With God It’s About YOU
– Ephesians 1:3-14
Dear Christian friends. Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks, Brett Favre, Simone Biles, Jeff Gordon, Dale Ehrnhardt Jr. All of you here are probably familiar with at least some if not all of those names. They are all celebrities either in the film world or the world of sports. Some of us here may even have met one of these celebrities. So, what is it that most people do when they meet a celebrity? They get their autograph. That is, they have that famous person sign either a piece of paper or an item of clothing. But why? What is so important about that person’s name? Well, I guess you could say that the main reason you or me would have someone sign their name is to prove to other people that we did in fact meet that famous celebrity. But, chances are, if you’d meet that person again a few days later, and asked them if they remembered you, the answer would most likely be no. And it’s not that they don’t care about their fans, it’s just that it’s almost impossible to remember one of hundreds of thousands of people they’ve met and signed autographs for at one time or another.
Sometimes the devil can tempt us to feel that God treats us much the same way. When we read passages like, “For God so loved THE WORLD that he gave…” Or he can use a passage that says that God was reconciling THE WORLD unto himself. And we may picture God as not remembering us. Taking care of the problems of the 8 billion people in the world, then moving on to the next one. It’s nice of him, but it’s not very personal. All we seem to be is one of the billions of people who make up “THE WORLD.” We feel like one of the nameless, faceless crowd. Yet our text today is a very good reminder of just how specially God knows and cares about each one of us and just how much of a personal interest he takes in us and our futures. I want you to be a little selfish for the next few minutes. I don’t want you to think about how God saved you—and all the rest of the people sitting in this building. I don’t even want you to think about God saved you—and the person sitting right next to you. I want you to just think about yourself, your situation, and what God chose to do about YOU. (If you want, you can even think your own name whenever you hear me say “you”–and you’ll hear it a lot.) He chose and made YOU to be blameless. And he revealed his plan specifically to YOU to believe it.
God chose and made you to be blameless. Paul says almost these exact words in verse 4, when he writes, “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.” Before God even created the world, God decided that he wanted you to share eternity with him. God knew that he wanted you to be with him forever. This is hard for us to understand how God could have done this even before the creation of the world–before the matter from which we would come even existed. But if God could “know us before he formed us in the womb”–as he told Jeremiah (1:5), then he could also know us before he formed the heavens and the earth. God didn’t just one day look up and realize that he was surrounded by people–including you–who needed to be with him in heaven. God had a plan. So why did God choose you for this? Because God is a holy God, a God who cannot tolerate sin, a God who cannot have any connection with sin. For you to be with God for all eternity, you would have to be holy, blameless. Perfect.
But there soon was a problem, wasn’t there? God’s all-knowing eyes look at every human being, and they see sin. And a holy God and righteous God cannot tolerate that. So, God must remove sin from his presence. A holy and righteous God should punish sinners forever in hell. And that’s you. You broke God’s law. You disobeyed God’s commands. You didn’t think about God’s all-seeing eyes. You told jokes that involved God that you shouldn’t have told thinking that no one would really be offended anyway. And kids, you broke God’s law, too. You failed to listen to your parents when they told you to unload the dishwasher before you went outside. You failed to love your neighbor as yourself when you spread rumors about someone at school. You ruined God’s plan for you to be holy and blameless and to share forever with him.
But not only did God choose you to be blameless, God also made you blameless. Paul writes that “In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ.” We’ve just looked at what you have done. So, it’s no surprise to read that the only way we were going to get into God’s family was through him adopting us into it. People sometimes like to think that we are all sons and daughters of God by virtue of the fact that we have been born–as though we have some claim on God. Sons and daughters by birth have a claim on the favor, the care, the love of their parents. But a1dopted sons and daughters have no claim on the favor of their adoptive parents—until they have been officially adopted. By nature, we have no claim on the favor, the care, and the love of God. By nature, you are not lovable to God. And yet God loved YOU. Paul says that he chose us “in love” for adoption. This should boggle your mind that God could look at what you were, what you had done, and still love us. But he did.
God has “lavished” the riches of his grace, of his undeserved love upon us. The word Paul uses here really pictures you as a container. The contents have been stomped down to fit in even more grace, more riches. And still you’re filled to the top. And still God is pouring his grace into you. Those riches spill out of, spill around you. And still God keeps on pouring.
He pours wisdom and understanding on you. God knows you don’t have that on your own. God knew that you wouldn’t know or figure out how to become holy and blameless in his sight on your own. God knew that you would foolishly hope that He would look at you and decide that you were “holy enough.” Or that you’d try to distract God’s all- seeing eyes from your sins by doing some things that you thought were good. God knew that instead of “putting on the robe of Christ’s righteousness” you would try to create some tattered rags of your own. And so, God gave you wisdom and understanding by revealing his plan of salvation to you, by showing you the “mystery of his will.” And why is it a mystery? Because you could never have solved the mystery of being holy and blameless on your own. You could never have solved the mystery of how to get rid of your sin on your own. You never would have dared to think, “Maybe God will send his real Son to suffer and die in my place so that I can become his adopted child.” So God made it known to you. And now that mystery is no mystery. God has clearly laid out his plan of salvation for you so that even a preschooler can understand it.
But we are a stubborn, stubborn people. And God knew that. So, God not only chose you to be holy and blameless, God not only chose to MAKE you holy and blameless. God not only chose to reveal the mystery of how he accomplished this to you, but God also chose you to believe it. God sent his Holy Spirit to work faith in your proud and stubborn heart.
A few years ago I remember this one commercial. The CEO of a large company hired these two young consultants to evaluate his company and to recommend how his company could improve it’s productivity. After a few weeks the two young consultants came back to the CEO and gave their report about how the company could be better. The CEO said, “Great – Do it!” The two young bucks just sort of looked at each other and started laughing. Then they explained to the CEO that they don’t actually do the things they recommend they just recommend. That’s not the way it is with God when it comes to our salvation. God didn’t just recommend that we be chosen to be saved, God actually did it. And not only that but continues to take a personal interest in you and your faith today.
We are not just a number. God doesn’t herd us through the gates of heaven just like cattle at the sales barn. It’s more personal than making small talk with hundreds of people at your family reunion. God loves each and every one of us. And out of the billions and billions of pieces of hair on the billions of people in the world he knows exactly how many pieces of hair are on your head at any given time. God chose you personally to share in the joys of heaven with him. And I really seriously cannot think of anything that could bring us more joy and happiness in our lives.
Those adoption papers have been signed. In the matter of fact, they’ve been signed before we even knew we would be born. And they have been signed not just with an impersonal stamp, but with the blood of our Savior. And that’s personal. So go ahead, be selfish… because with God it’s all about you. Amen.
Welcome: The family of Zion welcomes you as we worship the Lord today. We encourage children to worship with us. However, if you need to leave with your child, there is a nursery room to the right as you exit the sanctuary. The rest rooms are located in the hallway between the sanctuary and the fellowship hall. Visitors, please sign our guest book to the right, just outside the sanctuary. We’re glad that you are here and pray that through our worship the Lord grants you peace.
W h a t T h i s S u n d a y i s A b o u t
THE CHRISTIAN TRUSTS GOD TO PROVIDE
The hardest times to trust in God are the times we need him most. It’s easy to trust God when your job is great, your health is fine, your relationships are strong, your family is well. It’s easy to trust God when the sun is shining, but what happens when your life is suddenly overshadowed by dark days?
When tragedy or conflict affect us, we may wonder if God continues to care and provide for us. At those times the Christian focuses on certain foundational facts. The Christian was chosen, predestined, and adopted as God’s dear child. God has provided the Christian with innumerable spiritual blessings and promises the Christian an eternity of glory, peace, and joy. If we look at those spiritual blessing God provides to us, how could we doubt that he will, at the right time, give us everything we truly need? The Christian trusts God to provide.
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ORDER OF WORSHIP………………………………………………………….…..……….p. 154
HYMNS: 708 – 603 – 517 – 509
PRAYER – Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve. Pour upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
FIRST LESSON – 1 Kings 17:1-6 (pew Bible p. 253) – Elijah told a wicked King God would send years of drought and famine. In those dark times, the Lord provided food for his faithful prophet.
PSALM FOR THE DAY…………………………………………………………………………..138
SECOND LESSON – Ephesians 1:3-14 (pew Bible p. 827) – Before the world was formed God chose us to be his beloved children. This is why we can trust God to provide.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION – Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia / Your words are my joy – and my heart’s delight / Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
GOSPEL LESSON – Matthew 14:13-21 (pew Bible p. 692) – Jesus graciously and abundantly provides for the needs of a great multitude.
SERMON……………………………………………………………………..…Ephesians 1:3-14
“WITH GOD IT’S ABOUT YOU”
Lessons for Proper 13
FIRST LESSON – 1 Kings 17:1-6
Elijah Announces a Great Drought
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
Elijah Fed by Ravens
2 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: 3 “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. 4 You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.”
5 So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
SECOND LESSON – Ephesians 1:3-14
Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he[a] predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
GOSPEL LESSON – Matthew 14:13-21
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.”
16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
COMMUNION – This morning we have the privilege of receiving the Lord Jesus’ very body and blood together with the bread and wine, for the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening of our faith in him as our Savior. We ask that only those who are communicant members of a church in fellowship with the WELS or ELS come to the Lord’s altar. Please be sure to sign up on the sheet in the entryway of church.
QUARTERLY MEETING – Zion’s 3rd Quarter Meeting will take place after the service today. All are invited to attend.
NEXT SUNDAY – Next Sunday we will celebrate Proper 14 at 9:00 with fellowship and Bible study at 10:15. The readings will be: 1 Kings 19:9-18 / Romans 8:28-39 / Matthew 14:22-33.
SPA TIME – We’re going to try something a bit new. Every third Sunday of the month after the service will be SPA time. This stands for Sunday Pastor Availability. Pastor will be available until 10:40 when he leaves for Marshfield. If anyone needs to talk about things or church business outside of meetings need to be discussed, this would be the time. People can, of course, discuss things with Pastor before or after the service anytime but the third Sunday would be a specific time set apart each month to do that. There will be no Bible Class then on the 3rd Sunday.
JULY FORWARD IN CHRIST AND MEDITATIONS – These are available in the Narthex.
THOSE WE REMEMBER IN OUR PRAYERS – Barbara & Larry Long; Liz & Roger Lisenby; Greg Miller; Russ Perry, Deb Hunt’s father, in hospice care at home; Patsy Mickelson (Jane’s mother); Khendra Murdock; Norine Richardson.