Sermon Texts

September 22, 2019                                                                         Text:  Luke 16:1-15

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Money can be a temptress.  It gives you freedom but it also paralyzes you.  When you have it you think you can relax and enjoy it.  But it calls the shots.

            The manager in our parable this morning understood this better than most.  He had been cooking the books, skimming some funds, breaking the 7^th Commandment.  He worked to justify it – overworked and underpaid.  He needs it more than his master.  It is going to help him solve his dilemma.  Or is it?  It is a good question to ask ourselves . . .

“DO YOU TRUST THE MOOLAH OR THE MASTER?”

            You can’t trust false gods and money is a false god.  It doesn’t care about you or love you.  It will leave you.  This is what happens to the manager.  His money is abandoning him and so what now?  He has to find something else to put his trust in.  What will it be?

            This manager is desperate.  He’s stuck.  “I can’t dig, I’m ashamed to beg.”  He worked a lifetime, even if crooked to get to this point.  Even if you haven’t been in his position, you understand this could be you by tomorrow morning or by this time next year.

            The manger gets fired.  No longer legally authorized to conduct business.  Notice something here; the master does not throw him in jail.  He could have but he doesn’t.  This guy could have been escorted out the door by security like in today’s world.  Instead the manager meanders back and gets the books.

            This generosity by the master gives him a little time.  He has choices at his disposal.  The best option – bank on the master’s reputation for being exceedingly generous.  Trusting in the master’s money is gone.  He must now trust the master, the one thing he should have trusted in all along.

            He calls in the master’s clients.  They don’t know he’s been fired.  With each person in debt he cancels about eighteen months of wages.  But did you notice he has them change the amount?  It happens in their handwriting, not his.  This is important because when he returns the books to the master, the master will notice two things:  first, the debts have been lowered, and second, his debtors know about it, because it is their handwriting.  Genius.

            The master sits back in his chair and figures he is going to win businessman of the year.  He is the most generous landowner in the county.  Facebook and Twitter are on fire with the news of this swell fella.

            What will a normal landlord do?  He will walk into the celebration party and announce, “I didn’t authorize this.  This man is a crook.  I will be expecting your regular payments at the beginning of the month.”  Most creditors would do this.  It is what you would do, right?  But this master doesn’t do this and the manager’s plan doesn’t collapse.  This master is generous.  It is part of who he is.

            He commends the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.  Well-played Harris.  When the ship was sinking he knew where to jump.  He used the master’s generosity to his advantage proving that “it’s not what you know; it’s who you know.”

            What is the moral of the story for us?  What point is Jesus making?  “Make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into eternal dwellings.” (v. 9)  You’ve got money.  Many of us have significant amounts.  Use it wisely, Jesus says, for the work of His Kingdom so that more souls can go to heaven.  There will be people in heaven who are there to thank you and welcome you because God used your offering and the work of the Holy Spirit to get them there.  He made it so your money would have eternal returns.

            We don’t labor under a master who is hard and cruel.  We labor under a generous master.  Whether you have been faithful in your use of money or have wasted it, your Master is still good.  He loves you and sees you through.  You will be saved and have your eternal reward because of the generosity of your Master.

            Your Master?  Jesus Christ.  He loves and forgives sinners.  We receive more than earthly wealth and goods.  He gives you His body and blood on the cross to save you.  You don’t have to make back payments to receive this bounty.  You don’t need to do anything; you don’t even need to be wise.  You just need to know which way to jump when your ship is sinking.  You jump and let the grace of God in Jesus catch you.

            If your stuck and don’t know what to do or where to go – too weak to dig and too ashamed to beg – don’t trust your moolah but turn to the Master.  Grab hold of the generosity of your Father in heaven.  Truly shrewd stewards are Christians who trust in the generosity of the Lord.  Plead the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, his death and resurrection, and it’s yours.

            You are going to be okay.  You are going to make it, dear Christian.  Your Master loves you, indeed.

                                                Amen.   

September 15, 2019                                                                              Text:  Luke 15:1-7

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Fred Rogers – also known as Mr. Rogers had a program on Public Television for a number of years called, “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood.”  “Won’t you be my neighbor.”  I read that someone was blaming Mr. Rogers for the selfishness of a generation because he told children “they were special.”  The thought being that the world owes them something because they are “special.”

            The reruns of the show still show up on PBS.  I find the show, just like watching Bob Ross paint quite relaxing.  It is a stretch to blame Mr. Rogers for selfishness.  It is easier to point at Mr. and Mrs. Parent, but that theory also has holes.  The simple reality is this, we are sinful, which shows itself in our selfishness and blaming everybody for the way I am.

            You can rant and rave about this world all you want.  Heartburn today.  Heart attack tomorrow.  Subject to change without notice.  You can get mad.  You can deny it.  But one thing you can’t do . . .

“YOU CAN’T BLAME MR. ROGERS FOR WHO OR WHAT YOU ARE”

            We always point to the Scriptures when discussing these themes because it applies to everyone.  “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3:23)  “No one living is righteous before you,” writes the Psalmist. (Ps. 143:2b) 

            Everybody has the same two choices.  They are quite clear in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.  We can either see ourselves as more wonderful and less sinful than others or we can get on our knees, look up to heaven and say, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

            Which are you?  Where do you stand?  Self-righteous or a sinner in his or her sin?  Who do you blame for . . . well . . . whatever has brought guilt and inner conflict in your life?

            “Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear Jesus.  And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, ‘This man receives sinners and eats with them.’” (v. 1-2)

            You can’t read the Gospels and not see that Jesus is reaching into the lives of those with a sense of guilt and sin.  He is there for those dealing with discouragement and death, suffering and pain.  Jesus said this:  “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” (Lk. 19:10)

            Stan Mooneyham years ago was walking a trail in East Africa with some friends when he became aware of a wonderful odor.  “He looked up in the trees and around at the bushes in an effort to discover where it was coming from.  Then his friends told him to look down at the small blue flower growing along the path.  Each time they crushed the tiny blossoms under their feet, more of its sweet perfume was released into the air.  Then his friends said, ‘We call it the forgiveness flower.’

            “This forgiveness flower does not wait until we ask forgiveness for crushing it.  It does not release its fragrance in measured doses or hold us to a reciprocal arrangement…it merely lives up to its name and forgives – freely, fully, richly.”

            I find that an illustration of Christ’s love for us.  “He receives sinners and eats with them.”  The people that marched Him to Calvary are welcomed.  We – whose sins crushed Him – are forgiven and embraced by God forever.  Here in His Word and at the Holy Supper and at the baptismal font.  We come with the unworthy and undeserving and He grants forgiveness of all our sin and He has secured a place for each of us in eternity.

            “So he told them this parable:  ‘What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?  And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.  Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.’” (v. 3-7)

            Ever think of heaven rejoicing over you when God brought you into His fold?  Christianity isn’t some psycho-babble to help us get comfortable with the world.  Its repentance, friends.  It’s daily repentance.  It is also a struggle sometimes we forget that.  In the struggle we can run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

            Ancient Greek poetry tells of a warrior, the hero of Troy, dressed in all his military armor, stretching out his arms to embrace his son before going into battle.  His child was frightened as he looked at the helmet and full military dress, and instead of falling into his father’s arms he screamed in terror.  However, under all the battle array was hidden a heart of fatherly love.  The warrior threw off his armor, gathered his little boy in his arms, and held him tightly against his chest where he could hear the beating of his father’s heart, as if saying, “I love you, I love you.”

            That is how God revealed himself to us in the person and work of Jesus.  He still does in Word, water, bread, wine.  Christ rejoices over us.  When things don’t go the way you want, or thought, or expected – don’t blame Mr. Rogers.   Be thankful you belong to God through faith in Christ.           Amen.   

Sept. 8, 2019 – Christian Education Sunday                                Text:  2 Peter 3:14-18

Dear Friends in Christ,

            God loves growth.  He loves growth in people.  The human body is designed for growth.  Various growth hormones are released at special times in the human life cycle so that children grow.  There are growth plates in bones.  As the growth plates lengthen, bones, skin, muscles, tendons, and ligaments grow with the bones.  In addition, God has placed in our minds an insatiable curiosity that spurs our brains to grow and expand in knowledge.

            God also love spiritual growth in His people.  How do we measure that?  When the body grows or people expand their knowledge we can see it or quantify in testing.  Spiritual growth not so much.

            Our text is a reminder to us today that God desires growth, causes growth, and directs growth, so that His children of all ages may grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Yes . . .

“GOD LOVES GROWTH”

            Growth always requires an outside source of power.  Plants need sunlight.  Bodies need food.  The mind needs educational experiences to grow.  We need the power of God to grow spiritually.  “I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)  Connected to Jesus through baptism, remaining in Jesus through His Word, strengthened in Jesus through the body and blood in the Sacrament of the Altar, there is power for growth.  We need the light emanating from the Son of God.  We can grow only by grace.

            Do ever thank God that in His grace He sticks with you?  You break His heart.  You skirt His laws.  You turn away from His Word.  You abuse your God-created body.  You listen to the world.  You do this over and over.  He should let you go.  He can’t rely on you.  You have disappointed Him so many times.  He doesn’t do that, does He?  No, He keeps loving you like the prodigal son or daughter that you are.  His love doesn’t make sense.  It plays on our mind.  How can someone love us this much?  How can a Father sacrifice His Son for a worm such as I?

            His Scriptures remind us.  When He forgave and healed the paralyzed man, it was His grace in action.  He showed grace when he invited Zacchaeus to come down from the sycamore tree.  He showed grace when he fed the masses.  He showed grace when He went to the cross and died for us.  He multiplied that grace for eternity by rising from the dead. 

            That grace is ours.  The Lord provides direction for our lives.  His grace enables us to be graceful to those in our household.  His grace enables us to be patient with that trying co-worker.  His grace inspires our compassion toward a neighbor in need.

            The best way to get to know Jesus is to listen to Him.  We literally sit at His feet when we hear the Scriptures read publicly, when we engage in the Pastor’s sermon, when we study the Word of God in a group, when we have a devotion.  “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me. . . My sheep listen to my voice.” (John 10:14 & 27)  In hearing the voice of Jesus we get to know Him better.

            We see the joy of Jesus at a wedding turning water to wine.  We see him calm in stressful situations whether in the midst of a mob or in a storm tossed boat.  We see him relaxed with his disciples or in the midst of prayer.  We see him comfort the dead and their families.  We see Him face His own death.  We see His consistency through His love and grace.  He loves us in the same way.

            Our Christian Education is constantly evolving but are we growing?  Do we have an answer for the agnostic or the atheist?  Can we give a coherent message of God’s grace to a hurting family member?  When a friend wants to know about your Christian faith, what words come to mind?  If we don’t feed our bodies, they will not grow.  We don’t just snack on the Word of God when it fits our purpose.  It’s a meal.  It’s a daily meal.  It is a lifetime meal. 

            Step up and be fed.  We commit ourselves and our congregation to growth.  God loves growth, hey didn’t I hear that somewhere?  He loves spiritual growth.  God helps us grow through the power and direction that come from Jesus.  God helps us grow by His grace given to us through the Word and Sacraments.  We take no credit for growth, it is all the Lord’s doing.  Because as you know . . . God Loves Growth.  Didn’t I hear that somewhere?

                                                            Amen.            

September 1, 2019                                                                           Text:  Luke 14:1-14

Dear Friends in Christ,

            On The Andy Griffith Show amateur psychologist Deputy Barney Fife was always trying to help town drunk Otis Campbell cure his drinking.  In one episode Barney shows Otis the Rorschach inkblot cards and asks him what he sees.  When he shows him the one that looks like a butterfly, Otis sees a bat.  No matter what Otis says with the rest of them they are usually the opposite of what Barney wants him to see.  They end up yelling at one another and the guffaws ensue on the greatest comedy show of all time – in this Pastor’s opinion.

            Jesus has been invited to dinner.  People are watching him to see what he will do.  They want to find something to accuse him of.  Jesus is also testing them.  Let’s step into the drama and ask . . .

“WHAT DO YOU SEE?”

            The Pharisees are watching the Savior.  A man with dropsy appears.  Jesus gives the first test:  “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” (v. 3)  The Pharisees answer was no as we see by their silence.  They didn’t see a soul in pain that needed their help.

            What do you see?  When we look at those around us with problems and difficulties, do we feel annoyance and emotional tiredness?  Do we grow weary of helping others especially those who come with problems but don’t listen to our advice?  Do we set a boundary because we do not want to be an enabler?  Do you see this as love?

            Jesus gets to the deception.  He uses a son and ox that have fallen in a well.  “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!”  Now it gets personal.  Wouldn’t you help a loved one or an animal you need for labor?  Again – silence.

            Jesus on the other hand acts immediately.  He healed the man and sent him away.  In the same way He does not delay in healing and restoring us.  He doesn’t wait to forgive us if we repent.  Jesus doesn’t put our problems or pain off until a later time.  He listens and then acts according to His will and purpose.

            When the Pharisees see their peers, what do they see?  How do they relate to others?  Their love is for themselves.  They want the highest honor and the best seat.  They think their actions and work give them this deserved place. 

            What do you see?  Don’t we size up others?  Who is above me?  Who is below me?  Where ought I to sit?  When we love ourselves the most then we see others as objects and not people.

            Jesus again has an answer.  In their narcissistic attitude – love of self – they may get moved down in the order.  They may occupy the lowest place, the place of shame because they loved themselves more than others.

            The proper way is to start out is at the lowest place.  In our sin this is where we all are.  We are so far away we can barely see the host of the dinner.  But wait.  Here He comes.  He wants us to move up.  Go to the front of the line.  Sit in first class.  In love He is sacrificially giving us a better place.  This is Jesus’ sacrifice for us.  He gave His life placing others in front of himself because of love.

            When the Pharisees see their friends, what do they see?  Is Jesus insulting the host?  Has Jesus been invited because the host expects something from Him?  Wouldn’t this host, a Pharisee have better social standing if he could catch Jesus doing something wrong?  He is using others for himself.

            He has invited those who love him.  These people will gladly return love and invite him to their party.  I say “love” here but it is really a mockery of love.  It is not the deep sacrificial love Jesus has for us.

            We too confuse love.  We love our children but do we ever manipulate their lives?  We love our spouse, but are we above emotional blackmail?  We love our Pastor but will we still love him if he refuses to bury, marry, or commune someone we ask him to?  What do you see?

            Jesus expects nothing in return for His love.  He loves purely and simply to help others.  This is the love of God that led him to send his Son for our salvation.  This is the love of God from which we will never be separated.  In this love we see the gracious salvation that is indeed ours now.

            In the 2008 movie Vantage Point the President gets shot.  The rest of the movie is that moment in time.  What was the vantage point of each main character?  What did they see?  Each of you this morning sees and hears this sermon from a different vantage point.  Through the Holy Spirit can you trust the Savior’s love more faithfully?  Can the Lord’s love motivate your love toward others?  What did you hear today that has got you thinking – what do I see? 

            See this.  A Savior who loves you.  A Savior who sacrificially died for you.  A Savior who wants to help you to love others more than yourself.  Oh, say can you see?  Yes, with the help of Jesus.

                                                            Amen.         

August 25, 2019                                                                             Text:  Isaiah 66:18-23

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Your mission, dear Christian, should you accept it, is to share the Word of the Lord before the coming judgment.  Your main, adversary, Beelzebub, also known as Satan, will be working like the devil to thwart the cause.  He has made inroads in formerly Christian nations and is looking to imprison the world in their sin.  He is backed by a legion of followers working to conquer the world.  We want you and the billions of other Christians to fight back with the flaming sword of the Gospel.  You do not go out alone the Holy Spirit is there to back you up.  God Bless.  This tape will self-destruct in five seconds.

“YAHWEH GATHERS US TO HIMSELF AND SENDS US OUT TO THE NATIONS”

            At first it seems unexpected that Yahweh, the God of Israel, would set out to gather the nations to himself and save them.  The Israelites were God’s chosen people, His treasured possession.  In stark contrast, the nations were to be slaughtered and scattered, not gathered.  They were outsiders.  Unholy and unclean, an offense to Yahweh.  We are like them.  Before a Holy God we are outsiders and unclean and unworthy of Yahweh’s attention.

            These very nations would be used to carry out his mission to save the nations.  But these are the enemies.  In a few short years from this text the Assyrians are going to destroy half of Israel.  One hundred years after that the Babylonians descend and destroy the other half and carry them into exile.  We are numbered among the enemies of Yahweh.  It seems preposterous then that Yahweh would use those who were His enemies to carry out His mission.  This mission is unexpected and it looks impossible.

            For Yahweh, for our God, the unexpected becomes the expected and the impossible, becomes possible.  It was expected that Yahweh would save the nations and gather them to himself.  His missionary heart is to save people of all nations and people and language.  Once Adam and Eve sinned, the Lord promised a Savior that would defeat Satan for them.  John saw this picture when he wrote the Book of Revelation.  “A great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” (Rev. 7:9) 

            God accomplished this by sending Jesus Christ as our Savior, the one who loved the whole world.  As He is lifted on the cross, Jesus draws all people to Himself.  Through faith in this forgiveness we have through the death and resurrection of Jesus we are no longer filthy but clean, no longer enemies of Yahweh but His own children.

            The expectation of God is that the nations take on the mission.  He could have just used Himself or his angels but He chose to give this task to His people.  Israel was given this mission, but they forgot its purpose.  Israel was meant to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.  The task now falls on the people and nations that were Yahweh’s enemies.

            Are you ready and willing for the mission?  The Lord expects us to be a part of this life and death struggle.  What a privilege to be His “chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that we may proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (1 Pet. 2:9)

            This mission we take on is both inward and outward.  It is inward because the Lord gathers and strengthens us for the work through Word and Sacrament.  It is outward because God is sending us out to declare his glory to the nations.  In this mission not everyone is the chief – you may not be called to be a Pastor or a missionary overseas or in North America.  No matter, the chief can only win the battle with help from the Indians – everyone in the Christianity camp has the joyful privilege of being a witness where God has placed you.  You have family and friends.  You have work and live in a community.  You serve on boards and interact with the men and women that the Lord allows to enter your lives.

            This mission will not be accomplished in an hour TV show or a two-hour movie.  There will be self-destruction and pain along the way.  When you have watched the TV show or the movies you go into it knowing one thing:  the impossible is going to be possible.  Jim Phelps and Ethan Hunt are going to win.

            From the day you entered the waters of Holy Baptism your winning path was set.  Our Creator God set things in motion so that you and I would have an eternal victory.  It was guaranteed and sealed at Calvary’s Cross by the One who accomplished the mission – Jesus Christ.  We are now asked to share the message before the world self-destructs and Christ returns.  We are graciously gathered and graciously sent.

                                    Amen.     

August 18, 2019                                                                                 Text:  Luke 12:49-53

Dear Friends in Christ,

            I love word origins and word meanings.  I get to study them when preparing sermons and Bible studies.  Our word for today is “benign.”  If you have had a tumor you want to hear “benign” and not “malignant.”  Do you know the actual definition in the dictionary of benign?  Here are the two meanings:  1.)  “Of a gentle disposition.  2.)  “Of a mild kind.” 

            This is not a medical sermon but we are going to take a scalpel and cut away at a faith that many have – benign.  Gentle, mild, comfortable.  A faith that makes it’s home in the world.  Nurse, may I have the text please.  Let’s cut away and . . .

“REMOVE A BENIGN FAITH”

            The first cut is made with the first verse of our text.  “Jesus said, ‘I came to cast fire on the earth, and would that it were already kindled.” (v. 49)  Jesus is no weak, mealy-mouth Savior.  He spells things out.  He pronounces His judgment.

            Let’s cut a little deeper.  “I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished.” (v. 50)  What baptism?  This is a figurative way of referring to the cross.  Jesus is torn between two emotions.  On one hand, Jesus cannot but dread his impending death on the cross.  On the other, there is glory for Him and all humankind beyond the grave, thus His eager expectation.

            His death is a must.  “The Son of Man must suffer…must be killed…I must keep going.”  Why must he do this?  Because He loves you and me so much.  He desires our forgiveness through His baptism of blood.  This cut removes personal pain because we don’t have to sit in the shadows and wonder – Does God love me?  This makes our benign, mild faith look silly.  He died and rose for you.  The ultimate sacrifice.  The greatest show of love the world has ever seen.

            The next cut is even more dramatic.  Nurse, please wipe my brow.  “Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth?  No, I tell you, but rather division?”  Men and women need this surgery.  How many have such a benign faith that they blame God for their troubles?  The tumor of faith goes from benign to malignant as they seek someone, something to pin their shattered dreams on. 

            You don’t need a billboard from the pulpit to see how timely this verse is today.  Jesus’ peace is between God and man.  Not a peace that stops wars or killings or death or destruction.  The patient is looking for the wrong cure.  This is because the cross of Jesus divides.  When 25% of our American society now says they have no faith the division is widening.  Worldviews are different.  The eyes of morality see things differently.  The answer is nowhere to some and everywhere to others. 

            The last cut is the deepest and pierces the soul.  I am going to need more suction here!  “For from now on in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three.  They will be divided, father against son and so against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.” (vs. 52-53

            No surprise for the Biblically knowledgeable.  Remember the words of Simeon in the temple?  “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against…” (Luke 2:34)

            Many of you in the pews this morning are living these verses.  Your heart aches for a child, a grandchild, a spouse, a brother, a sister.  While I don’t hurt for my immediate family my soul is pierced by our Good Shepherd family.  I too am seeking answers for why there are less people in the pews.  Why families and individuals who use to be active in church now find something else to do with their time.  I ponder a benign faith lying on the operating table not seeing the danger that can land them in the fiery morgue because of turning their back on Jesus.

            We are crying to the Lord for answers.  What can we do?  The remedy for this malady is really quite simple:  What Can He Do.  He can love you.  He can show you mercy and grace.  He can quiet your fear.  He can help you breathe when it hurts so bad.  He can change hearts.  He is the greatest heart transplant surgeon this world has ever seen.  Trust Him.  There may be hurt along the way.  Frustration.  This Doctor of your salvation can cure all.  He can take your benign faith and make it alive.  His Word and Sacrament are the post-surgical medicine your body needs.  Then hope in Christ and live that hope because the world is watching.  They want to see if we really believe in what Christ has given to us.

            A Pastor was making a trellis for a climbing vine.  Pounding away at the nails he was watched by a young man.  The boy kept watching.  The Pastor finally asked, “Do you want me to show you what to do?”  “No, thanks,” said the little shaver, “I am just waiting to see what a preacher says when he hits his thumb with a hammer!”

            We are being watched and scrutinized.  When the neighbors see you leave the house on a Sunday morning in the dead of winter in your good clothes or they see you shoveling just to get out of your driveway to make it to the Lord’s House.  You are a church person – a person of faith – and plenty know it.  The world sizes up the reality of the faith we profess.

            A non-benign faith is an active and committed faith.  Warren W. Wiersbe said:  “You are a Christian today because somebody cared.  Now it’s your turn.”  Don’t you agree?  Lord please help us cut away forever . . . a benign faith.

                                                                                                                                    Amen.