Roger's Postings

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Revelation 1:4b-8. God over all history 26/11/06

{4}Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, {5} and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, {6} and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father--to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. {7} Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. {8} "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty."

God here says to us all, that he is the Alpha and the Omega – the beginning and the end, - the One who is; who was; and who is to come - the Almighty. Now that is a powerful statement to us human beings: Particularly us who are living in this day and age.

It is almost as if we today think we have a monopoly on history: That it is us and our knowledge, technology and the like, that is what makes for life. That we are around which life revolves. Along with that there is a reluctance to acknowledge the past in any meaningful way; and are living as if there is no future: Just, an attitude of “I am No. 1” and go get what you can, while you can: and that is the way to go in life. So there is a real arrogance to our approach life; and a dangerous one at that. We are now starting to see the results of this thinking.

Let me share with you what one high school student wrote who had experienced one of the high school massacres in America.

"The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings, but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints; we spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time; we have more degrees, but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgment; more experts, but more problems; more medicine, but less wellness. We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate more often. We've learned how to make a living, but not a life; we've added years to life , not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet our neighbour. We've conquered outer space, but not inner space; we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul; we've split the atom, but not our prejudice. We have higher incomes, but lower morals; we've become long on quantity, but short on quality.
These are the times of tall men, and short character, steep profits, and shallow relationships. These are the times of world peace, but domestic warfare; more leisure, but less fun; more kinds of food, but less nutrition. These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce, of fancier houses, but more broken homes. It is a time when there is much in the show window and nothing in the stockroom.

To this we have God saying, ‘grace and peace to you.’ He wants us to know that there is true undeserved favour: true harmony and wholeness available to us. In other words, he extends to us true health, wealth and happiness: True contentment, security and all the rest. Yes the things that we really need, and which are truly helpful and good. And on top of that, and most importantly, he gives forgiveness sins, life and salvation. If we keep our head in these difficult times, it will all work out in the end.

This all comes to us from the one who truly is God, and who is able to give us these things and ensure that everything works out for good for those who love the Lord. The One who is; always was; and always will be: God Almighty himself here ensures that it is so. Not some fickle philosophy – empty promises from someone who is here today and gone tomorrow. Not something that money can buy – but fails to deliver the good that is wanted or expected. No, here is almighty God himself: The One who is from everlasting to everlasting.

Here is the One who created all things and is still actively sustaining creation. He is the one who so intricately put together all that we see around us: the universe; our body, nature; the whole bit. The more we learn from science, the greater we see it all to be. And it is God himself who put it all together and keeps it going: and he does so for our good; even though we continue to muck it all up.
Here he also reminds us that the Holy Spirit is also at work seeking to do all he can to bring his grace and peace to us. Constantly through the Word and sacraments he tells us, and in fact, gives us his love; to reassure us of the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation that has been won for us by Jesus Christ. And through the Word to remind us of what is good for us, and how we can now live and act. He guides us in the way of peace and so much more.

Then we have Jesus most profoundly and clearly making it possible for this grace and peace to be ours through his life, death and resurrection. Through his life he showed and told us that he was the Son of God come into our world. Then he died on the cross, taking the punishment that should have been ours and thereby extending God’s forgiveness to us. Three days later he rose again so that we can be sure of this forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. He has now ascended to be ruler over all things: every earthly leader: every power and every philosophy.

So now surely our only response can be, to hold this Jesus up as the only hope and the only way: the only one to look up to and recognise as our power for living. Surely since he is such a great and loving God we will want to be a part his family: living for him and one another: seeking to share this grace and peace with others around us: Knowing all the while that he still loves us today and always: Knowing that all the time we live under his forgiveness and that we have the certainty of eternal life with our great God.

But here also the Almighty God reminds us that he will come again as Lord and Judge. He tells us that all who have not taken him seriously will mourn: in fact they will be devastated because they have rejected him and what he has to offer. They will have brought hell on themselves.

Oh yes, there will be many who will say – ‘but- but we are Christians. We went to church occasionally. We lived a pretty good life. We tried to do right thing – most of the time. And look we sort of believed in you, but we had to do all these other things: we got involved in other organizations: we had businesses to run; and we could go on. Anyway we were just following the thinking of our day: everybody else was doing it: and it was claimed to be the right way.’

To which God will once again say, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega: the beginning and the end, - the One who is; who was; and who is to come – the Almighty.’ And they won’t have a leg to stand on. They knew that he was God, and they had heard the truth but chose to take their chances: they chose to place their trust in the here and now.

So to conclude, what is there that we can say. He is the Alpha and the Omega – the One who is; who was, and who is to come. He is the Almighty: the great God of all of history. And all we can say is – ‘So shall it be. Amen. So shall it be. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

Saturday, November 04, 2006

Deut.6:1-9. The Lord is only God!! 5/11/06

(1) These are the commands, decrees and laws the LORD your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, {2} so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the LORD your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. {3} Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, promised you. {4} Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. {5} Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. {6} These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. {7} Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. {8} Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. {9} Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Hear this, you who call yourselves Christians: God's people; the Lord is our God - the Lord is no 1. In fact he is the only true God. The only real thing that has any worth and value for all of life. So, Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength. Never - never forget, that without him, life is nothing. And above all, make sure that you do all you can to impress the importance of God for all of life on your children and those around you.

This message is of utmost importance for us today; because our country is not in good shape at the moment. Even though we have had good rain these last days, we as a nation are still it the midst of a huge drought. This is having a huge impact on many lives; with many suiciding as a result. But even that aside, there are many, many people who despite the outward glitz, are really struggling and looking for a way out. They are searching for that something that will fill that emptiness within.

It is not until we come to an understanding of what God is saying to us here that we today and our nation will find that which truly brings peace, contentment and a sense of wellbeing. For far too long now, so many in our country, and too often we ourselves have chased after and made our own god's. We have looked to money, technology and material success for all our answers. We have look to health, pleasure and an easy life, as to what life is all about. But now we are finding that these gods that we have made ourselves, are no gods at all. When we really need them, we find that they are nothing but frauds; resulting in even greater problems and heartache. Here today, God is saying, have a good long and hard think about all of this. Ask yourselves who really is God - who is your Lord, Master and Boss. Then also think about where you stand in relation to him. Are you prepared to take him seriously?

For Moses as he addresses the Israelites, there is no question. Yahweh was their God. In fact he is the only God. He is No.1. Our translations give this God of Israel the title 'The Lord,' but for the Israelites his name was Yahweh. That is not a title but a name. That brings him down from being someone distant and remote; and thereby allows himself to be someone who we can be in relationship with. In giving of his name to them, he gives himself. He places his presence among his people.

So where this name was used and called on, there God was. What an awesome and great thing this must have been for the Israelites. Yahweh, the only God, present among them. That presence always meant one of two things. Either his awesome power, judgement and destruction, or his grace, deliverance and blessing. We see this come through very clearly in the history of the Israelites.

What power, might and judgement the Lord displayed in Egypt, when he brought that lowly bunch of downtrodden slaves out from the mighty forces of the Egyptian army; with their technologically advanced chariots. They were the ones who thought that they had the knowledge to do great and wondrous things. They were the ones who had a god for everything. Even their leader, Pharaoh, was thought to be a god. They had an answer for everything. It all sounds a bit familiar, doesn't it? But when they chose to defy the Lord, they were crushed and outsmarted by the awesome might of the one God who controls everything.

But the Israelites also experienced time and time again this same power and judgement work against themselves when they deliberately went against him. When they turned their backs on him and thought that they could go their own way and do their own thing, God also used it against them to remind them again that he truly was the only God and they needed to turn back to him.

However on the other hand, we can see how again and again Israel experienced tremendous grace and blessing from Yahweh. Who were these Israelites that God should take an interest in them? After all they were descendants of a nobody called Abraham. They were a lowly bunch of slaves: the scum of society. Nobody but Yahweh would come to their aid. But not only did he help them, but he gave his name to them. He made them a great nation, to live in relationship to him, and he blessed them abundantly.

That is the whole thing with this great God; the Lord; Yahweh. He chooses to give his name to us all so that he can be near to us and we with him. So that we can live in a close relationship with him and that he can extend his grace and blessing to us. But then best of all, he came in person and lived among us as a human being. He did this so that we can know, in an even greater way, who this God is and what he is like. Of course, most importantly, he came to rescue us from God's judgement because of our being less than perfect: Dying on the cross so that we might be forgiven and be able to live with him both here and in eternity. He rose again to prove to us that he was God and that he does give us a reason, purpose and power to live and enjoy life.

So now we have the name of Jesus, the Christ, as one whereby we can know, experience and have the presence of God with us. Everything, and more than the name Yahweh was Israel, the name Jesus is for us. We are told that there is no other name now under heaven by which we can know and experience the awesome wonder of God's grace, deliverance and blessing. No other name by which we might be saved. And there is no other name whereby we can live in peace and contentment with God and each other. Jesus is Lord - he is all important. Lets us now then live close to him and follow him all the way.

Our text here encourages us to hold onto the name of Jesus and make it central to our whole life. As it was for Israel; it is all or nothing. And if it is nothing, beware of that other aspect of God – his judgement and destruction. Surely however the encouragement is for us to, love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. Here, love the Lord your God, could be translated as hold near and dear. We know that throughout history God has held his people near and dear to him. He is always looking for opportunities to love and bless us. At the same time, it is always important that his people never turn their back on and him, ignore or walk away from that love, forgiveness and relationship that he wants with us and for us.

If we want to continue to receive that love and blessing then it is essential that we stay in that close relationship with our God that has been given to us at our baptism. We need to continually focus on our Lord and saviour, Jesus Christ. To do this, it is necessary for us to stay close to God's Word. To hold it dear and read it often, listening to it and letting it guide us throughout our life. This is made very clear for us in this text, of which I will give a free translation, of which I believe still holds true to it's intent.

"Stay close to the Lord your God in all your thinking; with all your living being, and with everything you have. Then God's Word will have a central part in all of your thinking, and it will be that which you will teach diligently to your children. Yes, even more than them getting a good education at school. Talk about God's Word when you are resting in your homes, and when you are up and about your daily life. Make that Word be seen in all the work you do, and in your very person. Let it be central to your family life, as well as to your relationship with everyone else you come in contact with."

Therein we have that which can again return the focus not only of our own lives, but also that of our society, to that which is most important and needed: to our Lord Jesus Christ and our relationship to him. Today our Lord is placing this challenge before us: let these things which of central importance be the major focus in our lives. As God's own people, let us set the example for our children and our country, so that they can once again see that Jesus is Lord. As you do, remember we have been given the name and the Word of the Lord and his very body and blood in the sacrament, so we can have all the help possible. He is after all our God - the one and only God, who has the grace and power to do all the important things of life. So let us go forward confidently and boldly to love the Lord our God with all our thinking, with all our living being and with everything we have.
AMEN

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba