I need Thee. O, I need Thee. Every hour I need Thee.
My one defense, my righteousness. O, Lord how I need Thee.
All too often we forget this. Maybe it is not that we have completely forgotten that we need Christ, but that we think somehow we can acquire some of what we need on or own. Most of the time we still believe God helps those who help themselves.
Satan likes to slip thoughts into our heads that move us to turn away from God. Such seemingly noble thoughts like, “I need to get right with God.” “I need to clean up my life so God will love me.” Most of the time we do remember that He does still love us, but do we also remember that He has already cleaned us up. He is my righteousness. The Gospel is “the good news” that Jesus has already saved us.
That good news St. Paul says, is the power of salvation. It is the power that changes who we are. It changes us from the inside out. For most of the month of August we focused on Jesus being “The Bread of Life” the food that God sent down from heaven to feed us. We cannot live without eating. We need to eat. We need to eat regularly. Our need for spiritual food is even greater. We need Jesus, The Bread of Life, every day. We need him for the whole hour of every hour of every day.
We get that bread from God’s Word. Especially His Gospel Word it infuses us with His righteousness. It gets the Spirit moving in us, strengthening our faith. We also get that bread as we come to the Lord’s Supper and He gives Himself to us in the bread and the wine. He says, “I gave myself for you. Receive me as the bread of life.”
I need Jesus all the time. I need to hear His Word of forgiveness every minute of every day. I need to receive His Body and Blood every week, but we are not the only ones who need Him. Our family. friends, neighbors, and coworkers all need Jesus every hour. Do we recognize that need also. Do we also understand that God has put Jesus in us to speak His Gospel to them. That they may be fed with the Bread of Life. Jesus said to Peter, “Feed My Sheep.”
Jesus has given you himself, The Bread of Life, so that you might share him with others. Yet all too often we look at others and say, “Their need is too great or my life is too busy.” Yet He gave the disciples 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread and said, “You feed them.” After feeding 5000 men plus their wives and children they collected 12 baskets of let overs.
My friends, don’t be afraid. Feed his sheep. Trust in His infinite riches.