I've had an Epiphany!

Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—   9  not by works, so that no one can boast. I begin almost every sermon the same way, with the prayer, “Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.” Grace and mercy. We often use those words interchangeably. It’s easy to think they are the same. They are not. There is a subtle, but very real, difference between the words “mercy” and “grace.” Imagine for a moment that you’ve fallen behind in your car payments, in your house payments, and in your credit card bills. The businesses to whom you owe money expect to be paid. That’s understandable. At first, they ask nicely for their money. Then, they get more aggressive. They send you bills in the mail. They call you incessantly. Eventually, they take you to court. There’s no question that you owe them. You have an unpai...

Matthew 27:27–31 27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole cohort of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him. 29 They twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand, knelt in front of him, and mocked him by saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 They spit on him, took the staff, and hit him repeatedly on his head. 31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. 1) Jesus on cross picture. We are still in the five hundredth anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation. With the Reformation, the Lord of the Church allowed His truth to be retold through the writings of Martin Luther. But, God also used artists to visually portray this gospel to the minds of His people. If we wanted to “picture” the Reformation in our mind’s eye, there is no better “picture” than The Weimar Altarpiece . In thi...

Art: Noah's Building of the Ark Artist: Edward Hicks, 1846 Worship Theme: This Sunday we begin a new Church Year with the season of Advent. In Advent the Word of God bids us prepare for the coming of Christ. The readings for Advent have this urgency to them: Since he is surely coming again in judgment, we desperately need for him to come to us first in grace. For without that coming in grace we will perish at his coming in judgment. Prayer of the Day: Stir up your power, O Lord, and come.  Protect us by your strength and save us from the threatening dangers of our sins; for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Old Testament: Genesis 6:9-22; 7:11-23 9 This is the account about the development of Noah’s family. Noah was a righteous man, a man of integrity in that generation. Noah walked with God. 10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. 11 In the sight of God the earth was morally corrupt, ...

1 Thessalonians 5:18 In everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. For many churches, the hymn we just sang: “Now Thank We All Our God” is as much a part of Thanksgiving as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, NFL games, turkey, pumpkin pie and napping. This hymn conjures up the image of a congregation singing in unison, following the lead of a stately pipe organ. It is a bold and beautiful hymn as we prepare for our Thanksgiving feast tomorrow. But, the history of this hymn recalls a very different image: A minister and his family singing this hymn with no accompaniment. It is their hymn of thanksgiving to God for the scraps of food they have on the table in their meager home. They live in a desolate refugee city that is afflicted with famine, disease, and war. To fully appreciate the beauty of “Now Thank We All Our God,” you need to know its story. So, for a moment, let’s leave behind the comforts of twenty-first century America and travel back ...

Title: Resurrection of the Flesh Artist: Luca Signorelli This is a very interesting painting. It is based on St. Paul’s great resurrection chapter in 1 Corinthians 15. The painting is especially founded upon this particular Bible verse: “ For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52).  In the painting, two angels are blasting their long trumpets from the sky. There is action upon the earth. Skeletons are rising from the ground. Flesh and muscle and sinew are returning to their bodies. There is laughter and joy at the great reunion of flesh and bones; the great reunion of body and soul; and the great reunion of God’s saints embracing one another. Worship Theme: Lord, keep us joyful in Christ our King! On this last Sunday of the Church Year, we rejoice in the fulfillment of God’s plan for our salvation through Christ our King. And we rejoice because our Christ our King reigns—the king who once came...