Free Republic

“Annunciation, Acclamation, Crucifixion” (Luke 1:30-33; Mark 11:1-10; 15:1-39) Today is a day in the church year that goes by two names, “Palm Sunday” and the “Sunday of the Passion.” This is Palm Sunday, the day when our Lord Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem, and the crowd spread palm branches before him and acclaimed him as their coming king. But today also serves as the Sunday of the Passion, the first day of Holy Week, looking ahead to Christ’s suffering, which will culminate in his crucifixion on Good Friday. The Scripture readings we have had so far in the service today...

“From Heaven Above to Earth I Come” (Luke 2:1-20) For our Christmas Eve homily tonight, I thought I’d let Luther lead the way. This is the 500th anniversary year of the Reformation, after all, and Martin Luther wrote and preached much on the wonder and the mystery of Christ’s birth. It was a favorite theme of his. So tonight we’ll use Luther’s great Christmas hymn, “From Heaven Above to Earth I Come,” as the basis for our meditation. You’ll find it as Hymn 358 in your Lutheran Service Book. Luther wrote the text of this hymn in 1534, it was...

“Gabriel’s Gracious Greeting” (Luke 1:26-38) Every year on the Fourth Sunday in Advent, the Holy Gospel is a reading about Mary. Last year it was the message to Joseph that Mary would bear a son. Next year it will be Mary’s visitation to Elizabeth. This year it is the Annunciation to Mary that she will conceive in her womb and bear a son. So each year on this Sunday there’s something about Mary becoming the mother of our Lord, which is most fitting on the Sunday closest to Christmas. As I say, our text today is the Annunciation, the announcement...

Red Double of the Second Class The goodness and kindness of God our Savior hath appeared to all men. It would seem that the third Evangelist, a disciple of St. Paul, had purposed setting forth this word of the Doctor of the Gentiles; or may we not rather say, the Apostle himself characterizes in this sentence the Gospel wherein his disciple portrays the Savior prepared before the face of all peoples; a light to the revelation of the Gentiles, and the glory of … Israel. St. Luke’s Gospel, and the words quoted from St. Paul, were in fact written...

“Ascension Day, the Forgotten Festival” (Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:1-11) Welcome to the Forgotten Festival! Today is Ascension Day, or, as it’s more properly called, the Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord. But there is reason to call it, as I say, the “Forgotten” Festival. Because even though Ascension Day is classed in the church year as a major festival, which means it’s a day for all churches to hold the Divine Service of Word and Sacrament, the sad fact is that in recent decades many congregations and many Christians have forgotten all about celebrating this important festival. It used...

“Opening the Scriptures, Breaking the Bread” (Luke 24:13-35) One of my favorite paintings is one we happen to have hanging in the hallway here at St. Matthew’s. I’ve brought it forward this morning, because it goes with the Gospel reading for today. The painting is called, in German, “Gang nach Emmaus,” “The Road to Emmaus,” by a 19th-century Swiss artist, Robert Zünd. I love this painting, because it really activates my imagination. You’re looking from a distance at Jesus walking with two disciples on the road to Emmaus, while Jesus is opening the Scriptures to them. You wish you could...

“On the Eighth Day of Christmas: The Circumcision and Name of Jesus” (Luke 2:21) On the eighth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me . . . the circumcision and name of Jesus? Huh? What? Yeah, well, that’s what happened on this day. On the eighth day of Christmas, God’s true love gave to me--and to you, to us--the circumcision and name of Jesus. That’s what our text says, the Holy Gospel for this day, Luke 2:21, which reads again as follows, “And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the...

FULL TITLE: 'Sending all our love': Star Wars vet Mark Hamill reacts to Carrie Fisher's heart attack as Chewbacca actor asks for 'prayers for our friend' Mark Hamill, who plays her brother Luke Skywalker in the Star Wars franchise, said: 'As if 2016 couldn't get any worse... sending all our love to Carrie Fisher.' Carrie and Mark have worked together since the first Star Wars movie, A New Hope, in 1977. The daughter of Carrie Fisher also appeared with Mark in 2015's The Force Awakens. And the two were filming Episode VIII earlier this year.

“Signs of the End” (Luke 21:5-36) Tomorrow night, if the sky is clear, you will be able to see what is called a “Supermoon.” This Supermoon is a full moon, but it will appear about 15% larger than average, because the moon will be at its closest point to the earth in 68 years, since 1948. In the Holy Gospel for today, Jesus talks about signs of the end times. He says there will be “great signs from heaven.” He says, “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars.” So is this Supermoon coming tomorrow a sign that...

“The Pharisee and the Tax Collector” (Luke 18:9-17)“The one who humbles himself will be exalted.” Now I don’t know if our Lord was talking about my Chicago Cubs there or not, but finally my humble Cubbies have been exalted. Well, actually, I do know: Jesus was not talking about the Cubs, because he said, “the one who humbles himself.” And it wasn’t that the Cubs were humbling themselves all those years, it was all the other teams humbling them. So maybe the Cubs being exalted now is just a matter of them having a whole bunch of good players. So...

“Lazarus: The One Whom God Helps” (Luke 16:19-31) This is the tale of two men. Which one would you rather be? It’s in a story that Jesus tells. It begins like this: “There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even the dogs came and licked his sores.” Well, this is quite a contrast between these two guys. Which one would...

“Faithful Stewards” (Luke 16:1-15) In the Gospel for today, Jesus tells the Parable of the Dishonest Manager. This story is also known as the Parable of the Unrighteous Steward. The terms are interchangeable: dishonest or unrighteous; manager or steward. But keeping the titles straight is the least of the problems with this parable. This text from Luke 16, on its surface, is a difficult one to understand. It seems that Jesus is commending the dishonest manager, the unrighteous steward, for his unrighteousness! And what does Jesus mean by, “make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth”? What’s that all...

“Jesus Receives, Rejoices over, and Restores Sinners” (Luke 15:1-10; 1 Timothy 1:5-17) Jesus receives sinners. Do you qualify? If so, great, I’ve got good news for you today. Or do you not think you’re not that bad of a sinner? Well, in that case, you’re on your own. Good luck with that. Jesus receives sinners. That’s the message that comes through loud and clear in our Gospel reading today, from Luke chapter 15. And when Jesus receives sinners, he rejoices over them, he rejoices that they’ve been found and brought back. And not only does Jesus receive sinners, and not...

“Friend, Move Up Higher” (Luke 14:1-14)Suppose you’re invited to a banquet--a wedding banquet, for instance--so you get dressed up in your best clothes, and you get there, and you see some seats that are open at the various tables. You figure you’re a pretty important person, or you’d like to be seen as such, so you go up and take a seat up front, maybe even at the head table. But then some other guy comes in, and he doesn’t look all that impressive, and the host or the waiter comes over and tells you that you need to move...

“Strive to Enter through the Narrow Door” (Luke 13:22-30) Suppose there’s a big party, a grand banquet that you’ve heard about, and you really want to go and be there for this great event. So you go to the banquet hall, and you see a door there, and you walk up to it and try the handle. It doesn’t budge. The door seems to be locked. “Okay, no problem, I’ll try another door.” Which you do. You pull on the handle, it doesn’t move, same thing. Hmm. What’s the problem? “Oh, wait! Let me see if there’s another door around...

“Fire, Distress, and Division: This Is the Gospel of the Lord?” (Luke 12:49-53) “‘I came to cast fire on the earth. How great is my distress! I have come to bring division on earth. From now on households will be divided.’ This is the Gospel of the Lord.” Huh? Am I missing something here? “Fire, Distress, and Division: This Is the Gospel of the Lord?” How is this “gospel”? How is this good news? Yeah, this is one of those Gospel readings that make you shake your head and wonder what’s going on. The Jesus we meet here is not...

“Do Not Be Anxious: Faith Overcomes Fear” (Luke 12:22-34) “Do not be anxious. Do not be worried. Fear not.” That’s what Jesus says to his disciples in our Gospel reading for today. He says we shouldn’t be so worried about our stuff, to not seek after more and more, like we’re obsessed about it. “Do not be anxious. Do not be worried. Fear not.” Well, OK, Jesus, I guess I’ll try. I’ll try not to be anxious. I’ll try not to be worried. I’ll try not to be afraid. And maybe I can do it. I mean, after all, I’ve...

“Eat, Drink, and Be Merry” (Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-26; Luke 12:13-21; Colossians 3:1-11) We all want to live the good life, don’t we? I mean, we want to have the best life now that we can have. Financial security, good health, no worries about our future, a nice place to live, happy family life, good friends and neighbors--who doesn’t want all that? Your best life now. Ah, wouldn’t that be sweet! A steak on the grill, a margarita in your hand, relaxing on the patio in the shade. Take life easy, eat, drink, and be merry! And is there anything...

“Following Jesus to the Cross” (Luke 9:51-62) Today Jesus says to us, “Follow me.” “Follow me,” he says. “Come, be my disciples.” “OK, we say. “Yes, Jesus I will follow you.” But do we know what we’re getting ourselves into? What all will following Jesus entail? Shouldn’t we know that before we answer too fast, “Yes, Lord”? Well, today we will hear what it will involve. For the truth of the matter is, we are “Following Jesus to the Cross.” That’s where Jesus himself is going: To the cross. That’s what it says in our text, the Holy Gospel from...

“Authoritative Word, Marvelous Faith” (Luke 7:1-10) It is hard to surprise or shock Jesus. It is hard to amaze him or cause him to marvel. It rarely happens. But today it does. It’s the story of the centurion asking for a healing for his servant, and how he asks it. This centurion causes Jesus to marvel. But it’s not just the story of the man’s faith. More so, it’s the story of what prompts this faith, what it is about Jesus that calls forth this faith. And so our theme this morning, “Authoritative Word, Marvelous Faith.” Let’s start with the...