Wedding Sermon: A Threefold Cord

Preached on Ecclesiastes 4:9–12
26 October AD 2019

Title: Click to hear the MP3 of A Threefold Cord.

Summary: Scripture defines marriage as the union of a man and a woman. Yet it also teaches that without God in its midst, a marriage isn’t as strong or healthy as it could (or should) be.

When Christ is central in a marriage, whatever frays the nerves or stretches the endurance of the other two strands cannot break the braid. His strength, made perfect in our weakness, supports husbands and wives. As He clings to them, He also leads them to cling to Him — and to each other — with similar tenacity.

Preached for the wedding of Albert Foster and Kelsey Keuhne at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Saline City, Missouri.

Text: Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone?

And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken. Ecclesiastes 4:9–12

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 A Threefold Cord.

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: Genesis 2:7, 18-24; Matthew 19:4-6

Wedding Sermon: Strength and Song, Salvation and Confession

Preached on 1 Timothy 6:12 and Isaiah 12:2
The Marriage of Laura M. Snyder and Kyle L. Molitor
10 June AD 2017

Title: Strength and Song, Salvation and Confession (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Besides the Scriptures included in the wedding rite, a pastor has many options when choosing a sermon text. When Laura and Kyle asked me to preach, I looked through the “usual suspects” and had an idea: The union of this man and this woman would include a joining of all they carried with them, including their confirmation verses.

With that in mind, I asked Laura to find out Kyle’s verse to see if it would work in unity with hers as a joint text. I was quite pleased when I discovered that his from 1 Timothy nicely complemented hers from Isaiah 12. Both confess that we have salvation and eternal life only through God in Christ Jesus.

Kyle and Laura completely agree that the most important love isn’t that between people but the love God has for fallen humanity. As I wove the themes of the two verses together, the Father’s boundless love and unconditional forgiveness through Jesus remained the unifying strand.

They will best live together and love together as they live in faith. They will forgive each other most completely as they realize how completely God forgives them. And they will most wholeheartedly sacrifice their own desires for each other as they embrace the sacrifice Christ made for them.

Note that the bulletin cover art I reference in the sermon is this Coptic illustration to the right. This vision of the Marriage at Cana beautifully shows our Savior sheltering husband and wife “under his wings.”

Texts: Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” Isaiah 12:2

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 Strength and Song, Salvation and Confession.

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: Genesis 2:7, 18-24; Colossians 3:1-4, 12-17; Matthew 19:4-6

Epiphany 2C Sermon: The Wedding Feast Begins

Preached on Luke 2:1-11
The Second Sunday after the Epiphany
17 January AD 2016

Title: The Wedding Feast Begins (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Of all the signs He could have worked, Jesus chose His first to be changing water into wine at a wedding in Cana. He didn’t heal someone lame, sick, or blind. He didn’t cast out a demon. He didn’t raise someone from the dead. Instead, He prolonged a party and spared a Galilean gentleman the shame of shorting his guests’ wedding wine.

While this seems odd at first glance, it’s quite in keeping with the person and work of the Christ. In the Gospel from Advent 3, about a month ago, Jesus noted that many of His enemies had branded Him as a party animal — calling Him “a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners! (Luke 7:34)”

When the Pharisees would later ask Him why His disciples didn’t fast, He replied, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. (Mark 2:19)” Even as He was helping Cana’s bridegroom with the festivities, Jesus was also beginning to reveal Himself as the heavenly Bridegroom, come to cleanse and claim His bride the Church.

If you observe Jesus’ other signs and miracles, you notice various Old Testament direct prophecies and types being fulfilled. Along with the subtle reference to God’s “marriage” with His people, could Jesus have been fulfilling a specific prophecy? Perhaps this sign announced Him as Judah’ heir (cf. Genesis 49:3-12), claiming the prophesied scepter and ruling staff by making wine flow so abundantly that even most impoverished vine grower could afford to tie his donkey to his grapevines without risking ruin.

Text: On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”

And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”

His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.

When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.”

This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him. John 2:1-11

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 Wedding Feast Begins.

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 128; Isaiah 62:1-5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11