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Pentecost 8, 2025 Proper 13
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
August 3, 2025
Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12–14; 2:18–26, Colossians 3:1–11, Luke 12:13–21

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

            How do you measure your own life?  How do you gauge how you are doing?  Many people measure their life by what they have.  They judge their worth by their net worth.  They measure themselves by their salary, by their house, their car, their investments, their clothing, their toys.  They measure themselves by how much they have.  And this is a great temptation for all of us whether we have little or much. The trap is that whatever you have it is never enough.  Even as you accumulate more and more you see that someone else has even more and you want what they have.  There is a whole world of advertising out there trying to make you discontent and to always want more.  There is a word for this.  Covetousness. Covetousness is our word for today. Covetousness is a strong or inordinate desire for possessions, particularly those belonging to another person. It is often associated with greed and avarice…. 

            Covetousness is a great spiritual danger for every one of you because it comes so naturally.  We see it even in our children.  Our sweet little children show us repeatedly how they are infected with the sin of covetousness as soon as they learn to talk. Little ones may learn mama or dada first, but soon after comes the word, “Mine!”  Little children do not have much and yet are masters of judging their worth by what they have.   Mine, mine, mine. 

Two little boys are on the floor each play independently. Nearby, a yellow toy truck lies on its side unnoticed by both boys.  The poor truck is ignored.  But then one boy grows bored with what he is doing and sees the truck and picks it up. The other boy now forgets what he was doing and is now obsessed with the yellow truck and screams, “It’s mine! Give it to me!  Now!” and grabs for the truck.  Both boys aggressively battle to see who gets to possess the truck that was ignored moments before.  What made it so suddenly attractive?  Someone else had it.  Someone else has something that you do not have.  Parents with multiple children see this behavior frequently and know it is so useless and such a waste of time.

            Covetousness comes so naturally that you must stay on guard, especially in our land of great abundance.  This is addressed in our readings today.  King Solomon is bemoaning the vanity of all that he has obtained through toil and wisdom. He calls it a striving after the wind. How ridiculous would it be for someone to run around trying to gather up the wind in his arms?  How utterly foolish is that?

            In our Gospel reading a man comes to Jesus to try to get Him to settle an inheritance dispute.  The Jewish religious leaders would often settle these types of disputes, but Jesus did not come as a judge or an arbiter. Jesus is not there to settle legal disputes, but He does use this interruption as a teachable moment.  Luke 12:15 (ESV) 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 

            Picture the scene…. Jesus is there…God in flesh…the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, is standing right in front of this man and what is the man concerned about?  Money.  Jesus offers something eternally more important than money.

            Jesus warns against covetousness.  Jesus then tells the parable of a rich fool whose land produced bountifully.  The man has been blessed by God in abundance and all he is concerned about is how to store everything in bigger barns so that he no longer has to work.  Luke 12:19 (ESV) 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’ 

            The man thinks he is set forever…but he is greatly mistaken.  Even if you have more than enough for this life, what comes next?  What happens after this life?  This man hoarded everything for this life but neglected eternal life.  He did not think about what happens when he dies, and he dies that very night.  He was set for this life, but was not ready for the next.  He measured his worth by what he had and is lost for eternity.

            Jesus warns against covetousness.  He warns against the natural way of the world which is measuring yourself by what you have.  But if life is not about what you have, what is life all about?  How do you measure your worth?

            We learn what to do from Paul’s letter to the Colossians.  Colossians 3:1–4 (ESV) 1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”

            Who you are is not based on what you have.  Who you are is based on your identity in Christ.  Romans 6:4 (ESV) 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. 

            In baptism you were buried with Christ and you were raised in Christ to walk in newness of life. Christ is your life.  Your identity is about who you are in Christ. You are redeemed for eternity. 

            Money and possessions are temporary… Jesus is forever. 

            Money and possessions are gifts from God for you to manage in this life.  The rich fool looked at his possessions and said, mine, mine, mine and he made plans to gather it all in for himself so he would be all set for the rest of his life so he could eat, drink and be merry.  Not even, “eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we may die” …for he had no sense of dying.  He thought only of this life and what does God call him?  Fool!  How awful for that to be God’s name for you.  Not, “my child, my beloved, my treasure.”  “Fool!”  Jesus applies this to all people who measure themselves by what they have…  Luke 12:21 (ESV) 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” 

            God has a name for people who measure who they are by what they have…fool!  This is same sentiment we hear from King Solomon as he sees how success, fame and even great wisdom is fleeting and fickle and limited. Ecclesiastes 1:2–3 (ESV) 2 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. 3 What does man gain by all the toil at which he toils under the sun?”

            Recently, champion golfer Scottie Scheffler, said in an interview that “You work your whole life to celebrate winning a tournament for a few minutes. … It’s fulfilling from a sense of accomplishment, but it’s not fulfilling from the deepest places of your heart.”  “I’m blessed to play this game, but if it ever affected my wife or son, that’d be my last day out here.”[1]

            These comments really confused those who measure themselves by what they have.  How can something be more important than being a champion? How can something be more important than winning? 

            There is something much more important…eternally important.  Measure yourself by who you are in Christ.  You are the salt of the earth, you are the light of the world. You have put on Christ.  You are a Christian; a little Christ.  You belong to Jesus, you do not belong to the world. Live out your identity in Christ.  What does it look like to live in Christ?  

            Colossians 3:5–6 (ESV) 5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming.”  Sinful desires come naturally as you are, by nature, sinful and unclean, but these are the ways of the world.  These are the ways of fools.  Resist these desires.  Battle sin in your life.  Confess and repent and receive forgiveness.  Put those desires to death.  Colossians 3:7–8 (ESV) 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away…” 

            Then Paul lists the sins of division.  Sins that destroy relationships and families and churches…  Put away… “anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth.”  The world is full of angry, divisive people and it is so easy to fall into their ways of hating those who differ or disagree.  But you are not called to hate, you are called to love your enemy. Confess your sins of division and restore relationships.  

            Colossians 3:9–10 (ESV) 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”  Speak the truth in love because you are of the truth.  You are a child of the Lord of truth.  You are a new creation in Christ.  You have put off the old self.  You have put on the new self.  Measure yourself by who you are in Christ.  You are a saint.  You have been made perfect.  You are holy, righteous and innocent in the blood of Jesus.  You are destined for eternity with Jesus so enjoy the days of your life.  Ecclesiastes 2:24–25 (ESV) 24 There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God, 25 for apart from him who can eat or who can have enjoyment? 

            Wisely manage what God has given you with an open hand.  One of the best defenses against covetousness is generosity.  Give generously.  Enjoy what God has given and enjoy the work that you have.  Keep on serving others throughout your life.  When full time employment ends seek other ways to serve your neighbor and find enjoyment in the toil.  Work hard, manage and enjoy what God has given, Colossians 3:2 (ESV) 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”

Beware.  Covetousness is a powerful force.  The world wants to pull you in and have you foolishly measure yourself by what you have… but you have an infinitely greater value than money or stuff.  You belong to Jesus.  Amen. 

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[1] https://wng.org/opinions/scottie-schefflers-ecclesiastes-moment-1753915677

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Pentecost 7 2025, Proper 12
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
July 27, 2025
Psalm 138:1-8, Genesis 18:20-33, Colossians 2:6-15, Luke 11:1-13

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

            There is a lot of talk lately about debt.  We hear about how college students are graduating with a mountain of student loan debt that financially cripples them for many years as they try to pay it off.  We hear about young people and families that borrow and borrow and borrow to get the things they want and then end up so deep in debt that they cannot see a way out. Recently Doordash offered an option to buy now and pay later for food delivery.  Debt is accumulated in big ways and in little ways.  With big purchases like houses and cars and with every small purchase that is charged to a credit card that doesn’t get paid off. Every month the statements come and the mountain of debt just grows and grows and is always there accusing you of being a financial failure who will never be able to pay back what you owe to others.

            Sin is like that mountain of debt.  The record of your sin goes back to earliest childhood; a mountain of sin.  How big is that mountain?  Walk around it and gaze up at its height.  Look closely.  Read some of the pages all piled up.  There are some big sins in there.  Ignoring God’s will and following your passions.  Shameful things.  Big sins and little sins.  It is all there.  Sins of anger; sexual sins, sins of greed, sins of broken promises, sins of laziness, sins of gossip, sins of rebellion against authority.  Pondering your mountain of sin is shameful and humbling. You want to try to ignore the mountain of sin; you want to pretend it’s not really there…or not really yours… or not really so bad.  But there it is.  It is a record of sin and shame all piled up in one place.  It is horrible and humiliating to see.  The mountain of sin gets in the way of praying to God. 

The devil knows the power of this mountain of sin and he weaponizes it against you.  He uses it to accuse you.  The devil points at that record of sin and failure and tells you that God cannot love someone with that mountain of sin; God does not listen to sinners; God wants nothing to do with such shamefulness.  Your mountainous debt of sin is overwhelming and you cannot get rid of it. 

            For those with a mountain of financial debt, what would it be like for someone to come along and pay it all off and erase that mountain?  Now, working hard, you can conquer financial debt by following a plan like Dave Ramsey’s baby steps or something.  Through sacrifice and hard work, little by little, day by day you can become financially debt free.  You can conquer financial debt, but you cannot pay off the debt of sin.  The debt of sin just grows and grows.  Folks will work hard to try to make atonement for their sin.  Unfaithful pastors will try to give you a step-by-step improvement program.  Some churches will try to get you to earn an indulgence to get rid of your sin…but none of that works.  It is impossible.  As you struggle with sin and guilt and shame the holy God seems so distant and unapproachable while you are so unholy and sinful and alone.  If only someone would come and pay off that mountain of the debt of your sin. 

            And then you remember.  You remember that night in Bethlehem so long ago; a baby born to a virgin visiting from Nazareth.  This baby appears to be just a normal baby, but this baby is God in flesh.  His birth is announced by angels.  God sent his Son to take on human flesh.  This baby grows to be a man who shows His divine powers by performing great miracles demonstrating His authority over disease and disability and nature and food and wine and even death.  We celebrate the birth of this baby because in this baby born in Bethlehem the whole fullness of God dwells bodily.  We celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus because this baby is God in flesh.  John 1:14 (ESV) 14 … the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…”   

God in flesh does not make sense.  How can the infinite God be contained in the confines of a 7 pound baby boy?  It does not make sense, but God does not have to make sense.

            God takes on human flesh and dwells with His people. He is baptized into your sin and He carries that sin to the cross.  Jesus takes your entire mountain of sin upon Himself.  2 Corinthians 5:21 (ESV) 1 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 

Jesus takes responsibility for your sin; He takes ownership of it.  Jesus takes the record of your debt and pays the price.  Jesus takes the record of every last one of your sins and He cancels the record of your debt, nailing it to the cross.  Jesus wipes your slate clean.  Your mountain of sin is gone. 

            The devil’s greatest weapon against you is taken away. The devil is disarmed.  He wants to accusingly point to the mountain of your sin, but the mountain is not there.  There is nothing with which to accuse you.  Jesus pays the price of your sin on the cross and declares, “It is finished.”  He triumphs over the devil and puts him to shame by rising from the dead.  He descends to hell to preach a sermon of victory to make the devil’s shame complete.

            The devil used to be able to accuse you because of your sin, but Jesus has paid for those sins.  There is now no barrier between you and God.  What an amazing thing this is for God to have done for you.  You are a lowly human who is here in this life for a short time and then gone and yet the Jesus cares so much about you that He died in your place.  He cares so much about you that He removes all barriers between you and the Holy and perfect creator of the universe and invites you to call Him “Father.”  Because of what Jesus has done for you, you have direct access to God.  You can come to God in great boldness and ask for what you need. 

            In our reading from Genesis, we see the boldness of Abraham who, as someone in God’s covenant, is shameless in asking God to spare the city of Sodom for 50 righteous people, or 45 or 40 or 30 or 20 or 10.  It sounds like Abraham is negotiating with God, but Abraham is not negotiating because he is not offering anything in return; he is simply making bold requests to the God of the universe.

            The disciples ask to be taught to pray and how does the prayer start that Jesus teaches them?  “Father.”  Jesus himself teaches you to pray to God and call Him “Father.”  This is incredible.  How can you, a natural born sinner, come into the presence of the Holy God and address Him as Father?  You can do this because you have been baptized into Christ.  You can do this because your sins have been forgiven; your record of debt has been cancelled.  You have been made righteous in the blood of Christ.  You are justified in Christ.  You can do this because, even though you are a natural born sinner, Jesus has paid the price for your sins and set you free from the accusations of the devil.

            Now, strangely, the devil tries to continue to use the record of your sins to indict you and get you to pretend that that mountain of sin is still there accusing you.  The devil wants to convince you that you are still a shameful sinner who has no access to God.  But that is just a lie of the devil.  When the devil tries to accuse you of your sins you tell the devil, “My sins have been forgiven by the Lord Jesus.  Be gone Satan!  I don’t belong to you; I belong to Jesus.”

            Now, the devil is tenacious.  He does not give up easily.  Stay alert for the devil’s lies and beware of the spirits of the world. Living life in this world is dangerous for followers of Jesus.  The world wants to take you captive by philosophy and empty deceit according to human traditions and the elemental spirits of the world.  So many false teachings sound so wonderfully sensible and plausible.  Did God really say?  So many want to make God make sense, but God doesn’t make sense.  God does things that we would never do.  God is not of this world.  And as a child of God you don’t belong to the world because you have received Christ.  As you received Christ, so walk in Him.  Jesus redeems you; He feeds you with His very Body and Blood in Holy Communion.  You have an intimacy with the creator of the universe that is beyond explanation.  Lose yourself in the love of God in Christ Jesus. 

            And pray boldly.  Pray boldly to God.  Pray shamelessly.  Pray for salvation for those who do not know Jesus.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to work on their hearts to bring them to faith so that they too may know that their sins have been taken away.  Pray that all people will know the incredible peace that comes from believing that Jesus has removed your mountain of sin.  Pray that daily the Lord creates in you a clean heart and a right spirit to walk in Christ. 

Jesus has cancelled the record of your debt.  Jesus has triumphed over the devil and put him to shame.  The devil no longer has power over you because you are a baptized child of God.  “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.”   Walk in Christ.  Your debt has been paid.  You are free.

            Amen.

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Pentecost 4 2025, Proper 9
July 6, 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
Isaiah 66:10-14, Galatians 6:1-10, 14-18, Luke 10:1-20

            A major skill for doing youth work is figuring out what you can ignore and what you cannot.  As kids transition from being boys and girls to being men and women they can be kind of crazy as they try to figure out who they are.  What can you ignore and what needs to be called out?

            I try to love and respect each of our youth and teach them to love and respect one another because love covers a multitude of sins.  But loving others can be hard.

            Lots of stuff can be ignored but sometimes there are things going on that are overly disruptive or hurtful or dangerous and it needs to stop.  When I ask someone to stop doing something often their first reaction is to deny, or make excuses, or try to blame someone else.  “He hit me first.  I wasn’t the only one yelling.  I didn’t do it.”

I tell them that if I ask you to stop doing something all you need to say is, “Ok.  Sorry.” And that’s the end of it.  I’m not going to punish you.  I’m not going to call your parents; I just need you to stop. I pray that I can model Christian love to them and I pray also that they love me and can overlook the times when I fail.

This is good advice for all of us.  Living together as brothers and sisters in Christ can be difficult. Well, not just can be difficult, it is difficult.  Dealing with other people is hard.  Because you are a burden to me and I am a burden to you.  Look at the people sitting around you.  They are a burden to you and you are a burden to them. 

            Life together as the family of Christ is a life lived together.  We are a collection of 450 or so people committed to one another.  450 sinners struggling together against the devil. 450 sinners from infants to 96 year olds huddled together against the influence of the world.  450 sinners battling the natural inclination to sin. And sin we do.

            Most of the time we just need to ignore each other’s sins just like we ignore our own.  Martin Luther writes in his commentary on Galatians, “But if we are able to bear and overlook our own faults and sins, which we commit in such great numbers every day, let us bear those of others as well…[1] 

            Galatians 6:2 tells us, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”  This is an interesting phrase, “The law of Christ.”  You don’t normally hear this phrase.  You are more used to the “Gospel of Christ”; the “Good News of Christ”.  The law of Christ sounds foreign to your ears.  The law of Christ is the law of love.  Christ Jesus has taken your sins to the cross at Calvary and paid the price for them.  Baptized in Him you die to sin and rise to eternal life. And so, in Christ, you are to love one another.  We don’t often talk about it this way, but as a baptized child of God… as a member of the family of God… you are burdened by love for each other.  When you are baptized into Christ and put on Christ, you also put on the burden of your brothers and sisters in Christ.  This is one reason you cannot just stop coming to church because the people can be annoying.  It is your burden to deal with the other people.  It is your burden of love.

            The people sitting around you are annoying sinners… and so are you… and so am I… and we put up with each other out of love. There is an awful lot about each other that you just need to ignore.  When you get tempted to get exasperated with someone else’s sins think about how many of your own sins the Lord Jesus forgives you each day and then go do likewise for one another. 

            We like to play a game of comparison.  We like to say, “Well, I might be a sinner, but I’m not as bad as that person.”  Perhaps that is why folks love Jerry Springer style TV shows where folks air their dirty laundry by telling sordid tales of their lives.  People watch and think, “well my life may not be perfect; I may have my faults, but I am not as bad as these people.”  This is not the Christian way.  Do not compare yourself with others.  Do not judge your behavior against another person but rather evaluate yourself against God’s holiness and perfection. Be honest about yourself.  You are a natural born sinner with no high ground to stand upon except on the rock of Calvary and the cross of Christ.  Galatians 6:3 (ESV) 3 For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.”

            There are times when the sins of a church member must be addressed.  When someone’s sin is damaging the fellowship through fighting and dissension, or when a serious sin threatens to separate someone from Christ’s salvation through stubborn unrepentance.

            When this happens, you must stay on guard against falling into their ongoing sin.  Everyone is susceptible to sin.  No one is immune from the threat.  When a well-known Christian leader is caught in a public sin the media goes crazy over it, but we really shouldn’t be surprised.  The threat is there for everyone.  What we all can say about it is, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.”  We are all only a few steps from grievous public sin.  Pastors certainly are not immune.  When it comes to pastors committing grievous, public sins, I had a seminary professor who would warn us that the day we say to ourselves, “That will never happen to me.”  That is the day you are in the most danger. 

So, when someone in our fellowship commits a grievous sin, what do we do? How should we handle it?  Galatians 6:1 (ESV)  1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”

            When one of your brothers or sisters in Christ is caught in a transgression that breaks them from the fellowship, or threatens to break them from the fellowship, you need to go to them to urge repentance in order to restore them to the fellowship.  You go to them humbly.  You do not lord it over them or go to them with any sense of superiority.  You go to them as a fellow sinner, struggling with temptation, who needs Jesus’ forgiveness.  You go as a fellow sinner, but that does not make it okay to sin.  You speak the truth in love and gently call them to repent and return to Christ. 

            What if when you go in gentleness to try to restore someone you find that they are secure in their sin?  They do not acknowledge their sin.  They excuse their sin.  They defend their sin.  They have put themselves in great danger because they are putting themselves outside the fellowship of the Church because, by their remaining in sin, they are rejecting Christ.  To allow them to remain is a danger to the fellowship because there is a temptation to ignore or excuse the sin, but that can lead others into the same or similar sin. 

            When necessary, you go to those caught in ongoing sin to speak the truth in love, but mostly you are called to bear one another’s burdens. This is done not just in youth work, not just in the family of faith, but also at home with your family and out in the world as you encounter others.  Life together as a family is an awful lot about learning what you can ignore and what you can’t ignore.  You bear one another’s sins.

This is part of the slow slog of Christian life.  It is not glamorous or fun or exciting.  It does not make for a catchy church sign, “Come join our church where you can bear one another’s burdens.”  Bearing burdens feels a lot like work.  Here, at Immanuel, you all do a pretty good job with this; loving one another, carrying one another’s burdens, helping one another, ignoring other’s faults, ignoring my faults. 

Life together is a life of living in the law of Christ; living in the law of love.  Live in the love of Christ in love for one another.  Live united… boasting only in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Live united in the love of Christ.  Live united in Christ — bearing with one another in love.  Amen. 

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[1]Luther, Martin: Pelikan, Jaroslav Jan (Hrsg.) ; Oswald, Hilton C. (Hrsg.) ; Lehmann, Helmut T. (Hrsg.): Luther’s Works, Vol. 27 : Lectures on Galatians, 1535, Chapters 5-6; 1519, Chapters 1-6. Saint Louis : Concordia Publishing House, 1999, c1964 (Luther’s Works 27), S. 27:113

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Pentecost 3 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
June 29, 2025
1 Kings 19:9b-21, Galatians 5:1, 13-25, Luke 9:51-62

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

            This coming Friday is a big day in America.  July 4, 2025.  The 249th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  July 4th marks the beginning of our freedom with the signing of the Declaration in Philadelphia, but the revolutionary war, was not over until September 3, 1783 with the treaty of Paris. 

            America won its freedom.  No more king, no more tax on tea, no more putting up with the Redcoats. We are free!  What does this mean?

            I think you can sometime think of freedom as being able to do whatever you want to do.  But that is certainly not what it means.  America won its freedom, but then the work really started.  Being a free American is not about getting to do whatever you want, it is about working together as citizens for the good of all.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  The people, the governed, establish a government to secure these rights.  Freedom is about working together for the good of all.  It is kind of a paradox.

A paradox is two things that seem to be opposites and yet are perhaps both true. American freedom is a paradox; you are free, but you are obligated to your fellow citizens to work together for the common good. 

            July 4th is Independence Day for American citizens. Every day is Independence Day for Christians.  Galatians 5:1 (ESV) 1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” You have been set free by Christ and yet the devil hates your freedom.  The devil is always going after you to make sin look like no big deal when he tempts you, but then, after falling into sin, the devil accuses you and makes the sin seem so great that God could never forgive you.  The devil tries to bind you with long chains made up of all the links of your past sins.  He oppresses you with guilt and shame and helplessness.  The devil wants to destroy you with guilt, and convince you that you are no good and have no future.  The devil is wrong.  The devil is a liar.  You are forgiven.  You have been set free from bondage to sin, death and the devil.  You are set free from guilt and shame to live a new life as a baptized child of God 

            Jesus opened the padlock binding the chains of your guilt and they fell off — setting you free.  Jesus took the punishment for your sins.  He bore your guilt and shame upon Himself.  He is the sacrifice on the altar of the cross to redeem you.  The devil has nothing to accuse you of because you are set free in the blood of Christ. 

            Every day is Independence Day because you have freedom in Christ.  You are free! What does this mean?  Christian freedom is also a paradox.  In, “On the Freedom of a Christian”, Martin Luther writes, “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to everyone…”

            In our reading today from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians he explains how to live out Christian freedom.  Paul knows that it is so tempting to try to use Christian freedom as an excuse to sin.  To think, Jesus freed me from guilt and shame so I can sin more.  I can just roll in the mud of sin like a pig in filth.  St. Paul clearly teaches, No!  Galatians 5:13 (ESV) 13 For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”

            You are free from the condemnation of the law, in order to delight in God’s will and walk in His ways.  Galatians 5:14 (ESV) 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 

            As a Christian set free from bondage to sin but still, by nature sinful, you live a life of struggle.  You are by nature sinful and unclean, but you have been cleansed from sin by the blood of Jesus.  Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who fills you with faith in Jesus and His Word and encourages you to selflessly love and serve your neighbor.  The Spirit calls you to selfless service, but, in this life, you will be pulled toward selfish indulgence of the desires of your flesh — encouraged by the devil and the world.

            Another paradox is that you are, at the same time, a Saint and a Sinner.  You are saint of God made 100 percent perfect in Jesus and you are, at the same time, a sinner, deserving God’s wrath.  Like the old cartoon depictions of an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other each trying to encourage you, you are locked in an ongoing struggle between the Holy Spirit of God and the desires of your own sinful flesh. 

            Paul writes, Galatians 5:16–17 (ESV) 16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh…” It is a battle every day. 

            Galatians 5:19–21 (ESV) 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

            The sexual categories stand out, sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, orgies.  You live in a world that is proud of immorality and celebrates it.  Folks literally have parades and festivals to celebrate sexual immorality.  And it is easy to think well, those folks are really messed up, but I am not like them.  I fear that this kind of thinking can be used to mask your own struggles.  It is so easy to fall into the world’s ideas about God’s gift of intimacy.  It is far too easy to adopt the world’s practice of intimacy while dating and intimacy during engagement and justify it because everyone is doing it.  There is great danger lurking.  You are only a few clicks away from engaging in immortality online and excuse it because it is easy and everyone does it.  Paul warns in 1 Corinthians 6:18–20 (ESV) 18 Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. 19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”

            The sexual categories stand out in the list, but there are only four of them.  There are two categories of false belief, idolatry and sorcery.  In this world that wants to believe that all religions are true and that any way is a good way to God, you must keep the Word of God as your authority because if all ways are true, then none are true.  Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through Him.  Cling to the Word of God.  Cling to the promises of God. 

            Paul warns against drunkenness which leads to no end of trouble and other sins. 

            And then you are left with eight categories that are the ones that you are tempted to dismiss as not being real sins like sexual immorality and false belief and drunkenness.  These are sins of the flesh that are so natural…so common…and they affect you from early childhood until the day you die.  Galatians 5:20–21 (ESV) 20 … enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy…” 

            This list is convicting.  These are eight different ways to damage other people; to damage relationships.  Eight different ways that the devil tries to tear people apart…tear families apart…tear churches apart.  These are so condemning because they come so naturally and are such a normal part of life. You love to bicker and fight.  You are naturally cruel to one another.  You naturally tear others down in order to build yourself up.  You excuse anger as just who you are.  

            These come so naturally, but this is no longer who you are.  You are a new creation in Christ and a temple of the Holy Spirit.  Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.  Repent of these sins and cry out to God, Psalm 51:9–12 (ESV) 9 Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.”

            And, in the Spirit, you will bear good fruit… Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV) 22 … love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control…”

            And aware of your own shortcomings, beware of the devil’s accusations.  The devil will try to slip in the charge that you are not fully walking in the Spirit, that you still are tempted by the works of the flesh.  You are not good enough.  Of course, he is correct.  1 John 1:8 (ESV) 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”  You will struggle with sin until the day you breathe your last.  If you could become perfect, Jesus would not have had to die.  When the devil accuses you, tell him that you know you are a sinner, but Jesus died for your sins and has forgiven your sins.  Tell the devil to get lost and walk by the Spirit.  Read the Word, hear the Word, remember your baptism, and receive the Body and Blood of Jesus to strengthen you for the struggle.

            You are free in Christ.  Stand firm.  Amen.   

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Pentecost 2 Proper 7 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
June 22, 2025
Isaiah 65:1-9, Galatians 3:23-4:7, Luke 8:26-39

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

In a battle between you and the spiritual forces of darkness, who would win?  In a battle between Jesus and the evil one, who would win?  Today’s Gospel reading demonstrates Jesus’ power over demons.  Jesus is God… and has power over everything.  In the Gospels we see that Jesus has power over sickness, injury, the weather, even death. Today we see His power over the devil and his demons.

Jesus and His disciples cross the Sea of Galilee to a predominantly Gentile area.  No sooner do they set foot on the shore than a demon-possessed man challenges them. This demon possession is pretty intense. The man lives among the dead, he wears no clothes, and the locals are unable to restrain him even with chains. Luke 8:28–29 (ESV) 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.” 29 For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.” 

Jesus shows His power over demons by talking with them.  Although demons are the sworn enemies of God, they have no choice… they must answer Jesus.  When Jesus asks “What is your name?” he answers, “Legion”, indicating the strength of the evil forces in this man.  A legion is an army numbering in the thousands.  Thousands of demons against one Jesus, but it wouldn’t make a difference if there were a billion demons; Jesus is Lord over everything and even the demons must obey Him.

When Jesus commands the demons to leave the man, they have no choice but to leave, the only question is where do they go.  The demons ask to inhabit a nearby herd of pigs, but even for this they need Jesus’ permission.  Jesus gives permission.  The demons enter the pigs and the pigs promptly stampede into the lake and drown. After that we aren’t told what happens to the demons.

The swineherds have a predictable response at the drowning of their herd of pigs… they run away.  They flee to a nearby city for help.  When the city folk hear the news they go out to check out this pig-murdering Jesus fellow. This scene gives us a glimpse into the difference between people who are saved and people who are still enslaved by the devil.

The man who is now saved is sitting at Jesus’ feet; he is listening as Jesus teaches.  The round trip to the city takes a little while, so the man who is now free of demons has had time for Bible class with Jesus.  He cannot get enough of Jesus and wants to go along when Jesus returns across the lake.

The people arriving from the city are terrified of Jesus.  They ask Him to leave.  Like so many unbelievers today, the local people see Jesus as a problem … not as a savior.

Jesus complies with the people’s wishes.  He departs, but He leaves a missionary behind.  The man who is now demon free wants to go with Jesus, but Jesus leaves him there, saying, Luke 8:39 (ESV) 39 “Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.” And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.”

When Jesus arrived, this man was full of demons and out of control.  When Jesus departs, this man is commissioned a missionary to the people on the east side of the Sea of Galilee.

Demons are mysterious creatures.  The Bible teaches us that demons are fallen angels.  God created them sometime during the six days of creation along with all the other angels.  Soon after the creation a group of angels rebelled against God and God condemned these angels to an eternity of punishment in the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 

Since demons are angels, they are spiritual beings; they do not have bodies and are not subject to the laws of the physical universe.  Since demons are fallen angels, they are enemies of God.

The problem with having God as your enemy is that God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and unlimited by time and space.  Demons are God’s enemies but are still God’s creation, and cannot win against God in a direct attack.  They must find some other way to express their hatred of God and the battlefield they have chosen… is you, a follower of Jesus.  Revelation 12:17 (ESV) 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus…”

The demons’ main weapon against you is deception as Jesus says in, John 8:44 (ESV) 44… When [the devil] lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”  It would be obvious if the devil appeared to you dressed in red body armor with horns and a pitch fork, smelling like burning Sulphur and demanding, “Follow me”.  You would instantly know that this is the prince of darkness and you would flee.  But the devil is clever.  Knowing you are naturally sinful, demons present temptation in ways that make sense … ways that seem like the right thing to do … ways that have a certain beauty. As the Apostle Paul writes, 2 Corinthians 11:14 (ESV) 14 And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” 

In Eden, the devil uses a serpent to tempt Eve to eat of the forbidden fruit. “Did God actually say?”  Eve and Adam fall to this deception and the temptation to want to be like God, and from then on, all of their descendants, every human being, inherits a sinful nature at conception.  

The rite of baptism in the Lutheran Service Book states, “The Word of God also teaches that we are all conceived and born sinful and are under the power of the devil until Christ claims us as His own.  We would be lost forever unless delivered from sin, death, and everlasting condemnation.”  In baptism you renounce the devil and all his works and all his ways.  You receive the Holy Spirit and you are set against the devil. 

You are a baptized child of God and a follower of Jesus, but the demon’s lies and temptations can feel so right because you are, by nature, sinful and unclean.  Instead of naturally loving God with all your mind, soul, and strength, you love yourself.  This is why you cannot trust your feelings, but trust the Word of God. 

Since demons deal in deception, they adapt their lies to the culture of any given time and place.  Rationalism has had a profound effect on our culture.  Many today do not believe demons even exist and that suits the demons just fine.  It doesn’t bother them one bit if you don’t believe in them. 

Folks are very concerned with outward appearances and trying to analyze people’s behavior.  Demons don’t care if the crime rate goes down.  They don’t care if charitable donations go up.  They don’t care if people give each other a helping hand. They don’t care there is a cure for every disease.  They don’t care if everyone is just one, great big, happy family, as long as it is one, great big, happy family on the wide road to hell.

The demons don’t care if there are churches on every corner as long as the churches don’t talk about sin and its punishment, and Jesus and His salvation. The demons don’t care if we talk about god as long as that god is not the god who took on human flesh and died to save you.  The demons don’t even care if we talk about Jesus as long as Jesus is just a great example or just a great moral teacher or just a great liberator or just a great unifier.  The only God – the only Jesus — that the devil hates is the Jesus who is the way, the truth and the life.  The Jesus who died on the cross for the forgiveness of sins and then rose from the dead in order to confirm forever His victory… over sin… over death… and over the devil.

There is only one person who defeated the devil.  That person is Jesus Christ, God in flesh, crucified for the forgiveness of all sins and raised from the dead.  That person and that person alone is the only one who endured every temptation that the devil could throw His way and yet never sinned.  Jesus and Jesus alone endured being forsaken by God for you as He died on the cross for your sins and He offers His victory to you.

Demons don’t always identify themselves by driving pigs into a lake. Sometimes they quietly inhabit people who look like quite normal.  They inhabit people who look respectable on the outside and seem very nice, but who repeat the lies of the evil one and ask, “Did God actually say?” 

Just like dangerous strangers may tempt children with candy or puppies, demons tempt you with your selfish desires to get you to indulge them and proclaim, “I am being true to myself.”  It is the demon’s goal to make you feel very comfortable and even righteous while traveling the path to hell.

We see Jesus’ power over demons in today’s Gospel.  He has defeated the devil once and for all on the cross for you. In baptism He has given you His Spirit who dwells in you and makes your body a temple of the Holy Spirit.  Trust in the Word of God.  Trust in Jesus.  Trust in His holy life, His innocent suffering and death, His resurrection from the dead and His ascension into heaven.  

The one who defeated the devil is the only one who can protect you from the attacks of the devil.  He is the only one who can give to you life everlasting.  Trust in Christ crucified and risen from the dead, and pray that the Holy Spirit will work that saving faith in all people, to rescue them from the devil, and give to them eternal life. 

You cannot face the devil alone.  You need Jesus.  Amen

John Singleton Copley: The Ascension

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Ascension (Observed) 2025
Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
June 1, 2025
Acts 1:1–11, Ephesians 1:15–23, Luke 24:44–53

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

            When I was a kid we would go to parades.  In 1976 I went to a lot of parades because my sisters were baton twirlers and there were lots of parades that year for the bicentennial. Something that would happen at almost every parade was both tragic and kind of cool.  A child would let go of the helium balloon that his parents had just bought for him before they were able to tie it to his wrist.  There is no worse feeling for that kid as the tears well up, but now everyone else gets to watch the balloon ascend up into the sky. If it wasn’t windy and the balloon was a bright color you could watch it go up and up and up and get smaller and smaller until it couldn’t be seen anymore.  

            Today we celebrate Jesus’ ascension 40 days after His resurrection.  How did Jesus ascend?  Jesus led the disciples out to Bethany on the Mount of Olives and told them, Acts 1:8–9 (ESV) 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.”

            Jesus promised the power of the Holy Spirit, instructed the disciples to be witnesses, and they witnessed Jesus ascend and a cloud envelope Him so they could not see Him anymore. 

            Where did Jesus go?  Acts 1:10–11 (ESV) 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”  So, where is heaven?  It is easy to get drawn into thinking that heaven is somewhere way, way, way up there… very far away.  But Jesus did not just keep ascending until He was out of sight.  He was enveloped by a cloud which brings to mind the cloud at transfiguration, the cloud of God’s presence at the tabernacle and temple, the pillar of cloud that was God guiding the Israelites out of Egypt.  Jesus was taken into a cloud.  So, where is Jesus now?  Where is heaven?

            We get clues from our Epistle reading today.  Paul is blessing the Christians in Ephesus and praying for them and that they may know… Ephesians 1:19–20 (ESV) 19 … the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places,” 

            Just as we confess every week.  Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.  So heaven is at the right hand of God the Father.  Where is that?  Where is God the Father?  God the Father is omnipresent, He is present everywhere. 

            Martin Luther writes about this:  “Scriptures teach us…that the right hand of God is not a specific place in which a body must or may be, such as on a golden throne, but is the almighty power of God, which at one and the same time can be nowhere and yet must be everywhere.” [1]

            It is beyond comprehension.  Our human minds cannot understand.  Jesus ascended in His body and is at the right hand of God the Father which is not a place of location, but a place of power and authority. Jesus is… Ephesians 1:21–22 (ESV) 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church…”  Jesus is above everyone and everything; rulers and authorities and the church.  This is not above in location, but above in power and authority.  All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus.  He rules.  This is the Kingdom of Heaven. 

When we think about the Kingdom of Heaven it is tempting to think about the kingdom as a place of location.  But the word kingdom may be better replaced by the word, “rule”… rule of heaven, the reign of heaven.  The kingdom is where Jesus rules… and where does Jesus rule?  Everywhere.  You pray in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy Kingdom Come”.  What do you mean by praying that?

      Luther’s explanation in the Small Catechism is pretty good.  “What does this mean? The kingdom of God certainly comes by itself without our prayer, but we pray in this petition that it may come to us also.”  You pray that Jesus rules you.

“How does God’s kingdom come? God’s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity.” 

The Spirit brings you into the Kingdom.  Jesus told Nicodemus, John 3:5–6 (ESV) 5 … “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” 

The Father gives you His Spirit so Christ can dwell in your heart, and you can know the love of Christ, and be filled with the fullness of God.

You have been born again of water and the spirit.  Your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit is the breath of God in you connecting you to God the Father through the Lord Jesus.  The Spirit shows you your sin through the Word of God and the Spirit points you to Jesus as your redeemer and savior and king through His Word and Sacraments. The Spirit lets you know that you cannot save yourself; that you are in God’s kingdom by the grace of God. 

            In Ephesians 3 we see how God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit work together in believers.  Paul writes…Ephesians 3:14–19 (ESV) 14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” 

The Father gives you His Spirit so Christ can dwell in your heart, and you can know the love of Christ, and be filled with the fullness of God.

            Jesus ascends to be enthroned as king; your king, my king, king of all creation.  Jesus is King but Jesus does not force obedience.  It is possible to reject Jesus.  Many rebel against their King.  Many reject Jesus’ reign and authority.  They want to follow their own gods that they can control.  They reject the Holy Spirit and by this, separate themselves from Jesus and salvation.  They put themselves outside the Kingdom of Heaven. 

            Among Christians, folks can sometime worry about whether they have rejected the Holy Spirit because of their sin.  The interesting thing is that if you are worried about rejecting the Spirit it means you still believe; it means you still have faith.  If you have faith, you have the Holy Spirit.  You may be resisting the Holy Spirit, but He is in you, pointing you to Jesus, letting you know you should be troubled by your sins and when you are troubled by your sins to look to Jesus and repent.  Turn away from sin and turn back to Jesus.  Repent… for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.  Repent… and receive the Body and Blood of Jesus into your body in communion with the King.  Pray, Thy Kingdom Come which is the same as praying, Lord Jesus, rule my heart. 

            The Holy Spirit dwells in you and gives you faith as He does with the whole Christian Church.  Jesus’ Church is unified in the Spirit.  The devil desperately tries to tear the Church apart with conflict and false teaching.  The devil wants you to reject the unity of the Holy Spirit.  Paul exhorts the Ephesian Christians. Ephesians 4:1–6 (ESV)  1 I … urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” 

            Jesus did not disappear high up in the sky like a balloon.  Jesus did not ascend way, way up far away to sit on His throne waiting to return.  Jesus ascended to take His position at the right hand of the Father as ruler over everything.  Jesus is King of the universe.  Jesus is King of the world.  Jesus is King of the Church.  Jesus is the King of you.

            “Thy Kingdom come.  Lord Jesus, rule my heart.”  Amen. 

---

[1] LW Vol 37, Pg. 57

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Easter 6 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
May 25, 2025
Acts 16:9-15, Revelation 21:9-14, 21-27, John 16:23-33

Sermons online: 
Text and Audio:         immanuelhamiltonchurch.com   click “sermons”
Text:                           pastorjud.org   
Audio:                         pastorjud.podbean.com 
itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
Full Service Audio:    bit.ly/ImmanuelWorship

            How amazing and wonderful would it be if you found a portal to heaven; an opening in the space-time continuum that would transport you to eternal life with Jesus.  In this sin-sick world, how many would line up to go through the portal to leave behind this life of sorrow and struggle and be transported directly to heaven?  If only there was a portal to heaven.  Well…I recently discovered that portal… in a shoebox of old documents.

            Now, I am not very good at saving things from important events, but I am impressed that others are.  After Mary Spoerl died, Tim brought me a box of historical documents of the church that Mary had been saving for many years.  She had some newer items — a copy of the bulletin from my installation as senior pastor here in 2006 and also some older ones.  She had the 25th anniversary booklet for the Immanuel Ladies’ Society that took place in 1922; 7 years before Mary was even born.  That one is in both German and English.  Altogether, the shoe box contains a nice little collection of historical Immanuel documents.  Perhaps Tim should not have entrusted them to me.  One booklet is from the dedication of this church building on April 1, 1951. I don’t believe I had ever seen this one before and it has great descriptions of the building. 

            The exterior architectural style is that of a Norman-Saxon parish church.  The dramatic change of pace in the tower with its massive walls at the base and its slender and cross-surmounted…spire at the top lifts the eyes heavenward and encourages a spirit of devotion and reverence.  Those who behold and enter the structure will have no difficulty recognizing it as “The House of God and the Gate of Heaven”.  The Gate of Heaven.  This church is a portal to heaven. 

            “The massive oak doors, the paneling above them and the large wooden cross which is the center of interest in the entrance are a source of delight to every observer.  To all who pass, the entrance announces that, “we preach Christ and Him Crucified””

            As you come through the doors, “the low ceiling of the Narthex may well serve to remind all who enter that humility is required of those who desire to come into the presence of God, and all who leave, that their walk among men should likewise be humble.” 

            “Once in the nave, the worshipper automatically follows the admonition, “Life up your hearts” as the high open ceiling lifts his eyes and thoughts upward.  The details and appointments lend emphasis to the fact that this is a place set apart. It takes one away from that which characterizes the market and the fire place.  Here one can commune with his God and meditate upon those things which are not of this world.” 

            “The center of attention in the oak-paneled sanctuary is the altar, also of oak, with its three-fold elevation…the IHS design, symbolic of the Lord Jesus Christ, is carved into the front of the altar.”  IHS are the first three letters of Jesus in Greek. 

            In 1963 the front windows of faceted glass chunks were added with the stars of heaven, the creator’s hand, representing God the Father with beams of light going throughout all the windows.  The Agnus Dei, Christ the Lamb of God, is resting on the Holy Bible with a flag of victory.  The dove is the symbol of the Holy Spirit.  On top, the Alpha and Omega, show Christ is the eternal God; the A and the Z, the beginning and the end.  The communion wafer and chalice, the grapes and wheat for God’s gift of the Lord’s Supper. The shell, a symbol of baptism.  The cross on the world telling of our mission to make disciples of all nations. 

            In 2007-2008 we renovated the sanctuary and added the 16 side stained glass windows and the windows in the doors to the narthex.  We chose 16 scenes to depict God’s story from creation through redemption to eternity with Jesus in the holy city of New Jerusalem.  Under the creation window we have the tree of life and under the last window of the heavenly city we have the tree of life again.  Eternal life lost in Eden will be restored on the Last Day.  This gate to heaven will bring you to heavenly city, the new Jerusalem.

            In our reading from Revelation today we have John’s description of the holy city from his vision while in exile on the island of Patmos.  Revelation 21:10–11 (ESV) 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” 

            John is trying to describe the holy city shining with the glory of God, using inadequate human language.  He describes the layout of the city, Revelation 21:12–13 (ESV) 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.”

            Twelve gates with angels and the names of the tribes of Israel from Old Testament times facing east, north, south and west welcome people from all over the earth.  Revelation 21:14 (ESV) 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

            In the description of the holy city we see the unity of ancient Israel and the New Testament church.  As Dr. Louis Brighton, a late professor at Concordia Seminary, describes it, “Thus by means of the wall with its twelve gates John is reminded that, as there has always been only one covenant of grace embracing the entire people of God, those of old by faith in the promise of the Messiah and those by faith in the fulfillment of that promise in Jesus Christ, so now the true Israel of God will be in the new heaven and earth as represented by the new Jerusalem.”[1]

Paul uses this same kind of language in…Ephesians 2:18–21 (ESV) 18 For through him [Jews and Gentiles] have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”

            In the verses skipped over in our reading today John describes the measurements of the city; 12,000 stadia long and wide and tall; a perfect cube — 1,380 miles in each direction.  It is a massive, perfect cube bringing to mind the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s temple; the place of God’s holy presence.  Entrance to the Holy of Holies was reserved for the high priest once a year with a blood covering.  At Jesus’ death, the curtain in the temple was torn in two — showing that we can now approach God covered by Jesus’ sacrifice.  In the holy city to come, the people of God, covered by the blood of Jesus, will be the Holy of Holies.

            There will be no temple in the holy city.  There will be no need for churches in the holy city pointing to the Lord.  The Lord God the almighty and the Lamb will dwell with the people of God.  There will be no need for separation between God and man. As Brighton writes, “The saints of God in their state of righteousness and holiness and perfection after the resurrection can now look directly into the face of God.”[2]   

            There will be no night in the holy city for the glory of God gives the city light and its lamp is the lamb.  Revelation 21:24–25 (ESV) 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there.”

            The twelve pearl gates are always open for there is no night, no danger, no threat, no evil.  The whole creation will be united in praising God and the Lamb.  It will be a place of eternal peace and praise for those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.  The way to the Father is through Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. 

            As a child of God — as a follower of Jesus — this is your future.  In baptism your name is written in the Lamb’s book of life.  You receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and you will live forever with God and the Lamb in the holy city of New Jerusalem.  You found the portal to heaven.  By faith through the Holy Spirit you have come here to the house of God, the gate to heaven.  You enter and humbly get on your knees and repent of your sins and hear the Good News that your sins have been forgiven by the blood of Jesus.  You praise the Lord and hear the Word of God.  You come up through the arched gateway to the altar of the Lord to receive a foretaste of the feast to come.  You receive into your mouth the Body and Blood of Jesus to strengthen and preserve you on your journey to life everlasting.  Here, you are covered by the robe of Jesus’ righteousness that covers all your sins.  Here you are at the gate to heaven.  And while we are blessed to have a building that points us to Jesus, the gateway is not the building.  The gate to heaven is the gathering of the saints of God.  Together, you are the Body of Christ, the Holy Christian Church, the Communion of Saints.  Gathered together, you, the saints of God, with angels and archangels, and all the company of heaven sing praises to God. 

Hearing God’s Word and receiving His gifts you go forth from humbly from this house of God to live out your identity as a saint of God in humble love and service to others in this world.  This is the gate to heaven and together you look for the day to come when Jesus will return in glory and take you to be with Him forever in the holy city of new Jerusalem.

            For now you live as the light of Christ in a world of sin and evil.  Stay alert, the world strives to pull you in and smother you with its darkness.  It is a dangerous world, but you know where the portal to heaven is and you can invite others to join you in the house of God on the journey to the Holy City where you will live with Jesus forever. Amen. 

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[1] Louis Brighton, Revelation, CPH pg. 612

[2] Revelation, Louis Brighton, CPH, pg. 618

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BULLETIN

SERMON TEXT BELOW

Easter 3 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
May 4, 2025
Acts 9:1-22, Revelation 5:1-14, John 21:1-19

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itunes:                         bit.ly/pastorjud
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            Roosters crow every morning, day after day, and not just in the morning but throughout the day.  Every time a rooster crows it picks at the scab on Peter’s heart so he feels fresh shame and guilt for what he has done. 

            Peter liked to think of himself as the tough guy, the decisive guy, the man of action.  He thinks himself brave and loyal and even brags about it.  After the Passover meal in the upper room… Matthew 26:31 (ESV) 31 …Jesus [says] to them, “You will all fall away because of me this night. For it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 

            Peter looks around at the other disciples with a bit of contempt…Matthew 26:33–35 (ESV)  33 … “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” 34 Jesus [says] to him, “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” 35 Peter [says] to him, “Even if I must die with you, I will not deny you!” … 

            All the other disciples agree.  Jesus then takes the disciples to Gethsemane where Peter promptly falls asleep multiple times while Jesus is praying.  Indeed the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. When the armed crowd comes to arrest Jesus, Peter jumps into action drawing his sword and attacking.  He cuts off the ear of a man named Malchus, but before the fight could continue, Jesus stops it. 

            The crowd seizes Jesus and binds Him.  Peter and John follow the crowd up Mt. Zion to Caiaphas’ house.  John knows the High Priest and goes inside to watch while Peter waits in the courtyard to see what will happen.  Tough guy Peter finds himself alone amongst enemies.  There are soldiers and servants and all sorts of people all waiting to see Jesus killed.  Peter nervously tries not to stand out.  Matthew 26:69–70 (ESV) 69 Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” 

            A little later, Matthew 26:71–72 (ESV) 71 …another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.”  The fear and uncertainty must be building in Peter. He is alone in a sea of opponents. Matthew 26:73–74 (ESV) 73 After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” 74 Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed.”

            The rooster crows and the memory of Jesus’ words slap Peter in the face.  Matthew 26:34 (ESV) 34 … “Truly, I tell you, this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.”  Peter is crushed by the shame and goes out and weeps bitterly. 

            Peter failed Jesus and Peter carries the wound of this shame as his constant companion.  Every time a rooster crows he is reminded of his frightened weakness and the wound is fresh again.  What has he done?  Peter confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, but then He denies His Lord and Savior.  He bragged that unlike all the other disciples he would die before abandoning Jesus but then, just hours later, out of fear, he denies even knowing Jesus. 

            Jesus is crucified, dies and is buried and it seems like everything is over, but then Jesus rises from the dead.  But even after learning Jesus rose from the dead the disciples are still hiding out in a locked room for fear of the Jews.  Jesus appears to them at least twice in Jerusalem, once without Thomas and then a week later with Thomas.  Then the disciples go to Galilee to wait for Jesus. Peter still struggles with the guilt and shame.  Can Jesus ever forgive him?  Can he forgive himself?  Has Jesus abandoned him?  Will he ever see Jesus again?  The once confident Peter is wracked with guilt.  Everything has changed. 

            In Galilee, on the Sea of Tiberius, the disciples wait for Jesus.  One evening, while Peter waits with six other disciples, he declares, “I am going fishing,” and the disciples agree, “We will go with you.” 

There is a lot of theological speculation about why they went fishing.  Was Peter thinking that his days of ministry were over and he needed to return to his previous vocation?  Was this a significant decision by Peter, or was he just bored and wanted something to do.  Did they just want to do something familiar after all the craziness?  Perhaps Peter was tired of hearing roosters crow and thought…maybe…just maybe, I won’t be able to hear them when I am out on the water.

            For whatever reason they do go fishing and they catch nothing all night.  For Peter, James and John this must bring up memories of the last time they went fishing a few years before.  They work hard all night setting and hauling nets with no success. 

            As morning dawns, the tired, hungry disciples see a man standing alone on the shore.  The man calls out, “Do you have any fish?”  Perhaps more literally, “do you have anything to eat?”  They yell back, “No!”

            The man calls out, John 21:6 (ESV) 6 … “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish.”

            It all comes rushing back.  Just like their last failed fishing trip when, after Jesus borrowed a boat to teach the people on the shore, He gave them two boatloads of fish. Peter, James and John all left being fishermen that day to follow Jesus. 

            John declares, “It is the Lord!”  Peter is so excited and relieved that Jesus is here with them that He puts on his outer garment and dives into the water to swim to shore. 

            They eat breakfast together; fish Jesus provided, fish from the miraculous catch, and bread from Jesus.  You wonder if Peter hears any roosters crowing during breakfast. Jesus is right here with Peter and the other disciples, but where does Peter stand with Jesus after his fearful denial?

            After breakfast, Jesus addresses Peter by his original name, Simon, John 21:15 (ESV) 15 …“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 

            Peter must be wondering… what Jesus is doing?  What does he mean?

            John 21:16 (ESV) 16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”  Peter’s confusion must deepen.  What is Jesus doing?

            John 21:17 (ESV) 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep. 

            Peter is suffering at Jesus asking him three times, “Do you love me?”  But then it becomes clear.  Peter is being restored to his place in Jesus’ ministry.  At the first great catch of fish Jesus told the disciples He would make them fishers of men.  Now Jesus commissions Peter to be a shepherd.  To care for and feed Jesus’ sheep and lambs. 

            Late that fateful Thursday night Peter was afraid that being associated with Jesus would get him killed.  Jesus now tells Peter that it is true.  Peter will be killed because of Jesus.  John 21:18–19 (ESV)  18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”  Tradition holds that Peter was crucified in Rome likely under Emperor Nero around AD 64 to 68. 

After a three-fold redemption Jesus ends with, “Follow me.”  Peter is restored.  Peter will follow Jesus all the way to his own cross in Rome.  The roosters’ crowing has no more power.  Peter is forgiven and restored. 

            The rooster’s crowing tormented Peter.  What is the trigger for you to remind you of your sin? Is it a sound…a song…a smell…a person…a place…an object that reminds you of your past sins?  How does the devil torment you with guilt and shame?  Is it his accusations?  “You say you are a Christian, but remember what you did?  God cannot love you…God cannot forgive someone like you.”  When the devil reminds you of your sins, remember Peter, tormented by the crowing of roosters. Remember Peter… whose sins were forgiven.  Remember Peter… restored and made a shepherd of the Lord’s sheep.  Remember… you are baptized.  Jesus has promised to forgive you all your sins.

Peter dove into the water and swam to Jesus.  You have come here this morning to be with Jesus and you began by remembering your entering Jesus’ Church by passing through the waters of baptism, “In the name of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit.”  Jesus is here for you — to declare to you, “I forgive you all your sins.” Jesus has prepared a meal for you to feed you with His own body and blood. Jesus says to you “Follow me.”  Jesus silences the devil’s accusations.  Jesus brings you out of your sin and restores you to your place in His Church. 

This morning three of our young ladies will confirm that what was spoken for them at their baptism is still their confession today.  They will pledge, with Peter, and all the Church, that with the help of God, they will continue steadfast in this confession and Church and to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it.  We join them in confirming our confession of faith.

            Peter was made a shepherd of Jesus’ lambs and sheep, and Jesus’ ministry continues today and you are a part of it.  Together we bring the Good News of forgiveness in Jesus to the world.  We care for and feed Jesus’ lambs and sheep.  We love and serve others, until Jesus returns. 

The risen Christ silences the devil and his accusations.  Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia! Amen.