"The Impact of an Invitation"

The Pastor's Windshield for Sunday, July 10, 2022

It feels good to be invited to something. Wouldn’t you agree? It means a lot when someone takes the time to invite you over for a meal they’ve prepared. It’s fun to be invited to go watch a game together or to enjoy a concert or other social outing. For many of you, there was probably a time when you received an invitation to visit St. Matthew or previous churches that you attended. Without that invitation, your journey of faith perhaps would have unfolded differently.

A personal invitation can go a long way! We see a great example of an inviting approach by one of Jesus’ first disciples, Philip. John tells us about Philip in John 1:43-51. Jesus personally invited Philip to follow Him. Philip did! And one of the concrete ways that Philip followed Jesus was by immediately inviting his friend Nathaniel to join him. When Nathaniel voiced skepticism about Jesus of Nazareth, Philip didn’t try to argue with his friend. He simply extended the invitation: “Come and see” (John 1:46). Apparently, the invitation made an impact! Nathaniel (a.k.a Bartholomew) is numbered among Jesus’ original 12 disciples in all four Gospel books of the Bible.

Like Philip, we can invite our friends and loved ones to come and see Jesus. We do this by sharing the hope that we have because of Jesus, taking care to do so in a gentle and respectful way (1 Peter 3:15). We can invite loved ones to see Jesus by inviting them to come to worship and Bible class with us. For some folks, it may be better to first invite them to a more informal setting such as a meal or a service event. As we go forward together in ministry, there will be more opportunities like these. If there are times when it might be helpful for me to extend a more “pastoral” invitation to someone, please let me know. 

There are many strategies that churches employ to reach their communities and neighbors. Churches utilize technology, direct mail, large-scale events, and other means to attract visitors. However, research indicates that one of the simplest outreach strategies is still the best. A personal invitation from a trusted friend, family member or neighbor still carries more weight than other attempts of making those connections. 

I encourage you to be a modern-day Philip! Consider who you can invite to “come and see”! Invite them to come and see Jesus with you. Invite them to come and see who we are as a church and what we believe and teach. Invite them to join you on the journey of walking with our Savior Jesus!

“Gifts” for Our Guests

Once the folks we’ve invited take the step of joining us at church, then what? What are some of the best gifts you can give guests when they visit our church? What follows are some ideas that I’ve borrowed and adapted from a pastor friend from South Dakota, Rev. Scott Sailer. Here are four simple “gifts” that we can offer to guests and visitors:

The Gift of a Close Parking Spot - if you are able-bodied, consider parking further from the church entrance to open more close parking spots for visitors, elderly worshippers, or families with young children.

The Gift of a Place to Sit – if you’re able, try sitting at the center of your pew in church so that those arriving after you can find a spot at either end of the pew.

The Gift of Helpfulness - help someone find their place in the order of service, lend a hand to young parents with their children, point someone in the right direction to find restrooms, the church nursery, etc.

The Gift of Warmth - greet others with a smile, introduce yourself by name, and ask for the guest’s name and make a point to remember it. If you forget, just ask them to remind you of their name.

Those gifts don’t cost much – only a moment of your time or a bit of extra thought and attention, but they can make a big difference. God bless you as you invite others to come and see Jesus and as you take these little steps to help them feel welcome and valued in our midst!

Peace in Christ,

                  Pastor Kory Janneke

How are we saved?

The Pastor's Windshield for Sunday, June 19, 2022

[Note: As the title for my pastoral articles, I’ve chosen “The Pastor’s Windshield.” As you know, windshields are much larger and more important than rear-view mirrors. Together, we’re going to look forward “through the windshield” to everything that the Lord has in store for us. I’ll use these articles to teach about the Bible and to share more about our ministry and direction for the future as a congregation. Thank you for reading!]

How are we saved? Hopefully a group of Lutherans can offer a solid, biblical answer to that question. However, before we explore the answer, let’s take a step back. A member asked me this week about a line in the Athanasian Creed which we confessed on Trinity Sunday. Near the end of the creed we confess, “At [Jesus’] coming all people will rise again with their bodies and give an account concerning their own deeds. And those who have done good will enter into eternal life, and those who have done evil into eternal fire.”

There are some serious statements in this section of the creed. We don’t like to think about having to give an account of our deeds. And what about the part about those who have done good and those who have done evil? Are we saved by doing good and avoiding evil?

That’s exactly what many people believe. They hope that their supposed goodness is sufficient to earn them a place in God’s kingdom. Comparing themselves to others, they claim that they haven’t lived such bad lives and that they’re mostly good people. But again, is that how we’re saved? By trying hard to be good, at least most of the time?

The Bible does contain some statements that sound as if this is the case, but it’s also important that we read these within the wider context of Scripture. For example, Jesus says in John 5:28-29, “An hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”

Jesus’ words are the basis for the statement in question from the Athanasian Creed. What, then, does Jesus mean by doing good? Some followers asked Jesus a similar question: “‘What must we do, to be doing the works of God?’ Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.’” (John 6:28-29) Then Jesus offers more Good News: “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life, and I will raise Him up on the last day” (John 6:40).

God’s Word makes it clear that we cannot be saved by our own efforts. We are saved by believing in Jesus for forgiveness and eternal life! Ephesians 2:8-10 puts it this way: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Passages like this one say repeatedly that we cannot save ourselves. We are saved by God’s free grace through faith in Christ. We are saved by His great gifts toward us of forgiveness and faith, but ultimately, we are saved by God’s gift of His only Son, our Savior Jesus.

Jesus Himself is the greatest good. The greatest good that we can do is not actually our work but the Holy Spirit’s. It’s believing in the One whom God has sent for us (John 6:29). The book of Hebrews tells us, “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him” (Heb. 11:6). Faith in God’s beloved Son is what God most desires to see in your heart and life. And because God poured out His Holy Spirit upon you in Holy Baptism, He does see that faith in you. Of course, faith in Jesus is not stagnant but living and active, for God has created us as His workmanship to produce good works – not to earn salvation but because of our salvation! 

God grant that your heart and life be filled with saving faith in Christ alone and with the fruits of that faith shown forth through what you think and say and do. 

Peace in Christ,

                  Pastor Kory Janneke

What’s with the Title?

The Pastor's Windshield for Sunday, June 12, 2022

How is your windshield looking this summer? Is it caked with dead bugs? Dusted with pollen? Or are you looking through your windshield much at all these days? With the price of gas, perhaps you’re staying home more often or riding your bike in place of hoping in the car.

Several times I heard a friend of mine compare windshields with rear-view mirrors. Think about what you do with a rear-view mirror. As you’re driving down the road you take an occasional glance at it to see what the traffic is like behind you. Perhaps you see a car following too closely. Oftentimes, though, you look back and see nothing important, so your eyes return quickly to the road.

Ninety-nine percent of the time, you should be looking forward at the road ahead of you. Your eyes should be scanning everything you can see through your windshield, both the things that are close to your vehicle and the sights that are still far up the road, perhaps even on the horizon.

Your windshield is many times larger than your rear-view mirror or your side mirrors on your vehicle, and for good reason. For your safety and for the safety of your neighbor drivers and pedestrians, your eyes should be fixed ahead as you look through your windshield.

That can be a metaphor for life as well. Sometimes we need to glance back and reflect on things that we have undergone or accomplished in the past. It’s good to remember. That being said, we’re not living in the past anymore. We take that glance in the mirror looking back, but then we need to return to looking forward at the road ahead of us.

As we look forward in life, we ask questions such as, “What do I need to accomplish today? What’s going to be important in this season of my life? What are my priorities going to be? Who am I becoming? How can I continue growing and challenging myself? How can I make a difference? What can I do to serve my family and church family? How can I be a blessing to my neighbors and community?”

There are many other forward-looking questions we could ask ourselves. What about as a congregation? How can we “look through the windshield” as a church? 

A tendency in many congregations is to spend more time and energy looking back to years past than to what the future holds. Declining churches may hearken back to their “glory days,” remembering such things as full Sunday school classes, large choirs, or many more members than today.

It's good to look back, but some people (and some churches) can get stuck looking backward. Instead, let’s follow the example of the Apostle Paul who described his attitude to the Philippian Christians in this way: “But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14). 

By the time Paul wrote this letter to the Philippian church, he was already in the final season of this life. These were among his last written words. Although Paul had decades of his life and ministry to look back upon, he was much more focused on what was still ahead: ongoing ministry in this life until the Lord delivered him to the life eternal.

Paul’s words set an example for us. If we were to focus on doing just one thing, what would it be? For Paul, it was finishing his course faithfully and fruitfully. 

As we “press on” in the Lord’s mission and ministry that He has given His Church, we look forward to all that He has in store for us. With that in mind, I invite you to join me during the Bible study hour, especially on Sundays, June 12 & 19, as we join in looking through our “windshield” and consider how we can imitate St. Paul in faithfully pressing on toward the goal!

            Peace in Christ,

                        Pastor Kory Janneke