Pre-Lent 1 – 2025
DOES “GRACE ALONE” MEAN NO WORKING AT ANYTHING? Prayer: Lord God, heavenly Father, through Your holy Word You have called us into Your vineyard: We beseech You, send Your Holy Spirit into our hearts, that we may labor faithfully in Your vineyard and put our whole and only trust in Your grace, which You have bestowed upon us abundantly through Your Son Jesus Christ, that we might obtain eternal salvation through Him. Amen. Sermon Text: Matthew 20:1-16 (v. 10-12). But…
Transfiguration – 2025
WHO WAS JESUS’ TRANSFIGURATION FOR? How glorious do you think God is? Can you imagine it? We get an idea of it in Exodus 34. It says that when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai, “the skin of his face shone, and all the children of Israel were afraid to come near him.” It was because Moses had been talking with God. The glory in Moses’ face was only a reflection of God’s glory, less than God’s, but they still…
Festival of the Presentation of our Lord – 2025
“NOW LET ME DEPART IN PEACE” Today we hear about what happened on the 40th day after Jesus’ birth, since today is the 40th day after Christmas Day. Joseph and Mary came to the temple with their baby, Jesus. They came to give some required offerings. One offering was for purifying the mother after childbirth, for she was considered ritually unclean and had to stay at home for 40 days if it was a baby boy. They had to give…
Epiphany 3 – 2025
“NEITHER THE PREACHER NOR THE HEARER SHOULD DOUBT THE GRACE AND ACTIVITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT” Prayer: Gracious Lord, guard us from judging from what we see, feel or experience about the effect or effectiveness of Your Word among people in our lives. Help us to believe and trust that when the Word is preached and heard, as You promise people will believe this Word and agree with it. Produce a firm faith in us, and also in others. Grant…
Epiphany 2 – 2025
THE GREATNESS OF A CHRISTIAN MARRIAGE AND HOME At the very end of John 1, Jesus calls His 5th disciple, Philip, who then goes to find his friend Nathanael sitting under a fig tree. Where Nathanael’s sitting shows that he was waiting for the Messiah, because it was written in the prophets that when the Messiah came, he would inaugurate a kingdom of peace in which every man would “sit under his fig tree” (Mic 4:4). Nathanael was waiting for…
Epiphany 1 – 2025
THE CHILD, JESUS Like all Jewish parents, Mary and Joseph knew their chief responsibility was to teach the faith to their children. They diligently taught Jesus. He went with them to synagogue every Sabbath. Like all Jewish mothers, Mary began teaching Him from the cradle. As soon as He could talk, Joseph had to begin His instruction. He surely did so, for if he failed to impart knowledge of the Law to his son – even to Jesus — he…
Epiphany Sunday -2025
Sermon: Matthew 2:1-12 (Historic Gospel) Epiphany Sunday, Hope-Leander TX THE CHRISTMAS OF THE GENTILES The Old Testament is filled with promises from God that His salvation is for all people, not only Jews but also the Gentiles, “the nations.” As you read the Old Testament this can be easy to forget, as it’s Israel Against Everybody. All the nations are trying to destroy them. You can forget that God told Abraham, through his offspring God wanted “all the nations” to…
Christmas Day- 2024
HOW DID THE SHEPHERDS’ GLORIFYING AND PRAISE OF GOD CHANGE? St. Luke 2:15-20 (v. 20). And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. Lord, this is Your Word and these are Your words. Sanctify us by the truth. Your Word is truth. Amen. In the name of Jesus, who was born for you, dear fellow redeemed: On Christmas Eve the story ends abruptly, with…
Christmas Eve – 2024
CAESAR, JOSEPH, MARY, AND JESUS St. Luke 2:1-14 (v. 1-5). And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria. So all went to be taxed, everyone unto his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called…
Advent 4 – 2024
WE CONFESS JESUS CHRIST The Text, John 1:6-8, 19-28 (v. 20, 23). He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” … They said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said: “I am ‘the voice of one crying in the wilderness: Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” Lord, this is Your Word and…