St. Paul's Lockport Sermons

Today we remember that Stuart was already made new, and will be made new on the last day. At his baptism, he received forgiveness of sins and new life by the Holy Spirit. God made Stuart new, changed his heart, so he could trust and believe in Jesus Christ as his savior. And as that faith endured in Stuart’s life, he is with Christ now, safe in his Savior’s arms, and will be raised from the dead o...

This is Good Shepherd Sunday - Christ has laid His life down for His sheep, and His sheep hear His voice. As sheep of our Good Shepherd, we learn that we should follow Christ, in what respects we should follow Him, why we should follow Him, and in what manner we follow Him.

In the gospel account we read the witness of Jesus' resurrection to the church. In giving the Holy Spirit to the disciples to forgive and bind sins, Jesus also witnesses His resurrection life by the church. We are in fact more blessed than Thomas and the ten as we do not see yet believe.

Preached for meeting of Northern Illinois Confessional Lutherans. Jesus , who conquers death and Leviathan, is recognized in provision and fruitfulness.

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! Easter is the greatest holiday in the church year, even greater than Christmas, because while you only remember the Nativity of Christ, you participate in the resurrection of Jesus Christ today.

Dear Christian, as you look back on your life, what has made you the happiest? Of all the people you’ve met, for whom are you most grateful? Thing that made your happiest is you were called into God’s House, the House of Lord, the church of the living God. You are most grateful to have known those people who called you to be one of the people with whom the God of all grace dwells and lives through...

The Psalms are the prayerbook of the church. They are the songs which Jesus sang about the history of Israel as He went to worship in the temple at the festivals for 33 years. They are the words which Jesus clung to as He went to His crucifixion. As baptized into His death and resurrection, we the church can cling to these same words as well, trusting in the faithfulness of the Crucified One.

In all the passion accounts of Jesus Christ, He does not only die, but suffers, and not only suffer, but take mocking and spite in the midst of His suffering. This is for our good, as the devil, through sinful men, exhausts all his hatred upon Christ and thus through Christ's bearing of this hatred we may be redeemed and freed.

What is the Lord's Supper? What are it's benefits? How do we rightly receive it? For this, we must look to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ.

"The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His Anointed." Christ shows especially in Luke the nature of His kingdom as upside down from the world. The disciples argue about who is the greatest. Pilate and Herod plot against Jesus. But Jesus comes as One Who Serves.

We see from Judas that those who oppose Jesus act as if love is a zero-sum game, there are winners are losers. Jesus' complete self-giving shows that the one who is lifted up, who goes into the earth and dies, bears enough fruit for the entire world.

Jesus goes to His cross as it is written. Nothing in His passion takes him by surprise. Just as He showed the disciples He knew where the donkey's colt would be, He knew that He must be delivered over to the Gentiles, suffer, be crucified, and on the third day rise.

Sermon for Holy Monday with the Passion According to St. Mark What were the disciples expecting when they went to Gethsemane? An ascension like Elijah? A conquest like David? They certainly were not spiritually prepared. This is why Christ must go to the cross for sinners, to take our sin, and give His strength and life.

We face many dangers in this world, even from other people. If God had not been on our side, we would never be able to overcome temptation or oppression from man. Thanks be to God, our help is in the name of the Lord, the name we are given in our baptism.

"Assuredly I say to you, if anyone keeps My Words, he will never see death." This word enrages Christ's enemies, but is sweet comfort to those who trust in Him. For we will all face death, but in Christ, we do not face it alone, nor forever.

Who is the Christ? When the man born blind is healed, no one is allowed to say. If the leaders of the Jews had read Psalm 132 rightly, they would have seen Jesus. Jesus is the true Son of God, who now makes His place in the Zion of the church, where people gather to receive His Word and Sacrament.

Laetare, the fourth Sunday in Lent, is a day of refreshment before Passion Week and Holy Week. On this day, as we consider Christ's miraculous feeding in the wilderness, we realize that we have physical and spiritual needs which can only be fulfilled by faith in Jesus Christ.

The Scriptures talk about life as consisting in Two Ways - the Way of Life and the Way of Death. We are brought into the Way of Life by Christ in baptism, and He keeps us solid and secure in that Way by His grace. Psalm 125 is a pray that we would say in that way and never fall away or into hypocrisy.

When Gabriel comes to the virgin Mary and announces the good news that she will bear a Son, everything changed. It was the beginning of God's big reversal of the curse. It was the beginning of our salvation, and the end of the devil.

There are two ways of looking at the Christian life. One is to make it like a hobby, a trinket, a small compartment which fits and molds to the greater part of your life. The other is to see the Christian faith as making you a new person, who is now separate from the life you had before. St. Paul tells us about the latter in Ephesians 5.

We continue our study of the Psalms of Ascent with Psalm 128, which speaks of the blessings for the man who fears the Lord and walks in His ways. Joseph, known as a "just" man, was one such man. Even though being Christ's guardian he faced many difficulties, he is an example of faith, fear of the Lord, and walking in his ways.

Reminiscere means "remember" and on this second Sunday in Lent we want God to remember us as we also remember that He is our only sure help. With the example of the Canaanite woman, we see what it looks like to cling to Christ as one's only help with strong faith. The Psalm of Ascent for today, Psalm 121, teaches to call on God as our only, sure and eternal Help.

Our second sermon on the Psalms of Ascent is on Psalm 131. Psalm 131 tells us to be calmed and at rest in soul like a weaned child with his mother. This comes from the soul being in a state of humility before God. God Himself grants that this may come to us by His grace.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, faced every temptation and conquered the devil in our place. In our baptism, we have become sons of God. When we are tempted, we are being asked to abandon the good inheritance we already possess. The Lord's Supper is here to strengthen us to hold onto that inheritance.

Psalms of Ascent - Psalm 130 - Our first sermon on Psalms of Ascent for lent midweek services. Psalm 130 is a cry for mercy from the depths of sin. Although we are like watchmen trying to keep our eyes open waiting for morning, we know that soon the sun will rise. Our trust in the hope of the promises of God is even greater.