κήρυξον τὸν λόγον

And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to proclaim upon those sitting on the earth, and upon every nation and tribe and tongue and people, saying in a great voice, “Have reverent fear of God and give to him glory because the hour of his judgment came. And worship the One who made the heaven, and the earth, sea and fountains of water.” Today is Reformation Day. It’s not every year we get to celebrate this anniversary on Sunday. Sometimes it’s 11 years between Reformation Sundays. That means a lot can change between celebrations. But one thing always remains the same ...  THE REFORMATION IS ALWAYS ABOUT THE GOSPEL This movement in history that we mark every October 31 is often attributed to Martin Luther. But that’s not true. Saint Paul was fighting Luther’s fight 1500 years earlier. So too were the prophets, as well as the patriarchs long before Paul. The Reformation, in fact, began not long after the Formation, or should I say the Creation. In the beg...

The lessons for the Church year after Holy Trinity Sunday most often focus on our lives in Christ. Some of our readings ... especially from the epistles ... are focused on values; some on morality. Some preach nothing but Jesus Christ and him crucified. But today, the lesson in front of us from Saint Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians delivers a challenging word. It is not a reading about morality. It is not about values. It doesn’t directly address Jesus Christ and him being crucified or risen. Our subject this morning is the most difficult we’ve attempted this year. Today’s reading is all about sanctification.  There, I said it. Sanctification. ... Sanctification is the five syllable, 50 dollar word our catechism uses to describe the transformation taking place in your life. It is probably a harder word to understand than that Hebrew I threw at you a couple weeks ago.  But suffice it to say ... Sanctification is the word that describes the work of the Holy Spirit in your life ....

Have you noticed how dissatisfied the world is around you? Or is it just me?  Dissatisfaction is swallowing the world whole. It expresses itself prominently in our news feeds. We don’t have enough , the world says. We need a better social network. We need a better environment. We need bigger and better infrastructure. We long for something more satisfying, with more promise, more prosperity, more freedom, more liberty, more justice .  Politicians have gotten themselves elected by promising to satisfy us. They gave us the New Deal, the Fair Deal, the New Frontier, the Great Society, the War on Poverty. They promise to satisfy our hopes and to make America great. They promise to satisfy your every whim. ... And we are still dissatisfied. Do we ever have enough? Truth be told, you can’t work hard enough or long enough to achieve the satisfaction the world hungers for. You can’t fly high enough or float on a boat long enough. There is no science, no medicine, no education that wil...

Which is easier to say, Your sins are forgiven, or Arise and walk (v. 5)? I know too many people who don’t like the fact that ... I, by virtue of my office as a called and ordained servant of the Word, announce the grace of God to you, and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all of your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son ✠ and of the Holy Spirit. I know too many people who want no part of that word of absolution. Who do you think you are ? Only God can do that , “they” say. I also know too many people who have taken offense when we pastors don’t use the special word for word announcement that Almighty God, our heavenly Father, has had mercy upon us and has given his only Son to die for us and for His sake forgives us all our sins. That’s one reason why you called me to be your pastor: You long for me to declare forgiveness in Christ! I also know some Christians who would rather go to a Benny Hinn big top tent revival than to seek private ...

וְעַתָּה מָה ... This is our word of the day. ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... It means and now what . As in, and now what are you going to do? ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... To whom are you going to turn?  ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... In whom are you going to believe? ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... And now what ? Today, we have reached a pivotal moment when we need to ask ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... That’s because today is a pivotal day between yesterday and tomorrow. Normally, we say this at those big moments in life ... you know, like when we graduate, or get married, or get a new job offer, or get out of the Marine Corps, or have children, or affirm our faith in confirmation, or mourn the death of Mom or Dad. Pivotal moments always force us to cry out ... וְעַתָּה מָה ... So now what ?  Today, this 18th Sunday after Trinity, is no different. ... וְעַתָּה מָה 6. As our Old Testament reading opens, the children of Israel were standing at such a point. In their case, it was the First Day of the Eleventh Month of the 40th...