What lives in your heart? What occupies your thoughts?
It might be a person, a possession, an activity, a place, or an experience. It can be a source of joy or a source of stress. It can come from generosity or from greed. It can come from appetite or altruism. It can be physical or emotional.
But there is something—something that captures our imagination and dominates our thoughts.
And its is far too often sin. Sin dominates our world and its effects are universal.
When we look at the vehement and bitter emotions on display—when we witness the depression and the disappointment around us, and sometimes within us—when we see the effects of sin in the world, we cannot help but pray for God’s intervention. This world will never be a perfect place. There will always be selfishness and injustice. The things of this world will never satisfy. Greed only generates more greed and lust generates more lust.
We need something better, something higher, to dwell in our hearts.
In his first letter, the apostle John warns us not to love the things in the world. Instead, our thoughts and our heart should be in our heavenly Father’s keeping. God protects our hearts from greed and corruption. By faith, God directs our desires to his will and our delight to his grace. God sanctifies his blessings in this world and keeps them from dominating us.
God’s grace washes away our sin and cleanses us inside and out.
The world will still tempt us with lust and material desires, but our hearts are in God’s hands. His word directs our thoughts and strengthens our character. God’s work energizes us and keeps us on his path. Jesus walks with us and keeps us from straying.
The world and its desires grow stale and disappointing—sin pollutes them and corrupts them. The love of God is forever.
We read from the second chapter of John’s first letter, inspired word-for-word by God himself.
1 John 2:15–17 (EHV)
15Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, boasting about material possessions—is not from the Father but from the world. 17The world and its desires pass away, but the one who does the will of God remains forever.
God bless you,
Pastor Tesch
Worship at Trinity
Here’s Sunday’s service: https://youtu.be/yQTtECay2Zs
Or you can watch it from our website: https://trinitymarinette.com/sermon-archive/531/
Or you can watch is on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TrinityEvLutheranChurchWisSynod/
Come and worship with us! You can sign up here: https://trinitymarinette.com/events/july-12-13-worship/ or call Pastor or call the church office to let us know which service you prefer. It is wise to wait a bit if you are at risk or would just like to wait for the pandemic to fade. God willing, we will worship together when he ends this plague.
Here is this week’s bulletin: https://trinitymarinette.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/2020-07-05-Announcements-The-Fifth-Sunday-after-Pentecost.pdf. Check it out. There is a lot coming up at Trinity!
If you would like to support the Lord’s work at Trinity, you may contribute at trinitymarinette.com/giving/ or you can mail it to
Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church
1501 Thomas St.
Marinette, WI 54143