Blind Trust

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Psalm: 66:1-9

O.T.: Gn 1:1-4a.26-31; 2:1-4a

Gospel: Jn 15:1-8

 

 

In a village it had not rained for months. The drought threatened to become a catastrophe. Residents were looking for a solution, and finally decided to consult a sage whom they knew could do miracles. They wanted to ask for rain.

All the people got up and, after a long journey, they finally reached the house of the wise man.

Village elders asked for rain for their fields and pastures and to quench the animals’ and people’s thirst.

But the wise man replied:

“Sorry, but there cannot be a miracle, because you have very little faith!

“But how can you say such a thing,” replied the old man. “We made an extra effort to all come here to ask for help. Is not that a proof of our faith?”

“No,” said the sage, “if you truly believed in a miracle, then everyone would have brought an umbrella!”

 

This funny story tells us in a simple manner what faith is about. It’s simple trust, blind trust. That is ‘unfortunately’ the only way faith works. Our faith and ability to trust God is tied to our belief in the supreme power of God. God is an almighty God. We call him that in many of our prayers in the church. The question is: Do we indeed believe this; do we live those words in our everyday life?

The topic for today is a new creation, or we could also say a new creature. In the same Gospel of John, in chapter 15, the topic is clear: those who remain in a relationship with Christ will have a new existence on earth, and the promise that this relationship shall be extended eternally.

Jesus Christ invites us to live a new life, a new existence, to transform us into new creatures. But to transform us into new creatures, something is asked of us too. What is asked of us is a willingness to accept his word, and for us to begin to trust Him, that is, for us to live a life awaiting His word in an absolute way.

God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit are not only names in a religion. Indeed, they are power. And we trust in those three persons of the Trinity as the only powerful being, creator and savior for humans. That is why I asked, if, we that are here in this church today, called by our belief in that God, truly trust Him. Do we live so that His heavenly power manifests in our lives so that we can say we are truly new creatures?

If our answer is yes to this question, then we must say aloud the words of our verse: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”

 

The fact that you are sitting there in one of these benches today and I’m standing here speaking these words arises because we want to be church. That is, to be united in the name of God, to praise His name and hear His word. Today, His word tells us: I propose a new way of living: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” Even if we are suffering, it will be insignificant if we see that with the perspective of what is to come beyond this life. And most importantly, we have the ability to see other things that those who did not learn to trust in Christ cannot yet see. “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.”

If we really want to be Christians, then we must begin to change our thinking in the manner expressed by this verse. Because being a Christian is not mere membership in a church, as if it were any association, but a way of living life. Being Christian is to be a new creature, other than we were and different from many people on the street who have not yet found Christ.

Here we are sitting today, not only to hear a sermon or announcements on the activities of the church or to hear a little more about a book of the Bible. Today, we are here to nourish ourselves with the word of God, so that God’s Holy Spirit can fill us with a power that is only available in the church and not outside it. This power, which cannot be replaced by anything else, serves to keep our spirits alive and maintains our living, communicated and renewed relationship with God. This divine power, since we cannot see it with our eyes, asks us to shift our focus “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen”

 

We believe that God, by our faith, gives us salvation. When we begin our relationship with Christ, we are promised salvation without merit or works of sacrifice. We understand and know this well. But there are still many people who understand this concept but they cannot live it. They cannot live it as long as they do not to show within their life the joy that this good news brings to us. In that way they cannot experience in their life the benefits of faith and daily confidence in God. God’s plan is for the salvation of all human beings, but he wants us to begin to experience His blessings in this life here on earth. But it is impossible to receive the blessings of God now, if we cannot begin to live a life in the joy and confidence that is produced when we feel that we have already been saved by Him.

God’s intention is to give us more than salvation for the future beyond life. There is one person whom I know that always says: “There is a better life, but not in this world.” This is a sad statement lacking confidence in God which naturally produces tangible consequences. God promises us a paradise. That we will share in his kingdom. But the kingdom of heaven begins at the very moment that we decide to believe and trust in Christ. But we cannot enjoy the here and now gifts from heaven, which are not dependant on God, but on how we live our lives. What are we giving more importance to? On what things are we placing our faith?, even though we say we are Christians? In the things of man, the things which are seen? Only in reason, in logic, in materialism? Blessed are we if we can confess out loud with our mouth, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”.

 

There are many ‘doubting Thomases’ (Jn 20:25) today, unfortunately, even among Christians. They place more confidence in what is seen: for example, in the material achievements of human beings, or in medical science, or in the strength of machinery, or in the strength of will and the capacity of human labor, or in the power that money has to get things, and etc, etc. And we know that everything material that man has is also given to him by God. But we must not forget that there is another dimension and that is the spiritual dimension that comes from God and we should not hold it in second place.

 

God wants us to live a new life. And many of us are doing this. There are others, however, that although they have attended church for decades, have not yet taken the step of putting God first in all areas of their lives and allow His power to act in their lives.

You know that God has given you salvation. But he also wants you to live a blessed life on this earth. And this all depends on your faith and your confidence in those things. We must do as the Bible says: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”.

May God give you the blessing of naïve faith and confidence so that you may taste the experience of a God who blesses those yet on this earth. Amen.

I will fear no evil, for you are with me

Misericordias Domini

 

The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
forever. Psalm 23

This Psalm has a huge poetic and emotional value for most Christians. It’s almost like a kind of creed, and yet it is one of the most beautiful passages in the Bible. And the beauty of this psalm is that we see God’s love and concrete promise of help clearly expressed.

Psalm 23 may have been a hymn sung by some of the ancient people of Israel. It expresses a true confession of faith and trust in God.

Those who pray this psalm do so as if God was a shepherd who lovingly offers His care and protection. And in the second part, God is described as a great host who feasts his guest with a magnificent banquet.

The idea of God as a shepherd of his people is derived from earlier expressions that regarded the king as a shepherd of his people. In the Old Testament there are many passages that describe kings this way as well.

The office of pastor also has the duty to feed the flock in tender pastures and by still waters, comfort it in weariness and to guide it by appropriate paths. The rod and the shepherd’s staff instill confidence and encouragement in the herd because they are used in guiding and defending the herd; they provide protection.

At the end, God is described as a host with symbols of solidarity and communion.

The chief meaning of this Psalm is found in verse 4: “I will fear no evil, for you are with me”. This hymn expresses very clearly the protection and care God provides us to alleviate our fears.

 

And on this day, I want to talk about our fears and the cure for fear.

We can reflect for just a moment about what our specific fears are. Let’s think; let’s take a few seconds to think – what is it that we fear today? Some of us may think: I have no fears. Well, you may not have a lot or you may not have any. In this case, it is, only, because you are putting into practice the lessons to be learned through, for example, this psalm: You should not be afraid because God is with you.

Some others, perhaps most of us, will admit having problems in our life today that are expressed through the negative feeling we call: fear.

When I speak of fear, I am not referring to that which, more than anything else, could be called being careful or cautious, for these tendencies serve to preserve life and we are wise to approach life with them. We should take care when in and around traffic, be aware of the dangers to wildlife, we should care for our economy and live a life of wise stewardship. We should care about ourselves, live a healthy lifestyle, eat well and exercise the body. These acts are not fears; they are practical and necessary so as to avoid conflict and harm. Today I want to talk about unreal or imaginary fears. These thoughts are those that consume our mental energy, make us worry and prevent us from enjoying life. Fear is defined in a dictionary as: an anxious disturbance of mood. To disturb is to spoil the quietness or peacefulness of something. To be anxious is to feel nervous, to worry and suffer with concern. In short, we could say that fear is a concern that ruins happiness.

 

Who could say today that they do not worry? Do we not worry about things every day? There is an even deeper question: are we truly happy?

If we say that, yes we worry, then that’s fine. But it is wrong to worry. When we worry we have to constantly deal with thoughts about negative events that have not yet happened. And somehow, even though these events have not yet taken place, we are preparing the ground with our thoughts and seeding dismal prospects, increasing the chance that these things may happen. In Job 3:25 it says: “What I feared has come upon me;   what I dreaded has happened to me”. Job, after cursing and worrying, realized that what happened is what their words have proclaimed. And our Lord Jesus Christ says: “According to your faith let it be done to you” (Mt 9:29). Whether we know it or not, whether we believe it or not, what we express with our tongues and thoughts has its consequences. In some ways they are like ‘prayers’ that we spread in the air, they are ‘Beliefs’ that we release. The good news is that we are able to make a distinction: what kind of confessions of faith are we releasing and on whose behalf are we acting? When we are worrying, we are making negative statements about our lives that will have its corresponding consequences.

 

Fear stems from worry and does not lead anywhere; it is worthless. It is not a Christian way of thinking, even though many Christians worry. Worry leads to fear, which is a kind of insecurity. We feel this insecurity about what we are imagining (because worry is a form of imagination) may happen but which has not yet happened, it does not exist yet. To worry is to have a lack of confidence in God. A lack of confidence that God will take care of us in our difficult, unsettled situations and this will cause us suffering. It’s a lack of confidence in the power of God over our lives. And if the lack of confidence exists, it is because there is not enough faith that is grounded in the power of God. We are not exercising our confidence in God on a daily basis. When we do not trust, we are separated from God and the promises He has for us. And one of the most beautiful promises is expressed through the words of the 23^rd Psalm, when it says: “I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” To fall short of this is to have a lack of faith. This lack of faith, in any case, is what we also call ‘sin’. A sinner is a person who is separated from God, who puts his faith not in God, even though they may want to say they are Christian. Lack of faith is an act of separation from God, and separation from God we have called sin. Thus we may conclude that, those who do not trust God, sin against him.

We do not want to be called sinners in this sense, which is why we will begin to trust him.

 

The most important question that may arise from some of us may be: How can I trust God, if my fears, my worries, my troubles are so deep?

 

Firstly: We must ask God for forgiveness for not trusting him. Perhaps we were not aware that we were sinning when we were worried.

 

Secondly: To acknowledge the feeling of suffering and trouble that come with our fears – they’re real. If we worry, we should admit that we are worried and that we worry every day. Though we may sometimes want to cover it up in front of people and ignore it ourselves. Do not be a hypocrite. There was a woman I knew who liked to speak to people about the issue of worry and confidence in God, but her family life and when she was alone was a mess. She lived a life tortured by her worries and bothers and she made her family bitter with her split personality. Hypocrisy is also a sin to be confessed.

After having confessed our sins and recognized the feelings of pain and anxiety that our fears and worries cause us, then, thirdly, we should pray the following prayer: I trust you Lord. I do not know how to trust more, but I want to say to you, as Martin Luther said, “Oh God strengthen my faith and my confidence in you.”

And fourthly: Begin to thank God because he is strengthening your faith, because he is already answering or giving you the best of His answers to your prayers that have to do with worries.

 

We know that God is a God who wants to bless abundantly and without shortages. And he wants to do it in every way. But to do so, we must first let him bless us with faith and confidence in him. Let us raise our hands to heaven and ask God to get rid of all of our feelings of fear, anxiety and depression and that His Holy Spirit may enter into us, anointing us with faith and confidence. The best way to practice confidence is to let go of that which separates us from him. To start, we should focus less on what we need but rather be thankful for what we already have and be thankful for what it is already coming to us. That is an act of confidence, quite contrary to the fear that separates us from God.

“I will fear no evil, for you are with me”. May that be our confession on this day, to let go of what terrifies us and keeps us from being able to have real communion with the God, to declare: “The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing”.

The bronze snake

5th Sunday in Lent

“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”

Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.

Numbers 21:4-9

Psalm 43

Gospel: John 11:47-53

 

 

When we first read this text, we may find it difficult to understand. Most of the texts of the Old Testament are a challenge for us because not only do we want a right interpretation but also a practical message for our lives today.

The people of Israel, after being liberated from slavery in Egypt had to travel, and wander for forty years and live in the steppes between Egypt and Palestine. They had to live enforced as nomads in that region for all those years, probably because they were not yet given the geopolitical conditions for entry to their former homeland, to what they called the promised land. They did not live in a desert as we imagine today, with just sand and sun, but rather in areas of steppe, desert in the sense of being devoid of people and natural resources. During that time they were cared for in every way by God; for food they even received the precious manna, a special and nutritive food which helped the people.

But in a moment of this journey through the desert, many of the people got tired and lost their faith in God. For the people of Israel, the time spent in the desert was a time of suffering and shortages. Tiring of this situation, some came to doubt the goodness of God. As such, they committed a sin; the sin of no longer trusting in Him, of turning away from Him and perhaps to look for other things or other gods that could alleviate their suffering. In the story, it is said that God punished the people and sent snakes to kill the population. The consequence of sin was punishment. But through the leader Moses, God had compassion on the people and worked out a solution: “when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.” This is a story that is difficult to understand, it is very different from our lives today. As Christians, it is even more difficult to see and understand a God that punishes and has so little compassion for his people, as we come to appreciate His nature from this reading.

In our Protestant tradition, on this day we celebrate a Sunday called Judica, (“Judge, God”) where the main theme of our celebration is the ‘Lamb of God’, another Christian symbol. We all know that as the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ was sacrificed as if it were a real sacrifice involving an animal, in order to redeem for the sins of the people. Jesus Christ became the “scapegoat”.

It is a symbol that is somewhat difficult to understand today. God decided to punish his people, to make them disappear from the face of the earth for their lack of reverence and obedience. But Christ decided to take that punishment and be punished himself, to become the sacrificial lamb, to pay the price for our sins, and death would occur by means of the cross. Thus, it is as it says in the Bible, that “whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”(Jn 3:16) All of mankind is offered a pardon such that anyone who chooses to believe in Christ receives a debt cancellation, a pardon from judgment. The only condition for that forgiveness is to believe in Christ as the Son of God, our Lord. To do this we must humble ourselves before him and look up towards the cross in order to understand the extent of his love for us. Everyone who looks up to the cross will be safe, will have life, eternal life. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:31)

We see that there is some parallel between this story of the desert with the story of God’s salvation through Jesus Christ. Perhaps there are still some people who cannot understand the details of the story from the desert, but we will prove that there is great similarity between the experiences of the people of the desert and of people today. And I would compare the different events of this desert life with our everyday life.

The desert, to us today, can be any desperate situation of pain that causes weakness, stress and pushes us to see God not as a God who helps us, but as a God who does not get involved, as if He did not exist. This makes many people turn from God, reject Him and to begin to look for other ways to solve their problems and to find other answers to their questions. Unfortunately they will search in vain, because God is ultimately the only answer, the only solution. Anyone could say that God would have to be a God of compassion that listens to and solves people’s problems. God truly is a merciful God. However, we often fail to recognize that God is helping us now. The people of Israel had been liberated from Egypt, had been freed from slavery, were being led through the desert, accompanied and nurtured carefully. While this may not have been what the people wanted, it was nevertheless substantial and extraordinary nourishment. The people did not appreciate this. The question of punishment is something that could be interpreted as follows: whenever we choose to refuse to acknowledge God, want to get away from him, when we deny and defame his name and, even worse, have other gods before him, we can say that we are self-punishing ourselves. The reason for our being away from the power and guidance of God is our choices and the consequences of this will be more than evident. It is also so for the people of today, that to be separated from God has terrible consequences that not only affect health and life, but also has the most tragic consequence, the loss of eternal communion with God, the eternal life. The worst that can happen as a result, which is something that some people interpret as God’s punishment, is to move away from the blessing of God for our lives. And it’s not his fault.

However, like what happened to Moses, God, in his “compassion,” sent his Son into the world to save those who chose to believe in his Son and humble themselves before him.

““We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.”  ”So spoke the people of Israel. Likewise, we could say that similar statements apply for many people today. We murmur against the Lord God and against His Son Jesus Christ. Not only do we stop trusting Him, but we also cast doubt on his divinity. And people today could say: take away that which kills us, what ails us, what makes our life full of conflicts, the concerns that rob us of a life of joy and prevent us from living a life with abundant blessings and the security of eternal life. What was the solution for the ancient people? – Looking up into the image of the bronze serpent to be healed. Today, we can do the same when we look up with a repentant heart and a willingness to believe in him; When we look up there to that cross and understand what it means, not only to have the opportunity to be healed but especially to be saved.

How is your life today? Are you struck down and in walking in the desert of difficult situations? Perhaps God is supporting you without your knowing. You are being given the opportunity to better feed yourself spiritually, through His Word and you’re discarding it. You may be doubting and complaining to God. How many times have you, in this past week, gone to the Bible to find strength in it? How many times this week have you joined your hands to ask God for what you need?

How many times have we, as a church, sought comfort for those who are desperate? Sought to strengthen others through our Christian witness? How many times have we invited our friends to come to church and talk about the saving cross?

Do not look for excuses. Do not believe that God is a merciless God. Most of the time, the snakes that are the terrible things in our lives happen to us because we stop trusting in God, because we turn away from him.

Do not be like the Israelites. Look to the cross, and trust him to not only strengthen and guide us through difficult situations, but also to give us the promised land of eternal life.

The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen

The Savior of the pagans

“When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help.  “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”

Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”

The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.  I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment”.

Mt 8:5-13

A few days ago I saw a movie on television about the time of the Romans. I told my wife that I did not think that the Roman world was as violent and ruthless as it was depicted in that movie. The movie was more of a Hollywood production than a documentary, and we know that, unfortunately, films which include extreme violence, nudity and coarse language are viewed the most and hence are the best-selling. And to this end, even in the daily news, we are always shown these same things. Unfortunately, this is what attracts our attention. On top of that, we can say that most of the information being transmitted is exaggerated truth or sensationalism (of the bad news) or simply half of the truth. There is another truth that is missing; the truth of the positive and good things that happen every day. These good things are rarely shown, at least not on television or newspapers. My wife replied: but perhaps this is because the Roman world was a society without God, the true and living God that we know today. This got me thinking. When I began preparing my sermon for today, I found this text concerning a centurion of which the Bible speaks. And then I realized that there were people of faith among the Roman people that were better than those who said they were believers.

Then I realized that God’s infinite power is always present and even reaches the non-religious who are in fact believers.

Who were the centurions? They were officers with tactical and administrative control. They were chosen for their qualities of strength, moderation and control. This one who came before Jesus was probably a senior centurion recognized by the Jewish society of that time.
Why do we differentiate between the religious and people of faith? What is the difference? Many of the Jews who did not accept Jesus, were of themselves pious people who believed in God, but were bound to strict societal and human rules that had nothing to do with the true spirit of God of which Jesus preached. They believed that the fulfillment of certain human standards would cause God to love them more. Jesus instead came with a different message that wanted to abolish all religion. He said that the most important thing is to accept that he is the Son of God. His message is of a loving God who wants us to love our neighbor as the most fundamental law. Accepting his message is going to give us the acceptance and salvation of God. That’s the difference between religion and faith.
Even today, there are many religious people that have more faith in their religion than in God. People that still think that it is more important to follow human rules than to do what Christ says to do.

Suddenly, out of the crowd, there comes this Roman centurion. To the Jews, he was an enemy occupier of the land, not a believer in the God of the Jews. In the eyes of religious Jews, he was assumed to be evil. He came to ask a favor of Jesus, just like anyone might ask a healer a favor. However, the fundamental difference is when we hear his words: “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” This centurion admits his lack of dignity in Christ. And while he shows respect for the word of Jesus, he shows a full and almost naïve faith in the power of Jesus Christ.
Jesus himself is astonished at this, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” And then he says that there will be many people who demonstrate their faith in Christ in such a way that will surpass even those who are thought to be religious, as was the case with the religious Jews who did not accept Jesus as the son of God.
How is our faith today? Or is it merely a religious belief? Are we tied to customs and traditions, even within our church? Or do you leave room for Christ to manifest with all His power in our lives. When we are religious, we are restricting, blocking the power of God.
The religious person is a person who maintains their faith through habit. He or she believes that by repeating certain rites and customs, out of fear and not love for God, God will love him/her. And the more sacrifices and works that are done, the more they please God. This is impossible, because the only way to please God is by saying, “Lord, I repent my sins, forgive me. I want to believe and trust you blindly, like a child,” and to praise and honor God out of love, because he gives us eternal life.
God is present when you love Him first and then your neighbor. But to love him, we should show our respect and faith in Him. Those who do not trust in God cannot love him.

Why does God respond favorably to this Roman centurion? It is because he realizes that the Holy Spirit did miraculous work in him. He allowed him to show naïve faith, the almost childlike faith that it takes to let God work miracles and because that faith was grounded in Christ alone and no one else.

Do we have a living and true faith like that of the centurion? Or rather: do we want Jesus Christ to be revealed in our lives with all His power as he manifested in the life of the Roman centurion? Then we can look to the centurion as an example. Let us re-read his words for they show us what it means to believe in Christ and respect him. All over the world people want to tell us and deceive us into living a life without faith: So listen to his words: “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

We can summarize in a few words: come to Christ, go to Him. If the centurion had not come, he would not have achieved anything of Christ. Seek Christ by reading the Bible, attending church on Sundays, attending other activities where the word of God will be preached and of course by approaching Him every morning and night through prayer. That is what it is to show our love and respect for God. Are we doing it?
Trust in God. Come to him daily. Believe that he has the power to change things, unlike the world, which does not believe miracles are possible. We’re talking about supernatural things. That is to say, the things that go beyond the physical, beyond the five senses. For God is not only in the physical: in what I can see, I can hear, in what I can smell, what I can feel, or what I can taste. For God, there is still another dimension, which is spiritual. And do you know what? Religious people do not believe in that dimension. In this they are almost comparable to the atheists, who do not believe in God directly.
If you really need help from God, then do not simply be religious. Look for God and begin to believe that God can get involved in your life. It is not enough to come to church out of habit. If I do not see God working supernaturally in my life, then all these rituals do not serve me. That is mere religion and mere religion does not save me and does not heal me. We need a change of 180 degrees; we need to turn to God through simple, innocent, naive faith, like the faith of the Roman centurion, a supposed atheist. He has given us a lesson in how our faith in God should be. That’s why God gave him what he asked for; he certainly showed His healing power and also showed him His salvation.

God came to save those who were lost, and if the lost come to God and believe and trust in Him, they are saved. If we maintain love and respect for God, through our faith and trust in him, the anointing of God comes to dwell in our lives and our church. And how good it can be to receive the words of Jesus, on every day of our days, when at the end of every prayer, we feel that Jesus tells us: “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” Amen

Eternity Sunday

What kind of obituary will write God about me?

“The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time?  It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.  Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.  But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk.  The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

 “The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows.  But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

Luke 12:42-48

Some Christians do not care when Jesus will come again. They live happily in this world and perhaps crave tranquility believing the Judgment Day will not come too soon. Others, however, yearn for heaven, and may want to leave behind a life of illness and mourning. The early Christians were convinced that Christ would return in an immediate time. Some of them even left their jobs and sold all of their property, because they thought that they would not need material things anymore. Now is “expected soon” has been diluted, it has been two thousand years and Jesus has not come yet. That he will come “soon” can no longer be understood in human terms, only in the measure of God’s time, where a thousand years is as one day (Ps. 90:4).

It is also the case that for some Christians the time on earth seems to be rather long. This is seen most when it comes to keeping faith and hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. Throughout the Christian life there are many influences that aspire to reach and destroy the innocent faith and sow doubts. Jesus knew this from the beginning, as he had seen it beforehand. It is for this reason that he tells the parable of the faithful and wise manager. The story ends with the exhortation: “The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.”

Today we are participating in the last Sunday of the church year, according to the liturgical tradition of many Christian churches. Next Sunday will be the first Sunday of Advent, the beginning of a new cycle in the church year. On this Sunday, also called “Eternity Sunday,” we take care to talk about the last things, particularly about the last times, which, according to the Bible, will take place when God disposes.

When we start talking about last things, the first thing that comes to mind is death, especially our own death. Who has not ever thought about his own death? And as the years pass and we grow older, and we watch loved ones leaving our side, the more we realize that death is real and that it does not only happen to others but can also happen to us at any time. What do we think about our own end? What will happen to my life? Are we perhaps afraid to die? Are we afraid to leave this world or our loved ones? Are we afraid to meet God?

What is our reflection, when we think Jesus is coming soon? What is our current behavior, thinking that Jesus could come at any moment? Though we may die before Jesus comes, what do you think will be Jesus’ view on your life, when he will wake you up?

It is possible to live under a delusion. You think you are kind, considerate and gracious when really you are not. You think you are building positive stuff into your children when in reality, if you could check with them twenty years later, you really didn’t. What if you could read your own obituary? How do people really see you? Here is the story of a man who did.

One morning in 1888 Alfred Nobel, inventor of dynamite, awoke to read his own obituary. The obituary was printed as a result of a simple journalistic error. You see, it was Alfred’s brother that had died and the reporter carelessly reported the death of the wrong brother. Any man would be disturbed under the circumstances, but to Alfred the shock was overwhelming because he saw himself as the world saw him. The “Dynamite King,” the great industrialist who had made an immense fortune from explosives. This, as far as the general public was concerned, was the entire purpose of Alfred’s life. None of his true intentions to break down the barriers that separated men nor his ideas for peace were recognized or given serious consideration. At death he was simply a merchant. And for that alone he would be remembered. As he read the obituary with horror, he resolved to make clear to the world the true meaning and purpose of his life. This could be done through the final disposition of his fortune. His last will and testament–an endowment of five annual prizes for outstanding contributions in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace (the sixth category of economics was added later)–would be the expression of his life’s ideals and ultimately would be why we would remember him. The result was the most valuable of prizes given to those who had done the most for the cause of world peace. Today we call it the “Nobel Peace Prize.”

To understand what could be written in your obituary, it is good to observe how you live your life now. Do you live for God or are you living for things that are only important to the world?

There are many who, while professing to believe in God, do not deal with the things that God considers important. And they live in their own way. They only place importance in material matters, neglecting the things that God wants you to watch:

If you have a successful career but a broken home, it was all in vain. You lost your home in the process of building the house.

Some earn for the home, but do not earn at home. Some gain in life but do not earn for life.

They are good for business but cannot maintain a loving relationship or come to forget God in the process. They seek to satisfy their material life but forget to build a lasting relationship with God.

On this day, we think about the last things. Not with fear, sadness, solemnity or depressive spirit. Rather, we think that God gives us wonderful years to be lived. God wants us to enjoy this life that he gives us.  He wants us to enjoy each of the material gifts he allows us to achieve. He wants us to enjoy and take care of our families, but above all things, he wants us to care for his church, his Word and respect him. If we put God first in our lives, not only will he look after us and give us all the other things we crave, but we are also going to be faithful stewards that do not fear but rather love him and we going to be given eternal life.

What would you like to appear tomorrow in your obituary written by God? How do you want God to see you when you depart your present life? Will you look like a faithful or foolish steward?

This parable is not just talking about managing material things or money. This parable is talking about what place God occupies in your life. Where have you placed God in your life’s schedule? To put God first and be a faithful steward means, firstly, that regardless of any circumstance in life, I remain true to his word and his promises. Being a faithful steward means that I believe in God, in His word the Bible and that I have accepted Him as Lord and Savior of my life. Being a faithful steward means that after this life, he will come to fetch me and take me with him to where he lives and that I will receive the reward for believing in him and in his word. Being a steward means I live my life thinking positively, trying to love my neighbors, who are: myself, my family, my church family, my community, any person whom I meet.

Being a steward means I want to keep in touch with God, through my active participation in a church, through prayer and Bible reading and something very important, which is to have a happy mood and be joyful for I trust and believe in the promises of God’s assistance.

If I lose all this and start thinking about anything but not in God, I’m starting to be foolish and unfaithful to God.

No one is forced to be Christian. You can believe whatever you want. But there’s only one being that is good, that is the truth and that keeps his word. That is our Lord Jesus Christ. Why not try to live your life according to Christ? Not only will you be wonderfully surprised in this life, but at the end of time you will receive a reward like no other! In this last Sunday of the church year, we do not talk about death but about life. Do you want to live a life full of life? Do you want to return to a true and eternal life beyond this? Draw near to God and receive Him as your Lord and change those things that may be empty today in your own life. Amen.

The highest commandment

As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”

 

“Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

 

Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

 

At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

 

Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

Mark 10:17-27 (NIV)

We could compare our life to a journey, in which we drive a vehicle along the path of our life. During this trip we will transport many loads. The loads can vary from goods, some of which may be necessary, to some loads that could endanger the vehicle and even the journey itself. Goods, in this context, are things that we acquire in this life, like possessions or wealth, but they may also be occupations or work that we will have in our lives, or they may also be our interests or hobbies, those things we do in our leisure time and for entertainment.

One of the goods we transport is wealth. Throughout the Bible, we can read tips related to wealth. And today, we have advice from the mouth of Jesus, with a particular, real and concrete example. As we said, goods can also be other things in life, such as our relationships with people, work and sports, all of these are loads that may or may not constitute risks to our soul, as all of these things can create a dependency in our hearts that becomes more important than God. “There where your heart is, there will be your god,” said Martin Luther. We are permitted to rejoice in all things in life, but we must be careful not to move away from Christ. This would be the worst that could happen to us. Learn from this verse today and take precautions with the loads that could endanger the journey, which can cause accidents to the soul. We do not want to have an accident on the road of life with the dangerous cargo that we carry.

The man who comes to Jesus demonstrates a great respect and interest in him. He came to Jesus by choice, without obligation, without coercion, without manipulation. I wonder what it would be like if people would be like that and come like that to our services and be interested in reading the Bible! He knelt before Jesus. This is a sign of respect and honor to God. The man exemplified model behavior. Then he asks that question, “Good teacher,” “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” A person, who truly asks a question like that, is not far from the kingdom of God. How few people today are interested in eternal life! They see it as unimportant, as if they were words spoken in another language or the decisions of the Senate. These people should take this man as an example.

When the man came to Jesus, Jesus gave an answer that was different from other cases where people of the Gospel came to Jesus and began to believe in him. In this case, it is likely that the rich man approached Jesus carrying a weight within him. He felt insecure and wanted to get a corroboration of that insecurity felt within the soul. And Jesus looked at the heart of this man and he saw it. Jesus saw inside his heart, that this man was not willing to believe, beyond the manners and behavior of an “almost exemplary believer.” Jesus said, without mincing words, that the man already knew and had come to listen. The man was very polite with Jesus, but had self-deception in his heart. Jesus was also very polite to him, despite the misleading question, but answered with a straightforward truth. We may be struck by Jesus’ harshness. This man came to Jesus with self-deception in his heart rather than a sincere intention to surrender to God. But he realizes that Jesus cannot be fooled by appearances. Nevertheless, Jesus looks at him with love.

We must be cautious not to misunderstand and to misinterpret the text. It is not that we have to part with our possessions or other material things to follow Jesus. Jesus observed the heart of this man and saw that his heart was completely dependent on his possessions. And he realized that his possessions were going to lead to destruction. That is why he asked for the radical action of parting from them. –You can test whether or not your heart has similar attachments–. And secondly: Jesus does not expect us to be perfect overnight. The man was asked to seriously follow the first commandment, namely ‘we are to fear, love and trust God above all things.’ But Jesus is also leading the way, so that he can learn, whether as a scholar, or as a disciple or as a follower of Jesus. And then he sees that God loves him despite his sin and learns that the perfect obedience of the commandments is not able to save him, rather it is God who wants to give him eternal life. From this he can gain a new confidence in God and this confidence will change his heart. And with that changed heart he can begin to fulfill the commandments correctly, acting within the Spirit of the commandments. With this he can begin a relationship with Jesus, but he will remain a scholar, he must keep learning. Are we aware of, dear brothers and sisters, what is involved here? It is not about perfection, but about willingness to learn, to being humble. It is to above all things rely on the word of Jesus and learn from it. The story is shocking because the man is not willing to trust: “At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth”. Poor man! With his money he was not happy and the thought of not having any money did not make him happy either. Today, there also are many people that are as poor as this man! Many of these people even consider themselves Christians! Many have refused to return to Jesus, and even feel offended or alluded to, when they say they are treated with contempt when we preach in the church about conversion when what we are really preaching about is what is best for their own salvation! In our country there are many rich people who would be willing to follow Jesus, but are not willing to put God first and change the way they live their lives. And as such, they are going down the wrong path. It is really sad to see them go to perdition.

Jesus is not asking us to reject our possessions, our wealth, our entertainment or distractions in this life. He only wants the sincerity, the honesty of our hearts, in this life. He wants to give us as much as what we have or crave and need, or even more, but the fundamental condition is that we put him on the top of our list. That’s why today’s topic is the most important commandment. Where do we put God? Honest obedience to this commandment is most important and is the key to salvation. We cannot fool God. He knows the depths of our hearts.

The two most important questions from the preaching text for today are:

1) Where are we putting God and his church? Where is God in our earthly and passing life? This is a question we can only answer honestly and only Jesus Christ, who looks at our heart, can verify if the answer is honest. If this answer is not honest, we will receive a similar response to the one that was given to the rich man, a radical response. What was the problem that led Jesus to answer so sharply in that way: it was his dishonesty and the hiding of his true feelings.

2) How can we put Jesus first in our lives?

We are sure that many of us love God. This cannot be a question we can answer in general. Each of us will have to answer to God individually and honestly, but there is a guide that can be useful, ‘that God has the scoop on everything.’ The ancient Israelites, when making offerings of their cattle to God, gave the first fruits to God. Everything belongs to God, because everything comes from him. When we do not acknowledge this in our hearts, we begin to put him in secondary places. In every aspect of life, God and Church must come first, before work, money, time, business, family, entertainment. If we can have this feeling in our hearts, then we’ll find the way to salvation even though we are not perfect. What Jesus wants from our lives is our commitment and our honesty of thought; he sees what we think. He is not paying attention to external things or things that others observe. He sees our heart and is longing for a sincere devotion to him. What makes us truly disciples is a committed trust in Jesus; this is what God asks of us. If we give a firm decision and are honest to God, he will take care so that we lack nothing in this life, not even salvation, which is eternal life. Amen

10th Sunday after Holy Trinity-“God’s people”

“When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.

They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken”.

John 2:13-22

The problem with most of the people of Israel was that their faith in God had become a religion, a tradition, a habit, a dead routine. It was boring. Religion no longer fulfilled its purpose.

When Jesus, as the envoy of God, the chosen one, the messiah, came to the temple, he became indignant to those people in front of the temple.

With this display of holy anger, he wanted to show that religion needs to change so that there is a real relationship with God. With this same message, he also comes to our lives today.

The Gospel says that Jesus was so angry because of the love that he had for the things of God. As a result, he took a whip and drove away those people who desecrated the temple.

Jesus had no problem with money being at the church. The issue for Jesus was that people took advantage of the church building to enrich themselves. He felt a strong indignation over the misuse of the church.

He felt the disdain that was shown to the temple or church.

He felt the ignorance that existed regarding the church.

He noted that the church had been transformed into a mere religion.

Perhaps we can answer this question: What is religion?

One definition that best applies to religion is as follows:

‘A personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices.’

Unfortunately, faith in God can become merely a ritual and nothing more.

In this sense, Christianity does not want to be a religion. Christianity wants to be a living relationship with God, who is alive and powerful.

Religion cannot save me. That is, the fulfillment of customs is not going to save us. What saves me is a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ; a friendship with God, love of God.

Picture a relationship of friendship with someone. What is it like? Does it resemble our relationship with God and his church?

A study was completed to define how a church that just practiced religion differed from a true church.

A survey of hundreds of pastors has allowed us to compile a preliminary list of measurable quality factors in the life of a congregation in ranking order. The twelve factors are:

1. Bible knowledge. Church members are increasing their grasp of the teachings of the Bible. They can integrate this with a theological system that enables them to apply the Bible’s teachings to their life situation.

2. Personal devotions. Members spend time daily in prayer, Bible reading, meditation, and other personal spiritual exercises.

3. Worship. Members regularly participate in the worship services scheduled by the church.

4. Witnessing. Members regularly attempt to share their faith in Jesus Christ with unbelievers.

5. Lay ministry. The lay people of the church are engaged in such ministries as teaching and discipling. In some cases this happens through consciously discovering, developing, and using their spiritual gifts.

6. Missions. The church actively supports missions, organizing and sustaining a strong program for recruiting, sending, and financing home and foreign missionaries.

7. Giving. Members give an appropriate portion of their income to the local church and/or to other Christian causes.

8. Fellowship. Members are growing in their personal relationships with each other through regular participation in church fellowship groups of one kind or another.

9. Distinctive life-style. Members generally manifest their faith in Christ by living a life-style clearly and noticeably distinct from that of non-Christians in the same community.

10. Attitude toward religion. Church members regard their involvement in the church primarily as a service to God rather than a means to fulfill personal needs.

11. Social service. Members are serving others outside the congregation. This includes direct personal involvement with the poor and needy, or in programs designed to help the needy.

12. Social justice. Either through the congregation as a whole or through specialized Christian agencies, members are striving to make changes in sociopolitical structures that will contribute to a more moral and just society.

This study may help us to orient ourselves a little, to show how a church should be driven on what God wants.

I will tell a funny story, if I may:

Three pastors got together for coffee one day and found all their churches had bat-infestation problems. “I got so mad,” said one, “I took a shotgun and fired at them. It made holes in the ceiling, but did nothing to the bats.” “I tried trapping them alive,” said the second. “Then I drove 50 miles before releasing them, but they beat me back to the church.” “I haven’t had any more problems,” said the third. “What did you do?” asked the others, amazed. “I simply baptized and confirmed them,” he replied. “I haven’t seen them since.”

In this, there is some humor, but also something very serious. If indeed this happens in churches, it is a sign that the church has become more of a religion, an institution, than a place where Christians gather together for a better relationship with God.

Today, God is calling us to leave the religion and have a true friendship with him. That’s what will change our lives into those of true Christians and that is what our church needs to change, perhaps.

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.

With this statement Jesus meant that his words were warranted. His words become truth and power to those who believe. And this warranty was demonstrated in his resurrection. There he showed himself as the Son of God and that his words are true.

The message for this Sunday is simple:

God wants to transform our lives, to change us dramatically. But we must seek him in prayer. We must stop thinking of God as a habit, but think that this place has a powerful presence, much more powerful than any human power that is waiting to come into our lives and change our life for a life of defeat to victory. From a life of sadness to a life of joy; a lifetime of resentment into a life of forgiveness; a life of illness to a life of health; of a life of bitterness to a life of hope; a life of lack to a life of abundance, a life of fear to a life of faith and confidence. God wants salvation for us but also wants us to live here on this earth and that we have a life of joy while we are here. And to have joy, we must trust our life to Him and know that ‘for where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them’ (Mt 18:20) Open your heart to God and entrust your situation to him. God will answer, and you will see that the church is not an institution but the temple inhabited by the living God.

The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Amen