A Famine Not of Bread

Click here to listen to this sermon. Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! They had been attending worship faithfully for two months. Actively participating in two weekly Bible studies, they seemed to drink in everything, asking the most insightful questions. They were the kind of prospective members that a pastor dreams about. “We think we’d like to join your church,” they said. “But before we do, we want to know just what you believe and teach. Do you have a book or something more in-depth that we could read?” I sent them home with one of my favorites, “Spirituality of the Cross,” by Gene Edward Veith. Two days later they returned. “Pastor, we’ve read the book you sent with us, and we just can’t agree with some of it. We can’t, in good conscience, join, because we would like to become involved in teaching. We know that we would always have some level of conflict with what you’re teaching.” Though I disagree with their conclusion, I could apprecia...

"The Offering of Abraham" by James Tissot Click here to listen to this sermon. “After these things God tested Abraham and said to him, ‘Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here am I.’ He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (Genesis 22:1-2). Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The temptation of Abraham lasts three days. It is not the only time he is tempted, but this is brutal. He journeys through the wilderness with Isaac, his only son from his beloved Sarah. This miracle child was born when his mother and father were ninety and one hundred, respectively. Isaac’s name means “he laughs,” he is their laughter in their old age. But even more than that, he’s the child of the promise. The Lord has declared that Abraham will be the father of a great nation through Isaac. All of that seems in jeopardy now, endangered by ...

"The Scapegoat" by William Holman Hunt Click here to listen to this sermon. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. And the tempter came and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But He answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written, ‘He will command His angels concerning you,’ and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him,...

"Temptation of Christ" by Vasily Surinov Click here to listen to this sermon. Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, He was hungry. The devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’” And the devil took Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and said to Him, “To You I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. If You, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.’” And he took Him to Jerusalem and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to Him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourse...

Click here to listen to this sermon. In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when He came up out of the water, immediately He saw the heavens opening and the Spirit descending on Him like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.” The Spirit immediately drove Him out into the wilderness. And He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And He was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to Him. Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the Gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mark 1:9-15). Grace to you and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! With his typical stinginess with words, St. Mark describes the inaugural events in Jesus’ ministry. His rapid-fire approach draws attention from the details of the individual events them...