Sermon Texts

July 21, 2019                                                                                    Text:  Genesis 18:1-14

Dear Friends in Christ,

            In the land of Israel a lady’s fight with a cockroach put her husband in the hospital with burns, a broken pelvis and ribs.  The Jerusalem Post  reported she found the insect, stepped on it, threw it in the toilet and then sprayed insecticide when it refused to die.  Her husband came home from work, sat on the toilet and lit a cigarette.  He threw the cigarette in the toilet and got burned on his “sensitive parts.”  When paramedics came they laughed so hard at the story that they dropped the stretcher, which broke the man’s pelvis and ribs.

            There was another time in Israel when laughter abounded.  It is in our text.  It involves a husband and wife.  A senior citizen couple.  Two souls thinking that having a child has passed them by.  But has it?  God doesn’t think so and He is the creator of life.  He enjoys a good laugh and I pray you do too.

“LAUGHING WITH GOD”

            Can we laugh with God?  I believe we can.  He makes me laugh all the time.  I like to park away from other vehicles in large lots.  Numerous times I come out and there is a car parked right next to me or that person is getting in their car at the exact same time even though there were hundreds of people in the store.  I laugh.  God laughs.  Whatever my foibles the Lord always says, “Not so fast human being Lueck, I’m in control here.”  I laugh.  He laughs.  It happens all the time. 

            Does the same thing happen in your life?  He laughs.  You laugh.  I sure hope it does because God’s gift of laughter has been shown in certain medical studies to stimulate organs with oxygen-rich air.  It also helps relive stress and tension, improves the immune system and mood and relieves pain. 

            Abraham and Sarah got even more than just health benefits.  Abraham laughed when told he would have a son.  Sarah now laughs.  “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?”  Sarah has both joy in a child to be born and in having sexual relations at an advanced age.  Joy with child and joy with husband.  God wanted Sarah to laugh for joy.  God wants us all to laugh for joy in His unique and astonishing promises.

            Notice at first though how Sarah’s laughter is laughter of doubt.  She didn’t believe a woman of 90 could have a child.  They laughed at the Savior too.  When he healed Jairus’ daughter the people laughed in unbelief.  But that unbelief turned to joy when she came back from death.

            Do we laugh at the Lord’s promises?  Do we doubt his Divine Providence?  Do we laugh at God’s promise to forgive us over and over in our weakness?  When do we laugh at His promises?  When we are struggling with temptation, when we are beaten down by the world, when we are sick or fighting a disease, when the expenses outweigh the income, when the direction for our life is not clear, when we watch our kids struggle.  The Lord asked a question to this faithful couple and He asks us the same thing, “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” (v. 14)  Can our troubles be too big for the Lord?  Never.  Laughing with God because His promises lead us from doubt and unbelief to joy and laughter.

            That is what happened with Sarah and Abraham when their Son was born – Isaac – which means, “he laughed.”  Sarah said at his birth, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” (Gen. 21:6)  It was by faith that these geriatrics believed the promise.  This Son being born brought great joy.

            There would be another Son being born that brought great joy.  Not just to a small corner of Israel but to the whole world.  He would be a Son of Promise.  Promised by God to all of mankind.  This was also a promise to Abraham.  From his seed would come forth one who would be a blessing to all the world.  They would laugh that He was the Son of God.  They would laugh when He wouldn’t come down from the cross.  They laughed in mockery and scorn.  They laughed that He was dead and what were His followers going to do now.

            God kept the promise.  God laughed at their antics.  God laughed that they thought they were bigger than Him.  God laughed at their foolishness and arrogance.  The Promised One from Abraham’s line and David’s line has conquered unbelief.  He is living proof that God keeps His promises, for he rose again on the third day and is alive today.  “To those who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (John 1:12)

            God wants you today to laugh with Him.  Laugh in joy.  Witness to this joy when others laugh at your faith.  Who cares?!  You will stand before the throne of God someday and laugh for joy for you are in heaven forever. 

            God has a great sense of humor.  Don’t miss it as you go about your daily business.  God laughs with all of us because of the promise of forgiveness and salvation.  Laugh with Him at the antics and arrogance of our world and then know the God of laughter has the last laugh.  You will too.

                                                                                                Amen.     

July 7, 2019       Texts:  Lamentations 3:22-33, 2 Corinthians 8:1-7, Mark 5:24b-34

Dear Friends in Christ,

            How many of you remember the show Hee Haw?  They had a segment on that show and a catchy tune about “gloom, despair and agony on me.”  Do you ever feel like that song?  We have many blessings as people of faith and people of this country but we also have gloom, despair and agony and as we look out over the horizon these seem to be building.

            You are a smart people gathered here today.  You know some of the challenges before us.  We hear them so many times we block out their intensity.  Taxes going up.  Roads being filled with vehicles and now drivers who can light up the funny weed and instead of reaching for the Cheetos they go for the car keys.  The continued bashing of people who aren’t in agreement with us.  The pseudo sages of our age who have all the answers for you but don’t want to follow their own ramblings. 

            The agony and despair may hit closer to home with divorce, a loved one who succumbed to drugs or alcohol or gambling.  A marriage in a precarious situation because of a health problem.  The financial cloud – do I have enough for retirement or college or the house’s next big repair? 

            We may lift our heads to the heavens and say, “Lord, these must be the last days.  Things cannot get much worse before you return in judgment.” (2 Pet. 3:1-4)

            You can get a little depressed, can’t you?  What if I tell you, “It can get worse.”  Please don’t jump up and leave.  We are going to find for you today . . .

“JOY OUT OF TRIAL”

            Read the Book of Lamentations and see how bad it can get.  God rained down ruin on the priests who wouldn’t repent.  God destroyed the city of Jerusalem and its idols and defiled temple.  God had warned them of this if they turned from the faith of their fathers. 

            Your personal problems seem more immediate than those of our nation and state.  Hang on.  It can get worse.  Look at the woman in our Gospel.  Her illness stayed with her for twelve years.  She had to sleep apart from her husband and be isolated from friends and family.  She went from doctor to doctor and all this got her was a little lighter pocketbook.  When she approached Jesus was she lamenting?

            Things can get worse – even in the Church.  The new congregations of Macedonia in our Epistle suffered affliction and poverty.  Have we suffered like they?  Yes, the church on earth has problems but we cannot equate them with some of the early churches.  They had lives and money at risk at all times. 

            Scripture reminds us that things can get worse – much worse.  Worse for our country, worse for our Church, worse for ourselves.  How can we go forward and take seriously the words of Scripture that say “Rejoice always?” (1 Thess. 5:16)

            In Christ, the future is not all gloom, despair, and agony.  Far from depression and misery is the Good News of our Lord.  When the writer of Lamentations surveyed Jerusalem and the destruction around, he could still say, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end.” ((v. 22)  When all seemed hopeless Jeremiah still confessed, “The Lord…will have compassion according to the abundance of His steadfast love.” (v. 31-32)

            Look beyond the doom and gloom.  Look to heaven.  The Lord is master over time and history, there is hope.  We have life-restoring Good News when we see our country torn apart by sin and when we drift in our personal lives.  There is a tomorrow for those who believe in Christ Jesus.

            If your despair is the more personal kind then witness the new life God gave the woman who touched his robe.  By the power of God her health returned and sadness was set aside.  She could again enjoy her husband’s company in bed and be back in her social circles.  God restored a soul and a body.

            He did the same for you in baptism.  He made you an unbreakable promise:  He has claimed you as His own.  He reminds you of that in His Word.  He communicates that to you when you eat and drink his body and blood.  God’s grace brings you a sense of assurance.  Come on out from under the covers, face the day, meet the challenge through your Savior.

            Gain strength from the witness of the Macedonians.  Persecuted with very little to give.  They knew of Jesus’ sacrifice so what did they do – they sacrificed.  They gave glorious gifts in spite of meager means.  The Holy Spirit gave them great joy in their giving.  In a country filled with despair, in a world filled with hostility toward God’s Word and purposes, these people became beacons of light to lead the lost to the Lord.

            Ignatius was the bishop of Antioch in 107.  An arrest takes place.  The crime?  He was a Christian.  He found joy in his martyrdom which was a lion feeding with him as the main course.  We don’t stand on the brink of arrest for our faith yet.  We will finish the week without being the main entrée for Simba.  But, like Ignatius, we have a victorious Savior.

            With light from Jesus, gloom, despair, and agony are banished from Christian lives.  With power from the conquering Christ, we find peace and healing, whether living in ancient Greece or modern America.  With the Lord leading, the Church can unite.  I told you it was safe to stay because now you know of Joy Out of Trial.   

                                                                                                                                    Amen.    

June 30, 2019                                                                                    Text:  Galatians 5:1, 13-25

Dear Friends in Christ,

            There is a hill in Lake District in England called Rash Judgment Point.  It was given that name by the poet William Wordsworth.  He and his sister were standing at the top of the hill one day during harvest season looking at the lake below.  They saw a man fishing and this angered them because every able-bodied man was needed to gather the harvest.  Wordsworth decided to go down the hill and challenge the man that he should be busy at work for the good of the community.

            He called the man to shore.  He got out of the boat old and bent over.  He had several fish.  He explained he had worked for years helping with the harvest but he couldn’t physically do it anymore.  Instead, he contributed to the community by getting up each day at dawn and fishing.  The fish he caught he added to the community’s resources.  Wordsworth felt so bad about his hasty judgment that he named the hill from which he had first seen the man fishing, Rash Judgment Point.

            Rash judgment is a sin of the flesh.  It is a weakness in every man and woman.  This was just one of the things Paul warned the Christians in Galatia about.  He has a whole list.  But he also has encouragement for us as Christians to . . .

“WALK BY THE SPIRIT”

            Walking in the Spirit means we do make judgments.  We are to distinguish between right and wrong, truth and error, good and evil.  Where there is open sin apart from God’s Word manifesting itself the Christian is called to do what Paul writes in Galatians 6.  “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.”  Matthew 18 has the congregation excluding openly unrepentant sinners.  The goal is restoration.  The child of God repents and is welcomed back.  We do not pass judgment on those outside the church that is the job of governing authorities.

            In our gospel lesson even the apostles James and John struggled with this sin.  When the Samaritans would not welcome Jesus they wanted fire to come down and consume them.  But Jesus rebuked them.

            Have you ever felt like that?  Wanted someone to get his or hers?  Don’t we take guilty pleasure in the misfortune of others especially if their arrogance leads to a bad decision?  Be careful what your sinful flesh wants.  Many of these same Samaritans we are told were saved when the gospel reached them in the Book of Acts.  Do we see a soul that needs saving or does our flesh work against walking by the Spirit?

            As long as the world stands there is an opportunity to share the Gospel with unbelievers in the hope they will be saved.  We are not walking by the Spirit if we wish for their damnation.  John wrote this, “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (Jn. 3:17)  The love of God is for those who recognize the depth of their sin.  That love has touched us.  As we walk by the Spirit we recognize our weakness in passing unfair judgments.  We need that love of Jesus that comes through His life, and suffering, and death.  Our sins are then forgiven and we escape everlasting damnation.  This love changes everything in us.

            Paul writes in our text, “For you were called to freedom, brothers.  Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.  For the whole law is fulfilled in one word:  ‘you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (v. 13,14)  When we are touched by the love of God, we can walk by the Spirit, we can even love our enemies.  We want them to be saved and in heaven with us.  This is where our love and kindness and goodness and patience and gentleness can make a difference in the lives of others today.  Isn’t our society screaming for more fruits of the Spirit to manifest itself?  Oh, it is so needed and I hope this is in your prayers daily.  Some days who wants to leave the house?  Through the Spirit we leave our residence and let Him work through us. 

            Corrie Ten Boom tells this story in her book, Reflections of God’s Glory.  “In Africa a man came to a meeting with bandaged hands.  I asked what happened.  He said, ‘My neighbor’s straw roof was on fire; I helped him put it out and that’s how my hands got burned.’  Later the whole story came out.  The neighbor hated him and had set his roof on fire while his wife and children were asleep in the hut.  They were in great danger.  Fortunately, he was able to put out the fire in his house on time.  But sparks flew over to the roof of the man who had set the house on fire and his house started to burn.  There was no hate in the heart of this Christian; there was love for his enemy and he did everything he could to put out the fire in his neighbor’s house.  That is how his hands were burned.”

            An amazing story, isn’t it?  It shames us when we take delight in what we think others deserve.  The truth is, we all deserve to be burned in fire because of our sin.  For the sake of Jesus we have been forgiven and the fire of wrath has been extinguished.  God loved us that much.  Can’t we in turn love others?  Live by the Spirit . . . and Walk By The Spirit.                 Amen. 

June 23, 2019                                                                        Text:  Galatians 3:23-4:7

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Have you made your plans for the 4^th of July?  We all know what the 4^th is right?  The birthday of our country, Independence Day, July 4, 1776.  Rein in your minutemen, my Christian friend, that’s not quite right.

            July 4, 1776 was the birthday of 13 countries, which don’t exist anymore and were never formally named the United States of America.  Here is what the Declaration of Independence actually said:  “We…solemnly publish and declare that these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be, Free and Independent States.”  Each had its own power to raise an army, conclude treaties, and elect a leader.  Not one, but 13 separate countries.  It wasn’t until 13 years later when “we the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union” wrote the Constitution, that we all became one.  This new government and Constitution went into effect in 1789.

            The holy Christian Church includes billions of souls, free and individual.  We are scattered in thousands of denominations.  We are diverse and independent and not always in harmony.  St. Paul writes in our text that we as Christians are all one in Christ Jesus.  How can that be?

“HOW CAN WE BE ONE IN CHRIST?”

            Christian churches are not all in agreement.  Thank you Pastor Obvious.  You see it among your family members and your friends.  You hear it from your co-workers and acquaintances.  We see it even among our brothers and sisters in our own Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod.

            Having been a Pastor in this Synod for almost 28 years I can say that we have had relative harmony the past few years.  It wasn’t this way when I was a non- gray hair Pastor.  But even now as I and our delegate Steve Parry vote for the synodical president and the church gets ready to meet in convention next month, we have some disharmony.  Not a lot, but Steve and I get mailings urging a vote one way or another.  This is because the church on earth is made up of individuals.  Sinful, I want things my way, human beings.  How can we be one in Christ?

            You Mr. and Mrs. pew sitter understand this.  Why?  Because something inside you tells you that you aren’t even one with yourself.  Are you always of one mind – in your own mind?  Don’t we all do things that we don’t want to do?  Haven’t we changed our minds about situations because we lived through them or were close to someone who went through something?  Do you really know yourself or are you just blowin’ in the wind?  What does it mean to say we’re all one in Christ Jesus when we’re not even one with ourselves?

            Inside every Christian believer there is a war between believer and unbeliever.  We are sinner and saint at the same time.  The struggle will not go away.  We are not as one with ourselves because the Christian can never be one with sin.  This is also why we are not one with other Christians because they have the same conflict going on inside themselves.  They may be glossing over a sin, not seeing a sin because of selfish motives or refusing to honor God’s Word on a certain subject.  All doctrine is not true.  Some is false.  God expects us to study His Word and declare to the world what we believe just like the reformers did. 

Isn’t this a little gloomy, Pastor?  There is hope.  Listen to the words of St. Paul in our text.  “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.  For as many of you were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither male nor female, for you are all on in Christ Jesus.” (v. 26-28)  We may look like a whole bunch of independent countries each going its own way, but beneath that, beneath it all, incredibly, the forgiveness we have by Baptism into Christ has formed a perfect union.

Wherever sin is forgiven, we are one.  Wherever sin remains – as in false doctrine – separation must remain.  But where sin is forgiven, we are one.

The beauty of that is that even with Christians from whom we must remain outwardly separate, we are one, because all true Christians – all who truly believe that Jesus’ death and resurrection has saved them – are forgiven, even those many believers who hold some teachings we find false.  We will not be visibly one with them because we cannot be one with their sin.  But we know that as we look at one another, inside we are one.  “You are all one in Christ Jesus.”

We are all on in Christ as we declare His death and resurrection.  We are all one in Christ as we stand in the Savior’s forgiveness.  We are all one in Christ when we live in His love and mercy and grace.  This how we CAN be one in Christ.

                                                                                                                        Amen. 

June 16, 2019 – Trinity Sunday                                           Text:  Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Back in August of 2000, we the members of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church placed a cornerstone (though it’s not really in a corner) in the front of our church.  We placed in there items such as a bible, a hymnal, a newspaper, a list of our congregation members and a few other things.  We sang a hymn and had prayers.  Someday, like at many churches that celebrate a 100^th Anniversary, this might be opened.  What will people see?  They will see God’s Word, the words of his people and the words of the world.

            It was our prayer that day that God would bless our congregation and the mission of God’s people.  We lifted to God our petitions that people would hear the Word of God, proclaim that Word in the world, lift up to God their songs of praise.

            In our text for today we do not have a time capsule with objects in it, but we do get a rare glimpse of what was there at the earth’s foundation.  Our goal is to open this text so that we can see the . . .

“DELIGHT OF GOD”

            This Old Testament Reading from Proverbs gives us some additional knowledge of what was happening at creation beyond what we know in the Book of Genesis.  Creation is something that is constantly argued in our world.  Let’s keep it simple as God’s people and say this.  We were not there when the world was created, but God was, and He has revealed how it happened.  God is credible.  We believe what His Word has to say.

            What Proverbs adds so beautifully is we are given a glimpse of God even before His work of creation.  Before the world began, God was rejoicing, and his delight begins the story of our salvation.

            What was God delighting in?  First God was delighting in Jesus.  Verse 30 says, “I was daily his delight.”  Christ, the Son of God, was and is an object of delight and pleasure for the Father.  Paul clarified this in Colossians 1:16:  “By him all things were created, in heaven and on earth.”  This ties the Father with the Son.  We also know from Genesis that the Spirit “hovered over the waters.”  The Trinity was present at creation.  Jesus is the master workman who is with the Father before the world was created.  Father, Son, and Spirit worked together to bring all things into being, and after it was all created, God called it good.

            After the fall into sin, Jesus had to come to restore creation.  If we go back to the foundation of the world and found this time capsule we would see that the story of our salvation begins with this delight of God.

            Many times we are guilty of approaching God for a temporary fix in our lives.  When something is wrong we turn to God.  A divorce.  A death.  A disaster.  A challenge.  A question.  We reduce God then to a temporary healer or fixer.  We make him fit our needs. 

            People are more like what W. Somerset Maugham wrote, “The nature of men and women – their essential nature – is so vile and despicable that if you were to portray a person as he really is, no one would believe you.”  Is that you?  Is that me?  Do we want all our thoughts exposed?  Our actions to be known? 

            This is why we need the delight of God.  Forgiveness for God is not a momentary fix in our lives.  It is part of a much larger story.  God found delight at creation after he formed us.  When we fell into sin, He still delighted in His Son.  Why?  Because Jesus chose to come, to die for your sin, and to rise for your salvation.  By His death and resurrection, Jesus promises to bring you from this world into the new creation of God, where you will sing an everlasting song of praise.

            I do enjoy the Book of Proverbs.  I think of most of it as God’s Instruction Book.  There are short proverbial sayings that help us in discipleship.  It helps us to walk in the ways of God.  It is easy to think we are the ones pursuing Wisdom.  In our text though we are not pursuing God.  Instead, we come across words about God pursuing us.  Wisdom goes to the crowded places, calls to all people, and sings of God’s delight.  Before we ever pursue God, God pursues us.  Before we ever delight in God, God already delights in us. 

            Thus, our salvation begins and ends with God’s delight.  As verse 31 sates, “rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man.” 

            The delight of God is with us for a lifetime.  Most of us or maybe all of us will not be around when the cornerstone of our church is opened some day.  But the delight of God will continue through Jesus to make a difference in the lives of our sons and daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.  That brings a smile to my face, to your face and most importantly to the face of God.  He delights in the salvation of all.

            Amen.        

June 9, 2019 – Pentecost Text: John 14:23-31
Dear Friends in Christ,
Who do you go to for counsel? As you know I am pretty self-assured person,
but there are areas of life I need some advice. When I bought my first car I talked
with my parents who had the experience and then I took them along. It was high-
pressure, with the salesman blocking our path to the door and my dad got a
headache but thanks to my parents the deal was pretty good. Two years ago we
leased a vehicle for the first time. I had lunch with a college friend who counseled
me on how to go about it. He is also on the ready when we turn it in next year.
Parents and friends are just some of the people who counsel us. You may
also seek out a Pastor or therapist or boss or coach or teacher. How many times do
you seek the help of the ultimate Counselor – the Holy Spirit? We don’t always
understand His work. He appears in Scripture as a dove and tongues of fire and a
loud, rushing wind and a quiet whisper. Will the real Holy Spirit please stand up?
Our text gives us help. The Greek word is paraklaytos, which literally means
“one who is called to and stands by one’s side.” In our text it is translated as
“helper.” I like the NIV translation, which is “Counselor.” It is Pentecost and we
ask…
“WHO CAN COUNSEL YOU BEST?”
What does a good counselor do? They listen and sometimes like with Nathan
and King David they confront us. We have all been counseled to repent, to make
right a wrong and to own up to our problems. This is also the work of the Holy
Spirit. He uses the Word of God to let us know about our secret and not-so-secret sins. This is not an easy job for our Counselor. We can be hardheaded and we don’t
want to acknowledge our guilt and our weaknesses.
Pastor Eldon Weisheit tells of the time he was doing a children’s sermon and
he help up words like “short”, “tall”, “smart”, “popular”, “handsome.” He then asked
the children to raise their hands if they thought these words applied to them. Most
raised their hands on at least a couple of them. Then he held up the word “sinner”
and waited . . . and waited . . . and waited, until finally one youngster in the front row
took hold of his little brother’s hand and lifted it high in the air.
Aren’t we like that little shaver? Ready to lift someone else’s arm up as a
sinful person? Do you ever think the problem might be you? The best counselors in
our life confront us with the truth in love. They are honest but compassionate. This
is the Holy Spirit. He is concerned about our welfare and He does not want us hiding
from the sin that harms us.
The Holy Spirit does not just convict of us of our sin – thank God. This is not
His most important job. His main priority is to comfort us with the Gospel, the Good
News of our forgiveness in Christ.
The Spirit convicts us to lead us to repentance. We all know what that looks
like, don’t we? We are told we should apologize or tell someone we are sorry. We
might do it a little hesitantly, but we do it and prayerfully feel better after. Our
Counselor reminds us we are poor, miserable sinners but this leads us to the great
joy that God still loves us and we are His children. How wonderful that is.
Daily the Holy Spirit speaks to us through the Scriptures. Daily we are
reminded of the promises of our Baptism. Daily he reminds us of Christ’s
death on the cross so that we can be forgiven. We then can pass that forgiveness on to others.
Someone close to us can hear it from our lips, a wife or husband, son or daughter,
brother or sister or Christian friend.
There was an older Pastor who grew up on a large vegetable farm in Ohio.
All the family worked there, aunts and uncles, grandparents, cousins. They had a
beautiful tradition that kept division at a minimum. Each Communion Sunday
before going to worship they would hold hands around their large kitchen table and
starting with the oldest down to the youngest they would ask forgiveness for any
hurtful words or sinful actions committed during the week. Then each would say, “I
forgive you in Jesus’ name.” Then it was on to church to receive with great joy the
body and blood of their Savior and to sit at the feet of their divine Counselor, the
Holy Spirit.
Who Can Counsel You Best? While you may get wonderful advice from a
trusted confidante, it is still coming from an imperfect human being. Also, our
human counselors may not always be available. The Holy Spirit is there for us at all
times. Call on Him to lead you. Call on Him for direction. Call on Him for that
problem that weighs on your mind. He will provide the answer as He makes you
spiritually aware of where you need to be or what you need to do.
Our Divine Counselor works powerfully in our lives to become the holy
people that the Holy Spirit calls us to be.
Amen.