κήρυξον τὸν λόγον

Preached to the saints at Grace Lutheran Church in Marble, MN and Mount Olive Lutheran Church in Bovey, MN on July 4, 2021.   22 For Jews ask for signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified; to the Jews, a scandal and to Gentiles, foolishness, 24 but to those being called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:22-24). Though powerful nations rise and fall and the wisdom and knowledge of the world changes, the church and her proclamation of Christ Crucified for the forgiveness of sins remains. For almost 2,000 years now, the message and purpose of the church has not changed one bit - and this is extremely comforting. You are given the calmness of mind in knowing that the eternally living and reigning Son of God, Jesus Christ, has purchased you with His own blood shed upon the cross; that He is the risen Lord and with all authority in heaven and earth, he has forgiven you of all of your sins. As the living Crucifie...

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord / He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored / You know it, and you love it, don’t you? Especially on a day like today!  Oh, how we love to glory in our glory!  Being a Marine Corps veteran myself, on a Fourth of July Sunday no less, I couldn’t help but spend far too much time this week learning about the “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Thankfully, you won’t find this song in the Lutheran Service Book. I thought I might find it in The Lutheran Hymnal (you know, the red book), or maybe even Lutheran Worship (the blue one), but I was pleased to discover it was in neither.  The problem with the Battle Hymn is, when you start reading it, you discover Julia Ward Howe’s Civil War song is actually rife with a theology of glory.  We Lutherans, on the other hand, preach Christ crucified, to Jews a scandal and to Gentiles foolishness. We proclaim the theology of the cross.  TO THOSE OF US BE...