Third Sunday after Pentecost – July 3, 2011
Praise to our heavenly Father
who abounds in grace, mercy, and peace for the sake of you and me, his dearly
loved children. Amen.
Dear Christians Friends,
Raise
your hand if you’ve had a hard week and feel like life just isn’t fair? Well then, I’ve got a message for you! Tell me, are you worn out by pain, frustrated
because things haven’t gotten better, or droopy eyed because you need more
sleep? Well then, I’ve got a message for
you. Let me know, do you find yourself
crying inside because of the guilt of sin, feeling as if you’ve come to church
today carrying a ton of bricks? Well
then, I’ve got a message for you. Are
you lonely or sad? Feel rejected,
mistreated or forgotten? Well then, I’ve
got a message for you. Is this the first
time you’ve been in church for awhile, or have you been regular and
faithful? Well, I’ve got a message for
you. Have you been harassed by the devil,
given in to the sins of the flesh much too much, or anxious about the future. Well then, I’ve got a message for you. Maybe you’re happy and healthy, and
everything is going well. Well then, I’ve
got a message for you.
It
is a message that turns our misery and pain into thanksgiving, our sorrows and
sighs into songs of praise. A message that takes our sins and flushes them down the drain. A message relieving our worry, reminding us
of what is important, and focusing our sight – to the never-ending message of
peace, grace, mercy, and love bestowed on us by our Heavenly Father. A message that makes us
joyfully shout, Praise the Lord, O my soul, for He has redeemed us from the
pit, and has crowned us with love and compassion. We read God’s words of immeasurable
comfort recorded for us in the 103 Psalm.
Psalm 103:1-5,8-12
vs.1 – Praise the LORD,
O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not
all his benefits – 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4
who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so
that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow
to anger, abounding in love. 9 He will
not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; 10 he does not treat
us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as
the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions
from us.
Today
is July 3rd, the day before the 4th of July. In some respects, I suppose you could call
this Sunday celebration Sunday! But what
makes today so much more special than last Sunday, or next Sunday, or two
months ago? Is it because many of us do
not have to work tomorrow? Is it because
we will be gathering with family and friends to celebrate the freedom of our
country? Actually, this Sunday is no
different than last Sunday, or next Sunday, or two months ago. Granted, it’s a different day and you are
listening to a different sermon, however there is no difference because of the
same word that God speaks to us day after day, Sunday after Sunday. The word that tells us - He has redeemed
us from the pit. First and foremost,
this is the reason we celebrate today!
Kind
David, the author of this Psalm, understood what success, power, and
celebration meant. As King of Israel he
extended its borders farther than they had been since the Israelites first
entered the Promised Land. He was given
victory after victory against his enemies.
He was continually blessed by God’s hand and provided peace, stability,
and a godly rule. However, David also
knew the other side of the coin. We
remember how the early years of his reign saw him constantly on the run from
his enemy, Saul. We remember his
wretched sins of murder and adultery, the distress brought by the death of one
of his sons, and the agony of having another son repeatedly attempt to kill
him. So, with these horrific sins and
distressing years, how is it that he could write such beautiful words of praise
to God? Simple, the Lord led him to see
what is most important - the forgiveness of sins. With these words of David we are given a
glimpse into the heart of God, where we see endless love, grace and mercy.
But
really, you and I should not be permitted to read words like these! King David should not have been allowed to
write words like these! David sinned
against the Lord , abusing his power to deceitfully
bring Bathsheba to himself. He sinned
against God when he slept with her. He
broke God’s law when he murdered Uriah.
He sinned against God when he decided he was going to determine what was
right and wrong. David sinned: so do you
and I.
When
we experience that never-ending week, and it seems like life just isn’t fair,
how quickly don’t we turn to God and grumble, complaining to him, criticizing
him for not making our life easier. We
sin against God when we willingly give into that pet sin, saying “It’s too hard
to fight it anymore.” We sin when we
suggest that God might not be telling the truth when we doubt that we are
forgiven and instead hold onto guilt. We
sin against God when we repeatedly ignore his Word by skipping out on Sunday
worship, or failing to receive the sacrament of Holy Communion often. Even when things are going well, we sin by forgetting
about God, and then start doing things with our own ego’s, our own desires, or
our own motivation in mind, deliberately ignoring God, who is behind every good
thing in our life. Yes, we have waged
open warfare against God and deserve to be swallowed by the grave, and sink
into a sea of torment forever.
So
how is it, then, with our life’s sins looking like hell on parade, and our
consciences screaming at us saying – you are a horrible sinner, you don’t
deserve God’s love, that I can ask you to shout, Praise the Lord, O my
soul. The reason is this, because we too
have been led to see that which is most important. Christ Jesus our Savior. With every endeavor in our life - in those
weeks that never seem to end; in the pain of another illness or the sorrow of
losing a loved one; in the joy of a special moment or when rejected by our
friends; in decisions we agree with or ideas we don’t like; when burdened with
a heavy conscience or troubled by a specific sin – we remember, we have God’s
love.
We shout,
“Praise the Lord Oh my soul” because God has not treated us as our sins
deserve. Instead, God has placed our
sins on Christ and treated Jesus according to our sins, and that meant he had
to suffer the bitterness of our hell.
Yet, when his awful work was done, Jesus had removed our transgressions
out of God’s sight. Through Jesus, we
have no sin in God’s eyes. God, full of
grace and love, has removed our guilt, clothed us with Christ’s own holiness, and
now guides us on our course to heaven.
We know and take comfort that God’s mercy and forgiveness are
immeasurable - his love will never end - his supply of forgiveness will never
run out - and that when God removes sin, he removes it completely.
And
so, as we get ready to go on our way today, to go live another week on this
earth, gathering with family and friends to celebrate the 4th of
July - first and foremost we stop to remember the blessing God gives us by redeeming
us from the pit. He has bought us back
from the depths of hell. He has removed
our sins forever, by placing them on his Son Jesus. And now, looking first through the cross of
Jesus we see that not only has he removed our sins forever, but that he also crowns
us with love and compassion.
I
ran across a story once in a history book that reminded me of God’s love and
compassion. The event took place in
1941. A German submarine sank a British
freighter off the coast of Africa. The
submarine surfaced among wreckage, lifeboats, and wounded men, and as the
British men were ordered to board the submarine they figured they would either
be killed or taken captive. Instead, the German captain had his doctor treat
their wounds. His crewmen repaired their
lifeboats, and he gave them food, water, wine, and tobacco, and then set them
on course for the nearest land. When you
stop and think, this captain had no reason to do this. These men were his enemies, and given the
chance, they would probably have killed him and his men. But regardless, he showed them undeserved
kindness.
Stop
and think - God has no reason to love us.
By nature we are his enemies and our sin crucified his Son. But through his Son, he showered us with
undeserved kindness. And yet, he doesn’t
stop there. Just as
the German captain went beyond the imagination of the British men by fixing
their boats, healing their wounds, and placing them on course to the nearest
land. The even greater love of
our heavenly Father goes far beyond our wildest imagination.
He
bestows upon us family, friends, and many things in this life to enjoy. He gives us hands to work with and brains to
think; sports to play and activities to enjoy; houses to live in and clothes to
wear. It reminds us of something like
this, “I believe that God made me and all
creatures, and that he gave me my body and soul, my eyes, ears, and all my
members, my mind and all my abilities.
And I believe that God still preserves me by richly and daily providing
clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land,
cattle, and all I own, and all I need to keep my body and life. God also preserves me by defending me against
all danger, guarding and protecting me from all evil.”
And
then to that we add, especially today, the blessing of living in a country with
so many blessings. Stop and think about
it. If we make more than $1,500 a year,
that’s less than $30 a week, we are richer than 75% of the world’s 6+ billion
people! Look at the choice of foods we
have! Look at the houses we live in, the
cars we drive, the places we can go to visit.
Greatest of all, look at the freedom we have to worship the true Lord
and Savior of all – the freedom of religion.
No one hinders us from worshiping the Lord. We are not threatened to lose our house, our
children, or our lives by opening the Bible.
We can worship when we want, where we want and how we want. We can gather together for special services,
fellowship meals, and the sacrament of Holy Communion. Indeed, today is a celebration Sunday to
praise the LORD for crowning us with love and compassion.
And
so it is appropriately to set aside today as a day of celebration, because we
stop to celebrate the wonderful love and compassion God is giving us by means of
our country. Surely, David recognized
the need for his soul to praise the Lord.
He knew where his success had come from.
He understood why he needed to remind his soul where to place its
praise. Because behind
every successful endeavor, every magnificent plan, and the completion of every
undertaking stands the Lord. First and foremost, for redeeming us from the pit of hell, and
for crowning us with love and compassion. Amen.