Sermons from the Divine Service

Jesus Promises to Send His Holy Spirit, the Helper. Though Jesus has departed from us visibly to the right hand of the Father who sent Him, yet this is to our advantage. For Jesus—who is Lord over all creation, who intercedes for us before the Father, who is preparing a place for us in heaven—has sent the Helper, the Spirit of Truth (John 16:5–15). “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” through Jesus Christ (James 1:17). The Holy Spirit helps us by taking what is Christ’s and declaring it to us. In the Word of truth, the Spirit works repentance and delivers to us the forgiveness of sins, the righteousness of Christ, and victory over the devil. For the ruler of this world is judged and defeated by the cross. Through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we have been brought forth to new life in Him who is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. Confident of our resurrection with Christ we confess, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid” (Isaiah 12:2).

Those Who Wait on the Lord Shall Rejoice. The people of God are pilgrims and sojourners in this world, looking ahead to a destination yet to come (1 Peter 2:11–20). Though we are now children of God, the fullness of what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We are those who wait on the Lord. Jesus tells us that the wait is just a little while. “A little while, and you will see Me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see Me” (John 16:16). Though you must experience sorrow for a time, though you must live as strangers in a world that is at enmity with Christ, yet your sorrow will be turned to joy when He returns. “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). The little while of weeping shall be replaced with an eternity of rejoicing in the presence of Christ the crucified and risen Savior. “And no one will take your joy from you” (John 16:22).

The Good Shepherd Cares for His Sheep. Our Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11–16). He is not like the hireling, who cares nothing for the sheep and only for himself, who flees when he sees the wolf coming. Rather, Jesus is the Good Shepherd who seeks out His scattered sheep to deliver them (Ezekiel 34:11–16). He gathers them and feeds them in rich pasture. He binds up the broken and strengthens the sick. He lays down His life for wandering and wayward sheep. On the cross, Christ bore in His body the attacks of the predators of sin and death and the devil for you that you might be saved. He now lives to restore your soul in the still waters of baptism, to lead you in the paths of righteousness by the voice of His Gospel, to prepare the table of His holy supper before you, that you may dwell in the house of the Lord forever (Psalm 23). “For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25).

The Wounds of Christ Give Us Life. “For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood” (1 John 5:7). These three point to Christ and flow from Christ. Jesus shows His disciples His hands side, from which blood and water flowed, saying “Peace be with you.” He presents the wounds which turn our fear to gladness and which restore us to the Father. Jesus breathes on His disciples and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:23). His breath, His words are Spirit and life. They raise up our dry, dead bones and give us new and everlasting life (Ezekiel 37:1–14). Christ now gives His ministers to speak His forgiving, Spirit-filled words to the penitent in His stead. Our Lord continues to come to His people, presenting His wounds to us in the Sacraments of water and blood. He bids us to touch His side at His table, to receive His risen body and blood in true faith, that believing we may have life in His name.

Christ’s Resurrection Means That We Will One Day Be Raised. “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed” (1 Corinthians 5:7). By the shed blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, eternal death has passed over us. Now we pass with Christ through death into life everlasting. For Christ the crucified One is risen! The stone has been rolled away from the tomb, revealing that the tomb could not hold Him (Mark 16:1–8). Now our Redeemer lives eternally to save us from sin and Satan and the grave, and we can live in the sure hope of our own bodily resurrection with Christ. “After my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God” (Job 19:26). Feasting on the living Christ, who is our meat and drink indeed, we boldly say: “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? . . . But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:54–55, 57).

The Cross and Passion of Our Lord Are the Hour of His Glory. “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Luke 19:29–40). To fulfill Scripture, our Lord rides into Jerusalem on a humble donkey so that He might die upon the cross (Zechariah). His kingly crown will not be made of gold but of thorns, the sign of sin’s curse. For His royal reign is displayed in bearing this curse for His people, saving us from our enemies by sacrificing His own life. The sinless One dies in the place of the sinner so that the sinner can be freed and bear the name “Barabbas,” which means “son of the Father” (Matthew 26 & 27). It is at the name of this exalted Savior, Jesus, that we bow in humble faith. With the centurion who declared, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matthew 27:54), we are also given to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:11).

Jesus Is Our Redemption. In the temple Jesus said, “If anyone keeps my word, he will never see death” (John 8:51). For Jesus came to taste death for us—to drink the cup of suffering to the dregs in order that we might be released from its power. Clinging to His life-giving words, we are delivered from death’s sting and its eternal judgment. Christ is our High Priest, who entered the Most Holy Place and with His own blood obtained everlasting redemption for His people (Hebrews 9:11-15). He is the One who was before Abraham was, and yet is his descendant. He is the promised Son who carries the wood up the mountain for the sacrifice, who is bound and laid upon the altar of the cross. He is the ram who is offered in our place, who is willingly caught in the thicket of our sin, and who wears the crown of thorns upon His head (Genesis 22:1-14). Though Jesus is dishonored by the sons of the devil, He is vindicated by the Father through the cross.

The Lord Feeds His People. The Lord provided bread from heaven for His people in the wilderness (Exodus 16:2–21). Now He who is Himself the living bread from heaven miraculously provides bread for the five thousand (John 6:1–15). This takes place near the time of the Passover, after a great multitude had followed Jesus across the sea, and when He went up on a mountain. Seen in this way, Jesus is our new and greater Moses, who releases us from the bondage of Mount Sinai and makes us free children of the promise (Galatians 4:21–31). Five loaves become twelve baskets—that is, the five books of Moses find their goal and fulfillment in Christ, whose people continue steadfastly in the doctrine and fellowship of the twelve apostles, and in the breaking and receiving of the bread of life, which is the body of Christ together with His precious blood. So it is that the Lord abundantly provides for us in both body and soul.

Jesus Overcomes the Strong Man. Our Lord Jesus is accused of doing evil when in fact He is doing good. He casts out a demon from a mute man so that he is able to speak (Luke 11:14–28). But some said Jesus did this by the power of Beelzebub, Satan. Like Pharaoh of old, their hearts were hard (Exodus 8:16–24). They did not recognize the finger of God, the power of the Holy Spirit at work in and through Jesus. Jesus is the Stronger Man who overcomes the strong man. He takes the devil’s armor of sin and death and destroys it from the inside out by the holy cross. He exorcizes and frees us by water and the Word. We were once darkness, but now we are light in Christ the Lord (Ephesians 5:1–9). As children of light, our tongues are loosed to give thanks to Him who saved us.

Holding God to His Word. Jacob wrestled with God; he would not let Him go until he received a blessing from Him (Genesis 32:22–32). So it was with the Canaanite woman. Though Jesus seemed to ignore and reject her, she continued to call upon His name and look to Him for help (Matthew 15:21–28). Even when the Lord called her a little dog, she held on to Him in faith and would not let Him wriggle out of His words: “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” This Gentile woman shows herself to be a true Israelite, who struggles with God and man in Christ and prevails. “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire” (Matthew 15:27–28). This is the sanctifying will of God (1 Thessalonians 4:1–7)—to test your faith in order that it may be refined and strengthened. 

Jesus Does Battle in Our Place. In the Garden, man exalts himself to be a god in place of God (Genesis 3:1–21). He succumbs to the temptation of the devil, and eating of the forbidden fruit, he receives death. But in the sin-cursed wilderness, God humbles Himself to become man in place of man (Matthew 4:1–11). He does not eat but fasts and bears the onslaughts of the devil for us that we may be restored to life. Jesus stands in our place to do battle against Satan. Though outwardly Jesus appears weak, yet He comes in the name of the Lord of hosts. His weapon is the Word of God. In Christ we are victorious over the devil. Let us therefore not receive the grace of God in vain (2 Corinthians 6:1–10), but seeing that we have a great High Priest, let us come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain help in time of need (Hebrews 4:14-16).

Faith Alone. The seeing are blind, while the one who is blind can see (Luke 18:31–43). Jesus tells the twelve that He is going up to Jerusalem to suffer and die and rise again, but they cannot understand or grasp what He is saying. The meaning of His words is hidden from their sight. However, as Jesus makes His way up to Jerusalem, a blind man calls out to Him for mercy. This blind man sees that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior, for he calls Him “Son of David.” Indeed, Jesus is the Lord’s anointed, the keeper of sheep (1 Samuel 16:1–13) who goes to lay down His life for the sheep. He is the incarnate love of the Father who suffers long and is kind, who is not puffed up, who never fails us (1 Corinthians 13:1–13). Jesus opens the eyes of the blind to see Him not according to outward appearances of lowliness, but according to His heart of mercy and compassion. Those who behold Him by faith follow Him to the cross through death into life. 

Scripture Alone. The Sower sows the seed of His Word (Luke 8:4–15). But the planting of Christ is attacked by the devil, the world, and the flesh. Satan snatches the Word away from hard hearts. The riches and pleasures of this life choke off faith. Shallow and emotional belief withers in time of temptation and trouble. But see how Christ bears this attack for us! Christ’s cross was planted in the hard and rocky soil of Golgotha. A crown of thorns was placed upon His head. Satan and His demons hellishly hounded and devoured Him. Yet, through His dying and rising again, He destroyed these enemies of ours. Jesus is Himself the Seed which fell to the ground and died in order that it might sprout forth to new life and produce much grain. In Him, the weak are strong (2 Corinthians 11:19–12:9). He is the Word of the Father which does not return void (Isaiah 55:10–13) but yields a harvest hundredfold.

Grace Alone. The people of Israel departed from the Lord’s provision for them. They were dissatisfied with His provision, and so were sent away from the promised land into exile (Daniel 9:2-10). In the same way, the first laborers in the vineyard complained against the landowner for the wage he provided them (Matthew 20:1–16). They charged him with being unfair, but in reality he was being generous. For the Lord does not wish to deal with us on the basis of what we deserve but on the basis of His abounding grace in Christ. The first—those who rely on their own merits—will be last and will not remain in the life-giving vineyard: “Take what is yours and go your way”(Matthew 20:14). But the last, those who rely on Christ, will be first. For Christ is the Rock (1 Corinthians 9:24–10:5). He is the One who was struck and from whose side blood and water flowed that we may be cleansed of our sin.

Jesus Is Transfigured and Manifests His Glory. The Lord appeared to Moses in the light of the burning bush (Exodus 3:1–14). Later Moses’ face would shine with the light of God’s glory when he came down from Mount Sinai (Exodus 34:29–35). At the Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah appeared with the One who is the Light of Light Himself (Matthew 17:1–9). Jesus’ glory as God shines with brilliant splendor in and through His human nature. By this epiphany, our Lord confirmed the prophetic word (2 Peter 1:16–21), revealing that He is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. He manifested His majesty as the eternal Son of the Father, and He wonderfully foreshowed our adoption as sons (Collect). We who have been baptized into Christ’s body are given a glimpse of the glory that we will share with Him in the resurrection on the Last Day.

Jesus’ First Miracle Reveals God’s Glory. The coming of the Messianic kingdom means the restoration of creation. The sign of this restoration is that “the mountains shall drip sweet wine” (Amos 9:11–15). When the elements of a fallen creation fail and run short at a wedding feast, our Lord Jesus steps in to restore creation and miraculously changes water into an abundance of the very best wine (John 2:1–11). With this sign, Christ manifests His glory. The hour will come when Jesus will again manifest His glory by taking creation’s curse into His own body to release us from its power. The Bridegroom will give His life for the Bride, and from His side will flow water and blood, the holy sacraments by which she is cleansed and made one with Him. Through this sacrificial love of Christ we are enabled to “love one another with brotherly affection . . .” and to “outdo one another in showing honor” (Romans 12:6–16).

In His Baptism, Jesus Takes His Place with Sinners. Our Lord Jesus is baptized “to fulfill all righteousness” (Matt. 3:13–17). He partakes of a baptism for sinners in order that He might be our substitute and bear the judgment we deserve. In the water, Jesus trades places with us. Our sin becomes His sin. His righteousness becomes our righteousness. Our glory, therefore, is in “Christ Jesus, who became to us . . . righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Cor. 1:26–31). Jesus is the “chosen” One sent from the Father to release us from the prison house of sin and death (Is. 42:1–7). Baptized into Christ, we also become the chosen ones, beloved of the Father. We cross the Jordan with Jesus (Joshua 3) through death into the promised land of new life with God. 

The Lord God Is Manifested in the Incarnate Son. The Feast of the Epiphany centers in the visit of the Magi from the East. In that respect, it is a “Thirteenth Day” of Christmas; and yet, it also marks the beginning of a new liturgical season. While Christmas has focused on the Incarnation of our Lord—that is, on God becoming flesh—the season of Epiphany emphasizes the manifestation or self-revelation of God in that same flesh of Christ. For the Lord Himself has entered our darkness and rises upon us with the brightness of His true light (Isaiah 60:1–2). He does so chiefly by His Word of the Gospel, which He causes to be preached within His Church on earth—not only to the Jews but also to Gentiles (Ephesians 3:8–10). As the Magi were guided by the promises of Holy Scripture to find and worship the Christ Child with His mother in the house (Matthew 2:5–11), so does He call disciples from all nations by the preaching of His Word, to find and worship Him within His Church (Isaiah 60:3–6). With gold they confess His royalty; with incense, His deity; and with myrrh, His priestly sacrifice (Matthew 2:11).

The Seed of David Comes to His Temple. The Lord foretold that He would make a new covenant with His people: “I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (Jeremiah 31:33). In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son Jesus to redeem us from the judgment of the Law (Galatians 4:1–7). Now He is presented in the temple in fulfillment of the Law and revealed to be “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel” (Luke 2:22–40). Christ has enlightened us in baptism, giving us to be adopted as sons of God and heirs of eternal life. Receiving the Holy Sacrament of His Body and Blood, we are prepared to depart this world in peace, for our eyes have seen the salvation of God in Him.

John the Baptizer Points Everyone to the Messiah. The coming of God in all His unveiled power at Mount Sinai was terrifying to the people of Israel. The thundering voice of the Lord puts sinners in fear of death (Deut. 18:15–19). God, therefore, raised up a prophet like Moses—the Messiah, the Christ. God came to His people veiled in human flesh. The skies poured down the Righteous One from heaven; the earth opened her womb and brought forth Salvation (Introit) through the blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of the Lord (Luke 1:39–56). The fruit of her womb is the very Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, the One whose sandal strap John was not worthy to loose (John 1:19–28). In Jesus we are delivered from fear and anxiety. In Him alone we have the peace of God which surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:4–7).

John the Baptizer Prepares the Way for the Lord. The voice of the Baptizer cried out in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord . . .” (Isaiah 40:1). John called the people to be made ready for the Messiah’s coming through repentance, for “all flesh is grass” (Isaiah 40:6). Now He asks from prison, “Are you the one who is to come . . .?” (Matthew 11:2). Jesus’ works bear witness that He is. The sick are made well; the dead are raised, and the poor have the Gospel preached to them. Their iniquity is pardoned; they have received from the Lord’s hand double forgiveness for all their sins. The “stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Corinthians 4:1) still deliver Christ’s overflowing forgiveness to the poor in spirit, comforting God’s people with the word of the Gospel which stands forever. This Gospel produces rejoicing among all those who believe.

The Lord Comes on the Last Day. The day on which our Lord returns will be a “great and awesome day” (Mal. 4:5). For He will come in a cloud with great power and glory. To the wicked and the proud, it will be a Day of judgment that will “set them ablaze” (Mal. 4:1). The signs preceding this Day will bring them fear and fainting. But to those who believe, who fear the name of the Lord, this Day is one to look forward to and rejoice in: “. . . straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” (Luke 21:28). Christ our Redeemer is coming; the Sun of Righteousness will bring healing in His wings. Let us, then, give attention to the words of the Lord, which do not pass away. Let us “through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures” (Rom. 15:4) be strengthened in our hope by the Holy Spirit and watch diligently for Jesus’ coming. Then, by God’s grace, we shall escape all these things that will come to pass and stand before the Son of Man. 

The Lord Jesus Comes in Humility to Redeem Us. The new Church Year begins by focusing on the humble coming of our Lord. “Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey”(Matthew 21:5). Even as He was born in a lowly manger, so Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a beast of burden. For He bears the sin of the world. He is the Son of David riding to His enthronement on the cross, where He shows Himself to be “The LORD is our Righteousness”(Jeremiah 23:5–6). Our Lord still comes in great humility to deliver His righteousness to us in the Word and Sacraments. Before receiving Christ’s Body and Blood, we also sing, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” (Matthew 21:9). And as we receive the Sacrament, we set our hearts on His return in glory, for “our salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed” (Romans 13:11). 

By Faith We Are Prepared for Christ’s Return. “The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:1–11). The arrival of the bridegroom will be sudden and unexpected. Therefore you are to be watchful and ready like the five wise virgins. “For you know neither the day nor the hour” when the Son of Man is to return (Mathew. 25:1–13). The lamps are the Word of Christ. The oil in the lamps is the Holy Spirit, who works through the Word to create and sustain the flame of faith in Christ. The foolish are those who do not give proper attention to the working of the Holy Spirit in baptism, preaching, and the supper, and so their faith does not endure. The wise, however, are those who diligently attend to these gifts of the Spirit, and who therefore have an abundance of oil. The flame of faith endures to the end. By God’s grace they are received into the eternal wedding feast of the Lamb in His kingdom, the new heavens and the new earth created by the Lord for the joy of His people (Isaiah 65:17–25). 

Walking humbly with our God and forgiving one another. With what shall we come before the Lord (Micah 6:6) who forgives all our sins, and how often shall our fellow Christians sin against us and we forgive them (Matthew 18:21)? Our gracious God on high does not need our “burnt offerings” or “thousands of rams” (Micah 6:6-7), which we could legitimately offer in thanksgiving. He is the Savior who gave His only-begotten Son for our transgression. He offers the fruit of His body, once hanging dead on a cross but now living and giving life in His holy Meal, for the sin of our souls (Micah 6:7). Because He releases us from our enormous debt of sin against Him, we need not imprison our fellow sinners with our lack of love and refusal of forgiveness (Matthew 18:24, 27, 30). As partakers of His grace, we yearn for one another “with the affection of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:8). As forgiven sinners, we are filled with the fruit of Christ’s righteousness, for He leads us “to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with [our] God” (Micah 6:8).

God Declares Us Righteous Unsheathing His Word Against All Evil. “In this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all people a feast of choice pieces” (Isaiah 25:6). Though the world is filled with sin and evil, the Lord is at work to restore His creation. The Father sent His Son to became flesh in Jesus Christ that He might restore fallen creation and save fallen man. To the nobleman whose son was deathly ill, Jesus says, “Go; your son will live” (John 4:46–53). And in the very hour Jesus spoke, the nobleman’s son was made well. The Word of Christ accomplishes what it says. In baptism, absolution, and the Lord’s Supper, He declares His life–giving forgiveness to you, and it is so. This saving Word of God is the sword of the Spirit by which you are able to fight off all the onslaughts of the devil (Ephesians 6:10–17). “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.” 

Saints Are Blessed in the Eternal Presence of Christ. “A great multitude … from all tribes and peoples and languages” cry out, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne” (Revelation 7:9–17). Faith-filled saints from every place and time with unified voices eternally magnify the Lamb of God. As His beloved children, we, too, “shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:1–3). Joined with the throng of angels and myriad saints, we shall “serve him day and night in his temple” (Revelation 7:9–17). In our earthly tension vacillating between saint and sinner, faith and doubt, sacred and profane, we earnestly seek Jesus to calm our fears, comfort our spirits and forgive our sins. The Holy Spirit, through faith in Christ, propels us forward, fortifying us in Word and Sacrament, to our eternal home. In the midst of our constant struggle as believers, we need to be blessed. And so we are. The poor in spirit, the meek, the hungry, the thirsty, the merciful, the pure and the persecuted are all blessed, and we will most certainly inherit the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:1–12). 

The Son of God Has Set Us Free from Sin and Death by His Grace. “Wisdom is justified by her deeds” (Matthew 11:19), and the true Wisdom of God, Christ Jesus, the incarnate Son, justifies us by His deeds. He prepares His way by the preaching of repentance, but He has suffered the violence of the Law and voluntarily handed Himself over to violent men, that we might eat and drink with Him in His Kingdom and remain in the house forever. For He is “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Matthew 11:19), and He has rescued us by His grace from the slavery of sin and death. By the proclamation of His eternal Gospel “to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people” (Revelation 14:6), “the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law” (Romans 3:21), “that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:26). And by hearing the Gospel of Christ Jesus, “whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:25), “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31–32).

In Life and Death, Christ Fulfills the Law of God. The Pharisees ask a Law question. Jesus asks a Gospel question. The Pharisees seek to test Jesus in His own words. Jesus seeks to “test” them in the saving reality of who He is as the Messiah (Matthew 22:34–46). The Law requires you to “fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul” and to “love the sojourner” (Deuteronomy 10:12–21). Failure to keep the Law perfectly brings judgment. On the other hand, the Gospel brings the grace of God given by Jesus Christ, that you may be blameless in the day of His return (1 Corinthians 1:4–8). Jesus is David’s Son yet David’s Lord, true God and true man. He is Love incarnate who fulfilled all the demands of God’s Law on our behalf, that we might be saved from the Law’s condemnation and sanctified in the Gospel’s forgiveness. Thereby we see that “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord”  (1 Corinthians 1:9).

Whoever Humbles Himself Will Be Exalted. “Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence” (Proverbs 25:6–14). Rather, take the lowest position at the table. Humble yourself before Him. For your place is not for you to take but for Him to give. Conduct yourself with all lowliness and gentleness, bearing with one another in love (Ephesians 4:1–6), that the King may give you glory in the presence of those at the table with you. “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:1–11). Is this not the way of Christ? He is the one who took the lowest place, who humbled Himself even to the point of death for us. He is now exalted to the highest place at the right hand of the Father that penitent believers may be exalted together with Him in the resurrection. To the humble at His Supper He says, “Friend, move up higher,” giving you His very body and blood for your forgiveness that you may ascend to take part in the great wedding feast which has no end.

Jesus Calls forth Life from Death. A large funeral procession carrying the only son of a widow is confronted by another large procession, Jesus and His followers. Death and Life meet face to face at the gate of the city (Luke 7:11–17). Filled with compassion, Jesus comes into direct contact with our mortality in order to overcome it. He touches the coffin and speaks His creative words of life, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” Jesus does what is neither expected nor requested. For through Christ, God the Father “is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:14–21). Jesus bore our death in His body that we may share in His resurrection. Even as Elijah stretched himself out three times over the Zarephath woman’s son (2 Kings 17:17–24), God stretched Himself out over us in the threefold application of His name in the baptismal water, breathing new and everlasting life into us. “To Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

Anxious Bondage vs. Confident Trust. “You cannot serve God and money” (Matthew 6:24–34), for they require two contrary forms of service. Worry is the worship given to the false god of mammon, an unbelieving anxiousness and focus on the things of this world. Faith is the worship of the true God, a confident trust that He is a loving Father who will care for all of our needs in both body and soul. The widow of Zarephath served God— that is, she believed the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah that the bin of flour would not be used up nor would the jar of oil run dry (1 Kings 17:8–16). He who feeds the birds and clothes the flowers will certainly provide for our daily needs. For He has already provided for our eternal needs, clothing us with Christ’s righteousness in Baptism and feeding us His body and blood for our forgiveness. With such confidence we are liberated from worry and freed to do good with our material resources, especially to those who are of the household of faith (Galatians 5:25–6:10).

St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist. Our ascended Lord gives “gifts” to His Church. In particular, He gave apostles and evangelists like St. Matthew, prophets like Ezekiel, and still gives pastors and teachers (Ephesians 4:8, 11). They speak Christ’s truth in love in order that the Body of Christ might be built up (Ephesians 4:12–13). Christ is not only the head of this body, He is her Good Physician (Matthew 9:9–13). He has come not for the well but for the sick, not for “the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13) — even notorious tax collectors like Matthew. Christ’s team of spiritual physicians must serve faithfully. Their instrument is “thus says the Lord GOD,” to be spoken “whether they hear or refuse to hear” (Ezekiel 3:11). To those stubborn, rebellious patients who believe they need no physician, the word “of lamentation and mourning and woe” must be fearlessly spoken: God’s Law calls to repentance (Ezekiel 2:10). To those who recognize their trouble and sickness, the salve of the Gospel is to be applied. So Christ works to save us, as Matthew’s Gospel records.

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross. “Sir, we wish to see Jesus” (John 12:21). Then look to His holy cross. For just as Moses lifted up the bronze serpent in the wilderness, so Jesus, when He is “lifted up from the earth, will draw all people” to Himself (John 12:32). “He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” to save us (Philippians 2:8). “Everyone who is bitten” by the ancient serpent’s venom of sin, “when he sees” Christ “shall live” (Numbers 21:8). The true holy cross is lost to history, and we cannot return to Calvary to find our salvation. So, Christ brings the New Testament in His blood to us. “We preach Christ crucified …. the power of God and the wisdom of God,” though foolishness to the unbelieving world (1 Cor. 1:23–24). It pleases God, “through the folly” of the cross we preach, “to save those who believe” (1 Cor. 1:21). We find the fruit and benefit of this holy cross poured out in Holy Baptism, spoken in the preaching of Holy Absolution, and delivered in the body and blood given and shed there for us. Thus are we strengthened to take up our crosses, sanctified by His.

Faith Comes from Hearing. A man who was deaf and therefore also had an impediment in his speech was brought to Jesus (Mark 7:31–37). In the same way, all are by nature deaf toward God and therefore also unable to confess the faith rightly. Jesus put His fingers into the man’s ears, and He spat and touched His tongue. Even so in Holy Baptism, water sanctified by the words of Jesus’ mouth is applied to us; and the finger of God, that is, the life–giving Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 3:4–11) is put into our ears in the hearing of the baptismal Gospel. Jesus’ sighing “Ephphatha” opened the man’s ears, and his tongue was loosed to speak plainly as Isaiah prophesied of the Messiah, “In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book” (Isaiah 29:18–24). So also, He who sighed and breathed His last on the cross for us has given us to hear and believe in Him and has opened our lips that our mouths may declare His praise.

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on September 3, 2025. 

The Lord Lifts Up the Lowly. “And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard” (Genesis 4:1–15). For unlike Abel, Cain’s offering did not proceed from a heart that revered and trusted in the Lord. Thus, the lowly tax collector who prayed, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” was the one who went down to his house justified before God, not the respectable, outwardly righteous Pharisee who trusted in himself and his own good living (Luke 18:9–14). The one who penitently despairs of his own righteousness and relies completely on the atoning mercy of God in Christ is the one who is declared righteous. For Christ died for our sins and rose again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:1–10). Therefore, “everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14).

St. Bartholomew, Apostle. Skinned alive! That, according to tradition, is how Bartholomew (called Nathanael in John’s Gospel) was martyred. Christ’s preachers are not to be great lords, but servants who faithfully stay with Christ in His trials (Luke 22:24–30). They are “jars of clay”; the Savior they preach is the “surpassing power” (2 Corinthians 4:7). Christ’s servants are “afflicted in every way,” “always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested” there (2 Corinthians 4:8–10). We bear sufferings not leaning “on [our] own understanding,” but trusting in the Lord (Proverbs 3:5–7). Life will be manifested in our bodies, too, when the Lord brings “healing to [our] flesh and refreshment to [our] bones” in the resurrection (Proverbs 3:8). For this reason, Bartholomew is often depicted holding his flayed skin. He will have need of it on the Last Day — at least for sizing.

The Steward’s Shrewdness Sanctified. “The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness” (Luke 16:1–9). The steward’s shrewdness is praiseworthy for two reasons. First, he knew the master would be merciful. He trusted that the master would honor the debts he forgave in the master’s name. In the same way, though we have squandered our heavenly Father’s possessions in selfishness and sin, Jesus is the Steward who has canceled our debt, knowing that His forgiveness will be honored by the Father because of the holy cross. Secondly, the steward was shrewd in using oil and wheat to provide for his earthly welfare. So also do these earthly elements aid us when pressed into heavenly use in the anointing of baptism and the wheat of the Lord’s Supper. Those who have the Sacraments will have an eternal home when their earthly home fails. These provide us aid in times of temptation (1 Corinthians 10:6–13). For the Lord is our strength and a shield to all who trust in Him.

The sermon was delivered by Reverend President Robert Beinke (President of the New England District - LCMS). Saint Lawrence of Rome was a third-century deacon in the city of Rome who was responsible for distributing alms to the poor on behalf of the church, in accord with St. Paul’s words: “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6). When the Roman prefect came to seize the church’s wealth, Lawrence secretly emptied the church’s treasury by giving it all to the needy. This act enraged the prefect, who sentenced the deacon to be martyred on a gridiron with hot coals beneath it. In life and in death, Lawrence embodied our Lord’s words: “He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25). We join the church in giving thanks to God for Saint Lawrence of Rome. “Our churches teach that the history of saints may be set before us so that we may follow the example of their faith and good works, according to our calling” (Augsburg Confession XXI, 1). 

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on August 3, 2025.Jesus Restores Paradise and Feeds Us Freely. In the Garden of Eden, our first parents received food freely from the gracious hand of God, apart from any burdensome work. But after the fall, food would be received only through toil and labor. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). But the Lord made a promise to His people: “Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your salvation comes’” (Isaiah 62:11). Therefore, Jesus the Messiah came to restore creation. Having compassion on the weary multitudes, He renewed the bounty of Eden on the third day, freely granting an abundance of bread to the 4,000 (Mark 8:1–9). So also our Lord Jesus, having endured the burden of our sin, was raised on the third day to grant us Salvation. He now miraculously turns the bread of death into the Bread of Life in the Sacrament, giving you His very body and blood for your forgiveness. For “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on July 27, 2025.Our Only Hope Is in Christ’s Righteousness. “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). God demands nothing less than perfection from you regarding His commandments (Exodus 20:1–17). Your only hope, then, is not in your own goodness but in the goodness of Christ, who did not come to destroy the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfill them for you. In Christ, your righteousness does indeed exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. For you have been baptized into Christ’s death and your sinful nature crucified. Therefore, he who has died has been freed from sin (Romans 6:3–11). You are now raised with Christ to walk in newness of life and to share in His resurrection on the Last Day. Christ has brought you through the baptismal sea “out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery” (Exodus 20:2). Therefore, “consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on July 20, 2025.Jesus Makes Fishers of Men. The Lord called fishermen to be fishers of men (Luke 5:1–11). The net they would use is the message of the cross, which is foolishness and a stumbling block to the world. The power of God to save is not in spectacular signs like wind and fire and earthquakes (1 Kings 19:11–21), nor is it to be found in human intelligence and wisdom. The power of God to save comes in the still, small voice of the preaching of Christ crucified. In worldly darkness the disciples could catch nothing. But in the light of Christ, whose Word was attached to the water, the boats were filled with fish. So it is that in Baptism you have been drawn in to the ship of the Church. Though the nets are breaking and some who hear the Word do not believe, pastors continue to cast the net of the Gospel and the Sacraments, that Christians may abide in the boat of the Church and that we may be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks a reason for the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:8–15). 

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on July 13, 2025.Christ’s Mercy Is Ours to Show to Others. “Be merciful, even as your Father also is merciful” (Luke 6:36–42). The old Adam in us wants to condemn and seek vengeance. But to condemn, to avenge yourself, is to put yourself in the place of God. It is to fail to trust that He is just. Ultimately, it is to disbelieve that Jesus suffered the full vengeance for all wrongs. Only Christ is merciful as the Father is merciful. He is the one who overcame all evil with the good of His cross, forgiving even His executioners. Jesus is the One who does not condemn but gives life that runs over. Only through faith in Christ are we sons of the Father—being merciful, forgiving, doing good to our enemies. For in Christ we know that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us (Romans 8:8–13).

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on July 11, 2025.

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on July 6, 2025.Jesus Receives Sinners. “This man receives sinners and eats with them” (Luke 15:2). The Pharisees’ statement of judgment against Jesus is in fact a proclamation of Gospel truth. For our God is one who delights in mercy, who casts all our sins into the depths of the sea through the cross (Micah 7:18–20). Those who refuse to be counted as sinners also refuse Jesus who came only for sinners. Those who think they are righteous of themselves, will not join in the heavenly celebration over the sinner who repents and so remain outside of the Father’s house. Let us therefore be on guard against self–righteously trusting in our own merits. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you” (1 Peter 5:6). Rejoice that Jesus receives sinners like us and that He still sits at table with us in the Holy Supper, bestowing His forgiveness and life.

This sermon was delivered by Elder Batson at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on June 29, 2025. St. Peter and St. Paul, Apostles. Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” So confessed St. Peter. And Christ promised to build His Church on it by the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 16:16–19). He does this so we don’t try to build the Church ourselves, on this or that person, or by any human means. The same Lord “who worked through Peter … worked also through” Paul and is still at work in His Gospel and Sacraments (Galatians 2:7–8). The Church of every age must be recalled to hear the word of the gospel—the free forgiveness of sins for Christ’s sake apart from the Law—and believe. The Holy Spirit makes no distinction among men, but cleanses hearts by faith alone. So we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus. Both were imprisoned (Acts 12:1–11), both wrote Scripture, both opposed the world—and sometimes each other—all so “that the truth of the gospel might be preserved” for us (Galatians 2:5). 

This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on June 22, 2025.Faith Trusts in Christ for Life Eternal. When the beggar Lazarus died, he was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. For he was truly a man of faith. The name Lazarus means “God is my help.” The unnamed rich man, on the other hand, did not love and trust in God. For he evidently cared little for the beggar at his gate, forgetting that it is “the LORD your God [who] brings you into the land…to give you…houses full of good things” (Deuteronomy 6:10-11). Because all good that we have comes from the Lord, “he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen” (1 John 4:20). He who loved and trusted in possessions and prestige died and was in torments in Hades (Luke 16:19–31). Repentance and faith are worked only through Moses and the prophets—that is, the Word of God, for it points us to Christ. Only through His death and resurrection are we brought the comfort of life everlasting—this cannot be achieved on our own.