Gospel Preaching – Bible Teaching – Tucson, AZ
Jesus, then beholding the Mother and the disciple standing alongside, whom He loved, said to the Mother: “O woman, behold your son.” Then He says to the disciple, “Behold your Mother.” And, from that hour, the disciple took her into his own.
For the full Sermon click on the Title above
Our sermon that breaks through Lent’s fast today is drawn from the Protoevangelium. That Good News was given by God directly to His newly fallen and restored creatures. They, as it is a matter of orthodox, right, confession were the first man and woman. God had formed Adam from the dust He had drawn forth from the then good earth.
God had created man first. He had placed him in the Garden to work and keep it. God had also determined that a fit helper for the man was not yet in the creation. …For more, click on the title above.
When members of this congregation studied the Book of Joel quite some time ago, we learned of some valuable biblical-historical realities. Among them was, that prior to the section of the Book we heard from today, God gave a clear call to repentance to His then sinning people. Their sins against Him were primarily from following other gods. But they also included not respecting their fellow Israelites, those who were called to be their brothers and sisters in the Faith. He told them He would, should they not repent, bring hordes of locusts upon them. …For more, click on the title above.
In our Collect prayer for the day, we heard the centuries-old emphasis for this middle Sunday in the pre-Lent season. First, we gave thanks that God has sown His holy Word among us. Second, we petitioned Him to prepare our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who continues to work through the proclamation of God’s Word. Third, we indicated why we are here in part, that is, to diligently and reverently hear God’s Word, to keep it in good hearts… to the end that we will all bring forth spiritual fruit with patience. Fourth, because we all have sinful natures clinging to us, we asked God to use that Word to keep us from yielding to our sinful desires, to subdue them in us, that we might continue to comfort ourselves with [His] grace and continual help. …For more, click on the title above.
“O YHWH! Do not let us perish for this man’s life,
and do not place upon us innocent blood, for You, O YHWH, as it has pleased You, You have done
Think about that prayer. It, in part, reveals what would happen in time, when One would be cast into the depths of death for you. t declares how helpless you are to do, say, or offer anything that could take the Holy God’s wrath from your unholy self. Today’s Words foreshadowed that which God, in the Person of the Son, would offer to Himself to buy you back from sin, death, and hell. They ask God to not account sinners guilty of the blood of the Innocent Man. …For more, click on the title above.
Hear again the Promise of the Lord to His Church as we continue to remember the appearances of our Lord in our human flesh, as God says:
“In that Day, I will cause to raise up the fallen booth of David, and I will repair the breaches in it, and its ruins I will cause to raise up, and I will rebuild it as in days of old…
From that, we are being called to cling to God’s promises, even when He doesn’t seem to give answers. Why? Because, as today’s texts show, He is always faithful to His Word. …For more, click on the title above.
Today’s Gospel reading certainly lays the groundwork for pastors answering the plea to see or hear Jesus. When we ponder the Lord’s Words that frame the Epiphany weeks, His appearance should become clearer to us. We begin that by considering how the Sundays of this season of growth and new life began today. We heard the Voice from Heaven say something like this:
This One remains My Son, the Beloved, in Whom I (am) well pleased. …For more, click on the title above
