A Letter to All Boys About Pornography

The Possible Pitfalls of Pornography  (The Art of Manliness)

Dear Boys,

All men are affected by pornography in some way or another. 

When I was in the sixth grade, my mom and dad sat me down on the couch and showed me a Playboy magazine. They wanted me to be aware that these kinds of things existed, but that I should avoid them. What I didn't tell them was that the kid who lived next door, had boxes of those magazines and that I had seen a few of them already.

In junior high one of my classmates cut the pictures out of pornographic magazines and sold them at school. Little pictures were 25 cents and big pictures were a dollar. He made quite a bit of money. Back then it wasn't easy to get a hold of pornography. Today that has changed.

Please check out the link above. I don't think "The Art of Manliness" is a Christian organization, so the author uses biological reasons to avoid pornography. One of the main problems is that scientists are realizing that pornography can actually change our brains. 

No matter what, I know that the forgiveness of God is the most important thing to heal our minds and bodies from whatever trouble we might have gotten into. I stressed this verse in my confirmation classes. I don't know if you remember it, but it is one of my favorites:  

"Such were some of you, but you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6.11).

The Rising Tide of Evil

I mentioned in my adult Bible study last Sunday that we are witnessing a rising tide of evil. I pointed them to an article in the Huffington Post that lists the mass murders occurring between 2009-2013.

This week we've had two massacres in Oklahoma and Louisiana.  The week before it was four Marines in Chattanooga and five females in California. In June it was nine killed in South Carolina. It's getting hard to keep up with all the carnage, and worse, we're being desensitized to it.

Many people try blame the massacres on lax gun control laws. But we've had semi-automatic weapons for years. That cannot be the main cause of this problem. Others blame it on mental health problems. But that also raises important questions: Are mental disorders on the increase? Did we have as many mentally disturbed people twenty five or fifty years ago? Suicide rates have actually declined since the 1950s.

There is an explanation which many do not want to hear: The problem is the problem of evil, and evil is on the rise.

Without a doubt there is another statistic that coincides with the rise of mass murders and that is the rising tide of unbelief in our country. In 2012 the Pew Research Poll shocked us by showing a dramatic increase in the number of Americans who used to be Christians but no longer identify as such. Is there a correlation between the two? Probably, but true correlations are difficult to lock down.     Correlation or no correlation, there is something very bad happening.

The really sad thing is that our culture doesn't even want to consider the possibility of a correlation. That's because in the culture of unbelief there can be no such thing as evil. Try debating with an atheist, and you'll soon find that out. If they admit the existence of evil, they would have to admit to the existence of the spiritual. This is something they cannot tolerate.

Will America consider the possibility that there might indeed be a rising tide of evil? Will you? What can be done about it?

I spoke about this in my Reformation sermon on October 28, 2012. In that sermon I pointed out that the world has witnessed rising tides of unbelief and evil before. God has given us a response, and that is the response of the Gospel. The only thing that can stand up to evil is the truth of God's Law and Gospel. God help us to hold to it ourselves, and God help us to proclaim it to the world around us.

I have proclaimed the good news of righteousness
In the great assembly;
Indeed, I do not restrain my lips,
O Lord, You Yourself know.

I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have declared Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth
From the great assembly.

Do not withhold Your tender mercies from me, O Lord;
Let Your lovingkindness and Your truth continually preserve me.

For innumerable evils have surrounded me;
My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up;
They are more than the hairs of my head;
Therefore my heart fails me.

Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me;
O Lord, make haste to help me
Psalm 40.9-13

Psalm 121 God Is Always Watching

Sermon from Evening Prayer, Wednesday, July 1, 2015, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Collinsville, Illinois

1. I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
2.  My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
3.  He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
4.  Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5.  The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand.
6.  The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
7.  The Lord shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
8.  The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.

This is a beautiful psalm that has been a great source of strength and inspiration for many Christians. Next to Psalm 23 it is probably one of the most memorized psalms. Parts of this psalm have been enshrined in both the liturgies for baptism and funerals. The psalm easily applies to almost any part of the journey of life.

There are a few interesting things about this psalm. First, is is part of a group of psalms called the Psalms of Ascents (Psalms 120-134) that were probably sung by Israelites as they made their annual trips to Jerusalem for worship. Jerusalem is truly a city built on a hill therefore you always "go up to Jerusalem" no matter which direction you take to get there. 

This psalm may have been a "farewell liturgy" sung by those who were leaving for Jerusalem and by those who were not traveling (perhaps because of their weakness or other needs to stay home). The first two verses are in the first person, "I will lift of my eyes..." But beginning in the third verse the psalm switches to the third person, "He will not allow your foot to be moved..."  

Luther was interested in third verse. Regarding the thought that God is not paying attention, he wrote that this psalm teaches us... "that we should remain steadfast in faith and await God’s help and protection. Because even though it appears that God is sleeping or snoring...this is certainly not so, despite the way we feel and think. He is surely awake and watching over us."

The sixth verse has always interested people: "The sun shall not strike you by day or the moon by night."  Charles Schultz wrote a Charlie Brown cartoon about this:

The most important part of the psalm is the repetition of the word "keep" or "preserve." Notice that in the New King James Version above three times it is translated "keep" and three times it is translated "preserve." The word shamar in Hebrew means "to keep attentive watch" as in Psalm 127.1 "Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman stays awake in vain." 

I would especially like to tie this thought in with last Sunday's sermon on Mark 5.36, Jesus' words to Jairus: "Don't be afraid; only believe." I pointed out that those who doubt God often complain: "Why doesn't God get rid of all the evil in the world?" But their question should really be rephrased: "Why doesn't God get rid of all the evil in the world right now?" There's a difference. The historical record shows that God has gotten rid of evil many times and that He is always doing this. Jesus healed many people to show the ultimate goal of His forgiveness. All of us know there are times in life when God has saved us. I remember a particular incident in my life when I was racing with my bicycle against a small scooter that was carrying my dad and another man. Gradually the scooter pulled away, but in my zeal to stay with it, I ran right through a stop sign and was horrified to hear screeching tires.  I had come so close to death except that the driver was alert and saw me in the nick of time. Or, rather, God was alert and watching over me and guided that driver to see me and to slam on the brakes. 

Psalm 121 is a good psalm for us to sing often. It is a constant comfort and reminder to us that God is always watching, protecting and preserving. 


See also:  Matthew 10.29-31; Philippians 4.7; 1 Thessalonians 4.23; 2 Thessalonians 3.3; 2 Timothy 4.18; Jude 1.1


Sermon: "Do We Trust God or Trash Him?" Mark 5.21-43" Print and Audio  June 28, 2015

Here is a hymn based on Psalm 121. It was in The Lutheran Hymnal #538 "Now the Shades of Night Are Past" Tune: Vienna

Now the shades of night are gone,
Now the morning light is come.
Lord, may we be Thine today;
Drive the shades of sin away.

Fill our souls with heav’nly light,
Banish doubt and cleanse our sight.
In Thy service, Lord, today
Help us labor, help us pray.

Keep our haughty passions bound,
Save us from our foes around;
Going out and coming in,
Keep us safe from ev’ry sin.

When our work of life is past,
Oh, receive us then at last!
Night of sin will be no more
When we reach the heav’nly shore.

According to The Handbook to the Lutheran Hymnal, this hymn was written by a Mohican Indian named Sampson Occom (Occum, Ockum) in 1770. It was first published in the Congregational Collection, Hartford, 1799.  

Devotions: The Irony of "Jesus" Barabbas

Barabbas. He was the man Pilate offered to the crowds in the hope of setting Jesus free since it was the custom to set one political prisoner free during the Passover. But it didn't work. The crowds had already been stirred up to call for Jesus' crucifixion.

Ever since I was a little boy I sensed the irony of this. Samuel Crossman, in his beautiful hymn "My Song is Love Unknown," captured it with these words:

They rise and needs will have

My dear Lord made away;

A murderer they save,

The prince of life they slay.

Yet cheerful He

To suff’ring goes

That He His foes

From thence might free.

There is, however, more to the irony. The New International Version tells us that Barabbas' name was actually "Jesus Barabbas." A lot of translations leave out "Jesus" from Barabbas' name because there is a little debate about it in the ancient manuscripts. 

More than twenty ancient manuscripts of Matthew have the words "Jesus Barabbas." But Origen, one of the greatest Bible scholars who ever lived, argued that this must have been a mistake. In his commentary he said, "“in the whole range of the scriptures we know that no one who is a sinner [is called] Jesus.”*  But great Bible scholars aren't always right. Origen didn't want the name of "Jesus" sullied by allowing it to stand for a criminal. But I think that is exactly what God wanted. 

If it is true that they both have the same first name, we can see all the more clearly how Jesus came to take our place on the cross.  St. Peter said, 

"For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit” (1 Peter 3.18).  

Paul said, 

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5.21). 

Jesus did allow His name to be sullied. He allowed His entire being to be showered with our sin when He went convicted and condemned to the cross. When you feel guilty, worthless and weighed down by sin, remember who became a substitute for you.

Prayer: God of Grace, I give You my thanks and praise when I remember how Jesus stood in my place to be condemned. Help me to remember that, though undeserving, I have been set free from the condemnation of my sin. I am forgiven. I am free. In Jesus' name, Amen. 




*Metzger, Bruce M. "A Textual Commentary On The Greek New Testament"

What Does the Gay Community Really Want and What Does It Mean?

I wish I didn't have to address the sin of homosexual behavior again. It is no different from any other sin. Indeed, we must be concerned about all sins. But we must be most concerned about the sins that people insist are not sins. 

During the recent Supreme Court hearings on gay marriage Justice Alito asked Solicitor General Donald Verilli if religious institutions can maintain their tax exempt status if they are opposed to same-sex marriage.  Verilli responded:

“You know, I — I don’t think I can answer that question without knowing more specifics, but it’s certainly going to be an issue. I — I don’t deny that. I don’t deny that, Justice Alito. It is — it is going to be an issue.”

In an earlier post I asked if it will still be possible in our culture to believe and to say publicly that homosexual behavior is sinful? 

Right now the main item on the gay community's agenda is the legal right to marriage, but coupled with that is the insistence that this lifestyle not only have legal status but that it also have full acceptance by all. This is why some would consider it illegal for institutions, especially educational institutions, to oppose gay marriage.

Why are bakers and photographers being forced to participate in gay weddings? Why do gay activists purposely single out Christians for these services? It's not just about their right to be gay, it's about their offense that someone does not approve of their lifestyle. This they can't stand. 

What does this mean? Different people consider different things to be sins. Muslims think that I am sinning and blaspheming against God by believing that God is three persons in one God. But that does not mean that I think they should be forced to believe or speak  otherwise. Even more, it really doesn't hurt my feelings that they believe this way. It doesn't hurt me personally because I am at total peace with my faith in the Triune God.

I cannot see into the hearts of gay people, but I suspect that one of the reasons for their instance that their lifestyle be accepted might be because they are not at peace with it themselves. 

This is a very sad thing. There are not enough laws, affirmations, or celebrations that can be implemented to take away this internal dissonance. Even if every voice of opposition to the gay lifestyle were silenced by force, there would be one last voice - the voice of conscience and nature that would still be saying, "This is not right." 

This is the same voice that I hear in my head when I sin. This is the voice I hear when I have evil thoughts or words or when I fail to live up to God's high expectations of righteousness. The difference is that I don't try to suppress this voice for long. I agree with Solomon: "He who covers his sin will not prosper; but he who confesses and forsakes them will have mercy" (Proverbs 28.13). 

This is why, although we are concerned about all sins, we must be most concerned about the sins people say are not sins. 

God have mercy. Give us true repentance. Give us forgiveness in Christ. Amen.

Funeral Sermon for My Dad

Funeral Sermon for Paul G. Walther

1 Corinthians 15.3-8

For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, ⁵ and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. ⁶ After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. ⁷ Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, ⁸ and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.  (NIV Adapted)

     Dear Mom, Susan, Kathy, Mike, Tim, Carol, children, relatives, friends and members of Zion Lutheran Church,

     My message this morning is based on the same text that I was studying and preaching from for last Sunday, Easter. I only had to adapt my sermon just a little on Sunday after mom called me about Dad’s dying. I want to share it again with all of you with just a few more changes.

     As most of you know the first Paul was a zealous Pharisee. He wasn’t in Jerusalem at the time of Jesus’ death and resurrection, but he must have come soon after - within a year. About that time Stephen was stoned to death and Paul was there guarding the cloaks of his murders. Paul enthusiastically joined the persecution of the church and was on his way to Damacus to find, arrest, and punish the Christians who had fled there. Some of them may have been killed also. But on the road to Damascus Paul, or as he was known then, Saul, was met by the risen Christ. He was the last person to see the risen Lord, and he was the most unlikely - for he had never loved Him but had in facted hated Him with all the hatred a human being could have. Paul was a proud, self-confident Pharisee who viewed God as a rewarder and punisher. His entire faith at that point was based on his own achievements. But as always happens in the Bible, when sinful men, no matter how holy they think they are meet a holy angel or the holy Son of God, it is a complete shock. Suddenly they realize their sinfulness.  Paul described his shock by saying that Jesus appeared to him as one “abnormally born.” The Greek word that Paul uses here is the word for “abortion” or “stillbirth.” But Paul’s shock wasn’t just that he saw Christ risen from the dead. The greater shock was that this Christ came to him in forgiveness and mercy, which Paul knew was totally underserved. He was told go on to Damascus where a disciple named Ananius would say, “rise, be baptized, and wash away your sins.”  Paul’s shock was that God is not just a rewarder and a punisher, but a forgiver. This is why Paul would refer to himself not as a man, not even as a child, but as one who had been abnormally born or aborted and had not even taken a breath. This is why Paul would refer to himself as the “least of the Apostles” and as “the chief of sinners.” Paul’s life was completely and forever changed. Paul would go on to become the greatest of all the apostles.

     Easter, and in fact the entire Christian life, is about forgiveness. The first sentence of Jesus’ first sermon was, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The last command He gave to the disciples was to “Preach repentance and the remission of sins.” From the cross He said, “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” In the heart of His own prayer is the profound petition: “Forgive us our tresspasses.”  It is always about forgiveness. Thus Paul also says in our text, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance, that Christ died for our sins.”  

    This is the same forgiveness giving Jesus into whom my father was baptized and with whom and by whom he continued to live all of his life. By God’s grace he met my mother and together they established a home in which Jesus was always the center of attention. He lived out his vocations as teacher, professor, administrator and friend in a Christ-like way. He and mom stood outside our nearest abortion clinic praying for minds to change and for babies to be saved. They went to St. Louis to help the homeless. Once when we were driving home from Ft. Wayne to see my Grandmother, Dad and Mom were have a serious discussion about the Seminex problem.* I was a precocious boy in junior high at the time. Dad was frustrated that some pastors were saying Jonah wasn’t actually swallowed by a great fish and vomitted back up on the beach. They were saying it was just a story. That’s when I piped in from the back seat. I decided to take up a little for those wiseacres with a little of my own logic. I said, “So what if Jonah wasn’t swallowed a great fish. It’s still a good story, and it still could teach us good spiritual lessons.” Looking straight ahead, and with the most matter of fact tone you could imagine he said, “Mike, Jesus said that Jonah was swallowed by a great fish.” Dad taught me not to question the Bible and it’s center in Jesus.

     Saturday he watched two basketball games, sports being one of the great loves of his life. He and mom had their last devotions together. The text of that devotions was from John 14. “In my Father’s house there are many mansions. If it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” Shortly after that he left his home here on earth and joined the first Paul and many other disciples since to celebrate the greatest Easter we all look forward to celebrating someday - Easter with the risen Christ Himself.

     What about all of us? Dad would not be happy if I did not bring this sermon directly to you. My family and my sisters and their families know about this. At family gatherings we often talk about our faith. What are you thankful for? How is your faith? Always remember Jesus and hold on to Him. Can we be transformed like Paul of Tarsus and like Paul G. Walther? Can we depart this life in peace and see the risen Christ ourselves?

     The answer is certainly “yes.” But like the first Paul God has to break us down. He has to tear from our souls those terrible misbeliefs that Satan wants us to hold: That maybe there is no such thing as sin; That we can pick and choose which things are to be called sins so that we can continue in some of them; That we can compensate for our sins by trying to be a good person.  None of those approaches do anything about sin. Quite often I see people looking to God for blessings. They want a good life. But they don’t always want forgiveness. Why would God give you more life if the life He has given you is being destroyed by sin already, and you don’t really care?  The sin has to be removed, and it can only be removed by the forgiveness of sins through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. It’s all about forgiveness.  And that is, amazingly, what Jesus wants to bring us more than anything.  Once we have that, we have everything.  Paul said, “How shall He who did not spare His own Son but gave Himself up for us also, along with Him, graciously give us all things” (Romans 8.32).  Realizing his own complete weakness as a sinful human being Paul found complete strength in Christ. “It is not I who live but Christ who lives in me, and the life I live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself up for me” (Galatians 2.20). God has given that strength for life and for death in the forgiveness of our sins in Christ. Oh Holy Spirit, sustain us in that faith that holds dearly to the Easter truths that Christ died for our sins, that He was buried, and that He rose again on the third day; And, that as He lives, so shall we live also. (John 14.19)

Amen!

Obituary - Paul G. Walther (1931 - 2015)

Paul G. Walther, 84, of Belleville, Ill., born March 25, 1931, in Brownstown, Ind., passed away Sunday, April 5, 2015.

Mr. Walther received a Bachelor of Science degree from Concordia University, Seward, Neb., a Master's of Science degree from the University of Michigan, and his Ph.D. from Indiana University. He spent many years as a teacher, a principal, a superintendant, and a professor.

He taught at Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, Ill., and was an assistant-superintendent and superintendent in the Vandalia, Ill. public school system. He was also the Director of the Area Agency on Aging in Belleville, Ill.

Paul was an active member of Zion Lutheran Church in Belleville, Ill., where he was a member of various boards and committees. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and brother.

He was preceded in death by his parents; F.J. and Amanda, nee Woempner, Walther; and a brother, Richard Walther.

Surviving are his loving wife of 59 years, Ruth, nee Michael, Walther, whom he married on June 25, 1955; a son, Reverend Michael (Carol) Walther of Maryville, Ill.; two daughters, Susan (Mike) Garrison of Litchfield, Ill., and Kathy (Tim) Weber of St. Charles, Mo.; eight grandchildren, Aaron, David, Paul (Laurie), Stephen, and Lydia Walther, Blake Garrison, Adam and Sydney Weber; two great-grandchildren, Jackson and Casen Walther; a sister, Hildegarde (Marvin) Brammeire; three brothers, Wayne (Marlyn) Walther, John (Caroline) Walther, and Daniel (Kathy) Walther, and two sisters-in-law, Doris Walther, and Marilyn Michael.

Memorials may be made to Zion Lutheran Church, to the Lutheran Laymen League, or to the Lutherans for Life. Condolences may be expressed online at: www.rennerfh.com.

Visitation: Friends may visit from 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 8, 2015, at Zion Lutheran Church, 1810 McClintock Ave., Belleville, Ill.

Funeral: A celebration of his life will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 8, 2015, at Zion Lutheran Church, Belleville, Ill., with Pastors Brian Downs, Michael Walther, and Dr. Darwin Schrader officiating.

At Paul's request, his body was donated to Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Mo.

GEORGE RENNER & SONS FUNERAL HOME, Belleville, Ill.

*Seminex is short for “Seminary in Exile.” During the 1960s and 70s some pastors and professors in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod were adopting the presuppositions and methods of Bible interpretation known as Higher Criticism. This approach denied many, if not all, the miraculous reports of the Bible. Yet they tried to retain the spiritual truths. For more on this see two short videos I made:  Part One  Part Two