Apr 29, 2018
Pruning
Series: (All)
April 29, 2018. Pastor Keith preaches today on Jesus preparing the disciples for his departure by using the image of grape vines being pruned. Like the earliest Christians, cut off from Jesus and going out into the world to spread the gospel, we too are God's vineyard. God cares for us one by one, as a vigneron lovingly prunes grape vines by hand. *** [Keywords: 2018 Christ Lutheran Church Easter Garden of Gethsemane Good Friday Gospel of John Holy Communion Island of Patmos Jesus is with us Jesus' first miracle Last Supper Matthew Maundy Thursday Pastor Keith Holste Prophet Isaiah Sermon on the Mount abide in me abide with me as I abide with you abiding in you acting in his stead address disciples argument arrest arrested assurances attached to him authorities balance baskets full left over being pruned bereft best wine better things down the road better wine brain disease branch by branch branches extending broken for us budget stay in the black celebration come to life common cup communal meal condemned connected to him convert sunlight crucified cut off cut off from others cyber bullied deeper roots deepest roots of all drink the wine early Christians eat the bread employment endure most intense pruning everything changes exiled faithful fed a crowd flourish followers of Jesus forewarns them forgiven fruit of life fruits we produce gathered in his name gracious words of presence grafted to him grape orchards grape vine grapes planted on marginal soil grieving process growing of grapes hard to bear harvested haters his roots are our roots holding us hope of life for all image important for community improve upon grapes individual care interpret their lives isn't worst thing job prospect last meal led to hill left there to hang life cut off life for all people life gets hard living out this love lonely love one another low unemployment lush and wet make ends meet makes life better in end merged together miraculously more character wine most severe pruning mowed down by life multiplied no machines not cutting but pruning not letting us go oneness in community pays off persecuted person by person plant by plant planted us prayer preparing disciples for departure produce the fruit profound loneliness pruned beyond bearing pruned by hand pruned from human race pruned on the cross pruning pure promise pushed and pulled receive new life receiving bread and wine renewed promise robust economy rocky on hillside sermon set apart single mom or dad soil strengthening tastes better terminated they will know we are Christians by our love thrown down tough soil tried trivia night questions vineyard we are God's vineyard what we were to suffer whispered in moments wine and bread wine at wedding wine left over won't be the same words of comfort]
WatchNotesDownloadDateTitle
  • Apr 29, 2018Pruning
    Apr 29, 2018
    Pruning
    Series: (All)
    April 29, 2018. Pastor Keith preaches today on Jesus preparing the disciples for his departure by using the image of grape vines being pruned. Like the earliest Christians, cut off from Jesus and going out into the world to spread the gospel, we too are God's vineyard. God cares for us one by one, as a vigneron lovingly prunes grape vines by hand. *** [Keywords: 2018 Christ Lutheran Church Easter Garden of Gethsemane Good Friday Gospel of John Holy Communion Island of Patmos Jesus is with us Jesus' first miracle Last Supper Matthew Maundy Thursday Pastor Keith Holste Prophet Isaiah Sermon on the Mount abide in me abide with me as I abide with you abiding in you acting in his stead address disciples argument arrest arrested assurances attached to him authorities balance baskets full left over being pruned bereft best wine better things down the road better wine brain disease branch by branch branches extending broken for us budget stay in the black celebration come to life common cup communal meal condemned connected to him convert sunlight crucified cut off cut off from others cyber bullied deeper roots deepest roots of all drink the wine early Christians eat the bread employment endure most intense pruning everything changes exiled faithful fed a crowd flourish followers of Jesus forewarns them forgiven fruit of life fruits we produce gathered in his name gracious words of presence grafted to him grape orchards grape vine grapes planted on marginal soil grieving process growing of grapes hard to bear harvested haters his roots are our roots holding us hope of life for all image important for community improve upon grapes individual care interpret their lives isn't worst thing job prospect last meal led to hill left there to hang life cut off life for all people life gets hard living out this love lonely love one another low unemployment lush and wet make ends meet makes life better in end merged together miraculously more character wine most severe pruning mowed down by life multiplied no machines not cutting but pruning not letting us go oneness in community pays off persecuted person by person plant by plant planted us prayer preparing disciples for departure produce the fruit profound loneliness pruned beyond bearing pruned by hand pruned from human race pruned on the cross pruning pure promise pushed and pulled receive new life receiving bread and wine renewed promise robust economy rocky on hillside sermon set apart single mom or dad soil strengthening tastes better terminated they will know we are Christians by our love thrown down tough soil tried trivia night questions vineyard we are God's vineyard what we were to suffer whispered in moments wine and bread wine at wedding wine left over won't be the same words of comfort]
  • Apr 8, 2018Resurrection As Relationship
    Apr 8, 2018
    Resurrection As Relationship
    Series: (All)
    April 8, 2018. Christians are a diverse group, but we are all gathered together in the risen Lord’s offer of peace, wholeness, and newness. For us, the resurrection is more an experience than something to be proved. Pastor Keith discusses this idea today, and suggests that maybe the resurrection is not about something to believe, but about the someone who makes believing possible.
     
    *** Transcript ***
     
    Well we reflect further on this in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
     
    It's quite an assortment of people and emotions who gather in that Upper Room with Jesus after the resurrection. There are those who had deserted him, those who had denied him. Some had watched him die from a distance. Some watched him die close up. There are folks in that group maybe who came to see an empty tomb. One of the people there believed right away, and one was confused by what he saw. So there were all kinds of people together. But they all seem to be fearful. The doors are locked tight. After Jesus appears, there is joy and there's testimony, as they can tell one another what they've seen, and they now believe that indeed he is the one risen from the dead. But in the midst of all this, especially between the two weeks when they meet, there is the skepticism of Thomas, who had not been there to see what the others had seen. There are so many different emotions, moods, reactions, impressions. Yet all are gathered together in the embrace of our risen Lord's offer of peace, wholeness, and newness.
     
    This really is a picture of the resurrection community: all kinds of distinctive and diverse people, bound together in the promise of the resurrection in such a way that the whole is larger than the sum of its parts. As Christians gathered together, they believe in the resurrection and coming together that makes them bigger than what each one could do. So we may talk today about that very early Christian community, gathered around the resurrection. But that is who we are today. We all gather, having had that death and resurrection in common of Jesus. Yet we're all different: in who we are, how we are moved by the resurrection, and how it has an impact on what we do each and every day. And so we come together on Sundays, the day of resurrection, to gather ourselves and to remember what we hold in common — and then to go into our activities during the week mindful that we have this community of people gathered around the risen Lord to sustain us. We come together on this first day of the week, as did the early disciples.
     
    In the last decade, an insight of professor Sandra Schneiders has changed some thinking about part of this passage we heard today. We heard the verse read that Jesus says, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; and if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." And that's often been troubling to people: what do we do with this retention of sins? But looking more carefully at the original Greek writing of this verse, she has noticed that the word "sin" really isn't there in the Greek in the second part of the verse. And so in her view it's not really accurate to say, "If you retain the sins of any, they are retained," because the word "sin" isn't there. She also has noticed that the word that we use for "retain" can also mean "hold fast" or "to embrace" someone. It's not just to keep in your mind, but to come close to someone. So with this in mind, the verse translated would be more like this to her mindset: "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; and anyone you hold fast is embraced and is held fast as well." So anyone who is close to you is someone you hold onto.
     
    And so when we think of Thomas in this case, the verse means something more like this: "If you forgive someone who has struggled to believe, they are forgiven; and if you hold fast anyone who is struggling, that person will be held onto and not let go of, nor lost or abandoned." So Thomas is there, someone struggling. But the disciples don't diss him. They don't do anything bad to him. They embrace him and say Thomas, come in here and come and see, and this will make sense to you. And so this seems to be a sensible way to look at this passage in the light of Thomas. Even though he questions the resurrected Jesus, he's not criticized by them or shunned or excluded. They include and retain him, hold onto him, until he has his own encounter with Jesus the next Sunday. It makes sense to think that this is what John wants for all of us. John, the gospel writer, wants us all to be able to forgive each other, to hold onto each other, to embrace each other — especially when we struggle — until we are caught up with the common experience of the risen Christ ourselves and share that in our community of faith.
     
    Perhaps this experience of the disciples starting so fearfully, not judging each other but thinking about what the resurrection means for them, describes who we are as we gather on Sunday. We are a diverse group of all kinds of people who will hold onto each other and retain and embrace each other, especially when we struggle, until we are caught up in the experience of the risen Christ — and we do that together. And it helps us hold up and support one another.
     
    We see here that this resurrection thing is more of an experience than it is a poof. Thomas was looking for his own encounter with the risen Jesus. He wanted to see Jesus alive again, so he could be assured that the promise of his relationship with Jesus would never be taken away. And Thomas helps to see that this resurrection, then, is experienced in different ways. It's more than a scientific proof that Jesus is alive or that the resurrection happened. There's no poof for that. Rather, the resurrection is among us, whether we see it or not. It's in the midst of us, whether we're able to point to it or not. When we're looking for the proof that it happened, we've missed the point. The truth is that it isn't something to be believed, but someone who makes the believing possible. And that someone we are talking about is someone who sees believing in terms of relationship, and who creates community through relationships. By the rising of Jesus, we know that we might have relationship with God and with one another and have life, and have it abundantly.
     
    When we see resurrection as relationship, then we begin to see our lives in terms of what we saw described in our first lesson today from Acts. Life in the name of the resurrection looks like what Acts describes. Here were the Christians gathered together of one heart and one soul. That can be us. We live together with no one claiming any private possessions, but all having things in common. We can be free to give testimony to the risen Lord and to receive God's grace. We're able to live without anyone being needy in our midst. We're free to lay our possessions at the feet of the church leaders and have it distributed as any had need. That was the lifestyle in the beginning of Acts. That's seeing resurrection as a relationship. While we may not do all those things in that way, we too are free to lay our possessions at the foot of the altar, to say these are the things I want to share with the world and the people around me. When we see resurrection as relationship, we know how good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity, as our Psalm proclaimed today. And we know how we strive for fellowship, as our second lesson mentioned as well.
     
    Seeing resurrection as relationship, it becomes a way to measure what we do in life. Our life in faith becomes a lifestyle for us. It's a way to live in a world where we can live simply and non-violently, in a shared style and in a loving style. It's not so much belonging to a certain organization called the church, but a way to live — even though we have membership and we'll be celebrating that today. But it's a group of people, it's a community. Not so much: are you on the rolls or not? How will our way of life help the world to come and believe, is what we want to ask as we live in this lifestyle of the resurrection. What will we help the world to see? Will the world be able to see the resurrection in each one of us, in all that we do, and all that we say? Then seeing what we do will be the way to believing for them.
     
    This past week there was a lot of recognition of the 50th anniversary of the violent death of Martin Luther King, Jr. And as they remembered that event, most of them played the highlights of his speech in Memphis, where we heard that brief section from his very famous speech: "I've been to the mountaintop. I've seen what we need to see, and that inspires me to live the life I live." That speech is based on his own religious experience of seeing something God had put before him. The disciples were seeing Jesus. Martin Luther King, Jr. saw and had another kind of vision of what God meant for him. I've mentioned other times this spring how what he saw led him to do things in his life. Seeing this vision of God is what inspired his faith and action.
     
    It's generally believed there were probably only a few hundred people who saw Jesus alive after the resurrection, yet thousands and millions have come to follow him. They obviously didn't see it with their own eyes, as we haven't ourselves. Yet Jesus has spoken to them and been heard in the voices of others, and been seen in the lives of others, which has inspired so many to believe. Through what we have seen in the faith lived out by others, and as we have heard the words of Jesus passed on through those others, we live as though we have seen Jesus too — because we have. We've seen him in the modeling and inspired lives of others. We've heard the words of Jesus to start with. We've had the witness to him. So now we join others to live out this resurrection, and he now lives through us, in this congregation, and in the world.
     
    Three times in this reading Jesus says, "Peace be with you." He comes to us and presents himself to us as the one who is alive to give life to us. It's not to be a fearful thing, but it is something that gives peace. He's come to give his life for us. Indeed, to know that Jesus has risen — and risen for us — gives us peace. It takes away our stress and our fear about living well enough. It gives us the freedom to live out the resurrection in the world around us. With this peace, like the peace of having a mountaintop experience with Jesus, we're able to live boldly in the world and to live with hope in the world. It's the one who was killed and then rose to life who urges us on. With him as our faith leader, we can live with peace, and live out the joy and the promise of the resurrection. Amen.
     
    And now may the peace and joy of our Lord Jesus Christ, that passes all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
     
    *** Keywords ***
     
    2018, Christ Lutheran Church, Webster Groves, sermon, podcast, transcript, Pastor Keith Holste, John 20:19-31, Acts 4:32-35, Psalm 133, 1 John 1:1-2:2
  • Mar 11, 2018For God So Loved the World
    Mar 11, 2018
    For God So Loved the World
    Series: (All)
    March 11, 2018. It may be the best-known verse in the Bible. "For God so loved the world..." (John 3:16). In his sermon today, Pastor Keith discusses how this verse applies not specifically to us, but to the whole world including us. Jesus calls us to love the world in the same way God does. God loves the world through us.
     
    *** Transcript ***
     
    We begin in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
     
    Our gospel today includes what may be the best known and repeated verse in the New Testament, and even of the whole Bible. If we were in childhood religious education as in Sunday School or home devotions, we most likely learned this verse very early on in life. And if we've watched a professional football game, chances are good that we've seen references to it as people hold up posters that say John 3:16. "For God so loved the world that God gave his only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life." It is a great verse of comfort that reminds us of the good news of the gospel. God does indeed love us, and God loves the world, and God promises life everlasting.
     
    Our tendency is to apply this verse, I think, to either ourselves or to the people who are around us. We get warm feelings because we have the assurance that God loves us. We think God loves me, and that's great! And that's true and we should celebrate the fact that we can be assured of God's love for each one of us. But as I look at the passage this time, I'm noticing that it doesn't spell out exactly the word "God loves me" but that "God loves the world." God loved the world so that he gave his Son. We as individuals are included in that world certainly, and definitely can believe that we're included in that group that is loved by God. But when we look at it more closely we see that because God loves the world, and we happen to be in the world, God loves us. God's love is bigger than just loving you and me and other human beings. God's love is as big as the world.
     
    The Greek word for "world" is one we know and use: it's "Kosmos." We could say God loved the cosmos so much that he gave his only Son so that whoever believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life. That God loves the cosmos, the world, is exceedingly great news. We're given the assurance that God loves this world around us, even though it doesn't present itself very well to God. Original sin, which is with everyone, is about being self-centered and ignoring God. And so even to this world where people choose to go against God, God wants to love. Even where people would rather satisfy their own desires, do what they want to do — to that world God brings the good news of love and life.
     
    We think of our first lesson this morning. We hear the children of Israel in the wilderness. God has led them from slavery by inflicting ten plagues on the Egyptians so that they could be freed from Egypt. And he led them to the Red Sea. When they were up against the Red Sea and they didn't have any way across it, and the Egyptians were coming after them, God opened the sea for them so that they could get across. And then they had come into the wilderness and it was tough. But they couldn't stand it in the wilderness, and didn't remember hardly what God had done for them, and forgot about God really, and were just angry to be out there in the wilderness and did say well, we'd just maybe like to be back in Egypt again. Did they really mean that? But God sent Moses, who prayed on their behalf, and who was given a clear order from God to make a snake out of bronze and put it up on a pole, so the people could look up to it and be saved from the snake bites that they were getting out in the wilderness. Moses did that. He put it up on the pole, and it was true that when the people looked up at it and believed the message of Moses, they were healed from their deadly snake bites. And we know how, time after time in their exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land, the people turned against God and either adopted other gods or tried to figure out other ways on their own to do things, rather than to trust God or to trust Moses. Yet God had made a promise. And God kept the promise. And we know eventually how God brought them to the Promised Land.
     
    So when John tells us that Jesus now is lifted up on a pole, for all to believe in him, he's calling his audience and us to notice the fact that God provides the same salvation now that God did when the bronze snake was on the pole in the wilderness and the people were saved from their snake bites. The two stories connect. As God has saved before, God saves now. God loved then; God loves now. When we think of God loving the world and saving it, we think about how we're involved in this plan. Jesus doesn't just call people to believe in me and now go do what you want. He calls us instead to love the world in the same way that God does, and to show the world and the people in the world, by our love, how God loves them. But not just the people, but Creation, and the place where God has called us to love, this whole round ball and the space around it, is what God loves and what we're called to love too. Called to love Creation, called to love the world, called to love all the people in this world. We are indeed called to love the people. God loves this world that has been made. God cares for us and all the people in it.
     
    And being the ones called by God, we hear that Jesus wants us to be part of the restoration of the world. We are the ones called to share the love of Jesus. We may get looked at with disdain when we do that, or maybe feel embarrassed as we do it. But we are the ones to be God in the places of the world where we are. We bring God's love, God's promise, so that when others see us and see our attachment to Jesus, healing can come to them. This may happen in one-on-one situations, but love for the world is also shown when we organize and work together to help others, or to help them get away to find a sustainable way to live. Or our care may be in ways so that we urge those who have office or the place to change things to do it. And we urge them to make changes so the world is better. We may help people organize, so that they can help their situation. All these ways are giving care to the world. God loves the world, and God loves the world through God's people on earth. So as faithful ones of God, we are those stationed to be in places where we can help and shape things around us to be better. God loves the world through us. God through us loves the world.
     
    Well, Albert Einstein and other physicists have dealt with the interrelationship of time and space. They figure the movements of planets and other objects in space, and see what their speed is in time, and make formulas and predictions about where things in space have been or will be in the future. Jesus uses time also, besides space, to explain about God. In our lesson today he invites his audience to look back and remember what they've heard about when their ancestors were in the desert, and God saved them by means of that bronze snake on a pole that they could look to for healing. That was back in time. That was a long time ago for Jesus to be talking about. Yet it had been kept fresh in their memories, and he could bring that image from the past and use it to explain the healing mission that he had as he would go high on a pole himself and die on a cross. That would be forthcoming. Jesus could have them look back to understand what was happening in the present. That mission of his which is ahead of him is not just a matter of earthly time also. It's a matter of eternity. Jesus speaks of himself on the cross as a gift of eternal life. So it's in time, but also timeless as well.
     
    We live out our mission in Christ in time. We make the best use we can of the past and what has been handed down to us. It may be what we've observed with our parents or others, and maybe life experiences that we've had which show us how God works. Maybe times we have been forgiven or have forgiven others ourselves, which have tied us closely to God in Christ. We live in time. We live in the present. We think back to the past, but we also point to the future. If we prepare ourselves so that we can do the best each day, living out what it means to be a person of Jesus, we act in loving ways and plan with others, so that in a timely way we can reflect God's love in our style of life. So we live in a place and we live in time. And where we are and how we live is in God's world. Our time is given to us by God. We endeavor to live with the mission of Christ's name, which makes Christ better known in the world, which demonstrates the way of a follower of Christ as we live that way, and which brings healing to the world.
     
    Jesus said God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him. Jesus has shown us the way. Only the kind of love which he has shown to us can be completely selfless and completely done for the sake of others. Only that will bring healing and wholeness to the world. And having shown us this kind of love on the cross, Jesus calls us to follow him and to bring healing to all the worlds that we are involved in. He calls us to be in a process that ends hate and injustice and oppression, and replace it with justice, compassion, mercy, love, and equality. He calls us to love the neighbor as ourselves. He wants us to make for a better present world and a better future world.
     
    Like the Israelites in the desert, we can look up to the cross — the cross Jesus was on, the one that was actually put there to give us complete life. By looking in faith at Jesus on the cross, the love of God has made clear to us, and we know that God's forgiveness and God's love is there for us. And so we respond in love, loving the world as God has loved it, in every place, in every time, letting Jesus live through us so that there might be a healthy world in all ways. Amen.
     
    And now may the peace of God which passes all human understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
     
    *** Keywords ***
     
    2018, Christ Lutheran Church, Webster Groves, sermon, podcast, transcript, Pastor Keith Holste, Numbers 21:4-9, John 3:14-21, John 3:16
  • Feb 18, 2018Times of Testing
    Feb 18, 2018
    Times of Testing
    Series: (All)
    February 18, 2018. Lent reminds us that God always draws life from death. In his sermon today, Pastor Keith talks about the times of testing in our lives, just as Jesus was tested in the wilderness and on the cross. Jesus passed those tests, and we can take comfort knowing that he is with us as we endure our own struggles. *** [Keywords: 2018 30s 40 days Adam and Eve Christ Lutheran Church Elijah Gethsemane God always draws life from death God's reign God's rule Great Flood Holy Land I am here taking a stand for what I believe is right James Jesus is tested John John was arrested Judas Kingdom of God has come near Lent reminds us Lenten courage Lenten season Mark Martin Luther King Jr. Maundy Thursday Moses Mount Calvary Mount Transfiguration Noah Now I am afraid Pastor Keith Holste Peter Pharisees Roman authorities Satan TV Winter Olympics against others all that comes together all us sinners angels arrested assignment at our side forever at work and in our life athletes bad style balance baptized begin his ministry believe the Good News bodies and minds bow down bowed over kitchen table called follower of Jesus calls us to embrace can't face it alone challenges children of Israel coming down committed himself to God his father compassion and forgiveness contemplate our mortality contests coward crowds crucified cup of coffee decision descended descended the mountain difficult things ahead of him disappointed disciples doesn't deny our losses dramatic end of my powers endure evil spirits expression of life failed faith falls asleep fast as they can fears began to go garden getting up the mountain goes to Galilee governor hard journey hard practice head in my hands hope that we have been given human plight hung there in our lives in the race in this moment income indulgence injuries journey to Jerusalem jump lead him into temptation living in light looking for leadership love for our family major life tests make time to refocus mentally and spiritually prepare himself ministry most severe test move out of the picture moved forward new life will and can be given by God new trials no guide nothing left on the run one more time opportunities overwhelmed pass life's tests passed his test prayed aloud prepare himself presence of the divine present with Jesus priests promised the grace put on the line quiet assurance ready to face anything ready to give up realistic received the blessing reorganize resurrection rose from the dead route he needed to go route to Calvary scribes seems impossible sent to test sentenced to death sermon service to community skiers snowboarders sobering news and loss soldiers stand up for justice state of exhaustion stay awake suffered God's wrath suffering surrender to God takes on our trespasses teens temple tempt tempted him test tested to make the right decision themselves they too will falter three days later thrown into the wilderness thrown out time is fulfilled time of contest time of testing times of intense struggle tough journey ahead training training for years truth uncertainty disappeared went away to Galilee what he needed to do what we need to do wild beasts winning gold with Jesus who has passed the test with and before God with us work work together wrong decisions]
  • Jan 14, 2018Coming to Faith
    Jan 14, 2018
    Coming to Faith
    Series: (All)
    January 14, 2018. Pastor Keith preaches on Jesus' followers Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael, and the organic way Christians come together and stay together in the faith.
     
    *** Transcript ***
     
    We continue to reflect on this, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
     
    How any one of us comes to faith is an interesting experience and a process. For many of us, we came to it by growing into it. We may have been baptized as a child, grew up with it in our home, and in time came to understand it more and more through involvement with church education, church worship, conversation, and perhaps personal meditation and study. Or we may have come to faith as an older person, or as an older child, and found out about it having been invited to a church, or just hearing about it and coming, for one reason or another, to become an adult now in the faith. But for many of us, if not for most of us, it's an ongoing and involved process. Coming to faith, staying with faith, understanding our faith, and being in relationship with God is a dynamic thing. It's an ongoing process for all of us, for all of our lives.
     
    In today's gospel reading we have a snippet of a story that gives us an idea of how many twists and turns that coming to and staying with faith can have. Jesus has just been baptized by John the Baptist as our lesson begins today. And as soon as he's baptized, Jesus decides to go to Galilee, it says. This may be because it was a safer place to be after John the Baptist was killed within a short distance of Jerusalem. It was smart for someone preaching against the establishment to get further away. And so that may have been one reason why Jesus went to Galilee, to get further away from the authorities. But it's also closer to his boyhood home. Maybe he wanted to go to the borderland, the north part where it borders Syria, to start his ministry and to be closer to home. We don't know exactly why he did it, but there are various reasons.
     
    Often, for us, faith has these qualities too. That is, our Christian faith may be something that's an alternative and something that we need to be firm about. Jesus was firm because he said, I have to get away from Jerusalem so I can say what I need to say. Maybe we work in a workplace that isn't really friendly to religion or to Christianity. Or our neighborhood isn't friendly to people, to faith. Or maybe there are folks in our own family background who aren't so friendly to our faith anymore, either. And so keeping the faith, and being firm in the faith in times of challenge, can be who we are from our roots. But we need strength to keep that up. Just as Jesus needed to go to a place where he could be firm in his faith, we need too to find those resources in us so that we can meet the challenges around us.
     
    After Jesus is baptized, two people follow him. One of them is named as Andrew, who we hear about in our reading. He tells his brother Peter about Jesus. They were both from a nearby town called Bethsaida. Philip was from the same town, and they call him too. And then Philip finds Nathanael and tells him to be with Jesus also. One tells another tells another tells another. This process of one calling another and another is a reminder of the way that it is with the people of Jesus. One reaches another. One tells another. One tells the best news they know and invites others to come and find out too. They were still learning much as they were just getting acquainted with Jesus, but they knew he was someone special. This kind of organic activity of a group is still the way Christians come together, stay together, and invite others to join with the group. Each of these people had a different personality. Each of them came to faith from a different kind of direction. Yet by coming to Jesus together, they were edified by one another. They could share their thoughts. They could share their feelings. And they were encouraged to know that they were not alone. They could talk about their faith, and what they were thinking about Jesus and living out the faith, and they could share that with each other.
     
    This picture of faith is how followers of Jesus like us still grow the faith and grow in the faith. We want to keep it dynamic. We invite others because we are so intrigued by Jesus and because we know how the faith has helped us, and put our lives and our thought and our passions together. We want others to know about this too. So we begin to tell others and share with others how our faith is with us. We share with others because we each have a different perspective. We're all different from one another. We each appreciate Jesus in a slightly different way. We kind of look at this jewel we could call Jesus, this piece of this precious thing that God has given us, and we see it from our perspective. But how we see it might be a little different than how someone from another angle sees it. So we show our perspective with others and edify each other as they share their perspectives to us. We build up one another as we share with others and say things like, "This is the way I see Jesus. Come and see him too." Or we might say, "This is the way I see or hear Jesus. Tell me about how you see him in your life."
     
    In this lesson today, we have four men talking together here as they approach Jesus. As with them, faith is shaped as we talk with one another about what this Jesus means to us. We talk informally, we talk in our study groups about what our faith means to us and how we live it out in our lives. Well when Philip approached Nathanael, Nathanael wasn't eager at all. Nazareth had a low reputation. So Nathanael resists the invitation at first. What good can come out of Nazareth? Why should I need to pay any attention to any person who comes out of Nazareth? In terms of reputation and power, Nazareth was about as different and far away in style and prestige as one could get from Jerusalem. The gospel writer of John though, is setting his story of truth and faith as far away from this traditional faith capital as he can get. Jesus is very different from the traditional religion, as it was practiced in Jerusalem. He tells a different truth and he tells a different way of life.
     
    We find in our time that where we see and observe the faith being lived out is in the small places sometimes, and the out-of-the-way places. We don't see it so much where the power is and where the money is. We learn more about faith lived out as we observe those who have struggled, those who have survived hard times, and those who yearn for quality of life rather than fame and wealth. A faith that is sustained and witnessed and shown by those who have lived long, can be sustained in their faith and through their difficulty. And as we see these people who've lived out their faith through very difficult times, it shows us what having faith and what being in a relationship with Jesus is like. And as they share that with us, we understand how important it is.
     
    Nathanael's name means "given by God" or "gift of God." After he changes his attitude and comes to believe in Jesus, Nathanael becomes a model of faith. He doesn't claim his faith is something he has a right to, or has a privilege to hold over others as those in authority did in those days. Nathanael receives his relationship with Jesus. He receives his faith as a gift. John is reminding us that when we come to Jesus, we come with our hands, our minds, and our hearts open to what God would have us believe -- not as ones who are telling God how he should speak to us. We want to be open to receive the gift from God. What turned Nathanael was that Jesus could pick him out of the crowd as someone he had seen under the tree. And even while Jesus says that that in itself isn't a very great thing compared to some other things Jesus could do it, it meant a lot to Nathanael. To pick him out from the crowd was amazing, but it also tells us how responsive Nathanael was. He was ready to let go of his previous prejudices about Nazareth. He was ready to be converted right away. When it came to hearing Jesus, when he came close to him, he could turn off all of his filters, put them away. But the words of Jesus come to him.
     
    That's a reminder to us that if we can clear away the things that get in the way, the more clearly the word of Jesus can come to us and we can hear him more easily. When we open ourselves and let ourselves receive what God wants us to have, and to know, and to believe, the easier it is. Ways of contemplation, ways of meditation can help us clear our hearts and clear our minds of all the clutter that gets in the way, so that the good word of Jesus can come to us. Then we can receive the gift that God wants to give us. It is interesting that Jesus noticed Nathanael under the tree. We can picture Nathanael there in nature, contemplating. It's about as far as you can get away from the hubbub of the temple in Jerusalem, in terms of environment. In this quiet place of nature is where Nathanael hears a call of Jesus, and Jesus becomes reality to him. And he comes to faith readily. This speaks again of the goodness of contemplation and quiet, where we can hear the call of Jesus and the word of God.
     
    On this Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend, I would like to read a short excerpt from Dr. Martin Luther King's book Stride Toward Freedom. It's about a time when his personal, quiet meditation changed him. He writes, "I was ready to give up. With my cup of coffee sitting untouched before me, I tried to think of a way to move out of the picture without appearing a coward. In this state of exhaustion, when my courage had all but gone, I decided to take my problem to God. With my head in my hands, I bowed over the kitchen table and prayed aloud. The words I spoke to God that midnight are still vivid in my memory. I prayed, 'I am here taking a stand for what I believe is right. But now I am afraid. The people are looking to me for leadership, and if I stand before them without strength and courage, they too will falter. I am at the end of my powers. I have nothing left. I've come to the point where I can't face it alone.' And at that moment, I experienced the presence of the Divine as I had never experienced God before. It seemed as though I could hear the quiet assurance of an inner voice saying: 'Stand up for justice, stand up for truth; and God will be at your side forever.' Almost at once my fears began to go. My uncertainty disappeared. I was ready to face anything."
     
    Martin Luther King, Jr. was changed by this revelation, often referred to as his "vision in the kitchen." Nathanael's revelation, in which he suddenly could see clearly who Jesus was, changed him. He then immediately proclaimed Jesus as rabbi, Son of God, and king of Israel. The revelation to Nathanael allowed him something new to see. It snapped into focus for him, being in prayer and in contemplation under the tree. Thinking about God has the power to change our lives, too. When Jesus had come upon Nathanael, at first he said here's an Israelite in whom there is no deceit. In the Old Testament, remember it was Jacob whose name was changed by God to Israel. He was full of trickery and deceit until his name was changed. It was also Jacob or Israel who saw the angels of God ascending and descending from heaven in a dream. So now Jesus is telling Nathanael that he will see angels ascending and descending too, and that all of Israel will. This is a new creation of Israel. It had happened with Jacob. It had happened as his name had changed. He had this wonderful vision. Now it's happening again. Jesus and Nathanael, with the gathering of these people, is creating a new Israel, a new body of people to come before God. Nathanael represents the new believer, the new follower of Jesus, the new Israel. Far away from the power center in Jerusalem, a new kind of faith is springing up that looks to Jesus as its leader. It espouses a purity of heart before God, and finds truth in contemplation under a fig tree rather than in a corrupt religious center.
     
    All of these dynamics that go on with this story are what go on with us too. There's the involvement of several, telling and inviting each other. There is a belief that there's no one right place where truth is found. There is private meditation. There's a call of Jesus that changes everything. The Epiphany, or showing forth of God, happens in many ways. We want to have our hearts and minds open so that we can receive God in Jesus, and have the eyes of faith to see the great things God does in our world, so that we have the courage to bring God's goodness to the world. Amen.
     
    And now may the peace of God which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
     
    *** Keywords ***
     
    2018, Christ Lutheran Church, Webster Groves, sermon, podcast, transcript, Pastor Keith Holste, Bartholomew, John 1:43-51
  • Dec 24, 2017Mightiness Hidden Beneath Lowliness
    Dec 24, 2017
    Mightiness Hidden Beneath Lowliness
    Series: (All)
    December 24, 2017. Faith is a big part of the nativity picture. Pastor Keith's sermon this Christmas Eve is on the simple, pure heart of Mary. *** [Keywords: 14 years old 2017 40 families 500th anniversary of the Reformation Angel of God Anne Caiaphas daughter Catholic church Christ Christ Lutheran Church Christian history Christmas Eve Elizabeth Galilee God still acts God's regard Hebrew Holy Spirit shall come upon you I won't even have her Israel Jerusalem Jesus Jews Joachim John the Baptist Joseph Martin Luther Mary Mary and Joseph Mary's parents Miriam Nazareth Pastor Keith Holste Roman empire Samson St. Bernard Syria against all reason all generations shall call me blessed amazing person angel Gabriel angel coming to Mary apparently spoiled woman appointed chores babe nursing at Mary's breast baby be present in the world beggar believed conceived belongs to all people betrothed bride bitter mar blessedness bridegroom bright lights bring all things to pass built house cattle cave center of our attention circumstances of birth common sense against it could not prove it court proceedings derision devotion disturbed downtrodden dugout enduring faith engaged to marry execution on cross experience expose her extreme poverty faith is such a big part of the nativity picture fear not to take Mary to be your wife feeds whole world flesh and blood flocks fourteen from bad to worse girl glitter godless man goodness of the prince graciousness handle difficult situation heart hidden beneath branches high station holy virgin honor hopeless housework humility husband incredible faith of Mary infant of lowly birth instrument to God's plan just a dream just man kept the secret last Sunday in Advent letter of the law live faithfully live out struggles loose woman low estate of handmaiden low status lowest state lowliest maiden marvelous things were announced meditation menial tasks mightiness hidden beneath lowliness mighty reach of faith milks the cows model Christian monasteries mother of God mother of the most high naming children no end of his kingdom nourished by this food obviate rumor orphan our love is tested overcame sin death world hell devil overwhelming gifts and graces perpetual joy plain man poor power of God powerfully present powerless on the cross praying pregnant princess privately prophet Isaiah public example put to shame reassured redemption of Israel remote town renewed in heart renounce her revered richness and goodness savior is given scripture sermon servant severe trial she believed shepherds showiness simple pure heart small town solace for human kind son of God special person stoned story strength lies below weakness suffer the shame take her to wife that I should bear a king this is how God operates this season this son of God is ours three miracles took pity transformed troubled trusted in God trusting God's hand under the tree unlikely means unto us a child is born utter bitterness virgin virgin birth trifle walked away from situation who am I little worm whom God chose with child woman]
  • Nov 19, 2017Don’t Bury the Message
    Nov 19, 2017
    Don’t Bury the Message
    Series: (All)
    November 19, 2017. Pastor Keith preaches on the Parable of the Talents from Matthew 25. In the story, two servants invest the money from their master, and a third servant buries it. But is the parable really about money? What if it's about the gift of the Gospel? Jesus died and was buried, but he didn't stay buried. Likewise, the good news of the Gospel is for the whole world and is meant to be shared, not buried. *** [Keywords: American culture Annual Synod Bishop's Convocation Bishop Guy Erwin Christ Lutheran Church Christian Community Outreach Christian Service Committee For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son God loves the world Good News Hispanic neighborhood Homiletics Festival I'm going to let it shine Jesus the Christ Jodi McCarty John 3:16 Jonah Kingdom of God LA Last Supper Los Angeles Matt Miller Matthew 25:14-30 Minneapolis Mount Olivet Nineveh PMC Parable of the Talents Partership for a Missional Church Pastor David Lose Pastor Keith Holste Pastor Penny Reformation Send Me St. Louis Southwest California Synod Synod training event This Little Light of Mine Thrivent shirts abilities about Gospel actions always have to offer amended amount of money annual festival anxious attend attitude toward us begins path to cross believer best sermons bringing the Word broken buried it bury it other six days of the week came and died changes meaning of the story children singing city by city close and far coinage congregations cope and thrive country by country cranberry hymnals died and risen for us different kind of language disappointment of the land owner disciples don't bury don't let it be wasted don't waste it dwelling in the word dwelling in the world easier to excuse employed encouragement of one another enjoy only for ourselves explain sermons fair and just five million dollars five talents foreign gave millions gift of grace give away giving you immense gift of my life going to rise great gift God has given us grows exponentially held up as model hide it high expectations invest it invested investment would grow key learnings kicking and screaming king and people heeded his message last parable in Matthew leading edge lesson live generously live in service to God live in the world live through you live with you living through Jesus lonely love of God loving and warning Word of God major preachers men message picked up and shared message will thrive modern scholarship monetary term more than enough to go around more we share it more it grows multiplied many times over new edge not to bury one million dollars only a few dollars our times out in the open out in the world out of the grave people always need love plan poor pray priority of the Gospel programmed ways to get involved pure grace of God real worship happens Monday through Saturday receive Lord's Supper received immense gifts redeem your life repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand rich sake of life sake of the world sat down saved from destruction selfishness and fear sermon shade shape of our congregation shape the whole world shapes your life sinful sit on skews the story small amount so angry wanted to die so hot so little peace so much anxiety speech stay buried studied theology take the Gospel around to the world talents the assembly think to be shared with the world to hear the Word tree two million dollars two talents unhappy they converted very frustrated very substantial amounts way of living we assemble on Sunday what does that mean what's the big deal whole city with this message witness won't grow at all world changing gift worship your good your salvation 10 dollars 20 bucks 20 years of wages 50 bucks 100 pounds of silver 2000s 2017]
  • Oct 29, 2017It’s All About Grace
    Oct 29, 2017
    It’s All About Grace
    Series: (All)
    October 29, 2017. This is the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Martin Luther became disillusioned by some of the practices of the Catholic church of his day when he visited Rome, and came to understand that instead of needing to try to earn God's favor, we have already received that gift and it's by faith alone that we are saved. Pastor Keith talks about Luther's revelation, and about the changes that he made in the church afterward that we still keep today. *** [Keywords: 1510 1517 2017 500th anniversary Bible Christ Lutheran Church Christ emptied himself of his righteousness Christian is lord of all Christianity in Italy Christmas carol God came down God cares for us daily God first loved us God is indeed a loving God God provides me with food clothing family work God's gifts to be received Holy Communion Holy Spirit It's All About Grace Jesus John 8:31-36 Lake St. Louis Living Lord Lutheran Luther exhibit in Minneapolis Luther lived with demons Martin Luther Mead Center Pastor Keith Holste Paul Reformation Reformation Sunday Rome Scripture St. Louis Post Dispatch St. Peter's Cathedral age all around him always over our shoulder angry anxiety anxious assurance backward barely stand to look at bathed in the grace of God be reminded blatant disregard borne out in Jesus boss both at the same time briefly cannot assume our faith car care carry on our life's mission catching up to me catechism changed emphasis changed some wording climbing up ladder climbing up steps on knees clothe us with it collection of money coming to approach us from rear commend that to God community chest competition at work completely attentive to needs of all completely free of everything confident contributions created us with life daily and weekly danger debt depend on our performance devil didn't throw out order disillusioned doesn't pretend we're better than we are doing different things for God down to us in Jesus earn God's favor earn God's will earn my way out of purgatory enduring exchanging both piety and money figurative rearview mirror fill us with it for life for those who were needy freely and fully covered us over full of spirit gift for writing gift from cross gift to us going down road hands of poor headquarters of church's power structure health help the poor here to Denver here to Philadelphia his own discovery historically how this relationship starts how we think about God ideas about changing direction indulgence receptacles infant baptism just shall live by faith keeps us as one keeps us nervous kept kept ancient order kept many practices large volumes learn scripture let go of the fear light live in fear long arduous walk looking back love came down at Christmas time love of others love one near to us love the neighbor mantra met him head on mocked money where it counted much more Christ-like mystery new and changing thoughts one together one's own sin or relative or friend order for today order of worship our sins are no longer ours but Christ's overnight retreat people in group pious please God pouring out that love upon us praise and thanksgiving prayed every day promise promise of Jesus readily understood by the people realistic about state of us as human beings rearview mirror receive forgiveness receivers not doers redemption of Jesus Christ reformers reinforces relationship with God rich in divine grace to sinners righteousness of Christ is not Christ's but ours sanctity school see them in front of him sermon servant size of shipping or clothes trunk slot for coins still struggled with his faith stuff we do for God teacher thanksgiving theology that points upward there for us to receive with arms wide open things turned upside down think we're making progress threat through rearview mirror time in purgatory would be reduced tormented trip to Rome trust uncertainty up to God van in parking lot walked from Germany to Rome we are justified by God's grace as gift we are loved child of God we are the church Catholic we live by faith we use it today what to do for careers what we've been promised what's approaching us what's going to overtake get me with a superior wonderful exchange world today worried worry about written on front of van wrote hymns youth]
  • Oct 1, 2017Congregational DNA
    Oct 1, 2017
    Congregational DNA
    Series: (All)
    October 1, 2017. On this 120th anniversary of our congregation, Pastor Keith talks about where we've come from, the individual and congregational DNA that make us who we are today, and our shared path toward the future. *** [Keywords: 120 years ago 15% 1897 1917 1950s 1986 1996 20 years 20% 2017 76 years ago AELC American Lutheran Church Arden Mead Arthur Carl Piepkorn Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches Atalanta Ave. Board of Education of Webster Groves Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church Christ Lutheran Church Cletus Romay Concordia Lutheran in Maplewood Concordia Seminary in Exile Creative Communications for the Parish DNA analysis DNA makeup Dr. Robert Bertram ELIM Eastern European English blood Ethelda Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Evangelical Lutherans in Mission Faith & Friends Community Day Fathers Day German lineage Interfaith Partnership Karl Wolf Ladue Larry Neeb Living Word Lutheran Church Luther Memorial Lutheran Church Lutheran Church Missouri Synod Lutheran Church in America Lutheran Disaster Relief Lutheran Foundation Missouri in Perspective Mothers Day Mr. Fix It Old Orchard Pastor Keith Holste Pastor Mark Roock Reverend Bob Trautmann Richmond Heights Scandinavian Seminex Thelda United States Webster Groves a little different across the street adopted practice also glad amalgamations anniversary anything unique arrangement at altar as close to God's desire as possible assisting minister background baptism benevolence better fit our time body type build a good organ within this building building bridges came to this congregation catalyst character chasubles child of God church at large church year color of hair color of skin come together on Sunday morning congregational DNA connections within contemporary converted into home counseling current church body current membership determine how we will live different congregations ecumenical in spirit energies families family systems fellowship felt welcome few native Americans for the sake of the world four grandparents four strands fundraising generosity genuineness gift of life going into the future good DNA good qualities good sign for us grandparents gregarious help people who are in need high and proper liturgy history holding hands facing outward hurricane relief hymns immigrants inherited DNAs intangible keep in our character larger community larger metro area lead theologian lead writer leadership legacy living the Christian faith makes us who we are meaningful hymns mechanical engineer member and assisting pastor merged mission given from God mixes us movement moving forward multiracial music music was important near community new worship space next part of our history not locked into our past not of predecessor groups not stuck offering proceeds one holy Christian church organizations original design original life will our staff outside work parking lot pastor's home people were important pledging predispositions to certain illnesses projects some things proper traditional worship publisher reach out to community reborn in Christ receive who we are receiving the meal receiving the word redeemed life will rejoice renovate renting respected rewrite prayers sainted seasonal cantatas sermon several pastors share our common joys and challenges social aid spirit of Jesus stronger support tendencies test theme this building was built ties in with readings town of Webster Groves unity among Christians in worship up and down the street upgrades values we have received vast majority vestments we are who we are weaving faith and worship and daily live together welcoming to all what God gives us as individuals what's our makeup where we came from whittled down whoever we are world history worship prayers worship space worthwhile]
  • Sep 17, 2017A Place For Justice and Forgiveness
    Sep 17, 2017
    A Place For Justice and Forgiveness
    Series: (All)
    September 17, 2017. Martin Luther underwent a conversion, from his earlier idea that the debt he owed God for all his sins was unachievable, to the realization that God was willing to forgive his sins due to his love of him and the world, and the sacrifice of Jesus. The understanding of this gift caused Martin Luther to begin to make changes in his life, focusing on the community and the needs of the world around him. Pastor Keith's sermon today is about the importance of this forgiveness and justice, and how instead of holding back the love we've been given, we can share it with others. *** [Keywords: 2017 Christ Lutheran Church Forgiveness With All Debt With God Day Galilee God covered it all God was willing to pay In the name of Jesus I bless you I forgive you I release you Jerusalem Jesus Jesus anticipated Jesus taught us to live by Jesus was willing to suffer Judah Lord's Prayer Luther's Small Catechism Martin Luther: The Idea That Changed the World Matthew 18:21-35 May McCarthy Old English Original Sin PBS film Pastor Keith Holste Reid Bartek accept the challenge angry another understanding about God anyone from my past as we forgive those baptized at font baptized ourselves bear a grudge before go to bed bestowed on us binds us blame ourselves both sides burden lifted called by a king can't get our heart to go there church complete forgiveness by God concept of community chest confessed nearly perpetually confessional conversion could never do enough could never pay it day of our baptism debt to God for sins deception dejected demands repayment of small debt didn't sleep well different role of God discipline do good badly doesn't work like that down drinking poison easier to serve ourselves eats at us equivalent to 150 years worth of wages eternal waterfall expecting other person to die faith fall asleep peacefully focus for our own health for the last time forgive hardly forgive one another forgive us our trespasses forgiven slave forgiven the debt forgiveness forth give free to experience free to forgive others fully graceful life generosity get to the point gets into your heart your soul gifts had come to him good and great gift good of all those struggling grace grandfather Pastor Jim grow into the promise gushing over us harbor unforgiving thoughts hard for us to live with good news hard to forgive hard to forgive ourselves harming people hatred haunt us help others his son Jesus hold back our love huge debt hurt his health i do so now i need to forgive image of being in cascading waterfall importance of forgiveness impossible to forgive in my present injury instead of looking up just keeps coming justice keeping people apart kept him up at night key to our life together kind learning experience let go life live their own lives live with sin living out the life looked around sideways lost sleep love for him love for world loved on main points make changes in his life make up for his sins mantra minor things money of community more difficulty need to forgive me neighbor never-ending no assurance of salvation no longer had debt no one could ever pay that much no reason to be selfish old style old way one more thing one understanding about God order of things other person in mind our feelings out of reach over and over again overwhelmingly overwhelms us payback payoff to God people around him place for forgiveness place for justice pleased with him plentiful promised pure before God reach out to other person repetitions resentment resist restored relationships retribution riled up role for forgiveness role for justice sacrifice of Jesus saying out loud scenes see needs of world self cleansing sermon servant in Parable sets us back sharing love sign of generosity silently sinful small matter of hurt feelings someone close to him spirit stepped away strong words struggle stuck study of Scripture takes away teaching way terrific promise thankful thanksgiving those who sin against us through the love of Jesus time out chair to see God to the end topic intersects treat others unachievable unbounding love understand unforgivable very short prayer warnings waters from above coming down we hurt ourselves we know better welcomed into Kingdom of God whatever way is best whether i remember them or not who trespass against us will take time willing to forgive wiped out worldly scale]