Sanctification 101 (EHR 4)

10/16/22 • 20 min

Exploring the Iceberg

How do we grow closer to and more like Jesus? How are we experiencing the regeneration of the Holy Spirit in our lives today? It starts and ends with God’s agape love for us and for the world. God, in Christ Jesus, has done for us what we could not do for ourselves. Through the love of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we have been saved, justified, and called children of God. Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Amen? Amen.

In obedience to God’s command and following the example of our Lord Jesus, we practice the habit of quiet time with God, drinking deep from the well of God’s love so that we can love God and others well. Human relationships require open communication, especially about our mutual expectations and “the stories we are telling ourselves:” about the thoughts and motives of others. We may have Jesus in our hearts, we learned last week, but we also have grandpa in our bones! That is, our family histories—the good, the bad, and the ugly—all play into and play out in our current relating with God and others.

Everything Under the Sun

And that gets us to this week’s lesson that challenges us to “explore the iceberg,” to look inside us and see what lies under the surface, in our hearts and wills. Emotions. Motives. Yes, we are going to talk about our feelings. Let’s start in Ecclesiastes 3:1-11, written over 2500 years ago.

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

9 What do workers gain from their toil? 10 I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. 11 [God] has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

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Exploring the Iceberg

Everything Under the Sun

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:

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Previous Episode

Grandpa Is in My Bones (EHR 3)

Words for beginning the service:

You have loved us first, O God, alas! We speak of it in terms of history as if You loved us first but a single time, rather than that without ceasing You have loved us first many times and every day and our whole life through. When we wake up in the morning and turn our soul toward You—You are there first—You have loved us first; if I rise at dawn and at that same second turn my soul toward You in prayer, You are there ahead of me, You have loved me first. When I withdraw from the distractions of the day and turn my soul toward You, You are there first and thus forever... we speak ungratefully as if You have loved us first only once.

--Soren Kierkegaard, Danish Philosopher & Theologian (1813-1855)

Grandpa (or Grandma?) in My Bones: Reckoning with Our Past EHR 3)

Rev. Brenda Satrum

October 9, 2022

Gospels for this message:

Luke 8:19-21. Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” He replied, “My other and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.”

John 15:9-12. (SLIDE 1) “I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. (Msg)

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Next Episode

Here I Stand (EHR 6)

Happy Reformation Sunday, celebrating the re-forming, re-newing work of the Holy Spirit in the church in every generation. Lutefisk, lutefisk, lefse, lefse: We’re the mighty Lutherans—Yah, shore, you betcha!

We are also in week six of our series focusing on Emotionally Healthy Relationships—EHR for short—as Faith leans into our congregation’s vision and dream to grow “closer to and more like Jesus.” Emotionally Healthy Relationships is an eight-week preaching, devotional, and small group series based on the work of Pete and Geri Scazzero. This week’s lesson has to do with “Climbing the Ladder of Integrity.” You can learn more about Faith and about Emotionally Healthy Relationships at our website, www.faithshelton.org. Thanks for listening today.

I’ve grown up in the Lutheran tradition. I’ve had the privilege to read a chunk of Luther’s writings and quite a bit about his life. He’s no saint. He wasn’t perfect, and was, in many ways, maybe just at the right place at the right time in history to be an instrument of the Holy Spirit to lead a re-formation of a Christian church that had gotten off track.

There are countless stories about Luther, his life, what he accomplished, what he wrote and taught. Today I want to share four details about Martin Luther that are meaningful to me, and why they matter. Three are a matter of public record, and the fourth is just a good story that sounds true. But we’ve got to start where Luther would: with the Word of God. Grab your Bible and open it up to Romans 3:21-28.

Romans 3:21-28

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in[h] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement,[i] through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

27 Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. 28 For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.

John 8:31-36

And now a short reading from the gospel of John, chapter 8, beginning at verse 31:

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?” 34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. The gospel of the Lord.

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Will Preach For Food Podcast - Sanctification 101 (EHR 4)

Transcript

Sanctification 101 (EHR 4)

Introduction

Hello, and welcome to the Will Preach for Food podcast. I’m Doug, a pastor here at Faith Lutheran Church, based out of Shelton, Washington, a congregation of the ELCA. We are in week four of our series focusing on Emotionally Healthy Relationships—EHR for short—as Faith leans into our congregation’s vision and dream to grow “closer to and more like Jesus.” Emotionally Healthy Relationships is an eight-week preaching, devotional,