President Walton's June 2018 Message
Living in Love
5.31.2018
Dear Friends,


We are just weeks away from the 33 rd Regular Convention of the Florida-Georgia District, and what a wonderful opportunity for us to rejoice in all of God’s blessings. This also happens to be the 70 th Anniversary of the Florida-Georgia District, and “It’s Time” to celebrate. “It’s Time” is kind of the adopted theme for the 70 th Anniversary celebration. We read in Ecclesiastes 3:1, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.” For the past 70 years we have been an extremely mission minded organization, reaching into a variety of populations, connecting people to Jesus along the way. It’s time for us to step up and reach out to the thousands of people moving to Florida and Georgia. We have seen tremendous population growth, and yet many congregations have struggled. It’s time to think differently and creatively to touch people with the love of Jesus. Evangelist Greg Laurie recently wrote, "Jesus did not say the whole world should go to church, but He did say, in effect, that the church should go to the whole world.” God loved this world so much that He sent us Jesus, who died and rose again so that we could experience the power of His love.

Love is powerful. In John 15:12, Jesus said, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” We know that love—we’ve heard about that love. Many have experienced personally the power of that love. We long to abide in that love. It is a security blanket for the soul. It gives us courage in the face of adversity; it gives us confidence in the midst of confusion; it gives us peace when chaos is clamoring around us; it gives us hope in times of despair. We look to the Cross of Jesus because there we see His love manifested in such a miraculous, powerful way. It’s a selfless love. It’s a sacrificial love. Bishop Michael Curry said it well at the recent wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markel. He said , “Jesus did not get an honorary doctorate for dying. He wasn’t getting anything out of it. He gave up His life, He sacrificed his life for the good of others, for the well-being of the world, for us. That’s what love is.” This is the very love that we are commanded to have for each other.

Each of us have been chosen in Jesus. That is an act of grace. We neither earn it nor deserve it, but we are freely chosen for the sake and by the merit of Jesus Christ, who willingly died that we might live. In His love, He chose us from before the creation of the world, and He chose us with purpose. Each of us has a different purpose. Collectively we certainly represent a diversity of gifts and talents, skills and abilities. Yet, we also have a common purpose, and that is simply to connect people to Jesus. In His love, He chose us, and commanded us to love others as He loved us.

This is really the only place, with the exception of John 13:34, where Jesus actually gives a literal command! His command isn’t to go to church; it isn’t to give a tithe; it isn’t to read the Bible daily; it isn’t to evangelize or do outreach; it isn’t even to not sin! It is a command to love, and Jesus knew that if we could get that one thing right all the rest would flow through it. It really brings us back to the basics. We go to church because we love Jesus; we give because we love Jesus; we read His Word because we love Jesus; we reach out to connect people to Jesus because we love Him; and we avoid sin because we love Jesus. Our motivation, as those who have been chosen with purpose, is the love of Jesus and our love for Jesus! This is why we abide in Him.

Abiding in Jesus does not mean that we become stationary or stagnant. Abiding in Jesus does not mean that we hide ourselves away in a mighty fortress. Abiding in Jesus means that we revel in His love and allow it to overflow from our lives into the lives of those around us. Abiding in Jesus means that we have an extraordinary confidence that rests on His presence in our lives. Abiding in Jesus means that we boldly go into the world in His love and with His love to bring healing to a sin-sick society.

In Matthew 16 you may remember that Peter makes this beautiful confession of Jesus. He says, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” More astonishing is the response of Jesus. He says, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Mt 16:16–18). Many who read this passage often have a picture of Jesus shouting commands to “bar the door and hold the infidels out!” It is exactly the opposite. Jesus is not talking defensively, but rather calling the church to tear down the gates of hell as we go into the world. We are called to invade this world with the love of Jesus, and the only way that we can, clothed with the full armor of God, is by abiding in Him.

As we celebrate 70 years of mission and ministry it’s okay to look back and feel a certain amount of joy and satisfaction. Think about the people we’ve known, the congregations that have been planted and those that have disappeared, think about the children who have grown up in our Lutheran Schools, think of the teachers and administrators who have served here, think of all the pastors who have been part of this district and your life! So many celebrations, so many opportunities. But an anniversary isn’t simply a time to look backward at what has been accomplished. It is also the opportunity to look ahead at all that we still can do for the sake of the Gospel. Wouldn’t it be great if we could start a minimum of two new ministries in each of the five regions each year for the next five years? Think of the ministries that God could raise up among us. Think about all the souls that we could touch with His love in brand new ways! Remember when you first experienced the love of Jesus, and picture being able to share that with someone else.

In his sermon to the Royal couple, Bishop Curry said, “The late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, and I quote: ‘We must discover the power of love, the redemptive power of love. And when we discover that, we will be able to make of this old world a new world. Love is the only way.’” Jesus commanded it, and more than that, entrusted this love to each of us to share with the world! The Apostle John put it this way in 1 John 4:19, “We love because He first loved us!” May the redemptive love of Jesus fill us and flow through us as those who are chosen with purpose. And may we find joy by abiding in Jesus, and power to share His love with the world around us! It’s time!
 
In His love,

Greg

Rev. Gregory S. Walton, President
Florida-Georgia District, LCMS
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