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Sermon - Trinity III, 2026 - Luke 15

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The Return of the Prodigal Son , Pompeo Batoni, 1773 The Joy of God to Save the Sinner In compassion God atones for sinful man Yet God desires children who love Him, not servants, so He gives us freedom to get lost God’s compassion brings back the sinner crushed by sin God, the angels, and the church rejoices over every sinner saved We have no need of jealousy, for the sinner saved only receives what we have already also received by grace When the father saw his prodigal son returning, seeing his pitiable state, he had compassion for his child. Such is the compassion of God to seek and save sinful mankind. “ As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. ” St. Paul writes: “ God our Savior, desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all. ” Indeed, Jesus...
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Sermon - St. Michael and All Angels 2021 - Matthew 18:1-11

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St. Michael , Raphael, 1504 The idea of patron saints is rather popular and attractive in various circles of Christianity, particularly in Roman Catholicism. It’s just a nice thought that there’s someone watching over you, guarding you, and guiding you during life’s trials. That said, having patron saints is a wholly unbiblical notion, since the Bible nowhere says that when we die God puts us to work taking care of people on earth. Death for the Christian is described as rest and being in the nearer presence of God. Those who’ve died don’t travel between heaven and earth. It’s quite possible that the church in heaven is praying to God for the church on earth, but that’s a far cry from being a patron saint. Moreover, Christians don’t become angels when they die. Angels are a unique type of created being, distinct from humans. Humans were created as humans, and angels were created as angels. Humans no more become angels in heaven than they become porcupines or maple trees in heaven. Ange...
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Sermon - Trinity XVI 2021 - Luke 7:11-17

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Raising of the Son of the Widow of Nain , Martino Altomonte, 1731 Death is so common (we all do it at least once), you’d think that by now we’d handle it well, but we don’t. In the last 3 ½ weeks I’ve buried seven people, but as often as it happens, it’s still death and it’s still painful. Death is such a terrifying and filthy thing that no amount of normalization will make death pleasant. Though we sure do try to make death look pretty. We relabel death into something attractive, we call abortion “reproductive healthcare” and we call physician assisted suicide “death with dignity.” We even call funerals “celebrations of life” in order to hide the grim reality of what has happened. The truth, however, is that death is not pretty. Abortion is still murdering an unborn baby, euthenasia is still suicide by taking a drug which kills you, and funerals are still the burial of someone we love who has died. Those things are all painful and leave deep emotional scars in the survivors.  Part...
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Sermon - Trinity XV 2021 - 1 Kings 17:8-16

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Prophet Elijah and the Widow of Sarepta,  Bernardo Strozzi, 1630's “ Do not be anxious .” That’s not too hard when life is going well. It’s easy to trust God when everything’s okay. It’s easy to have faith when your stomach, cupboard, and wallet are full. It’s easy because you don’t actually have to trust the Lord for anything, since it doesn’t seem like you need Him. But it’s far harder to not worry when people are sick and dying, when shelves are bare, and the bank account is drawing perilously low. It’s hard to trust then because you actually have to trust the Lord since you truly do need Him.  What is it that we do when we trust the Lord? We christians trust in the Lord by seeking first the kingdom of God. This isn’t just a nice turn of phrase, this is where the rubber meets the road, this is where faith meets reality. Seeking first the kingdom of God and trusting the Lord are concrete actions that we perform. Christianity is not only spiritual but it’s also physical, it’s...
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Sermon - Gaylord and Janice Naig Funeral - John 14:18-24

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Dear children, grandchildren, siblings, relatives, and friends of Gaylord and Janice, God’s peace be unto all of you. Our Lord speaks tenderly to you: “ Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. ” When your hearts are broken and stirred up, bruised and crushed, trust in the Lord who provides for you and comforts you with the hope of salvation. Gaylord and Janice were fantastic parents, grandparents, siblings, and friends. They were actively involved in the lives of their kids and grandkids because they loved them. They were deeply in love with one another, spending their lives together. It’s almost poetic that they would die within days of each other. They were a blessing to each other and to their family. Both were hardworking and loyal. Janice making baby blankets, which a couple of my kids currently use, and Gaylord with his mowing business, which he graciously mowed my lawn for a month before I moved here to town. Those who worked with them, or received t...
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Sermon - Trinity XIV 2021 - Luke 17:11-19

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The Healing of Ten Lepers , James Tissot, 1894 It’s a painful realization when you discover that you’re helpless to resolve a given situation. Chronic illness, permanent disability, death, terminal illness, natural disaster, all these things are terrifying because try as we might, we can’t fix them, we’re helpless. Ultimately this is why the covid crisis over the past year and a half has been so unsettling in many ways: it’s a problem we can’t fix. We 21st century Americans tend to believe that we’re at the height of civilization, knowledge, and technology. There’s nothing we can’t accomplish if we set our minds to it. When we compare ourselves to our forefathers just 100 years ago, we’ve changed so much! Many people lived without electricity, indoor plumbing, automobiles, and modern medicine. But look at us now! We can fly across the world in hours, perform heart transplants, access the world’s libraries from a palm-sized device, and live comfortably whether the temperature is -20 or ...
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Sermon - The Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist 2021 - Mark 6:14-29

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Saint John the Baptist Preparing Himself for His Martyrdom , Louis Finson, 1607 God’s Word, the Bible, isn’t like a Disney movie or a comic book; it can be very harsh and jarring at times. The cover art on the bulletin is a good example of that; it’s harsh and not pleasant to look at. I looked up some other art for this day of the church year and let’s just say this bulletin art is very tame in comparison. The reason that God’s Word, like our Gospel reading today, can be so harsh and uncomfortable is because it’s real, and reality is not a cute cartoon. This world is harsh and uncomfortable, it’s messy and violent, it’s frightening and worrisome. God knows it. Being a Christian in this world is risky and it can cost you everything. God’s Word is true and good and beautiful, but it often makes people uncomfortable and even murderously angry. When Christians cling to His Word, it can cause Christians much suffering. Yet, in spite of their earthly suffering, God promises to give rest to t...
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Sermon - Elden Meyer Funeral - John 11:17-27

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Agnus Dei from Ghent Altarpiece , Jan van Eyck, 1432 Dear children, grandchildren, close friends and relatives of Elden, God’s mercy and peace be unto you all in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior. “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning.” The steadfast love of Jesus and His mercy drove Him to the cross in order to fulfill His promise for Elden and for you: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” Elden lives, even now, He is alive with God in Christ Jesus. His soul is in heaven while his body rests here below, awaiting the resurrection of the dead on the last day. “According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power ...
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