Jesus Is Ready

Brad welcomed us warmly on a lovely, warm Sunday morning. Yesterday's car wash and rummage sale at Twig Town Hall raised a lot of money for the new building. May 31 we'll be worshiping across the street, and final prepping has been fun and exciting.

Announcements
1. "We enjoyed the semi-annual meeting so much that we are having another after the service today," Brad said. He wasn't kidding though. There has been an offer made on our current buildnig and we need to vote about whether to accept this offer.
2. Brooke excitedly shared that VBS is coming and the theme is Everest: Conquering Challenges with God's Mighty Power. An insert for Volunteer opportunities was included in today's bulletin. VBS will be June 15-18 this summer.

After a time of worship, during the offering,  Brooke came forward to share a video of what God is doing through our Covenant churches throughout the world. "We believe the local church is God's basic strategy to impact the world." 850 Covenant churches, 2.5 million people impacted. Brad wanted us to see where some of our resources go.

Jesus Is Ready

The message is based on the story of a simple woman who anointed Jesus' feet, found in Luke 7:36-50.

Brad began by noting that Jesus was always getting invited to parties. Jesus must have been likeable, fun to be with, Jesus was a blessing to be with because He loved people. That's who He was. People longed for His company.

Jesus enjoyed being in the presence of all kinds of people, including sinners and outcasts. This made religious leaders mad, but Jesus said, "It's not the healthy who need a doctor, but it's the sick."

In this story Jesus was at the house of Simon, a pharisee. It was crowded, with all kinds of smells. But at one point an uninvited woman showed up and came in, bringing yet another fragrance.

The Scripture describes her as a woman who was habitually immoral. Likely she was a prostitute.

So she hears that Jesus will be at this house and she shows up, though it is certain that she was not welcome. If you've ever been the victim of small town gossip you know what courage it took for this woman to show up here.

She showed up with an alabaster jar of perfume, and it is clear she had somehow met Jesus previously and had a powerful encounter with the Lord. It doesn't say who she was, but some say it may have been Mary Magdalene. When she arrives, she's here to explode with gratitude.

In His presence she comes unglued, tears pouring from her, sobbing. She falls at Jesus' unwashed feet, washing his feet with her tears. She undoes her hair and washes His feet, kisses His feet, then pours the contents of this jar onto His feet. The perfume fills the room with its fragrance.

As this woman does all this, Jesus doesn't say, "What's this woman doing here? What's going on here?" Rather, He was basking in the presence of a changed life.

Another smell in the room was the smell of judgmentalism. Simon sat there disgusted, thinking, "If this man were a prophet, He'd know what kind of woman this was." This woman was dirt.

In verse forty, Jesus responded to this man's thoughts. Jesus knows our thoughts, too. In response to Simon's thoughts Jesus tells a story.

41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?”

Then..

43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said. 44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”

Jesus makes it clear it isn't her love that saved her. And He doesn't downplay the seriousness of sin. But her sins, which are many, have been forgiven. That's why she's crying. She knows she has been forgiven for so much. And you think you have so little to be forgiven for, and that's a trap all of us can fall into.

Simon knew the right words, but this woman understood profoundly the deeper truth behind these words: "Love the Lord with all your heart, soul and strength."

What about you? Do you still find His grace amazing?

And your second question... how is your love for other people? Love is not a "strategy" for reaching the lost. We love people because God loves them.

We have to remember that we've not been forgiven for a little something. We've been forgiven for a lot.

When you know that you have been forgiven lavishly you begin to love lavishly.

48 Then Jesus said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49 The other guests began to say among themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

50 Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Jesus has the power to clean any stain, to make pure any life. And we ourselves are made right with God when we trust Jesus Christ to take away our sins.

The religious leaders grumbled, "Who is this who even forgives sin," but Isaiah already addressed this. "I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.

* * * *

Pam Johnson led a meeting after the service detailing the offer that was made. The offer for $95,000 is being voted on. The offer is contingent on the purchase of their home. This will be an "As Is" sale. The council is seeking freedom to negotiate a few items that were discuss. The vote was unanimous.

Risk Loving Like Jesus

"Good morning I’m going to talk about risk for the next few weeks. Premise: faith is inherently connected to risk, and risk is associated with fear. There are many places where God nudges us to take risks…" So began our service this morning with Pastor Shannon's welcome.

Announcements  
1. A shower would be held after the service to celebrate the gift of new life in two families, LeeAnn & Jake Vanderscheuren and Katie & Eric Borndal.
2. Council will meet Tuesday at its usual time.

Darlene, Ken and Chuck opened the worship time by singing “I Believe In Miracles.” After a time of worship the offering was taken while trio sang “Give Them All To Jesus... Shattered dreams, wounded hearts, broken toys... give them all to Jesus and he will turn your sorrow into joy."

Scripture: James 2:1-12

Risk Loving Like Jesus 

James is one of the most practical and direct books, so Brad began by inviting us to fasten our seat belts as he read for us two verses from today's Scripture reading.

The passage in James 2 begins with this straightforward statement: "My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism."

Want to know a secret? Nearly all of us have a list in our heads of who we like to be with and a list of    undesirables. We prefer to be around people of status or wealth and insulate ourselves from some. Others prefer to be around educated people. Some want to be around white collar people, and avoid blue collar. And vice versa. Then there’s thin and not so thin. And then skin color…

With God there is no partiality of any kind. It needs to be rooted out of our hearts and out of our church.You see it in Romans 2:11 also. "With God there is no partiality."

What is the origin of prejudice? It usually starts with parents. A second source of prejudice comes from peer groups. Once that poison of partiality is in the system, there is no human way to root it out.We need God's help.

When Jesus started his ministry He seized every opportunity to expose this.

In Mark 3 Jesus was in the synagogue on the Sabbath and the Pharisees had set up a sting operation, attempting to catch Jesus working on the Sabbath. In those days, the Pharisees had such a system of dos and don'ts over every aspect of the Law and especially around what you couldn't do on the Sabbath so when Jesus was speaking they had arranged for a man with a shriveled hand to be right there. Jesus sized up what is going on and got angry, grieved to His core at the hardness of heart in these religious people who would use this man's liability for their own ends. The tragic reality is they hated Him so much that right off they wanted to kill Him because this healing and He didn't pay homage to their rules.

On another occasion Jesus and the disciples were walking through Samaria and when they came to a well He sent the disciples on ahead into town. A Samaritan woman had come out to fetch water, a woman who good Jews would normally not talk to. Jesus didn't follow those conventions. He spoke with her, engaged her in conversation and changed her life. By his behavior Jesus was stating that this woman mattered and that women matter.

Religious leaders also disliked his Jesus’ choices of who to hang out with. In Luke 15 is sharing with tax collectors and sinners while Pharisees and teachers of the law muttered amongst themselves. Jesus knew what was annoying them and responded with three parables in a row: the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son. These people matter to God. That which is missing is valuable enough for an all out search.

In every case, retrieval brings rejoicing. “There is joy all across heaven when a single sinner repents.”

Then Pastor Brad stated "You have never looked into the eyes of a person who does not matter to God. Every single person your eyes fall upon matters to God. They are people for whom Christ died, they deserve your respect."

Jesus in his last hours, even as He hung on the cross, saw others in this way. One of the thieves nailed there that day who had wasted his life making wrong choices looked to Jesus, knowing he could never clean up his act now, wondered, "What if even someone like me mattered? After all I've done... "

And he asks, "Jesus, is there any chance you'd remember someone like me when you come into your kingdom?"

Jesus replied, "Today, you will be with me in Paradise."

Brad paraphrased, "In spite of all you've done, you still matter to Me. You've mattered to me since the day you were born. You mattered to Me when you were headed the wrong way.You mattered to Me when you did your first heist, when you were arrested the first time, when you got locked up the first time. ... on the basis of your humility and faith, I can say to you, 'Welcome home.'"

This is a love of a different kind.  It should melt your heart and change the way you look at other people. It should motivate us to reach out to those whom we've diminished, to be the first to say always, "You matter to God."

If You’re Happy and You Know It, Clap Your Hands

“Good morning!” In his intro remarks Pastor Brad stated that for four months he has been returning to a familiar text, I Corinthians 13. Today, he will be focusing on a little word in verse 6.

ANNOUNCEMENTS
~ Wednesday evening we are packing boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Join us for a meal and help pack our boxes. Pick an age bracket and bring gifts. Financial donations are welcome to defray cost of shipping the boxes.
~ Gwen announced the Christmas program planned for this year, and on Wednesdays (after next week) there will be rehearsals here after the meals.
~ Friday, Nov. 16 will be our Fall Bazaar with Crafts and Bake Sale at the Swamp Sisters, 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tell your friends.
~ Saturday, also at the Swamp Sisters, there will be a Ladies Pre-Holiday Brunch
~ Covenant World Relief soup can labels were handed out to raise money for a range needs. Covenant World Relief is the humanitarian aid ministry of the Evangelical Covenant Church
~ Leonard is once again making a Thanksgiving Dinner for those who have no place to go for Thanksgiving. We also sang “Happy Birthday for Paula whose birthday was this weekend.
~ Men as Peacemakers will be here in December to talk about domestic violence.

Joe Stapleton passed from our midst yesterday. He was ready and looking forward to be with the Lord, so we sang one of his favorite songs together to begin our worship: “Soon and Very Soon.”

An offering was taken and then the children dismissed for children’s church as Brad read to us from Mark 12:38-44, the story of the widow’s mite.

We prayed for needs both within our church family and in other places.

If You’re Happy and You Know It, 
Clap Your Hands

We've been hovering around I Corinthians 13 this year, and today Pastor Brad's message zeroes in on one particular phrase. Verse 6: Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth.

In John’s first letter to the churches, the apostle writes:

9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

And a little further on John makes it clear that whereas God is invisible, He makes Himself known by our actions, specifically the love we show one another.

"I was trying to think back over my life," Brad said, "and I have never heard it quite applied this way. 'Since God has loved us, we should so love one another.'”

This passage says the invisible God is made visible through the love His people show to one another. His love for us prompts us to love others.

Brad shared a little background about the Amish to set up a story he was going to share. There are Amish communities in a number of areas around the country.  They came from Europe as part of a larger family called Mennonites. They are famous for their simple living, plain attire and reluctance to adapt with the times. It's as if they were determined to maintain a lifestyle from the 18th century.

On October 4, 2006, in the village of Nickel Mines in Lancaster County, Amish country, a man named Charles Carl Roberts went into the school with guns. After sending out the men and boys, he tied up ten young girls, firing 18 shots into their heads and then taking his own life. The response of the community shocked the media that covered the shooting. The response was forgiveness. Two of the elders from the community went to the shooters wife… told her he was forgiven, and they also helped with funeral expenses. Media did not understand the Amish response.

One scholar who knew the Amish explained it. "The Amish believe God told them to forgive. They acted on their belief. Their emotions would follow after.”

How do you do that? You just do it.

In I Corinthians 13 Paul wrote: Love does not delight in evil. 

He is talking about the delight some people have when other people do evil. Love is not happy when other people go wrong. This is the heart of gossip, isn’t it? We talk about other peoples’ failures. One reason we do this is that when we compare ourselves to others, it makes us feel better about ourselves.

A former prime minister of England once said, “The mistakes of the great are the consolation of fools.” Taking consolation in others’ failures is not loving. Yet this is so pervasive in our culture today. Rumors are the poison fruit of politics. This recent political campaign exemplifies how we focus on the failures of our leaders.

The Apostle Paul had ample opportunity to let his detractors get him distracted. Paul bore in his body the marks of many beatings, stonings and more. Ten years after he wrote I Corinthians he found himself writing letters to the churches he founded while in prison in Rome. In the first chapter of his letter to the Philippians he wrote about his chains, and his observations that some people who were preaching the gospel out of wrong motivations, some out of rivalry or selfish ambition. Notice that he doesn't focus on their malfeasance, rather he states, “But what does it matter, … in every way Christ is preached, and I rejoice.”

Can we rejoice when truth prevails? When truth advances wherever it is proclaimed.”

Brad concluded with an illustration of his point with. People like to show him photos of their grandchildren, and he enjoys the connections from this sharing. They love to show pictures. They usually beam with joy at how cute this one is and how this one is now in college and this one is a star in basketball. But sometimes their voices soften, and they say “Pastor, I’d appreciate you praying for my grandson Larry…”

Brad recognizes this reaction for what it is. Larry has made bad decisions, is not going the right path. But it's a reaction of love. They don't say mean things, rather they care and bear it. Love doesn’t delight when people go wrong.

But we’re gladdened by truth, wherever it is found.

Harvest Fest

Our service was held at the Twig Town Hall in celebration of the new Sunday School season. The theme for this year’s Harvest Fest was Come Deepen Your Roots Wit Us. It’s one of the early autumn days where the sun warms by day and temps drop during the night. As we gather beneath the pavilion there are some in jackets because of the chill and some in short sleeve shirts soaking up the sun. The pillars and front of the makeshift sanctuary are adorned with orange and yellow sun flowers and maple leaves, splashed with sunlight.

“I’m grateful you’re here. I hope you can all hear me,” Pastor Brad said, informally attired in a blue-grey T-shirt. Announcements in the bulletin included… but other practical matters were addressed, such as the easiest way to reach the restroom.

Brad elaborated on the theme for today, deepening your roots, and then read from a passage in Colossians 2, “Be rooted in Christ… And put on love…” What does it look like to be rooted in Christ?

This was Elsa's last week with us and Brooke brought Brad an envelope with a card that included the gift of an oil change for the car Chuck helped her find. We all then prayed for her to be blessed as she went on with her life path.

Darlene, Chuck and Ken led us in some songs including I Saw the Light, You Are My All In All, and others.

Invocation, Offering, a Scripture Reading from Mark 7:4-8, 12-13 and 21-24, Prayers for needs in the Church Family and Special Music by Ed Newman carried us to the message Brad delivered this day.

A Few Words for Our Time

I read about a play on Broadway that opens in a smoke-filled hotel room. It is a political meeting and they were looking for a candidate. Once they identified their candidate, they began looking for a winning platform. Ideas are thrown around, and nothing sticks so they ask the chambermaid who says their campaign should be about love. "Everyone wants love. The platform should be Love."

Today’s politicians do the same thing, looking for a word that tells their story: Hope, Change, Integrity… But so often it all just feels like words.

But the early church did make their platform Love.

Love is essential, but not easy. I Cor 13:4-7 sums it up. What love does and things is does not do. In the midst of this, Paul writes that love always hopes.

The Greeks had plenty of everything but they did not have hope. Located in the center of Corinth was a Temple to Aphrodite, in which employed massive quantities of temple prostitutes so the very name Corinthian meant slimy.

Paul went there and preached with the aim of making an impact. Paul’s hope was not based on wishful thinking, but rather on his knowledge of the power of the Gospel and God's love which impelled him. Love always hopes. There are no hopeless people. Love always endures.

Brad told the story of a Muslim man who listened to the Gospel and noted what it would cost this man to become a follower of Jesus.Everything.

In one of Paul's letter's to the Corinthian church Paul outlined the extent of his own suffering on behalf of the gospel. Brad then noted that there have beeb more martyrs on behalf of Gospel this past century than the previous nineteen and shared other examples of what people have sacrificed for God.

Ultimately, we see Jesus in the Garden and his own anguish in the shadow of the cross. "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."

Suffering is not going to make it as a plank on anyone’s political campaign, but God has a higher purpose for you... to make you like Christ.

Come deepen your roots with us.

My Dad Knows God

Leonard Armstrong welcomed us and reminded us that Pastor Brad is on his way to Tennessee with the youth heading to CHIC. He noted that Rev. David Eaton would be preaching this morning. Leonard then introduced Chuck who invited us to worship with the trio Ken, Darlene and himself as they sang an opening number and led us in music.

After the offering, the Scripture reading was from Mark 6:1-13.

Leonard shared a humorous anecdote before leading us in a prayer time. Rev. Eaton was then introduced and went forward to take the pulpit.

My Dad Knows God

Rev. Eaton began by saying how much they appreciate Pastor Brad in their hospice program. "He is truly a community pastor out here… involved with so many families." His intro included mention of his own experience with CHIC many years ago. He then turned to his theme.

Most of us are familiar with the story of Samuel. When he was a little boy living in the tabernacle he thought he heard a voice. Three times he went to Eli who finally realized that God was speaking to the boy.How this boy Samuel came to be living in the temple is another story.

Eli was a priest and one day this woman Hannah was praying in a somewhat strange way, her whole heart moved and her lips moved but there were no words coming out. Eli presumed she was drunk. Her prayer was for God to open her womb and if God would do this she would give the child to God and no razor would ever touch his head. Eli said, "May the God is Israel grant you what you have prayed."

Hannah conceived and bore a son whom she named Samuel. When the boy was weaned Hannah brought him back to Eli to be given to the service of the Lord as promised. In short, Eli became Samuel's adoptive father.

Eli’s one fatal flaw was that he was a weak father. When you read the story you can guess that his two sons, Phinehas and Hophni, were pampered and spoiled. Eli was a descendant of Aaron and one of his two sons should have been the next high priest, but they were less than godly, even shameful in their behavior.

Rev. Eaton then read to us from I Sam 2:12-36 which begins, "Eli's sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord."

Eli’s leniencies toward his sons did not go unnoticed by God. God watches over what we do. God sends a prophet to Eli's house and he is told that a judgment is coming, and as a sign both his sons will die on the same day.

It is at this point in the story (Chapter 3) that the young Samuel hears God speaking to him. 

In the fourth chapter Eli's judgment arrives. Israel is at war with the Philistines and the Hebrews take it on the chin. But the elders of Israel believe that if they bring the ark of the covenant to the battlefield it will empower them. Unfortunately, despite the initial dismay it brings to the Philistines, ultimately the battle once again goes their way. A messenger is sent to Eli to give a report and we read these words… “also your two sons are dead and the ark of God has been captured.”Upon hearing that the ark had been capture, Eli fell over backward in his chair, broke his neck and died.

Eli would not have been Man of the Year material. The judgment of God extended beyond Eli and his sons.  On one occasion years later when David was fleeing Saul he kept his men nourished by getting bread from the priests of Nob. Saul, when he learned about it, killed them all… 85 total. These also were Eli’s descendants.

++++
Rev. Eaton asked, "What does it take to be a successful parent?"
Here are some answers to this inquiry.
1. A successful parent is a teacher. Being a teacher is more than words, but also includes modeling. The successful parent transfers the values of life. This includes...
a. Spiritual training
b. Reproducing our faith, making Jesus central in our lives
c. Moral teaching
Society tends to do a lousy job of teaching morals. Everything is relative in this society where there are no absolutes except the maxim "there are no absolutes." We must teach morals by both words and actions.
d. Financial teaching, vocational teaching and lines of authority are also important.

2. A successful parent is a lover.
a. Make your home an atmosphere of love
b. The best gift dads can give children is love for their mother.
c. Love is self-sacrificing, and wanting the best for another.
d. Spoiling does not mean you loved too much, it means you loved too little.

Our guest preacher closed with a story about boys bragging about their fathers. The father of one of the boys was listening in as the kids exclaimed their fathers' greatness.
“My dad can do engineering schematics,” said the first.
“My dad knows the mayor,” said the second.
“My dad knows the governor,” boasted the third.
 The father's breathing hesitated as he leaned to hear what his own son would say.
“My dad knows God,” the boy exclaimed.

The father crept back to his study, deeply moved... and I am guessing challenged. 

How Deep the Father’s Love Is for Us

After a warm greeting, the following announcements were highlighted.

Brooke shared with enthusiasm that it’s time for volunteers to begin signing up for Vacation Bible School. There was an orange insert in the bulletin with a list of needs to help orient us, which will also be available in the Narthex over the next several weeks as well. VBS will again be held at the Twig Town Hall.

There have been two important meetings in preparation for our needs assessment for the new building. They have gone well and two more are slated for next Sunday from 4-6 and Monday evening 6-8. Brad’s goal in this project is 100% participation.

This coming week is Palm Sunday. Among the activities schedules is a Good Friday service at 7:00 p.m.

The worship time began with Chuck Vanderscheuren reading the passage from Acts about Phillip and the Ethiopian. This was followed by two songs from the quartet, “Behold the Lamb” and “Worthy of Worship.”

Ken from the Gideon’s shared with us about the work they have done in sharing Bibles with the world in more than 190 countries and more than 180 languages. This was followed by the quartet singing “On the Jericho Road” and a time of prayer.

How Deep the Father’s Love For Us

Today Pastor Brad’s sermon centered on three incidents in the life of Jesus as recorded in Luke 7. Brad began by noting, perhaps with envy, Jesus’ strength. During the course of his years in ministry He poured Himself out, continuously being available to teach and meet needs. Luke 7 takes place immediately following the Sermon on the Mount, a day that was undoubtedly exhausting as Jesus ministered to a multitude.

The first incident occurs when a Roman soldier requested help from Jesus to heal his servant boy. Brad emphasized that there are no second class citizens in God’s economy. Jesus’ love does not discriminate between haves and have not, between sheiks and shoeshine boys. There is not partiality with Jesus. The fullness of His love is available to all, distributed freely. It’s only a matter of opening our hearts.

In verse 10 the boy is indeed healed.

In the next town on His journey Jesus is interrupted by a funeral. He asks who passed away and learns that it is the only son of a woman who has already lost her husband. Jesus felt a deep compassion and his heart went out to her. In response He goes to the casket and says, “Get up.” The young man comes to life again. Even though Jesus did not know this woman, His heart was moved.

The third incident in this chapter takes place in a town where all the important people have thrown a party for this special guest. It is an A-list type of crowd consisting of movers and shakers. At a certain point an uninvited guest arrives. It is the town’s “sinful woman” who enters and throws herself at the Lord’s feet, bathing them with her tears. She then pours ointment on His feet, as if to say, “You’re the only one on earth who can help me, I have sunk so low.”

The others at this party of bigwigs are mumbling to themselves, “If He knew what kind of woman this was He would not be allowing her to do this.”
But in God’s eyes, people who make big mistakes and cry sincere tears of repentance receive massive amounts of love and grace. This is why verse 47 underscores a significant truth: He who is forgiven much loves much.

Brad stated that if anyone should be most loving it should be him, for he has been forgiven much. But then , who amongst us has not?

If we are to be like Jesus, we need to become indiscriminate lovers of other people.

When the dinner party ended, the people there were asking, “Who is this man?” It’s a question people have been asking for more than two thousand years.

As noted earlier, Jesus stands at our heart's door, knocking, asking to be invited in. What will be your response?

Brad closed with a candid acknowledgement, “The fact that I am still loved by the creator of the universe still blows me away.” An apt introduction to our celebration of the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.

Reminder: Next Week Is Palm Sunday, the commencement of Holy Week.

Learning To Love

This morning's greeting included a reminder that this was the first Sunday in Lent, a time of reflection as we move through the weeks toward Easter. "How am I doing as a follower of Jesus?" Pastor Brad's focus these weeks of Lent would upon the fruit that should be growing in us as we walk with Jesus.

Announcements
1. The council will be meeting Tuesday evening.
2. Carl Peterson, a Covenant missionary serving in Mexico, will be here the first Sunday in April.
3. April 10 we will have our Annual Meeting.
4. April 9 there will be a pancake breakfast 8-noon at St. Benedict's Church as a fund raiser for cancer research.

Darlene and the quartet opened the service with a rendition of the song Praise His Name. They proceeded to lead us in a period of worship. The offering was taken while the quartet sang about God being with us not only in the good times but also in the hard. "The God of the day is still God of the night."

The reading of Matthew 4:1-11 and a time of prayer preceded the sermon.

Learning to Love from the One We Follow

Brad began by by reading a section of I Corinthians 13 beginning at verse 4. He would return to this passage twice more in today's message.

He then talked about love. We talk about love, sing about love, think about love and we all want love in our lived. And he proceeded to tell us about the loves in his life, beginning with the girl he was in love with in fifth grade. She had braided pg tails down her back, "and I longed to pull them because I was in love with this girl. That's how boys showed affection in fifth grade.

Later in life his dating techniques improved. He described a movie date, and even a first kiss, and eventually the altar with this girl now a young woman.

Forrest Gump once said, "I may not be a smart man, but I know what love is."

Brad shared that there were several Greek words for love. He summed up Eros with this statement, "What can I get for me?" Phileo is the Greek word for friendship love, a word that is at the heart of the name Philadelphia, city of brotherly love. And then there is Agape, God's kind of love. He defined agape as that "in spite of how I feel or what you did, supernatural difference-making love." This is I Corinthians 13.

What Brad did next was share how he personalizes this passage. Instead of reading, "Love is patient, love is kind" Brad said he asks, "Am I patient? Am I kind?"

Love ought to be a priority in our lives and our highest goal. And he asked what has been growing in our lives these past ten years? Our bellies? Our foreheads? Or our hearts? A bigger heart is what matters.

"Now I am giving you a new commandment," Jesus said. "Love one another, as I have love you." The love He speaks of is sacrificial and unconditional.

Love is inclusive. Jesus was notorious for including those whom others had rejected, from lepers to prostitutes. Jesus considered everyone better than Himself. If all you do is love the lovable, why is this commendable? Everyone does that.

Love is approachable. Jesus was approachable. Even in the midst of a busy day, with crowds pressed around him, he had time to set a child on his knee.

Brad said it's his desire to always be approachable. He may not be available at all times, but he most assuredly strives to be constantly approachable. Husbands, are you approachable? Wives, are you approachable? As a manager do you lead by intimidation or are you approachable? Parents, would your children say you are approachable?

Another feature of Jesus' love was that He was not only approachable but He would touch the untouchable. Brad shared a story about a man dying of AIDS whose parents only concern was to make sure that no one knew the cause of his death, rather than to make sure that he knew he was loved. Some have said AIDS is God's curse on homosexuals, but Brad noted that others have wondered if AIDS might be God's test of how compassionate we will be.

Great need is a time of great opportunity. Mother Teresa observed, "We can do no great things, only small things with great love."

In I John 3 we read, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers."

Brad wondered whether one reason we do not love more today is because we move too fast. Maybe the most loving thing we can do is slow down, to rest, replenish.

He said that even when our intentions are good, one of our biggest problems is that we use the wrong power source. There are two kinds of love... Brand X, which is feeling-based, sentiment driven, and then there is supernatural love.

Galatians 5:22-23 speaks of the fruit of the Spirit, beginning with love. God grows this love inside of us.

In this time of Lent, Brad urged us to use this time to get to know Jesus better. Love is the only thing that counts. Open yourself up to that.

In closing, Brad returned again to the passage from I Corinthians 13. He asked to read it differently this time, to personalize it.

I am patient, I am kind, I do not envy... When we think honestly on the meanings of these words, it's easy to see that we have a long way to go.

Love

This morning's message was about love. Your faithful scribe will share notes about the service shortly in the next blog entry. But first, I wanted to share this song which I heard many years ago, sung by the Longenecker family at a missions conference in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. The Longeneckers were home on furlough from service in Yemen.

Love Is Oneness

Love is oneness, oh how sweet

to obey this law;

The unlovely we may meet

need our love the more.

Make us one, oh Love, we plead

with men's sorrow and their need.

We are one in needing love

let us true love show;

Only Love's Son from above

makes our spirits grow.

Love us, this is our heart's need,

Let us love and live indeed.

We are also one in this

we must love or die;

Loving others is true bliss

self-love is a lie.

Love of self is inward strife,

love turned outward is true life.

Let us love and fruitful be

love is God's own breath.

Love will kindle love and see

new life born from death.

Nowhere is a heaven more sweet

than where loving spirits meet.

Feb 1976

Loving God and Loving Others

After the initial warm-up remarks, the announcements included the following:
1. There will be an Ash Wednesday service on March 9 here at the church, with no Adventure Club or youth group that evening.
2. VBS is a ways off, but summer will be here before we know it and Brooke is gathering volunteers to help now.
3. Covenant Park is a great resource our church has available and it's not too early to begin planning your summer. Cheryl Borndal has registration forms.
4. A building project meeting is scheduled for Monday at 6:00 p.m. Bring an appetite because there will be pizza.

The Quartet+Levi began the worship time with "Teach Me, Lord" and then led us in a set of choruses from the silver song book. They also sang during the offering that followed, always nice.

Jeff Larson read Matthew 6:24-34 and then Brad led us in a time of prayer, which was followed by the message.

Loving God and Loving Others

Brad began by noting that relationships are hard. All of us have relationship issues. It may be a co-worker, a family member, spouses, neighbors or even friends.

Not only are relationships challenging, but today's passage of Scripture is also challenging, as it talks about adultery, lust, gouging out eyes, turning the other cheek when being struck, and more. "So with the time we have remaining, I'd like to read the text and then we'll close in prayer," he said.

It was a light-hearted entrance into the theme, but by the end of the message it was apparent to all that this was a section of the Sermon on the Mount that has some serious things to say.

Ultimately, the easiest way to sum up the whole of the law of God is to recognize that it is a law of love. Love God and love one another. But life has ways of tripping us up.

The passage is Matthew 5:21-48 which covers a lot of familiar territory: murder, adultery, divorce and more.

Pastor Brad noted that there is a sequence in sin. Sin doesn't just happen. And Jesus zeroes in on it through these well known commandments. How does it happen? It's like a string of dominoes and when the first one tips, the rest are set in motion. Verses 27 & 28 show that murder begins in the heart. It begins with an attitude.

Adultery, too, doesn't just happen. We live in a culture that bombards us with sexual imagery. By allowing our minds to fixate on sexual fantasy, we have set in motion the actions that will trip us up. Brad pointed out that this is an equal opportunity issue that affects young and old, male and female.

Jesus then makes a hard prescription. "If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell." Is the Bible telling us to gouge out our eyes? To cut off our hands? No, the Lord is making a point. This is a serious issue and if one is to find freedom from sin, one needs to take drastic action.

The truth is, you can still cut off your hand and pluck out your eye and still have lust in your heart. What is that drastic step for you?

Another tough section follows, the matter of divorce. Divorce was never God's intent. But what Brad pointed out that is significant is that there is a relationship between all these sections of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus' discussion of divorce should not be divorced from the preceding paragraph on adultery, or the one before that addressing murder. These are dominoes, beginning with an attitude in the heart that leads to hatred, loss of intimacy, lust and ultimately the violation of one's (wedding) vows. It's not by chance that Jesus deals with adultery in the next breath after addressing murder.

When Jesus says, "Do not break your oaths. Let your yes be yes and your no be no," He again goes deeper than that. People say they will swear on a stack of Bibles that what they said is true or whatever, but why? They are trying to manipulate others to buy in to their interpretation of the facts. Jesus says that kingdom people are not concerned with spinning or stretching the truth, or manipulating others. They have integrity, and their word is good.

At this point Brad shared a number of lame excuses he has heard people give over the years when they want out of their marriages. You can see how all of these sections are intertwined not isolated points in the sermon. Jesus says, "Keep your oaths."

Brad then turned to verse 38, leading into a most misunderstood passage. "“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you."

Is Jesus saying that if you live with an abuser and they strike you in the cheek you're supposed to just turn the other and let them whack you again? Or if you're being sued for your car you should throw in the house as well? Or if your drug addict nephew is asking for money you should give it to him?

Brad said that Jesus is not setting down laws here. He is using illustrations of what kingdom people might do in certain situations because they go against the culture. The culture says, "When you're hit, hit back." Jesus says there are alternatives.

The real issue is this: Am I becoming the kind of person Jesus wants me to be?

The kicker verse in this whole section is verses 43-44: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

The law of love is the basic kingdom rule. It begins with having your attitude right. The general law of the kingdom is learning how to apply it in every and any situation we're in in like. What do our actions look like when we apply the law of love. To be like Jesus is to be a loving servant. That's why you find Him spending time with children in the midst of a busy day. Or washing the feet of His disciples, and giving His life on a cross.

Jesus still goes further. "Be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect." Jesus doesn't call us to do what He did on the cross. But He does call us to be saturated with His kind of love.

He Chooses You

Today was the first Sunday in Lent, a little cold outside but with a bright sun beaming through the windows and a lot of warm hearts within. Pastor Brad welcomed us warmly and summarized last Wednesday’s Ash Wednesday service this way: “You’re probably worse than you think you are, but God’s message to you in, ‘I love you.’” He then introduced his theme for the upcoming weeks: An Ordinary Day With Jesus.

Announcements
1. Cheryl Borndal noted that camp registrations are here.
2. A photographer will be here on the 15th and 22nd to take pictures for a new church directory. If you are part of our church family, even if you are not a member, get your family portraits taken so you can be included.

Dana Stroschein then shared for a few minutes regarding the tragedy that befell their family. Their home burned this past week. Dana put it this way, “We gave up our house for Lent.” It was wonderful to see her spirit. The Lord’s hand was evident in some of the particulars by which they’re lives were saved. "Despite the fact that our country is in an economic crisis, with wars going on abroad," Dana said she has never been more grateful. It was a moving testimony to God’s grace.

The quartet – Ken, Dale, Chuck & Darlene – sang for us and then led the worship time, which was followed by the offering, Scripture readings and a time of prayer.

He Chooses You

By studying the encounters between Jesus and different kinds of people it is possible to perhaps learn something about ourselves and our God. The ordinary day -- if any day with Jesus can be called ordinary -- which Brad talked about this morning was from Luke 5:1-11. The passage begins like this:

1And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret...

A little background on this lake. It is also called the Sea of Tiberius, or more commonly the Sea of Galilee. It is about seven miles wide and thirteen miles long, 680 feet below sea level and surrounded by thousand foot hills. It was the setting for a lot of cool things that happened in the life of Jesus. He stilled the storm here, fed 5,000 and walked on the water.

3And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.

At the time of this story Jesus had become somewhat popular already. Seeing the fishermen’s boats he got into the one with Simon in it. Simon was Peter’s name before Jesus declared that he was Peter, Petros, the Rock.

In the previous chapter, we find that Peter and his brother Andrew, though followers of Jesus were also still working as fisherman. In Luke 4:38 Simon Peter saw Jesus heal his mother-in-law and which indicates he was probably married and had a home life. So when Jesus gets into his boat, it is probably not their first meeting.

What’s interesting here, Brad noted, is the kind of people God chooses to change the world. Right from the beginning the whole list of is an assortment of people with shortcomings. Abraham was too old, Moses stuttered. David was too young, Rahab was a prostitute, Noah got drunk, Gideon doubted. In the New Testament John the Baptist was just plain weird.

Brad shared all this as a set up to some points he wished to make further along.

In verse four, Jesus turns to Simon, having finished his teaching, and says, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets.”

You can picture Simon’s response at this point. “Jesus, you may know something about carpentry, and teaching the Scriptures, but you don’t know anything about fishing. We’ve been up all night and caught nothing.” The nets had already been cleaned from a night of fruitless labor, so Simon wasn’t thrilled at this request. They were commercial fisherman by trade and knew that this was not a good time of the day for fishing, with the hot sun glinting on the water and the fish down deep.

Interestingly enough, despite his doubts, Simon answers, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." This is the very first time in the New Testament that we find the word “Master.” It is not the same as rabbi, or teacher or instructor. It says, essentially, “You’ve got authority.” And Simon pretty much indicates by these words that he wouldn’t do this for anyone else, but in this case it’s “as you wish.”

The catch, of course, is so incredible they have to call men from other boats to help bring it in, but even with the help the boats were so full they began to sink. At this, Simon Peter falls on his knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”

But Jesus replies, “Get up. From now on you will help Me catch men.” The word “catch” here actually means rescue.

Pastor Brad added some perspective here by sharing a story from Rob Hall, who preached at CHIC about six years ago. Hall pointed out that all Hebrew children, as part of their religious training had to memorize the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament. The highest honor for Hebrew youth was to be selected to follow their rabbi. A common saying of the day was, “May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi.” It indicated that it would be an honor to be such a close follower.

When Jesus went about, the “best candidates” for following rabbis were already taken. Simon Peter and the others here, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were those who hadn’t made the cut. Jesus, however, looked deeper than most people. And it was upon these men that the future of the church would depend.

In point of fact, we’re all “clearance rack” material. Yet, God says, “I want you to be my child,” in spite of our lopsided souls and garbled lives.

Here’s how Paul puts it in his letter to the Ephesians: 3-6How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He's the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth's foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son. (Eph. 1:4-6, The Message)

WE are the focus of God’s love.

It may be a risk investing in the stock market, but it’s an even greater risk when we invest in others. Jesus took that risk and invested Himself in fallible people, gave everything because He saw value there. He took the cross for every single one of us because we are deeply valued in His eyes.

“God has an incredibly high value of you,” Brad said. And the invitation, to follow Him still stands today, for you and me.

At the conclusion of this message, Brad stepped to the Communion table to partake in the Sacrament.

“We come to this table not because we must, but because we may,” he said.

“Do this in remembrance of Me.”

Crown Him King Once Again

"Good morning," he said. "I'm delighted you're here to worship with us." We were then reminded that today is Christ the King Sunday, a day in which we acknowledge and celebrate the kingship of Christ, His future return and eternal glorious reign.

Announcements today included the following:
1. Everyone is invited to come to the church next Saturday to decorate the sanctuary and Christmas tree, 1:30 p.m.
2. Saturday evening from 6:00 - 6:30 p.m. we gather to "get mugged." Bring a wrapped mug filled with the goodies of your choice, and a favorite game.
3. Next week we pick up our Pasties for the CHIC Fundraiser. Free will offerings throughout the year will also be welcome at any time.
4. The call is out for a donation of cookies and Christmas cards for the annual Inmate Christmas Program for the St. Louis County Jail. There are approximately 250 inmates and 35 volunteers at this Christmas event. Please bring your cookies (wrapped in a container that does not need to be returned) by December 9. Contact Ruth Anne Schelinder for additional details.
5. Pam shared that it's time to think about our annual Angel Tree program, also, in which we provide gifts for children who have a parent in prison. New Life Covenant will share by giving to a one year old boy and an five year old girl. Gifts need to be here by December 14. Call Pam Johnson for any additional details.

The worship service opened with Ken, Dale, Chuck and Darlene singing Holy, Holy, Holy. It was a very special time as we all joined in and continued with many wonderful classic hymns.

After the offertory, Cheryl and Darlene did a short drama about gratefulness.

The Scripture readings today were Psalm 100 and Ephesians 1:15-23. After a time of thanksgiving and prayer, Pastor Shannon preached today's message.

Crown Him King Once Again

33Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
34"Is that your own idea," Jesus asked, "or did others talk to you about me?"
35"Am I a Jew?" Pilate replied. "It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?"
36Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place."
37"You are a king, then!" said Pilate. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."
38"What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, "I find no basis for a charge against him. 39But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release 'the king of the Jews'?"
40They shouted back, "No, not him! Give us Barabbas!" Now Barabbas had taken part in a rebellion.
~ John 18:33-40 (NIV)

How surprising the ways Jesus puts His hooks in us. Pastor Brad began by telling a story about Frederick Buechner who, while listening to a minister make some off the cuff remarks, had his faith re-ignited. For Buechner it was "deep calling unto deep."

Pastor Shannon used this incident to springboard toward his theme, dealing with the many ironies of Scripture. He cited how Jesus refused Satan's effort to crown Him in the wilderness (offering Jesus the kingdoms of this world), yet how Jesus is crowned daily in the hearts of those who follow Him.

Amplifying the theme of irony, Brad spoke about laughter and how it is integrally related to truth, the centerpiece of Pilate's interrogation of Jesus on that dark Friday.

In reality, laughter is what we experience when we have been liberated from the illusions we once had that shackled us, when what we thought mattered is revealed to be tawdry and small in the light of the Truth of Christ, that He is king.

Indeed, Jesus declares, "For this I was born, to bear witness to truth."

When Jesus fed the five thousand, they responded by wanting to crown Him king. But when it came time to demonstrate his kingship, He rides into Jersualem on a donkey. What a different kind of image for one who is to be a king.

When Pilate failed to follow his conscience, succombing to pressure from Jewish leaders and the High Priest, Jesus was stripped, beaten and - in an ironic twist - crowned with thorns, robed, with mock obeisance from Roman soldiers. Even in joking about Him, they confessed the truth. "This is the king of the Jews." It's classic, comic irony. In trying to do one thing (mock Him) they were actually doing the opposite, proclaiming Him king.

The laughter is in knowing there will be a Third Day, resurrection coming.

Brad then shared with us Desmond Tutu, who was filled with love, identifying with Moses who declared, "Let my people go." Tutu, an opponent of South Africa's apartheid, was persuaded that love would win. He said love was his single weapon. To the ruling powers he stated, "All your weapons of oppression will fail."

We can laugh not because of present circumstances, but because there is a future hope. When Christ is king in our hearts, we can even laugh at ourselves. Our pretensions are seen for what they are, and we cease to take ourselves so seriously.

Pilate could have said "no" to the pressures put on him by the Jewish leaders, but instead he caved.

Lutheran pastor and author Walter Wangerin tells the story of an old black woman from his congregation in Chicago who used to comment on his sermon each week in the following manner. She was a smallish woman and spoke softly so that he had to bend down to hear her as she shook his hand after the service. Occasionaly she referred to his message as teaching and other times called it preaching. He finally decided to ask her what she meant, what the difference was between the two. She said, "When you teach, I learn for the day. And when you preach, God is here and holding us."

An incident occured in which Pastor Wangerin learned how astute this woman really was. The church was not in the best neighborhood. A prostitute nearby had had her water shut off and she and her johns (customers) would come to the church to use their water. Pastor Wangerin stepped in and stopped this. The following Sunday after church, the old woman, when she shook his hand, commented on the sermon. "God was holding you and not smiling. But He will."

In other words, Walter Wangerin was going to change, and the woman was confident of this. God was changing Pastor Wangerin's heart.

A similar story was shared to illustrate the point that God uses us in spite of ourselves.

In closing Pastor Brad asked, "Who or what rules your heart? What is it that thrills you dawn to dusk? Has Christ been crowned king in the midst of your tears and laughter... in your hearts?"

How Do You Read It?

Despite a chill north wind, the pews were packed again for worship this Sunday. Pastor Brad welcomed us with comments about how we are created for God’s pleasure, and that worship is not just something that happens on Sunday morning. Rather, all we do can be an act of worship.

He also noted that when we are here for worship, it is not as an observer, but as a participant in an act of worship. In the midst of all, here with us, is the God who created the universe.

The story of the good Samaritan is today’s theme, and many portions of the service dovetailed with this theme, especially the blessing of our Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes which were prepared last Wednesday evening.

A whole raft of announcements should be cited as the Advent season approaches and many activities are taking place. Here are a few that were noted.

1. CHIC Fundraising Pastie Sale… Contact Eric Borndal for details.
2. Jim Fretheim, Superintendent of the Northwest Conference of the Evangelical Covenant Church will be a guest preacher next Sunday. He can be counted on for an insightful, wise message. Lunch will be served afterwards.
3. A special Thanksgiving Service will be held 7:00 p.m., November 23rd at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Brookston.
4. A special ADVENTure Sunday School will be held Dec. 7, 14 and 21 leading into Christmas, 9 a.m. downstairs for all ages.
5. The Shannons will share their home in an Open House, Sunday December 7 during the coffee hour. (5637 Bergstrom Jct. Road)
6. The Christmas Program and Dinner will be on December 14 at 4:00 p.m. Kids’ practice is scheduled for the 13th, 10 a.m. till noon.

The quartet ushered us into worship with Fanny Crosby’s “I Love to Tell the Story.” After leading us in song and praise, the children carried the Operation Christmas Child boxes to the front where they were dedicated. Operation Christmas Child is a ministry of Samaritan’s Purse, intended to bring joy and hope to children in desperate situations around the world. Since 1993 more than 61 million shoe boxes have been packed and given.

The Scripture reading was from Psalm 78:1-7. After a time of prayer, Pastor Brad presented the message.

How Do You Read It?

It’s a familiar passage, the story of the Good Samaritan. We’ve all heard it many times throughout our Christian lives. The passage is found in Luke 10:25-37.

Does gaining eternal life really boil down to being a good neighbor? Or bringing a dinner to a hungry person? Is Jesus right to say this? Is it really this simple?

Pastor Brad was striving to engage our minds because all too often we hear passages like this and it’s the same old same old. We tune it out because we already know that. The challenge is to see something fresh, and the pastor succeeded in achieving this aim.

Brad noted that doctors do not give the same prescription to all patients. Each has different ailments which must be first diagnosed, and the remedy prescribed accordingly. There is not one answer for all. For this reason, the Lord spoke with Nicodemus about the need to be born again. To the woman at the well He offered living water, and said, “Go call your husband,” knowing her real circumstances. To the rich young ruler He said, “Sell all, give it to the poor and follow Me.”

In this story, Jesus happens to be talking with a lawyer. This lawyer knew all the right answers. The lawyer had asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus answered with a question. “What is written in the Law?” In other words, what does God’s Word say on the matter.

But Jesus went further. He also asked, “How do you read it?”

This lawyer knew all the right answers and answered correctly here. He answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

Jesus affirmed his correct answer, but added, “Do this and you will live.” In other words, like the great physician he is, the prescription for this lawyer was to put the knowledge you have into practice. Do this and you will have life. Act on what you have heard and profess, not as a way of gaining eternal life, but as a sign that eternal life has already begun in your heart.

It’s a hard pill to swallow. And for this reason, the lawyer asked another question, for the purpose of clarification. “Who is my neighbor?”

This is the context for the story of the good Samaritan. It is a brilliant setup in answer to the wrong question. The question implies that some people are neighbors and some are not.

The lawyer, who knew Jewish law, knew that there were some who were acceptable and some not. Gentiles were considered dogs. Samaritans were also among the excluded.

What happens when a neighbor is not my kind? How about illegal aliens? Or gays? We set up boundaries. But love transcends human barriers such as race, nationality, creed, sexual orientation, gender, circumstances, etc. All people who need help are my neighbors.

Love costs us. There is risk involved in helping the man in the ditch. Love doesn’t stop at convenience. To practice love stretches our capacity to love to its outermost limits.

In point of fact, you can’t do this in your own strength. Human love will fall short. The power of positive thinking is not enough. It is only the enabling Word that commands us which also empowers us to love like this. The enabling Word is Christ Himself. That kind of love has no limits.

Pastor Brad shared how he worked at an orphanage in Mexico once. He saw how the experience broke down barriers, sharing a story that setup a concept presented by Juan Carlos Ortiz called “Mashed Potato Love.” A sack of potatoes is a bunch of isolated individual spuds, but when we’re peeled and sliced and mashed the boundaries and barriers which ordinarily separate us disappear.

We can know God’s “plan of salvation” and the Four Spiritual Laws, but knowing these things is not liberating until we are changed. Christ can change us from our old ways of thinking, helping us to see with His eyes until we learn to live with His love. This is the Good News. Christ can break down the walls that separate us and make us new people where His Spirit becomes our spirit, His vision becomes our vision and His compassion becomes our compassion… and His life becomes our eternal life. This is the Gospel of the Lord.

Having the Mind of Christ

The sun emerged from an overcast weekend to make brilliant the beautiful maples and other trees that line our rural roads, especially colorful in our Northland autumns. We had a guest minister this morning, so the initial portion of the service was conducted by Chuck Vanderscheuren who welcomed us warmly and shared announcements.

Announcements
1. Adventure Club will begin this Wednesday night, 5:30 – 7:00. All kids welcome for fun, food, and fellowship.
2. Building Committee will meet Tuesday evening.
3. Women: be sure to fill out the survey in the back of the church pertaining to women’s Bible study. If you have additional questions, contact Joanne Winship.

Following a brief introit by Darlene, the quartet led us into worship with singing.

Today’s Scripture Readings
Exodus 17:1-7
Philippians 2:1-3

During our praise and prayer time it was apparent that there are some real needs and hurts among us and much to pray for. We are grateful to have a God who hears and is not indifferent to our pain.

Having the Mind of Christ
Our guest speaker this week was the Rev. Ben Larson who began by expressing his being grateful to be here. In 2008 he has held issues that kept him from the pulpit and even this week he was uncertain as to whether he’s be able to join us, noting that for fifty years he has had difficulties caused by a disease called French polio.

He opened his remarks with an anecdote told by T. Boone Pickens this past Monday at the National Press Club. The billionaire oil man was addressing wind power and alternate energy issues, but during the Q & A was asked what he thought about the presidential race. He replied by telling a story about ninety year old man who had recently been honored in his own community. Some one commented to the old man, “You must have seen a lot of changes these past ninety years,” to which the old man abruptly replied, “Yes, and I was against all of them.”

The text for today’s message was taken from Philippians 2, specifically verse 5 where Paul writes, “Let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus…”

It is interesting to note that God has a mind, and that we, being made in God’s image, have a mind, the mind of the Son of God.

In one place Scripture notes that God searches the minds and hearts of all. In Romans 12 Paul admonished us to be “transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Today’s message, therefore, was an outline of what it means to have the mind of Christ.

A Mind of Love
Rev. Larson shared how there was a black velvet banner with gold letters on it in the church where he grew up. The letters spelled out the verse in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His son…”

“I didn’t always love God,” Rev. Larson noted as he told us the story of how he came to encounter God during a Bible camp. He said it was there that he learned that the many of the stupid things he had done were sin, and when he couldn’t sleep one night he went out and prayed. There were no lightning flashes, but there was a blanket of peace that came over him.

He shared, too, his brother’s testimony, how he came to find salvation while a sailor. God loves us and pursues us.

A Mind of Wisdom
Wisdom comes from having the mind of Christ.

Rev. Larson told an anecdote about an African American minister he once knew names S.M. Lockridge. Rev. Lockridge said to him, “When you get angry, you get red. And when you are scared, you get yellow. When you are cold you turn blue. So how is it that you call us colored?”

Lockridge offered this practical advice regarding wisdom. “Get some learning so people don’t look down on you. Then get more learning so you don’t look down on others.”

God emptied Himself of his deity. He didn’t come to be served, but to serve others.

The Cross is follishness to the Greeks, Paul said, and a stumbling block to the Jews. But it’s central in our faith because it reveals the wisdom of God.

A Mind of Compelling Strength
The letter to the Philippians was written while Paul was imprisoned in Rom. “Have this mind in you…” he wrote. There are actually two meanings for this word in the New Testament. In this instance it encompasses both: intellect and knowledge.

Paul had spent time with the Philippian church (as well as time in the Philippian jail) and had a deep love for this church. He had evidently gotten word that there was trouble there between two women in the church and he appeals to them to work out their differences. Small things can get under our skin and fester, becoming big things.

The Holy Spirit was given to be our comforter and our strength, as well as our coach.

“I’d rather attempt something great and fail than to do nothing and succeed,” Norman Vincent Peale once said.

Jesus said, “I lay down my life…”

The Mind of Glory
It is a mind that understands glory, that understands God and His orientation. It’s a wonderful mind. It is not by imitating Him that we obtain this, but by yielding to Him who dwells within us.

He then told a story about Aunt Selma. Aunt Selma was a dear Christian woman who loved everyone. She was wise, and never condemned. Everyone loved her. She knew what was right and lived it. One day, she asked the pastor to come over, and after visiting a little said she wanted to discuss her funeral arrangements with him. She said when she was in her coffin she wanted a Bible in her left hand and a fork in her right.

The pastor understood the Bible in one hand, but was confused by the request to have a fork in the other. She explained. “At church dinners as they clear the tables after you’ve eaten, they sometimes say keep your fork. When they say ‘keep your fork’ then I always know the best is yet to come.”

So it is that when we have the mind of Christ, we know… the best is yet to come.

Goodness

Pastor Shannon has returned from his vacation ready to complete the summer series of sermons he has assembled regarding five fruits of the Spirit and the lessons they teach about love, drawing upon the life of David to illustrate key principles. In the midst of a beautiful Labor Day weekend, the church was filled nearly to the brim.

Scripture readings today were from Exodus 3:1-15 and Romans 12.

Goodness

Pastor Shannon opened by noting that there is, in Scripture, a distinction between kindness and goodness. He also pointed out that there are even different words used for goodness.

For example, Paul could have used the word kalos, which also means good in a different manner. Kalos refers to outward beauty, aesthetically pleasing to look at. For many, being out on a lake at sunrise casting for walleye, would encompass goodness of this sort.

Instead Paul used the word agathos, from which we get the modern name Agatha from. Agathos means moral goodness or integrity. Paul encourages us to increasingly express this kind of goodness.

Pastor Brad then offered this definition: “I choose to do the right things in my relationships with others.”

To illustrate the principle of goodness, Pastor Brad once again turned to the life of David. Today he shared with us an encounter he had with his friend Nathan as recorded in II Samuel 12.

We were reminded that before becoming king, David had endured much hardship at the hands of Saul during the fourteen years which passed between his initial anointing and becoming crowned king. Once, king, his life went on an upward trajectory with success after success. Chapters seven through ten in II Samuel find him doing well, winning battles, demonstrating goodness toward Mephibosheth, and winning more battles.

Pastor pointed out how Psalm 78:70-72 summarizes this part of his life.

70 He chose his servant David, and took him from the sheepfolds;
71 from tending the nursing ewes he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel, his inheritance.
72 With upright heart he tended them, and guided them with skillful hand.

David was at the apex of his success, leading his people with integrity, when became sidetracked. The incident occurred in II Samuel 11, which begins in the spring at a time when kings go off to war. Implied here is that David was in part distracted by remaining behind instead of leading his men.

Most of us a familiar with the story, but to re-cap. While David was walking on the rooftop of the palace, he saw a beautiful woman bathing. His heart was in the wrong place and his desires led him to meet with her. When she notified him that she was pregnant, he attempted to resolve the problem by bringing her husband Uriah home from the battlefield in the hopes that he would sleep with his wife and not find out later that the child was not his.

The scheme backfired, however, because Uriah was an upright man. He kept his integrity intact, and refused to enjoy the pleasures of his wife while his fellow soldiers were putting their lives on the line at the battlefront.

David sent him back to the front lines and devised Plan B. Essentially, he instructed Joab to put Uriah on the front, then withdraw the troops so as to leave him a sitting duck. The plan worked, Uriah was killed.

Pastor Shannon told how dangerous of a place it is when all is going for us. We are often even more susceptible to falling. But the harm done is even greater when we cover it up.

In chapter 12, David’s friend Nathan comes to see him. Nathan is a prophet who hears from God and also counsels David from time to time. In this story, Nathan was an “agathos” type of friend who did what was right even when it meant risking their friendship.

Nathan told David s story about a rich man who had plenty of sheep, but when a traveler passed through his town, the rich man killed a poor man’s only sheep, a sheep that had grown up with the family and was very dear. David became livid, outraged at what the rich man had done. Then Nathan exclaimed that David was that rich man. David’s heart was cut to the quick.

Pastor Shannon said that some of us are like Nathan. Someone in our lives needs to be confronted, and we need to be an agathos type of friend.

Some of you may be like David, with something hidden, and you have a pattern of covering it up. David’s response was godly, and significant. It is likewise instructive for us.

1) Admit it. (vs. 13) Make a clean admission of guilt.

2) Make it right. David went to God seeking to cease this pattern of wrongness. His heartfelt prayer is detailed in Psalm 51.

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,

and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
11 Do not cast me from your presence

or take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation

and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

3) Live the consequences with dignity. Just because David got his heart right with God did not mean everything was back to normal. Some of what David experienced caused great pain. The baby died. Later a daughter was abused by one of his sons. Another son put this son to death. Absalom later led a rebellion against his father’s kingdom. Later there was still another rebellion.

In short, a lot of the time things can never revert back to “how they were” but we can maintain dignity in the face of our changed circumstances. We can, like David, maintain a commitment to walk with God, no matter what.

In chapter 22, at the end of his life, David writes a song of praise to God. Bad things can happen, but this need not dampen our hearts. David was delighted with God, despite all he’d been through.

“Therefore I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing praises to Your name.”

This is the word of the Lord.