We thank God for the loyalty and ministry of St. Michael

St. Michael’s Victory over the Devil (Detail) by Sir Jacob Epstein St Michael's Cathedral, Coventry, Warwickshire, England

We don’t pray to the angels. We don’t even pray for them.
Rather, we pray with them to the One who has created us, redeemed us, and sanctified us.
We pray to Him who sent St. Michael into battle, and who also sends us.

Made Worthy

Illustrator of Petrus Comestor's 'Bible Historiale', France, Healing of the Man with Dropsy, Koninklijke Bibliotheek, 1372
Sermon for the 17th Wednesday after Trinity

And so, our dilemma is that we are unworthy——-and yet are bidden – even ordered – to be
here at the “wedding feast,” at the banquet over which One who is greater than Solomon
presides.

There is no other God

The Holy Trinity by Ulyana Tomkevych

A lot of people are mad at us this week. Not at you, in particular, not even at the pastor. They’re mad at Christians in general.
Why? Well, this is the week of the church year in which we Christians don’t play nice with the rest of the world. We are exclusive. We make claims about God that many other people on the planet cannot stomach and will not tolerate. …For more, click on the title above.

Holy, Holy, Holy

The Holy Trinity by Ulyana Tomkevych

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts! The whole earth is full of his glory.”
This is the call of the angels. And with the angels’ song and Isaiah’s reaction to what he sees, we learn something about who God is, about who He is as the most holy above all things. …For more, click on the title above.

Whit Tuesday: Remembering the gift of the Law

We, as Lutherans, believe that we receive through Baptism; forgiveness of sins, deliverance from death and the devil, and the promise of eternal salvation. We also know that none of these come about from our own doing—they are gifts. We receive the Holy Spirit through the water and the Word so that we might have faith to believe in the promises of God. These Samaritans had been baptized, but our text says they had not received the Holy Spirit….For more, click on the title above.

God builds His church

Icon of Saints Phillip and James. Source unknown.

Today the Christian Church remembers two pieces of this foundation: St. Philip and St. James. Through his prophets and apostles, God laid the foundation. God built the house, every wall, room, and floor on the Cornerstone of Christ Jesus, not with brick and mortar, but with his holy precious blood and his innocent suffering and death. …For more, click on the title above.

Kyrie Eleison

Oh Sing To The Lord by Holly Monroe

what is this week in the Easter season? Cantate Sunday. Cantate is Latin for sing; so that makes this Singing Sunday. This name is based on the incipit of the Introit (which we learned about in Bible class a few weeks ago) for this Sunday which comes from Psalm 98, “Oh sing to the Lord a new song.”…For more, click on the title above.

Water, blood and Spirit

Jesus Shows the Disciples His Wounds by William Brassey Hole

It’s often in the smallest detail that the most remarkable revelations are to be found. Ezekiel beheld a valley of dry bones. Ezekiel had served as a priest in the Temple in Jerusalem. He had seen the destruction of that Temple, God’s dwelling place, and he was now living in exile in a land far away. And he must have been wondering: “How can we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?” …For more, click on the title above.

For you

Sea of Galilee by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Haven’t we been here before? It sounds so familiar.
Every year, for those of us who follow the One Year Lectionary, on the Fifth Sunday after Trinity, we hear the account of a miraculous catch of fish. Remember? …For more, click on the title above.

The stranger on the road to Emmaus

The Gospel Reading takes us back to that first Easter Sunday. The early morning events are now over. Most of Jesus’ disciples are back in Jerusalem in a house with the doors locked in fear of the Jews.
The afternoon sun is approaching the horizon as two disciples are walking on the dirt road out of Jerusalem. …For more, click on the title above.