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The Word of the Lord is designed for teaching and deep reflection. Alongside our in-person gatherings, we provide media resources and insightful newsletter articles for you to enjoy at home. To receive our quarterly newsletter, simply email Beth, our friendly secretary, at beth@roseofsharonlutheran.org, and we'll happily add you to our email list.
God's Toolbox
By Pastor Schoenfeld
We all use tools. A carpenter may use a hammer and a saw. A parent or childcare worker may use band
aids or a bottle of milk or a pacifier or a crib. Someone in the medical field may use a stethoscope or a blood
presser cuff. A cook may use a spoon, a spatula, and a fry pan. Many people will often use computers. We all
use various tools on a regular basis. God also uses tools.
In the Lutheran Church we have identified some key tools which we call the Means of Grace. One of these
Means of Grace is the Word of God, the Bible. In John 20:31 it is stated concerning the Scriptures, “these are
written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that by believing you may have life
in his name.” God has given to us His Word so that through it He may work faith in Jesus and thereby bring
salvation to us (See also Romans 10:17 & 2 Timothy 3:15). We need God to do this for us because we cannot
come to faith ourselves. We further learn that God uses Scripture for other uses as well. “All Scripture is breathed
out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man
of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). God’s Word is one of the tools
the Holy Spirit uses to create faith, sustain faith, and equip us for good works.
Another Means of Grace is Baptism. Here God is at work bringing His Divine grace into the life of a sinner.
In Baptism God grants to us His Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38), the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38) which Jesus won for
us on the cross, and eternal salvation. Peter expresses it well in 1 Peter 3:21: “Baptism, which corresponds to
this, 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”. (See also Mark 16:16). God uses Baptism to connect us to Jesus and
empower us to live new lives (Romans 6:1-14). Baptism is one of the tools God uses to bring the salvation Jesus
has won for us and work grace in our lives.
A third key Means of Grace is the sacrament of Holy Communion. It is just as Jesus first spoke those powerful
words to His disciples as recorded in Matthew 26:26-28, “…Take eat this is my body. … Drink of it, all of you, for
this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” Jesus has made it
so clear. Through this mysterious gift we receive the forgiveness of sins which Jesus earned for us on the cross.
Communion is a very important tool God uses to deliver His grace into our lives. Here in, with, and under the
bread and wine Jesus is truly and really present (1 Corinthians 11:29). It is important we recognize this and
examine ourselves so and not take it to our judgement (1 Corinthians 11:28-29) but rather that we receive it for
our eternal blessing.
The Word of God, Baptism, and Communion, and the three traditional Means of Grace. Some have also like
to identify Confession and Absolution where God gives to us a great promise as recorded in John 20:23: “If you
forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them, if you withhold forgiveness from any it is withheld.” Through the
words of forgiveness spoken through the pastor, and one another, God brings His grace into our lives. It is one
of the tools God uses.
Although not historically identified as Means of Grace I do believe Scripture identifies other tools that God
has used and continues to use to work grace and blessing in our lives. First of all, it can be readily observed
that God works through people. God supplies food to us through the hands of the farmer and the grocer. He
supplies healing to us through the doctors, nurses, and the entire medical industry. He brings many blessings
into our lives through various people, vocations, and industries. Furthermore, God has brought His word into
our lives through parents, grandparents, Sunday School teachers, VBS teachers, pastors, and a host of other
individuals. We are God’s ambassadors as He makes His appeal through us (2 Corinthians 5:20). God clearly
works through people in many different vocations.
As I look into Scripture, I also see how God uses even creation as a tool to work good
in our lives. In Romans 1:18-25 it speaks about how people have no excuse since God
has made His existence known to humanity by the very reality of creation. If there is a
creation, then there must be a Creator. I believe creation is a tool God uses not only to
teach us of His existence but also to help affirm to us many things if we only have ears
to hear.
As we look into Scripture we see throughout history God has also worked in many
other ways as well. Although we do not have the promise that He will always do so, like
we do concerning the Means of Grace, yet we must not forget that God has many other tools that He has at His
disposal to use for His good and gracious purpose, namely, to lead us to the cross of Christ.
This Fall, beginning September 14, we will begin a new sermon series titled God’s Toolbox. I encourage
you to be in attendance for each one of these messages as we consider this Christian and uniquely Lutheran
perspective on how God works in our lives today. It is also another great opportunity to invite someone to
attend with you and let God work in their life through His Divine means, His tools.
"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads..."
Deuteronomy 11:18
The Transforming Grace of Forgiveness
By Pastor Schoenfeld
Forgiveness and Christianity go hand in hand. To be Christian is to be forgiven and in turn to be Christian is to forgive others. But life can get messy as we deal with a variety of situations. Thankfully God grants to us forgiveness on account of Jesus. Even though we do not deserve it, He gives it anyway. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9). Forgiveness comes to us as a gift from Jesus. Thanks be to God who forgives us such a huge debt of sin (Matthew 18:23-27)!
Having been forgiven, God now calls us forgiven Christians to go and forgive others just as He has done for us. Consider Ephesians 4:32: “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” But life gets messy. We live in a world where we and others don’t like to admit wrongdoing and where we do not always forgive. Sometimes we like to keep score and hold the wrongs of someone against them. At times people may be sorry and ask for forgiveness and at other times they don’t. Sometimes it may be easy to forgive and other times it can be difficult. On occasions we may think that a person does not deserve our forgiveness; the sin is to great or they are not sorry enough. We may act as if someone needs to earn our forgiveness and meet our demands. But forgiveness as God teaches it in the Bible is vastly different than what we may experience in our world.
Life gets messy. We live in a world that is deeply divided and displays resentfulness, bitterness, rage and anger, and the desire for vengeance. We live in a world where many people practice unforgiveness. We live in a world where we have many opportunities to forgive. By God’s grace as the Holy Spirit works through His Word, may God transform our lives and the lives of many people around us with the grace of forgiveness. It is a big part of being a Christian. I look forward to seeing you there.
Rose of Sharon Lutheran Church
6785 Jamaica Avenue S. Cottage Grove, MN 55016
(651) 459-3551
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