Sermon for the First Sunday in Lent

Luke 4:1-13

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I will admit it. I am a addict. No I am not addicted to drugs, alcohol, or anything else like that. But I am addicted to sin. Everyday I wake up, intending on not committing a single sin, not breaking the law of God, but somehow temptation wins and I sin. Every single day, whether I outright sin or whether I do not even realize it, I sin and this causes my addiction to increase. Just like everyone sitting in this beautiful sanctuary, I am addicted to sin. I might get to lead worship, wear these beautiful vestments, and administer the sacraments in which Jesus reveals himself to us but I am no better than any of you sitting in this congregation. We are all addicted to sin.

But is it our fault? We are tempted every day by the grand illusions of this world: the almighty dollar calling us to spend, spend, spend and demanding that we solely concentrate our time on obtaining more and more of it, others live in fear that their problems with controlled substances such as cocaine, heroin, nicotine, and alcohol will finally catch up with them causing them to commit irrational behaviors and actions, and for others the desire for power rules there lives with the desire to only obtain more power causing them to trampling over anyone or anything in their path. The list could go on and on. Temptation to sin and turn our back on God and God’s will is everywhere. Even Jesus was not immune to devastating and life altering temptation that sin has brought into our world.

But what do those temptations means for us today? Jesus was tempted with food, power and prestige, and finally the temptation to control the power of God--to ultimately control God’s will. But what we need to look at today is, “Why did Jesus do it?” and “How did Jesus do it?” We will come to the second question in a bit. Why did Jesus need to be tempted? Jesus is holy and righteous as he is. God claimed Jesus at his birth, at his baptism, and as we will find, even at his death. Why did Jesus need to be tempted (and, I might add, suffer) for 40 days and 40 nights in the wilderness?

Would you believe, to fulfill a commitment between him and God? In these three temptations: food, power, and the possibility to become more powerful than God, Jesus shows his alignment with God and not with the devil. As one author wrote, “ In the Old Testament and in subsequent Jewish tradition, fidelity to God was proven in the midst of testing--whether by the direct action of God, through difficult circumstances, or by the direct activity of the devil...[In this text], the devil seeks specifically to controvert Jesus’ role as the Son of God by disallowing the constraints of that relationship [and] ...by rejecting [the relationship] outright.” The fate of not only the world but the fate of God’s will for God’s people rides on Jesus’ ability to say NO to the devil, to reject Satan’s Will and to stay in alliance with God.

Going even deeper, Luke’s mentioning of the number 40 and the location of where the temptation took place (the wilderness) ties in the connection between the Old Testament and the fulfillment of God’s will for us. Think about it, The Israelites wondered in the desert for 40 years because they gave into the temptation of a gold idol. They were not able to resist the temptation put in front of them, but Jesus did. Even the texts Jesus cites against the devil are from Deuteronomy. This temptation that Jesus felt and overcame did for us what humanity could never accomplish in the sight of God. The Israelites spent 40 years in the wilderness and even then, they could not be seen as righteous in the eyes of God. But in Jesus, righteousness can be and has been obtain by a man of flesh and bone, who was born of a virgin, and has proven to us and God that he is the Son of God.

But how did he do it? We have a pretty good idea why he did all of this but how did he not succumb to temptation? To answer this, we need to look at that very first line of the text. “Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness” (Luk 4:1 NET). Did you catch it? “Full of the Holy Spirit” and “led into the wilderness by the Spirit.” Jesus is led into the wilderness not on his own accord or Will but by the Holy Spirit. Luke is an author who uses the passive voice when when talking about Jesus’s actions. In the passive voice, someone else is doing the action. For example, lip singing to a song or cruise control on a car. But when Luke uses the passive voice, he is using a divine passive voice showing readers that Jesus is not working alone but rather is an agent of God.

This is not the first time nor will it be the last time that the Holy Spirit will enter the scene in Luke’s gospel. There are twelve times in Luke’s gospel where Luke mentions the Holy Spirit and in each time, the Holy Spirit is the one doing the action or event.

What does that means for us? Does that mean that with the Holy Spirit we can do anything? Well in a way, yes but we will always fail to overcome temptation. We are sinful creatures. Remember, we are all addicted to sin. We all desire the things of this world that we cannot have--wealth that we could never earn; power and prestige of unlimited rule; and the ability to control God/the ability to know just as God knows. This is all sin and is revealed to us by God’s law. What do we do? Even filled with the Holy Spirit, we fail and sin. We are condemned. There is nothing more we can do. What now?

When we ask these questions, we must always, always remember their is Jesus. There is always Jesus who will save us. You see, Christ did not just stay in the water at his Baptism, Christ did not just stay up on that mountain with the great prophets of the past. No my friends, Christ left the water filled with the Holy Spirit, Christ left that mountain fully transfigured so that he could enter the wilderness, enter our lives, and reveal God’s glory to the wilderness. There is a wonderful line in song that says, "Our love is not a victory march. It is a cold and broken hallelujah." The idea that a God, our God, would leave their throne, their power, their ability to control everything in the universe to enter our lives, our wilderness, is completely shameful image for us to imagine. But that is the Gospel. Jesus enters into our wilderness to turn our love into a victory march--to turn our hallelujahs into a warm and complete song. This Lent, I encourage you all to reflect on who you and even on all the temptations you cannot turn away from, but always remember that Jesus is the one who sets us free from our captivity to sin and temptations. What we could never accomplish has been accomplished and has been fulfilled today by the one filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus. Only God could overcome the temptations of this world and the devil. God is the only one who can save us. Let this be our prayer always that Jesus remain with us even when the temptations seem to great, when the devil rears his ugly face, when the wall around us come crashing down in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

My reflection after the 2010 State of the Union

First, let me say I was proud to have President Barack Obama give that speech last night. He was passionate and direct with congress--something I feel they need right now more than ever. What horrified me was the lack of response the conservatives showed when the President talked about helping the poor and middle class. There was no clapping or cheering from the right side of the chamber. Why?

I was watching First Contact last week with a few friends. In this Star Trek movie, the Enterprise is pulled back to the 21st century. They enter a time in earth history when the world has just been ravaged by a Nuclear war. Millions have been killed but hope is on the horizon. Scientist have developed the warp drive engine and are about to launch it which will in turn will propel earth into a new era filled with no poverty, war, and little crime. As Captain Picard explains to woman from the 21st century, this new era, this new earth, is no longer concerned with the betterment of one’s bank account but with the betterment of humanity. The economics of the 24th century, Picard’s time, no longer uses monetary assets but rather uses the needs of humanity, the needs of all people, to drive science, industry, and legislation.

Gene Roddenbury’s idea of a need-driven economy rather than a money driven economy is not far off from the economic ideas that Jesus, Paul, and many other theologians and saints have preached. The needs of the neighbor far outweigh the needs of the individual. That is the gospel. If Christ was concerned with himself, why did he die for us? Why are we left with stories such as the Good Samaritan or a Friend at Midnight? If all God wants us to be concerned is ourself, why did God create other individuals?

It makes me sick that a country, like Haiti, some hundred miles off our coast, could be so ravaged by a earth quake. This should not happened. America, the entire world for that matter, should have given them the technology to improve their infrastructure. I know a earth quake of that magnitude would have rocked even a major city such as LA, but maybe we could have prevented some of the deaths if only we would have shared our resources. Why must we always be concerned with making a buck? When are we going to realize that human life, a priceless gift and a blessing, is far more important than making a buck? When are we going to realize that we are no different from the people of Haiti? We are all just one disaster away from losing it all. We are no different from the people of Haiti or anyone other country from around the world. I don’t care who you are, nobody can faithfully say that if a major disaster occured, whether it be natural, health, or familial, we would be able to recover immediately or even within 6 months. How many of you could survive one or two years without a paycheck? Anyone?

What we must remember is the commonality that connects us all together is that we are people. The American PEOPLE, Haitian PEOPLE, Turkish PEOPLE. We all share that common trait that we are people. We all breath and have heart beat. We all want to live and have a chance at living better. We all desire and deserve life rather than death and when we desire death, we hopefully have those who desire life close as a reminder to why life is always more desirable than death.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” We all have the right to life. The emphasis here is on life. We all have the right to life. A long life. A life where we pursue liberty over tyranny and happiness over deceit. These rights are not just for Americans but to everyone. All men and women, of any race or nationality, has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It is time that we wake up and realize this world is not very large and we are all one PEOPLE. This is not something we obtain overnight. It first must start with us looking to our neighbor and fighting for them. We must stand up and demand that everyone be taken care of and pass this same dream onto the world. Our goals must be that of the world and the goals of the world must ours as well. We must share our technology and our wealth in hopes that one day no child and no adult will ever have to choose medication over food, food over shelter, life over death. But for this dream to become a reality, we first must start with looking to where we draw the line for the outcasts. Remember, Christ is always on the other side of the line. Christ is always with the outcasts.

19th Sunday after Pentecost

In today's sermon, I decided to preach on the Semi-continuous lectionary, Job 23:1-9 16-17, and the gospel. I suggest you read Job and the gospel first and then read my sermon. They did record me preach but they have not emailed me it yet. I will post it as soon as possible.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us pray, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14”

Picture if you will a man of huge social status. Rich beyond all imagination. Has the perfect family and a beautiful wife--well at least I think she is beautiful (the text never talks about what she looks like). He has servants and maids--the latest technology-- and one day everything, EVERYTHING is gone. In the matter of a few moments, this man’s livelihood, his family, and many of his maids and servants are all gone. Now the man I am talking about here is the biblical character known as Job. Job has lost everything and his health is failing. Job is emotionally and physically drained by this chapter. He has sought comfort in three of his friends but has only found shame and frustration in their advice. Job is at his wits ends and he cannot figure out what he did to deserve this “punishment.” We, the reader, know why all these tragedies have happened. It wasn’t because Job sinned, or because one of his children have sinned, but it was the Satan, or in hebrew it is ha-satan, that instigated the initial “attack.” You could argue that God gave permission to Satan that it is God who is doing the actions against Job but in the end it was Satan that had the opportunity to decided whether or not to commit the actions which destroyed Job’s world and cause Job’s illness. But Job knows none of this. Job only knows that he has lost his world and he is deathly sick. Job feels abandoned, he feels hurts, and he wants to know why.

Today also my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy despite my groaning. Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his dwelling! I would lay my case before him, and fill my mouth with arguments. I would learn what he would answer me, and understand what he would say to me. Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power? No; but he would give heed to me. There an upright person could reason with him, and I should be acquitted forever by my judge. “If I go forward, he is not there; or backward, I cannot perceive him; on the left he hides, and I cannot behold him; I turn to the right, but I cannot see him.

When I listen to these words of Job, I can understand why Job was not always well liked by Jewish Rabbis of the early 1st century. That last line just sends shrivels down my spine. God is not there. “If I go forward, he is not there; or backward, I cannot perceive him; on the left he hides, and I cannot behold him; I turn to the right, but I cannot see him. Job looks around and he can no longer see God. God is absent to Job. This is not the message that we necessarily want preached in churches or synagogues. However, I do not think this is the message that Job is conveying in his speech. As one commentator wrote, “Chapter 23 frames this complaint with two statements that insist faith must sometimes be construed as moral rebellion, not silent compliance.” Meaning, it is okay to ask why.

This past summer I spent 13 weeks at The Reading Hospital and Medical Center doing CPE. I was assigned to Medical Intensive Care Unit and the other heart floors in the hospital along with the normal duties chaplains had in the trauma bay. Every single day I was confronted with families and my own self asking essentially the same question that Job is asking God, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” “Why did my son have to die?” “Why me?” “Why Alex? He was such a great brother.” I can remember many sleepless nights staying up with families who were in the same situation Job was in. Sometimes we need to ask why. Sometimes we need to demand, yell, scream at God and ask “Why me?” But after that, we need to remember its not “why do bad things happen to good people?” but rather “When bad things happen to good people...” This world can be a wonderful place and at other times can be a horrible and hurtful place. I can remember one trauma case where a 21 year old male decided to ride down a hill on his skateboard drunk with no helmet. He was a good kid but just made a bad decision. His mother had to make the decision whether or not to pull him off life support. It was a heartbreaking case that I hope nobody has to ever face. A mother deciding the fate of her child, a sister having to say good bye to her older brother, a father wishing he could have done something different. Bad things will always happen to good people. In the end, it is not so much as we need to know why bad things happen but rather we need to “when whatever happens to you, I will be there.”

This is precisely the promise Jesus has made with us. I believe Jesus’ teaching in the last part of our gospel reminds us of this promise. This world may take everything we have: wife, husband, child, house, etc. but it Jesus who promises to stay with us and remain with us. Sometimes this means our life will not be easy. It was not easy for that family to watch their son die. It was certainly not easy for the disciples either. All but one died at the hands of the Roman government. Torture, beheading, crucifixion were all in their future. Peter and Andrew left their father at the dock to follow Jesus. We believe Peter might have even have had a family with a wife and children that he left behind to follow Jesus. These men and women left everything behind--essentially lost everything--to follow a man they have never met or known and with only the promise that better things will follow. Sometimes we must lose it all to strike it big in the end.

Job had it all and when he lost it all he felt it was punishment. Little did he realize that it was God working through Job’s disaster, Job’s attack. God was never far Job. It was Job that could not see God. Job thought God was in all of his possessions but rather God was with him personally just as God is with us today. We are no better in the sight of God if we drive fastest car, wear the Armoni suites or if we come wearing jeans and a t-shirt. We are the same in God’s eyes. Robert Jenson, a former professor from LTSG, has a wonderful quote in his commentary on Mark. "Whenever you want to draw lines in order to mark who is outside the kingdom and who is inside, always remember: Jesus is on the other side of the line! Jesus is always with the outsiders!" Being a follower of Jesus Christ puts us with all the followers, the saints present and the saints who now celebrate with God, and it makes no difference who we are or where we come from--we are outsiders because we follow Jesus. It is simply our faith that grants us this eternal life, this eternal promise with God. My friends, do be like Job and ask the questions--get angry at God (I promise you God can take it) but know that in the end, God has and always will be with you. This is our theology, This is our faith, This is the promise God grants us in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sermon from September 7, 2009

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us pray, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14”

Here is good one about tolerance: A man who was walking across a bridge and came upon another man standing right on the edge, about to plunge to his death. The first man shouted "Stop! Are you a Christian?" "Yes, as a matter of fact I am." "Well so am I. Are you Catholic or Protestant?" "I'm Protestant," "Well so am I. Are you Episcopal or Lutheran?" "I'm Lutheran." "Wow... I am too. Are you ELCA Lutheran or Missouri Synod Lutheran? "I'm ELCA Lutheran," "Me too, that's amazing! Were you LCA or ALC?" "I'm LCA." "I can't believe it, so am I." But tell me are you a German Lutheran, or a Swedish Lutheran?" He answered, "Swedish Lutheran" To which the first man said, "Die you heretic," and he pushed him off the bridge.

Sounds crazy right? But how many times do we divide ourselves by churches or religious groups? I can think of hundreds of times I have been at church when someone has come up with a new idea and the first words out of someone’s mouth is “But we have never done it this way before.” Why are we not willing to take a chance? Why can we not trust in God when we are presented with a new and exciting avenue of ministry that differs from the status quo.

Every single church and every single Christian is guilty of this. I cannot tell you how many times I flinch in chapel at seminary when someone changes the order of morning prayer. My friends tell me I’m part of the rubrics police--i.e. I get annoyed when pastors and leaders do not follow the red italic text in the hymnal. We so easily forget texts like this one today--“Whoever is not against us is for us.”

This one particular line appears four times in the Synoptic Gospels--twice in Luke and once in Matthew and Mark. It is a line that, I believed, had great importance in the early church and among the Gospel writers. Think of the implications this line had on the early church--on the disciples hearing these words first hand. They thought they were doing the right thing by telling Jesus about this healer--TEACHER THIS GUY IS NOT PLAYING NICE WITH US! They are thinking they need to defend Jesus and the ministry he is establishing among the people. Think about the implications this man could have had on Jesus if he screwed up? But Jesus stops them and so eloquently turns their mistake into a teachable moment; “Whoever is not against us is for us.”

Robert Jenson, a famous theologian, has a wonderful quote his commentary on Mark, "Whenever you want to draw lines in order to mark who is outside the kingdom and who is inside, always remember: Jesus is on the other side of the line! Jesus is always with the outsiders!" What criteria should we use to determine if someone is "of Christ" or not? Where does active church membership fall within requirements for being "of Christ"? Most importantly, where is Jesus in all of this?

As a good Lutheran Seminarian, I would answer this last question by saying “Jesus is present in the hearing/the speaking of the word and in the Holy Eucharist.” But digging even deeper, I believe Mark is making the argument that Jesus is our midst just by saying his name. In verse 37 from last weeks lesson, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name”, in today’s reading, verse 38 “someone casting out demons in your name,” verse 39 “no one who does a deed of power in my name” and verse 41 “whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ. “ Bearing the name of Christ and acting in Christ's name indicates a belonging to Christ and perhaps even, being Christ's presence for the world . By claiming the Name of Jesus, God grants us the presence of Jesus in our lives no matter who we are.

Donald B. Kraybill, a professor in the field of sociology and religion says, "The genius of the gospel is its seed of self-criticism or self-reformation. Each generation of Christians, like the Pharisees, is tempted to make sacred its programs and freeze its routines. Jesus showed us that humanly created structures aren't sacred. There are no sacred places, organizations, times, objects, doctrines or social positions, except in the sense that all good things are finally sacred." We must remember that God is in charge and through God, all things are made Holy and Sacred. When it comes down to it, our hymnal will not save us, our Book of Concord will not save us, our church, our pews, our ideas will not save us but it is simply the cross that will save us. No matter what we do on earth, the cross is what saves us. So in the Name of Jesus, go and proclaim this message of God’s love for us and remember that whoever is not against us is for us. Amen.

A call for Church Unity Four weeks ago and now Lutheran CORE wants to seperate.

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

September 10, 2009

Lutheran CORE Plans Next Steps, Intends to be 'Free-Standing' Synod

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Saying the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America(ELCA) has "fallen into heresy," because of actions taken at last month's churchwide assembly, the chair of Lutheran CORE (Coalition for Reform)said the organization intends to be a "free-standing synod" which will carry out ministries apart from the ELCA.

In addition CORE is expected to consider initiating conversations with member Lutheran congregations and reform movements in the United States and Canada toward a possible reconfiguration "of North American Lutheranism," said the Rev. Paull E. Spring, State College, Pa., LutheranCORE chair. Spring is a former bishop of the ELCA Northwestern
Pennsylvania Synod.

Those and other ideas will be discussed when Lutheran CORE holds a convocation Sept. 25-26 at Christ the Savior Lutheran Church, Fishers, Ind. Nearly 700 people have registered as of Sept. 8, said the Rev. Mark Chavez, Landisville, Pa., CORE director and vice president, WordAlone Network, New Brighton, Minn. WordAlone is a member of Lutheran CORE. Lutheran CORE is a coalition of pastors, lay people, congregations and reform groups in the ELCA. CORE expressed distress and sadness over the assembly's decisions on human sexuality. The assembly adopted by a two-thirds vote an ELCA social statement, "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust," which CORE said changed ELCA teaching and policy on same-gender relationships. Voting members also directed that changes be made to ELCA ministry policies to make it possible for people in committed, same-gender relationships to serve as ELCA associates in ministry, clergy, deaconesses and diaconal ministers. CORE opposed that change, citing biblical teaching on marriage and homosexuality.

Following the assembly's decisions on sexuality, CORE announced it was ending its relationship as an independent Lutheran organization "officially recognized" by the ELCA. The organization is also encouraging ELCA members and congregations to send finances directly to ministries they support versus giving to the ELCA.

More than 1,000 people have contacted Lutheran CORE since the assembly, most expressing sadness and asking questions, Spring said. However, CORE is "encouraging people to remain in the ELCA -- for now," Spring said in a telephone interview with the ELCA News Service. "I myself intend to remain on the ELCA clergy roster and remain a member of an ELCA congregation," he said, adding that he and others may not participate much in the ELCA beyond the congregation. Despite his own "disappointment and shock" over the assembly's actions, Spring said he hopes Lutheran CORE can "be a visionary, future-oriented group."

"We have no desire to look back at what happened in Minneapolis. We need to look to the future with confidence, amid much uncertainty," Spring said.

CORE's 2009 convocation is expected to adopt a proposed constitution, authorize proposals for developing fiscal plans and authorize its steering committee to initiate conversations with "congregations and reform movements" within Lutheran CORE, Lutheran Congregations for Mission in Christ, and other compatible organizations, Spring wrote in a Sept. 4 e-mail to CORE supporters. There's also much planning to do over the course of the next year, he said. Convocation speakers include the Rev. Kenneth H. Sauer, Columbus, Ohio, former bishop of the ELCA Southern Ohio Synod and former chair of the ELCA Conference of Bishops; Ryan Schwarz, Washington, D.C., a CORE steering committee member and runner-up in the election for ELCA vice president at the 2009 assembly; plus Spring and Chavez. "We will try to be churchly," Spring said of the upcoming CORE convocation. "We are trying to be responsible. There's a lot at stake
here, including the future of Lutheranism in the United States."

---
Editors: Pastor Spring's first name is correctly spelled as "Paull."

Okay so I am not sure what happened. In this article the leader of LutheranCore, Rev. Paul Spring, said that he would remain apart of the ELCA and stay on the rooster. But when I get to the end article I am left scratching my head trying to figure out what happened.

The church needs to be unified. I do not think Lutheran CORE would disagree with me on this point. The church just made a huge decision and needs to heal. It was a decision that has taken years to decide and will most likely take many years to heal from. My question is why would Lutheran CORE, an organization that claims that their "intention is to remain within our church and to work with congregations, individuals, and other reform-minded groups for the reform of our own church" would end its relationship as an independent Lutheran organization "officially recognized" by the ELCA and encourage ELCA members and congregations to send finances directly to ministries they support versus giving to the ELCA? Where the hell is the church unity in this?

Whether you agree or disagree with the decisions the church made, we MUST (and I stress the word MUST) stay united. We should not go and run away from this. God gave us grace and we must show this grace. We have always been able to agree to disagree and live in communion and fellowship with one another. This is no different. Yes this decision did question theology and personal piety of many Lutherans but the church has been doing this for 2000 years. I seem to remember the debate in Acts about whether or not to minister to Gentiles and not just to the Jews. It was not a decision that many were happy about but the church unified and did what had to be done.

Remember there is always grace. We all sin and fall short of the Glory of God. The church and people that make up the church are no different. I am not calling the decisions of the ELCA right or wrong but they are still the decisions we must all live with. I am not to happy about what the church decided but I have accepted it. If I had my way, it would have been a 2/3 vote for the recommendations. I feel that if the church is going to make a monumental change like it did back in August then it should of had monumental support for the changes. But the vote is done and there is nothing we can do to change the vote. We are only left to preach the Gospel and administer the Sacraments just as we have done for 2000 years. So instead of run away as Lutherans have classically done before, we should unite and be the church in the world. That is what we need most right now.

A continuing debate...

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness (Excerpt from the Declaration of Independence--Paragraph 2).

I posted these few sentences of this amazing document to give all of you, my devout readers, my perspective on the Health Care Reform vote. I have been trying to keep up on the debate but seminary has begun and I have very little time to watch the news. If I say anything that is wrong please comment and me know.

With Ted Kennedy's death still in our thoughts and minds, we are approaching a very important vote in our nation's government. I would argue this bill is as important as the civil rights bill and the emancipation of slaves. Ted Kennedy fought for many years for the national health insurance plan and died fighting for the bill. I am sure many on the other side of this bill are hoping that the bill would die with him. But those fighting, well at least for me, will never stop fighting because of that first line in the Declaration of Independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights..."
This concept of unalienable rights has developed and evolved since this document was wrote. Many of those who signed this document owned slaves and would never have thought that slaves had rights. But America evolved and realized that slaves are people and these people do have rights. Granted, America is still dealing with problems of racism and discrimination but America has made many great strides in establishing laws that try to create equality for all.

This same argument could also be given to the woman's movement in the United States (and in many different institutions). This document was wrote by men and uses masculine pronouns but, like the civil rights movement, America's ideals and norms changed and the rights of women were created. Essentially, that first line should now read, "...all men and women, black and white, Asian, Mexican, European, etc, are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights..." While America has made goals to ensure the equality for all, there is still much work to be done.

So we all have certain unalienable rights--"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." When I hear those words I think about Maslow's Hierarchy of needs. The basic essence of this theory (please correct me if I am wrong because I was a sociology major in undergrad and we didn't really like the entirety of this theory) is that if you provide the basics needs for life, people will be happy and productive. You can look this theory up on google.
I do believe that the writers of this document put life first to emphasize life. We all have the right to live--the right to live a life devout to your country and your God (whoever that may be), and to live searching and pursuing happiness. How is Health Insurance not apart of that?

I still cannot fathom how some individuals (and no this is not a party issue anymore because there are many democrats that I will not support if they are against this bill) can say Health Insurance is not a right the government should provide. The government is called by our founding fathers to secure these rights for us. If the government does not do this, the people must stand up against the government. The United States has the ability to provide the best damn health care to all people. How can we deny this medical care to people just because they cannot afford it. This vote should not be a political move but rather a move to ensure those unalienable rights--to open the door to individuals, myself included, who cannot afford health insurance. America has always been about giving rights to individuals. How is this any different?

While some have made the argument that since Health Care is not in the Constitution the government should not get involved. I would ask you read my entry from July 8th. The government role is to ensure the well-being of all of it's citizens. Left to our own devices, we would hurt our neighbor. This is why we have laws and police to enforce those laws. The government ensures us our safety. So if the government ensures us our safety it makes logical sense for the government to ensure the health of it's citizens. For example, the government banned the use of trans-fats in food to help improve the diet of it's citizens. Another example would be minimum wage. The government tells employers they must pay a wage (I am not going to call it a livable because it is far below the standard of living in many parts of the U.S.) that can provide the bare necessities.

Okay enough of a rant. I could write a dissertation on this subject. Please comment and let me know what you think.

Sermon for the 13th Sunday after Pentecost

My sermon from August 30th. You can watch me this time too!

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us pray, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14”

Grace and peace to you from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in the God the Father and the Holy Spirit.

In the Lutheran Church there is dyad, this concept, of Law and Gospel. For Luther, the idea that we must work to earn our salvation was inherently wrong but Luther never said we should abolish the law. The Law is our moral guide, our moral code. I would add that the Law is what reminds us of our own humanity.

But the word LAW usually send shrivels up the spins of Lutherans because we are afraid to say “you must do this” or “you must do that.” It is one of the reasons why Martin Luther wanted to remove the books of James and John, traditionally known as the Catholic Letters/Epistles, from our canon—from the bible. Luther never like the theology of the book of James— “Faith without works is dead”—because of the negative interpretations that the church once had for this line. James wrote that line more likely out of necessity because the early church was taking Paul’s words to literally and practicing a Theology of cheap grace—you don’t have to anything like go to church or volunteer to help the less fortunate because we are going to heaven.

So now how does the Lutheran Church view this idea of Law and Gospel? I am going to try my best to explain without breaking a few heresies along the way. The first use of the law is the Civic law—do not kill people, do not steal, ect. The second use of the law is the knowledge of sin—we know we have sinned because we are told this is wrong. The Third use of the law is a guide to Christian living—we should do this because this is what God wants us to do.

Now the Gospel fits into this scheme in a very different way. We have this law that guides us tells us we should live this way but then we have the Gospel that says it is okay if we can’t live up the standards set before us. Martin Luther never believed that we could ever maintain perfection—other reforms did such as John Wesley. Luther would have said that the law was very good and necessary but not a tool of bondage. We are not bounded to the law. It creates a protection to us so that we cannot be accused of not living a good moral life but it would also guide us so we can live this good and moral life.

So knowing all of this about Law and Gospel, our readings from Deuteronomy and Mark should make a bit more sense. In Deuteronomy, the Israelites believed the law was a divine gift that provided guidelines for living out the covenant. The law is very important to the Israelites and to this day stays important to the Jewish faith. But like any good thing, overuse of the law had become a problem. The law became oppressive and discriminated against the less fortunate of society. What was once seen as free had become a prison filled with guards and wardens who did not believe in grace.

I love Jesus’ response to the Pharisees. He is able to quote scripture so eloquently:
Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
'This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
7in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.'
8You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition."
Lets focus on that last line—“ You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition.” God’s command is law and the Pharisees are sticking with the law right? Jesus is not questioning their ability to hold to the law—personally I think it’s good to wash your hands before you eat and make sure the food is clean—but to deny an individual rights at the table because they do not have the ability to wash their hands or hold to the law is a bit much. Jesus is protesting against the human customs being given the weight of divine law, while the essence of God's law is ignored. God’s law was to ensure the wellbeing of ALL of God’s people and not just the few who stuck with the law.

So here we are left with this concept of Law and Gospel. The law is our guide and the Gospel—not just the New Testament but the entire bible; Hebrew Scripture and the Christian Canon—the Gospel frees us when we cannot hold to the law. Just as our Lord said, “15there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile." 21For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."

Our sin is made evident in what we do and what we say. We are the essence of sin but thankful there is a God who redeems us and loves us even when we cannot live up to God’s standards. So go and do what Luther said, “Sin and Sin Boldly.” Do whatever is necessary to live out your baptismal calling. We are all still called today to do the work of the church. We might not be able to build bridges or knock on doors but we can all still love one another because it is by God’s grace, God’s wonderful and mysterious grace, that we find God’s salvation. May God grant us this grace this day in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.