Sunday, June 30, 2019

6-30-2019


 Good Morning All,

     Romans 6:5;For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.”       

    Baseball is in full swing.  If you are a Twins fan or a Dodger fan or a Yankee fan, you have had a lot to cheer about so far.  It is exciting to watch and you wonder if one of the new guys will become the player that can literally carry a team to a victory almost by his sheer will.  The last player the Twins had like that was probably Kirby Puckett.  After his death, some of his teammates were relating stories of him on a sports show.  They told of a time when Kirby told his teammates, “get on and ride me for a while.” That next game he went 4 for 5 with a homerun and a couple of amazing catches in the outfield.  The Yankees have had many of these through their illustrious history; Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Derek Jeter.  It seems that teams will get to a point in the season where their future is going to be determined by how well one key player plays.

    It is somewhat amazing that something like professional baseball, football or basketball can come down to how well one person plays.  Take a Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, or Michael Jordan or LeBron James off the team and see what is left; oftentimes, not much.  Yet it happens over and over even in our everyday lives.  A whole factory might wait as one trucker has to deliver the parts they need to continue.  Many cars wait while one person walks across the street so they can continue on their journey.  Our future may be tied to one person and we might not even know it.

    Yet our eternal future is known and is certain and we know the man it is tied to; it is tied to Jesus.  This is the great promise that Paul makes in Romans where he speaks of the power of Baptism.  We are connected directly to Christ through the wonder, the power and the Word of Baptism.  We are united to Jesus.  Our old Adam is drowned, daily, in order that we may stand before God in righteousness.  We go where Jesus goes.  We go through the death of our sinful nature in order to rise a new creation.  We are the declared righteous children of God who sees us through the glasses of Christ’s righteousness.

    This means that just as Jesus emerged from the tomb to defeat death; we too, will emerge victorious!  How do we know we will defeat death?  Because Jesus did!  Our entire destiny is built upon that singular truth, a truth that is totally dependent upon the mercy of God and not our doing.  We never worry if it is “enough”; God declares it so through the sight of the empty tomb.  Our destiny lays in the hands of our loving Savior who desires that all may be saved by his precious blood.  We are the victors indeed!

Gracious Father, in the blood of Jesus you have declared us your children and through the powers of Baptism you have washed us clean of our sins.  Keep us ever looking to you for our hope.  Guard our hearts and strengthen our spirit that we may ever rest in your peace.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

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