Ephesians 3:14-21 (EHV) 

¹⁴For this reason I kneel before the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵from whom the entire family in heaven and on earth receives its name. ¹⁶I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he would strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner self, ¹⁷so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Then, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸I pray that you would be able to comprehend, along with all the saints, how wide and long and high and deep his love is, ¹⁹and that you would be able to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled to all the fullness of God. 

²⁰Now to him, who is able, according to the power that is at work within us, to do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine, ²¹to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen. 

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so we may experience the fullness of your love for us through your Son Jesus Christ. Amen. 

Once upon a time, a young man walked into a department store. This was a very special store where you could purchase anything you want…for a price! He walked right up to the counter and placed his order, saying: “I would like to be loved.” 

The concierge behind the counter said, “Certainly sir. A very wise choice. I would be happy to help you place your order to be loved, and so that I may ensure you are loved to the fullness of your desires and expectations, I wonder if I may ask a few questions?”  

The young man agreed. 

The concierge then asked, “So that you might experience love, would you require a wife?” 

The man said, “Well, I suppose if that’s necessary, but would she love me?”  

“Oh, certainly she would love you! Although so that she might love you to the fullness of your desires and expectations, I would suggest a few optional extras at a very minimal cost. I suggest you buy her flowers on occasions and purchase gifts for her on birthdays and at Christmas.” 

The young man seemed surprised, and asked, “Why would I have to do that? If I want to be loved, shouldn’t she be the one doing things for me, rather than the other way around?” 

The concierge smiled kindly as he replied, “Well certainly, although in our experience, you would find most wives work more efficiently and provide a more satisfying service of love when their own needs for romance are also seen to.” 

The man said, “Well, ok, if I have to!” 

The concierge made a note and said, “Certainly sir. A very wise choice. May I also suggest engaging in conversations with her, listening patiently when she speaks to you (even if she speaks for long periods about seemingly mundane and ordinary subjects), and also touching her with gentle affection.” 

“What for?”  

The concierge patiently explained, “Well, again we find most wives respond very positively to these things. So that you might experience the fullness of love to your complete satisfaction, your wife will require some care and attention!” 

The young man thought about it for a while and then said, “Ok, I’ll give her some care and attention.” 

“Certainly sir. A very wise choice. Would I also be so bold as to suggest you assist her with the dishes, offer to take out the laundry, and give her the occasional compliment? We do find these things add value to the relationship and can help greatly in you being loved to your heart’s desire.” 

The young man started getting red in the face, but finally agreed.  

The concierge replied, “Excellent, a very wise choice! I can see you’re going to be loved very well and you’re going to be completely satisfied. Now, children?” 

“What?” 

“Children. Would you like to order some children?” 

The young man was getting a little upset. “Why would I want children? All I want is to be loved, and you’re suggesting children? Children are always so demanding and whingy and messy and expensive and difficult to get along with! Why would I want them?” 

The concierge gave a little giggle, smiled and said, “Yes, they certainly are that! I see you’ve come across children before. Delightful creatures, aren’t they? The reason I suggest children is because you do want to be loved, don’t you?” 

“Yes, but what’s that got to do with children?” 

“Well, in order for you to experience love to the fullest, with all those wonderful feelings of satisfaction and contentment, you may also want to experience the love of your children along with the love of your wife. While wives can provide so much love which satisfies many men’s hearts, there’s nothing like the loving trust of a child who cuddles up in your arms for comfort, who looks to you for help and support when they get hurt, or who eagerly drags you outside to play with them. If you want to be fully loved, I certainly suggest children!” 

The young man thought about it for a while, and said, “Fine. Throw in some children as well.” 

“Certainly sir, a very wise choice. If I may be as bold to presume that you’ll also want to change their nappies, blow their noses, carry them, read them stories, send them to school, teach them to drive, and walk them down the aisle at their wedding? That last one really is the icing on the cake and is a wonderful experience of love. I certainly recommend that one, but in our experience, this always comes as a package with all the rest. Would you like all these as well?” 

“Fine. Whatever!” 

“Certainly sir. A very wise choice. Now, would you like a god?” 

“What? Why would I want a god? All I want is to be loved! The gods I know are always so demanding and want you to do so much for them, like going to church, and believing in all types of stuff that doesn’t make sense! All I want, is to be loved!” 

The concierge smiled and said, “Well, if you really want to be loved, I certainly recommend having a god, although in this case, I have a particular God in mind who will serve you and love you and forgive you. When things go wrong in life, it’s certainly comforting to know God loves you and is with you always. In this case I can give you some unexpectedly good news. All the benefits of believing in this God have already been fully paid for.” 

The young man said, “Well, that seems more like it. Finally, I get to be loved without having to do anything in return! Yes, I’ll take this God.” 

“Certainly sir. A very wise choice if I say so myself. Now, so that you might enjoy the fullness of being loved by this God, might I suggest listening to him, learning from him, being washed by him in baptism, gathering with all of God’s people (even those annoying ones many find so hard to forgive), believing his words of forgiveness, receiving holy food and drink in the Lord’s Supper, and…sir, where are you going? You do want to be loved, don’t you? You do want the full experience of love to your complete satisfaction, don’t you?  

As the young man walked out of the store, the concierge shook his head and said, “Why do people always want to experience the fullness of love by just putting in the minimum of effort?”  

In our reading today, Paul is saying a prayer for the people of Ephesus, but it’s also a prayer for you and me.  

He prays for you so that, according to God’s vast richness of his glory, you’ll be strengthened by him so Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.  

He doesn’t want you to receive only a bit of Christ, but to receive Christ in his fullness so you may be firmly grounded in his love. He also prays you would have the strength to comprehend and know the breadth, length, height and depth of God’s love for you. He wants you to know and experience the fullness of God’s love for you. 

The trouble is, many people ask what’s the bare minimum of effort they need to put in toward their faith and yet still receive the fullness of God’s love.  

For example, have you ever heard someone say they don’t have to go to worship and mix with God’s people because they 1) believe in God, 2) can read the Bible for themselves, and 3) pray whenever they like?  

And yet, how many of these people can clearly define what they believe about their God, or have actually read the Bible from cover to cover, or who truly pray with any regularity? How many of them receive the fullness of God’s love for them by limiting their experience of God and his people in their life? 

You too might wonder why you need to gather every week with God’s people in worship and miss out on other Sunday routines such as sleeping in, going for a Sunday drive, or going fishing, especially when people in worship don’t always meet your expectations?  

Similarly, why would you need to read the Bible regularly? Why would you need to set aside some of your valuable time to go to Bible studies? Why do you as a congregation need to consider how you might be a blessing to anyone else in your parish? Why would you need to forgive someone who has hurt you when you know they’re probably going to hurt you again anyway? Why can’t you just keep your faith private and stay home so that you might watch your own choice of worship over the internet? 

Well, out of love for you, St Paul says he wants you to experience more of God’s love, not less of it. He sincerely prays for you to know and experience the fullness of God’s love and not just a portion. By choosing to limit your participation with God, his holy things, and his holy people, you also limit your experience of God’s love for you. 

Just like many of your relationships with your spouse, parents, children, and friends, would you really be happy with the bare minimum of love and effort from them? Would you be happy for them to receive the bare minimum of their relationship from you?  

Similarly, is aiming for the least effort really the best way to receive the most out of your loving relationship with God? Do you really experience the fullness of God’s love and forgiveness by withdrawing from a Christian community when troubles come? 

While God has generously saved you through Jesus’ death and resurrection without you having to ask for it, and he freely offers you forgiveness of sins and life with him in his eternal kingdom, wouldn’t you like to experience the fullness of his love for you, even though this comes through participating in a flawed community, receiving and passing on forgiveness, suffering for the sake of Christ as you bear witness to his grace, serving those around you, and faithful obedience to God’s Word?  

God wants you to experience and know the full breadth and length and height and depth of his love for you in the unity of his Church through Jesus Christ his Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit.  

Here in this imperfect community, whom God has drawn together, he cleanses consciences and creates new hearts through faith in his Word of forgiveness. He washes you with water touched by his Word in baptism. He feeds you with his own body and blood through physical bread and wine which has been blessed by his Word. He loves you and wants you to experience his love through the physical presence of those led by his Word and Holy Spirit. In this way God delights to love you through the God-pleasing words and actions of those around you. 

Instead of settling for a bare minimum, why not choose to experience God’s love with all his people in all its wonderful and awesome fullness, some of which can only be received through struggle and forgiveness.  

Here, as we gather to receive the grace, forgiveness, and life of Christ through his holy gifts of Word and Sacrament, and as we gather as one in Christ to forgive each other as Christ forgives us, we experience something of the fullness of the love of God, which is why St Paul can say: 

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever. Amen. 

Ephesians 2:11-22 (EHV)

¹¹ Therefore, remember that at one time, you Gentiles in the flesh—the ones who are called “uncircumcised” by those called “the circumcised” (which is performed physically by human hands)— ¹² remember that at that time you were separated from Christ, excluded from the citizenship of Israel, and foreigners to the covenants of the promise. You were without hope and without God in the world.

¹³ But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. ¹⁴ For he himself is our peace. He made the two groups one by destroying the wall of hostility that divided them ¹⁵ when he abolished the law of commandments and regulations in his flesh. He did this to create in himself one new person out of the two, in this way making peace. ¹⁶ And he did this to reconcile both to God in one body through the cross by putting the hostility to death on it. ¹⁷ He also came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. ¹⁸ For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

¹⁹ So then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household. ²⁰ You have been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the Cornerstone. ²¹ In him the whole building is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord. ²² In him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so that we may continue to be built up as your living temple of peace and grace for the sake of Jesus Christ, our chief cornerstone. Amen.

There have been, and are, many dividing walls of hostility in our world, such as the Great Wall of China, the wall of demarcation between South and North Korea, the wall between North America and Mexico, and also the imposing walls which have been put up around parts of Palestine.

While we don’t normally see these types of walls in Australia, we have our own natural wall as we’re surrounded by lots of water. We use this body of water as a political and security-conscious wall to stop refugees and other unwanted people from coming into our ports and airports.

This has been magnified due to fears of infection by Covid-19. We don’t just stop refugees, but we also limit how many of our own citizens we allow to re-enter our shores. It’s ironic that, despite the fact so many people once said: ‘We’re all in this together’, we actually struggle to get-together because each state government has been carefully controlling who it allows across its borders!

But it’s not just governments who build or use walls for protection and safety. We also have our own walls that we manufacture around us.

When we’re afraid we put up different types of invisible barriers around ourselves, such as:

• Barriers of strength and might as we insult and shout at those around us.
• Barriers of distance by keeping away from anyone who has, or who might, hurt us.
• Barriers of silence by ceasing communication with those who have offended us, hoping the silence will hurt more than our words.
• Barriers of expected behaviours by only relating to those who measure up to our own standards, and harshly judging those who don’t.

We build these types of walls around us in order to make us feel more secure. We put up these barriers hoping we’ll be protected from insult, abuse, injury, and betrayal. Unfortunately, those same walls might also stop us from receiving love, care, and compassion. Those same walls place other people on the outer and they feel excluded, unwelcome, uncared-for and strangers to us. And sometimes we’re the ones who are on the outer as people put up their barriers and walls of hostility against us.

What we often forget is God also erected walls to protect us.

His commandments and instructions tell us what to do and what we’re not to do. Keeping his instructions protect us and his gifts from becoming soiled with sin. His instructions also guide us on how to worship him rightly or how to show love and compassion.

One of his instructions, originally given to Abraham, is about circumcision. God said that all Israelite males were to be circumcised. This would identify them as God’s holy people and separate them from all the Gentile nations who weren’t circumcised.

But, for the fledgling New Testament church being built on the foundations of the Jewish apostles and prophets of Israel, this presented a problem for Gentiles who became Christian.

Sure, some Jews were trying to include them in a biblically faithful way by demanding Gentile converts keep this instruction as well, but it wasn’t as simple and painless as a vaccination injection! So, this particular teaching presented a barrier between Jews and Gentiles. It also became a hostile barrier between those seeking to remain faithful to God’s commands and those who were wishing to be more graceful and welcoming to Gentile converts.

So, how does St Paul seek to settle this argument and bring peace between these hostile groups of people? How does he remain faithful to God’s commands and yet show grace and mercy to those ‘outside people’ who, for many reasons, feel God’s command was a significant barrier to faith?

Well, he pointed to Jesus.

He reminded them that those who were once far off, and on the outer, have now been brought near to God through the blood of Jesus. Jesus’ blood paid the price of our access to God. Jesus’ blood made them holy and set them aside as God’s chosen people.

Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day in accordance with Jewish customs and so bled the price for all those who weren’t circumcised. But even more than this, the barrier of sin which had previously separated us from God the Father, has been fully paid for through his blood shed on the cross!

In this way, Jesus not only fulfilled the commands of God, including the command to be circumcised, but he’s now set aside this particular command as no longer necessary because through faith in him, the two groups of people once separated and hostile to each other, have been made one through his blood. This means both Jew and Gentile now have equal and unrestricted access to God through the blood of Jesus. All nations, including us, have access to God the Father through faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the One who has broken down the dividing wall between Jew and Gentile. Jesus has also broken down the wall which had separated us from God.

We, who were once far off and separated from God, have been brought near to him through the peace and reconciliation which was won for us through the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. He has abolished the laws and ordinances which had previously separated us, making peace between these hostile groups of people.

Through faith in Jesus Christ, we can all approach God the Father with full confidence and without fear. We’ve been joined to Jesus and been washed clean of any defilement through our baptism into Jesus. In this sense, you and I and God are at peace because we meet together in the flesh of Jesus Christ.

Now, this doesn’t mean God has gotten rid of the roles and functions of males and females or the roles of people and pastors (since St Paul talks about these roles later in his letter to the Ephesians), but Paul is making it clear we all have the same access to God the Father through faith in Jesus Christ and therefore no longer need to meet the requirements of circumcision.

We are all one in Christ and the barriers of hostility have been removed through the blood of Christ. But this also means Jesus is the foundation for our peace with each other and through whom any other walls of hostility may come down.

You see, Jesus received the full hostility of God’s anger against us for our sins because he bore our sins on that cross of suffering and death, and since he paid for the price for all people’s sin, if you still hold a grudge or won’t forgive someone for hurting you, especially a fellow Christian, then since Christ carries all people’s sins; Jesus is the one whom you’re holding a grudge against!

You see, no matter what you think of another person and how much they’ve hurt you (and how you want to build walls of hostility against them), Christ now bears all their sins and punishment. Who are you to say that the suffering and death of Jesus is no longer enough to pay the price for their sin against you?

Who are you to stand in God’s place to judge who is worthy or unworthy of Christ’s sacrificial death and the forgiveness of their sins?

What if, by building up walls of hostility between yourself and fellow Christians through your own unforgiveness, you actually block the blessings of Christ’s forgiveness out of your life and also from other people’s lives?

Earlier in this chapter, St Paul reminds you who you once were, and now in these verses he’s reminding you what this means for your life of faith in Jesus Christ.

All God’s anger against you has been taken by Jesus. All your anger and hatred against God has been taken by Jesus. All your anger toward those who have hurt you has been taken by Jesus. There on the cross, Jesus Christ dealt with all the barriers between you and those you build walls against. Christ then rose to become your only true source of peace without the need for any more walls of hostility.

Jesus is the foundation of all your peace and rest – both your peace with God and your peace with everyone around you. He’s your only hope of forgiveness and reconciliation in this world of conflict, terrorism and where walls of hostility threaten to divide us.

So now, through Christ, who breaks down all the barriers between us and brings true peace, we’re now being built up as one in Christ. He’s building us up into something more useful together than we can be apart.

We’re being built up as the new holy temple built on the foundations of the prophets and the apostles. We’re being assembled together with all the other faithful people of past, present, and future who have been washed in the blood of Jesus. We’re not to build up more walls of hostility between each other, but see each other as those who have been chosen by God and who are equally precious and holy in his sight.

Together, with Jesus Christ as our cornerstone, we’re being built as one in him as his living holy temple which brings his forgiving and reconciling peace to the whole world.

Through his forgiveness, Christ has broken, and still breaks down, all the barriers which keep us apart, and through his grace, he brings us together as one in him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, this means:

Through Christ alone we have access to the God the Father.

Through Christ alone we have peace with God.

Through Christ alone we have hope of true healing and reconciliation in a world filled with so many walls of hostility.

Through Christ alone our walls of hostility can be taken down and we may experience true peace and unity and rest.

Through Christ alone are we made into one body, into one holy forgiven and forgiving family.

And through Christ alone…

… the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard our hearts and minds in peace and love and unity. Amen.

Mark 6:14-29 (EHV) 

¹⁴ King Herod heard about the authority Jesus gave his disciples to perform miracles, because Jesus’ name had become well known. Herod was saying, “John the Baptizer has been raised from the dead! That is why these powers are at work in him.”

¹⁵ But others were saying, “He is Elijah.” Still others were saying, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.”

¹⁶ When Herod heard this, he said, “This is John, the man I beheaded. He was raised.” ¹⁷ For it was Herod who had sent men to arrest John. He had him bound in prison because Herod had married Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. ¹⁸ Indeed, John had been telling him, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”

¹⁹ Herodias held a grudge against John and wanted to put him to death, but she could not, ²⁰ because Herod feared John. He knew that John was a righteous and holy man, so he kept him safe. When Herod listened to John, he was perplexed in many ways, yet he gladly kept listening to him.

²¹ An opportune day came when it was Herod’s birthday. He gave a banquet for his nobles, the military officers, and the prominent men of Galilee. ²² When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.” ²³ With an oath he promised her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”

²⁴ She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?”

Herodias said, “The head of John the Baptizer.”

²⁵ The girl hurried right back to the king and made her request: “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter right now.”

²⁶ The king was very sad. But because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ The king sent an executioner at once and ordered him to bring John’s head. He went, beheaded John in prison, ²⁸ brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother.

²⁹ When John’s disciples heard about this, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so that we may truly fear, love, and trust you above all things. In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

What on earth are we to gain from hearing about the gruesome death of John the Baptist?

It seems to suggest bad people will often get away with their unjust behaviour and that faith in God won’t always save us from trouble!

But I wonder if we can use this sordid event to learn something about how much fears and desires can control our thoughts, words, and actions.

You see, fears will often result in self-protective behaviours, even to the point of sacrificing relationships, reputations, positions, or even life. On the other hand, fear’s counterpart, desires, will often seek to gain advantages for oneself by using other people to get what one wants.

But before we look more closely at the fears and desires of this Herod, it may be helpful to know which Herod we’re talking about here since there are a number of Herods mentioned in the New Testament.

For starters, when Jesus was born, the man in power over Judea was Herod the Great. He had a reputation for being a master of deception, murder, and political intrigue. He also had ten wives.

His title of ‘greatness’ wasn’t because of these things, but because he was responsible for a large and impressive building program, including the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. He died a few years after Jesus was born, so he’s not the Herod referred to today.

However, after his death, the area he once ruled was split into four areas, known as Tetrarchs, and ruled by four of his sons. Two of his children are mentioned in today’s text, but they were born of different mothers. Herod Antipas (the Herod mentioned in our text) was the tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, while Herod Philip was tetrarch of other areas.

Another of Herod the Great’s children, Aristobulus, had a daughter named Herodias. Therefore, Herodias was a step-niece to both Herod and Philip. She first married her uncle Philip, but then abandoned that marriage for her other step-uncle, Herod Antipas. Herodias had a daughter named Salome, but we’re not sure if she’s the daughter mentioned in today’s text, or whether her daughter’s father is Herod or Philip.

At some stage, the Herod of our story met John the Baptist, who pointed out that according to Jewish law (cf. Lev 18:16; 20:21), a man must not marry, or have sexual relations with, his brother’s wife, because it dishonours his brother.

Now, you’d think this Herod would simply get rid of John the Baptist, but it helps to understand that fear (and its counterpart, desire) controls a person, making them do all types of things which defy logic or reason.

In this case, despite what John the Baptist said about Herod and his wife Herodias, Herod wouldn’t kill John the Baptist because he feared him (v20). He feared him because he knew John to be a righteous and holy man. In this case, Herod’s fear actually saved John the Baptist…at least for a while.

On the other hand, Herodias’s fear was expressed in different ways. She didn’t like what John the Baptist said, so she sought to get rid of him and his accusing voice. Again, fear was controlling her actions, but in a way which would seek revenge on John the Baptist and get rid of him for good.

Now, as you heard in the text, Herod gave a great banquet in honour of his own birthday and invited many important leaders of the community to celebrate. During this festive meal, Herodias’s daughter danced.

Since this dance delighted him and the gathered guests, he offered her a reward for her dance, even up to half his kingdom.

But the young dancer, not knowing what to ask for, asks her mother. In this case, her mother, seeing her chance, convinces her daughter to ask for John the Baptist’s head – on a platter!

Herod, when he hears of her request is frightened. And remember; fear controls him and his relationship with John the Baptist, but now another fear enters the equation.

You see, on the one hand, he fears John the Baptist because he knows him to be righteous and holy. On the other hand, he fears what people will think of him if he says no, knowing he had promised to give this young girl up to half of his own kingdom.

The fear of God or the fear of man. Which would win?

Like so many of us, the fear of man won. The fear of man won because this fear matched his desire to make people (including his wife) happy. Where Herod’s fear of God had once kept John the Baptist alive, now Herod’s fear of man will cost him his life.

But how does this relate to us?

In this case we might ask ourselves:

How does fear control our own words and actions?

How does the fear of man affect what we say and do?

For example:

• When we’re afraid people will find out we’ve done something wrong, we’re tempted to lie and deceive.

• When we’re afraid people might hurt us, we’re tempted to either avoid them or attack them and their reputation.

• When we’re afraid we can’t keep people happy (which means they might not like us), we may feel the need to give in to their desires, even if this isn’t the best for them or compromises what we believe.

• When we’re afraid of not getting our way, we might yell at people, threaten them, or attempt to manipulate them in order to get what we want.

• When we’re afraid our own reputation is under threat, we might want to question or challenge the reputation of others.

• When we’re afraid of conflict, we might go to great lengths in order at avoid any situation or person who might threaten our peace and comfort.

You see, we often become slaves to our fears. Our fears control us and make us do many things which are wrong and hurtful. Fears force us to make hasty decisions which we might later regret. Fears make us lie and cheat and accuse and avoid and even murder, especially when we understand Jesus defines hate for another person as a type of murder. Letting the fears of man win ironically doesn’t make us any more friends. Allowing our fears to win often means the sacrifice of our relationships, including our relationship with God.

Knowing how much fear can control our lives, Martin Luther teaches us in his explanation to the 1^st Commandment that we’re to ‘fear, love and trust God above all things’.

He knows that when we fear the things of men more than we fear the things of God, it exposes our idols – the things or people we’re placing our trust in for our happiness, security, and fulfilment.

In this case, idols aren’t always made of gold or silver or wood, but our idols could be our beauty, our youth, our popularity, our reputation, our position, or even our loved ones. The trouble with idols is they always demand sacrifices to satisfy one’s own fears or desires.

In Herod’s case, he feared his wife, his daughter, and all the guests. The idol he was seeking to protect or satisfy could have been his popularity, his position, his reputation, or his acceptance in the community. The sacrifice for his fears to satisfy his idol was John the Baptist’s life.

In this case a godly person is sacrificed in order to pay for the idolatry of another. But in this way, this last sacrificial action of John the Baptist pointed to the greater sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ who died for the sins and idolatrous actions of the whole world.

Even though Jesus isn’t mentioned much in today’s text, we need to remember this text sits within the wider context where he’s just sent out the Twelve apostles to preach repentance, heal the sick, and drive out demons.

The call to repentance is a call back to safety and peace before God through the forgiveness of sins. Repentance is a call to abandon the idols and fears which control us, and to receive a restored relationship with God; a relationship where you trust the sacrifice for your sin has already been made through Jesus’ death.

Jesus sent his apostles to heal people, but when you look at the ministry of Jesus, you see how often the healing of people is closely related to the forgiveness of sins. When fears control your actions and you do things which sin against God and against others, this can affect your body and your health.

Now, this doesn’t mean every disease, sickness or injury is a direct result or punishment for sin, but some undealt-with-sin and fears may affect your health. For example, undealt-with bitterness or fears can lead to upset stomachs, anxiousness, nervous dispositions, depression, or outbursts of anger which hurt you and the people around you.

On the other hand, when you truly believe your sins are forgiven for the sake of Jesus Christ, you can sometimes feel an affect in your body – a sense of warming, relief, freedom, unburdening, and healing. The forgiveness of sins heals crippled hearts and lives which were once trapped by fear. Through faith in Jesus, miracles to body and soul still happen today!

The forgiveness of sins can also drive out the demons of your past. Now this doesn’t deny the existence of real demons which can possess people (which needs to be dealt with carefully and prayerfully), but like Herod was haunted by the demons of his past, you can also be haunted by the regrets of your own past. Jesus’ sacrifice for your sins, even those sins you committed because you were afraid, can bring about forgiveness and peace for your own past.

You see, where idols demand sacrifices, the greatest sacrifice has already been paid. Jesus died in order to pay the death price for your sins. Jesus died to save you from the devil who seeks to separate you from God and enslave you with your fears. Jesus even died to save you from death and the fear of death.

Fears may control you and your thoughts, words, and actions, but the love of Jesus can calm your greatest fears which in turn leads you to respond differently when faced with fears, because you now respond with faith, hope, and love because you fear, love and trust in God alone.

As we’ve heard in our text today, bad things happen to people, even the greatest servants of God, but this doesn’t mean you have to fear them!

You see, through your trust in Jesus Christ, your fears no longer have to control you. When you fear, love and trust God above all things, no-one can harm you or snatch you away from the love of God given to you through Jesus Christ. You’ve been chosen and adopted as his children, and you’ve received redemption through Christ’s blood for the forgiveness of sins.

Grace and peace is yours through faith in Jesus Christ. Don’t let fear control you, but through your faith in Jesus Christ, who was sacrificed for you and all your sins, may the love of Christ control you and all you do…

…so that the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

2 Corinthians 12:2-10 (ESV) 

² I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows.  ³ And I know that this man was caught up into paradise — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows — ⁴ and he heard things that cannot be told, which man may not utter.  ⁵ On behalf of this man I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses.  ⁶ Though if I should wish to boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.  ⁷ So to keep me from being too elated by the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from being too elated.  ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.  ⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  ¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so that when we’re weak, we may boast in the strength we have in Jesus Christ. Amen.

Have you ever noticed how much we boast to each other?

It’s not always obvious, but we often compare ourselves, our abilities, our experiences, our faith, or our relationships, as more favourable than those around us. My car is newer or more economical. My garden has a greater variety of flowers. My dog is more loyal. Our congregation is better than another one, and so on.

In fact, we may even boast in reverse. For example, someone might say ‘I’ve got a sore finger’ or ‘I’ve got a headache’, but you might be tempted to respond by saying: ‘That’s nothing! I’ve got a sore leg’ or ‘I’ve got a migraine’!

Now it’s quite natural to compare ourselves with others, but it seems to be a game we have to win because, if we can’t win this game, we feel inferior to others.

So, in order to feel better about ourselves, or in order to be noticed or valued or loved, we feel the need to boast and brag about ourselves. We also feel the need to hide any weaknesses, failures, inadequacies, frailties, or insecurities so that people will appreciate us.

Unfortunately, when we boast about ourselves, or hide the truth of what’s really going on for us, it can also put other people off. People around us may figure out we’re not telling the full truth, and that we’re not trustworthy. Our boasting may also make them feel small, insignificant, ignored or unworthy. We may give the impression they don’t measure up to our standards, even though our standards are false because we’re not being true to ourselves.

The strange twist is, although we may be put off by some people’s boasts, we’re often attracted to those who seem to be in control. We’re often attracted to the strong, the brave, the wealthy, the beautiful, the successful, and the intelligent, even if what they show us is just a fancy façade which hides their own insecurities and fears.

However, when we boast about ourselves, or attempt to hide our weaknesses in the Church, we end up giving a false and dangerous witness.

It often works this way: We all know Jesus is the only Way, Truth, and Life. We know Jesus is our Saviour. But when we boast about ourselves, we’re not inviting people to ‘come and see Jesus’. We’re inviting people to take notice of us.

Also, when we boast about ourselves and puff ourselves up, we bear witness we don’t need Jesus very much because we’ve got all things under control. We bear witness that others should be more like us than more like Jesus. When we defend ourselves and attempt to hide any weakness, fault or frailty, we bear witness we’re trusting in ourselves and don’t need the forgiveness, wholeness or peace Jesus offers.

Similarly, when we invite people to come to worship, we don’t normally want to invite people to be part of a fractured and frail bunch of sinners. We instead might say something like: ‘We’ve got a good pastor, come and hear him!’, or ‘Our pastor’s away and we can finally listen to someone else!’ Or perhaps ‘We’ve got great musicians’ or, ‘We have lots of fun’ or, ‘We’re a bunch of friendly people’ or anything else than actually offering what only Jesus offers through his Word or Sacraments.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with having these things, but the trouble is we boast in them. When we boast in them, we take the focus off Jesus.

The other thing is that, when we boast in all the good things we might have, it can backfire. You see, sooner or later people discover the truth that, no matter how much we might boast in about ourselves and what we offer, people will eventually find out we’re a bunch of sinful self-centred people who can often get up each other’s noses!

If you listen to St Paul speaking to us today about boasting in his weakness, I wonder if we’ve being going about this the wrong way. Perhaps, if any church should boast, it should boast that it has the worst bunch of sinners, the blandest sounding music, and the most boring preacher!

Now while this may sound stupid, think of it this way: if we’ve got nothing else to boast in except Jesus Christ, then we’re a church who finally has the correct focus, because a church which focuses only and clearly on Jesus (and not on ourselves and our own abilities, resources and talents), then we become a church which only wants to share the pure grace, love, patience, and forgiveness which Jesus himself offers!

While all of us want to avoid suffering and troubles, we shouldn’t be scared of admitting our failures, problems, struggles or inadequacies, because God has a habit of using weakness, failure, fights, and pain for his own purposes in order to strengthen our faith in him alone.

For example, notice that Paul talks about a thorn in the flesh which makes sure he can’t boast.

Paul knows he could boast about all his extraordinary visions, revelations, and spiritual encounters, but he has this thorn which stops him from boasting or bragging in these experiences. He asked for the Lord to take it away from him, but Jesus replied his grace is sufficient. God’s grace is the only thing he needs to boast in.

Now we’re not told what this thorn or splinter of Paul’s is, but maybe that’s a good thing. Since we don’t know what it is, it leaves the possibilities open for interpretation. It may also help us to think about our own thorns or splinters which irritate us.

In this case, what, or whom, is your splinter or ‘messenger of satan’ which stops you from boasting? In other words, what do you struggle with that God hasn’t taken away so that you’re led to boast more in him alone?

It could be your physical afflictions, such as sickness, physical limitations, hearing or sight difficulties, or the problems related to ageing.

It could be your emotional difficulties, such as depression, anger management, shyness, fear, or low self-esteem.

It could be your relationship problems at work, within your family, your friendships, or even within the church community.

You may have even asked God to take away your splinter and make everything ok. You may have wanted God to take away those difficult people, but he didn’t. Is it possible God hasn’t taken your splinter away so that you can’t boast in anyone or anything else except Jesus?

Ironically, instead of whingeing about our splinters, Paul is challenging us to not only be content with them, but even boast in them! Maybe we should boast about our physical problems, our emotional hang-ups, or about those people who really annoy us!

For example:

• Thank God I’m short, because it forces me to be humble as I ask for help!
• Thank God I can’t do as good a job as Mr Puddleduck, because it helps me realise I’ve got so much more to learn, even from people like him!
• Thank God I’m depressed, because it leads me to seek supportive and caring people who can pray for me!
• Thank God I can’t handle this situation, because this means I need to rely on God’s strength to carry on!
• Thank God I’m getting old, because as I lose my independence, I’m being prepared to depend solely on God alone and his eternal promises!
• Thank God for crabby old Mrs Griffenpuffle who really gets up my goat, because I’m being taught patience and the need for forgiveness!
• Thank God we’ve experienced conflict and turmoil in our parish, because it’s leading us to appreciate how to receive and pass on the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ!

In this way, we can boast about our splinters and weaknesses and troubles and frailties because they reveal just how valuable and important the grace of God is to us.

You see, God doesn’t love you because you’re always able to handle situations. God loves you whether you can handle them or not.

God doesn’t love you because you’re perfect (which you’re not!), but only because Christ is perfect!

God doesn’t love you because you’re able to love and forgive and get on with everybody, but he loves you even when you’re struggling to love and forgive and get on with everybody.

God loves you not only when you’re happy and well-behaved, but for the sake of Jesus Christ, he still loves you when you’re grumpy, disobedient, irritable, or crumpled in a heap!

Perhaps, if you’re going to boast at all, you might consider boasting in Christ’s suffering for you.

• Boast in the thorns which pierced Jesus’ brow as he was crowned as your king.
• Boast in his innocent blood which washes your sins away.
• Boast in his cry for your forgiveness from the cross.
• Boast in his humiliating suffering and death which paid the full blood price for your forgiveness.
• Boast in his glorious resurrection which assures you that you will also rise with him through faith.
• Boast that everything needed for your life and salvation has been done by God and there’s nothing more for you to do except receive his gifts through faith, especially through the means of grace in his Word, through Baptism and at the Lord’s Supper.

In other words, you’re encouraged to boast in what looks like the weakness of Jesus because it’s in Christ’s apparent weakness on the cross where God’s greatest strength lies. There on the cruel cross is the power of God. There on the cross of suffering and death is the power of grace, love and forgiveness.

While you may not like suffering in any way, God has a habit of using your thorns and splinters and weaknesses in order to draw you closer to him and depend on his grace. After all, if you’ve got everything under control, what do you need God for? But when you have nothing, God is everything to you.

While it’s tempting to hide them, every day you’ll be reminded of your greatest weaknesses – your own impatience, your greed, your selfishness, your ungratefulness, your pride, your arrogant and empty boasts, and so on. You’ll also be reminded of each other’s weaknesses and how much they hurt you.

But every day you’ll also have an opportunity to boast in these weaknesses because they lead you to the cross of Christ.

This is because, when you’re led to the foot of the cross, you’re led to the grace of God. When you’re dragged to your knees in humbleness and desperation, pleading for God to take away your splinters, God will tell you his grace, shown on the cross, is enough for you. Because God’s grace is made perfect through weakness, you’re to draw strength from his grace shown on the cross so that you can cope with your weaknesses.

I suppose another way to put it is this:

When we boast in ourselves, the need for Christ in diminished.

On the other hand, when we acknowledge our weakness and humility, and trust in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, he is the one who is glorified.

If we’re going to boast about anything, let’s boast and delight in our weaknesses, our thorns, and our splinters, so that the strength of Jesus Christ, and his gracious mercy and forgiveness, may dwell in us and through us, so that…

…the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Mark 5:21-43 (EHV) 

²¹ When Jesus had again crossed over in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him near the sea. ²² Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet ²³ and repeatedly pleaded with him, “My little daughter is near death. Please come and place your hands on her so that she may be healed and live.”

²⁴ Jesus went with him, and a large crowd was following him, pressing tightly against him. ²⁵ A certain woman who was there had a discharge of blood for twelve years. ²⁶ She had suffered much under the care of many physicians and had spent all that she had. Yet instead of getting better, she grew worse. ²⁷ When she heard what was being said about Jesus, she went up behind him in the crowd and touched his robe. ²⁸ She said, “If I just touch his robe, I will be healed.” ²⁹ Immediately her flow of blood stopped, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction.

³⁰ At that moment, Jesus knew that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?”

³¹ His disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing tightly against you and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’”

³² Nevertheless he kept looking around to see who had done this. ³³ The woman was trembling with fear since she knew what had happened to her. She came forward, fell down in front of him, and told him the whole truth.

³⁴ He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be healed of your suffering.”

³⁵ While he was still speaking, people from the synagogue ruler’s house arrived, saying, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the Teacher anymore?”

³⁶ But when Jesus heard this report, he told the synagogue ruler, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.” ³⁷ He did not allow anyone to follow him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. ³⁸ They went into the house of the synagogue ruler, and Jesus saw a commotion with people weeping and wailing loudly. ³⁹ When he entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.”

⁴⁰ They laughed at him. But after he put everyone out, he took the father of the child, her mother, and those who were with him and went in where the child was. ⁴¹ Grasping the hand of the child, he said to her, “Talitha, koum!” (When translated, that means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!”) ⁴² Immediately the little girl stood up and began to walk around. (She was twelve years old.) They were completely and utterly amazed. ⁴³ Then he gave them strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and he told them to give her something to eat.

Dear heavenly Father, touch us with your Holy Spirit so that we may trust your Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

A touch.

Just a touch.

That’s all she wanted.

Although, in another way, she was sick of touches!

You see, the doctors had touched her, prodded her, and poked her. She had suffered a great deal from the touch of their hands. Each touch had come at a cost and now she had run out of money to pay for any more of their touches or to pay for further treatments to stop her bleeding.

She had trusted them for a cure, but she wasn’t cured. They had bled her dry of resources, but her bleeding still continued. As a result their touches, her dignity and self-worth may have been so low, she may have been desperate to try anything.

So, perhaps just a touch…

You see, on the other hand she longed for touch. The bleeding common for women had been constant in her case, but the never-ending presence of this blood made her an outcast because it made her ceremonially and ritually unclean. According to the laws written in Scripture, those who were bleeding were unclean and weren’t allowed the privilege of touch. If she touched another while she bled, they too were excluded from the community, especially from the community of the faithful.

So, she longed for touch because she was forbidden to touch.

Just think; while we’ve been limited over the last year or so in the ways we are allowed to touch each other due to this pandemic, for her it had been twelve years. For twelve years she hasn’t been allowed to take the hand of another, pat someone on the back, or even feel the warmth of an embrace. For twelve years she hasn’t been allowed to be helped or to help another when they fell. As a result, she felt dirty and isolated and excluded. After all, the religious laws told her she was contaminated. Everyone around her reminded her she was polluted and impure, and this was reinforced by their looks, their comments, and by the absence of their touch.

But if she could only touch him…

Of course, she knew she was forbidden to touch him, but what if she just touched his cloak as it dragged on the ground behind him? She almost didn’t dare hope for a cure, but she’s heard he’s a healer…so perhaps just a touch…

“Who touched my clothes?”

The crowd who surrounded Jesus now looked with accusing eyes for the criminal, the one who dared violate the personal space of Jesus. The eyes of all fell upon the woman stooped with a hand outstretched – the woman whom everyone knew was forbidden to touch. The eyes and the looks and the murmuring comments were full of disgust and hate. How dare one of the untouchables touch the holy One!

So, the woman, trembling on her knees, terrified of Jesus and the crowd, confessed her sin of touch.

But Jesus didn’t ask who touched his clothes in order to accuse and condemn. His question was instead for her benefit. You see, now that the eyes of the accusing crowd were looking at her, he could announce her clean and healed because of whom she touched.

You see, the untouchable woman has been cured by trusting in a touch. By faithfully reaching out to touch Jesus, she was now cured and made whole. In front of so many witnesses, she was publicly and mercifully restored to the community. Everyone now new that when Jesus announced her as clean, the untouchable one could now touch and be touched again. Her twelve years of exile were over. She was both cured of her bleeding and cured of her banishment. She was fully restored to the community…by a touch.

But at the same time a man named Jairus stood to the side. While Jesus had been delayed in their journey to his house by this woman’s touch, he just heard his twelve-year-old daughter had died.

Although this woman was now restored to the community, his daughter is now lost to the community. As one woman is now allowed to touch and be touched again, Jairus would no longer be able to touch and be touched by his daughter.

No more hugs. No more kisses goodnight. No more fatherly teasing and banter in the family room. While the woman was restored by a touch, he now felt robbed of touch. It seemed Jesus’ healing touch now comes too late for his daughter.

Despite this, Jesus gives him hope, telling him not to be afraid and to trust.

Jesus continued the interrupted journey and arrived at Jairus’s house. Everyone was wailing and crying because they too felt robbed of her touch and robbed of their dreams for her.

They thought he was mocking them and making fun of them when he said she wasn’t dead but only sleeping. When you feel robbed of life and hope and joy, now is not the time to make jokes at a dead person’s expense. The bright young twelve-year-old girl is now dead. Jesus came too late. Her life and touch is now over.

Undeterred, Jesus asked the crowd to leave and entered the girl’s room with Peter, James, John and her parents.

The same laws which excluded the bleeding woman from the community because of her uncleanness also said the dead were considered unclean. If you touched the dead, you too were considered unclean and would be excluded from the community.

But Jesus dared touch her and took the dead child’s hand into his own.

While earlier the woman could reach out in faith to touch Jesus, the dead can’t reach out and touch in faith. Jesus is the one who did the reaching out to touch the dead girl. Holding her lifeless hand in his own, he spoke to her, telling her to get up.

Jesus’ touch and his effective words (which always do what they say) was all it took. The dead girl got up and walked around. She was raised from death, healed, and restored to her family and community…by a touch and a word.

Just a touch from their Lord.

That’s all they got, yet that’s all they needed.

And it could be today you’re coming to Jesus looking for a touch…just a touch.

You see, some of you may have been violated by the touch or the words of others. Trust may have been broken or your personal space may have been unwelcomely invaded. Because of inappropriate touch or inappropriate words, you may be terrified to open yourself to another. You don’t want to feel vulnerable and you’re afraid of more hurt. But you may still long for a loving touch, a supportive arm, an encouraging word, and a gentle hand. Can Jesus provide you with the loving and gentle touch that you long for – even if it’s just a touch?

It could be you feel excluded from those around you for some reason. Their looks, their comments, and their absence of touch make you feel unworthy, dumb, excluded, and unloved. You long for acceptance and friendship, but they ignore you, criticise you, and manipulate you. Some of this is done in the murmurings and gossips spoken behind your back, which only reinforce your exclusion. Some is done to your face. In response, you may want revenge or justice, but you might also desire mercy, forgiveness, and love. Can provide the touch you’re looking for?

Perhaps you feel dirty or unworthy. Others may keep reminding you of your sin and your shame, and you feel unwelcome and isolated. But it could be you’re your own accuser. Perhaps you don’t need anyone else’s looks or comments, because your own conscience accuses and condemns you. You beat yourself up and exclude yourself from others.

In response, you look down on yourself and you consider yourself unworthy. And so that accusing voice in your head shames you again and again. When you feel so unworthy of anyone’s touch, especially Christ’s holy touch, how might you dare reach out to touch the cloak of Jesus, or do you need Jesus to reach out to you?

Maybe you need healing. You may be suffering from fracture, strain, or sickness. You may feel old, useless, restricted, or imprisoned. You may feel like you’re a burden to those around you. You might look for Jesus to touch you and make you whole again.

It could also be you feel as if you’ve been robbed of the touch of your loved ones. Distance or death now separates you. Your children may have moved out. Your brothers or sisters have gone their own way. Your husband or wife no longer touches you. Your loved ones have died. Those loving touches are now a fading memory. In many cases you know those specific touches won’t be restored to you, but can Jesus provide a touch to fill your loneliness and emptiness?

Just a touch?

And today Jesus comes in his compassion to touch you.

While Jesus touches all people, such as through the education of teachers as they pass on his wisdom and knowledge, or ensures touch is safe through the protection given through police and armed forces, or provides a healing touch through doctors, nurses and other health care professionals, his touch through the Church is a spiritual touch.

Here in his Church a voice touches your ear and speaks to your trembling heart to soothe your troubled conscience. This voice washes your shame and guilt away when he says: “You are forgiven!”. His forgiving word, received through faith, restores you to peace and life and health. Even if you struggle to believe it, everyone else here in this crowd can vouch for this fact – that you’re forgiven by Jesus. Your sins are washed away. You’re now clean and holy. His voice does what it says. Don’t be afraid. Trust him!

Similarly, by a touch you became a child of God through baptism. No matter how others treat you in your life (by their touch or the lack of it), the touch of those baptismal waters bear witness that you’re a precious and dearly loved child of God. You now belong to his eternal community of faith.

In the Lord’s Supper you reach out your hand to receive his touch. Sure, it may not be a warm embrace, but his touch is enough. The touch of his body and blood seems so light in your hand and so sweet in your mouth. His touch reassures you of his love and forgiveness.

As you touch Jesus’ body and blood, you also touch your loved ones. All those kept safe in him through faith are part of his body. Those separated by distance or death are here with Jesus. The saints of all time gather at the feast of our Lord to receive the touch of his holiness and purity. Again, it may not be the embrace you long for, but it’s a touch.

Just a touch.

But sometimes a touch, if that touch is Jesus’ touch, received in faith, well, that touch may be all you need, because by a touch…

…the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Psalm 1 (EHV)

¹ How blessed is the man
    who does not walk in the advice of the wicked,
    who does not stand on the path with sinners,
    and who does not sit in a meeting with mockers.
² But his delight is in the teaching of the Lord,
and on his teaching he meditates day and night.
³ He is like a tree planted beside streams of water,
    which yields its fruit in season,
    and its leaves do not wither.
Everything he does prospers.

⁴ Not so the wicked!
No, they are like the chaff which the wind blows away.
⁵ Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

⁶ Yes, the Lord approves of the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

Dear Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit upon us so that we may delight in your words of instruction which we receive through faith in your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Imagine the following scene:

You’re walking down the street and you see a group of people sitting together observing those who walk by. You notice the one in the centre is making derogatory comments about the way people walk or how they’re dressed. His friends echo some of his comments and add some of their own. It’s like a verbal feeding frenzy taking place at the expense of those who are just trying to get through the day. This doesn’t mean they all join in. At least not straight away. Some end up being the scoffers and tattle-tales who spread the insults they heard to anyone who would listen to them later in the day.

Or, imagine someone says something on social media which is harsh and un-called for. Before you know it, others have chimed in to add their own two-cents worth at the expense of those under attack. Like most social media sites, there are those who lurk and observe. They may not add to the comments, but they share the postings so more people can add further damage toward the reputation of those under attack.

Or, imagine someone makes a comment about their brother or sister in Christ to a small group after worship. It may have been true, but it may not have been true. Sometimes it doesn’t matter. The seed of discontent and negative opinion about the person being talked about has been sown. The comment questioned the motives and actions of another person and threatens their reputation. Before you know it, others in the gathered group have also chimed in to add their own criticism and judgments toward their brother or sister in Christ. Of course, like the other situations, some people in the gathered group remain silent at this time, but later they spread the juicy gossip and chatter about what they heard to others.

The scenes I’ve mentioned are examples of the picture described in our Psalm.

The psalmist describes three categories of the wicked who mock and criticise and judge and insult and share all kinds of uncaring things about others. The effects of these comments ripple through a community, but also threaten the salvation of those who join in with such sport.

According to this psalm, it doesn’t matter whether you’re the one in the centre who is the chief of mockers, or if you’re one of the apprentices who are learning the art of mocking, or whether you’re a silent observer who goes along with the pack and later spreads the gossip to others. They’re all listed as one of the wicked.

And yet, how many times have you and I been involved with such sport?

How many times have we spoken in judgment of others? How many times have we added further damage to someone’s reputation by adding our own criticisms to what we hear? How many times have we passed on the juicy rumours and hurtful gossip to other people so they too will think badly of the one we talk about?

Whenever we’ve done any of these things, we haven’t just sinned against each other and strained our relationships. We’ve sinned against God! He calls everyone of us ‘wicked’ because we’ve been involved in such a cruel and abusive sport against one of those made in his image for whom Christ has died, which means none of us deserve to be in the assembly of the righteous!

On the other hand, the psalmist mentions the blessed man who would rather meditate on what God says. He should be congratulated because he isn’t found among the counsel of the gossip-spreaders, nor does he stand with the guilty apprentices who like to add their own insults, and he isn’t the one sitting in the seat of the king of mockers.

He should be congratulated because he doesn’t delight in the juicy gossip. Instead, he delights in God’s instructions. He doesn’t dwell on the evil insults and harmful chatter. Instead, he dwells on God’s word.

He gains pleasure from God’s instructive words on how to live and work and worship, including the instructions to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and to love your neighbour as yourself.

In fact, he gains so much pleasure from God’s Word, he seems to mutter it all day long and even at night. This means he doesn’t just meditate on God’s word for an hour of worship once per week, or for a few rushed minutes in devotions every day, or even during an additional time of bible study once per fortnight.

He constantly rolls God’s words around in his mouth: memorising them, chewing them, meditating on them, mumbling them, and munching on them. It’s like God’s instructive laws are an everlasting gobstopper which gives constant pleasure and joy to him! And the whole time the wicked people ridicule him for gaining pleasure from God’s Word.

But this isn’t the only dramatic picture of comparison given in this psalm between the blessed and wicked.

This wise man, gaining so much from God’s teachings, can be compared to a tree planted right alongside an irrigation channel. We all know that trees which have an uninterrupted water source don’t wither during drought. They can be a trustworthy source of fruit and shelter.

In this way, even though this person will experience tough times, this faithful tree-like person, who is constantly nourished by the life-giving word of God, bears his fruit and shade for the pleasure, provision and protection of others.

Enriched by God’s word, he becomes a refuge for the weary, a place of rest and comfort for the abused, and a shelter for the beaten.

This is the picture of a wise man who is constantly immersed in God’s word.

We’re also given another picture of the wicked or foolish.

They’re nothing like this tree, but they’re likened to cocky chaff. They’re like those bits of flaky seed coverings that are picked up and blown about by the wind. They have no substance and are of no use to anyone.

These wicked people, no matter how much they insult those around them and how far they spread their harmful chatter, well, they’re like worthless matter, constantly blown about by the winds of the age.

So, where the wise are unwavering and satisfied by the Lord’s water and words, the foolish are blown about by contemporary opinions, the latest insult, and the negative news. As a result, they wander aimlessly and provide nothing of benefit to those around them. These inconsequential bits of worthless matter will not stand in the court of judgement.

Now we get to that uncomfortable question: Which one are you? There’s only two possibilities!

Are you really like the wise man who constantly delights in God’s instructions and who persistently bears the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control for the benefit of others?

Or are you more like the worthless bits of cocky chaff who insult and offend and gossip about others?

Now, I’m sure you’d like to be counted as the blessed wise person who is likened to a fruitful evergreen tree, but do you really meditate on God’s Word day and night? Are you constantly receiving those living waters, or are you being blown about by the winds of the age and public opinion? Are you instead one of those cynical ones who have judged and damaged the reputation of others, which means you’re one of the wicked who are considered as worthless and doomed to destruction?

Well, if you haven’t figured it out yet, you’re not the tree!

You see, there’s only who really qualifies as the faithful wise man who is likened to a fruitful tree.

Jesus alone is the blessed one who murmured God’s instructive words day and night and bore the fruit of faith for the benefit of all those he serves. Despite this, the people of the day criticised him, judged him and killed him, including faithful people of God.

Yet, regardless of all this, he still remains steadfast like a tree beside a water channel. He gives life, shade, food, refuge and stability to all those who rest under his branches. Whenever you face storms and troubles in your life, you know Jesus is your place of comfort and strength.

However, while we may not be that one true tree, by the undeserving grace of God, you and I have been forgiven through the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus Christ, and through faith have become members of his body, and therefore branches of that evergreen tree.

You see, God delights in taking worthless and wicked people like you and me into his fellowship so that we may be forgiven, cleansed, and renewed.

Through faith we’ve been taught God’s word, washed in the waters of baptism, joined to the body of Christ, and nourished through our participation at his holy meal.

This means those same lips which have criticised, grumbled, insulted, and gossiped about those around us have also received Christ’s holy body and blood to cleanse our lips, purify our bodies, and renew our hearts.

It’s while we maintain our discipleship to our Lord Jesus Christ by constantly learning from his divine instructions, continuing to enjoy his cleansing of forgiveness, keeping on receiving the benefits of baptism and his holy meal, and as we continue to persist in our loving and caring fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, that we also bear the fruit of our faith to benefit those around us.

So, no, you’re not the tree itself, but as one joined to Christ through the waters and word of baptism, you’re part of it. By faith you’re one of those who gain from his instructive words which gives you direction, hope and life.

While you remain one in Christ, you’re one of his branches who stretches out to serve others in this troubled world. As long as you remain in the Word-made-flesh and continue to learn from his teachings, you’re one of those who offer hope and strength and refuge and safety to those around you.

By God’s grace, may you all continue to be part of that faithful evergreen tree which not only survives, but even thrives despite the storms, tough times, and insults which come your way.

By God’s Grace and through your own dwelling in God’s words of instruction, you may turn from a gossiper to a peacemaker, an insulter to a healer, and a criticiser to a carer.

Remain in Jesus, the true blessed one who is your source of life, light, hope, food, shelter and strength. Rejoice in his words and be counted among the righteous. Learn to love and gain pleasure from God’s living words of instruction so you may bear the fruit of love, joy, peace and patience to those around you.

And may the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, continue to guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1 John 5:1-6 (EHV)

¹ Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the God who has given birth also loves one who has been born of him. ² This is how we know that we love the children of God: when we love God and keep his commands. ³ In fact, this is love for God: that we keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, ⁴ because everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world: our faith. ⁵ Who is the one who overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

⁶ This is the one who came by water and blood: Jesus Christ. He did not come by the water alone but by the water and by the blood. The Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

Dear Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit upon us so that we may not be overwhelmed by the attacks on our faith because we have overcome the world through faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

It’s human to feel overwhelmed at times – both by good things as well as the not-so-good.

For example, we can feel overwhelmed with joy when we’re reunited with family and friends, but we can also weep and mourn because we feel overwhelmed by grief or despair.

We can feel overwhelmed by the beauty or majesty of scenery or the ingenuity of humans, and yet we can also feel overwhelmed by health issues or by how many tasks we have to do in so little time.

We can be overwhelmed by the love we feel for someone close to us, and we can also feel overwhelmed by hatred.

But, for Christians, we can experience a different type of overwhelming, and this is in regard to our struggles to believe in Jesus Christ.

You see, it’s possible many of us have in the past, or we may be currently, or we will one day in the future, experience feelings of being overwhelmed by the trials, temptations, peer pressures, questions, or arguments of the world, our own doubting flesh, or even by the devil himself.

This can affect us as individuals and as a community because, if we struggle to believe or trust in Jesus Christ, then we’ll also struggle to believe or obey his instructions. If we struggle to trust him and do what he instructs us, then we’ll also struggle to love each other as he commands.

St John wrote this letter to a Christian community who were struggling to love each other. He believed their lack of love for each other was a symptom of a much deeper issue. You see, whenever we struggle to bear the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and so on, it’s because the foundation of our faith in God is being threatened or weakened or misplaced.

You could argue nearly every conflict or difficulty we might have in our relationships (especially within the church), is because of a struggle with some aspect of faith. This is because a misplaced faith, an incomplete faith, or a struggling faith, will attempt to fill the gaps of our faith foundation with our own works or understandings.

It’s like we build a good solid foundation based on what we believe to be true in Scripture, but then we find some gaps in our foundation called ‘doubt’ or ‘uncertainty’ or some other complications. Instead of filling these gaps with trust in God, we fill them with ourselves and our own limited understandings or speculations.

When we do this, we don’t fully fear, love and trust God, but we end up relying more and more on ourselves and our own words and work and understandings instead of God’s words or work.

When we rely on our own words or work or understandings, this means we won’t pass on the love we’ve received from God because this isn’t the only love we’re relying on and trusting in. We’re instead relying on and trusting in ourselves, including our own fears or desires. And this will always be expressed by the way we treat each other.

You see, if we truly love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, then we’ll also love our neighbour as ourself. However, if we don’t love each other as God loves us, then it’s because our faith in God is incomplete or threatened.

But what are some of the temptations and doubts and struggles we face which threatens our faith, and how does John answer them?

Well, for starters, there are different understandings as to who Jesus is.

Some argue he’s not born of the Virgin Mary, but a natural-born son of Mary and Joseph. Some argue he was only made the Son of God at his baptism. Some argue Jesus is still dead and will only be raised as the first to be resurrected with the rest of mankind on the Last Day. Some may argue that he’s no more real than any made-up fictional character, even though historical documents testify to the fact he truly exists.

Similarly, some may argue God’s Word isn’t really inspired by God through the power of the Holy Spirit, but only a made-up book which is designed to fool the gullible and enslave the world through archaic and out-of-touch teachings.

Because of some of these attacks on our faith (and so many more), it shouldn’t come as a surprise we’re seeing a change in society where the once-accepted Christian faith is no longer admired or even tolerated. Our faith is now rubbished, ridiculed, and terrorised by many.

As a result of your experiences of doubts and questions and antagonism regarding your faith, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. You may feel as if you don’t have all the answers. You may feel threatened and unsafe. You might feel unsure. You might feel that what you believe to be true is no longer accepted or valued. You might feel the need to compromise or question what you believe.

But it’s not all external. It doesn’t always come from the world, but the struggles might even come from within yourself.

For example, you’re told to love and forgive, but you might want to hold a grudge or keep away from certain people. You’re encouraged to gather for worship with fellow believers, but you might want to do something else. You’re encouraged to bear the fruit of love, joy, patience, peace, and gentleness, but you may find yourself instead bearing the works of sarcasm, bitterness, antagonism, intolerance, and impatience.

You’re told to believe what God says in his Word, but you might reckon you, or the world, knows better than God. You’re told to believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, to take up your cross and follow him, but you might want to believe in someone or something else, and as to the cross of suffering and self-denial as you follow Jesus, well, there’s a few places you’d like to stick it!

In response, John’s been speaking so far in this letter in absolutes. He compares opposites such as light and darkness, truth and lies, love and hate.

He says Christ is the Light, the Truth, and Love incarnate. You either believe in him and will live in his words and ways, or you don’t. If you don’t, then you’re on the side of darkness, lies, and hate. There’s no in-between. Which means there’s no in-between in regard to your forgiveness, life, and salvation either. What you believe will either result in heaven or hell. There’s no third option.

This is why John is seeking to encourage you in faith by reminding you of the truth. He almost does it in such a way he considers your faith to be on trial and you’re to consider all the testimonies for their truth and validity. You’re encouraged to ask: ‘Which one is true?’

On the one hand, has the world got it right? Has the media or public opinion got it right? When people challenge what you believe, do they base their opinions and questions on the right foundations in the first place?

Are you even asking yourself the right questions, because if you don’t, you’ll come up with the wrong conclusions!

Has the devil whispered in your ear that age old question: “Did God really say that?”, which weakens a person’s resolve to trust what God says?

So, in response to all the temptations and doubts and questions and challenges which threaten to overwhelm you and your faith, John argues the testimony of mankind, the testimony of your own self, and the testimony of the devil can do their deceptive worst, but it’s no match for the testimony of God!

You see, you have three testifying to the truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that through faith in him you have forgiveness, life and salvation:

Firstly, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, testifies who Jesus is. He’s none other than the Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, who is born of the Virgin Mary. He is God-in-human-flesh who has come to be our Messiah, the long-foretold Christ, in order to fulfil everything written about him through his obedience, suffering, death, resurrection and ascension. Cross-examine the Spirit if you dare, but his testimony is true and unchanging!

Secondly, the waters of baptism testify who Jesus is and to whom you now belong through faith. The water testifies your sins have been washed away and you’ve been made pure and holy in God’s sight. The waters testify to your new birth as children of God. The waters testify you’ve been joined to Jesus, which means his death is your death, and his resurrection from death is your resurrection from death. These waters testify you already belong where Jesus is, sitting in glory at the right-hand side of the Father.

Thirdly, where the blood of Abel once cried out for justice, now the blood of Jesus testifies the price for your forgiveness, life, and salvation has been paid. You’ve been justified by Christ’s blood. The blood says it now covers you in Christ’s holiness and righteousness. The blood of Jesus testifies to the victory over sin, death, and the devil has been won through Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection.

So, who are you going to believe? Who are you going to trust?

Are you going to place your trust in the words of fickle and deceptive humans?

Are you going to place your trust in your own feelings or assumptions?

Are you going to place your trust in the lies of the devil?

Or will you trust the testimony of the Spirit, the water and the blood?

Whenever you feel overwhelmed by struggles in faith, and experience doubts, questions, and spiritual attacks, trust Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, has overcome the world. He is the victorious One. He is the One in whom you can trust and believe, because he doesn’t lie.

This means his instructions also can’t be ignored, because they too are the truth, including his instructions to love each other as he loves you. His word is true and trustworthy, even when it disagrees with the world’s values and opinions.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, don’t be overwhelmed by any threats to your faith. Believe and trust in the truth – that Jesus Christ is truly the Son of God the Father. He is also a real human being, born of the Virgin Mary. He’s rescued you from sin and death and hell. He’s paid the full price for your sins through his holy and innocent blood and declares you forgiven.

You are holy and innocent through faith in him. Jesus has overcome everything the world and the devil can throw at him, and all those baptised into him have also overcome the world. You’re now dearly loved precious children of God. You can trust this because the Spirit, the water, and the blood declares this to be true.

And this is why the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard our hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus.

Amen.

1 John 1:7-21 (ESV)
7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.
13 By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world. 15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgement, because as he is so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God”, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so we may love as you love us through your Son Jesus Christ. Amen.

Sometimes we’re very capable of loving others. Sometimes we struggle to love them.

For example, let’s say a young man meets a young woman.

He likes what he sees. She likes what she sees. They talk and laugh and generally ‘hit it off’ with each other. They start courting or ‘going out’. One day they even confess their love for each other and are willing to focus a lot of time and energy on the other person.

One day he nervously proposes to her and she willingly accepts through tears of joy and love. They work together toward their wedding day, overcoming the normal hassles and arguments over mother-in-law’s demands, planning the ceremony and celebrations, seating arrangements, and how to keep their spending on budget.

Their wedding day is memorable and filled with many expressions of love and faithfulness. Their early years of marriage are filled with excitement as they get to know each other.

But then one day they discover they do know each other, and they don’t necessarily like what they’ve come to know. Sooner or later all married couples find they can’t hide their true selves from each other forever. They might struggle to love the other’s person’s idiosyncrasies or quirks or habits, even though some of these things are what attracted them to the other in the first place!

As they justify to themselves all the reasons not to love the other, they start to push each other’s buttons at home and seek to embarrass each other in public. They seek to create distances between each other by putting more time and energy into their work or sport or children or community events or some other excuse to get away from their spouse.

Or, perhaps a beautiful child is born.

Both parents look with love at their new-born and are willing to do so much for this dependent and adorable child. Their child needs so much care and attention and they’re willing to freely give their time, energy, and loving attention to this little human being made in the image of God.

But it doesn’t take long before the child screams and the parent’s nerves and patience are tested. The child continues to assert itself as it grows up and throws tantrums if it doesn’t get its own way. He or she screams to make sure everyone hears their demands, and sulks if they don’t get what they want.

The parents also struggle to deal with the child’s messes. Firstly, they have to deal with the messes in their child’s nappies (which they ‘lovingly’ clean up), then it’s the messes the child makes in their room and home (which the child rarely cleans up), but the worst is when their little prince or princess messes with the parent’s minds, which is almost impossible to clean up!

The more parents and children get to know each other (and their messes), the harder it can be to love each other.

Or, let’s say a new pastor comes to a congregation.

At first, he’s willingly welcomed and accepted. He preaches good sermons, works well with the young and the old, and seems to do a great job. In return, he likes what he sees among the people. They welcome him and allow him into their homes and lives. Everyone seems happy!

But one day he discovers the truth about the people he serves. They’re not as perfect as they’ve made out to be. They can be grumpy, selfish, pride-filled, demanding, and jealous. They say or do things which offend him and his family. He doesn’t feel as welcome as he used to.

On the other hand, they discover he’s not perfect either. He lets people down and won’t listen to what they feel are ‘reasonable requests’. He says ‘no’ when people want him to say ‘yes’, and ‘yes’ when others want him to say ‘no’. His priorities don’t match the people’s priorities and so he fails to meet their expectations. He may even say or do some things which offend a few, who subsequently want nothing more to do with him.

You see, sooner or later a pastor and his people do get to know each other. They don’t always like what they come to know and can struggle to love each other.

Now I’d like to suggest that any resemblance of these examples to anyone living or dead is not intended, but these scenarios can be all too familiar!

I think you’d agree that no matter what kind of relationship we have; sooner or later we struggle to love because of what we see, hear, or experience from each other. We struggle to love them because of what they say and do. We want to punish them for not meeting our expectations. We even try to blame them for our own disobedience to God’s command to love each other.

Not surprisingly, we Christians aren’t immune from relationship struggles and can find it difficult to love as a result of what we’ve come to know about each other. In response, we create distances and barriers around ourselves to protect ourselves from further pain. Sometimes we’ll seek to punish fellow Christians because they didn’t meet our standards. Some will even remove themselves from the fellowship of God’s holy community and excuse themselves from loving his people. They may even deceive themselves into thinking their unloving actions are ok with God.

But we hear in our text today: ‘If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love the people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see’? (1 John 1:20)

Therefore, if we judge and criticise and try to stay away from our fellow believers, then we’re not being consistent or true to our confessions of love for our Triune God. How can you love Jesus the Groom and not love his Bride, the Church? God has married us together through faith in Jesus Christ. No-one should separate what God has joined together!

So, we have a problem. I believe it would be a lie to say anyone here has never had a problem loving others. Many of us have been hurt by others and it’s logical and completely understandable to want to protect ourselves from further hurt. However, this doesn’t excuse us from obeying God’s command to love each other.

So that we may understand what type of love St John is talking about, it helps to know the root word for ‘love’ used 27 times in this text is agapé. This specific word for ‘love’ describes a warm regard for, and interest in, another. This type of love is different to the love which describes friendship, lust or affection. It’s a love which gives and is willing to keep on giving, even when this giving involves risk, possible rejection, and pain.

C. S. Lewis, in his book titled ‘The Four Loves’ calls this type of love ‘Charity’ or ‘Gift-love’. He says: “Divine Gift-love in the man enables him to love what is not naturally lovable; lepers, criminals, enemies, morons, the sulky, the superior and the sneering” (‘The Four Loves’, Fontana Books, 1960, p117).

The reason we often struggle to love this way is because our selfish forms of love is usually dependent on others. Our love is usually a ‘pay-back’ kind of love. This means, if someone’s loving toward us, it’s very easy to respond in the same way. But if someone hurts us, then we figure we’re justified to withdraw our love and replace it with criticism, grudge-holding and payback.

In other words, our love is often a love which keeps ledgers. When everyone keeps ledgers of love and payback, it’s no wonder relationships within marriages, families, and churches break down.

But in the church (and therefore especially within Christian families), we’re to love each other without keeping ledgers because this Divine Gift-love never keeps ledgers; it simply gives and keeps on giving.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that this kind of love doesn’t come naturally. This kind of love has only one source. As verses 10-11 say: ‘This is real love – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other’. (1 John 4:10-11)

Understanding that we struggle to love someone this way once we know their grumpy, irritable, selfish, greedy, proud, and lazy sides (just to name some of their characteristics), we need to go back to the source of this Divine Gift-love so that we can love as God commands us to.

In this case, we learn God showed his love for us in such a way that, even though he knows us and all our grumpy, irritable, selfish, greedy, proud and lazy sides so intimately and completely (along with all our other faults and failures), he still chose to love us anyway!

God knows every dark secret you keep from others. He knows every secret sin you’ve attempted to hide. He knows what you’ve done and what you’ve left undone. He knows the motivations of your heart. He knows how you hurt others. He also knows when you’ve been hurt by others. He knows who you’re struggling to love or forgive.

And guess what?

Despite how sinful and unworthy you are, despite what he truly knows about you, and despite your struggles to love others (including him), he still loves you so much he sent his only beloved faithful and obedient Son to die on the cruel and bloody cross in order to forgive you and make you holy.

God’s love for you isn’t dependent on you loving him because you can’t love him enough. God’s love for you isn’t dependent on you loving others either. God loves you anyway and there’s nothing you can do to stop this!

But get this; the more you know and understand the love which comes from God, and the more you rejoice as you receive this unconditional love, the more willing and able you’ll be to love the same way toward others, because this kind of sacrificial and undeserving love can only come from him.

By concentrating on other people’s love (or lack of love), or even by concentrating on your own love (or lack of it), of course you’ll find excuses not to love. They’re not worthy of your love and you’re not as loving as you think you are. But by looking to, and trusting, God’s Divine Gift-love for you that he generously and mercifully gives you through faith in Jesus Christ, then you’ll learn to love his way.

To use an analogy, imagine a teacher putting a carnation into a glass of ink. After a while, the petals on that flower will match the colour of the ink. It can’t help it. It produces what it’s dwelling in. It’s similar with us.

Love which is only centred on fear, or pain, or pay-back, or hate, won’t result in truly loving actions, because it will only produce what it’s dwelling on.

But love founded on, relying on, and dwelling on, the undeserving Gift-love from God, will naturally result in us producing the same kind of love toward fellow Christians, no matter how hard others find it to love them. When we believe and trust God’s unconditional love for you and me, then we’ll produce the same love toward others.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, ‘let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. After all, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another.’ (1 John 4:7, 11)

In this way, may the peace and love of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1 John 3:16-24 (EHV)

¹⁶ This is how we have come to know love: Jesus laid down his life for us. And we also should lay down our lives for our brothers. ¹⁷ Whoever has worldly wealth and sees his brother in need but closes his heart against him—how can God’s love remain in him? ¹⁸ Dear children, let us love not only with word or with our tongue, but also in action and truth.

¹⁹ This is how we know that we are of the truth and how we will set our hearts at rest in his presence: ²⁰ If our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. ²¹ Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God. ²² We also receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep his commands and do what is pleasing in his sight. ²³ This then is his command: that we believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and that we love one another just as he commanded us. ²⁴ The one who keeps his commands remains in God and God in him. This is how we know that he remains in us: We know it from the Spirit, whom he has given to us.

Dear heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit on us so we may believe in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ who laid down his life for us. Amen.

If you were to offer a child their favourite food such as chocolate or ice-cream, and they say they don’t want any, would you think something’s wrong with them?

Similarly, if you were to give them a chance to do their favourite thing, such as go on holidays, visit a theme park, or get some tickets to see their favourite musician in concert, and they don’t start bouncing around the room in excitement, would you be tempted to call the doctor?

Most parents know what excites their children, and when they don’t respond as expected, they may reckon something’s wrong with them. If something’s wrong, then a visit to the doctor may be in order. Then, if you visit the doctor, sooner or later the doctor might take out that cold stethoscope and listen to their heart.

In a similar way, if you know someone who professes to be ‘Christian’ but refuses to be generous to those in need, or doesn’t love their fellow Christians, or refuses to forgive those who hurt them, well, there must be something desperately wrong with them and they should be immediately rushed to spiritual intensive care! Not surprisingly, one of the first things we need to do for a Christian who doesn’t love, or forgive, or help those in need, is to check their heart.

In our text for today the author of our letter mentions the ‘heart’ four times when talking about loving our brothers and sisters in Christ. But before we can check out what’s going on in our hearts it would help us to know how the Bible uses the word ‘heart’ and what it’s referring to.

In this case, if you were to check a Bible concordance (which lists every Bible text where certain words are used), you’ll soon discover it very rarely refers to the heart as that busy little muscle which pumps blood around our body. It also rarely talks about the heart as the place where we feel emotions.

What we discover is that most of the time when the Bible uses the word ‘heart’, it’s talking about the centre of our being as the place which motivates our words and actions. It’s the place where our will or determination resides.

This means, if our heart is set on doing something, then our mind, tongue, hands and feet will do everything necessary to achieve our heart’s desires. Everything follows the heart. Similarly, if our heart refuses to love or forgive or be generous, then our thoughts, words and actions will follow suit.

But it’s not just about what our heart is set on, but also what our heart is filled with.

For example, if our heart is filled with anger, then many of our actions will be in response to the anger which motivates or drives our heart. It’s our angry heart which make our mouths snap and yell at people. Our angry heart leads us to lash out. Our angry heart makes us stamp our feet and slam those doors. Our angry heart seeks revenge and payback.

Of course, it makes sense a heart filled with anger can’t, or won’t, love others. All the motivations to love are replaced by anger or hate and so an angry person finds it impossible to love. There’s no place for love when a heart is filled with anger. A heart filled with hate isn’t a healthy heart and therefore desperately needs to be cleansed and cured of its angry disease before it can love.

Similarly, a heart filled with hurt will be motivated by self-preservation. Some of that self-preservation might involve running away from a situation, but it may also seek to attack from a safer advantage point. In this case, those who are hurt might identify themselves as a victim of injustice and seek support from those around them through gossip or slander in order that their supporting group may fight and win the battle against their tormentor for them.

However, a heart filled with hurt can’t, or won’t, love or forgive because its focussing all its attention and energy on self-preservation. A heart seeking self-preservation is focussed on loving oneself which means it can’t, or won’t, love others rightly.

A heart focussed on its own hurt will most likely not love like Christ loves us because Christ’s love always considers the other person, including hurtful people, as worthy of laying down one’s life for him or her. A heart filled with unresolved hurt then is a heart needing a cure.

Understanding this, it’s when you honestly examine your own heart that you may be surprised to discover your heart isn’t filled with as much love and joy and peace as you might expect. Instead, your heart may condemn you because it’s filled with apathy, greed, lies, fear, distrust, pain and selfishness, which means your heart needs to be cleansed and cured before you can love like you’ve been loved by Jesus Christ.

Now, while you may think no-one can rightly judge your heart except God himself, the people around you can judge your actions. Unfortunately, your actions are mostly based on what’s going on in your heart and so in this way your actions will unconsciously reveal your heart to others.

All they need to do is ‘press your buttons to get a response’ and you’ll soon discover what’s really in your heart! In this way, your words and actions reveal your heart and so your heart condemns you because you don’t love each other the way Christ loves you. Your heart condemns you because you don’t love God, or love those whom he loves, with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.

So, what’s the answer? What’s the cure for hate-filled, fear-filled, hurt-filled, and selfish hearts? What’s the cure for unhealthy hearts which don’t love selflessly, generously, and mercifully? What’s the cure for unforgiving hearts? Where do you turn when your heart (and subsequent actions) condemns you? How might your heart learn to beat more closely with God’s own heart?

Well, for starters, you won’t find the answer in your own heart. Your own heart is already filled with the wrong motivations. The answer also isn’t in the other person’s heart who has hurt you because their heart and subsequent actions reveal they don’t deserve your love or forgiveness or generosity. The answer for unhealthy hearts isn’t found in anyone else except the One with a pure and perfect heart.

In this case, the cure is in Christ Jesus and his love for you. His willingness to lay down his life for his sheep reveals his loving heart. His love isn’t hate-filled or fear-filled. His love isn’t selfish, but selfless. His love is a love which is willing to sacrifice itself for me and you and even those who hurt us.

This means he loves us, and those we struggle with, even though none of us deserve it. He loves us even though we continue to hurt him and those he loves.

He loves you so much he laid down his life for you. He sacrificed himself on the cross for you. He paid for your sin – all of it. He even paid for the sin of those who hurt you – not because they deserve it but because he loves them too.

He loves you so much he chose to forgive you. He doesn’t forgive you because you’re good or loveable, since the bible teaches that you can’t earn or deserve his forgiveness. Jesus forgives you because his pure, perfect and compassionate heart compels him to forgive you.

We struggle to understand this compassionate, sacrificial and selfless love – but that’s the love which comes from God. That’s the love which moves God to sacrifice his Son for you and me. That’s the love by which Jesus willingly lay down his life for us. That’s the love which should fill our hearts. That’s the love which should motivate us to speak and act selflessly and mercifully with those around us, especially toward fellow Christians.

And the way we receive this perfect divine love into our hearts is through faith.

This means the way we learn to love as Christ loves us is by believing in Jesus’ name. Those who constantly look to, and trust, the love of Jesus, will love like he loves, forgive as he forgives, and willingly serve as he serves.

The opposite is also true in that, those who take their eyes off Jesus and trust in themselves and the world’s selfish ways, even for a short time, will of course struggle to love and forgive and be generous like Christ.

In this way, whenever your hearts condemn you because you said unloving words or performed unloving actions toward others, you look in faith toward Jesus Christ – your healer, your Shepherd, your friend, and your heart surgeon.

He knows your hearts better than you know them yourselves, and still loves you despite what’s in them. He doesn’t let what’s in your heart stop him from loving you. As you look to, and trust, his selfless love, his divine love will drive out your hate and fear and hurt and selfishness so that your heart is cleansed and renewed. By grace he forgives your sins and loosens its hold on your heart.

When you believe and trust in Jesus with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, whatever’s plaguing your heart will driven out by his love, which is more powerful than anything you’re afraid of or desiring.

As you trust in Jesus whole-heartedly, you’ll naturally love the way he loves you. As he cleanses and renews your heart through his forgiving Word, through the promises of Baptism, and through your faithful reception of Christ’s body and blood, your own heart will learn to syncronise itself with the heart of Christ himself.

When this happens, people will know you’re believers in Jesus Christ as you become givers instead of takers. People will know you’re believers in Jesus Christ when you have compassion for those in need who won’t be able to pay you back for your generosity.

People will know you’re faith-filled people when you’re ready and willing to forgive those who hurt you. People will know you’re believers in Jesus Christ when you no longer lock up your hearts from the anxieties and pains of others and instead express your love for them in deed and word.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, understand that both loving and unloving words and actions come from what’s in your hearts. If your hearts are filled with anything other than the love of Christ, then look to Christ and trust him.

As you look to him to clean and renew your diseased hearts, your faith in him will drive out any fear and hate and greed and selfishness and any other sin which has riddled your heart. As you look to Jesus in faith, your heart will be cured and filled with God’s love. By trusting the love of Jesus, you’ll not only love in theory, but love in practical ways of forgiveness and mercy.

Therefore, believe in the name of Jesus Christ who laid down his life for you, and love one another. Then people will see how much you believe in him by how much you love. Which is why…

…the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1 John 3:1-7 (EHV)

¹ See the kind of love the Father has given us that we should be called children of God, and that is what we are! The world does not know us, because it did not know him. ² Dear friends, we are children of God now, but what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when he is revealed we will be like him, and we will see him as he really is. ³ Everyone who has this hope purifies himself just as Jesus is pure.

⁴ Everyone who commits sin also commits lawlessness. Sin is lawlessness. ⁵ You know that he appeared in order to take away our sins and in him there is no sin. ⁶ Anyone who remains in him does not sin. The person who keeps on sinning has not seen him or known him.

⁷ Dear children, do not let anyone deceive you. Whoever does what is right is righteous just as Jesus is righteous.

Dear Heavenly Father, send your Holy Spirit upon us so that we may live as your righteous children who have been adopted through faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

If you’ve ever been to an animal rescue facility, you may have noticed some animals who have been badly treated in the past.

Perhaps you’ve seen cats or dogs cowering at the back of the shelter; shaking, whimpering and fearful. They may have had sores or scabs on their body. You might have easily seen their rib cages. Their coats may have been matted or bare. While they may have been in recovery, some of these signs gave an indication on how they’ve been abused or neglected in the past.

Out of compassion for these previously uncared-for creatures, many people have willingly adopted rescue animals, but to do so will sometimes test your patience, compassion and perseverance.

You see, what they’ve learnt in the past can take some time to undo.

If you approach an animal who has previously been abused or neglected with a loud and angry voice, or with a stick in your hand, or with a raised arm, you might see the animal shake, whimper, run away or soil themselves. On occasions they might get defensive by barking, snarling, hissing or biting. These are probably the behaviours they learnt for self-preservation under their previous masters.

However, with much care, gentleness, reassurance, compassion and perseverance, these animals might learn to be happy, obedient, and loving. Your persistent care and love and patience for these abused and neglected creatures might earn you their respect, obedience and loyalty. Through your gentle care, they might learn (or perhaps re-learn), how to relate to those around them in a much healthier and positive way.

Now, if this is how animals can respond when we adopt them into a caring, loving environment, what do you think our own response would be when we’ve been adopted by God as his dearly loved children?

As we live in the security and protection of our loving God who grants forgiveness of sins, cleansing from past abuse, rescue from our enemies, nourishment for our faith through his Word and precious Sacraments, peace and fellowship with himself and his holy people, and the promise of life after death, wouldn’t you think our own behaviours might change as we learn to live as God’s children?

We don’t live a new healthier way simply because this is the way we can earn our way into God’s good books. We’re already in his good books because of what Jesus Christ, his own dearly beloved Son, has done for us through his bitter suffering, his vicarious death, and his glorious resurrection. We’ve already been adopted into God’s own holy family and we’ve already been forgiven, cleansed, saved and promised life eternal. Nothing we do can make God love us any more or any less.

But, as God’s dearly beloved children who constantly receive his forgiveness, care and protection; as children who listen carefully and attentively to his holy Word which defines how God calls us to live in righteousness and holiness; and as children who receive grace upon grace, surely a bit of God’s goodness and graciousness would rub off on us!

Now you might be thinking it already does, and maybe this is so.

It could be that people can see how you’ve changed in the way you live and love and serve as a child of God. It could be that you no longer have any of those self-protective behaviours by which you would snap and snarl at those who threaten you. It could be that you no longer whimper or whinge or cry or throw tantrums in order to get what you want. It could be that you’re no longer selfish and self-seeking and will willingly and generously give of your time, energy and money for the sake of God’s kingdom.

It could be that you’re able to forgive all those who offend and trouble you. It could be that you don’t need people’s attention because you know you have God’s attention and that’s all you need. It could be that you’re not afraid of what people think or say or do to you because you already have all the love, approval and care from your heavenly Father, which is enough for you. It could be that you’re already living a righteous life just as Jesus Christ is righteous.

But it could also be that you struggle to live this way.

It could be that your old habits of self-protective behaviours, your selfish attitudes, and your desires for justice from those around you still keep rising from the dead to haunt you. You might still snap and snarl and bite back at those who hurt you. You might struggle to forgive your enemies. It could be you’re not as righteous in your actions, words and thoughts as God expects.

Just to show how serious this is, if we read a little further, we hear John say:

⁸ The one who continues to sin is of the Devil, because the Devil has been sinning from the beginning. This is why the Son of God appeared: to destroy the works of the Devil. ⁹ Nobody who has been born of God continues to commit sin, because God’s seed remains in him. He cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. ¹⁰ This is how the children of God and the children of the Devil are obvious: Everyone who does not do what is right is not from God, along with everyone who does not love his brother. (1 John 3:8-10)

This means, if we’re struggling to love our brothers and sisters in Christ, despite what they’ve done which hurt us, then we’re not of God. If we’re not constantly doing what’s right and good according to God’s Word, then we’re not of God. If it’s not obvious that we’re of God through our righteous thoughts, words and actions, then we could be accused of being of the Devil!

And yet, how many of us continue to struggle to forgive those who sin against us? How many of us struggle to live according to God’s righteous ways?

If the choice is between being children of the Devil and children of God, the answer would be pretty obvious! But, if we’re honest with ourselves, we all struggle to live as righteous children of God in all our thoughts, words and deeds!

How can we then live according to these verses? How can we live in righteousness? How can we forgive those who hurt us? How can we demonstrate we’re truly children of God by the way we live out our faith every day?

Well, let’s think back to the analogy of a rescue animal. If the abused or neglected animal is still controlled by fear, the animal won’t change its old behaviours. On the other hand, as the animal learns to trust the new master’s love and compassion, the animal will learn healthier behaviours.

Therefore, the answer for us is to no longer be led by the old masters of fears and desires, which always lead to sin. The answer for us is to trust our loving heavenly Father and be led by his love and righteousness.

While fear controls us, while selfishness controls us, while our desires control us, while past hurts control us, and while we continue to trust ourselves and our own well-practiced unhealthy protective behaviours, our faith won’t be obvious to anyone because the old sinful nature will continue to rule our lives.

On the other hand, as we learn to trust our loving heavenly Father who supplies all our needs for our body and soul, then we may learn to live as the righteous children of God whom he has called us to be.

You see, despite the fact God knows how deeply imbedded our sinful behaviours are, he still chose to adopt us as his dearly loved children anyway. Instead of refusing to forgive us in the vain and futile hope we’ll ever change our ways and repent, he willingly sacrificed his own dearly beloved Son as full payment for our sin. Even though he knows how much the abuses and neglections of the past continue to scar us, he still chooses to love us, and support us, and nourish us so we may live a new life of hope and peace and love.

Because God loves us, he adopted us as his children. In fact, it’s more than this. We’ve actually been born again as his children. We know this because this is what he tells us in his Word, and we can trust his Word because he never lies to us. What God says is true.

This means if God says you’re his children, then that’s who you are. If God says you’ve been reborn, then that means your old nature has died and you’ve been raised to live with him in righteousness, innocence and blessedness. If God says you’re forgiven and made holy through the blood of Jesus, then you’re now innocent and holy in God’s sight.

But, since the old nature with all its doubts and fears keeps wanting to entrap you in the old sinful nature, you need to constantly repent and believe. There’s a need to drown the old nature every day and there’s a need to look to God’s holy provisions to strengthen your faith every day.

As children of God, we no longer want our old selfish life of sin to rule our lives. As reborn Christians, we reject our own sinful natures and instead desire to grow in the righteousness of Christ, which is credited to us through faith in Jesus. As children of God we learn to forgive as we’ve been forgiven.

We forgive, not because anyone deserves our forgiveness, but simply because this is how children of God love and live. We forgive those around us because this is the way God forgives us. Our new loving and forgiving nature isn’t dependant on anyone else’s words or works (or lack of them). Our loving and forgiving nature is totally dependant on the words and work of our Triune God.

Fellow children of God, if rescue animals can learn new behaviours based on their new master’s love and compassion, then how much more can we learn to live a new life! After all, we’ve been rescued by our heavenly Father so that we may live a new life of faith and hope and love in his eternal kingdom of grace, which is why…

…the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.