"Hurt" -- Sermon from May 25, 2024

Bethlehem Lutheran Church Podcast

Sometimes it’s hard to see the worth of someone who is lashing out against us. It is hard to remember that we can sometimes lash out the same way, especially when we are tired, or hurt, or fearful, or hungry or feeling like we’ve lost control. In our focus text for this week the religious leaders don’t think a man was worthy of the healing he got because he broke their rules and carried his mat away on the Sabbath. He argues was only following Jesus command: “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” This made the leaders even more angry because Jesus was telling people to disobey their rules. Feeling their control slipping away they lashed out at Jesus, to the point of calling for his execution. Jesus died on the cross for not only the ones he healed but even the ones who were calling for his death! And that is the Good News, even when we are hurt so badly that we are lashing out at others, even when we are mad at God for offering healing to those who have hurt us, even when we hurt so badly we don’t feel we deserve God’s healing, God is there offering us all the love & healing none of us deserve!