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A Bishop told the story of a little boy swimming in a lake when he found himself going under. He could swim no farther. He was struggling for his life. Going down for the third time, he felt the arm of a strong man lifting him. The man had seen the boy’s plight and swum out to save him. After taking him safely to the shore and making sure he was O.K., the man was about to leave. The boy said, “Thank you for saving my life.” The man replied, “You’re welcome, son. See to it that you are worth saving.” The boy was the bishop telling the story. He never forgot that man who didn’t even leave his name. And he posed a good question. Am I worth saving. Is God getting any return on the investment He has made?

Ephesians 4:1-4 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit– just as you were called to one hope when you were called–

What this passage literally says is to “walk worthy of your calling.” The word for worthiness has the meaning of being able to carry the weight, the responsibility you have been given. The passage is encouraging you to respond appropriately, to live as though you were deserving of the honor you have received. You are to be God’s people. This is not just a title or an outward distinction, but one that has practical form and bears suitable fruit in your day to day living.

If you have experienced God’s grace in your heart, that will show itself by true goodness in your life. To live a life worthy of your calling means you know and believe and understand what God has done for you in Jesus. You will not conceal your religion. You won’t be ashamed of it or disavow it. Those who live worthy of their calling are those who state it loudly: “I belong to Jesus.” They glory in this proclamation. They rejoice in it. They don’t want to dishonor their lives by unworthy conduct. Instead, they want their lives to be brightened and elevated by their relationship to Jesus.

The worthiness spoken of by Paul in our text has nothing to do with merit, but response. We should walk worthy of the calling we have received, be a distinct people, set apart. It is not the cause for salvation, but the response to having been called to salvation. How do you do this? How do you live a life worthy of your calling? He give a brief checklist:

• humble – don’t think too highly of yourself. Remember that you could not save yourself.
• gentle – think of how easily you let harsh words fly at others when you get upset. That is not the life worthy of your calling. Those who strive to live according to God’s design will follow the model of Jesus: His speech and actions and demeanor.
• patient – willing to wait. Think of how patient our heavenly Father is with each of us even though we continue to disappoint Him.
• forbearing (put up with each other) in love – always a hard one.
• united in peace – an end to petty squabbling.

How many of you like to be described as worthless? If you don’t want to be known that way, don’t live that way! Live a life worthy of your calling, the kind of life someone should live in response to the salvation God has given you in Christ. God’s view of worthiness is different from the worlds’ description.

• A poet can take a worthless sheet of paper, write a poem on it and make it worth a fortune – that’s genius.
• Elon Musk could sign his name to a piece of paper and make it worth millions – that’s capital.
• A mechanic can take a few dollars worth of material and make it a working machine – that’s skill.
• An artist could take an inexpensive piece of canvas and make it worth thousands by painting a picture – that’s art.
• God can take a worthless, sinful life, wash it in the blood of Christ, put His Spirit in it, and make it a blessing to humanity – that’s salvation.

God has done that for you in Christ. You know about it. He has given you worth. He wants you to respond with a life led for him, a life worthy of your calling.

Exodus 24:3–11 When Moses went and told the people all the Lord’s words and laws, they responded with one voice, “Everything the Lord has said we will do.” Moses then wrote down everything the Lord had said. He got up early the next morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain and set up twelve stone pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings to the Lord. Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and the other half he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, “We will do everything the Lord has said; we will obey.” Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.” Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel went up and saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear as the sky itself. But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw God, and they ate and drank.

“We will do everything the Lord has said. We will obey.” That was a noble promise on the part of those who had just been led out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, and away from Pharaoh. And I am sure they were sincere in saying those words in response to all that God had just done for them. But it is a good thing being rescued from Egypt did not depend on them keeping their promise. They never would have made it out! If you have read the book of Exodus, you know that even after their rescue they spent a lot of time whining and complaining and following false gods. They were not worthy of being rescued, not worthy of salvation. Yet God saved them! They had good intentions when they made that promise, but that was not good enough.

Just as the Israelites were not worthy of their rescue, neither are you and I worthy of being saved by Christ. He did not come because He knew you and I would be these wonderful people that He just couldn’t pass up. He did not die for you because He figured you would contribute something that made you worthy of saving. He did not save you in view of the faith of your parents or your children. He saved you out of love. He wanted you to be for Him a treasured possession. So He gave Himself in your place.

There was only one ever worthy of salvation, the one we sing about, the one whom the angels and saints in heaven adore with this refrain:

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” (Rev. 5:12) 

Jesus Christ lived the life that was worthy of all things good. He was not deserving of death and punishment, but worthy of eternity with God. Yet when men were called upon to judge him, what was their verdict? The answered He is worthy of death! (Matt 26:66),

That in itself was a display of God’s goodness. By the blood of Jesus, by His death, by His rising He has made us worthy to receive the glory of forgiveness and life everlasting. He has paid the price for out sins, taking unworthy people and giving us His perfection and righteousness, so that we can now stand before God without fear.

Just over ten years ago my fishing buddy went to be with Jesus. I met Jim shortly after my father died, and he was around the same age my father had been. He and his wife moved to the area and joined our congregation. And he loved to fish. He fished more days than he did not fish. And he took me with him more times than I could count. He was the reason our church had a fish fry every year. He was a kind man, always concerned about others, he loved to laugh, and was a good friend.

What follows is a portion of the message I delivered at Jim’s funeral service.

One month ago today I woke up early, which is not that unusual. It was about 4:30 in the morning and I was reading from Proverbs for my devotion time. Outside, the thunder and lightning put on quite a show. I put on my headphones and hit the play button to see what music would come on. As I listened to the mandolin introduction, I knew it was no coincidence that this particular song popped up: “Lord, I Hope this Day is Good” by Don Williams. Very appropriate. For those who don’t know the song, it begins:

Lord, I hope this day is good.
I’m feelin’ empty and misunderstood.
I should be thankful, Lord, I know I should,
But Lord, I hope this day is good.

I smiled as I thought of all God’s goodness in my life. I try to thank Him every day for all that goodness. And I prayed along with Don as the song continued:

I don’t need fortune and I don’t need fame
Send down the thunder, Lord, send down the rain
But when you’re plannin’ just how it will be
Plan a good day for me.

 I know that in my life, I have had more good days than bad. That is a tremendous gift from God. And I remembered that the day before I had visited with Jim at home. He was still very clear-headed at that time, and we shared some laughs and some great memories. We knew it was nearing the end of the time he would spend with us here on earth and his entry into the presence of Jesus. During my visit with him, I thanked him for being my friend. I prayed with him. I reminded him of God’s promises, all of which have been fulfilled and kept by what Jesus did for us. As I was preparing to leave, my friend said to me his signature phrase, what he said to everyone and to me hundreds of times in person or on the phone: “Have a good one, now.” It was a good day.

And as hard as it is for us to think in these terms, June 22 was a good day, too. A good day for Jim. He has received what Jesus earned for him, the reward of his faith, the promised rescue and life that comes through faith in Christ. He is in that place where there is no more pain or sorrow or suffering. Thanks be to God!

As I said, Jim had the attitude that his life was in the good Lord’s hands. He told me that over and over again. And as I prayed with him, on more than one occasion I reminded him of these words:

Romans 14:8  If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

 That was his faith and confidence. Jim is with his Lord. As I think of where he now is, I say this of Jim not as a wish but as a statement of confidence: “Have a good one, now.”

Matthew 14 begins with the account of the beheading of John the Baptizer. When news of this reaches Jesus, He wanted some alone time to mourn and pray. However, a large crowd found and followed Him. The compassion of our Lord led Him to set aside His own needs and take care of the people, healing many of them. Then the disciples told Jesus to send them away because they needed to eat and there was no way to feed that crowd. Jesus simply blessed the meager supply of food they had and fed more than 5000 people until they were satisfied.

Right after this, Jesus sent the disciples in a boat to go ahead of Him to the other side of the lake. Then He went and had His alone time. The boat was having a hard time crossing the lake because to the wind. Then they saw Jesus walking on the water, and thought the worst. They thought they were seeing a ghost. But Jesus identified Himself. Peter wanted to know for sure, so he said, “If it is you, invite me to walk out there and join you!” Jesus offered the invitation, and Peter went out. He was walking on the water toward Jesus. Then we read these words.

Matthew 14:30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

One of the thoughts I have always had when I read these words is, “Why don’t we call him ‘Doubting Peter?’  He was chided for doubting just like Thomas was after the resurrection, but he wasn’t saddled with that label like Thomas was.”

But something else occurred to me recently when I heard these words read in church. It says Peter “saw the wind.” I know this may be splitting hairs, but you cannot see the wind. You can see the things the wind blows around and you can feel the wind when you are in it, but you cannot see the wind. You can certainly see the effect of the wind. A few weeks ago we had a big storm and saw the rain going sideways. Afterwards, my neighbor’s grill that belongs on her porch was out in the yard. The slide was ripped off the playground I built for my grandkids. And our heavy metal gate was pushed the wrong direction, ruining it and our gate opener. I saw the effects of the wind, but not the wind itself.

This led me to think about the Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit. It it interesting that the Hebrew word for “spirit” is also the word for “wind.” And just as you cannot see the wind, we cannot see the Holy Spirit. But we can certainly see the effect He has. His power is evident. He led people to write God’s Word so we could have it still today.

2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

He works through the Word and Sacraments to lead people to faith.

1 Corinthians 2:14 The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Titus 3:5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,

Philippians 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

1 Corinthians 12:3 no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

If it were not for the Holy Spirit, I would not have known that Jesus died to pay for my sin and earn my forgiveness. If the Spirit had not worked in me, I would never have believed in Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I cannot “see” the Holy Spirit, but He is just as real as the wind. And I am grateful that His power is at work in me.

From time to time in my ministry, I would address those gathered for worship with these words: “Welcome, Sinners!” That usually got their attention. While they were not expecting to hear those words, they we nonetheless an accurate description of those who assembled for worship.

Ironically,  many  people offer this excuse for not coming to church: “That Church is full of sinners.” My reply was always “You’d better believe it. And I hope those sinners keep right on coming to this Church!”  I didn’t say that because I am proud of the fact that we are sinful, but it is the truth. There is no denying it. We freely admit that to God and to each other when we confess our sins together, and then take advantage of God’s offer of free forgiveness for the sake of Jesus Christ. As the Bible states so plainly, Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners!  That’s us! All of us.

That salutation, “Welcome, Sinners!” is more than just a greeting. It is a description of what Jesus did, and what He would have us do as well.

Luke 15:1-10 Now the tax collectors and “sinners” were all gathering around to hear him. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?  And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, `Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, `Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

The enemies of Jesus muttered, this man welcomes sinners! They meant this as a stinging insult, a ridicule, a criticism, but it was actually a compliment. They were describing the reason that Christ came into this world. After the Fall, sin is a reality in all men. We are sinful by virtue of the sin we inherit from our parents, what theologians call “Original Sin.” And if that isn’t bad enough, each of us sin daily by going against God’s Law. We lie, cheat, hurt each other, lose our tempers. All of those are real sins, sins that have caused us to be separated from God. We deserve punishment, death and eternal separation from God because of all our sins. Yet our God comes to us and says, “Welcome, sinners.” He does so for Jesus’ sake.

One of our hymns has us happily proclaiming Jesus Sinners Doth Receive. Through Jesus, God invites all of sinful humanity to come to Him to be forgiven and live. We are the sinners who are welcomed by the God of Creation.

Jesus sinners doth receive; Oh, may all this saying ponder
Who in sin’s delusions live And from God and heaven wander!
Here is hope for all who grieve Jesus sinners doth receive.

We deserve but grief and shame, Yet His words, rich grace revealing,
Pardon, peace, and life proclaim. Here our ills have perfect healing.
Firmly in these words believe Jesus sinners doth receive.

Sheep that from the fold did stray No true shepherd e’er forsaketh;
Weary souls that lost their way Christ, the Shepherd, gently taketh
In His arms that they may live Jesus sinners doth receive.

I, a sinner, come to Thee With a penitent confession;
Savior, mercy show to me Grant for all my sins remission.
Let these words my soul relieve; Jesus sinners doth receive.

Oh, how blest it is to know; Were as scarlet my transgression,
It shall be as white as snow By Thy blood and bitter Passion;
For these words I now believe; Jesus sinners doth receive.

Now my conscience is at peace, From the Law I stand acquitted;
Christ hath purchased my release And my ev’ry sin remitted.
Naught remains my soul to grieve Jesus sinners doth receive.

 Jesus sinners doth receive. Also I have been forgiven;
And when I this earth must leave, I shall find an open heaven.
Dying, still to Him I cleave Jesus sinners doth receive.

Lutheran Service Book #609

Our girls grew up without cell phones. They were around, but they did not have them until they went to college. We had a rule that they needed to let us know where they were and what they were doing. That meant they had to find a “land line” and call us. In high school, they had various jobs, and they would call us when they were leaving work to head home. Those conversations went something like this: “Hi Dad, I’m leaving now,” to which I replied, “O.K. Be Careful!” As I said those words I could hear my parents telling me the same thing countless times as I was growing up, especially after I started driving. After all, parents know all the things that can go wrong. That’s why they warn and plead, “Be Careful.” But most times I said those words “Be Careful,” I’m sure my daughters dismissed them as easily as I did. After all, kids know enough that they don’t really need their parents telling them what to do! However, in the hope that it might somehow get through and have some kind of effect, I continued to urge my children “Be Careful.” In fact, I still do.

God does the same thing. Because He loves us so much and is so concerned about each and every one of us, He urges us to “Be Careful.” He led Paul to share those words with the Ephesians. I’m sure that as he was speaking God’s Word, Paul was hoping that people would not easily dismiss the words of caution and warning he was sharing.

Ephesians 5:15-20  Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Be careful how you live. In urging us to live a certain way, Paul points out what should be obvious: there is an opposite way to live. He warns us not to live as unwise, but as wise. You and I need to live with the wisdom God gives. And that wisdom we need is itself a gift from God. All we have to do is ask for it, as we are told in James:

James 1:5 – If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

And what is the wisdom we need? Paul spelled that out in his first letter to the Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 1:24 …to those whom God has called …Christ [is] the power of God and the wisdom of God. 

Jesus Christ is the wisdom of God that you need, the wisdom that has been given to you. With faith in Christ you are a new creation, you cast off the old way of life and embrace a new way of living, not as unwise, but as wise. You know and understand and believe that His death and resurrection makes all the difference in the world for you.

Those who are unwise, those who are without Christ in their lives, have no understanding. These are the people who live all around us and who hold positions of power and influence in our world. They have no insight into the things that pertain to God and salvation. The unwise regard the things of this world as being most important, things which are at best of fleeting value and often times even harmful. The unwise do not appreciate what is truly valuable.

Those who have the wisdom that comes from God, the wisdom that knows Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, will use it to size up a situation and make a good choice. A big part of wise living is looking past the here and now and instant gratification, thinking instead about the long haul. How will what I do today impact the rest of my life? How will what I say today influence others in their relationship with Jesus Christ? If you are careful to live wisely, you will see the time you have for the valuable commodity that it is, making the most of every opportunity. A missed opportunity never returns. Those who let the wisdom God gives direct their lives will take each opportunity that presents itself to let their lives show the glory of the Gospel to others. That’s being careful how you live and  making the most of every opportunity.