A Famine Not of Bread

  Click here to listen to this sermon. “ When He was at table with them, He took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized [Jesus]. And He vanished from their sight ” (Luke 24:30–31). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Have you ever frantically looked for something and were not able to find it? Maybe your car keys, the TV remote, or the book you were just reading. You search and search again. Then, after you’ve given up all hope of ever seeing it again, you come across it in the exact place where you’ve been looking. It was there all the time, but for one reason or another, you just didn’t notice it. Somehow, it was just hidden in plain sight. Our text for today teaches us where the risen Christ chooses to be found today: hidden in plain sight, in His Word and Sacraments. Like the disciples back in the city, the two on the road to Emmaus on the first Easter were struggling to ma...

  Click here to listen to this sermon. “Jesus wept” (John 11:35). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “God so loved the world He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).   “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23). “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1). Each of these passages, often used in funeral services, speaks of God’s love and compassion. God loves the world. He loves you and me. He shows that love by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, into the world as one of us. Jesus lived the perfect life that you and I could not live. He loves His Father above all things and loves His neighbor as Himself. He demonstrates the depth of that love by laying do...

Click here to listen to this sermon. Today, you gather with heavy hearts, remembering someone you loved: Ivan, your Pa, your Grandpa, your friend, neighbor, fellow member of Zion Lutheran. In moments like this, we naturally reflect on the life a person lived—the things they did, the roles they filled, the memories we shared. Many of those things are recorded in Ivan’s obituary. He was married to Margaret for nearly 72 years. They were blessed with eight children. Ivan served his country in the United States Army. He farmed for many years. Taught his children the value of hard work. He enjoyed gardening and cooking, traveling, and spending time with his family. He was quick-witted. Loved to play Rummikub. These are the outward things—good and meaningful things—that people could see. But God reminds us today that His gaze goes deeper. “The Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7). While we see the surface, God sees...

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. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! “There’s still more!” What wonderful words! You’re at a concert of your favorite performer. The music is beautiful. You’ve had an incredible evening. The musicians leave the stage as the crowd rises for a standing ovation. It seems that’s all there is. The crowd continues cheering for a few minutes: “More! More!” The band comes back for an encore. They play several more songs, including a couple of their best, which you’ve been waiting for. There’s still more! In our Gospel reading for today, Jesus is debating with a group of religious leaders known as the Sadducees. The heart of the controversy is between two points of view. Jesus, on one side, is saying, “There’s still more.” The Sadducees are on the other side, are saying, “That’s all there is.” What were they talking about? The resurrection from the dead. There came to [Jesus] some Sadducees, those who deny that there is...

Click here to listen to this sermon. The text for today is our Old Testament Reading, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:   For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:                 a time to be born, and a time to die;                 a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;                 a time to kill, and a time to heal;                 a time to break down, and a time to build up;                 a time to weep, and a time to laugh;                 a time to mourn, and a time to dance;                 a time to cast away ...