1 Peter 1:3-5  According to His great mercy, He caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

God rules and reigns the way He wishes. What God says, His truth, goes no matter what. Life with God is about following the King as He understands following. When Jesus says He is "the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), He is expressing what it means for Him to lead, to be the King. God the Father brings His kingdom through Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit's power into our world. He invites us in faith to confess this and live well with Him as King. And what a King He is!

His Word is not just something to be written down as cool thoughts to be remembered when we have a moment. His Word, who is Jesus, brings us everything we need for daily life. Our King actively takes the battles to our sinfulness, to the power of Satan, and to death. All have been defeated through Jesus' death and resurrection. The very life of King Jesus, who lives in those who have been baptized and believe, now leads us in our daily living. His rule is one of love and power lived out as He sees fit - which means through His Church, His very people.

His reign does not have term limits. There is no successor-in-waiting. Our King has always been and will always be. We rejoice as we faithfully follow our King in life. Long live "us" because our King reigns!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 John 3:8  Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.

Have you ever witnessed a live tug-of-war? The teams straining, the crowds cheering, and the flag in constant flux back and forth across the mid-line all keep spectators engaged and entertained. Evenly matched teams strive to physically outlast each other in a battle of strength. The competition takes an interesting turn, though, when teams are mismatched. The weaker team's strategy is to use logic, rather than brute force, to their advantage. Many a mismatched team has walked to the rope, taken their place, and grabbed hold only to let go once the starter's pistol is fired. It's a brilliant maneuver! When all tension is removed from the rope, the team pulling falls victim to the laws of motion and collapses on the ground. Does the flag cross the line in seeming victory for the fallen team? Yes. Has the weaker team fallen victim to the strength of the other side? No. Quite the opposite.

Luther uses the phrase "engage in combat" to describe the war taking place between the kingdom of the devil and the kingdom of God. No amount of human striving can keep sinners from the temptations that so easily entangle our hearts and minds. It is Jesus alone who saves. Just as a team pulling on the rope has no power over those who have let go, so the devil has no power over those redeemed by Christ. Through Jesus' death and resurrection, the tension in the struggle for our souls is released. Satan may think he has triumphed as he looks out over a sinful world. But in the world that is to come, he already stands defeated. The kingdom of God reigns victorious. 
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 Peter 1:14-16  As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."

If you have lived in a small town, then you know how important it is to have a good name - and how difficult it can be if someone in your family has brought shame to your family name. A good reputation opens doors, while a bad reputation closes them. The same can be said for God's name - except that it is us, His sons and daughters, who all too often drag His name through the mud instead of doing the good works that cause others to give glory to our Father in heaven.

We therefore pray that God's name would be hallowed - that is - be treated as holy. His name is special because it is the name of the God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - who created, redeemed, and sanctifies us. It is the name of the Lord God who saves us when we call on Him. It is the sign of God's love because with it the almighty Creator of the universe invites us to talk to Him. It would be a sin against His name to drag it through the mud, and it would be a shame to give Him a bad reputation in the world. We pray that His name would be kept holy by other people and most especially by us, who were baptized into His name and who represent it to others. We are saved by His name, so we pray that we treat it as the treasure it is.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

2 Timothy 2:19  But God's firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity."

Hallowed be Thy name. This first petition of the Lord's Prayer is a good reminder that God doesn't need us, but He does want us. He wants to be a part of our days, our nights, and all our moments. He knows those who are His. He comes to us through His Spirit, given to us in our Baptism, and is active and holy in our families, in our homes, at our dinner table, and on the drive to school, through every door we enter and every conversation we have.

In this petition, we pray that we would embrace the presence of Jesus Christ, to bring out when He is convenient. We pray His mercy would pour out found in our words. We pray His gentleness and truth would be this unjust world. We pray we would be led to open His Word frequently, letting Him give us insight into where the devil would try to fool, kill, and destroy any wisdom for our relationships. Kindness and friendliness are wonderful things, but kindness and friendliness done in the name of Christ Jesus are powerful. Undeserved grace given to those we encounter in the name of Jesus mangles and destroys what the devil would try to do in our families, in our relationships, in our churches, and even in our own bodies. All praise be to His name!
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

Matthew 7:11  If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
 

My parents taught me from an early age, "When someone speaks to you, look that person in the eye and respond. It isn't an option."

How much greater is the reality that our Creator has spoken to us by His Son. Our soul hears the Spirit-breathed Word and responds to our Father. It's what a child of God does.

As a rebellious creature, we are not worthy to be called a child of God. As a lost and condemned person, we cannot approach His presence. But the Son has addressed us. More than that, He stands in our place in the Creed so we can stand in His place in prayer. He prays for us and with us, but He also invites us to pray with Him, to enter with Him into the courts of heaven, to draw near to the throne of grace, and to approach the God of heaven  as He does - confidently, with God as our dear Father. Adopted by the Spirit and addressed by the Son, our Lord and Savior, we respond to the Father.

Jesus is teaching us to approach the Father as he does, boldly and confidently, with dependence and reliance, just like a little child. Jesus goes with us and teaches us to trust His promise to respond. It's what our Father does. He has and He will.

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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18  Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

He had not been in church for a while. But now he sat in his pastor's office. His first words: "Pastor, it got so bad I had to turn to God." Here we find an example of what Luther meant when he talked about being compelled to "call and cry out." Distress drove this man to his knees with a need he knew he could not meet.

But why wait? Why be driven to our knees when we can fall to our knees? Why let circumstances throw our needs in front of us when we can use the Lord's Prayer? Go through the Lord's Prayer and let it speak of your needs.

Do we honor God's name as holy in everything we do? Are we living joyfully in His kingdom, knowing He rules our lives through His grace? Do we always put His will before our own? What physical needs do we forget to bring before Him? Here's a big one: What do we lack when it comes to forgiving others? Temptations abound. Do we seek God's strength? Evil surrounds. Are we caught up in any of it?

When we meditate on these questions, we find we lack much! But we need not fear. We do not pray to some vengeful God who wants us to shape up or else. We pray to our Father who adopted us through a crucified and risen Jesus. He loves us and forgives us. He gives and wants what's best for us.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,

John 8:31-32  So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

The devil does his best lying by mixing falsehood with truth. What's more, deceives best when wrapping lies in a comforting mantle of benevolence. Satan teaches the value of unity and then preaches that the same is more important than truth. The world lectures on the merits of gentle speech and then condemn the Bible as offensive. Our sinful nature would have us believe that to reject the truth of God's wrath and His grace in Jesus Christ is not merely one option, but the kindest, most enlightened option. Confess my sins? No, let's think positive! Salvation in Christ alone? C'mon, don't be so narrow! How many have walked away from Jesus Christ, believing that in doing so they benefited the world?

Jesus is the divine physician who not only diagnoses the cancer of sin, but also loves us enough to tell us the mortal truth. More important, like no other doctor, Jesus takes your tumor of transgression into Himself. Instead of trying to shrink or excise the sickness, the Savior allows it to kill Him. Through this death, the Son of God nullifies the power of sin and passes this blessing along to sinners. Yes, God tells us we are sinners, and we believe Him. He also tells us that we are forgiven, and we believe Him. Not because this news is fashionable, enlightened, or even beneficial, but because He is almighty. Forgiveness is a truth not based in cultural shift or political movement, but in the unchanging, eternal God.
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Helping people live life with Jesus everyday,