1 John 3:1

Monday, May 18, 2026

Hello,

     I was just about finished with this week’s Bungee Cord which was about Pentecost (which is this Sunday and is known as the birthday of the church), so I decided to take a short break and ease my mind.  I switched my attention to a breaking news story on CNN.   I couldn’t finish what I was writing.
     The news story was about a shooting at a Muslim school and faith center in San Diego.  At the time of this writing, the motive of the shooters is not known, but the fact that it was a Muslim facility raises, in my mind,  the possibility of a religiously motivated attack.
     If you saw the news coverage, then you saw children holding hands being rushed out of the building.  You saw women being led to cover.  You saw police cars lined up on the road looking like an evening rush hour.  It was horrific.
     Some day we may find out what motivated the gunmen, but whatever the motivation, it is hard to imagine anyone calling it justified.  No matter the anger.  No matter the hatred.  No matter the prejudice.  No matter the opposition.   No matter the foolishness.   No matter what, this kind of thing should never happen.
     I know that much harm and death have been done under the name of religion, but it is my belief that such evil is evil wearing a religious mask, no matter who is wearing the mask.  From my visit to Africa, it is clear to me that the killing between people of different religions is primarily driven by ancient hatreds and long held grudges.  The study of history has unearthed deeper and darker motivations than religion for such things as the Crusades.  And the same thing has shown to be true about “religious” violence in our country.
     But even more than my amateur observations, when I read the Bible, I hear Jesus say, “ Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” (Matthew 5), “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12), “love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.” (Luke 6)….”turn the other cheek….give the shirt off your back…walk the extra mile”, and when Jesus was betrayed, he told his disciples to put their swords away.  Clearly, Jesus would not want his name inscribed on bullets, bombs, or swords.
     That is why I don’t understand people who share my Christian faith rejoicing in the death of thousands of Iranians, though enemies they might be.  I don’t understand celebrating capital punishment, though murderous the criminals might be.  I don’t understand applauding intimidation and callousness, even though it might bring the desired end.  I don’t understand bragging about lethality and deadly precision, though fearful it may be.  I can’t imagine any of these things coming from the mouth of Jesus.
     The purpose of each Bungee Cord that I write is to bring  an echo the grace and mercy that comes from the one who died on the cross for all people and rolled back the stone of death forever.  Today, when I heard the echo of gunshots in a San Diego Mosque, it rattled me to the point that I felt a need to turn up the volume of Jesus words that considers each person in the world so valuable that Jesus would give his life for them…that includes you, and me, and even those who have been given the name “enemy”.
     “ 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. “  (John 14)

God’s grace and peace, (ggap)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger See less

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

The Bungee Cord

Hello,
“Name someone who makes you feel guilty.”
That was the question that was asked of a contestant on a Family Feud segment that popped up on my Facebook page.  The contestant quickly answered, “my preacher.”
When I heard her answer, I thought to myself, “Is that the experience of people who are part of the Christian church?”  Unfortunately, I think it is.  The reason that I think so is that this is not the first time that I have heard guilt being the prime experience named by church goers.  I’ve heard people make jokes about church being a place where the spotlight is targeted at all the things one should not or should be doing.  Also, I have heard stories about people who turn away from going to church because of the anticipated judgement of guilt they expect to feel.  There is a story, maybe an apocryphal story, of a woman who found herself in the thralls of a crushing divorce, when a friend of hers invited her to come to church for some comfort.  The response from the newly divorced woman was, “Why would I want to go there?  I feel guilty enough already.”
Thing is, that when I read the Bible and see how Jesus dealt with people, what I see is something far different.  When Jesus encountered the woman caught in adultery, Jesus spoke mercy.  “He who is without sin may cast the first stone.”  When Jesus found Zacchaeus up in the tree,  Jesus didn’t turn his back on him, rather he invited himself to Zacchaeus’ home.  When Thomas had a hard time believing that Jesus had risen from the dead, Jesus did not lecture him on his faithlessness, rather he answered Thomas’ needs.  When people were burdened and feeling guilty, Jesus did not dump more guilt on them.  Instead, he poured forgiveness and mercy on them.
Interestingly enough, Jesus did dump guilt on some people he encountered, and the ones that were the recipients of the spotlight of guilt were the ones who were trying to “guilt” others.
I don’t know how the Christian church gained the reputation of guilt casting, but I am certain that is not what Jesus wants the church to do in his name.  It may be true that in the light of Jesus’ incredible love for me, I see how unworthy I am to receive such love.  I see the betrayals that I have given into.  I see the fickleness that I have shown.  I see the pain that I have brought.  It may be true that when I go to church, the radiance of Jesus goodness makes my guilt as clear as day, but it is there, when my warts are unhidden, that I do not find the judgment of guilt placed upon my shoulders.  The judgment that I receive by Jesus is not  “guilty”, but “forgiven;”
In a world that handles guilt in so many other ways…punishment, rationalizing, minimizing, diverting, ignoring, not forgetting….all ways that do not have the power to scrub the stubborn stain of guilt and its life-crushing power away, I find myself overwhelmingly blessed to step into a church and hear, “In the mercy of almighty God, Jesus Christ was given to die for our sins, and for his sake all of our sins are FORGIVEN.”  “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…your sins have been washed clean.  You are FORGIVEN.”  “This is my body, given for you…This is my blood, shed for you..for the FORGIVENESS of your sins.”  “Go in peace.  You are FORGIVEN.”
No “if’s”…no “ands”….no “buts”.  The thing that is supposed to happen when a person comes to church is FORGIVENESS!  And FORGIVENSS has power…power to transform, power to renew, power to give life to the FORGIVEN one and to those that the FORGIVEN one encounters.
It may be that other preachers are ones that “make you feel guilty,”  but I hope that I am a preacher that “makes you feel FORGIVEN!”
Have a great week.
God’s grace and peace, (ggap)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger See less

Monday, May 4, 2026

The Bungee Cord

Hello,
“Every party has a pooper, that’s why we have toilet paper……”, so the song goes, and often it is true.  Sometimes there is someone at a party that is meant for joy and celebration that douses the party with emotional water that puts the fire out.   Commenting about someone’s taste in clothing.  Criticizing the food.  Worried about an empty glass left on the table.  Determined to bring up gossip and rumors.  “Every party has a pooper…..”
I wonder if people think that is what is going on inside churches every Sunday?  “Can you believe that she wore that to church?”  “How can they serve such dry communion bread?”  “Didn’t you see how the pastor’s stole was not evenly draped?”  “Look who is in church today.  Did you know that he….?”  I know that people hear these things seeping out through church walls, and since that is what they hear, they have no desire to go to a gathering like that.  “Every party has a pooper….”  
But to poopers of Sunday morning worship celebrations, I hear Jesus say this, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…….and I have come that they may have life, and have it abuntantly.”   Jesus is no party pooper, he is the life of the party!  When Jesus comes to his Sunday morning parties, he starts singing a reveling song about opening a prison of guilt and setting the prisoner free, and he gets everyone to start singing along.  When Jesus comes to his Sunday morning parties, he grabs ahold of peoples’ hands and starts dancing around in a victory dance over death.  When Jesus comes to his Sunday morning parties, he looks for the hurting and fearful and pins a rose on their jacket to let them know how much he cares.  When Jesus comes to his Sunday morning parties, he stands at the door and embraces people who seemed to have lost their invitation and says, “It is great to see you here!”  When Jesus comes to his Sunday morning parties, his grace is so infectious that when people leave his party they infect the world with that same grace.  As the Gospel of John says, (paraphrased) “Jesus is the life of the party!”
That is not to say that Jesus’ Sunday morning parties are meant to be full of frivolities that ignore the pain and suffering of those in the world or those who attend.  It is not to say that those whose eyes are dripping tears should stay away.  It is not to say that skeptics and doubters should be turned away at the door.  Folks like these are not party poopers, they are real people in need of hope, peace, joy and love. 
No, the party poopers are the ones who stand at the door of the church and try and keep Jesus out.  The ones who hand Jesus a list of rules and regulations that he must agree to before entering.  The ones who pat Jesus down to make sure that he isn’t sneaking a megaphone in.  The ones who question his reputation, who his friends are, and which side of the tracks he lives on, politically speaking, that is.  It is true, I believe, that every (church) party has a pooper, or even a lot of them…and sometimes, I am one of them.
But every Sunday morning party does not belong to the poopers.  Each and every one of them belongs to Jesus.  They are his parties, and he, the life of the party, will not be kept out.  Jesus sneaks his way in.  He sneaks his way in in the cry of a baby sitting next to a woman who has just received a terrible health prognosis.  He sneaks his way in through a bad note played by the organist.  He sneaks his way in in the heart of a teenager who awkwardly stands afraid to be uncool and sing.  He sneaks his way in with a splash of water on a baby’s head, and a piece of bread and sip of wine sliding down an anxious throat.  The truth is that Jesus won’t let himself be kept out of his Sunday morning parties.
So, if you tend to believe that all those Sunday morning parties are full of nothing but party poopers, I believe that you are wrong.  There is at least one at each and every one of those Sunday morning parties that is the life of the party, and gives life to everyone who comes…maybe life unbeknownst to them.
So, please receive this Bungee Cord as an invitation, not from me, but from the one who throws a party every Sunday morning, who is the life of the party, and who promises to be there ….to come to his party.  You may be surprised what life you find there!
Have a great week.
God’s grace and peace, (ggap)
Pastor Jerry Nuernberger

Jerry Nuernberger

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The Bungee Cord