A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. As day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered Him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish (John 21:4-6). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! This last week, both of our LC-MS seminaries held their call services for new candidates in the ministry. We thank God for providing pastors for our congregations in Tea, Hartford, Canistota, and Montrose, and look forward to working with them in our South Dakota District. Call days tend to get pastors reminiscing and/or commiserating about their own call night. An almost universal disappointment seems to be the sermon for the placement service. I suspect that this might be in part because pastors—especially thos...

"Vocation of the Disciples" by Domenico Ghirlandaio Click here to listen to this sermon. When [Jesus] saw the crowds, He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest’” (Matthew 9:36–38). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! In his book, Loved and Sent , Jeff Cloeter tells this story about a young woman and man who meet in a café. Ava begins by identifying herself. “I am a lesbian atheist.” As she speaks, her eyes watch for a reaction from the Christian man on the other side of the table. What will he say? How will he respond? Ava and Jacob are acquaintances. They share mutual friends but don’t know each other well. Jacob was confused when she asked to have coffee with him. Is this a date? he wondered. Now, he kno...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘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 28:17-20). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! You have likely heard these words before, the so-called Great Commission of the Church where Jesus declares the Church’s mission until He returns. Many sermons have been preached on this text, usually about evangelism and the need to make disciples. We will speak a bit of evangelism today as well. But first, dear friends, we have some even better news from this Gospel lesson: The Holy Trinity is at work. In this text, the Lord Jesus Himself declares the identity of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; and you can’t find ...

"Christ Sending Out the Seventy Disciples, Two by Two" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name!” And [Jesus] said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:18-20). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! On Monday, we celebrate Independence Day, the birthday of our nation. It is good and right that we give thanks to God for this nation and ask that He would continue to “bless our native land.” We also do well to remember that freedom is bought with a price. Millions of men and women have served with courage, selflessness, and sacrifice so that we might enj...

"The Calling of Saint Peter and Saint Andrew" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “Now when [Jesus] heard that John had been arrested, He withdrew into Galilee. And leaving Nazareth He went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali” (Matthew 4:12-13). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! When Jesus hears that John has been arrested, He withdraws from the region around the Jordan into Galilee, heading northward after His wilderness conflict with Satan. Jesus is not running away, but He Himself will choose the times and ways to confront those who seek to destroy the work of God’s gracious reign. More importantly, Jesus withdraws into Galilee and leaves Nazareth, His hometown, in order to take up residence in Capernaum by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali. This happens in order to fulfill Isaiah’s words from our Old Testament reading. The light of the Christ has begun ...