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Hymn #345 Jesus Lover of My Soul
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual Romans 13:8-10
The Gospel Matthew 8:23-27
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Sermon Hymn #649 Jesus Savior Pilot Me
Hymn #307 Draw Nigh
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
Hymn #427 How Firm a Foundation
- Zoom tests will start this week, via emails which are the link.
- Medical care - Pastor Jim Shrader, Kermit Way, Sarah Buck.
- Avelin (Aby) Anderson was born January 24th two years ago.
KJV Romans 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
KJV Matthew 8:23 And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. 24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. 25 And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. 26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!
Lord God, heavenly Father, who in Thy divine wisdom and fatherly goodness makest Thy children to bear the cross, and sendest divers afflictions upon us to subdue the flesh, and quicken our hearts unto faith, hope and unceasing prayer: We beseech Thee to have mercy upon us, and graciously deliver us out of our trials and afflictions, so that we may perceive Thy grace and fatherly help, and with all saints forever praise and worship Thee; through Thy dear Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
[KJV Mark 4:38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
Mark is known for having the most condensed version of the Gospels, but here is a detailed combination - asleep on a pillow, awakened by His disciples, accused of not caring and about to die]
These details are very important, because they have guided Bible readers from the beginning. The episode places us in that ship, in that terrifying storm, and angry with our Good Shepherd for seeming to be indifferent, even asleep, not caring!
Faith versus Fear
As soon as fear crops up, faith goes out the window (Luther). General Patton said, "Never take counsel of your fears," and he ordered the chaplain to pray away a violent storm that hindered the Army in one horrific episode.
We are easily struck with the fear that drives away faith. That can be caused by work, threats of unemployment, rejection, relationships, bosses, threats far beyond our abilities to grasp or calm things down.
"Have faith!" is rather empty, unless we say or think, "Believe in Jesus Christ, have faith - have total trust in Him." All of Christianity is based upon this truth - the Son of God is our Good Shepherd, who watches over us and comes between everything bad and dangerous. Wolves growl and pace around, trying to devour and scatter the flock.
Bad answers to these problems include - Threatening, anger, retaliating, buying someone's favor, earning special titles and honors. In other words, living by the Law - not the Gospel - and making things even.
26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
There is a certain amount of humor in this and there is also sharpness. A little bit of faith is not adequate for the storms, and it only twists us up in worrying, fretting, and searching for answers apart from and against the Savior.
The greatest power on earth is Satan, but his time is drawing near, whether next year or centuries in the future. The Savior stands in the way of Satan and his many subordinates, who try to ridicule, avoid, and mock the Good Shepherd.
The Savior is far more powerful than Satan, because Jesus allowed Himself to be only the man. He was and is the Word of God who took on the sins of the world.
27 But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!
Those who followed and believed were still overwhelmed by the calm power of their Master. No matter what they saw and believed before this happened, stilling the storm and rebuking it were His actions, His will, His demonstration of divine power. Many things had to happen to let them understand and trust in all this.
We have the benefit of what they experienced, essential for the life God gives us. null
