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Did you hear about the little boy who presented his mother with an itemized bill. He had carefully written down all the things he did around the house, and listed an amount after each thing.  (By the prices you can tell this was a long time ago.)

Mowing the Grass                                 $5.00
Making my bed all week                     $1.00
Going to the store                                 $.50
Taking out the trash                             $1.00
Good grades on report card              $5.00

And so on. The mother took the bill, looked at it, and didn’t say a word. The next morning the boy found the bill on his plate with the money he requested, but he noticed that his mother had written something on the back of it. He read down her list:

For the nine months I carried you             No Charge
The nights I sat up with you                         No Charge
Doctoring you when you were sick            No Charge
Praying for you                                                  No Charge
Tears I’ve cried for You                                  No Charge
Toys, food, clothes                                            No Charge
All my love for you                                            No Charge

 The little boy returned the money and the bill to his mother. When she looked at it, she saw He had written across his itemized list PAID IN FULL.

The love of a mother is wonderful, especially a Christian mother. They take care of all our needs, including the most important need of telling us of Jesus, teaching us to love and follow Him. Christian mothers give us a picture of God’s love for us, how freely He gives us everything, all the while we try to make demands of Him. The sacrifice He was willing to make for us was profound. He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all–how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32). God’s love provides for our needs constantly, all at no charge to us.

I pay tribute to Christians mothers today, those who have made it their priority to live out their Christian calling in their homes. That is the kind of mother I was blessed with. I know there were times that she and I didn’t get along too well. There were times that I was sure I hated her, and she may have felt the same way about me! Isn’t it funny, though, that I can’t remember why? What I do remember is that she is the one who took care of me. She was the one who made sure I got out of bed and had breakfast before I went to school. She was the one who sat up late to make sure I got home safely. She knew the pain of childbearing did not stop with labor and delivery. She was the one who prayed with me and for me. I thank God for that.

A good mother deserves honor, whether it is the mother who bore you or the mother who bore your children. My wife was and is an incredible mother to our three girls, and we see the fruit of that in the way our girls are living their lives and the kind of mothers they are to their children.

A Christian mother will model the love that God has shown to us. As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; [says the LORD] (Isaiah 66:13). That is what God has done: He has comforted us, loved us tenderly, given of Himself for our sakes. He saw us in our need, our corruption, the depravity of our sins, and He reached out to us. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. His death satisfied God’s demand that payment be made for sin. His rising assures you that death has been defeated. This has all been given to you at no charge, out of love.

Many of you first heard this good news from your mother, and she raised you to believe this, even as she did.

Happy Mother’s Day.

Recently I attended a worship service in a congregation that does traditional worship, using the liturgies found in the Lutheran Service Book. They have a wonderful music program at their church and the services are done well.

During the sermon that day, the Associate Pastor was preaching and said something about people getting bored in worship. He said something like: “I understand. After all, it is the same service week after week.” I’m sure there were people who took offense at that. They firmly believe that the services in the hymnal are the only appropriate forms of worship. But I smiled when he said that about it being the same service week after week. Why? Because I thought to myself, “It doesn’t have to be.”

Don’t misunderstand me. I think the historic services of Christendom are wonderful ways to worship and praise God. But they are not the only way, in spite of those who insist to the contrary.

Something from that service I attended even affirmed that point. During communion, their cantor sang part of Psalm 96 in Latin (an English translation was printed in the bulletin). And then he sang in English “Sing to the Lord a new canticle” (many translations of Scripture have “song” instead of “canticle”). Scripture encourages us to worship God in new ways. Even our Confessions tell us worship services to not have to be uniform in all places.

VII. [The Church]
¹ It is also taught among us that one holy Christian church will be and remain forever. This is the assembly of all believers among whom the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy sacraments are administered according to the Gospel.
² For it is sufficient for the true unity of the Christian church that the Gospel be preached in conformity with a pure understanding of it and that the sacraments be administered in accordance with the divine Word.
³ It is not necessary for the true unity of the Christian church that ceremonies, instituted by men, should be observed uniformly in all places.
⁴ It is as Paul says in Eph. 4:4, 5, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism.”
(Augsburg Conession, Article VII, Tappert, T. G. (Ed.). (1959). The Book of Concord)

Our focus needs to be on sharing the Gospel with people in Word and Sacraments. We need to share Jesus in everything we do, who He is and what He has done for us through His life and death and resurrection. Different people react to different stimuli. We are not all the same. But we all need Jesus. Maybe instead of criticizing those who have forms of worship that our different than ours, we should have the attitude of Paul.

1 Corinthians 9:19–23 Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

Be all things to all people to point them to Jesus. God help us.

In 2012, Chris Stevens was the first United States ambassador to Libya in a good many years. He was also the first United States ambassador in a good many years to be killed while serving in that capacity. Ambassadors often find themselves in difficult and dangerous circumstances. As representatives their government, they are supposed to be protected and respected. But that only works for people who obey the law. Terrorists see ambassadors as an instrument to draw attention to their cause. That is why Mr Stevens was attacked at the U.S. Embassy and killed.

Of course, Chris Stevens is not the only ambassador who has been in danger. In his second letter to the Christians in Corinth, St. Paul reminded the believers that they were not just individuals, they were ambassadors for Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:20–21 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As those who have been redeemed by Jesus, everything we say and do reflects on Him. We represent Jesus and His Kingdom to the world. We are to share that message that the Savior’s life, death and resurrection assure all who trust in Him of complete forgiveness for sin. Because Jesus has ascended into heaven, He uses us, His followers, to make His appeal to an unbelieving world. We are ambassadors for Christ. And it is a job that is not without danger.
Jesus warned us: “All men will hate you because of me…” (Mark 13:13a). And history has proved that statement to be true. Over the centuries His ambassadors have often been the object of hatred, scorn and persecution. Even today, there are brothers and sisters around the world are being persecuted and killed because they are ambassadors for Christ. They are suffering, but as they do they know their suffering will point people to the Savior. They know and pray they may remain faithful ambassadors for Christ. The second part of that verse from Mark has Jesus reminding us: “…but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.” (Mark 13:13b).

Dear Jesus, You said Your followers would be persecuted. But You also said that those who endure to the end would be saved. Today I pray for those, many who are nameless, who are being persecuted because You have become their Savior. Help them endure and, even while being persecuted, remain Your ambassadors, proclaiming the forgiveness and freedom You have won. This I ask in Your holy Name. Amen.

Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. (Ps. 95:1)

I vividly remember Wednesday morning chapel services when I attended Our Redeemer Lutheran School in Dallas. Most often we used the order of Matins, and we would sing words based on the passage above in the Venite. God is the Rock of our salvation! This imagery is throughout the Old Testament.

When Jacob was blessing his sons, he came to Joseph and referred to God as a Rock, calling him “…the Mighty One of Jacob, … the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel.” (Genesis 49:24)

When Moses stood on the brink of the Promised Land, he offered a song of praise, and said: “He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he.” (Deuteronomy 32: 4)

David gathered five smooth stones from the brook as he went forth to do battle with Goliath.  And years later, when He was King David, He spoke of God this way: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior.” 2 Samuel 22:2-3

All through Isaiah we find references to God as the Rock, such as: Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD, the LORD, is the Rock eternal (Isaiah 26:4).

God was thought of as a ROCK because He is steadfast and firm. It is little wonder, then, that when our Lord Jesus appeared on the scene, he was called the ROCK! He is the Chief Cornerstone, the rock of our salvation. He is strong and mighty to save. Jesus is the Rock!

One Easter years ago at Grace, as people arrived to worship they were given a rock like the one in the picture, with a cross engraved on it. That was risky handing them out at the beginning, but thankfully no one threw one at me during the service. I gave everyone those rocks as reminders of Jesus being the rock of our salvation. He is the Son of God who laid aside His power as God to come down here as one of us, live among us, go through everything we go through, and do it all without sin. He then offered His perfect life on a different kind of altar – the cross. The Rock of your salvation let Himself be sacrificed to pay for your sin.

But on that Easter, I wanted them to remember another rock mentioned in the Gospels. After Jesus died, we are told that Joseph of Arimathea secured permission to take His body from the cross and bury Him.

Matthew 27:59-60 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.

That should have been the end. That was how life ended. With a burial. And Jesus had declared on Friday, “It is finished.” The price for sin had been paid by Jesus, the Rock of your salvation. It is finished. The stone sealed the tomb. That was it. But wait … there’s more. Jesus rocked the world — the stone was rolled away! Death could not hold Him. He burst from the tomb to announce life everlasting for all who believe in Him.

May you always remember the Rock of your Salvation and how He rocked the world for you!

There was a song recorded and made famous by Randy Travis back in 1987. I really like his smooth, deep voice. It was written by a fellow named Paul Overstreet who has written a lot of hit songs for a lot of artists, including Himself. You may recognize the lyrics.

I’m gonna love you forever
Forever and ever amen
As long as old men sit and talk about the weather
As long as old women sit and talk about old men
If you wonder how long I’ll be faithful
I’ll be happy to tell you again
I’m gonna love you forever and ever
Forever and ever, amen

 It is a nice little love song, with a man pledging his love to a woman. But we know that the love we show to each other is but an imperfect reflection of the love that God has shown to us. The love of God is known in Jesus, who was willing to set aside His power as God so that He would live among, keep the law for us, and offer Himself as the payment for the sins of the world.

Here are a few passages to consider about the way God loves you.

John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

1 John 3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.

John 13:34–35 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

1 John 3:23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

We know that God truly loves us, forever and ever. Amen. Let us resolve to imitate Him today, showing His love to the people He places before us.

A church was looking for a new preacher. They formed a Pastoral Search Committee and started interviewing candidates. During one of the interviews, they asked the candidate, “What part of the Bible do you like best?” He said, “I like the New Testament best.” Then he was asked “What book in the New Testament is your favorite?” He answered “The book of the Parables.” They looked at each other and then asked said, “Why don’t you share a bit of that book with us?” This is what he said:

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus who went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell on the stony ground among thieves; and the thorns grew up and choked the man. So he got up and climbed a Sycamore tree. He was there for three days and three nights, when Solomon and his wife Gomorrah came by and helped him down. They took him down to the Ark of the Covenant to take care of him. He went on and met the Queen of Sheba, and she gave him a thousand talents of silver and a hundred changes of clothing. And he got in his chariot and drove furiously, and as he was driving along under a fig tree, his hair got caught in a limb and left him hanging there! And he hung there for forty days and forty nights. The Ravens brought him food to eat and water to drink. And one night while he was hanging there asleep, his wife Delilah came along and cut off his hair, and his strength left him and he fell on stony ground once again. And it began to rain. And it rained for forty days and forty nights. And he hid himself in a cave and said, “I am the only one left!” Later he went on and met a man who said, “Come in and take supper with me.” But he said “I can’t come in, for I have married a wife” And the man went out into the highways and the byways and compelled him to come in! He then came to Jerusalem, and saw Queen Jezebel sitting high and lifted up in a window of the wall. When she saw him she laughed and he said “Throw her down out of there”, and they threw her down. And he said “Throw her down again”, and they threw her down again. In all, they threw her down seventy times seven. And the fragments that they picked up filled twelve baskets full! “Now, whose wife will she be in the resurrection?”

The search committee sat in stunned silence, and finally they agreed that this was indeed a very knowledgeable candidate!

Everything he said was in the Bible. And while you may have laughed at how mixed up it was, I would guess that most of you would have a hard time identifying the different Bible stories referenced here. Indeed, it is all in the Bible! Unfortunately too many people today are ignorant of these stories, where they are found and the significance of them. You may know what the Bible says, but knowing what it says without making sense of it does you no good.

That is why I encourage all of you to spend time in your Bibles every day. Read it for yourself. Don’t rely on what I or anyone else tells you about it. Read it yourself. You have to know what it says, understand what it means for you, and believe it. That will not happen apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. Nor will it happen if you don’t know what it says!

I know there are a thousand different things screaming for your attention every day, and this is one of them that is so easily dismissed as not all that important. But consider this: What is more important than God?  He wants to spend some time with you. He wants you to spend some time with Him. So I have a challenge for you. Instead of spending all evening watching shows that you’ve already seen on television or something you don’t really want to watch, instead of scrolling mindlessly through social media posts on your phone, take ten minutes of that time and read a chapter of the Bible each night. Alone time with God. Instead of playing computer games for an hour, play for 45 minutes and spend the other 15 minutes reading God’s Word. Become better acquainted with your God as He speaks to you in His Word. Make it a daily discipline to learn more about the one who made you, loves you, and sent His Son to redeem you. There is nothing more important than that, but you wouldn’t know it by the way most of us prioritize our lives.

The better you know God’s Word, the better you will be able to apply it to your life, your living, your peace of mind. The more time you spend in God’s Word, the less likely you will be to get as mixed up as that man at the beginning of this devotion. The better you know God’s Word, the more you will understand the peace you have with God because of what Jesus did in your place. The message of Scripture is all about that. Get into the Word yourself to let God speak to you.

A young woman wandered into a church service one day, heard the message of God’s love for her in Christ, and was led by the Spirit of God to put her trust in Jesus as her Lord and Savior. She had a very rough past, involving alcohol, drugs, and even prostitution. But all that changed once she met Jesus. In fact, the change was obvious in her life. As time went on she became a faithful member of the church. She eventually became involved in the ministry, teaching young children.

It was not very long before this faithful young woman caught the eye and heart of a young man in the congregation. In fact, it was the pastor’s son. The relationship grew and they started to make wedding plans. This is when the problems began. You see, about one half of the church did not think that a woman with a past such as hers was suitable for a pastor’s son. The members of the church began to argue and fight about the matter. So they decided to have a meeting.

This was one of those knock-down-drag-out church meetings where the way people talked and acted didn’t make them look like the followers of Jesus they were supposed to be. It got pretty ugly. As the people made their arguments and tensions increased, the meeting was getting completely out of hand. The young woman became very upset about all the things being brought up about her past. As she began to cry the pastor’s son stood to speak. He could not bear the pain it was causing his wife to be. So this is what he said:

“My fiancée’s past is not what is on trial here. What you are questioning is the ability of the blood of Jesus to wash away sin. Today you have put the blood of Jesus on trial. So, does it wash away sin or not?”

When the people assembled heard that question, it hit them right between the eyes. They all began to weep as they realized that they had been slandering the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Did the death of Jesus bring forgiveness or not? Was His sacrifice enough to cover all sins? Either Jesus paid for all sins or He didn’t pay for any of them – which is true?

Too often, Christians we bring up the past and use it as a weapon against our brothers and sisters. I’ve heard it described this way: “All too often the Church shoots its wounded!” That is the exact opposite of how we should treat each other. Forgiveness is at the core of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. If the blood of Jesus does not cleanse the other person completely then it cannot cleanse us completely. If that is the case, then we are all in a lot of trouble.

But that is not the case. The message of God in His Word is clear.

1 John 1:7-9 … the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 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.

We rejoice in the knowledge that no matter what our sins have been, we have forgiveness for Jesus’ sake. Let’s remember that our brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter what their sins have been, enjoy that same forgiveness.

Cheryl likes to watch cooking and baking competition on the television, like “Chopped” and “The Great British Bake Off.” I like to shows where they remodel homes, like “Maine Cabin Masters.”  Something these so called “Reality Shows” have in common is that at some point in every episode they try to add to the drama by saying they won’t have enough time to finish. Every single episode. They will even play music that tries to suck you into the sense of urgency. It is all geared toward making you more excited and involved so that you will continue to watch.

How easily we get caught up in the hype and pressure and tension. And I’m not just talking about those “reality shows.” We allow the drama in our lives to take control. We convince ourselves that we have to hurry up and get things done so we keep up with our neighbors. Our world is constantly telling us to “Go! Go! Go!.” Hurry up. There isn’t enough time to get it all done. Rush! Get moving.

When you find yourself getting overwhelmed by the drama and the demands on you, listen to what God says to you:

Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.”

Take a breath. Step back. Ask yourself if what you are doing is really worth what you are putting yourself through. Don’t push yourself too hard. You need to rest. Jesus said as much to His disciples before the Feeding of the 5000.

Mark 6:31 Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

And then again, after He fed that large crowd, we read this.

Mark 6:45–46 Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

Be Still. Take time to rest. Take time to pray. You can’t do everything. And you don’t have to do everything. Take time to rest and remember what Jesus has done for you. He paid for you sin. He earned your forgiveness. He defeated death for you. He opened heaven for anyone who will trust in Him. Let those things guide and direct how you spend your time today. I think you will discover you have plenty of time.