"It is not your love that sustains the marriage, but from now on, the marriage that sustains your love."

Those words of wisdom were written by Dietrich Bonhoeffer in a letter to his best friend, who was soon to be married, from the Gestapo prison he was held in during the last years of his life.  The idea that marriage sustains love, and not the other way around is one that our culture today need so desperately to understand.  Far too many marriages end when the two people in it don't feel like they're "in love" anymore; the emotions that brought them together have lapsed or faded (as most honest people who have been married a long time will tell you they at times do), and therefore the rational for the marriage itself is gone.
From God's perspective, the value of the sacrament (to borrow a word from our Catholic friends) of marriage is that it sustains us as a union of two of God's children through good times and bad.  It is not dependent upon what is felt but rather rests upon the promise and commitment that has been made before God and man. 
What is it that brings a marriage through a rough patch or dark days and back again into the light and joy of love?  The very commitment that is needed from both man and woman to stay with this union regardless.  It is when we honor each other by remaining true to our word that we allow God carry us through the circumstances that may destroy a marriage not founded upon trust in God, so that we can rediscover what made love bloom in the first place.
When a marriage breaks up over the ebb and flow of life a profound opportunity for growth and character has been forever lost.  It is for our own benefit that we should remain and strive for our marriages.  Our culture would like people to think that they deserve to find happiness and therefore should leave when a marriage isn't "happy", but that lie is selling something is cannot deliver.  Where is happiness without someone to share it with?  Where is happiness in selfish decision making?
It is when two become one, till death, that love can truly be that which sustains us.

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games movie was just released this week after years of sales of the trilogy of books by Suzanne Collins.  The moral effort made by Collins in her books, and in this movie version of the first book, are to be applauded.  The books and movie are a blend of Lord of the Flies,and The Gladiator, with a sprinkling of The Runing Man, Survivor, and The Truman Show.  The combination of Roman style gladiatorial fights to the death with modern reality television works well as a commentary upon our society's willingness to entertain itself with the misery of others.  Our morbid fascination with violence can be seen in the countless Youtube videos of street fights, the growth of the UFC and other extreme fighting shows, and the violence filled video games that children and adults love so much.
The emotional impace that The Hunger Games is able to have is due largely to its use of children as the fighters (as opposed to the adult slaves being used in The Gladiator or the classic Spartacus).  With each death of a child competitor our own innocence is further lost a bit unless we reject (as Collins hopes we will) such trivialization of life.  It isn't good enough to say that this is the world we live in; to throw our hands up and admit defeat.  As in Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Andrew Peterson (the Wingfeather Saga), there are things worth fighting for.  To defend the weak and the innocent against the strong is a noble pursuit, but to simply revel in violence for its own sake, for entertainment, or for cynical political purposes (as the government in The Hunger Games does) is to begin walking down a path that leads back to mankind's oldest obsession: self-destruction.

Sermon Video: "To seek and to save the lost" - Luke 19:1-10

As Jesus walks toward Jerusalem to face the cross he is confronted by an odd sight; a grown man sitting in a tree looking at him.  The man, Zacchaeus, was a hated tax collector, but Jesus chose to invite himself over to Zacchaeus' house for dinner that day.  Why?  Because Jesus' mission, and our mission too, is to seek and save the lost.  God's message is heard by those who know they're in need of salvation.  It wasn't a popular move, but Jesus, this time, like always, shared his grace and mercy with those in need.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

What it takes to defeat evil.

I've been reading in the Bonhoeffer biography about some of the various attempts to kill Hitler throughout the war (there were far more attempts than most people realize beyond the famous Valkyrie plot).  Each attempt ended in failure, for a variety of often mundane reasons.  Bonhoeffer's advice to a Christian German staff lieutenant, Werner Von Haeften, (one of Stauffenberg's aides) who in his duties was close enough at times to Hitler to take out his revolver and shoot him, offers insight.  He cautioned this brave man that to simply kill Hitler was not enough.  Evil could not be so easily defeated; there were many of Hitler's henchmen (Himmler, Goring, Goebbels) who were as vile as he was and who would take up his cause if he were removed.  I think that we've identified Hitler so closely, and for good reason, with the Holocaust, that we've forgotten how very many individuals were a part of the evil he unleashed.  It was not hundreds, or even thousands, but tens of thousands of "ordinary" soldiers, functionaries, and citizens who actions helped the Nazis murder millions.  Beyond them, there were countless others who stood idly by, who failed to act, and whose inaction made them complicit in the crimes against the innocent.
What do we learn from such things?  That evil is not easily defeated.  It can be destroyed, but not in one fell swoop.  We would rather believe that easy solutions exist, that wars can be waged cleanly, that one politician is responsible for our troubles, etc. than come to grips with the reality that evil (on a grand scale) could never exist without many helpers.
We should also remember that the efforts of those who fail to defeat evil, even if they're martyred in the process, are never wasted.  Such honorable sacrifice will always ripple throughout our world and down through time as it inspires others to take action even when the prospects for victory seem slim.
In the end, our responsibility is to God.  We must answer when our time here is over for our efforts and contributions.  Did we stand by and let others suffer?  Did we take action for the sake of Christ?  Among the list of victims of the Nazis are a number of good Christian men and women who were martyred for their faith; they met God with a clean conscience.

"Freedom as a possession is a doubtful thing for a church"

Another quote from Bonhoeffer's biography; this one arising from his visit to New York in the summer of 1939 (he returned to Germany a month before WWII started)..."Freedom as a possession is a doubtful thing for a church; freedom must be won under the compulsion of a necessity.  Freedom for the church comes from the necessity of the Word of God.  Otherwise it becomes arbitrariness.."  What caused Dietrich to sour on the freedom he saw in the American church?  It was a complete lack of serious study of God's Word in many of the churches he visited; sermons that focused on Henry James instead of St. James; sermons that didn't even mention Scripture or the Gospel.
For someone raised in a church where I heard sound Biblical preaching each and every week, that's hard to imagine.  The theological liberalism of the early 20th Century aimed to remove the miraculous from the Bible and focus on the ethical (we've heard this lie before, John Shelby Spong may be today's wolf in sheep clothing; denying the resurrection from within the church, but he isn't the first to do so).  That any church would stray so far from the true faith as to neglect the preaching and teaching of the Bible is at the same time sad and infuriating.
As someone who believes firmly in Ecumenism within the Church, I believe that there is strength in our diversity of opinion and practice as long as we are all doing so under the authority and direction of God's Word.  If a church, any type of church, forgets that our freedom exists within the confines of God's Word, it will soon cease to function as a church and become another social gathering place.  That Bonhoeffer witnessed this struggle in America 100 years ago should fill us with both seriousness and hope.  We must be serious, because the struggle to maintain a Church committed to Christ's Gospel is ongoing; our vigilance must be unceasing.  We must have hope because in many churches in America today Jesus Christ is still preached as God's Son, crucified for our sins and raised to new life for our justification.

SermonVideo: Joseph's Family Reunion - Genesis 45-46

After 22 long years apart, Joseph finally has the opportunity to be reunited with his brothers and his father.  This was possible because Joseph had forgiven his brothers and trusted God's control over his life despite the hardships he had faced.  As a result, seventy members of his extended family were saved from the famine and a final tearful reunion of Jacob and Joseph occurs.  The faithfulness of one son, because of God's grace, outweighed the sinfulness of ten sons.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

Sermon Video: Joseph: Revenge? - Genesis 42 thru 44

After everything his brothers put him through, Joseph looks across the room to see those same ten men standing before him.  The table have entirely turned as they are entirely within his power.  How will Joseph respond to the chance to take revenge?  The answer will come from what Joseph did with all of the sorrow, anger, bitterness and regret that 13 years of slavery and prison gave him.  Did he nurture it, and allow it to grow, or did he deal with it and put it aside?  Before he decides what to do, Joseph tests his brothers to see if they have changed.  Are they still selfish and self-centered, or has the guilt of their past actions moved them to repentance?  In the end, Joseph's brothers prove themselves worthy of forgiveness, but will Joseph embrace them or take his revenge?
To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video

Ed's Story

I've been watching the film series "Ed's Story" that is seven (5 completed, 2 in the works) episodes about the life of Ed Dobson as he has battled with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) for the past ten years.  If you know anyony who is facing a difficult disease, perhaps cancer or Alzheimer's, or depression; or anyone who has dealt with a severe loss, perhaps a marriage break-up or the death of a loved one.  Please recommend this series to them.  I can be downloaded from the website for under $10, the DVD's are about $20.
The series itself offers powerful insight into what it means to trust God, to put your faith in his lovingkindness even when your life seems to be all but over.  Our Sunday school class is using one episode each week as a springboard to talk about the Scripture references in them as well.
Ed also wrote the book, The Year of Living Like Jesus on the topic of what it takes to really live like Jesus would have.  Often funny, and very insightful, it'll open your eyes to the real cost of discipleship.
Those of us who followed Ed's career at Calvary Church in Grand Rapids would never have imagined that God could use him more mightily than he already was, but having read the book and watched the videos, it is clear that God, in his wisdom, chose to use his servant for a higher purpose.  As John the Baptist said, "he must become greater, I must become less."

"Where books are burned, they will, in the end, burn people, too."

Another lesson from the biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, "Bonhoeffer: pastor, martyr, prophet, spy"

This one is the translation from the German poet Heinrich Heine, who also happened to be Jewish.  He wrote those chilling words in 1821 and his books were consigned to the flames on May 10th 1933 as the Nazis unleashed a midnight pagan ritual during which Goebbels ranted "You are doing the right thing at this midnight hour- to consign to the flames the unclean spirit of the past."  And so, Germany was "purged" of its non-Aryan thoughts...This section of the book deals with the step by step destruction of civil society in Germany once Hitler and his party took power, as they used democracy to destroy democracy, and used the law to debase the law.  Sadly, there were many in Germany who went along willingly; some because of their own anti-Semitism, others out of pressure and fear, still others who thought that the Nazi nightmare couldn't last.  Men like Bonhoeffer tried to stem the flood, to organize a resistence before it was too late; to no avail.  When the foundations are being destroyed it is not enough for one man to act, nor even a few.  If they must stand alone, then act they must, but if God's Church is to survive the evil that men would inflict upon it, it must stand together to defend the Gospel.  Let Germany be a lesson to us all, the Church was not united in its defense of the Gospel message, it was divided by factions that sought their own agendas at the expense of the Cross of Jesus Christ; let that never be said of us.  We preach the Gospel, here we stand, we can stand nowhere else.

The value of joyful music

Psalm 100:1-2 "Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
                        Worship the LORD with gladness;
                        come before him with joyful songs.

Those of you who are familiar with our story know that Nicole and I moved 450 miles away from home in January so that I could take over as the new pastor of the First Baptist Church of Franklin.  That sort of change involves a whole host of new experiences from things as small as where you can get the kind of cereal that you like to where you find spiritual nourishment.  For my wife, there has been an additional adjustment because she must also find a new church to attend for Mass.  Back home Nicole (and I) went to the Cathedral of St. Andrew in Grand Rapids where the music direction was handled superbly by Nick Palmer and the choir was led with gusto and fun by Tom Good.  Thus far in the Franklin area, we haven't found much to compare.  Nicole has been to several churches, and they will of course not feel the same as home, but the thing that always seems to be missing is the music.  It doesn't have the same life, the same joy.  It has been more often than not the same songs that we're used to from St. Andrew, but something is missing.
Of all the things that I learned by going to Mass with my wife a thousand times, the combination of reverence and joy in the music probably tops the list.  I grew up with uplifting music in church, and we certainly have beautiful music here as well, but I hadn't really felt the connection to the music until I saw it through my wife's eyes.  (A lot of that has to do with talent, she's got loads of musical talent, I have only a handful)  And so our search continues, I'm not sure if she will find that "something" that feels like it felt before, but when it isn't there you can tell.  I know that Baptists see the sermon as the culmination of the service, and Catholics feel that way about the Mass, but we should both remember how uplifting and fortifying our music can, and should, be to those who have come to join us in our worship of the Lord.  Shout for joy to the Lord!

Sermon Video: Joseph: Interpreter of Dreams - Genesis 40-41

Joseph remains a prisoner despite his innocence until an opportunity to interpret the dreams of Pharaoh's officials offers hope of release.  Unfortunately for Joseph, the cupbearer forgets about him and Joseph remains in prison for two more years until finally given the chance to interpret Pharaoh's dream.  Ultimately, Joseph's faithfulness and trust in God are rewarded as Pharaoh elevates Joseph from the dungeon to the palace.  One good man can save a kingdom.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video