Sandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast Series

Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32  Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) Sunday and Pentecost 18. (The other text prominently cited in the sermon is the Epistle reading from Philippians 2:1-4, 14-18.) Life is not really mine. It is God’s. It has always been His or it is death. He is life, after all. What are the implications of God’s claim that “All life is mine”? God’s divine claim on our life means that...

Isaiah 55:6-9 and Matthew 20:1-16        September 24, 2023) Too often we let the economy and dynamics of the world enter our relationship with God. There is no free lunch out there, but here, God is gracious, a giver of free gifts to us. How can we simply rest in the grace of God?

Genesis 50:15-21 and Matthew 18:21-35 September 17, 2023 We want to notice what it is that Joseph does today and has already done in Genesis. Who is it in my life that needs forgiveness? Should I forgive them? I can forgive them, but I can never forget! Forgiving others is hard, so we take our cue from Joseph who becomes an instrument of showing God’s grace. May the hearer forgive the people in hi...

Ezekiel 33:7-9      9/10/2023 The Gospel reading is Matthew 18:1-20.  Ezekiel is supposed to proclaim a warning: God’s judgment of sin is real. God continues to call “Watchmen” to proclaim the Law and Gospel to us and through us. This sermon wants to remember the purpose of the Law in this process. We have all too often jumped to the Gospel which then becomes no good news. Today, we sing “The Law...

September 3, 2023       Jeremiah 15:15-21 Disappointment. Does our Christian expression even allow for disappointment in God? Or do we tell people that Christians never feel these things? Are we subtly and not-so-subtly telling them that these feelings are not Christian feelings? Jeremiah experiences rejection from the hearers of his day because of his faithful proclamation of God’s Word. He and G...

Matthew 16:13-20       August 27, 2023 Gates are not offensive weapons. They are defensive positions. Jesus is not calling us to hunker down behind the walls of our church here, but he is sending us out on a seek and liberate mission. We are on the offensive here. May the Holy Spirit embolden and equip the hearer to assault the gates of hell and free, through the power of Christ’s Word, those whom...

Matthew 15:21-28                    August 20, 2023 Old Testament reading for Pentecost 12 is Isaiah 56:1, 6-8. The disciples had been wondering why they were all the way up in Tyre and Sidon. Jesus is about to demonstrate to them that he is calling people to faith from every tribe, and nation, and people (see Rev 5.) We can still learn more, and we are never done growing into the heart of Jesus....

Matthew 14:22-33                              August 13th Jesus tips his hand here by calming the storm and walking on the water. He is God. The disciples recognize that here. They bow down and worship. It is all one can do when in the presence of God. We might feel like the world, worship and life  has become disenchanted but this reading helps us to see things anew in the light of the incarnate...

Isaiah 55:1-5. Other readings: Psalm 136:1-9 (23-26); Romans 9:1-5 (6-13) and Matthew 14:13-21. Isaiah 55 is a celebration meal. The Lord’s servant has been victorious. It’s time to feast. The worship theme for this day focuses on food—and all that that connotes in God’s eternal provision. The Psalm is often prayed at dinner tables and is traditional also for Thanksgiving Day (see 136:25). And all...

Isaiah 55:10-13 & Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 Pastor Jon’s message was originally preached on July 16, 2023 but is being released about the time that he will be attending the LCMS Church Convention this summer. It is also worthwhile noting, just for some context, that Pastor Jon worked in the cornfields for a couple of weeks prior to giving his July 16th message, helping out his father’s family busi...

The text is Isaiah 44:6-8. Eighth Sunday after Pentecost (July 23, 2023).  We know the rock that is God, but we first know Him in His incarnate self, as He has made Himself known to us: Jesus Christ, crucified for our sins and raised for our justification. May the Holy Spirit build a durable faith in the hearer which is able to withstand the assaults of the devil and this world. Pastor Jon is usin...

This sermon was preached by Pastor Lonnie (Jake) Jacobsen at the occasion of the 50th Anniversary for Faith Lutheran Church – A big thank you to the members of Faith Lutheran Church (Fawn Lake Rd and Highway 61 in Cherry County, NE) for hosting their 50th anniversary celebration, to all who join us on Sunday June 18th, to everyone who has supported Faith with their financial gifts, encouragement a...

The sermon text for the Day of Pentecost ( May 28th, 2023) is from Numbers 11:24-30. May the Holy Spirit of God move all people to speak God’s beautiful words of grace and hope!

On the Seventh Sunday of Easter (May 21st), the sermon is based on Acts 1:12-26. May the hearer be open to the risen Savior’s gifts to fulfill his mandate to be the agents of his love to our community. The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the initia...

On the Sixth Sunday of Easter (May 14th), the sermon is based on Acts 17:16-31. May the Holy Spirit teach us the things that matter and those that do not as we “canoe the mountains” of contemporary culture. The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the i...

On the Fifth Sunday of Easter (May 7th), the sermon is based on Acts 6:1-9; 7:2a, 51-60 . May the Holy Spirit give us to see our fellow human beings as Christ sees us – a redeemed and precious child of God!   The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the...

On the Fourth Sunday of Easter (April 30th), also known as Good Shepherd Sunday, the sermon is based on Acts 2:42-47. This is also Confirmation Day for two confirmands who publicly confessed their faith in their Good Shepherd. Others readings for this day include Psalm 23 and John 10: 1-10. May the Holy Spirit work in us the gifts which He brings through faith, particularly the life which is lived...

On the Third Sunday of Easter (April 23rd), the sermon is based on Acts 2:14a, 36-41. The Gospel reading for this Sunday is Luke 24:13-35. May the Holy Spirit open the hearts, minds, and ears of the congregation and the hearer to delight in God’s call to them! The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too...

The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The sermon series is called  "I See Jesus!" The presumption here is that Jesus, risen from the dead, is inhabiting and working through His people today. He is not sitting idly on some heavenly throne listening to ce...

Happy Easter! Christ is risen! The Old Testament reading for Easter this year is Jeremiah 31:1-6. It provides rich insight into the joy of Easter and God's Again for His people. May the hearer rejoice in God’s great reversal – death is undone, sins are forgiven, and devils flee in terror! God has promised his Again to us.

Pastor Jon focuses on the words of Paul in the Epistle reading to frame or introduce the massive and massively important account of Jesus’ passion and death. The homily on Philippians 2:5-11 is about 10 minutes in duration. After his homily, Pastor Jon keeps the recording going to let the hearer listen meditatively on a reading of the Gospel for Passion Sunday: Matthew 27:11-66. During this Holy W...

This sermon is based on the Old Testament reading from Ezekiel 37 for the Fifth Sunday in Lent. Readings for the Fifth Sunday in Lent include the following:  Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 130; Romans 8:1-11: John 11:1-53 Pastor Jon starts with a central image based on a painting by Edvard Munch entitled, "By the Death Bed." It would probably help to look at this painting prior to listening to t...

All human hearts produce idols, that is, false-god substitutes for the one, true God. Idolatry preys on us by blinding us to the unrestrained goodness of God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. We may think that God is absent. In our text from Isaiah 42:14-21, God makes us aware that He is active in our lives with his goodness (42:13-15). God shows his great goodness by leading the blind because...

The sermon entitled, "The Lord is Among Us," is based on Exodus 17:1-7, which is the Old Testament reading for the Third Sunday in Lent.  The Gospel reading for Lent 3 is John 4:5-26. May the hearer confess and marvel at the presence of Christ!

This sermon, based on the Old Testament reading (Genesis 12:1-9) for the Second Sunday in Lent, is called, “Father Abraham.” May the Spirit of God conform the hearer to the pattern of Abraham – the man of faith.!   The Epistle reading is Romans 4:1-8, 13-17 and the Gospel reading is John 3:1-17 and both are referenced in the sermon. The sermon outline is a definition of faith and is provided here...