Upside-Down Savior - Pastor Nathan Nass

“Christianity is foolish.” Do you hear people say that? How about: “Believing in God is so old-fashioned. We’ve progressed beyond needing all those old religious beliefs.” Don’t be surprised. Here’s how the Bible talks about the “foolishness” of Jesus’ cross: “ The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God ” (1 Corinthians...

Anger is an awful thing, isn’t it? It consumes our thoughts. It clouds our minds. It leads to foolish actions. Anger is an awful thing. But Jesus offers us another way. Hopefully, you’re familiar with the idea of laying your sins at the foot of Jesus’ cross. Every day, we repent. We humbly lay our sins at the foot of Jesus’ cross and trust in Jesus’ forgiveness. Here’s what we need to learn: To la...

There’s one word that we say to God more than any other word: “Why?” I bet you ask God that question. What are your “whys” today? “Why does it hurt? Why did the cancer come back? Why doesn’t she love me? Why do I feel this way? Why can’t I get a job? Why did he die?...” There’s a whole book in the Bible about that. The story of Job addresses this question: Why do believers in God suffer so much? H...

The life God has given you is the best life for you. Do you believe that? The life God has given you is the best life for you. It’s hard to be content, isn’t it? There’s always something more we want… We need! Whose life would you like to have? Watch out! Envy fills our hearts and robs our lives of joy. When you see Jesus die for you on the cross, God wants to convince you of something: The life G...

Do you ever feel like nothing? That’s an awful feeling, isn’t it? Jesus is so good and so powerful and so gracious that he’s able to take even nothing and turn it into something awesome. The end of Romans 8 is the best part of the Bible for anyone who feels like nothing. Since God is for us, who can be against us? Nothing! Since God gave his own Son for us, what will God fail to give us? Nothing!...

Last century, the Christian writer C.S. Lewis wrote a famous book called “Mere Christianity.” In it, he has a chapter on pride. Know what the title of that chapter is? “The Great Sin.” On Ash Wednesday, we heard about the great danger of pride. Pride trusts in its own self-righteousness. Pride looks down on everyone else. Pride wars against God. Pride lives in every one of us. It’s only the grace...

This is how we live with hope: You know the rest of the story. When you believe in Jesus, when you trust in his death and resurrection for you, when you listen to his promises of eternal life in heaven, you know the rest of the story. You don’t know how long the pain will last, but you know when it will end: In heaven! You don’t know what twists and turns your life will take, but you know where it...

The devil goes to church. Did you know that? Actually, the devil does some of his worst work at church. In our sermon this week, we heard how a demon-possessed man confronted Jesus at the synagogue in Capernaum. The devil goes to church to tempt God’s people to turn away from Jesus. But Jesus goes to church too. Jesus showed his power by driving the demon out of that man in Capernaum. In fact, “ T...

Jesus had a strange way of trying to attract followers. He told people to repent! As Jesus began preaching, his message was simple: “ The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news! ” (Mark 1:15). Jesus fished for people’s souls by calling people to repent and believe in him for forgiveness and salvation. But he didn’t stop there. As he called people to follow him, he said, “ C...

One of the simplest characteristics of a Christian is also one of the hardest: Listening. Are you a good listener? Listening is harder than it sounds. Isn’t it more satisfying to have others listen to us than to have to listen to them? But listening is vital for a Christian, because our faith is based on God’s Word, not on our words. In fact, faith itself comes from “hearing the message” (Romans 1...

Baptisms are surprisingly short. A person has water poured on them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. That’s it. If you were to time a baptism, it would take less than ten seconds. What good does that do? The Bible tells us, “ Baptism now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God ” (1 Peter 3:21). Do you know...

Who is wise? That’s a harder question than it sounds. There are lots of different ways to measure wisdom: IQ, college degrees, work experience, business success… Who is wise? Here’s what the Bible says: “ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom ” (Proverbs 9:10). Want to be wise? It’s not about your education level or your work skills or your IQ. True wisdom is trusting in Jesus. Like the...

I bet the first Christmas didn’t go according to Mary’s plan. She suddenly had to give birth to her first child far away from home and place him in a manger. Surprise! That’s not the type of birth any mother would wish for. Yet, Jesus’ birth wasn’t a surprise to God. In fact, the Bible says, “ When the set time had fully come, God sent his Son ” (Galatians 4:4). What seems like a surprise to us is...

“ Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests ” (Luke 2:14). The Christmas bells are ringing. Can you hear them? “Peace, peace, peace…” There are still wars, but the bells are ringing… “Peace on earth.” Because you have peace with God. You are forgiven! There are still people who reject you, but the bells are ringing… “Peace on earth.” God loves you! He a...

On Christmas night, the angel proclaimed to the shepherds, “ I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people ” (Luke 2:10). The Bible often uses a special word that means “good news.” Know what it is? The “gospel”! The Bible is filled with the “gospel”—the good news of Jesus our Savior. As we prepare to celebrate Christmas, this week’s sermon used the whole book of Romans in the...

Jesus is our King. Know what that means? It might look everything is falling apart, but it’s actually all going according to Jesus’ plan. It might look like life is spinning out of control, but it’s actually all in Jesus’ hands. It might look like everyone is rising up against Jesus, but Jesus laughs. Jesus is not worried. He’s in perfect control. So you don’t need to worry either. Ever. I hope yo...

Are you poor? Brokenhearted? Captive? A prisoner? Mourning? Grieving? Ashes? Despair? Then here is what Jesus has done for you: He proclaims good news. He binds up the brokenhearted. He proclaims freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners. He comforts all who mourn and provides for those who grieve. He turns funerals into weddings. I hope you can listen to this sermon abo...

Jesus is our perfect Priest. We don’t talk about priests very much these days, but the fact that Jesus is our Priest is at the heart of the Bible’s message. Here’s what Jesus did: “ He sacrificed for your sins once and for all when he offered himself ” (Hebrews 9:27). Those words “ once and for all ” were written down for you. Every sin was paid for at the cross. Once and for all! Your sin was pai...

As different as we all are, there is something that we all need: Comfort. What has weighed down your heart lately? Maybe a divorce. Or sickness. Or guilt for a sin. Or the death of a loved one. Or depression or anxiety. Life is hard, isn’t it? So here’s what God commanded his prophet Isaiah: “Comfort, comfort my people” (Isaiah 40:1). No matter what you’re facing, God wants to comfort you today. N...

We’re all following somebody. We’re all listening to somebody. With YouTube and podcasts and blogs and constant news, we’re all turning to someone for the truth. Have you found it? Moses long ago told God’s people where to find the truth: “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him” (Deuteronomy 18:15). Who is the t...

The word “Advent” means coming. In Advent, we prepare our hearts for two different “comings” of Jesus. We prepare to celebrate Jesus’ birth at Christmas, and we prepare for Jesus to come again on Judgment Day. So here’s the big question: “When? When is Jesus coming back? When will the world end?” Here’s what Jesus says: “No one knows.” The date of Jesus’ return is hidden from us, so that every day...

We human beings have very selective memories. It’s so much easier to remember the bad than the good. It’s so much easier to forget the good than the bad. That’s why the Bible encourages us, “Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:2). That last phrase is so important: “Forget not all his benefits.” The solution to the discontentment that so often fills our hearts is g...

Jesus wants us to be ready for the “Day of the LORD”—for Judgment Day. Every big day in life—whether good or bad—is meant to remind us that Jesus is coming back. When there is a catastrophe, when there is a great victory, remember that the day of the LORD is coming. It will be more terrifying than September 11th. But it will also be happier than your wedding day. We should be afraid of Judgment Da...

The Bible says, “ blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on ” (Revelation 14:13). Death is scary. There are so many awful ways to die! But here’s what’s not scary: What happens when you die. A Christian who dies is blessed, because we go to paradise with Jesus. We know what we deserve for our sins—the worst. But we trust in what Jesus has done for us: Everything. Like the rebel on the c...

Grace alone. Faith alone. Scripture alone. That is the message of Bible. That is the heritage of the Lutheran Reformation. A Lutheran believes that was are saved by grace alone. By faith alone. By Scripture alone. So what does that look like? What does it look like to live life by faith? Today on Reformation Sunday, we heard one example: Daniel. Daniel lived by faith. Even when he was thrown into...