You can listen to the devotion here.

 Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Scripture
John 14:23-31
23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.
25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.
 
Devotion by the Blessed Dr. Martin Luther

I. CHRIST'S SERMON OF COMFORT. 
7. That we may, under no circumstances, despair, Christ says, I will send you a Comforter, even one who is almighty. And he calls the Holy Spirit here a Comforter; for although both my sins and the fear of death make me weak and timid, he comes and stirs up the courage in my heart, and says: Cheer up! Thus he trumpets courage into us; he encourages us in a friendly and comforting manner not to despair before death but to cheerfully go forward, even though we had ten necks for the executioner, and say: Aye, although I have sinned, yet I am rid of my sins; and if I had still more, so that they overwhelmed me, I would hope, that they should do me no harm. Not that one should not feel his sins, for the flesh must experience them; but the Spirit overcomes and suppresses diffidence and timidity, and conducts us through them. He is powerful enough to do that. Therefore, Christ says further: 

"Whom I will send unto you from the Father." 

8. For he, the Father, is the person that takes the initiative: I am the Son; and from us the Holy Spirit proceeds. And the three persons are one, and one essence, with equal power and authority, as he better expresses it when he says: 

"The Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father." 

9. That is as much as to say: He who will comfort you is almighty and Lord over all things. How can the creatures now harm us, if the Creator stands by us? Notice how great the comfort of the Holy Spirit is. Now let all the Turks attack us. As long as he is our guard and rearguard, there is no danger. John also says in his first Epistle, 3, 19-20: "Hereby shall we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our heart before him; because if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things." Likewise, in the following chapter, verse 4, he says: "Ye are of God, my little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world." So the Lord now says, Him will I send unto you, so that nothing can harm you. Is not that liberal comfort? Who would not be fearless and cheerful in view of this? And Christ calls him "The Spirit of truth;" that is, where he is and comes there is a rock foundation through and through, the real truth. Neither falsehood nor hypocrisy is there, for the Spirit is not hypocritical. But wherever he is not, there is nothing but hypocrisy and falsehood. Therefore, we fall when the test comes, because the Spirit of truth is not present. Christ now further says: 

"He shall bear witness of me." 

10. That is, if he is in the heart he speaks through you, and assures and confirms you in the belief that the Gospel is true. Then, as a result, the confession of the Gospel springs forth. What, then, is the Gospel? It is a witness concerning Christ, that he is God's Son, the Savior, and beside him there is none other. This is what Peter means when he says: "Ye are a royal priesthood, that we are elected thereto, that we preach and show forth the excellencies of Christ." 1 Pet 2, 9. Hence, there must always be witnessing. Witnessing loads upon itself the wrath of the whole world. Then the cross follows, then rebellions rise, then the lords and princes and all who are great become angry; for the world cannot hear, nor will it tolerate, this kind of preaching. Therefore, the Gospel is hated and spoken against. 

11. Reason thinks: Aye, one can, nevertheless, easily preach the Gospel in a beautifully simple and plain way, without a revolution in the world, and then it will be heartily welcomed. This is the utterance of Satan; for if I believe and say that faith in Christ alone does and accomplishes all, I overthrow the monkey play of the whole world; and that they cannot allow. Therefore, Christ's teachings and man's teachings cannot stand together; one must fall. Priests and monks, as they are at present, are dependent in name, character and works upon human institutions, which the Gospel thrusts to the ground. Hence, they dare not accept the Gospel, and they continue as they are. 

12. Thus, I say that the Christian faith is founded upon Christ alone, without anything additional. The priests will not permit their affairs and institutions to fall; in consequence, seditions and rebellions follow. Therefore, there must be dissension where the Gospel and the confession of Christ are; for the Gospel opposes everything that is not of its own spirit. If the teachings of Christ and the priests were not antagonistic, they could easily stand together. They are now pitted against one another. As impossible as it is for Christ not to be Christ, so impossible is it for a monk or priest to be a Christian. Therefore, a fire must be kindled. The Lord himself, in Mt 10, 34 and Lk 12, 51 says: "I came not to send peace, but a sword." Then follows in our text: 

"And ye also bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning." 

13. Yes; then, first, when you become certain of your faith through the Holy Spirit, who is your witness, you must also bear witness of me, for to that end I chose you to be apostles. You have heard my words and teachings and have seen my works and life and all things that you are to preach. But the Holy Spirit must first be present; otherwise you can do nothing, for the conscience is too weak. Yes, there is no sin so small that the conscience could vanquish it, even if it were so trifling a one as laughing in church. Again, in the presence of death the conscience is far too weak to offer resistance. Therefore another must come and give to the timid, despairing conscience, courage to go through everything, although all sins be upon it. And it must, at the same time, be an almighty courage, like he alone can give who ministers strength in such a way that the courage, which before a rustling leaf could cause to fear, is now not afraid of all the devils, and the conscience that before could not restrain laughing, now restrains all sins. 

14. The benefit and fruit of the Holy Spirit is, that sin will be changed to the highest and best use. Thus Paul boasts to Timothy, when he was converted, that whereas he had lived such a wicked life before, he now held his sin to be so contemptible that he composed a hymn and sang about it thus, in 1 Tim 1, 12-17: "I thank him that enabled me, even Christ Jesus our Lord, for that he counted me faithful, appointing me to his service; though I was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: howbeit I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord abounded exceedingly with faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief: howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me as chief might Jesus Christ show forth all his longsuffering, for an example of them that should thereafter believe on him unto eternal life. Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen."

Collect
Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you that you have and continue to send us the Holy Spirit, our Comforter through Word and Sacrament. Amen.
 
 

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
​
Scripture
Acts 1:1-11
1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

Mark 16:14-20
14 Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.
 
Devotion (This is inspired and based on Dr. Martin Chemnitz’s The Two Natures of Christ)
Why do we celebrate the ascension of our Lord?  The Creeds confess the ascension as a key event in our Lord’s saving work that will culminate in his return in glory on the Last Day. The ascension confirms what the resurrection evidences demonstrate: that Jesus is the one Lord and creator who rises from the dead and ascends to receive His kingdom. And it marks the completion of our Lord’s redemptive work.  

Hebrews 1:3 says “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

We speak of the right hand of the divine majesty, or the right hand of His power or strength (Luke 22:69), at which Christ is described as sitting here in time.  Elsewhere in Scripture the right hand of God does not signify a member or part of God, nor merely a place of quiet and bliss, but it indicates the power and activity of God by which He drives back His enemies.

He is present with His own, listens to you with His grace, His blessing, His help, His liberation, His defense, His preservation, His salvation, as shown in His miracles and all His glorious divine works.
Christ according to His divine nature is the very right hand of God, for the Father does all His works of divine majesty and power through the Son. Through His human nature He is working for you, and sits at the right hand of God, because it has been personally united with the divine nature of the Logos, which is the very right hand of God.

Now after He has laid aside His humiliation in the exaltation or glorification, it has been brought into the full and manifest use of the power of the right hand of God. He had hidden this majesty during His life on earth and did not make full use but only when He wished.

The expression “to sit” in this passage (Psalm 110:1; 1 Cor. 15:25) does not refer to the reclining position of the body or to the occupancy of a particular place, but to His power and to the glorious administration of His office of King, High Priest, and Messiah and to His dominion over all things.
Scripture speaks in this way of Christ’s session at the right hand of God so that it may show clearly that also with respect to His human nature, according to which, He was crucified, dead and raised again, Christ is placed at the right hand of the majesty and power of God.

The terms which are added in the description of this session, such as “in heaven,” “in the heavens,” “in the highest,” do not restrict the right hand of God to one place, nor do they imply that Christ according to His human nature is sitting at the right hand of God in only one place in heaven;  but these expressions mean that the majesty and power are not created, earthly, or lowly, but rather that they are heavenly, lofty, and divine.

For it is said of God Himself, who is limited to no one place: “Our God is in heaven, He does all things which He wishes.” (Psalm 115:3)  So, to say that Christ – as God and Man- is seated is to say that He is still acting on your behalf as your Prophet, Priest, and King.

Not the least part of the work of Christ as our Mediator and Savior is that as Head He is present with His members, gathering, ruling, defending, preserving, and saving His Church.

For in all your afflictions and temptations—in the depraved infirmity of your nature, among the various offenses and the many pitfalls under the powerful tyranny and the rage of Satan, the world, and all the enemies of the church— your greatest and only comfort is our knowledge that Christ is present as our King, our High Priest, our Head, and the pastor of us who are His sheep in the midst of ravening wolves.

He does not place the burdens of governing in His kingdom on the shoulders of others through delegated work, as the custom of our kings is, for the government is always on His shoulders (Is. 9:6), but when He Himself is present He cares for us, governs, defends, preserves, and saves us, as His peculiar people whom He has bought with His own blood.

We have, moreover, an express word and a specific promise instituted in a particular and definite way, ordained as a part of His will and testament by the Son of God Himself on the night in which He was betrayed, a promise which Christ ratified also after His ascension by sitting at the right hand of the Majesty in His glory in heaven, a promise which was repeated to Paul, a promise that He wills to be present with His body and blood in the observance of His Supper as it is celebrated in the gathering of the Church here on earth in accord with His institution.

The words state that Christ desires to be present in His Church with His Body and Blood, or according to His human nature, wherever His Supper is celebrated on earth. Through His assumed humanity, He wills to bestow His benefits on us, to confirm and seal them, and thus to accomplish in the Church His work of giving us life, according to each nature, through His life-giving flesh.
This is a doctrine which is so full of consolation, that is, that the Son of God, our Mediator and Savior, according to the words of His testament wills to be present with His Church here on earth, which is fighting under the banner of the cross and struggling in this vale of tears.
For He wishes to be present also in and with His assumed nature by which He is of the same substance with us, related to us, our Brother, our very flesh, according to which flesh He does not blush to call us His brothers and in which flesh He was tempted.

So that He can share in our sufferings, according to which flesh Christ is our Head and we His members. And just as no one hates his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, so also Christ does to His Church, since we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bone (Eph. 5:29).
For He now fills all things in heaven and on earth. He continues “to do and to teach” (Acts 1:1), preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins through those sent in His name (Mark 16:14–20; Luke 24:44–53),  and giving you His true body and blood in the Supper.

He is Lord over all things for the sake of the Church. And He continually serves as your Prophet, Priest, and King.

He whom heaven cannot contain has raised your human nature to share fully in the glory of God. You who believe and are baptized into Christ’s body are already sitting in the heavenly places; for you are in Him who is at the Father’s right hand.

When He comes again in the clouds on the Last Day, you also will appear with Him in glory.
No matter what is going on this truth of what Christ’s Ascension means for us stands as our hope.

Collect
Almighty God, as Your only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, ascended into the heavens, so may we also ascend in heart and mind and continually dwell there with Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
​
Scripture
1 Peter 4:7-11
7 The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of your prayers. 8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Devotion by Dr. Paul E. Kretzmann
The apostle here guards against the danger of a false security which may follow his comforting assurances in the case of such as misunderstand the meaning of Christian liberty: But the end of all things has come near; be sensible, then, and vigilant toward prayer. As sure as redemption has been earned and salvation is ready for all men, as sure as the Judge of the living and the dead is prepared for the final Judgment and the apparent delay is only another gracious measure on His part to call men to repentance, so sure it is that the end of all things, of that which we commonly designate as heaven and earth, the visible world, is near.

This consideration of the nearness of the end is a strong motive for the Christians to exert all diligence in using the time allotted them in the proper way. Their entire conduct should be one that agrees with sound Christian common sense, with that sober-mindedness which should be the strongest characteristic of the children of God. They must put aside all spiritual drowsiness and be wide awake, vigilant, with regard to prayer. In view of the nearness of the end they will be particularly diligent in their intercourse with their heavenly Father, lest the dangers and tribulations of the latter days overcome them. All the cares, joys, and sorrows of life must not be permitted to interfere with their relation toward God.

The conduct of the Christians toward their neighbors must likewise be in line with these considerations: Above all, have the love toward one another fervent, for love covers a mass of sins. That the apostle stresses this point with such emphasis may easily be understood, especially in view of the conditions as they now obtain in the world. Such is the power of selfishness in these last days that the idea of unselfish altruism, of true love, has practically been lost. It is talked about very extensively, even in the relation of states and nations toward one another, but is practiced very little.

Therefore, all true Christians should distinguish themselves by making the love which they profess to feel an intense, an assiduous, a fervent, a real love, without a trace of selfishness, having only the welfare of their brother in mind. It is this love which is ready to cover and forget even a mass of sins, a feat which would not be possible if their love were of a kind that does not stand tests. Thus love preserves brotherly harmony and unity. It is not a question of magnanimously overlooking one or two little faults, but of forgiving even a multitude of sins, and in forgiving to forget them.
Another proof of this love is indicated in the words: Be hospitable toward each other without murmuring. This was necessary even more in those days of oppression and persecution than it is today, at least in our country. But as recent events abroad show, the time may well come also in this country when oppression will come upon us, making it necessary for us to open our homes to such as have been driven from their homes by persecution. But in any event Christians will be ready to show true hospitality, to receive their brethren and sisters with open arms whenever there is need of it. They will do this, moreover, not with an unwilling murmuring, but with a cordiality flowing out of true love.

A third admonition concerns the work in the congregation: Everyone as he has received a gift of grace, - serve one another therewith, as good stewards of the various graces of God. Mark that the apostle expressly states that every Christian has received some gift of grace, some talent which he should employ in the service of the congregation, of the Church of the Lord. Whether this gift is one of preaching, or of teaching, or of praying, or of exhorting, or of organizing, it should be exercised by the Christian. No talent may be hidden away in the ground for specious reasons. But these gifts are not our own to use as we choose, especially not for selfish purposes, for the advancement of various ambitious schemes. In receiving gifts from God, we have become stewards of God, we are responsible to Him; our gifts, according to His will, should be exercised in serving one another, in proving ourselves useful in the work which we are carrying on at God’s command, to the praise and honor of God and to the benefit and salvation of our neighbor.

Two of such special gifts of grace, of the Holy Spirit, the apostle names: if any one speaks, let him do so as he who utters the words of God; if any one ministers, let him do so as out of the strength which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and power forever and ever, Amen. If anyone has received the gift of speaking, if he holds an office in which he is to declare the oracles of God, Rom. 12, 6; Num. 24, 4, he should adhere strictly to these revelations of God as they are contained in His inspired Word. For any man to proclaim himself a Christian teacher and then to preach his own human speculations, or only that which he chooses to consider true in the Bible, is an insult to the Lord. All frivolous handling of the Word also, as when a Christian teacher forgets the dignity of the subject which he is laying before the congregation, cannot be excused on any grounds. In a similar way those that are engaged in ministering, in almsgiving, in taking care of the poor and needy, in assisting in the work of Christian hospitals and hospices, in short, all Christians, as they take part in the work of charity carried on in their midst, should remember that it is, in the last analysis, the work of the Lord which they are doing as His stewards.

They will, then, certainly not depend upon their own strength nor seek to further any private schemes in their work, nor will they permit their hands to be idle while there is so much work to do. That gift, that power which God has granted them, and which He wants to continue to supply, they are to use energetically, consistently. It is, in other words, the faithful, conscientious employment of the gifts which God has given to a Christian which he desires from every one of them. And the final aim and purpose will always be that God's name may be glorified among men more and more. For it is from Him, as the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that we have received faith and the fruit of faith, and thus also the power to praise and magnify His holy name through the works which we perform in the building and maintaining of His kingdom. The power of God becomes operative through Jesus Christ, to whom we give all praise and power in all eternity. 6)
 
Collect
O Lord, so rule and govern our hearts and minds by Your Holy Spirit that, ever mindful of the end of all things and the day of Your just judgment, we may be stirred up to holiness of living here and dwell with You forever hereafter; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 
​
Scripture
John 3:14-15
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Devotion from St. John Chrysostom
Ver. 14. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.”

This again seems to depend upon what has gone before, and this too has a very close connection with it. For after having spoken of the very great benefaction that had come to man by Baptism, He proceeds to mention another benefaction, which was the cause of this, and not inferior to it; namely, that by the Cross. As also Paul arguing with the Corinthians sets down these benefits together, when he says, “Was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized into the name of Paul?” for these two things most of all declare His unspeakable love, that He both suffered for His enemies, and that having died for His enemies, He freely gave to them by Baptism entire remission of their sins.

[2.] But wherefore did He not say plainly, “I am about to be crucified,” instead of referring His hearers to the ancient type? First, that you may learn that old things are akin to new, and that the one are not alien to the other; next, that you may know that He came not unwillingly to His Passion; and again, besides these reasons, that you may learn that no harm arises to Him from the Fact, and that to many there springs from it salvation. For, that none may say, “And how is it possible that they who believe on one crucified should be saved, when he himself is holden of death?” He leads us to the ancient story. Now if the Jews, by looking to the brazen image of a serpent, escaped death, much rather will they who believe on the Crucified, with good reason enjoy a far greater benefit. For this takes place, not through the weakness of the Crucified, or because the Jews are stronger than He, but because “God loved the world,” therefore is His living Temple fastened to the Cross.

Ver. 15. “That whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Do you see the cause of the Crucifixion, and the salvation which is by it? Do you see the relationship of the type to the reality? there the Jews escaped death, but the temporal, here believers the eternal; there the hanging serpent healed the bites of serpents, here the Crucified Jesus cured the wounds inflicted by the spiritual dragon; there he who looked with his bodily eyes was healed, here he who beholds with the eyes of his understanding put off all his sins; there that which hung was brass fashioned into the likeness of a serpent, here it was the Lord’s Body, built by the Spirit; there a serpent bit and a serpent healed, here death destroyed and a Death saved. But the snake which destroyed had venom, that which saved was free from venom; and so again was it here, for the death which slew us had sin with it, as the serpent had venom; but the Lord’s Death was free from all sin, as the brazen serpent from venom. For, saith Peter, “He did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth.” (1 Pet. 2:22.) And this is what Paul also declares, “And having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” (Col. 2:16.) For as some noble champion by lifting on high and dashing down his antagonist, renders his victory more glorious, so Christ, in the sight of all the world, cast down the adverse powers, and having healed those who were smitten in the wilderness, delivered them from all venomous beasts that vexed them, by being hung upon the Cross. Yet He did not say, “must hang,” but, “must be lifted up” (Acts 28:4); for He used this which seemed the milder term, on account of His hearer, and because it was proper to the type.

Ver. 16. “God,” He saith, “so loved the world that He gave His Only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

What He said, is of this kind: Marvel not that I am to be lifted up that ye may be saved, for this seems good to the Father, and He hath so loved you as to give His Son for slaves, and ungrateful slaves. Yet a man would not do this even for a friend, nor readily even for a righteous man; as Paul has declared when he said, “Scarcely for a righteous man will one die.” (Rom. 5:7.) Now he spoke at greater length, as speaking to believers, but here Christ speaks concisely, because His discourse was directed to Nicodemus, but still in a more significant manner, for each word had much significance. For by the expression, “so loved,” and that other, “God the world,” He shows the great strength of His love. Large and infinite was the interval between the two. He, the immortal, who is without beginning, the Infinite Majesty, they but dust and ashes, full of ten thousand sins, who, ungrateful, have at all times offended Him; and these He “loved.” Again, the words which He added after these are alike significant, when He saith, that “He gave His Only-begotten Son,” not a servant, not an Angel, not an Archangel. And yet no one would show such anxiety for his own child, as God did for His ungrateful servants.

His Passion then He sets before him not very openly, but rather darkly; but the advantage of the Passion He adds in a clearer manner, saying, “That everyone that believes in Him. should not perish, but have everlasting life.” For when He had said, “must be lifted up,” and alluded to death, test the hearer should be made downcast by these words, forming some mere human opinions concerning Him, and supposing that His death was a ceasing to be, observe how He sets this right, by saying, that He that was given was “The Son of God,” and the cause of life, of everlasting life. He who procured life for others by death, would not Himself be continually in death; for if they who believed on the Crucified perish not, much less doth He perish who is crucified. He who takes away the destitution of others much more is He free from it; He who gives life to others, much more to Himself doth He well forth life. Do you see that everywhere there is need of faith? For He calls the Cross the fountain of life; which reason cannot easily allow, as the heathens now by their mocking testify. But faith which goes beyond the weakness of reasoning, may easily receive and retain it. And whence did God “so love the world”? From no other source but only from his goodness.

John Chrysostom. (1889). Homilies of St. John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople, on the Gospel of St. John. In P. Schaff (Ed.), G. T. Stupart (Trans.), Saint Chrysostom: Homilies on the Gospel of St. John and Epistle to the Hebrews (Vol. 14, pp. 94–96). New York: Christian Literature Company.

Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast caused Your beloved Son to take our nature upon Himself, that He might give all mankind the example of humility and suffer death upon the cross for our sins: Mercifully grant us a believing knowledge of this, and that, following the example of His patience, we may be made partakers of the benefits of His sacred passion and death, through the same, Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one true God, world without end. Amen.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 
​
Scripture
Revelation 11:1-3
Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months. 3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14 The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

Devotion
Revelation uses a lot of imagery to teach the church.  Revelation 11 is no different, and the focus is that the church will suffer greatly in this world. God will protect His church and yet Christians will suffer persecution and even death. But in the end, they have victory because Christ is victorious.
There is a lot going on in this chapter, but it helps if you understand that both the temple and the two witnesses are a picture of the church.

This temple is the church where God dwells with His people in Word and Sacrament.  This is how the church is sustained even in the face of persecution, suffering, and even death.  The church will suffer and suffer greatly but it will not ultimately be defeated.

This is the same thing we see with the two witnesses.  The two witnesses are representative of the church’s preaching and teaching ministry, that is its prophetic witness to the world.  The church calls the world to repentance and proclaims Christ crucified for them.

The two witnesses are even killed in this section.  At times the witness of the church will be silenced in an area for a time (and the world will even celebrate this!), but then the church is raised up in that place again just as we see the two witnesses raised up. 

The end of the chapter shows the end of all things and the great joy that God’s children will have on that day. The ark of the covenant makes an appearance at the close of the chapter because it is a symbol of God’s presence and shows that His presence and fellowship is possible because of the atonement of Christ.  This presence is found today in the church as we gather around Word and Sacrament – the very place where Christ has promised to be for you and your salvation!

Martin Luther has some helpful insights into what it means for the church to suffer under the cross. He calls this suffering the seventh mark of the church: "Seventh, the holy Christian people are externally recognized by the holy possession of the sacred cross. They must endure every misfortune and persecution, all kinds of trials and evil from the devil, the world, and the flesh (as the Lord’s Prayer indicates) by inward sadness, timidity, fear, outward poverty, contempt, illness, and weakness, in order to become like their head, Christ. And the only reason they must suffer is that they steadfastly adhere to Christ and God’s word, enduring this for the sake of Christ, Matthew 5 [:11], “Blessed are you when men persecute you on my account.” Wherever you see or hear this, you may know that the holy Christian church is there, as Christ says in Matthew 5 [:11–12], “Blessed are you when men revile you and utter all kinds of evil against you on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.”…This too is a holy possession whereby the Holy Spirit not only sanctifies his people, but also blesses them."

These sufferings are actually a blessing that we can rejoice in because we know that Christ is with us using all these things for the good of His Church. 

Collect
Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank You, that through Your Son Jesus Christ You have sown Your holy word among us: We pray that You will prepare our hearts by Your Holy Spirit, that we may diligently and reverently hear Your word, keep it in good hearts, and bring forth fruit with patience; and that we may not incline to sin, but subdue it by Your power, and in all persecutions comfort ourselves with Your grace and continual help, through Your beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 
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Scripture
Matthew 21:28-32
28 “What do you think? A man had two sons. And he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 And he answered, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he changed his mind and went. 30 And he went to the other son and said the same. And he answered, ‘I go, sir,’ but did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly, I say to you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes go into the kingdom of God before you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. And even when you saw it, you did not afterward change your minds and believe him. 

Devotion
This is one of those parables that is easily misunderstood.  Sometimes people focus on the first few verses and turn this parable to a lesson on obedience. So that they end up saying something like, “It’s better to say you won’t do something and then actually do it, than to say you will do something and then not do it.” 
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This is a reading of the text I have heard far too many times.  But it is not even close to Jesus’ point.  The context for these verses is that Jesus’ authority was just challenged by the Pharisees.  Jesus flipped their interrogation on its head by asking them some questions about John:
24 Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?” And they discussed it among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was a prophet.” 27 So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

It is right after this that Jesus tells the parable of the two sons.  The Pharisees, who are represented by the first son, claim to be the ones who are following God, but then when the Forerunner and the Messiah come, they reject both and wallow in their self-righteousness.  They do not see their sin or their need for a Savior and so reject what God sent them for their good. 

Hilary of Poitiers saw this long ago: “The first son represents the people who are from the Pharisees. Urgently admonished by God through the prophecy of John to conform themselves to his commandments, they remained insolent, disobedient and contemptuous to God’s warnings. They put their faith in the law and despised repentance from sin, glorying instead in the noble prerogative that they had from Abraham.”

The tax collectors, prostitutes, and other people who saw their sin (who are represented by the second son) are repenting and trusting in Christ alone for their salvation.  They are welcomed into the Kingdom and are sure of their salvation, while the self-righteous, hardhearted Pharisees are on the outside looking in.  This shocked and horrified and enraged the Pharisees.  The looked down on these “sinners” and did not believe they belonged in the Kingdom.

The Good News for us is that Jesus still receives those who see themselves as “poor miserable sinners”, indeed, those who see themselves as “the chief of sinners”.  Jesus came to seek and save sinners.  He lived, suffered, died, and rose again FOR sinners. The Law shows us who we are as sinners, then the Gospel comes and forgives us those sins and gives us new life. Then like the tax collectors and prostitutes, we enter the Kingdom of God – not because of our own righteousness, but because we are covered in the righteousness of Jesus. And Jesus’ point is that in Him you are truly righteous and pious. This is THE Good News – Jesus Christ rescues and redeems you the sinner. This enrages the self-righteous but brings joy to those who see their sin for what it truly is.

Jesus sinners doth receive;
Oh, may all this saying ponder
Who in sin's delusions live
And from God and heaven wander!
Here is hope for all who grieve--
Jesus sinners doth receive. (LSB 609)
 
Collect
Lord God, heavenly Father: We are poor, miserable sinners; we know Your will, but cannot fulfill it because of the weakness of our flesh and blood, and because our enemy, the devil, will not leave us in peace. Therefore we beseech You, shed Your Holy Spirit in our hearts, that, in steadfast faith, we may cling to Your Son Jesus Christ, find comfort in His passion and death, believe the forgiveness of sin through Him, and in willing obedience to Your will lead holy lives on earth, until by Your grace, through a blessed death, we depart from this world of sorrow, and obtain eternal life, through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one true God, world without end. Amen.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 
 
Scripture
1 Corinthians 11:23-32
23 For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. 28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. 29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. 31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
 
Devotion
One of the reasons I picked our hymn, All Praise to Thee, My God, This Night, for this week (see Monday’s devotion) is because of the third stanza.

Teach me to live, that I may dread
The grave as little as my bed.
Teach me to die, that so I may
Rise glorious at the awe-ful day.

I love that stanza. It reminds me of the quote, “You go to the Lord’s Supper as if going to your death, so that you can go to your death as if you are going to the Lord’s Supper.” 

Four years ago, I wrote the following piece in remembrance of Pastor Steve Sanderson. I thought it was fitting with the themes of our hymn and would be beneficial given all that is going on in the world right now. I have edited it some from the original.

Martin Chemnitz wrote: Very beautiful is the statement of Augustine in which he says of his mother Monica that she bound her soul with the chain of faith to that sacrifice which is dispensed in the Lord's Supper so that neither lion nor dragon could tear it away. (Examination 2.321)
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I loved this “very beautiful statement” the moment I first read it. The imagery it evokes of a vicious lion or a ferocious dragon trying to tear away a faithful saint from the body and blood of Christ as given in the Lord’s Supper, is stunning. I loved it, but I do not think I truly understood it until a few years later.

I can remember exactly where I was when I got the call. I had been mowing the lawn and pulled out my phone to check the time. The news still rings in my ears, “Steve has cancer.”  At the time, none of us had any way of knowing how savage and brutal this particular cancer would be.
The cancer attacked the fit physical specimen who had run marathons and eventually made even walking short distances an exercise in pain and endurance. Even as the pain increased, on Sunday mornings you could still find Steve in church. The cancer forced him to move from his regular spot near the front to the back so that he could sit in my desk chair – a somewhat successful attempt to make sitting through church bearable.

When it came time for the Lord’s Supper, he refused to let me bring Christ’s gifts to him where he was seated. His reason, “I want to be at the rail with everyone else.”  I am sure there was an element of pride in this, but I also know that he desired to be with his brothers and sisters and receive Christ’s gifts with them.

For weeks, Steve would drag himself up to the rail. Usually, he was too weak to make it back to his chair without assistance. It was painful to watch him do this to himself.
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And yet, he encouraged us all. Steve embodied Augustine’s quote about Monica. Neither lion nor dragon, neither cancer nor excruciating pain, could keep him away from Christ’s body and blood in the Lord’s Supper. When I consider all the excuses (not legitimate reasons – and to be clear I do believe being at high-risk for the coronavirus/serious concerns over getting it is a legitimate reason) I hear for people missing the Divine Service - everything from pathetic to “I can’t believe you just said that out loud” – it is an astonishing thing to watch a man racked with pain do all that is within his power to be present to receive Christ’s gifts.

It is a beautiful example of what happens when God gives someone the faith to simply trust the Word: “This is my body. This is my blood…for the forgiveness of sins.” When someone believes that the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ truly preserve them in body and soul unto life everlasting there is no telling what they will endure to get it. He knew his desperate need and he knew where to find the only remedy.

Steve did get to the point where he was physically unable to attend the Divine Service. The last time I gave him the Holy Supper was a few days before he went into a coma. He knew death was near and he was not afraid. As I quoted earlier, “You go to the Lord’s Supper as if going to your death, so that you can go to your death as if you are going to the Lord’s Supper.”  I have seen this to be most certainly true.

On May 22nd, 2016, Trinity Sunday, Pastor Steve Sanderson’s battle with cancer ended as our gracious Lord ushered him into glory and four years later he still has much to teach us all. I am still encouraged as I think of Steve dragging himself to the communion rail. May we too see our desperate need and drag ourselves to where the remedy is found in Word and Sacrament.

Collect
O Lord God, heavenly Father, we praise and thank you for your grace that through your Son Jesus Christ you established this supper in which we eat his body and drink his blood. By your Holy Spirit, help us to use this gift worthily, to confess and forsake our sins, to confidently believe that we are forgiven through Christ, and to grow in faith and love day by day until we come at last to the joy of eternal salvation, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 
 
Scripture
Luke 12:32-34
32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
 
Devotion from St. Peter Chrysologus
You have heard today how the Lord has joined the sound of the heavenly trumpet to the shepherd’s song, so that he might raise to divine matters the minds of his sheep that had been stooped down for so long, and immediately lift them up to the heavenly kingdom. Do not fear, little flock, it says, because it has conjointly pleased your Father to give you the kingdom (Lk 12:32). Humility has acquired what arrogance lost, and the little and meek flock has subdued every kind of savagery by its own gentleness. The little flock has conquered and crushed as many kinds of beasts as the nations were diverse that it put under the yoke of Christ.
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The flock that was little and meek, endured being put to death, and for a long time submitted to being devoured, until the cruel pagans, filled up with blood and flesh, after partaking of the pleasant food of the Gospel and the streams of the divine fountain, would shun all sustenance coming from the world of their own kind, and after having deteriorated from being human to becoming beasts they would return from being beasts to becoming human. Moreover, that the prophets experienced this, that the apostles accomplished this, that the martyrs endured this, Scripture attests in that instance where it says: “On your account we are being slain all day long; we are considered as sheep for the slaughter.”

But for this flock of the new order to engage in battle, whereby the one who had been killed lives, the one who had fallen has conquered, and the one who loses his life finds it, it imitated its King, that sheep, and it followed that Lamb who “as a sheep was led to slaughter and as a lamb before its shearer, did not open its mouth.” The one who is silent suffers willingly; he screams who is slaughtered unwillingly; one cannot bewail death if he has deigned to accept death and was not coerced. It is a mark of power when one willingly dies for many; when one is led to death unwillingly it is a matter of great distress: because the first arises out of contempt for death, the second out of one’s natural condition.

So Christ is sheared like a sheep that is both willing and silent, in order to cover that nakedness that Adam first introduced. Just like a lamb he is killed so that by his sacrifice he may pardon the sin of the whole world. He lays down his life for the sheep in order to carry out both the devotion and the care of the shepherd. For you, therefore, he has become King, for you Priest, for you Shepherd, for you Sacrifice, for you the Sheep, for you the Lamb, for you for whom he had made everything he has become everything; and he who for himself never, but for you so often is changed; for your sake he is shown in various forms, he who remains in the form of his unique majesty. And why should I say more? God gives himself to you as a man so that you can bear it, because you are unable to endure him as he is. But let us hear now what such a Shepherd promises his little flock.
2. Do not fear, little flock, it says, because it has conjointly pleased your Father to give you the kingdom. What abundant goodness! What exceptional devotion! What unspeakable affection! The Shepherd receives the sheep as partners in his wealth, and the Lord grants the servants a share in his authority; the King admits the flock of the whole people to participate in the kingdom. In this manner does he make his gift, he whose wealth cannot be diminished, whose kingdom cannot be weakened, whose power cannot be lost by his generosity. But the Lord begins prudently by saying: Do not fear, little flock, because it has conjointly pleased your Father to give you the kingdom.

The one whose status is a servant is not able to hear the promise of a kingdom without fear, because the one who is hardly worthy of freedom is not strong enough to take up the insignia of sovereignty. Therefore, the Lord strengthens the minds of his servants with these words so that the unexpected news that the kingdom is promised them may not be their downfall. It is a crime for a servant to desire a kingdom, it is dangerous for him to hear such a thing, and it is reckless for him not to be fearful. But in Christ’s regard really how great or how wondrous is it that he gives the kingdom to servants, and that he makes his servants sharers with him in his authority, since he washes the feet of his servants in order to serve his servants with unparalleled service?
Let them come here, let them come who attack his power, and then let them argue about his benevolence when they are able to grasp, declare, and evaluate such great kindness…Come now, man, and spare yourself, because in order that you spare yourself, God washed your feet, he held them, and he embraced them!

Collect
Almighty God, merciful Father, since You have wakened from death the Shepherd of Your sheep, grant us Your Holy Spirit that when we hear the voice of our Shepherd we may know Him who calls us each by name and follow where He leads; through the same Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
 

You can listen to the devotion here.

Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Scripture 
Colossians 2:8-15
8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
 
Devotion
Awake, My Heart, with Gladness by Paul Gerhardt is one of my favorite Easter Hymns. It perfectly captures the joy and the meaning of Easter. I am going to read the whole hymn but then I want to focus in on a couple stanzas that really grabbed my attention as I sung this (10x) on Easter – especially since they so beautifully capture the end of what I just read from Colossians 2.

1 Awake, my heart, with gladness,
See what today is done;
Now, after gloom and sadness,
Comes forth the glorious sun.
My Savior there was laid
Where our bed must be made
When to the realms of light
Our spirit wings its flight.

2 The foe in triumph shouted
When Christ lay in the tomb;
But lo, he now is routed,
His boast is turned to gloom.
For Christ again is free;
In glorious victory
He who is strong to save
Has triumphed o'er the grave.

3 This is a sight that gladdens--
What peace it doth impart!
Now nothing ever saddens
The joy within my heart.
No gloom shall ever shake,
No foe shall ever take
The hope which God's own Son
In love for me hath won.

4 Now hell, its prince, the devil,
Of all their pow'r are shorn;
Now I am safe from evil,
And sin I laugh to scorn.
Grim death with all his might
Cannot my soul affright;
It is a pow'rless form,
Howe'er it rave and storm.

5 The world against me rages,
Its fury I disdain;
Though bitter war it wages,
Its work is all in vain.
My heart from care is free,
No trouble troubles me.
Misfortune now is play,
And night is bright as day.

6 Now I will cling forever
To Christ, my Savior true;
My Lord will leave me never,
Whate'er He passes through.
He rends death's iron chain;
He breaks through sin and pain;
He shatters hell's dark thrall;
I follow Him through all.

7 He brings me to the portal
That leads to bliss untold,
Whereon this rhyme immortal
Is found in script of gold:
"Who there My cross has shared
Finds here a crown prepared;
Who there with Me has died
Shall here be glorified."
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I want to focus in on stanzas 4 and 5.  One of the things Good Friday and Easter mean for us as Christians is that hell and the devil have been stripped of their power over us. Hell, death, and the devil are powerless because Christ has conquered them. So, we joyously sing, “Now I am safe from evil, And sin I laugh to scorn!” We can laugh at sin and death because even with all its might, no matter how much it raves and storms, grim death cannot scare us because Christ is risen from the dead. Where is our hope as the world cowers in fear in the face of pandemics and economic uncertainty? Our hope is in the crucified and risen Christ  who is strong to save and in glorious victory has triumphed over the grave.

I love how Athanasius talks about this in On the Incarnation: But if a man is gone down even to Hades and stands in awe of the heroes who have descended there, regarding them as gods, yet he may see the fact of Christ’s resurrection and victory over death. He may infer that among them also Christ alone is true God and Lord. For the Lord touched all parts of creation and freed and undeceived all of them from every illusion. As Paul says, “Having put off from himself the principalities and the powers, he triumphed on the cross”; that no one might by any possibility be any longer deceived but everywhere might find the true Word of God.

The stanza that caught my attention even more than stanza 4 was stanza 5. It is not only the devil that is out to get Christians, it is also the sinful world that is against Christians. It too, like grim death, rages against us but its fury we disdain and hold in contempt – as our Lord does in Psalm 2. All its efforts against the Christian are in vain! So, our hearts can be free from all care and anxiety.  No trouble needs to weigh us down and trouble us. Because of this we sing, “Misfortune now is play, And night is bright as day.”  That is a confession that we can make in faith because of Christ’s victory over death and the grave.

Collect
Gracious Father, I thank you that because You have made me Your child in baptism that I have been united to Christ’s victory over sin, death, hell, the devil, and the sinful world.  Grant me the grace and faith I need to always cling to Him for my salvation; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen

You can listen to the devotion here. 

​Invocation
In the Name of the Father, and (+) of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Scripture 
Mark 4:37–41
37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”  

Devotion
You have to understand that this was no normal storm. Many of the disciples were fishermen and they had seen quite a few storms, but this was different.  In fact, this is most likely a demonic storm. A storm caused by the devil to try to get Jesus. The disciples thought they were going to die.
And Jesus is sleeping.

Throughout the Bible we are told that to sleep soundly is a sign of faith – a sign of trust in God - and Jesus, fully God and fully man, perfectly fears, loves, and trusts in His Father above all things, no matter what is going on around Him.

And so, the Son of God sleeps, and the terrified disciples rush to wake Him up.

Have you not felt like God was asleep at times?  Haven’t you been terrified in the midst of the storms that have come your way and thought that God must be taking a nap?

Think about how many people are living in fear right now because of this pandemic. Many think that God must be asleep or not paying attention. They feel like the storms are crashing in on them and that God is not able or willing to help.

There is much that we can learn from this event.  Today we will focus on just one:  the disciples, and we ourselves, are taught that it is to Christ alone that we should flee for refuge.
The disciples rightly teach us that we should always run to Christ for refuge – whether temporal or eternal. He neither slumbers nor sleeps!  He is always ready and willing to assist you in your time of need.  His ears are always attentive to your prayers.  Does He sometimes appear to be sleeping? Yes, but only so that we might even more seek to “wake” Him through our prayers, so that He might strengthen our faith.

That very same Christ that calmed the storm wants you to have peace as well.  Psalm 127 says that He gives to His beloved sleep, that is peaceful rest.  His desire for you is to trust in Him even when things are bad…even when things look like they can’t get any worse and then they do…even when you are scared and struggling and wondering when or if the storm is ever going to end.
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Because He is fully God and fully man, He speaks a Word and calms the storms.  He is willing AND able to help you in your time of need. We know this because He has suffered and died for your sins, and He is risen and ascended -- all for you and your salvation.  So that even in the face of death and hell itself you can be at peace.  Because you know that the One who has conquered death and hell for you is on your side and fights for you, even when you are of little faith.
 
Collect
O God, from whom come all holy desires, all good counsels, and all just works, give to us, Your servants, that peace which the world cannot give, that our hearts may be set to obey Your commandments and also that we, being defended from the fear of our enemies, may live in peace and quietness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen