Wait on the Lord

Dear Weekly Readers!

God has granted us with another week according to His Great Grace!  

Is it not amazing that with as complex of a world we live in, as delicate our ecosystem is, how tiny according to the scope of the entire universe our world is, that He has safely led us through another week?  Dear readers, God cares about you!

God knows our troubles and problems.  God knows what we have gone through in the last week, and what is ahead!  Let us trust in Him for everything!

Last week we began speaking about Isaiah chapter 40.  I would like to continue in that same chapter this week.  We will pick up in Verse 4:  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain.  How has your life been?  Has it been perfect, without pain or suffering?  Do you sometimes feel very low, in a valley?  As though life seems to be very dark, full of worry and yes even doubt?  Does it seem like the path forward is just too hard?  

Let us remember what is stated in Psalm 23.  It says:  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.  Notice it says "through the valley of the shadow of death".  That means through, not just up to the valley.  You see, God will not leave us comfortless; He will lead us through the hard times, even when we lose loved ones, or we fear for our very own life.  He will lead us through!

David wrote this from experience.  He had many trials in his life.  Do you remember the Lion and the Bear?  How about Goliath?   God won these battles for David, just like He can and will win our battles if we turn everything over into His care and keeping!  We need not fear evil.  Jesus conquered death, hell, and the power of the devil when He died on the cross for our sin, and arose victorious!  The Lord Jesus is our mighty conqueror!  He HAS won!  Believe it!!

We also see in this verse 4 in our text that "the mountains and hills shall be made low"! This is very important to remember! Let us not begin to get proud and mighty in our own strength and abilities. We have absolutely no strength except that which is given of God. We have none! He has it all. Let us be humble and not proud!

Proverbs 16:5 Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.

Our life here on earth is so very short. Verse 6:  All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field…  Verse 8:  The grass withereth, the flower fadeth, but the word of our God shall stand forever!  We see how short we live!  Even the oldest and the greatest of all men are here on earth for only a very short time.  Like a wave of the hand!  Like grass, here, then gone!  But God’s Word shall stand forever!

Are we standing on the firm foundation of God’s Word today?  Do we believe in His promises for us?  Do we know and believe by faith that the blood of Jesus washes our sins away so that we are pure white and perfect in His sight?  Believe this, dear reader!  God’s Word says it is true!

When we believe in the Power of His Name and Blood, and are resting in the assurance of our salvation by the power of the Holy Spirit given to us by victorious, risen, and living Lord Jesus Christ, we have the victory!  The victory that has been won is ours!  May God be praised!

Let us wait on the Lord!  We read in our chapter 40 the last verse:  But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint!  Let us wait on the Lord for He shall give us strength!  Wait on the Lord.  The last shall be first!  Let us soar in joy, liberty and peace, knowing that Jesus has won the victory for us!  Be renewed today in your strength in the Lord Jesus!  He has made us more than conquerors!

Rejoice, and again I say, Rejoice! 

May God Bless your week!  John R.

Words of Comfort

Dear Weekly Readers!  

May  we know today the Power of God in each of our lives!

Today I would like to draw your attention  to a couple verses  found in the Book of Isaiah and in the 40^th chapter.

Comfort ye, Comfort ye my people, saith your God.

The 40^th chapter is as it were the beginning of the Gospel story as written by Isaiah.   This wonderful book has 66 chapters, which is the same as the Bible.   There are 39 chapters before it, the same as the Old Testament, and  then 27 chapters after, including this chapter.  It is amazing how God has allowed this to be such a great picture to us, even showing us in this one book of Isaiah a glimpse of His complete Salvation story for us!

Comfort ye...

These words were written not only for God’s people of that day who Isaiah was surely addressing, but I believe a very much broader audience was intended, including each of us today.  Do you ever feel you need words of comfort? I know I do!  Are you ever worried about the future, wondering how there will be enough money to pay the bills or enough food to feed the family?  Do you have sickness in your family or children not believing in Jesus Christ as their Saviour?  Do you have neighbors and friends you love who are backsliding, or refusing God’s free gift of salvation?  The Word of God says be Comforted!  As Christians we have no need to be worried!  Apostle Paul said:  We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; (2 Corinth. 4:8)

Who then should be comforted?  My People!  God calls His believers My People!  There is no getting around the fact that a true meaningful comfort is only available to those who are the ones believing by faith.  How amazing it is to be called by God, MY PEOPLE!  O what joy this should instill in our hearts!  God knows us, we are His!  We are a child of THE KING!  The one who made the entire universe and all that is in it!  We are HIS!  It says in 1 Peter 1:5 that believers are those:  Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. There is no other power by which I want to be kept than by the Power of God!

Let us now look at who are the ones God calls MY People, the ones to be comforted!  The very next verse, Isaiah 40:2 says: Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.  These are the ones to be comforted, those who believe in the power of the cross of Jesus Christ! 1 Corinthians 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

It is so very clear that Isaiah is here talking about the Saviour, our Lord Jesus, who paid the price so that we can be saved.  We also know that God created all peoples, and that Jesus came to die for all peoples, but some people have not turned to Him in repentance unto faith.  In the first chapter of Isaiah it says this: ¹⁸ Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.¹⁹ If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:²⁰ But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

Let us not be ones that refuse to be Comforted!  Also, let us not be ones that look for comfort in any other place than Jesus.  Let me give you a brief natural example of comforting words that do not work.  Let us say that a man owes the bank much money on his home.  The man gets hurt and cannot work, so he is many months behind on payments.  If we go to this man and say, be comforted, and tell him all will be fine, will he be comforted?  No, he will not be since we do not have the power to release him of that bill, only the banker does.  However, if the banker came and pardoned the debt, this man would surely be very comforted and  joyful!

Let us know and understand who is the one that has pardoned our sins!  Let us be comforted in the proper way, by the power of the Name and Blood of Jesus!  If we do not believe that our sins are washed away in the blood of the Lamb and that we are made white as snow, Lord, give us the strength to repent and believe in this Saviour and in all the redemptive work that He has done for each of us.  It says in Revelation 7:14:  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

It was for me He died!  For me!  O that each could believe this by faith, and be open and available to be truly comforted!  Lord allow us to believe Thy Holy Word and in Thy Son Jesus Christ for our salvation.

2 Timothy 1:8:  Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God...

Today is the day of Grace!  Today is the acceptable day!  Come and Dine on the feast Jesus has prepared for His own!

Our space is filled up for this week, but if the Lord wills, I would love to share more from this wonderful chapter in a future week.

May God Bless your week!   John R.

Why Does Our Church Baptize Babies?

Dear Weekly Readers!

May the Grace, Mercy, and Peace of God our Father, and our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ be with you today and always!  May God grant even those reading that are not yet believers the Grace to repent (change direction from one’s own ways to the Way, the Truth, and the Life, Jesus Christ) and to believe by faith that through the Powerful Name of Jesus and by the Power of His Blood, Sins are Forgiven!

O what joy is available for those that are able to hear!  We know as it says in 1 Peter 5:7,   "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you."  We can rest in this assurance. He cares.
Today I thought I would share with you a very brief article written by one of our board members. The topic is very fitting when we speak of Faith, and Repentance. The topic is Baptism.

We know and understand that this Sacrament of God has very deep spiritual and wondrous powers that our carnal minds cannot understand. It has a power that mere words cannot even express. We are so thankful that our God is so mighty and powerful that He can work in powerful ways through this Sacrament that we cannot understand with our carnal minds. Baptism is surely a big topic, but this short article and the links provided will give a glimpse into it. Baptism is surely a blessing and we are so thankful for it.

Have a blessed week!  John

Why Does Our Church Baptize Babies?

This is a very good question and worthy of a sound, biblical response. May God help me as I endeavor to respond to this question with as much clarity as I can.

Why do we baptize?

The Lord Jesus gave this instruction to His disciples, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" (Matthew 28:19-20). We baptize out of obedience to this command/instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Who is baptism for?

Our Lord Jesus taught His disciples the following: "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned" (Mark 16:15-16). Notice in this text that believing is the essential item for salvation (and not water baptism). We thus conclude that baptism is for the believer.

Do little children believe?

Jesus again taught His disciples: "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven… And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me…" (Matthew 18:3, 5-6). Jesus here gave the testimony that little children do believe in Him.

Therefore, in summary, we baptize in obedience to the Lord's command; we baptize those who believe, according to the Lord's instruction, and children do believe, according to the Lord's teaching.

So, we baptize all who believe, young and old alike. Some have reasoned in their minds that, because babies cannot understand this water baptism, they should wait until they are old enough to fully comprehend with their own minds. I understand that logic, but the Word teaches us: "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness…" (Romans 10:10).

Faith is a God-given substance, not something that we develop by our own human intellect. God has given faith to children as well as adults. Faith is not a matter of the carnal mind. The Apostle Paul teaches us that "the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you…" (Romans 8:7-9).

The Apostle John has written in his first epistle: "I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake" (1 John 2:12). And in verse 13 of that second chapter "…I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father."

The Lord has clearly accepted little children into the household of faith, and so do we! Therefore, we baptize them, not to become God's children, but because they are God's children. In the time of Jesus, even the disciples had similar reasoning as some today. "And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer (allow) little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God" (Luke 18:15-16).

Remember, also, that God commanded Abraham to circumcise baby boys at eight days old as a token of His covenant.

For further information on this subject, see the Principles of the Doctrine of Christ as taught in the Apostolic Lutheran Church of America, pages 15-17, or online at apostoliclutheran.org/doctrine.php.

Sincerely and in the spirit of prayer,  Pastor Scott Niemitalo

Dear Weekly Readers!

May the Peace of God be with you throughout the week. 
I ask for your prayers as next week our Foreign Mission board meets for our annual planning meeting.  We surely desire to do the will of God, so please pray to this effect.  We know that we are working in the Lord’s Vineyard, and only those things that He does through His Holy Spirit through each of us will be worthy. 
This week’s article is by Charles Spurgeon.  I may have written about this same verse some months ago, but since there is such a deep meaning I believe in this scripture, I am glad to share another revelation on this!

May God Bless your week!


 

"Behold, if the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall pronounce him clean that hath the plague." Leviticus 13:13

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Strange enough this regulation appears, yet there was wisdom in it, for the throwing out of the disease proved that the constitution was sound. This evening it may be well for us to see the typical teaching of so singular a rule. We, too, are lepers, and may read the law of the leper as applicable to ourselves.

When a man sees himself to be altogether lost and ruined, covered all over with the defilement of sin, and in no part free from pollution; when he disclaims all righteousness of his own, and pleads guilty before the Lord, then he is clean through the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God. Hidden, unfelt, unconfessed iniquity is the true leprosy; but when sin is seen and felt, it has received its deathblow, and the Lord looks with eyes of mercy upon the soul afflicted with it. Nothing is more deadly than self-righteousness, or more hopeful than contrition.

We must confess that we are "nothing else but sin," for no confession short of this will be the whole truth; and if the Holy Spirit be at work with us, convincing us of sin, there will be no difficulty about making such an acknowledgmentit will spring spontaneously from our lips. What comfort does the text afford to truly awakened sinners: the very circumstance which so grievously discouraged them is here turned into a sign and symptom of a hopeful state! Stripping comes before clothing; digging out the foundation is the first thing in buildingand a thorough sense of sin is one of the earliest works of grace in the heart. O thou poor leprous sinner, utterly destitute of a sound spot, take heart from the text, and come as thou art to Jesus

"For let our debts be what they may, however great or small, As soon as we have nought to pay, our Lord forgives us all. 'Tis perfect poverty alone that sets the soul at large: While we can call one mite our own, we have no full discharge."

Charles Spurgeon