David Bahn - Reflections

This message, based on the Prodigal Son parable on Sunday, September 18, 2022 at Fishers of Men Lutheran Church, Port Isabel, TX

May God bless the sharing of his word!

Paul speaks of his friends in the faith as well as partners in ministry. They are precious to him and he hopes he is precious to them. They build each other up in the faith and bring great joy. The same is true for me. Friends in the faith are the silver and gold of human relationships. They are a delightful blessing for with we can thank God: in the middle of the night, and in this very moment. Thank you, God, for our friends in faith. They make the love of Jesus ever more real.

As Paul writes here I can see two things he wishes for the people of Thessalonica. He prays that their love for one another and for all people would grow and overflow, and that their hearts would be strong, blameless, and holy. Those are worthy gap fillers. They are filled by embracing God's love and grace, holding to his truth, and daily repenting of our sins and renewing our faith in Jesus.

Suffering is inevitable. Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble." But he also said, "Rejoice, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). This is our hope in the face of the inevitable troubles we must all face. Thank God for those who do not give the false-hope of a troubleless life, and for those who are willing to stand with us in the face of those inevitable troubles. They may be inevitable. But they are not final.

The devil is a clear and present danger to our faith. He is the thief who wants to steal, kill, and destroy. Our prideful idea that we must take care of all things, never leaning on others, or asking for help, or sending others into the fray is also a clear and present danger. Sometimes people fall prey to that idea, thinking that only the pastor can provide spiritual care. They forfeit the prayers of the saints and miss the comfort of mutual conversation and consolation that brothers and sisters in Christ provide.

God's love is mediated through the Body of Christ, and we're all part of that body. Failing to take advantage of that gives the devil yet another opportunity to steal our joy, kill our hope, and destroy our faith. Thank God when he sends others to our side to help in that struggle.

If you believe you must live a perfect life in order to be saved, you will soon end up living a hypocritical life to cover your sin. But you can never hide from God. If you believe that God welcomes sinners, receives us when we fail, or even betray our faith, you will find great comfort in God's mercy and steadfast love.

What do you believe? Do you believe in the forgiveness of sins? Do you believe in the goodness, grace, truth, mercy, and steadfast love of God? I do. And that matters a lot...a whole lot!

Ephesians 4:11-16

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Maybe you know someone who is on the leading edge of every change ever suggested. He is the one first in line when the new Apple iPhone 14 comes out – or he may have already gotten a pre-production version to test. He’s also the one who gets burned sometimes because he’s too far out in front. After all, the leading edge is also the bleeding edge!

Gathering for worship is so important. You can relate to people in all three levels: as neighbors, friends, and as close friends. God's gift of the Lord's Supper is a further extension of this, for in that we experience a deep intimacy with Jesus and all the company of heaven, together with all the saints who join us at the communion rail.

Sometimes we must resort to some sort of virtual experience. But there's nothing like being there, face to face, and as appropriate, heart to heart. May Jesus allow that for us all!

Perhaps you can identify with being cared for and valued as a child of God. A dedicated servant of God has expressed love and encouragement to you. You have been in the prayers of a prayer warrior. Someone who is a follower of Jesus has visited you, offering God's word of grace and truth. That's where you can be in this picture of Christian love and concern.

May it never be that we are in the group who seeks to thwart others from gaining access to Jesus. We must not be the source of discouragement to faithful followers of our Lord. We must never get in the way of one who is spreading the word of Christ. Ridicule, criticism, grumbling, and fault-finding all do exactly those things. Let that never be our place in the picture!

Whenever we can we ought to invite others to imitate our faith and way of life. You say you've got some failures, sin, and missteps in your walk with Jesus? So does everyone else. Lead by example of contrition, repentance and a renewed commitment to live out the truth that God has revealed to us. He will come for his own and we will be eternally happy because of his great love and merciful redemption. Perhaps our example will embolden others to follow that path of faithfulness as well.