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Isaiah prophesied a lot of darkness and gloom, and he didn't mean winters in southeast Wisconsin. But the prophet also promises "a great light" that would come from God himself and changed your relationship with him and your outlook on the world.
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John the Baptist recognized Jesus as the greatest of all time because Jesus appeared as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world."
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Pastor Wayne Shevey serves as a campus pastor at Wisconsin Lutheran College in Milwaukee.
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According to Isaiah's prophecy seven centuries before Jesus' baptism, Jesus of Nazareth had a lot on his plate as he got out of the Jordan River to begin his public ministry. How would he handle it all? Isaiah makes clear: "He will not falter or be discouraged." Now, this sort of thing can be said of all who are baptized.
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We love Luke chapter 2 this time of year, but often only up until verse twenty. The eighth day of Jesus' life (January 1 on our calendars) encourages us to go at least one verse farther into Luke chapter 2 and see what is proclaimed to us sinners as the son of Mary is circumcised and officially given the name "Jesus".
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A person's stomach can sink when he hears, "Your father wants to speak to you." But when you hear that about God the Father in the context of Christmas, your stomach doesn't sink. Instead, your spirits soar! Scripture assures you that God the Father wants to speak to you in the person of his Son, Jesus, and about the work Jesus came to do for you.
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Saint Paul gives us the confidence that Jesus is not only God, but that he is still God with us, just as he was in the days of the apostles. Jesus is God with us as we live our daily lives and as we face death.
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During Advent, we celebrate especially Jesus' coming to us. But you can also come to Jesus with your questions of faith and about greatness in his kingdom.
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Normally, when a judge has entered your life, it means that something has gone wrong. But Isaiah's prophecy of a certain judge gives comfort to us Christians because this judge is promised to do the right thing for all Christians.
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Matthew doesn't record Jesus speaking a single word during his royal entrance into Jerusalem for Holy Week. Instead, we learn about who Jesus is and what he came to do from others. That has implications for the way we prepare for his coming at Christmas and from the clouds.
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Habakkuk was personally concerned about the unrighteousness he saw around him. So, when God promised him that there would be a day of justice for the arrogant and a day of salvation for the believer, he took that to heart. In the same way, we let God's promises about the Last Day have a personal impact on our faith life.
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Jesus predicts all sorts of signs that will lead into the end of the world. It's enough to frighten souls. So, Jesus makes sure to promise, "Stand firm, and you will win life."
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Sometimes, the grieving look for all sorts of messages from heaven. As Christians, we know where to find such a message and know what kind of comfort God gives us in it.
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As we celebrate Reformation Day, Saint Paul's words to the Galatians invite us to contemplate what the rest of our spiritual story will look like.
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Jesus intentionally saddens a rich ruler who seems like a good guy. Our Savior lovingly does this so that when it comes to eternal life, the rich ruler, the crowds, and we depend soley on God.
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In his love, Jesus made sure to "hook" us with the gospel. This is the same gospel he used to hook -- and then train -- the apostles.
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Professor Aaron Christie serves as our synod's seminary, Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary (WLS). After pastoring congregations in Antioch, IL, and Waukesha, WI, he accepted the call to teach homiletics (sermon writing and delivery) and to be the dean of the chapel at WLS.
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For over a year, Noah and his family lived in a boat full of animals. Once God told him to come out of the ark and to empty it, it was clear that Noah stepped onto dry ground with a boatload of gratitude.
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God wants you to take his commands seriously, but he also wants you to have confidence in his promise to comfort you in this life and in the life to come.
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This is arguably Jesus' most difficult parable to understand, but the more we ponder it, the more we see the blessings we have in our relationship with our gracious Master and with those around us.
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Saint Paul makes us aware of who the bad guy is when things go wrong in a congregation. He also shows us what to focus on as we sort things out.
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Where we might see a crowd of adoring fans of Jesus, our Savior sees individual souls who need to follow so that he can lead them to eternal life.
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As Living Water celebrates its 25th anniversary, it praises God that his forgiveness, life, and salvation have flowed to our congregation for over two decades and it celebrates the confidence of knowing such living water will continue to flow to us in the future.
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God gives us a glimpse of who gets into heaven and how. Instead of using it to judgemntally ask about others, "How did you get here?", this text invites us to reflect on the grace and compassion that God used to bring us into his church and to the very doorsteps of heaven.
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The writer to the Hebrews pictures our life of faith as an athletic race towards heaven. Just as earthly athletes surround themselves with the right kinds of individuals they need for athletic success, so the writer encourages us Christians to surround ourselves with the right kind of individuals who will set us up to successfully cross the finish line into heaven.
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God doesn't need your help when it comes to providing for your present or your future. That's because there's nothing we could do for him. Instead of asking for our help, he promises to help us both physically and especially spiritually.
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Nobody likes to be a fool, especially when it comes to money. To make us wise, our Savior Jesus shows us the meaning of life and then helps us both combat greed and display contentment.
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Our guest preacher is Pastor Keith Free, who serves the our brothers and sisters in Christ at St. John's Lutheran Church in Mukwonago. May God bless him and the ministry there!
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Abraham's repeated prayer to God is an example of how to pray. But in the way that God listens to and answers Abraham, we have confidence to know that he will listen to and answer our prayers as well.
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Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan to prove that doing God's commands are not as easy as we may think. But when we see the way God has had mercy on us in Jesus Christ, we become capable of becoming neighbors to all sorts of people.
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What does a few verses addressed specifically to pastors have to do with you? By letting you behind the scenese of pastoral ministry, Peter helps show you two things that Jesus wants to give you through the pastoral ministry.
