Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.
TO PONDER
Interestingly, this passage of scripture stands almost in complete contradiction of the quote, often mistakenly attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, "preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words." It's a nice idea but all throughout the New Testament the approach seems to be a case of 'do both'. Show your faith by the way you live but also be prepared to give a reason or a defence for the faith that has been placed within you. (1 Peter 3:15)
People might be drawn to ask about our faith by our actions, but our actions alone will not help them come to faith in Jesus. For that, we need to be prepared to talk about it; to tell the stories of what God has done for us and to explain how we come to the conclusions we have about God. None of that needs a theological degree, all that is needed is a personal walk with Jesus. He will make sure your story is right for the moment and even give you the right moment to share it with your friends or family.
PRAYER:Lord Jesus, thank you that you have placed faith within me. Help me to live in that faith more and more each day. Help me to know you more so that by faith, I may come to resemble you more closely. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
TO PONDER
Sometimes we joke among the LifeWay pastoral staff, that Lutheran's can forget that Ephesians chapter 2 even has a verse 10. Most of us, like Martin Luther himself, are quick to quote verses 8 and 9 as one of the verses on which we build our doctrine of Justification through faith, not by works, and we are certainly right to do that.
However, these two verses are immediately followed by verse 10 which reminds us that now we have been saved through faith in Christ alone, we are new creations, "created in Christ to do good works, which God has prepared in advance for us to do."
Good works are a part of the life of a disciple of Jesus, so much so that God has these 'good works' planned in advance for you. He has made you specifically for those tasks with the requisite skills, talents, and experience to be precisely the right person at the right time for him to use to accomplish his will in the world. Some people find that thought kind of oppressive. They don't like the idea of being 'controlled' by God in that kind of way. I can respect that. However, I want to offer a different perspective.
What if we were to think of it like being a chisel in the hands of a master woodworker, or any other tool in a craftsman's toolbox. A chisel, or a saw, or even sandpaper, doesn't accomplish much on its own. Yet when the master craftsman picks up the perfect tool for the task they have in mind, beautiful things are created, things much more beautiful or useful that anything the chisel might be able to do on its own.
God invites us to do the things he has planned in advance for us to do, so that we, and the world around us might come to see the beautiful work God is up to in drawing all creation back to himself and making all things new. It's not a chore to be endured but an invitation to be a part of God's plan for all the world into eternity. Who doesn't want to be a part of that?!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, you are the master craftsman. You know the perfect tasks that you have specifically created me for. You know how you want to use me to bring others to faith in Jesus and to see your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Please help me to see and to know the places and opportunities you have prepared in advance for me to be the tool you use to bring your love and life into the world. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle.
Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
TO PONDER
This has always been a compelling and confronting healing story for me. In many of the stories of Jesus miraculous healings, people come to him or call out to Jesus asking him to heal them. They do this themselves, they demonstrate their faith and trust in Jesus ability and willingness to heal them, but this story is different.
In this story, Jesus sees the faith of the paralysed man's friends and that seems to be, at least in part, what prompts Jesus to proclaim forgiveness of the paralysed man's sin and also restore his body.
It just makes me wonder sometimes whether my faith is something that has been obvious enough to bring others to an encounter with Jesus where they find the forgiveness of their sins and healing for their body, mind, and soul? Too often we think of faith as a private thing, as something just between ourselves and God. There is some element of truth to that, faith in Jesus does lead to a personal relationship with him. However, when Jesus left his disciples to ascend into heaven, he did not leave them with the command to keep all they had seen to themselves, they were to take what they had seen and believed and proclaim it to all the world so that others might also come to know Jesus as the son of God and their personal Lord and saviour.
Justification, or salvation through Christ's death and resurrection is a free gift for those whose faith and trust is in Jesus, a free gift to each of us from a loving Heavenly Father. However, the faith that recognises Jesus as Lord, is not just a gift to those who have that faith, it is also a gift to the rest of the world; one of the ways that others are drawn into an encounter with Jesus. Your faith is a gift to the world, one that is supposed to be shared and used to bring others to Jesus so that they too might have life and faith in him.
Don't let your faith only be a private thing. Live it, share it, and grow it, so that by it, others may find the forgiveness and healing of a life lived in Christ.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank you that you forgive my sins and have restored me to a right relationship with you. Please help me to live my faith each day in such a way that you can use it to bring others to you and find life and forgiveness in your name, Amen.
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
TO PONDER
I remember one night spent in the boat fishing with my Dad. We were in a fairly isolated part of the South East Coast of South Australia. It was a very dark and still night and while my day had all the necessary night time boating equipment that was necessary, there was a point in time when the battery which powered the high powered spotlight that we used to both spot fish on the surface of the water, but also to keep sight of the land and the many reefs and shoals in the area malfunctioned.
For a moment we were in the middle of the ocean and I remember worrying about how easy it would be to get lost on such a dark night with no moon to light things, a dark and overcast night sky where not even the stars were visible, no real sense of direction from waves or swell because everything was so calm. You could take of in any direction and not really know if you were heading to shore or further out to sea.
We sat like this for a moment while my dad pulled out a much smaller and weaker torch to help him see as he tinkered with the connections on the battery to try and get things working again, to no avail. We grabbed to other smaller battery powered torches out from the front of the boat and began a very slow and careful trip back to shore because even the navigational safety lights to help other boats know which direction you were heading in the dark had gone out.
I trusted my dad to get us back, but I was greatly relieved when a car pulled up on the beach and we could see its headlights shining out in our direction. I knew we now had something to guide us to where we needed to be. The people in the car that night (who turned out to be fisheries officers who were a bit suspicious of the low powered lights flashing around out in the middle of the ocean) didn't know how glad I was to see them but their arrival was something I was certainly glad for.
Our lives can be like those headlights on the shore for people who have lost their bearings in life. When they see the light of Jesus in us, it can give them something to cling to, to follow, to guide them back to the safety and love of their Saviour who does not want them to feel lost or afraid, but wants to use us to draw them to himself.
So, let your light shine!
PRAYER: Saviour Jesus, thank you that you are the light of the world and that you have placed the light of faith in us that we might be used by you to call people out of the darkness and into you marvellous light. Please help me to let my light shine before others so they may glorify you. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle.
But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.
TO PONDER
The book of James was one of Martin Luther's least favourite books of the Bible. He thought it focussed too much on 'deeds' or 'good works', and when you're fighting a battle with an institution like the Roman Catholic Church, as Luther was, about the place of Good works in the life of a Christian, you can understand perhaps why he wasn't a fan.
And yet, James is making a point which many of us could do well to hear again today. Faith is not just a list of things we believe to be true. That is certainly part of it, but certainly not the whole picture. Our most deeply held beliefs, we might call them convictions, inform our decision making and guide our behaviour. Our convictions, our beliefs, our faith, are visible in the way we act, the things we say, the responses and choices we make in every moment.
You can make a well reasoned theological argument in a debate and demonstrate what you believe with words alone, but it will never have the same power as a faith that is lived and exercised in the day to day business of living in the resurrection of Christ.
Churches have doctrine and statements of faith but these things are not faith by themselves, these things are only faith if they change us and do the work in us of conforming us to the likeness of Christ. it is faith in Christ that saves us and changes us. It is not faith in a articular branch of Christian theology or doctrine, it is not practicing your faith in a specific way or worshipping using one form of liturgical structure over another. It is faith in Jesus who says, "follow me". Following means doing what Jesus does. That's when faith can be seen and demonstrated.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, you are the author and perfecter of our faith. I pray today that you would help my faith in you to be visible to others. May it be something that transforms and renews me each day in the power of your resurrection life so that others may see you alive in me. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle.
So the other disciples told him [Thomas], “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
TO PONDER
Another pastor pointed out to me this week something I had never noticed before. In this story from John's gospel, we encounter the doubt of Thomas and from it we get the name or phrase 'Doubting Thomas'. But stop and think about it for a moment, the other disciples who "saw the Lord" as the verse for the day reminds us are still meeting behind locked doors in fear eight days later when Jesus appears a second time, this time with Thomas in the room.
Jesus told them on his first appearance that he was sending them, "as the father has sent me, so I am sending you". And yet, the disciples didn't go anywhere. They had heard the testimony of the women who went to the empty tomb that first Easter morning, they had now seen the risen Jesus appear among them and prove his identity via the wounds in his hands and sides and they are still so full of fear that they meet in secret behind closed doors.
The question I have is who are the real doubters. Is it us? Are we the disciples who know Jesus has risen, who know that he has sent us into the world with a mission to introduce others to him, who know we have been sent to love and serve others just as Jesus came to love and serve us, and yet still only express our faith behind locked doors in our Christian enclaves on Sunday morning?
Sometimes, faith is hard. Thomas wanted to see what the others had seen, he did not just take their word for it. But we have no excuse, we have seen what God has done, we have the testimony of the apostles, the gospel accounts of Jesus, and we have encountered the risen Jesus in our own lives as he has called us to faith through the Word and the Spirit. But hard doesn't mean we simply don't do it. Hard means we need to exercise faith, to trust that when Jesus sends us, he sends us as he did those first disciples, empowered by the Holy Spirit so that we might have the capacity to see to the things he is sending us to do. That's how we show faith.
PRAYER: Lord Jesus, Thank you that you have made yourself and your love and mercy known to me in so many ways. Please help me to step out in faith wherever you call me to go, trusting that where ever you send me, you will be wit me. Amen
Today's devotion written by Mathew von Stanke, LifeWay Newcastle
For we live by faith, not by sight.
TO PONDER
When I saw this text that I was to use for today’s reflection, I thought Pastor Mat was playing a joke on me. All through the week, we had Bible passages about light and seeing, and then at the end of the week, we find out it is not about seeing, but about faith. Then I realised I couldn’t blame Mat, but the Holy Spirit who guided Mat to this passage. OK, this is therefore important and I had better work out the conundrum.
Remember back to Thursday’s discussion, where we looked at seeing a reflection in a dirty, broken mirror. The way forward with God is essentially unknown to us and we may get only small glimpses of where God is leading us. So we are following God’s leading by faith that He is all that Jesus said that He is.
If we had a clear vision of the life ahead of us, either one of two things would happen. We could know what to expect at every moment, be able to prepare for it and get to the end successfully, priding ourselves in what we had achieved. The more likely scenario is that we would see things that scare us to paralysis and we wouldn’t want to go forward. The advantage of going ahead in faith with the Holy Spirit beside us, is that we will get the training and guidance to face everything we meet along the way, and God will get the glory for all that He does.
Yes, of course we need God’s illumination, but that is really about the relationship He wants to have with us. It is also about the illumination of all that He has already done to enable us to have that close relationship with Him. But the way forward, at each step is based on His assurance that He is with us all the time to guide us along the way.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for the glimpses of Heaven You have given us so that we can be assured that this is the home we are headed to. Meanwhile, on our way there, please help us to keep trusting your promises to be with us as we face the challenges of each day. Amen
Today's devotion written by Charles Bertelsmeier, LifeWay Epping
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
TO PONDER
Jesus made the comment in our text after He told the parable of the Sower (where the farmer scattered seeds on different types of ground and only got a good harvest from one of the fields). The disciples came to Jesus for Him to explain the parable. But before He explained the parable, Jesus also explained why He used parables.
Parables were just one of the ways Jesus used to get His message across to people. Jesus understood human nature very well, so He used methods of communication to suit His audience. To people who wanted to learn, He spoke plainly. But there were people who were indifferent to Jesus’s message and there were those who wanted to find fault with Him, so they were not really interested in understanding the truths Jesus wanted to share.
The advantage of parables was that the story was easy to understand and relate to, and people had a high chance of remembering the story. And while remembering the story in the parable, the Holy Spirit could work to bring understanding of the important truths behind the parable – even well after the initial hearing of the parable.
Jesus also used exaggeration (or hyperbole) to get His point across. If we hear what we expect to hear, it can easily “go in one ear and out the other” (an expression often heard in my youth). But if we hear something that doesn’t seem quite correct, we may stop and think about it, and again give the Holy Spirit the opportunity to get an important truth past our defences.
By the way, Jesus didn’t only teach through preaching, He also lived out His message in the way He related to people through His love, care and healing.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, thank You for all the ways you use to bring Your message to us, and thank You for interrupting us from our lethargy for us to listen to what you have to say to us. Amen
Today's devotion written by Charles Bertelsmeier, LifeWay Epping
For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
TO PONDER
I must admit that I get a bit frustrated with the translation of this passage. When I look into a modern mirror, I get a very clear reflection of an object in the mirror, just as clear as looking directly at the object. What we are missing here is that the mirrors of Paul’s day were just polished metal. Although freshly polished silver gives a good reflection, the silver very quickly tarnishes and the reflection becomes dulled. In addition, if the metal of the mirror wasn’t perfectly flat, then the reflection would be distorted. A better description (although not a proper translation) would be looking into a dirty, broken modern‑day mirror.
For our current lives on this earth, we are limited in our understanding of God and His purposes for us. God has given us sufficient knowledge and understanding (evidence) that He is the all‑powerful God who created time and space and us. He has also, through His Son Jesus, told us everything we need to know to live as His children in a close relationship with Him. But compared to knowing all there is about God and how He is working in our lives, we have limit knowledge. However, on the other side of the grave, we will get to know Father, Son and Holy Spirit fully.
Our God is about relationship with us. Yes, we need knowledge to help us grow in that relationship, but we are not to let the desire for greater knowledge to take the place of the desire to grow in knowing our God in a personal relationship and surrendering our lives into His love for us.
PRAYER: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, thank You that Your goal and plan for my life is an intimate relationship with You. Thank You for revealing more than enough information about Yourself that I can trust all Your promises and surrender my life into Your hands. Thank You for welcoming me back when I regularly reject Your plans and try to go my own way. Amen.
Today's devotion written by Charles Bertelsmeier, LifeWay Epping