A Famine Not of Bread

"Christ Entering Jerusalem" by Giotto di Bondone Click here to listen to this sermon. And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified (John 12:23). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! My cousin likes to tag me on social media with some of his religious humor. Just last week, he offered this one: Pontius Pilate says to Joseph of Arimathea, “Joseph, I really don’t understand. You’re one of the richest men in the region, and you’ve spent a small fortune on a new tomb for you and your family and you want to give it to this man, Jesus?" Joseph replies: “It’s just for the weekend.” It’s a joke, of course, but it’s true. Jesus was buried in a borrowed tomb. But it was just borrowed for the weekend. He was checked in before 6:00 pm on Friday and checked Himself out early Sunday morning. However, the tomb was not the only thing Jesus “borrowed” during Holy Week. For you, Jesus goes from borrowed donkey to borrowed r...

"My Soul Is Sorrowful Unto Death" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. Every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.    So also Christ did not exalt Himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by Him who said to Him,       “You are My Son,               today I have begotten You”; as He says also in another place,         “You are a priest forever,               after the order of Melchizedek.” In the days ...

Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Janet selected a Bible verse for this day: “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). She found great comfort in this verse and wanted to share that comfort with you. Let’s look at this verse in the context of the whole psalm, which was the basis for Luther’s hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” Nothing in the text specifies the occasion when it was written. It could have provided comfort for God’s people at many specific crises in Israel’s history. The reformers indeed recognized its value. But its scope extends far beyond any one fulfillment in history. The peace established by Christ’s return completes the fulfillment of this psalm, allowing us to be still, no matter what is happening around us. Psalm 46 expresses the belief that God actively controls everything and that no one can escape His reach. It is God who delivers disaster and deliverance. He decides our fate. No...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life. ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him’” (John 3:14-17). Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ It is called a caduceus and is the image first responders use in almost every city in America. You will often see it on the side of emergency vehicles, inside elevators, and perhaps on medical jewelry around people’s wrists. It is the snake (or snakes) wrapped around a pole. One thing is certain: when we see this image, we know help is on the way. This ubiquitous symbol tells everyone who sees it that the rescue they need is right where they will be. From the beginning of the wild...

Click here to listen to this sermon. The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many...