Welcome to your Ordination Sunday, Nov. 22, 2009 Christian Year: Thanksgiving; Christ the king Main Text: Rev. 1:4b-8 Secondary Text: Ps. 132:1-12 Theme: set aside for God’s work Summary of Message: Jesus came to save us from our sins, then to ordain us (set us apart) for the salvation of others. Our identity as priests means we: I. Praise and worship Him forever (Ps. 132:5) Live as proof of God’s kingdom, holy in all respects; and Witness in the world (ps. 132:12). See also I peter 2:9: “that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” The priesthood of all believers in revelation (see 1:6; 5:10; 20:6) is a theme echoed in Peter’s first letter: “…be yourselves built into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Growing up in a large extended family, I have memories of Thanksgivings with my maternal grandparents and all the aunts and uncles; the cousins and my four siblings gathering at one house or the other, making memories and stuffing ourselves so full that a nap on the fluffy comfortered bed was automatic, after pie. I remember some thanksgivings we had snowball fights with the boy cousins for hours and hours until our clothes were soaked to the skin and blue from the cold. There was one year it snowed so much we took to the sleds at my cousin’s house, who had made a path in the sloping woods all the way to the farmer’s field 1/8 mile away. With icy conditions we tried to follow him, weaving through the woods at breakneck speeds, and when a tree popped up we could not maneuver on our toboggan, we would have to bail at the last minute to avoid decapitation. Of course, the price was losing the race to the end, and having to do a rematch to prove yourself. Today we are thinking ahead to this year’s thanksgiving.

Last week I spoke about the assurance we can have of our salvation through Jesus Christ. We can know 100 % that we are forgiven from our sins, saved from the penalty of them, and saved to heaven where we will live with God forever. All we have to do is put our faith, not in our efforts, but in God’s effort through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross to save us. How can we have this assurance? We must know and read the word of god; we must pray for direction and illumination; and we must put it into action through extending our faith to God. “Lord I believe; help my unbelief” is a good prayer if that is where you are. You must have an experience with god, and if you have not, pray for one. Today I want to share what is perhaps the best motivation for living the Christian life, once we are a part of Christ the King’s family. That motivation is that we thankful for all God has done for us. Just as I was thankful when I made it all the way to the bottom of the hill, through the labyrinth of trees and bushes on my sled; So we are thankful when we come to understand that God is with us, guiding us through each turn and scare of life; leading us ever onward in the race of life. When we meet Jesus face to face, and when we actually read the Bible for the first time with eyes of faith (for don’t you know it is a dead book before God enlightens our mind to it?) we come to understand that we are called out, set aside, to serve the living God. We of all people, who know Christ as our savior, no longer march to the beat of our own drum. Instead, we march to the beat of God’s divine cadence. When we are baptized, we receive our marching orders and we are called into service in the world. What am I talking about? Yesterday. Here. Our church. It was a coming together of months of preparation; Signs up of volunteers over the phone, in person, and on sheets of paper. Year after year we do this and the need only increases. Part of me wants to quote Jesus: “you will