Burden and Blessing Podcast

Word of the Week: MAUNDY

As we enter another Holy Week and reflect on all that our Savior endured for our salvation, Pastor Rob Sauers defines the word "Maundy" from "Maundy Thursday".  You may be familiar with this word because it is the name given to the Thursday before Easter, the day when Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with His disciples and instituted the Lord's Supper.  The word "Maundy" comes from the Latin word Mandatum which means commandment. This is taken from the words that Jesus spoke to His disciples on that night, recorded in John 13:34:  "A new commandment I give you, that you love one another." On this night Jesus was giving His followers an example of love, a love that serves rather and desired to be served, an unconditional love, a love which Jesus had for sinners that led Him to the cross.  On this night Jesus also gave His disciples another gift of His love when He instituted the Lord's Supper.  Through this sacrament we have the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins as Jesus says:  "For this is the blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." Finally it was on the night of Maundy Thursday that Jesus went with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane where He was betrayed, arrested and put on trial.  He willingly went though all this and was crucifed where He suffered the agony of our hell and was forsaken by God for the sins of the world.  Oh, the depth of Jesus' love for sinners! 

Bible Study - Luke and Holy Week

In our Bible Study today Pastors Rob Sauers and Nathanael Mayhew will be taking a closer look at the Gospel of Luke and his particular perspective of the life of Jesus during Holy Week. Luke was a Gentile who was used by the Holy Spirit to record these events for the benefit of other Gentiles in particular.  One of the major themes in Luke's Gospel is to show that Jesus was the Savior of all people, not just Jews.  He shows how Jesus reaches out to the "less" of Jewish society, as well as foreigners in love and with compassion and forgiveness.  In this study they will look at some of the events of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday that are unique to the Gospel of Luke and which empahasize these themes. In addition they will look at some of the resurrection appearances of Jesus and His ascensionwhich revels the theme of Jesus being the Savior of all and our joy in praising Him for His work of salvation for us.  We hope you will benefit from this deeper look at the passion history of our Lord as recorded in the Gospel of Luke.

Word of the Week: VICARIOUS ATONEMENT

This morning Pastor Mark Tiefel looks at the Lenten concept of "Vicarious Atonement."  The word "atonement" means to appease or to remove something.  When it comes to sin, God has removed our sin thought the sacrifice of His Son.  The word "vicarious" means substitute, and this points to Jesus who had taken our place and made the sacrifice needed for our sins.  The Old Testament believers celebrated the Day of Atonement once every year.  One goat was killed and sacrificed, the other had the sins of the people placed upon it and it was led out into the wilderness where it was left to die.  These pictures point us to the sacrifice made by Jesus on Good Friday.  Jesus told his disciples that He had come to set sinners "at one" with God, through His death on the cross.  Jesus has become our substitute and made that sacrifice for our sin, removing it forever.  

Bible Study - Psalm 22

In this special Bible Study segment, Pastors Nathanael Mayhew and Rob Sauers take an indepth look at Psalm 22 and the clear predictions of the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross, as well as the victory He wins for sinners through His death.  This Psalm was written by King David over 1000 years before they were fulfilled by Jesus on Calvary.  Yet, by inspiration, the Holy Spirit foretells specific details regarding the work of the Messiah, Jesus, in how and what he would suffer to redeem sinners to God.  When we consider the accounts of Jesus' passion, we often focus only on the physical suffering that He endured.  And it is true that he endured much physical pain on that first Good Friday.  He was abandoned by His disciples to face the agony of the crucifixion, having His hands and feet pierced, suffering from dehydration and suffocation, while being mocked and ridiculed by those around Him.  But the greatest burden He endured on that day was being forsaken by God the Father as He endured the penalty of our sin and the wrath of God against it in our place.  Through this sacrifice, Jesus won the victory for us.  Life and salvation is ours by faith.  Thanks be to God!

Word of the Week: SHEOL

This week, Pastor Nathanael Mayhew digs into the unfamiliar word "sheol" and its meaning.  This word is a Hebrew word that isn't found in all English translations.  It is used often in the Psalms, and has the basic meaning of "death" or "grave", although it is also translated "hell" a few times.  It is a reminder that death is the just judgment we deserve because of sin and God told Adam in the Garden of Eden and as Paul reiterates when he says:  "The wages of sin is death."  Death is a certainty in life for all people, both believers and unbelievers, because of our sin.  Sheol is used to describe sorrow (Genesis 42:38), mourning (Genesis 37:35), shortening of years (Isaiah 38:10), and loss of knowledge and wisdom (Ecclesiastes 9:10), even for the one who believes in Christ.  Without the message of Christ's work for us in His substitutianary death and resurrection, death is an extreme terror.  But the Old Testament also proclaims the message of the Gospel to believers through victory over Sheol.  “But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol (the grave), For He shall receive me. Selah” (Psalm 49:15).  It also foretells the Savior's resurrection from the dead:  “For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption” (Psalm 16:10).
Surely, God has not left us to die, but He has redeemed us from the power of Sheol through the death of His Son Jesus, and by His resurrection from the dead, He has assured us that we too will be brought from death to life! What an important reminder, as we look to Easter during this Lenten season.  Even so, come, Lord Jesus!
 

Review - When I Survey the Wondrous Cross by Isaac Watts

In our Review segment this week, Pastors Nathanael Mayhew and Rob Sauers look at another Lenten Hymn, "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" by Isaac Watts.  This hymn (number 175 in The Lutheran Hymnal) was composed in English by the prolific hymnwriter, Isaac Watts, who wrote over 700 other hymns, some of which are found in our hymnal and other hymnals.  Watts had a natural talent for meter and rhyme at a very early age, and put it to work in pointing people to his Savior.  This hymn is rich in Biblical pictures and based largely on Paul's words in Galatians 6:14: "But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."  He points sinners to the cross of Jesus which is the means of our salvation, and our only hope in this world of sin.  We are reminded of the danger of our pride and posessions which we are tempted to value above Christ and His cross.  In the final verse, after we have viewed the gift of God's salvation in Christ's sacrifice for us, we are motivated to respond by giving our life to Christ and in His service.  We give thanks to God for the salvation He has won for us in Christ and the forgiveness of our sins.

Word of the Week: PASSION

This week, Pastor Nathanael Mayhew digs into the word "passion" and its relationship to the season of Lent.  When we think of "passion" the English speaking mind usually thinks of love or a strong enthusiasm for something. But the word “passion” which is derived from the Greek word “pascho” actually means “to suffer.” For centuries the word “passion” has been used to describe the suffering which Jesus willingly endured for sinners to redeem them from sin and death and to reconcile them to God. When we think of the Passion of Jesus, we are reminded of all that Jesus suffered in the hours that led up to and culminated in His crucifixion. He was slapped, spit on, and beaten by the Jewish leaders and guards during the middle-of-the-night Jewish trials. He was scourged, mocked and abused by Pilate Roman soldiers. After being condemned, Jesus was forced to carry His cross to Calvary where his hands and feet were nailed to the cross and he was crucified.
The physical suffering of Jesus was indeed great. But if that is all that we think of when we consider the passion of Jesus, then we have failed to see the real suffering which Jesus endured for us. The suffering of Jesus was greater than just the physical pain He endured. Peter writes: “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Through His passion, Jesus bore the punishment for the sins of everyone in the world. He endured the just anger of God against our sins.
Jesus suffered all this because of your sin and mine. If I had no sin, I could be released of my part in the suffering and death of Jesus. But I am not without sin, and my sin made the passion of Jesus necessary. 
Thanks be to our Savior Jesus for His passion - the suffering He willingly endured in the place of sinners, that He might bring us to God! 

Bible Study - Psalms

In our Bible Study episode this week, Pastors Neal Radichel and Nathanael Mayhew take us into the Old Testament book of Psalms.  This is a favorite book for many people, but at the same time it can be very intimidating because it can be difficult to understand the historical context or background of many Psalms.  This "Book" contains 150 individual "songs" that are all unique.  This is the Hymnal of the Old Testament and were often set to music with elaborate instruments.  The 150 Psalms were grouped into 5 different sections or "books" in which you can find certain themes or similarities.  There are Psalms that cover many different aspects of life including: Prayer, History, Trust, Despair, Sin, Repentance and much more.  So there is much application to our daily lives.  In addition, throughout the Psalms you will see God's love for His people and His promise to send a Savior Who would deliver us from the punishment of our sin by suffering and dying in our place.  The Psalms are a wonderful source of comfort and encouragment for us still today as they point us to Jesus and His work as our redeemer. 

Word of the Week: CROSS

As we continue to focus on Lent, Pastor Mark Tiefel goes into the word "Cross" and its importance for the believer in Christ.  Most people don't hang onto or celebrate reminders of suffering in their life.  But the Christian faith does emphasize such a reminder in the cross.  Paul says that we boast not in ourselves but in the cross of Christ (Galatians 6:14ff).  It was through the cross that Jesus reconciled sinful human beings to a holy God (Colossians 1:20).  Christ has abolished death and the hostility that was against us through the cross (Ephesians 2:16).  For these reasons the cross is a comforting thing because it reveals the grace of God for sinners.  Jesus calls us to deny ourselves and take up our cross and follow him (Mark 8:34).  The Christian will suffer and face persecution, but Jesus has overcome the world!  It is worth it.

Review - A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth by Paul Gerhardt

In our Review segment this week, Pastors Nathanael Mayhew and Rob Sauers dig into the Lenten Hymn, "A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth" by Paul Gerhardt.  This hymn (number 142 in The Lutheran Hymnal) was written by Paul Gerhardt, who was a faithful Lutheran pastor in Germany who lived about 100 years after Martin Luther.  In this hymn Gerhardt wonderfully depicts the purpose of Christ's suffering and death, His willingness to carry out mankind's salvation, and the great cost which He paid to accomplish it.  He also describes the resulting effect of Christ's atonement for sin in the life of the Christian, both now and in eternity.  He describes how the Christian, in view of the Savior's sacrifice for us, offers his life as a sacrifice for Christ.  Because of Jesus' redemption, we need not fear death or the Devil, but confidently trust in our Savior, who comforts us in our earthly afflictions.  We also look forward to the joy of eternal life which is ours, by faith, because Jesus has purchased our release from sin and death.  What a rich spiritual heritage we have in such Scriptural Lutheran hymns as this!