Now then, all of you who believe in God’s Word, let your watchword for entering the new year be this: “I am baptized!” Not as an excuse to keep on sinning, but as the reason and power to live life anew in God’s grace and Word.
God is with us in Word and Sacrament
God is with us in Word and Sacrament
"2016" Tagged Sermons
New Year’s Eve Luke 12:35–40 + IN NOMINE IESU + There are two customary ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve. The world throws a party. It’s out with the old and in with the new. Auld Lang Syne with Guy Lombardo, Champagne toast at midnight, and dance the night away! Some churches prefer a more…
For the Word made Flesh is the only stable thing, the only thing that does not age, wither, and die, the only thing that does not disappoint, in all of Creation. And nothing can ruin that, therefore, nothing can ruin Christmas. The Word became Flesh. We have a Savior. Thanks be to God.
“When all was still, and it was midnight . . . .” The eternal Son of God, the Second Person of the most Holy Trinity, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, was born—bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh, though without sin. God became man in the man Jesus Christ. And if we really fathomed what our Lord Christ has done by taking on human flesh, becoming our brother, living our life and dying our death, we would die of joy; our hearts would simply burst with joy. For the light of God’s love shines upon us in Jesus Christ, and yet the darkness of our hearts so often and so readily comprehends it not.
Do not be anxious about anything. The Lord is at hand. For the same body that was born of the Virgin Mary, wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lain in the manger; the same body that hung upon the cross, rested in the tomb, was raised from the dead; the same body that ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father, this same body is at hand and given to you as a feast in the Holy Communion. And this body takes away your sins, gives you His own divine life, and peace with God and one another.
So let our cry continually be sola Scriptura—Scripture is sufficient. And it is sufficient because it is God breathed. It is sufficient because it is God’s Word that does not return to Him empty, but always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it. It is sufficient because it is the Spirit-filled and life-giving Word of God.
Do not be afraid of what shall be. Rather, rejoice. For the Lord is at hand. Your king is coming to you, just as He promised. For the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the good news preached to them. So also, is the Christ, the promised coming one, raised from the dead.
Faith in Christ is sufficient for salvation because Christ’s atoning work is sufficient. For we confess that we cannot be justified before God by our own strength, merits, or works but are freely justified for Christ’s sake through faith when we believe that we are received into God’s favor and that our sins are forgiven on account of Christ, who by His death made satisfaction for our sins. This faith God reckons to us as righteousness. Thus we receive the righteousness of Christ are seen as righteous in God’s sight by faith, by trust in Christ’s atoning work. We are saved and forgiven on account of Christ and we receive this by faith alone.
And as you continue to struggle against your flesh and this world, remember that your King is coming to you. For He did not just come once in the past. He is coming for you in the future, even as He continually comes to you now in His Word and Sacrament. He rides into your presence every Lord’s Day upon humble means to forgive you sins, to speak you righteous, to give you strength for today and courage and hope for tomorrow. He is your king. A new day is dawned.
Those wise virgins fell asleep, the same as the fools. They were not saved because they were good or better than the others. They were not good. They were not better. But they believed and trusted, nonetheless, that the Bridegroom was coming for them. They believed and trusted that He was good and merciful, that His Word was true, and He would bring them in. So He did. So He will also for you – whether you are awake or asleep, He has not destined you for wrath but for Himself. He has set a bound to everything – nations, earthquakes, family squabbles. Come home to the Altar – to your Lord and your God. Here find nourishment for the wait and a foretaste of the Feast to come.