Wednesday, November 1, 2017 Devotion

written by Jeffray Greene | October 28, 2017

“Willingly I will sacrifice to You; I will give thanks to Your name, O Lord, for it is good.  For He has delivered me from all trouble, and my eye has looked with satisfaction upon my enemies.”  (Psalm 54:6-7)

 

Lord, You call for me to willingly sacrifice to You, but I often begrudgingly make sacrifices.  My eye often does look with satisfaction when my enemies get what I think they deserve.  But all of this merely points to the fact that my heart is far from You and not like Yours.  You have the ability to create in me a clean heart, So Lord I ask that You would do so, so that I may have a heart that is pleasing to You.

 

Lord, I can use this Psalm to justify the wickedness in my heart, but that is not why you put it here.  Help me, I pray, to simply come to the place where I am willing to put the whole of me on the altar of Your presence and be one who sacrifices all for You.  Deliver me from the trouble of my heart and guide me according to Your goodness to see in You alone the hope of glory that You offer in grace.

 

Lord Jesus, You have come that I may have life and have it abundantly.  Guide me by Your grace to make sacrifices that are pleasing to the Father.  Kindle in me the Spirit of Your love that I would not seek things for vain glory, but look to You as the example of One who sacrificed Himself for the sake of us all.  Lead me Lord Jesus, for I cannot, nor should not ever take the lead.  Amen.



Tuesday, October 31, 2017 Devotion

written by Jeffray Greene | October 28, 2017

“For strangers have risen against me and violent men have sought my life; they have not set God before them.  Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my soul.  He will recompense the evil to my foes; destroy them in Your faithfulness.”  (Psalm 54:3-5)

 

Lord, You are the One who is everlasting.  There is none besides You.  Yet, there are those in this world who lift up false gods and command me to look at them.  Help me to see clearly Lord that I would look to You alone.  Justice is in Your hands O Lord.  You know all that needs to be done.  Bring me to the place where I trust in your justice and live simply by the words You have decreed.

 

Lord God, You have made plain from the beginning the truth that You are God.  You are the Savior.  You are the One who sustains all things.  You will deal with all that needs to be dealt with.  Compose my heart to be satisfied with Your goodness.  Lead me to trust in Your justice.  Take away from me those things which will hinder me simply trusting You in all things and for all things.

 

Lord Jesus, You have come and declared that You are the judge of the living and the dead.  Guide me to trust You in and through all things, knowing that You alone must be the author and finisher of my faith.  Lead me this day in the goodness of whom You are, knowing that You will lead me through all things that will come.  Guide me to trust that Your grace is more than sufficient for me.  Amen



Monday, October 30, 2017 Devotion

written by Jeffray Greene | October 28, 2017

“Save me, O God, by Your name, and vindicate me by Your power.  Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth.”  (Psalm 54:1-2)

 

Your name O Lord, what is it?  Have you not sent Yeshua, which means, literally, Your Salvation?  You are the Savior.  There is no other.  You have come as one of us to lead the way for all who will listen.  You are the One who, from the beginning, has called to as many as would hear, to hear the call of Your voice, heed Your voice and listen to the call You give.  Let my mouth be full of Your praise.

 

Lord, You know us better than any of us know ourselves.  You created us.  You know who we are.  Lead me away from what I think up to the place where I see where You have revealed reality.  Guide me in Your ways O Lord that I would be vindicated by Your power and majesty.  Let my mouth be filled with words of Your goodness and praise You all the day long.

 

Lord Jesus, You have come to show the way.  Through You, who is the way, truth and life, You have pointed to the Father who offers to all who believe and eternal relationship.  Guide me in the eternal way, established from the beginning, that I would walk with You, as You lead, to where You are taking me.  Help me now and always to hold fast to the prayer of my heart, which is to walk in the way of truth.  Amen.



Pastor Gjerde’s Letter Asking Bishop Eaton to Stand Against Abortion

written by Steven Gjerde | October 28, 2017

Easter Greetings and Pastor Gjerde’s Letter Asking Bishop Eaton to Stand Against Abortion

  • APRIL 20, 2017 – 9:55 PM
  • LUTHERANCORE

Christ the Lord is risen! He is risen indeed!

There is no greater promise than the one our Lord Jesus gave to Martha. “I am the resurrection and the life.” (John 11: 25)

There is no greater source of strength than what the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians. “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15: 54)

There is no greater reason for hope than what is expressed in the book of Job. “I know that my Redeemer lives; and though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God.” (Job 19: 25-26)

The resurrection of Jesus is a powerful statement of the value of life. For why would God give us resurrected, eternal life if life were not precious?

Another powerful statement of the value of life is the cross. For why would Jesus have endured the suffering and pain of death by crucifixion if He did not place the highest value upon what would be obtained through that sacrifice – forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life?

Please find below a letter which Pastor Steve Gjerde, Vice President of the Board of Lutheran CORE, has written to Elizabeth Eaton, Presiding Bishop of the ELCA, asking her to take a stand regarding the harm and tragedy of abortion in America. We are also asking her to acknowledge the conscience and convictions of the members and leaders in the ELCA who are a part of the pro-life movement. Because Bishop Eaton has recently written about the preciousness of life, and because the ELCA advocates for many other kinds of victims, please pray that she will be led to go a step further and lead the Church in taking a stand against this industry that takes the life of the unborn.

Dennis D. Nelson
President of the Board and Director of Lutheran CORE

~ ~ ~

Dear Bishop Eaton,

In your most recent article for “Living Lutheran,” you wrote powerful and succinct words about the value of life: “Life is precious and beautiful and, even in its painfulness, something to be fiercely protected.” Those words reflect the fierce love of our Father in heaven, who sent His Son into great pain for the sake of freeing this whole creation from its bondage to decay. Thank you for that good statement.

Those words also reflect the commitments of Lutheran Coalition for Renewal (LCORE). With numberless Christians across the world and throughout times past, Lutheran CORE is committed to supporting the Church in faithfulness to Holy Scripture and God’s gift of life. I now write on behalf of Lutheran CORE, asking you to lead the ELCA into a renewed appreciation of the pro-life movement and convictions at work in the ELCA membership.

Members and pastors of the ELCA turn to us weekly for guidance, counsel, and comfort as they contend for life, health, and compassion in the midst of a culture and church that drifts from the vision of justice that we have learned from our Lord Jesus Christ. Having once been a growing child Himself in the womb of His mother, He leads us to see God at work in the wondrous events of human conception and development, and especially to see Him, the once Rejected One, in those growing human beings whom no one wants or welcomes.

It has long rankled members of the ELCA that our insurance provided through Portico (formerly, ELCA Board of Pensions) will support elective abortion. Likewise, the messages of the Office of Presiding Bishop, as currently listed, do not display a letter addressing the harm and tragedy of abortion in America. Frequent messages on behalf of refugees and the victims of violence appear, but there are no messages remembering the victims, both nascent and adult, of this killing industry, nor even a call for us to love and welcome the unborn into our homes and congregations through prayer, care, and the support of parents and struggling families.

Since social statements (such as the social statement on abortion, 1991) do not represent the end of conversation and speech, but a platform for further teaching and public witness, and since both Holy Scripture and our Lutheran heritage encourage hospitality towards unborn children, the Lutheran CORE board of directors and I hope that you will soon release such a letter. We also hope that the ELCA would, in love for its members and neighbors whose consciences are bound to resist abortion and work for a caring culture of life, explore ways to free its rostered leaders, with no penalty, from having to participate in an insurance program that supports elective abortion. Given the current state of insurance in America, we know that it is no easy task, yet we also believe the beauty and preciousness of life are worth the effort.

A letter from your office might necessarily acknowledge, as the ELCA has frequently tried to do, that a diversity of opinion on specific matters relating to abortion exists. Yet it would be good to see that the ELCA knows that the pro-life movement also exists; that it is an honorable expression of Christian faith and love, active among members and leaders of the ELCA; and that abortion has unjustly and violently excluded neighbors from our human community, damaged families, and afflicted the consciences of both women and men.

Some of our sisters and brothers in the NALC even worked with Lutheran CORE to develop a statement on the Sanctity of Nascent Life, which I commend to you (here). Although the ELCA social statement on abortion guides the work of your office, the joint NALC-LCORE statement joins you in valuing the beauty and preciousness of life, even in its painfulness, and it helps us reflect on how the weakest among us are to be protected. It also represents the voice of many people in the church that you and I serve, who have frequently sensed that their voices are marginalized in congregations and synods.

Again, thank you for such a beautiful statement regarding the sanctity of life, and for all the ways that your work points to the Lord of both the living and the dead, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sincerely,
The Rev. Dr. Steven K. Gjerde
Vice-President, Lutheran CORE