When God Tempts

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Promises are dangerous things. Sure, when you make a promise, you have in mind only the wonderful, glorious things that such vow will open to you. But the razor's edge of a promise is that you actually have to keep it. Once you give your word that you will do something, or that you will not do something, you must keep it.

Promises come in all shapes and sizes. The one most familiar to most of you is probably your wedding vows. You promised to love and cherish your spouse, to have and to hold her, remain faithful to her for richer or for poorer, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, til death do you part. This is no light wish or flip gesture. You were joined to each other under this vow before God. For better or for worse, she is yours and you are hers. “What God has joined, let no man put asunder.”

Return to Me

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As rebels, Lord, who foolishly have wandered

Far from Your love – unfed, unclean, unclothed –

Dare we recall Your wealth so rashly squandered,

Dare hope to glean that bounty which we loathed? (LSB 612.1)

We have wandered far from the love of God and from His grace and favor. Ever since Adam and Eve were thrown out of the Garden of Eden, man has been wandering the earth, seeking his own way to his own goal. The road is hard and unpleasant, and the destination horrible beyond imagination.

Isaiah says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned – every one – to his own way” (53:6). You and I have gone our own ways, seeking after the desires of our hearts and minds. Lost in the darkness and the shadow of death, you groped along, trying to find the scraps of something good, holy, clean. Just as in Israel in days of old, everyone does what is right in his own eyes. Whatever floats your boat. Different strokes for different folks, after all.

No Other Glory

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The desire to see God is a common drive among mankind. Though it may manifest in various ways, much of man's searching and striving in life is an effort to see, to apprehend, to comprehend the divine. The divine touches every inch of creation, and yet how does one touch the divine?

A great many people seek to see God in nature, in the things of this world. This is a worldview common among tribal religions the world over, which seek to pacify the spirits who control the elements which might otherwise conspire against them. Hindus, too, see the divine in everything. The pantheism native to the East says that everything is divine, and so everything must be regarded as a potential object of worship. A deity might choose to speak to you through the newspaper you choose to read. The cow in your pasture might be the mother of your grandchildren. The trees house the ancient spirits of the earth.

A Cleansing Touch

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

One of the most important issues in American everyday life is cleanliness. Just watch TV for an evening and count how many commercials run for things that clean: soap, shampoo, dental care, hair care, toilet paper, sanitizers, and so on. Clean is big business, and a big concern for a lot of people. Just think of the old adage: cleanliness is next to godliness.

In fact, much of the world takes to be more than just a quaint saying. In most of Asia, even in the dirtiest jungle, there is a concern for the state of one's feet. It is customary to take off your shoes when entering the home or temple of a Hindu or Buddhist, because to bring in the dirt of your travels would be to contaminate sacred space. The feet are considered perpetually unclean, and to display your feet or touch someone or something with them is considered insulting and offensive.

Jesus Brings Healing to Creation

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Discomfort is a fact of life in this world. Sometimes the discomfort you feel may be worse than others, depending on the source and duration. There is the irritation and discomfort of attempting to choose carefully a nice, smooth, flat campsite, then lying down and finding that you are directly atop a large rock or intrusive tree root. There is the discomfort of enduring a summer day when it is ninety-five degrees and ninety-five percent humidity. There is the discomfort of too-tight pants caused by too much indulgence.

Similarly, you and I endure a range of psychological and emotional discomforts. Worry about what the future will bring is discomforting. Stress over trying to accomplish ten things at once and doing them all right is discomforting. Encountering someone with whom you have quarreled or fallen out is discomforting. Seeing graphic images or hearing tragic stories in the news is discomforting.

And yet, all these discomforts are relatively easily remedied. But often you face another set of circumstances that brings more lasting discomfort. Illness can plague for weeks, months, or years. Personal tragedy strikes a mark on the heart that will never quite heal. These discomforts are not so easily relieved by rolling over or thinking positive.