Special Convention Edition

Why didn't they just say they were sorry?

The Old Testament lesson for the Second Sunday after Pentecost in the LSB Version of the Revised Common Lectionary, published by SOLA Publishing, is Genesis 3:18-15. These verses took me back more than twenty years to a Sunday during my first year at Grace Lutheran Church in West Kelowna, BC.

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”
He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,
“Cursed are you above all livestock
    and all wild animals!
You will crawl on your belly
    and you will eat dust
    all the days of your life.
And I will put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
    and you will strike his heel.”

The Fall of Humanity was the subject of the Children’s time on that Sunday. With the lesson concluded, I invited the children to bow their heads for a word of prayer. However, at that same moment, a little hand went up.

“Zach, I responded, Do you have a question?”

His question: “Pastor, why didn’t Adam and Eve just say that they were sorry? Maybe God would have forgiven them.”

I do not recall my answer to his question. However, the question has remained. Why didn’t Adam and Eve just say that they were sorry? They clearly were in the wrong. They should have confessed their sin and said that they were sorry. Yet, they did not. The root of their failure is found in the text.

When God asked Adam why he had eaten the fruit his response was quick and to the point. It was Eve who committed the act of giving the fruit and God who made Eve and put her in Adam’s life. It was their fault. When God called Eve to account, she blamed the serpent, the creature God had allowed in the garden. Each of them had blamed someone else for their predicament. In their minds, laying the blame on another, vindicated and exonerated them. A vindicated and exonerated person has no reason to say they are sorry. Are we any different? Like them we are hopeless and helpless? God would not leave them in their delusion of blamelessness.

God’s response was to assess blame, to judge and to punish. His judgment began with the serpent (Satan). His judgement is separate from Adam and Eve’s. The judgment shows God’s anger and hatred toward Satan. He is found guilty of crime of solicitation. He actively solicited Eve to commit the crime of eating a fruit forbidden to the couple. His sentence was humiliation coupled with curtailment of his power. Up to this point Satan walked confidently through the Garden of Eden. His beautiful form made conversation with the first couple easy. The sentence included the loss of his legs. He could only skulk about. The sentence included God’s intervention in Satan’s relationship with Eve. God put enmity between Eve and the serpent. The sentence included Satan’s final defeat. A child of Eve would defeat Satan in mighty struggle. Satan would be crushed and Eve’s child would be wounded in this epic struggle.

Martin Luther saw Jesus in these words. “He [God] says “her Seed. ”It is as if He were saying: “ through the woman you, Satan, set upon and seduced the man, so that through sin you might be their head and master. But I, in turn, shall lie in wait for you by means of the same instrument. I shall snatch away the woman, and from her I shall produce seed, and the seed will crush your head. You have corrupted the flesh through sin and have made it subject to death, but from that very flesh I shall bring forth a Man who will crush and prostrate you and all your powers.” (Luther’s Works, Vol .1, Page 193).

Luther went on to say… “Women gave birth up to the Flood and later to the time of Mary; but their seed could not be called Seed of the woman, but rather the seed of a man. But what is born from Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit and is the true seed of Mary, just as the other promises given to Abraham and David testify, according to which Christ is called the Son of Abraham and the Son of David. …. This meaning Isaiah is the first to point out when he says the virgin will give birth (Isaiah 7:14). Then, in the New Testament, it is more clearly explained by the Angel. (Luke 1:35).

The epic struggle between Eve’s Seed and Satan took place on Golgotha. Jesus suffered and died on the cross. His death and resurrection on the third day paid for sin, conquered death, and crushed Satan’s head. On the Pentecost Sunday the Apostle Peter placed the image of the suffering Savior before crowd of thousands. He called them to see that they were to blame for that suffering. The Holy Spirit moved mightily and about 3,000 were: “cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’” (Acts 2:37). Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38).

The Holy Spirit continues to use the proclamation of the crucified and risen Lord to cut people to the heart and cause them to repent and turn to God. He calls us to continue to preach Christ crucified.

In Christ
Pastor Ed Skutshek, President.

Convention 2021

CALC’s 2021 Annual General Convention (the “Convention”) will be held on Saturday September 11, 2021. The one-day Convention will begin at 9:00 AM and conclude at 6:00 PM.

Hybrid Event: The Convention will be a hybrid event with some delegates and visitors participating at an in-person meeting at the Coast Nisku Inn and Conference Center located in Nisku, Alberta, and some participating online through a ZOOM call. If COVID-19 protocols for the in-person meetings make holding and in-person meeting on September 11^th impossible or impractical, the National Council may hold the Convention, including, presentations by our keynote speaker, as an entirely online event by ZOOM.

Convention Registration Fees
In-Person Participants ..............$100.00
Online Participants .....................$50.00

Hotel Rooms
Convention Room Rate For September 10 & 11
$78.00 per night plus taxes.
Rooms: Single-king bed or two-queen beds (Based on double occupancy)
The hotel operates a shuttle to the airport 24 hours a day.

Click here to access the CALC Convention 2021 Brochure to read more about the convention schedule.

Convention Keynote Speaker
Mr. Jose (Jojo) Ruba

Our keynote speaker is the Executive Director of Faith Beyond Belief of Calgary, Alberta.

His presentation to us is slated explore Bill C-6 and its implications for Christian therapists and counselors, pastors and all Christians and to outline specific steps Christian congregations can take in anticipation of the passage of this controversial legislation. His presentation is divided into the four parts. The titles of his four one hour sessions are:

1. Redeeming Love: A Biblical View of Sexuality and Gender.
2. Banning Conversion: How Bill C-6 Will Impact Your Ministry.
3. Having a Ready Toolkit: A Proactive Approach in Church Policies.
4. Making the Change: How the Church Can Still Teach Conversion.

Click here to access the CALC Convention 2021 Brochure to read more about the convention schedule.

2nd Sunday After Pentecost

Why didn't they just say they were sorry?

Convention 2021

Convention Keynote Speaker Mr. Jose (Jojo) Ruba

Convention Keynote Speaker
Mr. Jose (Jojo) Ruba