GOD IS PLEASED WITH MEN
The earliest version of
this sermon was preached in 1979 at my vicarage church in Lincoln Park , Michigan
Let
us consider again the message from the angels to the shepherds. If you were one of them you would surely never have
forgotten. You would have heard a message that would have been seared onto your
memory forever. Because the grand proclamation made to those Judean shepherds
was made by a multitude of angels. What sort of message could require all those
angels? If on this one occasion, God sends not one, not two or three, but a multitude
of angels, He must have something of utmost importance to say. In fact, it
must be the most important thing He ever said to men, because nothing else ever
required the presence of so many angels. What was the message of the unanimous
and glorious chorus of heavenly messengers? Glory to God in the highest, and
on earth peace, good will toward men; or, to put it another way: Glory
to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men, with whom He is pleased. The
message from that multitude of the heavenly host of angels was clear and
simple: There is peace on earth, dear shepherds, because God is pleased with
men.
For
thousands of years after this grand
proclamation, men would go on supposing that peace on earth is something
accomplished by the ending of all global conflict, when at last all weapons are
laid down. If only they had heard and understood the message of the angels,
they would have known that peace on earth has already been accomplished. It
isn’t something to be hoped for, it is something that is. For the
message of the angels was clear: God is pleased with men.
But
at this point the objections of reason
will sound forth at once. This can’t be right. Some men are wicked, heinous,
tyrannical, cruel. Some are murderers, thieves, adulterers. How can anyone say
that God is pleased with men, or that there is peace on earth? There must be
some mistake. But even
if one considers the absurd impossibility of an angel being mistaken, the
message didn’t come from just one angel; it came from a multitude of angels.
Could a whole countryside full of angels all bellowing out one unanimous
message be mistaken? Listen to the angels, o shepherd in the field: God is
pleased with men.
But
Satan must also raise an objection to
this: How can this be? I have done my work well, I have caused many to fall
deeply into sin, I have made them all sons of hell; I have filled them with all
manner of wickedness, so that their thoughts are only evil continually. I have
trapped them in pride and self-worship; I have made them sell me their souls.
This message can’t be right! It’s far off the mark! It’s foolishness! Don't
listen to it! It must have come from the mouth of a lunatic!
But
it didn’t. It came from the mouths of angels.
And
thank God for those angels. For if
there are some men with whom God is not please, then surely we are among them!
And if you were one of those shepherds, you might easily find yourself
wondering—in fact you might be wondering right now—whether these objections may
have a point. What about me? I am not worthy of God’s good pleasure, am I?
Conscience pricks, and I know I have sinned. I know I am guilty, foul, and
unclean. A thousand years of tears would not suffice for once worthily
lamenting my wretchedness. How much more am I poor wretched man, who daily sin,
continue without amendment, and approach God in sin. And the truth is that if
God is not pleased with all men, he could never be pleased with me!
O
thank God for those angels! And
thank God for all the lights and tinsel of Christmas, and all the carols and
cheer, and all the bells which ring out the news which every sinner needs so
badly to hear: Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!
Here we see the reason there is peace on earth, and why God is pleased with
men. It isn’t because of what kind of men they are that God is pleased. In
fact, it has nothing at all to do with the
nature of man. The reason is this: to you is born this day in the city of David
Those
Bethlehem
+ Pastor Eckardt
'Tis
the nights before Christmas, in Kewanee town
Soon
the fam’ will be stirring, with nary a frown;
The
gifts will be opened in most of a day,
Though
longer, perhaps, and the reason I’ll say:
Where
once there were children all snug in their beds;
Their
children have children: we count thirteen heads;
And
mamma wears no 'kerchief, nor I any cap,
We
can’t get to bed, there’s a dog in our lap.
Where
out on the lawn there was once such a clatter,
Of
sons throwing footballs, or pitcher and batter,
Away
they all live, but come home in a flash,
At
this time of year for a great Christmas bash.
The
lights on the tree and the wrappings below
Give
a luster of warmth to the people who’ve grown.
More
rapid than eagles my coursers they came,
Always
happy they’re here, I can call them by name:
"Now,
Burnie, Amanda! (with Bevy and Millie!)
Now
Andy and Kristy! (with Sarah and David!)
And
Pete! John, Alissa! and Joey and Michael!
Now
dash back home! dash back home! dash back home all!"
Their eyes—how they twinkle! Their dimples, how
merry!
Their
cheeks are like roses, their noses like cherries!
They
sing when at church of the Word become flesh
And
at home they’ll all smile in the glow of the crèche.
While
giving their presents, their joy will increase
In
Him who is heaven’s great Gift, heaven’s Peace.
Then
spring to their cars, to their kin give a whistle,
And
away they’ll all fly like the down of a thistle.
But
they’ll hear me exclaim, ere they drive out of sight—
“Happy Christmas to all,
and to all a good night!”
God
rest ye merry, this Christmas 2014 and always – the Eckardt family
We
welcome Millie (born in August) and congratulate Peter, M.Div. (graduated in
May, now grad student) and Alissa, R.N. (graduated in December)!
Epiphany Vespers Day and Time Changed; Retreat the Next
Day
For the first time, our annual winter Vespers is scheduled for a Monday night,
January 5th, 2015, and at the new and earlier time of 5 pm.
This is the Eve of Epiphany. The move is offered in hopes of attracting more
attention to the event.
It will be followed by our traditional wine-and-cheese
reception, another annual tradition.
Then on Tuesday, January 6th (Epiphany Day) we’ll have a Day
of Theological Reflection, beginning with Epiphany Mass at 9:00 a.m. This will be our sixteenth retreat in the
Theological Reflection series, and is entitled,
“THE IMAGE OF GOD IN MAN, IN
CHRIST, IN THE LITURGY”
We have been considering this to some extent already in the
Sunday classes this fall; at this retreat, a more in-depth study will take us
into a careful consideration of this concept, its Christological meaning, and
its restoration in us. This retreat on Tuesday, January 6th, will
focus not only on the creation account, but on several passages throughout the
Scriptures that deal with the image of God.
January Birthdays
1/1 Chris Erickson
1/4 Lucille Kemerling
1/13 James Hornback
January
Ushers
Steve Peart, Grant Andresen, Larry Campbell
Shut-ins
Mary Hamilton at
home; Ann Baker (temporarily at Peggy Young’s, 116 S. Vine Street); Dale Baker
(temporarily at St. Luke’s hospital, soon to be convalescing at home); Emmy
Wear at Williamsfield Retirement Center
January
Anniversaries None
Annual
Voters’ Meeting
Our Annual Voters’ Meeting is scheduled for Sunday, January 4th, at 10:00
a.m. (in the time slot normally reserved for Bible Class).
2015
Envelopes
The offering envelopes have been
in your mailboxes for several days.
Altar
Guild Notes
Altar color is white for the entire month of January. Epiphany Day mass will be held on Tuesday,
January 6th, at 9 a.m. (followed by a Day of Theological
Reflection).
Our next meeting is Tuesday, January 13th (second Tuesday this month)
First
Tuesday meetings and Vespers on Second Tuesday
this month
Our First Tuesday meetings are moved to Tuesday, January 13th,
beginning with Altar Guild at 6 pm, Vespers at 6:45, and Elders at 7:15. Anyone is welcome to join us for vespers.
This change in schedule is due to the day of reflection scheduled for Epiphany
Day, January 6th.
Alms for the Needy
Please remember those less fortunate during this
season. The alms box is in the back of
the church, and the offerings will be distributed during the holidays.
The
Lighter Side
A lady was picking through the frozen turkeys at the grocery store, but couldn't find one big enough for her family. She asked a stock boy, "Do these turkeys get any bigger?" The stock boy replied, "No ma'am, they're dead."
In Our Prayers
In
addition to our shut-ins, our current list of prayer intentions at mass
includes the names on the lists here following.
Anyone wishing to update the lest by addition or subtraction, please
inform the pastor.
Sick or infirm:
in our parish:
Jean Russell, Emilie Ricknell, Linda
Rowe, John Sovanski
Ann Baker, Dale Baker
And all of our shut-ins.
And also:
Anna Rutowicz [re Harrises]
Julie Ross [Svetlana Meaker’s daughter, cancer]
Caleb Cleaver [re Ricknells]
Madison Lindsay [re Andersons
Jill Matchett [re Shrecks]
Barb Fornoff [re Russells]
Lorene Foglesong [re Kraklows]
Corbin Gonzales [re Russells]
David Wexell [re Verplaetses]
Cathy Van Wassenhove [re Verplaetses]
Carl Hepner [re Kraklow]
Duane Kraklow [brother of Allan]
Emily Corzine
Shelly DeBord [re Watsons]
Lois Hopkins [re Kemerlings]
Liam Hampton [re Murphys]
Anthony Strand [re Murphys]
Troy Kelly [re Murphys]
Cindy Davenport [re Kemerlings]
Louis Shreck [father-in-law of Diana]
Pastors Don Chambers [Manito]
Glenn Niemann [Pekin
In the military:
John Eckardt
Donny Appleman [re Ricknell]
Thomas Kim [re Shreck]
Michael and Katherine Creech [re Murphy]
Richard Heiden [re Eckardt]
Carter Wills
Luke Van Landigan [grandson of Dick Melchin]
in trouble:
any unborn children in danger
of abortion
Those suffering persecution
in Iraq , Iran , Sudan ,
Nigeria , North Korea
Persecution details (from The New York Post, Dec. 12, 2014)
Four Christian children were beheaded by ISIS militants
in Iraq for refusing to
denounce Jesus and convert to Islam, according to the leader of the Anglican
church in Baghdad Iraq in October for Israel ISIS
turned up and said to the children, ‘You say the words that you will follow
Mohammed,’ ” White said in video posted on
the Christian Broadcasting Network website. “The children, all under 15, four
of them, they said, ‘No, we love Yeshua [Jesus], we have always loved Yeshua.’ “They
chopped all their heads off. How do you respond to that? You just cry.”
Remaining persecution
details are from www.persecution.net:
IRAN
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Afshin was the prime
example of a devoted militant Muslim. As a member of a volunteer paramilitary
group, he and his companions would strictly enforce Muslim law, often resorting
to inhumane methods that involved the arrest and ill-treatment of innocent Christians.
Afshin was taught to be callous towards the regime's harsh political actions
and participated in six executions, heartlessly mocking the helpless victims. Iran
Pabel, a 33-year-old evangelist of the Colombia Para Cristo ministry, had
mysteriously disappeared last month. In late November of 2014, eight days after
his disappearance, Pabel's body was located in the mountains of the Paez Indian
Territory. The two murderers responsible for committing this crime have
confessed and are now in Indian custody.
Although the loss of Pabel is tragic, his widowed young wife is
responding through God's amazing grace which in itself is a very powerful
testimony, especially for the confessing perpetrators. Kelly was granted
permission to confront her husband's murderers as she had requested. Explaining
to the young men that although Pabel had always wanted to be with the Lord, the
crime they committed has also caused serious harm to her family. She is now
left without a provider and her two young children no longer have their father.
However, as a Christian, Kelly willingly forgave the men responsible for her
tremendous loss, mentioning that she would also ask God to forgive them.
"Pabel lived and died for the cause of Jesus Christ," Kelly
explained during a recent conversation with our ministry contact. "Life
goes on," she says with heartfelt emotion. "And here I am with the
flag to continue on with the work. Pabel never preached the Gospel to make
friends, but to save souls in the midst of such a place."
Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, is divided between a mainly
Christian culture in the south and a radical Islamic agenda in the north -- the
latter of which is characterized by massive riots, bombings and plans to create
an Islamic state.
Back in 2009, the Islamic extremist
group Boko Haram, an al-Qaida ally, vowed to rid the north of all non-Muslim
influence, including Christianity. Since then, more than 3,000 people have been
tragically killed by the insurgents' target of Christian villages, churches and
homes. Children were not exempt in the vicious attacks and, as a result, many
have been left wounded, traumatized and/or orphaned. In another incident this year,
which took place on April 14th, at least 270 Nigerian schoolgirls were abducted
by Boko Haram. To date, more than 200 of the girls are still missing.
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