God’s Hand:
October 2006 – Resignation from St. Mark’s, West Bloomfield
Missed only one Sunday
November 2006 – Begin as Vacancy Pastor at Zion, Detroit.
August 2007 – Last Sunday at Zion, Detroit.
The very next Sunday:
September 2007 – Began as Vacancy Pastor at Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills.
2008 – 2009 – 2010
March 2011 – Called as Pastor of the Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills.
Text: John 4
Date: Lent III + 3/27/11
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI
Once again we have seen the power, the destructive power of water in the Tsunami that followed the great earthquake in Japan. Acres of land were erased of the rickety structures of life, wiped out like so much straw, and thousands of lives were drowned out, just gone. Then the giant wave traveled thousands of miles causing destruction even on the other side, “our side” of the ocean. Just the consideration of that demonstration of power should make us look again in awe at the account of the very beginning of creation when the “stuff,” the formless void, the “nothing” out of which everything was created was called in Genesis “the deep” or “the waters.” In this sense all life comes from water and without water is death. Continue reading “The Disciple's Living Water”
Text: John 3:1-17
Date: Lent II + 3/20/11
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI
Welcome to St. John’s Gospel and to the Lenten road to discipleship. That, above all, is the goal of both as the Apostle and Evangelist stated his purpose in penning his account of the God-Man, Jesus of Nazareth, when he says, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (Jn 20:30-31). These words have the ability and power to create saving faith in your heart. “So that you may believe” is the purpose and the goal of John’s Gospel and of the season of Lent. For believing, the creation of saving faith in the heart, is what makes you a disciple, a learner, a follower of the Way, a member of the body of Christ, the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church throughout the world. Furthermore, that faith is not something you can conjure up or define on your own. It is the gift of God given through the Holy Spirit’s work through the means of grace, these Words preached and the Sacraments administered according to Christ’s institution. Continue reading “The Disciple Born Again”
Text: Matthew 4:1-11
Date: Lent I + 3/13/11
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI
The story is as old as the third chapter of the first book of Moses and as current as this moment. It is the story of life, God’s good gift of human life and identity as His creation, His offspring, His own sons and daughters. That life, however, met an enemy: temptation, suspicion, pride, the lie of “life” without God or at least apart, separated from God; then awareness of sin and guilt, then tears, then fear, isolation, bruise, pain, sweat, then dust. “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return.” It’s the same story for everyone no matter how great or how small, no matter fame and fortune, or neglect and poverty. “All have sinned.” Still, God saw His creation the object of His care and love and he planted alongside the Fall into sin the seed of promise, the promise of His own rescue, renewal, redemption, resurrection from death to life. Continue reading “The Disciples' Temptations”
Text: Matthew 17:1-9
Date: Transfiguration + 3/6/11
Lutheran Church of the Incarnate Word, Rochester Hills, MI
Today we celebrate the mystery of the Transfiguration of Our Lord. Six days before this, when our Lord Jesus Christ asked His disciples, “Who do people say that I am,” and “Who do you say that I am,” He was not suffering from an identity crisis or running an opinion poll to see if His marketing techniques were proving effective. He knew very well what people were saying about Him. And to this day it is so that, apart from the divine gift of faith, no one can come up with the right answer, namely, to discover and see and believe, as the apostle Peter rightly confessed, that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God. The apostle Paul wrote, “no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit’” (1 Cor 12:3). For it is by the Holy Spirit alone, working through the Word and sacraments, that faith is born in the heart. I always remind people not to miss the miracle, the miracle of faith in you when you say, “I believe.” Apart from faith, at best people say Jesus was a good man, an enlightened teacher, an amazing miracle worker. At worst they said and say today that He is a false teacher, even in league with the devil. It’s not enough even that we get the doctrine right on a confirmation exam, or in repeating the Creed, for even Peter, in the very next breath, at the mention of Jesus’ coming death by crucifixion—resurrection promise or not—gives the devil voice saying, “No way! This will not happen to you, Lord!” The challenge that calls forth faith is that the glorious deliverance of the world from the grip of sin, Satan and death comes only, solely and alone by way of the cross of Christ. So also Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” This is at least one reason why, six days later, “Jesus took with him Peter and James and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them.” Why? First, to confirm His glory as the Christ, the Son of God, and, secondly, to confirm the truth that the only way to glory, for Himself and for His disciples, is through the cross. Continue reading “The Beginning of the End”
