My Lord and My God Podcast—St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church (UAC), Magnolia, Texas

Why does Scripture say, “Let a man examine himself,” and what does that mean for pastoral responsibility at the Lord’s Table?

In this sermon from St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas (serving The Woodlands and Montgomery County), we work through 1 Corinthians 11:27–30, James 3:1, and Hebrews 13:17 to show why the Church takes the reception of the Lord’s Supper seriously—and why pastors are accountable before God for the care of souls.

The Lutheran Confessions speak plainly: the Body of the Lord is not usually given to those who have not been instructed, examined, and absolved. Drawing from Luther’s guidance on communing the laity and his preface to the Small Catechism, this sermon explains what “examination” actually entails: clarity about the Words of Institution, confession of sin and need, discernment of the Lord’s Body, and attention to doctrine, life, and conduct.

The sermon also addresses modern claims about “sacramental hospitality,” the meaning of closed communion, and why pastoral examination is not rudeness, but love—shepherding that seeks to guard against harm and to bring timid consciences to comfort in Christ.

Finally, the Gospel reading’s testing of the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:21–28) is held forth as a picture of faithful examination and saving mercy: testing that humbles, clarifies, and drives the sinner to the crumbs that fall from the Master’s table.

St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church meets for Divine Service every Sunday at 9:00 AM in Magnolia, Texas, followed by Family Catechesis at 10:30 AM. Learn more at www.stthomastx.church.

In this sermon, we contrast private confession and absolution (a cherished Lutheran tradition) with fasting (a discipline clearly commended in Holy Scripture and practiced by the Lord Jesus and the apostles). The sermon explores why both practices have fallen into disuse, and why voluntary self-restraint matters—not to justify us, but to discipline the flesh and prepare us for faithful living in our callings.

Moving from Genesis to the wilderness temptation, the sermon shows how fasting reveals what is already present beneath the surface: concupiscence—the restless, sinful desires of the old Adam that still cling to Christians in this life. Yet the point is not despair. The Gospel is that you who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ: the Father sees His Son’s perfect obedience, His Son’s perfect fasting, and His Son’s victory over the devil’s temptations for you. Your shame is not covered by fig leaves or animal skins, but by Christ Himself—His Blood, His righteousness, His finished work.

If you’re in Magnolia, The Woodlands, or Montgomery County, Texas, we invite you to join us at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church (UAC). Come hear Christ’s Word, receive His gifts, and be strengthened for the fight against Satan, the world, and your flesh.

For more information, check out stthomastx.church.

Why do Christians fast? And why do Lutherans retain private confession—even though there is no direct command from Christ establishing it?

In this Ash Wednesday sermon preached at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas (serving The Woodlands and Montgomery County), we examine Jesus’ words from Matthew 6 and the teaching of the Lutheran Confessions on fasting, discipline, and the subduing of the flesh.

Christian discipline does not merit forgiveness. It does not improve your standing before God. It does not make you spiritually impressive. Instead, fasting and self-restraint serve a higher aim: keeping the Christian fixed on Christ and pressing toward the imperishable crown.

Drawing from Matthew 6, 1 Corinthians 9, 2 Peter 1, and the Lutheran Confessions, this sermon calls Christians away from self-improvement culture and toward eternal goals—the New Jerusalem, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting secured in the Body and Blood of Jesus.

St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church meets every Sunday at 9:00 AM for Divine Service in Magnolia, Texas, followed by Family Catechesis at 10:30 AM. Learn more at www.stthomastx.church.

In this sermon preached at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church (UAC) in Magnolia, Texas, Pastor Stanley Lacey proclaims Christ crucified through the lens of 1 Corinthians 13 and Luke 18.

The familiar words, “Love is patient, love suffers long,” are often heard at weddings and admired for their beauty. But in this sermon, we are confronted with something deeper: our blindness. We easily hear the sounds of love but misunderstand its substance. We mistake emotion for love. We confuse personal preference with righteousness. We justify ourselves while quietly condemning others.

The disciples heard Jesus plainly when He foretold His suffering, death, and resurrection—yet they were blind to what it meant. In the same way, we can hear the words of Scripture and remain blind to our pride, self-love, resentment, and indifference.

But Christ is not blind. He set His face like flint toward Jerusalem. He did not hesitate. He bore all things, endured all things, and did not keep a record of wrongs. He marched toward suffering and death with you in His heart. He endured wrath, shame, and the cross to take away your sin and your blindness.

This sermon proclaims the true love of Christ—perfect, sacrificial, and given freely in the Gospel and the Means of Grace.

If you are in Magnolia, The Woodlands, or Montgomery County and are looking for a church centered on Christ crucified, the Divine Service, and historic Lutheran doctrine, we invite you to join us.

Divine ServiceSundays at 9:00 AM
Klein Memorial Funeral Home
14711 FM 1488
Magnolia, Texas

www.stthomastx.church

In this special episode, Pastor Stanley Lacey of St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church (UAC) in Magnolia, Texas joins Mason Moon of Odyssey (Odyssey Lessons) for a wide-ranging conversation on the foundations of the Lutheran faith.

Together they discuss the history of Lutheranism, justification by faith alone, the authority of Holy Scripture, the distinction between Law and Gospel, Holy Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and the practice of Confession and Absolution. The goal of the conversation is clarity and charity—explaining what confessional Lutheran theology actually teaches and how it seeks to remain faithful to the Scriptures and the Gospel recovered during the Reformation.

We are grateful to Mason Moon and Odyssey for hosting this thoughtful and Christ-centered interview. You can learn more about Mason’s work at Odyssey on YouTube and at their website.

If you live in Magnolia, Montgomery County, The Woodlands, or the surrounding Northwest Houston area and are exploring Lutheran theology or looking for a church home rooted in the Bible as the inspired and inerrant Word of God, the proclamation of Christ crucified for our sins and raised from the dead for our justification as the central message of God's written Word, and the traditions in worship and teaching faithful to the Bible as they have been handed down by the saints for thousands of years before us, we invite you to visit St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas.

Christ delivers what He won on the cross here and now through His Word and Sacraments. May this conversation strengthen you in His grace and truth.

For more information, check out the St. Thomas homepage.

In this pre-Lent sermon, Pastor Stanley Lacey reflects on the Church’s historic emphasis on exile during Septuagesima and Sexagesima. Drawing from Ephesians and Hebrews, the parable of the sower, and Christ’s teaching on grace and discipline, this sermon explores what it means to live as citizens of a Kingdom not of this world. Christians are warned not to place their hope in earthly success, comfort, or security, but to cling to God’s Word, which alone creates and preserves faith. Through the Means of Grace, Christ sustains His people on their pilgrimage to the better country He has prepared for them.

For more information, check out www.stthomastx.church.

In this sermon preached at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas, Pastor Stanley Lacey reflects on the Transfiguration of Our Lord and why Jesus revealed His divine glory to Peter, James, and John. Drawing from the Gospels, the witness of the apostles, and the Church’s confession, this sermon shows how Christ’s radiant glory prepares His disciples for the scandal of the cross, their own weakness and failure, and the hope of resurrection.

Recorded in Montgomery County, Texas, this sermon proclaims Jesus Christ as true God and true Man—“Light of Light, very God of very God”—who freely gives Himself into suffering and death for the salvation of the world. Through the apostolic witness preserved in Holy Scripture, Christians today are given the same light to walk through affliction, death, and into the glory of the Kingdom that is to come.

In this Epiphany sermon preached at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas (Montgomery County), we reflect on John 2:1–11 and the wedding at Cana.

“This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.”

At Cana, our Lord reveals two great mysteries celebrated during Epiphany: He is true God and true Man, and He has come to bring salvation not only to Israel but to all nations.

When the wine runs out, it signifies more than a social embarrassment. It points to the weakness of the Old Covenant, which could not free sinners because of our fallen flesh. Christ, the divine Bridegroom, fills the purification jars with the best wine—foreshadowing the New Covenant in His blood. His true “hour” would come when He stretched out His arms on the cross, poured out His blood for the forgiveness of sins, and gathered His Bride from every nation.

This sermon also applies Christ’s revelation at Cana to Christian vocation, marriage, and the ordering of authority as taught in Ephesians 5–6. Whatever He says to you, do it—trusting that your Lord gives nothing but the best, whether blessing or adversity, for your good and for your salvation.

For more information, visit www.stthomastx.church.

This episode comes from St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas, serving families throughout Montgomery County with faithful Lutheran teaching rooted in Scripture and the Confessions.

In this sermon, we examine the unchanging nature of God’s Law and how it relates differently to believers and unbelievers. St. Paul teaches—and the Formula of Concord confesses—that the Law remains one and the same for all people. The difference is not in the Law itself, but in the person who hears it.

Those who are not regenerate obey the Law under compulsion and threat, as slaves. Those who are regenerate in Christ, however, live in the Law freely as sons, not under condemnation but according to the Law of Christ, led by the Holy Spirit. This teaching clarifies the relationship between Law and Gospel, regeneration, and Christian freedom, showing how faith in Christ transforms obedience from constraint into willing service.

The episode concludes with prayer, asking that God’s Word would bear proper fruit among us through Baptism, faith, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

For more information, go to www.stthomastx.church!

Who is really in control of life—us, or God?

In this sermon preached at St. Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church in Magnolia, Texas, on the Feast of the Slaughter of the Holy Innocents, we hear how earthly rulers like Pharaoh and King Herod sought to take God’s place, with devastating consequences. The murdered children of Bethlehem stand as martyrs, bearing witness to the truth that we are not kings over our lives—God alone is.

This message also addresses modern attempts to control life through abortion, contraception, and in vitro fertilization, speaking truthfully and pastorally about suffering, infertility, repentance, and forgiveness. Above all, it proclaims Christ Jesus, the true King, who was preserved from Herod’s rage so that He might suffer and die at the right time for our salvation.

Listen for a clear confession of Christ’s lordship, comfort for troubled consciences, and the assurance that God’s good and gracious will cannot be frustrated—even by our sins.

For more information, check out www.stthomastx.church!