Brought down the wall!

So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called ‘the uncircumcision’ by those who are called ‘the circumcision’—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, so that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God. (Ephesians 2:11-22, NRSV)

You who were once far off have now been brought in to the fold.

The compound fence has been brought down!

Jesus took the barrier that once kept some out out of the way. No longer is there anything but ourselves keeping us from being a part of the fold.

Jesus took what was two separate entities and made them into one. He took two nationalities and made them one body.

So now we are united in the blood of Christ and that is stronger than anything that could cause hostility between us.

Let’s rejoice that God through Jesus has made a way for all to be a part of this wonderful life giving party!

God Provides!

Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether they will follow my instruction or not. On the sixth day, when they prepare what they bring in, it will be twice as much as they gather on other days.’ So Moses and Aaron said to all the Israelites, ‘In the evening you shall know that it was the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, and in the morning you shall see the glory of the Lord, because he has heard your complaining against the Lord. For what are we, that you complain against us?’ And Moses said, ‘When the Lord gives you meat to eat in the evening and your fill of bread in the morning, because the Lord has heard the complaining that you utter against him—what are we? Your complaining is not against us but against the Lord.’ (Exodus 16:4-8, NRSV)

God provided for the needs of His people wandering in the wilderness. They were complaining because they did not have the food to eat like they did back in Egypt. They focused on their needs and empty bellies now and remembered the good things about where they came from. They completely forgot about the fact they were slaves, they just remembered the good food they had to eat!

So God heard their complaints and gave them manna in the morning and meet in the evenings. God provided for their needs. He made sure His people were given what they need.

Has God ever provided for your needs? By taking care of a bill, providing a car when it was needed, or a job, or anything? God provided for His people in the wilderness and He still provides for us today!

Trust that He will provide for your needs!

condemned

Then each of them went home, while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him and he sat down and began to teach them. The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery; and making her stand before all of them, they said to him, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?’ They said this to test him, so that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, ‘Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.’ And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, ‘No one, sir.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.’ (John 7:53—8:11, NRSV)

Jesus was in the temple or on His way tot the temple, when He is brought a woman who has sinned. She was caught in adultery, my first thought is if she is committing adultery, where is the other person? It takes 2 to tango after all…

But that’s not the point… The scribes and the Pharisees want to stone her, and Jesus simply tells them to let the first one of you who is without sin to cast the first stone. After a while they are all gone and Jesus asks two questions, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

No one has condemned her. Which is interesting because the next thing Jesus says is “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again.” You see Jesus could have condemned her, because He met His criteria for the person that could cast the first stone.

Jesus knew she was a sinful person, just like the scribes and the Pharisees that brought her there. But He looked on her the same way He looked on the scribes and the Pharisees and you and I, with love. He loves us enough to give us a second chance, and be gracious to us when we get it wrong.

He is the one that can condemn us, but yet He chooses not to when we turn to Him and confess we are wrong.

So trust in His grace, mercy and love!

reckoned

We say, ‘Faith was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness.’ How then was it reckoned to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the ancestor of all who believe without being circumcised and who thus have righteousness reckoned to them, and likewise the ancestor of the circumcised who are not only circumcised but who also follow the example of the faith that our ancestor Abraham had before he was circumcised. (Romans 4:9b-12, NRSV)

If we hold to a religious system we are trying to work our way in to the good graces of God.

Paul had to tell the Romans, that grace was a gift, not because of anything we had done. It was faith and grace that brought us to a saving relationship with God and not following a set of codes set down as a religious system.

You see Abraham did not receive his acceptance with God because of his circumcision. Abraham received his circumcision as a sign of the righteousness he received from God!

So the physical sign is not what saved Abraham, but the physical sign was a reminder to him and an outward sign of God’s inner work!

Do not be fooled by anyone that tells you that we must trust in the laws and systems of religion. Only God can save you, not following the system or trusting in any thing other than the grace we receive by faith through Jesus Christ!

Live

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; but the people became impatient on the way. The people spoke against God and against Moses, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we detest this miserable food.’ Then the Lord sent poisonous serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you; pray to the Lord to take away the serpents from us.’ So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.’ So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live. (Numbers 21:4-9, NRSV)

The people of Israel are a lot like you and I…

Have you ever complained about your dwelling/surroundings only to move and find you really wish you were back where you were before? Or you compare here and there, there and here… trying to see which one is better.

The Israelites were slaves, but when they had no food, and were wandering in the wilderness they started to compare here to there, and there seemed a lot better.

They got hung up in the here and now and were not focused on the goal, the end, the prize, the wonderful place we will all be with God. We can not get hung up on the here and now and compare what we had with what we have, because something will always come up short and we will be dismayed and discouraged.

But God will always provide. Just as He provided the bronze healing snake to cure the snake bites, He will always provide.

So rest in the assurance that the prize, goal and end will be better and is worth the changes, challenges and the wait.

Born from above…

Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.’ Jesus answered him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.’ Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?’ Jesus answered, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, “You must be born from above.” The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.’ Nicodemus said to him, ‘How can these things be?’ (John 3:1-9, NRSV)

This is an interesting passage of scripture that has caused all kinds of discussions. How can a person be born again?

Well if you read the passage above, you might be saying, “it doesn’t say born again…” And you would be right. It says in the above translation, “You must be born from above.” That is not much clearer, at least we are not trying to climb back into our mothers to be born again.

Jesus says “no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.” We have to be born of water and of Spirit. For what is born of flesh is flesh and what is born of Spirit is spirit. I believe Jesus is saying here that we are all born a natural child birth, which any of you who have been through or witnessed happens with a lot of water. Born of water is when we were born into this world from our mothers. Even c-sections have lots of water. This is not baptism, then we are born of the Spirit, or from above, and that is how we enter the kingdom of heaven. As Lutherans we say that the one baptized is sealed by the Holy Spirit, and that is the birth from above.

It is not about being born again, but being sealed by the Holy Spirit, and being born from above.

So know you are marked with the cross of Christ forever!