A generation or two before Jesus was born, two schools of thought had developed within the Pharisees: the School of Hillel and the School of Shammai. Rabbi Hillel grappled to get to the spirit of the Law. Rabbi Shammai was a grouch and just wanted to get the crux of something and told it like […]
Luke 14:1-6: Jesus is Our Sabbath Rest
September 27, 2015 by
With laser-like precision, they honed in on His every word. They did this, not because they wanted to learn from the Lord of lords in the flesh, but to trap Him in His words. They wanted to pounce on Jesus and show that He was a fraud. So, those Pharisees conspired and schemed, looking for […]
1 Kings 17: Pointing to Jesus
September 21, 2015 by
Jesus says that all, not some, but all the Scriptures testify of Him (John 5:39). And so when we ponder our Old-Testament reading for today, we should ask, “How does Elijah, the widow, and her son point me to Jesus?” But before we go there, let’s review last week’s Old-Testament reading. For today’s Old-Testament reading […]
Matthew 6:24-34: You Can’t Serve God and Money
September 15, 2015 by
When Jesus says, “You can’t serve God and money,” He’s not accusing you of devoting your life to amassing wealth. For if you serve money, that means money is the most important part of your life. You’ll do whatever you need to do to get it, to get more of it. That describes almost no […]
1 Corinthians 15:51-57: Funeral Sermon for Ruby Kintzinger
September 10, 2015 by
Ruby Kintzinger was a long-time member of Shepherd of the Hills. She passed away on August 20, 2015 and her funeral was on August 24. This was her funeral sermon. Listen, I tell you a secret. We will not all die as Ruby has died. But all of us, those who have died and those who live, […]
2 Corinthians 3:4-11: The Letter Kills but the Spirit Gives Life
September 10, 2015 by
When someone reads the Bible, it’s easy for him to misidentify the person or people a text may reference. For example, in today’s epistle reading, we heard the word “we.” Did that “we” refer to the Corinthian congregation? Does that “we” refer to you? So, let’s take a moment to find out who that “we” […]
Luke 18:9-14 (Genesis 4:1-15): Coming to God on Whose Terms?
August 16, 2015 by
Why do people brag? It’s because they want recognition; they want others to notice them. After all, doesn’t it feel good when others sing your praises? Of course it does! But what if they won’t do that? What if the moment passes and no one notices how hard you’ve worked or how clever you are? […]
Luke 19:41-48: Jesus, the Incarnate Temple, Brings True Peace
August 10, 2015 by
Jeri was breathtakingly beautiful. All the men wanted to be with her, and all the women wanted to be her. But more than that, she was intelligent and industrious. She also had the best husband in the world, someone who was faithful, loyal, and caring, someone who sacrificed for her. Jeri’s husband made sure that […]
1 Corinthians 10:6-13: Take Heed, Lest You Fall
August 2, 2015 by
In our culture today, many may take offense at the confession of sins in a Lutheran service. But, that confession of sin, as distasteful as it may be, does teach us a valuable truth. It tells us that “if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.” And it even teaches us to confess […]
Matthew 7:15-23: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
July 27, 2015 by
“Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.” That’s what one of my seminary professors taught me. But there is a problem with that statement. It can be misleading. Oh, it is true in this way: In our fallen natures, we may not care how much someone knows until we […]
