κήρυξον τὸν λόγον

David prayed in Psalm 41, As for me, I said, ‘O Lord, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against You . In these midweek sermons, I am emphasizing two things for you: (1) that the Psalms speak about Jesus (Jn 5:39), and (2) that because the Psalms speak about Jesus, they therefore speak also about you. In Baptism, you were joined to the Lord , as the Scriptures say in 1 Corinthians 6 [vv 16–17]. You and Jesus have now become one , as the Scriptures say in Ephesians 5 [vv 29–32], just as He and His Father are one (Jn 10:30). What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate (Mt 19:6). 3. Your permanent and eternal connection to Christ is an essential tool for reading the Psalms. If it is true that the Psalms speak about Jesus, then the Psalms sometimes say strange, unbecoming, and seemingly untrue things about Him. Psalm 41 is an example, especially where it is written, O Lord, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against You. Those words speak strangely ...

A couple thousand years ago, it was called the Jabbok. Today, this river is called Zerka ... “the River of Blue.” That’s probably a pretty accurate description of how Jacob felt that night long ago when he was left alone alongside the river. Jacob was heading home and he was worried ... emotionally distressed ... you know, feeling blue. He was worried about seeing his brother Esau again. He was worried that his past sins would catch up with him. Would Esau still be angry when they met? Did Esau still want to kill him? Would all of the deceptions of his past ... first of Esau, then of Isaac, then of Laban, and even of his wife Leah ... would they catch up with him? Did God still love him? Would God bless him and keep him and make his face shine upon him?  Yes, left to himself, Jacob must have felt mighty blue by the blue brook called the Jabbok.  This is the setting of our Old Testament reading for this second Sunday in Lent. Jacob ... who had deceived his brother Esau, not onc...

King David said in the opening words of Psalm 41, Blessed is the one who considers the poor! In the day of trouble the Lord delivers him; the Lord protects him and keeps him alive; he is called blessed in the land; You do not give him up to the will of his enemies (vv 1-2). Those words were the stuff of last week’s Ash Wednesday preaching. In that sermon, I emphasized two things for you: First, all of God’s Psalms ... including Psalm 41 ... speak about our Lord and His work of our salvation (Lk 24:44). That is why God included the Psalms in His Scriptures: they bear witness , Jesus said, about Me (Jn 5:39). Second, because the Psalms are about Jesus, they are also about you. You are the baptized of Christ. When you were baptized, you entered into Christ’s holy body (Rm 12:5; 1 Cor 1:30) just as surely as He entered yours (Jn 14:20; Gal 2:20). You and Christ are now joined together by God. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate (Mt 19:6). Tonight, as we move forw...

And Yahweh Elohim ... (the LORD God) ... made for Adam and his wife tunics of skin, and he clothed them (v 21). Brothers and sisters in Christ, forgiveness is not easy. It never is. Not for you, me, or God. Forgiveness is gross. Forgiveness is a bloody mess. We don’t want this to be true. We want forgiveness to be clean and neat. No muss. No fuss. No blood. No death. Just cover it. Just say a word. Say I am forgiven because of something I call faith. Make it that simple. Act like it never happened. But forgiveness is a bloody mess. It is not easy. It is not delightful.  The forgiveness of sins requires the shedding of blood (Hb 9:22). It has been that way from the beginning. Where else do you think that Yahweh Elohim got the skin for the tunics that covered Adam and his wife in the garden for their sin that not only brought death to themselves but to all of creation? God was at rest in creation. How else could Yahweh Elohim clothe ... you know, cover the shame of ... Adam and his ...