Fassifern Lutheran Parish

02/06/2026

Pastor’s Pondering - I’ve been to Bali too! - no.1026

I’ve just returned from a holiday to Bali and Lombok. We’ve been many times before. Kayleen tells me it’s over 30! We started going there in 1980 and have led tour groups there to experience the place and see the origins and rise of Christianity there.
Many Aussies go to Bali regularly. What’s the attraction? Besides the water sports, partying and shopping, there’s the culture. Bali is predominantly Hindu, and the barong dances, temple ceremonies, cremations, traditional dress and religious observances are a curiosity to our western lifestyle experience.
As you walk along the streets of Kuta, you have difficulty avoiding stepping on the offerings outside the shops. Perhaps you watch a young Balinese girl waving a stick of incense in front of a Hindu shrine. What’s going on here and why do they do these things? If you ask a local they’ll tell you that it’s to bring good fortune to their business and please the multitude of Hindu gods.
Heaven and eternal life are not a real focus for the Balinese. The real issue is to live comfortably and prosperously from one day to the next. At best most Balinese hope for a good reincarnation after this life is over, and the way to ensure that is to do the right thing here in this life. They must make the right offerings, go to the temple regularly, and obey all the rules associated with their form of Hinduism. Of course that leaves no certainty for the future at all. They must always face the question as to whether or not their observances and obedience have been enough to gain them a better birth and maybe one day even entry to the habitation of the gods.
Christianity on the other hand is quite different. It answers many of life’s questions as well as supplying the certainty of what follows this life.
The basic tenant of Christianity is the scripture, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourself. It is the gift of God, and not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2: 8-9).
If we had to live up to God’s standard of perfection, no one would be saved. But there was one who did live a perfect life before God, and he was the God-man Jesus. He never did a bad thing, never had a bad thought, and never said a bad word. Oh, he got angry at times at the wrongs people did but he had nothing but love for people. He came here not only to do the right thing, but also to be punished for all our wrongs. He died on a cross not for any crime he committed but under the punishment from God for what we collectively have done. All of this was God’s way of saving a rebellious humanity, so that righteousness was appeased and justice served.
God is pleased to impart the works of Jesus to any and all who look to him in faith and trust. It is the grace and mercy of God that saves those who have faith in Jesus. Nothing we can do will earn us any merit or favour with God. All our efforts are useless if we’re trying to appease a holy God (Ephesians 2:8-9). Jesus has done it all. He is the way, the truth and the life and no can come to God the Father except through faith in him (John14:6). Christianity stands alone among world religions in that it alone guarantees the certainty of salvation.
If you’re going to Bali, enjoy your visit but appreciate what the true God has done for you and offers you. As you look at the ancient temples, and daily rituals, isn’t it great to know that by grace you have already been saved! Don’t take this free gift of our loving and gracious God for granted. Pray, praise, and give thanks!

18/05/2026

Boonah Sunday worship to the glory of God and the edification of his people 💥

28/04/2026

THE IMAGE OF A LAMB looms large throughout scripture.
Why a lamb? Why not a lion or some other animal.
Obviously Jesus is the Lamb of God.
Lambs are for sacrifice – a theme throughout scripture.
Don’t you feel God is trying to say something to us!
Yours in Christ,
Pr. Peter

Pastor’s Pondering Behold, the lamb of God - no.1122
This is how John the Baptist introduced Jesus to a couple of men, one of whom was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother (John 1:29).
Is that how you think of Jesus - a lamb who takes away the sin of the world?
The first death recorded in the Bible is that of an innocent animal there in the Garden of Eden. It was an animal without spot of blemish, less than a year old. Although the Bible doesn’t say so, I’m guessing it was a male lamb. Its life was sacrificed to make available its skin as a covering for the nakedness of Adam and Eve. God provided a substitute to temporarily cover the sin of the first 2 people.
We’re soon told that the children of Adam and Eve were offering sacrifices to God. They already knew that they were alienated from God. Abel brought the firstborn lamb of his flock, while Cain brought an offering from the soil. Abel’s offering was accepted while Cain’s was not!
Way down in history the people of Israel find themselves under harsh treatment in the land of Egypt. After several plagues to try and convince the Pharaoh to let the people go, the final plague was the death of the firstborn. The escape for the people of Israel was for them to take a male lamb without spot or blemish, in its first year of life, and to kill it and smear its blood on the doorposts of their homes. Again, the people of God are saved by the blood of the lamb.
God commanded his people to keep this Passover celebration as an annual event where they were to take a male lamb, a year old, without spot or blemish and kill it in memorial of the way God had saved their ancestors in Egypt.
In actual fact, the priests were commanded to offer a lamb in the tabernacle, and afterward in the temple, every morning and evening, as a part of the daily worship routine (Exodus 29:38-39).
In Isaiah, we read about the One who will be led like a lamb to the slaughter. He will be pierced for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities (Isaiah 53). For the first time we see that the lamb is to be a man, who will be sacrificed for the people.
Everyone it seems was waiting for God to send his Messiah, but they were expecting a king who would liberate and rule Israel. No one was expecting a Lamb; except John! “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”
The Bible is a remarkable book of history. Written by many different authors over a period of almost 2,000 years, it has incredible unity of content. There are those who deny that Genesis is true history, but the very theology of the Bible is grounded in real history including the very first words of Genesis. Consider the account of the exodus which echoes the words of Genesis and salvation by the blood of a lamb. The Bible carefully recounts the things that it claims truly happened. There was a nation of Israel, the descendants of Jacob, and they were in captivity in Egypt. If that never happened, if there was no captivity, then there also was no Angel of Death slaying the firstborn of those not covered by the blood of God’s lamb.
The entire picture here relates to and contributes to God’s revelation of the Gospel that Jesus is this Lamb of God who takes away not just the sins of Adam and Eve, not just that of Cain and Abel, or the nation of Israel in Egypt, but of all Isarel, and all nations!
If Moses did not historically strike the rock at Horeb (Exodus 17:6), then Paul is wrong when he indicates that the rock was a spiritual type of Christ in 1 Corinthians 10:4.
The Bible is first and foremost a book of history. It’s His story – God’s dealings with man from first day to last! It’s a book of salvation history. It’s a revelation from God that ever since sin raised its ugly head and spoiled God’s perfect creation, a lamb would feature strongly in sin’s demise and man’s salvation.
The revelation of a lamb firstly as a covering for sin, and then a sin bearer becomes clear in these words of John the Baptist! “Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”
Jesus is that lamb! His blood covers all sin, for “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins” (Hebrews 9:22).
Peter writes, “You know that it was not possible with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from an empty way of life, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world but revealed in these last times for your sake” (1 Peter 18-20). Why a lamb of all God’s creatures? What qualities does a lamb have? More to Ponder!

22/04/2026

Many people have tried to predict a date for Jesus’ return.
That date came and went and still we wait.
In our lifetime?
Soon?
Hundreds of years in the future?
The Bible doesn’t say, but it does say be ready!
As in the parable of the 10 Virgins – don’t slacken off!
Easter joy continue to be yours,
Pr. Peter

Pastor’s Pondering Wait on the Lord - no.1121

Jesus will return one day “to judge the living and the dead”, as the Apostles Creed states, and as we confess! Those words were written a long time ago - and so we wait!
The Bible gives us many warnings about the return of Jesus and the terrible day of the Lord. The prophet Joel wrote, “Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is close at hand”. (2:1) He wrote that about 2,800 years ago. Have we missed it? Have there been other ‘days of the Lord’?
Jesus told a parable about a man who went away on a journey and gave gifts to his servants to be used in his service. The man returned and was pleased with 2 of his servants who were faithful with what he’d given them, but a third who did nothing with what he had, he severely punished. (Matthew 25:14-30) This parable teaches us, among other things, that “faith without actions is dead”, and that there will be a day when the Master returns to demand accountability!
Before going to the cross, Jesus gave many descriptions of what life would be like before his return on the last day, and what life would be like for his followers. He encouraged them to be faithful and to always be watchful. “What I say to you, I say to everyone; ‘Watch!” (Mark 13:36) “So you must be ready because the Son of Man will come at a time when you do not expect him.” (Matthew 24:44
And so, we watch, and we wait! They say, “patience is a virtue”, but patience can run dry. Here we are almost 2000 year after Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension, waiting for his imminent return!
It’s hard to be filled with joy at times over the eternal life Jesus has won for us when it looks like nothing has changed, and we’re no closer to the return of Jesus than those first disciples. They all died without seeing the return of Jesus, and it looks like we might be dead and gone before that great day of the Lord.
If you’re sometimes feeling weary in your faith and starting to have doubts, it’s understandable! If you’re starting to find worship a chore rather than a joy, you might be excused for that as well!
Has Jesus forgotten about us? Has he fallen asleep? Has he gone on holidays somewhere?
Those questions are not new.
I think it’s safe to say that those early apostles thought that Jesus would return in their own lifetime. Paul wrote to the Christian congregation at Thessalonica and said concerning the return of Jesus, “we who are still alive, and who are left at the coming of the Lord…” (1 Thess. 4:15) It seems that Paul thought that he might be spared death and still be alive at the return of Jesus.
Before the end of the first century Christians were already starting to ask, “why the delay?”.
The apostle Peter addressed this very issue for them and for us who are still waiting. “They say ‘where is this coming’ that he promised? Ever since our fathers died everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation”. Peter then states, “But do not forget this one thing dear friends; with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but wanting everyone to come to repentance”. (2 Peter 3:8-9) Peter goes on to assure us that the day of the Lord will come!
If you’re tired of the horrible things happening in our world, knowing that these things are not of God’s making, and if you can join with the whole creation that’s also groaning, longing “to be brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God”, Romans 8:21) then you are not alone. As Peter encourages us to be faithful and have patience, so does Paul here in Romans 8 where he says, “If we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently”.
No one can hate the state of this fallen world more than God himself and Jesus Christ who died so that he can make all things new! Yet, despite the hatred for the evil in the world, “God so loved the world”!
He would not see this world continue a moment longer than it must, but for the sake of not wanting anyone to perish, but instead come to repentance, he is patient and calls us to be the same!
Actually, God calls us to be more than just patient. He calls us to be faithful, and to be proactive!
Don’t slacken off in your daily walk with God. Don’t neglect the spiritual disciplines that keep your faith growing, like Bible study, prayer, worship and serving the church.
The reason Jesus has not return is so others may be saved. Do you know someone who needs Jesus? You may be the instrument of God in bringing that salvation to another person. Pray and do not lose hope!

08/04/2026

Do I have to go to church to be a Christian?

05/04/2026

Boonah Easter. There's no celebration EASTER SUNDAY without Good Friday. He IS risen! Yes, he IS risen indeed!
Bacause he lives he promises life to all who believe and follow him.

28/11/2025