“The White Clothes of Jesus” (Mark 9:2-9)

The Transfiguration of Our Lord
Sunday, February 19, 2012

“The White Clothes of Jesus” (Mark 9:2-9)

Today on this last Sunday in the Epiphany season the church celebrates a great, pivotal event in the life and ministry of Jesus, namely, the Transfiguration of Our Lord. Jesus goes up on a high mountain, taking along with him his inner circle of disciples, Peter, James, and John. There he is transfigured before them, that is, his appearance changes, and his clothes become dazzling white. Two great figures from the Old Testament, Moses and Elijah, appear with Jesus and talk with him. The disciples don’t know what to make of all of this. Then a cloud comes, a voice comes from the cloud; it is the heavenly Father’s voice, saying, “This is my beloved Son; listen to him.” The disciples look again, they no longer see Moses and Elijah, they see Jesus only. Those are the essentials of the Transfiguration account, as it occurs in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, the basic facts of the event being the same, but with each gospel writer highlighting this or that detail, or describing it in his own way.

There are so many things going on in this narrative, and with three gospels to work from, that a preacher could go for many years and focus his sermon on a different aspect each year. Today I want to focus on one point in particular, in verse 3, where it says, “and his clothes became radiant, intensely white, as no one on earth could bleach them.” What is the significance of this bright white clothing, and what does it mean for us? Thus our theme this morning: “The White Clothes of Jesus.”

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Published in: on February 18, 2012 at 8:17 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“The Cleansing of Naaman: How Can Water Do Such Great Things?” (2 Kings 5:1-14)

Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany
February 12, 2012

“The Cleansing of Naaman: How Can Water Do Such Great Things?” (2 Kings 5:1-14)

Our text is the Old Testament Reading for today, the story of the cleansing of Naaman. Short version: Naaman was a man who had leprosy. He was told, “Wash, and be clean.” And, after some objections, Naaman did wash, and he did become clean. But there’s more here than meets the eye, as we will see. For one thing, this story raises the question: How could simply washing in a river–and a pretty unimpressive river, at that–how could that cleanse a man of leprosy? And what does this story have to do with us? Most of us do not have leprosy, and we’re nowhere near the Jordan River. And so our theme this morning: “The Cleansing of Naaman: How Can Water Do Such Great Things?”

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Published in: on February 12, 2012 at 12:52 am  Leave a Comment  
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“And He Healed Many” (Mark 1:29-39)

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany
February 5, 2012

“And He Healed Many” (Mark 1:29-39)

Yesterday, on a pastors’ e-mail list that I’m a part of, one of the men, Pastor Jay Webber of Arizona, brought a prayer request to our group on behalf of his son Paul and daughter-in-law Ruth. He’s given me permission to share this with you, by the way. His daughter-in-law, Ruth Webber, is 23 years old, and she is six months into her first pregnancy. However, she has been diagnosed with advanced gastric cancer, stomach cancer. Her chances for survival, Pastor Webber reports, are not good. Right now she’s up at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. The baby’s birth will be induced in a day or so, and the child will be rushed to the neonatal unit–and baptized, too, I might add. The baby’s name will be John. Once the baby is born, new mother Ruth will begin aggressive treatment for her cancer, undergoing radiation and chemotherapy.

Pastor Webber writes in his e-mail, “This is a nightmare. But we are not waking up from it.” He then adds these words, though, quoting in Latin the words of the Canaanite woman who came to Jesus begging for help for a sick daughter, “Domine, adjuva me!” “Lord, help me!”

This is the kind of story that rips your heart apart, even if you’re not the one living it. But it also touches your heart, deeply, to see the faith in the Lord’s goodness that God has given to the Webber family. “Domine, adjuva me!” “Lord, help me!” The question is, Will he? Will the Lord help this pastor and his son and daughter-in-law and their newborn baby? And what will that help look like?

These are the kinds of questions raised as we consider the Holy Gospel for today, a portion of Mark 1, in which Jesus goes about helping and healing lots and lots of people. “And he healed many who were sick with various diseases,” it says. OK, fine, good for those people back then. “And He Healed Many.” But our question is, Will he heal us?

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Published in: on February 4, 2012 at 9:47 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“A New Teaching with Authority!” (Mark 1:21-28)

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany
January 29, 2012

“A New Teaching with Authority!” (Mark 1:21-28)

Our text today is the Holy Gospel, the story of Jesus teaching in the synagogue and rebuking an unclean spirit, and the people’s reaction to what he was doing. They rightly saw that this was “A New Teaching with Authority!”

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Published in: on January 28, 2012 at 8:46 pm  Comments (1)  
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“Net Growth” (Mark 1:14-20)

Third Sunday after the Epiphany
January 22, 2012

“Net Growth” (Mark 1:14-20)

Where are the fish? Where have all the fish gone? This is the question on the mind of most every church in America these days. And no, I’m not talking about trout and catfish. I’m talking about people. Where are the fish, where are all the people? Why aren’t we seeing them in the church like we used to? Whose fault is it? Whom can we blame? Our numbers are down. Attendance, offerings–that’s what we’re fishing for, isn’t it? Maybe we need to try a different net. Why aren’t we seeing any (if you’ll pardon the pun) “Net Growth”?

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Published in: on January 21, 2012 at 11:45 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“Can Anything Good Come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:43-51)

Second Sunday after the Epiphany
January 15, 2012

“Can Anything Good Come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:43-51)

Can anything good come out of Bonne Terre? Can anything good come out of Potosi? Or let’s be more specific: Can anything good come out of St. Matthew’s? Can anything good come out of Redeemer? Those may be the kinds of questions in the minds of the people we meet and talk to. And the attitude behind the questions would be a rather dubious one. Believe it or not, some people may not think very much of those little podunk towns, Bonne Terre and Potosi, or of those little Lutheran churches, St. Matthew’s and Redeemer–if people have even heard of them in the first place. And this, in turn, can create doubts and even embarrassment in our own minds. We might become reluctant or even ashamed to speak up for, and invite people to, our church.

Can anything good come out of Bonne Terre? Can anything good come out of Potosi? Well, guess what, the disciple Philip had to face the same sort of skepticism when he spoke up for a man called Jesus of Nazareth. The response was similar: “Can Anything Good Come out of Nazareth?” So let’s see how that went, and how Philip handled it, and it may give us some guidance and encouragement for our own life of witness.

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Published in: on January 14, 2012 at 4:19 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“Christ’s Baptism and Ours” (Mark 1:4-11; Romans 6:1-11)

The Baptism of Our Lord
January 8, 2012

“Christ’s Baptism and Ours” (Mark 1:4-11; Romans 6:1-11)

Today the church celebrates the Baptism of Our Lord. On the First Sunday after the Epiphany, every year, we hear an account from one of the gospels of Christ’s baptism in the Jordan by John. “OK, so Jesus got baptized,” you say. “Big deal. Why should I care? What does this have to do with me?” A whole lot. As we shall see. Our reading from Mark and our reading from Romans will make the connection, as we consider the theme: “Christ’s Baptism and Ours.”

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Published in: on January 8, 2012 at 12:42 am  Leave a Comment  
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“Friday Night Lights” (Matthew 2:1-12; Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:1-12)

The Epiphany of Our Lord
Friday, January 6, 2012

“Friday Night Lights” (Matthew 2:1-12; Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:1-12)

“Pastor, have you lost your mind? What are you doing, dragging us out here to church on a Friday night, for goodness’ sakes! And in January, no less!” And my answer to that would be: The reason I’ve asked you all here tonight has to do with the “Friday Night Lights.”

Friday night lights. Let me explain. Today is the Epiphany of Our Lord, a major festival of the church year. Epiphany is always January 6–it’s what we call a “fixed-date festival,” determined by the date on the calendar, regardless of the day of the week. In that respect, it’s like Christmas. Christmas is always December 25. Then you have the twelve days of Christmas, which concluded yesterday. And now today, January 6, is Epiphany. And January 6 could fall on any day of the week. This year it’s a Friday. And so we have church tonight. That’s why we’re here.

But the bigger “why” is because of those lights I mentioned. The “Friday night” lights, this year. It’s the light that is shining that brings us here. It’s the light that we see once we get here. And it’s the light that we will take with us that will send us on our way.

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Published in: on January 6, 2012 at 5:16 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“Circumcision and Name Both Say ‘Savior’” (Luke 2:21)

Circumcision and Name of Jesus
Sunday, January 1, 2012

“Circumcision and Name Both Say ‘Savior’” (Luke 2:21)

Today is New Year’s Day, a day for looking forward to the year that lies ahead. It’s a day for plans and goals and New Year’s resolutions. “This is the year, finally, when I will get my weight under control, or when I will start exercising more regularly, or when I start being more faithful in my daily devotions.” All well and good. These can be good goals to have. January 1, 2012. This is also a day when we begin a new chapter in the life of our church. How is this dual-parish thing going to work out? How will we have to adjust to make it work? This is a day, New Year’s Day, for looking ahead to our family’s future. Will we have enough money this year as a family, as a household? Do we need to do better on our budget? And what about our nation? This is an election year, 2012 is. How will the elections affect our future?

Maybe all of these things fill us with fear and trepidation, at what might happen. Maybe they fill us with some degree of hope and optimism, that there could be some improvement ahead. Maybe it’s a mixed bag. The future is always an uncertain thing.

But there is one thing that is certain, no matter the day or the year. And that is, who will see us through the days and years ahead. It is none other than the good God himself, the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Our God will see us through. In him we have hope and confidence to face the future, come what may. And now today I want to tell you why you can be sure of his help. It’s based upon what else this day is, besides being New Year’s Day.

Today is the eighth day of Christmas, and therefore it is the day when the church celebrates two events that go together, the circumcision of our Lord and the giving of his name, Jesus. Both of these events happened on the same day, this day, the eighth day, exactly one week after the birth of Christ. Both of these events, the circumcision and the naming, are recorded in the Holy Gospel for today, which is the shortest Gospel reading in the whole series of readings. It’s just one verse, Luke 2:21: “And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.” Just one verse, but it speaks volumes. For both Christ’s circumcision and his very name, Jesus, tell us much about who he is–who he is for us. And so our theme today: “Circumcision and Name Both Say ‘Savior.’”

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Published in: on December 31, 2011 at 9:04 pm  Leave a Comment  
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“Christ’s Birthday Is Our Birthday, Too” (John 1:1-14)

The Nativity of Our Lord: Christmas Day
Sunday, December 25, 2011

“Christ’s Birthday Is Our Birthday, Too” (John 1:1-14)

Whose birthday is it today? Well, that’s a good question. Of course, we’re celebrating the birth of Christ. It’s Christmas, after all. But at the same time, it is through Christmas, through the birth of Christ in the flesh, that other children are born, too–namely, the children of God. That’s us. And so today we’re celebrating the birth of Christ, first and foremost, but also with it, our own birth as God’s children. I can put our message today into one sentence: The Son of God became man, so that the sons of men could become the children of God. Let me repeat that: The Son of God became man, so that the sons of men could become the children of God. Or to put it more simply: “Christ’s Birthday Is Our Birthday, Too.”

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Published in: on December 24, 2011 at 4:06 pm  Leave a Comment  
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