Easter Day Sermon: Peter Opened His Mouth

Preached on Acts 10:34–43
The Resurrection of Our Lord (Series A)
A Spoken Order of Matins (LSB 219)
12 April AD 2020

Video: Click to view the YouTube video of Peter Opened His Mouth.

Order of Matins from the Lutheran Service Book begins with the Versicles (219). Then follow the Psalmody (LSB 220–221) with the Venite and Psalm 16, the Readings (LSB 221), and the Responsory for Easter (LSB 222). The sermon starts at the 11:05 mark. The service concludes with the Te Deum (LSB 223–225), Kyrie (LSB 227), Lord’s Prayer, Salutation, Collect of the Day, Collect for Grace (LSB 228), Benedicamus, and Benediction.

Note: I’m still working to get better sound for the music.

Summary: Today’s text begins, “So Peter opened his mouth.” He has a rather spotty record through the previous instances where he does so. We wonder what words might come out and dread just how far his foot might go in.

He confesses Jesus as the Christ, then tells Him that He doesn’t dare go up to Jerusalem to suffer and die. The Lord responds first with a glowing condemnation, then with the stern rebuke, “Get behind me, Satan.”

Overwhelmed by the Transfiguration, Peter blurts out the suggestion to build three tents as shrines for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. From the bright cloud, the Father cuts him off, telling him along with James and John, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”

At the Last Supper, when Christ told the disciples that they would all fall away, Peter argued. Jesus responded that not only would Peter cut and run with the rest, he would also deny his discipleship three times.

Yet here, when Peter opens his mouth, he’s prepared to give good testimony concerning Jesus. He now realizes and confesses that the Savior’s death and resurrection were not only for Israel but for all people. God is completely impartial and baptismal regeneration and new life in Christ belong to Roman centurions just as much as to Galilean fishermen.

The gifts that Jesus won also belong to us. God is pleased when we open our mouths to speak of Christ’s love, when we forgive and ask forgiveness, when we call on Him in Jesus’ name, and when we remain steadfast in prayer for loved ones and for enemies alike. Like Peter, our best words are those God gives us in His Word — words of reconciliation, of peace, of joy.

Text: So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.

“As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.

“They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

“And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Acts 10:34–43

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.

Video: Click to view the YouTube video of Peter Opened His Mouth. Sermon begins at the 11:05 mark.

Other Readings: Psalm 16; Colossians 3:1–4; Matthew 28:1–10

Funeral Sermon: Master Craftsman

Preached on Psalm 139:13–116
The Funeral of Beno Messer
16 October AD 2019

Title: Click to hear the MP3 of Master Craftsman.

Summary: Craftsmanship means different things to different people but a true master such as Beno Messer leaves ample evidence of his artistic vision and the hard work necessary to bring the vision to completion. Through most of his life, this master craftsman worked in metal and other materials to make products both beautiful and functional.

Whether it was repairing others’ works or designing and constructing his own projects, he refused to cut corners or rush his tasks. He wanted to leave things better than he found them, and he displayed this same attitude in the rest of his life. He invested himself deeply in others and his craftsmanship extended into his family and friends as he always worked to make things better for other and to do better by others.

On an eternal scale, God also shows Himself to be a master craftsman. The psalmist confesses this in the sermon text. But the Lord wasn’t content to create beauty. When Adam and Eve fell into sin, breaking themselves, their world, and their relationship with Him, He set about to undo and remake the damage into new and lasting beauty.

His craftsmanship, then goes beyond physical beauty or effective function. He works through Jesus to make all things new and right. He creates clean hearts in place of our filthy, sin-damaged natures. He works all things for good for those who believe in Him. Through the instrument of the cross, He bent and broke His Son so that He might straighten and restore us and our relationship with Him.

In Baptism, He makes us new. The Holy Spirit continues crafting us into the creatures He desires us to be through the Gospel. Jesus remakes and re-forms us as He feeds us on His own body and blood. And at the end of time, God will unveil His final project as Master Craftsman when He brings us into the new heavens and new earth to live with Him forever.

Text:

You formed my inward parts;
  you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
  I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
  my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
  when I was being made in secret,
  intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
  in your book were written, every one of them,
    the days that were formed for me,
    when as yet there was none of them.
    Psalm 139:13-16

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 Master Craftsman.

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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: Isaiah 25:6-9; John 14:1-7

Saint Michael’s Day Sermon: Do Not Rejoice ... But Rejoice

Preached on Luke 10:17-20
Saint Michael and All Angels
25 September AD 2016

Title: Click to hear the MP3 of Do Not Rejoice ... But Rejoice.

Summary: The seventy-two disciples returned to Christ and the twelve, thrilled with the display of God’s glory they’d seen . They celebrated how they could cast out evil spirits in Jesus’ name. Yet He told them that their enthusiasm was misplaced.

Of course it’s good that Satan and his minions have no power over us. It’s wonderful when demons are driven out and tormented people given peace. Yet however good these are, they are only signs of our true source of joy: Jesus Christ died to save sinners and because of Him we are God’s children. The Lord’s true glory isn’t revealed in the demons’ submission to Jesus but in the Son’s submission to His Father’s will in His suffering and death. By His sacrifice, Jesus effected our salvation.

Yes, Jesus “saw Satan fall like lightning.” But Jesus also saw you raised up from the baptismal waters, named by God and recorded in the Book of Life. In Baptism, our names are “engraved on the palms of [God’s] hands. (Isaiah 49:16; see also the sermon Engraved on God’s Palms)” They are “written in heaven” and no matter what befalls us on earth, we know that we’ll be raised up as eternal citizens of the new heavens and the new earth. How can we not rejoice in this!

Text: The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!”

And [Jesus] said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

“Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” Luke 10:17-20

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 Do Not Rejoice ... But Rejoice

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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 91; Daniel 10:10-14; 12:1-3; Revelation 12:7-12; Matthew 18:1-10 (alternate Gospel)

Pentecost 14 Sermon: Our Home the Untouchable Mountain

Preached on Hebrews 12:4-29
The Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost — Proper 16C
21 August AD 2016

Title: Our Home the Untouchable Mountain (MP3 Audio)

Summary: In the history of Israel, Sinai was an important — even essential — mountain, but it wasn’t part of the Promised Land. For although He also proclaimed grace and blessing from its heights, the Lord primarily used Sinai to declare His Law, to instruct and discipline — even to terrify — His people.

Zion was the mountain of blessing. After the Ark of the Covenant entered Jerusalem, it was the place where God established His rule. Zion was the mountain where the Lord invited His people to come to receive forgiveness of sins.

As he compares and contrasts these mountains, the author of Hebrews also compares and contrasts the Exodus with the Christian life of pilgrimage to our final resting place. We won’t reach the Promised Land by dwelling at the foot of Sinai, striving to fulfill a Law that is beyond our keeping. We look toward Zion and to the new Jerusalem, the heavenly city, the resting place of the saints.

Given earthly form in Christ’s Church, the fulness of Zion is yet to be revealed. We can only touch it in part but we still receive full forgiveness. Although we still await eternal residence, we already inhabit Mount Zion, living even now by faith as residents of “the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.”

Text: In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.

For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.”

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken — that is, things that have been made — in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. Hebrews 12:4-24 (25-29)

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 Our Home the Untouchable Mountain

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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 50:1-15; Isaiah 66:18-23; Luke 12:22-30

Pentecost 8 Sermon: Steadfast Love

Preached on Psalm 136:1, 23-26
The Eighth Sunday after Pentecost — Proper 10C
10 July AD 2016

Title: Steadfast Love (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Preaching on today’s Introit to a gathering of nursing home residents, I noted that it’s much easier to “give thanks to the Lord” when life is fairly easy. However, the Psalmist calls us to be thankful in all circumstances, reminding us that “the God of heaven” steadfastly loves us at all times.

He supports and defends us in our “low estate,” redeeming us from our lowest estate of sinful natures forever at enmity with Him. He cares for us body, mind, and spirit but, above all else, works to create and sustain faith that we might have life forever with Him.

Text: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.

It is he who remembered us in our low estate, for his steadfast love endures forever; and rescued us from our foes, for his steadfast love endures forever; he who gives food to all flesh, for his steadfast love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven, for his steadfast love endures forever. Psalm 136:1, 23-26

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 Steadfast Love.

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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 41; Leviticus 18:1-5, 19:9-18; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37

Pentecost 4 Sermon: Cover-Up

Preached on Psalm 32:1-7
The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost — Proper 6C
12 June AD 2016

Title: Cover-Up (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Cover-ups. We see them employed by governments, businesses, and individuals in order to avoid the consequences of actions illegal, immoral, and sinful. They may work for a time but eventually, the truth usually becomes known. Of course, if a cover-up is maintained long enough, statutes of limitations, changes in attitudes, or more pressing matters often diminish or completely eliminate earthly consequences.

However, the same doesn’t hold true for the eternal consequences of sin. As David discovered, we cannot out-wait God’s judgment. Sin doesn’t become less sinful over time and God doesn’t forget or excuse our wrongdoings. Our attempts at cover-ups are no more successful than those of David with Bathsheba, Adam and Eve in the garden, or any others throughout history.

Yet there is one absolutely foolproof and complete cover-up: God covers us in the blood of Jesus, forgiving and forgetting all our sins. Washed in the waters of Baptism and clothed in Christ’s righteousness, He now sees nothing in us but the absolute righteousness of His beloved Son.

With David, we celebrate with “shouts of deliverance.” Along with the forgiven woman in today’s Gospel, we discover that as our sins “which are many, are forgiven” and now we are moved to much love — toward God who forgives and toward other people, as we both forgive and are forgiven by them.

Text: Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.

I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him. You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Psalm 32:1-7

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 Cover-Up.

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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: 2 Samuel 11:26-12:10, 13-14; Galatians 2:15-21, 3:10-14; Luke 7:36-8:3

Also: Here are related sermons on today’s Old Testament and Gospel readings.

Pentecost 2 Sermon: Absolutely Astonished

Preached on Galatians 1:1-12
The Second Sunday after Pentecost — Proper 4C
29 May AD 2016

Title: Absolutely Astonished (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Astonishing! Someone gives you something beyond value for absolutely no cost — and you’re looking for ways to pay for it! And so, after an introduction filled with sweetness and light, Paul immediately lowers the boom on the Galatians — and on us.

Even secular wisdom tells us, “Never look a gift horse in the mouth.” In other words, accept your gift thankfully and use it as intended. If this is true for even second-rate human gifts, how much more should it be for a priceless gift of love from God Himself?

Yet the Galatians were starting to listen to those who were telling them that Christ alone wasn’t enough. They were being told that to be “good Christians,” they needed to become good Jews. Freed by the Gospel, the Galatians were beginning to subject themselves to the Law.

Enemies of the Gospel were using it as a gateway, making Christ’s sacrifice a step on the way to holiness rather than the source and the completion of our righteousness. The freedom from sin’s bondage that these Judaizers” proclaimed was illusory — they were only “freeing” their listeners to step into a new bondage.

While the details change to fit times and circumstances, Satan and fallen human nature remain the same. We still face those who would turn us away from the full liberation of the Gospel and direct us back to works of the Law.

Listen to Christ. When He says, “It it finished,” He means that He has completed everything necessary for salvation. Our debt is paid, we are reconciled with the Father, and we can do nothing to add to God’s infinite love. What is more astonishing than our efforts to add human works to the Gospel? God continuing to love us, forgive us, and receive us into His presence.

Text: Paul, an apostle — not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead — and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel — not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.

For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. John 8:48-59

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 Absolutely Astonished.

NB: A few people have had problems trying to play the inline audio with Windows Media 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 96:1-9; 1 Kings 8:22-24, 27-29, 41-43; Luke 7:1-10

Lent 2C Sermon: The Lord Will Relent

Preached on Jeremiah 26:8-15
The Second Sunday in Lent, Series C
21 February AD 2016

Title: The Lord Will Relent (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Unfortunately, God’s Word finds some of its strongest resistance in His Church, among His people. In today’s Gospel, Jesus pointed out Jerusalem’s sorry record of murdering the Lord’s messengers. Yet neither He nor His Father had given up on Israel and soon He would join the Holy City’s martyred prophets, shedding His blood to pay for Israel’s sins and the sins of all mankind.

Jeremiah clearly show that ignoring the Word and assaulting its proclaimers wasn’t a problem new to Jesus. The prophet came to rebuke and chastise the city and the nation, directly accusing Judah’s inhabitants of all manner of wickedness. From the greatest to the least, none escaped the Law’s condemnations.

Yet Jeremiah wasn’t there only to condemn but also to proclaim full forgiveness from a gracious Lord — a Lord who was eager to “repent of the disaster” at hand. He longed to relent of His judgment. He desired a vibrant, active Church. He wanted a population of forgiven, joyous children filling the nation.

To this day, sinners — both within and without Christendom — resist the Word. They reject God’s judgments and scorn His mercy. Individuals, congregations, and entire church bodies find ways to substitute their own thoughts and wishes for the will of the Lord. Even pew-sitting, offering-giving, congregation-serving Christians — even you and I — may find ourselves at odds with God’s Word and in conflict with His messengers.

Thanks be to God that Christ didn’t turn His back on going up to Jerusalem to be the next of the slain prophets. For the same forgiveness that He won for those who crucified Him belonged also to those who rejected and killed His prophets, who rebelled in the Wilderness, who sinned in the garden. And yes, Jesus’ forgiveness also belongs to us modern-day rebels. For the sake of His Son, the Lord relents of our judgment and gives us His pardon and His peace.

God grant that we unworthy outlaws continue to believe in Christ’s sacrifice, receive His forgiveness, and — by the power of the Holy Spirit — live lives of faith toward God and fervent love toward one another.

Text: And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, “You shall die! Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant’?” And all the people gathered around Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.

When the officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and took their seat in the entry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. Then the priests and the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, “This man deserves the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your own ears.”

Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and this city all the words you have heard. Now therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the Lord your God, and the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against you.

“But as for me, behold, I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood upon yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the Lord sent me to you to speak all these words in your ears.” Jeremiah 26:8-15

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 MP3 of The Lord Will Relent

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 4; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35

Funeral Sermon: Forgotten and Remembered

Preached on Psalm 25
The Funeral of Hattie Mae Shelton
20 January AD 2016

Title: Forgotten and Remembered (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Today, I preached the funeral of a woman who died deep in the clutches of Alzheimer’s Disease. The fear of developing such dementia makes many people nervous. Christians can be particularly concerned about themselves and their loved ones, since throughout Scripture, the Lord has called us to remember Him, His works, and His Word.

If we suffer from dementia, how will we remember our Savior when we can’t remember the names of wife, children, or even self? How will we recall and cling to His promises of salvation and eternal life when we can’t recall what we just said? When our world turns entirely into phantom memories and fractured thoughts, how will we lean upon Jesus Christ, the unshakable Rock?

It’s possible that we could forget all of the Church’s statements of faith, including the Ecumenical Creeds and the Catechisms. The day might come when we can no longer say with the Psalmist, “I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old. (Psalm 77:11)” We might not be able to say or comprehend even the most simple confession, that “Jesus Christ is Lord. (Philippians 2:11)”

However, none of the saints will be separated from the love of God in Christ Jesus because of fading memory and dulled comprehension. Faithful to us, Jesus will keep us “faithful unto death” and, remembering to call us home, He will give us each “the crown of life. (Revelation 2:10)”

Thus we celebrate God’s wonderful remembrance of us. Yet His Word reveals something else just as vital — His forgetfulness: God maintains total amnesia about our sinfulness. Not only does He graciously forgive us, He also refuses to recall any transgressions in thought, word, or deed. Through Jeremiah, He said of His people, “I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (31:34)”

Summary excerpted and adapted from the Ask the Pastor article Remembering and Forgetting: Christians with Alzheimer’s Disease.

Text: To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.

Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long.

Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.

For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great. Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose. His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land.

The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for he will pluck my feet out of the net.

Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses. Consider my affliction and my trouble, and forgive all my sins.

Consider how many are my foes, and with what violent hatred they hate me. Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me! Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you. May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.

Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. Psalm 25

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 Forgotten and Remembered.

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.

Pentecost 24 Sermon: Trustworthy Word, Trustworthy Lord

Preached on 1 Kings 17:8-16
Proper 27B/Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost
8 November AD 2015

Title: Trustworthy Word, Trustworthy Lord (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Just as happened with the widow of Zarephath, God’s Word still creates trust in doubting hearts. Furthermore, when we doubt and waver, God credits us with the faithfulness of His Son who constantly and completely trusted in His Father even in the midst of suffering and death.

This trust becomes more than passively accepting the divine will. The Holy Spirit also moves believers to act on this trust, to give of themselves not only out of our riches but also—as in the case of the widow in today’s Gospel—out of our poverty and weakness.

Whether He is filling us up or emptying us out, we can have confidence that all God does, he does for our good, both in this life and to life everlasting.

Text: Then the word of the Lord came to him, “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.”

So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”

And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.”

And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’”

And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah. 1 Kings 17:8-16

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 the Proper 27B sermon Trustworthy Word, Trustworthy Lord

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 146; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44

Trinity 6 Sermon: Exceeding Righteousness

Preached on Matthew 5:17-26
The Sixth Sunday after Trinity
12 July AD 2015

Title: Exceeding Righteousness (MP3 Audio)

Summary: While Jesus often sharply criticized the scribes and the Pharisees, people of His time normally looked up to them as exemplars of virtue. They fasted, tithed, and kept the Sabbath in ways that few matched. In outward behavior, these men were Israel’s spiritual elite.

Yet Christ told those listening to His Sermon on the Mount that no one could enter the kingdom of heaven without possessing and displaying superior righteousness. Yet how could this be? None of His hearers could keep even the Ten Commandments, today’s appointed Old Testament reading. How could they ever hope to excel when they couldn’t even keep up?

The answer, of course, is the righteousness that belongs to believers in Jesus Christ. Those who participate in His death and resurrection through Holy Baptism (today’s Epistle) are clothed in the immaculate righteousness of the Son of God.

We baptized Christians — who hear and believe the Gospel, who trust Christ’s Absolution, who eat and drink His body and blood — exceed all earthly righteousness. The Father declares us holy and views us as being as completely sinless as Jesus Himself.

Christ’s righteousness, poured over us and wrapped around us, also takes root within us by the power of the Holy Spirit. And though our thoughts, words, and deeds never match the Law’s demands, the Father still considers us to be His sinless children and accepts our works as “good” for the sake of His Son.

Text: [Jesus said,] “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

“So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison.

“Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.” Matthew 5:20-26

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 the Trinity 6 sermon Exceeding Righteousness

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 19; Exodus 20:1-17; Romans 6:1-11