A Famine Not of Bread

"The Tree of Life" by Marc Chagall Click here to listen to this sermon. “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life” (Revelation 22:1-2a). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Each of the last three weeks, our Epistle from Revelation has shown us a vision of the new heaven and earth. In chapter 21, we heard of “the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (v 1-2). Last week, John saw “the Bride, the wife of the Lamb” and went on to describe her beauty and radiance in detail (21:9 ff). Today, the depiction of the new heaven and earth is reminiscent of the Garden of Eden. To better understand this depiction, we go back to Genesis 2, “And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there H...

"The Ascension" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “[Jesus] presented Himself alive to them after His suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the Kingdom of God… So when they had come together, they asked Him, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the Kingdom to Israel?’” (Acts 1:3,6). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! When it comes to Christian holy days and festivals of the Church there is no greater confusion than over the Ascension of Our Lord both in terms of what we are celebrating and why we are celebrating it. We confess the ascension of Christ every Sunday in the words of the creeds: “And He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father” but no further explanation is really given in either of the creeds, and we are left with more questions than answers concerning Christ’s ascension. Why didn’t Jesus stay? Where is He now? What is the right hand of God? D...

Click here to listen to this sermon. "Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, ‘Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb’” ( Revelation 21:9). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! As I read our text, I was reminded of the wedding announcements we used to read in our local paper. For those of you who don’t have such memories, here is an example from the Mitchell Daily Republic about 40 years ago: “[The bride] wore a gown of white satin and mandel rose galloon lace. The gown was styled with an empire waist and the bodice and bishop sleeves were of lace. The sleeves were caught in a satin cuff. Lace edged the rounded neckline. The gown featured a full-length detachable train of satin and lace… Her veil was attached to a cap trimmed with lace, satin appliques, and scalloped lace edging. She carried red roses, cushion mums, and baby’s breath tied with red and white...

"Adoration of the Lamb" by Jan van Eyck Click here to listen to this sermon. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.' “And He who was seated on the throne said, Behold, I am making all things new.' Also, He said, 'Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.' And He said to me, 'It is done! I AM the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will...

Click here to listen to this sermon. "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Psalm 23 is the most familiar of all the psalms, and like an old friend, many of us have known it since childhood. This is the psalm that we want to hear when we are facing our own mortality, or lying in a hospital bed, or overwhelmed by disaster, or stricken with grief, or standing at the grave of a ...