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Cheryl and I were listening to the news together recently and heard yet another story about a male who identified as a female so that he could compete in sports against women. You have heard all the insanity in our country. People want to identify as something that they are not, and half the nation seems to want to bend over backwards to accommodate their new self perception.

I told Cheryl that I was going to identify as a T-Rex. I could then go out and kill people and eat them and no one could condemn me for it, because I identified as something that naturally ate people. If that sounds ridiculous, it is because it is.

Simply declaring yourself to be something that you physically are not does not make it a reality. You and I don’t have that power. But God has the power to give us a new identity and He does it.

Romans 4:17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.

God told 99-year-old Abraham that he would have a son. Sounded at the very least unlikely if not impossible. But God can “call things that are not as though they were.” Abraham was not a father, yet God made it a reality by His power.

God can still “call things that are not as though they were.” That includes all those who put their trust in Jesus. Even though you are not righteous, God calls you that for Jesus’ sake. He covers you with His perfection. Your faith in Jesus lays hold of the righteousness He earned for you. That is the only way you can be forgiven for your sins.

Even though I get frustrated at the reports of people trying to identify as something in this world that they physically are not, I also feel compassion for them. I pray for them to find peace in their lives. And I know that is possible if they will seek to find their identity in Christ. All people should strive to find their identity in Christ. He loves you and cares for you and wants only the best for you. He died for you and conquered death for you. When you put your faith in Him, it changes you for the better. It has implications for your life now and for eternity.

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

Today I will lead worship services in which we will go through a confession of sins. I have done this thousands of times, and there is always a familiar unease as I do so. I confess my sin along with everyone else present. Confessing my sins honestly before God makes me uncomfortable. And it should.

Over the years, I heard lots of folks, especially people who were not used to liturgical worship, object to the ritual of admitting that we are ”poor, miserable sinners” or whatever language was used to point out our sinfulbness. They didn’t like it. And I understand their reticence. It is something none of us wants to do.

As uncomfortable as it is, it is necessary. It is also therapeutic. Maybe it would help to think of it in those terms. Anyone who has had joint surgery or an injury has to go through physical therapy. I know several physical therapists, and I have been through it myself. It hurts. It is uncomfortable. You can come up with all kinds of excuses not to do it. However, if you don’t you won’t get better. With the pain and discomfort of the therapy, healing and restoration comes. It is for your own good!

So it is with confession. Through the necessary discomfort and pain of admitting our sin, and by virtue of the faith we have in Jesus as our Savior, we hear the announcement of sin forgiven and life everlasting. We are reminded that the offering of His perfect life as payment for the sin of the world was our payment for sin. We are healed and restored and empowered to live for Him.

Jesus told a story to show us the attitude we should have when we confess our sins.

To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”   Luke 18:9-14

Lord, keep me from arrogantly thinking I don’t need to confess my sin. Give me the attitude that readily cries out, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” that I may go home justified, rejoicing in the righteousness that is mine for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Daily chapel services were part of my life as a student at Concordia Lutheran College in Austin. I still remember a line from one of Professor Richard Dinda’s sermons as we entered another Lenten season. He said, “We now find ourselves in the pits of the church year.”

I think many of us can relate to that sentiment. Lent is a sober and somber time of reflection that many people would just as soon skip and get on to Easter. But hold on for a second. We need this reminder. Lent points us to our own sin as the reason for Jesus coming to this world. Lent tells you Jesus loved you enough to pay for your filth and guilt that would keep you out of heaven. Lent is an exposition of just how vast God’s love for you is. That love was shown in Jesus’ life, suffering and death to ensure you could be forgiven.

I was in that mindset many years ago when God led me to write the following song. I hope the lyrics will help you through your Lenten journey this year.

Lenten Wonder

I’ve often wondered, Lord, at all that you’ve done
Into this world of sin you sent your Son.
And even stranger, Lord, you did this for me: You sent your Son to Calvary.

Jesus the Lamb of God, He took my pain,
The one who knew no sin for sinners has been slain.

I’ve often wondered, Lord, oh, can it be true,
That a poor wretch like me could be loved by you?
Love that could not be earned gave this gift free: You sent your Son to Calvary

The nails, the cross, the spear, wounds that He bore,
He suffered these that I might live forevermore

 I thank and praise you, Lord, that through faith I’m saved
To sin and death I am no longer enslaved
Jesus who went to die on Calvary He rose again in victory.

I thank and praise you, Lord, that by grace I’m saved
Of sin and death I am no longer afraid
Jesus who went to die on Calvary He rose again in victory.

2 Timothy 3:1–5 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.

Paul wrote these words of caution to a young preacher 2000 years ago. And these words have proved to be prophetic, prophecy that has been fulfilled over and over again in our world.  We recognize the truth of these words when we observe the world in which we live today. So many claim to be “godly” but deny the Scriptures that the disagree with, picking and choosing what they want to believe. It is a way to justify their sin in their own minds.

Martin Luther wrote these words about this second letter Paul sent to Timothy: “But he prophesies especially … concerning the perilous time at the end of the world. It is then that a false spiritual life will lead all the world astray, with an outward show, under which every sort of wickedness and wrong will have its fling. Sad to say! we now see this prophecy of St. Paul all too amply fulfilled in our clergy” (Luther’s Works 35:389).  Luther saw the fulfillment in his day as well.

Thanks be to God this is not the primary thrust of Paul’s letter. Yes, he warned Timothy about the dangers of unbelief and the denying the truth of God’s Word. He did so to encourage that young pastor to be faithful to the truth that had been shared with him, the message Paul proclaimed and that Timothy proclaimed as well.

2 Timothy 2:1 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Our lives as followers of Jesus are totally dependent on the grace of God. It is grace that saves us. It is grace that empowers us to live as God’s children. It by grace alone that we will enter God’s presence and be able to stand. That is the message we continue to rejoice in today and that needs to be continually proclaimed.

By grace I’m saved, grace free and boundless;
My soul, believe, and doubt it not.
Why stagger at this word of promise?
Hath Scripture ever falsehood taught?
Nay; then this word must true remain;
By grace thou, too, shalt heav’n obtain.

By grace God’s Son, our only Savior,
Came down to earth to bear our sin.
Was it because of thine own merit
That Jesus died thy soul to win?
Nay, it was grace, and grace alone,
That bro’t Him from His heave’nly throne.

By grace! This ground of faith is certain;
So long as God is true, it stands.
What saints have penned by inspiration,
What in His Word our God commands,
What our whole faith must rest upon,
Is grace alone, grace in His Son.

By grace! On this I’ll rest when dying;
In Jesus’ promise I rejoice;
For though I know my heart’s condition,
I also know my Savior’s voice.
My heart is glad, all grief has flown,
Since I am save by grace alone.

(The Lutheran Hymnal #373, stanzas 1,4,5 & 7)

Isaiah was a prophet who faithfully spoke God’s Word to God’s chosen people, the ones through whom He had promised to send the Messiah. The words he shared did not always make him popular. At times Isaiah called the people out for their waywardness and sin, but then he would remind them of the goodness of their loving Father in heaven and the kindness He wanted to show them.

In chapter 30, God’s people had sought some sort of alliance with Egypt for protection. They did so without consulting the Lord, indicating they did not rely on Him to be their protector. How often do we do the same in our lives, thinking we have to do everything ourselves and not involving God in the process?

Through His prophet the Lord chastises His people for trusting in the powers of this world rather than Him. Then He offers these words:

Isaiah 30:15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.”

They rejected the things that would have assured them of salvation from God over and over again. We look back on them and wonder why they would do that.

Lent is a time of repentance. We are encouraged to remember the sacrifice Jesus made to give us salvation, and to “rest” in that strength and certainty rather than trusting in ourselves and our own efforts.

Lord, forgive us for the times when we seek solutions to our problems without consulting you. Draw us closer to You and Your will. Remind us of all You have already done for us by coming down to this earth to be our Savior. Give us Your strength that we turn from our sins and back to you. Don’t let us be numbered among those who reject your ways, who “would have none of it.” Enable us to trust in Your power to save and Your ongoing guidance for our lives. Amen.

 Isaiah 26:3  You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.

During a recent Bible Class at our congregation, the leader asked what we thought of when we hear the term “outstretched arm.”  People suggested things like welcoming, hugging, holding hands, guiding, and giving directions by pointing. Someone mentioned the outstretched arms of Moses to part the Red Sea, arms that had to be held up by Aaron and Hur. Someone else brought up arms outstretched in battle to hold a shield and a sword. I suggested that sometimes an outstretched arm with a hand held up signals people to stop. My dear wife, sitting next to me, started singing, along with the hand motions: “Stop, in the name of love, before you break my heart…” An outstretched arm can mean many things.

In Scripture, this term is used repeatedly in the Old Testament to describe God’s activity here on earth. Most often it refers to God’s deliverance of His people from their slavery in Egypt and leading them to the Promised Land.

Exodus 6:6 “Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.

Deuteronomy 26:8 So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous signs and wonders

Jeremiah 32:21 You brought your people Israel out of Egypt with signs and wonders, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror.

The prophet Jeremiah also uses the term to describe God’s creative activity.

Jeremiah 27:5 With my great power and outstretched arm I made the earth and its people and the animals that are on it, and I give it to anyone I please.

Jeremiah 32:17 “Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.

In every instance, the outstretched arm of God is a display of His power and strength.

I think the ultimate display of God’s power and might was in the outstretched arms of Jesus on the cross. He was accomplishing our greatest need by willingly, in an act of love, offering His perfect life as the only acceptable payment for the sins of the world. His mighty hands received the nails, but they were unnecessary to hold Him on that cross. He chose to go there in order to atone for my sin, for your sin, and for the sin of everyone…including those who do not believe in Him. With His mighty hand and outstretched arms He accomplished an even greater deliverance than the Exodus from Egypt. He delivers us from sin and death and the power for the devil.

When Mary sang her song of praise to God, she included these words:

Luke 1:51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;

She was describing God’s power, which is capable of anything. And her Son displayed that power in the most loving way on that hill outside of Jerusalem.

A common excuse people use to justify sinful behavior is “I was born that way” or “I can’t help the way I am.” And I do not disagree with their self-assessment. Scripture agrees with them, too.

Psalm 51:5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

But being born sinful does not give you the right to live that way and insist that God must accept you on your terms. If you choose to live in your sin without repentance, God will allow you to do so. He will also give you what your sins deserve.

How that must break the Father’s heart. He has provided a way for you to be set free from your sin and its eternal consequences. Jesus took care of that with a perfect life and the offering of that sinless life as the sacrifice for the sins of the world. If you trust in Him, forgiveness is yours.

There are those who try to twist the message of Scripture to say that belief in Jesus is permission to continue sinning without remorse or repentance. That is the opposite of what Jesus said. While Jesus spent all of His time with sinners, He never joined them in their sins. And His constant encouragement was to stop sinning, as He told the woman caught in adultery:

 John 8:11b “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

When God forgives you, a sense of gratitude should be the result, a gratitude that seeks to express itself in your life. You want to live in a new way, the new life to which God has called you, which strives to leave sin behind and live according to God’s Will.

Matthew 16:24–25 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.

Those who want to continue in their sins do not “deny themselves.” They think that indulging in their sins will give them the life they are searching for. But they end up losing the life God wants them to have, life eternal with Him.

God gives you the strength and power to deny the desires of your old sinful self. The problem is we don’t always use that power. We stumble and fail and fall. But God’s grace is a reality in the lives of those who put their confidence in Jesus. We admit our sin, repent, and God reassures us of His forgiveness for Jesus’ sake.

1 John 1:8–9 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Someone asked me recently whether or not God cries. He said knew Jesus had cried while living among us, but He was asking if God still cries now.

That’s a tough question. Scripture, God’s revelation of Himself to us, describes Him as having emotions: sorrow, compassion, anger, joy, grief and others. But God is not controlled or overcome by emotions. And I don’t know of a place in His Word that would suggest that the Almighty sheds tears in heaven.

Let’s consider what the Bible says about God grieving.

Genesis 6:6 The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain.

1 Samuel 15:11 “I am grieved that I have made Saul king, because he has turned away from me and has not carried out my instructions.”

Ephesians 4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

God grieves over sin. He feels sorrow when people suffer. It hurts Him when people turn away from Him. All this comes from the love that He has for the ones He created, the ones He came down here and rescued by dying in our place. He grieves because He wants only the best for all people, but not all people trust Him and take what He has to offer.

Knowing that God grieves and experiences emotions helps us relate to Him and understand Him. He cares about us and is affected by what we experience.