The Bethany Bullet-Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Please note that The Bethany Bullet will take a holiday break on Tuesday, December 23 & 30.

FROM WORSHIP:
Six Words…I don’t know if you’ve been checking out the Six-Word memoirs of fellow members, on the website (www.bethanylutheran.org)? You can send yours in too. Here are few from the website:

Debbie shared a great confession, “Lord, you have carried me through everything”; from Donna came a profound truth, “Life is short, Eternity is not!” Zach sent in this wonderful confidence, “The Lord is my best friend.” And this jewel of wisdom, “Godparents duties don’t stop at Confirmation” came from Marjorie. Plenty of other Six-Word memoirs are listed on the website; they are just as spiritually uplifting and powerful as these – and simultaneously humbling.

My Six-Words this week have been less inspiring, less encouraging, less reflecting of the glory of God, and more bemoaning the situation of me - “What have I gotten myself into?”

“What have I gotten myself into?” are my Six-Words for this week.

Why? Well, I’m always a bit nervous when I think a TV show “about nothing” has something to say about the text before us, but such is the case and so I begin to wonder, “What have I gotten myself into?”

Do you remember that Sienfeld episode when Elaine gave Tim Watley, DDS, a label maker? I believe her gift was called a Baby Label Junior (the official product name.) Later, Elaine discovers that Tim has passed the gift on – he is a re-gifter.

Now, I must admit that I have also re-gifted.

I know it is only truly acceptable if it is admitted up front, “Hey, someone gave me this – I can’t stand it and thought immediately of you…” Hence, the reason re-gifting isn’t admitted. Re-gifting is done because the gift isn’t what the original receiver wanted, needed, or liked…as Tim Watley later states, “IT was the worst gift I ever got.”

In his letter to the Philippians (read Chapter 2), Paul informs us what it is that we have received - A Savior and a Lord.

Paul says, “You shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life.” (Phil. 2:15b-16a)

As I was prepping for this message and began to look at the Greek translation of this verse, I found something that caused me to say, “What have I gotten myself into?” A better translation of this text is “You shine like stars as you hold fast to the word of life.”

Six-Words… You Shine as you HOLD FAST.

You don’t shine because of holding out the Word of Life. Mission work and response to the Gospel is the heart of the Christian life, yet it is NOT the reason we “shine.” You shine as you HOLD FAST the Word of life. That is faith talk. We “shine” because of what God has done for us in the Word made flesh.

This should be obvious and we should know this. Yet, “NOT exactly what I was planning” to talk about. “What have I gotten myself into?”

Now, if there was one someone who had the right to ask, “What have I gotten myself into?” it was Jesus! Jesus who is the eternal God that became man in Bethlehem. The Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, laying in a barnyard feedbox, surrounded by laborers rather than royalty, he could have said, “What have I gotten myself into?” Yet, no crying He made. When He was sleeping in a boat amidst a storm at sea and found that His followers had no confidence in His providence He didn’t say, “What have I gotten myself into to?” Instead he said, “Quite be still.” When His own creation condemned Him as worthy of death and a ruler of a principality sentenced the King of the Universe to be crucified he didn’t say, “What have I gotten myself into?” BUT… “You would have no power over me unless given from above.” When nailed to a cross, with a crowd mocking and taunting Him, He didn’t cry, “What have I gotten myself into?” but asked, “Father forgive them.” When laid in a tomb He could have questioned, “What have I gotten myself into?” Yet, He waited three days and then proclaimed, “Peace be with you!” Ascended to the Father’s right hand He could have queried, “What have I gotten myself into?” as He left the mission of heaven to the ministry of the church and the work of God into the hands of us. Rather He would say, “I will be with you and you will be my witnesses.” This is the best gift we have ever received. For in Him we have been declared the blameless, pure, and faultless children of God of whom Paul speaks in Philippians 2:14.

And re-gifting such a gift would be ludicrous, ridiculous, and inconceivable. After all, this is the best gift ever! We would be inclined to hold onto it, hold it fast, horde it, hid it, and keep it. The question is before us again, “What have I gotten myself into?”

Paul tells us to hold it fast – but he doesn’t say to horde it or keep it to oneself and he (Paul) couldn’t either. In his letter to the Corinthians Paul said, (I Cor. 9:16) “Woe to me if I do not preach CHRIST.” Woe to me if I don’t share, if I don’t tell, if I don’t HOLD OUT the Word of Life to others. He couldn’t hide it as one who held it fast he was compelled to hold it out and he wouldn’t encourage us to merely horde it – rather HOLD the Word FAST and HOLD the Word OUT.

Two Six-Word stories for us:
YOU SHINE as you HOLD FAST . . . (to the Word of life)
THEY SHINE as you HOLD OUT . . . (the Word of life)