WHAT LOVE LOOKS LIKE

Anyone who does not love does not know God, because
God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest
among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so
that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we
have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to
be the propitiation for our sins. 1 John 4:8-10

Look into the Bethlehem manger, pray in Gethsemane's
Garden, stand before the Roman cross, and go into the
empty tomb. There you will see a love so pure, so
undeserved that it is unique in all the world. Never before
and never again will the world see such care and compassion.

These places show that God is love.

THE PRAYER:

Dear Lord, grant that we -- having seen and been saved by
Your love -- may reflect that love to a world, which is lonely,
lost and despairing. May they also see the Savior who is
visible proof of Your love. This I ask in the Savior's Name.
Amen

(Lutheran Hour Ministries)

LET'S DECLARE

Today, let’s declare that no matter where life takes us, we
will remain firmly planted in faith and obedient to God. We
may not get to choose the circumstances in our life, but
we can always choose our disposition. Let’s resolve to act
with faith, integrity, and kindness in any situation, just as
we would today.

With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN LIFE

"What can we say the Kingdom of God is like?" (Mark 4:30).

The Kingdom of God was the number one topic of Jesus'
teaching. The subject of Jesus' first sermon when He came
into Galilee was the "Kingdom of God": the "Kingdom has come,
" He said.  From that time on, almost every parable of Jesus
begins, "The Kingdom of God is like ..." But many of us know
very little about it, or we misunderstand it. We're like the little
boy in religion class who was asked, "What did Jesus say about
people getting married?" He answered immediately, "Forgive
them, for they know not what they do." If someone should ask
you, "What did Jesus say about the Kingdom of God?" your
answer might well be as unenlightened as that little boy's.

Jesus told us that the Kingdom of God is the most important
thing in life.  He told us to seek it first, before all things.  He told
us it's the one thing needful.  He told us it's like a treasure hidden
in the field that is so valuable if you ran across it you would sell
everything you owned in order to possess it.  He told us that it is
the pearl of great price.

But that leaves us with a real problem.  I want to ask you honestly
now, in the average week how many times do you think about
the Kingdom of God?  How many times does it enter your
conversation?  How many times does it become a part of your
decision-making?  For most of us who claim to be His people, the
Kingdom of God, which meant everything to Jesus, is not an
important part of our lives at all. It doesn't tie into the way we're
feeling, loving, laughing, and crying. 

Before the colonialists imposed national boundaries in Laos and
Vietnam, the kings of those countries reached an agreement on
taxation in the border areas. Those who ate short-grain rice, built
their houses on stilts, and decorated them with Indian-style serpents
were considered Laotians. And those who ate long-grain rice, built
their houses on the ground, and decorated with Chinese-style
dragons were considered Vietnamese. The kings taxed the people
accordingly and therefore had no need for boundaries. It was simple:
each person belonged to the kingdom WHOSE VALUES THEY
SHARED AND WHOSE KING THEY HONORED.
   
In telling us what our lives are leading up to, Jesus, our King of Kings
has provided us with a blueprint for the values we must live by. He
has provided us with the climactic ending for us all. And in telling us
what our lives are leading up to, we are empowered as in no other
way to deal with the events that will occur along the way. Jesus'
testimony unravels the mystery of the Kingdom: God's Kingdom is
the Kingdom of Love  .

(The Staff and editors of Sunday Sermons Online). .

IN THE MOMENT

Verse

But a Samaritan while travelling came near him; and when
he saw him, he was moved with pity.
Luke 10:33

Voice

Patience is not waiting passively until someone else does
something. Patience asks us to live the moment to the
fullest, to be completely present to the moment, to taste
the here and now, to be where we are. When we are
impatient, we try to get away from where we are. We
behave as if the real thing will happen tomorrow, later,
and somewhere else. Let’s be patient and trust that the
treasure we look for is hidden in the ground on which we
stand.
Henri J.M. Nouwen


Prayer

God, thank you for your presence. Give us this day our
daily bread. Amen.

IT'S ALL IN HOW YOU SEE IT

See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse.
Deuteronomy 11:26

I am reminded of a story about a pair of twins with opposite
dispositions. One twin was an incurable optimist; the other,
a perpetual pessimist. The parents, concerned about the
extremes, consulted a psychologist. The psychologist
recommended that for their next birthday, each twin should
receive a different present. For the pessimist, a shiny new
bicycle. For the optimist, a box full of manure. When the
birthday arrived, the pessimist opened his box and said:
“A brand new bike! I’ll probably fall off of it and hurt my foot.
” The optimist opened his box and ran outside with excitement
saying “If there’s this much manure, there must be a pony
somewhere!”

Similarly, we all have the choice to determine what we see in
life. We can see a blessing or a curse, depending on our
perspective. Let’s make the choice to see things from a godly
perspective. Everything is a blessings – it’s all in how you see it.

With prayers for shalom, peace,
Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein

GOOD SAMARITANS

Now by chance a priest was going down the road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. Luke 10:31-33
Some people enjoy Jesus' parable about the Good Samaritan. There are others who might find the Lord's story is a bit too close for comfort.
You see, we are incredibly blessed people. We are blessed because we have a Savior who taught us how to love. Even though the world didn't want Him and didn't accept Him, Jesus came into this world to rescue us. Here He gave His life so that all who are brought to Holy Spirit-given faith are cleansed of their sins and granted a place in the Father's family of life.
In response to the Savior's loving sacrifice, believers are given the opportunity to love their neighbors, which includes the folks who live next door and little old ladies in burning cars and teenagers who had an accident.
As the Bible says, "We love because He first loved us" (1 John 4:19).
PRAYER:
Dear Lord, help me honor You by being a Good Samaritan rather than a bad spectator. This I ask in the Savior's Name. Amen.

HOPE FOR THE FORGOTTEN

Verse

Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: though
your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow;
though they are red like crimson, they shall become
like wool.
Isaiah 1:18

Voice

Every time God forgives us, God is saying that God's
own rules do not matter as much as the relationship
that God wants to create with us.
Richard Rohr

Prayer

Thank you, Lord, that you never abandon us to our
hopelessness. There is always room at your table for
those who feel forgotten, or who have been cast out.
Train us in such hospitality. Amen.
Common Prayer

UNDESERVED

... By grace you have been saved -- and raised us up with
Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in
Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages He might show
the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward
us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved
through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift
of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for
good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we
should walk in them. Ephesians 2:5b-10

Thornton Fractional North High School is located in
Chicago.

As is true for most high schools, Thornton recently had
its commencement service. As you might expect,
Thornton's graduation was a time of excitement and joy.
There was a blend of emotions. For the students there
was an eagerness to get to the future, an eagerness that
was balanced out by a sadness at saying farewell to old
friends and pleasant memories.

This year Thornton's commencement had another dimension.
Most certainly the students were thrilled at moving on, but
they were also mourning for one of their classmates: football
quarterback, 18-year-old Aaron Dunigan. On the previous
Saturday, Dunigan, riding in a car as a front-seat passenger,
had been killed in a head-on collision.

Understandably, his absence was on everyone's mind.

Dunigan's football coach said, "If you are looking for a way to
honor Aaron, do it by going out and living life to the fullest,
taking advantage of your opportunities, and not sitting on the
sidelines, and watching life pass you by."

Other similar comments were made in this moving ceremony.
But the most emotional part of the graduation came during the
awarding of the diplomas. When Dunigan's name was called,
his mother, dressed in Aaron's cap and gown, ascended the
platform and received her son's graduation certificate.

I suppose some might object to her getting a certificate she
hadn't earned.

Some might, but I'm not one of them. You shouldn't be either.
We shouldn't object because we have also been beneficiaries
of the work of someone else. On Judgment Day, the day we
graduate from this world and enter the next, those who have
Jesus as their Savior, will be declared "innocent and free from
sin."

We will graduate with perfect grades not because of our own
abilities and hard work. On our own we had flunked out. On our
own, we were losers. But on that day we will graduate with
highest honors and move into heaven because of the life, death
and resurrection of our Savior.

We will receive something we hadn't earned.

And will there be any objectors to that? You bet. The devil is
going to howl and carry on, but he can't change what has happened.

Because of Jesus we are saved.

THE PRAYER:

Dear Lord, I give thanks that even though I have failed miserably at
keeping the Commandments, You still sent Your Son to save me.
May I always give thanks He accomplished all that I never could.
Further, may I share this good news with others who are still in
danger of flunking out. This I ask in the Savior's Name. Amen.

Pastor Klaus
(Lutheran Hour Ministries)