August 27, 2007 by admin.

Hebrews 12:1-13

In Christ Jesus, the Evidence of God’s Undeserved Love for Sinners, Dear Fellow Saints of the Lord,

Marathon runners refer to it as a “runner’s high.” Not that I’ve ever experienced it (although one time trying to leg out a double in softball I might have come close), but from what I’m told it’s a state of euphoria a runner reaches after a certain time which seems to give them that extra boost to keep going. It’s as if they forget the pain and weariness and suddenly find that little extra to help them finish the race. My wife, who herself nine years ago actually ran in and completed a 26.2-mile marathon, said it had something to do with the release of endorphins into the bloodstream. However it works, the runner’s high often plays a key role in the success of many marathon runners.

The Christian life has often been compared to a race, and we’re not talking about a short, 100-yard dash. It’s a marathon, one that we could never finish on our own. In reality, any kind of success we experience here on this earth or in the life to come is all because of God’s love for us. It’s that love — totally undeserved — that we call grace, and it’s this grace that acts as the “runner’s high” for Christians.

This morning let’s talk about the Christian marathon and how important it is that we:

“Run Life’s Race with Grace!”

I. Travel light
II. Endure hardship
III. Stay focused

The race we’re running has been run before. Go back one chapter, to Hebrews 11, and you find a nice synopsis of the Old Testament. Highlighted are the lives of believers such as Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, and the like. They were men who succeeded in running the race of life by the grace of God. That’s because they ran by faith, trusting in all that God had promised them. These are the “witnesses” mentioned in the first verse of our text (v 1), “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” The Old Testament saints are “witnesses” who can tell us a thing or two about the reliability of God. Their lives serve as witnesses for us to give us strength. We need that strength because the race is long one. That’s why the writer to the Hebrews encourages us to run with “perseverance.” We’re in it for the duration, and we can only persevere with God’s grace.

Marathon runners don’t usually run with their sweatsuits on. They’d only get in the way and slow them down. So also we’re encouraged to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” The Greek word that here is translated as “everything that hinders” is the same one from which we derive our word for the study of tumors, oncology. Tumors attack healthy cells in the body. Malignant tumors not only hinder, they kill. Sins that come easy to us, that may not seem all that serious, can still entangle us. They may start out small, but if they grow and are not removed, they have the potential to kill spiritual life and to snuff out saving faith. As with physical health, so also with spiritual health — it’s foolish to take chances. Get rid of what’s hindering you and holding you back! Replace it with God’s grace for the duration of your race!

Jump to the last two verses of our text for more encouragement (vv 12,13), “Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. ‘Make level paths for your feet,’ so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.” You can’t endure a marathon with “feeble arms and weak knees.” That’s what happens when we let the things of this world interfere by weighing us down and holding us back. That’s what happened to the army of Alexander the Great as it advanced on Persia. At one point it even appeared as if they would be defeated in battle. The soldiers had taken so much plunder from their previous campaigns that they had become weighted down and were losing their effectiveness in combat. Alexander immediately commanded that all the spoils be thrown into a heap and burned. Even though the soldiers complained, the tactic worked. Someone wrote, “It was as if wings had been given to them — they walked lightly again.” Victory was once again assured.

We need to be light on our feet as we run our race. That’s how it worked with the saints in the past. In chapter 11 we read (v 25), “[Moses] chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time.” What entangling, hindering pleasures of sin are you dealing with? Greed, envy, anger, unfaithfulness, hatred, jealousy — fill in your own blanks. We all have our own spiderwebs to avoid, sins that we can refrain from only by the grace of God. Take Paul’s advice when he tells the Philippians (Php 3:13,14), “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” That prize will be ours also because we have grace for the duration of our race!

The Christian race is long, and it’s hard. Let’s talk some now about the need for God’s grace for the struggle we face as we run our race.

“In your struggle against sin, you have not resisted to the point of shedding your blood” (v 4). Thankfully, the same can be said of us today. I don’t think any of us have had to shed blood for what we believe. The Hebrew Christians had suffered some persecution and the loss of possessions for their faith, and the writer of this epistle was a bit concerned that they were in danger of letting these setbacks affect their faith, so he reminds them of the words of Proverbs 3:11,12 (vv 5,6), “And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: ‘My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.’” Remember, the Lord doesn’t punish us for our sins because he punished Jesus on the cross. When the Savior cried out, “It is finished,” we were assured that the payment for sin was paid in full. And yet the Lord does allow pain and sadness into our lives, but only for his good purposes. Let’s not be so eager to ask, “When am I going to get out of these troubles?” Instead, let’s ask, “What am I going to get out of them?” As Paul reminds us (Ro 8:28), “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.”

Sometimes during our race on this earth we do struggle, but through that struggling the Lord strengthens our faith. Our text elaborates further on this point (vv 7-10), “Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.” There are times when my wife and I have to discipline our son by revoking privileges or by sending him to his room, but we do so out of love to teach him what’s right. As children we eventually understand that our parents disciplined us because they loved us. It proved that we had parents who cared. If there is no discipline, then no one cares. Then we are only illegitimate children. God disciplines us “for our good, that we may share in his holiness,” that we may continue to persevere and, with his grace, run the race and inherit the reward won for us by our Savior.

As you struggle during your race here on this earth, remember the Lord and his grace are behind it (v 11), “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” As children we may not have appreciated it when we were disciplined by our parents. But as we grew up, we realized why it was necessary. So it is with God’s discipline. It may not seem pleasant or joyful, but just as with fruit on a tree, ripening takes time. In the end “a harvest of righteousness and peace” will be ours. Even though we struggle while running our race, Scripture assures us (1 Co 10:13), “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.” We may struggle, but God will always be there for us. He’ll always be by our side during our race with his grace!

Finally, we have motivation to keep running. People need motivation to complete a marathon. They may want to prove something to themselves, to their friends or family. They may use the example of others to inspire them. It works that way with us as well. We have all the motivation we need to complete our race in Jesus.

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (vv 2,3). Jesus is our light at the end of the tunnel! He’s “the author and perfecter of our faith,” or, as the King James Version states, “the author and finisher” of our faith. He is the object and the cause of our faith, giving us something to believe and the faith to do so. He was the one who “endured the cross” for us. Why? “. . . for the joy set before him.” Christ endured the cross because he could see just ahead of him the joy that would be ours when he gave his life for our salvation. Someday we will hear the joy in his voice when he says to us (Mt 25:34), “Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.”

When we consider what Christ endured for our salvation, we can’t help but be motivated to keep running our race as we live for him. We’re motivated by grace. “Christ’s love compels us, . . . And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Co 5:14,15). So we fix our eyes on Jesus. We make time for him and his Word, whether it be at home or at church, with devotions or worship, by ourselves or with fellow saints in Bible classes. We teach our children about God’s grace. We bring them to church and Sunday School. We share our faith with others in whatever way we can, anxious for them to join us in our race. All this we do because of what God has done for us. We race assured of his love. We race with his grace!

If you’ve ever run a marathon (and I know a few of you have), you know that the goal is not necessarily to win. Finishing is what counts. It’s the same with the Christian race. We don’t have to win — Christ has already accomplished that for us. But our goal is to finish, by God’s grace, and to receive what he has in store for us. And what would that be? Scripture promises us (Jas 1:12), “Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.”

The race may be long. It may be a struggle. But we have all the motivation we need. So keep running! God has given us grace for the race, and it’s that grace that assures us of reaching the finish line — in heaven!

Amen

-Rev. Jonathan Rockhoff

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August 21, 2007 by admin.

Hebrews 11:1-3,8-16

In the name of the God who protects us day by day, increasing our strength and our faith, dear fellow servants of our Lord,

There’s a little mind game that tells us something about human nature. I’m sure many of you have tried it or at least have seen it being done. It involves two people. One volunteers to stand straight up, with arms crossed and eyes closed, and then falls backwards and is caught by the second person before hitting the floor. Simple, right? But you know what inevitably happens – the person falling backwards panics and arms quickly fly out in an effort to cushion the fall. No matter who’s doing the catching, almost every person seems to have a hard time having faith that they’ll be caught before they hit the floor.

By nature we’re skeptical people. We find it easy to doubt others and hard to put our trust in them. But who can blame us? We’ve all been taken by the deal that seemed “too good to be true.” We’ve all been let down by people, sometimes even people we consider our best friends. Too many times we’ve put our faith in others, only to have them not be there for us when we needed them most.

As Christians, we acknowledge the disappointment of misplaced trust while understanding that those around us are imperfect sinners, just as we are. And yet the whole issue of faith takes on a different perspective when we’re talking about an almighty and perfect God – a God who’s always true to his Word, who never lets us down, who’s always there to catch us! That’s why the writer to the Hebrews this morning can confidently encourage us, at all times and in all circumstances, to:

“Have Faith!”

I. The nature of faith
II. The power of faith
III. The result of faith

The 11th chapter of Hebrews has been called “the grandest chapter in the Bible on faith.” Read it in its entirety, and you’ll understand why. It begins with a definition of faith, one which I’ve always appreciated (v 1), “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Here’s another way to think of it: Faith believes the future and accepts the past. First of all faith believes the future — it’s the assurance of things hoped for. The evening before his death Jesus pointed his disciples to the assured hope of faith when he told them (Jn 14:19), “Because I live, you also will live.” We haven’t seen him return yet, but we’re confident our Lord will be coming back for us to take us home, simply because we have faith in what he promised when he said (Jn 14:3), “I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” And in the meantime we have faith that he’ll take care of us, because he’s promised us (Mt 28:20), “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Credit is given to the Old Testament believers who had this same kind of fatih (v 2), “This is what the ancients were commended for.” They never saw the Messiah in the flesh. They didn’t witness his humble service, his sacrificial death, or his final victory. Abraham never met Jesus, and yet as he heard earlier this morning in our Old Testament reading, the Lord credited his faith to him as righteousness. Later in this chapter you’ll find a number of people mentioned who lived by faith, not by sight – Abel, Enoch, Noah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and many others. They were all sure of what they hoped for and certain of what they did not see!

Faith believes the future, but it also accepts the past. None of us witnessed the resurrection of our Lord, but we accept it as an actual, accomplished fact because we have faith in what God tells us in his holy Word. By faith we accept what has taken place in the past, especially what the Lord has done for our salvation. That’s why we have no problem accepting how this world came to be (v 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.” We can’t explain it with human reason, but we accept it by faith! After all, we really have no choice but to believe the only eye-witness who was there, and that’s God! Instead of subjecting God to our human reason, we subject our human reason to the almighty God. And don’t let some liberal, pushover churches out there tell you it doesn’t matter if you believe in a six-day creation. If you question creation, you question the past. And if you question the past, you would have every reason to question the future, including your salvation. So believe in what God says happened. Have faith!

Not seeing, but still believing – that’s faith! Jesus said as much when he told Doubting Thomas (Jn 20:29), “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” That’s a blessing that our Lord gives to all believers who didn’t have the benefit of witnessing his resurrection. That’s a blessing that he gives to you and me! Rejoice that the Holy Spirit has worked that saving faith in your heart – faith that enables you to be sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see!

Now that we know what faith is, let’s take a closer look at its power. It’s faith that links us to the only one capable of rescuing us from our sins. Faith links us to Jesus!

Notice what the patriarch Abraham was motivated to do because of his faith (vv 8,9), “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. 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.” Don’t take lightly what Abraham was asked to do. He was told by God to gather up his wife and servants and all that he owned and to leave his homeland – and God didn’t give him a MapQuest to follow either! He just told him to go, and Scripture tells us (Ge 12:4), “So Abram left, as the LORD had told him.” Abraham’s obedience to the Lord’s command was a fruit of his faith!

God would lead Abraham to the land of Canaan, a land he promised to give to him as his own later on. But Abraham would live like a foreigner in tents. The only land he ever owned was a small burial plot he purchased for his wife. His son Isaac and grandson Jacob never actually owned the land either. But they all had faith in God and his promise, and they knew that the land would someday belong to their descendants. But this didn’t bother Abraham. He had bigger things to look forward to (v 10), “For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.” Unlike the tents secured only by pegs or earthly cities built by men, Abraham had dreams of a city with permanent foundations built by God himself. The power of faith led Abraham to look beyond this life to the life that is to come — an eternal life with his Lord in heaven!

But that’s not all. Abraham believed in God’s promise of salvation, but he also had faith in another promise the Lord had given to him (vv 11,12), “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. 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.” Faith empowered Abraham to believe the impossible. He knew God was faithful to his word. And at the age of 100, with his wife Sarah 90 years young herself and to date unable to bear children, Abraham became a dad. In Romans Paul puts it this way (4:18,19,21), “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him . . . . Without weakening in his faith, . . . being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.” And from that one son grew a great nation, and from that great nation came an even greater descendant – the promised Messiah himself!

With the power of faith Abraham believed in the promises of God, no matter how unbelievable they may have seemed. Take that example to heart for your life today. You may be faced with some rather troubling challenges in your own life right now. Employment questions, relationship struggles, financial woes – we all have something that comes to mind that at times seems to be an unconquerable foe. But our Lord comes to us with a simple directive – have faith! After all, it’s that faith that allows us to look back at how our Savior overcame our biggest obstacle – that of our sinfulness. So if we have a God who has taken care of our sins and has defeated the devil, why not trust him with the rest of what we face in life? Have faith in the God of your salvation, the God who is able to do the impossible!

The Holy Spirit gives us the power to put our faith in our powerful Lord and Savior. The end result? The promise that the best is yet to come!

The Old Testament believers lived for what was yet to come, something they would not see during their lifetime on this earth (v 13), “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised (at least, not while on earth); they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.” Even though these believers didn’t receive the fulfillment of God’s promise while alive, they all still rejoiced to see the promised Savior by faith, “from a distance.” And that was O.K. with them, because they all knew that their time on earth was intended to be temporary (vv 13-16), “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 left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country – a heavenly one.” They felt restless here on this earth, almost as if they didn’t belong here. Shouldn’t it be that way for us also? How can we get too comfortable here in this sinful world when we know the best is yet to come, when we’ll be taken to “a better country – a heavenly one” with our Lord and Savior? As Paul reminds us (Php 3:20), “Our citizenship is in heaven.” Our visas here are only temporary. The time will come for us to go back home.

Those who keep focused on what is yet to come find favor with the Lord (v 16), “Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.” In our Gospel lesson earlier this morning we heard Jesus remind us (Lk 12:34), “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Make your relationship with God “your treasure,” and you’ll put your heart into whatever it takes to make that relationship the best that it can be. The end result will be God joyfully calling you his own and giving you membership into the eternal city prepared for you and all believers before the creation of the world!

We’re worshiping today under the theme, “Looking Forward to Better Things.” If this truly is our mindset here on this earth, how evident is it in our lives? Our time here is so very short and yet so very important. The few years of our earthly existence can’t possibly compare to the unlimited time we’ll spend in eternity, and yet what we do with our time here is vital. The temptations are obvious, and they are abundant. Satan loves to get us so preoccupied with the here-and-now that we overlook the hereafter. We spend such a small fraction of our time in the Lord’s house and around his Word, and yet we even allow that time to be sacrificed in favor of time spent on worldly pursuits. We spend our dollars on so many things temporal, only to squirm and fidget when it comes to supporting things spiritual. We lie awake at night over how to supply our children with the best things of this world, only to so often neglect what they’ll need for their salvation. While proclaiming to be looking forward to better things, too often we try to obtain those “better things” from the world around us when they can only come from God and from the life that is to come.

This is where faith comes in. Make use of the opportunities you have to grow in the faith that points you in the right direction, that directs you to your Savior’s cross, that assures you the best is yet to come, that makes you sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see. Take to heart the words of Paul from 2 Corinthians (4:18), “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

That’s the kind of faith worth having! As the commercial says, make sure you don’t leave home – or this world! – without it!

Amen

Hebrews 11:1-3,8-16

The Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost

August 19, 2007

Messiah, Wichita, KS

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August 13, 2007 by admin.

Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:18-26

My time here is almost up. It’s down to the last day. My time getting to proclaim God’s Word in front of you is down to about twenty minutes. Knowing that while preparing for today, it got me thinking, if I only had twenty minutes to live, twenty minutes to talk to someone before I departed from this world, what would I say? If I was a soldier coming off a battlefield having a potentially fatal wound treated or a survivor hanging on by thread after a pile-up on the interstate, what would I say to the paramedic as he or she is trying to keep me coherent.

I know what you’re thinking: “Vicar, we’ve heard you preach for a year now and there’s no way you could say whatever it is you want to say to them in under twenty minutes.” And perhaps you’d be right. But humor me this one time. Knowing myself, I think there’s probably a good chance I’d try to echo the words of King Solomon from today’s sermon lesson. All of our readings for today deal with perspective. Our Old Testament lesson in particular, from the book of Ecclesiastes, teaches us the attitude, the perspective we need to have as we approach life in order to make it worthwhile.

My time here at Messiah has flown by. I’m sure many of you could say the same thing about your life. Your marriage: twenty years, maybe fifty years already, just like that. Your job: twenty, thirty, forty years, you’re almost ready to retire. Your kids: already leaving the house to go away to school. Where did the time go? Your life: seventy, eighty, ninety years. It goes by quick. When we look at our lives in retrospect, we understand Solomon’s wisdom from our lesson today when he encourages us to

“Make Sure it Counts”

We take the author to the book of Ecclesiastes, from which we get our sermon lesson today, to be King Solomon. He doesn’t expressly say it is him, but historically this is the way it has been taken since the author identifies himself as “the son of David, king in Jerusalem.” He also has the persona of someone of unrivaled knowledge, wealth, and experience. All things considered, it seems pretty clear that this is Solomon, at the end of his life, looking back over his entire life experience and claiming that traditional paths to happiness are meaningless.

You just have to have a tiny understanding of Solomon’s life to understand his words in Ecclesiastes. King Solomon started his reign as a faithful man – so faithful that God granted him any wish he desired. Solomon pleased the Lord by requesting wisdom, and the Lord consequently gave him countless other blessings. But wisdom doesn’t equate to great faith. Solomon began to love God’s creation more than the Creator. He oppressed his citizens with taxes to make a more beautiful palace for himself. He took a thousand wives to satisfy his lustful cravings, and not just Israelite women, but foreign women – the forbidden fruit. To be a popular king with his people and his many wives, Solomon established much idol worship in Israel. As time went on, Solomon began to see his kingdom deteriorate and his life fall apart. Due to the unjust taxes, the people in the northern portion of Israel started to rebel under their labor leader and eventual king, Jeroboam. Solomon saw how bratty and ungodly his kids were turning out to be, including Rehoboam, the one who was supposed to succeed him as leader of God’s chosen people. With a thousand wives pulling him in a thousand directions, Solomon became worn out. And it appears that at the end of his life, Solomon began to return to his spiritually wise ways.

Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes we find the brutal honesty of a man who has been scorned by the “finer things” that life has to offer. And you know what he said about these exorbitant riches, these gorgeous women, this decadent food and clothes, the unprecedented palace, and who knows how many servants to do any unpleasant work for him? He says it’s all “meaningless.” “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” (1:2) Fascinating, right? The guy who literally had everything that the world could possibly offer, but lost God, said the world without God is meaningless.

Solomon, here at the end of life becomes disenchanted by the wickedness of the world, including his own. People are oppressed without hope of relief (Ecclesiastes 4:1), the wicked flourish while the righteous perish (7:15), and noble acts are too soon forgotten (9:15). This sinful world is “meaningless.” The word Solomon uses in the Hebrew which translates as “meaningless” is the word הֲבֵל (hevel). Hevel – it’s interesting that this is the exact word that Adam and Eve used to name their second child, Abel. It’s as though Adam and Eve were commenting on the world after their fall into sin. Locked out of the paradise they once knew, Adam and Eve said that in comparison, this new sinful world was worthless, it was horrible, it was “meaningless.”

Solomon had poured so much time and energy into attaining the things of this world because he thought that’s what life was all about. He thought that would make him happy. He was so wise and he worked so hard that he got it all. And he became miserable. He explains why: “I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless.”

Solomon looked at all he had done in terms of earthly accomplishment and he wasn’t impressed. He knew that the kingdom that he had worked to make the most extraordinary on the planet was eventually going to be given over into the hands of his son, who wasn’t suited for the task. All would eventually be lost.

Solomon was realizing that he couldn’t take all of that worldly accumulation anywhere with him. Eventually he would die just like everyone else and those riches would be left behind. Think of how foolish many of the pharaohs of ancient Egypt look now. They were buried with millions upon millions of dollars of precious stones and gold, even slaves. And for what? So that they could look like fools when all of these items were stolen from their tombs years later? You can’t take it with you – a lesson that Solomon in all his wisdom had been blinded to for much of his adult life.

Lastly, Solomon’s rediscovered spiritual discernment led him to the conclusion that his unrivaled earthly prosperity really wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. In exchange for a momentary thrill, it brought grief and enemies. This past week Barry Bonds broke the record for most career home runs, surpassing baseball Hall of Famer Hank Aaron. Think about all the camps he went to as a kid, the year-round leagues, hitting 500 balls a night in the batting cages, the time away from family and friends. It undoubtedly took a tremendous amount of dedication. It was his whole life’s work. Was it all worth it? As he raised his arms in victory after launching his 756th career home run, at the pinnacle of his career, the defining moment, most of the sports fan world will see this as a record with an asterisk by it due to the performance enhancing drugs he’s taken. He’ll be remembered as one of the biggest “cheaters” in modern day major league baseball. And the day after, commentators were already speculating as to how many active players have a good chance of reaching his record. Eventually, probably sooner than later, Barry Bond’s career, his training, his record-breaking home run will become “meaningless.” And the guy who had everything will realize how little it all meant.

Life is so quick that we need to make the most of it. We spend too much of our time “chasing after the wind” as Solomon says. James, the brother of Jesus, wrote, “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14). He pictures our life as walking out into a cold morning, where you can see the vapor of your breath, but then as quickly as it seems to take form, it vanishes. While we’re here on this earth, we need to have our priorities straight. In life, we need to “Make Sure It Counts”.

After Solomon’s long, indulgent, yet arduous road of life, he came to the spiritual conclusion that the only way anything in this world ever means anything, is if one views life through the eyes of faith and a love for God. He says, “for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment?” (2:26)

“To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God.” The only reason that anything means anything, the only way we will find true peace and happiness in this world, is if we know our Savior from sins, Jesus Christ. In him we find purpose. In him we can deal with the problems that come our way. Through him we keep the blessings of life in perspective. True joy in this world is knowing that the things of this world are indeed “meaningless” compared to the paradise which Christ has won for us. Jesus said he came “that we may have life, and have it to the full!” (John 10:10). God wants you to take satisfaction in your work, knowing that you are pleasing him by using your talents faithfully. God wants you to enjoy the food set on your table, knowing how he provides for your every need richly and daily. God wants you to take pleasure in your family vacation, recognizing not only the beauty of his institution of family, but how he has blessed you not just by meeting your needs, but with abundance.

God wants to see his children happy. But he knows they will never, ever be happier than when they are with him in heaven, so he allows whatever is necessary to best prepare them for eternal happiness. “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what the Lord has in store for those who love him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9) It’s one of my favorite passages and it’s all about having an eternal perspective. Understand how your day to day life corresponds to your eternity. Jesus Christ has given us purpose. The wisest as well as one of the most prosperous men who ever walked the planet said that apart from Christ, everything is meaningless. Jesus has made things meaningful. We now do all things in this life to spread the message of him who has redeemed us from our sins, that we may have purpose, that we may find fulfillment.

The Apostle Paul said, “The glory that is yet to be revealed in us is not worth comparing to the greatest mansion built by the richest and most industrious human.” (Romans 8:18) He probably had King Solomon in mind as he wrote this. What glory God has in store for us! Anticipating that glory, we eagerly, excitedly, joyfully carry out our mission here on earth. That mission does not involve material things. It does not involve trophies or accolades. It does not involve the items valued by a world in which we consider ourselves foreigners. Our mission involves our obedience to God’s commands, our love and service to his church, and above all, our appreciation for his free and full forgiveness, which we will share the knowledge of with this world. This alone matters. This alone grants purpose. If the troubles of your day do not involve these, no longer consider them troubles. They are God’s hand in your life, grabbing you, pulling you closer to him for eternity.

If I knew this were the last time I’d ever communicate with you, I’d say, “Thank you. I love you for being fellow children of God. And I love you for treating me as such.” I hope if you’ve gained any spiritual insight from me this year it’s to maintain an eternal perspective on life. Make Sure This Life Truly Counts. I look forward to seeing you all again, and who knows, eternity may be the next place I see you. I encourage both of us to not get bogged down by this sinful world, because Christ has overcome this world and overcome our sin. He has given us life and he therefore is our life. So if I were to breathe my last breath and utter my last words before you right now, I’d probably choose not my own words, but those of a hymn writer much more eloquent than I, and say,

“What is the world to me! My Jesus is my treasure,
My life, my health, my wealth, My friend, my love, my pleasure
My joy, my crown, my all, My bliss eternally.
Once more then I declare: What is the world to me!”

Amen.

–Vicar James Hein

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August 6, 2007 by admin.

Luke 11:1-13

“Lord, Teach Us to Pray”

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. Amen.” (Ephesians 1:3)

Man A woke up late for work. He was late by a lot. It didn’t help that he got pulled over for speeding and got a ticket on the way to work. As he squeamishly walked by his boss’s office, he heard the blaring demand that he enter immediately. His boss said that he needs the project done today, that Man A was irresponsible, and that this definitely was going to be taken into consideration in the employee evaluations later this week. Finally arriving at his lunch break, and relieved to finally get something to eat for the day, the man gets an alarming phone call from his wife. His daughter was in an accident, is in critical condition, and might not make it. He rushes to the hospital without thinking, understanding he could very well lose his job. He spends the rest of the day there with her in a coma, his life on hold, his stomach in knots, tears in his eyes.

Man B woke up as he always did, after two pushes of the snooze button. He took a shower, got dressed, had some cereal. He kissed his wife of 16 years goodbye and went off to his job of 20 years. Nothing abnormal. It was a Wednesday. When he got home, he sat down for dinner with his family. They talked about their days over some meatloaf. He read the paper, watched a documentary on sharks on the Discovery Channel, and went to bed.

Man C had the day to end all days. It was his birthday, and he woke up before his alarm went off with an enthusiasm only saved for special occasions. His boss had been waiting for this day to let him know about his promotion that he had worked so hard for. New opportunities, increased pay, and the corner office. When he got home the family went out to celebrate at his favorite restaurant. As he looked around at his beautiful family laughing, time seemed to stand still for a moment. “This is as good as it gets,” he thought. “Life is good.”

Most of us, depending on the day you asked us, would probably be able to relate to one of these three men. You notice that the personalities of the men aren’t the things that change from story to story, but rather the circumstances. My question to you today is a simple one – which of these three Christian men needs prayer the most? Maybe that question is too transparent? They all need to pray, right? God doesn’t just tell us to “call upon him in the day of trouble” (Psalm 50:15), but also to “pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). But do we really believe that? Do we really practice that? Do we really value God’s gift of prayer and understand what its role needs to be in our lives? Do we know what to pray for? Do we know how we should pray? These are the real questions that a Christian needs to address. Today we say along with the disciples in our lesson:

“Lord, Teach Us to Pray”
I. for the proper things
II. in the proper manner

Our lesson for today begins: “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place.” The exact time and the exact place are really not important. It’s not often that you’ll hear me say that about a biblical account. The context in which God inspires an account to be written is generally always important. But these words are intentionally vague. And that’s the beauty of it. Sure there are times when we see Jesus pray in particular situations. But it’s also important for us to see him praying here on some day, any day. He’s teaching us to pray on every day. Jesus was undoubtedly a busy guy, in high demand during the course of his 3 year ministry here on earth. But he was never, ever too busy to consult his Father in heaven in prayer.

When Jesus’ disciples heard Jesus pray, they probably became conscious of how imperfect their own prayers were in comparison, so they naturally asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. I’m sure you might be tempted to think, “Well I thought any prayer was pleasing in God’s sight. Isn’t it just important that we do pray?” Not exactly. It depends on the heart that is offering up such prayer. When we selfishly demand from God that we receive what we want when we want it, that’s not a God pleasing prayer. When we pray and negotiate with God, as though we could possibly hold some bargaining chip to wager with the Almighty, that’s not God pleasing prayer. When we pray merely out of obligation, like paying our taxes or doing our chores, that’s not a God pleasing prayer. When we pray with a heart that doubts God’s ability to hear, answer, and grant our prayers, you may as well not do it, that’s not God pleasing prayer. Yes, sin can even taint God’s tremendous gift of prayer. Prayer can be motivated by sin. Prayer can be executed with a sinful attitude. The disciples knew that. They wanted to become better at prayer, which needs to become a goal of ours as well. So along with the disciples, today we say, “Lord, teach us to pray”.

Always in the business of granting spiritual growth, Jesus was undoubtedly pleased by his disciples’ request. He taught them to pray for the proper things. He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’” A beautiful prayer. A perfect prayer given from a perfect heart. But does it sound a bit short to you? If later on in the service I was leading in the Lord’s Prayer and used these exact words, you’d probably say the Vicar messed up….again. That’s because this isn’t the version of the Lord’s Prayer that we use. The version that we use is closer to the version we find in Matthew 6:9-13. The version here is two petitions shorter. Two different versions, both inspired by the Holy Spirit, seems to indicate two different lessons that Jesus is trying to teach. Jesus seems to be indicating to us here that he is intending to provide his disciples with a pattern for praying rather than with a set form for memorization and recitation, as he does in Matthew’s gospel.

What is he teaching us to pray for here? We can’t give each petition the due justice it deserves in one sermon, so we look at what Jesus is requesting here in a more general way. First he makes requests for spiritual blessings for all men. Then he makes requests for material blessings for all men. Lastly, he makes requests for spiritual blessings for the people of God. There you have it. Perfect prayer is dominated by spiritual things – our Catechism students learn that only one of the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer really deals with material things. Perfect prayer is not selfish – it seeks blessings for others, and not just those whom we are close to, but even for our enemies. Perfect prayer has God and his will at the center of it – it seeks the spread of his kingdom in this world, not ours. These are the proper things for which to pray. And we pray today that we grow in our spiritual maturity and sanctified lives that we understand better the proper things to pray for. The amazing thing is that God promises that when we do this, he will bless every aspect of our lives. “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33) So bring to God whatever is on your heart. Do this with the understanding that God wants to hear all things great and small from his children, you and I. “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:7) But desire his kingdom first, not yours, and you are guaranteed to pray for the proper things.

Jesus’ lesson wasn’t over at this point though – once he had taught his disciples the proper things for which to pray. He then went on to educate them how to pray in the proper manner. First Jesus teaches his disciples to pray with boldness and persistence, because of their relationship to their God in heaven. He illustrates that relationship with a story. He tells his disciples to imagine one friend going to another friend’s house in the middle of the night and asking for some food. The friend who is sleeping says he can’t get up because it’s too late. You have to understand a couple of items from that day and age to understand Jesus’ point. First of all, due to the daytime temperatures in the Middle East, it was common for people to travel at night in those days. So this man wasn’t going over to his friend’s house simply at an inconvenient time because he was inconsiderate. He went over because he had an unexpected guest who had arrived at night. The other cultural nuance to keep in mind is with the friend, the head of the house, who didn’t want to get up. It wasn’t because he was lazy or tired, but because in those days the entire family slept in the same room and he didn’t want to wake everyone up. As long as we understand that neither party is doing anything wrong, we can understand the point of Jesus’ parable. Jesus explains the point when he says, “I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.”

The neighbor was willing to help his friend in need not just because he was a friend, but because his requesting friend was bold in his knowledge of what friendship meant – friendship is a willingness to help a person at any hour with any need, regardless of the circumstance. That is what God is to us. Boldly bring your requests to God. God will answer in his own way, when the time is right. Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” What does God have in store for our lives? What tremendous blessings could we be missing out on? What hardships in life could have possibly been prevented had we simply come to the Lord in prayer? If we are lacking in any way in life right now, especially spiritually, why is it that we don’t have? Because we haven’t asked. Don’t do it once. Don’t do it twice. Keep on praying. The verbs used in this section are imperatives that indicate this is supposed to be an ongoing action. Jesus wants us to pray regularly, persistently, faithfully.

Prayer is a product of faith that can help to indicate the health of faith. You show me a faithful Christian and I will show you someone with a healthy, active prayer life. They are inseparable. Today we ask God to make us more faithful in prayer. And then we boldly come to him with all requests, trusting that he will hear, knowing that he loves to answer. In this we have confidence because of the promises he gives us.

Jesus teaches of the confidence we should have in bringing our requests to our Heavenly Father with another illustration. He says if a child comes to his father and asks for something good and necessary like food (in this instance fish or an egg), what father on the planet instead is going to give his child something bad (in this instance a snake or a scorpion). No one would. From the most faithful of Christians to the most pagan of heathens, no father in his right mind would ever do that to his adoring child. Jesus then makes the argument from the lesser to the greater. He says, “If you then, though you are evil (sinful), know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” Even sinful human beings grant the requests of those they love. Our perfect Father in heaven will by all means hear and answer every request we bring before him. Bring it with unwavering confidence. Jesus’ brother James has this to say about prayer in his book: “But when a man asks (prays), he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1:6-7) Praying to God and then doubting his desire to answer is a slap in his face. It is making a mockery of the powerful tool that God has blessed us with in prayer. As humans we’re naturally tempted to look at track records and statistics to plan for the future. Unfortunately we’re tempted to do that with our prayer lives too. As humans, we are inclined to think, “Okay, God has answered 3 out of my last 10 prayers. That means that my next prayer really has about a 30% chance of being answered.” That is not the attitude that God desires. With every prayer that you offer up to your Lord, trust 100% that it is going to be granted.

When you pray that God give you strength to resist temptation, know that he will provide it. When struggling with financial anxiety, pray that your family’s needs be met and know that God will take care of you. We just took on a nearly million dollar building project here at Messiah. I don’t have to have a crystal ball to say there’s probably going to be some sleep lost, some tense meetings, and some second-guessing over the next year or so regarding it. We can’t ever stop praying to God, thanking him for such an opportunity and knowing that he will continue to bless us. When you are struggling with one of the most difficult decisions of your life and that fork in the road troubles you beyond what you think you can bear, pray about it, and know that God will guide you down the path and bless your journey. Pray with confidence to the God who created all things and loves you more than anything. And if he doesn’t answer your prayer in precisely the way you want it, it is all the more reason to give thanks. Because the God who knew what’s best for you didn’t allow something that he knew would hurt you. What love from our Father!

Never underestimate the power of prayer. A poll was conducted several years ago of pastors, asking them what the average amount of time they spent in prayer was per day. The average answer – 10 minutes. That includes everything: prayer before meals, prayer in the morning, afternoon, and evening. That’s roughly a half of a percent of a day spent dialoguing to God about what is on our hearts in a survey conducted only on spiritual leaders. Now, we can’t label a specific amount of time as the minimum time spent in prayer that is pleasing to God. But, my point in sharing this is that I think we all at times have forsaken God’s gift of prayer. So the first thing we need to do is pray for forgiveness for this. And we hear God’s free forgiveness in the gospel of the final words of today’s lesson, which I will read again: “How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” God freely forgives the sins and answers the prayers of those who have faith – faith in Jesus Christ, our Savior. Our Heavenly Father loves to hold that blessing of forgiveness out to us, his children, whenever we ask for it. Nothing delights him more than his children coming to him with their greatest need, the need of forgiveness, and freely giving it to them that they may live with him forever. Our prayers rising to our Lord are now like a sweet aroma to him, because Christ has removed our sin.

God didn’t have to give us prayer – the ability to come to him through Jesus Christ – but he did it because he loves us. Could we live without it? If God had made it that way. But why would we ever want to? I can honestly say I wouldn’t be standing here in this pulpit before you today if it wasn’t for God’s gift of prayer. I can honestly say I might not be standing here on this earth if it wasn’t for God’s gift of prayer. The devastation of my sin, the trials of life, and the feelings of loneliness I believe would have been too much to bear. But God has been with me every step of the way and he’s let me pour my heart out to him, speaking to me through his Holy Word and promising that he’s hearing and answering all of my cries for mercy.

Today we boldly and confidently say along with the disciples, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Every day let us appreciate more and more the spiritual blessing and powerful tool that prayer is. Tell God how much you respect and adore him. Confess to him the transgressions that trouble your heart and thank him for washing them away forever and rejoice. With persistence and confidence tell your Father of your needs and know without a doubt that he will provide. He has taken care of our greatest need – a Savior from our sins. He will take care of the rest as well. Amen.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work with us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21)

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