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August 30, 2026                                                                        Text:  Matthew 16:21-28

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Are you ready to go on a journey?  Some journeys we enjoy.  A trip we have been waiting to go on.  A visit to see the children and grandchildren.  Some journeys we do not want to take. 

Something that has happened to many of you in recent years, which is inconvenient, and I hear you grumble about, is the sending people out of town for medical care.  Peoria, Champaign, Springfield, St. Louis, Chicago.  Instead of 10-15 minutes to go see a loved one, it is an hour or more and it can take up most of the day. 

            For the first time in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus today predicts his suffering, death and resurrection.  And Jesus tells the disciples – and us – that we are going along.

“LET’S TAKE A JOURNEY”

            The Lord called many to take a journey.  Noah had no idea where that ark was heading.  He had to trust the Father who knew the way.  The call of Abraham came with few details.  He had to trust his Maker.  The disciples left boats and tax stands for a lifelong journey of faith.  When Jesus asks us to go somewhere and we react, “Do what?”  We need to trust that going anywhere with Jesus will make the journey worth it.

            Jesus allowed the disciples to face problems so that they could learn more about His care.  He was patient when they struggled with greatness or a lack of faith on the choppy waters.  We grow when we journey.  Think of everything you have learned on a trip.  Historical, practical, and patience.  Toni and I had that coming back from Germany and our bomb threat earlier this year in Aruba.  You have your own, “I had to stay patient” story.

            As Jesus forms us, He also leads us.  This happens in prayer and through His grace.  His forgiveness leads us to forgive.  We serve in different ways.  What challenge awaits? 

            Where might we be sent.  The disciples were sent all over the modern world.  Their footprints dot the landscape and are still places that people journey to today.  This is also our mission.  To love people in Christ both near and far. 

            Peter’s discipleship in our text wasn’t complete, because he doesn’t realize crosses will be involved.  He expects a coronation not a crucifixion.  He thinks he is doing the right thing by telling Jesus this shouldn’t happen.  This is a natural reaction.  We try to do this with our kids or our parents or a spouse.  We want to save them from pain.  This can’t always be the case.  Sometimes pain is gain.  At that moment Peter was speaking for Satan.  Jesus rebukes.  Jesus had to go to the cross.  There was no other option.  When you speak the Gospel, there is always the chance you will suffer for it.  There is no other option.  We need to be bold in our living the words of Christ.

            Jeremiah in our Old Testament writes, “Why is my pain unceasing?”  He suffered for the Gospel.  Paul and Silas imprisoned in Philippi.  The persecutions of standing for the faith are still prevalent today.  When you are committed to the Gospel this is part of the journey.

            When you journey with your cross remember that Jesus carried his for us.  We struggle with denial and cross bearing.  We try to live with a foot in each kingdom – the world and the spiritual realm.  Our pesky sinful nature journeys on. 

            When Jesus says to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan” (v. 23), it is not a command for Peter to go away.  Peter has not been fired or expelled from the twelve.  Jesus instead is calling him to “get back in line.”  Our crosses always follow Jesus’ cross.  It is not what Peter wanted for him, but Jesus knew the cross was what we all need.  It is the cross of Jesus that made us God’s people again by removing the sin that separated us from the Father.  As God’s people, in our baptism into Jesus’ death, we become his disciples.  Which means we journey with crosses.  “But whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (v. 25b). We have found it, life eternal, when “the Son of Man…comes with his angels in the glory of his Father.” (v. 27a)

            When I was growing up in Argenta, everything was 15-20 minutes away – church, the mall, the doctor, the grocery.  But those journeys always varied in my mind.  If it was a birthday party at Monical’s with my friends, it seemed like we couldn’t get there fast enough.  If I was going to the doctor, my parent’s car sped like a rocket ship.  Because I suffered constantly from strep throat, that journey usually meant a shot in the gluteus maximus, that I was not too fond of.  That pain was gain.  My fever and throat were better within 24 hours.

            Some of our journeys involve crosses – be they pain or inconvenience or persecution.  They make us better Christians.  Jesus continues to forgive and to form us as disciples – to call and teach and lead and send us.  He also prays for us, he protects, He guides.  Journey on – but not alone!                                                                         Amen.

August 23, 2026                                                                                Text:  Isaiah 51:1-6

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Let’s think about rocks.  Rocks can be bright and shiny like a new piece of jewelry.  Rocks can also be an annoyance like when you get a pebble in your shoe.  Being compared to a rock is usually not flattery.  “Sat there like a rock.”  “As smart as a bag full of rocks.”  So how should we take it when Scripture pronounces us rocks?  How to interpret Isaiah words in our text, “Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.” (v. 1b). Apparently, humanity has a certain geology.  It seems sin comes with a terrain, and salvation brings a landscape.  So fellow rocks know that . . .

“JESUS IS SHAPING US”

            Who knew that rocks were so theological.  Babel piles up boulders.  The ark settles on Mount Ararat.  Abraham offers Isaac on Mount Moriah.  Jacob settles for a stone when settling in for the night.  Moses receives the Law on rock plates.  Israel builds a memorial with twelves smooth stones from the Jordan.  David slings one and drops Goliath. 

            The New Testament knows topography as well.  John prophesies about mountains brought low.  The devil tempts Jesus from an alpine precipice and offers him the world for one act of submission.  His life ends on rocky Calvary.  A curtain tears, the earth trembles and minerals are split asunder.  The encore opens when the stone is rolled away and Jesus is not there.  He has risen.

            We come today with a pocket full of rocks.  We will leave with the same.  In the meantime, what shall we make of them?  Rocks can be disrupting.  On a road, cascading down a mountain or in the grass when time to mow.  “For the heavens vanish like smoke, and the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner.” (v. 6).  Yikes!  The rocks confirm that everything isn’t ok.  Rocks have an honesty, and they confront us.

            Run into a rock big enough and you go nowhere.  You shouldn’t have scorned authority or endangered your neighbor.  You shouldn’t have lusted and deceived and indulged.  You shouldn’t have grumbled and slandered.  It hurts.  It deadens, hard as rock and cold as stone.  You are not who you thought you were.  The lawful Word of God stops us in our tracks, and we are going nowhere.

            Rocks can also mean sculpting.  The artisan can chisel and carve.  Sand and smooth.  You come out with a statue of David or Mount Rushmore.  You have faced the honesty.  Now feel the hope.  Your creator is quite the craftsman.  You were shaped and blessed like Abraham.  You were dug that you might multiply like Sarah.  Through sickness and sorrow, the Holy One holds and molds the remnant into Jesus. 

            This one suffered punishment for us.  Thorns scraped Him.  Nails punctured and blades pierced.  His body absorbed death.  His crucifixion satisfied wrath.  It reconciled and atoned and forgave and absolved. 

            He’s shaping heart and mind.  Heavenly blessing.  Everlasting kingdom.  In every ache and injury, forgiving grace buffers us.  The Savior cushions unmet deadlines and unexpected diagnoses.  In the nerve-wrecking dangers, the lonely nights and boring mornings, His Word softens the strikes.  Christ has put His mine-claim on us in our Baptism.

            You’ve faced the honesty and felt the hope.  Now have the peace.  Portions of the text.  “The Lord comforts Zion; he comforts all her waste places…I will set my justice for light…and my arms will judge.”  This house has been founded on rock.  A fortress and refuge.  In this house of the Lord, wind and rain may buffet, like it did recently, but it still stands.  Our brick and concrete block building is a great place for protection.  It reminds us of the safety that surrounds us because of Christ Jesus.

            You face the honesty.  You feel the hope.  You have the peace.  Now live the faith.  “My salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed.” (v. 6). Jesus has vacated the grave and eviscerated the devil.  He has commenced the new heavens and earth.  The promised land, our home, shall linger and last as permanent as he himself does.

            Leap in relief.  Sing healed.  God is shaping a mosaic from these rocks of ours.  Let your compassion have courage.  Let your patience persevere.  Let your humility remain resilient.  We’ve come here with handfuls of gravel and pockets of pebbles.  We leave with the same, but learning to believe differently and delight better in them.  May honesty disrupt, hope sculpt, peace protect, and faith persist.  These commands and promises will prevail.  So shall we and so may you, Christ alone our Rock, shaping us.

                                                                                                                        Amen.    

August 16, 2026                                                                 Text:  Romans 11:1-2a, 13-15, 28-32

Dear Friends in Christ,

            In recent times, there has been a resurgence of hate for people of Jewish ethnicity, what is known as anti-Semitism.  How many of you know the origin of the word?  Semites were the race that was derived from Shem, one of Noah’s sons.  Shem’s descendants were the Israelites or Jews.  The word was first used in the 1800’s and instead of anti-Shemites it came out as anti-Semite.  You would think because of 20^th century events like the Holocaust, this would be a “never again.”  You know it hasn’t gone away and we even have members of the US Congress speaking out against those that are Jews.

            When the Apostle Paul, and a Jew, wrote to the Romans it might have seemed that the grace of God once for the Jews, was now only available for the Gentiles.  It was tempting to think the Jews were no longer God’s favored people.  Paul, a Pharisaical Jew, was called to be an apostle to the Gentiles, but he knew the message was for all people.  He states . . .

“NONE ARE CAST ASIDE”

            Israel had been disobedient in the past, but God’s plan for them remained unchanged.  Here is a brief history.  Chosen by God, the Messiah would come from Israel and bless all the nations of the world.  Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob longed to see Christ’s day.  They would be slaves of Egypt for years but then be led by Moses to the Promised Land.  Along the way they received God’s Law and covenants.

            But they didn’t obey.  They formed an idol for themselves.  They grumbled against Moses.  Once in the promised land they desired a king rather than God.  Eventually, many of them turned to false gods. 

            God had the prophets warn them.  God had them defeated and parts of the nation destroyed.  They were in exile.  They did return home, but they looked less and less like God’s people.  Had God given up on His people?  Did God’s patience run out?  No!  There was always a remnant of Jews who believed in God and the promise of a Messiah.

            Paul is certain God has not rejected Israel.  Paul is a living example of God’s mercy.  He was converted.  He had to suffer.  Paul would learn God’s plan for salvation and that it included Jews like himself and Gentiles.  None are cast aside.

            God’s grace is for all people.  In our text, Paul is telling the Gentiles to not make the same mistake as Israel.  The Jews had looked down on the Gentiles and now the Gentiles should not look on the Jews as rejected.

            The great theme of this letter to the Romans, righteousness by faith, is behind our text.  Paul wants to preclude works.  The Jews cannot obtain righteousness by keeping the law and the Gentiles need to see that their salvation comes by the mercy God has shown to them.

            Although Paul was sent to the Gentiles, he always went first to his fellow Jews.  When they rejected him, his going to the Gentiles grew the Church!

            None are cast aside.  The salvation of all people is in the cross of Jesus.  Jesus was handed over to the wicked men to be crucified.  On the cross, he became the payment for sin.  Through Christ, the Father was reconciling the world to himself.

            And He arose!  Appeared to the apostles and hundreds of people.  He then ascended to the Father.  Whoever believes in him has life in his name.  God’s gifts and calling are irrevocable.  God works out his plan one way or another to fulfill his desire to show mercy to all. 

            This month our Portals of Prayer devotions are written by Mr. Steve Cohen.  Steve is a LCMS Lutheran and a Jew.  Over the years I have heard him speak and I know of no one who shares his faith more.  He will stand on the street corners of our biggest cities and share the Gospel.  Like Paul, Steve is a Jew who was converted.  I always tell you the best Lutherans are those who didn’t grow up in the church.  They appreciate and cherish it more.  The same is true of Christianity.  The biggest evangelizers are people like Steve Cohen.  They were once lost but now found.  They know what their fate could have been, and it scared the hell out of them.  They love the Gospel and want everyone to know that none are cast aside.

            That is our mission.  To pray and proclaim Christ to all people.  We aren’t anti-anybody.  We want all to believe and be saved.

                                                                                    Amen.         

August 9, 2026                                                          Text:  Matthew 14:22-33

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Recently something happened in our neighborhood that was quirky and a bit impulsive.  They tore up our street at the corner.  There was barely room for one car to get through.  The natural thing would be to take another street, which is easily done in our neighborhood.  Most people didn’t.  They would drive through the one lane.  At night as I would shoot baskets, I would watch this little traffic dance.  I really expected to be calling about an accident.  People sure are funny.

            Disciple Peter is one of those humans.  Quirky, impetuous, impulsive.  He’s earthy.  He makes mistakes and great confessions.  He would drive through the corner.  He’s rarely behind the scenes.  But who made him this “out there” figure?  The Gospel writers and the Holy Spirit.  Peter is far and away the disciple most mentioned in the Bible, over 150 times.  Matthew loved to include Peter.  He could have been his press agent.

            Can you relate to Peter?  I can.  I’m impulsive  when playing sports.  I do things that are quirky.  How about you?  Others have never let me be “behind the scenes.”  My family, my classmates, my college friends, my teammates and coaches and my profession have all pushed me front and center.  Are you anything like Peter?

            I bet you are.  Let’s get into the boat with him, the other disciples and Jesus this morning.  Peter will help us see what happens when . . .

“WE LOOK AWAY”

            There are a lot of interesting things happening here.  Jesus has just fed the five thousand.  It’s late and he goes to pray.  The disciples go for a late night cruise.  It is between the hours of 3 am and 6 am, no sleeping tonight.  They get a long way from land, John in his gospel tells us they are three to four miles out.  Remember also that a few of these men are fishermen, including Peter.  They should be comfortable on the water.  Let’s see.

            “And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart:  it is I.  Do not be afraid.’  And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’” (vs. 25-28)

            A Dr. Rob Boyd tells the story about a man named Charlie Stink.  He was picked on because of his name.  His friends encouraged him to change his name.  He went to court to have his name changed.  After his court appearance his friends asked him, “What did you change your name to?”  Charlie Stink answered, “I changed my name to George Stink, but for the life of me, I can’t see what difference it will make.”

            This is an example of how people – you and me – so often miss the obvious.  Peter had walked with Jesus, observed miracles, saw demons cast out and he asks, “Lord is it you?”  And the other disciples are no better.  They said, “It’s a ghost!”

            When life’s storms rough our boat we might say, “Does Jesus really love me?”  “Does God know what is happening to me?”  Why doesn’t God do something?”  We make any number of “Lord, is it you?” type statements.  The obvious.  “You’ve got to be kidding.”

            Now it’s time for impulsive quirky Peter.  “Lord, I think I would like to come out on the water and walk to you.”  The other wet, exhausted, windblown disciples had to be rolling their eyes.  The key verse for our message is verse 30.  “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me.”  He looked away.  Lost the object of his faith. 

            Alright fellow travelers.  Ever Peterish in your life?  You look away in the midst of storms, when if you would just look to Jesus He will pull from the depths.  Jesus reached out and took hold of Peter and got him back into the boat.

            We get caught up in the turmoil and don’t recognize Jesus.  Don’t get distracted.  Christ is there in Word and Sacrament.  Reaching into our lives.  Comforting.  Forgiving.  Always in sight.  If Christ was willing to suffer torment for our sin – if He went to that length for us – then He is not going to let you drown in the storms of life.

            The winds calm.  Peter and the disciples can refocus their gaze on the Savior.  They “worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’” (v. 33). Their reverence for Jesus in the boat is striking.  Jesus had previously calmed a storm, and the disciples wondered what kind of man he was.  Here they confidently confess that He is the Son of God.  It hearkens to the centurion’s confession at Jesus’ crucifixion.  There is no mistake.  It is God’s Son who makes this miracle happen.  Do you see it?  You do if you don’t look away.

                                                                                                                                    Amen.    

August 2, 2026                                               Text:  Isaiah 55:1-5

Dear Friends in Christ,

            One summer when we lived in Kansas City, I went to 22 Kansas City Royals baseball games.  It was with a church member who became a good friend.  We never paid for any of the games.  There were season ticket holders at the church that always had tickets for us.  What my friend recalls and still brings up when we are together is that I never had any food or drink at any of those 22 games.  He still finds that incredible.

            Does it mean I mean I never ate at Royals Stadium?  Au contraire.  Toni and I along with the other Pastor and his wife and our secretary and her husband ate at the Royals Club.  The head elder had privileges, and we were the recipients of his gracious invitation.  3^rd base line, indoors, enjoying a feast and watching baseball.  Pretty sweet, right?  I stayed away from the ballpark food and got to eat cuisine that satisfied.  The prophet Isaiah in our text is sending us a gracious invitation, it is no ballpark hot dog and bag of peanuts.  It is a banquet, and it is without cost.  You’ve been invited to the club.  Have a seat.  As you look around you may wonder . . .

“WHO’S FEEDING YOU?”

            What are you filling up on?  What satisfies?  When a new president takes power there is mad scramble for thousands of positions.  People want power and control.  So many venues of power in life and so little time.  We want control in our place of employment, in our home, over our spouse and kids, over our finances – is this vain hope feeding you?

            Do we feed on things that can’t deliver?  The cure for baldness, the antidote for skin aging, clothes to lure a guy who isn’t worth it, investments deals that don’t get you rich quick, or maybe drugs or drink or illicit sex.  Are these fleeting moments feeding you?

            Maybe you fill your plate with social media.  They literally tell you they are feeding you – it’s called a newsfeed.  You chase the rabbit down each and every hole and look up and two hours of your life is gone.  Are you satisfied?  Do you feel better?  It is literally consuming the average human.  Who’s feeding you?

            Ok Pastor, you have jabbed us pretty good these last few paragraphs.  Where should we feed?  Worldly solutions do not offer satisfaction.  We are told, “Just behave better.”  Oh, we try but we keep repeating the same silly people tricks or we invent new ones.  Survey after survey shows people want to put their phones down, but few do.  We are not at peace because we are at odds with the One who made us.  The single most basic relationship in life is between Creator and His creatures.  Our human behavior is opposed to God’s will.  We like the pig trough better than the banquet hall.  What source can give us rest for our souls and peace with God and ourselves?

            The only source of satisfaction and peace comes from the lavish feast that our Creator has prepared for us through Jesus Christ, our Lord.  Hear the words our text, “Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!  Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.” (v. 1-2).  We have no money to give to feed ourselves.  It is a smorgasbord of God’s grace, not man’s effort.  Where man fails, God succeeds. 

            In loving compassion, the Father has sent his promised Son of David, Jesus Christ, who alone was able to keep all the requirements of God’s Law.  The complete impossibility of man’s perfect obedience is accomplished by Jesus Christ.  The righteousness we could not achieve is a gift from Jesus to us. 

            But we still have this problem of feeding on sin.  Again, the lavish feast of God’s grace solves our dilemma of debt.  In the suffering and death of our Lord, a lavish payment has been made for our feeding on power or things that can’t deliver or social media.  This feast does not just satisfy, it goes beyond what we can imagine.  Christ even ate our greatest threat – death.  Paul wrote, “Death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Cor. 15:54).

            Pull up a chair.  You are dining at the Royals Club with the greatest Royal.  He grants you blessings through Christ at your baptism.  Come to His banquet table at this altar.  You have forgiveness and the assurance He is with you when your table on earth looks pretty bare.  Through these gifts He is feeding you.  This is peace that will not perish but will satisfy for all eternity. 

            Who’s feeding you?  If you come away still hungry, then hear well the words of Isaiah this morning, for his invitation is for you.  Welcome to the Lord’s Club.

                                                                                                                        Amen.      

July 26, 2026                                                   Text:  Matthew 13:44-52

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Some of you in this church like to bargain.  I hate it.  Just give me the price and I pay it or I don’t.  For the last 15 years we have bought all of our vehicles from our friend in Effingham.  I have done all my research; they give us a fair price and we move on.  None of this “let me talk to my manager” ritualistic dance.  Others of you like the game.  Whether with a merchant in a foreign country or your local garage sale.

            How about bargaining with God?  Should it be done?  Does He care?  Are we disobedient if we question His motives?  Our gospel has three parables.  I have found preaching on all three just leaves congregants not getting any of them.  We are just going to focus on one this morning – The Parable of the Pearl of Great Value.  Only Matthew scribes these three parables and the one we will look at fits him perfectly because he was a tax man.  He would have an interest in what something was worth.  Let’s get to it.

“CAN YOU BARGAIN WITH GOD?”

            Listen to the two verses of our text, “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.” 

            This merchant must have thought he was getting a great bargain.  It was his “blue light special.”  Those of you of a certain vintage will remember the “blue light special” at Kmart.  They had a little cart they would wheel to the area of the special, turn on the blue light and make a storewide announcement about the bargain.  They really made you feel like you were getting a deal.

            This merchant gets so distracted by the pearl, and the bargain he thinks he is getting, that he literally gives up everything for it.  He had to have it.  Imagine a Middle Eastern pearl dealer working the vendors in the jewelry market.  He bargains, wheels and deals, looking for the best pearl at the best price.  But then he finds the one, the pearl of pearls, the rarest and finest ever popped from an oyster.  For the sheer joy of owning it, he literally sells everything he has.

            We won’t get into every interpretation of this parable.  Let me remind you of this verse:  “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.” (Jn. 3:16). The kingdom of heaven is like the seeking love of God, who searches high and low for that one pearl of infinite value, the world He created and loves, and, finding it, gives everything He has, His only-begotten Son, in order to make it his treasured possession.

            We think we can bargain with God.  We go through the religious jewelry market and when we find Jesus, we give up everything to own Him.  We want to be the hero of the parable.  Put the cape away, my friend.  The parable exposes us as counterfeit coins.  Do you want to buy the farm to own the treasure?  Do you really want to give up everything to follow Jesus? 

            Thankfully, this is not about our choices.  It is about God’s choice to seek and save us.  It is about the love of God in Christ Jesus that stops at nothing to rescue the world from sin and death.  It is about God who works mysteriously, in, with, and under the things of this world to redeem the world.  It is about your value to God.  You are not a bargaining chip.  You are a precious pearl to God for Jesus’ sake.  You are worth His only Son, His shed blood, His innocent suffering and death.  You are His and part of His kingdom.

            One of the sacred texts of Mormonism – along with the Bible, the Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants – is the brief volume known as Pearl of Great Price, named for the pearl in today’s text.  In this book is the claim made by Joseph Smith that he unearthed gold plates, which he translated into the Book of Mormon.

            Discovering a hidden truth would indeed be like finding a pearl of great value.  Unfortunately, the Mormon text is anything but the pearl Jesus has in mind in the parable.  The Mormon faith offers a false hope, one based on salvation “by obedience to the law and ordinances.”  Anyone investing in this pearl will be eternally disappointed.  So will we if we invest in these false pearls:  wealth, the big corner office, even misplaced love or loyalty.  We don’t bargain with God, He uses the Holy Spirit to bring about our obedience.  We have it because Jesus considered us his precious pearl, worth His investing everything, even His life, to acquire.

                                    Amen.