May my spoken word be true to God’s written word and bring us all closer to the living word, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Some years ago a roadside memorial popped up on the main road outside our neighborhood. Clearly there had been an accident and someone had died on that spot. There was a cross, lots of flowers, a few pictures and a few notes left for the decedent.

One evening I was driving by and noticed that two young men and a young woman were standing there. I stopped, identified myself as a pastor and asked about their friend. They told me he was a great guy, lots of life, with a great sense of humor.

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Often when we are trying to comfort or encourage someone we will say something like, “God’s got this.” That is true, of course. God has this. He has you. He has me. God is sovereign over everything there is, Amen! We draw that from the great arc of scripture, from the creation in genesis to the consummation of all things in the eternal Kingdom of God. God’s will ultimately wins out.

While we are to hold that hope and promise, as we move through time, our experience, our challenges, our tragedies and sorrows are very real. We live in a world that is filled with injustice, chaos, cruelty, hate, disobedience – which is to say drenched in sin. Don't think that everything that happens is therefore God’s will.

And that is the witness of scripture. Yes, God created everything and said it was good. That was at the end of the fifth day, still on page 1, maybe page 2 depending on your Bible. On the sixth day he created man and woman. Turn one more page and we are in trouble.

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May my spoken word be true to God’s written word and bring us all closer to the living word, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Right now, I’ve got your attention. Of all the places you could be, you are here, or you are watching online, (or you are reading this sermon). Your attention could be on an infinite number of things, anything, perhaps a few things but not everything.

And I’m doing something a bit different this morning, standing at what we call “the cross.” Normally I’d be up in the pulpit, but I wanted to stand here just a few minutes to highlight how this room is set up visually.

Everyone in the nave is oriented forward. We have the lectern and the pulpit up and out just a bit from the chancel, with the choir and organ up here, which helps them lead worship. Further back and further up is the altar. Above it is that beautifully carved Christus Rex, or Risen Christ, then above that is Jesus as the Good Shepherd, for which we are named. The highest point articulates our vision of this body of Christ. The same applies in the chapel.

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