Where Did They Go Wrong?

[The folks in Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday] are simply not in their right minds—at least not as God created them and meant them to be. They are thinking in earthly terms, empassioned by the desires of their sinful hearts.

...While it is true that you, along with the Palm Sunday crowd, go wrong at every turn. What happened between Palm Sunday and Good Friday was all perfectly right. Make no mistake about it, in the person of Christ both God and Man rode that lowly beast of burden into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to suffer and die for you on the Friday called, "Good." And He descends here for you today as well, for the very same reasons—He has to, because if He doesn't you cannot be in your right minds either. To hear and/or read the entire sermon preached for Palmarum, Palm Sunday, click on this link.  http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3217

He Who Keeps God's Word Keeps You

There is One who has kept God's Word from the beginning of time—only One. And because He has, and continues to do so, He keeps you with God now and will do so forever as you hear the Word of God.

That is the promise, the work, the comfort, the peace, and the hope of the Holy Spirit we have in Christ Jesus, our Lord. He is the One who keeps God's Word and does so for the very purpose of keeping you with God His Father—Our Father--in heaven so that you will never taste death but have eternal life.

To hear and/or read the entire sermon preached for Judica, the Fifth Sunday in Lent, click on this  link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3210

That Nothing May Be Lost

Do not ever forget that our Father in heaven's desire for all of His creation—and especially for you, dear Christian—is that nothing of it may be lost. That is a big lesson, though not the only lesson, from today's Gospel text. As John says at the end of His Gospel, Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. [John 20:30-31] The same could be said from the lessons to be learned even from this one miracle of our Lord.

So, for this morning, let us focus in on this one lesson and take it with us to carry us through the wonders and the problems, the blessings and the curses of the coming week-- that nothing of God's creation and gifts to us, and especially we ourselves, may be lost. To read and/or hear the entire sermon preached for Laetare, the Fourth Sunday in Lent, click on th is link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3197

Martyrdom: No Shrinking Back

Like Perpetua and Felicitas, we are baptized into martyrdom.

Like Stephen, as servants of the Word, we are called and sent into martyrdom.

This is not a martyrdom we seek, but, like faith it is a gift of God, not of works, lest any of us should boast.

Thus martyrdom, again like, faith, is not a choice or decision of men, but the will of God. I suppose one could go so far as to say martyrdom is the destiny of faith and faith is the life of martyrdom.

To hear and/or read the entire sermon preached to the Utah Circuit pastors for the commemoration of Perpetua & Felicitas, Martyrs, click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3189

Casting Out Demons

Jesus is all about casting out demons. Notice, I said “is.” Jesus is still casting out demons today. Since man’s fall into sin, the second person of the Trinity, the very Son of the Living God has been all about casting out demons. At least from the time of His Baptism, the life and ministry of the incarnate Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, was all about casting out demons.

To hear and/or read the entire sermon preached for Oculi, the Third Sunday in Lent, click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3181

Your Faith Is Great!

After another week (or more) of trying and testing your faith, God is answering you saying, “Great is your faith!” After another week of letting you wrestle with Him, God is bestowing His blessing on you by calling you, “Israel,” which means you too have wrestled with God and have not been defeated. Like Jacob and the Canaanite woman, you have encountered “God face to face, and yet [your] life has been delivered.” Genesis 32:30

It’s a done deal, just as it was for Jacob and... the Canaanite woman. No one can take it away from you. Only with you, your face to face encounter with God is right here in His Church, in His Word and His Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion by which He delivers you out of this world of sin and into His house of faith—the house that is built on the Rock of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God.

To hear and/or read the entire sermon preached for Reminisere, the Second Sunday in Lent, click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3171

Led Up By the Spirit

Never forget, first and foremost Jesus ministry is a ministry-- that is, service—of spiritual warfare. Jesus primary purpose is to defeat the evil one and the sin and death he introduced into the world by his temptation of the first Adam, as we heard in our OT lesson this morning.

And neither let us not forget how that evil one worked. He was crafty. The original Hebrew word might be better understood by that outdated English word, "beguiling." Temptation cloaks deceit in beauty—appealing to the senses and desires of eyes, ears, and hearts not turned to God and His Word. But rather turned inward to what we think is God talking and what we want to hear.

So Jesus is led, even driven out into the wilderness to do spiritual battle with the evil one and fulfill His Father's promise to Adam and Eve to bruise, even crush the head of that evil tempter.

To hear and'or read the entire sermon preached for Invocavit, the First Sunday in Lent, click on this link. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3158