From the Pastor

The Spirit in the Dust
(Romans 8:1-17)

It has already been over a week since we gathered at church on Ash Wednesday. Lent has begun! We continue to hear in our worship life together those words from the prophet Joel: “Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” The ashes are long washed off. But we continue to live out that life of repentance that is all about keeping the eyes of our hearts on Jesus and journeying with Him to His cross.

St. Paul would have us do so with the assurance that the Holy Spirit accompanies us on that journey. The tendency for us is to find places in our lives where we’re “stuck” or feeling powerless or living in fear of God’s pay-back for something we’ve done. Lent begins with ashes, but Paul encourages us to live out our Lenten journey with the assurance “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Did you hear that? Paul uses the word “now.” The diagnosis of our human condition God reveals to us in His Word is simple: We cannot fix ourselves. It is not possible to rely on willpower to achieve personal holiness. We cannot outrun our failures. But in Christ Jesus the Holy Spirit lives in us now! The Holy Spirit gives life now! And yes, on one future day, the Spirit will raise our mortal bodies with new resurrected ones! That means the Holy Spirit doesn’t wait until we improve ourselves to start working in and through us. Through His Word and Sacrament, the Holy Spirit goes to work immediately, moving into the very places of our lives we feel most defeated and lost. You see, Lent isn’t about “proving” your repentance is real. It’s about discovering God’s gift to you in Christ, to be at work today in those very parts of your life you may have thought were beyond repair.

Jesus Christ has already borne the condemnation for sin that you and I deserve. That means the Holy Spirit is not a reward for progress but Jesus’ gift for the helpless! And so, the words “There is now no condemnation” is not just a future verdict—it is a present reality spoken over sinners who still feel like dust. I find that to be liberating and enlivening. Look inside this newsletter at all of the RLC March events. I encourage you to not only take time out from the busy-ness of life to reflect and give thanks for the suffering and death of Jesus on Calvary’s cross. Lent does not mean life stops or stands still. I pray that the Spirit in the dust of Lent for you this year may again be a call to action and focus on the cross of Jesus.

Hosanna to the King of Glory!
Pastor Jonathan