sermon

When does the Word of God gets to its proper place and when is it not?

Thoughts about the power of the Word of God in our lives

 

1. When is the Word of God not in its proper place? The Word of God is not in its proper place if we read the Losung’s Biblical verses for the day as a 'horoscope' or, looking for the answer for one of our specific questions, we open the Bible at random and we literally interpret the first Word we see, thinking that "this is what God tells us today". We cannot really feel the Word’s strength in case we have never read the whole Bible. We cannot be open for the Word’s content if we do not place ourselves in the presence of God, in the space of God, in the gracious love of Jesus and in the strength of the Holy Spirit before we start reading. We cannot fully accept the Word of God if we read it only. We have to listen to it, too. Let’s get in the habit of reading the Words of God loud out instead of just reading it. Let’s listen to the Word of God at church services, in the community of the believers. The preacher, the emotions of the many human souls, the elements of the liturgy, singing and praying will create different opportunities of acceptance and openness than the solitude. Let’s give more chances for the Word of God to resonate in ourselves and to find Its place! Let's realize that we give a chance to ourselves with all these because God has given His Word to find its place in this world and in our lives. (If you would like to know more about this, please read my essay here.)

 

2. When does the Word of God find its proper place in our lives and in our souls? King Solomon’s following parable beautifully shows us how does the Word of God look like in its appropriate place: "To speak a word in due time, is like apples of gold on beds of silver." (Proverbs 25:11) A nice apple is about a quarter liter. A quarter liter gold weighs eleven pounds. Why is the Word of God so heavy? The Word is God’s manifestation in the world. All Words focus Totality in themselves. The Word carries God’s creative power. This creative power is unlimited: it can even fold the sky as a vesture (Hebrews 1:12). The Word of God is like a stone. But not any kind of stone! The Word is exactly the stone that God has placed in the middle of the world: it is the Cornerstone, the Word made flesh. The Cornerstone, Jesus Christ, is the stumblingstone (Romans 9:32). When does the Word of God gets to its proper place? When it has arrived in the middle of our hearts – on beds of silver. The beds of silver: is the Holy Spirit itself. If we are open to the Holy Spirit when accepting the Word – it gets to the place where God has intended to place it, where Jesus lives: into our hearts. (If you would like to know more about this, please read my essay here.)

 

3. What is the Word of God reaching its place capable of? The Word starting from God has arrived to our hearts, which have been purified for accepting the Word, by the Holy Spirit with the mercy of Jesus’ sacrifice. The Word of God got to its place – at last. Can we be satisfied with this? We cannot! If we have accepted the Word, we have to let it work in us. The Word will do what it says (see: Isaias 55:11). Maybe it takes years – but it surely will do. But something more happens. The Word does not have a rest in us: we have to pass it to others. Where will the Word be at its proper place? In our brothers’ hearts! The Word has found its place at last: it has become our common treasure. Is it the end of the Word’s journey? No, it isn’t! Not yet! What is the Word capable of after finding its place? "That word above all earthly powers -- No thanks to them -- abideth." (Martin Luther: A Mighty Fortress Is Our God) The Word is the sign of our Creator and Father and our Redeemer in this world, which stands as a rock we all can surely build our houses on. The house built on the Word is the House of our Father in which we all can find realm forever. The Word leads us back here, into the Father’s House through Jesus Christ, the Door (John 10:9a). This is how the Word returns to the place it has started from: to the Father. But not empty but with all of us, together with all sheep of our Lord – Forever and ever. Hallelujah! Amen.  (If you would like to know more about this, please read my essay here.)

 

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What is the mechanism of effective learning in life?

Thoughts about the strength of spiritual retreats

1. Alternating good and bad periods are needed for learning in nature. During the past centuries mankind increasingly identified the idea of good with wealth. However, escaping from the bad is a wrong strategy because hardships coming from time to time are necessary to slow down, to stop, and to think about that from all that we have collected what are the few ones worth taking forward. It is important from time to time to deprive ourselves from the comfort and from the unbelievable information input in which we have lived before and go to "meditate in the wild". Spiritual retreats are very good forms of this. It is crucial to help our fellow human beings, who live their lives continuously in poor and bad times letting them to overcome this situation. (If you would like to read more about this, please read my essay here.)

 

2. Alternating good and bad periods are also important in the development of our souls. In nature learning may only proceed by the alterations of resource-rich and resource-poor periods. Alternating good and bad periods play a very important role in soul development, too. Alterations of good and bad are required that a nation, a church, an anything, which is valuable in the long term, may be formed. Thus the consecutive emotional "ups" and "downs" of sermons and spiritual retreats reflect exactly the same Knowledge which appears in the whole nature, and which is the most efficient way to obtain new experiences. (If you would like to read more about this, please read my essay here.)

 


3. What is the result of the learning process? There is an increase in the complexity, response-range and information content of the system, which learns. In other words: those who may learn from the ups and downs of life become wiser. Still in other words: the soul, which successfully passed some spiritual exercises gets closer to God. God is the Totality of knowledge. If we think about this, we may recognize that the three processes described here, are, in essence, exactly the same. Nature seeks after and heads to the place from where it was born: God’s Totality. (If you would like to read more about this, please read my essay here.)

 

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