So as He was coming down from the mountain, many people followed Him. And behold, a leper came and petitioned Him and said: “LORD, if you are willing, You can indeed cleanse me.” And Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him and said: “I want to do it, be cleansed.” And immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Also Jesus said to him: “See to it that you tell no one; instead, go on and show yourself to the priests and sacrifice the gift which Moses commanded, as a testim...ony from you.” [Matthew 8:1-4, Johann Gerhard translation]
Just as Jesus said in response to the leper who asked for his cleansing, when it comes to anybody asking Him for salvation, His answer is always, “I want to do it.” Because “it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." 1 Timothy 2:3-4
The trouble is, sinful man is not always so willing.
Our Lord Jesus says, “I Want to Do It.”
But sinful man is often too afraid to let Him. It is true:
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 1 John 4:18
The trouble again is, no sinful man has perfect love.
Only God does. In fact, God not only has perfect love, He is perfect love.
In dealing with the rich young ruler, Jesus observed, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Luke 18:24-27
Fear is a rich man’s disease. And we all have it. We all have some treasure we fear losing. And our love is neither perfect nor strong enough to overcome that fear.
But the perfect love of God, is. This is the love that, in Christ Jesus, is always saying, “I Want to Do It.”
To hear the entire sermon preached for the Third Sunday after the Epiphany, "I Want to Do It," click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3654
Just as Jesus said in response to the leper who asked for his cleansing, when it comes to anybody asking Him for salvation, His answer is always, “I want to do it.” Because “it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." 1 Timothy 2:3-4
The trouble is, sinful man is not always so willing.
Our Lord Jesus says, “I Want to Do It.”
But sinful man is often too afraid to let Him. It is true:
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. 1 John 4:18
The trouble again is, no sinful man has perfect love.
Only God does. In fact, God not only has perfect love, He is perfect love.
In dealing with the rich young ruler, Jesus observed, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” But he said, “What is impossible with man is possible with God.” Luke 18:24-27
Fear is a rich man’s disease. And we all have it. We all have some treasure we fear losing. And our love is neither perfect nor strong enough to overcome that fear.
But the perfect love of God, is. This is the love that, in Christ Jesus, is always saying, “I Want to Do It.”
To hear the entire sermon preached for the Third Sunday after the Epiphany, "I Want to Do It," click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3654
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