Sermon for the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost

July 19, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Texts:  Psalm 147:7-11 & Psalm 145:16 (Today’s Introit)

Sermon Theme:  “Sing to the Lord . . . Make Melody to Our God”

 (Sources:  Emphasis Online Illustrations; Harper’s Bible Dictionary; “Introduction to the Psalms,” Concordia Self Study Bible; original ideas; Online Church Jokes; Angels Singing, Online openbible.info; The Role of Music in Worship by Dr. Michael Edwards; Scott Bayles, SermonCentral online; Nelson’s Three-in-One)

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

           The Book of Psalms is the largest book in the Bible, and it is made up of ancient hymns, written by men and inspired by the Holy Spirit.  It has always been the Church’s hymnbook.  The Hebrew title for this great hymn book is “Tehillah” which means “song or songs of praise”; the English title “Psalms” or “Psalter” (which came from Greek) means “stringed instruments such as harp, lyre and lute.”  Throughout, it contains rubrics for music; there is no doubt that it is a song book.

We believe that 73 of the hymns were written by David; the others were written by Moses, Solomon, Asaph, Sons of Korah, and Ethan.  We do not know the author of 34 of them.  Many of the 150 psalms are songs of praise to God, singing fervently of His goodness and His greatness.  The Psalms show us that God’s people are a Church on fire with zeal for the Lord.

They inspire us to want to be a Church on fire as the early Church was at Pentecost.  Too many churches today are lukewarm churches like the Church in Laodicea Jesus condemned in Revelation:  “So, because you are lukewarm –neither hot nor cold – I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”  How do we avoid being such a lukewarm church?  How do we become a church on fire?  One, we praise God with zeal; two, we sing to God with passion; and three, we believe in the goodness and greatness of God wholeheartedly. Continue reading →

Sermon for Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

July 12, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Mark 6:14-29

Sermon Theme:  “Christians Decapitated”

(Sources:  Anderson’s, Cycle B, Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Commentary; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Online Stewardship of Life Jokes; original ideas; Online Bad Women of the Bible; Online All the Women of the Bible: Herodias; Safe Horizon “Child Abuse Facts”; Operation Rescue  “Abortion”)

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

           An insurance agent once stopped by a nearby church in hopes of selling some insurance.  He greeted the head usher at the door and asked to talk to whoever was in charge.

“Not me,” said the usher, “I only hand out the bulletins.  Let me take you to the pastor.”

The insurance agent then asked the pastor if he was in charge, and the pastor replied, “Not me!  I only preach and teach.  Let me take you to the president of the congregation.

The insurance agent then asked the congregational president if he were in charge.  “Not me,” he said, “I only conduct meetings and hear complaints.  Let me take you to the head elder.”

The insurance agent asked the head elder if he were in charge, and he retorted, “Not me, I just take care of the building.”

By this time, the insurance agent was quite frustrated and muttered aloud, “Well, who IS in charge around here anyway?”

The lady who made and served the coffee every Sunday piped up and stated loudly   , “That’s me!  NOTHING happens around here until I make the coffee!”

That sounds like me every morning at home.  My wife says, “Today is garbage pickup.”

I say, “I can’t do anything until I have a cup of coffee.”

One hour later, after I’ve read my newspaper and had my second cup of coffee, I say, “Good grief!  I have a lot to do today, — send stuff to the website, write a sermon, write a sermonette, pray for folks on the prayer list, run off pages for my Sunday School class . . . (pause) . . . I think I need another cup of coffee!” Continue reading →

Sermon for Independence Day Sunday

July 5, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Texts:  John 8:31-36 and Psalm 119:29-34

Sermon Theme:  “As Faithful Christians, What Do We Do?”

 (Sources:  Free to Be Faithful, LCMS newsletter, Summer 2015; Constitution of the United State, World Book Encyclopedia; Emphasis Online Illustrations;  original ideas; Online Funny Fourth of July Stories; Nelson’s Concordance; SCOTUS Marriage Ruling.)

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

           I want to start with a story.

The Fourth of July weekend was approaching, and Miss Pelham, the nursery school teacher, took the opportunity to tell her class about patriotism.

“We live in a great country,” she announced.  “One of the things we should be happy about is that, in this country, we are all free.”

Trevor, who was a little boy in her class, come walking up to her from the back of the room.  He stood with his hands on his hips and said loudly, “I’m not free, I’m four!”

Even though these are serious times with serious questions to ask, I thought it would be appropriate to begin with a little humor.

“Freedom” is such a beautiful, American sort of word, certainly much more so than some of the other “F” words we hear spoken in these post-Christian times!  It’s such a compelling concept; it’s why we celebrate the Fourth of July in the first place.  However, the word “freedom” itself raises serious questions. Continue reading →

Sermon for the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

June 28, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Lamentations 3:22-33

Sermon Theme:  “Great Is Thy Faithfulness”

 (Sources:  Brokhoff, Series B, Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Emphasis Online Commentaries; original ideas; Online Peanuts Quotes; Christian Jokes Online; Introduction to Lamentations, Concordia Self-Study Bible)

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

           The “dog days” of summer are about to begin, — when the triple digit heat index and the three-digit humidity make daily life miserable, especially without air-conditioning.

For people without hope, the “dog days of summer” hound them all year long, summer, fall, winter, and spring, — only the heat and humidity are within rather than without, and life is hopeless and miserable.

You know folks are in trouble when the woebegone husband says to the wife, “I married you, — now make me happy!”  It’s like when Charlie Brown said in a Peanuts comic strip, “I’ve developed a new philosophy.  I only dread one day at a time.”

In another strip, Lucy asks Charlie, “Why do you think we’re put here on earth, Charlie Brown?”

“To make others happy,” he replies.

Lucy responds, “I don’t think I’M making anyone very happy.”  After a pause, she continues, “Of course, no one is making ME very happy either!  SOMEBODY’S NOT DOING HIS JOB!” Continue reading →

Sermon for Father’s Day, Pentecost 4

June 21, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Mark 4:35-41

Sermon Theme:  “Does Jesus Care?”

 (Sources:  Brokhoff Series B Preaching Workbook; Father’s Day Quotes Online; Father’s Day Humor Online; Emphasis Online Commentary; Emphasis Online Illustrations; original ideas; Anderson’s Cycle B Preaching Workbook)

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

On Father’s Day, we recognize how important the father is in the rearing of children.  After all, God has honored fathers by using the term “father” to refer to Himself; He could have used “uncle” or “colonel” or “CEO.”  More about that later, but suffice it to say, — as fathers, because of the role we play in the family, we must be careful of what we do and what we say.

After the church service a little boy told his pastor, “When I grow up, I’m going to give you some money.”

“Well, thank you,” the pastor replied, “but why?”

“Because,” said the boy, “my daddy says you’re one of the poorest preachers we’ve ever had!’

Little Susan was mother’s helper.  She helped set the table when guests were due to dinner.  Presently everything was on, the guest came in, and everyone sat down.  Then Mother noticed something was missing.

“Susan,” she said, “You didn’t put a knife and fork at Mr. Smith’s place.”

“I thought he wouldn’t need them,” explained Susan, “Daddy says he always eats like a horse.”

In some instances, it’s the mother who helps the child understand God and develop a religious life, but the father should be involved in this, too, and he often is.

A father was at the beach with his children when his four-year-old son Bob ran up to him, grabbed his hand, and led him to the shore, where a seagull lay dead in the sand.

“Daddy, what happened to him?”  Bob asked.

“He died and went to heaven,” the dad replied.

Bob thought for a moment and then said, “Did God throw him back down?” Continue reading →

Sermon for Third Sunday after Pentecost

June 14, 2014, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Texts:  Ezekiel 17:22-14 and Mark 4:26-34

Sermon Theme:  “God’s Arbor”

 (Sources:  Anderson’s Cycle B Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Commentary; Emphasis Online Illustrations; Christian Jokes Online; Peanuts Comic Strips; original ideas; Harper’s Bible Dictionary; Believer’s Commentary)

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

           Father Murphy, the priest, walked into a pub and said to the first man he met, “Do you want to go to heaven?”

The man replied, “I do, Father.”

The priest said, “Then stand over there against the wall.”

Then the priest asked a second man, “Do you want to go to heaven?”

“Certainly, Father,” was the man’s reply.

The priest said, “Then stand over there against the wall.”

Then Father Murphy walked up to O’Toole and said, “Do you want to go to heaven?”

O’Toole said, “No, I don’t Father.”

The priest said, “I don’t believe this.  You mean to tell me that when you die you don’t want to go to heaven?”

O’Toole said, “Oh, when I die, yes!  I thought you were getting a group together to go right now.”

Today’s lectionary missed Arbor Day by one month and 20 days, — it’s the last Friday of the month of April, — but both of our sermon texts are about trees, the Old Testament from Ezekiel and the Gospel of Mark.  The metaphor of the trees and the parable of the trees shed some light on O’Toole’s misunderstanding. Continue reading →

Sermon for the Second Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 5

June 7, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Mark 3:20-35

Sermon Theme:  “A Very Disturbing Gospel Text: There’s Nothing Crazy about Jesus!”

 (Sources:  Anderson, Cycle B, Preaching Workbook;  Emphasis Online Commentaries; Emphasis Online Illustrations; original ideas; Online Christian Jokes; footnotes, Concordia Self-Study Bible)

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

           Reverend Billy Graham tells of a time early in his ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach a sermon.  Wanting to mail a letter, he asked a young boy where the post office was.  When the boy told him, Dr. Graham thanked him and said, “If you’ll come to the Baptist Church this evening, you can hear me telling everyone how to get to heaven.”

“I don’t think I’ll be there,” the boy replied, “you don’t even know your way to the post office.” Continue reading →

Sermon for Holy Trinity/Graduate Recognition Sunday

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Isaiah 6:1-8

Sermon Theme:  “Teach Me, Lead Me, and Send Me, Lord”

(Sources:  Brokhoff’s Series B Preaching Workbook; Anderson’s Cycle B Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Commentaries; Emphasis Online Illustrations; my ideas from Images, May 28, 2015; other original ideas; Famous Online Graduation Quotes; Funny Online Graduation Quotes; Harper’s Bible Dictionary)

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

           College Commencement speeches are usually much longer than high school graduation speeches, probably because colleges pay big money to hire famous speakers who feel they earn their money by making long speeches.  High school graduation speeches are usually given by students and are much shorter.  And sometimes better.

Some people dread attending graduation ceremonies, because many commencement addresses over the years have been very boring.  In past years, when I would start my sermon on Graduate Sunday, some members probably mumbled under their breath, “Oh dear, not another Commencement speech!”

Because of that attitude, there has been in recent years an attempt by many speakers to be funny, or at least to have a few funny one-liners.  Melanie White told a group of high school grads, “Now that you’ve graduated, just remember:  Bosses don’t usually accept notes from your mother.”

An auditorium full of college graduates listened to Arnold Schwarzenegger tell them:  “Just remember, you can’t climb the ladder of success with your hands in your pockets.”

My favorite one has probably been around so long it is considered anonymous:  “Go to it. Be bold.  Be true. Be kind.  Rotate your tires.  Don’t drink so much.  There aren’t going to be enough liver transplants to go around.” Continue reading →

Sermon for Pentecost/Memorial Day Sunday

May 24, 2015, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  Acts 2:1-21

Sermon Theme:  “Pentecost:  The Antidote to Spiritual Emptiness, Misinterpretation and Misunderstanding”

 (Sources:  Emphasis Online Commentaries; Emphasis Online Examples; Anderson’s Cycle B Preaching Workbook; original ideas; Wikipedia)

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

           A large part of the problem with God’s chosen people, the Israelites, was their disobedience, their faithlessness.  Another part of the problem, just as big, was misinterpretation of God’s Word on the part of the entrenched religious leaders, which caused misunderstanding on the part of the people.  The religious leaders drained the spirit out of their religion and narrowed it down to rituals and sacrifices.

David pleads in Psalm 51, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me . . . You do not delight in sacrifice . . . The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.”

The Old Testament prophets had foretold the Messiah just as He appeared in Jesus, but the religious gurus misinterpreted His nature and work and led the people to misunderstanding.

It’s so easy to misinterpret, misunderstand, and mis-communicate, isn’t it?

A woman went to a marriage counselor and told him, “I want to divorce my husband.”

“Do you have any grounds for divorce?”  the counselor asked.

“Why, yes.  We have almost an acre.”

“You don’t understand,” said the counselor.  “What I want to know is if you and your husband have a grudge.”

“That we don’t have,” she said.  “But we do have a carport.”

“The counselor shook his head and said, “I’m sorry, but I still don’t see any reason why you should divorce your husband.”

“It’s just that the man can’t carry on an intelligent conversation,” she replied.

Understanding.  It’s the stuff of which great comedy routines are made.  From Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s on first?” to the inspired nonsense of Lucille Ball or the gang from “Everybody Loves Raymond,” comedians have gotten a lot of mileage out of misunderstanding. Continue reading →

Sermon for Seventh Sunday of Easter, May 17, 2015

St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas

Sermon Text:  1 John 5:9-15

Sermon Theme:  “Get a Life!”

 (Sources:  Brokhof, Series B Preaching Workbook; Anderson Cycle B Preaching Workbook; Emphasis Online Commentaries; Emphasis Online Sermon Illustrations; Online Famous Peanuts Quotes; original ideas; Online What Children Say Quotes; Wikipedia.)

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

           Today’s sermon text is about life, eternity, and faith.  John says, “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”  The person who has Christ has eternal life.  Christ is life, and to have him by faith living in you is to have eternal life.  The emphasis is not upon “eternal” but upon “life.”  “Eternal” separates life in Christ from earthly life.  Physical life ends in death.  Spiritual life, found in Christ, never dies.  This life, “spiritual” life, begins here and now, right now.  It does not begin upon physical death.

No, “spiritual” life begins upon acceptance of Christ by faith as Lord and Savior.  So, heaven for a Christian actually begins now, not after physical death.

The meaning of life is something everybody puzzles about.  Sally Brown says in a Peanuts comic strip, “I think I’ve discovered the secret of life – you just hang around until you get used to it.”  Charlie Brown remarks, “In the book of life, the answers aren’t in the back.”  As always, Snoopy has a different view on life, “My life has no purpose, no direction, no aim, no meaning, and yet I’m happy.  I can’t figure it out.  What am I doing right?” Continue reading →