A Famine Not of Bread

"Resurrection" by Rembrandt Click here to listen to this sermon. “So when they had come together, they asked Him, ‘Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’ And when He had said these things, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as He went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven’” (Acts 1:6–11). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! In 1997, Marshall Applewhite led thirty-eight other people...

"The Last Judgment" by Francisco Pacheco Click here to listen to this sermon. [Jesus said:] “In those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then He will send out the angels and gather His elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven” (Mark 13:24–27). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Trust in the midst of trouble. That’s what our Lord calls us to experience today. In our Gospel reading, Jesus speaks to a few of His disciples about the end of the world and Judgment Day. The vision He offers is frightening, unsettling. Nature breaks apart. The sun and the moon no longer give light. The stars tumble from the heavens. Everything is falling apart. But trouble brings trust to light an...

Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! Last week, we heard how John the Baptist told people to get ready for Christ’s coming—through repentance and Baptism. We are to live a life of daily repentance. In our Epistle for today, St. Paul gives us further instructions to be ready, that we may be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord: Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; He will surely do it ( 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24). St. Paul tells us how to be found blameless at the coming of our Lord. In rapid fire, n...

Martin Luther Preaching, from the Altarpiece of the Church of Torslunde, 1561 Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! I’ve always enjoyed reading, but there is never enough time to read as much as I would like. Recently, I started to listen to digitally recorded books. While I still prefer to hold books in my hand (especially the more academic and theological works), I have found it to be an entertaining way to listen to well-written and well-performed works of fiction as I drive. I just finished listening to “World without End” by Ken Follett that is set in 14 th century England, with its feudal system of dukes and earls, serfs and servants, monks and nuns. Believe it or not, it helped me better understand the context of Jesus’ parable in our text for today. Occasionally, the lord would have to leave his manor and estate for a while. Sometimes he would be off to war. Other times away on business. Occasional...

Click here to listen to this sermon. “Behold, I am coming soon, bringing My recompense with Me, to repay everyone for what He has done.” (Revelation 22:12). Grace and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! “Just wait until your father comes home!” Those words can bring two extremely different reactions, depending upon the father and his disposition to his son or daughter. It could be a word of woe and warning—or it could be a word of joy and promise. The father could be an iron-fisted tyrant with a terrible mean streak bent on meting out punishment for each and every offense and infraction. Or he could be the Ward Cleaver type who opens the front door to be greeted warmly with hugs and kisses from his wife and kids. It all depends. Jesus’ words have a similar effect: “Behold, I am coming soon!” These words always have a double edge, frightening those who picture a wrathful Judge, but comforting those who know Jesus as gracious Savior, warning the unrepen...

The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins by William Blake Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Who would’ve thought that the day would come when $3.29 would seem like such a good deal for a gallon of gasoline?   But it wasn’t that long ago that it cost me over $20 more to fill the gas tank on our van than it does today.   While political parties point at each other, and many say greedy oil companies are the culprit, the fact is that the high price of gasoline is caused by a number of foolish choices, shortsightedness, and the simple law of supply and demand. For several years American refiners have been operating at above 100% capacity (however you can do that).   While consumption of oil products has continued to rise steadily, no new oil refineries have been built for three decades.   In addition, regulators have restricted development of pipelines that would carry crude oil from Canada, and enviro...