Sermon Texts

September 18, 2022                                        Text:  Psalm 113

Dear Friends in Christ,

    What did the seven dwarfs do for a living?  They worked in a mine, where they mined rubies and diamonds.  They seemed to enjoy their work so much they sang on the way home.  “Heigh ho, heigh ho, it’s home from work we go.”  All my life I thought they sang, “off to work we go” but a lyrical check shows they indeed sang, “it’s home from work we go.”

    Maybe you feel like singing when you go home from work.  Work songs have been a part of life for centuries.  Building railroads, the singing kept the workers in rhythm.  Farm hands and textile workers and other vocations had work songs.  The singing united everyone and kept everyone engaged in their tasks at hand.

    Today we are going to look at Psalm 113 – known as the “praise Psalm.”  It was sung at the beginning of the Passover celebration.  While not exactly a work song, it does convey something important . . .

“GOD’S GRACIOUS WORK”

    “Heigh ho, heigh ho, we look to this work and go.”  God’s gracious work.  The great thing about the work song is how it can tie together an enjoyable thing to do – singing – with something not as fun – a difficult task.  

    Our text also brings two separate things together.  In the opening of the psalm, we start to see attributes that make God – God.  The Lord is enthroned in eternity.  The leaders of nations, kings and queens come and go but the rule of God never ends.  It just always is.  His rule extends everywhere.  East, west, north, south, the Lord is in control.  

    But the Psalm also points out how near God is.  He cares for the poor and needy.  Those who get dinner from a garbage can are those the Lord Almighty notices.  The people who seem insignificant in the world are the ones He marks and claims as His own.

    We are instructed to praise the Lord.  Is this easy for you to do?  Do you have a song in your heart when you look to your Creator?  God the Father Almighty gives you so many things in which to sing His praise.  He sent Jesus, as a man, to pay for your sin and my sin.  He brings joy to the world with his gift of salvation.  He comforts us in suffering and carries our painful burdens.  He chose you.  He chose me.  We are all significant people in the eyes of the Lord.  Sometimes it might seem to us that the good things of the world are overwhelmed by the bad.  But the Lord is not overwhelmed.  He is exalted on high, and He reaches down low with His salvation.

    “Heigh ho, heigh ho, we look to our work and go.”  This psalm guides our work.  Work songs strengthened the bonds of the workers.  This psalm of praise brough together the Jews at Passover.  This psalm invites us to be a part of the community of faith.  

    What events in Scripture would make your top ten list?  The salvation story of Jesus, creation, Adam and Eve, Noah and the ark, the father/son drama of Abraham and Isaac, Moses and the Israelites, David and Goliath, maybe add in Samson, Joseph and his brothers, King David’s life and Paul’s conversion.  Most of us would not include Hannah and the gift of her son Samuel.

    Hannah was barren and in distress.  She went to the temple to pray and was accused by as priest of being drunk.  What she was doing was pouring out her heart to God.  Although her husband did not hear her, though the priest did not understand her, God could hear her and He understood what was happening in her life.  He answered her prayer.  The joy of this child, Samuel, being born brought forth a song of praise to God.  We have a line from that song in our psalm, “He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap, to make them sit with princes, with the princes of his people.” (v. 7-8)

    A minor character from the Bible, through the gracious work of the Lord, binds Israel together.  They saw how He works in the smallest ways to extend His gracious care to His people.  

    “Heigh ho, heigh ho, it is off to work we go.”  Martin Luther knew nothing about the seven dwarfs, but he knew the value of songs as God’s people work.  In our Small Catechism, as Luther teaches people to pray in the morning, he encourages them, after finishing their prayers, to “go joyfully to your work, singing a hymn, like that of the Ten Commandments, or whatever your devotion may suggest.”

    God gracious work – heigh ho, heigh ho.  He rules over all things.  He graciously loves and cares for us.  We sing God’s praise, and He leads us into service for His Kingdom.  “From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!” (v. 3)

                                            Amen.  

September 11, 2022 – Christian Education Sunday                Text:  Deuteronomy 6:4-15

Dear Friends in Christ,

    Who’s your teacher?  When you are in grade school that is a question that comes your way.  Within the past month our young people were finding out who their teacher was going to be for the coming school year.

    On this Christian Education Sunday that is a good question for all of us – “Who’s your teacher?”  Who do we imitate?  Who are our role models?  Who do I like to sound like or dress like or act like?  

    There are many people competing to be our teachers.  They want to instruct you and your family.  They want you to follow their example.  So . . . 

“WHO’S YOUR TEACHER?”

    God has always desired to be the teacher of his people.  He gives this command in the opening verses of our text, “Hear, O Israel:  The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” (vs. 4-5).  God is not making a suggestion.  God knows that what we hear influences what we think and do and believe.  God wants to be your teacher and your children’s teacher.  God wants our ears open and attentive as He speaks His Word to us.  “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.” (v. 6)

    Now we get to a portion of Scripture that has always had an important place for us as parents and grandparents.  “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”  That is a huge responsibility, is it not?

    God gives the primary teaching job to the parent.  Sitting at home – family devotions.  Walking – look around at God’s creation.  Lying down – a Bible story and prayers before bed.  When you rise – prayers for the day, a word of advice.  Bind them on your hand – you live what God’s Word says because “they shall be as frontlets for your eyes.”  Our children are always watching.  Are we living what we are saying?  Do we back up our words with actions?  Who’s our teacher in the eyes of our children and grandchildren?  Write them on the doorposts of our house?  Does your home reflect your Christianity by what is hanging on walls, or on your bookshelf or the words we speak to one another?  

    We stray from this command when we are not proactive.  The world is happy to teach your children and grandchildren.  And they have quite an influence, haven’t they?  If our commitment to Christ and His Church is an hour or two a week, well, there is a lot of time left to fill.  Are we hearing, marking, learning, and inwardly digesting the Word of God?  Is it a prime source of nutrition in your home?  

    God desires that his Word be constantly in front of us.  He desires that the Word fill our homes and our hearts.  Here at Good Shepherd, both young and old hear that Word, which is then meditated upon throughout the week – whether we are sitting or walking or standing or lying down or rising.  It is that Word of God that should be in front of us on a consistent basis.

    In this Word of God, you are receiving great gifts and blessings.  Your mind is being enlightened by the Gospel.  In the Word, the Holy Spirit is working mightily to forgive sins, delivering the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection to you.  In the Word, the Holy Spirit is strengthening your faith.  When you read or hear that Jesus died for your sins, you are not only learning that truth, but in and through these words, Christ’s forgiveness is being given to you.

    I cannot guarantee that if you do all these things that your children will not leave the reservation.  Many of you in the pews this morning are hurting because of this truth.  The world and its ways can be quite the seductress.  You pray for the Holy Spirit’s work.  Then remember this:  you never stop teaching.  With God as your teacher you continue.  Verse 7 says as parents we are to “teach them diligently.”  The Hebrew word is shaman, which is the verb that’s used to describe sharpening a blade by continually running it over a stone.  Through the Word we are sharpened, and we need this sharpening continually.  Sharpened by the Word we can discern truth from error, withstand the attacks of the evil one, and wield the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.  Be strengthened by God’s Word this morning.  Forgiven, loved, able to withstand trial and temptation, He empowers you and I in good works to glorify God and serve our neighbor and family members in love.

    Who’s your teacher?  I pray you know.  God desires to be your teacher and your children’s teacher.

            Amen.       

September 4, 2022                                    Text: Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Dear Friends in Christ,

    A few months back when Roe v Wade was overturned, I was privileged to be part of a webinar that featured brief talks from pro-life leaders throughout our nation.  Over 50 speakers were lined up in just a few days.  They each were given 2-3 minutes, though some went a little longer.  I remember that Tuesday night sitting at the laptop for 2 ½ hours.  

    Two main themes came from almost every speaker.  1).  We thank God for the decision.  2).  There is still more work to do.  Right on both accounts.  The patience of God put in place men and women who understood this was bad law.  As has been proven these last few months those who want a culture of death, led by the devil who is working even harder, will do some evil things to keep their power.

    We are people of the Word of God.  It is easy to get into the political debate and lose the focus.  We have been chosen by God.  We have had breath breathed into us from God the Creator.  Our text is not about abortion, it is about who we are as God’s people.  We do what we do because . . .

“GOD HAS CHOSEN US”

    It is interesting isn’t it how both sides of this issue used v. 19.  One side just takes two simple words, “Choose Life,” and makes it a rallying cry.  The other side can’t print “choose death” on bumper stickers because that isn’t inspiring or wise.  So, they use a form of the word choose and they want to be positive, so it becomes – “pro-choice.”  Clever, right?  Who doesn’t want a choice?  And since 1973 the semantics of those words have been effective.

    In our text the same people God is addressing he once called “stiff-necked.”  But he also said of these people, “The Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your faithers, that the Lord has brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the house of slavery, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.”  (Deut. 7:7-8). They were not chosen because they were special; they were special because they were chosen.

    Peter tells us in the New Testament Church that we are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.” (1 Pet. 2:9)  Let’s go one step further.  Each of you were chosen by God before the foundation of the world.  In baptism, made a child of God.  Each of you is special because you were chosen.

    We’ve got some choices in our text.  Life/death, good/evil.  Fundamentally the choice is this:  trust God or turn away to other gods.  That was a constant problem with Israel.  “If your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them.” (v. 17). This is when the evil and curses will come. 

    We have had a lot of curses on our land as we have continued to de-value life both in utero and with our aging population.  In the last fifty years these are all up:  child abuse, suicides, mass killings.  As we erode the value of life, these are the consequences.

    Has death ever led to life?  Watch your answer.  Jesus chose suffering and death to pay the price we owed God because of our sin and destroyed death once and for all through His resurrection from the dead.  Jesus chose death to rescue us.  Jesus chose you, and you have been baptized into His death and resurrection.

    You have the assurance.  You can trust God because He promises that nothing can separate you from His love.  You can trust God because He promises to work in every aspect of your life.  You can trust God because He loved you so much that he gave His only Son as a payment for your bad choices.  You can trust God because He sets His love upon you every time you receive His Holy Meal. 

    When life is chosen, then generations will live as our text states, “you and your offspring will live.” (v. 19).  Your faith will grow as you obey the voice of the Lord.  Holding fast and clinging to the Lord you dwell in His promises.  Your voice, along with millions of others has made a difference.  You walked for Life, or you spoke out for Life, or you did a vigil in front of a clinic.  You maybe even gave life to a child that was unexpected.  We need to continue to be there for those in life situations.  The issue will always be with us.

    Most of you are aware of my personal story.  One of my Godchildren became pregnant as a teenager before marriage.  She wrote me a very personal letter at the time.  I cried.  Two weeks ago, Toni and I had dinner with this extended family – 12 of us in all.  The child that was born sat right across from me.  She is now a sophomore in high school.  I was privileged to catch up on her life.  She is a tiny person who went out for football last year.  Courage.  You think about these things when you know the backstory.

    Her mother is married with another child and works to help others through her work with the Illinois Department of Child and Family Services.  I am blessed as are others by what the Lord is doing in her life.  

    The prayer is you see the same thing.  You are chosen by God.  Chosen for life.  Chosen to make a difference.  Loved by Creator God for a purpose.  Live knowing that you are His.

                                                Amen.        

August 28, 2022                                  Text:  Proverbs 25:2-10

Dear Friends in Christ,

    Picture the scene.  You are in the lobby of a crowded restaurant.  You have put your name in, and the waiting game begins.  You make small talk and keep glancing at your watch.  After an hour, in a surprise declaration the words you have longed to hear sweeten your ears – “Wienerschnitzel, party of four.”  Nirvana.  Thy table has been prepared.  You may proceed where ordering of food can commence.  You may have a little strut in your step as you walk by the other patrons and think to yourself, “we are the Wienerschnitzels and we have a seat.”

    Does God ever summon you?  Is there a seat for you at God’s banquet table?  God has prepared a never-ending banquet, which he desires to be for all people.  Does He say to you . . .

“HAVE A SEAT”

    In the Book of Proverbs it is always best to focus in on one or two verses when giving a sermon because the Book is written in a way that each verse has its own thought.  We will do that with the text this morning as we take a look at verses 6-7.

    “Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great, for it is better to be told, ‘Come up here.’” (vs. 6-7a).  Those who exalt themselves to God’s banquet table will be humbled.

    You are in the lowest section of the Assembly Hall/State Farm Center watching the action up close of a University of Illinois basketball game.  The problem is the seat you have taken doesn’t correspond with the seat you are supposed to be in.  The seat where even Kofi Cockburn looks small.  Though you can see and hear the game like never before, you are not enjoying yourself.  Then it happens, the moment you have been dreading, the usher taps you on the shoulder, “Sir, I believe you are seating in the wrong seat.  Can I see your ticket?  I’m sorry you must go to the seat on your ticket.”  Embarrassed you make the shameful walk up the concrete stairs to seat you have been able to afford your whole life . . . and the game gets smaller and smaller.

    We are tempted to seat ourselves in God’s presence based on our works.  Our kindness toward others.  Our faithful church attendance, our perpetually giving to the church and we even serve on a church board.  Give me a seat, Lord.  On top of that we are following the Lord’s commands and we love our family.  That has to merit a better vantage point, right?

    But aren’t we just in lock step with the world?  Self-glorifying is everywhere.  Hard work means I move up the ladder.  We’ve earned it and we deserve it and if I am being honest here, I am not as bad as the person I am sitting next to.

    Our pride and arrogance leave us shocked that our works do not merit a place in God’s kingdom.  Paul writes, “For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse.” (Gal. 3:10). “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.” (Gal 5:4).  These words put us in our place.  It’s true, we are guilty.

    God exalts to his banquet table those who are humbled.  “It is better to be told, ‘Come up here,’ than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.” (v. 7).  Stranded in our sin and banned from the eternal banquet, we are confronted with and humbled by our inability to seat ourselves in God’s presence.  Before God, we slink to the lowest place and confess our sins.

    God does not leave us in despair.  He clothed himself in human flesh so that He might defeat death and devil and deliver us from their power.  He was made like us in every way so that he could satisfy God’s wrath for our sins.  He is able to sympathize with our weaknesses but maintained the righteousness we cannot.  He allowed himself to be placed “outside the gate”, driven out of the city and crucified, to sanctify us by His blood.

    Clinging to Christ in faith, God graciously says, “Have a seat in my Kingdom.”  “Come up here.”  To the font and be washed in baptismal waters.  “Come up here.”  Receive forgiveness and be reconciled to Me and one another.  “Come up here.”  Hear my Word and the Holy Spirit will create in you a new heart.  “Come up here.”  Eat and drink at my table.  Feast on the abundance of My house.  “Come up here.”  Remain in My presence forever.  Never be separated from Me, and rejoice in the unending life I have given you.

    The breathing is a little labored as you have climbed to your seat at the Assembly Hall/State Farm Center.  It is hard to follow the ball and the sounds echo.  Then a hand touches your shoulder.  It is an usher in an orange blazer.  Your seat number has been chosen and you have been given another place to sit.  Down and down you go.  The players are getting larger, the sound has less of an echo.  You have dreamed of this moment for a lifetime.  You are given a seat you could never afford.  You can hear the bounce of the ball and see the intensity of the game.  You have a  seat.  Orange and blue boy…do you have a seat.

    The Lord motions with his finger to you:  “Come here!”  And you are thrilled.  You do step toward Him with eager anticipation, because He’s told you and you know:  through Jesus Christ, you do have a seat at God’s eternal banquet table.

                                Amen.       

August 21, 2022                                          Text:  Luke 13:22-30

Dear Friends in Christ,

    How many doors did you go through this week?  Let’s make a list.  Bathroom door.  Garage door.  Car door.  House door.  Basement door.  Workplace door.  Grocery door.  Restaurant door.  Retail establishment door.  Gas station door.  Church door.  Maybe a hospital or doctor or dentist door.  Barn door.  Bar door.  And how many of you married men walked right through the door to your wife’s heart?!

    One can assume all these doors were open.  But we have all had the experience of a locked door.  It was my last year of seminary; Toni and I were engaged.  Christmas 1990 we had gone to Wisconsin for two days of Lueck family Christmas.  Toni had to be back to work on the 26th so we had to leave Reedsburg, Wisconsin and make the 6 ½ hour trip back to Ft. Wayne, Indiana.  These were the days of being young and carefree.  We didn’t really care how late we left.  With me being a late night being and Toni a morning aficionado, we lost her somewhere east of Chicago.  I was fine until about an hour out of Ft. Wayne.  Heat in the car, good music and my eyelids are drooping.  Time to stick my head out the window and let that 20-degree air keep me awake.  Finally, we make the seminary and I can get to bed.  Except the door is locked.  Middle of the night, Christmas, no one around.  This is no fun.  Toni lived with a family on a farm and accommodations were made.

    It is disappointing when doors are locked.  Let’s take that image with us as we explore our text.  We have a question poser to begin, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” (v. 23)  This was a common debate back then.  It is still debated today.  Who is going to be saved?  What is the standard for salvation?  Will those who haven’t heard the Gospel get a pass?  The person was essentially asking about themselves.  Let’s focus on that.  You are here.  You are listening.

“WILL YOU BE SAVED?”

    Jesus answers, “Strive to enter through the narrow door.  For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” (v. 24). The reality of the Savior once again comes through.  There will a lot of souls that will not pass through to eternity.  Not only is this true but Jesus answers this way to get our attention.  He doesn’t want us to have a comfortable Christianity.  He does want us to have trust in His promise.

    Striving or effort can be translated in the Greek as “agony.”  There is going to be struggle in the Christian life.  Paul uses the same word in 1 Timothy 6:12 in asking us to “fight the good fight of the faith.”  Following Jesus takes some effort.

    John Bunyan wrote the classic book Pilgrim’s Progress.  It follows a man named Christian, who is tormented by spiritual anguish.  A spiritual guide name Evangelist urges him to leave the City of Destruction and he tells him only salvation can be found in the Celestial City of Mt. Zion.  He gets tempted by distractions and shortcuts.  He perseveres.  The gatekeeper Goodwill gets him on the “straight and narrow” King’s Highway.  It is revealed later in the book that Goodwill is Jesus Himself.

    Don’t we also look for the easy way out?  Don’t we get distracted?  Don’t we despair?  Yet, Jesus helps us to persevere.  He agonizes with us so that the narrow door can be opened.  

    But beware that the door also closes.  This is the warning, “’Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’” (v. 25b)  That is frightening.

    Don’t ignore the open door.  Don’t let time and family problems and financial challenges and world events and your health get your mind off the Savior.  The narrow door is there.  Strive through the work of the Holy Spirit to recognize it.

    What is the greatest open door of all time?  The Easter tomb.  “No one is here.”  The death and resurrection of Jesus means that this narrow door is open to us.  Many of us each year go through “open enrollment” to decide on a health plan.  But this is not unlimited.  For the Concordia Plan here at church it lasts about 40 days.  Even God’s Church has limits.  You don’t get enrolled on time, and you can be in healthcare hell.

    The same is true for our salvation.  The narrow door is only open so long.  Once closed, the only other option is hell.  There are those who are going to be disappointed thinking they had more time as they wasted their life away.

    Let’s ask it again:  “Will You Be Saved?”  How can you be saved?  Salvation comes through knowing Jesus.  The rejected hear, “I never knew you.”  To know Jesus is to know him intimately and personally in His Word and Sacrament.  Jesus has opened that door to have that relationship with you through his death on the cross.  In John 10, Jesus is declared the door and that “if anyone enters by (him), he will be saved.” (v. 9).  He has laid down his life for you . . . and to be known by you.  The door stands open.  The invitation remains.  Don’t ignore the open door.

    Amen.      

July 31, 2022                                Text:  Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-26

Dear Friends in Christ,

    Years ago the Chicago Tribune did an article on the creator of the “Dilbert” comic strip.  Reporter Jane Meredith Adams writes:  “In an office just slightly bigger than a cubicle, Scott Adams transforms tales of idiotic bosses and meaningless empowerment teams into Dilbert, the chinless comic-strip hero to millions of confined workers.

    “Since Adams published his internet address . . . he has been deluged with questions from readers who wonder how he knows the exact level of ineptitude with which their company operates.  It’s because he has been there.  Adams endured 17 years of cubicle employment – most recently as an applications engineer with Pacific Bell.

    “I don’t think I’ll ever forget what it feels like to sit in a cubicle,” says the cartoonist, “and realize you’ve been there for eight hours . . . and everything you did today will become unimportant in the next reorganization.”

    While our ESV version translates the word as “vanity” the NIV translates it as “meaningless.”  “Everything is Meaningless.”  The basic thrust of the Book of Ecclesiastes is that life is futile, useless, and hollow if lived apart from God.  Only when living for God and His Word does life have meaning.  Where are you?

“WHAT ARE YOU CONVEYING TO THE WORLD?”

    These seem like strange words coming from the Bible.  Isn’t the Bible supposed to lift us out of despair?   The writer of Ecclesiastes, seems just a little despondent.  He isn’t manic-depressive.  He was inspired to write these words by the Holy Spirit.  They are designed to teach us a powerful truth about life in this sinful world.

    When the writer speaks about “under the sun” or “beneath the sun” he is equating this to life apart from God.  Therefore, he hates his toil.  He despises his labor.  He experiences sorrow.  His heart cannot rest at night.  Man, then sees life as meaningless.  One big puzzle with no final piece.  The everyday routine makes no sense.

    This is the existence so many are conveying to the world.  With nothing long-term to live for people are questioning their toil and labor.  With no faith in the end game, people are cutting their lives short.  Without hope, men and women just live for themselves and the next party.  Let’s just legally dope it up and have a good time.  It’s not gonna last and this too is meaningless.  They are walking in a desert with no water in sight.  They eventually dry up as dust in the wind.

    When mankind cannot understand creation as it is related to the Creator, nothing makes sense.  Unless God rescues man from this predicament, everything dissolves into meaninglessness.  Only God can bring reconciliation.  He reaches out to us.

    God is only understood in the context of the cross at Calvary.  Meaning is found in God alone as He chooses to reveal Himself.  Even our text says, “the hand of God, for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?” (v. 24b-25)

    We struggle with this and the message we convey isn’t so great at times.  We can pursue all the wrong things at the wrong times.  Most can admit they get depressed and worried about the cares of this world.  Recently, it has been magnified in our response to Christ.  When we start to show cracks in our trust level with God then the devil is ready to pounce.  

    God hasn’t given up.  He knows things have meaning.  He knows you have meaning.  He rescues that which has fallen into ruin.  God didn’t retreat from the world.  He sent His Son into it.  Jesus wasn’t just a moral teacher ready to show us a path.  The Son of God is beyond our life under the sun.  He lived under the fiery sun for us.  Remember how parched He was on the cross?  He needed a drink.  That living water he spilled on Calvary washes over you now.  It gave you life in Baptism.  It refreshes.  It quenches.  It works deep into your soul.  

    Jesus came as a ransom for many and to forgive us for chasing after the wind.  He rose from the depths of the grave to grant unto us new life in Him.  We now interpret everything in our lives in the context of God and His gift of salvation.  We know the end game.  It gives our lives meaning.

    Is that what you are conveying to the chasers of wind?  Life is not like a painting; it does not stand still.  If we live that way, then life just passes us by.  It is not to be captured.  Life is to be enjoyed. When people see less worry in our lives, at this time in history, wow what a difference it can make.  Do you see the opportunities?  God has given us the gift of life, and those who are wise will live in that gift, trusting in the greater life given to them by God the Father in Jesus Christ, his Son.

                    Amen.