Rev. Dr. Jonathan Blanke, Senior Pastor
Pastor’s Corner for April 7-13, 2024
More than Just a Nice Story
(John 20:19-23)
Our Gospel text this weekend from John is frequently used to consider the apostle who is dubbed “Doubting Thomas.” Is it possible St. Thomas gets a bum rap for being the guy who asked questions about Jesus’ resurrection? Thomas hadn’t been around when Jesus first appeared to his disciples on Easter Sunday. Yes, he should have believed their story. Yes, Jesus Himself had even foretold his resurrection several times before it happened! But was it so wrong that Thomas wanted to ground the resurrection in what he could see with his eyes and touch with his hands? People claiming to see visions of dead loved ones were not unknown in Thomas’s day. For Thomas, the status of Jesus as truly risen from the dead mattered. For me, Thomas is a kind of unsung hero among Jesus’ disciples. For one thing, he is the only disciple we have on record who cried out to Jesus, “My Lord and my God!” For another, tradition tells us St. Thomas was a missionary to Asia. To this day, many churches in the Indian subcontinent trace their origins to the disciple of Jesus who was sent. Could it be that the desire to understand the resurrection of Jesus as more than just a nice story was a gift from God? And might it be true that this desire is what actually propelled Thomas to the far ends of the world?
Jesus, crucified and resurrected from the dead, comes to you and me today with a message not unlike the one He had for His first disciples: “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you” (20:21). Going to a far corner of the world with the gospel of Christ is a wonderful thing. But we don’t have to go to India to be sent by the risen Christ! Jesus opens our eyes to his sacrifice for our sins. He then opens our hearts to the very real needs of people all around us that He is using us to serve and to love. In the weeks ahead you will be hearing about ways to serve at RLC. April 13-14 is our Time and Talent weekend. Our goal is to get as many completed forms back from you as we possibly can! In the days ahead, listen in about how you can review a Time and Talent form a little early. And come ready to sign up for your areas of interest next weekend!
The Easter event is more than a nice story, after all. It is the real-Life event that has forever changed your life story and mine. Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Easter hope and joy in Christ,
Pastor Jonathan
Pastor Jonathan Blanke grew up in Richmond, Virginia. He received his Bachelor's degree from College of William and Mary in Virginia and attended Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri, where he earned a Masters of Divinity degree and a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Biblical Studies, Book of John. He served as a Vicar at Messiah Lutheran Church in Richardson, Texas.
The Blanke family lived in Japan while he served as pastor and missionary to Okinawa Lutheran Church and taught Biblical Studies at Japan Lutheran College in Tokyo.
Pastor Jonathan lived in southern Maryland from January 2014 to November 2019 and was thankful to have served as the Sole Pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lexington Park, Maryland.
He and his wife, Juli, have two grown children. In his free time, Jonathan likes to travel, "play around" on the piano, and enjoy the outdoors.
Click HERE to view a brief video from Pastor Jonathan.