Roger's Postings

Saturday, August 24, 2013


Isaiah 58:9b-14.                      Improving our nation!!                                                25/8/13

 “If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. 13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honourable, and if you honour it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, 14 then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.”  For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.

 The Australian elections are almost on us again and we are having all kinds of promises placed before us of a better future. Vote for us and we will give you this and that which will all make this country a better place.  Inevitably we finally vote for the one who we think will give us the best future and who will carry through on their promises. But naturally we are extremely cynical when it comes to politics and the promises made.

 Now this election, perhaps more than most, is a critical election. I think we all have a sense that our Australian society and way of life is not at a good point at the moment and it is getting worse, fast. Here is not just the economic aspects and security of our manufacturing jobs. But even more seriously is the rapid decline in where we are at morally, mentally and spiritually. We are receding rapidly in many important and basic area of our human life. The loneliness, futility and shallowness of life is fast engulfing many peoples lives and not leaving us in a good place as a nation.

 Now this makes it vitally important that we consider responsibly the vote that we make. Never-the-less no matter who is in power, unfortunately the attitudes in our nation will make it very hard to bring about any meaningful change for the better. We have become by in large a selfish, self-centred nation that wants everything handed to us on a plate without us having any responsibility on our part. With that as our attitude the future does not look all that hopeful.

 However, here in this reading, we have God giving us some very sound advice, if we want to improve our nation dramatically. This advice applies to our politicians and nation, as well as, and perhaps most importantly, to each of us as individuals. There is a message here for us all; and it is accompanied by promises that God will deliver if we vote in the right manner. Then he tells us we will return to being the nation that we long for.

 He says here: “If you do away with, the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

 So the first thing he tells us is that we have a responsibility to do certain things if we want change for the better. Each of us, and all of us, need to do our bit, and then blessings will flow. What is asked of us in really no great thing, although the second issue is perhaps less popular in our present climate. They are really simple basic issues. Yet they will make all the difference.

 Gone here is the thinking that it is the government and everybody else’s responsibility to do what will make life easy for me. I have my rights and privileges, and everybody else must deliver for me. Behind this is God’s whole concept of love for our neighbour as we love ourselves. Our concern needs to be first and foremost the welfare of the other, before ourselves. And if we all operated with this attitude then naturally my concerns will be taken care of by those around me.

 So if we do away with; the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed. Simple basics of life. Care for those who cannot care for themselves. Watch out how we speak about others. Stop the bullying, and ‘put downs’. Don’t be a faceless twitterer and facebooker who seeks to drag people down. All simple, common sense things.

God here says that if we do those things: then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. 11 The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

 Then instead of doom and gloom, confidence and hope will spring up in life. We will be able to see a positive future ahead. We will be strengthened and flourish like a garden in the midst of spring. And will gain a reputation of being a people who can rebuild life back to what it was meant to be. When we do what is called for then everything will change for the better.

 Then in the second part of this reading we come to an even more important and significant attitude change that is asked for if we truly want to bring a change for the better.  Here God says: “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honourable, and if you honour it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,

 So here the call is to remember and take seriously what Sunday is all about. It is not a day for us to do what we please: work, sleep-in, pleasure and the like. It is God’s holy day. One day in the week to spend time with our Lord where he can feed and strengthen us with the things he knows that we need. We should delight in the day holding it as something that is truly honourable.

  By setting the day aside as that which is truly significant and as an opportunity to be strengthened spiritually we are reminded here that we will receive that which we really need in order for life to be immeasurably better for us and for others. God says:  then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob.” 

 We know from the history of Israel, that as they did these things, suddenly their whole future changed. They returned from exile in a foreign land and once again prospered as a people. As they did these things, then their future changed immeasurably.

 So these things are important for us ponder over deeply and to do something about it, as we contemplate this coming election and the changes we feel that may be needed for our nation. Here God tell us what he knows is important for us to consider as we go forward.  Our text concluded this section by saying: For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. So let commit ourselves to doing what God has called for here and pray that our nation as a whole will think about these issues also.

 Here let us remember that God is true to his word and his promises. Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection is proof not only of his love and forgiveness for us so that eternal life can be ours. But also that when he says to us, if we repent; that is turn away from our sinful, selfish life and look to God and his help for us to live in accord with his word, so that we can live a blessed life, that he will then do what he promises. He will give us a better future.

 So let us turn to our Lord and seek his help to now deal appropriately with the oppressed and hungry and all others around about us. Let us make the most of the Sabbath Day; delighting in it and honouring it in a way that is truly good and which brings glory to our Lord and saviour Jesus Christ.  Let us watch carefully how we speak of and to others and the Lord so that in all things we may bring honour to him who truly is the leader that we can look up to and follow.

 Then let us go forward knowing that as we do our Lord will bless us with a future that is brighter and better not only for ourselves but for the people of our nation. Only then will true glory and honour go to him whom it belongs, our great God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

 Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Saturday, August 10, 2013


Hebrews 11:1-16.                             Faith is active!!                                                  11/8/13

 {1)  Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. {2} This is what the ancients were commended for. {3} By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
{8} By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. {9} By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. {10} For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. {11} By faith Abraham, even though he was past age--and Sarah herself was barren--was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. {12} And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. {13} All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. {14} People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. {15} If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. {16} Instead, they were longing for a better country--a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

 This morning to help you to understand the message of our text I would like you to imagine that you are down and out, living on the streets, with no real hope for the future; no seeming way out from this life of poverty and misery. In fact things look as if they are going from bad to worse. Then out of the blue this lawyer comes up to you and gives you a letter, telling you that you have inherited a fortune; a great home, a good business and a couple of million dollars in cash.

 Now what would your reaction be? Would you put that letter in your pocket  and then continue on living the way you always have, on the streets? Then every now and then you would bring out that letter and say to yourself that you have this great inheritance and that you are wealthy person, but then put it back in your pocket and go back to fossicking in the rubbish bins for your next feed? Never taking advantage of, or living in and with that inheritance that is yours. Is that what our reaction would be?

I doubt that very much. I am sure most of us would be jumping up and down for joy. We would not only be telling everyone but we would rush to see and live in light of this wonderful thing that has happened to us. If it was the other side of the world and we did not have the money to get there, we would walk the whole way. Then with that great fortune that we had received we probably would even share some of it with our friends in the street. We certainly would want to make the most of that which we had so miraculously received. Surely we would, wouldn’t we?

 Sadly though it would seem that that is not the case. Yes it probably would, if it came to earthly wealth. But when it comes to God and the promises that he has given to us, our reaction is much more like the first attitude. Look, we have been saved from an eternity in hell and have been given an inheritance into God’s kingdom; we have a new life in and with our Lord Jesus Christ, freely given to us. We say we believe it. Yet it seems as if we would prefer to live as though this world and what it has to offer and especially our problems, is all that there is to life. We prefer to live ‘on the streets’ rather than in the light of Jesus Christ. All too often our thinking and activity is bound up in living in this life, by and for ourselves, rather than in our Lord and the wonderful inheritance that he has for us.

 Now I am not so sure that if that is our attitude whether God would credit that sort of attitude of ours as righteousness. To have faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. That reading goes on to say This is what the ancients were commended for. He then goes on and uses example after example from ancient times of the kind of faith that receives God’s approval. You I am sure would have noted from those examples, that the faith that is commended in this reading involved a changed way of thinking and action. There was an absolute trust that God was true to his word. There was a stepping out and living in light of the promises that were given.

 Think of Abraham. He believed God when he said that he would be given children and a country, even though he and his wife were way beyond child-bearing age. And because he believed God, he went forward and sought to do what God had told him to do. He didn’t just sit in his tent a do nothing about it. It was only many years later that he had a child and he only saw the country that he was promised.

 Even though from time to time it would seem that he had his doubts, and he did not always do what was asked of him, he still went forward trusting that somewhere, somehow God would give to him what he had promised. Even though he lived in the land that was promised, neither he nor his child, or grandchildren ever owned it. But their faith kept them going forward; clinging to nothing but the promises; and above all, the God who stands behind them. Now, of course, we know how it all turned out in history: everything that God had promised him had come to fruition and his descendants became a great nation and the saviour arose from within it.

 What do we read in this text: All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country--a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

So there is a very important lesson here for us and for our lives today. Those examples of faith that are held up before us, are of people who did not walk by sight, or by continually having proofs, signs or experiences as evidence that they were on the right track. They had God’s promises bound up in a signed and sealed agreement; or covenant, that he had made with them. So they went forward in full anticipation. Because they believed that God was true to his word they stepped out in obedience.

 So in light of this and of God’s promises to us, we too can live by faith. Because of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection and the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation that he has made available to us all, we too have every reason to go forward with confidence and hope. Through our baptisms our Lord has made a covenant with each of us; giving us an inheritance into God’s family. A rich, powerful and everlasting inheritance, that has been granted to each one of us. On top of that he has for us an ongoing assurance, that all of this is there for us individually, as we are given his very body and blood regularly in Holy Communion. So again and again he reassures us of the forgiveness of sins and thereby of the gift of eternal life with himself.

 What an inheritance – what a promise it is that has been placed in our hands, and that we are reassured of over and over again, is ours. What I have mentioned here only scratches the surface of it all. But the fullness of it all is handed to us now already. We cannot see it all; nor understand it fully, but it is there and it is ours.

 So each and every day we can live as new people who have been given everything that is good and important. We can live with confidence and hope, in a world that fails to deliver. We now can be sure that we are loved and are important and that there is a future for us. Life does have meaning and importance. We can love and serve others, because we have all the riches of God having been made available to us. We can, most importantly, share the Good News of Jesus Christ, with those around us.

 Now we can also live according to his promises with regard to how we are to live and act as his people, day in, day out. We will want to be rid of all those things that God tells us are bad for us and for our relationship with him and the people around us. We will also desire to do all that he tells us to do that are good for us and our relationships with all around us. God and his Word will be the determiner of how we will live and act as his people. We will trust that what he tells us is what is good for us, rather than change it to suit ourselves.

 Our faith, that has been given to us and is at work in us, surely says yes to it all; and then goes boldly forth to live in light of it: Confident that these promises are sure and certain and good. We surely believe it, and so are willing to step into each new day to live and move toward that which is now ours. To God be the glory, great things he has done and promised.

 So go from here once again reassured that we are much the richer indeed. Go and be ready to make the most of the inheritance that is ours through Jesus Christ our Lord. Go, having a faith that is sure and active. Go in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and serve him and the people around us. To him be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

 Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish

Saturday, August 03, 2013


Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14.                  Chasing after the wind!!!                                             4/8/13

 “Meaningless! Meaningless!”
    says the Teacher.
“Utterly meaningless!
    Everything is meaningless.”
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

 Chasing after the wind. An interesting thought, isn’t it? Have you ever tried it? I am sure we would all say that of course we haven’t. It is absolutely stupid. Utterly meaningless! But do you know what? We all do it, in far more ‘important areas of our lives’. Even though we often know that it is stupid, we still do it, because everyone else is doing it.

 Let us just look at a couple of examples. The Gospel reading this morning tell us of the rich man who built his bigger barns, so that he could eat, drink and be merry, only to die and leave it all to someone else who most likely would also squander it. The implications behind this parable are very applicable to many, many people around us today; and to a greater or lesser degree to every one of us. Our whole philosophy of life in the western world is built around this thinking. The making and accumulating of money is the be all and end all of life. And ultimately it is Utterly meaningless! Chasing after the wind.

 The next example we could use is that of work and busyness. We have an obsession today with being busy. It is a badge of honour for many people: For others it seen as the only way to survive and get on in our present day world: While for others again it is the one area of life where they can feel valued and important.

 Irrespective of the reason for work and busyness, again when we think about it all, this too is a chasing after the wind. We work and run hither and thither and then what? It is all gone and the things that are important have been neglected. When this becomes the sole focus of life it will eventually be seen for what it is, utterly meaningless.

 Yet another issue is that enfettered desire for leisure and pleasure. We live in order to be happy and our days filled with enjoyment. The ’land of the long weekend’; the black box in our lounges; our devices in our hands; and endless array of entertainment centres all, are looked to as that which makes for a truly happy and fulfilled life.

 Yet for all of this what are we now finding? A society full of lonely, depressed people. We are chasing after the wind. Our endless endeavours for happiness and pleasures are not giving us what we are searching for but the opposite. When this too becomes the ultimate object of our striving, we find nothing but meaningless.

 The writer of Ecclesiastes and ultimately God himself reminds us through this whole book of Ecclesiastes that no matter what area of life we might look at and seek to find the answer to life and satisfaction and meaning; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

All the things that are done under the sun all leave us coming up short.

 Now these words of wisdom are a real shocker to our world today. Yet I think, as we look closely at our western world where we have had access to all of this to the extreme, we can readily see that we come up short again and again. As we look around us we see that there is a real truth to these words.

 Our society is desperately searching for that which makes life truly life and continually coming up empty. Yet we still chase after the wind in the desperate hope that we might find the elusive dream. But all we end up doing again and again is chasing after the wind.

 So does this mean that everything in life is futile and meaningless; not worth the effort?  The writer of this book says here in our text: What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! When we look at life from a worldly view this is the case.  We can put all kinds of masks and positive ‘spin’ over it all, but in the end it is all meaningless. 

 To compound this even more, we are telling ourselves that we have evolved from monkeys, and so there is even less reason to be positive. No wonder we have so many today simply living for the moment, or hitting the drink, drugs, sex and other addictions to try to blot out the futility of it all. But in the end it all still comes to nought; and we still have to face judgement day before God.

 So what is the answer? If there is one?

 Well here in Ecclesiastes we have God’s conclusion of the matter.  In the last chapter of Ecclesiastes we read.
Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. 10 The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true.
11 The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails—given by one shepherd. 12 Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.
13 Now all has been heard;  here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
    for this is the duty of all mankind.
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
    including every hidden thing,
    whether it is good or evil.


 Fear God and keep his commandments. There is God’s simple response to our dilemma.  Take God seriously and recognise that He will come as Lord and judge. Remember that he alone is the creator and sustainer of all things. He is the God who knows our every thought and action; and is a holy and righteous God. So he cannot be fooled or messed with. Therefore we need to uphold him as the one thing that is more important than everything else.

That means that we will also uphold his Word, the Bible, as vitally important for our lives as his people. We will seek to keep everything he has commanded us, to perfection. We will want to do what he wants because we acknowledge that he is all important.

 We will also acknowledge what his Word has to say about the sin of mankind. That it is our disobedience and rebellion against God; our unwillingness to take God seriously that has caused the mess that we have in this world. Our sinfulness and selfishness is what has turned this paradise into a meaningless existence.

 Only when we take these things seriously will we start to make sense of this life. Only then will we be able to keep all of these other aspects of life in their proper perspective, and find meaning and fulfilment in them. Only then will we no longer be chasing after the wind. In and through God alone will we find meaning and purpose in life: In him our lives are no longer empty, but filled with good things to be a part of and to do: In him there is real hope for the future.

 Now here I would like to encourage you with God’s Word that came through in our reading from Colossians this morning. [Colossians 3:1-11.]

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.
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

 Yes, because Jesus died on the cross for our sin and was raised again for our justification we can lift our heads and live positively with lives full of meaning and purpose. We can and need to turn to him again and again for forgiveness and help to now live this new and purposeful that we have as we live in and with our great God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In him and in obedience to his commands we have a life that is worth living. In him life is anything but meaningless, and is far from a chasing after the wind.

So with that let us go forward in life, holding God and what he has to say to us as of first importance, and then may we find meaning and hope in all that we do as we live and be his people each and every day of our life. Then may all glory go to him for the great things he has done.  Amen.

Pastor Roger Atze
Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish