A Famine Not of Bread

  Click here to listen to this sermon. And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah” ( Matthew 17:4). Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ!   Lord, it is good to be here. It is good to be here at St. John’s/St. Paul’s/Zion Lutheran Church. It’s good to be here to worship with you. It’s good to be here to hear God’s Word with you… to sing God’s praises with you… to come to the Lord’s Table with you… to share a Sabbath rest with you. Rest is good. Rest is important. Rest is necessary for our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. But rest is hard to come by, isn’t it? There is so much these days to keep us busy. If I projected a community calendar up on the wall here, we’d all see how busy we all are. There are meetings, community events and family activities. Add to all this busyness our children’s schedules: play dates, basketba...

Click here to listen t o this sermon. “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of His glory He may grant you to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:14–21). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!   Almost two weeks ago, LCMS Pastor Jim Roemke received national attention for the benedicti...

"Jesus Heals a Possessed Man" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, ‘What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him’” (Mark 1:27). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Today is the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany. Epiphany means “manifestation” or “shining forth.” The readings appointed in the Church’s lectionary for this season focus on the truth that God Himself has come to visit us in our Lord's incarnation. If Christmas is the season to celebrate that the Word became flesh , Epiphany celebrates that it is the Word that became flesh, and we beheld His glory . In last week’s Gospel, Jesus began His ministry and called His first disciples in Galilee. Today, He takes those disciples with Him to worship in Capernaum. On the Sabbath, following their selection to become fishers of men, Pet...

"The Last Supper" by Pieter Pourbus Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Shh! Listen closely! Our Lord is praying. It is the night of the Last Supper. He is soon to be betrayed, but not yet. He and His disciples have not even reached the garden. They are in the upper room, and the Lord is praying. So, listen closely, dear friends—because He is praying for you: “Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You. For You granted Him authority over all people that He might give eternal life to all those you have given Him” (John 17:1-2). The Son prays to be glorified. But consider this carefully. He is not praying for the world’s idea of glory. The world defines glory in terms of splendor, strength, beauty, and celebrity. The one who wins is the glorious one. But Jesus defines His glory quite differently. Because the Father has given Him authority over all people, all people are H...

"Christ's Entry into Jerusalem" by Benjamin Robert Haydon Click here to listen to this sermon.  "The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’ And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey’s colt!’ His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about Him and had been done to Him” (John 12:12-16). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Palm Sunday processions come in many shapes and sizes. In some churches, they gather in the parking lot. Palms are distributed and blessed and then the crucifer leads then up the doors of the church. Th...