St. Paul's Lockport Sermons

If I had a nickel for every church tagline or mission statement that said “love God, love people,” I would be able to end the national coin shortage single-handedly. There is something particularly appealing in Jesus’ response to the lawyer’s question – which is the greatest commandment in the law? Yet the four-word phrase, “love God, love people,” while very catchy and memorable, doesn’t supply m...

We know hypocrisy in others when we see it. We see it in the TV preacher who acts holy but seems most interesting in getting his viewers’ money. We see it in the politician who rails against the rich and goes to dinner galas where the plates cost more than an average car. We even see it close in home in false friends who betray us to look good in front of others. No one likes hypocrisy in other pe...

As often happens in death, Mary and Martha grieved differently for their brother. People came from all around to console them. It wasn’t until Jesus came that they really moved. At least Martha moved. Mary stayed home. Martha went because she was the kind of person who could not sit in grief.

Imagine being the deaf mute man who is brought to Jesus by his friends. Your world is silent, you cannot speak rightly, then Jesus takes you aside privately and comes up close to you. He sticks his fingers in your ears and you see him spit and touch your tongue. You see Jesus look up to heaven and sigh and then “Ephphatha.” Ephphatha. Be opened. Not just a word, but the first word you ever hear. A...

As Jesus taught, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!” But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and keep it!” (Luke 11:27). This, from the words of Christ in Luke, is why we remember St. Mary today. It would be truly wonderful to be the one who bore and nursed Jesus, the Son of God who...

Have you cared about a place so much you would weep to see it go? Jesus, having entered the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, now weeps over it. Jerusalem was never His home. He was not born there, that was Bethlehem. He did not grow up there, that was far north in Nazareth. Yet Jesus has been to Jerusalem many times. It was where the temple was, and for those who believed in God in the Old Testam...

Guest sermon by Rev. John Bucka.

Guest sermon by Rev. Charles Kittel

“The country isn’t what it used to be. Everyone has abandoned their faith in God. No one follows the truth. Everyone follows those who say evil things, and those who speak the truth are ignored or canceled. The government is completely corrupt, the worst it has ever been. Even those who worship God are lukewarm and idolatrous,” so said Elijah the prophet, adding, “I am the only true believer left,...

There are quite a few teachers and former teachers in this congregation, as well as many parents, who are the first and primary teachers in a child’s life. So many of you understand first hand that as a teacher you desire to form your student to whatever you are teaching. Especially for parents, you desire your child to learn from you and become more like you, at least in the good things you wish...

When Jesus comes, everything gets cleaned up. When something is not getting done which needs to be done, you take it into your own hands. That’s what Jesus does. This is what makes the Pharisees grumble against Him. Jesus is calling sinners to himself. He seeks and saves the lost. The Pharisees and the scribes, the leaders of Israel, the ones who knew the law, were supposed to be doing this.

A man prepared a party and no one showed up. What a terrible circumstance, it’s one that people have stressful dreams about. It’s one thing to ask for a favor, like helping you move, and no one wants to come. To refuse a free party must really put that host low on their priorities list. The man had even invited the guests already, he was just telling them everything was set and it was time to come...

Jesus presents this story of two men, the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man has what the world would consider the perfect life. Lazarus has what the world would consider a wretched, awful life. One might say Lazarus pulled the short straw, that chance worked against him. The rich man lucked out, won the lottery of life. Or maybe the rich man deserved it because he was such a great guy, and no one...

Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the undivided Unity! While every other feast of the church year refers to an event – Jesus’ birth, baptism, resurrection, etc., the day of the Holy Trinity is one where we commemorate a doctrine. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is that we worship one God in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is the reality of God which Scripture reveals to us, but we c...

You are probably familiar with the story of Noah, that God sent a flood to destroy the earth, but preserved Noah, his wife, his sons and their wives, on the ark, along with pairs of every kind of animal on earth. After the waters receded and the ark rested on dry land, Noah’s family along with all the animals were commanded to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. Humanity after Noah was in...

Who is the Holy Spirit? He is not an impersonal force. He is not just some aspect of the Father and the Son. He is the Third Person of the Trinity, equally God to the Father and the Son. We confess in the Nicene Creed that He proceeds from the Father and the Son, as we read in our gospel lesson today. Jesus says the Holy Spirit is one, “whom I will send to you from the Father…who proceeds from the...

Jesus was not the first man to ascend into heaven. As we heard in our office hymn this evening, a man named Enoch was translated into heaven. As Genesis tells us, after walking with God for 365 years this great-grandfather of Noah then was not, for God took him. Elijah also, as we heard in the Old Testament lesson, was taken up into heaven in a chariot of fire. This greatest of the Old Testament p...

In our gospel lesson, our Lord Jesus Christ gives us very clear and precious promises concerning prayer. While the Gospel of St. John does not contain the Lord’s Prayer, as do Matthew and Luke, Jesus speaks in detail about the work of the Holy Spirit in prayer after His own resurrection and ascension. Think of these words of Jesus along with the Lord’s Prayer, that prayer He gave to us, the perfec...

The Christian life means a life lived in dependence on Christ, who gives us the Helper, the Holy Spirit. This is what our epistle lesson from James teaches us today. This is good to know not only for those new to the church, as Dan, who will be confirmed today, or those who return like Penny, who will be received by confession of faith. This work of the Holy Spirit is begun at the baptism of all C...

Something you may have wondered now in the Easter season is why we so quickly in our gospel readings move from the accounts of Jesus’ resurrection to words that He spoke before the resurrection. The women at the tomb make sense, the appearance to the twelve and Thomas make sense, but what does this teaching from before Jesus’ death have to do with Easter? Remember, the gospels are not a documentar...

Five hundred years ago today, April 18, 1521, also Misericordias Domini, the Third Sunday of Easter, Martin Luther made his “here I stand” statement. At the Diet of Worms, Luther confessed before the bishops, princes, and emperor that he would not take back any of his writings or teaching about justification by grace alone through faith alone unless he was shown his error by clear scripture. He he...

Alleluia. Christ is risen! John always has a theological point he is trying to make in his gospel. One of John’s trademarks that the other gospel writers don’t do is to jump in and “take the mic” so to speak in order to explain the significance of what he is describing. Jesus will say “destroy this temple and I will build it in three days” and John will jump in and explain: he means the temple of...

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! Hear the words of David from Psalm 30: “Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning” (Psalm 30:4-5). This is most true on this morning, Easter morning.

Passion of Our Lord according to Saint John, read at noon Good Friday service, April 2, 2021. From the English Standard Version.