Sermon # 15

 (To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David)

Psalm 41:1-3

We walk past them. We hear them, but we do not see them. Not because we cannot, but because we choose not to. They are victims. Victims of chance, of circumstance, of greed. And of depravity.

We as a culture, turn a blind eye to the poor, the homeless. The wealthy, the affluent consider them a nuisance, a blight on our society.

Matthew 10:8 says "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely you have received, freely give. (King James Version Bible) And it's sad, really, truly sad.

So, why is it sad? Because God gave us his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Redeemer. Our salvation. And yet we, ourselves, cannot be the salvation for the poor and the homeless.

Now, a lot of us may be financially independent, but are we spiritually wealthy or are we  spiritually bankrupt? Yet, it seems the poor and homeless, appear to be most wealthy in terms of spirituality and faith.

Despite the above, who is more depraved? Are the poor and homeless depraved because they are not socially and/or financially equal to everyone else? Are we depraved because we donate to charities and do no more? Or are the executives who take fifty thousand to one hundred thousand dollar salaries the depraved ones? Ask yourself why they are not taking one dollar salaries.

Amen.

Let us pray The Lord's Prayer.

A Prayer, written on 3/20/2020

Before reciting the prayer below, say The Lord’s Prayer.

“Let everything that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.” – Psalms 150:6

Most benevolent God, Christ the Redeemer I thank you for giving me the life I have. Thank you Lord for allowing the people I have met to enrich my life in all my years on your gift to us all.

“Fear thou not; for I [am] with thee: be not dismayed; for I [am] thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” – Isaiah 41:10

 Gracious God, you gave us your only begotten Son who died on the cross for our sins. I have tried to follow the example Jesus set forth for us to follow. Gracious God, hear my prayer. As I kneel here praying to you, my body is riddled with illness and pain. I pray to you to ask that You, my Lord God, slow the illness and to take away my pain as I am not yet done praising you on this glorious jewel you created.

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” – Romans 10:9

Gracious God, I have sinned in my life. This I know.  As I confess my sins to you, I please ask you to forgive my sins in life so I may enter Heaven unfettered. I kneel before you to confess my sins and to receive your forgiveness. [confess your sins]

Gracious Lord, I thank you for hearing my confession. Lord Jesus, I thank you for your forgiveness of my sins as I can feel the burden they represented having been lifted from my soul.

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.” – Proverbs 3:5-6

Lord Jesus, I believe in your plan for me, even though I know it not. I trust that Your will be done. I trust you with my life as I trust You with my immortal soul and my faith. I know this path you have set me upon is filled with hardships to teach me lessons. Lessons I need to learn, with some to be passed along to others. Lord, all I ask is that you guide me to end of the path with grace.

Amen