Changing the World: Romans 15:14-21

I can only imagine the dread that I would feel should I look up one Sunday morning and see someone enter through those doors at the back of our sanctuary clothed in body armor and wielding several guns.  I can’t imagine the horror I would experience seeing this person shooting at you as you sat in the pews; perhaps scrambling for safety; perhaps throwing stuff at the shooter; perhaps screaming in agony.  Such terrifying thoughts should never take place because such things should never happen.  But such a thing did happen last Sunday, and we are all aware of it.

As happens with such events, folks are quick to jump into the blame game.  Generally, the blame is simplistic–guns, mental health, the NRA, lack of proper laws.  We want a simple answer so that we can get a quick fix.  We just need to properly fund mental health care, and these things will stop.  We just need to pass the correct gun law, and these things will stop.  We just need to arm every single citizen, and these things will stop.  Simple problems can be solved with simple answers, and that’s what we like.

But what if the problem runs deeper?  What if the problem is more complex and more difficult to solve?  What if the problem cannot be solved by passing laws or spending money?

This is a heck of a sermon to be preaching on the day that we are confirming seven young men and women.  It would be nice to have a fluffy, happy sermon.  It would be nice to have a sermon that is simply rejoicing and full of rainbows and unicorns.  But the world is not full of rainbows and unicorns.  The world is not always just or kind or fair.  The world is oftentimes full of hatred and violence and evil.  We see this on a daily basis when we look at the news.

But there is other news that is oftentimes overlooked.  There is other news that is oftentimes ignored or relegated to superstition or called a myth.  There is other news that has power to bring change; to bring hope; to bring light into the darkness.  It is the news that we as the church have been entrusted with.  It is the news that God has begun His restoration project of the world.  God has begun the process of unleashing His kingdom, and He builds that kingdom one heart at a time.  He is building that kingdom through you; through me; through these seven young men and women; and He is expecting us to go out and help that kingdom grow.

And that is not an easy task.  It is not an easy task at all because of the society in which we live.  For you see, I believe that our society has changed.  I would argue that at one point and time in our society, most folks agreed on what was right and what was wrong.  They agreed on a basic standard of morality.  They agreed on what was shameful, and they corrected the folks who deviated from what was considered acceptable.  Now, this was not always a perfect process, and sometimes what was agreed upon was wrong, I mean, I my family would look very differently if I were living in the 1950's.  Sometimes a shaking up of the boundaries is a good thing–as long as you establish other boundaries.

I am not certain that we have any clear cut, universal boundaries in our society anymore.  I am not certain that we have any clear cut, moral values in our society anymore.  I am not certain that you can go out in public anymore and correct anyone who might be deviating from what might be considered the norm.  What do I mean by that?  Well, let’s say that you are walking around in Wal-Mart.  You are walking by the toy section, and you see a child flop down on the floor throwing a temper tantrum because he or she wants a toy.  You see the parent, bend down and say, “There, there, stop crying.  I will get you the toy.”  If you were to tell that parent, “You know, it’s probably not a good idea to give that kid a toy because he threw a temper tantrum,” what is likely to happen?

Well, that person will probably look you right in the eye and with more than a bit of anger tell you, “You have no right to tell me how I should parent.  You just mind your own business!”

Oh, and just in case you might feel morally superior to that person, reverse the roles.  Say your child was throwing a temper tantrum and you were refusing to give in.  Say that other parent walked up to you and said, “You know, you should really just give the kid a toy.  They aren’t going to be with you forever, so you should just spoil them.”  What would you say?  “You have no right to tell me how to parent!!!”  You see, it works both ways.  We want to defend “our” rights to do things as we please.  We don’t like anyone telling us what to do.

And here begins the problem.

If I don’t like anyone telling me what to do, who becomes the ultimate authority of my life?  I do.  I become the sole source of authority of what is right and what is wrong.  I become the sole source of what I think is good and what I think is bad.  I call the shots.  I make my own way.  I am my own boss.

Now, what if everyone feels the exact same way?  What if everyone believes he or she is their own boss?  What if everyone thinks no one has the right to tell them what to do or how to act?  What do you end up with?

Chaos.

You have people thinking they can do anything without any sort of correction at all.  You have people thinking that it is perfectly okay to shoot folks at a concert; shoot folks in a church; say that there is no such thing as male or female; give two correct answers to a problem on a test and say that one of them is more correct than another; and so on and so forth.  Truth becomes relative to what any one person or group of people in power say that it is.  And ultimately, the only way to resolve a conflict between differing, deeply entrenched beliefs is violence.

This is the path our society and culture is on if we continue to believe there is no greater
authority than the individual.  We can expect more shootings.  More violence.  More hatred.  More division.  Until we can agree upon a set of standards, morals, and values, these things will increase.

It’s not a pretty picture.  But it is a picture tailor made for the Gospel.

For it is the Gospel that points the way to God’s kingdom breaking into the world.  It is the Gospel that points the way to the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  It is the Gospel that says that we do not discover the Truth, but that the Truth is revealed to us in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord.  The Truth comes to us not as an idea, a thought, a methodology or a way of life, but it comes to us as a person–fully God and fully man.  The Gospel says that the Truth enters into our world and seeks to dwell within the very depths of our hearts.

And it is on the cross that the Truth is most fully revealed.  “For ‘twas on that old cross where the dearest and best came to pardon and sanctify me.  So I’ll cherish the Old Rugged Cross.  Where my trophies as last I lay down.  I will cling to that Old Rugged Cross, and exchange it some day for a crown.”  As the hymn proclaims–it was on the cross that Jesus took our sin unto himself and gave his righteousness to us as He suffered the death and punishment that we deserved.  He bestowed salvation upon us by sheer grace–through no work of our own.  He did not seek to claim us with power or authority or violence, but He sought to claim us with self-sacrificial love–a love that we did not deserve.

Oh what heart changing love!!!  Oh what amazing grace!!!  Oh that our hearts may be moved with gratitude and love in return!!!  Oh that our hearts may melt so that we give ourselves to Him in submission–casting aside our desires to have authority over our lives and instead living for Him and seeking His will!!

And then to behold the marvel of his resurrection!!   The marvel that all evil will be overcome with good!!  The marvel that nothing can ever separate us from the love of God.  Not even death can overcome the Truth!!! 

Oh, and what can happen when a community of people is seized by this Gospel?  What can take place when human hearts are changed and come together living in the grace and mercy of God?  What kind of kingdom is established on earth when people who are grasped by the Gospel of God and live for God?

Acts 2:43, “43 Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44All who believed were together and had all things in common; 45they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, 47praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.”

Who does not long for such a community?  Who does not long for such a place where people gather and share?  Where people gather and care?  Where people gather in mutual harmony?  Where people have glad and generous hearts?  This is what the Gospel produces.

But how can this Gospel produce this if it is not shared?  It must be shared–not through power and violence, but through a burning desire to love the world as Jesus loved the world.  It is this burning desire that shines through Paul’s words from the book of Romans this morning.  “17In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to boast of my work for God. 18For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and as far around as Illyricum I have fully proclaimed the good news of Christ. 20Thus I make it my ambition to proclaim the good news, not where Christ has already been named, so that I do not build on someone else’s foundation, 21but as it is written, ‘Those who have never been told of him shall see, and those who have never heard of him shall understand.’”

Is it possible for such news to change the world?  Is it possible for such news to bring about transformation?  Is it possible for us to make such an impact if our hearts were seized by the love of God in Christ Jesus?  Is it possible for our nation to once again find a common purpose; a common sense of morality; a common sense of right and wrong?  Is it possible for our nation to be transformed by the power of the Gospel–to participate in God’s kingdom being revealed?

In a few moments, seven young men and women will stand here this morning to affirm their baptism.  They will stand here to say before God and this congregation, “Yes, I believe.”  Yes, I believe I have responsibility to live out a life of faith. Yes, I believe I have responsibility to share the Good news of Jesus Christ. Yes, I believe that Jesus died for me and for the world.  Yes, I believe that God’s kingdom is breaking into our world.  Yes.  I believe.  May their statement be our statement, and may we dedicate our lives to the spread of the Gospel–the spread of the kingdom of God. Amen.

There is No Other God: A Letter to My 2014 Confirmands

October 19, 2014

Dear Confirmand,

            This letter is based on Isaiah 45 verse 5.  “I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me, there is no god.”

    I wanted to write this letter to you on the day you are being confirmed.  I wanted to spend a little while letting you know what you are doing today and how important it is.  When I was your age, I didn’t think confirmation was all that big a deal.  It was something we Lutherans did–like the Catholics and others, but I personally didn’t see much significance in it.  It was one more hoop I was supposed to jump through to be an adult member of the church.  And that is exactly what you will be after today, but the focus of confirmation isn’t just about this.  It’s much, much more.

    For today hearkens back to the day you were baptized.  You were much smaller than you are now.  You couldn’t make any decisions at all.  You didn’t ask to be baptized.  You didn’t ask to be a Christian.  You didn’t even know God or Jesus.  Yet, your parents wanted you to be a Christian.  They wanted you to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.  They wanted you to follow Him throughout your life.  They promised to raise you to become a Christian.  It was their promise; not yours. 

    Today, that changes; however.  Today you are going to stand before this congregation and say, “Today, I affirm what my parents did years ago.  It’s no longer their promise which holds me to the church–it is my own promise.  I now want to follow and serve Jesus Christ.  He is my Lord and Savior.”  This is a very important stand you are taking–a very important stand.   You may not quite understand this now–in fact you might not have thought about what I am going to tell you at all.  It’s okay, though.  It’s only been recently that I have really come to start understanding just what it means to be in a relationship with Jesus.  It’s only recently that I really and truly understood what the Gospel meant.  It’s only recently that I have come to see just how different the Christian faith works in this world.

    You see, for the longest time, I wanted to be important.  I wanted to be valued.  I wanted what I said and what I did to count.  I wanted people to tell me what a good job I was doing.  I wanted people to like me.  And I wanted to make a name for myself.  As a pastor, you get this one of two ways: either by growing a church bigger and bigger and bigger to the point where people can’t help but see what you do or you toe the party line and suck up to the power structure so that they will bring you up through the ranks.  I’m not one to suck up to people in power and authority.  I never have done well with that, so the other alternative was to make a church grow–and grow big.  Do you know what this caused me?

    It ended up causing me a lot of grief.  For you see, when things were going good at church and people were joining the congregation, I was happy.  When everyone was getting along and our pews were full of people, I was all smiles.  Everything was wonderful.  But, you know, things do not always work out in the way we want them too.  Our church hasn’t grown as fast as I wanted it to.  There were some people who left the church for various reasons, and it hurt me.  It hurt me a lot.  I thought I had to make everyone stay because my value and my worth came from whether or not this church grew and grew and grew.  And when it didn’t grow and grow and grow, I became angry and tired and frustrated.  It was my own fault really.  I was simply doing what the world had taught me to do.  I was following a lot of false gods.

    You see, the world teaches us from the time we are born that our value; our worth; and our happiness comes from what we do.  You all know this very well by now; so well you probably think this is how everything works in life.  You know this very well as you go through school.  If you want a good grade, then you have to study and prepare and do your homework and school work.  You know that if you want to participate in athletics or cheerleading or any extra-curricular activity, then you have to keep your grades up.  You also know that in order to fit in with a particular group at school, then you have to dress a certain way or act a certain way.  If you don’t do those things, you will not be accepted.  You have also reached that age where designer labels matter.  It’s not enough to buy a pair of blue jeans; they have to have the right label so that no one will judge you or laugh at you.  You also know that your value in sports and in activities is directly linked to how well you can perform.  If you can hit a baseball well, you will be in the starting line up.  This is just how the world works.

    And it won’t change much as you grow.  More and more you will find things telling you that if you want value; if you want happiness; if you want some sort of worth, then you will need to do certain things.  If you want a good job, then you will have to get an education.  If you want to be happy, you will need to buy a certain type of car. If you want to experience peace, then you will have to give up money to travel to a certain vacation spot.  If you want your children to be happy, if you are blessed with children, then you will have to buy them a particular toy.  Over and over and over again, you will be told this.  Just about everything in the world operates this way.

    And if you believe this; if your mind and heart is captured by this, then you will find yourself just like I was: tired, worn out, angry and burned out.  You will find yourself wondering if you really have worth and value.  You will wonder if you will ever find true happiness and joy.  And whether you know it or not, it will be your fault because you will have spent a lifetime pursuing a lot of false gods instead of the One True God–the God who says in our first lesson this morning–there is no other God, except Him.

    Now, this might sound a little bit arrogant.  I mean, aren’t there a lot of people who worship in other religions?  Aren’t they sincere in their faith?  Don’t they try to be devout people who do good things?  Why in the world should we say that the God we worship is the only True God and that they are not worshiping our God?   Shouldn’t we be respectful instead of thinking that we are better than them? 

    Here is the thing, if you are worshiping the One True God, then you will be respectful and humble.  You will care for people who you disagree with.  You will give people freedom to go their own way, and you will still love them even if you know that way is headed down the wrong path.  If you worship the One True God, then you will recognize that other people can be good and moral and nice–sometimes even being better and nicer and kinder and more loving than you.  But you will still realize that they are pursuing false gods.  You will still be able to recognize that the way of the One True God is vastly different than the way of every other god and especially the way of the world.

    I will try to show you how.  You see, last November, I went to visit my grandfather.  He’s 95 now, so he has a world of accumulated wisdom.  My grandfather was a pastor, and he and I talked a lot when we visited.  He talked a lot about the things he did as a pastor.  As he talked, I learned a lot.  He never served a large congregation.  He was a country pastor.  He never worked his way up into the higher offices of the church.  You could say that he never really advanced very far in his career if you wanted.  He never wrote a book or became a famous theologian.  He knew this, and he was more than okay with it.  I know this because as he talked to me, he said something that hit me to the very core.  He said, “You know, I didn’t accomplish much in the eyes of the world, but the Lord and I are on very good terms.”

    That stopped me dead in my tracks because up until that time I realized what I was trying to do.  I realized I was trying to accomplish a lot in the eyes of the world.  I was trying to get my value and worth and happiness from my accomplishments.  I was buying into what the world said, “Do this, and you will be loved and appreciated.”  But our Christian faith does not say this.  Our Christian faith says something completely and utterly different.  Our Christian faith says being on good terms with the Lord is the most important thing, and that does not come about from anything we do.

    And this is the most important point that I want you to hear this morning as you confirm your faith.  This is the central thing I want you to grasp and hold onto.  The world says, “Do this and you will be accepted.”  All other religions say, “Do this and God will love you.”  Christianity says the exact opposite.  Christianity says, “God accepts you; God loves you; now live into that freedom.”

    The world and every religion wants you to earn your own way.  The world and every other religion wants you to justify yourself–justify your value; justify your work; obtain your own happiness.  Christianity says Jesus gives you love and acceptance and value and true happiness without any work on your part.  It is the exact opposite of the world.

    And Jesus gives this all to you despite the fact that you are imperfect–despite the fact that you are a broken piece of this broken world.  I know I don’t have to tell you this too much.  I remember very well what it was like in school.  There were kids who used to pick on me all the time and highlight my imperfections.  You probably have that happen to you as well.  And the way I used to make myself feel better was to pick on others and highlight their imperfections.  I didn’t know any other way, but I do now.  I accept my flaws.  I accept my brokenness, and I ask Jesus to change me.  He’s got a lot of work ahead of Him in that regard, but He willingly works on me.  And on you.  And on everyone who calls upon His name.  Why?

    Because He loves us.  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that all those who believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God sent the Son into the world not to condemn the world but that the world may be saved through Him.” 

    Christianity is the only religion or philosophy in the world that teaches that God dies on behalf of the world.  It’s the only religion that says you are accepted before it ask you to do anything.  It is the only religion in the world that gives you value even when you really don’t deserve it.  And when someone gives you something you know you don’t deserve, you do not become arrogant.  You become humble.  You become thankful.  You become respectful of others, and you want them to know that God has done the same for them that He has done for you. 

    It is my sincere hope for you today that as you confirm your faith, you realize just how rebellious you are being.  You are turning your back on a world and on all the false gods who want you to earn your value and worth and to justify yourselves.  You are saying to them, “I wish to follow a different path.  I wish to follow the One who has already loved me; already given me value; and already given me joy.  I renounce all you false gods, and I place my trust in the One True God.  The God who died for me.  I put my trust in Jesus.”  May we all have the courage to do just that.

Sincerely,

Pastor Kevin Haug

Above and Beyond

I changed the way I teach confirmation this past year.  I had to.

With the advent of a more mobile society and the involvement of families in their children's activities--especially on weekends, Sunday School for children has almost become a relic of the past.  Where once classrooms were filled on Sunday mornings, they are mostly barren in many congregations.

Consequently, when youth arrive in Confirmation, they are ill prepared to talk about any sort of significant doctrines of the Lutheran Church.  They have little or no understanding of the biblical story that our doctrines are based upon.  Therefore, you can't even begin to talk about Luther's explanation to the First Article of the Apostles' Creed since the kids have little concept of what God has done not only in creation but throughout Salvation History as recorded in the Bible.

Young folks have a lot--A LOT--of catching up to do.  Too much to cram into two years of class.

And so, I began assigning the kids homework.  Quite a bit of homework.  They were required, in a month's time, to read a significant chunk of scripture and answer questions about their reading.  In doing, they had to learn important portions of the biblical narrative.  Then, they had to write an essay on the Christian concept of grace.  Finally, they were required to put their faith into action by performing a service project.

When I assigned the final project, I anticipated kids doing minor projects: visiting someone in a nursing home, cleaning up trash, reading to a young student, and the like.  I did not anticipate anything like what two of the students decided to do.  They dedicated themselves to putting together boxes for Operation Hugs.

They set as their goal to collect enough goods and money to send 30 boxes/care packages to service men and women.  As of this typing, they had 38 boxes ready to ship and anticipated getting enough to send 43 packages.

Mind you, these are two junior high students.  Young men who are becoming adult men and who will hopefully continue this streak of helping others into their lives.

When I first heard what they were doing, I believed they were going above and beyond what I had asked them to do, and I still stand by that.

This past Sunday, the entire confirmation class joined in to put together these packages as they collaborated together on this project.

This proud pastor just wants to say: GOOD JOB!!