Beginning A New Family

Next Sunday is Mother's Day here in the U.S.A. I'm veering off that national topic by asking for a national celebration of  Family Day, especially since the Biblical concepts of marriage and family are now under severe attack on many fronts.

The Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario commemorate the importance of their families on on the third Monday of February. Family Day is also a public holiday in South Africa, in Vanuatu, in Vietnam and as "Family & Community Day" in the Australian Capital Territory.

Here in the U.S.A. Family Day is a state holiday in Nevada, celebrated on the day after Thanksgiving, i.e. the Friday following the fourth Thursday in November.[5]  American Family Day is a state holiday in Arizona and has been celebrated on the first Sunday in August since 1978.

Family Day was also launched here in the U.S. in 2001 by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. Their Family Day is a national movement to celebrate parental engagement as an effective tool to help keep America’s kids substance free. Quite obviously we need to do more than celebrate one day out of the year. Together we must help families confront the multitude of forces at work to destroy them.

Families begin with marriage and marriage is always defined in the Bible as the union of one man and one woman. This definition goes back to the beginning of Creation. Over the years I've offered counsel to men and women planning marriage based upon this passage of Holy Scripture:

So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said, "This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man." Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. - Gen 2:21-25 ESV

My comments are based upon three concepts lifted up in the quoted verses, based in part upon the KJV translation of these words:

• Leave - Therefore a man shall leave his father and  his mother
• Cleave - Hold fast to his wife (cleave once meant adhere closely or remain faithful to)
• Weave - They shall become one flesh

I am summarizing the discussions I have with couples in this week's postings. Here's what we talk about.

I. Leave - Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother

Marriage is between one man and one woman. It is not the union of two families even though it is vital that you both recognize that you are joining one another's families. Unfortunately, some parents do not want to release their son or their daughter to marriage. What about your parents?  Will they feel they have to steer and guide your marriage? Perhaps you've known, as have I, some parents who even accompanied the new couple on their honeymoon.

You both need to talk with one another about your families. Here are some things to consider: What is your family like? Are you a close-knit family? Will your family care if you do not join them for every holiday? Will your mother feel it is her duty to give you advice on housekeeping and child rearing? Will you expect it? What about your Dad? How is your relationship with him?

The Biblical word for leave (azav -Hebr.) does indeed mean to leave behind, forsake, let go. With this in mind you must not let others in the family interfere in your marriage. The task you face is to make your own decisions. Will you be able to do that? Do you even want to?

On the other hand, that does not mean that you cut off all ties with your families. The challenge is to learn how to join your families and develop loving relationships. The commandment to honor parents (Exod. 20:12; Deut. 5:16) does not cease with marriage. However, relationships with parents, siblings, cousins, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc. dare not come at the expense of your marriage.

_________________

That's enough to get the juices going. We'll have more to talk about next time.

April Is National Child Abuse Awareness Month

April is designated as National Child Abuse Prevention Month, providing opportunities to raise awareness about protecting children. As budget cuts threaten the safety net of services for vulnerable families, there are many ways that communities can actively support children’s safety.

April is child abuse awareness month in Texas. 

The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services has kicked off a month-long campaign starting April 1 to stop child abuse and raise public awareness.  

Child abuse cases continue to climb and in 2012,  212 Texas children died at the hands of their parents or caregivers, and more than 64,000 children were abused or neglected.  There were 166,211 completed investigations and 16,972 children were removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. . . . 

Thanks to a federal grant,  The Department of Family and Protective Services is spending $1,000,000 on the campaign from now through the end of the summer. TV ads in English and Spanish are running on stations in all Texas media markets during Child Abuse Prevention Month. The online ad campaign runs from mid-March through the end of August. This advertising buy specifically targets young parents and especially young mothers. 

The ultimate goal of the Help and Hope campaign is to help Texas parents find the help and information they need in their communities to head off child abuse before it happens.
“I heard hundreds of child abuse cases when I was a district judge in San Antonio,” said DFPS Commissioner John Specia. “Many of the parents who came through my courtroom were young, poor, and stressed.  If we can get parents the support they need up-front, fewer will end up in court needing the help of Child Protective Services.” 

While prevention is best, always report child abuse or neglect. Don’t count on someone else to do something. Report your suspicions to the Texas Abuse and Neglect Hotline at 1-800-252-5400 or online at www.txabusehotline.org. 

April is also child abuse month in North Dakota. Their website presents a long list of resources to help parents and others with this national problem related to domestic violence.

Prevent Child Abuse America, founded in 1972 in Chicago, works to ensure the healthy development of children nationwide. The organization promotes that vision through a network of chapters in 50 states and over 500 Healthy Families America home visitation sites in 41 states, all the territories, Puerto Rico and Canada. A major organizational focus is to advocate for the existence of a national policy framework and strategy for children and families while promoting evidence-based practices that prevent abuse and neglect from ever occurring. 

Quotes from Scriptures about raising children: 

For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.” - Genesis 18:19

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. - Proverbs 22:6  

 All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children. - Isaiah 54:13 

Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. - Colossians 3:21 

And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives." It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. - Hebrews 12:5-11 - ESV

Children are A Blessing From God 

He gives the barren woman a home, making her the joyous mother of children.Praise the LORD! - Psalm 113:9

 Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. - Psalm 127:3-5

 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you,when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. - Psalm 139:13-16

When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. - John 16:21

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. - James 1:17

Read more: Bible Verses About Children- 25 Inspirational Scripture Quotes

We're Heading Home

Holy Week

A year ago last fall my wife and I had a wonderful weeklong cruise on a ship up along the eastern side of Canada. We visited the Canadian maritime provinces, went down the St. Lawrence river to Quebec City and stayed in a comfortable timeshare apartment for a week. From there we flew back home.

Home! How good it was to be home! Canada was great. We really enjoyed the visit, but the people spoke French, a language we don't understand. Their customs and even their food are quite different from ours. We didn't belong there. It was great to be home!

Next Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week, that week when the church focuses on the events leading up to Christ's suffering, death and resurrection. In that first Holy Week our Lord celebrated the Passover with his disciples. During the meal Jesus told them He was going home to his Father's house to make preparations for their coming as well.

"Let not your hearts be troubled," Jesus said. "Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going." 

Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?"

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him." - John 14:1-7 ESV

Just before these words we read of Judas leaving on his dastardly mission to betray the Lord. After he was gone, Jesus urged the disciples to love one another and then told them he was going somewhere they could not follow, at least not yet. Peter wanted to go with him, even promising he would lay down his life for Jesus. Jesus soberly told Peter that before the rooster crowed in the early hours of the morning he not only would not lay down his life for Jesus. He would deny three times that he even knew him. What a troubling prophecy.

But, said the Lord to both Peter and the others, "Let not your hearts be troubled. You believe in God. Trust me as well. I am going away, but I am going to my Father's house to prepare a place for you—even you who will forsake me."

Now what exactly did Jesus mean by his Father's house? In the OT Bible the phrase father's house can refer to two things:

• The dwelling in which one's father lives. So Abraham, in seeking a wife for his son Isaac, sent his servant back to the land of his kindred and his father's house in the city of Nahor (Gen. 24:7-10). The servant's journey was successful. He brought back Rebekah and she became Isaac's wife. 
• But the father's house (Bayith Abi) in the Abraham and Isaac story also refers to the extended family, the relatives, the kindred and kinsmen (mowledeth), as well as in the later story of Rachel and Leah (Gen. 31:14-16) and other stories. 

This is picked up by the Lord Jesus when he promised Peter and the other disciples,

Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. - Mar 10:29-30 ESV

Even in this age our Lord provides family, people bound to us by a common faith and rebirth by the power of the Holy Spirit. We all have the same Father in heaven and Jesus is our Brother. We are family. And in the age to come, after the great resurrection, it will be even better. All the joys of really knowing one another, sharing a common background, speaking the same language and being bound together as brothers and sisters and members of the same family will be ours forever and ever. All this Jesus has prepared for us by his life, suffering and death upon the cross of Calvary.

But there's more . . .

Christian Ethical Issues with Cloning

We're discussing cloning. The word clone comes from a Greek word meaning twig. My primary concern is with embryonic cloning procedures, especially the ethics of human cloning. To review, there are basically three types of cloning procedures.

Cloning Laboratory Procedures (from The Ethics of Human Cloning)

• Molecular cloning - DNA fragments containing genes are copied and amplified in a host cell, usually a bacterium. This has led to the production of many important medicines. 
• Cellular cloning - a cell line identical to the original is grown in a culture. Useful in testing and sometimes the production of medicines, such as insulin and tPA. 
• Embryo cloning - three categories
• blastomere division - able to produce a new individual organism. Used in livestock breeding
• blastocyst division (twining) - a sexually formed embryo is split into two identical halves. 
• nuclear transplantation—from each blastomere or embryo into the cytoplasm of an egg whose genetic material has been removed (enucleated). This process is used both for the therapeutic cloning of pluripotent stem cells and the potential cloning of human beings. 

There are many legal and political issues surrounding cloning. I do not intend to discuss them. For instance, Federal Law states that any clinic using assisted reproduction techniques must be monitored. And there are regulations on the number of manipulations that may be made to eggs or embryos. My focus is upon the religious issues, specifically the ethical issues that arise from Biblical teachings. These considerations apply specifically to Christians and will be used by them as they make decisions in their callings as parents, teachers, citizens, lawyers, political leaders, medical practitioners and scientists.

Christian Ethical Issues

1. Obtaining pluripotent stem cells from human embryos - remains the biggest problem for us Christians who believe that human life begins with conception (see Human Life Begins With Conception). We recognize human life to be human life (Gen. 9:6; Psalm 139:15-16), regardless of the stage of development. This is why we strenuously object to any attempts to manipulate and destroy such life. 
2. Induced pluripotent stem cells research is an exciting new development. iPSCs, as they are called, are derived from adult somatic cells that, through genetic manipulation, have been reprogrammed to resemble embryonic pluripotent stem cells. Pluripotent stem cells have the unique property of unlimited proliferation in the undifferentiated state while retaining the ability to differentiate into terminal cell types, including neurons, when cultured appropriately. iPSCs hold enormous potential for studying human development and disease, creating new systems to identify promising drugs, and generating customized replacement cells that can be used as therapies directly. And they circumvent the ethical issues arising from embryonic sources of pluripotent stem cells
3. We humans were designed by our Creator to be in a family (Gen. 2:18-25; 4:1; Eph. 3:14-21). We are not merely highly evolved animals to be manipulated and manufactured. We are created to be the result of the union of a loving father and mother, joined and blessed by our Creator. We were never created merely to be the union of a sperm and an egg or a nucleus implanted into an enucleated egg. We are created to be a part of a family. And our Creator intends for that family to be the protective and stable milieu into which children are born and in which they are nurtured, taught and brought to maturity.  
4. Some may in fact clone a human one day. As stated in my previous blog, the science is available. Should that happen, how will we deal with that life—that person? It is not a question of whether he/she has a soul, as the Schwarzenegger character asks in The 6th Day movie. Man does not have a soul. He is a soul. What distinguishes man from the other creatures that have life is the image and breath (neshamah -Hebrew) of God (Genesis 1:27; 2:7; 5:1; 9:6). He is the highest of God's creatures, created to be in fellowship with God and made to rule over all the rest of the living creatures. We can only assume that even under the inhumane practices of manipulating God's creation to our own ends and ignoring His plan for human life, He may bring forth human life. And so we must treat that human with the same dignity and love as any other human. He/she is not simply another Dolly the sheep! 

We who live together on this earth are called by our Creator to be fruitful and multiply. It is in our DNA. But as we do so, we must be very careful to join our LORD and Savior to pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."

The Holy Family And Yours

I write on the Eve of this year's joyous Christian celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus the long-awaited Messiah. In this season the family is very important. Families around the world gather to celebrate what happened to the Holy Family in Bethlehem where Jesus was born and placed in a manger. My family is gathered this Christmas at the home of our daughter in South Texas.


The old question of Jesus' own family—and his later possible marriage–arises unbidden. A few years earlier it was all the rage as people read in novels that Mary Magdalene was Jesus' wife. The news was filled with the nonsense. If you'd like an extended conversation about the issue, you may want to read the long article "Was Jesus Married? A Careful Look At The Real Evidence" by Dr. Mark D. Roberts. He says there is hardly even a hint from the sources that Jesus was. His conclusion:

Once when Jesus was preaching he was approached by his natural family. The crowd told him that they were there to see him. Jesus responded, “Who are my mother and brothers?” Then, looking at his disciples, he answered the question: “Here are my mother and brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother” (Mark 3:33-35). Ironically, therefore, Jesus is more inclusive and counter-cultural than those who would tie Mary Magdalene’s significance primarily to her filling the traditional role of wife. Though much in Scripture supports the importance of natural family, the relationship that matters most of all is our relationship with Jesus Christ as his disciple. We disciples are, together, the true and only bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:21-33).

As you celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus again this year, I invite you to join me in celebrating the wonder of it all. Our Lord chose to become one with His precious bride. We are His and because of this birth, we shall always be so. So I wish for you and your family a joyous celebration of Emmanuel, God with us. Hallelujah. Do have a most merry Christmas.

Healing And Growth In Our Families

We're continuing our discussion of the third purpose of marriage: restraint of sin. 


Have you ever asked a newly married couple if they plan to have children and they answer, "No! We have too many other things to do with our lives?" It happens, doesn't it? Couples reject the very thought of having kids in order to pursue their own self-centered plans.


But then the baby comes anyway, even at the most inconvenient time. And everything changes. I mean everything. This little person demands to be fed, have his diaper changed, put to bed, taught to walk, and on and on. The demands never end. And that is when marriage becomes a most wonderful place of learning, maturity and growth. In the family the children aren't the only ones to mature and grow up. Parents also learn to grow up and take on ever increasing responsibilities.


Of course we all know it doesn't always work that way. Our sinful nature does not disappear just because we have children. It asserts itself in endless ways. And here I'm talking to parents. Sadly some parents beat and whip their children into submission, ignore, neglect, shame, despise or force them into activities beyond their native abilities. They use their children to win their own glory, sexually abuse them, emotionally harass them and more—the list goes on and on.


Unless all in a family learn to control their self-interests—and the all includes both parents—everyone is hurt. How often have I seen that even in Christian homes, to say nothing about those families in which Christ is not present. This is why the larger Christian family, the church, emphasizes the importance of hearing God's Word, renewing our Baptism and eating and drinking at the Lord's Table week by week. These are the means by which our Lord continues the process that began with our rebirth, that moment when His Spirit gave us new life. When Jesus is present in our families to nourish our souls, guide our decisions, forgive our sins and heal our losses, we all grow together. That's a process that continues throughout our lives. It is a process that eventually includes all members of the extended family, grandparents, grandchildren, cousins, uncles, aunts and beyond. 


In this connection we must also speak about suffering, pain, separation and death. Strangely, even paradoxically, these times can even become opportunities to learn and grow. A soldier-husband is called to duty in a foreign country. Mom is left behind to raise and care for the children all by herself. A wife is suddenly afflicted with a mysterious disease that leaves her crippled and Dad is forced to work and make arrangements to care for Mom and the kids. Or even worse. Mom dies and Dad is now a single parent with three small children to raise. All this falls under the command of Jesus to take up our crosses and follow Him. And in those times He does not forsake us, but provides also His Spirit to strengthen and guide. Here is His promise: 

God is faithful and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it (1 Cor. 10:13). 

Those of us who have been so tested look back upon and bear witness to the truth of His Word. He is ever with us as He promises and He does provide a way out of what at times seems to be impossible situations.


To sum up this part of our discussion, the third purpose of marriage is not merely to restrain and control sin. It is much more than that. It is an opportunity for both husband and wife to learn the meaning of Christ's love, that love He displayed when He gave Himself up for us all as a personal sacrifice on the cross (Ephesians 5:1-2). Sin in marriage is not only curbed and controlled, it is most especially forgiven in the name of Christ. Thus its destructive power is removed day by day. It loses the strength to tear apart our families. Christian couples and their families learn that this controlling principle of our new life in Christ works genuine healing in our marriages and families. We learn from the living Christ to be kind and how to forgive one another, even as God in Christ daily and richly forgives us (Ephesians 4:32). 

Family Matters

For Sylvia and me this has been another family summer. We drove from Texas to Illinois, accompanied by our daughter Cheryl Lee, to a family reunion on Sylvia's side of the family. My son Nathan flew in to join us for the weekend. Cousins from Alaska to Texas, Nebraska to New York and many states in between, gathered to link together and share memories. Below is an old photo of Grandma and Grandpa and their sons and daughters. All the cousins can trace themselves back to this old picture through their parents or grandparents.

As you can see, this photo dates back to the beginning of the 20th century, to a time when taking a picture was a big deal. Notice how the family members have on their best clothes, the girls in their pretty dresses, the boys in their knickers, white shirts and ties. One can just imagine the big box camera attached to a sturdy wood tripod with the photographer centering upon the front door of the porch and saying, "Everybody look my way. Hold it. Hold it. Got it!" I don't think anyone ever smiled for a photo in those days. It was too serious an event.

This and similar photos were spread out on tables for all the cousins to see. "Now let's see," John said, pointing to the old picture, "This is my dad and that is your mom."

Some of us are now writing back and forth by email, wondering how we can preserve that brief weekend together in our memories. We've started a family website on My Heritage.com. We hope to fill out the birthday, wedding and funeral dates, as well as add more photos.

Family matters. Maintaining ties to our families is a big deal. This was confirmed in our family on that weekend. God's Word emphasizes this also. Again and again we read about who was the father of whom and who married whom. The whole long, complex history of our families is foretold in the opening chapters as the LORD sends Adam and Eve out from the garden of Eden (Genesis 2:1-3:24).

They would no longer be allowed to eat from the tree of life and live forever. They made a fatal choice to disobey the command not to eat the forbidden fruit. As a result they became aware of evil, the dark contrast to the bright, good life they had known prior to their sin. A curse would now be upon the very earth from which they had come. In addition to the plants that provide food, they would have to battle thorns and thistles.

They would still have children. That promise was not removed. But all the daughters of Eve would have pain multiplied in the wondrous act. And the battle of the sexes was about to begin.

As we gathered this summer, I became aware again that our family shares this history. We smiled and laughed, recalled childhood events and told stories about family events. But beneath it are also painful memories of divorce, sickness, suffering, conflict and even murder. It was all there, but we did our best to not focus on these matters. This was meant to be a happy time

One other thing was there—or should I say One other person was there? Most of us cousins share a faith that can be traced all the way back to those fateful events in the garden when the LORD spoke a curse upon the deceiving serpent and a promise to all the offspring of Adam and Eve.

I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel"(Genesis 3:15). 

That promise was fulfilled when Jesus of Nazareth, offspring of the virgin Mary, stepped into the family of man, to take to himself the curse we all yet bear. As a tree was involved in the story of our sickness and death, so also a tree was involved in our healing. The Apostle Peter puts it this way:

"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed" (1 Peter 2:21-25).

Family matters, not only to us, but especially to our Father in heaven. Because He was willing to sacrifice His Son, we look forward to celebrating all the good things about our family in the glory that awaits in the renewal of all things (1 Corinthians 2:7-10).

 

Joseph, Model Father

On Christmas Day one thinks about family. Today I got an email greeting describing exactly the same kind of Christmas we had when I was a child, living on a farm in southern Minnesota. My father would rush to get the cows milked a little early and then we were off to the children's Service on Christmas Eve. My sister, my mother and I would all be in the car ready to go. Then Dad would say he forgot something and rush back into the house. In a few minutes he would be back out and off we'd go. After the Service we would come back, rush into the house and lo and behold, Santa Claus had been there to bring us all those wonderful gifts. It was a grand fantasy and great fun.

Not much is said about the Father Joseph in the meditations upon Christmas, yet it could not have happened without him. Who was this man who appears briefly and then disappears completely from the Scriptural record? We know nothing about when he was born, nor how old he was when Jesus was born. No record survives of when he died. All we know for certain is that he, like Mary, was a descendant of King David (Matthew 1:16; Luke 2:23). He protected his family, cared for them in Egypt and helped them settle back in Nazareth (Matthew 2:23; Luke 2:39). He was still around twelve years later when the family went to Jerusalem (Luke 2:51).


Joseph was a τεκτων, a Greek word that has usually been translated as carpenter (Matthew 13:55a), but often had a far wider meaning in common Greek. It could refer to any artisan working with wood and metal. It could even refer to a poet.


The Wikipedia article on Joseph lists a modern book discussing Joseph's historical fatherhood and the principles we modern fathers can draw from it: Fatherhood Principles of Joseph the Carpenter: Examples of Godly Fatherhood by Akili Kumas.


In any event Joseph remains as a model of a loving husband and father, providing loving care and protection and teaching godly character. With humility and thanks I remember my own father in the same way. He too was a τεκτων, for that is what a farmer had to be in those days. But he was also a godly man who in love cared for his family.


On this day I join everyone who so remembers his/her father. A blessed Christmas to all. 

The Great Family Gathering Awaits

This will be a quick post, because in a short time from now I will be joining the others of the family of my dear cousin Melvyn to give thanks for his life and to praise our Lord for keeping him in faith and now taking him to the glory of heaven and all that awaits us.

Several of you have posted comments on about the previous post. I am so thankful that my words offer comfort to you. One of you, a pastor, has asked permission to use what I wrote. And I gladly offer those words to you, dear brother, to use in any way that will bless your hearers and comfort mourners.

Last evening the family gathered--as so many do when a loved one is taken--and we had some great moments recalling events, getting better acquainted, catching up on what has been happening in our lives and rejoicing in the Gospel. This is one of the very important parts of the farewell time that a funeral is all about. All this reminds me again of what awaits.

We are a family in Christ, regardless of whether we have been born of the same mother and father. We are bound by blood, the blood of our Savior. We have been cleansed and purified by that great sacrifice. And so imagine what a great and wondrous gathering will take place on that Day when our Lord returns. What great catching up we'll have to be about. So many stories to tell, photos to share, hugs and kisses to give when we are all reunited again.

So you see that's another advantage to being called to a funeral at Christmas. We are again given a glimpse of what our Lord has accomplished and why it was so important for the CHILD to be born and laid in a manger. I can hardly wait for what is yet to come, but I shall and while I wait I shall give thanks.

Quarrels and My Christian Family

One of the things I learned in my years of pastoral ministry was that quarrels among the people of God are inevitable. The Apostle Paul addresses this issue in the very first chapter of his letter to the Corinthians in this manner:

"I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas; still another, "I follow Christ."

"Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power" (vv. 10-17).

At the same time I found many wonderful and close brothers and sisters in God's family. It has been over fifty years since I first began to serve as a public minister of God's Word. I still receive emails and other correspondence from some of the people I served in those early years. Sylvia and I go back to the congregations we served and are immediately received warmly and with great affection. This is one of the reasons I claim to be among the wealthiest of men. My wealth consists of the love and affection I have received and long to share with those, my brothers and sisters in Christ.

The point is that we who are baptized into Christ become family. Our ties transcend any differences we may have because of culture, race or status. What we have in common is the cross of Christ, that power of God to rescue and save us from our own very human weaknesses and failings. In receiving that free and undeserved grace and mercy, we find a unity unknown in any other area of human life.

There are folks with whom I have great conversations about intellectual matters. We talk about history, science and the natural world at great length. I really enjoy those conversations. But this or that person I have in mind is not my brother.

There are people who help me to manage my money. We talk about the best way to invest, the future of the stock market and our mutual distrust of the IRS. We moan and groan about political matters and decisions by congress. Some of these people are and some of these people are not my brothers.

I attend conferences that discuss writing. I attend conferences that offer insights into social problems and solutions to psychological problems. I learn from the presenters, but I know that many of them are not my brothers and sisters.

There are members of my extended family who send me Christmas cards and with whom we share gifts and even hugs and kisses, but some of them are not my brothers and sisters.

You see what I say? Being baptized into Jesus Christ changes everything. In Him we find our unity, not in intellectual pursuits, social status or political leanings, not even in our family. In Christ we are bound together in a spiritual unity, both in this life and for all eternity. What an awesome revelation. What a wondrous reality.

I like the motto adopted recently by the little congregation Sylvia and I attend. It helps me to think about this matter: "Living Today for Eternity."

Modern Life and Ancient Corinth

For the past year I've been leading a Bible study with a small group. We've been examining and discussing what the Apostle Paul wrote in his so-called first letter to the Corinthians. He wrote the letter about a generation after Christ's ministry. At that time there were hundreds in Galilee and Judea who had seen the Lord Jesus alive and present with them after His resurrection. Paul makes reference to that fact in the fifteenth chapter.

The Corinthians are so interesting because their problems have so many parallels in modern urban life, as well as the life in contemporary churches. Three individuals in particular, Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus, come to Paul while he was teaching in Ephesus over on the eastern side of the Aegean Sea (modern Turkey). They told him they wanted to assist him with his work, but they may also have been the ones who carried news about predicaments in the several house churches there in Corinth.

I can imagine them saying, "Brother Paul, we have some real headaches, especially with one of our families. This man--dare we call him brother--is living with his step-mother. He claims it's perfectly legal and refuses to listen to anything we have to say. We're uncertain about how to proceed."

Perhaps Paul listened intently, asked some detailed questions and assured them he would be writing a letter. Was there anything else?

"Oh, yes," they replied. "We have a whole list of hurdles. Some are even questioning your right to claim the title of Apostle. They insist they follow Apollos. Others claim to be followers of Peter. And so it goes. They don't want to listen to anything you have to say."

"Interesting," mused Paul. "Continue."

And they did, listing controversies about church leadership, lawsuits, sexual experimentation, prostitution, marriage, idolatry, the Lord's Supper, worship, the work of the Holy Spirit and on and on.

Paul must have prayed for long hours for wisdom. How should he reply? Would they even bother to listen to what he had to say? After such musings and guided by the Holy Spirit, the Apostle wrote this wonderful letter to the believers scrattered around Corinth.

Corinth had a long history as a city and a city state, long before Paul's day. It was the home of more than 250,000 free persons, with nearly double that number of slaves. It was a harbor city, with commerce flowing back and forth across the isthmus upon which it was located. Greek to the hilt, controlled by the Romans, Corinth was home to a dozen pagan temples, many that sponsored religious prostitution. This was a center for open and unbridled immorality. At one time as many as a thousand sacred prostitutes served in the temple of Aphrodite.

In writing his letter, Paul deals with these and many other questions about morality, faith, religion, hope, life after death and the resurrection. As I said, it's a letter packed with vital and meaningful teachings that have scores of applications to modern life. I want to tackle what Paul writes and reflect upon it over the next months. Stay tuned.

You Did It For Me

It is a bit uncommon for me to fill a pulpit on any given Sunday morning. That is my own choice, I suppose. Some classmates and friends are interim or vacancy pastors, still preaching every Sunday morning. Be that as it is, I am privileged to preach this Sunday, the final in the traditional church year. My sermon to the small congregation in Livingston, TX. is based upon the Gospel lesson from Matthew 25:31-46, the final separation of the righteous from the unrighteous. What struck me again about that lesson is the vision our LORD has for Christian community. Upon commending the righteous for their lives, He says,

"I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me."

They protest, indicating they didn't see Him. But He responds, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

All of their deeds of kindness, care and concern were in reality done to Him. In other words, the believer's entire life is one of response to the love we receive from Him. We love Him because He first loved us. "If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen" (1 John 4:18-20).

Note that the word 'brother' is used both by Jesus and by the Apostle John. John says that the brother in need is visible enough, even though God remains physically invisible. So if I love God who first loved me in Christ, the immediate way to love God is to love my brother. Earlier in the same chapter of his letter John writes, "if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us."

This points to that strange mystery about the church, the mystical body of Christ in the world. We are His body, hands, feet, eyes and ears. His Spirit lives in us. It is through us that He continues to teach, heal, serve and care. Consequently it is quite unthinkable that we do not love one another.

The word 'love' is, of course, the tricky word here. English speakers are bound to use the word love in all directions, whereas the Greeks of Jesus' day had four words available: agape, or spiritual love; storge, or familial love; philia, the love between friends; and the familiar eros, sexual love.

C.S. Lewis took all this apart in his well known work, The Four Loves, published by Harcourt in 1971. In it he points to the many ways by which familial, 'philial' and sexual love can be twisted from the purposes for which they were created. Yet all this changes when the 'agapic' love of Christ takes hold of one's life. Then you begin to love as you have been loved and in those very acts you are changed. As John wrote, "His love is made complete in us."

As we approach a national day of Thanks Giving, I give thanks that I have been called into this love of God so clearly seen in Christ Jesus. Consequently I have been and continue to be loved by my brothers and sisters in the great family of God. In turn I have family members all around who need and welcome my love. What a wonder. What a reason to give thanks indeed.

My Grandson's Wedding

I am about to receive one of the greatest blessings of my life. This weekend I will preside at the wedding of my eldest  grandson Shawn. He and Marian will exchange vows of faithfulness in a church in south Texas. Needless to say, along with the rest of the family, I am very pleased and excited. 

The young couple has asked me to help them to meditate upon Matthew 7:24-27:

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

One of the things often forgotten is that public ministers or pastors did not preside at Christian weddings for several hundreds of years. Marriage for long centuries was understood to be a contract between families. Often couples were not even acquainted with one another. That depended, of course, on the economic level of the families and where they lived. In any event the concept of marriage as one of the so-called seven sacraments did not arise until later in the history of the church. The Council of Trent in the sixteenth century counter-reformation declared that for Roman Catholics a marriage is a sacrament to be administered by the church through the witness and blessing of an ordained priest. The same Council insisted that the couple must exchange rings, a custom that earlier was optional. 

As a Christian pastor committed to the Lutheran confessions, I cannot accept marriage as a sacrament offering special grace to enable the couple to live the Christian life together. We Lutherans reserve the use of the word 'sacrament' to the Lord's Supper and Holy Baptism (and sometimes also penance). That is a topic for much longer discussion at another time.

Instead, I turn to the Word of the Lord Jesus that Shawn and Marian have asked be read and considered at the time of their wedding. Through his Word our Lord promises to strengthen them with His Spirit. His Word is the rock foundation upon which they must build their new house--their common life and the life of their family. As they build upon that Word they will find all they need to face the storms that inevitably will come crashing in upon them like the hurricanes that sweep off the Gulf of Mexico. 

I am very happy that Shawn and Marian have chosen to build their household, their family upon that foundation. In Psalm 103 King David reminds us that our days are like grass. The dry wind comes along to blow over it and it is gone and forgotten. However, the love of our Lord Jesus is eternal and ever lasting with those who hold him in reverent faith and honor. He has made a covenant with us upon the cross, a covenant in which he pronounces forgiveness and mercy. In Christ we are now seen by the heavenly Father as righteous and without sin. We are his sons and daughters. 

Shawn and Marian believe that. They share the same faith as do I and the rest of the family. So, as David says, "The Lord's love is with those who fear him and his righteousness with their children's children" (v. 17). So they need nothing more. They have the love and blessing of Jesus. They are not only part of our family, they are part of the great and eternal family of God. He will guide, protect and defend them until we all dwell together in the Father's house in the new creation. 

Should I be happy about that? Should we have a family celebration this weekend? As we used to say up in Minnesota where I grew up, "Yah sure, ya betcha!" Yes, ya betcha again and again a thousand times over. And we will. I might even post a photo or two the next time I post. Keep looking. 

Our Family Enters A New Year With Thanksgiving

Last evening Cassie, my granddaughter, and I looked at the Christmas pictures stored on my computer. The photos took us back over the years, back to the times when we first began to gather here in Pagosa Springs. We remembered sharing Christmas gifts, worshipping at Our Savior Lutheran Church, skiing and hiking in the mountains, fishing in the streams and lakes, singing camp songs and roasting marsh-mellows around camp fires and hiking to water falls and overlooks. We've been coming here for more than a dozen years. When we finally built our vacation house here Cassie was a little girl. She's now a grown up young woman about to enter college.

When we built this house, Sylvia and I decided it was to serve as a place for the family to gather for fun and fellowship. Over these years it has been that, not only for our family, but also for many other families and friends. We consider this house and these times together as precious gifts of our Lord. In so many ways, we have seen His hand not only leading us here, but also blessing our times together.

It is good to remember that as another year comes to an end. It's also good to remember the importance of caring for our families. Here's how the Bible puts it:

But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel (1 Timothy 5:8).

The Apostle Paul first spoke these words to young Pastor Timothy as part of an admonition to him to see that the widows of his congregation were properly cared for. That is the first application, but there are others. We all have an obligation to care for those who are of our own house.

We have a beautiful wooden plaque hanging over the door of our Pagosa house. It quotes the words of Joshua, the great leader of Israel following Moses. After admonishing his people to turn from the false gods of the people who occupied the Promised Land, he said, "As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15).

That's the first thing Sylvia and I wanted to do as we set out to care for those of our house. We wanted them to know that we serve the Lord Jesus. By the word house (oikeios in Greek) the Apostle refers both to one's blood relatives and to those who are related because of being born anew into the spiritual family of God, the household of faith (Galatians 6:10). We wanted to establish a pattern, set an example, and build memories of how parents and families pray, worship and live together in Christ.

We haven't done that perfectly. We've made mistakes, sometimes spoken harshly to one another, been very critical of one another and forgotten the importance of providing encouragement and comfort. But we have loved one another and forgiven one another in spite of it all as we shared God's love and forgiveness in Christ. And that is what the Apostle is talking about in his admonition to Pastor Timothy.

Tonight we enter another year, the year of our Lord 2008. We enter it with thanksgiving and praise. We enter it anticipating that in this year Cassie will graduate from high school with honors, Patrick will graduate from university and go on to become an engineer and Shawn and Marian will become man and wife. What else the year holds we do not know. It may be the year Jesus calls another member of our family to be with Him in heaven. It may even be the final Year of this age when our Lord Jesus returns. What a wonderful thing that would be.

Whatever the year holds, we will remember that we are members of our family and members of the great, universal family of God. As we enter this year we give thanks to Jesus for coming to be born of Mary to be our Savior. In this year we will serve Him. And in this year we will provide especially for the members of our house.

Questions On The Journey

We arrived at our beautiful vacation home in Pagosa Springs, Colorado yesterday. A second grandson arrived during the night. Two grandsons have already hit the slopes. Wolf Creek has a ten foot packed powder base. Other members of our family will soon begin their journeys to arrive here for the Christmas holidays. This is the tenth year we've been celebrating these family times in this house.

During the drive up I had a conversation with grandson Patrick who was along for the ride. Among other things, we talked about education, goals and making money. He has a year to go in college and is naturally concerned about such things. For that matter, aren't we all?

While I was pondering what sage advice this grandfather might give to his maturing grandson, I recalled something about life being a journey, not a destination.



Who first said that? I had no idea so I checked out Think/Exist and found some interesting quotes.

18th century Irish essayist, poet and dramatist Oliver Goldsmith wrote, “Life is a journey that must be traveled no matter how bad the roads and accommodations.”

20th century novelist Don Williams Jr. writes, “The road of life twists and turns and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.”

Greg Anderson (American best-selling Author and founder of the American Wellness Project., b.1964), writes, “Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it.”

German born American social Philosopher and Psychoanalyst, 1900-1980, Eric Fromm wrote, “Let your mind start a journey thru a strange new world. Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before. Let your soul take you where you long to be...Close your eyes let your spirit start to soar, and you'll live as you've never lived before.”

One of my favorite authors, Ursula K LeGuin wrote, “It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end."

I liked the Japanese proverb: "When you have completed 95 percent of your journey, you are only halfway there.”

Matsuo Bashō (1644 – 1694) the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan, said, “Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.”

I also discovered a study Bible titled "The Journey: The Study Bible for Spiritual Seekers." I haven't read it, so I cannot vouch for it, but the concept is interesting, because the Bible does have the answer to the most significant questions about life. And we don't know how to ask many of them until we get some distance down that journey.

Here's some questions that I'm dealing with in this my 70th decade of my journey:

+ How long will I continue on this journey?

+ Does it matter to anyone but me?

+ How will my journey end?

+ What's happening to all the people I've met and served on my journey?

+ How many of them will continue the endless journey with me in that country called Heaven?

+ What contributions may I yet make before this part of my journey ends?

Oh yes, I'm certain of arriving one day in Heaven. My Lord has guaranteed that. That's one of the great reasons why I delight to celebrate Christmas.

What about you? What questions are you dealing with as you continue on your journey?