December 17, 2023

Sermon for 12.17.2023 Advent 03 

Isaiah 61:1-3,10,11 

The Spirit of the LORD God is  upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the  afflicted. He sent me to bind up  the brokenhearted, to proclaim  freedom for the captives and  release for those who are  bound, to proclaim the year of  the LORD’s favor and the day of vengeance for our God, to comfort all who  mourn,3to provide for those who mourn in Zion, to give them a crown of  beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, a cloak of praise  instead of a faint spirit, so that they will be called oaks of righteousness, a  planting of the LORD to display his beauty. I will rejoice greatly in the LORD. My  soul will celebrate because of my God, for he has clothed me in garments of  salvation. With a robe of righteousness he covered me, like a bridegroom who  wears a beautiful headdress like a priest, and like a bride who adorns herself  with her jewelry. 11 For as the earth produces its growth, and as a garden causes  what has been sown to sprout up, so God the LORD will cause righteousness  and praise to sprout up in the presence of all the nations. 

The Christmas songs are blaring. Aside from the occasional religious carol,  which usually is only the tune not the words, and the occasional kids’ song,  have you listened to many of the themes? “All I want for Christmas is my  two Front teeth.” “All I want for Christmas is You.” “It’ll be a Blue  Christmas Without You.” “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas.” The list  could go on, but I think you see the reoccurring theme. It’s what I want for  Christmas. The way Christmas is promoted and thought of is that it is a  time of joy based on getting what you want. Most people have a long list of  what they want -toys, clothes, cars, a happy family gathering and the like.  And if they don’t get it? Or get the wrong color, size, or style? Well, it’s gonna be a blue Christmas. 

God promised a Savior King who would come and the people filled out  their wish lists of what they wanted this king to do for them. But was God’s  plan what they wanted? Is it what you want? 

In Isaiah’s day the people had their idea of what would bring them joy.  Freedom from the Babylonian invasion. A return to the glory of David’s  kingdom. So when they heard Isaiah’s message, which had nothing to do  with their wish lists, their response was “So what? That’s not what wewant.” 700 years later, the people of Israel hadn’t changed their list much,  except the Babylonians were replaced with the Romans. And their response  to Jesus was the same.  

This section is quoted by Jesus both in the synagogue of Nazareth and  when he answered John the Baptist’s disciples. When John the Baptizer was  put into prison, he sent a few of his disciples to ask Jesus whether or not he  truly was one who was to come, or whether they should wait for someone  else. John had preached about the coming Messiah using the Old  Testament pictures of his coming judgment saying that the Messiah would  clear his threshing floor and burn the chaff with unquenchable fire. John  had his expectations of what Jesus would do. But that wasn’t happening.  Jesus told those disciples, “Go and tell John what you see and hear. Then he  gives a clear reference to Isaiah 61.  

The people of Isaiah’s day missed it. The people of Jesus’ day missed it. John  missed it. Can we be in danger of missing it? 

You may be someone who agrees with the Christmas song: "It's the most  wonderful time of the year!" But I've been a pastor long enough to know  that this season isn't always the most wonderful time of year for many.  They, maybe even you, wouldn’t use the word joy to describe this time of  year at all. You might use the word dread. Or grief. Or stress. Unhappy  memories are brought to the surface and toxic relatives are seated next to us  at the table. An untold number of Americans will wash down their  antidepressants with eggnog this Christmas. 

So many problems throw a big bucket of water on the yule log. Death,  divorce, children spending Christmas without a parent, mom or dad  spending Christmas without their kids. That’s Christmas in the real world,  ripped out of the Hallmark movies where everything works out in the end.  It’s Christmas in a corrupted and fallen creation where heartache and grief  don’t take time off for the holidays.  

Sometimes, just like John the Baptist, we miss the joy in knowing that Jesus  is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world because we are  wrapped up in what we think he should be doing. It is amazing how many  don’t want a Savior from sin. They want a Savior from their earthly  problems.  

Perhaps part of the mistake we make is forgetting that the first Christmas,  started out as the worst of times. Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem  because the Roman overlords had forced them to undertake this journey to  pay their taxes when no pregnant woman should be on the road. No warm, sanitized room awaited them after their trip. When this young mother went  into labor, where was she supposed to lay down to give birth? On rough hay  littered with cow manure? It’s a wonder both mother and child didn’t die  that night. This is not the way any baby, least of all Jesus, should have been  born. 

And yet in the dark, the cold, in the mess God was born. It’s a story that  gives meaning and hope to our own dark, cold, messy stories of  Christmases that seem anything but joyful. For it was on this night that  God began to teach us that we don’t need to have a Hallmark Christmas to  find peace and joy. 

Shepherds were out in the fields doing their shepherd thing that night,  when an angel of the Lord shows up to bring a message from God: “Fear  not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the  people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is  Christ the Lord.” 

If the sentence, “A Savior has been born to you,” is no longer a life-changing  sentence, if it no longer causes you joy, than it’s time for each of us to take a  moment with ourselves and remember the facts. 

Fact 1) I am a sinner. You are a sinner. It’s a short painful sentence, but it  cuts through a whole bunch of the devil’s lies spooking around in your  head, like these: “I’m not that bad, not any worse than anybody else, in fact,  probably even a little bit better.” Recognize what you are by looking into  God’s holy law! You are a sinner, from the souls of your feet to the hair on  your head, in total need of saving or you will die forever. You need saving. 

Fact 2) A Savior has been born! There’s hardly ever been a more  theologically packed sentence. God saw of world of you’s and me’s, who  were going to die because of their sin, and though deeply hurt by a world  lashing out against him, he didn’t lash back! Instead, his heart was moved  to give. His heart was moved to save, and he gave a Savior. And not just  some measly pawn as a sacrifice in the game, but the King of it all, his Son,  all the fullness of God in bodily form.  

Fact 3) A Savior has been born to you! It’s time to get your pointer finger out  and lay it softly on your heart (come on, let’s do it together), and say these  words: “For Me, a Savior is born for me. The Savior I didn’t even always  want, but the one I would die without. He came for me. He left heaven for  me. He suffered hell for me. He saved me.” Let those truths sink in until  your heart melts.

When the angels sang of the Savior's birth, God was bringing His  Christmas present to this world. When Jesus defeated the devil in the  desert of temptation, he was proclaiming victory to those afflicted by  temptation. When the Son of God healed the sick and spoke words of  forgiveness to the repentant, He was binding up the brokenhearted. When  Jesus cried out on the cross, "It is finished" he was proclaiming freedom for  all held captive by sin. And when He rose from the dead, overcoming every  obstacle that would try to steal away hope and joy, He was proclaiming the  eternal year of the Lord’s favor. 

Christmas is a delightful disruption of the way things normally go. Christmas is not about what I want or what you want. It’s about what we  need. It’s about God taking on our flesh and blood, being born as one of us,  to share our griefs, to bear our sorrows, and to unite us to himself. You do  not have a Savior unable to sympathize with your weaknesses, but one who  has experienced them all, so that no matter what your hurt is, he redeems  it, and carries you through it. Joy is not the absence of suffering but the  presence of God. And born for you is “Emmanuel” God with us. God with  you -ever, always.  

Maybe for you this is the happiest time of year. Rejoice, God’s joy is for you.  Joy is your enjoyment of God and the good things that come from God. 

But even if it isn’t a happy time for you, God's joy for you still holds. You are  right with Him and He will bring you perfect joy in a glory that  overshadows all trouble. Count on it. With His living Word as comfort for  your heart right now and with the assurance that all will be well one day  with Him in eternity, Jesus gives you the strength and the faith to hope for  holiday joy. 

For unto you is born a Savior who brings a joy that lasts past Christmas and  in all circumstances.  

I pray that all of us will keep him at the top of our Christmas lists.  Amen.


September 3, 2023

Today's sermon was based on the Gospel reading today. Who do people say the Son of Man is? That question is as applicable today as it was in Matthew’s Gospel. The question remains, “Who is Jesus?” As the disciples rattled off the popular misconceptions, one is struck by how illustrious that list actually was. There were no slouches in that group. But they didn’t even begin to compare with the truth. Many people today give similar answers: they call Jesus a teacher, a philosopher, the founder of a religion, an agent of change. Their answers miss the mark as widely as the answers of the people in the Gospel. Only disciples of Jesus, through the work of the Spirit of God, can confess him as he truly is. Could Peter’s answer be any better? You are the Anointed One, the one set apart by God and prophesied by Scripture, the Promised Seed who would save us from sin. But even more than that, Peter showed that the disciples confessed him to be the Son of the living God. You, Jesus of Nazareth, are the Son of the God who is life and who gives life. This living God is the hope of every sinful man ever since Adam in the face of death named his wife “Life,” because through her womb would come the Seed who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Now here, in the flesh, stood the Son of the living God whose mission was to restore life to this world of death. This truth is the rock on which the Church stands. Because it stands on the rock and not on the pebbles of men who serve it, the Church will stand forever: its message is changeless; the ramifications of its work are eternal.

August 20, 2023

Preacher: Pastor Tim Redfield

Text: 1 Chronicles 29:1-9

Theme: Godly Giving is Contagious 


Are you truly satisfied? Do you have enough to be happy? I suppose you might be thinking, “Well, that depends on what you are talking about.” In many situations in life, we convince ourselves that we need a little bit more in order to be happy. Even if a person has thousands of dollars in the bank, they want a little bit more. There is always something else that they can buy. Money doesn’t buy happiness because there is always a desire for more. Think about time. We feel like there are not enough hours in the day to get our tasks done. We want just a little more time. But then we would just find more projects to fill that time. We even wish that we had more energy to get our tasks done. We grab that extra cup of coffee to get a little boost of energy. What about relationships? If we have more friends will we feel more loved? 

In so many areas of our life, we feel like we’re just a little bit short. It seems to be our default human condition. We’re never quite satisfied. We want a little bit more. Part of the problem is the focus on ourselves. By looking at the example of David and the Israelites today, we see that a focus on Godly Giving is a path to true satisfaction and happiness. When we give back to God with our time, talents and treasures and when we have a joyful attitude, it can be contagious in the family of God. 

Part 1: Watch your heart for the proper attitude 

It is interesting to think about the amount of money that David and the Israelites gave in this section. According to the information in my study Bible, it says that between David and the Israelite leaders, they gave 270 metric tons of gold. By the conversion numbers I found on a quick internet search, that came to around 18 billion dollars of gold. That is a huge amount of money. That is 3 times more than the amount of money that was spent to build SoFi Stadium in California for the LA Rams and LA Chargers. While you will find different estimates when you search for the cost of the temple, the point is that it was a large amount of wealth that the people put into that building. They wanted to give to the Lord. 

We look at that huge amount of money and think that we could never give that much. We sometimes think that our resources aren’t enough or our wealth is scarce. That is not the way that King David thought. David wanted to give to the work of the Lord. He said, “With all my resources I have provided for the temple of my God… in my devotion to the temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided for this holy temple” (1 Chronicles 29:2,3). He then urged the people to give. He said, “Now, who is willing to consecrate themselves to the Lord today?” (1 Chronicles 29). The first response to his words is that the other leaders gave willingly to the project. 

The temptation the devil puts in front of us is to make us think that we are not able to give. We look at those big gifts and we know that we can’t do something like that. We live in a culture which tries to push us to keep striving for more and more and therefore it is hard to be content with the blessings that we do have. We feel like we never have enough. First we feel like we don’t have enough money. Then we feel like we don’t even have enough time or ability to help with the work of the Lord. Our culture makes us extremely busy. We’re running to this event and that event. We struggle with many things going on. We are searching for one more thing to make us happy. We need more time to work to get the money to make that happen. Then next temptation is that God is getting in the way. “How am I supposed to give him an hour a week for worship when I need that time for work or other important events?”

The thought is that it hurts us to give to the Lord or to others. Generosity seems to be painful. This is when giving loses its joy. Is this thought tempting us? Ask yourself: how hard is it for you to give your money away? If it is hard and painful to give your money away – to anyone – you are living with an attitude of scarcity. We think we need a little bit more. We need that extra ten dollars for this or that. The devil has convinced us that we are a little bit short. 

God wants to completely change our mindset. He wants to free us from the attitude of always being short.  In our second lesson today it said, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously” (2 Corinthians 9:6). We can see this idea in business. Sometimes you have to take a big risk to get a big reward. There are times when an investor backs a company or product without knowing for sure if it will be successful. Then when it becomes a huge success, they get a huge return on their investment. That takes trust on the part of the investor. God says that it is the same with him. He who gives, receives, He who sows generously, will reap generously.

Getting out of that scarcity mentality comes down to trust. Is God good for it? Can I count on him? 2 Corinthians 9:8 said, “And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” The devil wants us to have the “just a little bit more” disease. In contrast, think about how many times Paul uses the word “all” or “every”. “And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.” We don’t have a God of “just a little bit more.” We have a God who gives us “all.” God is not a God of scarcity. He is a God of abundance. 

God’s abundance starts with grace. When we hear grace, we think about Jesus. God’s grace is his undeserved love for us in Jesus. How much of that love is there? God describes it like a flood – it’s abounding and overflowing. Romans 8:32 says, “Indeed, he who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also graciously give us all these things along with him?” God’s grace helps us to get past the “I need a little more” mentality.

With God, we don’t need a little bit more. We have it all! In chapter 8 of 2 Corinthians, Paul wrote, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that although he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that through his poverty you might become rich.” Everyone who goes through life thinking that they don’t have enough is missing the big picture. Jesus has died for you. Jesus has forgiven you. Jesus saved you. Jesus loves you. You are rich – right now!  We have a God of abundance!

Being rich isn’t about a number. You can have all the money in the world, but still be poor. Being rich is an attitude. It is the gift of God’s grace. You have something that the richest people in the world don’t have. You have God’s peace in your heart. Your worth isn’t determined by your bank account. It’s determined by Jesus blood. Your freedom isn’t a result of your constant struggling. It is the result of Jesus’ forgiveness. You are rich! You will leave church today without a single dollar more in your pocket. You’ll leave without a single hour more in your day. But you are not short. You have what you need the most. You are overflowing with the love of God!

Part 2: Through Jesus we give willingly and with joy

Sometimes people talk about different perspectives in life. The old question goes: are you a glass half-empty or glass half-full kind of person? When it comes to our faith, neither option is the right one. Our glass is full! When the scarcity ideas comes into our mind, we think about our God. He is able to make grace overflow to you. Because of him, I am rich. God has blessed us with abundance.

God’s abundance doesn’t stop with us. God has given us these blessings because he has a purpose for us. He wants to make us a blessing to others. The blessings don’t end when they get to us. God’s blessings are not meant to come to you and stop. He’s got a much bigger purpose for you than that! Isn’t that what we want to hear? We want a purpose in our lives. God gives that to us. You exist to be a blessing for others. God wants his abundance to flow through you. 

Have you ever heard of “seed money”? It’s money that is used to start something bigger. You might put “seed money” into your child’s college account – and hope it grows. God’s blessings to us are like “seed money.” The money and time and possessions and talents that God has given you are seed money to sow generously. He doesn’t want us to keep our blessings to ourselves any more than a farmer keeps his seeds to himself. He gives us blessings to plant them so that they grow and flourish and bless even more people with God’s abundance. 

Think about our attitude. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says, “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” Giving is connected to our heart. It is a decision that reflects faith in Jesus. This is why we don’t tell you a specific amount to give. As you decide, ask yourself: Do I have a God of abundance or scarcity? Do I have a God who leaves me a little short or gives me all?

The people of Israel were encouraged by their leaders. 1 Chronicles 29:9 said, “The people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given freely and wholeheartedly to the Lord.” They could see that their leaders had been blessed by God and were giving back to the Lord. We don’t personally proclaim the amount we give to the Lord but as a group, we can see when we accomplish a big financial goal. We can see that in our budget and in our special projects. It shows that God has blessed us when we accomplish those projects. 

Jesus accomplished more than anyone in the history of the world. But even with all those things that Jesus did, look at how he carries himself. He finds time for it all. He is not too busy to help others. He finds time for prayer and meditation and even naps. He had the same 24 hour days that we have. He only lived 33 years. But he had enough time. We are not living in scarcity. God has given us exactly the right amount of time to serve him. God has given us exactly the right amount of money to serve him. God has given us exactly the right amount of talents to serve him. Don’t wish for more. Rejoice in what he has given you. 

Conclusion

Even though it might seem like we always need more for ourselves in order to be happy, that is not the best way of thinking. Even though it might feel like we need more money or time or energy or love, we already have an abundance from our God. True happiness is not found in having a little bit more. True happiness is found in the fact that we have been satisfied through Jesus and his cross. We have enough. We don’t need more. This abundance of blessing makes us generous. Our generosity is motivated by the greatest love. Jesus gave us the greatest blessing. His love overflows to us. He has forgiven all of our sins. We are all forgiven. We gather together and praise our Savior. This generosity motivated by God’s grace is contagious among us. 

July 23, 2023

6th Sunday after Pentecost                It’s God’s Way or the Highway 

Isaiah 55:6-11, July 13/16/23, 2023           1) Listen 2) Marvel 

Introduction I remember when I was 10 years old walking through a public marketplace in Tijuana, Mexico, on vacation with my family. Vendors were set up right next to one another, all crammed together. The owners of the mini shops weren’t sitting in the back room; they were in front of the store attempting to get the attention of any passer-by. They were loud and pushy. They were even willing to barter with their customers, willing to negotiate the price of their goods. With the help of my mom, I was able to buy a marble elephant at a pretty decent price. You could tell that the owners were desperate to sell their merchandise. Not to enrich American tourists, but to enrich themselves. In the end, they were after our money. For the most part, salespeople try to make a sale in order to make money. They are all about making money. There’s a reason why Americans are skeptical opening their doors to solicitors, a reason why “no soliciting” signs are posted on doors – we are tired of being sold items or programs. We know it’s only going to cost us money in the end. In a way, it’s too bad we’re so skeptical of people coming to our door - ask our elder teams, work is much more challenging.  

Context The nation God had chosen wasn’t much interested in spiritual matters. There were other influences, other voices, various distractions that made God’s message through Isaiah secondary in nature to the nation of Judah. Not much has changed today. There are still various distractions and voices that drowned out God’s voice. Or, people in general are so turned off by corporate religion and people trying to sell them the next best thing to slice bread, they are completely disinterested and hardened to what God has to share with them in the Word. 

God isn’t trying to sell us anything. He’s not looking for your money or your favors; he’s not looking to take anything from you. If anything he’s trying to sell you on the point that he has something to offer you that will not cost you anything, while at the same time, offer you everything. He actually openly invites all to partake of the riches he offers in verse 6, Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. You can sense the urgency in God’s message. There is only a limited amount of time before we can call on God. And the other truth of the matter is – the unbeliever will not turn to God in unbelief. They do not have the natural ability to turn to God on their own. They need the gospel. In the gospel, God comes near.

Illustration If you’re a fan of board games, you know how important directions are. If you don’t have directions to a game, how are you going to know what to do in the game. Therefore, before the game is played, directions need to be read and shared. Some directions are simple; some are a bit more complicated. I read about the game called “The Campaign for North Africa”, which is considered the most complicated board game ever created. It’s a war game that involves a lot of strategy. The average time to complete the game is 1500 hours, and you need roughly 10 players to play. Why would anyone ever want to play this complicated game, that never seems to end?! For such a complicated game, directions are key. The directions to this game are written in a clear and entertaining way, with numerous notes to make it a worthwhile experience. In the end, b/c of the complexity, the game still received a lukewarm reception. People are lukewarm about this life at times. At times, the days seem long, as well as the weeks and months – like a complicated, never-ending game. Life at times can be overly complicated where the good and the righteous seem to suffer, while the wicked are flourishing. At times it’s hard to make sense of this life with all of it’s problems, with all the problems we have to face. It gets to the point where we are tempted to shake our fist at God and excuse him of poorly ruling this world and our lives. 

Cure Hopefully if you ever feel overwhelmed, you don’t blow your top, but you “be still” it says in Psalm 46 and know who God is. In order to know who God is, in order for your nerves to be calmed and your fears to change to confidence, you need God to speak to you in his Word. Listen to what God has to say to you this day in Isaiah 55:8,9, 8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. God reminds us he is in control; he’s in charge. He created the world; he set the laws of nature in motion; he put the stars in the sky and the animals on the dry ground. Better than that though; God laid out for mankind his gracious plan to save the world from sin, death, and the devil. His son would see to it, by his perfect life and innocent dying and glorious rising, Jesus took care of the business of making us right with God. Thus, as Isaiah says in verse 7, we can freely turn to our God for mercy, for pardon. 

Virtue God encourages us to acquire his gracious blessings, and he suggests an unexpected method for securing them: “Listen, listen to me.” It’s not a moment of listening to God tell us what to do, rather God wants us to listen to what he has done. He’s done it all, free of charge. Not only is that clearly communicated in the Bible; we’re told today it’s a unique message have the source being God Almighty. His message is so special no other sacred book or religion talks about a Savior God. Left alone and without God’s Word, no human can imagine that God would send a Savior to die for unworthy sinners. God’s grace remains a mystery to human intelligence and research. Mankind doesn’t possess the natural ability to devise such a message. God can and did. And in this special message of God’s holy Word where he tells us it’s all been done for us, despite us; we’re also told that it works results in people’s lives. God’s Word works. 

Sometimes directions to board games take some patience before we completely understand the concept of the game. We may not understand it right away, but we can trust the manufacturers of the game knew what they were doing when they put together the game. God no doubt knows what he is doing. He tells us how to successfully navigate this life all the way to the next life – follow Jesus through the hearing and reading of God’s Word. We may not always understand the ways of the Lord, but we can trust his way is best. We can trust that his Word is true and will do what it says. 

Context To help us have a better understanding of how God works through the Word, he explains it in his Word. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Sometimes we feel that the rain or snow can be an inconvenience. We forget the rain and snow is more than an insignificant nuisance – the water enriches and beautifies our planet. It plays a major role in our ecosystem, aiding in the growth of crops and plants. In a miraculous and mysterious way, water helps germinate the seed.

God works like a seed – miraculously and mysteriously. We see proof of God’s miracles in the Bible, out in nature, and in our lives. We see proof of how God works mysteriously, in the Bible out in nature, and in our lives. Maybe you’ve even heard the common phrase - “God works in mysterious ways.” The Bible talks this way, yet you are not going to find the passage with the exact phrasing – God works in mysterious ways – because the phrase comes from a poem by William Cowper (who lived 1731–1800), whose first stanza reads, “God moves in a mysterious way / His wonders to perform; / He plants His footsteps in the sea / And rides upon the storm.” 

God is mysterious, and there is much we cannot comprehend about him and his ways; his ways are much higher, loftier than ours he tells us. At times he can make his presence felt; and other times he is a bit more discreet. In those moments it’s tempting to want to yell at God for not making his presence known in a more meaningful way; for not being there or helping us the way we want. Job had that issue for a while. Job suffered a whole lot, more than anyone else here knows. In his suffering, he felt justified in questioning God’s ways and criticizing his way of governing. Yet, in the final chapters of Job, we see God peppering Job with many questions which can all be summed up with the one question: does the creature have the right to sit on judgment against the Creator? The Bibles says no; in Romans 9:20,21, “20 But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? “Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me like this?’” 21 Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?


Conclusion It’s God’s way or the highway. This shouldn’t be a point of contention, but a source of joy and comfort. God’s way is always best. All that God does is good and right because he’s God! He, after all, made it possible for you to live in this great world he created. He makes it possible for you to know his goodness and mercy through Jesus. He makes it possible for you to be comforted with a peace that the world cannot give. It’s all found here, in the Word. The Word that lasts…the grass withers and the flowers fall, kingdoms rise and go, people are born and then die, but the Word of God lasts forever. Thank God for the Word, listen and marvel at it. Amen. 



 

July 9, 2023

Exodus 32:15-29


July 9, 2023


Text:

Moses turned and went down the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant law in his hands. They were inscribed on both sides, front and back. The tablets were the work of God; the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.

When Joshua heard the noise of the people shouting, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war in the camp.”

Moses replied:

“It is not the sound of victory,
    it is not the sound of defeat;
    it is the sound of singing that I hear.”

When Moses approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, his anger burned and he threw the tablets out of his hands, breaking them to pieces at the foot of the mountain. And he took the calf the people had made and burned it in the fire; then he ground it to powder, scattered it on the water and made the Israelites drink it.

He said to Aaron, “What did these people do to you, that you led them into such great sin?”

“Do not be angry, my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’ So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!”

Moses saw that the people were running wild and that Aaron had let them get out of control and so become a laughingstock to their enemies. So he stood at the entrance to the camp and said, “Whoever is for the Lord, come to me.” And all the Levites rallied to him.

Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died. Then Moses said, “You have been set apart to the Lord today, for you were against your own sons and brothers, and he has blessed you this day.”

You have been set apart to the Lord today

It can be quite hard to take a stand for what is right. The child who is outside during recess agrees with this statement as he sees a group of kids doing something that is not in line with the rules of recess. The right thing to do would be to intervene and explain to his peers that what they are doing is wrong, and they should consider some alternative forms of behavior instead. But he knows this will most likely bring some ridicule and mockery his direction from his classmates, so he simply looks the other way.

The parent whose older child is engaged in some sort of immoral behavior agrees with this statement, too. They recognize that what their adult child is doing is wrong and is hurting his or her relationship with God and also with their family. They recognize that they really should intervene, but they also don’t want to risk losing a relationship with their child. So, it becomes easier to look the other way.

The politician who also happens to be a Christian would agree with this, too. He truly feels that his Christian beliefs and morals could be a benefit to his work as a public servant, but he also knows that expressing such things could hurt his political aspirations. Thus, it becomes easier to remove such things from the conversation or hide such convictions amongst smooth political double-talk.

The college student agrees, too. She knows what the Bible says. She studied it for years. She believes it to be true. She fully trusts that Jesus is her Savior. And then those beliefs are challenged in the classroom or in the dorms or even in athletics. And she would love to take a stand for the truth. She would love to boldly proclaim what the Bible says about such things, but she also knows that it could affect the dreams that she had for her future, along with the goals that she has laid out for herself. So, it becomes easier to not say anything.

The Christian business owner agrees, too. He knows what the Bible clearly states about honesty and integrity, fairness and equality, priorities and humility, and even giving God the recognition and praise. But, it’s a cut-throat business world out there. You have to be shrewd and assertive or you’ll never make it. As a result, his Christian beliefs and morals are pushed to the side when he is at the workplace.

Now, these are meant to be hypothetical situations, but maybe you can relate to them to a certain degree. And I would submit to you that there is one thing at the heart of all of them: idolatry. You might remember that in catechism class you learned about two kinds of idolatry: open idolatry, which would be openly worshiping some sort of false god, and secret idolatry, pushing God out of first place in our hearts and replacing him with some earthly person or thing. 

Thinking back to all those situations that we just mentioned, I do believe that secret idolatry is at the heart of each of them. Whether it is desiring to be accepted by your earthly peers, achieving success in earthly business, viewing earthly relationships as the most important thing, or looking to earthly people or things for your hope and confidence, what’s the problem here? Well, you may have noticed that I inserted the word “earthly” into each example. And that’s exactly the problem. We get too wrapped up in the stuff of this life that we quickly push God out of the picture. That’s how we get engrossed in secret idolatry.

For the Israelites, though, it was open idolatry. Three months after leaving Egypt, something that had been 400 years in the making, the children of Israel arrived at Mt. Sinai. In keeping with his promise, God brought his people out of Egypt and to this place, so that they could worship him as the true God and as the one who freed them slavery. The presence of God was so evident there because of the thunder, the lightning, and the thick cloud that covered the peak. Moses went up there to receive the law from God, so that he could share it with the people. There had even been a fellowship meal between God and the elders of the people. Moses lingered on the mountain a bit longer - forty days and forty nights in all.

 

This was a long time. People don’t like to wait more than an hour for something. Imagine waiting forty days?! So, the people grew impatient, and we all know what happened next. They talked Moses’ brother, Aaron, into building the golden calf, and they worshiped it. Now, that’s the Sunday school or Christlight version of the story, which certainly isn’t wrong, but the Bible is pretty descriptive in how they worshiped this golden calf. So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry (v 6). Things that were supposed to be done for the true God, sacrifices, were offered to a false god. And things that have nothing to do with worship - eating, drinking, and revelry - were also given to this false god. The idea of the Hebrew word for “revelry” has a sexual meaning to it, so it is quite clear that this was not a healthy thing that the people were doing. Sadly, it mimicked the worship forms of the pagan nations that surrounded them.

And this is the scene that Moses walks into when he comes down from Mt. Sinai. You can understand his anger, can’t you? After all God had done to rescue them from slavery in Egypt, they resort to this?! And by making them drink that false god, Moses showed them how false and worthless that calf really was. What kind of god is it that you can melt it down and consume it? What could a god like that possibly do for them?

It’s a lot like the things we mentioned earlier. Things like money, power, success, acceptance, and relationships might be nice. They might look real good on the outside, but they could melt away at any time. Or, sometimes God makes you eat it in an attempt to humble you and reel you back in. And his point is the same: whether it’s a golden calf or something that you set up in your heart as god, it’s still false. It’s still powerless to do anything to save you. And God may very well do something in your life to make that very clear to you.

And that’s where the Levites come in. Such idolatry is not only ugly and sinful, but it also had the potential to ruin the very reason for which God had led them out of Egypt. They were on their way to the Promised Land. To the place where the Savior would be born one day. And idolatry only stands in the way of the work of the Savior. So, this had to be dealt with swiftly and strongly. The Levites grabbed their swords and plunged them into the hearts of those who insisted on following a false god. They put to death their own relatives and friends because they were willing to take a stand for what was right. They would not allow their fellow Israelites to make a mockery of the true God by worshiping this golden calf, and they would make a clear testimony to anyone else who might consider getting involved in this idolatry. Only God is to be worshiped!

That act of shedding blood that day set the Levites apart from their countrymen. They took a stand, and God blessed them for it.

And it’s the shedding of blood that has set us apart to the Lord, too. Thank God that the Levites did take a stand that day because it had eternal benefits for us. The Savior was born in the Promised Land. He did shed his blood there for the sins of all people, and that’s what has set us apart. The holy, precious blood of Jesus has forgiven all of our sins, even our sins of idolatry. Jesus allowed nails and a spear to be plunged into his flesh. He felt the stabbing pain of eternal death. He gave up the lifeblood from his sacred veins to wash each and every one of our sins. Through that sacrifice on the cross, and by faith in what he did, we have been set apart to the Lord, today and every day. 

That’s what allows us to do what Paul said to Timothy: flee from all this [from the trappings of the things of this world - those things that so easily become idols in our hearts], and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Living our faith is not something that we do in secret. It’s something that we do out in the open each and every day. That’s part of what it means to be set apart by the blood of Jesus. We are set apart, made holy, by faith, which means that forgiveness and eternal belong to us, but it also means that we are set apart to live as light in the dark world. We can do so boldly and confidently. 

And the reality is that this might cause earthly difficulties for us. It might affect our personal relationships or our status in the world. But that’s all part of what Jesus said: Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. Everything in this world is fleeting, so we don’t put our hope in it. Instead, by faith, we follow Jesus, even as we go about our unique and individual callings in this life. 

Which might mean that, at times, we do have to take a stand for what is right. But our weapon is different than the one the Levites used at Mt. Sinai that day. The weapon that we have is quite sharper and more powerful than their swords. We have the sword of the Spirit. We have the Word of God, which is sharper than any double-edged sword, and it plunges right into the heart. As we take a stand for the truth of the gospel in this evil world, we recognize that the gospel will take care of itself. We simply wield it when God gives us the opportunity, and we let God take it from there.

Yes, it can be hard to take a stand for what is right. But, when you do, you stand on the Word of God. And you wield the most powerful weapon there is - that very Word. And you have the promise that God will work through that Word. So, use it! By boldly sharing the Word of God with a family member who is wandering or a coworker who is confused or a friend or classmate who is in the wrong, you have plunged the sword of the Spirit into that person’s heart. And God’s promise is attached to it - whenever his Word is shared, he gets right to work. You have been set apart to the Lord for this. He will empower you, and he will bless you. Amen.


June 25, 2023


Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,


Jesus came to save a world that could not save itself. We saw that in the Gospel for this Sunday. He could heal people of every disease and every sickness- something that no doctor on earth can do. He saw the people coming toward him and was filled with compassion because he saw that the people were troubled and downcast- like sheep without a shepherd- people incapable of finding their way to God. Then, he sent out his disciples into the world to bring people to God. But these men would show themselves as slow to learn and to be men of “little faith.” They would even run away from Jesus in fear when he was arrested, and Peter would deny ever knowing Jesus. Then, later, Jesus would call an enemy of the gospel and Christianity, a man named Saul, to become an apostle and one of the greatest Christian missionaries of all time and the man who wrote the epistle to the Romans.

Do you see what Jesus teaches us? He helps the helpless. He came to earth to die for his enemies. He calls sinners to bring the ungodly to God. It is this truth of Jesus Christ that the apostle Paul teaches us as well in our lesson for today from Romans 5, and by the grace of God we will see the ancient and enduring Gospel message that Jesus came to die for the ungodly.

Our lesson begins with these words: For at the appointed time, while we were still helpless, Christ died for the ungodly. This is the Gospel- Jesus came to die for sinners, and you qualify. Throughout this lesson, do you see the way that the Bible describes us in our natural, sinful condition? It uses the words “helpless, ungodly, sinners, and enemies.” We come into this world spiritually helpless- not able to do anything to change our own sinful condition. We are ungodly- not on God’s side but separated from him. We come into the world as sinners- guilty of not keeping the law of God and incapable of doing so. In our sinful condition, we are also enemies of God. Romans 8:7 tells us “The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” 

This is how God sees our sinful condition. This is what the entire world is seen as apart from Christ. This is the evil that still lives in our sinful nature. But maybe you think this is a little harsh, or you’ve heard this truth so much that you lose track of what this means: We are not pretty good people who have some flaws. Apart from the forgiveness of Christ, we are ungodly, helpless, sinners and enemies of God. Just imagine for a minute if we had a screen here and your ten worst and most shameful actions were portrayed on the screen for everyone to see. Or imagine that all our words were recorded. At a summer job in college, a man with whom I was working was using a lot of foul language, and then he asked me what I was going to school to study. I said, “I’m studying to be a pastor.” He was shocked and said, “Why didn’t you tell me that! I would have cleaned up my language!” As if our words could somehow escape the notice of an all-knowing God. Or worst of all, imagine if all your thoughts were displayed above your head like a thought bubble in a cartoon book. What would people think of you? What harm would you do to others? What would happen to your relationships with your family and friends- with people that you even like! Hebrews tells us that the word of God judges the “thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” 

When the word of God calls us helpless, sinful, ungodly, and hostile to Him, he is not talking symbolically. This is reality. So, we need to hammer this truth home that Christ died for, or in place of the ungodly, in place of us. We need to hear this because it is so different from what we would expect. Listen to what Paul says, “It is rare indeed that someone will die for a righteous person. Perhaps someone might actually go so far as to die for a person who has been good to him.  But God shows his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We love hearing stories from history about someone giving up their life for others. There are heroic stories of men jumping on grenades to save their fellow soldiers. There are parents or grandparents that have or would be willing to die for their children or grandchildren. We perhaps would die for someone that we loved or that we considered to be good. It’s rare. It’s not common, but we’ve heard stories about it, and we could imagine it.

But the love of God is different. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Could you imagine President Putin of Russia giving up his life for President Zelensky of Ukraine? No way! God’s own love is different than ours. Christ died for the guilty. Christ died for his enemies. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, go to the cross of Calvary. Look at the darkness of that day. Hear the taunts of those crucifying Jesus. See the horror of the son of God gasping for breath, bleeding and finally dead on the cross. Hear Jesus crying out, “Father forgive them” or “My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” Do you think that he suffered this for pretty good people who just have a couple minor flaws? No! He died for sinners. He died for his enemies. He died for the helpless! He died for the ungodly. He died for you! He took all your wicked actions, evil words and disgraceful thoughts and paid for them with his death. You are forgiven. Your sin is gone in Jesus. This is the love of God for you.

Since Jesus died for the ungodly, since he died for us, what does this mean? Listen to what Paul says: 9 Therefore, since we have now been justified by his blood, it is even more certain that we will be saved from God’s wrath through him.  10 For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, it is even more certain that, since we have been reconciled, we will be saved by his life.  11 And not only is this so, but we also go on rejoicing confidently in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received this reconciliation. Did you hear the way Paul describes the blessings that we have through Jesus’ death? We are justified, saved, and reconciled. We are justified, declared not guilty. We can give up all the games of self-justification that we play to try to give meaning to our lives, our decisions or what we have done. We can stop the very tempting game of trying to get others to declare us righteous and innocent. The justification that matters and that will endure isn’t the justification that happens by our decisions or works, it’s the declaration of “not guilty” of justification that God won for us on the cross. It’s the justification that he has delivered to us in our baptism and through His Word.

Because we are justified, we are saved! Saved from what? God’s wrath! It’s not popular to talk about God’s wrath. But the fact is “being saved” means nothing if we don’t understand the wrath of God. God is immensely angry over sin and the way that people disrespect him by disobeying his law. God has every right to punish everyone with eternal punishment. This is our biggest issue. The biggest issue is not financial uncertainty in our lives, a health crisis, the threat of war or any other earthly calamity- as difficult as these can be. The biggest issue is that the wrath of God should still be hanging over every one of us. The biggest issue is that there is a hell with eternal suffering for those who do not believe in Christ. This is what Jesus has saved us from. On the cross, God turned away the wrath of God, so that all who believe in him will not only be saved from hell but be saved to eternal life in paradise with God forever. We are saved. Jesus keeps us in His salvation as he continues to serve us with his word, as he continues to bring us into his family in baptism and as he gives us his body and blood in the Lord’s Supper.

Finally, we are reconciled to God. In the death of Jesus Christ, God has restored our broken relationship with him. God’s anger against sin has been lifted. Usually, the one who commits the offense is responsible for restoring a relationship. But God, the offended, took on the work of bringing us to himself. So, we can call God our Father. Through faith, we are his children. We can go through our lives under the guidance, protection, and honor of having God as our Father, and Jesus as our Savior and brother.

This is certain. Since Jesus has died for us- the ungodly- this justification, this reconciliation are ours. As Paul says in verse 11, we can rejoice confidently in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Dear Christian friend, this is good news: Jesus died for the ungodly. He helps the helpless. He came for sinners. You qualify. What a message that saves us! What good news we get to proclaim to others! There is no one for whom the son of God has not died- He died for sinners! He died for you! Through the proclaiming of the gospel, he turns enemies into his friends. This confidence is from God’s Word for us, not from our work for God. So, with the disciples, and with the sick who were healed by Jesus and with the apostle Paul, let us approach life in this world, in God’s kingdom as we live in this confidence of Jesus Christ, forgiven and loved by God. Amen.


June 18, 2023

Matthew 9:9-13 sermon


There is income tax, social security tax, Medicare tax that show up on your W2.  But that’s not all there is.  There’s sales tax, real estate tax, personal property tax, capital gains tax, excise tax, inheritance taxes, federal taxes, state taxes, local taxes.  All of that adds up to a whole lot of money.  It’s also a lot to keep track of. At the federal level alone, the IRS has some 80,000 full time employees.  And then there are all the people who work in the private sector just to help businesses and individuals navigate the complexity of the tax code. And I’ll bet that’s a whole lot more than 80,000.

Does this topic stir up any emotion in you?  If it does, I’m guessing it’s not appreciation or excitement.  If anything, its probably more like frustration or resentment.  -Especially if you aren’t a fan of how the government always manages those dollars.  But count your blessings.  At least we get a voice in electing the representatives who tax us.  In first century Palestine in Jesus day, the people didn’t have a voice like that.  Back then it would be more like if Communist China took over North America and then set up a puppet government of their choosing and then made us pay for it.  In other words, they take our money in order to fund their ability to keep us under their thumb.  That was the political situation between Rome and Palestine in Jesus’ day.  And the Romans needed someone to administer all of this.  Well, who better to do it than some of the Israelite’s own people?  If you put a Jewish face on the taxation, it might not be so stark of a reminder that their dollars were going to fund their oppressors.  So what do think Jesus’ disciples thought about the tax collector Matthew?  A Traitor? A money-grubber?

There is a lot that we don’t know about taxation in the ancient world, but the bible tells this much, -that Matthew’s tax collecting booth was located in the town of Capernaum along the shores of the sea of Galilee.  So it stands to reason that his tax collecting had to do with services and goods that were transported and exchanged along the Sea of Galilee.  Maybe he collects a fee every time a fisherman takes his boat out.  Or maybe he counted the fish every time they came in off the lake and took a monetary cut equivalent to the price of the fish.  Whether or not Matthew was one of those who took a little bit extra to line his pockets at his countrymen’s expense, Scripture doesn’t say, but it would have been unsurprising.  Tax collectors were known not only as traitors, but it was apparently common for them to cheat their countrymen.  

And think about this:  where Matthew set up shop was the same town that served as the home base for Jesus and his disciples.  And on the shores of the lake that provided the income for at least a third of Jesus’ disciples who were fisherman, they weren’t strangers to Matthew.  So what do you think they thought of him?  Maybe, “this is the guy who is working hand in hand with our oppressors, -and he’s profiting off our oppression!”  

So how about looking at it from the flip side.  What do you think Matthew thought of Jesus and his disciples?  Or what do you think Matthew expected when he saw Jesus and his disciples walking toward his tax collector booth?  Maybe, “here’s another religious leader coming to chew me out for everything that I’m doing wrong.”  But whatever Matthew expected, Jesus didn’t come up to him to berate him. Jesus came to him to change him.  “Follow me,” Jesus said.  And this isn’t “follow” in the sense of walking behind someone.  This is “follow” in the sense of leaving your life behind and learning from someone else what real life really is.  

So this encounter gives us a stunning picture of the kind of savior Jesus is.  When Jesus casts his eyes out on the world, he doesn’t filter out the no-goods and undeserving and just set his eyes on the people who already at least mostly have their act together.  If that were what Jesus did, that would be like a doctor who only does wellness checkups.  Jesus isn’t like that kind of doctor.  Jesus is like the trauma surgeon.  The one that goes after the worst patients, who other doctors have given up on and moved on from.  After all, what did Jesus say?  “It’s not the healthy who need a doctor but the sick.”  So Jesus went to the tax collector’s booth.  And there was more than one tax collector at Matthew’s house so Jesus probably went to more than one booth.  And he went to the other moral outcasts, people who everyone else figured were too lost to be found.   

And so I’ll ask you just to think for a moment.  Where do you think Jesus would go today to seek the sick?  You know that there are as many right answers as there are people in the world.  And it’s a useful exercise to look at people through Jesus’ eyes.  But I wonder if any of you thought about yourselves.  What’s your personal self-assessment spiritually speaking?  Healthy or sick?

Now imagine looking out your front window and you see Jesus walking up your driveway.  Just like Matthew saw him walking up to his tax collector booth.  Do you suppose that “here he comes to tell me everything that I’m doing wrong,” or “I better get my act together before he gets to the front door.”  Jesus doesn’t come to you for a wellness check up.  It’s not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  And its not like the sicker you are the less interested Jesus is in you.  No, the sicker you are, the more you need him.  

And Jesus’ call to Matthew is the same as his call to you:  “Follow me.”  Not just in the sense of walking behind, but “follow me, and discover anew what real life really is, and that in me you really have it.”  And even if every other person in the world were to react to Jesus’ calling you the same way that the Pharisees reacted to Jesus calling Matthew, (something along the lines of “why in the world would Jesus want someone like that?) that wouldn’t change Jesus’ mind.  His call still goes out to you: “follow me.  Follow me and discover what real life is like and that in me, you really have it.”  And when you follow him, you know where he takes you don’t you?  The same place where he took Matthew: to his cross.  That’s where he shows you your life in his death.  That your identity and your value to God and your hope in life and in death doesn’t come from how well you are able to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.  That would be like a trauma surgeon taking a gun-shot victim and wheeling him into the operating room and then just standing there doing nothing because he thinks that the patient should be able to take care of himself.  That’s not what surgeons do. They do surgery.  They save.  That’s what Jesus does.  He took the record of your sin, -the record of everything that separates you from God and from life, -he took it all and put it on his own shoulders and put it into his own body and put his own name on it.  And as surely as that killed him, its all gone.  -Everything that separates you from God and from life is gone.  That means God will never leave you.  That means that you have a life that nothing can take away.  That means you have purpose.  Not mere existence, whiling away the time while you wait for Jesus to come again.  That would be like a gunshot victim recovering from his surgery and then just staying in his hospital bed.  

Look at what it was for Matthew.  For Mathew this new life resulted in this huge transformation that everyone could see.  He walked away from his tax collector booth and became one of Jesus 12 apostles.  God used him to write the first book of the New Testament.  These words about Matthew were written by Matthew.  He was telling us what God had done for him.

God has a purpose for you too.  It may not be as high-profile as apostleship.  People might not be still talking about you 2,000 years from now.  But lower profile does not mean lower value in the eyes of your God who died for you.  If you are at home alone and you pray for someone who needs it, no one else may ever know about that besides you and God.  But that prayer is heard and answered by the God who can move mountains.  If you use your phone as a phone and call up someone who needs it, it probably won’t make the evening news: “Christian person calls another and says something nice.”  But still that person will hear the love of God in the sound of your voice.  

Let’s wrap up with this:  the calling Matthew is recorded in three of the four gospels.  And each one of those records the event in its own words.  They aren’t photocopies of each other.  But there is something at the beginning of each of them that is striking.  They all tell us that Jesus saw Matthew.  The story doesn’t being with Mathew looking up and seeing Jesus.  Jesus saw Matthew.  And when Jesus walked up to that tax collector’s booth, he knew what he was getting himself into.  He didn’t have any illusions about Matthew’s character.  But that didn’t stop Jesus.  It didn’t keep Jesus away from him.  In fact, it’s the reason Jesus went to him.  Because Matthew was sick.  And Jesus was a doctor.  And let’s put aside the metaphor.  Matthew was a sinner.  And Jesus was his savior. Jesus went to Matthew because Matthew needed him.  Desperately.

If you ever feel that you are too messed up ever to be made right again, then remember how the account starts every time it is recorded.  Jesus saw Matthew.  There wasn’t anything about Matthew that Jesus didn’t know.  And there’s nothing about you that Jesus doesn’t know either.  He knows what he’s getting himself into.  That’s why he calls you.  That’s why he made sure that you were baptized.  Because you were sick and needed a doctor. A sinner that Jesus saves.  Let these words my soul relieve, Jesus sinners does receive.