What does it mean to be confessional?

My son does this hilarious thing.  Standing with both his mom and I, he will ask one of us a question.

"Mom, can we go to the park?"

When he receives the affirmative answer "Yes, we can," he immediately turns to the other parent (the one not speaking) and repeats the joyful news.  "Daddy, we are going to the park."  (As though I wasn't there for the whole thing.)

At first, this seemed a little silly to me.  But then I realized that this is the purest and simplest way of communicating.  He knows I had heard the news.  But he wanted to speak it.  He wanted to tell me.  He wanted to share in this goodness with me - put it in the air himself - say the same thing that the authority had said. 

This is what is means to be confessional.  To say the same thing.  To confess the good news.  To know that one believes in the heart and confesses with the mouth.  To hear God speak His Word and immediately speak it back to Him.  Christians know that God knows His own Word.  But we want to speak it.  We want to tell Him.  We want to share in His good Word with Him.  Put it in the air from our lips - say the same thing as our gracious heavenly Father.  No, its not the park we get to go to - its His heavenly kingdom.  But we cannot hold back from sharing this good news.

There is another part to this idea. 

Those who are confessional gather and speak/believe the same thing as others in their confession.  They do not worship with those who speak differently than them - that would be like my son getting excited about going to the park with someone who kept saying "We are not going to the park."  It would never happen.  He would quickly find someone else who could excitedly repeat with him "Yeah!  We are going to the park."

What does this mean?

There is a pure and simple way to faith in God's Word - confessing it.  Uniting with those who confess it with you, and sharing it with those around you (whether they confess with you or not).  We are going to the park - the eternal kingdom of our heavenly Father.

Do good people go to heaven?

The most common religious teaching in the world is this very notion:

Good people go to heaven, bad people go to hell.

But good according to who?  According to you?  According to what society thinks is good in 21st century North America?  Who is the judge that determines good and bad?

The Final Judgment is coming.  There will be a Day of Reckoning when all will be laid bare, when the hearts and minds and actions of all people will be exposed and judged.  And we will not be the ones determining what is good and what is bad.  God will.  The One who made us.  The One who placed the notion of right and wrong in our conscience and continually torments it with us.  Because the truth is - we are evil - all of us - we have not been good and we know it - we have not done the right thing - we wrestle inside about it - wouldn't a good person simply do good naturally?  Why the struggle?  Why the effort?

So we twist the rules, the expectations.  We figure God will not destroy all of us.  As long as we appear better than most of humanity, then we figure God will award us over the rest. 

But this is not the judgment.  The Word of God has already made its verdict upon us all.  And the verdict is guilty. 

"None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands,
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.
Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive.
The venom of asps is under their lips.
Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood;
in their paths are ruin and misery,
and the way of peace they have not known.
There is no fear of God before their eyes." (Romans 3:10-18)

We have so little fear for God's wrath that we fight against this verdict even though we know its true.  We know we don't understand.  We know we don't seek God unless it suits us.  We know we speak deception, that our mouth has uttered bitterness.  We know we get angry.  Yet we deny it all!

Good people go to heaven - but you are not one of them.

Yet this Judge is merciful.  He saw you in your guilt and took action to free you.  He sent His only Son into your flesh to suffer your verdict.  His Son, Jesus, was crucified in your place, taking your judgment upon Himself - that you might live.  Hear this.  Believe it, for He promises forgiveness, life and salvation to those who trust in Him.  You cannot earn this.  You do not deserve it.  Yet He gives it.  He did it for you.  He came from heaven so He could take you there.

There is only One who is Good.  Only One who goes to heaven - Jesus.  Yet you go too - in Him.  Trust in Him.  He is your life and your salvation.

What is Islam?

The events of the last couple of months have generated a lot of varied discussion on the religion of Islam.  But most of this attention and discussion has revealed that most people know very little about what it is about.

Lutheran Hour Ministries (Men's Network) put out a series of short videos a couple of years ago that help provide a basic look at the teachings and history of Islam.  Take a look by clicking the following link, you can pick and choose which videos you would like to view.

http://www.lhmmen.com/studyvideofull.asp?ID=11684&fid=1951&mode=

How do I keep the devil away?

It might be because you feel the pressure of temptation, or it might be because of something more intense, like you are being haunted.  But in either situation the same answer applies.

You don't keep the devil away - Jesus does.

The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).  We are helpless against the Evil One.  We are powerless.  He will always overcome us if we try to defeat him on our own.  But that is why Christ comes.

Christ comes in His Word.  A Word He invites you to speak.  His Holy Name He invites you to speal.  His holy blood He invites you to invoke.  Spit God's Word at the devil.  Shout if you have to.  Say it outloud and believe every syllable.  Christ comes in His Word.

Christ comes in His holy washing.  If you are having trouble with evil thoughts, desires or temptations, dive in the cool waters of Baptism.  Remember the promise God made to you there and say it outloud.  The fiery darts of the Evil One must be extinguished by the wet promises of God in Baptism.  And if you are not baptized - GET BAPTIZED!  God wants to protect you with His holy washing, because Christ comes in His holy washing.

This may be a radical change of thinking for you.  You do not take on evil by yourself.  You don't even take on evil side by side with a teammate.  Jesus takes on evil in your place.  He takes it down by dying with it, crucifying it in His own body, ending its power against you.

And Jesus brings His protection - all the benefits of His death and resurrection - through His Word and Sacrament.  So when the devil comes around, speak God's Word, remember His promise made in baptism, trust all that He has said, for the devil cannot endure God's Word.

When is the devil preaching?

THE DEVIL?!?  Preaching?

Pop culture has made the devil out to be a red guy with horns and a pointy tail.  Always with a sneaky smile on his face.  Other parts of culture have taught that the devil wants/does bad things to you - and those bad things usually mean hurting your body or your pocketbook or your family.

But do these ideas come from Scripture?  What does God reveal about the Evil One?

The answer may surprise you - because he is not necessarily out to make life terrible for you, especially not in North America where our affluence has become our blindfold to God's Word.

In fact, the Bible describes Satan with these words - "accuser", "deceiver", "father of lies", "liar", "adversary", "enemy", "masquerading as an angel of light."   You have likely noticed that putting these descriptions together you do not have a cheesy, red suited guy with a sneaky smile.  Instead, you have an intelligent preacher of falsehood who appears righteous and beautiful.  He preaches.  He speaks lies.  That is how he works.  He doesn't want to make your physical life miserable, unless he can use it to shake your confidence in Christ, unless he can also get you to trust his fake words.

So when is the devil preaching?  How do you know it is the devil who is speaking his lies in your ear?

Well, this can be tricky, because he is so crafty.  He speaks through advertisements, politicians, news broadcasts, you name it - anytime words are being spoken in this world, they are either of God or they are of the devil.  (Even the idea that there is some sort of neutral ground, that is not influenced by God or the devil - is his deception).  He will even use God's Word to deceive you, by misinterpreting it, or emphasizing the wrong part of it over against another part.  Here is a list of characteristics in his preaching that you can be on the lookout for.

1) His words oppose God's Word.  Knowing God's Word is your certain defense against him.

2) His words focus you on glory.  Christ came for a cross - not glory - the devil hates this.

3) His words put the focus on you.  What you do - or what you don't do - the devil wants you focused on yourself - not Christ and what He does.

4) His words make promises for your life now.  Christ looked past the shame of this life to the joy that follows, and He calls Christians to do the same.  Any words that speak otherwise are of the devil.

5) His words create self-righteousness or despair.  Either you are a good person, or you have no hope - there is no middle ground - there is no Christ to save you.  This is what the devil preaches.

Certainly this list is not exhaustive, but it is a good start for you to be aware of.  St. Peter said, "Be soberminded.  Be watchful.  Your enemy, the devil, prowls around you like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.  Resist him, firm in your faith." 

In other words, your faith in God's Word protects you.  You resist the Evil One by holding to God's Word.  The devil wants to scare you into letting go of God's Word - perhaps he threatens you with being unpopular, or persecuted for your faith, or less successful than your peers - all of this is designed to make you release God's promises.  But you have the promise of Christ.  Christ defends you.  His Word is your fortress.  Run into His safety and fill your mind with His Word.  Read it, meditate on and speak it back to God - against this the devil has no move.

Why is God called the LORD of hosts?

Yahweh Sabaoth - LORD of hosts (in English)

You've probably heard this expression before, but have you ever wondered about what it means?

The hosts are armies.  Our God is a God surrounded by His armies.  Armies of angels.  Armies of believers.  Yahweh is in their midst.  He is the God who dwells with His people.

But there is something very unique about these armies - they don't carry any weapons!  WHAT!  No weapons!  Well, not exactly - none of their own.  The hosts, God's armies, are priests.  They serve Him day and night in His holy presence. 

But what if someone should attack?  Who will defend these defenseless priests - these people of God?

This is exactly what God wants people to ask - because He Himself is the warrior.  He Himself is the king, the fortress, the defense of His people.  His people don't have weapons because they don't need weapons.  God is their protection, their refuge, their strength, and He will always keep them safe.

Think about it.  This is the picture throughout the Old Testament.  God leads an unarmed mass of people out of powerful Egypt, and when Pharoah's army chases them, He drowns them.  Then He takes them into the Promised Land where the walls of Jericho just fall down.  Then is the period of the judges, where God's people have no standing army!!  And when an army is gathered by God's servant Gideon - God makes them cut their numbers to 300 when they are about to face 10,000.  Why?  Because at every turn, God wants one thing to be clear - He is the One who protects His people.  He fights for them.  He is the LORD of hosts, and His hosts are His treasured possession.  Nothing can harm them - not even death - because He has even destroyed death too.

Today, the LORD of hosts is still in the midst of His people.  He is surrounded by them when He serves them His body and blood, with which He fights off all their sin, death and the power of the devil.  Our liturgy even confesses this amazing truth in the Sanctus, right before we commune - Holy, Holy, Holy LORD God of Sabaoth - (hosts) - Heaven and earth are full of Your glory.  Hosanna in the Highest!  Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the LORD.  Hosanna in the Highest!  Christ is with His people.  He is in the midst of us, and He fights for you.  He is your champion.

Why doesn’t good take away bad?

Most people think of righteousness as something determined by an old judicial scale – If I put the good I’ve done on one side, and the bad I’ve done on the other side, which one weighs more?  Am I more good than bad?  Then I’m good! 

This might work for manmade righteousness, for telling (lying to) yourself that you are a good person, but the judgment of God described in the Bible sees righteousness in an entirely different way.  Perhaps a good picture to use would be wet paint.

If white is good, and black is bad, measure out how much white you think you have, and put it on the canvas.  Then measure out how much black you think you have (be honest), and put it on the canvas.  While the paint is still wet, mix all that you are, and all that you’ve done together.  No matter who you are – your own view of yourself ends up gray.  All your white is tainted by your black.

The problem is that God demands purity.  Perfection.  Goodness.  Not good with a little bad – not pure with a little impurity.  Not godly with a little “well I’m human.”  According to your own righteousness, you are dirty, stained, mixed up.

But God saw you in your problem, before you knew about it.  He took action to save you from it before you even asked Him.  And His salvation is something entirely incredible.  God doesn’t save you by making you a good person or by allowing you to have a righteousness of your own – He saves you by giving you His righteousness.  By sharing His perfect, holy, pure Godly righteousness with you – in fact, He covers you with it.  By sending His Son to die on the cross, God has laid Himself over top of your gray painted mess.  He has covered it up with His own perfect canvas, one that is perfectly white, the righteousness of Christ.  You are not reckoned righteous because you are – you are reckoned righteous because Christ is, and He has freely given His righteousness to you by faith.  God no longer sees your gray mixed up slop, instead He sees His only Son, who pleases Him in every way. 

Imagine that, you are completely free – freed by what Jesus did on your behalf.  You no longer have to weigh your good against your bad, you no longer have to worry about your black tainting your white, you no longer are a slave to the work of proving yourself – for Christ died for you.  Now you can do the right thing, simply because it’s the right thing to do – and remain confident that in Christ you have already been saved.