Dear
Fellow Children of God,
This past week I attended a church meeting in
Portland, OR. Local church leaders
discussed how to help congregations in their efforts to do the work, and to share
the love, of our Savior, Jesus. Part of
the discussion of helping congregations included dealing with problems
Christian congregations are facing.
Perhaps, compared to the early church, our problems are small.
But, compared to recent history in our western culture, where Christ’s
church held a place of honor and influence, we face real problems.
In a culture which distrusts organizations and
authority, the Christian Church is often considered suspect, even a problem by
many today. Traditional Christian views
on family, on truth, on authority, on the goodness of God, on grace and
forgiveness, are often rejected. Many
congregations are growing smaller.
Unfortunately, in addition to cultural opposition, the Church often
shoots itself in the foot. And, like
other groups in our society, the church has a shortage of workers and pastors.
We seem to be struggling to recruit people willing to serve unselfishly and
sacrificially for the Lord of all.
As we discussed in our meeting the mission of
Jesus and the challenges the church faces, the Gospel reading from last Sunday,
August 27, spoke loudly. Jesus asked a
question of His disciples. Among others,
Peter spoke up to answer Jesus. Our Lord
then taught them concerning what Peter had answered. Listen to this conversation from Matthew 16. “13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea
Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man
is?" 14 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah;
and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." 15 "But what
about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" 16 Simon Peter
answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 Jesus
replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed
to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are
Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” (Matthew 16:13-18)
Gates are defensive tools, not
offensive. The gates of Hades, hell, Satan
and his forces, are intended to defend and to protect the rebellion of the
devil against the Lord of the universe. Yet,
Jesus says that hell has no defense against the confession of Peter: "You
are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
The Christian Church in
our time faces serious challenges. Nevertheless,
the forces of evil are nothing compared to Jesus, the Son of God, the promised
Messiah. The anti-institutional,
anti-family values, anti-authoritarian, anti-Christian direction of our culture
today are nothing compared to the love, the forgiveness, the salvation and the
life which God gives through faith in Jesus.
If we trust these words of God’s Son, the Messiah, it is not The Church
which is in trouble, but the forces of the devil. In Jesus’ death on the cross to pay for the
sin of the world, in His rising from the dead and overcoming the powers of sin
and death, He has won the final victory.
As Jesus leaves this world, He gives His disciples call to the
offensive, the task of spreading the Gospel, “19 Therefore go and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to
obey everything I have commanded you.”
But, if you read the
preceding verse, verse 18, Jesus shares the reason He gives this command. "All authority in heaven and on earth has
been given to me.” As the One who has overcome the forces of Satan, evil, and death,
Jesus has authority in this world, even over the challenges the church faces
today. “ . . . the
gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
The problems and
challenges facing the Christian Church today can SEEM overwhelming. But the truth is (and Jesus is THE TRUTH)
Jesus has already won the war. In spite of opposition, we can boldly make
disciples, baptize, and teach about our Savior. We Christians move forward doing the work of
Jesus in the authority and the power of our Lord, “the Christ, the Son of the living
God."
A Child of God, Facing
Challenges to the Christian Church with the Victory and Authority of Jesus,
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. We are working on and harvesting in our
gardens.
·
On August 23, I finished pulling daisies from
our front flower gardens. Here are some
pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/b2YVczhtzRmH8wRw9
·
We brought swiss chard, collards, and cabbage to
church on August 27, and all of it disappeared!
J
·
Dena Jeffers, Mary Colberg, and Christine Samms
took us up on our offer and came over to receive some of the bounty. We gave away cabbage, lettuce, celery, and
beets.
·
Our granddaughter, Annie, came out to our vegetable
garden with her mom. While we picked
more beets, it was the carrots which caught Annie’s eye. I really like this picture of my granddaughter!
https://photos.app.goo.gl/ssEg8SCWbzf5QMrK6
P.P.S. Pastor Dan Deuel and his son, David, are visiting
us from CA. They came to Alaska to
fish. However, with some of our local streams
closed to salmon fishing, and others flooded, it has been difficult to find
fish. I took them to 4 different streams
and one lake. We did catch some. Here are some pictures. https://photos.app.goo.gl/g4fAJ1edUxBStvUg7
P.P.P.S. Kathy and I are driving to Florida, leaving
on September 3. We covet your prayers
for a safe trip to our new adventure where I will serve as vacancy pastor at
First Lutheran Church in Gainesville, FL.
P.P.P.P.S. FOR YOUR CALENDAR in October 2024: I was asked to serve for 2 weeks at the
Wittenberg English Ministry in Wittenberg Germany. I tentatively agreed to serve there and to
lead worship October 17-31 (Reformation Day), 2024. MAYBE you want to come over at that
time. J
*******
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired
at the end of August 2019 from serving as senior full-time pastor of St. John Lutheran Church
in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly
devotion previously entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor." When I retired many asked me to continue
writing these devotions. So I have
continued writing. However, with life's
changes I now call this weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child
of God." Since I am no longer
senior pastor at St. John, I felt it right to only send this message to those
who asked to receive it.
So, if you stopped receiving these
devotions and wondered why, now you understand.
And, if you are now receiving these devotions and do not wish to receive
them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove your name from my distribution
list. My e-mail address is
jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer is that these devotions help
each of you in your daily walk with our Lord, Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John
Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 a)
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