Love Of Money

1 Tim 6:10

He that loveth silver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also vanity.

When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?

The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

There is a sore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt.

But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand.

As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.

And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go: and what profit hath he that hath laboured for the wind?

All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness.

Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.

Every man also to whom God hath given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labour; this is the gift of God.

For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart. 

                                                                     (Eccl 5:10-20 KJV)

There was a time when just about everyone rejoiced that they had work that would enable them to provide for themselves and their families. Their rejoicing was not because they were going to be rich and and have every material thing that they desired. They rejoiced that God had provided them a means to be able to have shelter and food to eat for themselves and their families. They were not so greedy to want every material thing because they actually wanted to have time to spend with their families and friends. They knew that there were and are more important things in life than "stuff."

One of my husband's great-uncles told me the story of how he provided for his family. He had been struggling to make ends meet so he prayed that God would give him enough money to support his ever growing family. Within short order he was hired by the post-office and lived financially comfortable; yet, not rich in things, ever after... He was ever grateful to God who provided for his family.

Things are not the most important thing in life. Great wealth can very easily rob a person of the greater pleasures in life. 

Let us give thanks to God for the real pleasures in life. Live life in Christ and rejoice!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

For The Good Of The Whole Body

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:

So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.                                                                    

                                                                               (Rom 12:2-5 KJV)

The world would tell us that it is all about us as individuals. It is about taking care of our own needs and wants first. It is not and yet it is. Life is about each of us as individuals using the gifts that God has given us to serve and glorify God and to serve one another that we might live in unity peaceably. 

It is not about each individual getting what they want in the way that they want it. It is about each of us giving of the gifts that we have been given. Whether we like to admit it or not we do depend on each other. We cannot live without the help of others. We cannot grow or thrive in a vacuum. Families and communities need to be there for each other and to support one another. 

In a very real sense it is also about us as individuals. The individual will use the gifts that they have been given for the good of the whole body in Christ.  

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Confession

If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 

                                                                                   (1 John 1:6-10 KJV)

I watched parts of the "Irishman" yesterday with my husband. I watched only parts because I have a hard time watching television. I am not able to focus well on stuff that I know is fiction; especially stuff where lives are getting snuffed out. But, since my husband is spending most of his time in the recliner as he heals from surgery, I have been trying to at least sit with him.

Frank Sheeran was an official in the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the president of Local 326, and an alleged Mafia member and hitman. Now, I am pretty sure that there is no priest who would reveal the contents of a confession so I count it as fiction; but, at the very end of the movie we see Frank Sheeran making his confession. He made his confession without any remorse. In the movie he did not appear to actually be able to fully recognize that he was a sinner. I hope that this was totally fictional for effect. I do not know. Only God knows the hearts of man.

Over the years, I have had way too many people confess their sins as they sought absolution. Not everyone showed any signs of real repentance or remorse for the damage they had caused. Those that did not were usually sorry because they got caught in their sins. If you are one of those who asks for forgiveness; but, has no remorse over hurting others or turning your back on God, maybe you ought to ask yourself if you truly repented.

We are all sinners and if we say that we are not; then we are lying to ourselves. But, we cannot lie to God because He knows everything that we say and think and do. As sinful human beings we continue to turn our backs on God and one another. But, as Christians we will strive not to. We will recognize our sinful natures and we will repent because the light shines on us and the truth of our sinful ways is revealed to us. 

And, so we give thanks to God for sending His Son to suffer the penalty for our sins so that all who believe in him will not perish; but, receive everlasting life in the presence of Almighty God.

Repent and step out of the darkness that the light of Christ may shine on you.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Office of the Keys and Confession

This Lenten Season we have been going through the chief parts of Luther's Small Catechism. This week, our topic is "The Office of the Keys and Confession." Those of us who have any years in the Lutheran Church behind us probably recall something called the Office of the Keys. It is no longer taught in every Lutheran Congregation. The lack of it's use within the church has subtly eroded the understanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus. It has led to a widespread false teaching that has many neglecting or refusing to acknowledge that they have sinned against God and against others. They would say that God loves us no matter what we do so we can just go ahead and do it. There is no need for forgiveness because we have not sinned. Without the Office of the Keys in these latter years, many have come to believe that there is forgiveness without repentance. This is purely cheap grace and cheap grace is no grace at all. Forgiveness of our sins came at a great cost. It cost Jesus his life.

Indeed, God does loves us so much that He gave His only begotten Son for all people. But, do all people love Him enough to repent of their sins? Do they love Him enough to turn away from their sinful ways and turn to this God who loves us so much? Does the sacrifice that Christ made for us mean so little that we would continue to follow in the ways of the world; in the ways of the evil one; rather than the one who loves us that much?

There have been times that I have been accused of not being very Christian because I take seriously the Office of the Keys as an office held by His Church on earth. The name-calling is just a little thing and it is something I am willing to live with as I cannot say that what is a sin is not a sin. I will not cheapen the sacrifice that Christ made for us in that manner. It is better to serve God than the world.

Please, consider the Office of the Keys and Confession from the Small Catechism as I and many of you learned it in confirmation classes many years ago. . 

THE OFFICE OF THE KEYS AND CONFESSION

 What is the Office of the Keys?

The Office of the Keys is the special authority which Christ has given to His Church on earth: to forgive the sins of the penitent sinners, but to retain the sins of the impenitent as long as they do not repent.

Where is this written?

The evangelist writes, John 20:22-23: “Jesus breathed on His disciples and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; and if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’”

What is Confession?

Confession consists of two parts: one, that we confess our sins; the other, that we receive absolution, or forgiveness, from the pastor or confessor as from God himself, and in no way doubt, but firmly believe that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven.

What sins should we confess?

Before God we should acknowledge ourselves guilty of all sins, even of those which we do not know about, as we do in the Lord’s Prayer. But before the pastor or confessor we should acknowledge those sins only which we know and feel in our hearts.

Which are these?

Here consider your own situation according to the Ten Commandments, whether you are a father, mother, son, daughter, employer, employee; whether you have been disobedient, dishonest, lazy; whether you have injured anyone by word or deed; whether you have stolen, neglected, wasted anything, or done any harm."

God grant us such great love for Him that we would turn and follow in the footsteps of Jesus. God's Peace be with you all - Pr. J.