St. Paul's Lockport Sermons

He seeks their willing desire, as Christians, to walk and please God as he had already taught them, and in fact to do so more and more. After the catechism, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, there is really not more concepts to learn, but we come into the deeper knowledge of these things and of our own weaknesses. When Paul tells them “you know the commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus” he means the basic teaching that he and Silas taught the Thessalonian church while he was with them. They have been instructed how to live, how to believe, and how to pray, as have we.

Think of yourself as a sailor, you are on a sinking ship in this world, your only hope is to appeal to the one who controls the storm, and who has given you a word of command. Pray with great reverence that you may be able to follow Him.

The heart of the devil's temptation is for Christ to deny His Sonship to the Father. In a similar way, we are also tempted to deny the sonship we have received in baptism.

There is a temptation, a lie, that the devil will tell every Christian, that many of us in fact fall for again and again. He will tell us that repentance is something that is easy. He will convince us that we can sin, we don't need to worry about sin, because we can always repent in the end. When we are in temptation and holding that decision in our mind, and know what we might do is sin, the devil will sidle up to us and whisper in our ear. He will say, “What's the worst that can happen? Suppose you sin, it is no big deal to return to God, to confess, to be sorry, to say, Lord have mercy. Just do those easy steps and God will forgive you, pardon your sins, and save your soul.”

Many of us have things in life we would like to do that we put off until it is easier. For some this can be the Christian life and its duties. We look at the parable of the soils and think that those who produce the fruit of faith must have an easy life with attacks of the devil, affliction, or temptations of the world. This is completely untrue, as Christ faced all these things, so must Christians. When we are humbled and brought to our lowest place, there God answers us, "my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

Mark, Joseph, and baby Jesus appear to be just another poor Jewish family in the temple, giving the sacrifice for the dedication of the firstborn. Simeon, with the eyes of faith, sees in this six-week-old Jesus the coming King, and the suffering that He and His mother will face.

What is spiritual idleness? Refusing to do the work that is needed. Where do we find this work? In the Ten Commandments. Where is our spiritual job board? Look in your catechism at the table of duties. Not everyone who does physical work is doing spiritual work, but everyone who does spiritual work will be doing something physical, and in real time. 

He takes us to our own mount to be with him. Every communion is a heavenly mountaintop experience. But we are not alone. As Peter James and John were together so we come with other believers. We are strengthened in fellowship with one another as we are strengthened by His body and blood. We as strengthened as One Body under Christ, our Head.

What do you think about Jesus? Who do men say that He is? Who do you say that He is?In the beautiful climes of Caesarea Philippi, with snowy Mt. Hermon gazing down upon them, Jesus asks these questions of his disciples. They have been with Jesus for years. He healed the sick, cast out demons, and raised the dead. He preached repentance and the coming of the kingdom of God. Thousands have followed him. Few are fully dedicated to being his disciples. Others hate him and want Him to die. So who is He?

If the Father speaks from heaven at the baptism of Jesus saying, "This is My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased," then we should take these words to heart. This is an epiphany of Jesus Christ as the only Son of God, we would do well to worship Him. What He does follows the Father's will exactly, and we would do well to believe in and do what He does. It is imperative for us also to become beloved sons of God, which we are, being joined to Him in baptism.

This love He has for His mother and father is no less for all lost sinners. We don't find Jesus in the place of our plans. We find Him in the place of the cross, because that is the place of His love for us. We must start at the cross where we see how serious our sin is, that it would cause this death. We see how great His love is, that He would do this for our life. And we do this not just once, but come back again and again.

The gifts of the wise men were just the first payment – tribute to a king who could not repay them back in gold or silver. But he pays with his own precious blood. He purchases and redeems us for His kingdom, and people from all over the world, in a way we never could.The Lord's kingdom shall expand through the church and the preaching of the gospel to be the greatest in the world. Not in worldly riches, but wealth in souls and in good deeds. What Christ can accomplish as king is beyond any king in the world in extent or endurance. Store up treasures in heaven for this kingdom.

What do we do with suffering? Suffering is a part of life. Since we live in a sinful world, we will never completely avoid suffering in this life. Yet the common wisdom is to just “avoid suffering.” That's good enough as far as it goes, we certainly don't want to try to suffer, do we? But what do we do when we must suffer? Matthew gives us a very good example with the early life of Jesus, and our epistle from St. Peter will lead us as well.

Then let us also be all the more diligent to receive our inheritance. If you would resolve anything in the new year, resolve this. Resolve to live in the name and inheritance which you have been given. Put to death those sins which are foreign to who you are. Christ has already cut off those things by baptism, in the circumcision of your heart. Live honoring the name which you have been given, the name of Jesus Christ. Remind yourself of this promise, and make good use of the sacraments for the strengthening of your heart. 

In Revelation 14, God gives us an image of how He sees the church, with Christ, the Lamb, as it's strength and head. This is to comfort us, as the devil works through the sins of men to attack the saints and the innocent, and to strengthen us, a God redeems sinful men to protect and help the saints and innocent in both body and soul.

Jesus Christ, the baby in the manger, is the eternal Word, the source of all creation. He is the eternal Light, who enlightens the dark hearts of men to know God. He is the eternal tabernacle, who has sacrificed himself to redeem us, so that God may dwell with us.

To those who were at the birth of Christ, it appeared as nothing more than the birth of an ordinary child. To those who believed the preached word of God, this birth became something more more marvelous, the coming of the Savior, the Son of God.

The Israelites said they did not want God to talk to them on Mount Horeb, but Moses, a man, to speak for God. God said this was good. Moses prophesied a prophet like him would one day come from the midst of the Israelites, who spoke a new and greater Word of God - the gospel. This prophet is Jesus, the incarnate Son of God.

Ruth and Naomi find their hope fulfilled in the work of Boaz, their kinsman redeemer. Ruth bears Obed, who would be the ancestor of the great Redeemer born in Bethlehem, Emmanuel, Jesus Christ.

In a world where it seems like Jesus isn't ruling, where His church isn't very impressive, one can wonder - where is Jesus? How do we know if we have come to the right place? We need to trust his word that Jesus has called men in his church to be His servants and stewards of the mysteries of God.

"This is what happens for Christians who live in hope and faith. It shines through in good works. It was not just the works that Boaz saw, but the faithfulness of Ruth. He sees in her someone who has taken refuge under the wings of the Lord. Ruth is someone who trusts in God. She is not Israelite by birth, but is a true member of Israel, a true child of Abraham, in her trust in God.Likewise, trusting in God, our good works shine through. We must first know that God is well-disposed to us, and this is only through the gospel of Jesus, that he has shed his blood and redeemed us from our sins. Then we can have faith and hope in God. Then we can do truly good works through which God does eternal work to serve our neighbors. That is life in Christian hope."

When it comes to many things in scripture, we often try not to think about it. We stay on our little islands on the parts of the gospels we like, familiar Bible stories, comforting verses, and the 23rd Psalm. All these are good, but there is something for us in the roiling waves of the more perplexing and even scary parts of scripture. As Paul is telling us today in Romans, it all comes together in Jesus. The scriptures are a book of hope in Christ, and in every part of them we should be encouraged in hope.

In chapter 1 of Ruth, God is showing that He can create blessing out of the bitterest circumstances, even when caused by our own sin. Crosses we bear make hope a difficult thing. Because God has visited His people in Jesus Christ, our Savior, Christians always have a certain hope.

When our introit today says “Let no one who waits on you be ashamed” we don't mean that we are waiting for the baby born in Bethlehem. When we pray “stir up your power, O Lord, and come,” we don't mean that we are like the Old Testament prophets waiting for a Messiah who will save us, not yet fully seeing Him. When we sing today at the Lord's Supper, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” we are not just pretending to be those people in Jerusalem welcoming our Lord sitting on a donkey.

Jesus is our help, but He is not just a means to our own ends. He will answer our prayers in the way that will best bring us closer to Him. Sometimes that's a yes, sometimes that a no.The Samaritan leper did not just ask Jesus for help to get on with his life. Upon being healed, he saw that Jesus truly IS life. 

People can put demands on God that he does not make them wait. Yet God made many wait – David still worked as a shepherd for years after being anointed king. The apostles had to wait 50 days for the holy spirit to come after Jesus rose. Instant gratification culture creates anxiety and frustration when forced to wait. The Word takes time. God takes time to form us in faith. The foolish never receive because they do not wait or ask in faith. 

God is not holding back his return because He is unable, or forgot, or any other human weakness. Time is nothing to Him. The Lord desires all to be saved, and if Christ is tarrying in His return and the final judgment, it is because there are some still who He wishes to save before the end. What scoffers disregard as weakness of God, or proof of nonexistence, because of their fear, is actually His great love for them.

It is very easy for people to live their lives as if there is not a Second Coming. Things that are far away are easy to put out of one's mind. That is why when tragedies happen in our sinful world, Jesus wants us to pull back our thoughts to repentance and faith. He wants us to consider the end, and our end.Even if we will not all live to the second coming of Christ, it is destined for every man to die, and then the judgment. As Paul explains to the Thessalonians in the epistle reading, even those who have died before Christ's return will on the last day be awakened for it. So the second coming of Christ is something that involves every person of every time and place.

Jesus Christ gives to his saints the certain hope of the resurrection. The scriptures testify to the hope throughout the Old and New Testaments. This hope purifies us in this life, looking forward to the final day when we will see God face to face.

While there have been many reformations in the church, the distinctive of the Lutheran reformation, and why we celebrate it, is because it returned the church to scripture as our final authority in all things, which led to a restored understanding of salvation by grace through faith alone. We can see an example of that kind of reformation in the Old Testament, when the book of the Law is discovered in King Josiah's reign.

What are the essential gifts which Christ gives to His church?

Memorial service for Susanna Joy Anastasia Antonetti, unborn daughter of Pastor and Karin Antonetti. Sermon by Rev. Dan Greg, Zion Lutheran Church, Bensenville, Illinois.

Jesus connects to the parable of the one taking the seats at the feast. He is referencing the Proverbs reading we heard as the Old Testament today. We know that if you set yourself higher than you really are, you can be humbled and pushed to a lower place. If you sit lower than you should, you may receive the honor of being brought up higher. The highest seat is not determined by where you seat yourself but where the master of the house seats you. Your place is not determined by exalting yourself but where God puts you. Remain humble and submit to his judgment – how? By valuing others greater than yourself.

Christ bore the cross for us, and we Christians have to bear our crosses. Many times Christians are living their lives and things are going well, when we are hit with a brick wall of a cross. St. Paul prays for the Ephesians that they do not lose heart or despair because of his crosses. He shows us that prayer is the remedy for despair.

But Mammon is the ruler of worry and can hide in many forms. He can look like being economical or thrifty. Mammon can rule someone who says they are just trying to do their work to get by, be conscientious and responsible. We can hide mammon worship in many different ways, but Jesus comes and rips off the mask of our false virtue. He hits hard with this – “do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what will will put on.” 

Let us then be bold like Christ and Matthew and say, follow Christ. Understand that true mercy is to tell the truth of the gospel – repentance and forgiveness of sins in Christ. People must be brought to recognize their disease – they are sinners and cannot save themselves. Then they can receive the doctor – a divine Physician who only comes for sinners. A doctor who heals every patient and is partial to no one, spurns no one who recognizes their sin.

How did Jesus know when His earthly ministry was finished and it was time to go to the cross? Some Greeks came and said, "Sir we wish to see Jesus." Jesus must die on the cross, be lifted up to draw all peoples to himself. He must die and rise so that all who die in Him can live eternally. "Where my servant is, there will I be also." If the world hated Christ, it will hate His servants. If Christ has eternal life, His servants will be with Him.

“Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” If we must become like children to receive the kingdom of God, and we receive the kingdom by faith, then children must be able to have faith! It is essential that we bring children to Jesus that they receive faith by the Holy Spirit in baptism and grow in faith for their entire lives.

Today we have an excellent example in the lectionary of a pairing between the gospel reading and the Old Testament. At first, it may seem like a parable of Jesus isn't very like Cain and Abel, one of the oldest accounts from the book of Genesis. We can look closer and see that Jesus is pulling a very similar theme to what he had Moses record thousands of years before. We have in both two men coming to pray, one is heard by God, and one is not. The one who seems greater in the world's eyes is humbled, and the one who seems lower is exalted. For both, we can say, he who exalts himself, will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Abel is righteous before God. The tax collector is justified. 

If you did a search by name “Bartholomew” in your Bible, you would not find much on him. He is listed as one of the twelve apostles in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Acts. The Augsburg confession says that we remember the saints in our church in order that we may emulate their faith and example, according to our callings. What is Bartholomew's example, being on some lists?

Guest sermon by Rev. Rich Bellas

Guest sermon by Rev. Richard Bellas

Today in the gospel reading, we have Jesus saying to us, and to Joan, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” While Joan worked hard in her life, now she has come to her final rest. Her funeral today is a confession of that rest. 

God gave Adam a home, but Adam sought "freedom" outside of God's Word in the wilderness. Christ comes into our wilderness and feeds us, gives us a home. Holding to Christ, we have an eternal home today in the church which will last into eternity when Christ returns.

There is a common misconception that because of Jesus, there is no law. But Jesus says, "I have not come to abolish the law, but fulfill it." and "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." How do we obtain that higher righteousness?

What does the Christian life look like when we are brought into the ship by the gospel? We live in concord, of one mind, having compassion, loving as brothers, tenderhearted, humble-minded. This is how Christ feels about us. From His compassion He has saved us, so we live in this way toward our brothers.

Last week, we heard about the God who finds the lost, that the angels, all heaven, and true Christians rejoice when the lost is found. No one should begrudge those who have turned from their wicked way and come to God in repentance. Such a brother should receive forgiveness and reconciliation.Since we only agree with that in the general case, this week's lessons push on us a little bit. When it's generic sinners and tax collectors we are fine, but does God really want us to be merciful to that person?

In three parables, Jesus shows himself to be the one who seeks and saves the lost. All who love Jesus and love the Father rejoice in what God rejoices in. Only the older brother does not rejoice. Every Christian must realize that he is a prodigal, received by the Father, and rejoice in what the Father rejoices in as his brothers are saved the same way in the forgiveness won by Jesus Christ.

Mary's Magnificat is an example of faith in thanksgiving that the Lord would turn his face to her, a humble virgin deserving of nothing, and lift her to be the mother of her Lord.

The church is founded on the confession of Peter and the apostles, "You are the Christ, the son of the living God." To be apostolic is to be built on that Word of God.

The story of the rich man and Lazarus shows us that only the Word of God, Moses and prophets can bring people to faith. Miracles, even resurrection, without the Word do not create belief. A good life does not mean the person will be grateful to God and believe, nor does a bad life mean God has forgotten us. If we want to be carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom when we die, we must only trust in Jesus Christ, our only hope in life and death.