Monthly Archives: July 2015

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on July 23, 2015
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Do You See the Cross? It is Right Here — Rev. David J. Schreffler

July 23, 2015

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’” Matthew 25:31-40

“Do not look for the cross of Christ in the past alone; in the year of our Lord 30. See it in the present, it is standing among us! The black sky brooding over Golgotha is arched above us too. The tempest and the earthquake which terrified Jerusalem terrify us also. Do not envision the cross of Christ as something far away. It is as near and contemporary as anything can be.” Edmund Schlink (1903 – 1984) “For All The Saints” volume IV (p. 313)

Who was Edmund Schlink? He was a leading German Lutheran theologian in the modern ecumenical movement, especially in the World Council of Churches. He was a teacher, a pastor (since 1932), and a professor (1946-1971), and he was also a leading participant in several official ecumenical dialogues. In 1961 he wrote the Theology of the Lutheran Confessions.

Schlink is trying to help us understand that the work of Christ was not just meant for the 1st century in Palestine. The work of Christ is embedded in all time and space — because we will always find the hungry among us — and the naked — and the sick — and those who are in prison. And so we look to the cross of Jesus, and the life and ministry of Jesus, and this informs us how to live our lives. I was sitting and talking with a lady the other day who was discussing her son. She said her son was seeking G*d’s direction in his life — but in particular, he wanted a clear sign from G*d that he should do this, or do that. Her response to her son was to say “I do not ever hear G*d’s voice — except when G*d tells me to help that person, be generous to that person, forgive that person, love those people. That is when I hear G*d’s voice most clearly.” I would say that this woman understands Matthew 25 — how the cross of Christ stands among us today — and how the voice of G*d speaks to us everyday, pointing us to service, love and grace.

Pastor Dave

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on July 22, 2015
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Grafted — Rev. David J. Schreffler

July 22, 2015

“Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I glorify my ministry in order to make my own people jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead! If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place to share the rich root of the olive tree, do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember that it is not you that support the root, but the root that supports you. You will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. For if God did not spare the natural branches, perhaps he will not spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness toward you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And even those of Israel, if they do not persist in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree.” Romans 11:13-24

“Christ crucified extends his arms toward both Jews and Gentiles; he died, St. Paul says, in order to reconcile the two peoples, and to break down the dividing barrier of enmity between them. Agony now is the way of achieving that reconciliation, that breaking down of the barrier of enmity — which the madness of men prevented love from accomplishing, and the frustration of which is the most refined torment in the sufferings of the Messiah.” Jacques Maritain (1882 – 1973) “On Anti-Semitism” in Christianity and Crisis, October 6, 1941 “For All The Saints”, volume IV (p. 309)

I have never grafted one plant onto another, but I am always fascinated by the process of growing plants. When my wife and I moved into the first home that we purchased, we had a garden in the back yard that was filled with several “hybrid” rose bushes. These rose bushes were created through the process of combining the genetic material of one rose variety with another variety — thus creating a new variety.

We did not know anything about caring for these kinds of roses, but we tried our best for the first two years. By the third year, most of the rose bushes were dead.

I learned a few years after that failed experiment that varietal roses are fragile plants. They take a lot of care — and compassion — and they can easily die, never to be seen again, if not cared for properly. Thank G*d that the same is not true for those of us who are grafted on to the tree of salvation — through Jesus Christ — which is for eternity. G*d has the power to graft — it is not up to us. Because we are grafted onto the tree of salvation through the cross of Jesus, we seek reconciliation with all people: people of faith and people of no faith, people of other cultures, people of other religions, and people of other races. We should not boast of our adoption, we boast of Jesus Christ.

Pastor Dave