How Do We Understand What Laws We Follow in Leviticus?

Why do Christians pick and choose which laws to follow in Leviticus?  How can someone wholeheartedly affirm one passage that says declares one sin an abomination and then flat out ignore another that forbids eating shellfish.

One of the misconceptions in understanding how to read the Bible is that people often simply say, “I read the Bible literally.”  That’s not true, even by the people who claim it.   Most of the people who might say something like that actually don’t literally believe that the poetic language of Psalms should be taken literally.  Or when Jesus claims “I am the gate,” believes that Jesus is literally a fence that opens and closes.

A better description for the proper way to read the Bible is: read the Bible as it was literally intended to be read. This means that some books are intended to be read as history, others are intended to be read as poetry, others as apocalyptic and so on.  When we read the bible we have to consider, who wrote the book and what was the author’s intention behind what we read.

So how’s this translate to the book of Leviticus?

The book of Leviticus is a book full of laws.  And as we read the book of Leviticus it is important to understand how we should understand the book we are reading.  Because the book is full of so many laws we have to consider, should we be following these laws?  And if not, why don’t we follow them?

When you read the book of Leviticus you cannot automatically assume that every law you read still applies today.

But at the same time you cannot automatically ignore every law that is found in the book of Leiviticus.

You have to discern, is this a law that was for a particular time and place or was it timeless?

The 3 Types of Laws in Leviticus

1) Ceremonial

The ceremonial law was given to the nation of Israel for a particular purpose.  These are the laws that were given to the nation of Israel for the purpose of separating them from their Gentile neighbors.  These laws are for a specific nation, at a specific time, and for a specific purpose.

And so for the sake of separating Israelites from the Gentiles, you will read about laws like dietary regulations (don’t eat shell fish) and other regulations of cleanliness. These laws are not meant for all people or all times.

2) Civil

The civil law, like the ceremonial law, was given to the nation of Israel in their particular culture.  The civil law had a different purpose than the ceremonial, but like the ceremonial it was not meant for all people or all times.

The civil laws were the laws given to the nation of Israel for managing the civil affairs of the people. It gave laws that suggested how to run business, punishment for crimes, and even the treatment of slaves. These laws do not apply to us in our culture.

3) Moral

The moral law is unlike the other 2 types in that the moral law is not to a particular culture or for a particular time period.  The moral law can also be described as the natural law.  This isn’t because it is natural to obey the law, but because it is the way God created the natural world to function.

The moral law is timeless.  It exists before, during, and after the culture in which it was given.

For example, murder.  When did murder become a sin?  When Cain killed Abel, there was no commandment against murder.  But it was still wrong.

Why?  How can something be a law without having been given as a law?  Murder, I would suggest, is a part of the moral law.  It existed even before the giving of the ten commandments and is still important in our day and age.

This is why we often place such high importance on the Ten Commandments as Christians.  It’s not because the list of 10 is more important because it’s from the book of Exodus instead of Leivitucs.  It’s simply because it is the best summary of the moral law.  These are laws that are timeless and that we should hold dearly.

And so with laws in Leviticus, we must consider what kind of law is this?

Criticism Sucks: Don't Listen to the Haters

Criticism sucks.

And based on my experience, criticism tends to happen whenever something goes well.  You preach a sermon you love, you get the deal you’v been waiting for, you write a blog post that blows up… and then somebody decides to rail you for it.  Anytime you share your work with the world, you run the risk of being criticized.  As I’ve preached and written many different times and plan to keep doing so, I’ve come to expect that this will inevitably happen to me.

But even when you expect it, it still sucks.

Because even when you get 100 compliments, the 1 complaint is much louder. A while ago after receiving some criticism, I was reminded of an important truth that I often like to share with others.

You are not what you do.

Criticism stings because we take it personally.  And that really can’t be avoided.  But what makes the criticism sting so much?  Because when somebody criticizes my work, no matter how much I don’t like what is said I will still replay it over and over again in my head.  And no matter what someone else might say to counter the criticism, I often believe something about myself based on what someone says about me.

Criticism hurts because of what we believe about ourselves.

We believe that we are what we do.

When somebody criticizes my preaching, it is a statement about who I am.  When somebody doesn’t like my writing, it is a statement about who I am.  I attach my identity to the work that I do.

But what if I didn’t find my identity in what I did?

The more and more you deal with haters, the more and more you need to remind yourself of the truth of the Gospel.  Your identity is found in Christ Jesus and it has nothing to do with what other people say about you.  Your identity is not found in the words of the haters.  And, lest you get a false sense of self-worth, your identity is also not found in the words of your fans.  Your identity is found in the person and work of Jesus.  People might hate you, they might think your art is terrible, and they might even label you a heretic, but you are God’s child because of Jesus.

And believing that might change the way you hear criticism.  And in the least, it will remind you of what you need to hear when the volume of the critics begins to drown out the truth of the Gospel.

Comforting Bible Verses for Times of Death

If you are anything like me, tragedy causes you to question everything you say to the people you care about.  You question whether or not to say anything at all.  In order to help myself in these situations, I’ve decided to think about it ahead of time and write down some bible verses that are helpful for a variety of difficult situations in which I want to be careful no to say something stupid.

Now, doing this, remember that even when you are nervous about what to say, your presence speaks loudly.  Be present for the people you love even when you don’t have the words to say.

But given that you are like me and you want to know what places to point people to in these moments, I thought it would be helpful to consider what we can say when someone dies.

Scriptures that are comforting when someone dies:

Psalm 23, which speaks to the God who walks with us and cares for us even in the darkest valleys and in the shadows of even death itself.

The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.  He makes me lie down in green pastures,he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.  Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;your rod and your staff, they comfort me.  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.  Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Isaiah 25:6-9, which speaks to the important reality that death doesn’t get the last laugh.  Death stings, but it doesn’t win.

On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples,a banquet of aged wine— the best of meats and the finest of wines.  On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples,the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever.The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces;he will remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth.The Lord has spoken.9 In that day they will say, “Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us.This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.”

John 11:35, which is the shortest verse in the Bible and reminds us that in our moments of grief, Jesus grieves with us.

Jesus wept.

Romans 8:31-35, 37-39, which speaks to God being on our side.  While death and the devil are raging war against us, God is for us.  While we suffer and are in pain, we can be reminded that God is fighting for us and nothing is going to stop him.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Death is always hard.  And often more important than being able to remember these scriptures is going to be you being present in the lives of the people you love.  As Christians, we can put our hope that death is not the end.  And because of that, while we might hurt, we also can hope.

A teacher of mine once suggested about death that, “Resurrection makes dying hard.”

This might be a bit odd at first glance, but consider it.  The fact that Jesus rises from the dead and the fact that we are promised a resurrection proves that death is not the way God intended things to work.  And so while we have the hope of eternal life that comes with dying, dying is still hard.  And it’s hard because it’s not the way God intended for this to work.  Death isn’t just an escape from the awful, worldly life.

Death is the enemy and it still stings, but it doesn’t win.

More Than a Piece of Paper

In our world it is easy to see marriage as nothing more than a piece of paper.  But marriage is about more than a simple, legal binding between two parties.  It is about two people before God, their family, and their friends making a promise.

This isn’t about negotiating a contract.

It’s not about scoring the better end of the deal.  It’s not about making sure your benefits outweigh the costs.  It’s not about making sure that you’ve made out better than the other person.  This is not about being a consumer seeking a good bargain.

Our world loves bargains and business deals.  But marriage is not one of them.

Marriage is about two people making vows.  It’s a promise to one another and a promise to God.

This promise between a husband and a wife actually reflects the promise that God himself makes to his Church.  Paul describes this in Ephesians 5 when he says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”  This is the promise we see kept by God.  Jesus Christ sacrifices his life for us despite our unfaithfulness.

Imagine that kind of promise.  An unconditional, faithful, and forever love.

Although we’ve sinned, although we’ve fallen short, and although we do not deserve it - Jesus continues to love us.  He gives up everything so that we might have everything.  He makes us holy and clean.  And in marriage, we reflect this same promise.  If it were a contract, it would be about negotiating terms.  But instead this is a covenant; it’s about making a vow.  A vow to give sacrificially, to serve humbly, and love unconditionally just as Jesus himself did for every one of us.

Contracts are about the piece of paper.  Contracts are about the legal agreement.  Contracts are about what you can get from the other person.  But this isn’t about the paper, it’s about vows.

But marriage is a promise that says, “I’m binding my life to yours forever.”

Marriage isn’t about a contract, it’s about a promise.  The marriage part matters not because the piece of paper matters, but because in the promise to be a spouse, there’s a commitment that fulfill God’s calling to love and serve each other in your marriage.

In marriage we have a joining of two people that cannot be separated.  In marriage, two are bound together.  They are glued to one another for life.  Sickness, tragedy, trials, and pain - none of these can separate the couple that has committed themselves to each other “till death do us part.”

You’ll notice this same language reflected when describing God’s relationship with us:

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  - Romans 8:38-39

No change in feelings, no loss of job, or no tragedy can separate the two that have been joined together.  In marriage, we commit that even when the passion fades, the promise will always remain.

Ideas Are Cheap. Teams Take Work.

Ideas are cheap.

Anybody can come up with a great idea, but executing that idea is a different endeavor.  There was a season that I spent some time making some iPhone apps; one of the common occurrence during that season was a ridiculous number of people would tell me they had a brilliant app idea but they just needed somebody to help them with the app.

And I was not interested.

Because ideas are a dime a dozen.  Anybody can come up with ideas.  But executing that idea is hard work.

There’s something far more important than the brilliant idea that you wait up all not far.  And that something doesn’t happen randomly when you are on a walk or in the shower, but it happens by hard work with time.

So what’s more important than a great idea?

A great team.

"A mediocre team will screw up a good idea.  But if you give a mediocre idea to a great team and let them work together, they'll find a way to succeed." - Catmull from Pixar, p.149

Jim Collins, author of Good to Great suggested,

"Most people assume that great bus drivers (read: business leaders) immediately start the journey by announcing to the people on the bus where they're going—by setting a new direction or by articulating a fresh corporate vision.

In fact, leaders of companies that go from good to great start not with “where” but with “who.” They start by getting the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus, and the right people in the right seats. And they stick with that discipline—first the people, then the direction—no matter how dire the circumstances.”

Whether you are leading a ministry, a team of volunteers, or a large organization, this is an important understanding.  The team is more important than the idea.  If you have the right people doing the right things, they can take an idea and turn it into a product or an event.  If you have the right people in the right places on the bus, they can take a problem and figure out the best solution.

The right people are always more important than the idea.

This is why so often people with their grandiose new business plans don’t succeed.  Because they have a great idea, but they have no skills or people to execute their idea.

In ministry it is often easy to focus on the next idea.  What’s the next event?  The new program?  The retreat coming up?  Or the new sermon series that needs to be designed?  And while all of those things are certainly important, what is more important is the team that works on those things together.  The team has to learn to enjoy each other, support each other, and make each other better if they are going to execute their ideas more effectively.

Perhaps the best thing you could do for your ministry is put your ideas on hold for a season and focus on the team.  Build your trust, find your roles, and learn to work together.

What's your worship style?

Imagine the disciples if they were encountered with a discussion of “worship styles.”  I can only imagine their reaction to somebody suggesting they prefer contemporary worship or traditional worship as being, “Huh?”  Or consider their confusion when worship is a genre of music and not what one does with all of their life.

There are only two styles of worship - true worship and false worship.

“The hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” - John 4:23-24

Despite our best efforts to categorize worship into hundreds of categories, there is really only two.  It’s either the worship of God or the worship of something else.  Contemporary, traditional, contemplative, experiential, post-modern, liturgical, confessional, attractional, missional, contemporvant…

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The same confusion continues when worship is an adjective to describe something.  Worship music, worship album, worship artist.  Is there a kind of album that is not worship?  After all the person creating the music, album, or art had to be worshipping something.

So what is true worship?

Jesus suggests true worshippers worship the Father "in spirit and in truth."

What does this mean?

Worship is always about receiving and responding.  This is true of our gatherings when we worship corporately.  This is true of our lives as we worship in our vocations.  A worshipper is a worshipper because of what they’ve received.

This is why it is so important that we worship “in spirit.”

This isn’t suggesting that our worship must be emotional (although that is not necessarily bad), it is suggesting that we approach God in worship by faith which is given to us from the Holy Spirit.

We can call God Father because of the work of the Spirit which puts faith in the person and work of the Son.  In other words, the Spirit clings to the truth.  The Spirit teaches us the truth about ourselves and the truth about our God.

We are faced with the harsh reality that we have nothing to offer when we come in worship as we are exposed to our sin. And the Spirit also reveals to us the truth about our Savior.  This is the very truth we hear and we sing and we read as worshippers.

So what style of worship do I prefer?

I prefer true worship.  The one that receives all that God gives to me.  The one that receives what God promises to deliver in his Word. And the one that responds in faith to that truth with all of life.  Worship that is not just about the singing, but certainly embraces it.  Worship that is not just about a gathering on a weekend, but certainly sees the importance of it.  Worship, instead, is about the totality of life as it flows out of an understanding of who we are and who God is.

Worship is about receiving and responding.  It receive from God the gifts that only he can give to us in the ways that he promises to give them to us.  It receives these gifts by faith in the promise of God.  And it responds to this with all of life.  Our work life, our home life, our neighborhood, and our church life… all lived in response to what we have received from God.

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” - Romans 12:1

A Cheater's Guide to Preaching Without Notes

As a preacher, one of the most valuable tools that I find in preaching, is preaching without notes.  The idea of preaching without notes is one that I’ve loved whenever I’ve seen it done.  But the idea of doing it is quite frightening.  It is extremely nerve-wrecking to consider standing in front of a congregation without your trusty notes to guide you through.

As I’ve begun preaching regularly for our entire congregation, I’ve tried to make it a regular practice do preach without notes.

Why?

If I can’t remember what I’m talking about, how will the congregation be able to remember what I said?  Years ago, I listened to a preacher talking about communication and he suggested that giving a sermon should be like talking about your own family.  What he was suggesting is that a sermon should be something that is so deep within you that it doesn’t feel like your reading from a script or a page of notes.

Some Tricks to Help You Preach without Notes:

1. Practice, practice, practice.

One of the best ways to diminish the need for notes is by practicing.  When I preach, I practice a ton of times, each time reducing the amount of notes that I use when practicing.  When I start practicing on Tuesday, I might be at about 6 or 7 pages of notes.  Each day this gets significantly reduced so that finally by the end of the week I hardly need 1 page of notes.

Now, I get it, some people suggest that they really don’t like to practice.  But nobody likes to practice.

But it helps.  And while it might seem unnatural to practice your sermon out-loud, it will probably make it much more natural when you actually deliver the sermon.

2. You can still use notes.

One of the tricks I learned about preaching without notes is that I can still have notes.  I just keep them hidden and have them to fall back on if necessary.  Because of the practice I really don’t need the notes much, but I do have them and can strategically use them when we open up and read the Bible.

Throughout the week when I am practicing my sermon, I also use that time to get my notes down to a single sheet of paper.  I end up making that paper into two columns so that I can have a single sheet of notes that can be laminated and fit within the pages of my Bible while I’m preaching.

I use the notes as a bookmark and will occasionally reference it if need be.

Download a copy of notes I've used in a sermon.

3. Think in chunks.

As I reduce my notes, what I’ve learned is I have to think in chunks for my sermon.  This means I have an idea for what I want to communicate but I also need to have a way to reference that idea enough in my notes so that its short.  A friend of mine suggested that one way of looking at these chunks would be like doors to a room.  Think of your sermon as a house that you want to explore.  The chunks are simply the doors into the rooms.  You need the doors to help you remember where you are going, but once you have the door you then can open it up and start showing people around.

Reclaiming the Word Evangelical

The word “evangelical" gets a bad rap.  It’s used to describe political agendas, a style of worship, or perhaps even a backhanded way to call someone a fundamentalist, a legalist, or out-of-touch with our current world.  It’s ironic that a word which is derived from “Gospel” or “Good News” can so easily send people running.  If an “evangelical” is really one who clings to the message of Christ’s death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins, then evangelicals should be a group of people you'd like to be around.

But there's a reason why Rob Bell when pressed about his identification with the word evangelical once  responded, “If An evangelical is somebody who, when they leave the room, you feel better because you heard the good news [from them], then yes.”  Because this is not what people typically think of when they think of the word evangelical.  And while I certainly don’t agree with Rob on a lot of issues, he accurately perceives that most people don’t think Good News and Evangelicals belong in the same sentence.

There was a time when the word evangelical was used to describe the distinction from the catholic church.

“[Evangelicals] were also the first to emphasize the Gospel to such an extent that it became central to every level of their doctrine and practice.  This evangelical focus, made over against medieval Catholicism, opened the door to every other Protestant expression that came later.”  - Gene Veith

What Kind of Evangelicals Do We Need?

We need to evangelicals who are about emphasizing God’s words - we are sinners in need of a savior and Christ declares that “It is finished."  It’s not about political agendas or styles, but the centrality of the Gospel to every doctrine and practice of the church.

It’s interesting to note that even Luther himself didn’t want to call himself Lutheran but instead evangelical.

Christians have always been people who are about the message of the Gospel.  In the New Testament, in the early church, in the middle ages, and in the days of the reformation - it has always been about the Gospel.

"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. - 1 Corinthians 15:3-8

There was a group of people who witnessed the death and resurrection of Jesus.  They saw him alive after he had died.  And then they pass on that message as it is “of first importance.”

We have that same message.  A promise that sins are forgiven.  A promise that death has been defeated. A promise that you are made new.  A promise that Christ was victorious.  A promise that is good news for all people.  A message that is the most important message around.

This message is what makes an evangelical.

Evangelicals are those who seek to see the Gospel reach a dying, dark world.

"There is no saving doctrine except the Gospel; everything else is night and darkness." -Luther

This message is Good News.  It is not news that you need to earn.  It’s not news that gets you votes.  It’s not news that gives to you exactly what it promises, the forgiveness of sins by faith in the finished work of Jesus.

I am an evangelical.

And It’s not because of a political stance.  It’s not because of a style of music or the preachers or books I read.  It’s because what we have received I want to pass on as the most important message of all.

How to Speak the Language of the Culture

We are missionaries in our world.  We have been sent with the promise of the Gospel to our broken world and are called to go into our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces with the message of the Gospel.  When a missionary enters into a foreign country, he must become a student of that foreign culture.  The missionary must study the culture before he ever enters the country, he must learn their customs, their language, their dress, the people of influence, and even their social behaviors.

In missions what often happens for missionaries is that there is a level of excitement when entering the new culture that they have studied.  But then not long after the initial excitement about the new mission work, reality sets in.

The realization dawns that this is now our home. Here our children will grow up as natives. And we must become one with these people with their unintelligible tongues and foreign ways before we can effectively share with them the Good News of the gospel. - Paul G. Hiebert. Anthropological Insights for Missionaries

In order to effectively share the message of the Gospel, the missionary has to become a part of the culture.  They have to become a native.

The missionary needs to speak the language of the people.

A missionary is a translater.  They translate the truth of the scripture into the language of the people.  Whether that language be spanish, arabic, or english, missionaries are finding ways to translate the ancient truth into something that people can understand.  In our culture, there is no shortage of people who haven’t heard the message of the Gospel.

The job of the missionary is to translate the Gospel message into the language of these people.

Speak it in a language they can hear, understand, and apply.

The missionary needs to be one of the people.

Knowing the right words isn’t enough.  You can’t just know the language, you have to have the accent.  When tourists show up in town, all the locals can spot them a mile away.  They don’t look the same, they don’t talk the same, and the things they are interested in are completely different.

The tourist stage ends when we move from being outside visitors to becoming cultural insiders. This takes place when we establish our own homes, take responsibility for ourselves, and start making a contribution to the local community. - Paul G. Hiebert. Anthropological Insights for Missionaries

This isn’t to say that you have to agree with everything in the culture of the people you are trying to reach.

But it means that reaching the people in your culture is going to require more than dressing the part and learning some illustrations that prove you are culturally-savy.  The missionary can’t just drop in with a mega-phone and start saying all the right words, the missionary needs time and relationships.  The missionary needs to earn the right to be heard - a right that only comes through loving relationships with the people they are trying to reach.

What are the best leadership books?

Leaders are learners.  And learning means listening to teachers, reading books and articles, and practicing new learnings.  As a ministry leader, one of the topics that I love to read about is the subject of leadership.  Because I love to read these types of books and think that other leaders should also be reading, here is a list of my favorite leadership books.  They are in no particular order, just 20 leadership books that came to mind.

Top 20 Leadership Books

1. Good to Great by Jim Collins

2. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

3. Linchpin by Seth Godin

4. Rework by Jason Fried

5. Start with Why by Simon Sinek

6. Go, Put Your Strengths to Work by Marcus Buckingham

7. Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath

8. StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath

9. Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us by Seth Godin

10. A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink

11. The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni

12. Great by Choice by Jim Collins

13. Choosing to Cheat by Andy Stanley

14. Church Unique by Will Mancini

15. Purple Cow by Seth Godin

16. Deep and Wide by Andy Stanley

17. The War of Art by Steve Pressfield

18. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

19. Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon

20. The Accidental Creative by Todd Henry

The Day I Became a Grunewald

In third grade I wrote a paper entitled, “Officially a Grunewald.”  And in the way that only a third grader could write, it recorded the events of a very important day in my life:

Last year on October 17, 1995, I missed a half day of school because I went to court.  When we were at home, my mom gave me a chain with a cross on it.  My brother, Corey, got a chain with a cross in the middle of a heart, and my sister, Molly, got a necklace that had a G in the middle of the heart because we became Grunewalds.

The judge asked my mom and dad a lot of questions.  While we were getting our picture taken, I banged the hammer the judge uses.  I got my picture taken with Corey, Molly and the judge.  Second, we got a picture taken with my mom, my dad, Corey, Molly, the judge and I.  The judge got to hold Molly every single time.

I officially became a Grunewald.  When we left we ate at the Clock. I had scrambled eggs.  Corey had Mickey Mouse pancakes, and Molly had French toast.

My mom brought me back to school after everyone finished eating.  Everyone asked me where I was.  I said, "At court." The kids in my class asked, "Do you have to go to jail?"  I was proud the day my stepdad adopted me and I officially became a Grunewald.

On October 17, 1995, in a courthouse, not because of anything I had done and not because of anything my brother or sister had done, but solely because of the love of my dad, I was declared a Grunewald.  It had nothing to do with my decisions or behavior, but simply because my dad said before the judge, “I will love these children as my very own children,” everything changed.

It would not be about stepson or stepdaughter, stepbrother or stepsister.  It was instead, “These are my kids.  This is my family.”  And so, on October 17, 1995, I was given a new name and a new identity; this was my family.  My dad said, “I love you, and you are my child.”

I was adopted and called son.

And all throughout the Scriptures this is the very same way that our relationship with our Heavenly Father is described.  We are described as sons and daughters who have been adopted into the family.  We are a family who has been made family.

And just as a judge banged a hammer and declared, “This is who you are,” so also on the cross of Christ it was declared, “This is who you are.”  You are given a new name, a new identity.  You are called a child, a son, a daughter.  This is why throughout the Scriptures we see this adoption language coming up over and over again.

In 2 Corinthians it says, “‘I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me,’ says the Lord Almighty.”  How does this happen?  Because we have been adopted as sons and daughters.

In Galatians 4, when the Apostle Paul is teaching us what it means to be children of God, he says:

“But, when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those under the law, that we might receive the full rights of sons, that we might be adopted as sons.  Because you are sons, because you are daughters, because you’ve been adopted into the family, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts in the Spirit who calls out, ‘Abba, Father.’  So, you are no longer a slave, but a son, and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.”

And in Ephesians 1 (NLT) it says, "God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.  This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure."  By the death and resurrection of Jesus, you and I have been declared children of God.

On October 17, 1995, I was given a new identity.  You and I, almost 2,000 years ago on a cross, we were made new.  In the waters of our baptism we were given a new name.  We were called family as we have heard and trusted the promise of the Gospel.  We have been adopted into the family of God.  We are a family who has been made family.  No matter how far we’ve run, we’ve been called sons and daughters.

The Vocations in a Family

Everybody has a vocation.  Vocation is a really just a fancy way of saying a “calling.”  Our vocations are the way that God works in the world serving the world through us as we fulfill our vocations.  And we all have these callings.  God serves our schools as teachers teach, principals lead, and as students obey.  God serves in our families as husbands love their wives, as wives love their husbands, and so on.  Our callings extend into our workplaces, our neighborhoods, our churches, and into our homes.

One of the fascinating things about family, however, is that it is the first place that we all experience calling.  Because we are all born into the vocation of a son or daughter.  Families are full of different callings - each of which have different unique characteristics, responsibilities, and value.

Note: This list is really simplified and meant to scratch the surface. We could spend a lot of time on each of these individual vocations, so if you feel like one doesn’t say all that it should… it probably doesn’t. 

Husband.

The husband is the leader of the home. Ephesians calls the husband to love his wife the way that Christ loved the Church.  This is a high calling, to be the sacrificial, loving leader of the home.  Service and sacrificing for the benefit of the one he loves.

"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” - Ephesians 5:25

Wife.

The wife has been called to her husband and to love her husband as the Church loves Christ.  The calling of a wife is a distinct calling from her husband, yet equally sacred and important.

"Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.  Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.” - Ephesians 5:21-22

A wife is called to submit to her husband.

Now this word can cause a lot of trouble, but it doesn’t need to.  Because this is about mutual submission. She is not called to submit to him for the sake of him “lording it over her” but to submit to and serve her husband as he has also done for her.

“A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.” - Proverbs 31:10-12

Father.

A man, if he has kids, not only has the responsibility to lead his wife but to also lead his kids.  The father provides for his family, protects his family, and also pastors his family.  The calling of fatherhood is a call to disciple your children - to make sure they know they are loved by God and by their parents.

"You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." - Deuteronomy 6:7 ESV

Mother.

Moms have one of the most difficult callings there is.  It’s one of the most important, yet it is also one of the most under-appreciated and exhausting callings there is.  The most important work that any mom does is the work she does as a mother; and it is an exhausting, unpaid, holy calling to love, care for, and disciple her children.

"She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed.” - Proverbs 31:26

Son/Daughter.

The first vocation that we all have in life is the same.  It’s the vocation of being a son or a daughter.  This might be unusual, especially because we primarily begin to think of callings as what happens when we become adults.  But this isn’t true, callings extend into childhood as - son/daughter, brother/sister, student, and friend.

"My son, keep your father’s commandment, and forsake not your mother’s teaching.” - Proverbs 6:20 ESV

We could also add to this list things like brother and sister, grandparents, godparents, aunts and uncles, cousins.  All of these are unique relationships that God has placed you in.  And since God has placed you in those relationships, this also means that he has called you to love him and love others in those relationships that he has called you to.

What are some of the other unique callings within a family that you could describe? 

How Not to Say Something Stupid

“Doesn’t she look great?”

Every now and then I hear something like this at a funeral and I can’t help but think to myself, “Umm…not really, she’s dead.”  And then immediately I scold myself for being so mean in my head and remind myself that the person was well-meaning.

Whenever somebody I care about is in a season of suffering, I find myself worried about what I am going to say.  I find myself second-guessing every statement in order to avoid saying something stupid in this moment of pain.  When I go into these situations, there are a couple of things that I need to constantly remind myself of, so I don’t overthink how I care for my friends and family in these moments.

Your presence matters.

You’re not going to say something stupid.  And if you do, they most likely won’t remember it.  Because your presence is going to say far more.  This doesn’t mean that words don’t matter in these moments, but don’t underestimate the significance of simply being present and sitting with the people who are suffering.

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. - John 11:33-35

Listen, cry, talk about anything, look at pictures, pray.

All of these things matter.

Stick to what you know, not what you don’t.

In the need to say something in these difficult moments, the place we often find ourselves getting into trouble is when we start to find things to say that we perceive as comforting that we really don’t have answers to.

When you go to a funeral and somebody is comforting another because their loved is "getting their wings"; this is somebody who is trying to be comforting but is speaking about things they really don’t know about.

When I am in these moments, the thing I must always remind myself is that when I need words of comfort, the best place I can run to is the place that I know speaks truth to the hurting.  Instead of coming up with comforting statements in my own mind, I can find things that have already been said in the scriptures.

For example, a book like the Psalms can speak to the greatest moments of joy and the most agonizing moments of suffering.

"Psalms give voice to the praise of God in the depths of affliction and in the heights of human joy. We have confidence in praying the psalms for in the Psalter we are praying God’s own words.” - Lutheran Service Book: Pastoral Care Companion

When we use the words of God, we know they are true.  Rely on what you know is true.  Rely on the prayers, songs, and words of the Scriptures to provide comfort when you don’t have the words to say.

Prodigals, Pharisees, and Sons

Most of us don’t need to be convinced that we should pray.  Even the people who don’t believe in God, when faced with the worst of situations, often finds themselves in prayer to a god they don’t believe in.  The way we approach God matters  There are postures that we can take when we approach God that are appropriate in our relationship with Him.  And there are other postures that seek to make God more like a divine Genie or pair of designer jeans than a loving father.

When you pray, do you pray as a prodigal, a pharisee, or do you pray as a son or daughter? 

Prodigals.

Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. - Luke 15:11-13

The prodigal son wants the benefits of sonship without any of the relationship.  He wants to receive the inheritance, but he doesn’t want to be family.  This is the story of being a prodigal.  As prodigals, we look to do whatever it takes to get what we want, but we ultimately have no desire for any sort of relationship with our heavenly Father.  We might want the reward, but we don’t want to live out our faith.  We might want the benefits, but we don’t want any of the responsibility that comes with it.

When we pray like prodigals, we only pray when we want something.  We might pray as though there is some being up there that occasionally grants our wishes, but we don’t pray to a Father.  And we certainly don’t pray as though we have any kind of relationship with this God.

Pharisees.

When the Pharisees pray, they want to be seen.  They want people to know how holy they are.  They are in essence standing on the street corners shouting, “Everybody come see how good I look.”   The Pharisee follows the rules, but not because of their relationship with the father, but because of who might be watching them.

And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  - Matthew 6:5

The pharisee prays to be seen and believes all their blessings are rightfully theirs.

When we pray like pharisees we falsely believe that we have done something to earn our blessings.  We pray, “Thank you God that I’m not like those sinners.”  Or even, “Thank you God that I’m not like those Christians.”  We find ourselves concerned and asking, “God I’ve done A, B, and C, why haven’t you blessed me yet?”

A Third Way

Instead, we should find ourselves responding like the prodigal son ends up responding.  The son has a speech all planned out:

Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants. - Luke 15:18-19

He isn’t disowning his father this time.  Instead he realizes he screwed it up.  Unlike previously, this time he wants to come home, but knows he shouldn’t step foot in that house again.  Unlike the pharisee, he shows up knowing fully what he deserves.  His speech to his father is the equivalent to, “Lord, have mercy on me a sinner.”

Instead of praying without a relationship and a false view of ourselves, we pray with the words that Jesus taught us, “Our Father.”

We pray not as prodigals or pharisees, but as sons and daughters.  Sons and daughters who have been adopted into the family the work of the Son.

Sermon Series Ideas: 001

If you are in ministry and you teach regularly, chances are you are also consistently looking for sermon inspiration or freebies. As a ministry, we are regularly producing great content for our sermon series.  The creative process to developing these is one of the areas that I am most passionate.  I love working with our team as we brainstorm ideas and then helping move ideas forward into a finished product.

Feel free to use these ideas to inspire your own ideas.  The only thing we ask is that you don’t sell our original content as your own.  Also please note, that occasionally some of our series images heavily rely on stock images; in those cases I will let you know since you must purchase the original source image in order to have legal permission to use the image. 

First Things First

Series Description: At the beginning of the year most of us make resolutions to prioritize our life. That’s not easy to do. We try to place first things first, yet there are so many things that take up our time and energy. Everything we have is a result of God first giving it to us. Our job is to use those gifts that he has given and respond by placing first things first.

Note: In order to have permission to use this graphic for your sermon series, you must download the appropriate vector images from a variety of stock imagery websites.

Click Here

Note: This “click here” imagery was the inspiration of one of our Pastors, Paul Arndt. 

Series Description: After his resurrection, Jesus appeared to two of his disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35). They didn’t recognize him nor did they understand the purpose of his ministry. As Jesus walked with them, he opened up the Old Testament and began to link all of the Scriptures to himself.

If Jesus were to have the same conversation in our digital age, it might look like a hyperlink or one of those notations on the web page that says, “click here”. He would hover over a portion of the Scripture and link it to his person and work, his death and his resurrection, the message of the forgiveness of sins.

Download full size title image. 

Download background slide image. 

Download editable .psd file. 

Pray Like Jesus

Series Description: Throughout the Gospels we can read about Jesus' prayers. There are specific prayers that He taught His followers to pray and there are others that He prayed on our behalf. What can we learn from Jesus' prayer life, and His teachings, that we can apply to our prayer life? How does Jesus respond when confronted with temptation or trial? Can His response be our response?

Note: In order to have permission to use this graphic for your sermon series, you must download the appropriate size image from Lightstock.  Get this image here.  If you purchased the graphic assets and want the full size image with the text, just let me know and I’ll get it to you. 

Credit: Our designers who do all this amazing work are Mari, Sheila, and Corey.