Sermon for Christ the King, November 20, 2016

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Luke 23:27-43

Sermon Theme:  “Was He a King of Fools?”

(Sources:  Emphasis online Commentary; Emphasis online Illustrations; Anderson, Cycle C, Preaching Workbook; original ideas; History Jokes, history.inrebus.com; Brokhoff, Series C, Preaching Workbook)

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

While America has no King or Queen, most Americans are familiar with royalty, because of the British royal family.  By the way, in England, when a royal male becomes King, his wife is always given the title “Queen.”  However, when a royal female becomes Queen, her husband must never be called “King” if he is a foreigner, — such as the case of Prince Albert who was from Germany and Prince Phillip who was from Spain.  Such a designation reminds the folks that Queen Victoria, or Queen Elizabeth, is the true Royal Monarch of the United Kingdom.  Not their husband.

Australia is a Constitutional Monarchy, with Elizabeth II as their figurehead Queen.  Once when Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip were visiting a university in Australia, a couple introduced themselves to Prince Phillip as Mr. and Dr. Robinson.  When the husband explained, “My wife is a doctor of philosophy.  She is much more important than I,” Prince Phillip sympathetically replied, “Ah, yes.  We have that trouble in our family, too.”

In the early days, including Old Testament times, when Israel had a King, the King had absolute authority, and people believed in the Divine Right of Kings.  In England during the Middle Ages, it was believed that a bad King was allowed to rule the people as punishment for their sins, so you deserved and had to endure a “bad” King.  In today’s world, some countries, like England, still have Kings and Queens, but they have little or no authority and are pretty much figureheads.

God used the images and languages of the world to communicate His nature, the mystery of His existence, to us, and so we view God as the King of Kings, the divine monarch of His Kingdom.  Earthly kings, then and now, are political; the Divine King, Christ the King, is spiritual, although at the time of His crucifixion, Roman leaders and the religious leaders of the Jews saw Jesus as a political threat.  Obviously, Christ was a very different kind of king. Continue reading →

Sermon for the Twenty-sixth Sunday after Pentecost

November 13, 2016, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  2 Thessalonians 3:6-13

Sermon Theme:  “Be Busy, Not a Busy-Body”

(Sources:  Anderson’s Cycle C Preaching Workbook; Brokhoff, Series C, Preaching Workbook; original ideas and example; Footnotes, Amplified Study Bible; Online quotes and jokes about being lazy; Emphasis Online Illustrations; footnotes, Concordia Self-Study Bible; The Faith by Charles Colson and Harold Fickett)

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

It’s just amazing how many funny things have been said or written about laziness or lazy people.  If I quoted all of them, we’d be here all day.  Here are just a few of them:

“They say that hard work never killed anyone, but why take the chance?”  “Give a lazy person a fish and he will eat it.  Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and sleep all day.”  “I should have suspected my husband was lazy on our wedding day, his mother told me: ‘I’m not losing a son, I’m gaining a couch.’”  “I hate housework, because several months later, I have to do it all over again.”  “When you have the urge to work, lie down until it’s gone.”  “You know you’re lazy if you have to save up energy to take a nap.”  “Don’t do anything tomorrow, if it can be done the day after tomorrow.”

And there are zillions of jokes about preachers’ being lazy, since they work only on Sundays.  Once when a grandfather had to take his granddaughter to school on Opening Day (her mother was sick and her father was too busy), Grandpa said to his grandchild during an interview with her new teacher, “Tell the lady where your daddy works.”

The little girl looked at her grandfather and said with a frown, “Grandpa, you know daddy doesn’t work, — he’s a preacher!”

Well, nobody could ever have said that about the famous preacher in our sermon text for today, — the Apostle Paul.  If you’ve ever read the Book of Acts and Paul’s letters, you know how hard Paul worked, how tireless he was all of the time.  Not just with his ministry, but with making tents to earn money and helping others.  Paul was a skilled tent-maker, and he used his skills to make and sell tents. Continue reading →

Sermon for All Saints’ Sunday

November 6, 2016, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  1 John 3:1-3

Sermon Theme:  “Saint and Child of God”

(Sources:  Concordia Pulpit Resources, vol. 26, Part 4, Series C, 2016; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Life-Application Study Bible footnotes; original ideas and examples; The Timetables of American History; Merriam-Webster Collegiate Encyclopedia)

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

I want to begin with my favorite joke about saints, so if you’ve heard it before, laugh anyway.  It goes like this:

A pastor dies and is waiting in line at the Pearly Gates.  Ahead of him is a guy who’s dressed in sunglasses, a loud shirt, leather jacket, and jeans.  St. Peter first speaks to this rather colorful-looking guy:  “Who are you, so that I may know whether or not to admit you to the Kingdom of Heaven?”

The man replies, “I’m Joe Cohen, taxi driver, of New York City.”

Saint Peter consults his list.  He smiles and says to the taxi-driver, “Take this silken robe and golden staff and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”

The taxi-driver goes into heaven with his robe and staff, and it’s the pastor’s turn.  Pastor stands proudly and booms out, “I am Jonathan Snow, Pastor of St. Mark’s for the last forty-three years.”

Saint Peter consults his list.  He says to the pastor, “Take this cotton robe and wooden staff and enter the Kingdom of Heaven.”

“Just a minute,” says the pastor.  “That man was a taxi-driver and he gets a silken robe and golden staff.  How can this be?”

“Up here, we work by results,” says Saint Peter.  “While you preached, people slept; while he drove, people prayed.”

While that joke implies that there are levels of sainthood based on good works, we are convinced all true believers, dead or still living, are “saints.”  Period. Continue reading →

Sermon for Reformation Sunday, October 30, 2016

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  John 8:31-36

Sermon Theme:  “Preaching the Truth for 500 Years”

(Sources:  Anderson, Cycle C, Preaching Workbook; Concordia Pulpit Resources, Vol. 26, Part 4, Series C, Aug. 28 – Nov. 20, 2016; Brokhoff, Series C, Preaching Workbook; original ideas; Online Lutheran Jokes, Christian Forum; LCMS Plans Taking Shape for 2017 Reformation Celebration by Roger Drinnon; LCMS Convention Prepares to Celebrate Reformation 500^th; Online Lund and the Quest for Christian Unity by Timothy George; Vatican Radio, Pope to Take Part in Reformation Events in Lund)

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

It’s been a while since I have had a Junior Confirmation class, but here’s a story I can relate to.  It seems a Lutheran Pastor was teaching his junior confirmation class about the Sacraments of the church when he noticed that young Johnny was not paying attention.

“Johnny!,” the Pastor said in a loud voice.  “Pay attention!  The Sacraments are very important to the church!”

“I know,” replied Johnny.

“Then, how many Sacraments are there in the Lutheran church?  Catholicsrecognize seven Sacraments, but how many do we acknowledge?”  Having just explained what a Sacrament is, the Pastor was very put out with Johnny.

Panic-stricken because he hadn’t been listening, Johnny searched hismind, trying to think of all the things his parents had always said were important to the church.  Then he took a breath and said, “Two.”

The Pastor was really impressed; he couldn’t believe Johnny got it right!

“And what are those two Sacraments?,” asked the Pastor.

Thinking he had it right, the boy responded with great confidence,

“Coffee and donuts!”

Tomorrow is October 31, Reformation Day. Today is known as Reformation Sunday.  On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany, marking the start of the Protestant Reformation, — which means that this year we begin the 500^th year.  For 500 years, faithful Lutheran pastors have preached the truth, and the truth has set people free!

That’s why the pastor in my story felt it was so important for Johnny to understand the two Sacraments of the Lutheran Church. Continue reading →

Sermon for the Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost

October 23, 2016, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Luke 18:9-17

Sermon Theme:  “Actions Flow from Attitudes”

(Sources:  Anderson’s Cycle C Preaching Workbook; original ideas; Online Jokes about Self-Righteousness, cybersalt.org; Online Emphasis Illustrations and Commentaries; Online Evangelical Outpost; Harper’s Bible Dictionary; footnotes, Life Application Study Bible)

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

Two elderly Southern women, attending their Full-Gospel church, were sitting together in the front pew of the church, listening to a very fiery preacher.  When this preacher condemned the sin of stealing, these two ladies cried out at the top of their lungs, “AMEN, PREACHER!”

When this preacher condemned the sin of lust, they yelled again, “PREACH IT, REVEREND!”

And when the preacher condemned the sin of lying, they jumped to their feet and screamed, “RIGHT ON, BROTHER!  TELL IT LIKE IT IS!  AMEN!”

But when the preacher condemned the sin of gossip, the two got very quiet.  One turned to the other and said, “He’s quit preaching and now he’s meddlin’!”

The attitude of these two faithful, church-going women is similar to the attitude of many folks when they read or hear the parable in today’s sermon text.  It’s a familiar parable, but in its familiarity, people miss the twist that Jesus intended.  If folks go away thinking that the Pharisee is the villain in the story and the Tax Collector is the hero, they missed Jesus’ intent.

In the parable, a Pharisee and a tax collector walk into a temple.  The Pharisee stands before the altar and prays, no doubt with palms lifted up to heaven and raised eyes.  The Pharisee prays, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.”

In contrast, the tax collector, standing off to the side, looking down, not able to lift his eyes up toward God, and beating his breast, prays, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”  Jesus of course says  that the tax collector is the one of the two justified.  No doubt, those listening to Jesus tell this story, were staring at the Pharisee and thinking, “What a self-righteous group of men, those Pharisees are!  They are wicked!  Thank God I’m not a Pharisee!”  Before we go any further, let’s make sure we understand why the people felt the way they did about tax collectors and Pharisees. Continue reading →

Sermon for LWML Sunday, October 16, 2016

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Texts:  Luke 18:1-8; Luke 21:2-4; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7

Sermon Theme:  “Models of Persistence and Sacrificial Giving”

(Sources:  Emphasis Online Illustrations; “Mite Offerings,’ LWML website; “Mite Box Explanation and History,” LWML website; original ideas and examples; Life-Application Study Bible; Harper’s Bible Dictionary; Concordia Pulpit Resources, Vol. 26, Part 4, Series C; Anderson’s Cycle C Preaching Workbook)

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

Often, persistence will get a person, or an animal, what he wants.  Our cat Gatsby is one of the most persistent creatures God ever created.  He follows me into the kitchen and begins to beg for snacks with a quiet meow.  I ignore him, and the meows get louder and louder.  I continue to ignore him and he starts to howl, throwing himself in front of me and lying on my feet.  I can’t take it any longer, so I toss him a handful of treats.  His persistence always works!

It works with people, too, Harpo Marx, one of the famous wacko Marx brothers, once experienced this truth.  Harpo was staying in a New York hotel when a lady who worked for a charity found out where he was staying and phoned him twelve separate times in the space of 48 hours, always with the same request, ‘Would you please speak at our charity benefit?’  Eventually Harpo relented and agreed to appear.

To make sure he wouldn’t duck out at the last minute, the lady showed up at his hotel room to personally escort him to the charity benefit.  On the way out of his room, the phone rang.  Harpo ignored it.  She asked, “Aren’t you even going  to answer your phone?”

“Why bother,” Harpo replied, “it’s probably you again.”

I have chosen three sermon texts for LWML Sunday.  The first one, Luke 18:1-8, shows the persistence of a widow.  The second one, Luke 21:2-4, shows the sacrificial giving of a widow.  And the third one, 2 Corinthians 8:1-7, shows the sacrificial giving of a congregation. Continue reading →

Sermon for the Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost, October 9, 2016

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  2 Timothy 2:1-13

Sermon Theme:  “Be Strengthened in Grace As You Share in Suffering”

(Sources: Concordia Pulpit Resources, Volume 26, Part 4, Series C; Anderson’s Cycle C Preaching Workbook; Brokhoff, Series C, Preaching Workbook; The Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching and Preachers; Online Sermon Illustrations; “Nero Persecutes the Christians,” eyewitnesstohistory.com; original ideas; Online The Fiscal Times, March 22, 2015; Life-Application Study Bible footnotes; Lutheran Cyclopedia; “Charles Spurgeon: Preaching through Adversity” by John Piper)

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

Once when Bob Hope, the famous comedian, received a major award, he responded, “I don’t deserve this, but then I have arthritis, and I don’t deserve that either.”  Neither suffering nor grace is deserved, but we have both.  Well, — in some cases, you do deserve the suffering, if, for example, you rob a bank and you suffer in prison as a consequence of your evil action.

Someone once asked famous Christian writer, C. S. Lewis, “But why do the righteous suffer?’

“Why not?” Lewis replied, “they’re the only ones who can take it.”

No one could write about the righteous endurance of suffering better than the Apostle Paul could.  In his second letter to Timothy, Paul tells his young co-worker Timothy, and us, four things:  ONE, In this life, all people suffer, and while Christians may suffer, they also endure; TWO, thus, as Christians, we have a need to be strengthened; THREE, we are strengthened by God’s grace, His favor that is in Christ Jesus; and FOUR, we are strengthened so that we may speak the saving Word to our neighbor, that is to all people.

No human being can live in this worldly life without eventually suffering.  As in the case of Paul in our text, it may be innocent suffering, — Paul was shackled in prison like a criminal because he preached the Gospel.  It wasn’t because he BELIEVED the Gospel, it was because he PREACHED it.  Paul fully expected to spend the rest of his life in prison or to be executed.

This was the second time Paul was in prison, and it was during the vicious, vicious persecutions of the Emperor Nero.  During his first imprisonment, around 60 A.D., Paul had been merely under house arrest, but this time, around 66 A.D., he was shackled in a prison cell.  To grasp the impact of what Paul is saying to Timothy, we must consider how inhuman this persecution was.  Under Nero, not only were they imprisoned in rat-infested dungeons, but also Christians were covered with the skins of wild animals and thrown into an arena filled with hungry dogs to attack them.  Under Nero, Christians were nailed to stakes and crosses.  Some had hooks driven through their throats and were hung from trees.  Some were doused with oil, ignited and used as human torches to light up Nero’s gardens.   Continue reading →

Sermon for the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

October 2, 2016, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Luke 17:5-6

Sermon Theme:  “’Dead Duck’ Faith”

(Sources:  Emphasis Online Commentaries; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Anderson, Cycle C, Preaching Workbook; “the Seed of Faith,” bunbury.org; original ideas; “Verses Showing Justification by Faith,” CARM; Nelson’s Three-in-One Bible References; Online article on Faith by Greg Koukl; Luther’s Small Catechism and Explanation; Scientific American Online)

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

Let me begin with a story.

A lady goes to the vet with a duck, which she presents to the veterinary surgeon.  The duck is quite clearly dead, and after a cursory examination, the vet duly informs the lady that her duck has breathed its last.

Outraged, the lady tells the vet he doesn’t know what he’s talking about and challenges him to prove that her duck is, indeed, dead.  The vet sighs, but then opens the back door of the surgery room and ushers in a large black Labrador who walks up to the examination table, puts his paws on the table, and sniffs the duck from head to toe.  The Labrador looks dolefully at the vet and slowly shakes its head and leaves the room.

The vet then brings in a large tabby cat, which he places on the table beside the duck.  The cat also sniffs the duck from head to toe and also looks up to the vet and shakes its head.  The vet removes the cat and then says to the lady, “There you are, I told you it was dead.”  He taps a few keys on his computer and says, “That will be $150, please.”

The lady, clearly shocked, says, “$150 to tell me that my duck is dead, that’s outrageous.”

“Well,” said the vet, “if you’d taken my word for it, it would have only been $20, but with the Lab test and the cat scan, it’s a hundred fifty.”

In other words, ‘Have faith in me and my diagnosis.’  We Christians talk about being saved by grace through faith alone, and faith comes from hearing the Word of God, but you can have faith in many things, — your veterinarian, your own doctor, your own intelligence, the plumber you call, the experienced roofer, a contractor, etc.’ Continue reading →

Sermon for the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost

September 25, 2016, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Amos 6:1-7

Sermon Theme:  “A ‘Prophet’ Who Practices What He Preaches”

(Sources:  Brokhoff, Series C, Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Commentary; Prophet and Priest, chabad.org; “Practice What You Preach” by Neil Epler; notes in Life Application Study Bible; original ideas; Harper’s Bible Dictionary; Greek/Hebrew Key Bible)

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

Since you regularly attend a church that uses CPH inserts from a Lectionary Series, I’m sure you have noticed how all three Scriptures for each Sunday, — Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel – all have a common thread that ties them together.  Your pastor chooses one of the three to focus on, but the others relate to it.  That of course is true of today’s Scriptures.

Moses led the people of Israel as God’s Prophet, and God made Aaron, the brother of Moses, the first priest.  Many people are often confused about the difference between the “Navi” [Prophet] and the “Kohen” [Priest].  That’s because in the New Testament and in our own time, they seem to merge together.  Aaron was a descendant of Levi, so for centuries, priests and other professional church workers had to come from the descendants of Levi.

The duties of prophet and priest were distinctive, but sometimes overlapped.  Although you had to be a Levite to be a priest, you could be a prophet without being a descendant of Aaron or Levi.  Still, the most famous of the Old Testament prophets came from the families of priests, —  Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Zechariah, — and I’m not sure about Isaiah.  We don’t know enough about many of the minor prophets, like Joel, Obadiah, Micah Nahum, etc., to know if they were also priests.  The Old Testament Prophets, whether from priestly families or not, were Godly men whom God used to admonish the people and to proclaim His plan of salvation.  Eventually the priests, but not the prophets, of Israel became so decadent that God had to call pure and good men like Samuel to serve as both priest and prophet. Continue reading →