Live from Sola in San Antonio with Pastors William Cwirla and Brent Kuhlman. The kids ask questions, and they answer – see how they handle the hot seat!
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Episode 45: July 10, 2009
Author: Higher Things
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Episode 44: July 7, 2009
In the episode just before Sola, Pastor Borghardt will interview Stan Lemon the Higher Things Webmaster and tech-guru on the latest and greatest from Michael Bay, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Then Pastor Borghardt will interview Mark Pierson a current Seminarian at Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN and going on vicarage at University Lutheran Chapel near UCLA. Mark will discuss Apologetics and defending the Christian faith in a followup to his recent article in the Summer 2009 issue of the Higher Things Magazine.
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Revenge of the Fallen
Two years ago Transformers came out and swept the box offices raking in millions of dollars and reintroducing a Hasbro toy from the generation before to today’s kids. The movie was nothing short of fantastic, taking the characters we’d come to love from the toy aisle and memorable cartoon and spicing them up with flashy CGI graphics. Additionally our hero was your every day run of the mill geek, nothing too spectacular in Sam Witwike and yet everything spectacular. In the end the Autobots prevailed, Megatron died and then was buried in the depths of the sea. Supposedly condemned to an icy grave, the credits rolled and we catch a glimpse of Megatron’s second in command, Star Scream zipping off into the sky.
When I saw the first movie I knew there would be more to come by the way it ended. In the cartoon Megatron and the other Decepticons built a base in the depths of the sea and it was from there that they conducted their campaign against humanity, so this seemed to me the perfect setup for a sequel.
The sequel, Revenge of the Fallen, is undoubtedly good, though perhaps I would say that about any movie which animated my favorite childhood toys. Yet the movie does deserve some criticism. Unfortunately the amount of foul language in this installment is excessive. When the writing seems to be missing something in terms of substance, they try to make up for it with crass jokes, sexual innuendos or downright tasteless language. That takes what could be a family friendly movie and instead earns a PG-13 rating. If you’re a parent or youth group leader thinking about taking your kids to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen be warned, it’s not the cleanest flick at the box office this summer. Now onto the movie itself…
Spoilers to follow…
Revenge of the Fallen opens with the Autobots having formed an alliance with the humans and battling a league of Decepticons which continue to ravage the earth in a last ditch effort to claim the fragment of the Allspark and enslave all of humanity. This alliance is kept under the radar though, with apparent doubt from the current presidential administration at its success when a Decepticon is stopped in Shanghai and the coverup is less than clean.
Meanwhile our hero, Sam Witwike is getting ready to go off to college and leave his faithful Camaro Bumblebee behind. His parents are struggling with the departure–maybe it’s just his mother–and his girlfriend is battling the difficulty of maintaining a long-distance relationship. Just before Sam leaves he finds a fragment of the Allspark on the t-shirt he wore on that fateful day when he defeated Megatron. Havoc breaks lose, and the Witwike’s get a wonderful opportunity to remodel their home!
While Sam is at college the Decepticons are out to get him, knowing what Sam does not know, that when the Aallspark was destroyed it imprinted upon his brain special information for the location of some sort of star-eater which is capable of extracting energy to help make new transformers. The Decepticons bring Megatron back from his watery grave and he goes to battle Optimus Prime in order to seize Sam and claim the star-eater for himself. A fight ensues and with Optimus Prime out numbered it appears that he does not stand a chance. Optimus sacrifices himself to overcome the Decepticons and is finally murdered by Megatron providing opportunity for Sam to narrowly escape.
With Optimus Prime dead, hope seems to be lost, the Autobots are banished to their secret island military base, and Sam goes into hiding. While in hiding Sam learns about the Allspark’s mark on his brain and begins to put together the puzzle pieces of what is going on around him.
With the final descendant of the Primes dead (that would be Optimus) Megatron’s master leaves Cybertron to take charge of the effort to claim the star-eater machine which has been hidden somewhere on planet Earth. Sam eventually learns the whole of Megatron’s plans and sets out in search of the key which unlocks the star-eater in order to bring back Optimus Prime from death.
Great tribulation presents itself to Sam who eventually finds the key, only to die himself in a bloody battle between the humans and Autobots on one side and the Decepticons on the other. The story doesn’t end there though because the key seems to resurrect Sam who then resurrects Optimus Prime and with the added help of an elder Autobot super-powers his transformer self for a final battle against Megatron’s Master. Optimus Prime slays Megatron’s Master and Megatron disappears into hiding and thus only through Optimus Prime’s death and resurrection is humanity delivered from “the Fallen”.
In the movie “the Fallen” refers to Megatron’s Master an ancient transformer who was part of an elite seven given to govern over the rest of the transformers. This particular transformer went sour though and decided to use his power for evil instead of good. The remaining “Primes” end up sacrificing themselves to prevent the Fallen from doing harm, and thus begins a great and long period of silence in the Autobot history.
The Fallen is Satan, someone close enough to the throne of God at one point to have been numbered as an angel. Optimus Prime is a picture of Christ, being the hero of the day and ultimately having to die in order to deliver humanity. As Optimus Prime is slain by Megatron, who is really nothing more than a pawn in the Fallen’s game, the Fallen believes he has achieved victory. Just like Satan was fooled by our Lord’s crucifixion. The story doesn’t end there though. Optimus Prime – like Jesus, is raised from the dead and in so doing overcomes sin, death and the devil (the Fallen). Only by the grace of God and in the resurrected flesh of Christ are the chains of the Fallen’s hold on this world – death – broken free from humanity so that they might live in peace.
Our Lord Jesus Christ took on lowly flesh, our flesh and descended for life apart from His home to dwell amongst us humans. The Godhead joined flesh in order that He might deliver us from our own iniquity. Through His death and resurrection He freed us from the snare of the devil and set us free to walk in newness and live in Him.
Only by death could Jesus free us from death. Jesus likes to turn things upside down and do them better. He takes things which make no sense to us and uses them to deliver the forgiveness of sins to poor miserable sinners like us. He takes water and uses it as a medium to deliver righteousness. He takes every day ordinary bread and wine and makes them vessel of His own life giving body and blood. He takes human flesh and conceals within it all the power of the Godhead in order to deliver humanity from its own sinfulness. He takes the sinfulness of death, even death by crucifixion and He flips it around in order to save all of humanity. He saves by dying. God the all-knowing all-being ever-present, almighty and immortal dies, so that the fragile mortal bodies of men might be raised up to life on the last day to walk with Him in righteousness. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, like all stories, ultimately shows bits and pieces of the Truest Story, the saving of sinners by the Son of God.
Going Further
Bible Study Discussion Questions
1. In Transformers the battle against humanity is at first a hidden battle. Against whom does St. Paul say that our battle is in Ephesians 6:12.
2. How is Satan’s kingdom brought down in the world today? See Luke 10:1-20. What does the Lord send his disciples to do?
3. The idea of a person laying down their life to help others is common in many stories. By laying down their life, a person is usually able to save someone else. Read John 10:11-17,27-29. Why does Jesus lay down His life? What does it mean for us that He does so?
4. The Transformers are a race of beings from long ago and far away. Is Jesus just one more angel who saves us from the evil angels? Read Hebrews 1:1-6 for the answer.
5. Sometimes it seems as if the powers of good and evil are equal. How do we know that Christ is stronger than the Devil and truly wins the final victory? See Ephesians 1:18-23.
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Episode 43: June 26, 2009
Pastor Borghardt will talk with The Rev. William Cwirla of Holy Trinity in Hacienda Heights, CA and the president of Higher Things about the Augsburg Confession in honor of it’s anniversary and festival commemoration. He’ll also call frequent guest Sandra Ostapowich of Mt. Olive in Loveland, CO to talk to her about the sudden and unexpected news of the death of pop-star and 80’s icon Michael Jackson.
Higher Things has the next batch of Daily Reflections ready for you to download! These Reflections cover June 28 through August 1, 2009. With reflections on the readings for the Trinity Season, the Catechism and the Daily Lectionary, these Reflections will daily deliver Jesus and point you to Him through His Word and Sacraments. These Reflections are written by Pastor Greg Schultz, Campbell Hill, Illinois, and HT’s own Internet Services editor, Pastor Mark Buetow, Du Quoin, Illinonis. To download the Reflections in a printable booklet, click HERE.
If you tuned in last night to TLC on your cable box you were probably looking for the show, “Jon & Kate Plus Eight”. Last night, after months of turmoil and paparazzi the couple announced that they had come to a pivotal crossroads and made a decision which would change their life forever. That decision was to split up and file for divorce.
My wife and I first started watching this show after we got married. That was just three years ago and my wife in particular was fascinated with Kate and her strong personality as she managed a house with eight kids in it. I specifically remember her being impressed and amazed as Kate struggled to cook healthy meals within a reasonable budget. There was something appealing to this Christian couple who had chosen to follow through with a pregnancy of six and then to try and raise them in a wholesome environment all while showing individual and unconditional love.
The first season we watched didn’t always sit well with me. Kate was clearly the dominant personality and to a certain extent she ruled with an iron fist. She wasn’t always nice and at time she was even disrespectful to Jon. Meanwhile, Jon would grumble and make sarcastic remarks about Kate’s behavior and the whole while it became evident that their lifestyle was changing with the success of their show.
I remember the season Kate underwent plastic surgery and the rationale that followed, and then later Jon took her shopping to renovate her wardrobe. Next Jon was getting hair implants and Kate was going on speaking gigs to New York because of her book. It seemed to me that maybe they had shifted from showcasing their multiple blessings to capitalizing on them.
Pause for a moment, because if you didn’t see last night’s episode coming, think about the underlying transformation the Gosselins have endured with their fame. As the seasons have progressed, they’ve become more and more engrossed with themselves. Perhaps the real breaking point was when they decided to abandon their friends and pseudo-family for a new house on lots of property. They weren’t so much interested in the kids’ needs as they were with themselves. If you still don’t think so, flip back to the first and second season and look at the way Jon dressed, walked and even talked.
It’s unfortunate to see a marriage dissolve, and it’s horrible to watch it unfold to the whole world at the expense of eight little children. Yet here the Gosselins aren’t just parting ways and calling it quits, they say they’re doing it for the sake of their children.
If you caught the episode, you also saw that the kids were getting new play houses, called “Crooked Houses”. These little play houses were pretty cool. They were built to look like little kids had made them. Things weren’t quite square or level and each little play house exploded with creativity and color. But the real crooked house wasn’t being built in the backyard, instead it had already been built by Jon and Kate.
Kate kept saying over and over that her and Jon parting ways was best for the kids, and I honestly think she believed that was true. That just shows you the twisted and upside-down ways the world now views marriage! What’s best is no longer what God has erected but what man wants to tear down. What Gods has said will not go asunder man insists must, and all purportedly for the sake of these eight cute and sweet little children. The truth of the matter, and as Kate made evident at the end is that it’s going to be very hard for the Gosselin 8. Because of Jon’s and Kate’s actions, these precious children have been reduced to nothing more then a statistic reflecting America’s continued despising of traditional marriage.
Ultimately that’s what Jon and Kate comes down to, another episode in the unraveling of Holy Matrimony. What makes Jon and Kate different from Will and Grace? In the end marriage between a man and a woman is no longer holy and sanctified, but something that can simply be disregarded by fantastic ratings and an episode of cable television.
This is not what God intended for man and woman. God did not intend for Jon and Eight plus Kate and Eight. He did not want Jon and Kate to separate. What God intended was that those eight precious little children would look to their parents and see His love in the self-sacrificing of Jon for Kate, and the honor and devotion of Kate for Jon. Those eight sets of trusting eyes are supposed to see the love of Christ for His Church as He hung on the Cross for their sins. Instead of the kitchen cabinets with God’s Holy Word taped to the cupboard doors, these kids get the unfamiliar doors of a new home in a new place without the loving presence of both of their parents. And that is truly sad.
God in Christ Jesus forgives all these things. He forgives our infidelities and our unfaithfulness to Him and to each other. Where the house that man built tends to stand a little crooked, the house that God has built stands sure and strong on the foundation of Jesus Christ. Tonight, as the credits rolled for the latest episode of “Jon and Kate Plus Eight” and news of their decisions to break God’s Holy Covenant of Marriage set in, I realized how truly sad this episode was. The only hope after an episode like that is to be found in the spilt blood and crucified body of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who died on the Cross to deliver us from sin, death and the devil. Let’s pray that Jon and Kate might return to each other and to the Lord, for their sake and for the sake of their children; and that they might remember the love of God in Christ Jesus and the forgiveness He won for them and how that love mends all things, even our crooked houses.
Going further…
Bible Study Discussion Questions
- Read Genesis 2:19-25. The Lord gives Adam the gift of a wife, a helper comparable to him. How is the woman made? How is she presented to Adam? Why does Adam rejoice?
- What does Jesus have to say about divorce in Mark 10:2-12? What does He say about breaking apart a marriage? What sin often results from divorce? Why do you think Jesus wants marriage to be preserved and honored?
- Read Psalm 127. This song speaks about marriage and children. Who is needed to build a good marriage? Why do you think children are called a blessing?
- Review the Sixth Commandment and its meaning:
You shall not commit adultery
What does this mean?
We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and decent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honor each other.What does it mean for a husband and wife to love and honor each other?
- Read Ephesians 5:22-33. How should a wife act with respect to her husband? How should a husband act with respect to his wife? Of what is marriage a picture? What truth is denied by divorce (or same-sex marriage, or living together without being married, etc.)?
- Imagine that Jon and Kate are your personal friends. What advice and counsel would you give them at this point in their marriage?
- Is divorce the “unforgivable sin?” How does Jesus’ death on the cross point us to the greater marriage of Christ and His church? Read John 19:34. What do blood and water point to? How does this point the union of Christ and His church? (Recall how Eve was made!)
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Episode 42: June 19, 2009
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Episode 41: June 12, 2009
Curious about what goes on at a Higher Things conference? Come join us for day at SOLA-San Antonio and find out! Registration for Higher Things for a Day (HTFAD) is now open. Your $50 registration fee includes conference materials, a T-shirt, and if you register for Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, even includes lunch. Download the registration form here. For the safety of our youth participants all HTFAD participants must pre register with the registrar. Registration forms are due June 20, 2009, so don’t delay. Register now!
by The Rev. Rich Heinz
This weekend, my family saw Up, the latest Disney/Pixar film. Once again, the great minds (and computers) at Pixar have proven that they cannot produce a bad or even mediochre film…every Disney/Pixar is a great film!
Up presents Carl Fredricksen, a man who grew up dreaming of adventure with his childhood sweetheart. They did grow up and get married, and had a lovely, normal life, never reaching their South American adventure. We see a montage of scenes from across the years, “filling us in,” until we see him widowed and his quaint Victorian surrounded by construction.
Along the way we meet Russell, a “Wilderness Explorer” — (read “Boy Scout.”) Russell happens to be at the house when Carl unleashes thousands of helium balloons to carry his house far from the depressing overhaul of his neighborhood.
The house floats to Paradise Falls, in South America, where Carl and his beloved Ellie had always dreamed of going. Yet through it all, Carl (who has been a gruff recluse) learns from Russell that sometimes the best and favorite memories are the ordinary ones, not exciting adventures.
Russell could teach people about the Holy Liturgy too. Far too often we have people yearning for something new and exciting. “If we only had this pop song style, or that multi-media equipment, we’d really pack in the young people!” some say.
Hmm….listen to Russell. The best aspect of the Liturgy is that it does not change on you. You can count on it. Yes, hymns, readings, and prayers may change, but certain items are the same week in and week out. That is a GOOD thing. Stability. Reliability. While the world changes around you and things can become chaotic, the Divine Service will be your sure and certain friend through it all.
The best worship experiences are not chasing after moments of excitment, searching desperately for mountain top experiences. The best moments of worship are ordinary. Or rather, the best moments of worship are when we recognize just how amazing and extraordinary it is for our Almighty and Eternal God-in-the-flesh comes to us in His Gifts and forgives us…which He does through ordinary elements of bread, wine, water, and Word!
Up is a touching film, which I highly recommend. It also has some beautiful, if not subtle, applications to our lives.
