Worship Anew

Sermon Text: Psalm 23:6  The Bible identifies Jesus Christ as both “The Lamb” and “The Good Shepherd.” Jesus Christ, The Lamb, has endured every pain inflicted by a sin-broken world. Jesus Christ, The Good Shepherd, pursues us with goodness and mercy “all the days of my life” (Psalm 23:6 ESV).

Sermon Text: Acts 9:1-9, 17-20  Paul was a fierce enemy of Christianity, so his conversion to faith in Jesus was an amazing event. This was totally unexpected. But God can do anything because of His almighty power and because of His awesome grace, mercy, and love. 

Sermon Text: John 20:28 We confess in the Apostle’s Creed that Jesus, on the third day, rose again from the dead, and we believe in the resurrection of the body. Why is it important we believe in the resurrection? Hear why the resurrection of Jesus changes everything for you.

Sermon Text: 1 Corinthians 15:20 The empty tomb means that our bodies will rise from the grave! The empty tomb means that we will be reunited with loved ones who have died in the faith. The empty tomb means that we will live forever with God in holiness, innocence, and blessedness. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ has changed everything!

Sermon Text: John 19:17-30 It is fitting that we take a look at the words of Jesus to the world as He hangs upon the cross in suffering and pain. We ask the question, “What does this mean … for us … for the world?”

Sermon Text: John 12:13b Holy Week begins on the road to Jerusalem. The King makes His grand entrance into Jerusalem, riding atop a borrowed donkey, as the people greet their Messiah: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” The mood, however, shifts quickly from palms to passion, from triumph to crucifixion. This King, this Messiah, came to lay His life down, to die for His people on th...

Sermon Text: Luke 20:9-20 Jesus tells the parable of the wicked vinedressers to illustrate the unfaithfulness of the children of Israel to the covenant God so graciously made with them. A new Israel, the Christian Church, will emerge as a new covenant is set in place.

Sermon Text: Luke 15:11b When we return to our Lord in our sin, our heavenly Father is always there, arms wide open, ready to restore us to the family. Our sin is great and deserves nothing but punishment, but His grace is greater. Despite our sin, He continues to love us, He continues to seek us out, and He continues to deal with us with the love and mercy made possible in Jesus.

Sermon Text: Psalm 85 We are all sinners. This means that, at times, we will receive discipline from the Lord. But rejoice! This discipline comes from the love of God and is for our good. This is corrective discipline; it is blessed discipline.

Sermon Text: Philippians 3:20 Lent powerfully reminds us that we don’t belong here, that we hold heavenly citizenship. Today we learn of the privileges and responsibilities, the pitfalls and opportunities, of celestial citizenship.

Sermon Text: Luke 4:1-13 Jesus, the sinless Son of God, took upon Himself all of our sins and paid the price for our forgiveness, in full, on Calvary’s cross. Jesus resisted Satan’s temptations and, in so doing, showed us how we, too, can resist. We turn to God’s Holy Word and rebuke Satan saying, “It is written.”

Sermon Text: Psalm 51 Are you ready for a journey through Lent? God’s mercy and forgiveness are real and powerful. God shows us His love and mercy in His dealing with King David. We are reminded that our Lord, in His mercy, also forgives all repentant sinners like us.

Sermon Text: Deuteronomy 34:1-12 Transfiguration Sunday is the day to remember the moment Jesus revealed His glory to Peter, James, and John. It was high upon a mountain. Two other “mountain climbers” – Moses and Elijah – appeared with the quartet. The account of Moses’ death upon Mt. Nebo, and his reappearance with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, invites us to see how we, too, are changed...

Sermon Text: Luke 6:27-28 Our Lord Jesus Christ had mercy on us though we did not deserve it. Our ingratitude should be punished, but instead He forgave it and gave us even more. Our wickedness should be judged as worthy of hell, but He gave His own Son hell, and gave us heaven instead. Living in and under the love, grace, and mercy of God in His Son, Jesus Christ, life looks different, sinners lo...

Sermon Text: Luke 6:22 The term “blessed” is one of the most misunderstood and misused words in our cultural vocabulary. Today we find this word “blessed” coming straight from the mouth of Jesus, but the way He uses the word stands in blatant contrast to the way it’s used in the world. Everything about today’s Gospel lesson challenges our natural and cultural understanding of what it means to be “...

Sermon Text: Isaiah 6:1-8 We know all too well that God is holy, and we human beings are not. Isaiah also knew this, and each one of us joins with him in crying out, “Woe is me!” But Christ became sin for us, and that means for us a blessed reality here on earth and in the life to come when we will be holy!

Sermon Text: Luke 2:32 The forces of light and darkness have clashed since the creation of the world. Jesus brings light into every corner of creation. Do we suppress His light through ignorance and neglect? Or do we live in the light?

Sermon Text: Luke 4:16-30 Jesus is invited to choose and read the Scripture reading at a worship service in His hometown of Nazareth. He reads a powerful section from Isaiah the Prophet about the work of the Messiah. He startles the worshipers with the statement, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” What? How could this be? But it begs us to examine our own lives and ask ourselves,...

Sermon Text: John 2:11 Recognizing and understanding signs is an important skill to master when learning to drive. Jesus performed many miraculous signs and wonders so we can see the signs and know He is the Christ, the Son of God.

Sermon Text: Luke 3:21-22 “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his” (Romans 6:5 ESV). Today we celebrate the Baptism of our Lord in the Jordan, God in the flesh, and so also we celebrate our Baptism into Christ. What a great comfort in the midst of temptation and trial, sin and death, and every distress that we can s...

Sermon Text: Luke 2:40 God’s Wisdom saves you. The teachers in Jerusalem were being taught by the One in whom all wisdom is found. In Christ Jesus, the Passover Lamb was sacrificed for our sins once and for all. In Christ Jesus, the punishment for our foolishness was received. We have been forgiven, and heaven is ours.

Sermon Text: Luke 2:36-38 Anna was an elderly woman who lived in Jerusalem. She had experienced great grief at a young age when her husband died, and she, thereafter, had remained a widow. But God sustained her in her time of sadness and preserved her in saving faith through his Word. In fact, she became a powerful witness for the Lord, used by him for the benefit of many people. Her story speaks...

Sermon Text: John 1:14 God works things out so beautifully. We see that particularly in the Christmas story, but not in the places where you would think. It’s not the angels tearing open the sky or the picturesque idea of a stable, but in something utterly unremarkable.

Sermon Text: Matthew 1:21 Christmas Eve – the time for us to celebrate the underwhelming arrival of an overwhelming love. The Old Testament gives our newborn Savior the title, “Immanuel,” which means “God with us.” We have everyday and eternal peace and joy by having a God who is One of Us.

Sermon Text: Zephaniah 3:14-20 For some, the season of Advent is a far cry from a joyful season. For others, they might be caught in a feedback loop of rejoicing only for the repetition of loved traditions. Our Lord invites us through His message, by way of Zephaniah, both to rejoice and to know why it is we rejoice!