Throwback Thursday

Thursdays on social media can be fun.  Many people participate in the #ThrowbackThursday craze.  Pictures are posted all over of good memories from the past.  Trips and vacations.  Good times from back in college.  Memories of growing up.  Remembering friends and loved ones.  The list could go on and on.  I'm sure one of the reasons Throwback Thursday is so popular is because of the good feeling we get when we remember fond times from the past.

The devil, though, would have us celebrate a different kind of Throwback Thursday.  You see, one of the many devices the devil uses is to throwback sins in our faces.  The devil loves to bring back old feelings of guilt over poor decisions.  He loves to drudge up old grudges, open old and painful wounds, and throw past sins back at us.  As the devil puts up his slideshow of our painful memories and failures, he throws some difficult questions our way.  "How could God possibly love you?  How could God really forgive you for that?"

The good news is that no matter what kind of accusations the devil throws our way we have the cross of Jesus Christ.  "If we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1John 1:8-9.  Our Savior lived the perfect life that we simply could not, died for the very sins the devil accuses us of, and rose victoriously from the grave to ensure victory over death and the devil - for us!

So when the devil throws your sins, guilt, and pains back at you - respond with the cross.  Throw back at him the victorious words, "I am baptized into Christ".  The devil has no response for that - for you are a forgiven and redeemed child of God!

Satan, hear this proclamation:  I am baptized into Christ!

Drop your ugly accusation, I am not so soon enticed.

Now that to the font I've traveled, All your might has come unraveled,

And against your tyranny, God, my Lord, unites with me!

LSB #594



Veterans Day

Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

Joshua 1:9

As our nation celebrates Veteran’s Day, we have the privilege to say “thank you” and offer our collective debt to our fellow citizens who have served our country well.  We live in a country that offers far too much honor and recognition to sports figures, movie stars, music and TV personalities whom we misguidedly call “heroes and role models.”  On this one day of the year, we thank our Veterans and remember their bravery and courage – but this day should inspire and encourage us to honor our Veterans – our true heroes and recognize them as role models for they are truly the finest soldiers in the world.

Veterans Day must never be relegated to a one-day remembrance but a daily prayer of thanksgiving to God for the men and women - our grandparents and great grandparents, mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, sons and daughters - whom we honor as we live in the freedom they have given to us with the gift of themselves to serve both God and country.

So as this Veterans Day evokes such great emotion and patriotism, I pray that it also leads us to seek the comfort and promises of God as we honor our heroes to the glory of Jesus Christ.

In Joshua chapter 1, we find Joshua, mourning his mentor and friend, Moses, who had died; but his greatest challenges still were ahead of him – the Promised Land wasn’t theirs yet; there were battles to be fought, a war to be waged – but all he had to do was remember the promise God had given him.

“The Lord your God is with you wherever you go”.  That is the promise Joshua held onto, the promise our Veterans held onto as they served God and our country, and the promise that all of us as Christians hold onto as we live daily in the freedom God has given us through the service of our Veterans.

May God continue to bless our Veterans and our Country this and every day – and may the freedom we enjoy lead us to give thanks to God for His steadfast love and His sure and certain promises!

 

All Saints' Day

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world – our faith. 1 John 5:4

The celebration of All Saints' Day can be summarized in one word – victory! This is not victory in the worldly sense of winning a game or something like that – but the victory we celebrate is the victory won for us and given to us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The world sees victory in a different way. In the sports world, one of the most recognizable symbols of victory is the Nike “swoosh”. Nike has made millions of dollars because people want to wear that same “swoosh” that numerous championship athletes wear. In fact, the brand name “Nike” comes from the Greek word “nikos” which means – victory. But of far more importance than any sports victory is the victory spoken of in 1 John 5:4, “And this is the victory that has overcome the world”.

This All Saints' Day we celebrate the victory that was won for us by Jesus Christ – a victory that has overcome the world and the sin and death that it includes. As we remember our loved ones who have died and are now rejoicing in eternal life – we give thanks to God for the victory he won for them to give them eternal life. We also rejoice in the certain fact that Christ’s victory is our victory – not just when we die, but right now that victory is ours!
As we celebrate All Saints' Day, let our hearts and minds rejoice along with all the saints on earth and in heaven as we remember the victory that is ours through Jesus Christ!