04052015 Easter Sunday - Gold Bead - Jesus Christ gives us eternal life!

Sermon Audio

April 5, 2015

God gives us eternal life!

Seated on a park bench in early Spring next to a nurse was a young man.  He stated the following, “My momma always said, “Life was like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you’re gonna get.””  With this simple phrase, the world was introduced to the profound wisdom of “Forest Gump”.  In this gem of wisdom Forest pin pointed life and the experience most people have of “never knowing what you’re gonna get”.

Unlike Forest Gump, two thousand years ago, God in His Son Jesus Christ told His disciples that He would rise from the dead after His crucifixion.  And in rising from the dead, Jesus Christ would offer all of mankind an eternal gift.  This morning we gather celebrating Jesus Christ resurrection with the phrase “He is risen, He is risen indeed Alleluia!” echoing in our ears.  And we also gather to hear about the gift given to us that is symbolized by the final bead and installment of the Salvation Bracelet Series.  The final bead is Gold and humbly signifies what Jesus Christ is offering all of mankind.  The Gold Bead specifically represents the gift that God gives us…eternal life!

For God clearly offers all of us gathered here the gift of eternal life with His Son’s innocent death on Calvary.  When the disciples and women found the tomb empty, unlike the box of chocolates and not knowing what one would get, the disciples had heard exactly what Jesus would be giving them.  And today we gather here because of this gift given to the disciples and to each of us.  For symbolized in the Gold Bead that completes the story of salvation as told by the Salvation Bracelet is the gem of the knowledge that God gives us eternal life!

There are two questions, we can ask this morning.  The first our society and Satan wants to ask, if Jesus was resurrected, “So What?”  Our society and Satan want us to doubt God and doubt what the disciples found, an empty tomb.  Society wants us to doubt the resurrection and any gift offered by Jesus Christ.  Our society doesn’t understand the significance of the gift God is offering us.  Our society is looking for ways to question God, doubt God and even discredit God.  All because the gift of eternal life God is giving to each of us has eternal value.  Satan and our society clearly do not want us to believe without any doubt in our mind and heart that, “God gives us eternal life!”

The value of the gift God gives us with ‘eternal life’ is so substantial.  Compared to the worth of a vehicle we drive, the home we live in, the vacations we take or even the education we receive whether in high school, college or even in the military, the gift God gives is priceless.  All of us have seen the Master Card commercials, but what is different with the truth found of an empty tomb is that this gift that “God gives us… eternal life!” had a heaven and earth-shattering price tag.  The price tag was Jesus Christ death on Calvary.  But Jesus Christ offers us His life, because of His love for each and every one of us who believe in Him and believe that “God gives us eternal life!”

Jesus Christ love for us and His willingness to sacrifice Himself in order that we might have eternal life is a game changer.  Jesus Christ wants us to believe in the resurrection and the gift of grace “God gives us…eternal life!”  Jesus Christ wants us to believe, because in our belief, we therefore trust God fully, unconditionally and without question, not only in the forgiveness of sins offered out of His love for us, but eternal life and salvation.  When we exercise the muscle of faith given to us in our baptism, the truth that “God gives us…eternal life!” becomes a certainty we point to and believe in and it strengthens our trust in Jesus Christ and His love for each and every one of us.  For this is the point of the resurrection, the reason we gather here today and especially the clear message of the Gospel we proclaim of Jesus Christ sacrifice for all of mankind.

On June 22, 1997, parachute instructor Michael Costello, age forty-two began his work day like any other.  Teaching skydiving, was something that Michael enjoyed not only doing, but sharing with others.  Gareth Griffith, age twenty one was a novice and was being taught how to skydive safely by Michael.  Jumping in tandem, connected to his instructor, Gareth would learn first-hand how to properly execute every maneuver required before performing his first solo jump.

Everything was normal when they jumped out of the airplane at 12,000 feet.  As planned the two flew through the air in preparation for Gareth’s pulling the rip cord to open the canopy of the parachute.  At the proper time, Gareth pulled the rip cord and the parachute malfunctioned.  With only seconds remaining before gravity completed their descent to earth, the instructor who was above the student plummeting to the ground did something extraordinary and unexpected.  Michael the instructor right before impact rolled over and insured he would hit the ground first and the novice, Gareth, would land on top of him.  Michael was killed instantly, Gareth survived the fall with a fractured spine, but was not paralyzed.

Our society would ask, “So what?”  Today, as we celebrate the resurrection and Easter, we who gather here this morning have landed on top of not our instructor, but our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Jesus Christ, God incarnate gives us eternal life.  “God gives us eternal life!” out of His love for each of us and His sacrifice of Himself for us, so we can share it with one another. 

Consequently the second question we need to ask each other this morning is, “What’s next?”  The Salvation Bracelet we receive this morning is the answer to the second question.  For the Salvation Bracelet is a tool we can use to point to the Savior, Jesus Christ.  With this bracelet and its colored beads and two knots, we have the apparel that each of us can wear and use to tell the salvation story and what Jesus Christ did on Calvary for all of mankind.  We who gather here today can use this bracelet unlike the uncertainty of a box of chocolate and what one will receive, and firmly and faithfully point to Jesus Christ and the Gold Bead and tell others that Jesus died for each and every one of us and in, through and by Jesus death on Calvary, “God gives us eternal life!”

For the gift of eternal life is an offer for all of mankind, but especially for all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel this morning who are willing to wear, share and firmly believe in Jesus Christ and the gift of salvation as can be told by the Salvation Bracelet.  For no truer statement can be said that in the empty tomb we find, not nothing, but the truth found in a little gold bead on our salvation bracelet that symbolizes God’s grace given unto each and every one of us that believe “God gives us eternal life!”  AMEN.

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04022015 Maundy Thursday - Knot - Jesus Christ is our connection!

Sermon Audio

April 2, 2015

Jesus Christ is our connection!

Truly humble Lord, You stooped at the feet of the disciples and washed them.  Your demonstration was not about what they could do, but a clear demonstration of Your willingness to seek, serve and save all of mankind.  When we hold our Salvation Bracelet, may we be reminded of Your willingness to insure we are never separated from You, when we hold the last knot of the bracelet.  For Your sacrifice was for all of mankind, including each of us gathered here this Maundy Thursday evening.  AMEN.

As a parent, one of the hardest things for me to undo that Sarah has done is a knot.  Whether in her shoes, her hair or especially her head phones she uses with her Leap Pad or even her Kindle.  Like most kids she has a clear talent to make the knot tight and not easy to separate apart.

Tonight, on this Holy of Nights that we celebrate Jesus Christ institution of the Lord’s Supper, we contemplate the second of two knots on our Salvation Bracelet.  The first knot, was a reminder that we are planned by God and He has a purpose for each of our lives.  And that purpose is for His Glory to be fulfilled by and through our lives.  The second knot in one sense completes the set and the thought.  We through our understanding of the Salvation Bracelet have no separation from God.  Consider Jesus words promised to each of us His children, “I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”  Concisely in this passage Jesus Christ promises that we will not be separated from Him.  In essence Christ is our connection!

Let me unpack “Jesus Christ is our connection!”  If you think about rings and even about the Salvation Bracelet that tells the Story of Salvation, a ring and the bracelet form a circle.  Just as God’s Love has no beginning nor end, we through God’s love of each of us are forever connected to Jesus Christ.  For Jesus Christ in His sacrifice is connected to each of us through our baptism into His life, death and resurrection.  We are forever not just connected, but intertwined into the fabric of salvation history.  The knot we have tonight binds not only the Salvation Bracelet together, but connects each of us in such a specific way for all of us to be brought closer to Jesus Christ.

For the Salvation Bracelet not only tells the story of salvation, but specifically what Jesus Christ came to earth to accomplish on Calvary for all of mankind of His death on the Cross.  And these knots tied for these bracelets are special.  They have the ability to make the bracelet fit for both men and women with small or large wrists.  So to the offer Jesus Christ makes is a one size fits all in our connection with Him.  Jesus Christ is our connection not only with the sacrament we share this evening that He instituted, but also with and for all of mankind for all of time.  Jesus Christ is our connection offered to each of us of life and salvation by His death on the Cross of Calvary.  For the amount nor the depravity of the sin matters for what Jesus Christ offers each of us.  Jesus Christ is our connection and His offer covers all of our sin.

Jesus Christ is our connection and offers us the greatest gifts of grace without cost, without equal and all tied up by the last knot of our salvation bracelet.  For Jesus Christ is freely offering us the greatest gift and show of His love for all of mankind.  This last knot of the salvation bracelet not only ties the bracelet together, but connects and shows the length Jesus Christ is willing to go to offer us salvation.  And this final knot isn’t just tying up a loose end, but it is a poignant reminder of Jesus offer of salvation that brings the conclusion of salvation history.  For Jesus Christ is our connection that binds us and connects us with the events of all of salvation history which point to and find ultimate resolution on the Cross of Calvary for all of mankind.  Including all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel tonight that believe we are bound with this last knot of the salvation bracelet that believe “Jesus Christ is our connection!”  AMEN.

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03252015 - Wednesday of Lent 5 - Green Bead - Growth

Sermon Audio

March 25, 2015

Growing in Christ!

Heavenly Father!  We are unable to make things grow, but by Your divine favor You not only cause plants to grow, but You raise us up as Your children.  Inspire us to grow, in grace and the ability to share it with others of what Jesus Christ did on Calvary.  For Jesus died in order to set us free and this was out of His love for each and every one of us.  AMEN.

Robby Gallaty, an author and church expert in discipleship wrote a book entitled, “Growing Up: How to be a Disciple Who Makes Disciples”.  In this book his main thesis is that we Christians are to be disciples of Jesus Christ and we are called to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ and share this relationship with others.

From the outside looking in, it is clear, Robby is right, that is what we are called to do, but as happens with a lot of us, then demands of our job, family, school, expectations and other things not only overwhelm us, but we become numb.  Our numbness is not only to the voices we hear that bombard us on television, radio, the internet, but even from our children, family, friends and even here in the church.  We become numb to the need of growth in our lives as Christians and then become numb to the meaning and implications of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

But this is why we celebrate Lent, to remember Jesus willingness to go to the Cross for us and especially why tonight we have a green bead on the salvation bracelet.  The green bead we have tonight is to remind us that we are to be “Growing in Christ”!  Just as when the wheat is planted in the fall or corn in the spring, just as will happen shortly, the seed outside of dirt will not sprout and grow.  But once planted into the ground with the right moisture, depth, warmth and sunlight, sprouts from the cover that protects.  And once it sprouts it sends a root deeper into the earth and a sprout that emerges from the ground and the seed grows as God intended.

This is a perfect metaphor or explanation of what we as Christians are called to be as we are “Growing in Christ”.  When we wear the Salvation Bracelet and explain our beliefs to non-believers and believers, the green bead is to remind us we can “Grow in Christ”.  We grow when we come to hear the Word of God that tells of the offer of the free gift of salvation from Jesus Christ.  God feeds us by the Gospel of Jesus Christ that tells what He did on Calvary.  And our growth is aided by God’s gifts given to us of His Sacraments from the Altar, His Word from both the pulpit and lectern as well as being surrounded by others who are here to “Grow in Christ!”

Just as wheat and corn grow best in a ‘stand’ when planted with other seed.  We as Christians grow best when we are surrounded by others who want to grow as well.  Hence why we are here tonight to learn about the salvation bracelet’s green bead symbolizing ‘growth’.  Our individual growth is not dependent upon others, but only made a reality by God and His gifts of grace to and for us.  For God like Paul says, gives the growth that we have and this is a gift from God for all of us.  And the growth offered is limitless unlike corn or wheat.  If I were to engage one of the farmers they would say, a wheat plant can have approximately 20 to 50 kernels of wheat in one head that can be harvested.  So to, one Christian who grows in their faith and shares it can have a larger kingdom impact.  This is why God calls us to “Grow in Christ!”

For the salvation bracelet with the many colored beads is a tool to help us to “Grow in Christ” and in our faith and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  For the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not only a gift, but a real opportunity for us to wear our faith on our wrist, and also engage and grow in our faith on a daily basis and share it with one another.

Recently, I heard a Christian author tell how he engaged his faith with his family.  It wasn’t only by sharing the stories of faith around the table at dinner or before bedtime with the kids or dragging them to church, because the pastor was the ‘expert’.  They as a family understood that living their faith wasn’t just a one-time experience.  They were out to dinner locally and saw an individual who was different than they were and they invited them to have dinner with them. 

After engaging in small talk about the latest scores from the NCAA and the weather, the individual asked about why they invited them to join them for dinner.  This opened up an amazing opportunity for the family from the children to the parents to share their faith and the impact it had of inviting this stranger to join them in a meal.  This is the opportunity that the salvation bracelet can have of helping us to be bold with our faith and sharing it with others even over a meal at McDonald’s or Arby’s.  It is the opportunity that God can use to plant the seed of the Gospel of Salvation, water it, but especially made it grow and have a kingdom impact as we grow in our faith and life as disciples of Jesus Christ.

This is the opportunity we have when we fully understand how the Green Bead symbolizes our “Growing in Christ”.  When we combine all the beads of the salvation bracelet the salvation story not only is planted firmly in our lives, but we can grow in grace, understanding and belief that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is for all mankind and share it.  And God has purposely planted us here at Emmanuel in order that we can grow in our faith and be enabled to share it with others.  For God wants us to ‘Grow in Christ’ and have a kingdom impact in sharing what Jesus Christ has done for each of us on the Cross of Calvary for all of mankind.  Including all of us saints gathered here at Emmanuel who are “Growing in Christ” when we share what the Green Bead of the Salvation Bracelet really means.  AMEN.

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03182015 - Wednesday of Lent 4 - Blue Bead

Sermon Audio

March 18, 2015

One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism!

Father, Son and Holy Spirit, in and through the Water connected with Word in Holy Baptism, You lifted each of us up and cleansed us from our sin.  Remind us not of that which bound us, but of You Who set us free to be the people of God.  For Your promise in Holy Baptism with the pouring of Water and connected to the Word offer us life and salvation and entrance into Your Kingdom.  And this offer is made because of Your great love for each and every one of us.  AMEN.

In seminary, my fellow classmates had t-shirts made that contained a simple saying, “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism!”  Encapsulated in this saying, not only was a confession, but a belief in God.  Tonight we like my classmates encounter a bead that is a reminder of God’s epic promise to each and every one of us.  With the blue bead on the Salvation Bracelet, we can understand it stands for the promises from God to and for each of us in our Baptism.

When we were brought forward and the Water and Word of Holy Baptism were spoken and poured over our head, God made a promise to each of us of what He would do.  It was not a promise to take us to Disneyland, to go for an Ice Cream Cone at the Vault or Dairy Queen, or even to prevent us from ‘skinning our knee’ as we grew up.  God made the promise to offer us life and salvation through the simple yet profound connection of simple water, with the Word of God.

With our baptism in the font, like this one, or another or even in a river, pond or even cattle watering trough.  God made each of us the promise of eternal life and salvation that is connected with God’s Gift of Grace and Forgiveness found in Jesus Christ.  When we became wet, God sealed for each of us a reality that Jesus Christ fulfilled on the Cross of Calvary.  Jesus Christ Who came and lived among us, walked the landscape of Israel and Egypt, healed the sick, fed the poor and proclaimed release of the captives, is connected to each and every one of us here tonight.  Our connection is not just with a font, it is with our having the Cross made upon our brow on Ash Wednesday, sealed in the Blood of the Lamb of God that we receive in Holy Communion and even when we wear a simple Salvation Bracelet.

The bracelet we wear is the beacon of the promises of God that are fulfilled for each of us.  The Blue Bead that symbolizes both the Water and the Word in Holy Baptism are meant for us to be a reminder of what God has done and continues to do for each of us each and every day.  It is a reminder for each of us of our Holy Baptism and God’s promise for us.  It is a reminder of God’s willingness of His Son, Jesus Christ to become something for us.  Not just our friend but a bearer of our burden, our sin.

Tim Challies, wrote an article entitled “How to Become a Burden-Bearer for Others”.  In the article Tim states, “To be a burden-bearer is a great ministry.”  But for we who gather here tonight, this is a ministry we are unable to fulfill if left to our own devices.  Yet, God through our baptism has grafted us into and we become the burden that Jesus Christ carries and bears on the Cross of Calvary as the perfect sacrifice for each of us.  And when we wear our Salvation Bracelet, we point, not to ourselves, but to what Jesus Christ did on the Cross of Calvary for each and every one of us.

We point to Jesus Christ offer of life and salvation for each and every one of us.  We point to and remember how the Water intimately connected with the Word offer us eternal life, because of God’s great love for each and every one of us in Holy Baptism.  Tonight we gather to remember a simple blue bead as a reminder of God’s gift for each and every one of us in the font of the forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ for all of mankind.  And the blue bead in the salvation bracelet reminds us that our Holy Baptism is an offer by Jesus Christ not for a select few, but is for and includes each and every one of us gathered here at Emmanuel who remember our baptism through this simple blue bead.  And the offer of salvation for each and every one of us, because of His love for all of mankind, including each and every one of us who remember our baptism with the blue bead of the salvation bracelet.  AMEN.

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03112015 Wednesday of Lent 3 - White Bead

Sermon Audio

March 11, 2015

We are forgiven!

Forgiving God, You clearly can see what we do and do in fact see past our actions and forgive us.  We don’t deserve it, but You forgive us out of Your great love for us.  Thank You for this gift of grace and especially of Your Son’s sacrifice for each of us on the Cross of Calvary.  For this offer was not just for a select few, but for all of mankind, including each of us gathered here with the white bead of the salvation bracelet as Your forgiven children on this Wednesday of Lent.  AMEN.

If one were to look at the entirety of the Old Testament there appears to be nothing but lists of who begat whom, destruction of peoples and places and stories of individuals wandering in the desert.  Yet, if you look a little further, there is clearly a concept that the people of Israel were imparted from God.  It wasn’t deliverance on their time table or overcoming those who were their masters, the concept that the people of Israel had as a thread from the Garden of Eden, wandering through the desert, their entrance into the Promised Land and the building of the Temple in Jerusalem had a simple phrase as their unspoken, but believed mantra.  Simply, it was, “We are forgiven”!  And tonight we make that connection with each of us that gather here to hear and learn more about the white bead of the Salvation Bracelet.  “We are forgiven!”

Isaiah the prophet foreshadowed, reminded and prophesied for the people of Israel and for us tonight this concept of “We are forgiven!”  For Isaiah knew the history of the people of Israel and understood their human condition.  Hear Isaiah, “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the Lord, “Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.”  Isaiah in this brief excerpt of his book pin points what God does for the people of Israel.

The people of Israel continuously sinned and turned away from God.  They were strong willed and sought only what they desired and felt would get them the results they desired, which in most cases was against God’s divine plan.  And every time they followed their own plans, they continuously encountered problems.  But even though they encountered problems, God walked with them.  And God not only walked with them, but God as Isaiah said, turned what was scarlet into white as snow.  In essence God forgave them each and every time.

What can we who gather here tonight take away from this?  We like the Israelite people need to hear from God, “We are forgiven!”  God has reached down into our lives here in Goodland, KS and forgiven us.  Why does God do this?  Because God loves us and wants us to hear, believe and share the message “We are forgiven!”  In this white bead of the salvation bracelet, we are reminded of God’s great compassion for each and every one of us in our present circumstances.  God reaches down into each of our lives and wants us to feel the forgiveness He so freely wants to offer us.  We can share this clearly, without question and with uncompromising vigor.  This is why the salvation bracelet is such a powerful tool.

This simple bead of white, clearly shows and shares with us God’s love for us.  “We are forgiven!”  We no longer are defined by the scarlet sin as Isaiah said, but made clean by the Blood of Jesus Christ.  Like lint on a table or dust cloth that changes the appearance of many homes, God removes the lint of our lives that weighs us down and forgives us.  And we are empowered to share this message of forgiveness.

When we wear the salvation bracelet, we have the opportunity to start a dialogue with others who may never have heard about Jesus Christ.  The bracelet offers the opportunity and the Holy Spirit inspires us to share what God offers us through His Son Jesus Christ.  And this simple white bead, reminds us of God’s gift to and for all of mankind, but especially each and everyone of us gathered here this Wednesday of Lent who believe this simple message, “We are forgiven!”  AMEN.

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03042015 Wednesday of Lent 2 - Red Bead

Sermon Audio

March 4, 2015

The Blood sets us free

Gracious Heavenly Father, we know we have no strength in and of ourselves.  But You have sent your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ to not only defend us, but die in order to set us free.  Jesus Christ sacrificed Himself and His innocent blood in order that we might be set free.  May we not only see this gift, but hear the message represented by His blood and receive the freedom offered for each of us.  For our Lenten Journey is not complete without a simple red bead on the salvation bracelet offered by Jesus Christ for all of mankind, but especially each of us gathered here this Wednesday of Lent.  AMEN.

In the gardens of Thomas Jefferson at Monticello, there is a plant grown named “Love Lies Bleeding” that was originally misunderstood.  As most of the early settlers understood, they needed to be self-sufficient, so they used plants that had medicinal purposes.  One plant, “Love Lies Bleeding”, with red foliage and red berries would be used to treat many of the common diseases of the day, including, kidney ailments, sores on the body and even could be made into a drink for ease of consumption and use.  The drink when complete was red and it was believed by the native Americans that this was in fact people’s blood.  Hence when communion services of the church were celebrated, the same understanding of blood of humans was mistakenly understood.

Tonight, our focus is upon a red bead.  Unlike the Native Americans understanding of the drink made from the red berries of a plant.  What we partake of in Holy Communion is Jesus Christ Blood, shed for us for the forgiveness of sins.  Paul in Romans 5:8 says it plainly, “⁸ But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  We have through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ His willingness to die for each and every one of us.  Jesus Christ willingness was not only to die, but shed His blood as a ransom for us and all of mankind.

The salvation story as told by the salvation bracelet with the red bead is for each of us to be reminded of our familiar connection with Jesus Christ.  Our connection is not tangential, but deep and intimate.  Jesus Christ Blood represented by this red bead is to remind us what Jesus Christ shed for us.  The movie “Passion of the Christ” is very graphic, some people don’t want to watch the movie because of the amount of blood and violence.  But it was by and through Jesus Christ very blood, shed in the soldiers quarters, the Praetorium, along the way to Golgotha and especially on the Cross that we not only see God’s demonstration of His love for us, but to the degree Jesus Christ was willing to sacrifice Himself.

When we wear the salvation bracelet and look at the red bead it is not only to be a reminder of Jesus on Good Friday, but to point us to the altar.  For it is around and from the altar here in the church or wherever Holy Communion is celebrated that we are not only reminded, but called on to remember Jesus Christ sacrifice.  Jesus Christ willingness to have a thorny crown placed on His forehead that pricked His brow, the nails hammered through His Hands and Feet, and especially the spear that pierced His side and the subsequent gush of blood and water all point to one thing.  Jesus Christ offer to all of mankind of the forgiveness of sins.  It is in and through Jesus Christ offer of His Blood that we receive life and salvation.

For Jesus Christ offer of His innocent blood gives us the forgiveness we so desperately need.  This is why Paul said, ⁸ But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  Jesus Christ was willing to shed His Blood in order that we may be set free.

In the Gospel of John, John writes, (15:13) “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”  And this is exactly what Jesus Christ did for us, lay down His life, shed His innocent blood and make the ultimate sacrifice for all of mankind, including each and every one of us.  When we hold the red bead as we tell the story of salvation, we are reminded not only of His sacrifice, but Jesus Christ willingness to die in order that we might be free.  Our freedom comes at a cost, the cost of Jesus Christ innocent Blood represented by this red bead on the salvation bracelet that tells the greatest story of forgiveness for each and every one of us found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ for all of mankind.  And this includes each of us gathered here tonight who believe, Jesus Christ died for each and every one of us.  AMEN.

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02252015 Wednesday of Lent 1 - Knot

Sermon Audio

February 25, 2015

It’s all in the knot

Creator of Heaven and earth, from the beginning of the universe, You knew what would occur.  From Your divine vantage point, everything You created had a purpose.  May we truly understand that not only are Your hand prints all over creation, but they are all over each of us gathered here during our Lenten Journey exploring the Salvation Bracelet.  For it tells the story of our salvation by Your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN.

Tonight, we encounter, not a bead, but a knot.  Unlike the knots we have in our hair, shoe laces or electrical cords, the knot we encounter tonight has a divine purpose.  God in His infinite wisdom, knowledge and foresight tied a knot in the wrinkle of time in order for each of us to not only enter into creation, but be with Him in His Kingdom.

You see God not only had a divine purpose, but God planned for each and every one of us to be born, live a life and even when we will die.  Paul in Colossians 1:16 says it well, “16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.”  Paul’s words clearly apply to each of us that not only call ourselves human, but especially Christian.  God from the beginning of time not only created the heavens and the earth from nothing, but made each of us gathered here this evening.

We are not only the apple of God’s eye, but that which God created.  Just as the knot serves the purpose to hold the beads together on a length of cord in a circle to form a bracelet, God has a divine plan for each of us gathered here.  Each and every one of us wants to clearly know and understand our purpose in life. For some this is even more of a challenge.  Specifically for those who have lived a full life and their bodies are failing them, whether eye sight, hands, legs and sadly, but especially the mind.  When I visit Good Samaritan or Wheat Ridge, I encounter individuals who are at this point in their lives.  They wonder what God has in store for them?  Do they serve any useful purpose now?  Some are angry for being left in the home by family members, others are troubled because nobody comes and visits them or cares for them in the way they want.  Each of them is in desperate need of hearing the truth from God from not only me the Pastor, but especially we the people of God that God still cares for them.  This message for them and for each of us gathered here tonight is simply in the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

In the Gospel of Jesus Christ the salvation story like we can explain from the salvation bracelet is like a loose end that is tied into a perfect knot.  The knot is that God sent His Son Jesus Christ to hold us up and hold us together.  Jesus Christ is the knot that keeps us together and we share this with others through the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  God’s message has a clearly defined purpose to give hope to the downtrodden to uplift those down in the spirit that seem to have no hope and especially for we who gather here tonight as His children.

The salvation bracelet our Lenten series is based upon wouldn’t be a bracelet without a knot.  So to the Gospel of Jesus Christ would not offer salvation nor have the importance or impact without Jesus Christ as the perfect knot that ties it all together.  Just as Jesus Christ came into the world to set the world free, so to Jesus Christ came to be our sacrifice and live the life we could not live.  Just as a knot can hold two strands of cord together, Jesus Christ holds onto us His children, you and me and offers us the gift of eternal life.  Jesus Christ offer is a divine fulfillment of God’s plan and offer made for all of mankind.  It is this offer that God offers us through the plan of salvation fulfilled by Jesus Christ the perfect knot.

This same purpose and plan we are a part of with our baptism into Jesus Christ life, death and resurrection and we are tied into salvation history.  God offers us this out of His great love for us, not for a select few, but for all of mankind.  We who gather here this evening are invited into this special knot and can be tied into the greatest knot of living history, that of Jesus Christ.  For this gift of grace is tied together in the perfect knot for all of mankind, but especially including each and every one of us gathered here tonight to hear about the first knot of the salvation bracelet of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  AMEN.

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02182015 Ash Wednesday

Sermon Audio

February 18, 2015

All aboard…the sin express

Heavenly Father, we come tonight to confess our sins, have the ashen Cross inscribed on our forehead as a reminder of our returning to dust, but more importantly to receive the forgiveness of sins from You.  For it is through the Cross of Jesus Christ we receive the greatest gift of grace.  And our response of “Amen” is a prayerful reminder of God’s fulfillment of the plan of salvation through Jesus Christ.  May we not only be reminded of this, but empowered to claim the Cross of Christ that sets all of mankind free, but especially all of us gathered here on this Ash Wednesday night at Emmanuel.  AMEN.

If one were to hear, “All Aboard”, the first thought for travelers would be of a train.  And this is correct.  For tonight, on Ash Wednesday we embark upon a pilgrimage, not with a destination in mind determined by railroad tracks, but a journey of exploration about our salvation.  This journey unlike some has a guide with clear and unmistakable meaning.  Our guide is not a person, but simply a piece of jewelry.

The jewelry for our journey is not made with precious metals of silver or gold.  It is does not shimmer in the sunlight.  It is simply a modest cord of rope with a few beads and knots.  The jewelry is simply a bracelet that tells a story.  It is a story we will explore on Wednesday night for the weeks of Lent that tells the story of salvation.  Not just any salvation, but salvation offered to each of us by and through Jesus Christ. 

The salvation bracelet tells the simple, but complete story of salvation that God offers us through Jesus Christ and the bracelet and beads connection not only to scripture, but how the Story of Salvation comes full circle like the bracelet.  During the coming weeks we will learn about other colored beads and their significance, the knots used to tie the bracelet and how our Christian lives have a story to tell that the salvation bracelet helps us to not only understand our Christianity, but our personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Our first stop on this journey is the ‘black bead’.  So, let’s embark on our journey as we hear our conductor saying, “All aboard.”

In order to clearly understand salvation history, one needs to first hear and understand why salvation is a concept that is needed to be clearly understood.  And the “black bead” clearly signifies and symbolizes not a place, but an action all of us are born into.  The “black bead” signifies “sin”. 

In Lutheranism 101, this week we talked about a three letter word and asked a simple question.  What is in the middle of “sin”?  The answer is not rocket science, simply “I” is in the middle of “sin”.  Just as Adam and Eve were wooed by the Devil in the Garden of Eden and put themselves first, they fulfilled what Paul says this “black bead” signifies.  Paul wrote in Romans 3 (3:23), “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”.  It was not just one or two people that fell short of the glory of God, but “all have sinned”.  Each and every one of us gathered here tonight boarded the ‘sin express’.  We are all guilty of putting ourselves first and daily each and every one of us “fall short of the glory of God”.  It is not a choice, but in our very nature of who we are.

Just as we will in a few minutes receive the sign of the cross on our foreheads reminding us that ‘we are dust, and to dust we shall return’.  The salvation bracelet puts the reality of our sin squarely first.  This is not to ‘beat us up’, ‘put us down’, ‘make us feel bad’ or ‘make us feel angry’, but putting sin first is to get the worst idea and event of human and biblical history out of the way on our journey.  For our journey does not end at sin.  Just as Christians we believe that our journey does not end at the grave, our journey we embark upon tonight is just beginning.  For even though we sin, God sent Jesus Christ to overcome sin and be the ultimate sacrifice for all of mankind and for the sin of the entire world.

Jesus Christ came in order that we might be set free from our sin.  Jesus Christ came to take our sin upon Himself.  For Jesus Christ was clearly unlike what Paul wrote in Romans.  Jesus Christ became and took upon Himself our sin in order to set us free.  Jesus Christ came in order that we might be set free from the devil, our sin and even death to be with Him in His Kingdom.  This is what Jesus Christ did for each and every one of us.

Yes, in a few minutes we will be marked with a black cross from the ash made from the burnt palms of last year’s Palm Sunday.  But our sin that we are reminded of with the ashen Cross and the black bead on the salvation bracelet is only a reminder of what our Savior Jesus Christ came to earth to overcome.  Jesus Christ came to not ‘fall short of the glory of God’, but to be the glory of God for each and every one of us on the Cross He was nailed to on Calvary.  Jesus Christ came to overcome what the ashen Cross and ‘black bead’ symbolizes and remove the spot of sin from our lives.  Jesus Christ came to remove our sin from each of us and replace it with the garment of salvation of Jesus Christ innocence for all of mankind.  And this includes each and every one of us gathered here at Emmanuel. 

Tonight, as we gather to receive the Ashen Cross, we begin this journey of discovery of what the salvation bracelet means for each of us through Jesus Christ sacrifice for each and every one of us.  For God’s sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ removed the ‘black bead’ that symbolizes sin from our lives in order for all of us to be with Him for all eternity.  Thanks be to God for the Gift of Grace of His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ that we come to honor and receive with an Ashen Cross this Ash Wednesday night.  AMEN.

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