Summer Worship Series, Sunday August 9, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 9, The Sun Scorches the Plants

Readings for Week 8:

First Lesson: Deuteronomy 8:1-9.  The Israelites who would enter the Promised Lan had gone through much testing and many difficult times, but through it all, God had positive lessons for them to learn.

Second Lesson:  Hebrews 12:1-13.  On the heels of the great “Hall of Faith: chapter of the Bible (Hebrews 11), this reading reminds us that all of God’s people face difficulties that God uses for our discipline and ultimate benefit.

Gospel and Sermon Text:  Mark 4:1-20.  The parable of the Sower and the Seed describes a variety of reactions people have to hearing the Gospel.  May God grant that we continue to hear his Word with joy and gratitude and bear much fruit!

Sermon:  The Sun Scorches the Plants.  Mark 4:1-20

Sometimes the message from God has the purpose of confronting people with his law…and sometimes this meets with rejection.  That message then condemns those who oppose God.  At other times, that Word fulfills the desire of God that people be saved, and it works or strengthens faith in him.

This message of Jesus’ was meant to build up those given the gift of faith and allows us to think about our need to be deeply rooted in God’s Word so that we do not allow trouble and persecution to scorch our faith.  And we all experience our share of trouble in this world that we Christians must go thru in order to receive eternal life.

It is a blessing to know that just as Jesus loved us enough to live and die for us, he also loves us enough to warn us.  He forgives us for our past failures in these things and he urges us to listen to his Word, because that will produce a faith strongly rooted in the words and promises of our Lord.

Pastor Ron Koehler

Summer Worship Series, Sunday August 2, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 8, The Sun Rises Over Good and Evil

Readings for Week 8:

First Lesson, Exodus 23:1-9.  When God made laws for the nation of Israel, he took special note of those who might otherwise be looked down on.  He instructed his people to show them a special measure of love.

Psalm of the Day, Psalm 72.  The Rule of the Righteous King.  Psalm 72 describes the glorious right of the messianic King, the Son of David.

Second Lesson, Romans 12:9-21.  The Apostle Paul reminds the Christians in Rome to love others and to repay the evil done to them with good done to others.

Gospel and Sermon, Matthew 5:38-48.  In this section from his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus corrects the mistaken notion of many that they are to love their friends and hate their enemies.

Sermon, Matthew 5:38-48.  The Sun Rises Over Good and Evil.

Jesus reminds us that it is God who causes the sun to rise day after day and to shine on the earth.  The sun rises for everyone; people all over the world benefit from its light and heat and energy. 

God does not divide up this world into those who are his enemies and should be left in darkness or drought and on the other than those who are his friends who enjoy the sunlight and the needed rain. 

We can make it our attitude that we weight our words and our actions not according to how we feel or what we think, but against God’s standards.  We can look at our enemies and pray for them and love them.

God makes the sun rise on the evil and the good and he invites his children to imitate that sort of love.

May every sunrise remind us to live humbly out of love for others, and to love even our enemies in the name of him who loves and forgives us.

Amen

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

Summer Worship Series, July 26, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 7, The Sun Beats Down on Jonah

Readings for this week:

First Lesson and Sermon:  Jonah 4:5-11.  When God first sent Jonah to preach to the city of Nineveh, Jonah fled.  God redirected Jonah back to the city, where he preached and the people repented.  This account records Jonah’s reaction to their repentance.

Second Lesson:  Romans 10:8-15.  God wants people to be saved through faith in his Son, Jesus Christ.  Because of this, he sends people out with his word to share it with others.

Gospel:  Luke 10:1-16.  Jesus appointed and sent out 72 followers to share his message.  We continue to pray that God would send workers into his “harvest field.”

Sermon:  The Sun Beats Down on Jonah (Jonah 4:5-11)

The story of Jonah is not about Jonah or a fish or the Ninevites.  Here, at the end of Jonah, Chapter 4, the last chapter, it becomes clear that this is all about God and his mercy for repentant sinners like the Ninevites, and like Jonah and you and me.

What a truly wondrous and gracious God we have who spares sinners from the judgment they—we—so richly deserve. 

May we be reminded of that as we think about how God wanted to reach the Ninevites.  And may the Holy Spirit work in us to see out people around us who need to know about the forgiving and gracious God!

Amen.

Pastor Ron Koehler

Summer Worship Series, July 19, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 6, The Shadow of the Sun Moves Back

Readings for Sunday, July 19, 2020

First Lesson and Sermon:  Isaiah 38:1-20.  Hezekiah was a righteous King in Judah.  When he prayed that God would heal him, God gave him what he requested and even gave him a special sign for reassurance.

Psalm 27:  A psalm of David.  An exuberant declaration of faith and trust in God.

Second Lesson:  James 5:13-18.  It ought to be the attitude of all Christian to pray to God in times of sickness and suffering.  We have God’s promise to hear and answer our prayers. 

Gospel:  Luke  18: 1-8.  Because of God’s power and love for us, we can pray boldly and not give up.

Sermon:  The Shadow of the Sun Moves Back.  Isaiah 38:1-20

Each day, the sun rises moves across the sky and sets in the west.  It was quite unusual when the shadow of the sun reversed course and moved back ten steps during the reign of Hezekiah, a faithful king in Judah, as a sign from God that he’d heard his prayers.  Hezekiah  had become sick and was dying. Hezekiah knew the Lord, so he turned to him in prayer, and God heard.

This lesson is most definitely a lesson about prayer but it doesn’t mean that we should pray that God would allow us to live longer and then we will live longer. Instead, it reinforces what God teaches us throughout Scripture: that he hears us when we pray.

Jesus himself instructs us to pray and not lose heart.   We don’t always know whether our prayers will be answered the way that we want them to be answered, but we can be absolutely certain that God has the wisdom to do what is best for us.

So let us pray.  Let us go to God frequently, regularly, repeatedly with our cares and concerns. 

Let’s pray for ourselves and for others.

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

Summer Worship Series, July 12, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 5, Life Under The Sun

Readings for Sunday, July 12, 2020

First Lesson and Sermon:  Ecclesiastes 1:1-14.  In this book, King Solomon describes how many things “under the sun” are meaningless.  He then explains that through fait in God our lives have meaning.

Second Lesson:  Philippians 3:7-11.  Faith in Christ allows us to know and to believe that anything else in our lives would be meaningless without him.

Gospel:  Matthew 6:25-34.  Since earthly things are far less important than spiritual matters (the kingdom of God), we do not need to worry.  We can trust that God will provide what we need.

Sermon:  Life Under The Sun. 

1)       It is all chasing the wind

People of all times and all places have wondered what the meaning of life is:  Who am I? Where do I come from? Why am I here?

Believers have an advantage the unbelieving world does not and that is God’s Word, a source that will answer whatever questions we may have when it comes to figuring out what truly matters in life. 

There’s a sobering truth that no matter what we do or don’t, we cannot prevent ALL future pandemics, economic downturns, or the painful ways our sinful nature shows itself.

Sin is and will always be a part of this world until the Last Day.

2)      God alone gives meaning.

Once we lift our gaze to the one who is over the sun (God) everything changes for the better. 

As God had promised, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One, lived, died, and rose so that righteousness and forgiveness could be given to all with faith.  That is a historical fact with eternal results that can never be undone or called into question.

We have a home waiting for us over the sun where sin hasn’t and will never leave its ugly mark.

“This is the conclusion of the matter.  Everything has been heard.  Fear God and keep his commandments.  For mankind, this is everything. (verse 12)

Prayer: May our Lord help us focus on him and always value the righteousness he gives so that we know what truly matters in this life under the sun.  Amen.

Pastor Tim Patoka

Summer Worship Series, July 5, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 4, The Sun Stands Still

Readings:

First Lesson and Sermon Text:  Joshua 10:8-15. The Israelites, led by Joshua, had made a treaty with the People of Gibeon. When Gibeon was attacked by the Amorite kings, they called to Israel for help. These verses share how the battle unfolded and how God fought for his people in a special way.

Psalm 31: In you, O LORD, I have taken refuge

Second Lesson:  Ephesians 6:10-17..  Not only does God fight for his people, he also fights with them and equips them for their battles against evil.

Gospel:  John 16:22-33.  We rejoice and take comfort not in our own ability to overcome the sinful world, but in the victory won for us by Jesus. He has overcome the world in which we still struggle.

Sermon: The Sun Stands Still: Joshua 10:8-15.

We pause to consider how God fights for his people today. “His people” no longer means a specific nation in the world, but they are called out of nations throughout the world: they are the full number of those who believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior from sin.

Our battle is a spiritual battle. Currently in the world it is a battle whether we will trust in people and expect that the only way we win this battle by trust in in God’s promises that he will use all things to accomplish his good purposes.

This spiritual battles requires us to look past the limitations of this world and into an eternal life that God has promised to us.

God fights for us because without him we don’t stand a chance. Jesus, on the cross, defeated Satan and death and hell. He said, “It is finished,” because the battle was won. But the skirmishes continue!

We need to daily repent of our sins and weaknesses, our failures, and to humbly look to God for forgiveness and strength.

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

Summer Worship Series, June 28, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 3, The Sun Is Worshipped

Readings:

First Lesson and Sermon Text:  Deuteronomy 17:1-7.  The First Commandment enjoins God's people to worship and serve him only.  For the Old Testament Israelites, bowing down to other gods, including the sun, was punishable by death.

Second Lesson:  Romans 1:18-25.  Worshipping anyone or anything beside the true God amounts to worshipping what has been created over the one who created it all.

Gospel:  Matthew 6:16-24.  We have been called to faith in God who is himself unseen and who sees what people do not.  We cannot serve anything else, like mammon (an Aramaic word for wealth and property) and still serve God.

Sermon: The Sun is Worshiped.  Deuteronomy 17:1-7.

God has given us a great blessing in having a sun that offers us light and warmth, but we should not focus on only what we can see. 

God is not only the Creator of all, He is also our Savior.  Heaven is our home and our lives on earth have meaning and purpose because we know what He has done for us.

He wants us to fear, love and trust in Him above all things because He loves us.  He wants us to live with Him under His loving care, for eternity.

God invites us to love, trust, and worship Him.

So let us bow before Him, worship Him, and thank Him for all He has created for us. 

We will look forward to the day He will no longer be invisible to us and we will be with Him forever.

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

Summer Worship Series, June 21, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 2, The Sun Bows Down

Readings:

Psalm 16

First Lesson and Sermon Text: Genesis 37:3-11, Joseph was one of twelve sons born to his father Jacob. This account details how his brothers envied Joseph and some unique dreams that God allowed Joseph to dream.

Second Lesson: Romans 8:28-39, It is God’s promise that he will use all things to accomplish good in the lives of those he has called to follow him. Therefore nothing can separate us from his love. Nothing.

Gospel: John 9:1-11, This Gospel account shows us another example of God using something evil (a result of sin in the world) to accomplish his good purpose, bringing glory to his name.

God cannot be blamed for all the bad things that happen to us and others in this world. But he does work through them for our ultimate good, for his dear children. We remain assured that God will make good out of the evils of our day for us.

Pastor Tim Patoka

Summer Worship Series, June 14, 2020

Under the Sun Series, Week 1

We live under the sun and we study it, but we often miss the mark with our theories about it, especially if we deny that God, in his divine wisdom, created it.

Besides God’s wisdom, Genesis also gives us a glimpse into the divine power of the Creator.

Fortunately for us, Genesis gives us a glimpse into the divine love of the Creator.

Whatever our sins are, including those we must consider regarding God’s creation and his Word which tells us about it, they are forgiven by Jesus.

We are freed from them and freed to live in harmony with God as we live out or day under the sun. And we look forward to the blessed day that brings us to heaven and the glorious light of our Lord for all eternity.

Pastor Ron Koehler

First Sunday After Pentecost, June 7, 2020

Holy Trinity Sunday

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:16-20

Readings:

First Lesson: Genesis 1:1-2:3

Gospel Lesson: 2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Sermon: Matthew 28:16-20

Our Triune God is beyond our understanding, but we understand this: he is holy. That means that he is perfect and demands perfection. It means that he has every right to expect perfection and obedience.

Jesus Christ the Son of God came into the world as a human being and reconciled God with us in the world.

In love, God sends out his Holy Spirit. He works through Word and Sacrament to call people out of darkness and unbelief to trust in him for life and salvation.

And that is why we gather around his Word. That is why we come as sinners to hear about a God beyond our understanding whose love for us is likewise beyond our understanding.

That is why we rejoice to have been baptized in his name and why we worship and live in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

The Day of Pentecost, May 31, 2020

The Coming of the Holy Spirit

Readings:

First Lesson: Joel 2:28-29

Gospel Lesson: John 1:6:5-11

Sermon: Luke 24:44-53

A Perfect Pentecost:

The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit works through the Word of God that is proclaimed, that He cuts people to the heart with news of their sin, and then He heals their hearts by telling them about forgiveness found in Jesus who paid for their sins. 

He’s the one who prompts faith in a person, perfects their prayers and their imperfect lives so all of that becomes a sweet smelling to the Lord.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful people, and kindle in them the fire of your love.. Amen

Pastor Ron Koehler

The Ascension of Our Lord, May 24, 2020

You will be my witnesses

Readings:

First Lesson: Acts 1:1-11

Second Lesson: Ephesians 1:16-23

Gospel and Sermon: Luke 24:44-53

A Victory to share with all people:

Jesus won the foretold victory. He did what he came to do and he shares his victorious blessing with you.

He still uses his powers to help us in uncertain times like these as no matter what happens, we have the victory Jesus won for us.

Pastor Tim Patoka

Sixth Sunday of Easter, May 17, 2020

The one who loves Me will be loved by My Father’ ; I, too, will love him and show Myself to him.

Readings:

First Lesson: Genesis 4:1-16

Second Lesson: 1 John 3:13-18

Gospel: John 14:15-21

Sermon: John 14:1-12

Hold on to Christ’s commands:

• Through the Spirit he gives

• Because he lives

It sounds simple: Love God; love others. Serve God, serve others. This is easier said than done, but nothing is easier said than done for Jesus. He made amazing promises that sound impossible, promises to send the Holy Spirit and to live beyond death and the grave.

He did it. He died for you and he rose again and now he invites us to do what without him would be impossible. Hold on to his commands. Tell others the great and wonderful works of Jesus our living Lord!

Pastor Nate Kassulke

Fifth Sunday of Easter, May 10, 2020

I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life

Readings:

First Lesson: 1 Kings 18:16-45

Second Lesson: 1 Peter 2:4-10

Psalm 33

Sermon: John 14:1-12

To not know what is the right way, is a really tough thing.  The Disciples asked Jesus, “…how can we know the way?”

Don’t we all struggle with the same questions the Disciples had in the upper room as Jesus was preparing to give his life for a sinful world? 

Don’t we still have questions like the Disciples had about the Jesus?  He said, “..I am in the Father and the Father is in me? “ 

Even if we believe, we may still have questions about our eternal life.  Answers of uncertainty come from questions about how the victory for eternal life comes to us. 

We have a Savior who tells us we are on the path to victory right now thru the one who is the way, the truth, and the life, because he paid for all our sins himself and has prepared a place for us in heaven.  His victory is our victory.

Jesus intends to bring comfort to us with that message he shared with the Disciples. 

You are the way, the truth, the life;

Grant us that way to know,

That truth to keep, that life to win

Whose joys eternal flow

Christian Worship Hymnal #356, verse 4

Pastor Ron Koehler

Fourth Sunday of Easter, May 3, 2020

I am the door for the sheep

Readings:

First Lesson: 1 Samuel 17:34-37

Second Lesson: Hebrews 13:20-21

Psalm 23

Sermon: John 10:1-10

It’s a big deal that Jesus is the door to life.  Let us be sheep of the Good Shepherd: the door to life.

The sheep pen door in Jesus time was where the shepherd remained when the sheep were inside the pen; he determined who came in and who went out; he slept the night in the doorway to prevent predators from coming in.  Jesus is our doorway to protect us from the devil, the world, and our sinful nature and we can remain with him and away from our bad choices.

If we have faith in him and in him alone. Even though we continue to do these bad things, we remain with our good shepherd

Let us make good choices: 

• Our 1st choice is to follow our Good Shepherd, listen to his voice, read his book, the Bible, so we know which voice to listen to. 

• Our 2nd choice is to flee away from those thieves and robbers, the strange voices that can steal kill and destroy our lives with Christ. 

• Our 3rd choice is to do the first and second choices regularly and flee from those strange perilous voices that lead us away from Him and to retain this life we have in Jesus’  promised peaceful pastures.

With the help of the good shepherd Jesus we can enter thru the door to life.

Pastor Tim Patoka

Third Sunday of Easter, April 26, 2020

“Were not our hearts burning within us while he was speaking to us along the road and while he was explaining the Scriptures to us?”

Readings:

First Lesson: Acts 24:10-21

Second Lesson: 1 Peter 1: 17-21

Sermon: Luke 24: 13-35

The same despair the two followers of Jesus on the way to Emmaus were feeling is the same despair we feel today. So much hope, so much promise, so many things going on, all dashed by a virus.

The things we enjoyed as a community, as a family, as a church have been restricted so much that we feel isolated, alone and helpless.

Jesus shared His victory with the two of His disciples. This victory is over despair. Sin and suffering might be the cause of our despair, but Jesus gives us the joy of salvation and everlasting life.

Don’t be foolish or slow to believe, but trust His word and believe that He has saved you, that He is alive and will live with Him forever.

Prayer:

Oh God, by the humiliation of your Son you lifted up this fallen world from the despair of death. By His resurrection to life, grant your faithful people gladness of heart and the hope of eternal joys; through your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen

Pastor Ryan Heiman

First Sunday of Easter, April 19, 2020

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Readings:

First Lesson: Acts 10:34a, 36, 39-43.

Second Lesson: 1 Peter 1:3-9

Sermon: John 20:19-31

Thomas was not there when Jesus appeared to the Disciples on Easter and said unless I see and touch I will not believe, so was nicknamed Doubting Thomas. He was honest, though, about his questions; Jesus waited, maybe to let him and the others think through why they believe before he reappeared to them, including Thomas. Jesus met all of Thomas’ conditions (to see and touch him) the next week in the way that Thomas needed to put aside his doubts and skepticism. Thomas’ left his conditions aside and fell at Jesus feet and said a great confession of faith, “my Lord and my God!”

Our faith can be honest like Thomas; you can have legitimate questions, yet along with those questions, your faith can be brought to see the Lord Jesus, to see that he still comes to you to stand with you during these challenges.

Prayer:

God of all grace, we thank you for the gist of eternal life in your Son. By the resurrection of Jesus from the dead and by the faithful testimony of the apostles, you have assured us that our faith stands on a sure and solid foundation.

Amen

Pastor Frank Rose

Easter Service, April 12, 2020

He is Victorious!

The sermon text this Easter Sunday might not be the sort of text you expect for this special holy day. John saw many great and amazing things in his vision. He saw a rider on a white horse that is clearly Jesus, “Faithful and True.”

Jesus comes to proclaim victory over the battle with the devil. He became one of us so that he could face those temptations and defeat them—-for us. He became one of us so that he could face death itself and defeat it.

The grave did not hold him. Jesus is alive.

Victory looks like an empty tomb that loudly proclaims: He is risen! He is risen indeed!

Alleluia!

Amen

Pastor Nathan Kassulke

Good Friday Tenebrae Service, April 10, 2020

The Son of God Goes Forth to War

Less than a week before, a large crowd had chanted specific names and words of praise reserved for God’s promised Savior, but now the warrior was hanging on a cross dying.

This was the final battle. The big one. He had come into this world and had worked every day of his life to prepare for this.

Your future, my future—the future of everyone who has ever lived—was hanging on the outcome of this battle.

The life of Jesus is the most significant single life in all of history and what happened on the cross at his death changed the entire world and everyone who has ever lived.

The battle was won. Jesus made it to the end and paid the price for your sin and mine—-and the overwhelming proof of his victory and ours will be seen in an empty garden tomb on Sunday. Amen

Pastor Ron Koehler

Maundy Thursday Service, April 9, 2020

The Son of God Goes Forth to War

Jesus’ resurrection can get worked into the ways you deal with even the hardest parts of life in this world:

it doesn’t mean you have to forget the really terrible betrayals others have done to you, but it does mean you don’t have to repay evil for evil.

In Jesus you can overcome evil with his goodness living in you.

Jesus offers himself to you as a friend, as a savior, as a guide, as a resurrected Lord to help you through those difficulties.

You are not alone.

Pastor Frank Rose