GSLCVA Podcast

Today is Palm|Passion Sunday, it is one of the more cluttered and confusing liturgical days of the church year. In celebration of Palm|Passion Sunday, today we remember a parade deliberately staged by Jesus. Join Pastor James as he focuses on the cheers of Hosanna during that parade, shortly followed by the jeers of the crucifixion on Good Friday. The parade and crucifixion both unwittingly show humankind's part in highlighting God's great love for each of us as sinners.

What does Jesus mean when he refers to "the kingdom of God?" Pontius Pilate wrestled with this exact question asking, "What is truth?" How do we navigate the waters of worldly authority and stay true to the eternal authority of God? Join us today as Pastor James discusses how Jesus is our King in a way that no earthly authority could ever comprehend. He loves and provides for His subjects, leads by example, and offers Himself to ensure the salvation of His people.

In today's Gospel reading, some Greeks come to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and say, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." They wanted to see Jesus, which in John's gospel, is closely connected with believing. Join Pastor James as we, on our journey to the cross, come to understand that in the end, you don't have to see Jesus in a physical sense to come to know Jesus through faith.

Join us this Lenten Wednesday as Pastor Johann discusses Peter's denials of Jesus. Like Peter, we too may shrink from our faith. The pressures of living in a culture that does not recognize Jesus as Lord and God can be significant and may lead us to soft-pedal our beliefs or even to outright deny Jesus. However, Jesus will have the last word. He will forgive us, restore us, and send us out with a task to complete. He calls us to return to Him, to return from denial.

In today's gospel, John 3:16, Jesus articulates, as Luther says, "the Gospel in a nutshell." God is fundamentally a God of love, love is the logic by which the kingdom of God runs, and God's love trumps everything else; even justice, in the end. Join Pastor James as he speaks to how frightening it can be to be so utterly dependent on God, and understanding that it is about God's boundless love in the gift and exaltation of Jesus Christ.

Join us this Lenten Wednesday when Pastor James discusses Judas's betrayal and where the sin of false witness prevails. The false witness of Jesus' sham trial is evident, however ours is seldom so. In what ways do we bear false witness? How do our failures lead us away from God? God calls us to turn from our sin, to look to Him, and to find our rest and identity in Him. When we do, Jesus takes our sins—even our false witness against Him—and offers us forgiveness.

The true power of the cross can be hard to see. In religious culture, it is an icon, yet in the first century, it was a gruesome capital punishment device. Join us as Pastor Johann discusses the message of the cross. To those perishing it is foolish; to those being saved, it is the power of God. The cross shows us the broad love of God, reminds us that God's ways are not worldly ways, and points to grace and unto salvation.

Join us as Pastor Johann explores betrayal, specifically the ways that we betray one another and Jesus through our denials and rejection of faith. We live in a culture that prides itself on rejecting the morality that Jesus taught. Whether it is failing to acknowledge our faith or embracing our own sinful urges, it is too easy to turn away from God and betray Jesus. Yet Jesus did not avoid betrayal and accepted the consequences to ensure that all who believe in Him are free.

In the Gospel for this week, Jesus tells his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." Join Pastor James as he discusses the expectations and impact of the cross upon each of us as we face just what the "how" of that is on our journey of cross carrying and denying ourselves.

Today's sermon focuses our attention on Peter, James, and John in the Garden of Gethsemane and explores the topic of prayer. God commands us to pray, but we seldom do a very good job of it. Join us today as Pastor James discusses prayer. When God calls us to pray, He provides us the means to pray, and even fulfills what we ourselves are unable to do. Jesus takes our sins upon Himself and dies on the cross, satisfying the wrath of God and fulfilling what we ourselves are unable to do.