The Meyer Minute

The Meyer Minute for September 28, 2020

Today offers you a sense of wholeness, sifting through the world’s news to settle yourself on what’s most important and dismissing the rest. Today our Jewish friends observe the Day of Atonement, a special day of great significance for us Christians.  

Its ritual included two goats; one called the “scapegoat.” How relevant, people blaming others for their problems. You can make it a verb, “scapegoating” others for our problems, and we do.  Scapegoating is always in the news, and we do it in our personal lives. On the Day of Atonement, the scapegoat, was “presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness…” (Leviticus 16:10). That is, the sins of the people against God were symbolically placed on the scapegoat and it was abandoned in the wilderness to be done with sin.  

The other goat was sacrificed. ”Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering” (Leviticus 16:9). Two goats: one killed to atone for the sins of God’s people against Him; the other carries sin away from the life of God’s people. Can we see ourselves in the goats? We have sins that have made us not-at-one with God, sins that call for death and for renunciation, that we go “and sin no more” (John 8:11). 

“In this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place” (Leviticus 16:3). At-one-with God is not of our own devising. God teaches His people how atonement is to come about. Not by church programs, policies, or scholarship. Not by stewardship or evangelism. Not because of faith and good intentions. Those all have their place, but it is only The High Priest who offers the necessary sacrifice and sends sin away. “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come…, he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:11-12). 

There is much we Christians don’t understand, but one thing we get is the wholeness from the One in Whom all fits together. The Day of Atonement reminds us of a principle of Bible reading, “The New Testament in concealed in the Old; the Old Testament is revealed in the New.” 

The Meyer Minute for September 23, 2020

“For everything there is a season” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Call if “fall” or call it “autumn,” we’ve entered a season of spiritual insights, if only we’ll pause and ponder. For us blessed to live with four seasons… Whoa, Dale! Blessed to endure the biting cold of winter? The oppressive heat of summer? Yes, every season has lessons for us. “This is my Father’s world / And to my listening ears / All nature sings and round me rings / The music of the spheres.” “For everything there is a season, a time to be born,” spring, “and a time to die” Fall shows us leaves and flowers at their most beautiful time, mature…and close to their destined end. “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever” (Isaiah 40:8).  

“Let them praise the name of the Lord! For he commanded and they were created. And he established them forever and ever; he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds! Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the name of the Lord” (Psalm 148: 1, 5-13). 

The faith given us leads to introspection; we sense a message in the changes of fall. “In the morning it flourishes and is renewed; in the evening it fades and withers” (Psalm 90:6). “Here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14). I haven’t the slightest feeling of what heaven will be like but as my years mature… Aren’t gray hairs like the changing leaves?... As life winds down, each colorful leaf, each pumpkin and shock of corn, each cooler day to put on warmer clothes in which to snuggle… these little things of changing seasons are more precious as the years go by. Nature calls us, nature’s God calls us to reject the vanities of the world and stand in awe before the Creator and Recreator of life. “Earth’s crammed with heaven / And every common bush afire with God: / But only he who sees, takes off his shoes, / The rest sit round it, and pluck blackberries.”  (Elizabeth Barret Browning, “Aurora Leigh”). 

The Meyer Minute for September 22, 2020

Let’s say you like a candidate but the candidate’s position on abortion is definitely not yours. “I don’t like either candidate, but I’ll hold my nose and vote for…” Or let’s say you have ties to an organization whose leadership has now taken a position on sexuality that is different from what you believe the Bible teaches. Yes, it may be the law of the land but it’s not the faith you received and believe. Stay or leave? 

These are questions of conscience, but in our time conscience seems to have taken a back seat to expediency. What position is most advantageous for me, for my organization, for my company? Yet the voice of conscience is of great importance to a Christian. When Martin Luther’s integrity was on the line, he famously said, “I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe.” How should conscience guide our conduct in ethically contentious times? 

Christian conscience is constant conversation with God that is shaped by Baptism. “Baptism…now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him” (1 Peter 3:21-22). The first function of conscience for a Christian is not external, “What should I do?” but internal, Whose am I? Like Baptism, a Christian’s conscience reflects both justification and sanctification. Conscience is always an accuser (Romans 2:3, 14-15), but the new birth of Baptism accounts you guiltless in Christ (Romans 8:1). And conscience also reflects sanctification, “As he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct” (1 Peter 1:15), but again, accusation. Though saints, we are still sinners. 

So, what about public issues at odds with my Christian belief? “Belief” singular, because Christian morality is Christ-centered. Contentious issues are occasions for us to share the hope that is in us, and if your view is disparaged, which may well happen, then keep a good conscience by appealing to God through the merits of Jesus Christ which have been applied to you, imperfect as you are, always struggling until we come to the heavenly inheritance which is “imperishable, undefiled, and unfading” (1 Peter 3:15-16; 1:4). “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22). You expected an easy answer? 

The Meyer Minute for September 21, 2020

Permit me this Monday morning to thank the world for making me appreciate what I have within myself. By “world” I don’t mean the world of nature. Autumn is upon us and flowers and leaves are their most beautiful as the days shorten. No, the “world” I mean is what we see on the news. Killing of innocent people and destruction of personal property. Violence of words, speeches and social media attacks on others. Political expediency in the pursuit of power. Self over others. This is the “world” I want to thank, everyone who is blinded by vanities. 

It makes me appreciate, and I hope you do as well, what the Spirit of God has put in us: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Don’t ignore the news; let it grieve you, but much more let the world make you thankful for who you are. “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 John 3:1). The world will continue as it does, but you and I have within us the peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7). 

Of course, we’re not yet perfect. Jesus says, “Out of the heart of man come evil thoughts” and He lists all the sins too much with us in this life (Mark 7:21-22). Struggle is within the Christian’s soul. “I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war…and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members” (Romans 7:23-24). Just the fact that we see the world’s vanities and struggle against them in our own hearts is a cause of thanks to God and hope. “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure” (1 John 3:2-3). 

So, I thank the “world” and trust you join me. “This is the advantage: the less the Christian finds esteem and acceptance in the world, the more he turns his eye inward, to see what is there; and there he finds the world’s contempt counterpoised by a weight of excellency and glory” (Robert Leighton, 449). 

The Meyer Minute for September 18 2020

Each generation is impacted by some public event. The Greatest Generation was shaped by the Depression and World War II. Baby Boomers had Viet Nam, civil strife, and the assassinations of the 1980s. How is the Covid-19 crisis impacting today’s young people?  

I recently interviewed Dr. Tim Brackman and Mrs. Cindy Burreson. Dr. Brackman is principal of Lutheran High School North in St. Louis and Mrs. Burreson is the school’s Director of Counseling. The impact of the crisis upon students has been profound, much more than changed ways of teaching and learning. Mrs. Burreson said high school “is a time of great growth and development, personally and interpersonally, and a lot of that is social. And they don’t have that. So, students are sad for what they’re missing out. There’s an increase in depression and anxiety for students, for adults also but especially for students. There are definitely grave concerns.”   

We can't expect transparency and honest conversation. Dr. Brackman explained that in normal times teachers watched a student day after day and picked up clues something is wrong. Even then it wasn’t easy to get a young person to open up about heavy issues on his or her heart. Now with students physically distanced by masks or virtual learning, it’s so much harder. For an adult but especially for a young person, not to deal with emotions, to try to bury them deep within, always has bad consequences. 

We don’t know the long-term impact of the crisis upon this new generation. Dr. Brackman struck a hopeful note.  Their students are 14, 16, 18-years-old, so this crisis is “a huge fraction of the life they have lived.” “Not all that will be bad; I think good, positive change will also come from some of what we’re experiencing.” That hopeful note in these terrible times springs from the love we have in Jesus Christ. Lutheran High School North’s theme this year is “Inseparable.” Nothing “will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:39). In His love we move forward. Dr. Brachman cited Joshua 1:9, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  

You can watch my interview with Dr. Brackman and Mrs. Burreson at concordiatheology.org. Click on Word & Work and see “Education Youth in the Age of Covid-19.” https://concordiatheology.org/2020/09/educating-youth-in-the-age-of-covid-19/

The Meyer Minute for September 17, 2020

Diane and I are nervous about going out in public. I need a haircut but antsy about getting close to the barber, or should I say stylist? Diane goes to the grocery store but is ever cautious; get in and get out quickly. We’re wary about carry-outs for dinner, though now and then we do. We had imagined that these early weeks of retirement we’d be out, doing things we enjoy, being with one another, but instead we have what? In-home arrest?  

Attitude is everything. 1 Peter 1:5 says God’s power is guarding us through faith. Sometimes translations hide the impact of God’s promises, and this is one instance. “You are being guarded” is the image of a military fort. We can paraphrase, “God’s keeping you safe within His fort.” While we can’t go out without masks or cares, we know our deepest being is safe in God’s fortress. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear” (Psalm 46:1).  

Maturing in faith brings ever-increasing happiness in God. Whatever the chaos outside, we trust we’re ultimately safe within His “fort.” His promises are the strong walls keeping sin and evil at bay. Of course, this isn’t a physical fort but it’s still real. It’s our comfort at home and our assurance wherever we go, grocery store, barber, work, even to the hospital. “The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27). That’s an attitude changer. Haven’t you seen how faith, though unseen, makes a real difference in your life? I expect you have and pray you are experiencing the difference God’s promises make in our present troubled times. It’s good within the gates and will be even better when the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2) will come, the walls of faith we need now for protection will become history, and we’ll realize the goal of faith, “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are by God’s power…being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice” (1 Peter 1:4-6). 

“In thine arms I rest me; / Foes who would molest me / Cannot reach me here. 

Though the earth be shaking, / Ev’ry heart be quaking, / Jesus calms my fear. 

Lightnings flash and thunders crash; / Yet, though sin and hell assail me, 

Jesus will not fail me.” (Lutheran Service Book 743:2) 

The Meyer Minute for September 16, 2020

I hadn’t noticed the word “flourish” until reading “For the Life of the World” by Miroslav Volf with Matthew Croasmun. This sentence stopped me: “Truly flourishing life is the most important concern of our lives” (19). Whoa, doesn’t sound like traditional Christian verbiage, but by the end of the book I agreed. Volf: “The flourishing life, on the Christian account, is a life lived through the agency of God and in the presence of God…. Righteousness is possible only because through the Spirit, divine love has poured into our hearts (Rom. 5:5) or because Christ lives in us, and through his indwelling we, in turn, live ‘in’ Christ and participate in his life” (181). You and I can flourish, yes, even amid all that’s going on, but how? 

President Trump campaigns that flourishing will come from the economy. Former Vice President Biden presents flourishing as justice in various aspects of national life. They may not use the word, but their campaigns promise flourishing if we vote for them. And what about commercials? Buy this product and…your acne will be gone, or whatever…and you’ll flourish. Really? Vote for your candidate, yes, the campaign is important, and buy what you will, yes, products can help our earthly lives, but Washington D.C., perfect skin, or whatever won’t make your soul flourish. Common sense tells us flourishing is deeper than even the most important externals. 

“Blessed are… the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account…for your reward is great in heaven (Matthew 5:3-11). Quoting Volf, “Live ‘in’ Christ and participate in his life.” That’s flourishing here-and-now.  

Vanity of vanities are the materialistic campaigns and commercials that talk down to us. “We insult the humanity of the languishing when we suggest that concern with the basic character and direction of their lives is somehow beyond their reach, that they have to progress on the hierarchy of needs—from food, shelter, and safety to community to self-esteem—until they are finally capable of reflecting on the meaning and puzzling out the shape of true life” (18). There’s no ladder of self-improvement before we can flourish. God loves us all, just as we are. Only in Jesus am I blessed, and in Jesus I will flourish, here-and-now.  

The Meyer Minute for September 15, 2020

“What should we have for supper?” is Diane’s daily question. My answers are always unimaginative, “hot dogs,” “pasta,” “chicken,” or the decisive, “Whatever you want.” After a roll of her eyes, Diane comes up with a good meal, a special side, and a main plate better than anything I suggested. ‘Give us this day our daily bread.” God answers that prayer through Diane and others.  

“Man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 8:3). People need the Word of God, but we also need daily bread. Of some 328 million people in the United States, about 37 million are “food insecure.” That’s about one in every 11 Americans. Covid-19 has made it worse. There’s been an 84 percent increase in food boxes handed out by the Salvation Army. Meals on Wheels is serving 47 percent more people than last year. Several Saturdays ago, traffic backed up on one of our main streets in Collinsville because a church was giving away 30,000 pounds of meat. Are we aware, we who eat so well?  

During the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, one government assistance program was intended “to educate voters who hadn’t been so hard hit by the Great Depression and didn’t know much about the degrees of suffering in their midst” (New York Times Magazine, September 6; 9). Oblivious people are still around, and I’m one of them. The grade school I attended had a playground bounded by an alley. As if it were yesterday, I still see a woman pushing a baby buggy and stopping at every garbage can to look for scraps. The reason that is so clear in my mind all these years later is I’m not hungry and don’t move among people who are “food insecure.” 

“If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:15-17). Is your congregation aware of hunger in your community? Or do we just assign that to government? 

“Zwei dinge, Herr, sind not” begins a German meal prayer. “Lord

The Meyer Minute for September 14, 2020

Last Tuesday I gave a virtual presentation to pastors in Oregon. When I finished, they turned to local matters and one dominated their conversation. “How are the wildfires where you’re at?” “What can we do to help?” That was almost a week ago; it’s gotten worse since. In the most terrible of times, religious piffle won’t work. Even spiritual substance is hard when your life is going up in flames.  

Jessica Wilson couldn’t find her 16-year-old son Josiah. She posted on social media: “Please, everyone, my son is missing and not to be found. So please, dear God, help my family and find my son.” Can you imagine? The Butte County Sheriff’s Office found a body, and DNA revealed it was Josiah’s. His mother posted, “I’m so sorry, son, I wasn’t there to protect you. I love you so much and miss you” (New York Times, September 13; A16). 

What word of God can we lean on when all seems lost? My musings led me to this: faith, hope, and love. “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). When trouble is upon you, nothing worldly but only the Holy Spirit can give you inner peace.  

“Not only that…” Paul signals that faith has substance for our troubles here-and-now. Facing a wall of fire, or on the other side of the country, a wall of wind and water from tropical storm/hurricane “Sally,” faith trusts that through it all the One we call “Father” is leading His children into greater maturity. “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” (Romans 5:3-4). Faith, hope, and…. 

“And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (verse 5). Josiah’s mother said, “I love you.” Sooner or later, catastrophically or slowly through the seasons of life, you and I will face despair. “Love is the greatest” (1 Corinthians 13:13)13, love between us in terrible times, and love from our Father, “who comforts us in all our afflictions, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction” (2 Corinthians 1:4). “When ev’ry earthly prop gives way / He then is all my hope and stay” (Lutheran Service Book, 576:3).   

Our prayers for all going through devastating loss. 

The Meyer Minute for September 11, 2020

Pastors are working on their sermons today, the anniversary of 9-11. Terrorism continues. Civil unrest is increasing. Political campaigns are tearing us apart. The economy will never be the same. Almost 200,000 of us have died. Wildfires are destroying the west. If America was united after 9-11, it’s not now. We seem to be deconstructing the democracy our ancestors labored to build and bequeath to us. Pastors, don’t tell us we’re sinners, as if that’s some revelation. We’re being beat up by sin and evil. Explain, please, where God is in all this. 

For thousands of years people have wondered about the source of evil. The ancient Greeks, the well spring of our western civilization, believed evil came either from fate, the gods ordained our troubles, or that evil came from bad and ignorant human decisions. The Christian Bible doesn’t probe the origin of evil but does teach us how God is at work. The Law of God, all His ‘thou shalts” and “thou shalt nots,” explains what’s going on, not to beat us up but to bring us to righteousness, to life the way it should be, the life we yearn for. “The Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith” (Galatians 3:21-25). 

As a population, we are “imprisoned…under sin.” Has despair ever been so great in our country? About increasing rates of suicide, Shannon Monnat of Syracuse University ways,  “There are many reasons to suspect that suicide rates will increase this year too, not just because of Covid-19 but because stress and anxiety seem to be permeating every aspect of our lives” (Alex Tanzi and Wi Lu, Bloomberg). 

Ancient Greeks gathered for dramatic performances of tragedy. We’re seeing tragedy in our time, played out in many scenes. Let our sermons Sunday give us heart that God is indeed present, leading us to righteousness. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote in his troubled times, “May God in His mercy lead us through these times; but above all, may He lead us to Himself” (“Letters and Papers from Prison,” 369-370).