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Having standards is good. You know what’s expected. You can make a plan for action and then strategically follow through.

But what if the standards are too high to hit? Too far beyond your abilities. What if the standards are simply impossible?

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:21

Then we don’t see them as good; we see them as depressing. We no longer find any hope of being able to reach that which has been set before us. Instead, we despair. We lose all sense of capability.

Our text today is from Romans 12, and St. Paul lays out a lot for us to consider — a lot of standards, a lot of to-dos, a lot of things every Christian needs to not only consider but to follow through with.

They’re all good things. I don’t think any of them are ones that we would disagree with or have a problem with.

But when we really look at the magnitude of them in number and scope, it is more than unsettling. It is frightening. It is daunting. It is, truly, at its core, impossible.

If this is what God requires of us, then God help us, for we cannot do it. Taking to heart just the list in our text produces a guttural “Uh-oh” moment as we grasp the true height of God’s perfection and the depth of our depravity.

Just the last verse in our text, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21), seems so simple and innocuous. But how are we supposed to do that? How are we supposed to overcome evil with good when we’re not good ourselves — when we so often fail to even recognize what good is, when we so easily drift or even run to evil ourselves? The evil within us. The evil around us. The evil that defines us.

God help us indeed!

And that’s where we have to land. That’s the only place we can land: in the merciful, forgiving, loving hands of God, who not only helps us in keeping his commands but went even further — and through Jesus kept all of them for us. Fully. Willingly. Lovingly.

All that God commands us now is possible through the power of the Holy Spirit, and through the lens of Christ’s satisfaction for all of these standards, now completed on a cross and through an empty tomb. “Uh-oh” becomes “A-ha!” All that God requires, he has fulfilled. All that he desires is completed through his gracious invitation, because of our faith in his Son, our Savior, Jesus.

Now all the things laid out for us are gracious invitations: to follow in His footsteps, invitations to love as He loved, invitations to live as He lived.

We no longer need to read God’s commands with an “Uh-oh,” but rather with the excitement of knowing that even when we fail to follow through perfectly, when our heart is joined to His, our imperfection is no longer an obstacle but a covered detour through faith in Christ.

Thank You, Lord!

“Gracious Father, You have laid out so many acts of love and service for us to follow in our discipleship to You and service to others. We confess we have failed to keep Your standards but rejoice that Jesus has done so for us. Grant us Your Spirit to now see Your loving Law, not as daunting but as exciting opportunities of doing; and when we inevitably fail in our execution, set us back up in You and move forward to try again. In the precious and perfect name of Jesus do we pray. Amen!”

Scripture

• Romans 12:9-21
• Psalm 26 (responsory)

Much is said when we talk about this passage in Matthew 16 about the interpretation of who or what the rock is. Catholics would have you say that the rock is Peter himself, and that this establishes the papacy. Others say that although it refers to Peter, his confession is the rock—the confession that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Matthew 16:16

Let’s take away, for a moment, that discussion and focus on that confession. When Jesus asks who people say that He is, and then asks the disciples specifically who they say that He is, the response that comes back from Peter is not one that was arrived at naturally. It was not something that Peter or the others were going to figure out for themselves. God had to reveal Himself to Peter. God had to show Peter Jesus’ identity. And that revelation is going to be foundational to the Church, to its mission, to its fight against the devil and hell itself.

“You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Jesus was not just some rabbi or teacher or good man or someone with a new, interesting philosophy to live by. He was not someone who might have had special gifts and abilities to heal, or speak, or feed thousands from what seemed like magic tricks. He was the one promised from of old, all the way back in Genesis—the Christ, the Anointed, the Messiah, the chosen one of God! This is who Jesus is: the Son of the living God, God and man, the One who came to fulfill what God promised, the One who was speaking to them as the fulfillment of God’s plan.

And this fulfillment—this Jesus—is going to storm the gates of hell, and they will not be able to withstand it. Through suffering and death on a cross, the death of God’s plan and the destruction of all that God loves seemed imminent. But God changed that. He reversed it. He used it instead to display His power, His glory, His victory over sin, death, and the devil on our behalf, forever.

And we are blessed, because this was not revealed just to Simon Peter but has also been revealed to us. By His word, we also now know, through the Spirit, who Jesus is, what he has done, and who we are now as his children—redeemed, forgiven, and granted salvation.

Let everything else come what may. Let the gates of hell and the Devil himself come against us—they will not prevail. Christ has already prevailed against them, for us, forever.

Praise God for that!

“Gracious God, thank you for the truth of who Jesus is: Your Chosen One, Your Son, the One who conquered all for us. Help us to build our foundation, in all aspects of our lives, on Him—our Rock, our fortress, our Savior. In His precious name we pray; amen.”

Scripture

• Matthew 16:13-20
• Psalm 138 (responsory)

Let’s begin getting something out of the way: this passage from Isaiah isn’t talking about current immigration policies, politics, and controversies in the United States.

My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.

Isaiah 56:7c

That isn’t to say there aren’t tangential issues that will brush up against our discussion, but let’s keep the proper focus here.

Isaiah was a prophet during the Exile; when God’s people were taken captive into foreign lands. And in our passage he’s discussing the foreigner’s place before the Lord. (And let’s be clear: the people of God did not typically have a good or pleasing outlook on those outside of themselves.

They were God’s chosen. Others weren’t. They had the Covenant. Others didn’t. They had the Temple. Others didn’t. They had the only one true god, YHWH. Others didn’t.

And yet here Isaiah shares that “foreigners who join themselves to the Lord” (Isaiah 56:6) this same YHWH; this same only one true God, “will bring to [His] holy mountain, and make them joyful in [His] house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on [His] altar; for [His] house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples” (Isaiah 56:7).

Amazing! Those who turn their hearts to Him, he accepts! We might put it this way, “those who trust in the Lord, who put their faith in Him, are saved by Him.”

What wonderful news! But it goes a little further: this same only one true God, YHWH, “who gathers the outcasts of Israel, declares, ‘I will gather yet others…besides those already gathered’” (Isaiah 56:8).

Did you catch that: “The outcasts of Israel.”

God’s people were outcasts so many times in their history. In Egypt; in the wilderness; in the exile; and many other times. So as ones treated poorly by others and by grace from God, they should know how to treat others with love and respect and how to share the love and grace of God with them, too.

And here’s where we should learn and apply.

We were outcasts, too. We have been shown undeserves grace and mercy by God through the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Our sins have been forgiven. Everlasting life has been granted. Immeasurable blessings are shown to us daily.

And all of that is not just for us. It is to be shared with others through us; so they are saved, too.

How are we doing with that?

Do we realize LifeBridge is not our but God’s for all His people? Do we welcome, love, and respect all God brings into His house here, eager to pray with them, walk with them, cry with them, laugh with them, mourn with them, praise God with them, love them the way God love us?

May we see in this place an avenue to receive God’s mercy and grace and share and live it with all God brings here so that all may see and believe in Jesus!

“Gracious Father, thank You for showing us Your grace and mercy through Your Son, our Lord, Jesus; bringing us to Your Holy Mountain in worship. Move us, Lord, to be winsome and welcoming to ll You would send us so that they, too, would have salvation in Jesus. In His precious name do we pray. Amen.”

Scripture

• Isaiah 56:1, 6-8
• Psalm 67:107 (responsory)

There are times when you instantly know you’ve messed up. Big time. Times when you instantly know you should have kept your mouth closed. When you’ve gone too far. When you’ve vastly overstepped.

In today’s reading Job makes those scenarios looks like child’s-play.

Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding.

Job 38:4

As a short recap: Job lost everything, save his wife and friends. His friends and wife challenge him saying he must have done something wrong. His wife tells him to just curse God.

Job pleads his case. And what he says is true. He has acted righteously.

But then he goes too far. He calls God as a witness to his righteousness. That may not seem bad, but the result is questioning God’s providence. Questioning God.

Not a good strategy.

God shows up and sets things straight. He shows Job who God is – and it’s not Job. He reminds Job of his place in the nature of things.

It’s a moment when I suspect Job wishes he had brought a change of pants.

But here’s the thing: Job acknowledges in humility he was wrong in this. He doesn’t double-down. He doesn’t plead for evidence. He doesn’t try to further his cause. He says, “Behold, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? I lay my hand on my mouth” (Job 40:4).

We can learn from this.

So many times we want to plead our case before God. We want the world – and Him – to know that what’s happening to us isn’t “fair.” (What does that even mean?) We want it known that we don’t deserve what is happening.

But there is a careful line here: are we pleadin to God or are we pleading against Him? Are we running to Him for help, for shelter, for comfort, for healing; or are we running to Him questioning His providence and, by extension, His mercy, His grace, His love, His care?

Several steps too far!

Time to change your pants.

God is god. You are not. God’s providence is perfect. Your actions are not. God acts in love and for the good of His people, whether or not we see or feel it right now.

Know that! Trust that! Take comfort in that!

Whatever is happening to you, around you, affecting you, know that God is still on His throne. Nothing that is happening is outside of His sight, His care, His reign.

And neither are you.

Let’s move that to Jesus. Unlike Job He didn’t plead His case before God, but pleaded to God for His case. Like Job (finally did), Jesus was humble before the Lord and trusted that God’s way and plan was best – regardless of how it impacted Him.

And now, through faith in Jesus, we know and can trust that “the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18) and that “for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).

That doesn’t mean life will be simple or easy, but it does remind us that, because of Jesus, the pains and sufferings of this world are temporary and will end in glory! Through faith in Jesus, God’s “Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7).

That’s what gets us through! God and His love shown perfectly in Jesus! Through faith in Him, we can and will get through whatever comes our way!

And we needn’t bring a change of pants for it; because He has already clothed us in His righteousness unto everlasting life!

Thank You, Lord!

“Gracious Father; we confess that when things are difficult we often plead our cause to You rather than plead to You for our cause. Forgive us, Lord and humble us. Focus us back to You and Your loving and divine providence, fulfilled perfectly through Your Son, our Lord, Jesus. Let us focus on Him instead of what’s happening to us, for in Him we have Your mercy, Your grace, Your forgiveness, and Your life everlasting. In Jesus’ precious name do we pray. Amen.”

Scripture

• Job 31:35-37
• Job 38:1-21
• Job 40:1-5
• Psalm 18:1-6

WE ARE STILL HAVING MAJOR SOUND ISSUES ON OUR LIVE STREAM.
THIS IS AN EDIT OF OUR CAPTURED AUDIO AND RECORDED VIDEO FOR THE SERMON.
OUR APOLOGIES!