FROM THE PASTOR:

Colossians 3:13 Be bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

Most of the summer Grace Lutheran Church has been enjoying a sermon series on the 10 Commandments. I have to admit, as a pastor, preaching on the “law” of God can be a challenge. I say this because as the sermon is prepared – a great portion of it ends up being “law.”
So what is the big deal, you may ask? What is wrong with hearing a little law once in a while? What is wrong with being told that we have not lived up to what God asks of us? And the answer is - nothing. God’s law is truly effective. It is not hard to feel the guilt of a convicted heart.
But as a pastor we want people to hear the Gospel - sooner rather than later. One of the greatest teachings to pass on is that the Law should never be told without the Gospel. And for that matter the Gospel never without the Law. Convicted hearts need to hear there is forgiveness. And the death and resurrection has little meaning if there is no payment for the law we broke.
Recently, Pastor Lilienkamp shared a devotion from “Portals of Prayer” in our morning meeting. The title was Double Jeopardy. The author had selected the above verse from Colossians. And began with these words –
“Justice has always been important to humans beings. When we are wronged we want justice! We want the other to pay the penalty for his evil deeds.”
The devotion struck me personally, but also how it applies to our sermon series. We demand justice when we have been wronged. And the law convicts when we have done wrong. The law convicts our hearts and we feel that guilt. It seems easy to see when others cross the line, to judge them and convict them. It is harder to see our own faults and to be willing to confess these wrongs. The devotion continues with –
“God calls us to repent and give up our desires for personal justice. We are to bear with one another, forgive one another, and not hold on the sins of others against them. That is hard to do!”
The last sentence says it all for me, “That is hard to do!” It is easier to go on feeling like a victim - to feel wronged – than it is to forgive. We want the other person to feel the pain we are feeling – so we - “hold on the sins of others against them.”
The largest struggle for me is to initiate that conversation and work towards forgiveness. These are the conversations that can open uncomfortable discussions; discussions that require us to admit we have been wrong and desire to be forgiven. Discussions like these us ask us to examine just what went wrong – even when we believe that we have done nothing wrong - because there is always something that both parties can admit they have done wrong or could have handled better.
The devotion shares this incite – “We are not to hold these sins against them. Just as Christ gave up His claim for justice on you, but instead suffered for it, so we give up our claim for justice on our neighbor and bear with the sin, forgiving it.”
We are going to continue with the 10 Commandment Sermon Series into August. There will seem to be a lot of law in the sermons – but remember – it is the law that makes the Gospel so amazing. When our convicted hearts bring us to ask God to forgive us - realize how undeserving we are – then we begin to understand just how amazing God’s grace is; how much He loves us.
May this be the love that brings you to work through differences – sooner than later. May it be the reasoning that reminds you - holding on to a sin harms rather than heals. May the Lord continue to show each of our sins through the law – so that we may see His truly amazing grace in the gospel.

From thePastor__