When our Lord calls us to be his disciples, to follow him, He calls us to come and die.
God is with His Church in Tuscola, Illinois, through Word and Sacrament
God is with His Church in Tuscola, Illinois, through Word and Sacrament
Sermons by Rev. Jason M. Braaten (Page 52)
“Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.”
There is a difference between being full and being satisfied.
“Blessed, rather, are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”
“Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame.”
Giving into our temptations always seem reasonable at the time, but they actually make things far worse than better.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
The word of the Lord does not return to Him empty, but it always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it.
What sort of man is this? He is the Lord. And what sort of God is this? The only true God. For He rebukes us if He must. He sends the waves over the sides of the boat to make us desperate, full of fear, and even angry, that we learn to pray. And then, He gives us peace according to His Word. He gives us the faith we lack. He gives us the Holy Spirit, and He will bring us home. For He remembers His Word and Promises, while we wait for the Resurrection to come and the consummation of all our hope. What sort of man is this? He is Jesus, the God who saves.
So we cling to what the Word of God, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, says—not just about forgiveness but about everything. When he speaks, we take it to heart, believe it, hold fast to it, and seek to conform our thoughts, words, and deeds to it.