In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he lavished on us. Ephesians 1:7-8a
We are coming off the Christmas season where we celebrate the birth of Jesus into the world with God among us. January’s focus in the Gospel is about the identity of Jesus being revealed. One of the things we often don’t pay attention to is the aftermath of Jesus’ time among us. That information is often found in the rest of the New Testament after the first four books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Our second reading in worship tends to come from there. The passage above is from the second reading on the 4th.
Jesus came to show God’s love in how he lived, died and his resurrection which is good news that should give people a sense of peace. Through our redemption in Christ, we don’t have to worry about God’s wrath. We are no longer estranged Children of God, separated by rebellion. Being cut off is something that happens within a lot of families. Recently online we hear it is more common for a child to become estranged from their parents for past trauma. Parents are out there often confused and hurt by being rejected by their child. They did the best they could at the time. I don’t know how toxic the relationships have been, but it makes me wonder about how this plays out for God and us.
I know the heaviness of a family member being estranged from the rest of the family. I have a sister that has cut us off a couple of times, the last time she left was about 10 years ago. We’ve tried reaching out a few times over the years but are met with silence. The best we can do is pray for her and leave the door open for her to come back. It was sad to see both of my parents die still estranged from their daughter. I don’t encourage anyone to accept abuse, yet I still pray for reconciliation in families. I ask is whatever caused the division still that important to keep you apart? Is healing possible? Has time given you a different perspective?
Humans rebelled against God and pushed him away. We often want to decide God’s side of the relationship that puts no healthy boundaries on us. We don’t like the word “no” even when that is often in our best long-term interest. So, we push God away. God was very hurt by this and desired to reconcile with his children. However, everything he tried with sending prophets, showing miracles of blessing, or letting people feel consequences for their actions including rejection, he couldn’t reach us to understand his love.
So finally, he came to us in our own vulnerable form to reach us at our level. Jesus cried over our rebellion as he entered Jerusalem yet always gave us mercy, compassion and put everything on the line, including his cruel death. God has done everything to reach us at our level yet some still prefer their rebellion. We make the choice to not be reconciled with God; he isn’t pushing us away.
We have done plenty to hurt our relationship with God, yet God continues to reach out to us. His intent is not to punish but see us do well. The expectation isn’t about perfection but working together in love. The question is, can you see this as good news? Come join us in worship. Share communion with us as we receive God’s mercy in love. Share in a community of other flawed humans navigating our faith the best we can.
In Christ, Pastor Linda
Current Turmoil:
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Minnesota has been in the news a lot lately and not for positive reasons. This is upsetting at numerous different levels. I have seen on Facebook several of my colleagues writing messages and prayers to post. Some of their postings are meant to bring comfort, ask for God’s mercy and others are to advocate one side or the other of the issues involved. I admit that I am struggling with what is unfolding yet unable to ascertain what are the objective facts and understanding the events.
So, I’m not going to tell you how to process the events. Instead, I will just share how I am going to navigate this stressful time. First of all, I admit I don’t have enough understanding to draw conclusions but turn to God and how my faith can be my anchor. What I see is manifestations of the brokenness of humans and our need for God. I imagine that God’s heart must be broken seeing all the hostility between humans. This is a reminder to me on why it was so necessary for Jesus to come to bring healing and reconciliation with God. Even though Jesus died under the Romans as a political threat, I see he never took a direct stance against them directly nor endorsed them. Instead, his focus was on the Kingdom of God and calling us to follow him.
I said in my Christmas Eve sermon that peace first starts inside us and spreads out. It is Jesus coming into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that we are guided and transformed to be more like Jesus and God’s desire for us. God has perfect wisdom, yet he also gives us freewill to make our own choices in life. That is why peace and love has to start by changing our hearts and then spreading out to those around us through our actions. Where we seek out wisdom does impact our choices. Jesus is God’s word of love and speaks to us through the Bible. It is in prayer and reading that I seek guidance for myself. I trust in the guidance of the Spirit more than my own understanding.
Because of this, I pray for the peace and wisdom of God through the Holy Spirit for you also. I am always available to talk if you need. You can reach me at 651-357-8130. Peace be with you.
Pastor Linda Molitor
