Trinity Sunday Sermon: To the End

Preached on Matthew 28:16–28
The Feast of the Holy Trinity
7 June AD 2020

Video: Click to view the YouTube video of To the End.

Audio: Alternatively, choose To the End to hear the MP3.

Summary: Just as with His apostles, so Jesus continues to remain with all believers "to the end of the age." By the power of the Holy Spirit, He comes through Word and Sacrament. He protects and provisions us, leading us through earthly life into life everlasting.

Text: In normal recreation, we’re only treating symptoms while missing the cure. We mispronounce it and look for it in the wrong places. We need what the word clearly says: re-creation. We need to be remade in God’s image, not to merely clean and polish our fallen sinful images.

Text: Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

“And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:16–28

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 To the End.

Audio: Click To the End to listen to the MP3.

Other Readings: Psalm 8; Genesis 1:1–2:4a; Acts 2:14a, 22–36

Pentecost 15 Sermon: Preach You the Word

Preached on Hebrews 13:1-17
The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost — Proper 17C
28 August AD 2016

Title: Preach You the Word (MP3 Audio)

Summary: “Remember your (church) leaders” — that seems easy. Merely thinking about current and former pastors is no problem. We may remember a series of spiritual leaders or we might have had only one pastor so far in our lives. Some we might recall with fondness, others, less so.

Yet biblical remembering is more than just replaying memories. To remember is to occupy your entire being, body, mind, and soul in engaging the object of your memory. Therefore, when the epistle writer continues by saying, “Obey your leaders and submit to them,” he doesn’t mean blind, unquestioning obedience to their every utterance but rather carefully considering their proclamation of God’s commands and promises, then thinking acting upon these words.

A faithful congregation echoes God in speaking to its pastors: “Preach the Word.” And a faithful congregation likewise joyfully submits to what is proclaimed.

So when our leaders lay down the Law — the damning, destroying message of God’s wrath and judgment — we’d better pay attention. And when they speak the sweet consolation of the Gospel — Christ’s suffering and death for sinners bringing full forgiveness — well, if we don’t focus on this, then we’ve forgotten what it means to belong to Him.

Relationship between pastors and parishes are never perfect — all too often, they’re a fair distance from even being really good. However, just as Christ’s ministers bear with much among the flocks where He places them, so Christian congregations are encouraged to put up with and overlook those things that are mere matters of opinion and preference. This brings joy to pastors as they wash, teach, and feed the flocks entrusted to their care.

Text: Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp.

So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured.

For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. Hebrews 13:1-17

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 Preach You the Word.

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 131; Proverbs 25:2-10; Luke 14:1-14

Easter 2C Sermon: Baby Food

Preached on 1 Peter 2:2-3
The Second Sunday of Easter — Quasimodogeniti
3 April AD 2016

Title: Baby Food (MP3 Audio)

Summary: The sermon is based on the antiphon from today’s introit.* The opening words from the ancient Latin text give the 2nd Sunday of Easter its traditional name, Quasimodogeniti, “Like newborn babes.”

But it’s not only addressed to believers new to the faith or new to life itself. This verse also benefits mature Christians who’ve been in the Church for many years.

Both Paul (1 Corinthians 3:2) and the author of Hebrews (5:12, 14) encourage Christians to be ready for the “solid food” of in-depth Scripture study and theology. Yet regardless of how much knowledge and wisdom we achieve in matters religious, we never outgrow our need for “pure spiritual milk.”

What is this “milk” that Peter encourages us to crave? Nothing other than the Gospel — God forgiving sins for the sake of Jesus Christ. Truly, we can say that Christ Himself is this nourishment as we receive Him in Word and Sacrament.

The fulness of true theology can be weighty and sometimes confusing. But God still moves us to nibble, chew on, or dig in to the meat of His Word. However, the most complex doctrines cannot be swallowed unless we wash them down with the pure milk of the Gospel. And in times of trial, doubt, and worry, sometimes the milk is all we can take in — yet it remains ever enough for our needs.

So even as you sink your teeth into the solid food of God’s Word, remember that a childlike faith still needs the same nourishment that sustained it in spiritual infancy. And whether chewing on the meat or sipping on the milk, you will continue tasting “that the Lord is good.”

Text: Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation — if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. 1 Peter 2:2-3

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 Baby Food.

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 148; Acts 5:12-20 (21-32); Revelation 1:4-18; John 20:19-31

Illustration: Detail of Maternity by Pablo Picasso (1905).

*The introit is a set of verses sung responsively at the beginning of the service. Normally, it is composed of portions of selected Psalms. The antiphon is sung at the beginning and end of the introit and — as happens today — may be from a Psalm or can be drawn from other parts of Scripture or from ancient liturgical texts.

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

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

Reformation Sunday Sermon: Abide

Preached on John 8:31-36
also Proper 25B/Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost
25 October AD 2015

Title: Abide (MP3 Audio)

Summary: Jesus freed us from sin and its consequences through suffering and death on the Cross. He delivers our release from slavery to sin and death comes His Word and through the sacraments.

The Lord doesn’t seek to grant us parole or a temporary release from our satanic chains but wants us to remain completely free. In order for us to maintain abiding freedom, Jesus tells us that we must abide in His Word.

Abiding doesn’t mean casually dipping into Scripture, occasionally communing, or once-in-a-while remembering our baptisms and confessing our sins. Abiding entails a life of total immersion, of absolute trust, and unwavering attention.

Yet because we cannot do this on our own, we also cling to Christ’s forgiveness for our failures — even our failure to always cling to Him. He never wavered in His faithful attention to His Father. The Father credits us with this same steadfast abiding for the sake of His Son.

Text: So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”

Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:31-36

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 Abide, preached to the saints at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Fayette, Missouri.

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 46; Revelation 14:6-7; Romans 3:19-28; alternate Gospel Matthew 11:12-19