A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. The text for today is our Gospel lesson, Luke 12:49-53. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I know for many of you, “parliamentary procedure” is a dirty word. But I must confess I am a fan of Robert’s Rules of Order . Well-done parliamentary procedure does make for shorter, more orderly meetings, ensuring that while the majority opinion prevails, the rights of the minority are also protected.   One of the more interesting parliamentary procedures originated in the Roman Senate. Ordinarily, the Romans used voice vote. But if there was a vote that was disputed or considered too close to call, one of the members might rise and call for a division of the house. Those who were voting divided themselves—the “ayes” on one side of the house and the “nays” on the other side. The call for a “division of the house” is still useful for verifying the results of a voice vote. It can also be a method of applying pressu...

Click here to listen to this sermon. [Jesus said:] “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” (Luke 12:51). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “This is the Gospel of the Lord,” we say each week after reading the Gospel, but there is no good news in these words from Jesus this week. It’s a hard text to preach on. The difficulty stems from a dominant (and often unquestioned) cultural assumption about God and His relationship to us. As a rule, Americans tend to believe life is primarily about the pursuit of happiness. They also believe that God, if and when they consider Him, exists to help them in their pursuit. This is why most prayers are for good things—like healing, favorable weather, economic growth, reconciliation, wisdom, strength, and … peace. But here is the rub. Jesus is clear in this text: “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division” (L...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into His presence with singing! Know that the Lord, He is God! It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name! For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever, and His faithfulness to all generations” (Psalm 100). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! You’ve surely heard of how early Christians were tortured and threatened. Those threats posed a temptation for them to give up on Christ. You may know stories of personal rejection and humiliation that others less famous faced because of their faith, which created painful pressure for them too. Today there are folks like Jack Phillips, owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop; Baronelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene’s Flowers; and Kimberly Davis, th...

Click here to listen to this sermon. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him, “Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” (Luke 12:19-20). Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! It’s quite embarrassing really. Jesus has just warned His disciples to beware of the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. He has encouraged them to not fear those who will persecute them. He has promised His disciples that those who confess Him before men will be acknowledged in heaven. And He has assured them that they need not worry how to defend themselves when brought before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, but that the Holy Spirit will teach them what to say. Then some dunderhead in the crowd says, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” Notice what he does not say: “Teacher, my brothe...

Click here to listen. Downloadable mp3 files are available upon request. The text for today is our Gospel lesson, Luke 12:49-53. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I know for most of you “parliamentary procedure” is a dirty word.   But I must confess I am a fan of Robert’s Rules of Order .   I’ve actually taught courses for Jaycees and judged state FFA parli pro contests.   Well done parliamentary procedure really does make for shorter, more orderly meetings, assuring that while the majority opinion prevails, the rights of the minority are also protected.     One of the more interesting parliamentary procedures originated in the Roman Senate.   Ordinarily, the Romans used voice vote.   But if there was a vote that was disputed or considered too close to call, one of the members might rise and call for a division of the house.   Those who were voting divided themselves up—the “ayes” on one side of th...