"I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Sovereign LORD will make righteousness and praise

 spring up before all nations." Isaiah 61:10–11 (NIV)

The first part of Isaiah 61 is a beautiful promise about the coming of the Savior. In fact, Jesus quoted Isaiah 61:1-2 in the synagogue in Nazareth (Luke 4:18-19) and said that he was the fulfilment of those verses.

In the verses above, the prophet speaks for all believers about how we respond to knowing the Savior.

While it remains true that we live in a sinful world and experience the troubles that result from sin, Isaiah reflects a view of life that is driven by faith in the Savior. Because of Jesus, you live each moment in the certainty of God’s love and the confidence that God is working in your life based on that love. Jesus’ death and resurrection, which assure you of eternal life, also assure you of God’s unending love for those who believe in him. For this reason, Isaiah found joy in knowing God. You can too! The Lord Jesus has declared you to be a member of his eternal kingdom. Even as you face the trials of life, you can live in the joy of knowing God’s love for you is real and will never end.

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As God works in our hearts through the message of Jesus as our Savior, what a glorious change occurs! The message may seem small and insignificant compared to the other urgent and important messages we hear each day, but only the gospel causes a complete change of heart. We are snatched from the curse of hell and delivered to the glory of heaven! By faith, you can see how huge of a miracle God has performed in your life. By faith you see the importance of growing closer to Jesus. Only he can change you and make you a person who is eager to serve others with all your gifts and abilities. Jesus’ parable reminds us of the tremendous blessing we have from knowing Jesus as our Savior. Don’t let anything in life (the daily routine or traumatic events) cloud your view of the glorious gift that is yours through faith in Jesus.

"Jesus told them another parable: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.'” (Matthew 13:31-32 NIV)

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To know who you really are, you have to look at yourself by faith. In the following quote, Martin Luther reminds us of our new nature through faith in Christ Jesus.

"This is our comfort and confidence. For a good reason we are able to boast with assurance and to say: We are holy people and holy brethren at Wittenberg, Rome, Jerusalem, etc., and wherever Holy Baptism and the Gospel are; and we regard one another in no other light than that of God’s saints. Although we still are sinners and many frailties permanently stay in our flesh and blood, yet if we continue to cling to Christ, remain loyal to His Baptism, and rely on His blood, He covers our sin and impurity and moves God to consider us entirely pure and holy. . . . If we are to confess the Creed aright: “A holy Christian Church,” we must not doubt that we are holy; just as you must not doubt that you are baptized and that Christ shed His blood for you. If you believe this, you must also confess that you are holy; for it is certainly the Holy Spirit who gives you Christ and His holiness and works faith in you. It is true, the Holy Spirit at times allows Christians to err and stumble and allows sin to remain in them. And He does so for the very purpose of keeping us from taking pleasure in ourselves, as if we were holy on our own account. Rather we are to learn what we are and from whom we have our holiness; otherwise we could become too arrogant and presumptuous." (What Luther Says, p. 237)

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" -2 Corinthians 5:17

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Fear occurs when we look in the wrong place. Whether it is a child afraid of the dark or an adult afraid of the uncertainty in our economy, fear focuses on the problem and we might even forget about how much God loves us and his promises to take care of us. In Psalm 56 David says, “When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?” (vs. 3-4)

Where do we look for security? At the cross of Jesus Christ we see God’s love shining brighter than the sun. Our hope for today and tomorrow is that our Savior will not and cannot leave us. The devil wants to fool you by getting you to focus on your troubles. Instead, listen to the promises of God in the Bible and see the truth!

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"The Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him."
Isaiah 30:18-19 (NIV)

The verses above are from a section of Isaiah in which God was warning the Israelites of looming punishment for their sins. The warnings were stern. Those intent on ignoring the Lord would face his anger.

But that isn’t what God wanted! He didn’t want to punish. He wanted his people to repent and trust him. He wanted to forgive them and show compassion to them.

The voice of the cursed liar, the devil, and even our own sinful hearts don’t think God should forgive or that God wants to forgive. Guilt is a powerful voice that often convinces us that God is angry with us and that God prefers to punish us. Living in this sinful world, we see seeming evidence in the troubles all around us.

Isaiah’s words above remind us that God does not want to punish us. He wants to forgive! He already punished your sins when he punished Jesus on the cross. God wants to you to know the peace of that forgiveness. He wants your fears silenced and your heart renewed with an earnest desire to serve him.

By faith, see God for who he is. He is God of compassion and love who is at work in your life to bless you.

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In the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, you receive amazing, unimaginable gifts. You receive the body and blood of Jesus – he communes with you. You receive the forgiveness of your sins in those elements. The Scriptural words are not difficult to understand.

Matthew 26:26–28
While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”

1 Corinthians 10:16
Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?

This heavenly gift to you enrages the devil. It must. He devotes tremendous energy to belittling the sacrament and trying to distract us from the heavenly blessings we receive. If he cannot rob the simple words of their wonderful meaning, he tries to make the reception of the sacrament ordinary, mundane, or thoughtless so that we miss out on the joy and comfort God gives us.

As you receive the Lord’s Supper – whether you kneel or stand or the pastors bring it to your pew or home – you receive indescribable blessings from your Savior. Believe the promises of our Lord. Receive the Lord’s Supper in confident faith that sees the reality of Jesus’ presence in your life and the reality of his forgiveness.

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The temptation never goes away to see the ways of the world and be envious. There is a part of each of us – our sinful nature – that wants to indulge in sin and all sorts of selfishness.

Psalm 37:1–6 (NIV)

"Do not fret because of evil men

or be envious of those who do wrong;

for like the grass they will soon wither,

like green plants they will soon die away.

Trust in the LORD and do good;

dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

Delight yourself in the LORD

and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the LORD;

trust in him and he will do this:

He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,

the justice of your cause like the noonday sun." 

The Psalmist reminds believers that we have a different focus. We are renewed through faith in Jesus. We see life through his forgiveness and the promise of eternal life that he freely offers to us. We find joy and delight in the Lord and his ways. We are eager to do good – as defined by God. We are confident that he will bless those who trust in him, even though we know that those blessings may not be things we can see. God will be with us, always!

Do not be envious of what you see in the world. Their ways lead to destruction. Instead, find the joy that comes from trusting in the Lord and doing good. The narrow, less-traveled path of faith is God’s will for you. Don’t be fooled by what others do. You are a child of God. Trust and serve him.

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The gospel message that you, by God’s grace, believe is nothing new. As he began writing his epistle to the Christians in Rome, Paul commented that the gospel message of Jesus as the Savior was promised through the prophets in the Old Testament.

Romans 1:2 (NIV) ". . . the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures."

Granted, because of their place on the timeline of history, the Old Testament people did not see all the details that we can see in the life of Jesus. Nonetheless, they were looking forward to a Savior who would take away the sin of the world. They believed a promise of God that was not yet fulfilled. Through that faith in God’s promise, the Old Testament believers were saved.

You might compare it to what Judgement Day is to us. We know it is coming, and we know some of what will happen based what the Scriptures tell us. But we do not know all the details yet. Yet, we believe the promises of God of future deliverance for all who believe in Jesus when the world comes to an end.

God’s plan has always been the same – he will save those who believe in him. By his grace, you live each day under the promise of salvation. Because of Jesus – who lived, died, and rose for you – you know that God’s forgiveness is real, and his plan is to deliver you to heaven. Live in the comfort of God’s consistent love for all his people. This love covers you too!

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The waters of the ocean are powerful! They are intimidating to the most seasoned sailors. The ocean is unforgiving in its power.

Psalm 93:4 (NIV) "Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea—the LORD on high is mighty."

Life is a voyage across a wild ocean. The waves and storms of life come and go without warning.

The Lord is mightier than any storm we may face, no matter the type of storm. And the Lord always stands with his people. He will sustain and bless us with the comfort of his love – a love that led Jesus to die on the cross for us. Even when he allows the storms of life to continue, we know that his actions are always driven by love. He is working something amazing and mighty in our lives. Even if a storm should end our lives, we know of the victory that our Lord has perfectly prepared for us by Jesus’ death and resurrection. Nothing can hurt us!

For centuries the Christian Church has called the place where the congregation sits in a church the nave. This comes from the Latin word for ship. The intended picture is that as we journey through the stormy seas of life we need to be in a ship to protect us. Our “ship” is the time we spend hearing God’s Word and receiving his sacrament. These make us strong and remind us of the love of our God. In our “ship” we see Jesus at the helm as he speaks to us and comes to us with his forgiveness. He is the mighty Lord who keeps us his people safe in the powerful seas of life.

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The gospel message of free forgiveness through faith in Jesus will often offend people. But that does not mean that Christians should offend people. When God gives you the chance to speak about what he has done for you, do it “with gentleness and respect.” When a friend or family members asks you about your faith and how it help you, do not be proud or arrogant in what you say. With godly kindness, tell them about your Savior who is also their Savior. (And don’t be fooled into thinking you have to be able to explain everything in the Bible to them. Tell them about the peace that comes from knowing God’s love and the absolute proof of that love that we have through what Jesus has done for us.)

They might be offended by the message. The Bible talks about that possibility that sadly happens due to unbelief. But they should not be offended because you conveyed the message in an offensive way. While you may have to point out the reality of sin, do with the respect as you admit that you are also a sinner. You will have to talk about Jesus whose death and resurrection are the only source of forgiveness. That seems like foolishness – we should have to something, or so we think. Speak with a conviction that reflects your faith.

The best evangelism that our congregation does is done by you! It happens as you talk to people you know. May God grant you the opportunities, courage, and faith to speak in those moments.

1 Peter 3:15 (NIV) "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."

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