"Let the Adventure Begin"
#84-15Presented on The Lutheran Hour on December 11, 2016
By Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz, Lutheran Hour Speaker
(Q&A Topic:What Does Forgiveness Mean?)
Copyright 2024 Lutheran Hour Ministries
Q&A MP3
Text: Isaiah 35:1-10
The Prophet Isaiah said, "Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees. 4 Say to those who have anxious hearts, "Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and He save you." 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 6 then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; 7 the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down, the grass shall become reeds and rushes. 8 And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way.
In the Name of our Savior, Jesus, the Babe of Bethlehem. Amen.
"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all." Do you know who said that? It was Helen Keller. And who is she? Well, Keller was born in 1880 and if you know anything about her life, you know that it was full of setbacks and hardships. At 19 months old, she contracted Scarlet Fever and that illness left her blind and unable to hear. With such limitations, the normal challenges of life would seem insurmountable, wouldn't you agree?
But with the attitude that life is a daring adventure, she refused to quit and she refused to let any limitation hold her back. She was accepted into Radcliffe College at the age of sixteen and she graduated cum laude. Her single determination was to improve the lives of others and became an advocate for the blind. Her assistance helped the American Association for the Blind become an institution. Her speaking skills and gentle spirit won her the admiration of audiences around the globe.
That's right; her speaking! Though robbed of hearing, sight, and speech; that didn't stop her from learning to communicate, even to speak. And speak she did. Excelling at public speaking, even becoming an international celebrity for her intellectual prowess and strong wit. Helen Keller made the most out of life and accomplished more than most people who see with 20/20 vision and can hear every word you say!
She wrote bestsellers, she advocated for the blind, the deaf; she wrote about and talked about faith as well.
What made her attack life with such bravado, such a passion to achieve? I think that her quote says so much: "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all!" To dare to live; to treat life as an adventure. I think that's the spirit of our text today in Isaiah.
Isaiah comes and says, "Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you." And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness. It shall belong to those who walk on the way.
I want to get on that road, that highway, don't you? I want to know what life is like when God comes into one's life with a salvation, a redemption, and a way forward that makes each day another day, another adventure of following the One Who loves us with an everlasting love!
One of the greatest problems in the church today is that Christians have lost their sense of adventure. Christians have settled for a boring life when they are supposed to be living the adventure of faith in Jesus, the adventure of a life filled with His love in a loveless, even cold world. This "Highway, this way of His holiness," is a way that sets our path in this world, and sets our sights not merely on the temporal things of this life, but the eternal things of life with Him forever!
For the Christian Church this is the season of Advent. It's not the "holiday, shopping, party-scene season," you know, the one that everyone regrets every year. No, this is the season of Advent, a time to re-ignite the adventure of faith in God; the God Who sent His Son so that our adventure might not merely last a lifetime, but an eternity.
Just think about that word, Advent, you can already see and hear its connection to Ad...ven....ture. Advent means "coming or arrival of something or someone of great importance." In this case it's the very coming of Jesus the Christ. Adventure means "an unusual or exciting experience" one that follows the "arrival of this Jesus" who makes life possible again!
During Advent, we look forward to the celebration of Christmas. But we also look forward to the coming of Jesus at the end of times. In Him, all of life is an adventure, one that is full of His promise and His hope.
Isaiah, the author of our reading for today, was pretty bold about inviting people to put their trust in God and get in on this adventure with Him. He said, "Rejoice. Behold your God." This adventure is drawing nigh. Behold. Your God is coming.
Isaiah 35 is surrounded by a gushing joy. So much joy that you can't even express it. Joy bubbling over. Incredible indescribable joy. Unbelievable joy. In fact, Isaiah couldn't contain himself when writing our text for today. He was so full of joy that he kept saying it over and over and over again. Rejoice. Sing for joy!
You might think that Isaiah was writing about all of this when things were going well, when there was an obvious time for joy. But that wasn't the case in his life. At the time of this writing there was no reason for joy at all. Isaiah's hometown of Jerusalem was not doing well. The once populous city was no longer full of people. It was a shell of its former self. And the situation was getting worse. There was no viable military to speak of even to defend her.
And the powerful Assyrians, they were taking over the whole world at the time. They were an unavoidable and unstoppable force. They had just destroyed the nearby sister kingdom of Samaria to the north and word had it that they were marching on Jerusalem.
Isaiah's King, King Hezekiah of Judah and Israel, he looked for some help. He knew that there was no way Jerusalem could defend herself against this army. Destruction was imminent. The Assyrians were known for their cruelty. There would be no mercy. So Hezekiah looked to another mighty ancient power for help, the Kingdom of Egypt.
But Isaiah, the prophet of God, told Hezekiah don't align yourself with Egypt. Isaiah told Hezekiah to trust in the Lord, not in armies. Isaiah told King Hezekiah that Egypt couldn't help. Instead, the King should rejoice in the adventure. Not only should he rejoice, he should overflow with joy.
Why would Isaiah say that Hezekiah? Why would he say rejoice? There is only one reason: behold your God will come to save you. And when God is in action for you, let the adventure begin! When God is acting on our behalf, bring on the challenges, bring on the struggles, and let the joys be multiplied! That's Isaiah's word for God's people then and that's God's Word for us today!
The promised adventure of joy is simple. God is coming. In fact, God has come. God will act. We can entrust our lives to Him but when we look back on this Word, we can even be more joyful. Why, because God the Father not only acted to save Israel, to restore them, He acted to save us all by sending His Son Jesus into the world to rescue us from sin, from death, and from the power of Satan himself.
The adventure of life really begins when you realize there is someone in your life that can overcome what is against you; that can provide a way through where you see only obstacles. When someone trustworthy enters your life, life is not a foolish dare, it is a daring adventure with One Who can help you see your way through.
That's what happened to Helen Keller. She was faced with insurmountable odds, she was overcome with incredible challenges, but then Anne Sullivan of the Perkins Institution entered her life. Partially blind herself and a former ward of the state, Anne was well aware of the kind of life that awaited Helen, were she to be banished to an institution. But because of her own triumphs over adversity, Anne was also aware of the miracles that might be wrought through persistence and disciplined effort.
With this in mind, she arrived at the Keller home, and the instruction began. She had been through all the struggles. She had experienced all the frustrations and now she would perseveringly love and teach Keller until she "saw things, maybe not with her eyes, but with her heart and soul."
When someone is there who loves you, who has experienced all your struggles and pains and now shows you the way of life through it all for yourself; it would be wise to trust them, to follow them. Life changed for Keller when Sullivan entered her life.
Isaiah is pointing to an even greater source of joy and confidence for our adventure. Behold your God, the One Who has saved you, the One Who will save you and me, the One Who provides a way of life where there is only sin, and death, and destruction.
The Bible, all the prophets, and the Apostles remind us that the God of the Scripture is the God of the Exodus adventure, out of slavery and bondage to freedom. He is the God Who would rescue His people from the captivity of the Assyrians and bring them back to the land He had promised them, a place of security and identity. But ultimately, He is the God Who would act and rescue all people from the guilt of their sin, the pain of their suffering and death through the person and work of Jesus Christ our Savior. The Bible is certain. The adventure is sure. God is coming, put your faith in Him. Behold your God, He comes to save.
That's Isaiah's message to King Hezekiah amidst the fears and terrors of Assyria, the vulnerability of Jerusalem. He preaches ultimate joy and hope in the God Who will act for them in the end. Though all looked lost at that time and Judah deserved God's wrath and anger, Isaiah tells King Hezekiah and all of Jerusalem to rejoice. Behold your God. That's it, and that's what you ultimately need. Behold your God. He will ultimately come to save as only He can.
And that's the message for us today too. When Jesus arrived that first Christmas, the Bible said that God had made a way through the desert; that He had cleared a path so that you and I could see that Jesus is the fulfillment of all of God's promises to save us, to save all. Jesus even quotes Isaiah when talking about His work on earth saying, "because of Me, the blind are receiving their sight. The deaf are able to hear. And the lame are leaping." Translation: rejoice. Behold your God. He has come to save you and me!
That's the message for today. Rejoice. Behold your God and let the adventure in Him, with Him, begin.
I realize that you are not King Hezekiah facing down a murderous invader called the Assyrians. Your fears surely are not that grave, or maybe they are. Maybe this is a time when sin and guilt have overwhelmed you. Or, maybe this is a time when you are terrified by some failure, or you are overwhelmed with real grief. Maybe this is a time when you are uncertain about the future, or facing a real loneliness that makes you feel like your life isn't worth living at all. That's a darkness that can be just as terrifying as anything King Hezekiah faced. And that's why Isaiah's message is so important for you and for me to hear too. Behold your God, the One Who loves you, the One Who understands you, the One Who overcomes all that is against you, even your own sin, the One Who comes to save you.
Now is not the time to seek other sources of strength and confident, they won't last, they won't cut it. So listen to Isaiah's warning. Don't put your trust for life and salvation in anything but the God Who loves you, Who saves you, Who guides you by His Word in this life now and forever. Behold your God, the One Who comes to save.
But know this. Isaiah's promise is our certainty; for God not only came then to save, He came that first Christmas in the flesh for all. He came to pave the highway of righteousness so that you can dwell with God forever. He came to take our place, to live our life perfectly before God the Father. Every year the Church looks at the Christ Child and says, "Rejoice. Behold your God."
And amazingly, the Living One, Jesus Christ, also came to die in our place in order to redeem and ransom all who are held in the clutches of sin.
Using Isaiah's language; Jesus died to pave the highway of righteousness in the desert. Jesus walked the way of sorrow to pave the way of righteousness. Jesus died to bring the desert to bloom like the crocus; to redeem and restore all of creation. On the cross. Behold your God; the One Who came to save you as only He can.
And even more; Jesus stood in the midst of death as the resurrected One Who is alive even now. Jesus rose from the dead. And because He rose, you too will walk the holy highway. Because He rose, there will be a road that leads to God's holy city. Because Jesus rose, streams will run through the desert. Because He rose, the place that was abandoned will now be one full of life and hope. At the empty tomb: Rejoice, behold your God, the One Who came to save you as only He can.
Henry Blackaby, the author of "Experiencing God," wrote this: "We should attempt things so great that they are doomed to failure unless God intervenes." Well, let me say this to you today. God has intervened for you!
So, today, in your heart and mind, behold your God, the only One Who can save you and me and grant us a life of adventure, now and into eternity. It's an adventure of repentance and faith in Him, of underserved love that we get to receive and share as a gift. It's an adventure with an eternal destiny to all who follow Him.
That's the Advent invitation to adventure. Isaiah's Christ has come. Christ Jesus will come again for you and me. Behold your God, your Savior, Jesus the Christ, the God Who comes to save you and let your adventure in Him begin and never ever end. That's my prayer for you today. In His Name. Amen!
Action in Ministry for December 11, 2016
Guest: Daniel Andriamanjaka and Samantha Spratt
ANNOUNCER: You're listening to The Lutheran Hour and this is Action In Ministry. Today Pastor Seltz talked about life as an on-going adventure. With that in mind, we want to tell you about another adventure of sorts, and that's our upcoming Online Mission Trip (OMT) to Madagascar. Joining me here today are Daniel Andriamanjaka and Samantha Spratt. Daniel is the director of our ministry center in Madagascar and Samantha is here in our office helping to coordinate this upcoming trip. Daniel and Samantha, thank you for joining us.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Glad to be here.
SPRATT: Thank you for having me.
ANNOUNCER: Now, in January, grade school students are going to be able to visit Daniel and his team in Madagascar without even having to buy an airline ticket; how is that possible, Samantha?
SPRATT: Any parochial school student can participate, home-school student can participate. During the LEA Convocation we even had a college professor register to participate. Really, anyone can take this trip.
ANNOUNCER: Families too, right?
SPRATT: Oh yeah. Everyone.
ANNOUNCER: All right.
SPRATT: What's really unique about OMT is that it's all online. You can experience the culture, seeing the country, seeing the mission work. What's all really great is that we even offer a two-day in the life for students and families so they can actually see two kids, their lives. They're the same age as them and can relate. This is going to be an amazing opportunity that you'll definitely want to experience.
ANNOUNCER: Very good. Daniel, tell us where is Madagascar and how did you come to be involved with Lutheran Hour Ministries?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Okay. Madagascar is an island and it is located southeast coast of Africa. The east coast of Madagascar is the Indian Ocean and the west coast of Madagascar is the Mozambique Channel; that's where it is. Now, how and when I became involved in LHM; in June of 2016, this year, they've been looking for a new director because the former director has been retired...
ANNOUNCER: Okay.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: By then I was still working for the British Embassy back home, but I was also looking for an opportunity to work for the church because I'd been working for the church a long time ago. Then I worked outside the church for a mining company, for an embassy. By that time I was looking for the job and they were looking for a director.
ANNOUNCER: And it came together.
ANDRIAMANJAKA:And they came together, so I think this is God's plan.
ANNOUNCER: Could you tell us a little bit about the people and the culture of Madagascar?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: I think if we talk about the people in Madagascar, the population is about 22 to 23 million people in Madagascar and we have about 17 tribes in Madagascar. If we talk about culture, there is also religion that goes with it. The religion in Madagascar is 55% of Malagasy follow traditional beliefs and that's very significant. But if we talk about Christianity, 40% of Malagasy are Christians, but we also have Muslims in Madagascar...
ANNOUNCER: All right.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: ...about 5 to 7%.
ANNOUNCER: That traditional religion, what is that like?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: It's animism, so to say. People believe in God but they don't really go to church. They just believe in God. They believe in ancestors.
ANNOUNCER: Okay. There's like a spirit in different objects and in animals and things like that?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Animals, yeah. The forest.
ANNOUNCER: The forest, okay.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: The water.
ANNOUNCER: Kind of a superstitious belief?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: There is. There is, yeah. There is among the animism.
ANNOUNCER: And there are also many Lutherans in Madagascar, right?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Yeah. Of 23 million people, I think there are 4 million of that is Lutheran.
ANNOUNCER: That's the Malagascy Lutheran Church.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: That's Malagascy Lutheran Church, right.
ANNOUNCER: Now recently, Samantha, we sent a video crew to Madagascar to capture some of the scenery and to bring back some interviews and some footage that will be part of this Online Mission Trip; what did they find?
SPRATT: Some of the footage that our video crew came back with is just absolutely amazing. I'm very excited for everyone to see it. They went to Nosy Be. They visited national parks. They even took a drone and got some great landscape footage. They also have some fun footage of animals, such as lemurs, like our two sitting here...
ANNOUNCER: Those of you who are watching us on video, that's what those two creatures are. They're lemurs. Are they dangerous animals?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: No, they're not. Actually they are friendly to people. They are friendly to people, yeah.
SPRATT: They also got some chameleon footage. One thing that was really cool that they did is that they actually visited the biggest prison in the capital and shot some footage of the prison ministry there.
ANNOUNCER: Daniel, could you describe your ministry activities in Madagascar and how you are reaching out to the people?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Samantha talked about prison ministry. That's one of the major activities that we do; the prison ministry. Actually we had a good story from that.
ANNOUNCER: Oh, really.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: But apart from the prison ministry, we also have, of course, the BCC (Bible Correspondence Course)...
ANNOUNCER: All right.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: We do that. We have the youth ministry, youth rallies, and actually we have a project on that to expand to the youth department at national...nationwide, you know. Apart from that we also have the radio station program. We do that every week. We work with 10 radio stations now in Madagascar. Those are basically what are the main activities that we have been doing.
ANNOUNCER: All right. What are your biggest challenges?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Talking about BCC (Bible Correspondence Courses); the challenge, the biggest challenge, that is the location where the people live. It is difficult to reach them.
ANNOUNCER: Geographically.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Geographically. Exactly, yeah. So that's the biggest challenge that we've been facing so far.
ANNOUNCER: Okay. To help our listeners understand that; I understand that Madagascar is a very long country. Is it like the distance from Kansas City to New York, is how much ground you are covering. Is it very difficult to get around?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Yeah, if you go by car from the capital city to the north, it takes you three days. If you go from the capital city going down south, it takes you another three days. So you can see how long it is considering the bad state of roads, of course.
ANNOUNCER: Okay, yeah.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: But it's big.
ANNOUNCER: So, a lot of challenges there. All right. What are the attitudes towards Christianity? Do you have people pushing back at you because of your message?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: No, actually, I think people are very welcoming, yeah, and they like it.
ANNOUNCER: Good.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Yeah, the thing is that we need visibility. We need people to know who we are and what we do. I think that's the basic thing and that is the very important thing that we should be doing. But people are welcoming and they like it; especially when we do the film showing. A lot of people come and watch the film.
ANNOUNCER: You said you had a story about the impact of the ministry?
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Yeah, we had somebody who was just released from the prison. We've been doing a BCC course at the prison and we have about 400 people following the BCC. Only a few of them have completed it; the course, of course; because some study and they go, new prisoners come and join the BCC course and they go. But this person recently released from the prison and he's been following the BCC course at the prison, and when he was released, he came to the office. We were astonished. He prayed in the office and he started talking about his life after prison and I think part of the changing of his life is the BCC course, the visit of the team in the prison, the worship that we've been doing at the prison, and the changing life and that experience that made him very, very happy. He came and made a testimony of that. Now, because of that attitude change, the praying...he said, "Okay, can I be...can I volunteer myself and work with you and help you at the prison ministry?" Then we said, "That's a gift. That's a gift." We were happy and he's now a volunteer; one of our volunteers; but because of life, he has to make his life, is moving here and there to make his life. But when he comes to Tana, he comes to the office and he works with us, happily.
ANNOUNCER: So he was reached by the message of Jesus and now he wants to be part of sharing that message with others.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: Yes, and he's sharing that with pleasure with others.
ANNOUNCER: Very good. Samantha, how can someone take part in the Online Mission Trip?
SPRATT: It's really easy. You just register online. Registration is free. During Lutheran Schools Week is when the videos will be released. One video per day will go out. All communication is done via email. What's really great about it is you can then, because you have this link, decide if you want to play it in the morning or in the afternoon. It's very flexible to your schedule. What's also great is even if you can't watch it during that week, it's online and available. You can always go back to it afterwards. Another thing to look forward to is we have a complimentary curriculum coming that can be used in correspondence with the videos.
ANNOUNCER: And in just a moment I'll give you the link where you can find all that information at our lutheranhour.org website. If you would like to call us, we'll send you a Lutheran Hour Ministries luggage tag so you can be a part of the Madagascar trip in that way. Daniel and Samantha, I want to thank you for sharing with us about the Online Mission Trip to Madagascar and you're helping us see how God is working through Lutheran Hour Ministries in different places all around the world. Thanks for joining us.
SPRATT: Thank you.
ANDRIAMANJAKA: I'm glad. Thank you for having me.
ANNOUNCER: And that's our Action in Ministry segment for today; to bless, to empower, and to strengthen your life in Christ for others.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for December 11, 2016
Topic: What Does Forgiveness Mean?
ANNOUNCER: Now, Pastor Gregory Seltz responds to questions from listeners. I'm Mark Eischer. Pastor, a listener asks us about the topic of forgiveness. What does it mean to be forgiven and how are we then to forgive others?
SELTZ: Wow, Mark, we're back to basics. I think this is really important. We've got to talk about this a lot. Does anyone talk about repentance and forgiveness anymore?
ANNOUNCER: We hear more about getting what's yours or getting even, unfortunately.
SELTZ: And that's a real problem in our world today, Mark. It's toxic in people's lives too. So, forgiveness; it's really important because it starts by getting your life right with God. When the Bible talks about forgiveness, it describes God's removal of our guilt because of our sin. Remember, we are guilty of sin when we think, speak, or act contrary to God's will. God tells us that the punishing reality for our sin is death.
ANNOUNCER: Sounds really harsh.
SELTZ: Yeah, it is, but it's reality. Sin is a rebellion against life. It's like taking that drug that's killing you because it feels good for the moment. God had to break that condition or it would break us eternally.
ANNOUNCER: And He did that by sending Jesus Christ to be our Savior.
SELTZ: Absolutely. What a beautiful thing. God sent His Son to overcome our sin, to destroy death, and to restore us from our sinful condition to our original state as His beloved creatures. Paul sys that in 2 Corinthians 5; one of my favorite verses, "For our sake he (God the Father) made him (Jesus) to be sin who knew not sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
ANNOUNCER: Does that mean that since Jesus has died on the cross and risen from the dead, everyone has forgiveness?
SELTZ: As usual, yes and no. Jesus paid the price for all of our sins on the cross. He earned the forgiveness for every sin for every person. But not all receive this gift. Only those who have faith, those who trust in Jesus Christ as the gift of God receive what He has freely given.
ANNOUNCER: So we receive forgiveness, the benefits of that, through faith trusting in Christ. When we believe in Jesus as our Savior, we receive that forgiveness, but what does that really mean?
SELTZ: When our sins are forgiven, we are declared righteous in God's sight. God has actually reconnected us, then, to Himself. Now we get to live in Him, with Him, by Him again!
ANNOUNCER: We start to do that by sharing that forgiveness with others.
SELTZ: Just like we say in the Lord's Prayer, "Father forgive us as we forgive others." We receive that forgiveness that comes from God on His gracious terms in Jesus and then we put that to work by learning to forgive the people that are in our lives.
ANNOUNCER: But what if those people who have sinned against me, though, have disrespected and really hurt me? What then?
SELTZ: That's exactly why forgiveness is hard and why we only learn to forgive through God's love. I'm often reminded of how hard it must be for God to continually love someone like myself. I don't even live up to my own standards, let alone His, and yet here He comes with forgiveness, life, and salvation over and over and over again. I definitely want to receive that, but the more I learn about it I want to spread that around more too!
ANNOUNCER: But aren't we supposed to protect ourselves?
SELTZ: Yes and no. I'm not talking about being naive but to love someone is to be vulnerable to them. They may not receive your love and forgiveness properly, there's no doubt, but that doesn't mean you have to foolishly return the favor, the way they treat you. So you do want to talk about speaking the truth, speaking the truth of God in love, and you're forgiving others as Christ forgives you. In fact, that's the only way that love can survive in this world!
ANNOUNCER: But if I do all that, they might just turn around and hurt me all over again.
SELTZ: And again, I'm just telling you, only God can break that kind of cycle. Remember, He forgives us and that person who hurt us and we're in His care when we put our trust in Him. So, you've got to keep the big picture on all of these things.
ANNOUNCER: So you are saying, to sum this all up, God is willing to forgive us. He sent Jesus to be our Savior to pay the price for our sins. Because of all that, we must also forgive others.
SELTZ: Actually, we get to forgive others. We get the joy of trying to love and forgive others the way that God in Christ actually forgives us.
ANNOUNCER: That's an important distinction. We must forgive but we get to forgive because of all that God has done for us in Jesus Christ. We thank our listener for that question. Thank you, Pastor Seltz, for that answer. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music Selections for this program:
"A Mighty Fortress" arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
"Hark! A Thrilling Voice Is Sounding" From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
"O Lord, How Shall I Meet You" From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
