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This Is Living!

Posted on Mar 2, 2022 in pastors pen | Tags: Abundantly, contentment, fulfillment, honestly, hope, inner peace, joy, Lent, Living, loss, never die, purpose, Relationship, Resurrection

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die’.” – John 11:25-26

We get confused about the word life. “That’s life” often means “too bad, that’s the way it is.” Or we might say, “What a life,” meaning, “this is wonderful.” We all value life. We hold onto it as long as we can, and we mourn its loss. Sometimes we are under the mistaken idea that life consists of who we are, what we have, what we do, and whom we know. If those are our thoughts, then these words of Jesus make no sense. Earlier in this Gospel he told his disciples, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). He was speaking to people who were full of physical life. So obviously he meant something else when he used the word.

Jesus, in claiming to be the source of life, is talking about another kind of life. It is not limited to tangible or physical things, but rather to those defined by the spirit. There is an eternal or spiritual life that we can live while we are continuing to live in this present world. That kind of life comes from a close relationship with the source of life – Jesus. It can be described by its qualities – inner peace, honesty, hope and expectancy, a sense of the constant presence of God, direction and purpose, fulfillment, contentment, joy.

While telling Mary and Martha that their brother would physically rise from the dead, even more important, he was offering spiritual life to them.

Lent is a time for Christians to see how sin has made our earthly life empty and shallow. Holy Week reveals the depth of God’s love as he ransoms us from our lives to give us his life. Easter is our celebration of God’s gift of new life.

This month as we begin our Lenten journey may it lead us through the awe of Holy Week to the shout of Easter “THIS IS LIVING!”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I receive your offer of life. Fill me with your life today. Amen.

In His Peace,

Pastor Kurt

Don’t Be Afraid, Children

Posted on Jan 13, 2022 in pastors pen |

From The Pastor’s Pen. Saturday, January, 1, 2022 | 10:24 AM

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” 2 Cor. 5:17

It can be frightening to stand at the beginning of a new year and ponder what the future holds, especially if we think we enter it alone. We who have been made children of God in the waters of baptism can take comfort that we are “in Christ”.

The expression “in Christ” appears some 200 times in the New Testament. To be “in Christ” describes many aspects of the Christian life. For a believer to know that he is “in Christ” brings confidence, joy, and eternal hope.

The Bible says “Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore, we have been buried with Him through baptism into death in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. FOR IF WE HAVE BECOME UNITED WITH HIM IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS DEATH, CERTAINLY WE SHALL BE ALSO IN THE LIKENESS OF HIS RESURRECTION” (Romans 6:35).

In Galatians 3:27 we read: “For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” Baptism is more than a ritual or a ceremony. Baptism is not a mere tradition of men. Baptism is a clear teaching of God in His Word. In baptism God is at work, bringing us into the family of God. Through baptism God miraculously unites us with Christ. Baptism is part of God’s ongoing creating, and recreating, power that He used to create the whole world. In baptism we become “in Christ,” and “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV).

The joy and power of baptism is crucial to the correct understanding of the New Testament and the strengthening of the Christian life. Through baptism we are miraculously connected to Christ and all His power for life. Through baptism Christ unites us to Himself, to His cross and resurrection, the only foundation and strength for all Christians. Through baptism God promises us power to overcome Satan, strength for a daily life of joy, and the blessed certainty of the final resurrection “in Christ,” unto life eternal.

Have no fear baptized child of God! Your past, present, and future are in the hands of our loving and gracious Father.

Prayer: Powerful and loving God, thank you for enabling us to celebrate, as your baptized Children in Christ, a life without fear. Amen

In His Peace,

Pastor Schultz

God’s Gift

Posted on Jan 13, 2022 in pastors pen |

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with a child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) Prophesying over 700 years before the birth of Christ, Isaiah spoke to King Ahaz of Judah about the deliverance that God would provide that besieged kingdom. This prophecy has provided the world with one of the clearest declarations of the Christmas miracle. God would come in the flesh to dwell among us. He would enter our world through the womb of a virgin. What a wonderful sign God gives to us to behold and believe.

It may be difficult to identify with King Ahaz of Judah. As reflected in 2 Kings 16:24, he was a young, arrogant king of “detestable” ways. In spite of this, the prophet Isaiah went to Ahaz to offer him spiritual strength in a time of national crisis. Because of his godless ways, Ahaz did not merit a sign or a faithful prophet. Yet despite these evil ways and his phony spirituality, a covenant keeping God gave Ahaz a clear sign of what he would do, not only for Ahaz but for our sin-darkened world through the Immanuel prophecy.

What can we learn from God’s actions? We learn about the character of God. He is a God of tremendous mercy and tenderness. In the midst of the dilemmas that were entirely of Ahaz’s doing, God came to deliver the king and his kingdom. We should never underestimate the depth of God’s love for any of us. None of us is worthy, and still God comes. He comes into our lives with signs that are clear and understandable to us. He is not a God who would stay hidden and unnamed from a people he loves. As we worship him, he extends to us a cup, the bread, and a cross. At Christmas we are presented with a star, a manger, a virgin, shepherds, and kings. As Jesus takes on our flesh God presents us with tangible proof that he is indeed among us, to be known by us, in a personal relationship.

At Christmas, through signs and the messages, God continues to seek after us. Will we be onlookers who stroll past these familiar words and signs with casual interest? Or will we stop, open our eyes, ears and mouths, and dare to believe that a loving heavenly Father is here to cut through our fears, and to draw us to himself? Ahaz. You. Me. God still desires that we believe and be saved. Christmas is a gift for such as us.

Dear God, you know of no hopeless ones in this world. Help us to stop and realize that you are truly there for us. Enable us to believe. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

In His Peace, Pastor Schultz