Emmanuel Hudson

Transition! From Infant Baby to Suffering Savior

Matt. 2:1-3 Now ^hafter Jesus was born in ⁱBethlehem of Judea ^jin the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men¹ from ^kthe east came to Jerusalem, ² saying, “Where is he who has been born ^lking of the Jews? For we saw ^mhis star when it rose² and have come to ⁿworship him.”

Transitions are a studied part of literature, movies, articles and all forms of communicating. Well crafted by an author they appear at precisely the right spot in the story and lead on to the next part. Two or more authors writing about the same incident or topic may have different points of transition as they present the details of the narrative. In the Bible the inspired writers did just that. So it is in the story of Jesus’ life. Our recent celebration of Christ’s birth took us to the heights of awe and wonder and left us wishing that we could sing more Christmas Carols, enjoy the decorations longer, hold on to the feeling of comfortable peace that is so much a part of that holiday. 

But move on we must. There is work to be done, projects to complete before the end of the calendar year, school resumes and there is much cleaning to be done. 

Moving on with “the rest of THE STORY” is usually determined by the emphasis that God wanted as he had human authors assume his place in the process of divine revelation. If you read only the Gospel of Luke you will miss out on some very important details about the life of Christ. So also if you read only from the Gospel of Matthew your perspective is again different and limited.  The Gospel of John clearly adds another story line and brings out the eternal plan of God and clearly speaks of Jesus’ identity. Mark picks up the story line with the work of Jesus and emphasizes his Gospel ministry and the training of the disciples. 

Bound as it were to the Lunar calendar there is little time on a Sunday-to-Sunday basis to get it all in. So we choose to have Mary and Joseph’s actions lead us to the following section of the gospel of Luke: 

But ⁿMary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds returned, ^oglorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.²¹ And ^pat the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, ^qhe was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb. Luke 2:19-21 

It would appear that after their presentation of the firstborn to the Lord, the holy family returned to Bethlehem to finish the business of registration for taxation and to allow both baby and mother to gain in strength and grow.  Joseph may have even used his carpentry skills to provide a meager existence making an occasional bench or table or yoke. We do not know. 

We keep in mind that Jesus, in the perfections of His divine nature there could be no increase. But as Son of Man, in His human nature, His body increased and He grew in all the endowments of a human soul. Christ accommodated Himself as Son of God, to His state of humiliation in human flesh. 

As the leading star brought the Magi to the end of their journey, we pick up the story once again. This time the infant is older and already he feels the weight of rejection from a terribly wicked world. A world that was and is badly in need of healing and peace.

We do well to pause and to focus on the transition from the infancy flight to human sanctuary, as Joseph was directed to tak e Mary and her child to Egypt, to the beginning of Christ’s public ministry. It is especially important because in a very personal way we are drawn into the narrative as it becomes clear that the Almighty God intended that his only-begotten Son be the Savior of all people, including you and me.

In the weeks of Epiphany we want to retain the warmth of God’s love we felt at Christmas and make our way through the cold winter to the promised springtime of Jesus Christ as He fulfills his role of the beloved Savior he had come to be.

Ash Wednesday is February 13^th, 2013.

May God be with all of us as we make the journey!

Happy New Year!

Courage or Foolishness

"It all depends on how you look at it." 

When in school many years ago I had the opportunity to attend a lecture offered by a man who was called a motivational speaker. He made quite a good living going around the country presenting his story about how to be successful as a sales person.  Our professor hoped that as students we'd learn from this fellow a few things that would enable us to do a better job as students, and eventually succeed in whatever career path we might choose.

The speaker's big point for us to consider was to do some attitude evaluation. He used the question that most everyone has heard: "If you saw an accident and there were vehicles that were damaged in the accident that were no longer driveable what would you call? A towtruck or a wrecker?

He maintained that he was able to determine our attitudes by the answer that we would give to that question. If you called a "tow truck" you had a positive attitude, if you called a "Wrecker" yours was a negative attitude.

Some people are basically optimistic, they'd call for a tow truck. That means they seem to have a way of looking at things that always finds something good in whatever the situation may be. Their optimism is often seen in the way they go about business or the way they live. Most of us would say that's a good thing. Living the way you believe, or demonstrating a positive attitude toward life can result in being successful and moving forward in life. However, for others such a perspective is looked upon as a negative thing and causes many to see them as fools who are not in touch with reality. 

Boldness or shyness are also a matter of attitude. In the book of the Bible called Proverbs there is another demension added to this matter of attitude and how a person looks at things. The new element is whether a person is evil or good. The passage goes like this: "The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion." (Prov. 28:1 NIV84).

 This passage is about individuality at its worst and best. This is not a commentary on the group or an assessment of a certain society. This is about the "me", the "you", or the "I" in each of us.

What God describes is how we are by nature. Without cause or being provoked, the natural thing is for us to "flee." Everyone is afraid and worrisome by nature. Our conscience keeps us on the run. We live our lives looking over our shoulders, we take things that are said and done in the worst possible way, and the result is we live in the misery of never being truly happy, content or at peace.

What God has made us through Jesus, however, changes all that. The righteousness of God within our hearts and minds makes us settled and courageous. We know that we are forgiven, that God sustains us with his love, and we may face each trouble with confidence.

The picture of a Lion is used to have us understand that with the power of God on our side we need not fear, tremble, have sleepless nights and or spend our time and energy worrying. Calling a wrecker is not a part of our worldview.

Through Jesus we are given the power to resist temptation, deal with the fear that comes from the uncertainty of the future as the world sees it, and to courageously live from day to day with a positive attitude knowing that we have a merciful and gracious God who is always with us.

Our boldness is not foolishness nor is it false conceit or arrogance as though we were something, but it is the confident assurance that enables us to take each step along the course of life with the perspective of one who is special to God because of His Son. We have peace in Jesus!

I hope you can live with the confidence of knowing that the Almighty Lord God is on your side.

 

 

Lion or Ego?

I've done a lot of preaching in my life. Some of its been good and some of its been "not so good". Most of the time I begin with a short prayer that acknowledges that "it is by the grace of God" that I have the gifts, energy and stamina that it takes to do it week after week for the last 50 years.

I've watched a lot of football in my life, even played some in highschool and college, and think its a good show of physical and mental strength most of the time. One of the things I don't like so much about the pros is the grandstanding that takes place. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for exuberance and excitement, that's all a part of the game, but when I see all the antics of these men when they make a tackle, knock down a pass, and score a touchdown it makes me get up and get a drink of water, or otherwise... in short, it takes a lot away from my enjoyment of the game. 

Now don't "sour grape" me on this one. The NCAA put some limitations on what college athletes could add to their football performances and it didn't hurt the game. If my guess is correct it may have saved some energy for the game, worked toward focussing on the sport itself, and gave a little credance to the fact that football is a team sport. (I wonder if anyone keeps track of the list of injuries that have been caused by grandstanding?)

There certainly is a big difference between self confidence and egomania.  The lessons taught by the pros are easily caught by the  youthful aspirants of sports of all kinds. At a recent gradescool basketball game where the players can hardly shoot, pass and dribble without tripping over their megabuck sport shoes, it seems that a certain 6 foot plus 8th grader had spent too much time watching his heroes and not listening to the coach. In the game I was watching the "towering giant" dominated the boards and scored all his team's points. While several of his shorter team mates remained benched for the entire game,he played the whole game. The big guy scored one basket so easily that I felt pity for the defender who was fully a foot shorter. Then, as if to add insult to injury the one with the early growth spurt pointed his forefinger to the roof as he ambled to the opposite end of the floor to grab another rebound. 

From football to basketball from the pros to kids just learning the game...What do you think? Have the antics of the players superceded the halftime shows and the sideline cheer leaders?

If you want athleticism consider the "girls of New York." I wonder how we'd react if one of the girls in the "Rockettes" broke from the line and celebrated her precision by bending a knee! Hah! Now that would be a show stopper!

I don't think it would be considered good entertainment.

Perhaps the next time I deliver a reasonably "good" sermon I should step out of the pulpit, lift my robe, bend a knee and point heavenward!

 

 

 

The Messianic Star Shines Even Now!

During the weeks of Advent this year I have been doing a little study of stars from the Biblical perspective. That being said, if a person simply starts reading what has been written in all literature about stars, it seems it might easily become a lifetime activity. As you might expect there are many different perspectives about what they are, how they came to be, and what significance they might hold for mankind.

A brief study of the Bible that focuses on the word “star” reveals that it was commonly used to refer to the historical person of Jesus Christ.

In the Old Testament book of Proverbs there are several references attributed to an ancient prophet by the name of Balaam. For him the context of his writing and prophecies were historically anchored and were made within the framework of the worldview of Judaism. As a prophet he not only spoke as the mouthpiece of God about his surroundings and the current political setting, but as can be derived from a study of world history, what he had to say and record pointed ahead to things that were to take place in the future. 

In this way God had men foretell the future while at the same time setting forth the details of his messianic plan. The image that comes to mind is that of how a shadow precedes the real object or person that is moving along with a light shining behind them. If an observer is separated from the real thing casting the shadow, say by a wall, a fence or a building, it is possible to know something of that reality because the shadow cast by the object is seen before the reality becomes visible. In our picture it is reversed. If the individuals were walking toward us it would be clear that they were approaching before we would see them. In this way a prophecy was and is seen as a foreshadow of things yet to come. Thus the passage that follows become clear.

Numbers 24:17 ESV

I see him, but not now;
I behold him, but not near:
a star shall come out of Jacob,
and a scepter shall rise out of Israel;
it shall crush the forehead[a] of Moab
and break down all the sons of Sheth.

As those who have not only seen the shadows in the scripture as expressed by the prophet, we have seen these words fulfilled historically in two persons, David, the great king of Israel, and in Jesus Christ as he fulfilled the timeless plan of mankind’s reconciliation to God.

As we continue to study the Bible and read of the stars we come to realize by the Spirit’s guidance that there is much more to our existence and the way God guides us along our life course through his revealed word than we might originally sense. What we may conclude when we first read what has been preserved in the  scripture it may seem like an interesting ancient story. However, when we read and study what has been recorded in extra-biblical literature, astronomy, archeology, and recorded history it becomes increasingly clear that The Bible is a direct expression of the only, almighty, God that has been put into the languages of man. Combined, their voices give an amazingly clear picture of God’s intent and purpose, his plan and care of all matter, His love for all of his creation and its creatures, how He sent his Son Jesus Christ to be the Savior, and how intricately interwoven it all is. 

We invite you to include in your plans time to worship, rejoice, and review all that God has set before us in the celebration of Christ’s birth, life, death and resurrection. Please join us if you are able.

Our worship schedule for the next couple weeks includes:

12/16 -9:00 AM (Children's service);

12/19 -7:00 PM Final Advent Service;

12/23  -9:00 AM 4th Sunday In Advent;

12/24  - 5:00 AM Christmas Eve Candle light Service;

12/25 - 9:00 AM Christmas Day Service.

If you have any questions don't be hesitant about sending it along, I'll try to give you a short and sweet answer. God bless!

Pastor Kogler

 

Pastor Kogler

 

 

An Advent Wish!

³ I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy,⁵ because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. ⁶ And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ . ⁷ It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace,^[a] both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. ⁸ For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. ⁹ And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, ¹¹ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comesthrough Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Christmas is right around the corner... almost. At this writing its a couple weeks away. During the weeks that remain of the Advent Season we find ourselves increasingly involved in special activities. Rehearsals, shopping, decorating, baking, making travel plans, the list is almost endless its seems.

I can remember that when I was a young boy the season of preparation was magical. So many things seemed to appear that weren't usually around. I especially remember two things: The outside decorations that folks put in their yards for others to see and enjoy, and then, because my older sister lived away from home at that time, I would be filled with the eager expectation of her coming home for Christmas. I knew the rest of us in our family had the same feelings because there was a lots of talk about whether she'd be able to make it home on time, what we might do about buying her Christmas gifts, and who would have to give up their bed so that she and her husband would be able to stay with us during their time with us.

I had forgotten about this part of my life until just recently when I received an email from one of my sons which said, "I'll be home for Christmas!" I can't possibly share with you the emotions that rippled through my heart and mind as I read that note. On reflection, I can now, first, only imagine what my parents must have felt when they learned for sure that my sister, their firstborn daughter, would be joining us on those Christmases years ago.

I'm sure this time of the year brings about all kinds of different emotions as plans are being made to gather and to celebrate with loved ones and the members of various families. 

In the text that is quoted above, the Apostle writes of such emotions, hopes and desires. Even though they may not have been about "going home for Christmas" they resonate clearly as we rethink of how wonderful it is to be together woth those whom we love, especially if they share our faith in the Lord Jesus.

Even though we know the wonders of mass communication and almost instant sharing through the internet, we know that there will be pangs of loneliness, and the pain of not having our loved ones with us to embrace, to kid, to quibble with and to worship.  Our Church is a Christian congregation of individuals which believes that it is really important to gather during Advent and especially for Christmas.We have many special services to which those in our area may come, and we invite you to do so.  That's what the open door is about. Feel free to join us on Wednesday evenings 12/12, and 12/19 at 7:00 PM.  Our Christmas service for the children is scheduled for Sunday 12/16 at 9:00AM. We have special services on Sunday, 12/23 at 9:00 AM, Monday 12/24 (5:00 PM), and 12/25 at 9:00 AM.

If you can make it, please join us to share the "Good News" about the Savior's birth.

 

Making today's list

I just woke up from an undisturbed 5.5 hours of sleep. So I thought I'd quickly setup my "To do" list for today. What that means for me is to take out a piece of 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper, unlined, and fold it in half so that I have a four page mini booklet.

After labeling the front page (time, date, location) I number the pages 1-4.

I've been doing it this way more or less for 50 years. It's what I "grew up" with.  But after today I want to take a look at changing from the paper version to an electronic version. I'm not sure exactly how this should be done, so if you have any suggestions let me know. I want to do it because there seems to be many advantages to using the newer electronic systems available, cmptrs., cell phones, tablets, etc.. In addition to those obvious reasons, I know that if I don't use my mind in a challenging way it will lose its elasticity and life will become a fearful bore.  I'm not ready for that.

The paper booklet version has evolved out of the use of a calendar book that I have used since 1964. Since then I have written a sermon every week to be publicly delivered in a church and/or before a congregation of people whereever and whenever required to maintain my career as a public minister of the gospel. I've spent thousands of hours reading, thinking, studying and writing and teaching about life as it relates to the Bible and what it says.

This little blog will be the journal...it will concern itself with the congregation I serve as pastor, and the way that I move through the process of converting from the "old ways" to what is current in the areas of planning, doing, and achieving.

Two persons have proven to be instrumental in this attempt to "modernize." For the time being they will remain unamed. Not because I don't want to identify them, but because my interest here is to study them and their use of different processes to keep themselves organized and highly productive.  One of them is a young man who is following a career path that is in its "teenage years." The other is an elder statesman who, having lived longer than I by some fifteen years, remains active and alert to the changes around him and is adapting to the activities of daily living through the embracing of modern tools that are a part of our fast moving world.

I have several computers, Mac and PC platforms, an electronic reader, a smart phone, cameras, a camcorder, and all the cords, disks, and resources to maintain them and their supportive accounts. The problem, however, is that I have the strong sense that I'm missdirecting a lot of my time, talent and resources without demonstrating and/or realizing the task completion standards that I have set for myself.

The concommitant activities of daily living and the study of my metamorphasis from what I am to what I want to be will have to be monitered and processed so that it doesn't degenerate into a hobby instead of a new way of life. After all is said and done, I don't think I want to be obsessed and/or possessed by the activities of doing at the expense of real accomplishment. We'll see!

A hymn verse comes to mind: "With the Lord begin thy task..." So I have begun with prayer. Amen.

Unbelieveable!

What a beautiful day...the month of August seems to be starting off really well. It's almost unbelievable. I say "almost" because in my memory there have been many similar days, in fact, I have even come to expect the first part of August to be wonderful as far as the weather goes.

Sooner or later we'll get rain, then it will begin to cool down, and the leaves of many trees will begin to turn to their Fall colors. That's something I also look forward to with great expectation.  After the first frost my allergies seem to retreat and I feel much better. When that season comes along my life seems better and I look for some exceptional results. I perform at my optimum, goals are set and achieved, and I feel good about things in general.  May be you share some of these assessments.

Speaking of exceptional results, how about that Michael Phelps.  Great in my opinion!  I guess what I like about his performances and accomplishments is that they can be viewed without having to be made more or less outstanding by commentary and/or my wishing they would be one way or another. He's a great swimmer, he's won many races, and that the way it is.

The part that I think is best about his achievements is that they have been exceptional. He's been great and that's what I have come to expect from him.

In my opinion he represents what I have come to believe is my opinion about America!  We are an exceptional country and I expect that together its citizenry can accomplish and continue to accomplish exceptional things. There is one thing that I believe is essential for our fulfilling the American dream of global exceptionality and that is it will only be that way as long as we have the principles of the
Triune God guiding us, as they have to a great extent in the past, along the path to excellence, exceptonal performance,  and service to our world wide community.

Current leadership not withstanding, it would appear that as a nation we are about to reemerge from our own greedy folly and begin once again to demonstrate an exceptional ability to overcome the changes that surround us!  

Hoping that this is the case... I'm going to work at applying the principles of the Bible and sharing the message of Jesus Christ to that end. 

 

 

Merry Christmas

Without any hesitation I say "Merry Christmas" at this time of the year as a greeting. Now I know that there are more than a few folks whose freedoms I would take up arms to defend who do not subscribe to the Christmas greeting thing, but that's okay...we're Americans after all.

I will never hold a gun to your head, nor plant a bomb under your car because your don't have the same world view that I do. Even though I disagree with you, I know that a show of military might, threats and terrorism are not the way I would influence you or win you over to my Biblical Christian world view.

Nope, I'd rather show you a better way through consistency of confession, kindness in my dealing with you and gentleness in my witness to the Christianity of the Bible. I may point out that we all need spiritual help and that to know who the true God is and how He is a part of our lives we need His intervention. But that intervention comes through the proclamation of the Good News about Jesus Christ dying for our sin and forgiving us for all the mistakes that we make.

To learn that my sins are forgiven and that I'm acceptable because of the substitutionary sacrifice of His Son, Jesus, gives me great happiness, joy and peace! In the best possible way, and on the highest human plane it causes me to celebrate and have merriment in my heart.

So, Merry Christmas everyone...!

The Ugly Word!

I wondered the other day about how people use words, how I use words. Then I thought maybe, just maybe I could get a few folks to let me know what words they use, and how they rate them.

This is not totally unlike a study I did a few years back to find out how people have more than a few stereotypical trait words in their vocabularies. To be more representative of society I asked different categories of individuals: college students, middle-schoolers, pastors, mothers of children in preschool, and finally a group of seniors themselves.

Here's how it went. First I asked for permission of all individuals if they would be willing to participate in the study, then those who agreed were asked to list five different words that they would use to describe "elderly people." Then I got together with the groups of individuals to reveal and discuss my findings.

The result was interesting. (If you want to participate, give me your list of five words and I'll post back the most common word revealed in the study several years back and the ones I get from this post.)

Once I received the input I began to group the words according to different descriptors: warm, friendly, cold, mean, etc. One word I used was "ugly." The results and what became clear was a surprise to me. One of the more commonly used words was "forgiving."  That means that many individuals, when they thought about the elderly, what came to mind, or a word that they would use to describe one who is elderly is the word "forgiving."

Then the trait words, when categorized, found the word "forgiving" in the "ugly" word group. When I got into the group settings to deliver the findings I asked why this was the case. The general response developed a thread that the reason "forgiving" was looked upon as an ugly word had to do with what it implied, namely, that there was a general attitude among seniors that there was something wrong with others that needed to be forgiven!  How's that for twisting things around?

I always thought that people didn't like to hear the word "sin." When I expressed that notion to the study groups, the response was that "sin" didn't even come to mind, or basically didn't apply to the elderly as a trait word. So, on the basis of popular useage and expression, "sin" should be stricken from the dictionary, and the word "forgiving" has now come to hold a negative connotation. WOW!

No wonder there are so many things said, thought and done that cause stress, wickedness. and destructive pain in our society. We need to get things back into balance. There are norms according to which we are to interact and according to which we are to live... I guess that means one would fair better if the lot of us humans would get back to the basics. "Sin" is the transgression of the Law. "Forgiveness" on the other hand is a beautiful word that describes how our sins are no longer charged against us, but we are declared righteous or forgiven.

That's what our church in Hudson is all about: The declaration of the forgivness of sins on the basis of Christ's righteousness.  Stay tuned you'll hear a lot more! 

 

 

 

They took my Billboard Away!

Some time in the month of July I received a phone call from a fellow stating that I had won a prize for being successful as a real estate agent. The prize was that I would have my picture taken and turned into a billboard. I got to choose the location and select the professional photo to be put on the billboard.

Was I ever impressed! I told the guy on the phone that I didn't want any part of such foolishness. Not only did I think my "free" prize and honor would cost me something, but I wasn't too sure about having my presence made so public. He assured me that it wouldn't cost me anything, and that in fact the brokerage firm was really pleased with the work that I had done and they wanted to give me this advertising advantage.

Well, sure enough, my real estate partner and I had our pictures taken and they were converted to a billboard that was near the intersection of Plato Blvd and Robert St. in St. Paul, MN. 

One of the things that convinced me to get into this billboard thing was the fact that my real estate partner relied heavily on the business we had as agents and it seemed that this would give us quite boost.

Even though the bill board was big, and our names and pictures were on it, there was absolutely no way that a person could learn from it how to get in touch with us. No phone numbers were allowed, no web page addresses and no email address was to be seen. It was a branding scheme dreamed up by some marketing firm that sold the parent company on the idea that they could ride on the coat tails of their better agents to increase their brand awareness.

That's one of the reasons I don't work very hard at real estate! The billboard was "free" for me but I was used to promote someone else.  Needless to say I don't do much real estate these days, for all kinds of reasons. What I spend the lion's share of my time and energy on is the promotion of something that I know was paid for and then offered freely to everyone and anyone that wants it. 

I spend many hours each day working at the public ministry and concentrate on the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I try real hard to make clear the details of what the Bible says about me and my fellow man. But most importantly I spend most of my time and waking moments talking about my personal Savior Jesus. I'd like very much to have the opportunity to share Him with you. Not because it gets me brand recognition, but because Jesus is also your savior.

I have a church in Hudson, WI and serve the Lord and a congregation of wonderful Christian friends as their pastor. We have public services each Sunday at 9AM to which you and those whom you love are cordially invited. What is more we have webpage that you are iinvited to browse at anytime. www.emmanuelhudson.org

God bless you and yours, stop by sometime we're located at 712 Grandview Drive, Hudson, WI 54016.

Oh yes, the surprise cost was levied at the photography studio, and even though my "free" billboard was up and in full view, it's gone now, somebody else is there in my place and they took my billboard away!