Mary and Job and Jesus - 2026 Job Lenten Midweek 5 
Based on Job 38:1-11 and Luke 1:26-38.

You can access the audio of the sermon HERE.  

Only nine months till Christmas.  Do you have your celebrations prepared? 

   Christmas is celebrated on December 25^th because early church fathers believed the crucifixion happened on March 25^th, which is, based on the date of Passover, a strong possibility.  Added to this, the ancients held a cyclical idea about human life, that the day one is conceived would also be the day one dies.  March 25^th, was understood to be the date of Good Friday, when Jesus died, and so also the date of the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel told Mary she would be the mother of God’s Son, and the Christ was miraculously conceived in her womb.  Nine months later is December 25^th.  And so tonight, we get to sing a Christmas carol.  Which is cool. 

   Also cool is this: the book of Job gives us a microcosm of the entire Biblical narrative.  Both share an idyllic beginning, the man and the woman in the Garden of Eden in Genesis, and Job’s wonderful life, full of blessings, described in chapter one.  Then Satan intervenes.  In the Garden he took on the form of a serpent to successfully tempt the woman and the man to sin.  In Job the evil one responded to the Lord’s praise of Job with a challenge: Allow me to ruin Job’s life, God, and he will curse You to Your face.

   Suffering and confusion result, but a promise sustains the faithful, the promise of the Seed of the woman Who would come and defeat Satan.  Job believed this promise, handed down to him, father and mother to children, through the generations.  The fulfillment of this promise forms the central narrative of the Bible.  But first comes a long period of confusion, and a struggle to be faithful, and the plague unfaithful preachers.  Job had his worthless friends, who were sure Job was hiding some sin that was the cause of his suffering.  God’s people had to deal with false prophets, preachers who pretended to speak for the Lord, but who in reality were proclaiming “Peace, peace!” when there was no peace.  False prophets consistently denied that Israel’s problems were due to their sins, and that God was going to punish them for them. 

   Like Job, God’s chosen people were often perplexed and persecuted, and looked forward to the chance to meet God face to face, to ask why they were suffering, and above all, to be delivered.   

   In both stories, the desired meeting finally happens, but the mystery is only increased.  God’s Way is so much greater than our understanding.  But His way is true and good.  And so the longed-for appearance of God on the scene was good news, for Job, for Mary, and for us.  God’s appearance to His people leads to their final restoration, at the end of Job, and at the end of the book of Revelation. 

   The book of Job describes in the story of one man the broad arc of the Biblical narrative.  There are certainly lots of details missing, necessary truths about salvation.  Job can’t replace the whole Bible.  But the thrust of things in Job matches the overall thrust of things in the Bible.   

   Chapter 38 of Job then is the Annunciation and Christmas rolled into one.  God shows up to respond to Job’s questions, and also to deliver His chosen one.  But the meeting does not go how Job expected.

   Job expected to debate with God, to lay out his case and compel God to see his point.  But, the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said: ² “Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?  ³ Dress for action like a man; I will question you, and you make it known to me.  ⁴ “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?  Tell me, if you have understanding.

   Job believed the Lord was his Savior, but he failed to understand how much greater God is than the wisest man, how much of God’s Way is beyond human comprehension.  God comes and shows Job all that he could never understand, just in the Creation.  Job can only repent in dust and ashes. 

   Still, God’s arrival is the best of news for Job.  God corrected him, to be sure.  The Lord asks Job 70 questions, seven the number of divine perfection, times 10, the number of the Law.  In this full examination, Job came to understand better and accept his limits.  But, he was also restored.  Job was God’s beloved child, and so Job was restored.  His understanding was faulty, but his faith in God was vindicated.   

   Job repents of seeking to know unknowable things, and God forgives and restores him, doubly.  His suffering is removed, and he received double back of all that he lost.  Before Satan attacked he had 7,000 sheep, now 14,000.  3,000 camels, now 6,000.  He had 10 children, and he received 10 new children. 

   Wait, why not 20 children?  Because the first 10 sons and daughters were not truly lost to Job, he would be reunited with them in the resurrection!  The end of Job includes a promise of a heavenly reunion with all the faithful departed.      

   Mary and Job both ask famous questions.  Job asked “how is it possible that God’s righteous followers, those who are trust in promises and so are declared righteous by God, still face suffering?”  Mary asks “how is it possible that a virgin should conceive a son?” 

   Through Job’s question we begin to learn that salvation only comes through suffering, that the cost of the Fall into sin is suffering, not just for wicked unbelievers, but also for the restoration of believers.  Job is among the first Old Testament saints who suffer in order to foreshadow the Savior, the Suffering Servant who would one day come and redeem the world: by His stripes, we are healed. 

   Mary’s question was simple biology.  She understood where babies came from.  From Gabriel we discover that God was doing something new, that Mary’s pregnancy was the beginning of something entirely unique, that had never happened before and would only happen once.  A virgin conceived and bore God’s Son.  This birth unlike any other birth also brought suffering unlike any other suffering.  Mary would suffer, tremendously, but even more, her Son would suffer in a unique and redemptive way

    For both Job and Mary, God’s reply to their question is more or less that “I am God, I say so, and so this is how it is.”  God doesn’t explain suffering to Job, He delivers him from it.  The angel does not explain the mystery of how God could become a man, he just says God was going to do this thing.  This lack of explanation can be frustrating to us.  But, the reliability and power of God’s Word is also our great comfort.  When God says to you and me: “I forgive you all your sins,” we, with Job and Mary, can trust that Word, and rejoice, because what God says always happens! 

   The Mystery of God coming to us is too great for us to fully comprehend.  But it is not too great to be believed.  Like Mary did, whose faith in God’s Word of promise prepared her for her calling, which included great suffering. 

   The suffering of Job was obvious, first the loss of flocks, herds, servants, and most bitterly, his children.  Then suffering came to his body, with terrible boils.  What about Mary?  Well, no doubt her miraculous pregnancy leads to suspicion.  Who would believe her?  Would her fiancé?  Not at first, but thanks to an angelic visit to Joseph’s dreams, he believes and stays with Mary. 

   Still, Mary felt it necessary to go and hide at her cousins house in the hill country.  Was this to avoid prying eyes and rude questions?  Then, late in her pregnancy, she and Joseph have to journey to Bethlehem.  The birth was forever blessed, and filled with wonders, but 40 days later at the Temple, Simeon would speak of suffering.  Yes, the Child would be the deliverance of Israel and the light of the nations, but, he told Mary, a sword will pierce your soul too. 

   This was the deepest suffering of Mary.  Job was a great man of faith, but he was only righteous by faith, not on his own merits.  He was a sinner in need of God’s forgiveness, and he received it.  But Mary’s Son was truly righteous in His essence; in every thought word and deed He was without sin.  Jesus was truly innocent, truly righteous, and yet He suffered.  This is why He came, to suffer for the salvation of the world.  And Mary had to watch.  I don’t think she could look away from watching her grown-up, perfect Son get treated like the worst sinner ever.   

   Job’s suffering was ultimately resolved by God’s appearance.  The Lord confronted, corrected, and commissioned Job to intercede for his worthless friends.  And then Job was restored.   

   Mary’s suffering was also resolved by God’s appearance, it was fulfilled by Jesus, along with all the other suffering necessary for the whole world.  But Mary’s restoration took longer.  Thirty-three years she loved and watched her Son.  In the end, she saw Him rejected by His own people, unjustly accused, tortured and crucified.  Mary watched her Son die on that Roman cross. 

   But then, He appeared again.  In the Resurrection, Mary’s suffering and questions were finally resolved, once, and for all! 

   The God who showed up in a whirlwind to correct Job is the same God who took up residence for nine months in Mary’s womb.  In all of His appearances, He comes to take on our need, our suffering, our sorrow, and redeem them all, so that we can be restored.

    It is nine months to Christmas, when we celebrate the biggest baby reveal ever, the face of God found in a newborn, the Incarnation.  Holy Week is next week, when we celebrate the most important 8 days in all of history.  Christmas and Holy Week are coming.  Have you prepared your celebrations? 

   Relax, God has prepared the best celebration, for you.  By all means, plan your own add-ons.  Bake a ham, or a brisket, host your friends and family.  Do whatever wonderful things you want to add to the celebration. 

   But first and most importantly, gather around the celebration of Jesus, for this is the greatest celebration,  

 the family gathering God invites you to join,   

where you can hear Him tell you of His love for you, again,  

where you will be reminded of what He did to remove your sin,  

where you can take your place at His table, to be fed by your High Priest,

who made Himself your Sacrifice.   

The only God and Savior has come, for Job, for Mary, and for you.                         

Your God and Savior is here, as He promised, wherever His people gather in His Name.  He is present to deliver forgiveness, freedom and wisdom, to you.     

Your God and Savior will come again, visibly, one more time

not in a whirlwind, with Words of correction,  

not as a baby, born to suffer.

No, some day soon Jesus will come as your Victor King, riding the clouds of glory, to take you and all His chosen home with Himself, to give you more than double your blessings, to bring you to live with Him, and with all the faithful of all time, including Job and Mary.  Rejoice in Jesus, God in flesh, come to save you, today, and forever and ever, Amen.   

Judgment Time - Variations on a Theme
Sermon for Judica, the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Based on Genesis 22:1-14, Hebrews 9:11-15, John 8:42-59

You can access the audio of the sermon HERE. 

In the Name of Jesus, our Vindicator.

   Do you know Ludwig von Beethoven’s 5^th Symphony?  I bet you do:  Dahn-dahn-dahn, daaaaahn.  Dahn-dahn-dahn, daaaaahn. 

   Beethoven takes a very simple musical phrase, three short notes on one pitch, and then one longer note a bit lower, and he repeats it, over and over, building a 35 minute symphony.  It varies.  He expands it, reverses it, turns the theme upside down and inside out, then contracts it and returns again to the original.  Variations on a simple theme, creating one of the most recognizable pieces of music in human history. 

   The theme of Beethoven’s Fifth is exceptionally simple.  But most musical composers do something similar, using longer melodies, over and over, with variation and return to the original.  Some concert pieces, with multiple movements, which may last an hour or more, are still centered on just one or two key musical themes, phrases, or melodies, that recur from the beginning to the end.  George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” or Maurice Ravel’s “Bolero” are great examples.  I’ll refrain from trying to hum them.  You can look them up.  We hear the same thing in pop music, Country and Rock n’ Roll, also in Jazz and Blues, and Bluegrass.  Not to mention Christian hymns.  Repeated themes and melodies are what make music memorable.     

   These composers, knowingly or not, are mimicking the Holy Spirit, Who again and again takes a simple theme, a core idea or thought, and repeats it with variation, weaving together His message.  And, taken altogether, the whole Bible, even though it is comprised of 66 books written over as much as 1,900 years by dozens of different writers, nevertheless weaves together all its themes and genres to proclaim one message, one central truth, a single through-line running from Genesis to Revelation.  This through-line is the saving love of God for sinners, revealed in the life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God and the Son of Mary.     

   The Word of God tends to focus on themes, and God’s people need to remember it.  So, it is not surprising that since at least the time of Moses, God’s people have set His Word to music, combining the memorability of recurring musical themes with the recurring truths of the Word to deliver God’s Good News even more powerfully. 

   Kantor Richard Resch at the Fort Wayne seminary taught us to seek this same goal as we planned Sunday services.  Try to focus on one central theme, he encouraged, a particular aspect from the appointed readings.  The lectionary is designed this way, with connections and common themes between the readings.  I try to reinforce this with the hymns and our catechetical review.  For the sake of clarity and memory, I like to have one main theme for a service, to take one facet of the diamond that is Christ’s teaching, and focus on it.     

   Sunday by Sunday, my goal is to implant one truth in your minds and hearts, to help you walk your walk of faith throughout the week, and throughout your life.  When it goes well, and all the elements of the service are interconnected, sermons almost write themselves. 

   Our musicians also get in on the act.  Organists choose preludes and postludes that draw on the readings, or are variations of the day’s hymns.  Choir directors choose pieces that fit with the readings.  Before our midweek services at Our Redeemer, Liz simply plays through a medley of Lenten hymns, which creates a mood, and prepares us for contemplating Christ’s journey toward Calvary.    

   Through the centuries the Church has even named many Sundays, in particular those during Lent and Easter, further solidifying the central idea of each one.  In the West, these names tend to be taken from the opening words of the Introit, like today: this is “Judica” Sunday, Latin for judge me, or vindicate me, which are the first words of our Introit: Vindicate me, O God.  The psalmist almost begs the Lord to judge him.     

   Do you beg to be judged?  Kind of depends, doesn’t it, on the type of judgement we expect.   To be judged can mean to be condemned.  Go to jail.  You’re fired.  Or, God forbid, go to hell. 

   To be judged can also mean to be evaluated on your performance, and then get sent back for more practice, for more training and instruction, so you can do better next time.  “Nice try, but this and that part of your performance don’t meet the standard.”  “You won’t be in the select choir this year.”  “You didn’t make the varsity.”  “You can take your driving test again in two weeks.”  Or, “I know you’ve graduated law school, but you have to pass the bar exam.  Until you do, you cannot work as a lawyer.”   

   There is a positive aspect to being judged, potentially.  As the ESV rightly translates “shaphat,” the judgment verb that begins Psalm 43, we can be judged to be excellent, a winner; we can be “vindicated.”  “Vindicate me, O God.”  That is to say: “Judge me righteous, declare my innocence, proclaim my right and good status before you.” 

   Indeed, this is the goal of Christ; this is what God is working toward, the justification, the eternal vindication of sinners, like you and me.  And, spoiler alert, vindication before God does not come from your practice, or your improvement, or your commitment to the process. 

   Practice is good; you can get better at whatever you are called to do.  And you should.  Life is better for all of us when each of us performs the tasks of our callings well.  And, this is pleasing to God.  Parents, love your children; children, honor your parents.  Slaves obey your masters.  Citizens, pay your taxes and give honor to your rulers.  All great things, and important. 

   But vindication before God, being judged eternally righteous, and so being admitted to God’s heavenly kingdom, is not about you.  It is about Christ, for you.  And so His pursuit of your vindication is the central theme of the Bible, the main thing God needs you to understand, believe, and trust.

   Far too many Christian teachers mess this up.  They tend to teach that vindication before God is like making the varsity football team or earning a spot as a musician in an orchestra.  Practice, practice, practice, then be judged.  If you fall short, go back and practice more, until you earn your spot. 

   This is a satisfying idea to our fallen minds.  It matches the way the world works, and it feeds our spiritual egos.  But, it is a lie.  It is the number one lie Satan tries to use on people who believe in God.  It is also an impossibility.  “By works of the law shall no one be justified in God’s sight,” proclaims Paul in Romans chapter three.  Rather, God justifies us, through faith in Jesus.  And so, the Bible spends the most time proclaiming Christ, and His righteousness, His vindication, which He desires to share as a free gift, with you and all sinners.   

    This is especially clear on Judica, on this Vindication Sunday, the last Sunday before we dive into Holy Week.  A verdict of righteous, not guilty, vindicated, the pursuit of such a judgment runs through all our readings today.

   In our Old Testament reading, we see the depth of Abraham’s faith be vindicated, proven, and demonstrated, as he obeys God’s command to sacrifice his son Isaac.  Abraham was ready to obey, even though Isaac is the son through whom God had promised to raise up many nations, and also raise up the Savior.  This is one of the most shocking stories in the Bible.  The author of Hebrews helps us out by revealing that Abraham believed God could raise Isaac from the dead, so he moved forward with this terrible task. 

   The LORD stops Abraham, sparing Isaac, whose death would have been pointless.  His sacrifice would not have achieved the vindication, the justification, of anyone, for Isaac was merely human, and a sinner.  A better Son would be needed to justify a sinful world.  Clues that point to Christ fill this story: the beloved son of the father is sacrificed, on Mount Moriah, which is where Jerusalem would eventually be built.  The victim carries the wood for his own sacrifice up the hill.  And the substitute, a ram, is caught by his horns in a spiny thicket, foreshadowing a crown of thorns.  What Abraham and Isaac approached, but did not go through with, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit would take to its finish on the same mountain, over 2,000 years later.       

   That day was drawing near in today’s Gospel reading from John.  Jesus is judged, He is condemned by the Jews, His own people.  They reject Him, because He says He is the LORD God, the I AM, standing before them as a human being.  It is understandable that the Jews got really heated, since they don’t believe Jesus is God.  So, in their understanding, His words are clearly blasphemous, and worthy of punishment.  They think Jesus is usurping God’s position, just like Adam and Eve tried back in the Garden.  So, he must be rejected, even destroyed. 

   Unless, of course, Jesus is giving them legitimate reasons to think He might be God.  Like say, working great miracles.  Or proclaiming God’s Word with a clarity and authority that no one ever had.  Or fulfilling ancient prophecy after ancient prophecy.  The Jewish experts in the Law of Moses should have recognized Him.  But they did not.  They reasoned away His miracles and stuffed their ears at His teaching.  No way that is Jesus is Yahweh, the LORD, say the Jews.  They judge Jesus to be the worst kind of fraud.

    I wonder if any of them had second thoughts when Jesus worked a very small miracle, hiding Himself and slipping away when the angry Jews picked up stones to kill Him. 

   Our Lord would submit to their evil judgment, He would allow them to kill Him soon enough.  But that day in the Temple was not the day.  Nor was stoning the way that Jesus would bring God’s judgment down on Himself, for our sake, and also for the sake of the Jews who opposed Him.  So, Jesus hid Himself from them and slipped away.       

   Finally, our Epistle reading from Hebrews 9 does not use the word judgment, but as it discusses the sacrificial system that Moses gave to Israel, judgment and vindication are the point.  Through the various animal sacrifices commanded by God, the judgment, the condemnation deserved by God’s people for their sins, was expiated.  It was relieved, released through the shedding of blood.  Innocent animal victims gave their lives, to allow sinners to avoid the judgment they deserve.  In this we see that the Old Testament sacrificial system was always pointing to One Victim to come.  The Temple sacrifices were placeholders, a holy and necessary judgment-delay-system, until a better Lamb with better blood should come, and justify the whole world. 

    Now, our great High Priest, Jesus, who was also the Innocent Sacrificial Victim, has revealed a new covenant, a new relationship with God, based entirely on His righteousness, His justice.  And He comes to us weekly right here, to deliver His righteousness, His vindication, to us, through His Word, and by His Body and Blood, hidden under the bread and wine.

   How then, do the vindicated live?  First, judged righteous by faith in Jesus, we live without fear of condemnation.  We are free, not free to sin, but freed from sin, set free in order to live to righteousness.  We are free to live with joy, for the vindication we have received is better than anything else in this world.  That feeling you get when you are judged a winner and chosen for some great thing?  When you got the job you wanted, or made the varsity, or when your beloved said yes to your marriage proposal?  Our joy in Christ should be even greater, for His vindication makes us beloved children of God, today, and forever and ever. 

    A life without fear, fleeing from sin and pursuing righteousness.  A life of holy joy, that spills over to our friends and neighbors.  This is God’s goal for us, and in Jesus, we have been given the Way. 

   Dahn-dahn-dahn, daaaaahn.  Beethoven’s famous four note melody is often called the “fate theme.”  It creates the feeling of impending judgment.  The moment of truth is coming; how will it turn out?  Dahn-dahn-dahn, daaaaahn. 

   Dear friends, know this: in Jesus, you have already been judged, and the verdict for you right now is not guilty, and beloved.  You are vindicated, in Jesus, because He has passed through the judgment of God against sinners.  This He did, for you, and for the whole world. 

    God in Christ has vindicated you.  And so you are free to live, to rejoice, to dare to love and serve.  And we are free to share the Good News, that in Christ, by faith in and union with Him, the coming Judgment Day is not frightening, but rather it is our entrance into perfect joy, forever and ever, Amen. 

Heavenly Bread for Our Earthly Journey, Sermon for the Fourth Sunday in Lent, Laetare Sunday

Heavenly Bread for Our Earthly Journey - Fourth Sunday in Lent, March 15^th, A+D 2026
Our Savior’s and Our Redeemer Lutheran Churches - Hill City and Custer, SD
John 6:1-15

Audio of the sermon is available HERE.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

   The folks on the mountainside were hungry and weak, and a long way from any place they could find bread.  Traveling further without eating would be to risk collapsing on the way.

   Do you suppose Jesus didn’t foresee this problem?  Why did He allow them to follow Him so far afield?  Captivated by his Word and the healings He was working on the sick, they stayed with Him till they were tired and hungry, and far from the necessities of life.  Why did Jesus let this happen? 

   Jesus led them into the wilderness on purpose.  The hunger and the potential suffering, pain and fear did not originate from Him.  But Jesus uses these struggles, for the ultimate benefit of the people, a harsh experience, yes, but still in keeping with God’s divine mercy. Our Lord knows we are all ultimately helpless.  So, He led the crowd into a bad situation, so that, right there, in their desperation, He could provide for them.  Jesus taught them that there is only one place to find true and lasting sustenance.  He showed them that He is the hope for the hopeless.

   We sinners learn faith through suffering.  Still, as John tells us at the end of our Gospel reading, many of those folks on the mountain could only think of satisfying their physical hunger.  Their bellies miraculously filled, they wanted Jesus to be their King of Bread.  And so, Jesus withdrew to the mountain alone.  Being a Bread King was not His mission.

   Today, here on our mountainside, our stomachs still rumble.  The pull of our flesh is still strong.  Our worries, our depression, our sorrows and distractions are often intense.  Do you hurt more in your physical body, or in your spirit?  We ache, and like the Israelites in the wilderness, we still murmur against God.

   It is ironic.  For all of us here, I think, and for most people in our nation, there is more than enough bread, all kinds of delicious food, really.  Our knowledge of the world and the technology we enjoy combine to make our lives pretty amazingly comfortable. 

   And, unlike most generations throughout salvation history, we have the Word of God readily accessible; all the Scripture’s wisdom and promise is at our fingertips.  And yet, we are often unsatisfied, unsure, uneasy.    

   The fire that blew up on the southeast side of Custer last Thursday was frightening.  The shock of it was heightened by the fact that we do not regularly face many dangers.  Certainly, unlike most humans throughout history, we do not face frequent danger.  And when dangers come, we have amazing machines and experienced guardians who help keep us safe. 

   We truly have it good, in many ways.  But do we have peace? 

   I pray that you do.  But I also know from our conversations that peace often escapes many of you, just as it escapes me.  Peace, and even joy, these are God’s goals for us.  So, I am glad we are together here today, that God’s peace might find us.  For we need it.     

   We have doubts about the Word of God.  If we spend any time glued to our screens, irreverent questions about the veracity and reliability of the Bible assault us, and seek to worm their way into our minds.  Doubts about God’s goodness or even His reality can plague our hearts.  Now and again, such questions arise from our hearts, and sometimes slip out of our mouths: 

Even if this is all true, Jesus, what do I care?  What good does it do me if You performed miracles and taught great things 2,000 years ago?  You also promised a wonderful future for us.  Where are You now?  Where have those magnificent spiritual experiences gone, when You led your followers to the summit of the emotional mountain, by filling 15,000 bellies from 5 loaves and two fish?”

When will You multiple the loaves I care about?  I'm not literally hungry, but I have wants.  I cry and pray to heaven, asking you to remove my suffering, to heal my family, to fix my finances or take away my physical pain.  But the sun rises and sets, and the clouds pass by, raining or not, never noticing me.  The night comes, again, and I do not see the miracles for which I pray.

   Is the feeding of the five thousand men and their families relevant for our lives, today?  How can we continue to pray for relief, when this has been our unceasing prayer, and for so long it has gone unanswered?  How often, when facing great need, have we sympathized with Philip, saying, "Thirty-two thousand dollars worth of bread would not be enough.”  That is to say, "There is no hope."  

   Looking at the needs that surround us, and then looking at our resources, how often have we echoed Andrew’s hopeless sentence:  "Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?"  That is, "It just seems impossible, Lord."

Under a gentle sun, I believe everything the Word says about you, Jesus. But when the black curtains of disease, or want, depression, or frustration descend around me, separating me from my loved ones, or robbing me of my good things, then everything seems irrelevant to me.

Oh You, who conquered sin and death, can You not conquer my pain?  Can’t You take away my suffering?  You claim that nothing is impossible for You, so why haven’t you done what I ask? 

   Is it possible that we also would prefer a King of Bread, instead of a Savior?

   Dear friends, you, like me, are sometimes happy, even joyful.  And then sometimes we are sad and lonely, sometimes stubborn and complaining.  One day life is all sunshine and rainbows, the next, full of impossibilities, insurmountable obstacles, and long, dark nights.  Your pains and sorrows are not unknown or unimportant to God.  And He is greater than all of them.  For God, all things are possible.  He can conquer, and He does.  But He conquers all things in the way that we need, not necessarily in the way we think is best.  

   From the ashes the Phoenix rises to life, but that's just Egyptian and Greek mythology.  Superman died, then but rose again, stronger than ever.  But that is just DC Comics. 

   But please hear this: from a borrowed tomb our Lord Jesus Christ rose.  Dead on a Roman Cross on Friday afternoon, He revealed His total victory over pain, struggle and death when He walked out of the Tomb in the early morning of the first day of the week.  The Resurrection is not a myth.  It's true.  Do you have doubts?  Certainly, the world says Christians who believe in the Resurrection are blindly naïve.  Doubts may assail you, but God can handle them.  Go ahead, investigate the Resurrection.  God can handle it.  Examine the accusations of the critics, and then read the responses of centuries of wise Christian apologists. 

   Paul explicitly hinges all of Christian faith on the truth of the Resurrection, (1^st Corinthians 15).  From Genesis 3 through Revelation 22, the promise, fulfillment and proclamation of the Son of God crucified and resurrected to save sinners is the central theme of the Bible.  

   Reasonable, serious study of history and archeology supports the truth that something entirely unique happened with a Jewish tradesman from Nazareth name Jesus.  His miracle has left us with many clues, and it's a joy to study them.  Because the Resurrection is true.  If you want, I'll happily join you in such an investigation, because each time I dig, my faith and confidence are boosted. 

   From the Cross and the Resurrection we learn the Essential Truth: that, from the most insignificant circumstances, using unimpressive things, from weakness and humility, even from death, God gives the best gifts.

   And so when you say, "What should I do?  I'm sad.  I'm lonely.  I'm depressed.  I'm frustrated.  I'm scared.  There's nowhere to turn," the Lord responds to you:  “O.k., come here, sit down. If you want, lie down."  That is what He said on the mountainside, before the miraculous feeding.  He commanded the people to sit down, even to recline, to rest in the abundant grass.  Be still, and know that I am God, and I will feed you unto life.  So also today, Jesus says to you, "Sit down, rest."

   Sit and listen.  Sit and wait.  You will be provided for in His way, in His time.  How could He not provide for you?  After all, He became a human being to save you, for eternity, and also in the here and now.  Our experience of salvation in this fallen world is incomplete, not yet perfect.  But it is true, and real. 

   Jesus looked up at the five thousand men, plus women and children, who had come to hear Him, and He had compassion on them.  At His word, they sat down, and He took care of them.  He saw that assembly of doubting followers through merciful eyes. 

   Through the centuries, God has watched over all His beloved children of all times with these same merciful eyes.  He sees your joys today, and He smiles with you.  Jesus also sees your sadness, and sighs with you.  He hears you cry, "Lord, I am in pain," and He answers, "I know.  And I know how that is.  I was hurt too, hurt so bad I died.  But my Father did not leave me in the grave.  He freed me from the depths of hell, and so I will free you as well.  I know your struggle is real, but trust Me: My death is sufficient for you.  My blood covers all your sins.  The price for your rescue has been agreed upon, paid in full, and accepted for eternity."

   In your good moments and in your bad days, Jesus speaks to you: “Wait.  I love you.  I am here for you, where I have promised to be.”  The Christ of God reminds you: “In the darkest days, I am your comfort, peace, and hope.  In Me, you will find more than enough strength for the journey.” 

   “But only in Me.  Do not be fooled.  I AM the only Name under heaven by which men are saved.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.  There is no true comfort, no healing, no peace anywhere else.  When the sun shines upon you, when blessings fill your day, do not forget, these also come from My Father.  Still, do not trust in these blessings; instead always trust in Me.”   

   And so this is why Jesus sometimes allows troubles into your life.  This is why He says to you: “Stop grumbling.  Stop trying to go your own way.       Repent.      Turn around, and sit down.  See that I am here to serve you.  Listen to my words of life, of love, and of forgiveness.  Come, kneel before me, and I will feed you with bread that satisfies your soul.  And know this: At just the right time, I will come back for you.”

   Jesus Christ hears you.  He answers your prayers.  His answer won't always satisfy your fleshly desires, but He knows what is best.  Often enough, His actions don't make sense to us.  But we can trust that He gives abundantly, wisely, according to what is truly good, always keeping in mind what we can bear.

    Remember how Jesus fed the five thousand with more than enough; He gave so much that each person ate until they were full, and there were still twelve overflowing baskets left.  Where God distributes His gifts, human vessels are filled to overflowing.  We cannot contain it all.  God's grace is greater than our need.

   The victory you need over sin, death, and hell is complete.  It has been won on the Cross and announced in the Resurrection.  Soon, we will pass through this veil of tears and enter our heavenly home.  For now, there is only one way to fight, one way to move forward, one path that will take us through this desert.  This path leads though the heavenly Manna He so generously bestows.  Those walking this path are washed clean by His Baptism, and His Word echoes in their ears and hearts.  You are placed on this path and kept on this path, by the Holy Spirit, working through His Word and His Sacraments.  By God’s Grace and Providence, these gifts are available to you, today, and every day.

   He has given you the Bible, the Apostles’ teaching, recorded and preserved, for you.  Pick it up, every day.  Read it.  Listen to it.  Pray it,  There is overflowing comfort and wisdom for you, in the Word of God, which reveals your Savior to you, and also draws you into the fellowship and the prayers, the enactment of love, intercession and praise that is the hub of Christian life, our regular corporate worship, gathering together, to receive Christ’s gifts, and to rejoice together.

   He has also given you the Breaking of the Bread, that is, the Lord’s Supper, in which Christ serves us His Body and Blood.  The Supper will strengthen and sustain your body and soul for the living of this life, even they prepare you for the next.  In and through His Holy Supper, Christ forgives your sins, cleanses your soul, and brings you into perfect communion with His Father.

   But wait, there’s more.  The end goal of the Apostles’ teaching is to deliver forgiveness, and this is especially proclaimed over you in the Absolution, the declaration of your innocence.  Jesus Himself is your Advocate, your defense attorney, proclaiming you to be innocent before His Father, innocent because of His own wounds.  In Absolution, Christ Himself speaks, through the mouths of His servants, delivering the blessed result that you become pure and holy, as the Christ is pure and holy.

   Please remember, for now, these gifts won't take away all your pain or suffering.  They won't even cure all your doubts, although they will help you overcome them.  What Christ’s gifts will do for sure is give you the strength to carry on, to believe in the midst of your troubles.  They will protect you from giving up along the way.

   In the end, the Gifts of Christ, the Apostles’ teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread and the prayers, will carry you to your destination, where the cross will be exchanged for a crown, the place where there are no tears, no remorse, no shame, no fear, no guilt, no loneliness, no depression, no want.

   The Christian life isn't easy, but it is good.  It is the best life, because it is real, and true, and it is the only life that lasts forever. The Christian life is centered on His Word, which defeats Satan, drives out the impurities from your heart, and cleanses your lips.  And so, by the gifts of Christ, you begin to enjoy the peace that only God can give, today through faith, and soon, in glory.

   So come and let your soul delight in the Lord's abundance and mercy.  Let Him fill the empty spaces within you.  Stop, sit, listen, and receive.  And you will live, for Christ will share His indestructible life with you!  Our cup overflows.  God is good.  Amen.

 

(This sermon draws on one by Pastor David Peterson, Redeemer Lutheran Church, Fort Wayne, Indiana.  Many blessings be upon him.)

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Avoiding the Nets by Staying Close to the Stronger Man - Sermon for Oculi, the 3rd Sunday in Lent

Avoiding the Nets by Staying Close to the Stronger Man
Sermon for Oculi, the 3^rd Sunday in Lent
Our Savior’s and Our Redeemer Lutheran Churches
Hill City and Custer, SD
March 8^th, Year of Our + Lord 2026

Based on Jeremiah 26:1-15, Ephesians 51-9 and Luke 11:14-28.

There is no manuscript to share this week. 

You can access the audio of the sermon HERE.

If this is a blessing to you, consider passing it along to someone you think might also benefit!  

 God bless your week, pw

Second Sunday in Lent - Reminiscere
March 1 A + D 2026
Our Redeemer and Our Savior's Lutheran Churches
Custer and Hill City, South dakota
The Catechumen - Matthew 15:21-28

Audio of the sermon is available HERE.   

    Who catechized this Canaanite woman? We must find out. 

     The catechist catechizes the catechumens according to the content of the Catechism.    

   In my time here in South Dakota, I’ve catechized far more adults than youth, and I don’t usually inflict my worst puns and word play jokes on the adults.  So I haven’t been able to enjoy this wonderful sentence very often: The catechist catechizes the catachumens according to the content of the Catechism. 

     A catechist is one who teaches the Catechism, which is a summary introduction to the basics of the Christian faith, the faith that is recorded for Christ’s Church in the Holy Bible.  Christian catechesis is to teach souls, sometimes called catechumens, what Christ has given us, the truth about God, and man, and Himself, our Savior.  Catechesis carries a sense of echo, of teaching orally and learning by repitition, which can be heard in the Greek root: katacheo, literally, ‘according to the echo,’ the back and forth speaking of God’s truth.  Luke uses the verb ‘to catechize’ in the opening of his Gospel, referring to the teaching of the Word that Theophilus had received. 

     Catechesis is the heart of evangelism, for it is to apply the Gospel, the Good News of Christ’s salvation, to a soul, through the ears, into the heart and mind, so that the Holy Spirit can create, maintain and strengthen true faith.  Taking advantage of an opportunity to start a Gospel conversation with an unbeliever and invite them to enter into the worship and teaching of the Church is wonderful, and is a necessary first step in evangelization.  But, while the Holy Spirit can do His conversion work as fast as He wants, for faith to take root and grow usually takes some time, and a lot of teaching and re-teaching.  Typically it takes a lot of catechesis to turn a person into a strong and wise believer.  Consider this: the disciples traveled and lived with Jesus and heard His catechesis for three years, and still they only came to faith when they saw the resurrected Christ. 

     Catechesis is the heart of evangelism.  And, because the Devil, the world and our own sinful flesh all fight against faith throughout our earthly lives, catechesis, evangelization, is still needed after conversion.  We sinner-saints need Jesus to continue teaching us throughout our lives, until He finally drags us across the finish line of life in saving faith.       

     And so, I’d love to know who catechized the Canaanite mother in our Gospel this morning.  What methods were used to bring her to such great faith?  It would be very good for us as Church to know, because her level of understanding, wisdom and confidence about the Word of God and the teaching of the Christ is wonderful.  We would do well to copy the methods used with her.  Consider her testimony. 

     Lord, help me!  This is how this woman prays, even though Jesus had already ignored and rejected her previous requests.  She demonstrates the attitude that Luther encourages us to have in his explanation of the Introduction of the Lord’s Prayer: Our Father, who art in heaven: What does this mean?  With these words, God, tenderly invites us to believe that He is our true Father, and that we are His true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask Him as dear children ask their dear Father.   

     Only firm confidence in the goodness of the heavenly Father could persist against all the opposition this woman encountered.  Remember, she is a foreigner, a dirty Canaanite, a woman who should not even approach a faithful Jew.  She is a member of an enemy nation of Israel.  Still, she knows that God the Father, Jesus’ Father, is also her Father.  So she persists in prayer.

     Her trust, her love and her obedience to the commandments move her to persist.  She understands the summary of the Law of Moses, confessed by Jesus himself: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. ³⁸ This is the great and the first commandment.  ³⁹ And the second is similar to this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. ⁴⁰ On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40)       

     This woman loves God, and neighbor, and so will not perceive the silence and exclusion, nor the seeming insult of Jesus, as if they were words with any power against her.  She persists because she knows, she trusts with a miraculous faith that the Father has sent Jesus to be her Savior, that Jesus is proof that God loves her.  By this love, the Canaanite woman then loves her neighbors, especially her first and dearest neighbor, her own daughter.  For the love of her tormented daughter, this woman will not stop seeking Jesus' help.

     Considering the Commandments, it is enough today to review only the Second:  You shall not misuse the Name of the Lord your God.  What does this mean?  We should fear and love God so that we do not curse, swear, use satanic arts, lie or deceive by His Name, but call upon it in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks. 

     Taught by the Holy Spirit, the Canaanite understands, better than the twelve disciples, that Jesus is the Lord (1 Corinthians 12:3).   Since she believes that the man Jesus is the Lord, God in human flesh, she does not hesitate to cry out to Jesus, to invoke his Holy Name: Lord, Son of David, help my daughter.  Not only back at home, in the privacy of her room, but out in public, before a group of thirteen Jewish men, and who knows how big a crowd, she loudly prays to Jesus.  Not just once, but three times.  She does not allow Jesus' apparent rejections to discourage her.   Oh, that the Name of the Lord would be sanctified among us in the same way!

     It is unlikely that this woman could have heard the singing of Simeon, 30 years ealier, as he held the infant Jesus in the Jerusalem Temple.  She lives far to the north, in the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And even if she had been in Jerusalem, Canaanites could not enter the Temple.  She had to have learned about Jesus some other way.  But she believed what Simeon proclaimed, a promise that Jesus’ own disciples don’t seem to be familiar with.  Simeon prophesied that this Jesus was going to be not only the glory of God’s people Israel, but also that He was the salvation of the Lord, which he has prepared in the sight of every people, the light of revelation for the Gentiles.  Jesus is the Savior of Israel, and He is also the Savior of the Gentiles, of all the other nations.  (Luke 2:30-32) 

   But the disciples don’t want her around, they want to keep Jesus for themselves.  And, based on His harsh responses to her requests, it also seems that Jesus does not care about the salvation of the Gentiles.  His answers seem to indicate that Jesus shares the typical Jewish prejudice against foreigners.

    First, He doesn't say a word to her.  The second time she cries out, Jesus says: “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”  Then the woman comes right up to the Lord and kneels down before Him, begging: “Lord, help me.”  And to this desperate mother the Lord says: “It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.” 

   To ignore, exclude and call the Gentiles "dogs," all of these reactions to this mother’s prayers fit perfectly with the typical attitude of a proud first century Jew, negative toward all foreigners.  Even still, the woman is not discouraged.  She knows that the promises to Abraham were not only for his descendants by blood.  As St. Paul would write 10 or 20 years later, she knows it is not the children of the flesh, but rather those who share Abraham's faith, who are the true children of God. (Galatians 3 and Romans 9)

   And so the Canaanite mother does not hear Jesus' insult as a ‘no.’  Rather, she believes it guarantees that she will receive a "yes."  She already trusts another promise that would be written by Paul in his 2^nd letter to the Corinthians: For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, … was not Yes and No, but in Him it is always Yes.  (2 Corinthians 1:19-20)     

   The Lord had promised, so she persists until she reaches her Yes.  And she knows that she has reached her Yes, she knows that she has captured her Jesus, when the words that seem so cruel to us left His mouth.  Listen again: Kneeling before Him, she prays: Lord, help me!  And He answered, “It is not right to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.”  

   You and I hear this as an insult and may doubt the Lord’s goodness.  The Canaanite mother hears the truth, and rejoices.  Because, anticipating the first letter of St. John, she knows that if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. But, if we confess our sins, (God) is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1: 8-9)   She confesses that she is a dog, but she is a dog of faith.  She believes Jesus, God-made-man, will cleanse her daughter from the demon that had possessed her.       

   It is as if she had consulted with Luther, and understood his explanation to the Fifth Petition of the Lord's Prayer: And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.   What does this mean?  We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them.  We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. 

   Full of joy, the woman confesses that yes, she is a dog, a sinner who deserves nothing from Jesus, which means she is just like every other person in the world.  But her sin does not cut her off from the Son of David, as long as she confesses it.  She knows that she has Jesus trapped in His own Word of promise, so, she quietly replies: ²⁷ “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” 

   Oh, what delight, what pleasure Jesus now expresses, as His faithful daughter reaches this great confession: O woman, great is your faith; Be it done for you as you desire. And her daughter was healed instantly.  What joy in the house, when the daughter was set free.  What a surprise for the disciples, as Jesus praises the Canaanite and grants her petition. 

   This surprise would serve them well in a few years, when, after some resistance and confusion, the Apostles begin the mission to the Gentiles, their outreach to all the children of Abraham, to all those from every nation who will truly become children of Israel, by faith in Jesus Christ.   

   And what about us? What does this Canaanite woman of great faith teach us?  I hope we do not imagine that we are better than the disciples, or the Jews, that we could never be so tribal, so xenophobic, so prejudiced against outsiders.  Human nature has not changed.  We are still able to lock ourselves inside our approved group, and try never to deal with people who are different from us.

   The Church, and especially her catechists, must always maintain the truth of all God’s Word, including His Law which establishes traditional Biblical values.  At the same time we must remember that in Christ there is no Jew or Greek or barbarian, there are no foreigners and natives.  Rather, by faith in Jesus we are all made one Body, one People.  Especially today, when the Church is rejected publicly more and more, we must remember that Christ came to save the whole world, and that we are the worst sinners, just like everyone else.  We can stand before God only because of the work of Christ.  And the work of Christ is for everyone. 

   May we also learn to pray without ceasing; and give thanks in everything, even when it seems that God ignores or rejects us.  This is God's will for us, that we exercise our faith like the Canaanite mother.  For all His baptized believers, God's answer is always ‘Yes’, even when we don't understand it. 

     Also, we do not always get to know how or when God will help us.  As St. Peter teaches, beloved, do not overlook this one fact, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (2^nd Peter 3: 8-10)        

     Finally, I pray we come to better understand how great, how broad, how high and deep is Jesus' blessing for us. We do not need to have everything in this life, because we know this life is a shabby preview of the glorious eternal life that Jesus has earned for us. The bad things of this life do not count, when compared with the good things of the Kingdom of Heaven.  And the truly good things of this life do not need to have a luxurious or impressive appearance.  Sufficient are the crumbs of the Lord.  And the crumbs we receive are even better than those the Canaanite woman received that day, so long ago.  For she could only look forward to the table that we are blessed to approach this morning, the altar of the New Testament, our preview and foretaste of the coming heavenly banquet, where today we receive the finished fruit of the Cross and the Resurrection.

   As Luther asks: What is the benefit of this eating and drinking?  His answer?  These words “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins,” show us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation are given to us through these words.  For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.

   All of this, and Christ himself, present to bless us, in His Word, and under the bread and wine. Truly, just a few crumbs from the table of our Master will be enough, in the Name of the Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.