Why are You Here?

Biblical Text: Luke 7:18-28

There is typically a 2nd Sunday of John the Baptist in Advent. I’m not sure what people who insist on sticking with the Gaudete Sunday theme do with this text. You have to get to the Joy on the other side of the pit. And maybe that is really the answer. I pick up from last week with the thought that you have to go through John the Baptist to get to the manger. Last week we talked about the apocalyptic and the preparation. This week picks up from there, but confronts the reality that as immediate as the apocalyptic is, the life of faith is nowhere near as immediate. In fact, it often throws you in the pit, with John. And it causes you to ask questions like John’s, “Are you the Christ, or should we look for another?”

What this sermon attempts to do is preach a faith that moves from the fear of God to the love of God. And to love something you have to know it. The text is a self-revelation of God. The Kingdom of Heaven that draws near in Jesus is good news for the poor. It comes humbly. It comes under the cross. This Kingdom, as humble as it is, also comes in no other way. It comes in the person of Jesus. “Blessed in the one who is not offended at me.”

Which leads to Jesus turning the crowds – turning to us. Why are you here? Why have you come to the place that is of no earthly good? You know the answer. Will you live it?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Behold Your King

032424-Sermon Download

Biblical Texts: Palms – John 12:12-19 Passion – Mark 15:1-47

This sermon has two “movements” (man that is a pretentious term). The first is a bit of history about Passion Sunday and Palm Sunday and how we got to them being together. The second is a meditation upon the two crowds: the one that sang Jesus into Jerusalem with Palms, and the one that cried crucify. The second movement is really the preaching for the day and takes up most of the sermon. And the really interesting thing from these two texts is the interplay of who calls Jesus “The King of Israel” and who calls him “the King of the Jews”. Israel and “The Jews” are always distinct things. And Palm Sunday/Passion Sunday confirms the difference. Israel is the people of God by faith. They accept this King who comes on colt and cross. “The Jews” are the people from every nation that reject this king, who have no king but Caesar. And that is the crisis of the Kingdom. The King has come, but is this Jesus your King?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Lenten Midweek 5- Lord’s Prayer

032024-MW5-Sermon Download

This is the final sermon in the Lenten Midweek series. We reviewed the first portion of the Catechism with emphasis on the creed (MW 2,3 & 4). The Law was MW1 and this MW5 is the Lord’s Prayer. We used the third petition as the text. The arrangement of Luther’s catechism in the Word section drops leaves you at prayer, which is part of Luther’s teaching. The Christian life is a life of prayer. This sermon reflects on what prayer accomplishes and how which are the two questions Luther asks in the catechism: What does this mean? and How is this done?

Discipleship 101

012124-Sermon Download

Biblical Text: Mark 1:14-20

The text is Jesus’ calling of the first disciples – Andrew and Peter, James and John. But prior to that there is a one sentence summary of the preaching of Jesus. “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel.” Making disciples in the mission of the church. Jesus gave that to the church in the great commission. But what does it mean to be a disciple? That is the question of this sermon. Because the first think you have to confront is does it mean for everyone what it meant for those first 4? They left their nets and the father and followed. This sermon ponders that a bit. And it does so in the light of that summary of Jesus’ preaching. A summary of preaching which I think serves rather well as the basics of discipleship shared by all from Apostles to the present age.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Dating the Reign

Full Sermon Draft Download

Biblical Text: Acts 1:1-11

We observed Ascension Day this Sunday. So I swapped out the first reading for the Ascension Day one. The recent coronation of the English King had me thinking about some things in regards to the Kingdom of God, the phrase Jesus consistently used. I guess the two questions would be: a) when does that reign start? and b) how does it manifest itself? Ascension Day is one of the logical times to date it from. (There are some nice theological arguments to be had about this, but the Kingdom in its full recognition starts here.) Our problem with this is the first royal decrees are not what we would do. “Are you now going to restore the Kingdom to Israel?” That was the disciples’ question. Because it is payback time. It is time to get ours. That is not what The King does. This sermon looks at the first royal decrees upon Ascension, and how they direct us today.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Who’s Blessed?

Full Sermon Draft Download

Biblical Text: Matthew 5:1-12

How we use the word saint in the English language has a couple of meaning that are somewhat contradictory. This All-Saints Day sermon ponders those categories of saints a bit and then turns to who and what Jesus calls blessed.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Of Camels and Needles

Full Sermon Draft Download

Biblical Text: Mark 10:23-31

The text contains a couple of Jesus’ classic aphorisms, but this sermon really isn’t about those aphorisms. Those aphorisms are given to heighten the shock that the disciples are feeling. They can’t believe what has just happened between Jesus and the Rich Young Man. Even less can they believe what Jesus says about it. Their surprise is our entry to think about our attitude to wealth. How does wealth form the soul? What are the deep dangers that Jesus is warning about? The sermon ponders these. It then follows Peter’s blunt but natural question: who gets it right, the disciples or the rich young man? If you saw Elon Musk walking away, wouldn’t you have some questions about the deal? Jesus’ answer, just like all of Mark Chapter 10, is necessary for the modern church to hear. And it leaves us with stuff to ponder.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Tough Texts

The first Sunday after Christmas has what for me is a terrible text, The Slaughter of the Holy Innocents. Immediately after Christmas we get something that reminds us of the type of Kingdom, the type of King who has come. His Kingdom is not of this world while being firmly in it. This sermon is a reflection on that. (And I hope it is understandable. I had surgery on Friday afternoon, and so the pain killers were still working here. A nod to being in this kingdom while looking for that resurrection. The text is not quite as clean as I just don’t have my main hand, so I dictated and went rough.)

Full Sermon Draft Download

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

What Does it Mean to Have a King?

Full Sermon Draft Download

Biblical Text: Matthew 21:1-11

The first Sunday in Advent often carries over a theme from the previous week – the Kingship of Christ. But instead of concentrating on the fulfillment of the Kingdom, Advent places us back in our temporal surroundings. It reminds us that the Kingdom comes humbly. It comes by invitation and promise. It comes one heart at a time. And yet it is a Kingdom. We are called to watch. It has a King.

This sermon is a meditation in a busy week of what it means in our day to have a King. And I think that most realistic analogy is when we talk identities. This is an advent pondering on putting on Christ.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

15 Minutes of Advent

Full Sermon Draft Download

Biblical Text: Micah 5:2-5

The curse and blessing of a liturgical church. When everybody else has already moved on to Christmas, maybe they’ve been on it for a month, we are still in Advent. The day is often given over to Mary and the magnificat. There is a great recording of our choir singing one of those here. But I’ve been spending time with the minor prophets this season. We’ve been taking them in bible class, and I felt I had to bring one into the pulpit. One more day of blue and purple. One more day of the penitential and the hopeful. Grant me 15 minutes of Advent on this 4 Sunday of the season. We’ve got a bakers dozen for Christmas starting tomorrow.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download