11th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 13)                                                                     LSB #850
Text – Luke 12:13
 
Someone in the crowd said to [Jesus], “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
 
DIVIDING THE INHERITANCE
 
Two weeks ago we heard Martha say to Jesus, “Tell my sister to help me.”  (Luke 10:40c ESV)     Today, it’s someone in the crowd saying, “Tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”  We learned from Jesus that Martha had her priorities wrong, & He makes clear that so does the ‘someone in crowd’ who’s seeking help this time:
“He said to him, ‘Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?’”  (Luke 12:14 ESV)   This demand placed upon Jesus presents Him with a perfect opportunity to give instruction on the importance of money & wealth.  To be more explicit, I should say Jesus is actually pointing out the lack of importance of money & wealth.
Financial security is far & away the lesser thing when compared to matters of the soul.  So today’s teaching actually has a lot in common with Mary & Martha.    It has a lot in common with you & me.  What things take priority in our lives?     How have your priorities changed over time?   Has the Son of God had an effect on the way you focus your time & your energy? 
Are you all about building up your life in Christ?    That was last Sunday’s message.  Have you done anything with it since then?        In studying for this sermon, I came across a quotation that seems to hit the nail right on the head:
“It’s good to have money & the things it can buy.  It’s good also, to check up once in a while & make sure you haven’t lost the things that money cannot buy.”    That’s from a man named George Lorimer.  He was editor of the Saturday Evening Post during its heyday, & he put the 1st Norman Rockwell painting on its cover.  At one point during his tenure the Post went from $2000 in sales per week to over $1 million.  That was in 1908 dollars.   As popular, pervasive & profitable as it once was, the Post has not been published in over 47 years.  “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself & is not rich toward God.”   (Luke 12:21 ESV) 
George Lorimer knew a thing or two about wealth,   yet he realized there are things that money cannot buy.   Money & possessions can be wonderful gifts from God, yet we can easily turn those possessions into false gods & then they take possession of our soul.   Though he didn’t have a clue, that is exactly what happened to the rich man in Jesus’ parable. 
The man thought it was his wealth that was providing him with all that he needed.  You’ll find these verses instructive, “He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do,   for I   have nowhere to store my crops?’  And he said, ‘I will do this:  I will tear down my barns & build larger ones, & there   I will store all my grain & my goods.  And I will say to my soul…’”[1] 
In less than three verses, one particular word shows up 6 different times.   Did you notice which word it was?     It’s a common problem among sinners.   In fact, Martin Luther taught that, as a result of the fall into sin, all human beings are curved in upon themselves.  It’s the perennial problem of ‘me, myself & I.’ In other words, life is built up in me, rather than built up in Christ. 
Martin Luther wrote in his Lectures on Romans: “Our nature [is] so deeply curved in upon itself  that it not only bends the best gifts of God towards itself… but it also fails to realize that it so wickedly,  curvedly  & viciously  seeks all things,  even God,  for its own sake.”   The rich man was all about me, myself & I.   Unfortunately, so are we.   That is God’s diagnosis. 
The cure, very fortunately, is not all about me, myself & I.  It’s about Jesus.    Me, myself & I is nothing but sin.  Jesus is nothing but perfect harmony.   That’s what draws people to Him.   The event of today’s Gospel reading occurs on Jesus’ way to Jerusalem where, at Golgotha, He will atone for every one of our failures.  There are no more reasons to be afraid of confessing our failures or sins.   Emotionally,  yeah, that’s still difficult at best,  but rationally, spiritually,  confession of our sin  allows the Holy Spirit to reconnect us to living forever in paradise.  The rich man was trying to create his own paradise here in a twisted & evil world:
“And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years;   relax, eat, drink, be merry.’”  (Luke 12:19 ESV)    That’s not the kind of life I’ve known,  but if I look at the rich man as one of the “one percenters,”  it’s easy to write off this parable  as not about me.  It’s painless to rail against & slam the wealthy as evil & corrupt. 
Sadly, many preachers have built up this rich man into a monstrous form of selfishness & greed.  Jesus says nothing of the sort.  In that day, being wealthy was a sign that God loved you.  Unlike today, having wealth was not something that people criticized a person for.   Being in the top one percent of wealth in America is increasingly being looked at as evil.
So what does Jesus say about the rich man?   “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself & is not rich toward God.”[2]   Jesus does not angrily shout the man down for being greedy or selfish or even a ‘one percenter.’  He just points out that this man is not rich toward God.  The rich man has more faith in his wealth than he does in his heavenly Father. 
So how do we fight against the temptation to put faith in our possessions rather than in our Father, who created everything that exists in the 1st place?   One step we can take is to regularly give away some of our money.  If you find that difficult it presents an opportunity to ask yourself if you are trusting in money more than in God. 
How healthy is your faith in our Lord’s promises to provide?    Next Sunday’s Gospel reading continues as Jesus draws the conclusion for us to the parable of the rich man, “So is the one who lays up treasure for himself & is not rich toward God.  Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.  For life is more than food, & the body more than clothing.”[3]  Food & clothing are things that money can buy.  Have you done inventory & checked up lately on the things in your life that money cannot buy?   In other words, how healthy is your faith in our Lord’s promises to provide everything that you need?  Giving back to Him, a portion of what He’s given you, is exercising your faith.
Exercise is good for the body & for the soul.  The rich man in the parable didn’t make that effort.  His life revolved purely around the stuff that he had.  Jesus calls that man a fool because the rich man thought only of his worldly possessions.  Jesus rebuked Martha because she was overly focused upon her earthly good deeds.  Is our focus any different?
When ‘the someone in the crowd’ says to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Jesus warns him against the temptation to think that life consists in the abundance of possessions.   If you remember, when Satan tempts Jesus in the wilderness, one of the temptations is to turn stones into bread. 
Jesus responded that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”[4]  People who reject the Creation narrative of Genesis are denying the power of God’s Word to give, or to sustain, life.  People who refuse to give offerings that are a real sacrifice often struggle to trust the power of God’s Word to give, or to sustain, life.
Like the rich man in the parable we try to create our own paradise in order to protect us from the evil we see in so many aspects of our world.  I’m not saying that trying to protect our lives is wrong.  Neither is cooking a meal wrong, nor building larger barns nor seeking to divide an inheritance fairly.  All of those can be godly stewardship. 
The problems arise when we do any of those things to the exclusion of our Father in heaven.  Problems arise when we do any of those things in such a way that our Lord & Savior’s work is minimized.  Jesus didn’t come to earth to arbitrate financial disputes.  He didn’t come to earth to spend His days eating.  He didn’t come to earth to build larger barns.  Human beings can do those things.  Not a one of us can dispel the darkness & death of sin for the purpose of bringing the light & life of God’s perfect kingdom. 
There are things in this life that are of a far greater priority than money, wealth & possessions.  Two paragraphs before today’s parable, Jesus teaches us to be afraid, not of “those who kill the body, & after that have nothing more that they can do.”  Jesus says, “But I will warn you whom to fear: fear Him who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell.” 
The far & away greatest purpose for which Jesus came is to rescue each of us from hell, yet, He does not save indiscriminately.  He comes to save His sheep, those who know His voice & follow Him.  Jesus took on human flesh in the womb of Mary so that He could take our place, earn our inheritance, & then divide it with us on the Last Day of time.
Two weeks ago Martha chose to do a good thing, but she still had her priorities wrong because she chose the lesser of things.    She spent her time in elaborate preparation for entertaining Jesus when it would have been far better for her to spend that time listening to Jesus   as her sister Mary had done.
Jesus teaches us these things in order that we will set our mind on things above, not on earthly things.  He knows that our inheritance in heaven will last forever.  He is totally aware of how moth & rust destroy the stuff of this life.  Of what does your life consist?  Around what does it revolve?  What is the focal point of your living?  Repentance should be! 
Our lives should be built up in Christ.  If we want to love Jesus more, we should give away more of the things we have.  Stuff is intrinsically dangerous because it takes our eyes off of the Author & Perfector of our faith.   The focus of our time & energy is frequently narrow & limited.  Certainly there are details that need to be accomplished, but they should always be done in God’s scheme of things.  Already when Jesus was still on earth, He was teaching that the Last Days are here.  Don’t waste your time on trivial things that are here today & gone tomorrow. 
If your house is burning down & the fire department shows up, you don’t complain that the carpet cleaner is late for his appointment!   Jesus would say, “Repent, for the reign of God is at hand.”  Keep the main the main thing.   In the remainder of Luke’s 12th chapter, the Son of God stresses preparation for His 2nd coming, because that is the main thing. 
Be watchful & be ready!  Don’t allow the distractions of these temporary earthly things to take your eyes off of Jesus.  St. Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae perfectly complements Jesus’ teaching in Luke 12:
“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, & your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”   (Colossians 3:1-4 ESV) 
Being a ‘one percenter’ is not evil or even greedy.  What is foolish & caused by evil is to spend your time & energy ignoring God because your focus is so locked upon the things that money can buy.  Then you certainly will lose the things that money cannot buy.   Our calling in this life is to confess our sins, & to receive the merciful forgiveness that God offers. 
Jesus’ sheep know His voice & they follow Him, thus receiving His inheritance.  Amen. 
 
 
Cure Your children’s warring madness;    bend our pride to Your control;    shame our wanton, selfish gladness, rich in things & poor in soul.   Save us from weak resignation   to the evils we deplore;   let the gift of Your salvation   be our glory evermore.    Lo, the hosts of evil round us scorn the Christ, assail His ways!   From the fears that long have bound us free our hearts to faith & praise.   Grant us wisdom,   grant us courage for the living of these days.  Amen.   LSB 850:3, 4, 2.


[1] Luke 12:17-19a ESV
[2] Luke 12:21 ESV
[3] Luke 12:21-23 ESV
[4] Matthew 4:4 ESV

9th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 11)                                                           LSB #’s 388, 730
Text – Luke 10:40 
 
Martha was torn between all the preparations that had to be made.  She came to Jesus & asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself?  Tell her to help me!”
 
TELL HER TO HELP ME!
  How many of you have spent time working in a situation where you had to go it all alone?  If the project is long it’s easy to become discouraged.  Despair & hopelessness will hound your thoughts & nip at the heels of your emotions.  Bitterness sets in as you think how unfair it is that you have to do all the work   by yourself   & others are not expected to help. 
In the Gospel reading we find Martha in exactly that sort of situation.  She can’t believe that Jesus is allowing Mary to just sit there & listen.  There’s work to be done & I shouldn’t have to do it all alone.  After all, work produces results.    Listening to someone speak is just a way of avoiding your responsibilities.   PAUSE
Does sitting still, listening to a sermon make you anxious to get home & get to the real business of life?     Do you feel like the time you spend here is merely loafing?     Do you feel unimportant because you aren’t accomplishing anything worthwhile? 
In 2001 I met one of my friends at the Youth Gathering & he was stressed out because he wasn’t getting any real work done through being in New Orleans.  I felt sorry for him, because I was having a great time.  Listening to the speakers at the Gathering was inspiring,    my spiritual life was being blessed, & on numerous occasions   I had to wipe the tears from my eyes. 
But my buddy Paul   he wears the same shoes that Martha does.    He doesn’t feel good about himself   unless he’s working.    For him, it takes priority over everything,   even over listening to the Word of God himself.  He has since resigned from the ministry.   It’s common to find people who struggle with the art of listening, whether that’s listening to other people or listening to the Word of God.    In New Orleans, the four young men who were with me heard some tremendous speakers   on exceptionally relevant topics.   And yet, if you weren’t there,    it’s difficult to listen, isn’t it, when I speak of the incredible spiritual messages we heard? 
There are so many distractions in our lives.    We’re torn between so many competing interests.    Will all of you be like Martha,   too distracted      to pay attention?    Too busy working    even to care?    Do you really have more important things to do    than listen to what your Lord & Savior is attempting to teach you?
“Tell her to help me!”  But answering, Jesus says to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried & upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.”   Worried & upset about many things – we’ve all had days like that, haven’t we?  Maybe that’s even the story of your life. 
Do you remember the parable of the sower?   “The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life & the deceitfulness of wealth choke it,   making the word unfruitful.”    Martha was suffering from that illness.    The worries of her life were choking out the Word of God & making it unfruitful. 
She wasn’t listening because her faith was weak.      And her faith was weak because she had not been listening.   Our faith also   can be choked out by the worries of this life.  Jesus calls us to trust in Him to take care of us & all the situations that we sinfully worry about. 
At the Youth Gathering   we were challenged to take our hearts off of the things of this world, & to set our hearts on things above   where Christ is seated on the higher ground.  Where is your heart today?    Jesus says, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”    Is your treasure the Kingdom of God     or the kingdom of this broken & sinful world? 
The importance of that point was brought home very powerfully on Sunday morning   as we learned of a 15 year old boy who died of a heart attack at his hotel   the 1st evening of the Gathering.  He & others in his youth group got impatient waiting for the elevator.  Running up the stairs instead aggravated an unknown heart condition   & it killed him.  Yet, tragic as that was, he is now on permanent higher ground.   The things of this world no longer entangle him.  They can no longer drag him down.  He has been lifted up by God to his heavenly home. 
His heart was set on Christ.   Is yours?     Do you have the same priorities as Mary   or as Martha?    You see, there was nothing wrong with Martha’s concern about preparing a meal for her Savior.  The problem was   she had placed that as a higher priority than the feeding of her own soul.   Mary had chosen what is better, & it would not be taken from her. 
Like my friend Paul, who was worried that he should be working rather than attending the Gathering, it can feel safer for us to be busy  than to be listening to what Jesus has to say.  Martha was almost frantic with her efforts to serve & she wasn’t receiving the peace Jesus was offering.  Mary had found that peace.   Martha was torn between the distractions of this world. 
Those distractions become dangerous, even deadly, when they draw us away from hearing,   learning & studying God’s Word.  Those are the better things of this life & they can never be taken from us.  Your home, your cottage, your job, your health, even your family,   all of those things you may worry about can be taken from you in this life. 
Only your faith in Christ cannot be taken,   & that’s because our Heavenly Father has promised that no one can take us out of His protective hand.  Suffering & tragedy will come into our lives, that’s a given.  The family & friends of the boy who died at the Youth Gathering endured grief that we would never wish upon anyone. 
Yet they have hope because of the Words & promises of God, that He will never leave us nor forsake us.  Even in midst of the greatest of our trials & suffering, His Holy Spirit is ever present, strengthening us when we would certainly fail.  He’s encouraging us when we see no reason for hope.   He comforts us   when we find no peace.   In the frantic busyness of our lives, God calls to us in Psalm 46, “Be still & know that I am God.”   That’s a lesson Mary had learned & she was practicing it as she sat at the feet of Jesus to hear His teaching.  Before the new version of the hymnal came out, the Introit for this morning stated: 
“Teach me your way, O Lord, & I will walk in Your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your name.  For great is Your love toward me; You have delivered me from the depths of the grave.”
God’s Word speaks as if you have already died & been resurrected.  In a very real sense that is already your reality.  It’s just that with our physical eyes we cannot yet see that reality.  At this moment our resurrection already exists only in a different dimension.  It exists in that dimension where Christ now lives   with all the saints who have gone on before us.
Your resurrection exists in that dimension where Christ comes to each of you personally in the bread & the wine of Holy Communion.      Through the Lord’s Supper you enter into that dimension as you commune with Christ  through the reception of His body & blood,  both of which He has given  for the remission of all of your sins. 
In that Holy Supper, you already exist as the children of God resurrected from the dead.  Eternal life is yours even now in the mystery of God’s grace.   We certainly cannot understand that mystery now, yet it has been revealed to us through the power of His Word – the very Word that Mary was so intent upon listening to,   even at the risk of offending her sister. 
Martha’s wrong headed priorities, of work over listening to the Word of God, had caused her to treat her sister with a self-righteous attitude: “Lord, tell her to help me!”    What Jesus Christ really wants us to tell, is the good news of how He has worked peace & healing in each of our lives.  We do not live in a hopeless world   even when it seems as if we are working all alone.  The only true God wants you to take time out to rest & to listen to His Word.   We are not His slaves, but His children.  He didn’t create us to spend our entire lives   frantically torn between all the things necessary to live in this world.  He created us in order to be in relationship with Him as His dearly loved children.  He sent His Son not to be served, but to serve you. 
That is tremendous news which you will find no where else in this life.   The day you come to understand that is the day that telling others about Jesus Christ becomes a privilege & not a chore; it becomes a blessing, not a burden.   Jesus has carried your burdens.   He’s taken your worries upon Himself   & He died with them. 
As you come to understand that glorious news, you also will long to sit at the feet of Jesus   & hear it over & over again.  The obsessive compulsive need to work,    in order to make yourself worthy,   will subside.    Like Mary,   you will gladly choose what is better, & it will never be taken from you.  Amen.
 
 
 
While shepherds kept their watching   O’er silent flocks by night, behold, throughout the heavens   there shone a holy light.            The shepherds feared & trembled   when lo, above the earth   rang out the angel chorus   that hailed our Savior’s birth.           Down in a lonely manger   the humble Christ was born;   & God sent us salvation   that blessed Christmas morn.        Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills & everywhere;   go tell it on the mountain       that Jesus Christ is born!

​8th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 10)                                                                       LSB #387
Text – Colossians 1:11-12
 
May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance & patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.
 
ENDURANCE & PATIENCE WITH JOY
 
 
Running has been my chosen form of exercise for 20 years now, & running a race is sort of the top achievement in that sport.  When I’d get to the finish line it took a good ten minutes before I could feel the joy of having finished the race.  Up to then I was nauseous from pushing myself to the limit.  Endurance & patience are needed to finish such a race with joy. 
Running can also be an accurate illustration for highlighting certain aspects of our spiritual life.  The apostle Paul uses it several times in his letters.  Probably the most powerful is at Galatians 5:7, “You were running well.  Who hindered you from obeying the truth?”  (ESV)   Our heavenly Father could have said the very same words to Adam after The Fall.
And the Bible reveals very clearly just whom it was that hindered Adam from obeying the truth.  At John 8:44, Jesus said of the devil: “When he lies, he speaks out of his own character,   for he is a liar   & the father of lies.”  (ESV)  
We have become so accustomed to hearing lies, that we think nothing of it anymore.  It’s just a normal part of life.  It’s what people do.  Even in the church we’ve become blinded to the damage that lying causes.  That’s why St. Paul’s words are such a powerful diagnosis: “You were running well.  Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” 
We need to believe that we are hearing the truth in order for us to endure suffering.  When running in a race, if I didn’t trust the time keeping system, it was a lot more difficult to push myself to the limits.  I wanted to know that my suffering would bring worthwhile results.  Motivating yourself to suffer for a lie is almost impossible.  A couple Sundays ago, the sermon was titled Walking By The Spirit.  It was about living the Christian life & following the guidance of God’s Spirit to live that life with integrity.  Having faith in Jesus always brings results.  God promises that & He makes it happen, even if those results cannot be evaluated with our physical eyes.  Nevertheless, faith believes the promises of our Lord, no matter how things appear.
Since Jesus is truth, Satan’s only real weapon is the lie.  If he’s able to convince you that the lie is true, then he has separated you from life.  You may remember that Jesus said, “I am the Way, & the Truth & the Life.”  (John 14:6 ESV)   Separating you from the Truth automatically separates you from Life.  That is Lucifer’s day in, day out, continuous goal.
He’ll fight you tooth & nail, & being a pacifist is not an option for our saintly nature.  The devil wages spiritual warfare every hour of every day.    It is only in Christ that we find endurance & patience for that battle.  The saints at Colossae were not only fighting that battle, Satan was attacking them furiously.  Worse yet, many of the people weren’t clued in.
St. Paul writes the letter of Colossians in order to warn the Christians there, to encourage them & to strengthen them.  He wants them to continue walking by the Spirit, yet, he’s also teaching them that this walking will require endurance & patience on their part.   Those thoughts are directed, by the Holy Spirit, also to every one of us here this morning.
As you hear these words, “May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance & patience with joy,” (Colossians 1:11 ESV) those very words enable & empower endurance & patience for each of you simply because they are the Words of God.  That is what “believing in Jesus” is about. 
Christians don’t just believe in Jesus.  We believe in His Words, & in their power to bring about what they say & what they promise.    Many children of God consider that to be a fairytale Christianity, because they do not always “see” an immediate effect from the Words.   Since they do not see, for example, an instant answer to their prayer, they come to believe wrongly, that God’s Words have no power.  They forget that simply because an admiral may say “Full speed ahead” does not make the boat instantly travel at full speed.  It still requires the work & the time & the energy of everyone involved, accomplishing their tasks, to make it happen. 
So it is with much of the work God’s Holy Spirit calls us to do.  It certainly takes endurance & patience to teach children, as we do here at Sunshine ECC & at Holt Lutheran Schools.   It takes endurance & patience to teach adults as we do in Sunday morning Bible class, or at elder’s meetings, or voter’s meetings, or church council meetings. 
You might say it takes endurance & patience to get through listening to my sermons, or listening to my Bible studies.  You can bet it takes endurance & patience on the part of the Holy Spirit as He guides & directs us in walking by the Spirit. 
Yet, as St. Paul encourages the Colossians, & you, & me, with these words, “May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance & patience with joy,” (Colossians 1:11 ESV) those very words have their effect.  It may not be as immediate as we would like, but they are Words of God & they do not return to Him void & empty.
We should also keep in mind this, as we doubt the effect of those words, we are the ones who weaken their power.  As we are skeptical of the effect of those words, we are the ones who lessen their scope.  As we hear & welcome the lies of Satan, we are the ones who separate ourselves from life.  Without life we cannot run & we cannot walk by the Spirit.
Continuing beyond the milk level of faith, stepping into the meat level of Christianity, the lies of the devil do more than simply get in the way.   It takes more than just avoiding the lie to run the race well.  It takes endurance & patience too.   And going even beyond that, “May you be strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for all endurance & patience   with joy,  giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you  to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” (Colossians 1:11-12 ESV)   The Apostle Paul does not merely call us, or encourage us, to endurance & patience, but to do so with joy, giving thanks to God   because it is He who has qualified us to share in the inheritance! 
St. Paul not only urges us on to greater faith, through words of Law, he also empowers us by telling us why with the Gospel.  He introduces the Good News in the last words of v. 12 & then lays it out for us in vs. 13 & 14:
“…giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.  He has delivered us from the domain of darkness & transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  (ESV) 
The Apostle knows & God knows that we will fail to endure & to be patient as we ought.  We absolutely will fail to be joyful as we should.   Yet, the Apostle, & certainly God, also know that without offering the forgiveness of our sins no sinful human being can ever get beyond their sin.  No sinful being can reconnect himself to the Source of life.
Jesus came to earth & took on human flesh for that express purpose.   As we endure & practice patience, with joy giving thanks to the Father, in due season we will reap a harvest.  Our labors will not be vain; we will not have run the race to no avail.  Yes, being a good Samaritan is not easy.  It takes great endurance & patience. 
Being generous with our income is not easy, especially with the way the government has messed up our economy.  It also took great endurance & patience to follow the laws of Leviticus where farmers were required to leave some of their crop in the fields so that hungry people had an opportunity to provide themselves with food to eat. 
Endurance & patience with joy is practically impossible, nevertheless, it is a lie that says
we cannot run the race with endurance or patience & with joy give thanks to our heavenly Father.  Jesus is not just the Truth & the Life, but He is also the Way to heaven.  Jesus is the Way to living a life of endurance & patience with joy.
Joy to the World, we sing it with gusto at Christmas time.  So exactly when was it that our joy left us behind?  When was it we decided we were no longer joyful at Christ’s coming?  Was it one day after Christmas, three days, a week later, or a month later? 
It’s not like Jesus has abandoned us or anything, but look around at the number of members here in church today.  A lot of them are missing.  Many of them are not finding their joy in Christ this morning!!   For those of us who do, it is our calling from the Holy Spirit to share the joy we have with them. 
In order to do that, 1st we need to have our joy strengthened & renewed.  The Words of Colossians 1 point you in the only direction from which true joy will ever arrive in your heart & soul:
“…giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.  He has delivered us from the domain of darkness   & transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.” 
Running the race is not easy, but we have the Son of God running that race with us, carrying us even, right to the finish line.  There’s plenty of room to find joy in that.  Amen.
 
 
 
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!   Let earth receive her King;   let every heart prepare Him room   & heaven & nature sing.         Joy to the earth,   the Savior reigns!    Let men their songs employ,    while fields & floods, rocks, hills & plains   repeat the sounding joy.         No more let sins & sorrows grow   nor thorns infest the ground;    He comes to make His blessings flow   far as the curse is found.   He rules the world with truth & grace   & makes the nations prove   the glories of His righteousness    & wonders of His love.  Amen.