Roger's Postings

Saturday, April 25, 2009

1 John 3:1-7. You are Children of God 26/4/09

(1) How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. {2} Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. {3} Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure. {4} Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness. {5} But you know that he appeared so that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin. {6} No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him. {7} Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.

What an amazing message we have here this morning. We are here, reminded that we are children of God. Think about that for a bit: You are children of God: part of God’s family. Extraordinary! Unbelievable even, maybe! Yet that is what God has done for us through our Lord Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection, and our connection to him through baptism.
On the one hand, we might like the sound of it and sort of accept the words of it, but do we grasp the significance of it? I suspect that we might very well have the view that surely we are not yet fully God’s children. We are sinners: we are far short of the perfection that, is needed or expected of one who is a child of God. How can we be a part of a family that is righteous: in others words that does everything right. That is not us! So obviously, we are not really, truly God’s children. We obviously have to do a little more or a little better yet: we have to work a little harder.
Or on the other hand, we might see ourselves not as children but as adults who are free to make up our own minds and do our own thing. We hear the words freedom in the Gospel and see that as enabling us to live and do as we please, because after all we are adults who surely know what is good for us. Yet at the same time, we are quick to follow the popular thinking of the day, without thinking things through. There is no way however, that we want to see ourselves as children, having to live and act within family constraints. We are above and beyond that.

Now, here in this letter John is addressing the situation where there was a strong influence either from within our outside the congregation, which saw itself as having a superior knowledge of God and of having a special and better relationship with him than what had been passed on to them by the disciples. They saw themselves as above the Law and had no need of it because they were God’s special people. And they denied that Jesus was truly human and downplayed the importance of Christ’s death on the cross. Serious stuff! And it was wrecking havoc within the congregation.
These people were acting like spoilt children and had an arrogance and superiority, which, on the one hand was intolerable, and yet had an appeal that was hard to resist by people who have a sinful human nature: in other words, all human beings. They came across as being super Christians, with an air about them that was appealing to humanity, yet was far from the truth of Scripture and what is in accord with one who is a part of God’s family. They were children of the devil, even though they were promoting themselves as the true Christians.
So John has to remind and encourage the remainder of the congregation to beware: to be strong: to be children of God. To encourage them to see themselves as children of God: That is people who know to whom and where they belong, and who are dependent on God and prepared to listen to him rather than get caught up in the thoughts of the day and the persuasiveness of human argument and superiority. At the same time, they are to be people who seek to live in accord with the family: that is, doing the things that God tells us are important: living by his Law rather than being lawless. Doing what is right, rather than being led astray into that which is wrong.
The hen and her chickens is a good example for us in this regard. After the chickens have hatched, they stay close their mother, and learn from her how to live and survive. They watch what she eats and drinks and doesn’t eat: they listen to her clucks so that they know what is important and what is not; and the danger that is around. When they hear her call, that danger is there, they run to her and hide beneath her wings and so are kept safe. They stay close, listening, following and doing what the hen does.
However from time to time a chicken fails to heed her mothers, and other hens, call of danger when a hawk circles above, perhaps thinking that this danger will not affect it. Yet sure enough, in a flash the hawk has swooped, and the chicken is gone; snatched away as someone else’s lunch.
Now we here are children of God. God has claimed us as his very own: no matter who we are or what we have done. His Son Jesus coming into our world and dying on the cross in our place so that we now are, forgiven and can have a place in God’s family. Through our baptism, we are joined to Jesus’ death and resurrection and become God’s children. Being a part of God’s family means that we have the assurance of perfection: which is ours now, but will only see and experience in all its fullness in eternity. It means that we are brothers and sisters of the Lord Jesus Christ. It means sharing in all the glory and goodness of God, for all time: Everything of God Almighty himself. Absolutely amazing!

All lavished on us because of God’s love for us, despite our sinfulness.
The extent of this love is far beyond our comprehension. We only get a glimpse of it when we start to understand what God did to his very own Son on the cross: His much loved Son at that. He allowed him the disgrace of taking on himself our sinful humanity, and having to suffer at the hands of each and every one of us; who are by nature real enemies toward him: rejecting him, disobeying him, and seeking to have nothing to do with him other than to get rid of him. Then to satisfy his own holiness he punishes Jesus, to the point of totally forsaking him. He does it all because of the love he has for us, even though we don’t even begin to come close to deserving it. He does it all so that we can now be his very own children. Truly incredible!

For now, however, we have to content ourselves with the fact that we are simply God’s children in the midst of this world, with all of its problems. Knowing that we are God’s children, we then know that we in the fullness of time, when Jesus appears again, we will enjoy the full extent of what this truly means for us. In the meantime, we go forward with hope, and seek to live as his children: as chicks around its mother hen.

That being the case, we will purify ourselves, as we are pure. We will seek to live holy and perfect lives here on earth; and when we fail, we will turn back to our Lord in repentance for the forgiveness of our sins. Our whole aim now will be to live in total obedience to our Lord instead of seeking to live and do our own thing. We will constantly want to stay close to our Lord and his true Church so that we can hear what he has to say to us, so that we are not led astray by those who, think that they can live and do as they please, and say that they have greater knowledge of God than what his Church has, and who boast about their freedoms and experience that places them above others, and who reject and downplay the importance of Jesus death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. Yes, these same dangers are very much in our community at this time, and within Christian circles. So we will seek to stay close to our Lord and his true Church, and constantly listen to him so that we are not caught unawares.

When he tells us of the dangers that lay around about us, we will heed his warnings and run for cover. We will not be so presumptuous as to think, ‘she’ll be right mate; I’ll be OK; I know better. Or look, it is not so bad, after all, they claim to be Christian’. We will test the spirits as John goes on to say in the following verses, to see if they are from God. The test being; is Jesus coming into our world as a human being and his death on the cross for our forgiveness, of paramount importance. If not we will be very cautious.

Why? Because we are children of God: Because we are holy and precious in his sight: Because we are connected to Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection: Because we have the sure hope of eternal life with our Lord. So we have every reason to live close to our Lord and take care that nothing will separate us from his love for us.

Yes, what a privilege it is that we should be called children of God. Utterly amazing that he should love us that much. In response, let us now seek to live as his true children: staying close to him; Listening to him and being obedient to his commands, and all time seeking to be sure that we are not led astray by the subtle wiles of the antichrist, which comes to us in the guise of being Christian, but seeking to destroy us: All the while looking to our Lord Jesus Christ and his death on the cross as our assurance that God loves us so much that he has called us his children. To him alone be all glory and honour, now and forever. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Friday, April 17, 2009

John 20:19-23. Christ appears and sends. 19/4/09

“ 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!" After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."

Here in this reading this morning Jesus has two Easter surprises for his disciples, and that includes us. He appears to them behind closed doors and he sends them out to do his work. What an Easter turn around! This is the man who was strung up to die and buried into the past; who seemingly has lost his chance to have an impact on the world; who was rejected by his own people; punished for all of our wrongs; deserted by all, even though he was innocent. This one bright hope for the future was thought to be gone.

So what do we find; his disciples hiding away behind locked doors: Frightened for their own lives, in case the Jewish leaders should come after them: Frightened to face the outside world for fear of ridicule. Depressed and humiliated because they had let their Lord down. Their whole world had fallen apart with the death of Jesus, and now they were hiding away in fear.

And yet despite the fact that they had let their master down: Despite the fact that their confidence, knowledge and everything else had failed them, and they now really haven’t got anything going for them, either as leaders or even witnesses for God, Jesus comes to them and gives them his peace and sends them out to be his witnesses. What an incredible turn around! What an amazing thing that Jesus has done here. It certainly does not fit our modern approach to the church and peoples involvement in important positions.

But of course, that was history. That was way back in the past. What has that that got to do with us and the here and now situations that we are facing in our lives? Yet, is not that you and me also? Are we so good in our faith and our living out our Christian lives; witnessing for Jesus Christ and the forgiveness that he gives? No, of course not! So often we fall into the same category as those first disciples: hiding away at home or work, or behind our church walls, or our committee involvement; Hiding behind our claim to be Christian, but not openly: uncertain and feeling bad because we also have let our Lord and others down: not wanting to face our friends and neighbours as Christian witnesses because we are afraid of being ridiculed or whatever. Yes, in many ways we are no different! We also have heard that Word of our Lord and we claim to be Christ’s followers, but too often are hiding away: from God, each other, and our community.

Yet, surprise, surprise! Today again, our Lord Jesus comes to you and me: He is here in this service again revealing himself to us, and pronouncing his peace to us, and sending us out to live and be his witnesses. He is here, sharing his message of forgiveness. To each one of us he says, ‘Peace be with you”. So he is not here to tick us off because we haven’t been to church much lately, or because we have done this or that wrong, or that we haven’t done something that we should have. Sure, it upsets and hurts him that we have done this, and he would certainly like to see more from each one of us.

But no, he is here to extend his peace to our lives: To free us from those guilty fears that we have for letting God, others and ourselves down: To pronounce to us that we are forgiven, for all of our sin: that he did die for each and every one of us. He is here to remind us that we are accepted by God, through Jesus’ death and resurrection, and to assure us that he does love us and has something far better in mind for us, and that there is meaning and a purpose to our lives. Even in the midst of the pain, hurt and loneliness that we human beings make for ourselves, that he is there with and for us, and that he does care: that even there he has forgiveness, life and salvation for us.

So yes, in his coming to us again and again he seeks to make us whole human beings again: at peace with our God, with others around us, and with ourselves. That is what he gives to you and me here today. He has come to say, ‘Peace be with you’. And just as there was no barrier to stop Jesus coming to his disciples: no closed doors and windows, or doubting hearts such as Thomas’ that could stop him from appearing to them and bringing that peace; so also for us, no matter who we are or what we have or haven’t done, or how closed off to God and others we are, or anything else: to each one of us he says, ‘Peace be with you’. Assuring us again that that is what he has in mind for each one of us, and that it is now available to us. It is ours. His death and resurrection is our guarantee that he and his forgiveness is for real and that it is for all people.

That brings us to the other reason for his appearance to those first disciples all those years ago, and to us today. The peace that he has for us, is also for all the people out there in the world around us, and he wants them all to know what he has done for them: that there is forgiveness for them also, and there is a new and better way for them in and through our Lord Jesus Christ: that he also has a wholeness of life for them that they will find nowhere else. He wants all of those people out there to know for sure that they also are loved: that Christ took the punishment that they should have received, so that forgiveness is there for them and that there is meaning and purpose to life, and they are a part of it.

So the message he has for us, is also the message he sends us out with. He wants to bring peace to the whole of our broken, hurting world. So in coming to us and pronouncing his peace to us, he is also charging each one of us, and all of us together, with the task of sharing that message of peace. This is now our major role in life. We are not here to simply look after ourselves, and our own pleasures, and to maintain to own faith and nothing else. Jesus has taken care of that for us: we now have everything that is important. So he challenges us to look beyond ourselves, to the people around us. Even our gathering for worship now has that focus of allowing God to serve us, and strengthen and encourage us, so that we can serve the people around us. We study the Scriptures not for our benefit, but for the benefit of those around us. So that they too can know of the peace that God has for them.

And we can and must be diligent in this calling and challenge that Jesus here places before us. Look, we can do it! Remember, Christ has died and risen again for us: He is our living and all-powerful Lord and Saviour. This is a fact! This is not some fancy or wishful thinking. Jesus has risen from the dead. So we can go forward with confidence. On top of that, remember also, that Jesus has given us his Holy Spirit to guide and help us in this task. He is there in our lives to constantly remind us of all that our Lord Jesus has done for us and for the people around us. He is here in our Church reminding, strengthening, and building us up through the Word and the Sacraments for this very task.

So we are not alone in this. There is no need for us to be afraid. No need to hides ourselves and our faith away. We have every reason to go forward with confidence: willing to face everything this world can throw at us: willing to reach out to our friends and neighbours knowing, that we are not on our own, but that the Holy Spirit also goes with us. On top of that, we have a most important message that our world needs to hear: a message that is vital for their wellbeing. Remember also that this message has helped millions and millions of people in the past: it has transformed nations: and it is just as relevant, helpful and powerful today.

The one who was rejected and died on the cross for us all, has risen from the dead. Jesus has risen and has spoken his word of peace to us. He is truly our Lord and Saviour, and so we have every reason to be overjoyed and confident: Every reason to say with Thomas, ‘My Lord and my God’; and every reason to share his message of forgiveness with others. Yes, Easter goes on for us each and every day, because the risen Lord Jesus is for real and he has given us his peace. Let us now share this Good News with others, for he is risen, he is risen indeed. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Thursday, April 09, 2009

Acts 10:34-43. Jesus, the risen Lord of all. 12/4/09

Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favouritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right. You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached-- how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him. "We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen--by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."

He, is risen! He, is risen indeed! The Lord Jesus, is risen from the dead. Jesus has risen after dying on the cross to take our punishment on himself. That is real Good News, because now we know that what he said about his death for the forgiveness of our sins, life and salvation is for real. So this is amazing news; it is tremendous! What a great, powerful and loving God he is. This is the sort of news our world needs to hear: that it longs to hear. This is the very best! This changes life, surely for us all. This is what needs to be shared with the rest of the world: Shouted from the roof tops.

Yet many in our society go back to sleep. Back to eating their chocolates and their long weekend! Back to living for the moment, and for short term pleasure: Hoping again, that somehow it will all work out in the end: Hoping that their excuses will hold out. Amazing, isn’t it! The greatest and most important event in history has occurred. The one thing that changes life in a powerful way for all of us, and yet so many could not care less. So what! She'll be right mate. And sadly, even many who call themselves Christians, think along this line.



But then, there are those many people these days, outside the church, who really have no idea or understanding of these things. Jesus and Easter is merely a fairy story of no real consequence. Jesus is merely a name used in vain, and Easter is simply about chocolate, Easter bunny and a long weekend. As to the church and its message, it is irrelevant. It is irrelevant because so often it has failed to proclaim this Good News. All it simply talks about is being good people and morals and points to me and my feelings and all that stuff, and so Christianity is seen simply as a moralistic social group which can’t even live up to what it preaches. And for these groups Jesus is little more than a good example of how we should live and act. So all of these people are left in no-mans land, with no real hope or future presented to them. They are left to continue to search for that something they know deep within them that they need.

Peter however, reminds us this morning that wherever people are at today and whatever their thinking might be, Jesus Christ, is risen from the dead, and he is now Lord of all. He is judge of all, living and dead, and all who believe in him will now receive forgiveness of sins, life and salvation that has been won for us all. And there is no way around that - this is for real - this is what Easter is all about.

Remember, we have just come from recalling Jesus' death on the cross; where he was strung up on a tree to die. Strung up despite the fact that he, was anointed by God and went about doing good and healing many people. He was hung on a cross to die because he was a threat to the position and power of the leaders in the Church of the day. But, as we have been made well aware of, he willing went to the cross so that he could take the punishment, we deserve, on himself so that we might have forgiveness sins, life and salvation. So that we might again be a part of God's family for all time. That is fantastic! But if it was just his death on the cross we would never be really sure. People are dying all the time, and so what makes this Jesus any different. Well, after three days, God raised him from the dead and caused him to be seen. So now we know for sure that we have a living and powerful Lord on our side. God raised Jesus from the dead so that we can be sure he is our Lord and Saviour. That this is God’s plan for our salvation, and that he is pleased with what Jesus did on the cross for us. So we can be sure of his victory over sin and death! So we can have certainty of life after death, and that our faith in him is not in vain.
Peter and those early disciples who only days earlier were scared stiff, now went forward as bold witnesses of their Lord and saviour. They now knew, and willing went out to tell others, come what may, of how God now was willing to accept all people no matter who they are or what they have done; that forgiveness of sins is available to all. But most importantly; that this Jesus Christ is now Lord and judge of all, both the living and the dead. That he, is now the one who determines who gets to be in heaven and Hell, not you, me, or anyone else. No longer is it determined by how good we are or are not. Not that that works anyway, because none us are perfect, and none of us can make up for the wrong that is in our lives. But Easter is all about Jesus taking care of all of that. That his death on the cross takes care of our punishment, so that forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation can be there for all who believe. Yes, all that is needed and is required from us, is to trust that the Lord Jesus has done everything for us: that he is now our Lord and Saviour.

Yes, as the risen Lord, he is now the one whom God has appointed to look into your heart and mine, and every other human beings as well, and to judge that belief, and to declare his forgiveness for those who do trust him and what he has done for us. Who trust, that he is now our Lord and Saviour.

And look, we can trust him, we can believe in him because he has risen from the dead. He, who died on the cross, was raised again three days later. It is not some made up story. This is for real. We are reminded here that there were witnesses of his resurrection. There were people who ate and drank with him after he rose again. That he did talk to them and remind them again of the work he had given his disciples to carry out. To point people to Jesus Christ and what he has done for them.

And we know that these people, as a result of seeing this risen Jesus, went forward as changed people. Instead of hiding away in fear of their own lives, now went forward boldly, proclaiming, even to the very people who had Jesus put on the cross, the whole message of Jesus Christ and his importance for us all. They now allowed nothing to stand in their way from pointing to Jesus: From holding him up as the only true Saviour for us all and the only source of forgiveness. They were even prepared to die, in order for that message to be spread to all people; and we know that many of them did. Many died as martyrs, for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ, because they now knew that he and his message was for real, and that it is most important for all to hear about him and know of the forgiveness he had won for them.

As a result, this Good News has turned the world upside down. Christ and his message of forgiveness, has spread the world over. Nothing has stopped its spread. Nothing, accept the apathy and complacency of our modern affluent society. It is only when Christ and his message of forgiveness is changed to suite the me-centred culture of the day that it loses its power. When the focus is shifted from him to other things, then the church struggles to maintain its identity.

But even today it is still the message of the crucified and risen Lord Jesus, and the forgiveness that is available through him, that is vital for the churches existence. It is that message alone that turns our world and our lives upside down, and gives us hope and joy, life and salvation, meaning and purpose, and so much more. It is this Good News that allows us to go forward boldly and confidently, and face each day as it comes, knowing that nothing can now separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Because Christ lives, we shall live also.

And I – we, now proclaim this Good News. This great news to all! This is what now gives us impetus to go forward boldly to live as Christians each and every day. To have confidence to face life in whatever way it comes, knowing that we now have an all-powerful and forgiving Lord on our side, who has faced death for us and who has been brought out the other side. Heaven is now a certainty. Guaranteed by him who died on the cross and now three days later has risen again.

Yes, let us now be witnesses of this tremendous news. Let us continually point to Jesus, who is the one who has done it all for us. To this one who died on the cross so that we might be forgiven, and was raised again three days later so that we can be sure. Jesus Christ is now our risen Lord and Saviour, so let us sing his praises forever more. For he, is risen! He is risen indeed. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

John 19:30. It is finished!! 10/4/09

(30) When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

Here today we recall the greatest day in the history of mankind. Here we have a day and an hour which stands riveted in the life of our world. This moment stands central in the life of all of God’s people. As a result of this happening nothing will ever be the same again.

The moment: a man hanging on the crudest and cruellest form of execution ever known in the history of mankind: strung up between two criminals: The whole weight of his body pulling down on his weakened muscles; Tearing away at the spot where the nails were driven through his hands. The pain and torture would have been unbearable.

However, the physical pain would have been nothing compared to that which he was bearing as a result of carrying the weight of the sins of the whole world on his shoulders: being punished for everything that you and I and everyone else has done that is less than perfect – our very rebellion against God. There on the cross he is taking the full wrath of God against sin, on himself, for us: Being abandoned by his Father and rejected by his own people.

There in the midst of this agony he cries out in victory, “It is finished!” and he bows his head and gives up his spirit.

Now to mere mortals, death is such a tragedy. How can anything positive be in it or come from it. We so often look in horror at such an event. We look at that and say what a dreadful, terrible thing to have happened to one so great and so innocent – betrayed, rejected, punished and killed, even though he had done nothing wrong.

How could such an event hold any importance or value: The sooner we can push it from one’s mind the better: The real important and valuable events have to do with power: with the miraculous and mighty show of strength. It has to do with life here and now. Even within the church there are many who refuse to see the centrality of this event to all of history, and its basis for any discussion and thought with regard to our Lord and other matters of the faith. It is very quickly brushed over.
Instead, the focus is placed on Jesus’ teachings, his power, the Holy Spirit, our decision and living the good life, and many other things. We promote the things that we must do as of utmost importance. And we pick the passages here and there which suit our thinking in this regard. We do almost anything to shift the focus off of the cross.

How often don’t we ourselves, like to see Easter Sunday and the resurrection as the high point of Easter; as that which is of greatest importance. Today remind us too much of our own weaknesses and inadequacies: It reminds us of the blackness that is there in our lives. Good Friday and Jesus death on the cross reminds us too much of how terrible we and our world really are. We hate to think that it is you and I who put our Lord up there on the cross. We would sooner focus on Easter and joy and power and that kind of thing rather than that which was absolutely essential for our salvation.

However, we cannot and we must not do that. Because after all here we have the most important event in the whole of history; Here we have the focal point of all true Christian life. And it is here that our faith stands or falls. It is not my decision to follow Christ that saves me. It is not my display of the gifts of the Holy Spirit; or my living the good life or whatever, that is going to be the determining factor as to whether I will be going to heaven. It is Jesus death on the cross that has saved me from being cast into hell; hell on earth as well as in eternity. His death alone saves us; and it is there that I must look; and it is there alone that I must trust.

Sure, when I look to the cross, there I see the results of my life’s work and ambitions: No matter what I do or have done, there is what I deserve. Even my very best cannot achieve God’s approval. Nothing I do can save me. All I deserve is to be forsaken by God and cast into hell.

But there on the cross I see that someone else has taken my place. There is another person taking the punishment that you and I and all the people out there deserve. He is suffering the wrath that you and I should have faced. Now of course that someone hanging there is no ordinary person: That is God’s very own Son, Jesus Christ. Come into our world to identify in every way with us; but with the specific purpose of dying in our place, so that we might be forgiven. He deliberately went to the cross for you and me and all the people out there. He wanted very much to provide a way out for us: to make it possible for us to be forgiven; and so that he can share life with us here and in eternity.

This death of Jesus was essential for our wellbeing. So in his hanging there on that rough wooden cross he finishes his work of saving us. After suffering everything, without giving in to the temptation to walk away from that suffering, he could then give the victory shout, “It is finished!” He has won salvation for you and me.

And now as we look to Christ and the cross we can see that there is nothing that can separate us from his love. There is nothing that can bar us from eternal life with our God. It is there for us all. The door has been opened to a living, loving relationship with our Lord. Now we can have everything that God has promised for us: the best of everything.

Surely, this is by far and away the greatest thing that has ever happened for you and me? Surely, this is so significant that we cannot help be overwhelmed and transformed by this event and what it means for us, and our lives, both here and beyond death. In light of what has been done for us we will see Jesus and what he has to say and what he would have in mind for us as all important.

So instead of turning our back on Good Friday and the cross of Jesus Christ; ignoring its importance for our salvation and Christian life; let us focus on it and live in light of what it means for us. As a result of Jesus’ death on the cross, let us now live as forgiven people; people who have been given a chance to really live. Yes as humble people, who recognise that we are weak, and sinful, and that we constantly fail to be the people that God would have us be. But with huge awe and respect for this one who has done such a great thing for us. Always looking up to Christ and his cross, and prepared to listen and follow him: Recognising that he truly is Lord: in fact Lord over all lords, because of what he has done for us on the cross: Remembering always that he has taken care of our most important needs, so trusting him in every other aspect of life also.

Yes, Good Friday, Christ and the cross has made a big difference to life. Let us not forget it and try to place other things as more important. Instead, let us continue to hold the Lord Jesus and his death on the cross as central to everything we say and do. For it is there, and there alone, that there is any victory, power and life for us.

Yes it is a sombre day; and a serious day; a day of reverent awe. But at the same time it is a victorious day; because there our Lord ascended to his throne, the cross, and took up his Lordship over sin, death and the devil, and gave us life, here and in eternity. His work is finished, and our life has begun. So let us be humbled by that; but also let us be extremely thankful for it as well. Let us in doings so hold Christ and his death on the cross as supreme. To him alone be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

1 Corinthians 11:23-26. A new Covenant!! 9/4/09

(23) For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, {24} and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." {25} In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." {26} For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Here Paul reminds us that on the night before Jesus’ death on the cross he drew up a new agreement between God and his people. This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Here we then have something that is vital for our relationship between God and his people. God is establishing a new covenant; a new agreement between himself and us. In so doing, he is saying that the Old Covenant is no longer applicable and with his death a new covenant needs to be established.

To understand why and the significance of this, we need to go back and understand first of all what the old covenant was, and then we will understand in a greater way the significance of this new covenant for us and for our lives, week by week.

You may recall that instance where Abraham had been given the promise of many descendants, and a descendant through whom all people would be blessed, and that Israel would gain the inheritance of the land that God had promised them. But Abraham had trouble grasping and understanding if and how this could be possible. So God sets about making a covenant with him. He tells him to get a heifer, goat, ram, dove and a pigeon and to slaughter them in a special way. Then he would walk through the trail of blood, signifying that if this covenant was broken then this is what Abraham and his descendant could do to God himself: they could kill him. Thereby he assured Abraham and his descendants that they were guaranteed the inheritance of the Promised Land.

Some time later when Moses leads the people toward the Promised Land this covenant was revisited. Here God again reassures the people that he will be their God and they will be his people. He writes this agreement on those two tablets of stone that Moses brought down from Mt Sinai, where he stipulates that he is the Lord who has brought them out of Egypt, and he also states the Ten Commandments as the way that his people can live happily within that covenant relationship.

But he knows full well that the people will not always live up to their side of the agreement, so he gives them certain sacrifices to carry out when they have sinned. The blood of these sacrifices would remind the people and God of the covenant that he made with Abraham. Through that blood they were assured that their sin would not be held against them: they would still receive the promise of the inheritance and the full blessing of God.

However, the covenant also stated that if this agreement was broken by either party, then God would allow himself to be slaughtered. In this way it made the blood of the sacrifices effective. Every time that the blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled on the altar or in the Holy Place it was a reminder that the Lord was going to die for the sins of the people so that the inheritance that he had promised would be guaranteed.

Every sacrifice then was a pointer to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Every sacrifice was a reassurance that God himself would make all things right for his people. Sadly, then as now, many no longer remembered or recognised this fact. They too believed that it is what they did that ensured Gods blessing for themselves and the nations of the world. They too often were not like their father Abraham, who believed God’s promises, and this trust was credited to him as righteousness.

So we see that this old covenant was God’s reassurance to his people that he was true to his Word. It was a reassurance that God would punish himself for the failures of his people and to ensure that his inheritance and blessing would be guaranteed; just as he had promised. That covenant found its fulfilment in Jesus Christ and his death on the cross. There God allowed himself to be killed so that forgiveness of sins, life and salvation could be extended to his people. All then who trusted God and his promises received all that God had in mind for them.

That then brings us to the night on which our Lord was betrayed, before going to the cross the next day. There Jesus knows that the old covenant is fulfilled and so sets up a new covenant whereby the people living this side of his death on the cross can receive the reassurance that their sin will not be held against them and that they too can have the full assurance that the inheritance that he has promised us will be ours.

Instead of looking forward to God’s promises fulfilled, he gave us a covenant meal whereby we can now, not only look back, but be taken back to and given that which ensured forgiveness of sins, life and salvation for each one of us. He takes us to the foot of the cross and gives us his very body and blood, which he shed on the cross so that this could be a reality for us.

We read: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."

So he gives us Holy Communion: the Lord’s Supper, so that he can reassure us week by week that here the Lord himself died as a punishment for our failure to be the people that God wanted us to be. But he did so, in order that, all that God had promised us would be ours, guaranteed. Then so that we are constantly reassured of this he tell us to celebrate this special meal as often as we can.

In so doing, we are as Paul says, proclaiming the Lord's death until he comes. We are being proclaimed to, and are telling one another that Jesus died so that forgiveness of sins, life and salvation is there for each and every one of us. Even though we have sinned much: even though we do not deserve it; Jesus gives us his very body and blood so that we can know for sure that this is so.

So here, Jesus gives himself to us so that we can be sure that he loves us and is for us. At every Communion Service he tells us, “here is my very body and blood which was shed on the cross: my very presence is here with you so that you can be sure.” He doesn’t just give us some bread and wine, and say ‘remember’ that I love you and died for you: but says, “here IS my body – here IS my blood,” ‘here I am with you.’ ‘I am really and truly here for you – to assure you that I love you, forgive you, and have eternal life for you.’ And as an extension of that, he throughout our gatherings, joins us: he participates with us; speaks to us through his Word: listens to us in our prayers; and helps us through our fellow brothers and sisters. He is there to live in that close personal relationship with us every day; to be our God and our friend. And it is this that he established on that night when he was betrayed – before he goes to the cross and dies in our place, and then rises again three days later.

So, here we have something that is absolutely essential for us and for our wellbeing. It is the greatest – God promising and giving himself to us; assuring us of forgiveness of sins, life and salvation; reassuring us that he is with us and for us. He has made that covenant with us, and shares that with us every time we come forward in Holy Communion; so that we can know for sure that it is so.

Now that Jesus has established and does all of this for us, surely we will now live in that relationship; seek to make the most it; and find peace and assurance in it. Surely, we will not walk away from all of this and go back to living as if God is some distant and uncaring being out there somewhere: that he doesn’t have much at all do with us and our daily life. Surely if he has made us part his family; committing himself fully to us – we will now live in that relationship, and enjoy all the benefits, joys and security of it all; rather than go out and try to get through life on our own without God’s friendship and help; striving to ensure that we are good enough for God’s acceptance of us.

So to conclude, in the Lord’s Supper our God has set down this new covenant so that we can be sure that he is true to his promises that he has an inheritance for us in the Promised Land. His blessing does rest on us, even though we sin much and do not deserve it. He has sacrificed his Son so that all of this can be ours. And he gives us this special meal so that we can be reassured of this over and over again. So let us now make the most of living in this covenant relationship. It is the best that there is.
To God be the glory – great things he has done. To him be honour, glory and praise now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Friday, April 03, 2009

Mark 11:1-10. Your King comes! 5/4/09

(1) As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, {2} saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. {3} If anyone asks you, 'Why are you doing this?' tell him, 'The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.'" {4} They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, {5} some people standing there asked, "What are you doing, untying that colt?" {6} They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. {7} When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. {8} Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. {9} Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted, "Hosanna! " "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" {10} "Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!" "Hosanna in the highest!"

Praise God! Your king – your true leader – our Lord and Master comes. That is the reminder that we are given here today. Our King – the true leader and Lord, ‘has come to town’ - into our world to reign over his kingdom. Jesus has and is coming constantly to us, seeking to give and lead us into a life of peace, hope and contentment. He wants to bring us back into touch with God so that we can have and be a part of the great things of life. He wants us to live with our gracious, loving God.

But the question is, do we want him? Do we really want Jesus as our Lord and King, every day? To answer these questions, I want you think about what your expectations of Jesus are. We hear and know that he is the King of a great kingdom, of which we are a part. We see ourselves as Christians, and the Lord as our God. But what are our expectations of him. I wonder if we do not look to Jesus as we do, say, to our political scene today, where we expect our politicians to give, give, give me: to solve all our problems and make life easy for us, while at the same time letting us do as we please. As long as they do not expect us to pay too much tax or to give up anything.

Yes, too often, we are no different today, than these people of Jesus’ time. These people around Jerusalem had seen many healings and how Jesus provided food for 5,000 people from next nothing; and they had even heard that he had raised a dead person back to life. They heard the way he could speak with authority about all the great things of God. Yep, here was one who could fulfil their dreams; and he even fits many of the Old Testament prophecies about the great Messiah who was to come. So here now comes our king who will drive out the Romans, remove all of our problems and provide us with everything we need.

But where were many of these same people a few days later, when Jesus stood before Pilate? In fact, many of these same people were crying out for his blood: they wanted him put on a cross - wanting him out their lives. When he failed to fulfil their expectations of seeking to get rid of the Romans and setting up their kingdom once more the way they wanted, they pushed him aside as of no value. How fickle we human beings are! How stupid can we be! We do not recognise true greatness when we see it. We do not understand the true nature of our world or of God's kingdom. We far too often simply want our own way in life, to hang with the consequences; and God had better see to it that he does, or we will go looking elsewhere.

Yes today we are no different. We want a king who has the power to zap evil from our lives: who will heal us at a moments notice; who will remove all our problems, at our whim and wish: who will give us gifts to do great and wonderful deeds that will be noticed: and who will give us an easy run through life. In other words, we want a king who fits our terms of reference, rather than accepting him as Lord and King. Sadly, we just do not understand – we just do not want to understand.

Here I would like to remind you again of our reading from Philippians this morning.
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus was God. He was divine. He had all glory and power. But he put all of that aside. He never once used his own godly power: even when he performed the miracles that he did. He called on his Father for this. When he walked this earth, he did so as one of us in every way - except that he did not sin. As King, he sought to identify himself with us - without exception. He came to serve and to give of himself for our benefit: not by handing out a few lollies; a few goodies and by simply being a good bloke; but by getting right down to earth and dealing with our real problem - that of sin: taking the punishment on himself, for what you, I and everyone has done wrong; so that we can again be a part of his kingdom. He deals with God's glory and justice so that we can be a part of God's family forever, instead of going to Hell.

The price, had to be paid, for what we so wilfully and blatantly do and have done by our disregard of God and his Word. So he, being our King, went to the cross on our behalf, willingly and obediently, so that we can be a part of his kingdom. That is our Jesus – that is our King – our Lord and Master. That is why we are here today. For here, now, we have a true and lasting King: one who is above and beyond all our fickleness and who ‘gets his hands dirty’ dealing with the important issues of life; not just the popular and the easy.

As a result; God has raised him high and given him the name which above all other names. That, is also why he now stands as the only door to heaven: the only source of salvation and true meaning and purpose to living. Here, we are again, reminded that everyone will acknowledge Jesus Christ as the great King sooner or later: either to their benefit or destruction. For those who trust that he died on the cross for their sins and who look to him as their Lord and follow him and his ways; theirs is a life of sharing eternity with God in paradise. But for those who choose to ignore him now and think that they can live as they please, or who simply choose to look to him as one who should give to them what they think they need, they will find that they will have to stand before Jesus on Judgement Day and acknowledge after-all that he is the only way; and then go to their destruction in hell.

But even now, he seeks to come to us as Lord and King, to lead and guide us as we live out our daily lives. Here also he has come right down to where we are: week by week; day by day, as we hear, read and meditate on his Word he continues to remind us of the important things in life that we need to know as his people. There he leads and guides as to how we are to live as people who belong to his kingdom, and to warn us of the dangers that are ever present around us. Through Baptism, he comes to each of us and brings us into his kingdom, assuring us of our adoption into his family. Then again, week by week as we gather at the Altar Rail he gives himself to us so that we can know for sure that he has forgiven us and accepts us as his very own. He comes to us in our brothers and sisters as we support and care for one another as fellow Christians.

But again, we need to remember that this Jesus and his kingship is far different from what the world sees as power and glory. His throne and might hangs on the cross. His coming is on a donkey: in the very simple and ordinary of life. Yet within that cross; the Word, the Sacraments, comes life and salvation to each and every one of us. In connection with him, we are sons and daughters of God almighty himself. All made possible by his humbling himself and becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

This Jesus is the King that has and is coming into our world. This Jesus is the One who comes to bring blessing and peace to us who trust in him. Let us continue to look to him now and everyday as our Lord and King. Let us seek from him those important things that he has to give: that which cost him dearly, so that we can be a part of his kingdom. Let us this coming week recognise the importance of what this great King has done for you and me; and celebrate it. Let us hail Jesus as our true and lasting King, now and always. Praise God! God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord! God bless the coming kingdom. Praise God! AMEN

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish