Preaching and Teaching from St. John Ev. Lutheran Church (Sherman Center), Random Lake, Wisconsin

23. February 2020

Love is to be delivered over to the Gentiles. Love patiently suffers the scorn and shame of enemies and friends alike. Love is kind to those who persecute you. Love is mocked and shamefully treated. Love is spit upon. Love is flogged and killed. Love is crucified. Love gives His life for His friends. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love obeys the Father even unto death. Love dies for the sins of the whole world. Jesus is love. Whenever you hear love in the Holy Scriptures, you hear Jesus.

Taught on February 23, 2020.

Taught at Emmanuel Adell on Thursday, February 20, 2020.

Preached on February 19, 2020.

15. February 2020

Take heart, dear Christian! Christ Jesus has again today in your hearing given you ears to hear and tongues to confess His Holy Name. He has tilled your hard heart, crushed your rocky soil, and weeded out every care in you, so that your entire faith, hope, and love is in Christ and His salvation alone. The sower went out to sow, and He has accomplished what He set forth to do for you.

Jesus can do nothing apart from the Father (5:19, 30; 8:28). He does the works the Father sent Him to accomplish (5:36; 4:34). This is a real relationship with real, personal interaction, not just a revealing of the relationship of the divine persons. The presence of “the Jews” is helpful, because they have come to the grave, confident that Lazarus’ death is fact and death is invincible. And then Jesus overcomes what is impossible and gives thanks to the Father in full dependence. He is commanding faith in Him and the Father who sent Him! This has been the purpose and goal since the Prologue (1:14, 51).

Taught on February 12th, 2020 at Emmanuel Adell.

Preached on February 12, 2020.

5. February 2020

For Christ turned His face to Jerusalem, suffering all in glory, that you would be glorified in Him. He has forgiven all that would keep you from being in the presence of God. You are given not only to approach Him without terror but are given to be joined to Him. He gives you His glorious flesh and blood, food and drink rich in grace and mercy. Now you pay approach God and live. Now you may approach Him and be with Him. Now you see His face and you have peace.

2. February 2020

Who God is, His relationship to you, and what He has done and continues to do for you, must be revealed to you.“No one has ever seen God; [but] the only God, who is at the Father’s side, He has made him known” (John 1:18). Jesus is the only begotten of the Father, who knows the heart of the Father, and can alone reveal the Father’s thoughts. He alone has seen the Father. And therefore, only He can tell us who God is. “Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him” (Mt 11:27).