Sermon: Ash Wednesday (OT)
18 February AD 2015
The First Day of Lent
Title: You Will Be Satisfied (MP3 Audio)
Summary: Sinners are never satisfied. We want what we don’t have and have no great desire to receive the special blessings that God wants to give to mankind. Worse, God is in no way satisfied with anyone who isn’t absolutely holy and without sin.
Yet the Lord promises us as He did Israel: “You will be satisfied.” Forgiven by Christ, God lavishes His love on us, adopting us as His children and promising full restoration in the Resurrection. Even now, He washes us in Baptism, feeds us His Son’s body and blood, and constantly renews us by the Holy Spirit working through the Gospel.
As the Scriptures tell us, He opens his hand and satisfies every living thing (see Psalm 145:16) — particularly us believers in Christ. In Him, our satisfaction is guaranteed and everlasting.
Text: “Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?
Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.
Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep and say, “Spare your people, O Lord, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”
Then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. The Lord answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations.” Joel 2:12-19
Scripture quoted from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Audio: Click to hear the MP3 of You Will Be Satisfied.
NB: For some reason, a few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio if Windows Media is their default MP3 player. If this occurs, you can either change to QuickTime or another default browser player, copy and paste the link directly into a selected player, or download it to your computer, where it seems to work regardless of which player. Several folks have suggested VLC Player from VideoLAN.
Other Readings: Psalm 51:1-13 (14-19); 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
Illustrations: First graphic from Art of the Church Year by Ed Riojas available through Higher Things Store. Second graphic public domain.
Tags: Lent | Ash Wednesday | Three Year Lectionary | 3 Year Lectionary | Series B | theology | Jesus | Jesus Christ | Christ | Gospel | Law and Gospel | Law | God | salvation | repentance | restoration | resurrection | fasting | forgiveness | satisfaction | 18 February 2015 | February 18, 2015 | Lutheranism | Lutheran | Church | Christian | Christianity | Christian Church | Joel 2 | sermon | preaching | homily | text | theme | topic | You Will Be Satisfied | audio | mp3 | Pastor Snyder | Pastor Walter Snyder | Walter Snyder | Ask the Pastor | Happenings
The First Day of Lent
Title: You Will Be Satisfied (MP3 Audio)
Summary: Sinners are never satisfied. We want what we don’t have and have no great desire to receive the special blessings that God wants to give to mankind. Worse, God is in no way satisfied with anyone who isn’t absolutely holy and without sin.Yet the Lord promises us as He did Israel: “You will be satisfied.” Forgiven by Christ, God lavishes His love on us, adopting us as His children and promising full restoration in the Resurrection. Even now, He washes us in Baptism, feeds us His Son’s body and blood, and constantly renews us by the Holy Spirit working through the Gospel.
As the Scriptures tell us, He opens his hand and satisfies every living thing (see Psalm 145:16) — particularly us believers in Christ. In Him, our satisfaction is guaranteed and everlasting.
Text: “Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.”Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster. Who knows whether he will not turn and relent, and leave a blessing behind him, a grain offering and a drink offering for the Lord your God?
Blow the trumpet in Zion; consecrate a fast; call a solemn assembly; gather the people. Consecrate the congregation; assemble the elders; gather the children, even nursing infants. Let the bridegroom leave his room, and the bride her chamber.
Between the vestibule and the altar let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep and say, “Spare your people, O Lord, and make not your heritage a reproach, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’”
Then the Lord became jealous for his land and had pity on his people. The Lord answered and said to his people, “Behold, I am sending to you grain, wine, and oil, and you will be satisfied; and I will no more make you a reproach among the nations.” Joel 2:12-19
Scripture quoted from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Audio: Click to hear the MP3 of You Will Be Satisfied.
NB: For some reason, a few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio if Windows Media is their default MP3 player. If this occurs, you can either change to QuickTime or another default browser player, copy and paste the link directly into a selected player, or download it to your computer, where it seems to work regardless of which player. Several folks have suggested VLC Player from VideoLAN.
Other Readings: Psalm 51:1-13 (14-19); 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21
Illustrations: First graphic from Art of the Church Year by Ed Riojas available through Higher Things Store. Second graphic public domain.
Tags: Lent | Ash Wednesday | Three Year Lectionary | 3 Year Lectionary | Series B | theology | Jesus | Jesus Christ | Christ | Gospel | Law and Gospel | Law | God | salvation | repentance | restoration | resurrection | fasting | forgiveness | satisfaction | 18 February 2015 | February 18, 2015 | Lutheranism | Lutheran | Church | Christian | Christianity | Christian Church | Joel 2 | sermon | preaching | homily | text | theme | topic | You Will Be Satisfied | audio | mp3 | Pastor Snyder | Pastor Walter Snyder | Walter Snyder | Ask the Pastor | Happenings
posted by Xrysostom | 20:00
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