<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Romans 10;14&amp;15<div><br></div><div><b>14. &nbsp;But how are men to call upon him in&nbsp;whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher?</b></div><div><b>15. &nbsp;And how can men preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news!”<br></b><div><br></div><div>Paul here makes the case for the great&nbsp;doctrine of the&nbsp;“Means of Grace.”</div><div><br></div><div>The Means of Grace is how God ‘delivers’ the gifts of repentance, faith, salvation, and the Holy Spirit, from Him to us. &nbsp;Means of Grace is ‘God’s Divine&nbsp;Delivery system.’ &nbsp;In the Lutheran Church we normally add</div><div>‘Word and Sacrament’ to the phrase, Means of Grace.</div><div><br></div><div>Notice in verse 14, Paul asks the wonderful question: <i>“How are men to call upon Him?&nbsp;</i>&nbsp; The gift of salvation is given so that Believers,&nbsp;<i>“call upon the Name of the Lord.”</i></div><div>The grace of God is given not only so that men receive Christ, but so that they pray! &nbsp;Our prayers are for God to direct and empower us in lives of thankful&nbsp;faith and&nbsp;fruitfulness.</div><div><br></div><div>The grace of God is given not only that we Believe, but that we be fruitful. &nbsp;All fruitful living is lived in and through Christ indwelling us by the Holy Spirit.</div><div><br></div><div>We <i>“call upon the Name of the Lord,” </i>for the sake of being fruitful seeking God’s &nbsp;grace to bring forth <i>“the obedience of the faith.”</i></div><div><i><br></i></div><div>None of this fruitful living will happen without the Means of Grace, Word and Sacrament coming into us through the Ministry of the Word, the&nbsp;Gospel of Christ. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>The progression of fruitfulness (calling upon the Lord)&nbsp;begins with Believing. &nbsp;Believing, is hearing with faith&nbsp;the Good News. (Note: the Good News brings the gift of faith with it. &nbsp;Sort of a ‘batteries included’ gift.) &nbsp;Hearing requires a ‘Preacher.’ &nbsp;Preachers must be sent by God through the Church. &nbsp;The authority for the&nbsp;Ministry of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is given to the Church, the Body of Christ and through the Church to a Pastor.</div><div><br></div><div>Christ gave this Ministry to the Church in Matthew 28;18-20.</div><div><i>“ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. &nbsp;Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and low, I am with you always, to the clothes of the age.”&nbsp;</i></div><div><i><br></i></div><div>(Notice, No commas between Father Son and Holy Spirit. &nbsp;It is not three names, but One Name.)</div><div>When Paul writes in Romans 6 of being Baptized into Christ, he is not eliminating The Father and the Spirit.</div><div>Paul is emphasizing that only through the person and work of&nbsp;Jesus do we gain participation in the God-Head. &nbsp;Without His&nbsp;atoning sacrifice, the Father and the Spirit would have nothing to do with us. &nbsp;It is the blood of Christ that brings us into the presence of God.</div><div><br></div><div>The <i>“beautiful feet”</i>&nbsp;of the preacher&nbsp;is not of the ‘appearance’ of the&nbsp;preacher’s feet, but of the saving&nbsp;Word he proclaims&nbsp;which gives&nbsp;us&nbsp;Life.</div><div><br></div><div>&nbsp;&nbsp;Like the filthy fireman, dripping wet, smeared and&nbsp;covered in ash, smelling of smoke, dressed in a heavy coat,&nbsp;helmet, gloves, and boots, unrecognizable because of a mask,&nbsp;he is beautiful, not for how he looks, but for&nbsp;what he does: He uses water! &nbsp;He&nbsp;rescues from death, he carries us&nbsp;helpless children of God&nbsp;from the fire.&nbsp;&nbsp; We know or care not who the preacher&nbsp;is<span>, we rejoice in&nbsp;what he&nbsp;does. &nbsp;</span></div><div><br></div><div>The Ministry of the Life giving Word in&nbsp;Water, Bread, Wine,&nbsp;preaching, and teaching&nbsp;is ‘God’s Fire Department’!</div><div>The Minister ‘hoses us down’ with grace. &nbsp;Grace which sets us free from our entrapment, grace&nbsp;which carries us in our helpless condition,&nbsp;bringing&nbsp;us out of death&nbsp;into the life giving Breath of God.&nbsp;&nbsp;The born-anew&nbsp;Life of the Word and Spirit.</div><div><br></div><div>The Ministry of the Word and Spirit&nbsp;is indeed <i>“beautiful.”</i></div><div><br></div><div>This Ministry belongs publicly to the Office of the Called Pastor, and privately to every Believer commanded to teach God’s Word to their children and Live God’s Word to their neighbor (even their evil neighbor)&nbsp;through lives of Good Works. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Remember, the Office of the Public Ministry comes from God through the congregation. &nbsp;Ours is a ‘mediated Call’. &nbsp;God’s people do not forfeit the Ministry when they Call a pastor (see, Ephesians 4;11-13). &nbsp;We all are to&nbsp;impart the Good news in Word and deed&nbsp;of&nbsp;what God in Christ has given us:&nbsp;the Command to <i>“Go, and make disciples, Baptize and Teach them&nbsp;the ‘obedience of the faith.’” &nbsp;</i></div><div><br></div><div>This command, (called the ‘Great Commission’) belongs to&nbsp;and remains with the entire Church, both publicly and privately. &nbsp;Fathers and mothers remain the primary spiritual educators of their children. &nbsp;Pastors assist parents<span>, they do not replace them. &nbsp;They serve&nbsp;publicly&nbsp;‘in the place of parents’ as extensions of the Ministry. &nbsp;</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Pastors are not above fathers and mothers, they are the public servants of fathers and mothers. &nbsp;They are the Voice of God to the Church in Absolution, in teaching and preaching the Gospel of Christ, they are the hand of God in the waters of Holy Baptism, and at The Table they distribute the Body and Blood in with and under the consecrated bread and wine.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>In Excommunication (the ‘Major Ban’), they are the Voice of God under the direction of the entire congregation. &nbsp;In God’s love they are given the authority of the ‘Minor Ban,’&nbsp;withholding Holy Communion from those in danger (through unbelief and unrepentance) of eating and drinking judgement upon themselves.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, we rejoice that You have&nbsp;given&nbsp;to Your Church, <i>“beautiful feet.”</i></span></div><div><span>Bless us with those feet to walk in <i>“newness of Life” </i>proclaiming Christ in Word and deed. &nbsp;&nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span>Love,</span></div><div><span>Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor</span></div><div><span>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, forgiven, believing children, are His.”</span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><span><br></span></div><div><br></div><div><br><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Romans 10;14&15
14.  But how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher?15.  And how can men preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news!”

Paul here makes the case for the great doctrine of the “Means of Grace.”
The Means of Grace is how God ‘delivers’ the gifts of repentance, faith, salvation, and the Holy Spirit, from Him to us.  Means of Grace is ‘God’s Divine Delivery system.’  In the Lutheran Church we normally add‘Word and Sacrament’ to the phrase, Means of Grace.
Notice in verse 14, Paul asks the wonderful question: “How are men to call upon Him?   The gift of salvation is given so that Believers, “call upon the Name of the Lord.”The grace of God is given not only so that men receive Christ, but so that they pray!  Our prayers are for God to direct and empower us in lives of thankful faith and fruitfulness.
The grace of God is given not only that we Believe, but that we be fruitful.  All fruitful living is lived in and through Christ indwelling us by the Holy Spirit.
We “call upon the Name of the Lord,” for the sake of being fruitful seeking God’s  grace to bring forth “the obedience of the faith.”
None of this fruitful living will happen without the Means of Grace, Word and Sacrament coming into us through the Ministry of the Word, the Gospel of Christ.  
The progression of fruitfulness (calling upon the Lord) begins with Believing.  Believing, is hearing with faith the Good News. (Note: the Good News brings the gift of faith with it.  Sort of a ‘batteries included’ gift.)  Hearing requires a ‘Preacher.’  Preachers must be sent by God through the Church.  The authority for the Ministry of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is given to the Church, the Body of Christ and through the Church to a Pastor.
Christ gave this Ministry to the Church in Matthew 28;18-20.“ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and low, I am with you always, to the clothes of the age.” 
(Notice, No commas between Father Son and Holy Spirit.  It is not three names, but One Name.)When Paul writes in Romans 6 of being Baptized into Christ, he is not eliminating The Father and the Spirit.Paul is emphasizing that only through the person and work of Jesus do we gain participation in the God-Head.  Without His atoning sacrifice, the Father and the Spirit would have nothing to do with us.  It is the blood of Christ that brings us into the presence of God.
The “beautiful feet” of the preacher is not of the ‘appearance’ of the preacher’s feet, but of the saving Word he proclaims which gives us Life.
  Like the filthy fireman, dripping wet, smeared and covered in ash, smelling of smoke, dressed in a heavy coat, helmet, gloves, and boots, unrecognizable because of a mask, he is beautiful, not for how he looks, but for what he does: He uses water!  He rescues from death, he carries us helpless children of God from the fire.   We know or care not who the preacher is, we rejoice in what he does.  
The Ministry of the Life giving Word in Water, Bread, Wine, preaching, and teaching is ‘God’s Fire Department’!The Minister ‘hoses us down’ with grace.  Grace which sets us free from our entrapment, grace which carries us in our helpless condition, bringing us out of death into the life giving Breath of God.  The born-anew Life of the Word and Spirit.
The Ministry of the Word and Spirit is indeed “beautiful.”
This Ministry belongs publicly to the Office of the Called Pastor, and privately to every Believer commanded to teach God’s Word to their children and Live God’s Word to their neighbor (even their evil neighbor) through lives of Good Works.  
Remember, the Office of the Public Ministry comes from God through the congregation.  Ours is a ‘mediated Call’.  God’s people do not forfeit the Ministry when they Call a pastor (see, Ephesians 4;11-13).  We all are to impart the Good news in Word and deed of what God in Christ has given us: the Command to “Go, and make disciples, Baptize and Teach them the ‘obedience of the faith.’”  
This command, (called the ‘Great Commission’) belongs to and remains with the entire Church, both publicly and privately.  Fathers and mothers remain the primary spiritual educators of their children.  Pastors assist parents, they do not replace them.  They serve publicly ‘in the place of parents’ as extensions of the Ministry.  
Pastors are not above fathers and mothers, they are the public servants of fathers and mothers.  They are the Voice of God to the Church in Absolution, in teaching and preaching the Gospel of Christ, they are the hand of God in the waters of Holy Baptism, and at The Table they distribute the Body and Blood in with and under the consecrated bread and wine.
In Excommunication (the ‘Major Ban’), they are the Voice of God under the direction of the entire congregation.  In God’s love they are given the authority of the ‘Minor Ban,’ withholding Holy Communion from those in danger (through unbelief and unrepentance) of eating and drinking judgement upon themselves.
Prayer:  Merciful Father, we rejoice that You have given to Your Church, “beautiful feet.”Bless us with those feet to walk in “newness of Life” proclaiming Christ in Word and deed.   In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/Eric/Grandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation, and we, broken-hearted, contrite, forgiven, believing children, are His.”






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