Sermon for March 23rd, 2014

Sermon for Third Sunday in Lent, March 23, 2014

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  John 4:5-26

Sermon Theme:  “A Paradigm for Witnessing”

(Sources:  Emphasis online illustrations; Emphasis online Commentary; Anderson, Cycle A, Preaching Workbook; original ideas; Concordia Pulpit Resources, Volume 24, Part 2, Series A)

Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

I want to tell you an old story that’s been around for so long you may know it.  Even if you’ve heard it before, I’m going to tell it anyway, because it’s one of my favorite stories and it helps to make the main point of my sermon.

The story is about two evangelists who went door-to-door inviting people to come to church.  They knocked on the door of a certain woman who told them in no uncertain terms that she did not want to be bothered.  To reinforce her point she slammed her door right in the faces of the evangelists, but the door just bounced open again. Continue reading

Sermon for March 16th 2014

Sermon for Second Sunday in Lent

March 16, 2014, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Romans 4:1-8; 13-17

Sermon Theme:  “God’s Ledger”

 (Sources:  Anderson’s Preaching Workbook, Cycle A; Harper’s Bible Handbook; original ideas; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Online Yahoo Answers; Book of Life by Jack Zavada, about.com/Christianity; Wikipedia; Online Bible Hub)

 Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

 As I’ve said many times, we are not saved by our good deeds; they are performed out of gratitude to God for having already saved us.  It is faith in Christ, not the good works that come from that faith; that saves us.

Here’s an example.  A single-engine plane was flying over ocean waters with three men aboard.  While still several hundred miles from shore, engine trouble developed and the plane was forced to land on the water.  The three men barely climbed from the plane before it sank into the depths.

Of the three men aboard, one could not swim, and quickly drowned.  The second man could swim but was not physically fit and after about ten minutes he sank below the waves.  The third man was an Olympic medal winner in swimming.  He kept afloat for three hours but eventually was exhausted and could not save himself from drowning.  Continue reading

Sermon for March 9th 2014

Sermon for the First Sunday in Lent, March 9, 2014

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Genesis 3:1-21

Sermon Theme:  Life Has to Have Boundaries

(Sources:  Concordia Pulpit Resources, Vol. 24, Part 2, Series A; Anderson’s Preaching Workbook, Cycle A; original ideas; Emphasis online Illustrations)

 Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

 I want to begin by sharing a story with you that is only too human:

A young woman stopped into a coffee shop.  When asked if she wanted any fresh Danish pastries with her coffee the woman declined saying that she was on a diet.  Taking a seat by the window she noticed the man at the next table was preparing to leave, and lo and behold, when he got up, he left behind one perfectly good untouched donut. 

Inside the young woman there was a struggle, and very soon she gave into temptation.  She reached over and took the pastry from the table and bit into it just as the man returned carrying his second cup of coffee.

Obviously, she wasn’t strong enough to resist temptation, she gave herself permission to take something that was not her right to give, and her sinful action had consequences – we don’t know what they were, but if nothing else, — embarrassment. Continue reading

WINKEL HELD AT ST. PAUL’S

WINKEL HELD AT ST. PAUL’S

 

Some of the pastors attending the Circuit Winkel, held at St. Paul Lutheran Church on March 11, 2014. Pastor Stallings is second from the left. Pastor Ray hosted the monthly meeting.

The German word, “Winkel” means corner, angle, place, or spot; and in the early days of the LCMS, the circuit pastors’ meetings were called “Winkels.”  They still are called that.  This month, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, was host today for the monthly Winkel.  Both Pastor Stallings and Pastor Spitzenberger were present, with Pastor Spitzenberger serving as host and presenting a devotional.  A representative, Mark Schoepp, from Wheat Ridge Ministries led a discussion on “Brain Gains — Heart, Soul, Mind and Strength.”  Wheat Ridge helps with School and Small Group Mission Projects, Health and Wholeness Ministry, Prison Ministry, Grant Programs, Ministry to Military Service Men and Women and their families, Health Clinics, and other areas of ministry.

Mark Schoepp from LCMS Wheat Ridge Ministries is pictured at our Circuit Winkel, leading a discussion on “Brain Gains — Heart, Soul, Mind and Strength,” in the Fellowship Hall of our church.

 Mark Schoepp, who was trained as a DCE, makes presentations at churches, conducts workshops, and will even present the message for Mission Festival worship.  In his training as a DCE, he learned ASL, the sign language for the deaf and is able to “speak” ASL.  He has agreed to be our Mission Festival speaker and presenter.  Considering how busy his schedule is we will leave the Mission Festival date open for him to choose.  According to those who heard him today, he is a very dynamic and exciting speaker.

Sermon for March 2nd 2014

Sermon for the Transfiguration of Our Lord

March 2, 2014, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  2 Peter 1:16-21

Sermon Theme: “The Voice of the Mountain and the Bright Morning Star”

(Emphasis Online Commentary; Derl Keefer and Ron Love, Emphasis Online Illustrations; Anderson’s Preaching Workbook, Cycle A; original ideas; GotQuestions.Org; Concordia Pulpit Resources, Vol. 24, Part 1)

Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

The theme song of the Disney film Pocahontas is a song called “Colors of the Wind.”  The song is sung by a reflective young Indian maiden to a self-assured young English explorer, John Smith.  She explains to him that his notion of the way things are may not be quite complete.  Where he sees this new land,America, as a place to exploit and conquer, she sees it as a place to embrace and call home.

She pleads with him in the song, as she sings, “Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains?  Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?” Continue reading