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I am a football fan. Have been as long as I can remember. My family moved to Dallas when I was entering the third grade in 1966, and I have been a long-suffering Dallas Cowboys fan ever since. As much as I like watching professional football, I like college and high school games even more. I’ve sat in plenty of stadiums on Friday nights in my life, although that has slowed down a bit in recent years. Nowadays I tend to watch games on television on Saturdays. But this weekend, I will be in College Station at Kyle Field with my brother, son-in-law and grandson to see the “Fightin’ Texas Aggies.”

While I’m a fan of the game, I could do without most of the announcers. I dislike how one of them will coin a term or phrase and then suddenly every sportscaster feels the need to start using it. You know what I mean. They latch on to terms like “athleticism” and “physicality.” One year every game I watched had someone talking about “playing behind the chains.” But the most overused phrase, in my humble opinion, is “one of the best.” After a player makes a good tackle, they will say “he is one of the best linebackers in the league.” A quarterback completes a long pass and they say, “he has one of the best arms in the game today.” Every game you will hear the announcers say that a player in that game is “one of the best” at something.

I don’t think I have ever heard them describe a player as being “one of the worst.” That probably would not help ratings or that announcer’s status the next time he tried to interview that player. It is not praise, false or sincere, to call someone “one of the worst.” We would all rather be told we are “one of the best” whether it is true or not. Well, almost always.

When the apostle Paul wrote to a young pastor named Timothy, he included these words:

1 Timothy 1:15  Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst (NIV84).

The word translated “worst” in the NIV is actually the word that designates someone as number one or first place. The ESV renders the verse this way:

…Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

The King James Version said “of whom I am the chief.” 

As unflattering as it sounds, Paul was claiming to be not just “one of the best” sinners, but the number one sinner of all. And he was not claiming to be better in the sense of not being as bad as all the other sinners. On the contrary, Paul knew the evil that he had done and the evil desires that continued to live in him (See Romans 7). And he accepted that about himself in light of the affirmation made in the first part of that verse: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.

God the Father sent His very best, His only Son, to take the place of sinners in punishment, pay all our penalties, and give us complete pardon and peace with God. That is why you and I can happily say with Paul, “I’m one of the best sinners.” We know that Jesus came precisely for us.

A hymn that I have known for longer than I can remember is “Children of the Heavenly Father.” Some days I just find myself humming the melody and singing the words in my mind. It has long been one of my favorites. It was written by Karolina Sandell-Berg in 1858. As is the case with many hymns, it was written after the author had experienced a personal tragedy in her life. She had been on a boat with her father when he fell overboard and drowned. This hymn was an expression of her faith and confidence in the aftermath of that event. Here are the first three stanzas.

Children of the Heavenly Father
Safely in His bosom gather
Nestling bird nor star in heaven
Such a refuge e’er was given

God His own doth tend and nourish
In His holy courts they flourish
From all evil things He spares them
In His mighty arms He bears them

Neither life nor death shall ever
From the Lord His children sever
Unto them His grace He showeth
And their sorrows all He knoweth

To be God’s child is a privileged status. Those who have been born of the Spirit, or been brought to faith in Jesus Christ, have that status. Scripture affirms “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:26). Being a son implies that you are an heir of all God has promised. The verses just after this say that all believers are “sons” regardless of their gender or nationality.

You are a child of God with an eternal inheritance because God has given you that status. Your spiritual birth elevates you to the status of God’s child. And that is a gift. Even the faith that grabs onto this is a gift. (Ephesians 2:8). When you believe that Jesus has paid the penalty for your sins, you are God’s child.

You are not God’s child because you strive to be good. You are not God’s child because you’ve earned that right. You are not God’s child because you have been obedient. You are God’s children simply because you’ve been born again, and He is your Father who loves you.

May you find comfort in your status as a child of God.

Over the years I have served on several juries. I will admit that I was usually less than thrilled to receive that summons in the mail. Back when I was still working full time, Monday was supposed to be my day off and almost every time I was summoned to appear was on a Monday. Most of the times I was selected to serve on the jury, there would be a mistrial or a settlement before we were asked to deliberate and render a verdict. But I remember one time I was impaneled and the trial started that same afternoon. We were released around 5 p.m. and told to return at 8:30 on Tuesday morning, which meant missing a day of doing whatever I was supposed to do that day.

I tried to take the attitude that I was doing something to render a service to my community. As we listened to the evidence against the defendant and then the defense offered by his attorney, it was obvious that the young man was guilty and that was the verdict we rendered.

I remember trying to imagine what it would feel like to be sitting where he was, hearing the charges read against him, listening as the evidence was presented and then hearing the verdict announced. Then it occurred to me that I will one day be in that position.

2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Romans 14:10b For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

Imagine sitting before the throne of Jesus and hearing all the charges read against you, every single thing you have done wrong in your life. The list would include everything from that “little white lie” to marital infidelity, stealing a candy bar to spreading false and vicious rumors, losing your temper to taking God’s name in vain. Just imagine hearing it all read out loud. And then imagine trying to defend yourself in the face of those charges, all of which you know to be true. That is a frightening prospect.

The good news is that you don’t have to face those charges alone. You have an advocate on your side who will do more than offer a defense. He will not try to justify your actions. Rather, He takes the punishment in your place so that you will not have to suffer the eternal consequences your actions deserve. Paul wrote about that as well in 2 Corinthians.

God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

In what has to be the most marvelous exchange in all of history, Jesus took your sin on Himself in order to pay its price, and then offers you His righteousness, His perfect life of obedience. It is because of your faith in Christ that you can walk out of that final courtroom, away from the judgment seat, as one declared to be “not guilty.”  The verdict that should be rendered against you was instead placed on Jesus so that you can go free.

I prayed for the man we convicted in that jury trial. His earthly consequences for his actions have long since been fulfilled. Hopefully he turned his life around.

If we were to pay the penalty for our sin, we would never finish that sentence. It would be eternal separation from God. That is why the salvation Jesus accomplished for us is so astounding. It frees us from guilt and condemnation. It gives us the certainty of forgiveness and life everlasting with our Creator, Redeemer and Sanctifier. This message of forgiveness and life and salvation that comes from Jesus is for everyone, including that man our jury found guilty … and each of you reading this today.

I really hate summer colds. Last week I had a head full of congestion, a little bit of a sore throat, accompanied by some sneezing and coughing and blowing my nose quite a bit. In today’s world everyone wants to jump to the conclusion that it is Covid-19, but people were getting head colds long before the pandemic and will continue to do so most likely until our Lord returns.

What did I do? I stayed home a few days, took it easy, drank lots of fluids, asked God for healing, and got plenty of rest. After I recovered, I thanked God for healing me and went on with my life.

In my “down time,” I came across this passage.

Psalm 41:3–4 The Lord will sustain him on his sickbed and restore him from his bed of illness. I said, “O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you.”

What a great reminder that our healing is a gift from God. He is, after all, in control of everything. Restoration of health is a gift. But we can also be blessed when God withholds healing here on earth. Paul discovered that truth in his life (2 Corinthians 12:7-10).

I bring this up because this Psalm seems to say that the illness is the result of David’s sin. Many people jump to the conclusion that if someone has a terrible illness or problem in their life, it is because of something they did wrong. The truth of the matter is that all of us are so sinful that we all deserve nothing but bad stuff in our lives. We deserve much worse than illness. Our sins deserve to be punished eternally. But a better way to understand the problems and illnesses we have here on earth is this: all the problems on earth are the result of all the sin on earth.

And God did something about that. That is why Jesus came. He took care of the penalty our sins deserve. He lived a life without sin that was the only acceptable sacrifice for the sins of the world. He let Himself be killed so we could be forgiven. And then He defeated death for us as well by rising from the dead. Those who put their faith in Jesus get the benefit of all He did.

When we are sick, we avail ourselves of what is available to help us heal: Doctors and medicines and rest. When we need spiritual healing, the only thing that will help us is Jesus. Interestingly enough, after He gives us His healing, He gives us rest.

Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

For all the saints who from their labors rest,
Who Thee by faith before the world confessed,
Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest. Alleluia! Alleluia!

That hymn has long been one of my favorites. I can remember singing it when I was a child, and later playing it on my trumpet to accompany the organist in worship. It became a little more difficult for me to sing this hymn after it was part of the service for my father’s funeral. Difficult because tears of joy would stream down my face as these words took on more significance for me. I freely admit that I still get choked up with emotion more often than not when this hymn is used in a worship services.

The lyrics are beautiful and powerful. I love to think of fellow believers in Jesus as saints, because that is what Jesus makes us. But that does not mean we are without sin.

One of the teachings that reemerged during the Reformation was that we are simul justus et peccator. This is a Latin phrase that means “at the same time sinner and saint.”

Those who have put their faith in Jesus have been made holy by Him, so they are saints. You are saved as a gift from God, not by what you do. God declares you to be “not guilty” for Jesus’ sake. This is true even though you remain sinful.

You and I have the same struggle in our lives that Paul described in Romans 7:7ff. And we will sometimes give in to temptations, just as Paul said: “the evil I do not want to do, this I keep on doing.” We are sinners. But because of faith in Jesus, God will not count your sins against you (2 Corinthians 5:19). Instead, He sees you as righteous and holy: a saint.

This is what gives us our peace, our confidence, our ability to face each day. That is why we can rejoice and sing with confidence, even through the tears, when someone dies with faith in Jesus.

Revelation 14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

Those who die in the Lord are those who put their faith in Christ. They, along with all of you who believe in Jesus, are saints, having been made holy by God.

Over 15 years ago I was able to attend the fiftieth wedding anniversary celebration of some former members who had moved down to a north Dallas suburb. As part of the celebration, there was a worship service at which the couple renewed their vows. It was wonderful to hear different people offer tributes and memories and testimonies about this couple. Their sons offered both touching recollections and light-hearted ribbings.

A recurring theme was the wonderful way they lived, how they treated each other and all those around them. The presiding minister’s message was based on Psalm 23:6, how “goodness and mercy” have followed them. That was true, and goodness and mercy have flowed through them to others.

After all the slide shows and accolades were complete, the husband arose to say a few words. In his usual humble and gracious manner, he thanked everyone for attending and affirmed that he and his wife loved everyone there. The man always sppoke in a sincere and genuine fashion, and this was no exception. He went on to say that this celebration was not really about himself and his wife, but it was about God’s goodness in their lives. He shared a wonderful witness of his faith in Jesus and how that made everything in their life together worthwhile and meaningful.

That same year, the Billy Graham Museum opened in Charlotte, North Carolina. News reports said the evangelist toured it with his son, Franklin, shortly before it opened.  As Graham finished the tour, his son Franklin asked how he had liked the tribute. The gruff reply: “Too much Billy Graham.”

Franklin Graham said, “The last thing my father wanted was to have a monument to himself.” In an email interview, Dr. Graham said, “I’m humbled that anyone would want to honor me in this way.” He added that he had instructed Franklin and other museum designers “to point people to Christ rather than to make it too much about me.”

These two godly men gave me powerful reminders of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. It is not about who I am or what I can do or what I have done or even what I will do. It is all about Jesus, who He is and what He has done. The only-begotten Son of God came into this world as one of us, to live among us, to live a life without sin and offer that life as complete payment for the sins of all people. The promise is that everyone who puts his or her faith in Him will receive the benefit of everything He did. Forgiveness, life eternal and salvation become our possession through faith in Jesus as our Savior. We escape our deserved punishment for His sake. Because of that, the focus of our lives on earth becomes living in a way that responds to God’s goodness.

Disciples of Jesus will want to dedicate themselves to humble service. Life is not about receiving awards and plaques or getting your name in the paper – It is about helping your neighbor. Jesus points us in this direction in Matthew 24:

I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.

I’ve given you some masculine examples of this, but I don’t want to ignore the feminine. I had the privilege of working in an advisory role with the women’s organization of our church, the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, at the congregational, area and state and national levels. I loved working with them because they are all about getting the message of Jesus to more people and don’t get bogged down in politics. They are also committed to doing so in a humble manner. This is the pledge of this organization:

In fervent gratitude for the Savior’s dying love and His blood-bought gift of redemption we dedicate ourselves to Him with all that we are and have; and in obedience to His call for workers in the harvest fields, we pledge Him our willing service wherever and whenever He has need of us. We consecrate to our Savior our hands to work for Him, our feet to go on His errands, our voice to sing His praises, our lips to proclaim His redeeming love, our silver and our gold to extend His Kingdom, our will to do His will, and every power of our life to the great task of bringing the lost and the erring into eternal fellowship with Him. Amen.

A humble disciple will want to echo the sentiment of John the Baptizer when Jesus came on to the scene: He must become greater; I must become less, or, as some translations have it, He must increase, I must decrease (John 3:30). I hope you will join me in praying that God will make more and more of us His humble and willing servants.

For many years my in-laws had a place up in southwest Colorado that is isolated and remote. There is a stream that runs through that property that is filled with brook trout, and a pond that has rainbow and browns in it. It is over 10,000 feet, so it takes some time to adjust to the thinner air. The drive up there is about fifteen hours, but I thought it was well worth it.

They sold the place a few years ago. We have not been there for more than three years, and did not think we would ever be able to do so again. I was especially thinking about going up there with the continued triple digit temps here in North Texas. And just recently, we received a wonderful, unexpected blessing from God: we are going to be able to go back next summer.

I am already thinking about that trip. I usually get up early and head to that stream to see if I will have trout for dinner that day or not. Some days we do, some we don’t. But I enjoy the time fishing either way. That is because I also use that time for prayer. And it is more than just praying I’ll catch something. When I am up there fishing that stream, I won’t see anyone else for several hours. And I think about what Jesus did:

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16)

No one else is around, there is no cell phone service, no distractions other than hooking a fish every now and then. It is a good time for me to exercise the privilege of being able to talk to my Father in heaven. And I talk to Him about everything. My shortcomings. My family. Those who are struggling. Those who are experiencing joy and blessing. I let Him know that I know He is in control. And I know He is listening.

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. (1 John 5:14)

 That is an important thing to understand about prayer. We can talk to God about anything, and He invites us to do so. But we dare not think prayer is a way to manipulate God. He is in control, not us. So we follow the example Jesus gave us in our prayers:

… not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42)

For me, it is comforting to talk to God and know that He always wants what is best for me. He will answer my prayers in the way that is most beneficial for me, even if it is not the way I think He should answer. I have this confidence because I know what He did for me in Christ.

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)

Of course, I don’t have to wait to go up there to pray. It is important for each of us to find a time and a place every day for prayer. Find what works for you. You can pray anywhere and anytime, but find that time and place where you can minimize distractions and simply talk to God. I think you will be glad you did.