A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. or here. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Perhaps the most ridiculous proverb in our culture is this one: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” What a dirty, rotten lie! Words can hurt us… to the core of our being. That’s why bullying is such a big issue. Child psychologists say it takes ten positive remarks to compensate for one negative remark—and I think that remains true for us as adults, too. Words can hurt. Their scars may be invisible to the naked eye, but they can last forever. The Eighth Commandment has to do with the power of words—particularly, as it applies to one’s reputation. How does one endure being falsely accused? Remember Richard Jewell, the security guard who was falsely accused of the bombing in Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics? Or how about the young men from Duke University ...

Click here to listen to this sermon. Or here. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! The text for today is Exodus 20:15: “You shall not steal.” At first blush, this Seventh Commandment seems quite straightforward: “You shall not steal.” Duhh!!! Everyone, from the youngest child on up, knows it’s wrong to take something that doesn’t belong to you. Protection of private property is fundamental to stability in any society. How can you have any sense of order if everyone’s trying to take stuff from someone else? How can you be productive if you spend all your time trying to protect the stuff you’ve already got? But Luther’s explanation in the Small Catechism once again draws out the deeper implications: “We should fear and love God so that we do not take our neighbor’s money or possessions, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his possessions and income.” As with all the commandments, there is a negative side and ...

Click here to listen to this sermon. Or try this one! “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name” (Exodus 20:7). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “What is God’s name?” she asked. Not sure I had heard right, I asked her to repeat herself. “Can you tell me what God’s name is?” she asked again. How do you answer a question like that? I was a first-year seminarian, about to lead my first chapel service in a Fort Wayne nursing home. The woman who asked the question exhibited a number of the characteristics associated with the mid- to later- stages of dementia. You learn a lot at the seminary, but there aren’t any courses that specifically deal with this sort of situation.    I first thought of the old joke: “What is God’s name?” Answer: “Andy.” You know, as in the gospel song, “In the Garden”… “Andy walks with me. Andy talks with me. Andy tells me I am hi...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “You shall have no other gods” (Exodus 20:3). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Our summer sermon series is on the Ten Commandments. Before we start on the Commandments themselves, however, we should reflect on why they were given in the first place. We go back to the father of the Hebrews—Abram—and to the covenant that God had made with him and his descendants. The Lord promised Abram a son, and, through that son, many heirs who would inherit the land He showed him. But Abram’s offspring would first live as slaves in a foreign land for many years until the time was right to bring them to the Promised Land. At the time of our text, the children of Israel had been in Egypt for 430 years. Though once treated favorably for Joseph’s sake, a new king had arisen who neither recognized Joseph, nor more importantly, Joseph’s God. Jealous of their fruitfulness and strength, Pharaoh set taskmasters over the Isr...