Moving Day

It's good to be home, wherever that is at the moment...

On February 1st a mötley crew and I manned the cold and made my move happen. There photo is here on the right (with one of them taking the photo). A few days before the weather reports weren't too good, so I was going to play it by ear.

Before 3pm we got nearly all of my boxes and random pieces moved, then around 4 the well oiled machine came and got my furniture loaded and unloaded, unscratched, and during maybe the worst blizzard here this winter. Big thanks goes to the Cates for letting me use their conversion van and for driving their shipping trunk to make this move happen. And I'm glad they got back safe as well.

So by now Katie and I have found a place for our things and are settled in pretty nice. To catch some of you up, we'll be living here in Verona, WI for 6 months. That's longer than the last 3 places we've been (Lodi California, Arcadia Wisconsin, Madison Wisconsin). I'll be serving Resurrection Church here until the end of July, and then its off to Milwaukee again for one last year of seminary (and from there, who knows...).

All this makes me thinking I'm living in a much lazier and more orderly version of Abraham's journeys according to the words of Hebrews 11:8-10, "8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God."

Who killed Jesus?

This might be one of the most interesting acts of vandalism you've never seen. It's called the "Alexamenos graffito." I've attached here a slightly stylized outline. You can use Google image search to find different views. It dates approximately to the 2nd century A.D. and was found near the Circus Maximus in "downtown" Rome.

The text says in Greek, "Alexamenos worshipping a god." Now, we can't be certain what this meant precisely (can you with any graffiti today?), but it seems like Romans making fun of Christians for worshiping a crucified donkey. They associated donkeys with Middle-eastern peoples (the vast majority of early Christians) and associated crucified people with the worst of criminals. That made no sense to anyone.

It still doesn't make sense today that any god would do such a thing. This kind of self-less love doesn't make sense...

With this in mind, check out this story I saw on my Google Reader. I'm seen enough stories and comments like this, with this one being the latest:

http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/01/glenn-beck-the-jews-killed-jesus/69715/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+AtlanticNational+(National+:+The+Atlantic)&utm_content=Google+Reader

This is the comment I latched onto: "Just to be clear: It was the Romans. If we could just get that straight, it would be really fantastic for everyone involved."

This is what I posted on my Google Reader:

Just to be clear: It was us...we are all responsible for Jesus' death...my sins, the Romans' sins, the Jews' sins, your sins put Jesus on the cross. There's no blame shifting to be done here.

"To be sure, HE carried OUR sicknesses. HE carried OUR pains. YET we considered HIM to be beaten, struck down by God, and humiliated. But it was HE who was pierced BECAUSE OF OUR rebellious acts, crushed BECAUSE OF OUR punishable and guilt-bearing acts. The punishment that makes us complete was laid on him. And through his wounds we are healed! ALL OF US like sheep have wandered. EACH ONE OF US has turned to their own way. But Yahweh has let him be hurt for the punishable and guilt-bearing acts of us ALL. (Isaiah 53:4-6) [my rendering]

Because Jesus himself bore the guilt that all my evil thoughts, words, and acts bring and was punished for all of them, I'm healed because God has dealt with evil and death once and for all! I'm made whole and have peace through trusting and following Jesus.

We don't want just Romans or Jews having all this, do we?

The crucifixion of Jesus is the pivotal moment in history where God's abounding love and his perfect justice collide and provide for you and me a solution to the problem of evil and death that only God could think of. Centuries of prophecy and God working in history to form his kingdom and restore his creation through Israel find fulfillment on the cross and in the empty tomb (and the entire life of Jesus, but that could be another post...). On the cross God condemned evil and death by punishing Jesus, the God-Man in your place. Since evil and death are now condemned, we are set free, released, forgiven to live new holy lives since nothing is holding us back. The chosen anointed one, the Christ, the Messiah, accomplished his mission to save.

And Jesus promised to come again and raise to never-ending life those who trust and follow him, just like Jesus' Father did for him. And Jesus has given us his Word in the Bible, his Spirit and seal in Baptism, and his body and blood in the Lord's Supper to kindle this trust in our dead and evil selves.

Ok, I'm done. Just remember this when anyone talks about who killed Jesus. And while you're at it, remember this always! It's the good news in the smallest "nutshell" I can put it in! It's the "Gospel."

Have an Enlightening Epiphany!

Even many Christian Americans might not realize it, but today is Epiphany! It's the celebration that seems to get the shaft in American Christianity, at least. The "12 Days of Christmas" isn't just a random song, the "days" are talking about the 12 days after Christmas that lead up to January 5th, Epiphany (if you're Latino, it's probably the day you give people gifts on). It commemorates the day when Magi came from the East to worship Jesus who was born as king of the Jews (Matthew 2). Then it kicks off the next Sunday with Jesus' baptism (when Jesus began his public ministry), and will end when Jesus shows his glorious light for a moment to his disciples on what's been called his "Transfiguration." It's the time when Jesus slowly but wisely and carefully revealed himself to be God's Messiah, redefining what "Messiah" and "the Kingdom of God" was always supposed to mean, which included a kingdom for all people. I attached a picture of an Orthodox icon.

The Magi, being Gentiles, that is, not of an Israelite ethnic background, followed some type of celestial body which led them to Jesus. Epiphany also became a season in the traditional church year which varies in length since the date of Easter determines its end (which is based on a lunar, not a solar calendar, so it "changes"). The Greek word means "appearance." Because of the event it celebrates, the two big themes are light and the inclusion of Gentiles into God's kingdom in a new way (Jesus being God's light for ALL people), which is what Israel's purpose was to be since the beginning. But I won't get into that right now.

It's such a neat holiday and church season, with so many very visual events like the Magi coming, Jesus' baptism, his healing and teaching ministry, his transfiguration, that I'm confused as to why it doesn't have a fitting visual custom or more traditions associated with it. I decided to make up my own greeting of "Have an Enlightening Epiphany" for this reason. Maybe it does have a lot more cool things associated with it, but Lutherans (the church I'm a part of) or whatever just don't do much. I don't know. What I mean is Advent has the wreath and candles, Christmas has the tree, Lent the Ash Wednesday and typically giving up something, etc. Or when have you heard an inspiring "Epiphany" song? Let me know if you have ideas! Planting a tree after taking down your Christmas tree? I don't know. Key words of Epiphany are: light, growth, green (the traditional color), and water.

For me it marks also the return to normalcy now that Christmas and New Years and traveling is over. I'm getting back into the routine of things, as I know most are as well.

Oh, and a big O H I O for the Buckeyes winning a great game in the Sugar Bowl! Big Ten football in general didn't fare well this bowl season, pretty lousy actually, so it's good to know we won a prominent one against the SEC...It seems no matter where I am, when I garb up and put a buckeye-necklace on and go watch a game, I get to meet a lot of Ohioans and fans with interesting stories to tell. Katie and I went to a bar here in Madison and met several fans. It was a fun time, even besides the game.

Christmas Break

Katie and I had a great vacation in Ohio, seeing friends and family. We've finally mastered the technique of making the 11 hour or so drive in a way where we don't ruin our sleeping schedule. Basically we leave in the evening, drive through the night while eating minimal food and probably stopping once or twice at a rest stop for a quick power nap. And man, Tobi is the greatest dog for driving. He doesn't make a sound (and no he isn't dead when he doesn't).

Columbus is always new and growing every time I come back. The weather was nice, sunny, and temperate compared to the cold Wisconsin winter, age old friends are getting married or moving on with their studies and careers, my family and house is relaxing with a very homey feeling, New China is still amazing. Life is good.

I know I still haven't gotten my mind fully out of the holiday mood yet. Hopefully this week I can make the transition seeing as things are going to start picking up with sermons, Bible studies, catechisms, visits, etc., not to mention my own private research and weird projects I do.

On the way back I decided I'd do something a little interesting for this blog. I decided I'd make a short "You know you're from Ohio when" list. Maybe later I'll do a Columbus or even Westerville one...we'll see...I know for some it'll be spot on, whereas others will disagree, but that's just how things are when you make statements in general. The list won't be in any specific order and it'll just speak of my personal experience. Here it goes! I'm open to any additions.

You know you're from Ohio when...

you have trouble identifying with any specific region of the country (Eastern, Southern, Midwestern, etc.).

you sort of chuckle when anyone talks about great amusement parks or roller coasters they like when you're used to not only Cedar Point, but also Kings Island.

you hear Miami and Cuban fiestas don't come to mind, but a university in a town called Oxford which isn't in England.

you find more northern states too cold in the winter and more southern states too hot in the summer.

you actually know what a Buckeye is.

you know that for better or for worse, when you yell out O-H on the street, someone will yell back I-O.

you think Tim Horton's is local (see earlier blog post).

Bob Evans seems to take the place of McDonald's on interstate exits.

you think it's odd to have to drive more than a few hours to hit several major sports venues, concert venues, or vacation spots.

you'd at least at times prefer Lake Erie to an ocean beach because you can't stand that nasty salt water feel it gives.

you feel jipped if you order something from a 99¢ from a fast food value menu and don't get a penny back (Ohio doesn't tax take out foods).

The Winter Malaise

First of all, I want to apologize for not posting for almost three weeks. Winter came, and by winter I mean the time you get in Wisconsin when it's cold day and night with snow permanently on the ground.

The photo here is from the morning that we had church cancelled because of a snow storm. Doesn't the sepia filter give that great old-timely look? Thanks Katie.

My typical pattern has been getting out of whack lately with the extra driving time because of snow and ice on the roads, shoveling the driveway, bundling up, warming up the car, etc. then the fun but time consuming Christmas present buying (sometimes fun...), special Advent services, Christmas services and invites, travel plans, etc.

What's surprising is that beyond the obvious benefits of my Bible reading plan (Immersio), it's given much needed structure and consistency to my days. It's something to look forward to and challenge me every day.

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas on the Eve of Christmas Eve, as Katie reminded me this morning. At Resurrection, the church I'm serving at this school year, we've had a well-received Advent series I had the opportunity to think up and design on the "Songs of Advent." We had 3 special services on 3 of the 4 songs Luke gives us in the beginning of his Gospel (a book about the good news of Jesus) concerning the events surrounding Jesus' birth. They are the the following:

The Song of Zechariah (Benedictus), where Zechariah, a Levite priest, who had the once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform the temple ritual for the Day of Atonement (יום כפור), was told his son would be the promised Elijah, the forerunner who'd prepare God's people for the Messiah's birth.

The song of Mary (Magnificat), where Mary was told she'd give birth to the promised Messiah, who would be Yahweh himself in the flesh, given the name Jesus, which means Savior.

The song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis), which a pious man named Simeon sang when he held the infant Jesus in his arms at the Jerusalem temple during the time when Jesus was being circumcised and redeemed (see Leviticus 12 and Exodus 13:2 for the background on the ritual. The Redeemer himself was redeemed! Neat idea...). Simeon was told he'd see the Savior, the redemption of Israel, before he died. Thought-provoking moments in history and solemn events to be sure which have inspired many hymns and artwork.

You might be thinking, what about the 4th? Well, that's the angels' song to the Bethlehem shepherds who were told to go and see this child born in Bethlehem who was the Savior, the Messiah, Yahweh (the Lord) in the flesh!

Christmas Day I'll have the chance to talk about John 1:14a "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us." No more than 10 words, but more than enough substance for an eternity of meditation! We just got our microphone's working again for recording better, so you should be able to read and/or see and/or listen to the sermons on the Resurrection's website, http://www.rlcverona.org/site/cpage.asp?cpage_id=180020015&sec_id=180007160

So have this encouragement during the cold, dark days that lie ahead of many of us (those in the southern hemisphere or better climates, instead just imagine how it is for us in the upper Midwest):

God fulfilled his promise to send a rescuer from the problem of evil and death which have infected his good creation when the Word, Jesus, became flesh and lived among us. Through trusting and following Jesus (in order words, through faith in him) we join the winning team in the struggle between life and death, light and darkness, truth and deceit, so that his victory becomes your victory since he lived as your Savior, died as your substitute, and rose as your conquering Lord!

It's appropriate to use the verse that inspired the name of Resurrection Lutheran here:

John 11:25 "Jesus told her, 'It is I who am the resurrection and the life. Whoever trusts me, even though he dies, will live.'" (my translation). Jesus says, "I, not others, are this," thus evoking as well the name "I am" that Yahweh gave to Moses (Exodus 3:14) for the sons of Israel when he was told to redeem them from physical slavery (which Paul uses as an image for the slavery of sin).

Trusting, by its very nature and definition, leads to following. There are many paths to follow in this life, but they all lead to death in the end, except one! Following Jesus leads us on the path to eternal life because he's promised to come again, this time in glory, to renew creation and form the "new heaven and new earth," and give those who follow him glorified bodies in which to inhabit this new world.

Enough said for now. Is it obvious I'm about to practice delivering my sermons?

Bible Reading Plan

I've now completed week 1 of my (in my humble opinion) groundbreaking and original Bible reading plan. Basically, this one follows the church year, reads the Pentateuch, Gospels, Acts, Psalms, every year, and the rest every 3 years, including time for reading the Lutheran Confessions. I have a detailed explanation on Resurrection's website (the church I'm serving at as a student pastor for this school year).

http://www.rlcverona.org/site/bibdisplay.asp?study_id=180003697&sec_id=180007160

It's going fantastic so far. Manageable, a good variety, interesting.

In a purposely overly-simplistic way for the sake of expressing it in this blog post, if I can comfortably read though these books, then I'll have the essential base for understanding all of biblical studies, which involves in-depth knowledge of literature, history, and philosophy/theology.

These are the four books:

1) Greek and Hebrew Bible (or if you prefer, Biblia Sacra Utriusque Testamenti Editio Hebraica et Graeca). It's a single volume which contains the 27th Nestle-Aland Greek Bible and the 4th edition BHS Hebrew Bible. It doesn't get more hardcore than this. I even got a leather-cover custom made for this baby.

2) The Rahlfs-Hanhart Septuagint, 2nd edition. The Septuagint is a hard to define term, but basically it can refer to the Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible. Now, I know this isn't the critical apparatus isn't much by any means compared to Göttingen Septuagint, but my interest for the present isn't the implications or interpretations of all the Greek variants, but instead comprehending and immersing myself in the language of the Koine Septuagint itself so I can better understand the "Intertestamental Time" and the language of the Greek Bible.

3) The Lutheran Study Bible. For more in depth information, go here http://www.cph.org/t-tlsb.aspx. This is an exceptional study Bible which has excellent scholarship behind it, and it's uniquely devotional and meditational with Law and Gospel applications (including Luther's Small Catechism!), which is befitting anything Lutheran as opposed to a standard Evangelical study Bible focused more on apologetics or a certain theme.

4) The Book of Concord. This is the least important of the three, but good for understanding one aspect of Church History in a cursory way, and good for seeing how pious laymen and theologians down the ages who knew their Bibles have expressed their belief in the Word they were willing to die for (and many did). This edition has great footnotes and introductions. Perhaps next year I'll get to reading just one of the Latin and German editions I own (forget the Triglotta with the English besides! :) ). For more info on these epic statements of faith, see http://www.cph.org/t-topic-concordia-faq.aspx

So since high-school I've been reading through the Bible every year in one form or another. This is my first time mixing it up a bit more. Feel free to contact me for advice on a plan that'd fit you. I've tried many and have a lot of creative ideas for other plans as well.

I can't overstate how it's changed my life to read the Bible regularly and annually. There are tons of different types of reading plans. So if you have interest, check one out and go for it. New Years is a good time to start! If you want a boost, here's a few sites with some plans.

http://www.youversion.com/about/reading-plans

http://www.navpress.com/dj/content.aspx?id=138

Hosting Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving. The American fall-harvest festival. Back in the pilgrim days I assume the main purpose was to give thanks to the fact you might survive the harsh winter months. Today, of course, it's developed into a day to remember what you're thankful for.

I'm thankful that Katie and I got to host Thanksgiving for the first time (and probably last in a while). For those of you who don't know, members at my church are letting Katie and I rent out their old house that they were trying to sell. So we got room! And despite the chaos of taking care of someone's dog during this, buying and preparing food, entertaining four young Nephews, etc. I'd say it was a success. Family and food was prevalent.

The following might be considered too "preachy" and/or "churchy" in a bad way. If so, I'm sorry you've had bad experiences or something like that. I haven't had those bad ones, so to me it's awesome. Now, there are lots of things I could list to be thankful for (for some reason that one dinner scene in The Punisher comes to mind...), but above all I want to thank Jesus after reading the text of our Thanksgiving Eve Service, Luke 17:11-19. I want to thank Jesus for his pity, and for my faith. Jesus' pity on me and the faith/trust his Spirit has worked in me through his Word (the Bible) and Sacraments (I'm talking about Baptism and the Lord's Supper) had nothing to do with any good work I did or good decision I could've made, but everything to do with his grace, that is, his undeserved love in choosing me. Like the leprous Samaritan, I was born in this world as foreign to God and infected with the leprosy of sin. Every day by nature I waste away due to the wages of sin, which is death. But Jesus had pity on me by living the life God demands and dying the death my sins deserve IN MY PLACE, and rising to the life I, too, will live. Jesus' pity on me is what motivates me in turn to reach out to others and be simply a Christian, that is, someone who bears the image of Christ IN this world and FOR this world.

Paul states it so succinctly when talking to fellow sinner-saints in Ephesus about what it means to be made alive in Christ when he says, "It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

And my faith has kept me from screwing up my life on many an occasion. It has held my family together and it seals my marriage. My faith, given to me by Jesus, is what enables me to understand the true depth of Jesus' mercy (thinking primarily of the Hebrew חסד), of being the "snake-crusher" promised to Adam, the "seed" promised to Abraham, the "fulfillment" of the Torah given to Moses, the wisdom or word made flesh who tented among us, the true Israel for the world that no one could ever be, the Messiah, Savior, Son of Man, Redeemer, the perfect prophet, priest, and king. And through my faith I receive those benefits now, and will receive the benefits of a "not guilty" verdict on the Last Day (or as Old German Lutherans called it, the "youngest day" [der jünste Tag] looking forward to the beginning of a new heavens and new earth) when the Son of Man comes again in glory to take me to rule with him. So thank you Jesus.

One more thing, I had someone at church ask me an interesting question after our Thanksgiving Eve Service. "Does thanks have to have an object?" In other words, can I "be thankful" without anyone or anything in particular to be thankful to? He was thinking of how the Greek word "πιστις" normally translated 'trust" or "faith," inherently has an object, that is, something or someone that you trust/have faith in/regard as dependable. My knee-jerk answer was yes. What do you think?