The Christian Faith

There are three chief symbols that define orthodox Christian faith outside of the Bible and are what the Lutheran Church adhere to along with the church catholic (denote the small “c” connotes that it is not the Roman Catholic Church of which we speak, but the Church under Jesus Christ.  These are the Apostle’s Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed.  These symbols arose to define the Christian faith against heretical views that were being debated by other theologians wanting to undermine Christ’s full divinity and full humanity.

I. The Apostle’s Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord: who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried: he descended into hell, the third day he rose from the dead, he ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of God, the Father almighty, whence he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

II. The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten not made, being of one substance with the Father, through whom all things were made: who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man: who for us, too, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, sufffered, and was buried: the third day he rose according to the Scriptures, ascended into heaven, and is seated on the right hand of the Father: he shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom shall have no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the lord and giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son: who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified: who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe one holy, Christian, and apostolic church.
I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins, and I look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the age to come. Amen.

III. The Athanasian Creed

1 Whoever wished to be saved must, above all else, hold the true Christian faith. 2 Whoever does not keep it whole and undefiled will without doubt perish for eternity.
3 This is the true Christian faith, that we worship one God in three persons and three persons in one God
4 without confusing the persons or dividing the divine substance.
5 For the Father is one person, the Son is another, and the Holy Spirit is still another,
6 but there is one Godhead of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, equal in glory and coequal in majesty.
7 What the Father is, that is the Son and that is the Holy Spirit:
8 the Father is uncreated, the Son is uncreated, the Holy Spirit is uncreated;
9 the Father is unlimited, the Son is unlimited, the Holy Spirit is unlimited;
10 the Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, the Holy Spirit is eternal;
11 and yet there are not three eternals, but one eternal,
12 just as there are not three who are uncreated and who are unlimited, but there is one who is uncreated and unlimited.
13 Likewise the Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, the Holy Spirit is almighty,
14 and yet there are not three who are almighty but there is one who is almighty.
15 So the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Spirit is God
16 and yet ther are not three Gods but one God.
17 So the Father is Lord, the Son is Lord, the Holy Spirit is Lord,
18 and yet there are not three Lords but one Lord.
19 For just as we are compelled by Christian truth to acknowledge each person by himself to be God and Lord
so we are forbidden by the Christian religion to say that there are three Gods or three Lords.
20 The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten by anybody.
21 The Son was not made or created, but was begotten by the Father.
22 The Holy Spirit was not made or created or begotten, but proceeds from the Father and the Son.
23 Accordingly there is one Father and not three Fathers, one Son and not three Sons, one Holy Spirit and not three Holy Spirits.
24 And among these three persons none is before or after another, none is greater or less than another,
25 but all three persons are coequal and coeternal, and accrodingly, as has been stated above, three persons are to be worshiped in one Godhead and one God is to be worshiped in three persons.
26 Whoever wished to be saved must think thus about the Trinity.
27 It is also necessary for eternal salvation that one faithfully believe that or Lord Jesus Christ became man,
28 for this is the right faith, that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is at once God and man:
29 he is God, begotten before the ages of the substance of the Father, and he is man, born in the world of the substance of his mother,
30 perfect God and perfect man, with reasonable soul and human flesh,
31 equal to the Father with respect to his Godhead and inferior to the Father with respect to his manhood.
32 Although he is God and man, he is not two Christs but one Christ:
33 one, that is to say, not by changing the Godhead into flesh but by taking on the humanity into God,
34 one, indeed, not by confusion of substance but by unity in one person.
35 For just as the reasonable soul and the flesh are one man, so God and man are one Christ,
36 who suffered for our salvation, descended into hell, rose from the dead,
37 ascended into heaven, is seated on the right hand of the Father, whence he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
38 At his coming all men shall rise with their bodies and give an account of their own deeds.
39 Those who have done good will enter eternal life, and those who have done evil will go into everlsating fire.
40 This is the true Christian faith. Unless a man believes this firmly and faithfully, he cannot be saved.

Don't worry, be happy!

“This storm will slow and when it hits it will be no more than a category 1 hurricane, but probably just a tropical storm.”  This is what the news was telling the people in the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Boca Raton area about Hurricane Wilma as it was traveling across the peninsula toward them.  The area was hit with 110 mph winds by the right or ‘dirty’ side of the hurricane and is said to be the most powerful hurricane to hit Ft. Lauderdale in 50 years.  When I ponder this I think to myself that this is a lot like our world and many churches as they preach the Word of God.  “Don’t worry about the dangers of sin or bringing any change in your life, but God wants to save ‘everyone’ and that is the purpose of Jesus Christ.  Let us welcome everyone with open arms and never speak a message that may offend or confront them in their sin!”  It troubles me because we are not preaching the truth, but only half truths.  What must be has been done for us in Jesus Christ and that is the main truth that in our faith in Jesus Christ we are redeemed, but the question is this ‘Do you truly believe?’  Do you believe in Jesus Christ as Lord in your life?  When you believe this profound changes occur in your life it is inevitable.  It may not be all at once, but things will be different.  The message of love needs to be given, but within the Gospel the Law is always present.  Why would we need Christ unless we were sinful and falling short of the glory of God?  That is the Law within the Gospel.  We are saved in Jesus Christ, but our hearts must belong to Him and not to the other idols we build up!  So may the Lord strengthen all in their faith and may they turn to Christ for all salvation!

Lord light a fire

A generation full of fire for the Lord is something that I dream of!  We are living in an age constantly confronted with the question of truth.  The most common secular response is, “Truth is relative.”  We live in a time full of two extremes in the Christian world, either we have the “in your face” Christians screaming out and damning everyone that may have a differing view to Hell or you have the Christian that goes to church, but in their day to day life they don’t really show much in the matter of faith.  I know that this is largely a generalization, but I don’t believe that it is that far fetched.  I remember living in Oklahoma.  Living in the Tulsa area which is home to Oral Roberts University and the Oral Roberts Ministry beginnings and Rhema Bible School and Kenneth Haggin Ministries so when I moved there and wasn’t Christian I was confronted by that everyday.  What I found was a witness that continually condemning and a “haves” and “have nots” theology – I have been saved, you have not!  This is not the servant mindedness to which Christ calls us to.  The greatest witness that I had was given to me in the love of my future wife and her mother.  We are not called by God to point our fingers, but to use our fingers in the service of others!  To give the Truth and show that it is not relative, but living it in our lives and showing the difference of Christ over and above all others because no other faith has such a Gospel of hope!  All other faiths are contingent upon what you do to please God, but Christianity is a faith of what has been done for us by God because of the love that He holds for us, a love that burns so deep that He gave His one and only Son and entered into creation, imagine the creator becoming one with His creation.  What an awesome miracle!  We need to reflect that in our lives with a sense of happiness, love, and courtesy.  We live in a society that centers on self, but as Christians we are to center ourselves on Jesus and in that we find our focus is placed on helping the other to the glory of Jesus.  Lord light a fire in our hearts!

Lord, I am Yours

Lord set the world on fire in a passionate love for you.  Let those hungry souls come to you knowing that they will be fed!  The church is being bombarded with great difficulties.  We are being sidetracked by issues that continually distract us from focusing on you.  Lord strengthen us in our service to you that we may spread your glorious name around the world – Lord Jesus Christ our Savior, our Redeemer.  Your love is so great that it spreads across all of us even though we are flawed and filled with sin!  We need to prayer and fill this world with prayer that all the corners of the earth can do nothing less than cry out to you Lord.  Let the cries of your name fill the voids within all hearts.  For those that are looking for something greater, let them find you, in the midst of their emptiness let them see you.  The conversation continues on within your saints.  You are the savior, the great I AM that was spoken of in scripture.  You are the Alpha and the Omega, you transcend all knowing!

When it comes to the things of this world nothing else matters, but you!  The world is so hungry and we see suffering and destruction in all corners of your creation.  Children suffer and are forgotten by those that you left to care for them.  The selfish desires of our world are the ultimate sign of the great sickness of sin that encompasses our world.  Renew us Lord in our spirits and our minds that we no longer look to our own selfish desires, but desire to fulfill your will!  Save us all Lord from ourselves.  Help me to be an instrument of your will in the world, use me Lord as you see fit.  I know that I am imperfect and flawed, but I also know that you love me and that in you I may be perfected.  Lord, Yahweh, my savior Jesus Christ, fill me with your spirit.  Utilize me and this prayer I will continue to lift up to you, use me Lord!  Use me Lord!  Use me Lord!  You are Holy!  You are Holy!

I will not stop until I hear the great AMEN ring from your lips and I look forward to the day that I may hear the words, “Well done!” flow from your lips!

Refocus

I’m in a thought and feeling that I should return to the intent that I had when I started this blog to discuss my own theological journey in faith.  The reality is that all these rants and feelings of political issues just anger me and distract me from the true reality that is the greatness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I guess that is just the major issue within the world today is we are so easily sidetracked; the Devil is a tricky one.  Thinking on this it is no wonder that those that are outside of Christ look at Christians and think that it’s just another crazy religion.   We become sidetracked on issues and lose focus on the one true thing.  We lose sight of the one thing that should be driving us and that is Jesus Christ!

I have three other blogs that I am involved with – my devotional blog, the discussion with my atheist acquaintance the 502 which has been fun thusfar, and another that is more geared for the church I am serving at currently – ucbones icanarmy blog.  I have been distracted in my true intent of Northern Born Southerner.  The reality is that I have been on a protracted journey in Christ.  I have lived fully in the brokenness that is outside of Christ and did not want anything to do with this Jesus Christ.  I’ve lived in the reality of a broken home, associated with the dregs the spat upon and looked down upon and loved them for their honest loyalty to friends.

I recall when I was 18 and 19 a friend of mine in Grand Forks.  She was called ‘little Sis’, but she was not little, but she was like everyone’s sister in the group that I hung with.  I loved her because she was real and she was real loyal.  She was my friend and I was hers.  She didn’t like herself all that much and thought of herself as a bitch and even tattooed that on her hand.  Now she was tough and I would admit she wasn’t someone that any would want to be on her wrong side, but to me she was a wonderful young woman.  I remember the last time I saw her we wept together because her cousin had just been killed in a wreck or something.  Honestly it’s been over ten years since I thought of her, but recently she’s been on my mind.  I don’t know that I will ever be able to find her now; I don’t even know her real name because that wasn’t important at the time for me.  I only pray that God is working in her heart and she knows Jesus Christ in her life.  As I look at my journey my heart is lead to look at those that are the unwanted in most segments of society and truly show them that the have value to me, but most importantly to Jesus Christ.  It’s sad to think that many of the friends that I once associated with may no longer be with us.  The fragility of life, hmm…

Sojourners Magazine - Liberal Bias

I receive regular emails from Sojourners and even considered getting a subscription to try and gain perspective of what some others may be saying in the evangelical Christian faith.  You see I’m a member and studying to become a pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and though conservative to many at seminary in the whole spectrum of things I see myself as quite a moderate.  I am not a fundamentalist, although I don’t thing that fundamentalists are all that bad, I just don’t agree with everything that they believe.  I guess, for the most part, I find that my theology is pretty Lutheran, but I am first and foremost a Christian.

Well, what prompted me is the article in the most recent emailing by David Batstone entitled “Frist, Rove, DeLay: Who's looking the other way?”  The article is so politically laced to show the true agenda of this group is to be another political voice that aligns itself with the liberal left and is not truly unbiased as it would appear when it compares a man in the midst of an adulterous affair with men such as Frist, Rove, and Delay who could arguably be victims of a witch hunt by the same people who lauded an agenda of “Anybody But Bush” instead of trying to raise up a viable candidate.  Our country is so divided with one side vehemently against anything conservative that when they speak of conservative ideals they make it equivalent to evil.  It saddens me how our country is so divided.  I get angry at some of the things pushed by the left also and am guilty of making broad judgments, but I have never and will never call someone evil for espousing an opinion I don’t agree with and most certainly don’t believe in a policy of “Anyone, but So and So”.

I still recall the last presidential election being given the bird by anti-Bush people because I was supporting President Bush.  I still support our president.  I didn’t agree with President Clinton, but still held respect for the office in which he held.  Jim Wallis and the Sojourners Magazine continues to prove to me how completely unaware they are of their bias.

UND FIGHTING SIOUX

To heck with the NCAA and there idiotic sense of being politically correct!  The big issue with team names that are Native American is nonsense.  I am a UND FIGHTING SIOUX fan and I don’t care!  I’m proud of it.  The logo was drawn by a Sioux and the proceeds from the products go to support the Indian (Native American) Programs on the campus.  UND has one of the largest Native American Studies programs in the US.  Do these people not understand that this is partially why they do?  UND doesn’t do like the Florida State Seminoles do and have a student representing Osceola ride out on a horse and throw a spear in the field, in fact at every event a special message is given to show respect for the Sioux tribes.  If schools like UND lose the Sioux name the school would suffer greater than just the name, they would lose a beautiful facility built by Ralph Engelstad that he gave access to as long as the Sioux name was kept otherwise all rights of use are lost (he knew what was going on and didn’t want some whining white liberal panty waste to decide to change the name out of fear).  So, all I say is if this gets pushed further I would say bye-bye to all the specially funded Native American studies programs and then we should go after changing every name of every school that has some connotation of any people…i.e. Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Syracuse Orangemen, and the like.  That is my rant…whew…I feel better.

Why not God?

Why not God?

What is the threat?

What is the danger?

We live in a world that is hungry, hungry for meaning, hungry for purpose, but society wants to take away the idea of God as something plausible to look at for answers to the questions of life and existence.  Any expression in the public forum is trying to be removed – the Ten Commandments, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the like.  Prayer or any Christian faith expression is being prevented from schools and it seems to me that the goal is to remove these expressions from all public forums.  Imagine a place that it is dangerous to pray openly to God, where it could mean your life.  Oh, well, 3 billion Chinese know this everyday.  The dangers of secularism is that, though it doesn’t expressly state that religion needs to be removed from society, but when the push is to limit the freedom of expression and define acceptable and unacceptable where does it stop?  God and Jesus Christ are becoming an offense and if we are not careful they may become equivalent to hate speech because they confront each and everyone with this horrible word, sin!

Wisdom from the side of a coffee cup

Everywhere, unthinking mobs of
“independent thinkers” wield
tired clichés like cudgels,
pummeling those who dare
question “enlightened” dogma.
If “violence never solved anything,”
Cops wouldn’t have guns and
Slaves may never have been freed.
If it’s better that “10 guilty men
go free to spare one innocent,”
why not free 100 or 1,000,000?
Clichés begin arguments,
they don’t settle them.

-- Jonah Goldberg
-- Editor at large of National Review online

Important Recall Notice

IMPORTANT RECALL NOTICE!!

The Maker of all human beings, is recalling all units manufactured,
regardless of make or year, due to a serious defect in the primary
and central component of the heart. This is due to a malfunction in
the original prototype units code named Adam and Eve, resulting in
the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units.

This defect has been technically termed, "Subsequential Internal Non-morality", or more commonly known as S.I.N., as it is primarily expressed. Some other symptoms:

1. Loss of direction
2. Foul vocal emissions
3. Amnesia of origin
4. Lack of peace and joy
5. Selfish, or violent behavior
6. Depression or confusion in the mental component
7. Fearfulness
8. Idolatry
9. Rebellion

The Manufacturer, who is neither liable nor at fault for this defect, is providing factory authorized repair and service free of charge to correct this SIN defect. The Repair Technician, JESUS, has most generously offered to bear the entire burden of the staggering cost of these repairs. There is no additional fee required.


The number to call for repair in all areas is: P-R-A-Y-E-R. Once connected, please upload your burden of SIN through the REPENTANCE procedure.


Next, download ATONEMENT from the Repair Technician, Jesus, into the heart component. No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, JESUS will replace it with:

1. Love
2. Joy
3. Peace
4. Patience
5. Kindness
6. Goodness
7. Faithfulness
8. Gentleness
9. Self control

Please see the operating manual, the B.I.B.L.E. (Believers Instructions Before Leaving Earth), for further details on the use of these fixes.


WARNING: Continuing to operate the human being unit without correction voids any manufacturer warranties, exposing the unit to dangers and problems too numerous to list and will result in the human unit being permanently impounded. For free emergency service, call on JESUS.


DANGER: The human being units not responding to this recall action will have to be scrapped in the furnace. The SIN defect will not be permitted to enter Heaven so as to prevent contamination of that facility.


Please assist where possible by notifying others of this important recall notice!!!


Thank you for your immediate attention.

ALL MY LOVE ~ GOD

Is Christ in You?

Is Christ in You?

     An issue that always bothers me in our world is the misuse of Christ in context to the world.  For some the idea of a Christian is an annoying person who feels superior to everyone else, someone who is judgmental and narrow minded.  I know this because of some of the experiences that I have had before coming to Christ and from some of the reactions that have been given to me by others.  The fact that I and many others like me are conservative tends to be icing on the cake for many because then they just lump me in with the likes of Pat Robertson, Jimmy Swaggert, and Pat Buchanan.  These are all roadblocks to evangelization because these don’t represent the majority like me.
     My heart is in trying to introduce many to the great salvation that can be found in Jesus Christ, the great relief and rest that one can find is astounding.  I can remember when I was pretty much anti-Christian, I was still a conservative, but I looked at most of these Christians as being people that felt they were superior and they more often than not justified my feelings by their actions.  If you have long hair, a goatee, and are a partier and a smoker, well, you just can’t fit – at least as I knew them in college.  I was rejected because I didn’t wear the uniform and didn’t act the ‘right’ way.  Well, here I am now an ex-smoker with short hair and no goatee a Christian in seminary to become a pastor, but still remembering the way that I was treated and wanting to insure that others will not go through the same things that I did and having convictions that have been burned into me since coming to Christ and I am having to break through and hurdle over the mistreatment given by others before me.
     The idea of faith is being looked at as illogical and to some extent I would agree because it isn’t something completely tangible, but then knowing that the alternative is just as illogical because it places a ‘faith’ in man made constructions and when illogical things occur those who adhere to a concept of science and reason write it off as an anomaly.  Then there are those who I understand their beliefs such as Wicca and other pagan movements who are so hardened by the judgment of others that it becomes almost impossible to even begin a dialogue.
     So, here we are with two choices to do nothing or to reach out to a broken world.  God is calling up an army to change the world, the question is:  “Are you hearing it?”  The choice of doing nothing is one that has been the choice of many for a long time and is why we find a world that is trying to marginalize Christianity as just another idea and eventually, if allowed, these churches will cease to exist.  This leaves truly only one long-term option – to heed the call – to join God’s army – an army not of guns, swords, or any other weapons, but an army that is on its knees in prayer and serving the world fully dependent on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  The question isn’t whether it will succeed, the question is will you be a part of it and is Christ in you?
     

Katrina National Day of Prayer

Katrina – National Day of Prayer

Let us remember to pray for those victims of Hurricane Katrina today and the rebuilding of that devastated area along the Gulf Coast.

Atheism

“Technically speaking Atheism is NOT a belief system. It is by definition a lack of belief. Much like I don't believe in the tooth fairy, I just simply don't believe in a supreme being. There is nothing to adhere to. We don't have a code or a handbook. We don't need weekly meetings to assure each other that we are right. We are not 'Darwinists'.I think faith is silly. I believe in that which I can see or have proven to me in some way. Gravity for example. I may not understand all the physics & science behind, but I have yet to wake up not firmly attached to the ground. I drop s**t, it falls to the ground.Religion doesn't afford me the same level of confidence. I was prolly 8 or 9 when it occured to me that prayer was really no different than talking to yourself. I can prove my own existence. What is the point of a middle man? The more I read, the less I found religion to have a point outside of some sort of f***ed up mental masturbation. It is a comfort to those who need it. I don't need it. “
“XXXXXXXX summed it up well. Atheists are such a diverse group that they can't be labeled. The only thing they have in common is that God is not a part of their life. When speaking to any one of us, you should know that our opinions only represent our individuality. They may not be shared by others.With that said, I accept the Big Bang Theory as well as Darwin's Theory of Evolution. They are the most viable explanations I have seen to date. The Scientific Method is an excellent system that has been developed to understand the world we live in. I apply a similar system to my own base of knowledge. I verify facts, build opinions, and am open to admitting when I'm wrong. Proof, theory, and falsifiability.In Reason,XXXXX”
I have entered into a discussion with some atheists on another blog (names have been removed to respect them and if they want to continue the discussion or not), but I thought instead of filling the comments up on that site, I would bring it to my own.  What you have to understand is that I find it fascinating to understand, partially because I am unable to understand atheism and the other reason is that I have a heart for evangelism.  Logic seems to be the center of many that say that they adhere to atheism.  I understand it is not a religion, but a lack thereof, but if one were to truly look through history religion is not natural.
Atheism really didn’t exist until the age of reason also known as the enlightenment.  Now to be fair most people were automatically a part of the church from the fourth century A.D. until the sixteenth century A.D. and it is arguable that many of these people did not have faith or truly understand what they believed.  Before that and in countries that were not introduced to Christianity a faith of some sort was very prevalent.
I understand that atheism is different because it is not a religious faith, but it is a faith nonetheless.  However, in my opinion, Atheism is a faith in self, placing reason at the top.  Humanism, secularism, Darwinism, and the like are in essence a faith placing self at the top and placing the human mind and reason as the only tools to understanding.  It is said that the scientific method has proven Darwinism which is not entirely true because there are many things that Darwinism can’t prove or explain, but it exists.  Basically the faith of Darwinism and the Big Bang Theory is a belief that everything began simply by chance and evolved to some extent out of chance and to some extent out of necessity which is evolution.
I believe and have always held a belief in God or a god because I can not simply explain away the idea of a creator.  Everything, in my opinion, must have a creator of some sort.  I want everyone to understand that I have not always been a Christian, but have always believed in a creator or god.  That is why atheism is so difficult for me to grasp.  Reason would tell me that there is something greater that is creator of everything, be that called the source, the creator, god, goddess, etc.  The Greeks who were at the epitome of the ancient concept of reason even held some belief and reverence to gods and goddesses.  They may not have been certain, but they weren’t so bold as to completely deny the possibility either.  It seems to me that it is quite bold to truly completely deny the possibility considering that most great scientists had a faith of some sort and the prevalence of atheism with scientists has been increasing in the last century.
So, as Pascal stated in what is called Pascal’s Gamble:
“What is the greater risk to believe in God and Jesus Christ and find that they don’t exist or to not believe and find that they do and so does Heaven and Hell?”

Why I am a Conservative

     As a child I remember hearing all the political stories of my grandmother who was highly active within the Republican Party.  I knew where my grandmother stood on every issue and why and my grandmother taught me how to discuss politics in a positive way with others and not analyze others ideas and ideals.  Because of her I am and have been truly grounded to understand what it is I believe.  She was a conservative through and through.  She didn’t always agree with the Republican Party and how it was going especially when the Christian Right took over.  The reasoning was that the vision and views of the Christian Right are not in line with true conservatism.  The reasoning is this.  The Christian Right’s views tend to try and drive the agenda to federalize certain things such as the abortion rights issue and the like.  She didn’t like the desire of some to go and make a constitutional amendment.  My grandmother wasn’t one that took changes to the constitution lightly and she knew that when amendments were made the ramifications could be greater than planned.
     I would have to say that for the most part that I agreed with her and still do, but we do have our differences.  I am a Reagan Republican, having grown up in the Reagan era I truly liked his politics and where he led the party and my grandmother, though she also like Reagan felt that he was not conservative enough, which I can understand to some extent.  Ronald Reagan was a great leader for our country and knew how to communicate his vision well.  The media didn’t play well for him and often ridiculed him and mocked him.  He was called evil and a war-monger because he was direct in his words against communism and was uncompromising with terrorists – i.e. Mohammar Qadaffi and the Libyan standoff.  The media criticized, but he did not back down on things he felt were uncompromising positions.   Today we live in a divided country with one side so filled with hate and venom against our president that it colors all other issues.
     I, at one time with my grandmother, held a pro-choice stance for many years because I believe that issues such as abortion are meant to be handled at the local level, but my view has since changed because of the uncompromising spirit on the pro-abortion side.  There are two sides now where there were once many it has went from a pro-choice view that I believed which was education, to a pro-abortion side that wants to just have it be an issue that wants little to impede or educate on the options.  When states impose waiting periods to allow for thoughtful discussion on the topic the pro-abortion side steps in and tries to stop it and have it overturned in the Supreme Court.
     Many may look at my site and because I am a Christian assume that I am part of the Christian Right.  I would argue that you are mistaken.  I have been conservative longer than I have been Christian and, though some my views have been honed by my faith, I am not conservative because of my faith.  I believe in conservatism because I believe that it focuses on communities coming together to improve themselves.  True conservatism drives people to hold up their neighbors and to build up the communities in which they live.  As a conservative I believe that local cities and townships know better how to fulfill their needs and that power should be less the higher the level of government.  States take care of their constituencies and the Federal government is meant to protect interstate commerce, international commerce, and provide for the civil defense of the country.
     Now as a country I pray that we can come together first as American’s once again and begin to embrace our differences and instead of hate begin to converse as equals.  The Democratic Party has lost itself, it has lost its center, and I look forward to the days where political debate can be more civil and open.  I learn the most from those I disagree with because they make me better understand what it is that I truly believe.

Mon., 9/12

from the Presidential Prayer Team website:

Throughout our history in times of testing, Americans have come together in prayer to heal and ask for strength for the tasks ahead. So I've declared Friday, September the 16th, as a National Day of Prayer and Remembrance. I ask that we pray -- as Americans have always prayed in times of trial -- with confidence in His purpose, with hope for a brighter future, and with the humility to ask God to keep us strong so that we can better serve our brothers and sisters in need. -- President George W. Bush

In the face of unprecedented devastation by Hurricane Katrina, President Bush has called for our nation to go to its knees in prayer.

In response The Presidential Prayer Team (PPT) is providing a unique opportunity to pray...The PPT Virtual Prayer Rally. You are invited to be a part of this exciting initiative at this time of great national testing--join with multitudes of PPT participants around the world strengthening our nation with your prayers.

Hi Everyone,

I am sending you the link to the Presidential Prayer Team's sign-up for the "Virtual Prayer Rally" on Friday, 9/16. At this site, you will be able to sign up for a specific time during the 24 hour period to join in prayer for our Nation. Go to: http://www.presidentialprayerteam.net/vpr/signup.php

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. Colossians 3:17

What kind of cross would best represent you?

You are St Brigid's Cross: St. Brigid is an Irish
saint who hand-wove a cross,out of rushes she
found by the river. She made the cross while
explaining the passion of our Lord to a pagan
man.


What Kind of Cross are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Devotional Site

Three days ago I launched a secondary blog which I am utilizing to write devotions. This is a two-fold benefit, it allows me to honor God by pondering on His Word and it allows me to possibly inspire and help others in their faith. I have already received a couple positive comments and I hope that more and more people will grow closer to Christ in their faith.

Devotions

Well, I have decided to have a devotional section that you can check out on the devotional link to the side. Check it out and tell me what you think!

Dawn and I at Jon Strauss' wedding

Dawn and I at Jon Strauss' wedding
Originally uploaded by cbyars_luthersem.

Gomer Daughter of Diblaim

Gomer, Daughter of Diblaim
Based on the book of Hosea
     
Lord, you bless me, a woman born of low means,
You bring to me a husband, a man that you have entrusted with your Word,
A man to speak your will to your promised children,
We are prosperous under you,
Ba’al provides.
We have wealth and food,
We need not hunger.
Bless us Lord,
hwhy is our Lord God,
With Ba’al you provide for us all we need,
Your children of Ephraim.
My heart is with your man of faith,
I will be a wife to Hosea
And bring him children.
Out of a life of distrust,
I have arisen,
He loved me though he was not my first,
In the temples I submitted myself to others,
He came to me and married me,
Oh, I hope to be true to him.

His words become harsh and he drives me away,
The judgment that he passes,
How are these words yours Lord,
We are your people.
He drives me out to other men,
And I take them into my bed
For without them it would be empty,
I am with child
He cries that it is not his
Condemning me for being unfaithful,
Yet he drives me away from him,
He derides me for my trust in Ba’al,
And accuses us of being an unfaithful people,

We are your children Lord, hwhy,
Will you turn your back upon us,
As Hosea says.
To us a son was born,
He named him Jezreel,
As Hosea, your prophet, states you told him.
Why condemn our King Jeroboam II for something of the past?
Must we live in the past?
The massacre is forgone,
Are you so unjust as to punish us for the acts of our fathers?
Hosea, you bring such shame to one of your own,
You deny that he is fully yours.

A daughter is born to us and you shame her with the name Lo-Ruhamah,
“Not loved”,
What shame you put on her head,
All will believe that she is forsaken,
What man will want to take her hand,
You bring dishonor onto us all,
And you say it is a sign of what will become of Israel,
Again you deny that she is your own,
How can I love such a man?
Yet I still do.
You drive me from your arms and pain me with your words,
I fear the name that you will give the next child in my womb.

I have born you another son,
And you shame him with a name of shame,
Lo-Ammi,
“Not my people,”
Why punish our children with such names.
God, hwhy, why do you bring such shame to our household,
The man I love,
The man you blessed me with,
My beloved Hosea,
Pushes me away,
Another’s arms are bringing me comfort,
And offers me the love that is not offered to me,
The man I love tears me apart,
His words,
Spoken,
As though they are your own,
Destroy me,
My Lord,
My God,
hwhy,
Your word makes me look to the promises of Ba’al,
The security offered through the bringing of fresh foods,
The raisin cakes are sweet in my mouth,
And bring me great nourishment.
The arms of one who loves me greatly.
The words that Hosea speaks,
The punishment that he professes will come,
While we stand strong.
Will you let our strength fail?

My man, Hosea, my love,
He comes to me and buys me away
From my lover,
He has reclaimed me as his own.
Joy this day for he has welcomed back to his bed,
I pray that our love will be better,
I will not fall away from him again.
His love is pure,
He has shown me that he desires me in his life,
I will not forsake you again Lord.
You are my protector.
Do not forsake your children,
Israel.
The Assyrians threaten our borders,
The words of my love,
Seem to be coming true,
They encroach upon our borders.
Save us,
We have been unfaithful,
My love, Hosea,
Spoke truth,
I was an unfaithful wife,
But he has redeemed me,
Just as you will redeem Israel.
He redeemed me and brought honor to our family,
Praises to you, Lord,
Protector,
Do not forget your children,
Israel,
They are in turmoil,
Because of greed,
And distrust,
They have fallen away from you.
Do not let us fall once again into slavery,
Restore your people.

Israel has fallen,
We have been scattered,
There is no king for Israel,
Other than you Lord,
Let us not forsake you again,
Restore us and let us remember the promise,
That you gave Jacob,
You are our Lord,
And we are your people.
Redeem us,
Return us to the land that you,
Lord God,
Have given us,
No more will we worship at temples,
No longer will we conduct ourselves as we once did,
Ba’al is not our god,
But you Lord,
hwhy,
You are the only one that can provide,
You are our protector,
All that we have we have received,
We have received from you Lord.
Redeem us Lord,
As Hosea redeemed me and brought me out of my disdainful ways,
Redeem your people,
Israel.

I'm going to scream

I’m going to have to say that the news has been really affecting me negatively.  Hearing the constant finger pointing and all the media’s attack against our president and our country has fatigued me.  Being a right of center American makes it difficult to hear some of the garbage that is being released by the media.  It highlights for me how divided we are as a country.  I grew up in Grand Forks, ND and in 1997 was living in Moorhead, MN studying at Concordia College when my parents were evacuated because of the flood.  I saw my hometown inundated and fires burning downtown with six feet of water in the streets.  I remember how our little city pulled together and the community was working to help one another.  People were displaced for a month.  I remember hearing the stories and one from my aunt who was busy with the sandbagging crew working at the time seeing the water almost to the edge and then hearing someone cry out a warning that it was failing and having to get away.
I think back and wonder how far we are from that day as a country.  There was no finger pointing, though many fingers could’ve been pointed.  The community came together and helped one another.  I pray for the people of New Orleans and those affected in other parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida.  I long to hear the stories of how some affected communities pulled together and see how they rebuild.  I am sad for the people of New Orleans and tire of the comments trying to turn this to a racial thing.  This is a human problem.  It is true that the greatest amount of the displaced were those that lived in impoverished communities and they have lost everything and were unable to leave on their own, but that isn’t a black or white issue.  I would argue that it was an issue of complacency on the part of those that were to establish a disaster plan for New Orleans.
The saddest testament of what has occurred in New Orleans is the fact of the “fend for yourself” mentality that has been the norm since the disaster started.  I heard the saddest report today that patients in a nursing home were left to fend for themselves because the staff did not come to help them.  The nursing staff left their posts and forsook their duty to make sure that those that they were entrusted to care for were safe.  What a sad testament.  I look forward to the tales of those neighbors that stuck together and helped one another.  I am gladdened by the stories across our wonderful nation of families opening their homes to those evacuees/refugees (whichever term fits).  I wish the media and those in their ivory towers would stop with the negative and become a part of the solution.

Hollywood – don’t criticize, do something, get planes to help, get involved with the rebuilding effort {not just money, but hands and feet}

Politicians – quit posturing, get helping

Musicians – shut-up and sing – read above for Hollywood

Thank you, Lord, for all the churches that are doing the right thing, rolling up their sleeves and getting dirty.  God’s people are doing what God’s people do – being Jesus’ hands and feet to the world.  This isn’t left-wing or right-wing, it’s a human thing and it is time for us to get together and help our fellow human beings.

McChurch?

Cry Out To Jesus

Cry Out To Jesus
Words by Mac Powell / Music by Third Day

(click on the link above to hear the song)

To everyone who's lost someone they love
Long before it was their time
You feel like the days you had were not enough when you said goodbye
And to all of the people with burdens and pains
Keeping you back from your life
You believe that there's nothing and there is no one
Who can make it right
There is hope for the helpless
Rest for the wearyLove for the broken heart
There is grace and forgiveness
Mercy and healing
He'll meet you wherever you are
Cry out to Jesus,
Cry out to Jesus
For the marriage that's struggling just to hang on
They lost all of their faith in love
They've done all they can to make it right again
Still it's not enough
For the ones who can't break the addictions and chains
You try to give up but you come back again
Just remember that you're not alone in your shame
And your suffering
When your lonely
And it feels like the whole world is falling on you
You just reach out, you just cry out to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
To the widow who struggles with being alone
Wiping the tears from her eyes
For the children around the world without a home
Say a prayer tonight

(c) 2005 Consuming Fire Music / ASCAP. All rights administered by EMICMG Publishing. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Go and sin no more!

Go and sin no more!
Reflections of John 8:1-11

How often is it that we feel just like that adulterous woman thrown before Jesus by her accusers?  Sin is the factor that drives us down into the dirt and causes us to cower before God.  The reality is far different for some, though.  Because we walk in knowledge that Christ has forgiven our sin it can become easy to at as though our sin isn’t as bad as someone else’s sin.  The fact is it is sometimes easier to finger someone else for his sin than to build ourselves up and divert attention from our own sin.  Yet this isn’t what Jesus gave us.  Jesus gave us forgiveness not to place ourselves above another, but to forgive one another, also.  Matthew 7:1 (NIV) says, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.”  We are not to judge anyone for the sins that they commit, which is the wagging of the finger and showing power, but we are to kneel down with them and pray.  So often we either wag our fingers at someone for her failures or we sit back in the other righteousness of saying that we should not judge.  The question is this:  Is it judgment to notice and approach someone with care when we see him falling into sin?
Jesus told us not to judge, that is true, however He did not act as though there was no sin.  Jesus looked at this woman and knew that she was sinful, but guess what?  So was everyone that was accusing her and condemning her for her sin.  In Christ’s love we are to come together in a community of faith that is safe for sinners to be open and honest about the sins that each and every one of us struggle with.  The church is not a place of stones and wagging fingers, but a place of hugs and understanding.  It is not a place that is blind to sin, but a place where sin is revealed and sin is washed away.  No matter how great or how small Christ wants it all.  Give it and go and sin no more!

A Brother at War

A Brother at War

I currently serve at Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fridley, MN and Dave Glesne, who is the senior pastor, has a son that is a Marine serving currently in Iraq. Mark Glesne is his name and he has a blog to tell of what he sees in Iraq and to stay in contact. Well, his most recent post from Sunday states that something has occurred and our prayers are needed. We know that he is not injured, but for security reasons he is unable to elaborate. Brothers and sisters in Christ, I am asking for focused prayer for our brother in Iraq that he be kept safe. Our soldiers are needing our constant prayers for safety. May those that wish to bring harm and create chaos have their hearts changed and may they wish to strive for peace.

Southern Care

Southern Care

At this time my heart breaks for our Christian brothers and sisters that are suffering in the South.  Katrina has brought such devastation it’s almost impossible to know where to start.  So many people in suffering and that is all we can see.  I opened the paper today and saw a picture that troubled me to the core, a body floating in the water.  I troubled me and made me ask the question:  Why?  Not why, so many dead, but why would any responsible news agency place that picture in a newspaper and I open Sundays St. Paul Pioneer Press there it is.  It troubling for me that it would be printed because it does not account for the person’s family who may not yet know that their relative is dead.  I understand there are so many dead and the tragedy is great, but as a society we should also know there is hope.  The aid that is being poured out upon the people in the midst of their suffering is such a wonderful vision of the true goodness of people and counters the visions of looters and those wishing to throw the people into chaos.
Now is the time that we join together as a people setting aside politics and moving forward.  As a country we should set aside our petty differences and move forward as a country united in rebuilding our southern coast and caring for our neighbors.  This is the time to follow what Christ called us to “loving our neighbor as ourselves.”  Blame needn’t be assigned because complacency can be seen on all fronts apart from politics.  Most news organizations were breathing a sigh of relief for New Orleans Tuesday morning before the levees broke.  Now isn’t the time for blame, now is the time for unity.
     Great sites that offer aid:
     www.elca.org – The Evangelical Church in America (All the monies donated for Hurricane Katrina disaster relief go directly for disaster relief)
     www.worldvision.org – World Vision is a great organization and is on the ground in the Gulf coast as we speak – great mission working for the end of poverty around the globe.

God Bless those in suffering and I look forward to hearing the positive stories of neighbors taking care of neighbors in the coming weeks to counter all the negative news – death and looting – that has filled the media waves.

Dr. Richard Wallace

Dr. Richard Wallace

Today I received some very troubling news. A beloved professor at Luther Seminary, Dr. Richard Wallace, was found dead Thursday afternoon. He had passed away Tuesday late afternoon or early evening they figure and when he did not show up Wednesday or Thursday at his church they checked on him and found him. What a tragic loss for our community. Dr. Wallace was a wonderful and compassionate man and his passion was for Pastoral Care.

His wife was not at home with him, but they were living in a long distance relationship while she studied for her PhD at Duke University in North Carolina. His father was sick and passed away a month ago and he was planning on attending his uncle’s funeral next Tuesday in Atlanta. His mother and sister had passed away a few years ago which is another tragic tale. On his way to visit his mother in the hospital his sister picked him up at the airport and his sister collapsed and died in his arms. Two weeks later his mother died. What tragedy for his family.

Dr. Wallace was a compassionate and caring man and he will most certainly be missed by many of us at Luther Seminary and in the academic community. I had some great conversations with him and prayed with him and for him with everything that was going on with his father and his family. His work was to help advance the understanding of pastoral care and how to better care for the church community. Helping those with special needs and helping those who were in the midst of suffering. I was only one of many that were blessed to have known him. God bless you Richard Wallace! We miss you!

New Orleans 2005

Oh, New Orleans,
Your streets now flooded in filth,
Your people suffer in pain,
Our hearts mourn for you,
Our brothers and sisters,
We weep for your loss
And wish to help raise you to your glory again.
Children of New Orleans,
Streets covered in filth,
We are pained for you,
As we see you suffer,
May you be protected from further suffering,
May those that wish to control you,
Threatening the streets with chaos,
Justice will come to them.
Sweet New Orleans the water flows
Over your roof tops,
Such a harlot has brought your downfall,
May your streets be renewed,
As the filth is washed away.

A Loving Hand - a sermon

A Loving Hand
Matthew 18:15-20 (Romans 13:8-14)
Chris Byars

I’m what they call a Gen-Xer and the thing about my generation is that we were the generation of great change. PCs, Laptops, Dayrunners, Palm Pilots, Cell Phones all came into existence and we became the multi-tasking generation and were hard to label or define for the most part. It could also be said that our generation helped to ‘invent’ ADD and ADHD because often times we have so many things going on in our heads that we can seem so scattered, but often focused at the same time. We hated labels, but often we would end up embracing them – you had punks, Goths, non-conformists, skaters, etc. They go on and on. From my generation and beyond the world has had a drastic shift in how we understand things, for example when you hear the term ‘cut and paste’ most no longer think of scissors, paper, and glue. There are other things that have changed also, many of them positive, but some very negative for example the ideas of love, responsibility, accountability, sin, and judgment.
No longer can it be assumed when these things are spoken of that everyone will know exactly what you are talking about or will understand it the same way as you do. With things like accountability and responsibility, I believe, they have been affected the most. When I was a kid I had a temper. My parents had divorced when I was four and I was angry. I had seen a lot of fights up to that point and I was angry and that translated into a temper. My parents did remarry one another when I was nine, but when I was younger and began going to school, I was angry and I got into a lot of fights. So much so, that in the first grade I was very familiar with the principles office and had many an argument with my teacher in the midst of class. The reason was I needed something of a structure in my life and I needed that in class, in school, but I wasn’t receiving it from my teacher. Midyear this teacher and the principle tried to label me as a problem child and wanted to send me to a different school. Fortunately this did not happen and I was moved to the other first grade class at my school with a teacher that was very strict and fair and I loved it. I was never allowed to excuse my behavior on my past – my parents wouldn’t allow it. Society has moved from trying to stuff problems away to pulling them out in the open, but when they do this they also try and place blame away from the perpetrator.
You hear it with everything that has happened recently along the Gulf Coast, especially in New Orleans. We have this great tragedy with Hurricane Katrina and look at what’s happening! We have people looting, shooting at rescue helicopters, etc. The media and some ‘experts’ try and explain it away because of what has occurred. I know that I can understand with food that some would break into a grocery store to get food and drink for their family, but stealing is still stealing. People are stealing clothing, jewelry, electronics, guns, etc. The tragedy that occurred is bad enough, but the greater tragedy is that we tend to see more of the negative and have experts try and explain it away instead of truly calling the negative, negative and focusing on the great acts of humanity throughout this suffering. In general, we live in a time where instead of dealing with the issues that are confronting us we look for pills or other things to cover up the issue. Its to the point that we have commercials on television that tell us if we feel down or depressed for a period over two weeks talk to your doctor and we have the pill for you. Never mind that along with sadness you may not feel anything else either. Our kids are often being prescribed medication to settle them down instead of dealing with them with the loving hand that they may truly need. I understand that there are many that are helped from medications for ADD and ADHD and I am not trying to prescribe for them, but is a pill always the answer? Is the past an excuse for current bad behavior? Some of you may say yes, but the question comes to what is it that we are to do as Christians? Are we called to give a loving hand of help and support? What is meant and how can we determine that?
Now we come to these verses of Romans and Matthew that tells us of love and of dealing with wrong doing. We read it and what is it saying, what are we being told to do? We are a community of faith, but what does that mean? What differentiates us from the world? Jesus was asked by a teacher of the law, “What is the greatest commandment?” and in Matthew 22:37-40 he gives us the greatest commandments:

Matthew 22:37-40 (NIV)
Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

In our love of God we are called to love, we are called to love our neighbor as we would ourselves. So, first we must understand and know what love is and really know the love we have for ourselves. And in our reading for today from Romans it is explained for us. We are to be indebted to no one except in love.

Romans 13:8-9 (NIV)
Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Love writes the law on our hearts. We are changed inwardly by the love of Jesus Christ. As we grow in that love the desire to do those things to harm it fall away. Ezekiel 11:19-20, put it this way:

Ezekiel 11:19-20 (NLT)
And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their hearts of stone and give them tender hearts instead, so they will obey my laws and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God.

Our hearts are turned away from those selfish interests that divide us from others and place us in community in Christ and Christ’s love. In our world today we have differing views of love and what that means. Love is turned as I spoke of earlier to a feeling of desire and often times a sexual desire. How often is it that we hear these words either on TV or movies? “But Daddy I love him?” or “We’re in love.” Often right, you watch a TV show which is portraying High Schoolers in all this drama, whether it be The OC today or whatever show. They are sleeping around and doing all these things in the name of love. The love that they show tends to selfish and self-serving; it is convenient, so we begin to understand this term love as being equal to lust. Is that truly all there is? Just a fantasy, something created in a studio for us to view on TV or in the movies? Is our concept of love being reduced to a concept defined by what we watch, listen to, or read? Or do we know this thing called love a little differently? Let me ask you this…how do we know love?

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NIV)
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

This is a verse that many that aren’t familiar with their Bible probably recognize. It is said at many weddings, but in a world with divorce at such a high and throw away relationships being more of a norm is this truly believed? If the world’s view is so dark when it comes to love and marriage, how do we know it? How do we know this love that is described above? The love that is described above is the love that Christ gives us and as followers of Christ why would we give any less to anyone else? Love turns our hearts. I understand that there are those that don’t love themselves and one might ask, “If someone doesn’t care for her own well-being why would she care for another?” The odd thing about this if someone is fighting depression or low self-esteem she usually really cares for others and placing them above her own well-being. For that reason as a community we are to come together and pour the love we receive through Jesus Christ back on those that feel unloved or unlovable.

Colossians 3:12-14 (NIV)
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Why is it that when we hold up boundaries of petty differences that stop us from loving our neighbors? Issues that have nothing to truly do with eternity, minor issues that become giant obstacles stand before us. Is that how we are called to live in community? Someone misspeaks or disagrees with a view or a mindset and communication stops. Why is it that when we see someone in the midst of suffering, especially family and instead of comforting words the words that flow easily off our tongues ring as judgment and disappointment to the ears of listener? When someone is fighting depression are the words that we say truly compassionate and are they expressing Christ’s love for them or are the sounding more like frustration and disappointment? Are the words and the desires being expressed truly gentle, humble and full of patience and compassion?

Romans 13:10-12 (NIV)
Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

Love does no harm to its neighbor. That is such a powerful statement! When we truly love we forget about those selfish desires that we hold. As we grow in that love a change occurs. In love we no longer are first. We see this with parents and their children. That we see in the nights that they stay awake and all that they do because in love we become sacrificial. I know that as a child my parents didn’t have a lot of money, but they gave me all that they could and would sacrifice things that they wanted or, maybe, needed. God has done that for us in His great love giving us His son Jesus Christ on the cross for us and continually pouring down grace on us. We are no longer bound to the sin that once tied us down; we can come to God with anything and be forgiven. In love we find understanding. Christ’s love is such a wonderful gift especially in a time and an age that tells us that we should hold grudges. If someone does me wrong, I’m going to get them back. Why is it we do this? Is this truly how we want to live? How many of you feel truly happy when you are holding a grudge against someone? Not one person ever feels better when they are angry and stewing against someone, but how often is it that we truly live our lives this way?

Romans 13:13-14 (NIV)
Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

We are called into community. For that purpose there is an expected and acceptable way that we should behave. This is to promote agreement.

Matthew 18:19-20 (NIV)
“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

What a promise! When we come together in Christ in prayer, praise, and worship we are joined by our Lord, Jesus Christ. How wonderful, we are not left to our own devices, but our guided in the Spirit. This relationship is so powerful that when we come together in faith and agree, whatever we agree upon will be done by our Father in heaven. That is why we must take vows and promises seriously and with great preparation. It is true that love makes us free. We no longer have to worry or be jealous when bound in love. However at the same time that love makes us free love makes us accountable. We are no longer free to do what we desire because we are now bound in love and don’t wish to do something that may damage or injure that love. Martin Luther put it best in Freedom of a Christian:

“A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none.
A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”
- Martin Luther, “The Freedom of a Christian”

Some of you may be familiar with catechism which is something that was once more commonly studied in the Lutheran church and is still commonly studied within the Catholic Church to help instruct in the faith. Well, in this teaching we discuss the various doctrines or teachings within the church tradition and one of these doctrines of faith is the Office of the Keys. The Office of the Keys is the doctrine that covers the concepts of confession and absolution, to move away from “churchy” language it is the idea of how we tell another that we trust those sins, those misdeeds, that we have done that are weighing heavy on our hearts. The purpose of this is two fold, either to forgive and release from the heavy burden or to bind depending on if there is a true desire conveyed that there is turning away and a change of heart or not. This is described in Matthew 18:18:

Matthew 18:18 (NIV)
"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Christ has given us an awesome gift, but also a heavy burden. Because we are forgiven in Christ we are given the ability to forgive others for the sins that the commit, but it calls for some discernment or deep thought. It is not simply to forgive, but to release from the burden of sin. If someone were to tell you his sin you may either forgive him and release him if they truly are showing a desire to repent or turn away from that sin, however if he doesn’t seem to truly show any desire to change you may also bind that sin to him until such a time that he truly shows a desire to change or turn away. What power! One may think, but if you think that you misunderstand because it is not meant to be a power that you hold over another. The reason that we are given this is in Christ we are called to be accountable for one another.
We are to be “our brother’s keeper”. We are to offer a loving hand to our neighbors to help them. We are bound as brothers and sisters in Christ and for that reason Christ desires for each of us to be willing to help one another in our suffering and our struggles. As one African Lutheran pastor once said, “Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar where the food is.” It isn’t that we are placing one above the other, but we are just helping each other out. To understand this we need to pose the question: What does it mean to be accountable? Accountability is not judgment. Because we are all facing various issues and struggles in life we aren’t to judge someone for a misstep or gossip about it. We are to come in community and suffer with each other because accountability comes out of love. When someone is in the midst of suffering and pain she may not be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Accountability is freeing. The reason for this is in how we can best define accountability. Accountability is being willing to accept responsibility or to account or answer for one’s actions. This frees because there is nothing to hide. When we are accountable for ourselves and one another in a community we don’t need to worry because we know that in love we will not be judged and we are among people we can trust, so how are we to be accountable? As we look through the gospel lesson we will find that in love we are to approach one another in confidence and with concern.

Matthew 18:15 (NIV)
"If your brother sins against you go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

We aren’t to go out gossiping and telling others about the issue, but we are to approach with great confidence and concern, not slinking up or acting like we have some dirt on them. It’s not about power, it’s about love. Sometimes that will fail so we are to involve others only when one-on-one fails.

Matthew 18:16-17 (NIV)
But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.' If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.

Now this is sometimes misunderstood or misused within faith communities. I was once in a conversation with a pastor in another tradition and he began to discuss this verse with me. I was troubled because he had told me that in their tradition if someone doesn’t turn away from the behavior or sin that is being called into question they kick them out of the church. This troubled me because isn’t that person the person that needs to truly be in the church? I understand that she would need to be removed from any leadership position if they held one until such a time as they turn away from the sin, but to cast them out. Uh-uh. We aren’t to be the judge; we are to be the physicians. We are to help them, pray for them, and ask the Holy Spirit to heal them. If they walk away we are to leave the doors open for their return and like the prodigal son celebrate when and if they return. We are to pray for them constantly holding them up. We are to forgive when they turn away from sin and we are to hold them to account when they refuse to turn away. These things are true and the gift and burden that we have been given in Christ. The great power of Christ is that He loves us where we are, but he loves us too much to leave us there.
As a community of faith we are given a great duty in coming together and reaching out to a community that is so desperate for the Gospel. We are called together in a community of faith that pours out upon the world the only unconditional love that exists. The unconditional love of a Father that gave His only son that we may come to Him. The forgiveness that we can know through Jesus Christ is so vast and so awesome that nothing can separate us from it apart from ourselves. We are to be filled with grace and forgiveness, but we are also called to pour that out on a world that only knows selfishness and materialism. We are to be accountable to one another as a people joined in the love affair that is Jesus Christ.

Christ’s love was poured out on the cross when He was suffering and dying it is written in Luke that He was crucified with two criminals, one on each side, and one mocked Him, questioning His divinity. The other criminal defended Jesus knowing his own guilt, but even more knowing Jesus’ innocence and in Jesus’ pain it says in Luke 23:43:

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." Luke 23:43 (NIV)

The one who mocked and did not wish to turn away that felt righteous and proud of his acts or sin and died with no hope, but when the one that came to him knowing that he deserved what he received came to the defense of our Lord asking for forgiveness, he received it. The criminal dying along side Jesus knew his sin, knew his wrong, but what he found was far greater than what he may have ever expected. Salvation!
The great gift, the great power that we have given to us in the community of Jesus Christ is that we can walk in the knowledge that we are forgiven. No sin is too great, no sinner too bad. We are given the gift of forgiveness. We are given the promise! We are given the hope of the promise! We are to be that loving community of faith joined in love and being accountable to one another in that faith and love. Now ask yourself this: As we come for the bread and the cup, is there anything that is burdening you. Is there someone that you need to approach to ask for forgiveness or to offer forgiveness too? This gift of salvation, this gift of redemption or making new, this gift of absolution or cleansing of wrong is the freedom given to us in Christ’s love, are you willing to accept it? Is there a heavy burden you are carrying? Are you ready to give it over? Do you feel the loving hand of God pushing you to turn away from sin? Is the loving hand of God driving you to ask someone’s forgiveness? Is the loving hand of God driving you to forgive another? When you see someone in hard times do you offer a loving hand or do you look away in shame or disgust? Are you in the midst of some struggle and you are looking for that loving hand to pull you up? We are a community bound in our faith and in our love, if someone were to enter are there ways that each and every one of us may do better in showing it? God’s loving hand is out there ready for you to grasp hold have you taken it? When we approach the cross are we going to be like the one criminal mocking Christ or are we the one aware of our guilt, but asking to be remembered in His kingdom? Christ knows your heart, come to Him and let Him take your burden from you.