Good Morning
All,
Luke 9:2; “and
he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.”
I
love to watch old movies about the Medieval Era. I like the stories about knights and jousting
and rescuing ladies in distress. My
favorites are the tales of King Arthur and his court. The tales of Sir Lancelot, or Sir Galahad or
Lady Guinevere; I can watch over and over.
It doesn’t matter if it is the fanciful Errol Flynn ones or the darker
newer ones. I like knights and swords
and suits of armor. They are fascinating
to me.
In our verse, we read where Jesus sent out his disciples to proclaim the
kingdom of God. While most of us tend to
think of the kingdom of God as a place; it is actually an action. The kingdom of God is the active presence of
Jesus in the earth and in our lives. The
kingdom of God is God at work; restoring the creation back to its pristine
condition. It is the steady movement
forward to recreate that which is corrupt into what is pure and holy. It is God saving you and me and fixing what
is broken.
This is good news for us and for all of creation. It is news that will lift the veil of despair
and lift the hearts of the downtrodden.
It is the Word of God changing lives of men and women who hear it and
cling to that good news with its promise of hope. This is a message which needs to be
proclaimed throughout the land. This
good news should be taken to all the downcast and the suffering. God has chosen you and me to fill this role;
we are God’s knights.
God gives to us the armor we need to fight this battle. He gives us the Spirit to lead us, to
encourage us and to sustain us. God
invigorates us with his Word and Sacrament to refresh our soul and to lift up
our spirits. Even when the battle is fierce and the warfare long; God is our everlasting
and ever present hope and shield. He
equips us to go out and to spread the good news even when the devil tries to
block us. The devil will never win
against the kingdom of God; it will always fail.
Even when we are struck and knocked down, God is there to pick us up and
to make us whole with his tender love and mercy. We may be struck but we will never be
mortally wounded by the devil. He cannot
get us. God has promised to provide for
us so no matter how bleak it may seem to us God is for us. God is always there for us no matter how it
looks; he is using us to proclaim his kingdom and it is the force which cannot
be stopped.
So rise, Sir Knight, for you are part of God’s great kingdom, cleansed
by the blood of the Lamb and crowned as an heir of his kingdom. Go with speed and strength for it is God’s
work which we do. God is with you every
step of the journey.
Father
of all grace, we give you thanks for the promise of salvation and the gracious
gift of faith. Enable us to hold fast to
your Word. Be with those who are lost
and hurting. Be with those who suffer
the pain of guilt and fear. Use us as
your hands to proclaim you words of hope and salvation. Use us to proclaim your kingdom. In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret
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