A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. “They shall be Mine, says the Lord of hosts, in the day when I make up My treasured possession, and I will spare them as a man spares his son who serves him. Then once more you shall see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him” (Malachi 3:17-18). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Over twenty-five years ago, The Matrix trilogy offered the premise that the world we see and experience is not real, but computer-generated. This is a secret known only to the few humans who’ve been liberated. Only after being freed from the machine do they finally see how deceptive what they thought to be the “real world” truly is! In our text, the people of Israel had their own perception of the “real world.” They were still living in the glory days when their nation had been powerful, and God had blessed them with peace and prosperity. Sadly, they failed to r...

Click here to listen to this sermon. [Jesus said:] “ It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning—lest he come suddenly and find you asleep” (Mark 13:34-35). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! The last Sundays of the Church Year bring eschatology, the study of the last things, into focus with the lectionary’s emphasis on death, the final judgment, and the promise of the new heaven and the new earth. These Sundays bring us to the conclusion of the Nicene Creed, “And He will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead.” We have said those words so often, but what do they mean? Truth be told, we are often more concerned about the judgment that comes from other human...

Photo by Robin D. Fish, Jr. Click here to listen to this sermon. “Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; but My salvation will be forever, and My righteousness will never be dismayed” (Isaiah 51:6). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! It seems a fitting text for today, given the recent solar eclipse. Judging from news reports and social media, there were a lot of people who were “lifting their eyes up to the heavens.” Hopefully, they did so with ISO approved safety glasses. Throughout history, total eclipses have caused a wide variety of reactions, including curiosity, awe, superstitious fear, and impending doom. It seems this last one is no exception. Some people predicted that this eclipse would signal the end of the world, since it’s been exactly 70 years since the modern nation of Israel...

Click here to listen to this sermon. An mp3 file is available upon request. “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble.   The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.   But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings.   You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall” (Malachi 4:1-2). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “The day is coming,” say the Lord in our Old Testament lesson.   And Jesus continues the theme in our Gospel, speaking of a day and the days leading up to it.   What day are we talking about?   Well, let me give you a hint.   It’s in November; we’re in the last couple of Sundays of the church year, where our lessons focus is the end times.   And so the day that is coming is the Last Day, the Day o...

Our text for today is our Gospel lesson, Mark 13:1-13, which has already been read. Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Even his critics knew President Ronald Reagan as “The Great Communicator.”   I think much of that ability to communicate was due to the consistency of his message.   No matter what the forum or audience, he always spoke of the greatness of America’s heritage, the productivity of its citizens, and the potential for even greater success.   Frequently, he would close his message with these words: “America’s best days lie ahead.   You ain’t seen nothing yet!”   Though certainly not grammatically correct, it did get his point across and it captured the imagination of millions of supporters for years afterward.   Even in the most recent election many people were looking for someone who could effectively communicate that sense of optimism and purpose. “You ain’t seen nothing yet!...