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Text: Matthew 22:34-46
Date: Pentecost XIX + Proper 25 + 10/23/11

The chief priests and elders of the people and the parties of the Pharisees and Sadducees all quizzed Jesus and tried to catch him in His talk. In this last week of His earthly life, after one last attempt to test His orthodoxy, Jesus reached out to his opponents one last time. He gave it One More Try to bring them to repentance and faith; repentance of sin and faith IN HIM. The result of His final effort is stated by Matthew, “No one was able to answer [Jesus] a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.” Case closed. From here on Jesus would speak His final words of warning, His grief over the rejection of Jerusalem, His last words of instruction for His disciples, then His betrayal, arrest, denial and trial, and finally His death by crucifixion. All this suggests that there is coming a time for each person when it will be too late; too late for repentance and faith, too late for salvation. So is it important to receive Jesus as Savior now, today, before it is too late. Continue reading “One More Try”

Text: Matthew 22:15-22
Date: Pentecost XVIII + Proper 24 + 10/23/11

We are definitely on the threshold of the ending of another liturgical year, the completion of the Church’s telling of the story, the Good News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who He is, what He came to do and how all of that involves you, your life now and your eternal destiny. Big topics! Important stuff! We are coming to the conclusion of reviewing our Lord’s earthly ministry. And we are also coming to the conclusion of whether this saving Word of God has found a dwelling place in your heart and mind and soul by a God-given faith for your salvation. Continue reading “Schmoozing”

Text: Matthew 22:1-14
Date: Pentecost XVII + Proper 23 + 10/9/11

Somebody rewrote the book on etiquette. I never remember being told, I only discovered by observation and then asking someone about it. Since when has it been common practice, even expected, for people to be invited to attend a wedding but then only come to the reception after? To this day it seems to me to be a rather rude way to proceed. In answer, I highly suspect that it has something to do with people’s aversion in general these days to anything involving religion, and that that aversion has become a socially acceptable stance. I still think it’s rude. Don’t you? Maybe we should return to the old way, as I experienced once at our church in Grand Rapids, where the marriage was part of the Sunday morning Divine Service! Might as well, if only fellow Christians are going to attend! Continue reading “You Are Cordially Invited”

Text: Matthew 21:33-46
Date: Pentecost XVI + Proper 22 + 10/2/11

In the last week of our Lord’s earthly ministry, Holy Week, leading up to His foremost goal to be the all-sufficient sacrifice for the sin of the world upon the cross, the chief priests and elders of the people (now joined by the party of the Pharisees) questioned His authority. It appeared that Jesus was not going to answer their question. But He did indirectly by means of a couple of parables—the first, the parable of the two sons and the second the parable of the wicked tenants of the vineyard. The authority they questioned was and is His own as the Son of God and as the Incarnate Word of the Father. More important than arguing over who’s in charge, however, is the question of the salvation and life Christ came to bring. Continue reading “Get With Christ”

Text: Matthew 21:23-27
Date: Pentecost XV + Proper 21 + 9/25/11

Lawyers know that in court you never ask a question unless you know the answer ahead of time. Politicians, on the other hand, are expert in “spin.” I’ve always said I could never be a politician because I’m not a good liar.

It is the last week of Jesus’ life, after His triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Mt 21:1-11). The first thing He does is drive out the merchants and moneychangers from the temple, saying, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you make it a den of robbers” (Mt. 21:12-13). It is then that the chief priests and elders of the people confront Him, asking, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Less like good lawyers knowing the answer before they asked Him, they sounded more like politicians. Agreeing to Jesus’ offer that He would answer their question if they would first answer one of His, He asked them about John the Baptist. Did his baptizing ministry come from heaven or from man? Their answer is almost comical. They calculated a negative result one way or the other so they simply answered, “We don’t know.” Deal done. “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.” End of story. But not quite. Jesus did proceed to answer their question by means of a couple of parables. Continue reading “Politics”

Text: Luke 10:23-37
Date: Trinity XIII + One Year Lectionary + 9/18/11
Occasion: Barry Blomquist 40^th Anniversary
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Grand Rapids, MI

I don’t know if you’ve noticed Mr. Blomquist’s eye glasses. They are rather heavy…thick. I’m amazed that they continue to issue him a driver’s license! (You do have a driver’s license?) I remember when I got my first glasses. I knew I needed something for reading small print. However, when I got them what I didn’t know until then is how much I needed them even for distances. My eyes were opened, literally, wider and clearer. I remember the doctor asking me how old I was. “Forty,” I said. “Yep,” she responded, “right on schedule.” There’s a schedule? I didn’t know there was a schedule! Well, this weekend we celebrate another “Forty,” and another kind of vision: the forty years in the teaching ministry of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod of our dear teacher, principal, friend and brother Barry Blomquist. As a fellow classmate of the class of 1971 of Concordia College, St. Paul, Minnesota, I stand with you in some awe and wonder that it’s been forty years since graduation. Continue reading “Blessed are the Eyes that See”

Text: Matthew 18:21-35
Date: Pentecost XIII + Proper 19 + 9/11/11

What a terrible choice of scripture to be read on this day, don’t you agree? this day on which we commemorate the tenth anniversary of the evil attacks of our enemies on the United States on September 11, 2001? A terrible choice! Forgiveness? Wouldn’t it have been better if we had heard of Moses mightily leading the children of Israel through the divided waters of the Red Sea and those seas then closing in and drowning Pharaoh and his army?

Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying, “I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.” (Ex 15:1-10)

Or, how about Joshua and the fall of Jericho? There’s a song for that one too!

Joshua fit de battle of Jericho, Jericho, Jericho
Joshua fit de battle of Jericho,
And the walls came a tumblin’ down. Continue reading “Has God Really Forgiven You?”

Text: Matthew 18:1-20
Date: Pentecost XII + Proper 18 + 9/4/11

First, I suppose I ought to explain the sermon title. For it sounds quite boastful, don’t you think? Who among us would even consider much less talk about our own greatness? Yet that’s what Jesus’ disciples do in our text today. The last two chapters of Matthew’s Gospel have been treated with the sermon titles, “When Faith is Great,” then “When Confession is Great,” followed last Sunday by “When Faith and Confession are Not So Great,” which brings us to today’s topic, “When I Am Great.” It is great, after all, to be told by Jesus, “Blessed are you” for your God-given, Spirit-charged miracle of faith and confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Add to that the experience of the three insiders of the Transfiguration in chapter 17 and you can almost hear the Mac Davis song in the background:

Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble
when you’re perfect in every way. Continue reading “When I Am Great”