YouTube -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 7th Petition (August 31, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, August 31, 2025.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 7th Petition (August 31, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-4

DELIVER US FROM EVIL.

In the name + of Jesus.

    There is a translation question with this final petition.  Some have translated it, “Deliver us from evil,” and others have it, “Deliver us from the Evil One” (Matthew 6:13).  Either translation is valid.  If your Bible has one translation, there is likely a footnote to offer the other.  Either we are praying to be delivered from the devil, or we are praying to be delivered from all the evils that are caused by the devil.  No matter which one you pick, your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper. 

     If you surveyed people and asked them what kind of evils they want to be delivered from, you would probably get similar answers whether they are Christians or not.  What is on your list?  Do you want to be delivered from fear?  There is plenty that strikes fear in our hearts.  Some fears come from headlines or from phone calls.  Other fears are fabricated as we fret over things that have not happened and are unlikely to happen.  But we would like to be delivered from all fears.  Do you want to be delivered from poor health, aches, and pains?  That’s understandable.  No one likes to feel lousy.  We could go on, of course. 

     Almost everything we want to be delivered from comes because we are living in a world that has been corrupted by sin.  The world is broken as evidenced by sickness, disease, war, crime, poverty, debt, pain, loss, and death.  Politicians promise to address these things.  They mean well, but they cannot fix what sin has corrupted.  Doctors write prescriptions to fix these things.  But doctors are not miracle workers.  Sometimes what is broken is beyond repair.  Job’s assessment of life may sound pessimistic, but he is right: “Man born of woman has a few short days, and they are full of anxiety” (Job 14:1).  We live in a broken world.  Bad things happen.  That is why we pray, “Deliver us from evil.”  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.

     When the devil came into the world, he brought the curse of sin upon it and all the people in it.  When Jesus came into the world, he came to deliver us from every evil in it and from the Evil One who caused it.  “This is why the Son of God appeared: to destroy the works of the Devil” (1 John 3:8).  Jesus began to reverse the brokenness of this world through the miracles he did.  Isaiah had foretold this work: “The eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unplugged.  The crippled will leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute will sing for joy” (Isaiah 35:5,6).  What Isaiah foretold, Jesus did.  Through his miracles, we get a glimpse of the kingdom of heaven.  In the kingdom of heaven, there are no blind, deaf, mute, or lame.  There will be no need for walkers, hearing aids, corrective lenses, or speech therapists.  When we finally enter the kingdom of heavenly glory, there will be no evils. 

     This is what people pray for and long for.  But these are not the greatest evils we face.  No one is banned from heaven because he needs a wheelchair.  No one is forbidden because the doctor reported bad test results.  There is no car accident, no infection, no disfigured body, and no epidemic that will keep anyone out of the kingdom of heaven.  Even if such things send people to an early grave, they do not condemn.  You can pray that the Lord will deliver you and defend you so that you will never experience such evils.  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.  But understand that the hardships and frustrations of life are not your chief problem.  Even if you are delivered from these evils, you still have not been delivered from the Evil One.

     One time when Jesus was preaching in a house, some people tried to see him.  They were carrying a man on a mat because he was paralyzed.  But there was no chance to get to Jesus because the house was packed.  So, they carried him up to the roof top.  Roofs in Palestine were flat with a parapet around them.  They could be used as a spare room or as a workspace.  These people carried their friend up there and began to remove the tiles from the roof.  Once the hole was big enough, they lowered him on his mat right down in front of Jesus.  It was no secret what they hoped Jesus would do for the paralyzed man. 

     “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’” (Mark 2:5).  I have to believe that some were there thinking, “What is he doing?  Isn’t it obvious that this man was brought to have his legs restored?  How is the forgiveness of sins going to help him?”  That is what many people would like to have from Jesus—relief from physical problems.  People want to be delivered from the evils of failing health, threat of war, school shootings, acne, and poison ivy.  If we have that, we believe, then we have been delivered from all the evils that concern us.  Then we have enough.

     The man who was brought to Jesus obviously wanted to have strength restored to his legs.  He wanted to be able to serve his family.  He wanted to be free from being dependent on his friends or on charity for all his needs.  It was a valid concern.  Calling upon Jesus to heal him was a proper prayer.  But this man’s paralysis was not going to keep him out of the kingdom of heaven.  Sin does that.  Sin brings divine judgment, wrath, and death.  Sin comes with a curse and results in eternal punishment.  And sin marks us all.  Whether life is easy or stressful, whether you enjoy robust health or endure chronic illness, whether you are financially stable or struggle to pay the bills, you are a sinner.  There is no salvation for those who die in their sins.  And that is why Jesus told this man, “Son, your sins are forgiven” (Mark 2:5).  Jesus addressed the great evil that afflicted him.  In mercy, he delivered him from perdition.  In love, he also delivered him from paralysis.

     Do not underestimate the significance of your prayers.  Our Lord spares our country and community from many dangers when we call upon him to deliver us from evil.  We don’t know the evils that our Father in heaven delivers us from.  We only know the evils that still happen.  That makes us wonder if our prayers do any good.  It is also why the godless mock us for our prayers.  Just last week, a former student opened fire on the children and teachers at a Roman Catholic school in Minneapolis.  Unbelievers spout off, “What good are your prayers?  Those children were actually praying when this happened to them!”  (The mayor of Minneapolis said as much.)  But this is what the Lord says: “The prayer of a righteous person is able to do much because it is effective” (James 5:16).  He was not lying when he said this to you.

     We pray “Deliver us from evil” because we want to be safe from the Evil One and all the evils he produces.  The evils produce fears in us.  COVID had many fearing for their lives.  A school shooting has every parent fearing for their children.  Your concerns are valid, and your prayers are proper.  Your fears give you every reason to pray.  But fears also distort our focus.  Our focus shifts from the heavenly goal to maintaining earthly peace and security.  Rather than listen to our Lord and his promises, we listen to people who promise that their ideas will produce peace and security for us here and now.  But Jesus issued this warning: “Do not fear those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul.  Rather, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28).  Jesus is telling you not to fear the Evil One or any evils that may bring harm or death.  The devil may want people to go to hell, but he cannot send anyone there.  War, crime, and disease may bring death, but they do not damn.  The only one who can damn or send anyone to hell is the Son of God.  All judgment has been entrusted to him; so, fear him.

     But don’t just fear him.  Flee to him!  For, this very same Son of God came so that we will not be destroyed both soul and body in hell.  Our fear is not that we would die, but that we would die apart from the Son of God because the one who could destroy both soul and body in hell has come to rescue us from that judgment.  The Son of God became a body-and-soul man to redeem your body and soul from sin, death, and hell.  In order to deliver you from the grasp of the Evil One, Jesus substituted himself for you.  The judgment and punishment that we should have received was taken by Jesus.  Jesus died the cursed death for you—totally forsaken and utterly rejected by his Father for the sins he was bearing.  Jesus’ death was an evil death—not because he was falsely charged by the priests, not because he was unjustly sentenced by Pontius Pilate, not because he was treated violently by Roman soldiers, and not because he was stripped of all dignity as he hung from the cross.  Jesus’ death was an evil death because he died under God’s curse.  Jesus did this to deliver you from an evil death and to grant you a blessed death.

     A blessed death is not that you die peacefully, which would be nice.  It is not that you would be surrounded by your family, which would also be nice.  Rather, Jesus taught us to pray that “when our last hour comes, [our Father would] grant us a blessed end and graciously take us from this world of sorrow to himself in heaven” (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 7^th Petition).  This is a blessed death because it is died in the faith.  Those baptized children in Minneapolis may have died by a violent, evil, and senseless act, but they died a blessed death.  They were marked by Jesus, and they went to be with Jesus.  The goal of every Christian is not to die at an old age.  It is not to die a peaceful death.  It is to die a blessed death, that is, to die in the faith.  Ultimately, that is our prayer: “Deliver us from evil.”  It is our utmost concern, and it is a most proper prayer. 

     It is also where we draw our comfort, no matter what circumstances we endure.  The Lord Jesus Christ went into death to conquer it for us.  The Savior rose body-and-soul from the grave to assure you that you, too, will rise body-and-soul to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.  Even if you die in an act of unspeakable evil, Jesus delivers you from the Evil One, from an evil death, and from every evil that has ever plagued mankind. 

     If you surveyed what evils people want to be delivered from, you would get similar answers from Christians and non-Christians alike.  People long to have good health, good relationships, peace, safety, and the like.  While many people wish for all these things, you and I only have the wait for them.  We pray, “Deliver us from evil,” and our Father in heaven will.  He will grant you a blessed end.  He will bring you to the unending joy, goodness, and peace of Paradise.  Your concerns are valid.  Your prayers are proper.  And your Father in heaven hears and answers.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 6th Petition (August 24, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, August 24, 2025.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 6th Petition (August 24, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-4

LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION.

In the name + of Jesus.

    This petition has confused many Christians.  When we pray, “Lead us not into temptation” to the Father, it infers that he might.  Pope Francis even suggested that this petition needs to be changed to avoid misunderstanding.  However, no man has a right to change the words of our Lord.  It is our understanding that needs correction, not God’s word.

     St. James wrote, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ because God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself tempts no one.  But each person is tempted when he is dragged away and enticed by his own desire” (James 1:13-14, emphasis added).  Temptations do not come from God.  He is pure and holy.  He does not condone sin, much less encourage it.  Temptations arise from within us.  We are sinners which means that we are naturally prone to rejecting God’s commands and craving what God forbids.

     One reason people accuse God of tempting people has to do with the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.  Our Lord had put that tree in the middle of the Garden, which means that Adam and Eve would see it often.  God attached this word to that tree: “You shall not eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for on the day that you eat from it, you will certainly die” (Genesis 2:17).  People have reasoned that the Lord was laying a trap.  They argue that by putting this tree in such a prominent place, God was practically begging Adam and Eve to sin against him.  Either the tree was evil, or God was evil for putting the tree there. 

     That’s not how God saw it.  After God had completed his whole creation, God gave his assessment: “God saw everything that he had made—which included the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil—and indeed, it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).  So, the tree was good, and the word God attached to that tree was good.  The tree presented Adam and Eve with the opportunity to demonstrate loving and willing obedience to the Lord by keeping his commandment.

     Adam and Eve had one commandment by which they could demonstrate their love for God.  You and I have ten.  Just as the Lord placed the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil where Adam and Eve would see it all the time, so also the Lord puts in front of you, every day, opportunities to demonstrate loving and willing obedience.  By doing this, God is not tempting you to sin.  These are opportunities for you to honor, serve, and obey the Lord and to love your neighbor.

     Just as the devil twisted everything in the Garden of Eden, so he continues to pervert God’s good gifts.  The devil warps God’s good blessings for his own perverse purposes.  The internet can be good.  The devil teaches us to use it for perversion, for insults, to stoke envy, or to distract us from our responsibilities.  Music is a tremendous blessing from God.  The devil uses it to glorify promiscuity and to celebrate debauchery.  God gave us speech to encourage, to comfort, and to build each other up.  Satan leads us to use our words to tear people down.  All God’s gifts are given so that we can glorify him with them.  The devil tempts us to use them for selfish and perverse purposes.

     We pray, “Lead us not into temptation,” because Jesus warned us, “Temptations to sin are sure to come” (Luke 17:1).  In fact, they are never-ending.  The devil even turns opportunities to do good into temptations to do evil.  When God gives you the opportunity to be patient, the devil stokes up anger.  When God gives you the opportunity to console someone who is miserable, you might find joy in their suffering.  When God gives you the opportunity to help someone in need, you may ignore him so you can focus on yourself.  What God offers as an opportunity to do good, Satan turns into a chance to do evil.  So, we pray, “Lead us not into temptation.”

     Sometimes God puts your faith to the test to strengthen you in it.  But Satan will use the same event to tempt you to sin against God.  It serves one purpose for God, but the opposite purpose for the devil.  So, if you should lose everything through tragedy like Job, would you still confess that God is good?  If you should have to wait for relief like the Israelites in Egypt who endured centuries of oppression, would you still hold on to God’s promises?  If you should daily be seduced to do evil like Joseph was by Potiphar’s wife, would you remain steadfast in purity?  When you are despised and defamed for confessing God’s word like all the prophets and the apostles, will you still confess that word?  God uses such difficulties to draw us closer to him.  The devil uses them to drive us away, not merely to disobey God’s word, but to abandon it altogether.  These tests can be intense.  The Father’s discipline can seem harsh.  The temptation to forsake the narrow path which leads to heaven for the broad and easy road which leads to hell can be enticing.  This is what the devil wants for you, not God.

     The hymn What a Friend We Have in Jesus includes the line, “Jesus knows our every weakness.”  So does Satan.  Guess where he will attack you.  The devil knows which sins you find most attractive.  He knows what could lure you away from the kingdom of God, and he will put out the bait again and again.  His temptations for you are tailor-made.  What tempts me may not tempt you, and what tempts you may have no appeal to me.  But the temptations will come to us all.  That is why we call upon our Lord, “Lead us not into temptation.”

     In his explanation of the 6^th Petition, Martin Luther told us why our prayer is so important.  He wrote, “We pray in this petition that God would guard and keep us, so that the devil, the world, and our flesh may not lead us into false belief, despair, and other great and shameful sins, and though we are tempted by them, we pray that we may overcome and win the victory” (Luther’s Small Catechism: 6^th Petition).  

     I try to warn young people in Catechism Class about such temptations.  Teenagers and twenty-somethings are often embolden people to do things that are wicked—whether they are seduced or pressured or act on their own foolishness.  There is a reason the Psalms teach us to pray, “Do not remember the sins of my youth” (Psalm 25:7).  If you are older, odds are that you have something in your past that qualifies for “great and shameful sins,” not that we outgrow these things.  After great and shameful sins, Satan  works to lead people into despair.  That happened with Judas Iscariot.  It was mere hours after he had betrayed Jesus that Judas was filled with great shame and remorse.  He was so overwhelmed by his guilt that his solution was to kill himself.  Having despaired of God’s grace, he perished.  Sadly, this pattern has been repeated by many young people.  Satan plays dirty.  Pray hard and pray often that Satan does not lead you into false belief, despair, and other great and shameful sins.

     Shame is a big reason why people do not come to church.  They expect that the church will only pile on a heavier burden of guilt.  I suppose that happens in some cases.  But Jesus did not come to crush you in guilt; he came to take your guilt away.  Jesus Christ does not condone sins, but he did pay for them and he does forgive them.  We come to church to receive our Lord’s absolution.  We come to have the blood of Jesus purify us from all sin.  He releases us from every charge of guilt.  Jesus is not ashamed of us.  He presents us to his heavenly Father as holy and blameless.  No one needs to despair over his sins.  Satan will always accuse, but Jesus sets us free.

     The devil takes what is good and perverts it into what is evil, but the Lord turned the tables on the devil.  He took what was evil and turned it into what serves your highest good.  It was evil when religious leaders plotted against Jesus.  It was evil when Judas Iscariot betrayed him.  It was evil when Jesus was falsely accused, mercilessly beaten, unjustly sentenced, and brutally executed on a cross.  It was evil when the religious leaders mocked him, calling out, “If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross!  …He saved others, but he cannot save himself.  If he’s the King of Israel, let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him” (Matthew 27:40,42).  Satan tempted Jesus right to the end to prove himself to his enemies or to abandon his suffering, to come down from the cross, and to let ungrateful sinners perish in their guilt.  But Jesus faithfully obeyed his Father’s will, and he died for our sins.  All the evils the devil worked among sinful men Jesus has used for your good.

     Jesus has taken away your guilt.  There is no need to despair, even over great and shameful sins.  If you are haunted by your sins, then go to your pastor for Private Confession and Absolution.  Hiding your guilt and pretending that everything is fine will not provide you with any relief at all.  Your burden may remain your secret, but it also remains your burden.  Listen to God’s word: “A person who conceals his sins will not prosper, but one who confesses and abandons them will receive mercy” (Proverbs 28:13).  Neither your pastor nor your Lord will be surprised that you have given into temptation.  Neither your pastor nor your Lord wants you to suffer the burden of shame or the weight of your guilt.  The devil wants to bring you to despair.  The Lord wants you to have peace and hope.  The Lord gives you a pastor to deliver these to you.

     You have been redeemed by Jesus.  Your sins are forgiven, and God’s favor rests upon you.  Nevertheless, you and I still need to pray, “Lead us not into temptation,” because temptations are not going to stop.  Right after Jesus was baptized and the Father declared from heaven, “This is my Son, whom I love” (Matthew 3:17), the devil came to tempt Jesus.  If the devil attacked Jesus, he will certainly also attack you who have been baptized into his name and are beloved children of God. 

     Our Lord summons you to pray to him so that you are not overcome by temptations.  In fact, he extends a promise to you.  He says, “Call on me in the day of distress.  I will deliver you, and you will honor me” (Psalm 50:15).  To fend off the devil, you have been given the word of God and prayer.  To strengthen you in the battle, Jesus gives you his body and blood.  To preserve you in godliness, the Holy Spirit continues to work in you to will and to act according to God’s good pleasure.  Our Father in heaven strengthens us to stand firm against the devil, the world, and our flesh.  He does not lead us into temptation; instead, he leads us on paths of righteousness and into eternal glory.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 5th Petition (August 17, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, August 17, 2025.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 5th Petition (August 17, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-4

FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES AS WE FORGIVE THOSE WHO TRESPASS AGAINST US.

In the name + of Jesus.

    Of all the commands our Lord has given, perhaps the hardest one to observe is this one: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven us” (Ephesians 4:32).  It is hard to forgive those who have sinned against us.  We have our reasons.  One is that forgiveness is not justice.  Justice says that anyone who commits a crime or a sin should pay a price.  When someone sins against you, it is personal.  Your sense of justice boils over to vengeance.  Our pride demands retribution.  Some call it getting even.  It is not.  It is upping the ante and giving it back worse than you got it. 

     St. Paul tells us what the Lord expects of us and why: “(Forgive) one another, just as God in Christ has forgiven us” (Ephesians 4:32).  God the Father forgives us freely.  That’s because Jesus Christ willingly paid the price for our sins.  If we are Christians, then we are to act like Christ, forgiving people freely and eagerly.  But we do not.

     Why not?  We have our reasons.  Maybe you’ve argued, “They don’t deserve it.”  And actually, that is true.  No one deserves forgiveness.  God’s command is, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  When people sin against you, they do not give you the love they owe you.  If someone does not give you what they owe you, they are indebted to you.  You know it, and you want to make sure that he who sinned against you knows it, too.  If you just cancel the debt, you gain nothing.  If you refuse to forgive, you get to hold his sin over his head, claim moral superiority, and have control over that person.  That sounds much more appealing.

     We pray: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  If you think you have good reasons to not forgive those who trespass against you, don’t you think that the Father has more and better reasons to not forgive you?  God pours out his love upon you daily.  He provides all you need for body and life.  He gave you skills and abilities and opportunities to enjoy your interests.  He fills the world with beauty and creature comforts.  All this he does because he is your good and merciful Father in heaven, and not because you have earned or deserved it.  For all this, you ought to thank and praise, serve and obey him.  This is most certainly true.

     But that’s now how it works out, is it?  God shows us how we can serve and obey him in his Commandments.  But we are convinced that we know better than our Father in heaven.  We ignore what God has to say, either in sinful weakness or in outright defiance.  This is especially true when our Lord calls us to forgive those who trespass against us.  We won’t.  We have our pride.  We’d rather bear a grudge.

     How should the Lord respond when we do not give him the obedience we owe him?  We might think that God should just forgive us.  We have our reasons.  We assume that our sins are not so serious for God to be upset by them.  We believe that God would tell us that our anger is justified and that we are right to withhold forgiveness.  Maybe we think that God really won’t carry out the punishment he threatens and that our sins will suffer no real consequences.  We might want to think that, but God does not. 

     If the Lord does nothing about our sins, then we don’t need to take God or his word seriously.  If there is no price to pay, who cares what we do?  But this is what the Lord says, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he did while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).  This is why we pray for our Lord to forgive us our trespasses.  For, there is a price to be paid by any who do not give God the love and obedience he is owed.  If he does not forgive, then we have no hope for heaven.  None.

     Can the Lord be just and still be merciful?  He is both through his Son, Jesus.  Jesus came because the Father does take his Commandments seriously.  He does not set aside his judgment against the guilty.  Rather, he sent Jesus to become the guilty one for us.  This is why Jesus went to the cross.  There, God the Father carried out his justice.  All your guilt was taken by Jesus.  He was made THE guilty one.  Jesus was sentenced, condemned, and put to death—for, that is the wages of sin.  Jesus paid the price for you.  All of God’s punishment was absorbed in him.  You, on the other hand, have received full pardon.  The Lord does not treat you as your sins deserve because Jesus was treated as your sins deserve.  This allows God to be both just and merciful.  As St. Paul wrote to the Romans: “He did this to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so that he would be both just and the one who justifies the person who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26).  Having been shown such mercy, our Lord calls on us to be merciful to others and to forgive those who have trespassed against us.

     To illustrate this, Jesus told a parable (Matthew 18:21-35).  He said that the kingdom of heaven is like a king whose servant owed him millions of dollars.  The servant begged for mercy, promising to pay back everything.  This servant never stood a chance to repay the debt.  So, out of mercy, the king cancelled the debt.  The servant was free.  That servant went and found a fellow servant who owed him 100 days’ wages.  He demanded to be repaid what he was owed.  Just as the first servant did, the fellow servant pleaded for mercy and promised to repay everything.  The first servant refused.  He demanded what he was owed.  He had his fellow servant and his family hauled off to debtor’s prison.  When word got back to the king, he said, “‘You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt when you begged me to.  Should you not have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had mercy on you?’  His master was angry and handed him over to the jailers until he could pay back everything he owed.” (Matthew 18:32-34).  Jesus, then, gives us this warning: “This is what my heavenly Father will also do to you unless each one of you forgives his brother from his heart’” (Matthew 18:35). 

     Every sin we commit is against our Lord.  Every lustful thought is about using our neighbor for our own gratification.  This is an abuse of the neighbor God has given you.  Every complaint despises God’s provisions and promises.  Every selfish act exalts our own will over God’s will.  Every spirit of revenge usurps God’s role as judge.  Every sin we commit is against our Lord, but not every sin is against you.  Not every act of violence is against you.  Not every snide remark is against you.  But some sins are.  Sin is love that is owed you but denied you.  It is like the debt of 100 days’ wages which was owed by a fellow servant.  It is substantial, and we don’t need to pretend it’s not.  But it is minimal compared to what we owe God and have denied him.  Our debt to God is not only substantial, it is insurmountable. 

     And yet, the Lord Jesus Christ was pleased to pay that debt for you.  He paid a debt he did not owe because you had a debt you could not pay.  And he continues to do this.  The blood which was shed for your sin is delivered to you here again and again to cleanse you of your sin.  The body which bore your guilt at the cross is delivered to you here and continues to pardon you of every offense.  The Lord does not grow weary of forgiving the penitent.  His grace is greater than your sins. 

     If we bear the name of Christ, then we are called to be Christ-like in how we treat other people.  We pray, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  Is this forgiveness deserved?  No.  Grace, mercy, and forgiveness are never deserved.  Grace, mercy, and forgiveness come from the giver.  They are given freely because the giver desires to be compassionate, longs for reconciliation, and peace—just as God, in Christ, treats you, loves you, and forgives you.

     We pray, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  In some cases, you will find it hard to do that.  Some sins against you are especially painful.  They have damaged reputations and relationships.  They cannot be undone.  How can you forgive someone who has inflicted such harm?  First of all, you do not have to pretend that sins are not painful or evil.  When Joseph addressed his brothers about their sin, he stated, “You meant evil against me” (Genesis 50:20).  He did not tell them, “Oh, it’s okay,” because it wasn’t.  It was evil.  There is nothing wrong about acknowledging that.

     Secondly, you do not need to follow the adage, “Forgive and forget.”  Can you really forget the pain that was done to you?  Do you think the first Christians ever forgot the harm that St. Paul had done to them?  Do you think Bethsheba ever forgot David’s arranged murder of her husband?  Joseph surely did not forget his brothers selling him into slavery.  So, you may never forget.  Forgiveness is not forgetting.  Forgiveness is pardoning the offense.  It is relinquishing your right to avenge yourself.  It is choosing to not hold it over another and to remind him what he did over and over again—which tells him that you have not really forgiven anything.  Psalm 103 declares, “(The Lord) does not treat us as our sins deserve.  He does not repay us according to our guilty deeds” (Psalm 103:10).  Forgiveness means that we treat people likewise—again, not because it is deserved, but because it is needed.

     Thirdly, it should be noted that there is an immense chasm between refusing to forgive and struggling to forgive.  If you refuse to forgive, that means you are insisting upon justice and vengeance.  If you insist on that, the Lord will concur with your desire, and he will carry out justice and vengeance upon you.  Jesus warned, “With the measure you use it will be measured back to you” (Luke 6:38).

     If, however, you are struggling to forgive those who trespass against you, that shows you know it is right to forgive from the heart.  You are doing battle with your sinful nature which would rather bear the grudge.  These battles are usually hard.  The only way to overcome is not to focus on the wounds you have received, but to focus on the wounds which Jesus has received for you.  Only Jesus’ mercy can stir up mercy within you.  Only Jesus’ compassion can make you compassionate.  Jesus loves you with a love that is undeserved, but it is also undeniable and unending.  When he pours that into you, it will spill over onto others, even upon those who have trespassed against you.

     “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.”  Rejoice that God does not base his forgiveness upon ours.  Rather, we base our forgiveness upon God’s.  We get to be merciful, because he is merciful.  And his mercy endures forever.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 4th Petition (August 3, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-3

GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD.

In the name + of Jesus.

      Satan engages in a continual attack on the Scriptures, and he attacks on many fronts.  One on-going attack is against Creation.  The Bible declares, “God created the man in his own image.  In the image of God he created him.  Male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27).  Many reject the “male and female” of God’s creation.  They insist that you can be both, or neither, or that you can change from one to the other, sometimes from day to day.

     When God created male and female, he also gave them particular roles.  To the man, he gave the role of protector and provider.  To the woman, he gave the role of helper and child-bearer.  Modern people have cast off these roles.  Instead of regarding them as blessings which God gave, people cry out, “Destroy the patriarchy!”  Women are taught that the role of man is to be despised and craved at the same time.

     Another attack on Creation is the theory of evolution.  This, we are told, is not even open to debate anymore.  The entire universe and every life in it are supposed to have happened by pure chance.  If God gets credit for anything, he is said to have given creation its start.  After that, God simply let things happen as they did.  Death, then, is not a curse, but a natural and necessary step for improvement of the species.  Sin is regarded as a societal construct, meaning that a majority decides what is sinful or not.  So, the goal is no longer to stop committing the sin which inflicts guilt, but to get more people to say it is not evil.  With evolution, the origin of mankind is murky.  When exactly did the knuckle dragging species become sentient human beings?  Adam and Eve are regarded as mythical figures, not historical people.  If so, there is no original sin.  Then sin and death have no connection.  If Genesis 1-3 (the creation of the world, the forming of the man and the woman, the fall into sin, and the promise of a Savior) is fictional, then what do we need a Savior for?  To be saved from what?  In the end, evolution makes Jesus Christ useless and unnecessary.  And that is the point of Satan’s attack on Creation.

     “(We) believe in God the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth” (Apostles’ Creed).  We believe it because we trust that God is telling us the truth about his Creation.  Our Lord not only created it, he still loves it, cares for it, blesses it, and sustains it.  This was all put into motion when our Lord created the world.  When God created the vegetation, he blessed it.  “God said, ‘Let the earth produce plants—vegetation that produces seed, and trees that bear fruit with its seed in it—each according to its own kind on the earth,’ and it was so” (Genesis 11:1).  This blessing assures us that seeds will continue to produce the next harvest.  We plant them, even though we have no control over how they will grow.  But God does.  So, when we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are only asking God to keep his word and to continue his blessing to provide fruits, vegetables, nuts, and berries for another season.

       When God created the animals, he blessed them as well.  “God blessed them when he said, ‘Be fruitful and multiply.  Fill the waters of the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth’” (Genesis 1:22).  Just as God blessed the fish and the birds, so he also blessed all land animals.  Year after year, the animals reproduce.  We get to marvel at their colors, speed, power, and agility.  Some we prepare in the crockpot or on the grill.  So, when we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are asking God to continue his creative blessing upon all the fish, birds, and animals.  And we acknowledge that our bacon cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets come from him.

    When you consider the individual petitions of the Lord’s Prayer, six out of seven petitions have to do with the kingdom of God and spiritual blessings.  That’s because the spiritual blessings have eternal value.  But Jesus did not dismiss our earthly needs.  He taught, “Do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:31-33). 

     Our Lord knows that we live an earthly life.  We need food, clothing, and shelter for basic survival.  But our Lord usually gives us far more than our most basic needs.  Even if our diet were limited to bread, just think of the variety God supplies.  There is wheat, rye, pumpernickel, and sourdough.  There are croissants, bagels, and doughnuts.  There are tortillas, pitas, and naan.  You get the idea.  But our Lord also provides spices and herbs, fruits and vegetables, fish and meat, and so forth.  Our Lord is most generous in how he blesses us with food.  He also provides clothing, shelter, orderly society, governmental structure, the change of seasons, art, music, laughter, and so on.  When we pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” we are giving thanks to our Father in heaven for his fatherly goodness in all these things.  We thank him for the blessings which make life more than a matter of survival, but bring us happiness and comfort. 

     Our Father in heaven demonstrates his amazing generosity in providing daily bread to all the world.  As Martin Luther teaches us to confess about this petition, “God surely gives daily bread without our asking, even to all the wicked” (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 4^th Petition).  Our Father is pleased to sustain the lives of all people, whether they acknowledge him or not.  Jesus said, “Your Father who is in heaven … makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45).  This shows just how loving and gracious our Father is.  That love and care is not limited to people, either.  God loves all that he has made.  He cares for every creature.  Psalm 145 reminds us, “The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food in due season.  You open your hand; you satisfy the desire of every living thing” (Psalm 145:15-16, emphasis added). 

     Our Father in heaven is kind in bringing variety and generous in supplying abundance.  But mankind has often been unappreciative of God’s goodness.  What God provides is never enough or good enough.  Even in the Garden of Eden, where “God said, ‘Look, I have given you every plant that produces seed on the face of the whole earth, and every tree that bears fruit that produces seed.  It will be your food’” (Genesis 1:29), even there the man and the woman craved fruit from the one tree God had forbidden.  And so it continues.  God’s provides, but his provisions receive criticism.  When the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness for forty years, the Lord provided manna for them.  This was bread that they did not have to grow, harvest, and mill.  They simply had to collect what God miraculously provided every morning—daily bread in the truest sense of the word.  If the Lord had not provided it, the Israelites would have died.  Nevertheless, God’s gifts were not good enough.  They complained, “We are disgusted by this worthless food” (Numbers 21:5)! 

     You and I may not declare our disgust, but we are seldom content.  We envy people who have been blessed with more wealth.  We are jealous of people whose blessings are shaped differently.  This does not mean that God has failed to provide your daily bread; it means that you are not content with God’s blessings.  Or perhaps you do not trust that God will provide your needs.  Do you worry that God will fail you?  Now, if you and I pour our money into luxuries and frills—and look through your house, it is a lot of luxuries and frills—it is not God’s fault that the bills do not get paid.  Repent, because God is always faithful.  Even poor people have what they need to live.  Poor people even manage to have large families.  They may live on meager means, but they still live.  God provides daily bread, just as he promises.

     Jesus warned us, “A man’s life is not measured by how many possessions he has” (Luke 12:15).  At the same time, God’s love is not measured by how many possessions we have.  God’s love is demonstrated by the fact that God made himself part of his creation.  The Lord took on flesh and entered this world to deliver us from our sins—for our failure to give thanks, for our failure to trust him, for our coveting other people’s blessings, and for our desire to collect more and to crave what is better or even what is forbidden.  Jesus perfectly trusted his Father to provide for his needs, even though he had no place to lay his head.  Jesus went to the cross where his only possession—his garments—were stripped from him.  The only thing that Jesus had possession of when he suffered and died was our sins.  He paid for those with his life.  But in doing so, he covered the debt we owed and atoned for the obedience we had not given. 

     And now, Jesus still has connected himself to created things to bring the benefits of this salvation to us.  Jesus attaches his salvation to the waters of baptism to wash you clean of every stain of sin.  Jesus attaches himself to the bread of holy communion.  Under this bread, Jesus sustains your faith with the body that has overcome death.  Jesus attaches himself to the wine in the cup.  Under this wine, Jesus gives you the blood which purifies you of all sin.  Daily bread will sustain your life for hours, but the Bread of Life will grant you life without end.  This is what we truly hunger for, and our Lord supplies this need, too.

     “Give us this day our daily bread.”  The heavenly Father knows that you need it, and he will provide it.  But this daily bread only has value for a while.  Therefore, this is what the Lord says: “Hey, all of you who are thirsty, come to the water, even if you have no money!  Come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.  Why do you spend money on something that is not bread?  Why do you waste your labor on something that does not satisfy?  Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good.  Satisfy your appetite with rich food.  Turn your ear toward me, and come to me.  Listen, so that you may continue to live” (Isaiah 55:1-3).  The day will come when you won’t care about what you will eat or what you will drink or what you will wear.  For, your life on earth will have come to its end. 

     Your Father in heaven provides all you need for this life.  Better, your Father in heaven supplies all that you need for eternal life.   He gives you the Bread of Life.  He clothes you in garments of salvation.  He will bring you to heavenly mansions.   Food, clothing, shelter.  It is all you need.  And your Father gives it for free.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 3rd Petition (July 27, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, July 27, 2025.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 3rd Petition (July 27, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-2

THY WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

In the name + of Jesus.

    Our Lord Jesus Christ taught us to pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  We are often left to wonder what God’s will is for us.  Many people claim to know what God’s will is when certain events happen or when they want certain events to happen.  They may claim that it was God’s will that some proposed bill was passed by Congress.  They may claim that it is God’s will that their team will win a championship.  When these claims are made, people are confusing God’s will with their own will.  Just because you want it to happen does not make it God’s will.

     Sometimes, plans or actions are defended as God’s will.  I had heard about a couple at a Reformed college in western Michigan who were dating.  The man told his girlfriend, “It is not God’s will that we keep dating.”  I suppose he was trying to deflect her anger: “Blame it on God, don’t get mad at me.”  Now, he was free to not date her just as he was free to date her, but to say that the break-up was God’s will meant that it was a sin to date her.  You can consult the Commandments; that is not in there.

     Perhaps the most common time for people to try to decipher God’s will is when a tragedy or a crime happens.  When those children died in the flash flood at Camp Mystic in Texas, was that God’s will?  Or the stabbings that happened yesterday in Traverse City—was that God’s will?  In one sense: Yes, because it happened.  Some will insist that these cannot be God’s will because they were bad.  But nothing happens apart from God’s will.  For example, day and night will endure until the end of time because that is God’s will.  He promised so in Genesis 8:22.  As for evils or tragedies, these do not happen apart from God either.  He never loses control.  And while God can prevent any of them, we should be careful not to confuse what God can do with what God does. 

     God does not sponsor evil.  Since he is holy, he cannot be the author of evil.  On the other hand, God uses evils to fulfill his own purposes.  The Bible reminds us, “In your book all of them were written.  Days were determined, before any of them existed” (Psalm 139:16).  So, the Lord has determined the length of our days.  If he uses a flash flood, a murder, or a car accident to achieve this end, God’s will is done.  God uses the flawed world and the wicked acts of men to fulfill it.  If you are having trouble trying to wrap your head around this, that’s no surprise.  That’s why the Bible says, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are his judgments and how untraceable his ways” (Romans 11:33)!  When we try to figure out God’s will in every tragic event, the best that can happen is that we get a headache.  The worst is that we blame God for everything that has gone wrong and forsake the saving faith.  But remember: God did not bring sin into the world.  Mankind did, and we are reaping the rewards for it.

     We pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  The only way to know God’s will is for God to tell us want he wants.  He has revealed that in his word.  The Ten Commandments are a summary of what God wants you to do and to not do.  The Commandments also show us, however, that we have not followed God’s will.  The Commandments show us what is good, but they also show us that we are not.  The Commandments define what is evil, but they also convict us of evil because we have done it.  In his explanation of this petition, Martin Luther wrote, “God’s good and gracious will certainly is done without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may be done among us also” (Luther’s Small Catechism; Lord’s Prayer: 3^rd Petition).  If we oppose God’s will, God will still do what he desires.  God’s will is done with or without us.  Our prayer is that we would not be forsaken by God and his will.  Therefore, we repent and seek his mercy.

     We pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” and we learn from God that he has not forsaken us because of our sins.  Rather, he has revealed his will to save sinners.  What is God’s will?  We heard it in our epistle reading earlier: “God our Savior … wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3-4).  This has always been God’s will.  As soon as sin entered the world, God promised a Savior to deliver mankind out of their sins and all its consequences.  He did not destroy Adam and Eve and say, “Well, that was a failure.  Let’s try this again.”  The Lord does not write anyone off as a lost cause.  The Lord makes his will clear: “I take no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies, declares the LORD God.  So repent and live” (Ezekiel 18:32)! 

     The Lord has not only revealed his will for the salvation of all mankind, he has also revealed how he secured it.  The Father sent his own Son to make himself a sin offering for you.  Jesus knew exactly what that meant.  He would suffer the hellish torment which has been earned by every sinner in the history of the world.  No sinner was left out.  No sin was overlooked.  Jesus was in anguish as he was facing this sacrificial death.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me” (Matthew 26:39).  The cup is what God gives to people.  In Jesus’ case, it was the cup of God’s wrath, the full judgment of God against all sinners.  Jesus prayed that, if there were any way possible, salvation could be won another way.  But in the end, Jesus prayed, “Yet not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39).  Jesus conformed his will to the will of his Father.  He consumed the cup of God’s wrath in order to take away your sin and its judgment.  This is God’s will, and it has been fulfilled by Jesus Christ.

     “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  Our prayer is that God’s will is done among us.  That means not only that our status is exalted from sinner to saint, but also that our lives are changed from sin to righteousness.  We want to be conformed to the likeness of Jesus.  We want all our thoughts to be captive to Jesus Christ.  We want all our motives to be pure, our words to be gracious, and our deeds to be helpful.  We want God’s will to be done among us and by us.  And God is the one who produces all of that in us.  St. Paul wrote to the Philippians, “It is God who is working in you, both to will and to work, for the sake of his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13).  By his word, he directs you.  By his sacrament, he strengthens you.  By giving you a cross to bear, he puts to death your desires for anything but God’s gracious promises.  So, even if you lose your health, your money, your freedom, or your loved ones, you still have the only thing that saves you.  And finally, this is the goal of the Christian life—to live as a child of God now and forever.  This is God’s will, and he works in your life to crave nothing else.

     “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  God has revealed his will to you in his word.  That is how you know what God wants.  But God does not reveal everything.  God does not tell you where to live, what job to take, what car to buy, or what color to paint your bedroom.  Where God is silent on these things, you are free to do whatever you want.  Some of these issues will involve wisdom—recognizing any decisions which could threaten your faith and avoiding them.  The devil usually offers a fun alternative to faithfully attending church, or a lucrative to attending a faithful church.  Lot chose to live next to Sodom because of its lush meadows for his flocks.  It was a good business decision, but a destructive move for his faith.  Other choices are totally a matter of opinion.  If you paint your bedroom black, some might question your sanity but they cannot say that you are sinning, because God does not care what color you paint your bedroom. 

     “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  God has revealed his will to us in his word.  There God reveals why he does much of what he does.  But again, God does not reveal everything.  So, when he has you bear a cross or allows a tragedy to come into your life, you want to know why.  “Why has God afflicted me this way?  Why has God withheld this blessing from me?”  But God does not give you a specific answer. 

    Think of the patriarch Job.  God had blessed Job with great wealth, a large family, many servants, and a position of prominence and respect in his community.  The devil challenged Job’s faithfulness, claiming that Job only served the Lord because the Lord had so richly blessed him.  God allowed the devil to strike Job.  And in short order, Job lost all ten of his children, all his wealth, his servants, his reputation, and his health.  Job was at a loss to know why he was suffering as he was.  His friends came to comfort him, but they only made Job’s sufferings worse.  One claimed to know the will of God in Job’s sufferings.  He declared, “Who has ever perished if he was innocent?  Where were the upright ever erased?  This is what I have observed: Those who plow evil and sow trouble will reap the same” (Job 4:7-8).  In other words, “Job, you are only getting what you deserve.  God is punishing you for something you did.”  He claimed to know God’s will, but he only inflicted more misery by making faulty judgments.

     God ended up relieving Job of his misery and blessing the end of Job’s life more than the beginning, but God never told Job why he had to endure what he did.  This happens to us, too.  When it does, our comfort will not come from trying to figure out what God has not revealed.  Our comfort comes from trusting what God has revealed.  And this is what the Bible teaches us: “We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).  You may never know how or why, but you do know that the Lord is still your good and merciful Father in heaven.  You may not feel like it, but you have his word on it.  His will for you remains—that you would be forgiven of all your sins, that you would be a child of God, and that you will partake in the glories of the eternal kingdom.

     “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”  “God’s will is done when he breaks and defeats every evil plan and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh, which try to prevent us from keeping God’s name holy and letting his kingdom come.  And God’s will is done when he strengthens and keeps us firm in his Word and in the faith as long as we live.  This is his good and gracious will” (Luther’s Small Catechism; Lord’s Prayer: 3^rd Petition).  Our prayer is that God’s will includes us.  The Father desires your salvation.  He sent his Son to secure it.  The Son sends his Holy Spirit to strengthen and keep us in it.  That is God’s will, and he will fulfill it.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- Summer Sermon Series: Lord's Prayer, 2nd Petition (July 20, 2025)

LUKE 11:1-2

THY KINGDOM COME.

In the name + of Jesus.

     “After (Jesus) had suffered, he presented himself alive to the apostles with many convincing proofs.  He appeared to them over a period of forty days and told them things about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).  When we hear about God’s kingdom, we think of countries and palaces and armies.  That’s what a kingdom is to us.  Perhaps the apostles were also hanging on to this flawed understanding, too.  Just before Jesus ascended into heaven, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you are going to restore the kingdom to Israel” (Acts 1:6)?  They had in mind a political entity—a great country, a luxurious palace, and a powerful army.  They were wrong.  We are, too.

     We have been taught to pray, “Thy kingdom come,” so I think we are stuck with the word “kingdom.”  Perhaps a better word would be reign or rule.  God’s kingdom is about how he governs the world and its events—both triumphs and tragedies.  It is about how God sustains life and all creation.  The kingdom of God is especially about how God deals with us through his word.  Martin Luther summarized the meaning of this petition in this way: “God’s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives his Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we believe his holy Word and lead a godly life now on earth and forever in heaven. (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 2^nd Petition).   

     Many people think the petition, “Thy kingdom come,” is about the heavenly kingdom, and that our prayer is for God to bring us there.  It is partly about that.  But if that is all it is, that suggests that the kingdom of God is not here.  It also suggests that you are not in the kingdom of God right now.  But, of course, you are.  You live under God who lives and reigns over all things.  His word stands firm.  His kingdom endures.  No one and nothing can dethrone him, ever. 

     The Lord is King of heaven and earth, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t opposed.  The devil is the prince of this world because he took humanity captive back in the Garden of Eden.  God had given his word to Adam and Eve, but the devil convinced them that God’s word is not good and that God’s reign is evil.  He convinced them that rebelling against God would set them free from God.  In a sense, that was true.  By eating the fruit which God had forbidden them to eat, they asserted their own rule.  Now they were free—free from God’s mercy and God’s love; free from peace and gladness and life.  By their rebellious act, they became captives to the devil, to sin, and to death. 

     This is the sinful condition which has been passed down to all people.  And it does not have to be taught.  It is a rebellious spirit that can be seen in the youngest of people.  Tell a child, “Eat your vegetables,” and you will get a defiant, “No!”  Tell a child, “Clean your room,” and you will get an eyeroll and something muttered under his breath.  Tell a teenager, “Do your homework before you turn on the PlayStation,” and you may hear a slamming door or a sarcastic reply.  What parent responds glowingly, “I am so glad my children are free to express themselves that way?”  None.  We never outgrow this sinful rebellion, and we cannot escape it.  We are captive to it, and the devil wants you to believe that this is freedom. 

     What does the devil’s freedom look like?  St. Paul wrote that “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” Galatians 5:22-23).  So, the fruits of the devil are the opposite of these.  Sin robs you of peace so that you continually wonder if God is pleased with you.  Your conscience will tell you that he is not.  Sin makes you impatient and unkind.  You are annoyed by people because they are in your way.  This impatience results in insults, threats, and even violence.  Sin perverts love.  Your sinful condition insists that love is about you—that you should always get praise and priority.  Love for others comes with conditions, and it is withdrawn when those conditions are not met.  Sin also teaches you to reject self-control.  Instead, you are to be swept away by drunkenness, anger, jealousy, promiscuity, and the like.  The devil claims: This is freedom!  He would have you believe that you are accountable to no one, and he stirs up your anger against anyone who would rein you in or rebuke you.  But sin produces death and judgment and hell.  If you are captive to sin, you are bound to death and hell.  Oh, did the devil forget to tell you that? 

     When we pray, “Thy kingdom come,” our prayer is that God would set us free and keep us free from this captivity.  The kingdom of God was ushered into this world by Jesus.  In establishing this kingdom, Jesus did what the prophet Isaiah had foretold: “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me … to proclaim freedom for the captives and release for those who are bound, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Isaiah 61:1-2).  In order to release you from your captivity to sin, death, and the devil, Jesus enlisted himself in the great prisoner exchange.  Jesus exchanged himself for all mankind, the innocent one on behalf of the guilty, the Son of God on behalf of all mankind.  Jesus bound himself to your sin and guilt, taking on the curse that you deserve.  Jesus bound himself to your death, dying under the wrath of God that you have earned.  And when the devil had the chance to kill the Son of God, he seized his opportunity to do his worst. 

     Although the devil did his worst to Jesus, Jesus overcame death in his resurrection.  In exchanging himself for you, Jesus took your sins away.  You are free from your sin—its curse and its control.  In overcoming the grave, Jesus set you free from death.  The grave may hold you for a season, but Jesus will bring you back.  You are free from death.  And the devil may still try to convince you that he owns you.  He will tempt and taunt and try to deceive you.  But Jesus overrules anything the devil says.  Jesus has set you free from his grasp.  He has brought you into a kingdom that brings life and peace and hope and joy.

     The kingdom of God is not a political entity.  It is not limited to one country or people.  God’s kingdom is wherever his Gospel is preached and sacraments are given.  Where these are, the Holy Spirit bestows God’s grace and sets the captives free from sin and death.  Sadly, Satan still convinces many that God’s word is bad and that his reign is evil.  Many still live in rebellion.  They prefer their schemes, their sins, and their sentiments to the word of the Lord.  The Lord will treat them as they choose to be treated—as rebels who have no use or love for God’s word.  If they want nothing to do with Jesus now, Jesus will not make them spend eternity with him, either.  They will be allowed to go as they wish, forever free from God’s mercy and goodness.

     But the kingdom of our God will endure no matter how many are left outside of it.  That is why we pray, “Thy kingdom come.”  Our prayer is to be included in God’s kingdom.  In his explanation of this petition, Martin Luther wrote, “God’s kingdom certainly comes by itself even without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may also come to us. (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 2^nd Petition).   It is more than being delivered from hell.  It is more than being set apart for heaven.  It is a kingdom that is here and now and takes up its place in your heart and mind and body.  If you have been made God’s people, then you also desire to be godly people. 

     “Thy kingdom come.”  What does this mean?  “God’s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives his Holy Spirit, so that by his grace we believe his holy Word and lead a godly life now on earth and forever in heaven. (Luther’s Small Catechism: Lord’s Prayer, 2^nd Petition).  Our prayer is that we would grow in faith and that, more and more, we live godly lives.  This prayer is not for someday; it is for today.  It is as St. Paul wrote to the Colossians: “We keep asking that you would be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so that you might live in a way that is worthy of the Lord.  Our goal is that you please him by bearing fruit in every kind of good work and by growing in the knowledge of God, as you are being strengthened with all power because of his glorious might working in you.  Then you will have complete endurance and patience, joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light” (Colossians 1:9-12).

     Our Lord has convinced us that his word is good and true and right.  Just as God’s command to Adam and Eve was for their good, so God’s commands to us are for our good.  We trust this because we know our Father in heaven is good and merciful.  Therefore, we pray our Father would continue to pour out his Holy Spirit upon us to guide us in godly living.  Our comfort is that God is pleased with our works because Jesus Christ has made us pleasing to him.  And our prayer is that we will be confirmed in godliness forever.  Although we are in God’s kingdom now, we are not yet in glory.  We long for that glory—to be with Jesus, to be perfected in body and in mind, and to be free from every struggle, every pain, every weakness, and every foe.  That is the freedom we long for, and that is the freedom which is found only in Jesus Christ.

     We pray, “Thy kingdom come.”  And that prayer extends beyond us.  We pray that God would add to his kingdom many more.  This is done as his word is preached and taught throughout the world.  Once again, this will be done even without our prayers.  The Church of God will endure despite all attacks, and God will advance his kingdom with or without us.

     Our Lord graciously includes us in this blessed work.  We provide the answer to our own prayer as we support the training and sending of more pastors into this world.  Granted, you will probably not go to the ends of the earth to preach the Gospel, but you can support those who do with prayers, offerings, and letters of encouragement.  So, you don’t go to Viet Nam, Saudi Arabia, or Nigeria.  That’s okay, but you can go to your family, friends, and neighbors to invite them to church.  You can encourage them to study God’s word with you.  You can tell them what Jesus has done to save sinners.  This is how God’s kingdom comes to them.  This is how God sends his Holy Spirit so that, by his grace, his word is believed, lives are changed, and people are saved.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.