troubles and inadequacies. He knows our weaknesses and failures and yet he sends us out. It is with all of these issues at work in lives that we are still able to bring God's offer of forgiveness. To tell them that because of Jesus’ death and resurrection their sins are forgiven. As Jesus, God's Son, left his glory to take on our humanity and to live in our world - to identify with and be able to relate to people in a broken and hurting world; so we too are now sent out with our weaknesses, fears and troubles to relate to others around us who are also hurting and in trouble. We do so with the same message that has touched and changed our lives, bringing peace and wholeness. We go, recognising that this Jesus and his message of peace, changes our relationship with the people around us, even those who are giving us a hard time, and it changes the way we will treat and deal with them. Because forgiveness, salvation and peace is ours, we will want to impart and pass that on to them also.

Here also remember that we do not go out there alone. Jesus reminds us that we too have received the Holy Spirit. As we speak of what we know and have heard from God's Word, the Bible - through preaching, reading and study of it, we have the assurance that the Holy Spirit will be at work through that message. The same God who told us that Jesus would die and rise again three days later, is the same God who has promised that the Holy Spirit would be at work in and through the Good News that we speak with our inadequacies and fears
.
All the while our Lord continually speaks his word; Peace be with you!
And that word lives with us and goes with us to those around us. So we are able to go forward and face life with confidence. We can live and share the great message that our Lord has died and risen again for our salvation; forgiveness is ours and ours to proclaim in Jesus name.

This certainly is Good News. This is Easter going on every day of our life. Life thereby has surely changed - even though we still live in a frail and hurting world. Because of our crucified and risen Lord Jesus and his word of peace, we too are left to say; My Lord and my God!
To him belongs all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Colossians 3:1-4. He is risen – Have you risen??? 23/3/08

{1) Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. {2} Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. {3} For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. {4} When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

He is Risen! He is Risen: Our Lord Jesus has risen from dead. He lives to ........... Ho Hum; and the world goes back to sleep, or gets ready for its picnic or whatever other recreation that they are into. Thanks for waking us up, so that now we can go and look for our Easter eggs. Let’s get on with our long weekend. Sadly the world today takes little notice of the message that come out from the churches on this day. It has got nothing to do with their lives. It is just some proclamation of an event that supposedly happened a long time ago; and it seems as though it is of no real importance for us today.

As a result, most of our fellow Australians are running hither and thither to enjoy a long weekend. Here is a weekend that they can go and get away from it all; enjoy the beauty of our Australian scenery and many other forms of relaxation. They know the joys and pleasures that can be got out of this Easter weekend. So they now aim to make the most of it. They will leave Easter celebrations to those of us who want celebrate an event that is long past and seemingly irrelevant to their lives.

Yes there are a good few who will take time out to spend 1 hour in church on this day and then rush back to what ever they were doing before. The message of Easter is again of no great value to them; they sort of know that it is important and they will do the right thing and hopefully keep God happy. Then at the end of the year, at least they can say they have been to church.

But even amongst most of us Christians here today that message of the risen Lord Jesus makes little difference to our lives. Yes, we proclaim, quite readily, that Jesus rose from the dead; we hold to these truths of the Bible and pay lip service to their importance. But our lives display very little evidence to the relevance of this risen Lord to our everyday life. Our lives are little different to any others in our society. No wonder so many of our fellow Australians have lost interest in the real message of Easter; that life changing - life renewing message of Jesus crucified and risen again for you and me. Sadly, so often, this change can't be seen. There is no evidence then, for those out there that this is for real. Too often all we do is pay lip service to this message; but where is the power and importance of this message for peoples lives? Where is its relevance for life today? When they look at you and me do they see that Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection is all important to us?

Let us think back to those early Christians and their experience of the Easter message. To this point those first disciples were like ‘scared rabbits;’ that is until they heard the message that Christ is risen! Their master has risen from the dead just as he said he would. He really is the one he said he was. From that point on, everything he had said to them became important for their lives. His life giving Spirit filled them to overflowing and they became changed men. The risen Lord - the Message of Easter transformed their lives. Now they could not help but speak of the things that they had seen and heard. They boldly lived by what they believed: right to the point of being flogged to death; or being crucified themselves; or even thrown to the lions. Their whole lifestyle changed. Their whole orientation in life was turned upside down. Their lives took on the whole thought of our text here.

Let us hear it again. Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

With Christ's resurrection they and we too have been raised to a whole new life. The power which raised Jesus lifeless body is now at work in
their lives. Instead of minds filled with how to survive this life and how to avoid persecution and hardship, their hearts and lives were fixed on the Lord Jesus; on the one sitting at the right hand of God. Their only concern was to live and do as the Lord wanted. And they could do it, because their life was hidden in Christ. He was the one who was all important to them. They knew that no matter whatever happened to them, they were sharing in his glory. Their whole life was now to be lived as Christ lived. They would seek to do as Christ did. And they could make a good fist of it, because He lived in them - he was their real life. So now they lived - now they loved - now their lives had purpose and a direction.

No wonder people flocked to hear the Easter message. No wonder the church grew and grew. The power of God which raised Jesus was evident in his followers lives. They could see the changes God had made to their lives. They could see what the death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins and the assurance of life and salvation meant for these people. They could see how they were freed from the shackles that held them all back. They could see the truth of Jesus. They could see the love of God flowing forth from these peoples lives. The risen Lord Jesus had made such an impact; such a change. As a result many of them wanted to know more: many wanted to be a part of this Jesus Christ.

That is surely the message that comes to us today. He is Risen! Our Lord Jesus has risen from the dead. The power of God has transformed life for us also. We too are given the new life that was given to Christ. To all who believe in him and are baptised, they have been raised to life with Christ. We don't have to worry about death. We don't need hassle ourselves and struggle in order to get on in life. Our life too is hidden in and with Christ. Trusting in him we have the certainty of eternal life; the certainty of sharing in glory with Christ. At our baptisms we were joined to Jesus and his death and resurrection. We are a part of all this which is truly great.

Now then our minds also can focussed away from ourselves and our own wants and desires. Now we can fix our minds on Christ and the things of his kingdom. Our whole life can take on a new meaning and direction: No longer looking down and around us; worrying about this and that. No, we can now look up - look out - we can live - we can love - we have true peace and joy in our lives. Our lives being transformed into the life of Christ. We are a part of this great One who died and was raised from the dead; and he assures us that we now will be able to share in his glory forever more.

So now then our lives can reflect this Jesus each and every day of our lives. We can take up our crosses courageously and allow this Jesus and all that he has done be reflected to the people around about us. We know that this Jesus will work good out of the most tragic of situations, even if we can’t see how this can be. We will continually speak of Christ and the forgiveness that he has won for us as being central to who we are and what we are about. Surely Jesus and what he says is important is what will be important for us. The things of this world that people strive after will fade from significance for us, compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing and being a part of Jesus Christ.

Christ is risen! We too have risen. New life has come into the world - our world. We are changed people. We are people who can look up. No longer is our life the same as so many around us. We surely are different - we are new people. People who have what is important in life. Now the power of God can also be evident in us his people. What a change has come over our world. A change that transforms our lives. New life has come to us also. New life has come to Christ and through him to us also. To him be glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.
Christ is Risen! - He is risen indeed!

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Thursday, March 20, 2008

John 19:18-22 The King is Crucified!!! 21/3/08

(John 18:36-39) Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place." {37} "You are a king, then!" said Pilate. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." {38} "What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, "I find no basis for a charge against him. {39} But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release 'the king of the Jews'?"
(John 19:7-8) The Jews insisted, "We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God." {8} When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid,
John 19:18-22) Here they crucified him, and with him two others--one on each side and Jesus in the middle. {19} Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. {20} Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. {21} The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, "Do not write 'The King of the Jews,' but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews." {22} Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written."

Jesus the King has been crucified. Think about that THE KING has been put to death. More than that Pilate had come to the conclusion that this probably was the SON OF GOD who he has crucified [and we now know that he was the Son of God]. This surely then is an event that is truly remarkable. In fact this event overshadows every other event in history. This is the cornerstone of life itself. This event, unlike any other, has turned life upside down for us all. Here we have the one and only thing that gives us a sure and certain hope for the future.

However this seems like utter foolishness to the world around us. The Scriptures themselves tell us that the true Good Friday message is not a good and easy one for humanity. It says; Jews [and many around us today] demand miraculous signs and Greeks [and many scholarly people today] look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength. (1 Cor 1:22-25)
The message of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, crucified for the sins of humanity is that which is central to the Christian faith. Yet sadly even within the churches, there is only lip-service to the greatness of this event, but we steer away from a focus on it. There seems to be a desire to have a ‘nice,’ loving Jesus, but don’t mention sin and that being the cause of Jesus’ death. We want a positive, appealing message that is easy on the ego.
A number of times in these last couple of weeks leading up to Easter heard and read messages that speak of Jesus, in the context of an Easter message, as an example of service toward others; of the power of God that is a result of the resurrection; and even the removal of the Good Friday message from Sunday School. Here let me read what the publisher of this material said and a commentators response.

"Easter is a special time in churches." "It's a time of celebration and thankfulness. But because of the graphic nature of the Easter story and the crucifixion specifically, we need to be careful as we choose what we tell preschoolers about Easter."
"In order to be sensitive to the physical, intellectual, and emotional development of preschoolers, we have chosen not to include the Easter story in our curriculum. Instead, we are focusing on the Last Supper, when Jesus shared a meal and spent time with the people He loved. We have made this choice because the crucifixion is simply too violent for preschoolers. And if we were to skip the crucifixion and go straight to the resurrection, then preschoolers would be confused."

The curriculum marketers must know how bad this sounds, so they reassure the church they believe that the Gospel is for all people. Leaving out the cross and the resurrection is actually to help children come to Christ. They write, "We're using these formative preschool years to build a foundation for that eventual decision by focusing on God's love and telling preschoolers that 'Jesus wants to be my friend forever.'"
Jesus wants to my friend forever? Who is this Jesus? And where is He? Apparently, He's a Christ without a cross, without an empty tomb. He spends time with His friends, and loves us. Does knowing this, apart from the Gospel, actually prepare preschoolers to see themselves as sinners in need of a Mediator before a Holy God?
No, a Jesus who is not crucified, buried, and resurrected, does not save, and doesn't help ease the way to salvation. Jesus as moral teacher, inspirational rabbi, or "forever friend" apart from the Gospel only prepares one for old-fashioned Protestant liberalism, the notion that what matters is that I'm civilized, ethical, and enculturated as a Christian. That's not Christianity.
At Pentecost, the apostle Peter delivered a Gospel proclamation that cut the heart of his hearers to the quick of repentance by preaching that the dead body of Jesus was no longer in the tomb, but had been raised by the power of the Spirit. Peter thundered: "Let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified" (Acts 2:36 ESV, emphasis mine). When the people cried out for direction as to how to be saved, Peter continued: "For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself" (Acts 2:39, emphasis mine).
The apostolic preaching included raising up children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, a nurture and admonition that is nowhere in the Scripture abstracted from the Gospel. Indeed, the very idea of an ethical system, or a love of Jesus, that is not rooted and founded in Christ crucified and resurrected is something far different than the message of Christianity... no matter to whom, and for how long, it is given.
If this were just a Sunday school publisher, we could ignore it. If this were one isolated incident, it would not be worth mentioning. But it is not. The temptation that comes to all of us, in every era of the church, is to have Jesus, without seeing ourselves in the gore of his bloody cross and the glory of his empty grave. In the way that we speak of Him to our children, or to skeptics, or to seekers, we sometimes believe we'll gain more of a hearing if we present Him as teacher but not as a former corpse. It is too disturbing, we think to ourselves, too weird.
Peter thought that way too. Not the bold preacher of Pentecost, mind you, but the Peter of just a short time before that, the Peter of Caesarea Philippi. Peter certainly knew Jesus as friend, and he had just confessed that He was Messiah and Son of the living God. But when Jesus began to teach that He must "suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed, and on the third day be raised," Peter was outraged (Matt 16:21).
Peter was no preschooler, but he was disturbed. Matthew tells us that he began to rebuke Jesus. His cognitive development was not yet to the point where he could understand such things. This will never happen, Peter said. He loved Jesus. He wanted to be with Jesus. He wanted to stand with Jesus. He just didn't want the Jesus of the cross or the empty tomb. Jesus didn't call this shallow theology. He didn't call it inadequate teaching. He called it Satan (Matt 16:23).
Our children need to hear the Gospel. They need to see Jesus. That's graphic, sure. It's confusing, of course. And not just for kids. But it is the only message that saves. It's the only message that prepares one for salvation. It is, as Paul says, that which is "of first importance," the message he received from Jesus Himself (1 Cor 15:3-4).
The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is the Gospel. That's the first word. If we cannot speak of that, we would be better off not speaking of Jesus at all, rather than presenting another Christ, one who meditates but does not mediate, who counsels but is not crucified, who is accessible but not triumphant over sin and death.
The apostle Paul told us the word of the cross would be folly to those who are perishing (1 Cor 1:18). He didn't warn us that it would sometimes also be folly to those who are publishing. No matter. It is still the power of God
This Easter, preach the Gospel... to the senior citizens, to the middle-aged, to the young adults, to the teenagers, to the seekers, to the hardened unbelievers, to the whole world. And, yes, preach the Gospel to the preschoolers.
I'm not saying it won't be scary. The Gospel will disturb the children. And, if you understand it, it will disturb you too.

God did not send his Son to die such a cruel and miserable death for nothing more than just as a good example. He dies so that we do not suffer an eternity in Hell, which is what we deserve because of our rebellion and sin against God. He dies that we might be forgiven and have life and salvation. God dies so that we might not die. As a result he is King of all Kings and Lord of all lords.

For us as Christians, Christ is King as he hangs there on his throne the cross. There we have our God who is truly important to us. There is our Saviour and our Lord. And here as we focus on our King on the cross, we find what is truly important for us and for our Christian life. There we understand what it means for us as we live our lives as his people. As we continue to live in a sinful world we too will have to carry our crosses as we die to the sinful way of life that our world lives.

All the while, now for us, Christ and the cross is supreme. No matter how terrible and negative the cross may seem, now the cross and the man who dies on it, is the only means of life and salvation for us all. To him then be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN
Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Luke 22:19-20. A New Agreement to be remembered! 20/3/08

(19) And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." {20} In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Here in this Last Supper Jesus instigates something that is of vital and lasting importance for his people. There he began something that was never to be taken lightly, for it connects us to that which is of vital importance to us all. Here is something that all who truly claim to be Christian, will take part in; and in fact are commanded to take part in. Here in the Lord's Supper there is the binding of a New Covenant – a new agreement that lasts for all time. Here our God has something of special significance and importance for us all.

Here then we have something that is to be taken seriously, for the whole basis of our ongoing relationship with the Lord is found in the Lord's Supper. To neglect it and the meaning of what is happening in it, is to do so to our own peril. I believe that one of the reasons why we struggle so much in our Christian life is because we fail to understand and come to grips with what is involved here. We far to often treat it simply as something we have to do if we are a Christian; giving very little more thought than that to it.

Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, states that this is one of the reason why some in that church were suffering illnesses and death. Because they failed to take seriously what the Lard's Supper is all about. To take lightly this meal, is to take Christ and his death on the cross for our sins lightly. To take part only when it suits us is to indicate that Christ and our relationship to him is not all that important. The results of this is readily seen as life goes on. Also the way some Christians relate to each other is a denial of all that Lord's Table is and represents. There seems to be little understanding of the fact that we are joined to Christ and each other in this special meal.

By way of example: in a marriage if one was to ignore your partners physical and emotional needs; and in fact went looking elsewhere for your satisfaction, it puts that marriage in a very shaky position. To take each others needs lightly, is to take your partner lightly. If the relationship is strained, how much doesn't that play on the mind - affecting one’s thinking, energy level and even one’s health. Yet a healthy life together where each thinks highly of the other and seeks what is best for them, is a good indication that the marriage is going well.

In many ways our attitude toward our Lord and the Lord's Supper that he enacted, indicates something of how important this relationship is to us. Our willingness to take seriously what is taking place here at the Table is an indication of the health of our relationship to our Lord. How often we want to join with our Lord and receive what he has for us, is an indication as how vital we see him as a part of our Christians life. Surely he and what he has to give us is basic to our ongoing existence; basic to our relationship with our Lord and each other.

Here we need to firstly remember, that the Last Supper is tied very closely to the crucifixion of our Lord. Thursday evening is followed by Good Friday. At the cross Jesus gave his body and shed his blood for the forgiveness of our sins. This was and is a central part of the new covenant that God was establishing here with his people. Here God is setting up and enacting a new agreement whereby we are and can be assured that we are God's people through the forgiveness of sins. The old covenant of Law - do this and you will live has been superseded. Now it is the death of Christ that is the start and centre of a whole new relationship with God.

In this agreement, God binds himself to his people – you and me. Here Christ begins this relationship by erasing all our sin from us, so that nothing stands in the way of us being in the presence of God now and in eternity. Really what he is saying is, now that Jesus has died on the cross, nothing at all stands in the way of any of us being children of God. It is not determined by who we are or what we have or have not done. It is simply that through Jesus death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins, God throwing open the door, that all may come in. He desires to be the Lord of all and bind himself to all believe. Christ's body and blood being the seal of that agreement with each of us individually..

Now through God's Word and the Sacraments all of this is made available to us. The Scriptures tell us of our sinful state and what Christ has done to rectify the situation. Baptism brings us into this relationship. Holy Communion continues and restates that covenant relationship. When we come to the Lord's Table and receive that very body and blood which Jesus shed on the cross, we are have that agreement being restated again and again. In a very real way we are formally joined to God and his family. By going forward we receiving the great gifts of Christ: first and foremost his very body and blood so that we are assured that all our sin is forgiven. So having forgiveness of sins we also are assured of salvation and eternal life. But as we receive Jesus Christ at the Table we are also assured that he thereby goes with us as we live out our lives every day. So we are strengthened in our relationship to Christ and also our love for one another.

At the Last Supper the Lord commanded his followers to "do this in remembrance of me.” This command stresses the importance he places on it for us. He knows we need to continually be reminded of this covenant which assures us that we are forgiven for all our sin. There he binds us in our personal relationship with our Lord and each other. Every time we come forward we are reminded in a very real way of the Covenant that Christ made with his church. He re-establishes that agreement for us personally; sealing it with his blood. In a sense we taken right back and joined with those first disciples in that Last Meal with Jesus and with the whole Easter event; and with all Christians past, present and future. So again we are able to come back from the Altar quite sure that nothing stands in the way of us being a part of God's family now and forever. We are reminded that our Lord has done everything for us.

We can again then, be quite sure that we are in a very special relationship with God and our fellow believers. We are bound to Christ. We are at one with him. Sharing everything with each other. And of course this also affects our relationship with our fellow believers. We now are prepared to love one another as we are loved by our Lord. We will forgive one another and we will seek to do what is best for the other.

All this and much more is involved in this new covenant that was established by the Lord Jesus Christ on the night he was betrayed. As we come forward to the Lord's Table we are a part that covenant; receiving everything he has to give. So the Lord’s Supper is so very important to the Christian life. In fact it is vital to the wellbeing of our ongoing relationship with our Lord.

So come forward often and receive the benefits of our Lord Jesus’ death. Continue to be a part of this new covenant that our Lord is making with us. There at the Lord’s Table be joined to the whole Easter event; being joined to Jesus’ death and all the great blessings that flow from it. This is the new covenant that we so very much need to have and be a part of, because of its great importance to our ongoing relationship with the Lord Jesus. In coming forward and receiving his very body and blood which seals this agreement, may you be truly blessed in every way. And you will, for he is the only Lord to whom belongs all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Matthew 21:1-11. Who is this Jesus!! 16/3/08

“ As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, tell him that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away." This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet: "Say to the Daughter of Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, "Who is this?" The crowds answered, "This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee."

Who is this Jesus fellow, riding into town – into the hearts and lives of people? Who is this one who is receiving shouts of Hosanna as he comes to town? What are we to make of him? Certainly this Jesus and his coming to Jerusalem has turned the world upside down. Certainly his coming has evoked all sorts of different responses from the people of his day, in Jerusalem, and down through the ages since.

Here this morning it is good for us to ponder over all of this; for we too are in danger of having the same attitudes as those of Jesus’ day and missing the whole point of who Jesus is and what he had come for. Too often we also want a Jesus of our own making who will be and do what we want him to be and do. Too often today so many, even who claim to be Christian, have missed, or more to the point have chosen to ignore, the real Jesus and what he came to this earth and to Jerusalem for. So as we reflect on the attitudes of those in Jerusalem let us see in ourselves and in our community around us those same attitudes. Then let us understand anew who this Jesus is and what he came for.

Now to begin with, we need to appreciate the fact that the people of that day were looking forward to and longing for the Messiah to come. They were seeking after the one God said he would send who would establish his kingdom. As they were under Roman rule this was something that was very strong in their thinking at that time. But we need to recognise that they were looking for an earthly king who would drive out the Romans and establish a huge world-wide kingdom.

Then along with that we have this Jesus having just raised Lazarus from the dead. So this along with all the other miracles that he had performed suggested to them that here was certainly someone who would be good to have as their king. Can you imagine it; if you get sick this guy can make it all better; we don’t have to work for our food, for this Jesus can just provide plenty of it; and yes, we don’t even have to worry about dying because this Jesus can bring us back to life again. Just the sort of king we want. Give us health, wealth and happiness without us having to lift a finger.

Is it any wonder that they shouted "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" Is it any wonder that they were yelling out; ‘Save us!’ ‘Help us!’ ‘Give us all of this!’ We today are no different. What do we want God for? What do we want him in our lives for? Far too often it is so that he can give us what we want so that we can comfortably cruise through this life. We even have it proclaimed from our churches; it is all about health, wealth and happiness; here and now. Gimme! Gimme! Give me it all; and if I don’t have it then God is the biggest mongrel out.

We keep missing the point; over and over again. That is what he cried for when he came down the hill into Jerusalem. ‘If only you knew what it is that makes for peace. If only ....

But they like us today; when he didn’t do what they wanted him to; Crucify him. Crucify him. Yes these same people who were proclaiming him king , a few days later, was shouting for his blood. Get rid of him! He is not the god that we want. We don’t want a god who makes claims on us, we just someone who will give us what we want; when we want it.
If only they knew what makes for peace. I only we had more sense.

Yet surprisingly, Jesus still comes riding into town, even though he knew that this was the attitude. Yes, he choses carefully, when and how he would come into town. He comes on the foal of donkey, to clearly portray to the people that he was not coming as an earthly warrior king. Also that he has come to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet. His coming was to fulfil the many promises that were given in the Old Testament to God’s coming to save his people.

He comes as they are about to celebrate the Passover; that time when they remember that God delivered them from the Egyptians all those many years ago. The Sacrificial Lamb also having been given that which constantly signified to them that they had forgiveness for their failures to live and be the people that God expected them to be. The sacrificing of the lamb was understood as having true significance because it was connected to the sacrifice of the Lamb that God would send, which would take away the sin of the world. All of this was the highlight of the days ahead. Jesus has come to be the true Passover Lamb which takes away the sin of the world. But the people failed to recognise all this. They failed to even want it.

Along with that he comes as the Son of David; as the promised Messiah who would come to establish God’s kingdom. He is even acknowledged as being sent from the Lord. All this being exactly the case even though the people did not understand the true significance of it all. Yes here was God himself, come to do what was necessary for us and for our salvation. They have every right to hail him as Lord and King.

Here was the messiah who has come to bring peace to humanity; to you and me: Peace which passes all understanding and allows us to be at one with God without fear and trepidation. A peace which allows us to come into God’s presence despite our sinfulness. Here is the one who is come to take the burden of life from us; and allow us to live with confidence and hope; knowing that now nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

Can you imagine what all this means for us. All because of this Jesus and what he has done for us, we can go forward in peace. Through our baptism we are connected to this Jesus and therefore can have that absolute assurance that we have forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. We don’t have to wrestle with the uncertainty of whether we have done enough, or have enough faith or anything else. This Jesus has done it all for us. So again we don’t have to have miracles; or great, health, wealth and happiness, for we are connected to him who has won it all for us. This Jesus and what he has done for us is absolutely unbelievable= beyond our wildest expectations. Despite our sinfulness he has done it all for us.

So now we don’t just hail him as King, we live under his amazing kingship. We live for him; we live according to his rules; he becomes the centre of our world; not us. He is Lord of us and all that we do. He is around whom everything gravitates. His Word directs all that we say and do. We don’t continually direct who God should be and what he should do for us. Who do we think we are? He knows what makes for peace; for he is the Prince of Peace. He is Lord over all lords and King over all kings. So we listen to him and we follow him, even we he says that means taking up our cross and having our difficulties in this life.

Here again let us be quite clear that it is his death on the cross, which we focus on next Friday, which is absolutely central to who he is and what he has done for us. There alone is what gives us the peace, hope and salvation that we need. So much of the garbage that is focussed on by many Christians is the same as it was for those people of Jesus day. We have taken our focus off of that which is central; and we are listening to all kinds of rubbish that puts us back under pressure and uncertainty; a constant looking for something more and something better.

No here In Jesus and what he came to Jerusalem to do is what is vital for us all. May we all this coming Easter weekend take the opportunity to reflect on; and most importantly be further strengthened and enlivened by our Lord as we celebrate with holy awe this Jesus and what he came to do as king for you and me. May we truly sing our: "Hosanna to the Son of David!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" "Hosanna in the highest!" As we appreciate who he truly is and what he came to do for us. To him alone then be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Saturday, March 01, 2008

Ephesians 5:8-14. Live as children of light. 2/3/08

“For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

Here in our reading this morning we are challenged to think through another important issue with regard to our Christian life. And it is no coincidence that we are called to look at this in the midst of Lent, as we all fall far short of what our Lord expects of us in this regard. Now we all, as Christians, know that we are saved by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and that Jesus has done everything necessary for our salvation. That through our baptism we are washed clean and made children of God, and all we need is to believe in Jesus and then we will be OK. And I could go on. And all that is vitally important for us, but here we are also reminded of another very important issue for us to think about.

Since we are children of God, then surely there is a need for us to live as such. To me it seems very strange indeed, to think in terms of being a Christian, and yet not attempting to live as one; or we will just do so when and where it pleases us. This is a big issue for many people today. How often don’t we hear; “I can be a Christian and not go to church, or I only need to do so when I feel that I need to.” “I believe in Jesus and that is all that matters.” And again I could go on. Now these are all views that are right up to a point, but they are seriously flawed.

Let me use a story to illustrate what I mean. There were some orphan children last century living in London; in absolute poverty – living on the streets, scrounging for food out of rubbish bins to stay alive, and getting thinner and thinner by the day. They started getting ill and it really looked as if life was over for them. Then out of the blue a couple came along and picked them up; fed them, clothed them, and gave them shelter. Then they went to great lengths in order to adopt them as their very own. They did everything they could possibly do to make those children happy and give them what they needed. They gave them a good home in every way; they did not mistreat them or do anything to harm them, and they were able to live with want for nothing.

But those children after a while walked out of that house and went back to the streets where they had been living. They went back to scrounging in bins and sleeping under newspaper. Yes, they told everyone that they belonged to this rich family, but they made no attempt to live in and with that family and the benefits that were available to them. They finished up dying of malnutrition and cold.
Why? I don’t know. There was no sensible or sane reason why they should have.

But then again is that all that surprising. There are many who are doing exactly the same thing with God. On the one hand, they say they believe in God; they were baptized into his family; and yet they do not listen to him or seek to live as he requires of them. They turn their backs on being in a relationship with him, and in most ways they pretend that he doesn’t exist. In other words, they want the rights and privileges that go with being people of God, but don’t want the responsibilities. In so doing they are actually denying that they are children of God. They are saying by their actions that they have no real interest or trust in Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.

Now, we know that Jesus died on cross for all people; that all have access to God, through our Lord Jesus Christ. And so, it is possible for all to be children of light. We are reminded here that at one time we all were wandering around in darkness; caught up in the hopelessness of this worlds living, with nothing really to look forward to, except more doom and gloom. Yes, sure, they are running around with all sorts of philosophies, ideas and hopes, but they are all futile. They are like living in the darkest night that goes on and on, and are trying to pretend that there is a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

But through the Lord Jesus Christ we are brought into the light. We are assured of the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. We are given something sure to hope in and look forward to, and are able to see how life is to be lived. Yet so many, including ourselves to some degree, turn our backs on all of this and prefer to go on living in the dark. They don’t really want to know God. They don’t want to follow his way of living, but want to place store on what we do to make ourselves acceptable. There are so many who say they believe, yet their lives are not changed in any way and there is little or no sorrow about it. They seem to think that it doesn’t matter if we still live the old way of life, and in doing so they are denying what they claim to believe. Faith is allowing Jesus to not just save us, but also to fill us and change us; to lead us to live lives that are good for us, and for his kingdom. And if we are not prepared for that then there is a serious questions with regard to that persons trust in God – their faith. It is like those children turning their backs on all that they had been given and walking back into poverty and death.

Our text says; ‘Now you are light in the Lord,’ ‘Live as children of light’. So if we are light and are surrounded by the Light; this being the Light Jesus Christ, then we are able to live as God would have us live. His light will radiate out from us and be reflected in how we live and act so that others will be able to see what it is to be a Christian - one in whom Christ himself lives. We are light – we are children of God. So we will seek to live as such.

And our reading reminds us that, ‘the fruit of light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.’
Because of Jesus death on the cross, and as a result of us being connected to him through baptism we are declared good; so let our lives produce the goodness that he has filled us with. Showing forth the good that has come our way in and through the Lord Jesus. Showing that in ourselves we are not good, but that through Jesus Christ we are. Letting it be seen that it is his goodness that is now displayed in our lives as we love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and as we love our neighbour as we do ourselves. Letting the good that our gracious God has given us, flow out from us to produce a bountiful harvest.

And because of Jesus death on the cross we are declared righteous. That is we are credited as living in a right relationship with our God. So let us live in that right relationship; allowing the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us in everything we do; taking every opportunity to spend time with God in prayer, meditation, and reading, hearing and studying what he has to say to us, so that we can be filled even more, and given all the support, encouragement and confidence that we need for this life and the next.

Truth will also be a vital part of our lives as a result of Jesus’ death and resurrection. So then let us also allow that truth to be evident in our lives. Seeking to know and understand that truth. Standing up for it; and doing what is in accord with it. But with regard to God’s Word as well as the way we speak to and about one another.

In every way let us live as children of light - as children of God - as lost and condemned people who have been saved and restored by our Lord Jesus Christ back into his family. Because that is what we are! Let us therefore allow the fruit of this Christian life to come forth and be evident in our lives. God has filled us with all that we need to do this, so let us not turn our backs on him and what he has for us, and so walking back into spiritual poverty and death. No, let us remember – we are light in the Lord, therefore let us live as children of light. To him be glory now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba