We are now just two weeks away from Easter Sunday and find ourselves at Judica Sunday. The purple paraments have returned and the bright and joyful pink that decorated the nave is gone. But the welcoming pink is not the only thing that has been removed. Much like how the nails left holes in Christ’s hands after he was removed from the cross, today the removal of the rest of the glorias leaves the services with empty holes that stand out. …For more, click on the title above.
Tag: Vicar Decker
King of the Jews
Today marks the third Wednesday in the season of Lent as we continue our series on the doctrinally sound Stations of the Cross. As you can see by looking to the back of the Nave, the fifth station of the cross is uncovered and is what we will be looking at today. If you look at the station, you will see a scene where three men are in front of a cross that is laying on its side, yet to be hoisted aloft. The key figure is Jesus. Our Savior is standing tall but looks weak. Jesus knew what was to come next. He knew that he was mere moments from being placed on the cross. …For more, click on the title above.
Rejoice in God
One of the key teachings of the Confessional Lutheran Church is that mankind is justified—declared right with God—by faith, not by the works carried out with human hands. This has been the case since Luther nailed the Ninety-Five Thesis to the door of his church. While there are multiple readings from Holy Scripture that explain the truth of how mankind is justified, our epistle reading for today clearly states that “we have been justified by faith.” For more, click on the title above.
Blind and begging
God has brought us to the last Sunday of Pre-Lent. In just a few days the greens we see before us will be replaced. Crosses will be veiled. There will be a lot to see and hear as the seasons change.
Of the five senses that we use to absorb information about the world around us and in the Church, sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing, we tend to rely on two of them more than the others. Sight and hearing are the two key senses we use more than anything else. Now, this is not to say that the other three senses are unnecessary or useless. We use all of our senses on a daily basis. …For more, click on the title above.
Listen to Him
Today marks the last Sunday in the Epiphany season this year. It starts to guide our thoughts and studies to the season of Lent. That will conclude with the events in the city of Jerusalem during the Passover feast and the Passion of Christ. The reading our church fathers selected to fill this role is the Transfiguration of our Lord as recorded in the Gospel of the Apostle Matthew. …For more, click on the title above.
Written by the prophet
There are two ways that people learned of and came to visit the infant Savior. The first way is how the shepherds learned of the birth of Christ.
As we heard read during the Christmas Eve Midnight Mass, the shepherds were doing their job, watching over the flock placed in their care through the night when they were greeted by an angel of the Lord. The angel told them where Jesus was and sent them on their way. They were told by a messenger of the Lord where the Light of Man was born….For more, click on the title above.
Dressed for action and lamps burning
Seeing how this is the last day of the calendar year, it seems only fitting that the sermon is on the true and final Last Day.
Through the earthly authors of the Bible, God has communicated to mankind some details about the events that will take place leading up to and during the Final Judgement. Typically, this topic would lead the faithful to dissect the text of the Revelation or as it is titled in the Greek text, The Apocalypse of John, to find information and answers to their questions.
That is not a bad place to start your study. In fact, it would be the correct choice in many cases, considering how Revelation largely focuses on this subject. However, the Final Day is spoken of elsewhere in Scripture, including but not limited to our Gospel and sermon text for today from the Gospel of Luke the Evangelist. …For more, click on the title above.
The Word
Christ is born!!! The Savior prophesied about in ages past has arrived, born of the virgin in Bethlehem. But now what? What did Jesus do?
There are multiple excerpts from Scripture that give an outline of this what Jesus did. One of the best known examples of this would be John 3:16 where we are told why Jesus came, what He did, and the result. It is nice, quick, and to the point. …For more, click on the title above.
Who are you?
Before Jesus started His incarnate earthly ministry, the attention of the 12 Tribes of Israel was focused on someone else—John the Baptizer. John whom some of us heard about on Advent II Wednesday, was the son of Zachariah and Elizabeth and had a special role to play in God’s plan for salvation. In our Gospel reading we see John talk about this role. John also answers the question: Who are you? …For more, click on the title above.
The magnificat
Welcome to the first midweek service of this Advent season. Our theme for this year’s sermon series is “The Songs of the Saints,” and as I’m sure you may have guessed, the sermon text for this week is the Magnificat. Out of context, it makes sense to study the Song of Mary during Advent considering how the song was sung during Mary’s pregnancy. It is also found in the first chapter of Luke, where the Gospel is building up to our Savior’s birth. However, today we will be examining the canticle from a slightly different angle. …For more, click on the title above.