Do Not Lose Heart - Jesus Never Fails

[00:00:01] Unto him who loved us and washed us in his blood, forgiving us our sins and making us priests and kings to live together with him in his kingdom. To him be glory in the church, both now and always. Amen. [00:00:18] The text for our sermon this morning is the epistle lesson read to you a moment ago in the name of Jesus. Dear christian friends, certainly is a timely subject that is brought before us in the epistle lesson, even in the opening lines of chapter four. [00:00:50] Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart. [00:01:01] We do not lose heart. [00:01:05] Many situations in our life, in our community, in our world, maybe would lead us to lose heart, even on national television. [00:01:23] At least it has been shown. In the Detroit area where I'm from, there are advertisements encouraging people not to lose heart, messages spoken by Franklin Graham. [00:01:45] He opens his statement in that advertisement with the statement seems that there is so much hate in the world. [00:02:01] And then he names people, not by official name, but groups of people that seemingly are causing problems and causing people to lose heart. [00:02:23] He mentions college students, business leaders, military powers, and he offers a solution. [00:02:35] And he says, peace can be ours through Christ. [00:02:45] And we find ourselves perhaps today in the same kind of rut, facing various tribulations and troubles and difficulties and heartaches and sorrows. [00:03:01] And we are led to believe that there is no hope. [00:03:08] And so Paul speaks to us and encourages us today. [00:03:13] Don't lose heart. [00:03:18] It's fitting and appropriate that we hear this word at this time and in our world. [00:03:31] Paul addresses this problem in the opening verses of this chapter. [00:03:44] It's one of my favorite sections of the scriptures because it has within it a section that has been summarized and never forgotten. [00:04:03] This section where Paul says, we have this treasure in earthen vessels so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves. [00:04:18] We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed, perplexed but not despairing, persecuted but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed. [00:04:36] I don't recall the translation or the paraphrase or the edition of the Bible in which the statement was made that I have never forgotten. [00:04:50] And that is the statement in summary of these dilemmas. [00:04:57] There are many enemies, but we are never without a friend. [00:05:05] And that's a good point to remember, as we are encouraged not to lose heart. [00:05:14] There is a dependable friend. [00:05:19] It captures the very heart of this section of the scriptures. [00:05:27] We have the answer in the word of God. [00:05:31] For us it is not veiled. [00:05:35] We have and we walk in that light that shines in the darkness, so we do not lose heart. [00:05:50] So this is a time of the year when graduations are ending, but still graduation celebrations taking place in the lives of those who have reached a milestone in their education. [00:06:09] And we watched with interest the graduation ceremonies and the calls that were issued at our seminaries. [00:06:22] And I remember graduation and ordination, for which I preached in Yambial, South Sudan. [00:06:38] A group of seminarians from the current class, after graduation, were all ordained in a single ceremony. [00:06:54] And I preached on this text, and I reminded them that our ministry is of God on account of Jesus. [00:07:08] Two phrases that came from this particular text. [00:07:16] We have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves, for we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus as Lord on account of his love. [00:07:53] These seminarians did not lose heart during the course of their studies. [00:08:03] Even though they had to be separated from their families for a period of eight months in the year they carried on, they finished their course, and they became proclaimers of the truth. [00:08:26] It's interesting that these men are being ordained and trained as part of a church body that is only 31 years old. [00:08:41] On the day that the current class, represented by the bishop, summarized the history and talked about the early functioning of the church body, now 31 years old, there was a young man by the name of Andrew who heard a lecture by the chairman of our board, who also was president of the seminary in Fort Wayne, Doctor Robert Preuss, a lecture that he gave in Nairobi, Kenya. [00:09:34] And after that lecture, he wrote to Doctor Preuss and asked, could you send me some of those books, books you mentioned in your presentation, didn't say which ones. [00:09:45] Doctor Price sent me a message and said, I don't know which books he's talking about, but I talked a lot about the catechism and the Book of Concord. [00:09:56] Why don't you send them five catechisms and the Book of Concord later on, after Andrew finished his training at the Fort Wayne seminary, and I took him to some L. W. Meetings, and he would tell the group that he became a Lutheran as a result of five catechisms and a book of conquer. [00:10:24] He was an Anglican, but felt the call to the lutheran ministry actually started eight congregations before he was a Lutheran. [00:10:39] And I told him, you can't do that. [00:10:42] You're not a Lutheran. [00:10:44] You have to go to the seminary. [00:10:47] So we sponsored him at the Fort Wayne seminary, and the church grew and grew and grew because the ministry there was not of God and not of themselves. [00:11:03] Today, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of South Sudan. Sudan numbers over 200 congregations and some 250,000 members. [00:11:16] And recently, at the synod convention in Milwaukee, this church body received the fellowship with the lutheran church Missouri Synod. [00:11:33] They did not lose heart, and they proclaim in their preaching that their ministry and the service of laypeople is of God on account of Jesus. [00:11:53] There is the reason why we do not lose heart. It is because of Jesus. [00:12:03] So it is for you, no matter what your vocation and work might happen to be, housewife, student, farmer, factory worker, employer, employee, mother, father, child, your vocation is of God on account of Jesus. [00:12:31] So we do not lose heart, but having the same spirit of faith according to what is written. I believed, therefore I spoke. [00:12:46] We also believe, therefore we also speak. [00:12:54] We believe, therefore we pray, we preach, and we print so that people do not lose heart, but find strength, help and hope in the precious word of truth found in the Bible. [00:13:21] More people to be brought to Jesus so that they might experience the glory of God in Christ Jesus. [00:13:42] We do not lose heart, therefore, we do not lose heart. But through. Though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. [00:13:58] For momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison. [00:14:08] While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. [00:14:15] For the things which are seen are temporary, and things which are not seen are eternal. [00:14:24] We do not lose heart. [00:14:29] It is our privilege to introduce people to the light of his truth. [00:14:37] And all this can be yours. It says, because of the never failing love of Jesus. [00:14:48] It's why we publish books, so that people may better understand that light is come for them, the light that fills the world. [00:15:03] And so we publish these books that bring the light to people, especially the catechism. [00:15:13] This happens to be the creole catechism. It's a catechism that used in Haiti, and there are 125 similar catechisms in those 125 different languages being used by people around the world. [00:15:37] We bring the light through worship in the language of the people. This hymnal is a french hymnal where we bring the light to people and better understand the truth as it is in the Bible. [00:15:57] In the Book of Concord, this Swahili edition, published for people in Kenya and Tanzania and the Congo, published books for children, such as a child's Garden of Bible stories. [00:16:14] This one happens to be the Bahasa translation of the child's garden. Bahasa is the language of Indonesia. [00:16:24] The Lutheran Church of Indonesia is among the largest church lutheran churches in the world. [00:16:31] And in Indonesia, the church is permitted to teach religion in the public schools. [00:16:40] It's why this book was published along with the catechism and along with the catechism workbook, so that pastor had materials to teach their children in the public schools. [00:16:57] And, of course, Spanish is one of the great products to reach out to the growing number of Hispanics here, even in the United States. [00:17:11] It started with the publication of this Bible that was unique because it has a catechism in the front of it, full catechism. [00:17:21] It was requested by our missionaries in Panama, and now it's being used by people all over Central and South America, all over here in the United States. [00:17:34] It's in its 8th printing. [00:17:37] Almost 150,000 copies have been printed, all of which have been given away free of charge to our missionaries. [00:17:49] Along with that is this child's Garden of Bible stories in the spanish language, which some 75 editions of the child's garden have been published thus far. [00:18:04] And of course, along with the spanish publications, is this recent publication of the spanish hymnal, dedicated at our Senate convention in Milwaukee. [00:18:20] Took 14 years to bring this to fruition, and this is now being distributed Central South America and the United States. [00:18:39] It wasn't that long ago when both my father and mother died. [00:18:44] My father died in month of February, and my mother died in the month of July and came time to break up the family farm home in rural Minnesota where I grew up. [00:18:57] Each member of the family was given an opportunity to come into the home, take out what could serve as a keepsake. [00:19:05] And the item that I chose didn't require a truck or trailer to haul it off. It was just a little item that hung on the family home for 63 years of my parents marriage before I hung it in my office. This plaque that hung on that wall, I took it to a printer and asked if he could reproduce it in its exact form. [00:19:38] Bookmark. And today, all over the world, this bookmark is appearing that says, jesus never fails. [00:19:48] It talks about the never failing love of Jesus. On the back of it, it says, things fail us, people fail us, and finally, our health fails us. [00:20:03] But there is someone who never fails us, and that's Jesus. [00:20:09] And we know that because he met our deepest need. [00:20:14] Our deepest need was for the forgiveness of sins. [00:20:19] And in order to provide that for us freely, he went to Calvary and on the cross he suffered and died and rose again from the tomb, guaranteeing the freedom of sins forgiven. [00:20:46] If Jesus can meet our deepest need, being the forgiveness of sins, can he not also keep us from losing heart with the knowledge of free forgiveness of our sins. [00:21:12] It's a great gift. [00:21:16] It's such an important story and message that we want to help people tell that story. [00:21:25] And that's why this morning in the Bible class, I gave a free copy of a little booklet with the title Jesus never fails. And it tells the story of the never failing love of Jesus. [00:21:39] And we printed this in a form so that it could be put into your pocket or into your purse. [00:21:46] And to be given to someone who seems to be losing heart. [00:21:53] It's a mission endeavor that can be carried out by each and every one of us to help people keep from losing heart. [00:22:06] Therefore, we do not lose heart. [00:22:10] Come what may, we face it in the power giving word, that every word reminds us of the never failing love of God. [00:22:23] He will not fail us. [00:22:26] He will help us, for he is our hope, our joy, our peace, and is the one who gives us strength day by day. [00:22:43] We do not lose hope. [00:22:51] It is his failing love that keeps our heart filled with his peace, joy and hope for the sake of Jesus us. [00:23:06] Amen. [00:23:08] And the peace of God which passes all human understanding will keep your hearts and minds into one true faith unto life eternal. Amen.