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Sermon - Jubilate 2024 - John 16:16-22

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Paul and Silas Singing in Prison , Jim Padgett, 1984 Christian Joy in View of the Eternal Resurrection Christians have sorrows on earth Yet, christians have joy, not in the fleeting things, but in the eternal things Richard Wurmbrand was a Lutheran pastor in Romania in the mid-20th century when his country was under communist control. In one of his books, he describes the suffering which many Christians had to endure in communist prisons. He described living conditions where the prisoners were kept practically naked in cold cells, fed rotten cabbage soup daily and a slice of bread once a week. The communists would torture the christians so severely and in such a vile manner it’s not appropriate to describe in polite company. Nevertheless, in spite of their horrible suffering those christians still had joy. One of pastor’s Wurmbrand’s stories reminds me of the time Paul and Silas were stripped, beaten, and thrown in prison in Philippi, and in the night they prayed and sang hymns to God.
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Sermon - Misericordias Domini 2024 - John 10:11-16

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Good Shepherd ,   Catacomb of Priscilla, Italy, Rome, 3rd Century Jesus is the Great I AM God revealed Himself in the Old Testament as I am who I am, or YHWH. God in the New Testament revealed Himself more fully through Jesus finishing the sentence I am… Jesus is the Good Shepherd, the only human of the I Am statements. Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Who does God say that He is? We say that God is Triune, and He is, because that is how He has revealed Himself to us in the scriptures. He is one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But in the Old Testament the personal name of God is recorded as four consonants, in our alphabet it’s YHWH, which is usually pronounced like Yahweh. Although from what we’re aware the pious practice was to not even say God’s name, which is still retained in our English Bibles where we have the word LORD in capital letters. Whenever you see the word LORD in capitals in the Bible it’s actually the Divine Name, YHWH.  But
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Sermon - Quasimodo Geniti 2024 - John 20:19-31

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The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Caravaggio, 1600 The Ministry of Peace Jesus’ work of death and resurrection give us peace, as seen in the wounds which remain in Jesus’ resurrected and glorified body. Jesus gives this peace through His pastors whom He sent to forgive sins in His place. Pastors come and go throughout life, yet the peace which different pastors give comes from the same Christ Jesus. Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Have you ever been gripped with fear? The Apostles were in our reading today. “ On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews. ” Though, one day, not long before this, the Apostles had heard that Lazaraus had died, and that Jesus was going to go to him. It was a risky trip, since the Jews were seeking to stone Jesus. But Thomas piped up: “ Let us also go, that we may die with Him ” Then, on the night when Jesus was betrayed, Peter and all the apostles said:
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Sermon - Easter Day 2024

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Women at the Empty Tomb , Fra Angelico, 1439 Do not be Alarmed for He has Risen Christians feel very defeated these days The Crucified One is risen Instead of being defeated, we Christians are in fact victorious Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Oh rejoice ye Christians loudly! Christ has risen from the dead! Let the bells ring and the organ pipes sing with jubilation! Let our voices be raised with loud shouts of Hallelujah! This is the day for celebration and jubilation, since today is the heart of Christianity, the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ! This is the highest feast and holiday, outshining all the others. This feast is so great it’s the basis for why we gather every Sunday, since every Sunday we are celebrating the resurrection. Every Sunday is, in a sense, Easter! The whole year therefore is crowned with the joy of Easter. Yet the typical mindset of a Christian these days is very similar to the mindset prevalent among the women who first reached t
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Sermon - Good Friday 2024

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Ecce Homo,  Caravaggio, 1605 Behold your King! His kingdom is not of this world His glory is His crucifixion He rules by bearing witness to the truth Out stepped Jesus, wearing a crown of twisted thorns and a purple robe, while soldiers spit on Him, hit Him, and mockingly paid homage to Him: “ Hail, King of the Jews! ” Pilate brought Him before the people, declaring: “ Behold your King! ” Stripping Him naked He was nailed to the cross, and above His head a sign was posted: “ Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. ” Soon the veils will be removed from the crosses here, and we too will gaze upon the cross. The words of Pilate ring out into our ears: “ Behold your King! ” Christ is King! This notion brought great anger to the crowd of Jews. “ If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes Himself a king opposes Caesar. ” They went so far as to confess: “ We have no king but Caesar. ” For them the only kingdom they wanted was an earthly kingdom. They wanted the
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Sermon - Maundy Thursday 2024

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Last Supper , Jacopo Bassano, 1546 Food that Matters Food is important to us This Lord’s Supper is more important We want to eat healthful food The Lord’s Supper is medicine of immortality, except to those who eat unworthily Food is kind of a big deal. We eat it every day. We have multiple rooms in our houses dedicated to food. The most frequented stores sell food, like grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations. When we get together with others one of the central activities is typically eating. Even our churches have kitchens and dining rooms as big as our sanctuaries. Food is kind of a big deal in the Bible, too. The opening chapters of Genesis are about God creating a world to feed us with, and Adam and Eve falling into sin with the action of eating wrongly. Throughout the Bible food is everywhere, from Old Testament dietary laws to the heavenly wedding feast in Paradise with the Lamb of God. Today we heard about one of the most significant events among the Israelites, the Exodus
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