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Episodes
Weekly sermons and Bible studies led by a retired pastor of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod
Episodes
Tuesday Sep 01, 2020
Tuesday Sep 01, 2020
Sermon for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, based on:
Sermon originally delivered August 28, 2011
Tuesday Aug 25, 2020
Tuesday Aug 25, 2020
The following is a devotion I wrote in 1977 that was published in The Lutheran Layman magazine, February 1978. I had forgotten I had written it; but it was used again as a Lutheran Hour ministries devotion on July 10, 2020 and a friend saw it and called it to my attention. You can read the devotion or listen to my recorded reading of the sermon below. You can view more LHM devotions at: lhm.org/dailydevotions.
Copyright owned by International Lutheran Laymen's League, used with permission of Lutheran Hour Ministries. All rights reserved.
Steady Love Through Life's Tremors
Lamentations 3:22-23 - The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.
Many people live quietly in desperation—unhappy with their lives, fearful of the future, and yet certain there has to be more to life than what they're experiencing. Even more people have occasional periods of deep depression, where life seems to lose its savor, and it's hard to do even daily tasks.
These periods of depression are not uncommon even for Christians, and they do not automatically signal the loss of one's faith. Some people think Christianity is supposed to quickly solve all our problems. To admit, then, to being downcast or fearful or troubled would be showing great weakness or sin, or so some would think.
This is not so, however. Even mighty figures in Scripture battled depression and despair. Read about Elijah in 1 Kings 19 when he wanted to sit down and die because of loneliness and dismay with his ministry. Listen to the writers of Psalms 6, 38, 88, 102, and elsewhere. They were terribly downcast and speak of their questionings, even to God. Think, too, of the apostle Paul who admits his weaknesses and distresses in 2 Corinthians 11.
We are saints through Jesus Christ, but we are also sinners in a sinful world. The way out of depression and doubt opens up for us only when we admit our weakness and despair—as the biblical writers did. We'll never conquer life's depressions by denying that we have them.
Remember the God you have and the beautiful promises He makes to you. The whole Bible trumpets the fact that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. God reached down into this damaged world for the very purpose of lifting up broken and downcast people. Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead for our future benefit in heaven; He also did it so we might have hope now in this world.
Consider passages like 1 Peter 1:3-5 which speak of the living hope that God has for your future and mine in union with Christ. If God is so confident about us, can we not also press on in faith, no matter how desperate life seems at the moment?
It was this remembering of the love and mighty deeds of God that helped David in his worst times (see Psalms 13:5-6; 25:15-21). Meditating and resting on the promises of God in Christ can be another step out of depression and anguish.
Also remember that you don't have to deal with your problems alone. Jesus promises, "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28), and He is faithful to His promises.
This is our greatest hope—to entrust our lives to the One who gave His for us, so that we may live in victory over this world. In this, Jeremiah (another biblical figure who endured great hardship) reminds us that God is near—especially in times of trouble: "I called on Your Name, O LORD ... You came near when I called on You; You said, 'Do not fear!'" (Lamentations 3:55a, 57).
THE PRAYER: Heavenly Father, help us when we're full of worries and slipping in our faith to call on You. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
From The Lutheran Layman, February 1978 issue, "Depression: A Prescription for You" by Rev. Jim Barton
Reflection Questions:
1. Do you battle bouts of depression and low feelings?
2. How can it be said that God's mercies are new every morning?
3. Have you ever helped someone who was greatly depressed work through their problems?
Today's Bible Readings:
Tuesday Aug 25, 2020
Tuesday Aug 25, 2020
We begin our study of Colossians 3:7-10 with a quick review of verses 5-6. We have victory and new life in Christ, but there is still a struggle in battling sin and temptations to slip back into the old way of life apart from Jesus. Paul calls upon us to seek to put to death sexual immorality and desires and feelings that could lead us to sinful behaviors. We are also to watch out for covetousness, greediness that could make what we want into a sort of idol that is more important than our Lord. Moving away from Christ could lead us back under the wrath of God for our sins. We all started our life apart from God, as Ephesians 2:1-3 and Colossians 3:7 remind us, before our new life we have in Jesus.
In verse 8, Paul also gives us another sinful pattern into which we could slip in our lives with others. Anger can lead to rage, where we act with ill-will and malice, with slanderous (literally, blasphemous words of ill-will) or obscene (abusive, ugly, shameful) talk coming out of our mouths, which can be very hurtful to others. (See what James says in James 1:19-21 and in a long discussion of the tongue as a kind of fire, in James 3:1-12.) Likewise, in verse 9, telling lies is dangerous. We would be acting as if the devil was our father, instead of our Heavenly Father. See John 8:42-44.
As we came to faith in Christ and were baptized, we stripped off our old self (literally the old man,) with its evil actions, and dressed ourselves with new clothes, a new way of life. Actually, God did this changing for us, as we read in Old Testament passages like Isaiah 61:10 and Zechariah 3:1-5. Many other Scriptures speak of this contrast between our old life of sin (Ephesians 4:17-18,22, for example) and, as verse 10 says, “the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its Creator.“ Note that it is God’s doing, as we are being “renewed” by Him; and yet we grow in knowledge ourselves of God’s will for us. (See Scriptures like 1 Corinthians 8:2-3, 1 Corinthians 13:12, and Galatians 4:9, where as we are known by God, we know more ourselves, through Him and His Word.)
The idea of “renewal” is a strong concept, too, in our new life in Christ. God as Creator made the first people in His “image," sinless and in fellowship with God; but all that was lost in the fall into sin. We all start off life now in sin, with a sinful nature; in Christ, though, we have a new life and are counted as forgiven and sinless and acceptable to God. Our Lord would now like to renew us to be more like Him, with an image more like what Adam and Eve had in the Garden before the fall. See Scriptures like Romans 12:1-2, 2 Corinthians 4:16 and 5:17-21, Ephesians 2:10 and 4:24, and Titus 3: 3-8.
That last passage, Titus 3:5, speaks of our baptism, “the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.” If you have a catechism, look at the words of Martin Luther about Baptism, in Part 4 of his discussion about Baptism. He encourages us to remember our baptism daily, by sorrow and repentance for our sins of the day and “drowning” the old sinful life, and asking the Lord to help us start a new, fresh life of faith and action in Christ each day. God actually does the renewing, but He provides us with gifts and blessings by which that can happen, as we will hear more about next week. We are never alone in this battle against sin and the old sinful nature. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are always with us, forgiving us when we stumble and enabling us to continue the good fight of faith (1 Timothy 6:12).
Sunday Aug 23, 2020
Sunday Aug 23, 2020
Sermon for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost, based on:
Sermon originally delivered August 21, 2011
Monday Aug 17, 2020
Monday Aug 17, 2020
This portion of our Colossians study focuses on the battle we are in, in living our new life in Christ. Victory has already been won for us by Christ. As we heard last week in Colossians 3:1-4, we have been raised with Christ to a new life with Him. Our minds are now on things above, on Jesus and His love and His will for us and not on sinful things of this sinful world. We looked briefly at Romans 6:6,11,13-14. We are no longer slaves to sin, and sin does not have to control us and reign in us and have dominion over us. It is still a struggle, but we are to consider ourselves dead to sin and alive in Christ.
Many Scriptures speak of this struggle, and the contrast between the old life and the new, in Christ. You can look at some in these in Romans 7:15-25, 8:12-13, Ephesians 4:17-19, Ephesians 5:1-12, Galatians 5:16-21, and Romans 13:12-14.
Many people in the ancient Greek/Roman world had very low morality and few moral standards. What we call child abuse was readily accepted. Homosexuality and breaking of marriage vows was common. The highest levels of society and the leaders were very wicked. Those who came from this culture into Christianity had struggles with following Christ in His high standards and morals. There were still the temptations from the devil, a very sinful world, and one’s own sinful nature, all still trying to pull people back to their old life.
There is hope and blessing in the new life with the Lord and His great strength for us; and Paul is encouraging people to stay in the struggle. Paul says in Colossians 3:5: Put to death what is earthly in you, part of the old sinful life. He gives lists of some things to battle against, with the Lord’s help. The first list focuses mostly on sexual immorality (a general term for any kind of sexual behavior that goes against the will of God) and the impure thoughts and evil desires that can lead one to immorality. Paul also mentions covetousness, a desire for things that are not ours, which can get out of control and become a kind of idolatry. Other passages referred to in our discussion include 1 Thessalonians 4:2-8, and especially verse 5; 1 Corinthians 10:14; 1 Peter 4:2-3.
Paul also gives a warning about the wrath, the anger and judgment of God, coming for “sons of disobedience” and of unbelief. See also passages like Romans 1:18, John 3:17,18,36, and Ephesians 5:6. Next week, we will look at more things to battle and try to get rid of from our life, and positive qualities that God can give us to help with our lives.
Remember that Christ has already won the ultimate victory for us, as we stay close to Him. We can ask Him for help with anything that is especially a weakness for us and a temptation to sin. We can try to avoid situations where we might be weak and more easily tempted. We can ask for forgiveness when we fail, as we sometimes will, as imperfect people. And we will find that trying to follow Him and His will is always better for us and for the people around us. These passages also help us to identify evil things that we need to watch out for even today, as we move into what some call a post-Christian culture and morality, very similar to much of pre-Christian culture we have been hearing about. The Lord’s blessings and strength to all.
Monday Aug 17, 2020
Monday Aug 17, 2020
Sermon for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, based on:
Sermon originally delivered August 14, 2011
Sunday Aug 16, 2020
Sunday Aug 16, 2020
Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
Paul begins Chapter 3 of Colossians by referring back to what has happened to us, because of all that Jesus did for us to save us, as described in the first few chapters of Colossians. Paul uses the word “if” but clearly he means that we really have died to our old life and risen to a new life with Jesus, because of the gifts of faith and baptism He has given us.
Then, he says, we are called to keep on seeking and setting our minds on the things that are above, rather than things on earth. He is not saying that all earthly things are evil or that material things are evil and only spiritual things are good. See 1 Timothy 4:4-5. He is referring to the things our old sinful nature wants us to do, as he will describe in verses 5 ff. - things we are to battle and seek to put to death. He does not say what the false teachers at Colossae said in 2:21. Rather, we focus on the things of Christ, since Christ is our life. It is often a hidden life, as we struggle with many things and do not yet see the fullness and glory of the life to come when Christ appears again at His second coming.
And yet, the promises of God are certain, in Christ. He is the basis and power for our new life in Him. 15 times the name of Jesus is mentioned in Chapter 3 and the early part of Chapter 4 - Christ, Lord. Lord Jesus, Lord Christ. 15 times Psalm 110:1 is quoted in the New Testament, as it is here. Christ is seated at the right hand of God. That means that He has power and majesty co-equal with God the Father. He can and will keep His promises as our risen and ascended Lord. Paul knew it, because the risen Lord Jesus appeared to Him. John knew it too, as he had been with Jesus before and after His resurrection, and speaks of the glory of the Word become flesh to be our Savior, in John 1:14.
This does not mean that Jesus is stuck in heaven, though, as some churches say. He is also with us always and in a very special way in Holy Communion. It is true that the fullness of all God promises us in Christ will be seen when He returns on the last day. See, for example, 1 Thessalonians 4:17-18, 2 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 John 3:2, and Philippians 1:20-21. At the same time, the certainty of our eternal future in Christ is so sure, as we stay in Him, that Paul can say that our true citizenship is in heaven, as we wait for our Lord’s return. See Philippians 3:20-21, in contrast with those whose minds are set on earthly things (Philippians 3:18-19). See the promise of Romans 8:30, also, along with the fact that Paul pictures us as already seated in the heavenly places with Christ, beginning to enjoy that heavenly hope we have. That is our heavenly hope that helps through earthly days that are sometimes very difficult. In those dark days, we keep our focus on the things above. As Paul says, “My God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).
Sunday Aug 09, 2020
Sunday Aug 09, 2020
Sermon for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, based on:
Sermon originally delivered August 7, 2011
Sunday Aug 02, 2020
Sunday Aug 02, 2020
We begin with a review of Colossians 2:19 and the need to “hold fast to the Head” (v.19), to Christ, (v.17), and not let false teachers pull us away from Christ and focus more on ourselves and what they say we need to be doing in our lives. Why hold fast to Christ? Because He is the means to spiritual life and growth for us as individuals and for our life together in the church, as the body of Christ. Verse 19 tells us that we only grow “with a growth that comes from God.”
If we lost our own head, we would die very quickly. Jesus uses another picture image with the same emphasis, in John 15:1-5. He is the vine, and we are the branches. We cannot live and bear fruit without our connection with Him. He cleanses us and prunes us through His Word and blessings. But He reminds, “Apart from Me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5). 1 Corinthians 3:5-7 reminds us that we can plants seeds and water, but only God gives spiritual growth. 2 Peter 3:17-18 tells us not to be carried away by the error of lawless people, but to keep on growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ, above all. To Him be the glory for any growth we have.
The same is true for the church, the body of Christ. In Ephesians 2:20-22, Christ is our Cornerstone, and we are built up by the Word of God, coming from the prophets and apostles. In Christ, we grow and are built up, as the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, dwells among us. Ephesians 4:14-16 tells us not to be blown around by human ideas and teachings, but to speak the truth in love - the truth of Christ, our Head, Who is the Way and the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). Then the church, the body of Christ, can grow and mature in Christ (Ephesians 4:13).
God brings us growth through His Word, but also through the Word connected with visible elements in the two Sacraments, the Lord’s Supper and Baptism. In John 6:47-48, 53-58, and in 63-64, Jesus is mainly emphasizing Himself and His Word as the Bread of Life for us, so much better than the physical food He gave the 5000+ and better than the manna of the Old Testament. But He is also preparing the way for the gift of the Lord’s Supper, which He would institute the night before His death on the cross. Christ Himself comes to us and strengthens us through His Real Presence, His Body and Blood, in this holy meal. The Holy Spirit is also at work in the Word to bring us life and help.
As we also heard already in Colossians 2:13-14, in our Baptism we are connected to Christ and die to our old life and are raised to a new life in Him, as Jesus died on the cross for us and rose again on Easter for us. See also Romans 6:3ff.
This leads us into Colossians 3:1-4, where Paul speaks of our focus now on things above, where Christ is, rather than on earthly things. It is a hidden life in Christ right now. But as we go about our daily life as believers in Christ, we are called to seek to “put to death” the ways of our old life and sinful nature (Colossians 3:5-9), and to “put on" the ways of our new life in Christ (Colossians 3:10-17).
This is all very practical, for it affects family life and much else that we do, as Colossians 3:18-4:1 tells us. All this gives us a simple outline of what we will be looking at in more detail beginning next week. Christ and what He has done for us are still the key for us; but He can help re-direct our lives in ways that can better honor Him and say “Thank you“ to Him for His great love - and ways that are actually better for us and for one another, too.