Blog Archives - Page 146 of 149

February 20, 2014 By Phil Ressler 13 Comments

Right and Wrong Reasons for Giving up Something for Lent

We are fast approaching the season of Lent and it will be here before you know. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday which is March 5. We will be hosting Ash Wednesday Worship at 7pm at Good Shepherd and we would love to have you join us. We are working on putting together an unique interactive experience for all participants.

It is a tradition during the season of Lent for many people to “give something up.” You may very likely practice this tradition yourself. Some examples of the things people give up include chocolate, alcohol, smoking, television, and Facebook. There are lots of different reasons people have for giving something up for Lent. As with many practices there are some good reasons to do it and then there are some not-so-good of reasons to do it. Here are some of the not-so-good reasons:

1. Because it’s tradition

There are many good traditions in the church. Most every tradition is begun for a good reason. But there often comes a time when we lose the connection with the purpose of the tradition and we continue the tradition for the sake of the tradition. If you are not sure what the purpose of the tradition is, then it may be time to stop the tradition or at the least go back and re-examine the origins.

2. It helps me relate to the suffering of Jesus

Many believe that making a sacrifice will help them better relate to the sufferings of Jesus. But if you think this through, does giving up Facebook for Lent even begin to come close to helping you relate to the suffering Jesus went through? We are totally missing the point. Jesus gave his life as a sacrifice. His suffering was brutal. The idea of giving up 1st world luxuries to help us relate to the suffering he endured is laughable at best and mockery at worst.

3. To help me feel better about myself

For some giving up something for Lent is a way to kick a bad habit. Lent serves as a catalyst for living a healthier and more balanced life. It might serve to help you eat better or make better use of your time. All that is commendable and God wants us to be good stewards of our lives. But this still falls short of the fuller Lenten experience.

So what is the point then? Why would I give something up for Lent?

The whole idea behind giving something up is called FASTING. Fasting is a spiritual discipline much like prayer, Bible reading, and worship. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said, “when you fast …” He didn’t say, “if you fast …” There was an expectation his followers would fast. But it is an often overlooked discipline in the church. And because we don’t often teach about it, there is great misunderstanding about it.

So here are some reasons why we do fast or “give something up for Lent”:

1. More of God

While the idea of fasting involves taking something away, it is ultimately about more of God. Fasting in its purest form involves foregoing food for a certain period of time. This will lead to a hunger in our stomach which has an ultimate purpose of connecting us with our hunger for God. The time you might have spent preparing a meal and eating the meal can now be spent feasting on God’s Word. In other words, spend the time you would have spent eating by reading the Bible and praying. Jesus says, “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). We realize our food and everything else we have comes from God. If God did not provide it, we would not have it (see John 6:68–69). We eliminate that which we think we need for that which we truly need.

2. Removing barriers

Another important aspect of fasting is cutting out that which is hindering our relationship with God. There is nothing more important in this world than our relationship with him. Yet, we allow so many other things to get in the way. In last Sunday’s message we heard Jesus say, “if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off” (Matthew 5:29–30). The principle applies here is that we eliminate that which separates us from God. There are many things in life we think we cannot do without, but Jesus says only one thing is needful (Matthew 10:41–42).

3. Re-centering

Finally, fasting has a way of centering us and reminding us what is most important. We have a lot of competing priorities in life. We don’t fast for God’s sake. It is a discipline given to us for our benefit. Fasting points us to what is most important. It helps us to keep the first things the first things. This is why we see the early church enter a time of fasting prior to making a big decisions (see Acts 13:2–3; 14:23). Fasting helps us better discern God’s priorities for life and ministry.

So how about you? What are some of the reasons you fast or “give something up” during Lent? Make sure to share in the comments below.

Next week I will be sharing some ideas of things to give up for Lent. Hint, hint: They may not be what you think!

God’s blessings,
Pastor Phil

February 13, 2014 By Phil Ressler 2 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s Day, also known as St. Valentine’s Day. This holiday is a liturgical holy day of the Church to honor Valentinus, a priest in Rome who was martyred in 496 AD.

Very little is factually know about St. Valentine, but it is told that he was was imprisoned under the Roman Empire for his support of persecuted Christians and for performing weddings of soldiers forbidden to marry. During his imprisonment the legend is told how he healed the blind daughter of his jailer named Asterius. When the time came for him to be executed, the story is told how he wrote a letter to his jailer’s daughter signed, “Your Valentine.” Today, the skull of St. Valentine is on display in Rome with of all things a crown of flowers.

The modern expression of Valentine’s Day is synonymous with L-O-V-E. When it comes to love there is no greater example and expression of love than God. The sacrificial and selfless love is shown through the death of Jesus on the cross. We could never begin to love to the extent to which he has first loved us. Everything good that we have in this world comes from him. The rest that is not so good is on us.

I once heard the Bible described as God’s love letter to us. There is so much in there that tells us about his love. Here are just a few of the many verses to ponder.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 1 Corinthians 13:4–7 (ESV)
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 (ESV)
“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. John 15:12–13 (ESV)
We love because he first loved us. 1 John 4:19 (ESV)
But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)

How about you? What are some of the Bible verses that are special to you which express the immense love of God? Take a moment and share with us in the comments below.

Finally, here is a prayer for all of us to grasp his incredible love:

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:14–19 (ESV)

February 6, 2014 By Phil Ressler 1 Comment

Beyond the American Dream

The Gospel of Jesus Christ contradicts everything we have been taught. We have been told that we can accomplish anything we set our mind to. We have been taught to set goals and work hard to achieve. There is no ladder we can’t climb. There is no prize we can’t attain. There is no medal we can’t win. The stories of Olympic athletes these next two weeks will be used as proof.

The American dream is alive and well. This is the land of opportunity. We pride ourselves in our self-sufficiency. We idolize those who are achieve success as self-made men and women. We strive to achieve more and then to be recognized for it. We want more for our children as well, so we train them to be achieve-oholics.

Yet, there is a cloud that hangs over it all. There are many who reach the pinnacle and find it is not all it is made out to be. Many others hit a roadblock on the way to their dreams and struggle with the disillusionment and regret. They are frustrated they are not at a place in life where they want to be or hoped to be. It’s hard to understand how in this land of opportunity there are so many people who struggle with depression, anxiety, and addiction.

In the pursuit of the American dream, Jesus becomes a means to an end. We make our plans. We set our agenda. We develop our priorities. Then somewhere along the way we bring Jesus in to assist us in accomplishing it all. We ask for his wisdom to guide us, recognizing he is a great advisor and teacher. When the going gets tough we ask him to provide strength, recognizing he is a great motivator. We are the CEO and he is the best chief of staff we could ever have. We are the athlete and he is the best coach in history.

But all of this totally misses the mark. The Gospel goes far beyond any of that. The Gospel has nothing to do with us bringing Jesus along from the ride. The Gospel is about Jesus saving us from sin and from ourselves. The Gospel is not for people who can do it mostly on their own and need a little bit of help. The Gospel is for people who can’t do it at all. The Gospel is for us. As much as we might commit all our resources, energy, and passion to our cause – we still find ourselves coming up short. Or we discover our great cause was not all that great.

The start of the Gospel is when we come to the end of ourselves. It starts when we we recognize our lack of ability. The Gospel is not about our plans or our dreams. It is about God and God alone. God has a dream for us that is bigger than anything we could ever imagine for ourselves.

Jesus is not to be accepted, invited, or believed upon. It’s not as if we are somehow begrudgingly letting him into our lives. It’s not a matter of us doing a favor for him. It’s not that he needs us and we are giving him a job. It is really the other way around.

He is to be surrendered to, abandoned for, and depended on. This is the Gospel invitation. I am desperate without him. I need him.

I am a beggar. He is the rich man.
I have nothing to offer. He has everything to give.
I can’t. He is more than able.
I am lost. He is found.

Without the true Gospel the Church will be ineffective. Our faith will stay dull and lethargic. But Jesus is inviting you to more. It goes beyond having the right dreams, but living in a right relationship. The gospel leads you to exchange your dreams for his dreams. It moves you beyond hunger for achievement and recognition, but towards a hunger and thirst for him.

January 30, 2014 By Phil Ressler Leave a Comment

Do You Feel Lucky?

A few years back I had a neighbor helping me with some stuff on my roof. We had a ladder which lead the way onto the roof in front of the garage. As I walked into my garage I happened to walk underneath the ladder. After having walked underneath this ladder, my neighbor responded, “I can tell you are a man of God.”

We got a good laugh out of it, but there is an important lesson here. It is the difference between being lucky and being blessed. As a believer, I do not consider myself a lucky man. I consider myself a blessed man. Luck involves chance while blessing involves the providence of God.

With Jesus in my life, I don’t need luck. I have got everything I need and more. And with Jesus there is no such thing as bad luck. We don’t need to worry about walking underneath a ladder, breaking a mirror, or having a black cat walk across our path. With God we know that nothing happens by chance. There are no coincidences. What we might call coincidences I see as God incidents.

It is also important to know that spiritual disciplines are not a way of earning luck. It is easy for many to fall into the mindset that God is going to somehow going to give greater blessing if we do the “right” thing. How many people see reciting the Lord’s Prayer as a way to get God to be more favorably disposed toward them? It doesn’t work that way.

This Sunday we will explore the Beatitudes found in the Sermon on the Mount. It is the beginning of a 4 week message series about the greatest sermon every preached. The Beatitudes are 9 blessings Jesus spoke over his disciples to begin this sermon. Through these Beatitudes we discover what it means to be blessed and how blessing is discovered. The amazing thing about these blessings is that we will discover there is very little we can do to earn them. They come out of the heart and character of God. You just might already be in the perfect right place for God grace to rain down on you.

If you cannot make Sunday worship, you can always listen online at gs4nj.org/messages.

God’s Blessings,
Pastor Phil

January 23, 2014 By Phil Ressler 1 Comment

Beyond Building a Church Building

Good Shepherd Church Building — An aerial view of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Building in Old Bridge, NJ

What is in the picture above? You say, “our church.” That is the answer that most of us would give. But the truth is that picture is not a picture of our church. It is a picture of a building. We might call it a church building, but it is not the church. The church is more than a building.

The reason we call a building the church is because we have been indoctrinated with an institutional view of the church. We look at the church as an organization. The institutional view of the church leads to a mindset of preserving and protecting the institution. It becomes about guarding budgets, buildings, and traditions. We don’t want to lose what we have. With an institutional view of the church it becomes easy to lose our focus on the truly important and eternal matters.

You are hard pressed to find anywhere in the Scripture where Jesus aspires to build an institutional organization. In fact, much of Jesus’ message was hostile towards the religious institutions of his day. More than anything else, Jesus came to start a movement. He came to effect change and transformation. He came to heal people of their disease, to give hope to the hopeless, cast out the demons, and win salvation for lost sinners. Those entrenched in institutional religion had the hardest time following him.

The work of Jesus did not require a building or a budget. It was only hundreds of years after Jesus ascended into heaven when the idea of a church building was even conceived. The work of Jesus and his followers was one of generosity and sacrifice. Whatever gifts God presented, the church would give them away to any who had need.

I am not proposing we give away our church building, but what I am saying is that we carefully distinguish between what is part of our institutional religion and how the institutional things may be holding us back from joining a mighty movement of God. Instead of holding on to what we have, how can we give it away and use it to fulfill his great commission of making disciples? Eternity awaits and we only have a short time to make a difference.

At the end of the day, the church is not found at 3139 Country Rd 516. That location may be our world mission headquarters, but it is not the church. The church is where the people of God gather and where the people of God go. The building may be our gathering place, but right now at this moment the church is wherever you are reading this email from, because you are the church.

BTW- I thought this picture was a really cool picture of our church building (See full picture on on Facebook). It gives a whole new perspective. We are thankful that God had the confidence to entrust us with this property to use to fulfill his mission. It is our prayer that we would be good stewards with what he has given us. We pray that the carpet may wear out from the feet that walk across it. We pray that the walls become scuffed because of children running the hallways and just maybe one of the children will have the audacity to write on the wall with a crayon. We pray for coffee to be spilled and stain a pew. We pray for traffic in the parking lot to cause potholes. But through it all the lives of people are transformed for eternity because of the movement taking place here, that they encountered Jesus the Savior.

So how about you? What do you think? What is the role of the institutional church in God’s missional movement?