May 14, 2023

Today's Reading: John 14:15-21

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 3:1-16, 39-48; Luke 14:25-15:10

“I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me.” (John 14:18-19)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia! Christ is risen!  One of the scary things about losing your parents is that you lose a connection to your roots. Your parents are a connection to where you came from.

In the Holy Gospel today, our Lord makes two reassuring promises: I will not leave you as orphans and I will come to you. In Christ, we are not orphans, cut off from our roots. We are adopted into a lineage that goes back all the way to Adam and Eve. Now, you can’t find it on a genealogy website. But it is one that is recorded in Holy Scripture. Every baptized believer is born into the Church. This Church began with the promise made to Adam and Eve after the Fall, and stretched all the way into eternity. Our roots transcend generations, span oceans, overcome death, and will never be severed!

And that’s amazing, but what about our day-to-day life in the body? That’s where the second promise comes to our aid: “I will come to you.” He’s not merely talking about His Second Coming. He is Immanuel, God with us, and that did not cease to be true when He ascended. Consider the ways He is with His Church, which we call the means of grace.

He gives us Baptism as a proof that “I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you” (Isaiah 43:1-2) He sends His Holy Spirit with Absolution to assure us that the forgiveness which the pastor speaks is valid on the Judgement Day (John 20:21-23). He is with us in His holy Word, which is why we are taught to say, “Thanks be to God” when it’s read and we stand for the Holy Gospel. And if that is not enough, in the Lord’s Supper, He gives to you His own true Body and Blood to strengthen and keep you.

If you get lonely, feeling like an orphan, go to church. If it’s a Tuesday at 8:45pm, go talk with your parents, or phone a brother or sister in Christ. If you’re away from home and can’t do that, read the Bible as your family history and pray to your Father because you are His dear child.  In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

O God, the giver of all that is good, by Your holy inspiration grant that we may think those things that are right and by Your merciful guiding accomplish them; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

- Pastor Michael A. Miller is Pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Jonathan Lackey is an LCMS seminarian.

Study Christ's words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.