He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire. He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

How many of you have heard of the great tightrope walker named Blonden? He was a marvelous acrobat who turned somersaults on stilts and appeared before kings and queens. But he was most famous for his walks on a tightrope over Niagara Falls, 160 feet above the water. Each time he made “tightroped” over the Falls he made it more death defying that the last.

He was forever asking the crowd if they believed he could do this stunt or that stunt. On one such occasion, after having done several death defying walks and stunts, he asked the crowd if they thought he could cross the Falls pushing a wheelbarrow; this seemed impossible even for the Great Blonden, which is what he wanted to hear, and he went ahead and did it. Then, as if this weren’t enough, he then loaded the wheelbarrow with sacks of cement equal to the weight of a man and crossed over again. All were amazed - they were “wowed!” Then The Great Blonden asked the question, “Who would like to ride across?” Despite all he had done to prove his himself no one wanted to get in that wheelbarrow.

Our psalmist writes, Many, O Lord my God are the wonders you have done….Blessed is the man who makes the Lord His trust. The wonders of God are all around us: the sun came up just like it was suppose to, just as it has since creation; photosynthesis is still working, we have the oxygen we need to breath in the right concentrations; the laws of physics and aerodynamics are working- the planes are still flying- this is very comforting since I’m leaving on a trip tomorrow. There are butterflies and babies; God’s hand is over all of His creation. In Colossians we hear, …all things were created by Him. He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. (Col 1.16b-17) By these natural wonders God has proven Himself to us but if these are not enough we can look to the miracles of Jesus, who if you didn’t know, if you have not heard, is God in flesh appearing.

Just as Isaiah had prophesied 700 years before Jesus was born, the one who is from God who is God in flesh appearing will open the eyes of the blind, the lame will leap like a deer, and the deaf will hear and mute will shout for joy. (Is. 35.5,6) He did all this and adding to the list: the dead are raised, lepers are healed and, oh yes, sins are forgiven. (Matt 11.1-6)

If all this still were not enough for us to trust Jesus then look to the manger. There God was born, there He who is from heaven took upon Himself our humanness, our sinful humanness. There a promise to come and rescue us from our sin came to fulfillment. If that wasn’t enough look to the cross. There Jesus who didn’t have to die, laid down His life to save ours. He who was without sin became sin for us. The punishment, the sin and death that was to be ours He took for us. If that weren’t amazing enough, if that doesn’t cause us to wonder then look to the empty tomb. He who was good and died- crucified, bled out, run through with a spear was dead and buried- on the third day, just as He had foretold, just as the prophets had foretold He rose from the dead, not to be some sort of a Stephen King zombie but rose again His body renewed, more than renewed made glorious.

Yet, despite all this we often fail to be in “wonder” of God, to be in “awe” of God, and most importantly to trust God. At times we take creation, nature, even our bodies for granted. At other times we are awed by Jesus’ command over nature. Yet when Jesus asked us to trust Him enough to get into His “wheelbarrow” and that He will get us safely through life and home to heaven, we balk. We often fail to trust the One who is over creation and has proven Himself time and time again.

The psalmist writes, blessed is the man who makes the Lord His trust. Blessed is the man in whom faith has been created to believe and trust in the Lord. Blessed is the man who does not turn away to the left or the right but keeps his trust in the Lord. (Proverbs 4, 25-27) I cannot speak of this without having Wayne Shelton come to mind. In Bible class, he reminded us of Martin Luther’s explanation to the third article of the creed: “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord or come to Him but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with gifts, sanctified me with His gifts and kept me in the true faith.” If blessed is the man, who trusts in the Lord, then what are we when because of our sinful and doubting nature trust in our reason, our strength, and the things of this world over the things of God? What are we?! We are in a mess, that is what we are.

Oh Lord, forgive us for all the times we trusted in seemingly everything else. Blessed is the man who makes the Lord His trust. Blessed is the man who acknowledges and confesses his sins. Blessed is the man who treasures Jesus’ Words of forgiveness and absolution. Blessed is the man who trusts in the words of Jesus. Friend, your sins are forgiven. (Luke 5.18)

Blessed is the man who spends time with the things of God, the promises of God, turning them over in his heart and mind for he will be brought to trust and rely on the Lord when the hard, trying and long times come as they always do. Blessed is the man who gets into the Lord’s wheelbarrow for it has been safe for the Lord has never fallen.

The Psalmist writes He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and the mire. During the Civil War a company of Confederate irregulars known as “Bushwackers” were arrested by Union soldiers. Because they were guerilla fighters and not in uniform, they were not recognized as prisoners of war but were sentenced to be shot. A young soldier in the Union army approached his commanding officer with the most amazing and some might say “foolish’ request. “I know one of the condemned men. He has a large family who needs him badly. What he did as a “Bushwacker” was wrong, being out of uniform was wrong, but his family needs him. Please let me take his place. My parents are dead, and I have few friends. No one will miss me. Allow me to take his punishment.”

The officer hesitated but finally consented. The Confederate husband and father was released and the young Union soldier took his place in front of firing squad. On the stone that marks his grave in a little southern town are these words, “Sacred to the memory of Willy Lear for he took my place.”

Because of sin, all of us were destined for much worse than a firing squad, much worse than a life amidst the muck and mire of this life. We were all destined for Hell. Yes, as unpopular as it may be to say, there is a place called Hell, a place of eternal separation from God, a place where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth and it never ends.

In His great mercy God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit saw us and our fate. Even before we could raise a cry for help, God was about arranging for our rescue. He sent the Son to be our substitute, to take our place, to suffer what we in our sinfulness deserved. Jesus came and died that we might live not just now but eternally. He rose again that we might know that His death in our stead has set us free from death. Where that young soldier died to set Willy Lear free, Jesus died on the cross to set us free from sin and then Jesus rose again to life setting us free from death. St Paul writes to Romans and to all of us, If when we were God’s enemies we were reconciled to Him, though the death of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! (Rmns 5.10) Because He, again, lives so also will we live! (John 14.19) Of the rescue of this new life, the Psalmist writes, He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God.

Having been rescued from death and the devil, how might we live? St Peter suggests to us that we be clear minded and self-controlled…love each other deeply because love covers a multitude of sins; offer hospitality to one another without grumbling…serve each other, faithfully administer God’s grace…. Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil, live as a servant of God. (1st Ptr 4.7 -11 &2.16) Let us, also, treasure up and hold sacred the things of God: His Word and His sacraments. For by and through them, He gives us forgiveness and peace. By and through them, He creates and sustains real and lasting faith. By and through them, He gives direction and hope. Let us not balk at the things of God, let us not balk at one that has proved Himself to us and for us.

Amen.