faith – Page 5 – From the Pulpit

Posted on April 13, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

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Palm Sunday
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
April 13, 2025
Luke 19:28-40

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Sometimes days go by quickly and uneventfully and it is hard to believe that another week has gone by and nothing important really happened. Jesus’ week in Jerusalem is not that kind of a week. On Sunday, as Jesus rides a donkey colt down the Mount of Olives and into Jerusalem He is beginning a monumental week — the most important week in the history of the world.

Jesus has been moving toward Jerusalem for a long while with crowds following Him to receive healing and authoritative teaching. Accounts of Jesus’ miracles and teaching have spread throughout Israel and the surrounding countries. Everyone has heard about this teacher from Galilee who can do things that only God can do. This should bring great joy and excitement, but the local religious leaders are very focused on their own rules and their power and authority. Jesus purposely performs miracles on the Sabbath and this enrages the Scribes and Pharisees. The tension between Jesus and the religious leaders has grown intense, especially so after Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead just outside Jerusalem. The whole world is going after Jesus.

Now the time has come for Jesus to enter Jerusalem. He instructs His disciples to get a donkey colt and they are able to find the colt and bring it to Jesus, just as He said. Some throw their cloaks onto the colt and Jesus begins His journey down the Mount of Olives. The little parade must look a bit silly; a full grown man astride a small donkey. The King is coming into the Holy City, but He is not coming in power and might…He is coming in peace and gentleness.

Jerusalem is crowded with Passover pilgrims and they hear Jesus is coming into the city. This causes a great commotion as people rush toward the Mount of Olives to greet Him. Some cut palm branches and wave them in welcome, others lay palms on the road, still others lay their cloaks on the road. The gathered multitude cries out, John 12:13 (ESV) 13 … “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” Hosanna means help us, save us! Indeed, the King is coming into the city to save His people. Hosanna!

On that Sunday, Jesus enters the city and moves onto the temple mount. There He clears the temple of those who are changing money and selling animals for sacrifice…thus ratcheting up the tension with the Jewish leaders even more. The next three days Jesus travels into the city each day from the Mount of Olives to teach at the Temple. The Jewish leaders desperately want to arrest and silence Jesus, but they do not want to do it in front of the crowds because they fear the people will riot. So instead, they try to trap Jesus in His words and teachings, but they find that their traps are no match for the one called King of the Jews.

The frustrated religious leaders continue to look for a way to get rid of Jesus when an opportunity comes to them through the help of the devil. Luke 22:3–6 (ESV) 3 Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve. 4 He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them. 5 And they were glad, and agreed to give him money. 6 So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.”

On Thursday, Jesus tells the disciples how to find a room for the Passover dinner and it is exactly as He says, and there, in the upper room, they prepare the Passover. During and after the meal Jesus transforms the Passover into Holy Communion. The annual celebration of salvation through the blood of a lamb painted on the doorposts and lintel in Egypt becomes the weekly celebration of salvation through the body and blood of the Lamb of God soon to be sacrificed on the cross.

In John’s account of the Last Supper we see Jesus wash the disciples’ feet to show his love and service to His followers and how we are to love and serve one another. After the Passover meal, Jesus and His disciples walk down across the Kidron Valley to Gethsemane which means “olive press” in Hebrew. There, Jesus takes Peter, James and John and heads deeper into the olive grove, then leaving those three; Jesus goes a little further to pray by Himself pressured by the weight of knowing what is going to happen over the next 18 hours. He prays… Luke 22:42 (ESV) 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.”

As Jesus is praying, Judas leads an armed group to Gethsemane to arrest Jesus under the cover of darkness away from the crowds. The disciples try to defend Jesus. Peter draws a sword and strikes off the ear of one of those who came to arrest Jesus, but Jesus stops the fighting and heals the man’s ear. Jesus is seized and taken back across the Kidron Valley and up to the high priest’s house for a late night show trial, and a time to be able to abuse and mock Jesus away from the crowds.

In the morning they take Jesus to the governor, Pontius Pilate. Pilate has no interest in executing Jesus, but has less interest in a riot. Jesus is flogged and mocked and crowned with thorns and led off to be crucified.

Jesus’ joyous, Sunday palm procession down the Mount of Olives with a donkey colt carrying Jesus, now, on Friday, becomes a horrifying, cruel, heartbreaking procession to Golgotha with Jesus carrying the cross on which He will die.

Rather than shouts of “Hosanna! Save us!” now it is mocking shouts of “save yourself!, if you are the King of the Jews.” Jesus is crucified and dies and is taken down from the cross and laid in a tomb to rest on the Sabbath day to await the 8th day, the first day of the week, the day of new beginnings for all time.

Jesus’ journey is not just that one week, or even His 33 years on earth. Jesus’ journey down the Mount of Olives into Jerusalem begins in eternity — before the creation of the world — it continues at creation…in wrestling with Jacob…in the burning bush…the pillar of cloud and fire…in the fiery furnace. The journey takes on flesh in Nazareth and continues to Bethlehem and the Jordan River and Galilee, to the cross and tomb in Jerusalem which seems like the end, but the journey continues from the empty tomb to the ascension from the Mount of Olives. It is a journey that Jesus has been on from the beginning and it is a journey that continues today as we walk, with Christ, awaiting His return on the Last Day to raise the dead and take us to be with Him at the wedding feast of the Lamb in His Kingdom. It is a journey from heaven before creation to eternity in the heavenly city where there will be… Revelation 7:9–10 (ESV) 9 … a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

On that first Palm Sunday, the people cried out, “Hosanna!” Save us! That week in Jerusalem Jesus accomplishes the salvation of the world. His Body, the Church, distributes this forgiveness of sins to those on the journey with Jesus to the Heavenly City — and invites everyone to follow Jesus.

Today you remember that first Palm Sunday by waving palm branches and singing out to Jesus, “Hosanna! Save us!” for you need Jesus’ forgiveness and salvation. As you hold the palm in your hand, also look forward to being a part of the multitude in white robes with palm branches for eternity with Jesus in the Heavenly City.

You are on an eternal journey with Jesus. That week in Jerusalem changed everything. Amen.

Posted on March 23, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Godly response to deadly tragedy

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Lent 3 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
March 23, 2025
Ezekiel 33:7-20, 1 Cor. 10:1-13, Luke 13:1-9

It seems like the TV news often has information about people who have died and suggestions of what you can do so that you do not die. When I hear a story of someone who has perished I almost automatically look for reasons that what happened to them could never happen to me. They were on a motorcycle and I don’t ride one. They were out very late at night in a dangerous area and I don’t go out late at night. They were 90 some years old and I am not. They were driving along minding their own business…..They were in their 50s … I really like to think that I am not going to die, but I have heard that I may be just fooling myself.

In our Gospel reading today Jesus is told about some people from Galilee who were killed in the temple by Pilate. The people telling Jesus may be wondering, why did God allow something so evil to happen to people who were just doing what God commanded. Or, maybe they are wondering, what did these Galileans do to deserve to die in this way. Jesus…Luke 13:2–3 (ESV) 2 … answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

And lest the people of Jerusalem think that Galileans are more deserving of God’s wrath than the Judeans, Jesus brings up a tragedy in Jerusalem… Luke 13:4–5 (ESV) 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” Jesus does not want the people to turn their focus to trying to understand God’s motives. Jesus wants the people to examine themselves.

Don’t worry about why God let this happen, worry about yourself. Are you ready to die? The harsh news of this Gospel reading is that if you sin, you will die…and if you don’t sin, you will die.

When you hear about a tragic event, don’t use it as an opportunity to examine God, but rather use it as a wake-up call for you to examine your own life. What if it were me? Am I ready to meet my maker? Use the tragedy as a reminder to repent; to turn away from sin and turn back to God. Don’t be concerned about why God is doing something. Rather, be concerned about what you are doing.

In all our readings today we see that God takes sin seriously. In Ezekiel the Lord tells the prophet that He has made him a watchman for the house of Israel and he needs to warn the wicked of their wicked ways. In our epistle reading, St. Paul reminds the Corinthians that after rescuing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt God still punished them for idolatry and sexual immorality and for testing God and grumbling against God. God takes sin seriously. 1 Corinthians 10:12 (ESV) 12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

You are a baptized follower of Jesus living in a world that hates Jesus. The devil desperately wants to drag you into a life of unrepentant sin. Stay aware, and, in an ongoing way, as a humble disciple of Christ, be brutally honest about your status before God. Admit you are by nature sinful and unclean. Struggle against sin. Battle against sin in your thoughts…. before they become sins of word and deed. Do not let unrepentant sin creep into your life. Do not set up a lifestyle where you love sin more than you love God.

The temptations for the Israelites wandering in the desert are the same very real temptations today. In this land of abundance there is a great temptation to idolatry; to fear, love and trust money and possessions more than God. In this nation, sexual immorality is considered normal behavior and Christians are sorely tempted to follow the ways of the world and engage in intimacy outside the bonds of marriage. Testing God and grumbling against God is common and it is easy to fall into a life of complaint and discontent. We forget, 1 Timothy 6:6–7 (ESV) 6 …godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.”

The devil wants to keep you discontent and to ignore what God says and forget about His promises. And so you resist the devil. You gather together this morning to hear God’s promises once again. You know that God has promised to cover your sins with the robe of Jesus’ righteousness. You heard Jesus’ words to you again this morning, “I forgive you all your sins.” It is true and you can believe it. God takes sin so seriously that He sent His Son to die for you. While you were a sinner Christ died for you and rose for you. Jesus loves you, this you know, for the Bible tells you so.

In the second half of our Gospel lesson today Jesus tells a parable about a fig tree. Here we see Jesus’ long-suffering compassion on His people. The vineyard owner has a fig tree that is not producing fruit and orders the tree to be cut down so it does not use up the ground. The vinedresser protects the fruitless fig tree. Luke 13:8–9 (ESV) 8 …‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and put on manure. 9 Then if it should bear fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’ ”

Jesus is the vinedresser buying the fruitless tree another year. A little more time. A sinner gets a little more time to repent. Jesus will cultivate and fertilize the tree and give the tree every opportunity to bear fruit. Will there be fruit the next year? Will there be repentance before the final judgment?

Are you ready for the judgment day? Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand. Battle each day against the devil, the world and your own sinful desires. Do not make excuses for your sin, do not rationalize your sin, do not compare your sin against someone else. Repent. Repent means a change of heart. Repentance is making a U-turn. Turning away from sin and turning back to Jesus. Listen to Jesus, believe His promises and do what He says. Do not resist the Holy Spirit, but let the fruit of the Spirit abound, Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV) 22 … love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control…”

Jesus is God in flesh, begotten of the Father from eternity and born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus has given His life to save you. He loves you so much He suffered the humiliation and pain of death by crucifixion. He drank the cup of God’s wrath to free you from your sin. He lifts you up out of the muck and mire of your sin and washes you clean and says, “follow me.” Repent. Turn from sin and turn back to God. Turn from death and return to life with Jesus.

St. Paul encourages those in the church at Ephesus… Ephesians 4:22–24 (ESV) 22 … to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Today’s readings are a stern warning about the seriousness of sin. They are a call to continue to stay alert against the lies of the devil. To be vigilant and not allow the busyness of life and the deceitfulness of wealth to choke out the Word of God. To remain on guard against letting the desires of your own sinful nature become your guide, rather than God’s commands.

Do not give in to the devil’s seduction that your sin is too great for Jesus to forgive. The great deceiver wants you to despair; to give up hope and just sink into sin and celebrate it. But that is not who you are. Repent. You are a child of the most high God, adopted in the waters of Holy Baptism. You are grafted into the vine of Christ. You are ready to meet your maker. Abide in Christ. Amen.

Posted on March 16, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Mother Hen

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Lent 2 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
March 16, 2025
Jer. 26:8-15, Phil. 3:17-4:1, Luke 13:31-35

It is a normal day in the farm yard as chickens peck the ground and chicks run around like cute little yellow fuzz balls with legs. Just then a dark shadow slides across the ground. The rooster crows and the mother hen scurries around trying to corral her chicks. The shadow slides back and forth ominously. The soaring hawk has seen the chicks and is looking to make lunch of one of those cute, little, fuzz balls. Most of the chicks, sensing their mother’s distress and hearing her alarmed clucking, run to mom and nestle under her wings. Snuggled under her wings they are safe. Mother hen puts her body between her chicks and the hawk. Her body is a shield for the helpless little ones. One chick, however, does not seek shelter. One chick declares he is a brave little chick. He isn’t afraid of some shadow on the ground. He will be just fine on his own. He is good enough, he is smart enough and he is strong enough all by himself. The chick thinks he knows what he is doing, but he looks ridiculous — a helpless, fuzzy little chick strutting confidently around the yard unafraid of the circling hawk.

In a flash of feathers the hawk dives and grabs the chick in its talons and flies away to find a place to eat. All that is left of the brave little chick is a little fuzzy yellow down blowing around in the dirt. The chicks sheltered under their mother’s wings are safe, and as mother hen’s heart rate slows to normal the other chicks start to peak out from under their mother’s wings.

Jesus is on his way toward Jerusalem passing through the territory of Herod Antipas along the Jordan River just north of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus earlier foretold his death, Luke 9:22 (ESV) 22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” At Jesus’ transfiguration Moses and Elijah talk with Him about His departure which would happen in Jerusalem. Then Jesus set His face toward Jerusalem and is now on His way with His disciples teaching along the way and in the Synagogues on the Sabbath.

While He is teaching and journeying some Pharisees warn Jesus, Luke 13:31 (ESV) 31 … “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” We can’t be sure if the Pharisees were genuinely concerned for Jesus’ safety, or if they just wanted Him out of their territory, but Jesus responds defiantly, Luke 13:32 (ESV) 32 … “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.”

But Jesus is actually not planning to stay in the area so He continues, Luke 13:33 (ESV) 33 Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’

Jerusalem…Jesus turns His thoughts and His heart to Jerusalem which means, city of peace, Jeru – Shalom, but it is hardly that. Jesus laments, Luke 13:34 (ESV) 34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!” The stone pavement of Jerusalem is stained with the blood of prophets. Tradition holds that Isaiah was sawn in two in Jerusalem by King Manasseh. Zechariah was stoned to death in the temple court for criticizing King Jehoash. The prophet Uriah was killed by the sword of King Jehoiakim during the time of Jeremiah. And now Jesus — prophet, priest and king — is going to Jerusalem to die. It would be natural for Jesus to hate the people of Jerusalem for what they are going to do to Him, but His compassion shines through. Jesus wants to protect the people of Jerusalem. “…How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!”

I am not sure how frustration works with God in flesh, but it seems like it must be incredibly frustrating for Jesus. He is coming to the great city of Jerusalem to give Himself for the people, and the people will reject Him, arrest him, and cry out to crucify him. Jesus is ready to cover everyone with the robe of His forgiveness and righteousness to protect them from the evil one, but the people strut around like proud little chicks thinking they are good enough and strong enough and smart enough. They reject the protection Jesus offers because they think they don’t need a savior.

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! Jesus laments the rebellious disobedience of the Holy City, but He does not turn away. He continues on His way, Luke 13:33 (ESV) 33 …for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’

Despite the frustration, despite lamenting over Jerusalem, Jesus continues on His way to finish His course all the way to the cross and the tomb and the Sunday resurrection. Despite their proud strutting, Jesus does not give up on the people of Jerusalem… and Jesus does not give up on you.

How many times has Jesus lamented over your sin and rebelliousness? How many times have you strutted around like a proud little chick acting like you don’t need Jesus’ protection because you are good enough and strong enough and smart enough and you’re not afraid of the evil one? How many times has Jesus lamented over your sin and then continued to offer you His Body and Blood to forgive and cover all of your sins.

Despite opposition and rebellion, Jesus stays the course all the way to the cross. Jesus stretches His arms over you on the cross at Golgotha. He offers you protection under His wings. Psalm 91:1–6 (ESV) 1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty…. 4 He will cover you with his [feathers], and under his wings you will find refuge….”

You need refuge in Jesus. As a baptized child of God the devil is targeting you. Like a hawk seeking to snatch a helpless little chick, the devil prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Stay protected in Jesus. Jesus has ascended into heaven but He has not left you alone. The Church is the Body of Christ. The Church gives you shelter from the storms of life and from the evil one himself. Jesus gives you the Holy Spirit delivered to you in the water and word of Holy Baptism and in the truth of God’s Word. The Church delivers to you the truth of your forgiveness in Jesus. The Church pours out on you the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. United in the one Spirit, under the protection of the Body of Christ, you are safe for eternity.

Despite the temptation to strut around through life proudly and independently declaring you are good enough and strong enough and smart enough, you instead, each week, come here and humble yourself by kneeling before the Lord and confessing that you are not good enough, you are not strong enough, you are not smart enough. You give up the ridiculous strutting of a proud baby chick and you tuck yourself safely under the protective wing of your savior — who has given His all for you. Amen. –

Posted on March 2, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Listen to Jesus, Do What He Says

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Transfiguration 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
March 2, 2025
Deuteronomy 34:1-12, Hebrews 3:1-6, Luke 9:28-36

All four of my kids have worked at the same pizza place over the years with Caleb starting right after his 16th birthday in 2006 and Rebecca continuing to this day with just a brief pause during Covid. When each of them started working I gave them the same advice. “Show up on time, and do what they tell you to do.” Simple enough. Do what the boss tells you to do.

That is good advice for children with their parents. Kids, just listen to your parents and do what they tell you to do. Easy? Right? Why are you looking at each other like that? Listen and do. It shouldn’t be hard to just do what they say, the first time, without a fuss…and yet it is.

Jesus is having this same issue with his disciples and the crowds in the Gospel of Luke. At the end of the Sermon on the Plain Jesus asks, Luke 6:46 (ESV) 46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”

This is a good question that we can each ask ourselves on behalf of Jesus as we prepare to enter the season of Lent. “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”

Jesus continues, Luke 6:47–49 (ESV) 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.” If you hear Jesus’ words and do them…on Christ the solid rock you stand.

The first Sunday after Epiphany we remembered the Baptism of Our Lord. Jesus goes to John the Baptist down at the Jordan River. And it is an epic beginning to answering the questions, “Who is Jesus? And, “What has He come to do?” Luke 3:21–22 (ESV) 21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

Who is Jesus of Nazareth? He is the Son of God. Jesus shows this throughout His ministry. He goes to Nazareth and announces at the synagogue that He is fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy. He heals the sick and drives out demons. He gives the disciples He is calling a miraculous catch of fish. He cleanses lepers and heals people who are paralyzed. He heals a Roman centurion’s servant without even seeing him. He raises a young man from the dead in Nain. He heals great crowds of people. He feeds 5,000 plus with five loaves and two fish. He is doing things that only God could do. Jesus is God in flesh.

He teaches the people the parable of the sower and the seeds. Luke 8:14–15 (ESV) 14 And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. 15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

Jesus continues, Luke 8:18 (ESV) 18 Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”

Take care how you hear. What incredible advice from Jesus given during a time which was utterly quiet compared to now. There were no radios, no podcasts, no recorded music, no giant billboards, no television, no smart phones, no internet and still Jesus warns, “Take care how you hear.” Today there are so many voices vying for your attention and your time. It takes great intention to turn off all of the voices in order to listen to Jesus. Take care how you hear.

What would it be like to be in Jesus’ family? But who does Jesus say is His family? Luke 8:19–21 (ESV) 19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21 But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.” You who hear the word of God and do it are Jesus’ family.

Hear the word of God and do it. But just what does Jesus say? Jesus has some difficult sayings as we heard last week, Luke 6:27–28 (ESV) 27 “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”

After feeding the 5,000 Jesus has some heavy back and forth with the disciples. Peter declares that Jesus is the Christ of God and then Jesus tells the disciples, Luke 9:22 (ESV) 22 … “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”

And then…Luke 9:23–25 (ESV) 23 …[Jesus] said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?” These are difficult teachings. These are teachings that the disciples have trouble hearing. They are still worried about which of them is the greatest.

And then eight days later, Jesus takes Peter, James and John up on a high mountain and Jesus is transfigured before them becoming dazzling white, and Elijah and Moses appear with Jesus. A cloud overshadows them… Luke 9:35 (ESV) 35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”

Who is Jesus? And what did He come to do? Jesus is the Son of God. He is God in flesh. He is the fulfillment of prophecy. He is the perfect, final offering for the sin of the world. He will be sacrificed on the cross and rise again from the dead to conquer death. He is the Lord. He is King of everything. The Kingdom of heaven is near because Jesus is King.

Is Jesus God? Yes. Does He have authority? Yes. Should you listen to Him? Yes.

Listen to Jesus and do what He says to do. It is so simple and straightforward and yet so difficult.

It is certainly tempting to not listen to Jesus. It is tempting to reject Jesus’ lordship and be your own boss, and do things your way. It is so easy to be acting with God like a little child rebelling against his parents in a futile attempt to take control. Parents are not going to give up control, and yet children will throw temper tantrums trying to get their way. God is not going to give up being God because humans get grumpy. As the Lord teaches in Psalm 46:10 (ESV) 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. …”

Be still. Take time each day to unplug from the noise of the world and be in God’s Word and hear Jesus. Retreat from the cacophony of voices surrounding you, turn off the noise, and set apart some time to listen to Jesus. This is difficult. I know this is hard for me. It is hard for me to take quiet time alone to read and meditate upon God’s Word. There is a constant nagging to get finished and move on to the next thing. A constant temptation to check my phone, think about something else. There is always something else to do. I find myself being a Martha, running around doing things, instead of Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening to Him.

Carefully listening to Jesus really needs to be planned and deliberate. Take care how you hear. Set aside quiet time each day to pray and read and listen to God’s word. Learn again that Jesus has paid the price for your sin. Gather together here each week to listen to the Word of God read and preached and sung. Come to a Bible study to dig more deeply into scripture. Listen to Jesus.

Listen to Jesus. And if Jesus says something that you disagree with…know that Jesus is right. This is humbling and liberating. To know that God’s Word trumps your own ideas frees you from trying to mold and shape God to fit your ever-changing thoughts and ideas. It keeps you from being… James 1:6 (ESV) 6 …like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.” As a baptized follower of Jesus who struggles with sin and temptation, listen to Jesus because He has the words of eternal life.

To listen to Jesus and do what He says gives you freedom within the limits of God’s law. To live in the Kingdom of God under the reign of the Lord Jesus gives you blessed assurance that you belong to Jesus and you are God’s treasured possession. He has set you apart for eternal life with Him. Listening to Jesus and doing what He says is an act of worship acknowledging that Jesus is Lord and Savior.

To show up on time and do what they tell you to do is good advice for work. To hear Jesus’ words and do them is God’s command for His followers. As we come to the end of the Epiphany season we have answered the questions, “Who is Jesus?” He is the Son of God, Immanuel, God with us. “What did He come to do?” Jesus comes to be the perfect final sacrifice for your sin. Jesus is your Lord. Jesus is your Savior. He has forgiven you all your sins. Listen to Jesus. Amen.

Posted on February 23, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Life in the Overlap

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Epiphany 7 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
February 23, 2025
Genesis 45:3-15, 1 Corinthians 15:21-26, 30-42, Luke 6:27-38

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Venn diagrams can be an interesting way to analyze information. These items belong in one set. These items belong in another set. These are the characteristics that both groups share.

The whole human population can be broken down into two sets; sinners and perfect people. Who goes into the sinner category? Adam? Yes. Eve? Yes. All of their children and grandchildren? Me? You? Yes. Who goes into the Perfect category? Well, actually one of Adam and Eve’s great, great grandchildren. Jesus of Nazareth. He is in the perfect category. Two sets, one with all humanity minus one and the other set with Jesus.

But here is where it gets interesting. The two circles overlap. Many folks are only in the sinner category and Jesus is only in the Perfect category, but there are many people in the area of overlap. They are both sinners and perfect.

How does that work? These are sinners who believe in Jesus to whom Jesus has given His perfection and declared them to be holy. These people are both sinners and saints at the same time. You are in this overlap. As a baptized child of God, as a follower of Jesus, you are in the area of overlap. You are a sinner, but you have been declared to be holy and perfect and you are safe from the coming judgment on the Last Day.

The strange thing about being in this area of overlap is that you can become more aware of your sins than those who are in the sinner area alone. The more you learn about God’s law, the more sinful you realize that you are — knowing you sin in thought, word and deed. This makes you increasingly grateful for all that Jesus has done for you.

There is a danger in the area of overlap. The devil will try to convince you that you did something to earn your place in the overlap. He wants you to forget that you are a sinner who deserves condemnation and start to believe that you are good enough. He will tempt you to believe you are so much better than the sinners you are not in the overlap.

This is what Jesus is warning about in our Gospel reading today. When thinking about sin it is our natural tendency to think about other people’s sins rather than to look at our own, and to think their sin is so much worse than ours.

It is spiritually healthy to remember who you are in the overlap of saint and sinner. You are a sinner redeemed by Jesus. Beginning worship each week with the confession of sins keeps you grounded. Being a saint is not from you, but is purely a gift of God though the blood of Jesus.

Now, in the set of sinners who are not also in the overlap area of perfection there is a large subset of people who think they are good enough. These are those who think they are autonomous and just make up and adjust their own rules to live by. It is also those who follow false religions which teach that you can be good enough through your own actions. And it is those who trust in their good works rather than trusting in Jesus. Everyone in this subset of thinking they are good enough is mistaken. They have been misled. They are not good enough and are in danger from the coming judgment when Jesus returns.

No one in the set of sinners is good enough. Those in the overlap with perfection know that they are not good enough, but have been given the gift of forgiveness, holiness and perfection by the Lord Jesus, and they follow Jesus because He is the font and source of eternal life. Those in the overlap are marked with the blood of the Lamb which protects them now, and on the Day of Judgment.

You know you are in the overlap of saint and sinner. You know you are by nature sinful and unclean and you know you justly deserve God’s present and eternal punishment. You know that God has had great mercy and grace upon you and given you forgiveness and eternal life. You are safe from the coming judgment. You also know that those outside the overlap are in grave danger when the judgment comes.

There is a disaster looming and there is ready protection against the disaster. Picture for a moment a building full of people. You know there is a looming disaster which will destroy the building and everyone inside. You know there is safety on the other side of a doorway. How do to let people know about the doorway to safety? It is difficult when people do not sense the danger, they will think you are just acting crazy.

It can be like this in the world and worse. You know that everyone in the set of sinners deserves the judgment and condemnation of God. You know there is protection in the Kingdom of God, under the reign of Jesus, in the overlap of Saint and Sinner. You try to warn people of the pending disaster and have them come to safety. The problem is that so many are in the subset of those who think they are good enough.

You try to warn them, “Repent and believe Jesus died for you and rose to give you eternal life,” and too often the response is, “Whoa…what was that first word? Repent? Are you saying that I have something to repent of? Don’t you know your Bible? Luke 6:37 (ESV) 37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged…” It is a frustrating place to be for you. In love you want to warn of the impeding danger for all people in the set of sinners, including yourself, but they are hearing it as you being judgmental. And certainly there are those all about judgment and not about love and it is easy to fall into judgment and condemnation rather than compassion and patience and love. This is also what Jesus is warning about in the Gospel reading today. So, how can you make them understand the danger and see the path to safety?

A lot of that is the work of the Holy Spirit. The Lord wants all people to be saved but many resist the Holy Spirit and refuse to repent of their sins. So what do you do? Be the light. Many in the “think they are good enough” subset actually have doubts that they really are good enough. They are honest enough with themselves to be troubled. They are looking for something. So, take time to listen to people. Listen to their stories. Listen to their hurts. It is hard living outside the overlap of saint and sinner not knowing who you are or what you are supposed to do. Listen with the sympathy and empathy of a fellow sinner and invite them to come with you to this place where we admit the awful truth that we are sinners and we hear the amazing good news that Jesus forgives our sins.

Now, in the world you will encounter those who hate Jesus and hate you because of Jesus. Jesus teaches, Luke 6:27–28 (ESV) 27 “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”

This is a high and difficult calling. It is a call to not respond instinctually to insults and hurts, but to respond like Jesus.

Last week there was a hockey game with the U.S. against Canada. The Canadian fans booed the playing of the Star Spangled Banner and so when the hockey match began three American players started fights with the Canadians. “If you boo our national anthem we will make you pay — with our fists.” That is, I guess, the way of hockey. That is the way of the world. But that is not the way of Jesus.

We naturally want to be aggressive and decisive and demanding and vengeful, but that is not Jesus’ way. Jesus’ way is mercy and compassion. Jesus has great mercy and compassion on you. You deserve His present and eternal punishment, but He patiently gives you forgiveness — over and over and over. He never endorses or encourages sin, but He patiently loves you, forgives you and calls you to follow Him.

As you deal with those who are in the subset of thinking they are good enough, speak the truth in love. Don’t pretend that they are not in the set of sinners. Don’t pretend they really are good enough. But listen. Listen to their hurt. Walk with them in love and compassion. Be a beacon of hope. Be the light of the world. Let the love of Christ shine through you. And as we learn in…1 Peter 3:15 (ESV) 15 … in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect…”

When the time is right, gently tell them that the whole set of sinners faces judgment on the last day, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Let them know there is still time to take shelter in the grace of the Lord Jesus. Without endorsing sin, have compassion on those struggling with sin because you are a fellow sinner… struggling with sin… and Jesus has compassion on you. Be patient with those caught up in sin because Jesus is patient with you. Offer Jesus’ grace and mercy to others even though they don’t deserve it because Jesus gives grace and mercy to you even though you don’t deserve it. Judge not because you are not the judge. Condemn not because that is not given to you to do, but share that Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life and no one comes to the Father except through Him.

Love others with the reckless love of Jesus. This is radically countercultural, so rebel against culture. Love like Jesus. Love others like Jesus loves you. Amen.

Posted on February 2, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Love is a Burden

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Epiphany 4 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
February 2, 2025
Jer. 1:4-10, 1 Cor. 12:31b – 13:13, Luke 4:31-44

It feels like we just got the Christmas decorations down and packed away and wherever you go there are heart decorations. February is a month of generally dreary weather and a relatively obscure holiday right in the middle… on February 14. Valentine’s Day celebrates the sweetness of love. It is a day to give flowers and candy and sweet little notes. Kids in school exchange valentines with goofy messages. And there are those relatively tasteless little candy hearts with messages like, “be mine, hug me, you’re sweet, cutie pie,” and the like. It is a sweet little celebration of love in the middle of the dreary month of February.

Valentine’s Day is all about the sweetness of love. And today we get our epistle reading from 1 Corinthians 13; the love chapter. At first glance we can think that this chapter is another teaching about the sweetness of love. This is often chosen to be read at weddings because weddings are all about love. But what is this love that we talk about. What is love? People will say, I am, “in love.” People say, “I love cheeseburgers.” People say, “I love my mom, I love my kids, I love my spouse.” What is love? What does it mean to love someone?

There is romantic love. Google’s AI definition is not bad. “Romantic love” refers to a deep, passionate form of love characterized by intense emotions, physical attraction, a desire for intimacy, and a longing to be with a specific person, often associated with the pursuit of a long-term relationship and mate selection; it involves a combination of idealization and bonding with another individual.”

I worry that when we use the word “love” we too often are thinking only of romantic love. Romantic love is wonderful and powerful, but the love that you are called to as a follower of Jesus is so much more wonderful and powerful.

Even in marriage, romantic love is only one aspect of marital love. During the wedding ceremony the bride and groom pledge to take the other and, “to have and to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish till death us do part.” There is so much more to marriage than romantic love, or the sentimental sweetness of candy hearts.

While it is often chosen for weddings, 1 Corinthians 13 is not about married love in particular. It is about the love you are to have for one another. Love in the body of believers is not about romantic love at all, but about a serving, selfless love. It is about loving others, even those you do not like.

The church in Corinth is troubled by division and sin and Paul is writing to implore them to be true followers of Jesus and to understand what is most important. What is most important for a church? Is it that the pastors are great orators; preaching prophetic sermons? Is it that the people can speak in many different languages of men and angels? Is it that the pastors and teachers are super knowledgeable and understanding? Is it that people have incredibly strong faith? Is it that the people give generously or are willing to die for the faith? All of these things are good and important, but what is the most important thing?

1 Corinthians 13:1–3 (ESV) 1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.”

Love is more important to the church than all of those other things. Love comes from God. John 3:16 (ESV) 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” God loves you. You are called to love one another. The five word summary of all the Ten Commandments is, “Love God, love your neighbor.”

Love all people, and particularly love those around you. Of course that is the difficulty. C.S. Lewis once said, “It is easier to be enthusiastic about Humanity with a capital ‘H’ than it is to love individual men and women, especially those who are uninteresting, exasperating, depraved, or otherwise unattractive. Loving everybody in general may be an excuse for loving nobody in particular.” Wow. This is truly convicting. When you hear, “love your neighbor,” you can default to, “I love all people.” But what about that one person? The one annoying, rude, frustrating, problem person that you have to deal with? The one who is constantly pushing your buttons and making you angry? The one you think about all the time? That incredibly frustrating person for whom Jesus died? Do you love him? Do you pray for her?

What is love? St. Paul explains this in our reading today and it is an incredibly blunt, condemning teaching. Sometimes people will claim that the Bible is just an old book, 2,000 years out of date and does not have anything to say to us today. They are so wrong. Paul’s insights here into our natural inclinations are astounding.

1 Corinthians 13:4–6 (ESV) 4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.”

Valentine’s Day love is all about the sweetness of love. Paul teaches us about selfless, serving love. It sounds terrible, but instead of the sweetness of love, here Paul teaches about the burden of love.

There is a great quote from Dietrich Bonhoeffer in his book, “Life Together.” “The brother is a burden to the Christian, precisely because he is a Christian. For the pagan the other person never becomes a burden at all. He simply sidesteps every burden that others may impose upon him.”

“The Christian, however, must bear the burden of a brother. He must suffer and endure the brother. It is only when he is a burden that another person is really a brother and not merely an object to be manipulated. The burden of men was so heavy for God Himself that He had to endure the Cross. God verily bore the burden of men in the body of Jesus Christ. But He bore them as a mother carries her child, as a shepherd enfolds the lost lamb that has been found. God took men upon Himself and they weighted Him to the ground, but God remained with them and they with God.”

Love is a burden, but what a wonderful burden. Jesus loves you, you love others and they love you. In marriage, both partners are called to love selflessly. In pre-marriage preparation I teach that if each person in a marriage is most concerned about the other person’s needs and desires then both will be fulfilled and find joy in the marriage. If either partner is most concerned about themselves it brings great trouble. As in marriage, this is also true for the gathering of the followers of Jesus. In the Church we are called to love others selflessly.

Love is patient. Love is patient even when the other person has once again gotten on your last nerve and does not deserve patience. Love is kind even when you want to settle the score. Love does not envy others’ abilities, or appearance, or possessions. Love does not boast about itself to others. Love does not one-up the other when they tell a story. Love is not arrogant or rude. Love humbly considers the needs of others and is not pushy or careless with others and their feelings.

Love does not insist on its own way. Ouch!! Why is St. Paul picking on me? What if my way is the best way? It doesn’t matter. In our life together as redeemed children of God we work together in love and seek to avoid stepping on people’s toes, we do not demand to do it my way. Life together in love can be messy and inefficient. Love is not irritable or resentful. It is so easy to default to living an irritated life being surrounded by others and their foolishness. It is natural to resent others’ presence. Love anyway. Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing. Love does not celebrate unrighteousness or delight in hearing about evil or perversion.

Love. You are called to love like Jesus. You are to love like Jesus not in order to earn forgiveness. You are to love like Jesus because you are already forgiven. You are loved by God through your Savior Jesus. You live in the love of Jesus and strive to love like Jesus.

You are loved by Jesus, but it is hard to feel the love of Jesus. Jesus can feel very far away. His love can seem cold and distant. You know the truth. “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so,” but you see in a mirror dimly and it is a struggle to feel Jesus’ love. It is a struggle to love like Jesus.

Your love for others flows from Jesus’ love for you even though you cannot clearly see Jesus’ love. Jesus’ love is an abundant, overflowing love that you are called to imitate. Love bears without limits, believes without limits, hopes without limits, endures without limits. This is an amazing love. This is Jesus love for you, and… 1 Corinthians 13:8 (ESV) 8 Love never ends…” Jesus’ love never ends. The things of this world will go away, but Jesus’ love is for eternity. “…As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.” Love never ends.

1 Corinthians 13:12 (ESV) 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.”

The day is coming when Jesus will return and take those living up into heaven and raise the dead and then you will live forever face to face with Jesus. Then you will know Jesus’ love fully, the love He fully has for you right now.

How frustrating that here in the love chapter you find condemning law, but you also find great hope because you learn the kind of love that Christ has for you, even while you struggle to love like him.

So, once again broken by God’s law, struggling to love like Jesus, repent of being loveless and selfish and come to the Lord ’s Table to receive His body and blood under the bread and wine, not directly seeing Jesus face-to-face, but looking into a mirror dimly. Come as sinners, unable to love like Christ loves. And in the Holy meal you are loved once again by the Lord Jesus. Leaving here go and love like Jesus. Love the one you don’t like. For…1 Corinthians 13:13 (ESV) 13 … now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” Amen.

Posted on January 26, 2025 by pastorkevinjud

Familiarity Breeds Contempt

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Epiphany 3 2025
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
January 26, 2025
Nehemiah 8:1–3, 5–6, 8–10, 1 Corinthians 12:12–31a, Luke 4:16–30

The most monumental occurrence in all the history of the world is happening, but it is happening so quietly at first and then grows with bursts of excitement followed by long periods of silence. An angel appears to a young woman in Nazareth to let her know that she would be the mother of the Son of God. Joseph is told by an angel in a dream. Unborn John the Baptist and his mother Elizabeth rejoice at Jesus’ presence when Mary comes to visit. It is all very quiet. But then on the night of Jesus’ birth the big event is announced by an angel along with an army of angels to shepherds near Bethlehem. The shepherds spread the Good News. At the Temple, Simeon and Anna recognize the newborn Christ and spread the word. The Magi from the East follow a star to the one born King of the Jews. At twelve years old Jesus is back at the Temple and you wonder if any of the teachers have an inkling that this boy is the Christ. And then 18 years of quiet until Jesus heads down to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. Afterwards… Luke 3:21–22 (ESV) 21 … the heavens were opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” The witnesses must be astonished and tell everyone what they saw. The people of Capernaum see Jesus drive out demons and perform miracles and the news of Jesus and what He is teaching and doing spreads all around Galilee.

And then Jesus returns to His hometown of Nazareth, a small village 30 miles west of Capernaum. The people of Nazareth have heard about all what their home town boy is doing in Capernaum and the surrounding areas. They have heard of the teachings and the driving out of demons and the healing of the sick and even turning water into wine. They have wondered when will Jesus come home to visit His family so they can see Him face to face and watch Him do some miracles and other amazing things? And now He is here. Jesus is here…in Nazareth…on the Sabbath…at the synagogue. He stands up and slowly walks to the center of the synagogue to read and is handed a scroll from the prophet Isaiah. A murmur is heard from those seated on the three levels of stone benches surrounding the central floor. Jesus sets the scroll on the reading platform and rolls through it until He comes to this passage.

Luke 4:18–19 (ESV) 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

What does this mean? Why did He read that section? Is that all? Jesus rolls up the scroll and hands it to the attendant and sits down. All eyes are on him. What will He do next? Luke 4:21 (ESV) 21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”

Jesus is saying. Luke 4:18–19 (ESV) 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Jesus announces that He is the one Isaiah is talking about. He declares in His hometown synagogue that He is the Holy One of God, the Christ, the Messiah. He has been doing amazing things in Capernaum and the surrounding area. He has been driving out demons and healing the sick and infirm. Crazy things happened when He was baptized in the Jordan. They have heard all that Jesus has done and now they just heard Jesus declare He is the fulfillment of prophecy. This is incredible. This is an historic moment. This is amazing. But hold on. Hang on just one minute here. We know this guy. How is it that this guy is declaring Himself to be the Messiah?

Jesus knows what they want. They do not want to take Jesus’ word that He is the Messiah; they want Him to prove it; to do something miraculous right here. The people of Nazareth have known Jesus His whole life and now He takes a trip down to the Jordan to get baptized and comes back claiming to be the Messiah. Who does this guy think He is? It is said that familiarity breeds contempt. The people of Nazareth think they know everything about Jesus, but they are missing the most important thing. And so, when Jesus declares He is the anointed one, they want Jesus to give them a show.

There is a danger of becoming so familiar with Jesus that you forget the most important thing. Jesus’ name gets used in so many ways. People use it as an expletive to replace foul language. His name is tossed around as if it had no value or power. Politicians and celebrities will invoke Jesus to try to bolster their positions on various political and social issues, but rarely, if ever, do they talk about who Jesus is and what has He come to do. They use Jesus but lose that Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross to pay for the sins of the world. They use Jesus for their own purposes, but forget that Jesus came to save sinners like themselves. Many people claim to be Christians, followers of Jesus, but live like unbelievers. They view God’s commands as mild suggestions at best. People reduce Jesus and become so familiar with their reduced Jesus that they get confused and forget who Jesus is and what He has done. In our society we have a therapeutic Jesus, a life coach Jesus, a political Jesus, a social justice Jesus and so many others. So many ways that Jesus is reduced to fit people’s desires. The people of Nazareth desire for Jesus to do a show for them to prove what He is saying, but that is not how Jesus operates. They get angry and try to kill Jesus and then they get their miracle as Jesus just walks away.

With Jesus coming in the flesh as a baby in Bethlehem it can be easy to forget that Jesus is Lord. Jesus looks like a regular guy and it can be hard to remember He is God in flesh. He is the savior from sin. You have heard all that Jesus has done. That he died and rose from the dead. You know Jesus is God in flesh, but there is a great temptation to want Jesus to be a manageable Jesus; a Jesus you can control. Not Jesus, Lord of the universe, but my Jesus, my assistant, my helper, who does what I tell Him to do. The temptation is to want a Jesus who is all about helping you to be successful in life; a Jesus who is an accessory rather than Jesus, Lord of your life.

There is a similar danger with the Word of God. When Jesus reads the scroll in the synagogue in Nazareth there is likely one copy of the scriptures in town. Scrolls were hand copied and cost as much as a house. That was the case until Gutenberg invented the movable type printing press around 1454. Even then a Gutenberg Bible cost around three years’ wages so normal folks could never afford it. So, just like the people of Nazareth, until fairly recently with the industrial revolution and lower printing costs, coming to weekly worship to hear the Bible read was your only way to learn the Word of God. The Bible at Church was precious; it was the only one in town.

Over the years printing technology has evolved and now Bibles are printed in abundance. You can purchase on at the dollar store. What used to cost three years wages can now be had for less than 10 minutes wages. You can download a Bible app on your phone for free. Bibles are plentiful. There is such an abundance that you can start to forget how precious the Word of God is. There is a danger that with Holy Scripture being so abundant we take it for granted and forget its value and power. Just like with Jesus. We can start to think we know all about Jesus and forget His power and value. We can forget the reason Jesus came to earth.

At Jesus’ baptism the Holy Spirit descended upon him and the voice of God the Father said, Luke 3:22 (ESV) 22 … “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” The Spirit of the Lord is upon Jesus. He is the anointed one to proclaim good news to the poor. Jesus is the Messiah come to set the people free from bondage to sin, death and the devil. As He travelled, Jesus would often free people in physical bondage to sickness and demon possession. This was amazing and miraculous work by Jesus, but this is not the main reason Jesus came. His physical healings point us to Him freeing all people from the spiritual bondage to sin and death that has bound people since Adam and Eve fell. Through His sacrificial death and His conquering resurrection, Jesus frees the whole creation.

Jesus is God in flesh, God with us who has come to be the sacrifice for the sins of the world. He is the Lord Almighty. He is Prince of Peace. He is the King of Kings. He is Immanuel, God with us. Stay on guard against letting being God with us make him so familiar that you forget He is God with us and reduce Jesus to your helper instead of your savior.

That is what makes weekly worship so powerful. Here you remember what Jesus has done for you. Here, as you gather in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, you remember that you are a child of God adopted in baptism and set apart from the multitude of unbelievers. Gathered together, you hear God’s Word of forgiveness and love. Here you receive the Body and Blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. Here you remember the power and value of God’s Word, the power and value of His sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion, and most of all the power and value and Lordship of His Son, your Savior, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus is Lord and Savior. He is almighty God who has come to save you. Amen.

Posted on December 8, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

God’s Bulldozer

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Advent 2 2024
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
December 8, 2024
Malachi 3:1-7b, Philippians 1:2-11, Luke 3:1-20

John the Baptist is sent by God on a mission of earth moving; a mission of roadbuilding. Fulfilling the words of Isaiah the prophet John is… Luke 3:4–6 (ESV) 4 …“The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, 6 and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’ ”

John is sent by God to fill valleys and level mountains. John is God’s earthmover…God’s bulldozer. His job is to prepare the way of the Lord. John is God’s bulldozer.

No, it may just be my inner six year old boy talking, but bulldozers are pretty cool. I love to watch the bulldozers on the gold mining shows. Bulldozers are incredibly powerful. A small Caterpillar D1 dozer weighs 9 tons and costs over $200,000. It is 80 horsepower and can push about 2 tons of dirt at a time. The Cat D11 dozer is a behemoth 850 horsepower, 114 tons and costs over $2 million. It can push 45 tons of dirt with a blade 20 feet wide and 7 feet high. I enjoy watching the big dozers moving tons of earth to get down to the gravel pay layer where the miners hope to find gold.

Sometimes they get down a ways in the overburden and find a rock hard layer of permafrost. The blade of even the biggest dozer cannot penetrate this layer so the miners deploy a ripper, a curved, sharp-tipped arm that extends down from the back of the dozer to rip through the permafrost and expose it to the sunlight so it can thaw.

John the Baptist is charged with earth moving, but John does not have a bulldozer. Caterpillar won’t make their first bulldozer until 1945. So, what kind of bulldozer is John? John’s blade and his ripper are the Word of God. With God’s Word John pushes people to turn from their sin and rips into their belief that they can save themselves by strict obedience to the Pharisees’ many additional commandments. John pushes and rips and exhorts folks to return to the Lord, their God. The Pharisees instituted an extensive legal code in order to avoid God’s judgment, but they lost sight of God, and His mercy, and His promised Messiah. John proclaims a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He calls people to turn from sin and self-righteousness and believe in the coming Messiah.

And like a bulldozer, John is not subtle as he pushes and rips with the Word of God. Luke 3:7–9 (ESV) 7 He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 9 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” John is clearing the way for Jesus and ripping deep into the false securities of the people.

Different people react differently to his words of warning. Many hear John’s words and repent. They turn from their sin and receive John’s baptism of repentance in the Jordan River in order to be prepared for Messiah’s arrival. They ask John “What then shall we do?” John tells them to be generous with those in need and do what you have been given to do with honesty and integrity.

Some are just curious. They come out to see this crazy wilderness prophet and investigate what all the fuss is about, but they are not interested in John’s message. They resist repentance, and instead trust in their ancestry and their own works. They are the children of Abraham and they have everything under control. They do not need a coming Messiah.

Bulldozer John speaks the blunt truth to all, including those in charge. Herodias, Herod Philip’s wife who is living with her husband’s brother, Herod Antipas, hears John’s words of warning and is greatly offended. Who is this wilderness madman to tell me who I should be sleeping with? Herodias will demand that John be arrested and thrown into prison and Herod Antipas will comply.

John is in the wilderness preparing the way of the Lord. He is spiritually filling valleys and lowering mountains and straightening curves. John calls on the people to turn from their sin and believe that the promised Messiah is near. The children of Israel entered the Promised Land through the Jordan after the exodus wilderness wanderings. In the same way, the children of Israel who repent pass through the waters of the Jordan in baptism and return to the Promised Land knowing the Messiah is near.

God’s law is still proclaimed today. John’s message to repent is still being preached. When the world hears God’s Word of law warning them to turn from sin and return to the Lord their God, how is it received? When you, a follower of Jesus, hear God’s word of warning to repent…how do you respond?

Many hear God’s law and get angry and reject God’s call. Martin Luther addresses these people in his Large Catechism writings about the First Commandment. “They utterly disregard whether God is angry at them or smiles on them. They dare to withstand His wrath, yet they shall not succeed. Before they are aware of it, they shall be wrecked, with all in which they trusted. All others have perished like this who have thought themselves more secure or powerful.

Such hard heads imagine that God overlooks and allows them to rest in security, or that He is entirely ignorant or cares nothing about such matters. Therefore, God must deal a smashing blow and punish them, so that He cannot forget their sin unto their children’s children. In that way, everyone may take note and see that this is no joke to Him. These are the people He means when He ways, “those who hate Me” [Exodus 20:5], i.e., those who persist in their defiance and pride. Whatever is preached or said to them, they will not listen. When they are rebuked, in order that they may learn to know themselves and make amends before the punishment begins, they become mad and foolish. They rightly deserve wrath…”[1]

In Old Testament times…at the time of John the Baptist…at Martin Luther’s time…and still today… there are so many who do not listen to God. They have turned away from God and have become, “people with brute hearts who think that it makes no great difference how they live.” [2]

God’s law preached by John the Baptist or by preachers today is a call to repent; to have a change of heart; to turn away from sin and return to God – to know you need a Savior because you cannot save yourself.

Hearing God’s law I believe there is a danger that you can sometimes feel like you have God’s law under control and most of what He is concerned about does not apply so much to you. That God’s law is mostly about those other people, the ones proud of their sin; that God’s law is aimed at those who are proud of engaging in ongoing, open sexual immorality, or theft, or violence. And God’s law certainly is targeting those people to turn from sin and return to the Lord. But God’s law is also targeting you and your own struggles with secret temptations of thoughts and words and deeds. But sin is not just sexual sin or stealing or violence.

This is where God’s law rips deep into the permafrost of your heart. Reading the list of the works of the flesh in Galatians 5 you see that sexual sins are listed, but a much greater emphasis is put on sins of division and anger and strife.

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 plowing and ripping of God’s law in your life hurts. Valleys are filled. Mountains are lowered. Curves are straightened. As a baptized child of God, let the ripper arm of God’s law pull up the permafrost of stubborn sin in your life and expose it to the light of Christ’s forgiveness and love.

There are four warnings of sexual sins, two for having other Gods, one for drunkenness, and eight examples of infighting and divisions. This is a reminder that it is far too easy to fall into the sin of division and discord. This happens in families, at work, at school, in the community and in God’s family here at Immanuel. Anger and rivalries and such are the devil’s work getting you to proudly believe that you are right and they are wrong. The devil wants you to get annoyed and angry and judgmental at your fellow believers in Christ so he can use that crack of annoyance to drive in a wedge of division and tear apart God’s Church. Be on guard against the devil’s temptations of anger and division.

God’s law is for you. As a follower of Jesus, you feel the bulldozer of God’s law pushing away daily sin and ripping deep into the longstanding hardness of your heart and it is painful. It is tempting to try to justify your thoughts, words and deeds that you know are contrary to God’s will. It is tempting to reject God’s call and believe everything is just fine. It is tempting to ignore God’s law and bury your sin deeper and deeper. Anything but say those most difficult words. “I was wrong. I messed up. I sinned against God. It is my fault, my own fault, my own most grievous fault.”

The plowing and ripping of God’s law in your life hurts. Valleys are filled. Mountains are lowered. Curves are straightened. As a baptized child of God, let the ripper arm of God’s law pull up the permafrost of stubborn sin in your life and expose it to the light of Christ’s forgiveness and love.

John’s message is, “Repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Jesus is coming to reign, but His reign is not immediately a reign of judgment and punishment, but rather a reign of forgiveness and love — a reign of service; sacrificing Himself as the payment for all sin. John 3:17 (ESV) 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

Advent is a difficult season. Advent is a time of waiting. Advent is a penitential time when you look deeply and honestly at yourself and allow the Word of God to dig up your stubborn sins and have them melt away in the light of Christ’s love. It is a time to ponder, once again, your helplessness to save yourself and the great joy of knowing that, on the cross, Jesus has already forgiven your sin and freed you from the guilt and shame.

Advent means coming and coming means preparing. Jesus is coming back and you do not know when. To stay prepared you continue to hear the Word of God’s law which convicts you, and hear the word of God’s Gospel which sets you free in the blood of Jesus. Living in the light and love and forgiveness of Jesus you bear good fruit. Galatians 5:22–23 (ESV) 22 …the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

Despite the pain, let the bulldozer of God’s law do its work in you. You are God’s treasure and He loves you enough to refine you like gold into His most precious possession. You belong to the Lord Jesus. He is coming back to claim you. Stay ready. Amen.

[1] Concordia: The Lutheran Confessions—A readers edition of the Book of Concord – 2nd Edition, pg. 362

[2] Ibid, pg. 361

Posted on December 1, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

The Main Ingredient in your Advent Soup

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Advent 1 2024
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
December 1, 2024
Jeremiah 33:14–16, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13, Luke 19:28-40

Today is December 1. You are at the starting line of a very busy month. There are just so many things to get done before the 25th. If December was a pot of soup it would be overflowing onto the stovetop. So many ingredients get added to this December advent soup. So many different things get mixed together that there is a danger of losing the flavor of the main ingredient.

This is a busy time in the church and in life in general. Retailers try to make big money before December 25th so they try to start the Christmas season earlier and earlier each year to get people to buy more and more.

Christmas decorations seem to go up sooner each year. Now, just after Halloween, many folks begin the celebration of this season of lights by draping houses and bushes with hundreds…thousands of twinkling lights and yards are full of Christmas inflatables. Christmas trees are decorated and wreaths are hung. A Cincinnati Christian music radio station started to play Christmas music on Reformation Day. There is a tremendous wave of early Christmas cheer that is difficult to resist, but I do wonder if we are a little premature in our celebrations. Advent is, after all, a season of waiting…of anticipation.

A lot of this early celebrating is a fairly recent phenomenon. It was not that long ago that Christmas trees did not go up until Christmas Eve.

Now, retailers want to make more money so they start earlier and earlier, but I wonder if there is something else behind society’s desire to extend the Christmas season. I wonder if folks are trying to find meaning and joy in the lights and the decorations and presents and traditions and memories rather than finding joy and meaning in Jesus coming to be Immanuel; God with us. Is it possible that people have made Christmas celebrations so complex and extravagant that Christ gets obscured and forgotten? All of the busyness of Christmas preparations can be overwhelming as we skip over the anticipation of Advent and try to celebrate Christmas for the whole month of December.

For adults, December can seem like the shortest month of the year with all the preparations; cookies to bake, presents to buy, parties to attend, cards to write and on and on. The joyful anticipation can be tarnished by fatigue and guilt that their Christmas celebration won’t be just perfect.

For children, December can seem like the longest month as they await Christmas day and the presents. School days just drag on. Joyful anticipation of Jesus’ birth can get tainted by a case of the “I wants” and the “Gimmes”.

As we add so many ingredients to the mix, this season of Advent becomes a complex soup. So many things blended together; so many ingredients competing for your attention. This first Sunday in Advent I encourage you…keep Jesus as the main ingredient.

The word, Advent, means the coming or arrival of something awaited and momentous. Advent is a season of anticipation of the arrival of Jesus Christ. Advent isn’t easy. We are an impatient people and Advent is a season of waiting. Advent is a season of waiting and waiting is hard.

December can be so exhausting that by the time we get to the 25th, we are already tired of Christmas. This year, let us all set aside some time each day to rediscover the sense of Advent waiting and anticipation of the arrival of Jesus Christ. Let us keep Jesus as the main ingredient in our advent soup with thoughts of Jesus first arrival 2,000 years ago and looking forward to Jesus’ second coming. If you are able, gather each Wednesday at 6:15 PM for some homemade advent soup before our Evening Prayer service. Pick up an advent devotional booklet to read as a family each day. Maybe read the 24 chapters of the Gospel of Luke one per day in the days of Advent. Keep Jesus and His first arrival and His promise to return the focus of your advent.

During this time of year look forward to the celebration of Jesus, the son of God, breaking in on the world and coming in flesh as a baby born to Mary in Bethlehem. That baby is God in flesh, God with us; Immanuel. Look forward to the celebration of the incarnation; God becoming flesh and dwelling among us as the Lamb of God come to take away the sins of the world.

Also ponder Jesus coming again in glory on the last day; the judgment day. Look forward to the day when he will break through into our world in overwhelming glory and power and destroy evil and restore peace and righteousness.

Christmas images can seem sweet and heartwarming as you picture baby Jesus asleep on the hay, while Jesus’ return in glory and judgment can be more troubling. Jesus’ return comes with a sense of anxiety and fear. You struggle with sin, and for sinners, Jesus’ return is unsettling. “What if I’m not ready? What if I am caught in the midst of some sin?” As a poor, miserable sinner, it is hard to look forward to Jesus’ return. So, the season of Advent is also a penitential season; a time of the year, much like Lent, of self-examination when you sorrow over your sins and look for salvation in Jesus, the sacrificial Lamb, born in Bethlehem, the city of David.

The Christmas story can seem to be all sweet and wonderful, but Jesus’ first arrival as the baby in Bethlehem is actually full of hints of what is to come for Jesus. Jesus comes as the sacrifice for sin. The baby swaddled in a stone manger foreshadows a crucified Jesus wrapped in a shroud lying in a stone tomb. There is a gift of myrrh — a burial spice. There is Herod the Great trying to kill Jesus. Herod’s successor, Pilate, accomplishes the task. Jesus comes to be the once-for-all sacrifice for sins; your sin and mine. Advent is a time to reflect on our sin and heed John the Baptist’s call to, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

Advent indeed is a complex season. It is a mix of memories and decorations and sadness and generosity and joy and anticipation. As all the elements of the season mix together keep Jesus as the main ingredient.

During the reading of the lessons you may have wondered, “we are in Advent, why the Palm Sunday reading?” This is a traditional reading for the first Sunday in Advent. The events of Palm Sunday help us consider Jesus’ arrival. The folks in Jerusalem that day look forward to Jesus entering the city. They hear he is coming and they get ready. They gather and wait; they have been waiting a long time for the Messiah and he is almost here. They can see him coming down the Mount of Olives. The king is coming!

The people cry out, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in Heaven and glory.” From the Gospel of Matthew we know they also shouted, “Hosanna in the highest!”

The Lord Jesus is right there with them riding on His donkey and they cry out to him, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” The Lord is right there with them.

You sing the same words. You will sing them today in the Sanctus. “Blessed is He who cometh in the name of the Lord!” And why do you sing these Palm Sunday words? You sing them because Jesus is right here with you today in sacrament of Holy Communion. Jesus said, “This is my body, this is my blood.” He comes to you in these veiled forms to strengthen and preserve you until the time when he comes again. As you sing out with those lining the streets of Jerusalem you know Jesus is present with you today and you look forward to Jesus coming again in victory.

That Palm Sunday Jesus rides the donkey colt down the Mount of Olives. Forty-seven days later he will be back up on the Mount and ascend into heaven with his disciples watching. After He ascends, angels of the Lord appear and tell the disciples, Acts 1:11 (ESV) 11 … “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.”

Jesus will return. Not like he came the first time as a humble infant wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger. He will return. Not in humility riding a donkey of peace. He will return. Not veiled under bread and wine, water and the Word. He will return in full glory and he will conquer evil once and for all.

So now you wait. You wait for Christmas when you celebrate Jesus’ first coming, and you wait for Jesus to come again to restore all things. This advent season is a time of waiting. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Amen

Posted on November 24, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

Jesus is Coming Back. Stay Awake!

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Last Sunday of the Church Year
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
November 24, 2024
Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14, Jude 20-25, Mark 13:24-37

We have come to the end of another church year and Jesus still has not returned. Jesus is coming back…but when? It could be this afternoon and it may not be for thousands of years. Jesus promised to return, so, as a follower of Jesus, you wait. However, while waiting, many people get distracted trying to figure out when Jesus will return, but Jesus does not want you to guess when He will return. Mark 13:32 (ESV) 32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Jesus is coming back and there will be the judgement and Jesus wants you to be prepared when He arrives.

Mark 13:34–37 (ESV) 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

As you wait for Jesus to return you must stay awake. Not physically awake, but spiritually awake. You need your sleep and you need to stay on guard. Do what you have been given to do and stay ready for Jesus to come back. Live out your good Christian character.

The great basketball coach John Wooden once said: “Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are…the true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is watching.”

Do what you have been given to do even when no one is watching. Do the right thing every day and if you find yourself doing something you would not want to be doing when Jesus returns…stop doing it. Repent. Cut that sin out of your life. Confess that sin and receive forgiveness. This is an ongoing struggle. This process has to be repeated often, stop, repent, confess, be forgiven. Battling sin is frustrating, but in your frustration with your natural immorality, do not give up the fight.

Jesus returning on the Last Day is a troubling teaching. You know you should be doing what you are supposed to be doing. You know that you do not want to be engaged in open sin when Jesus returns. You also know that you are, by nature, sinful and unclean and your struggle with sin and temptation is real. Jesus gives a serious warning, Mark 13:37 (ESV) 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” Jesus returning for judgment is troubling because you know that on your own you will not be ready.

In our reading from Jude you get instructions on how to live in preparation for Jesus’ return. How do you take care of each other in this dangerous world full of people warring against the truth? Jude is a short book with only one chapter, so there are no chapter numbers. It is often an overlooked book, but Jude has much to say to us today. The book of Jude is an appeal to followers of Jesus to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. It is a stern warning against false teachers. Jude 4 (ESV) 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

Jude warns that God will punish sin. Jude shows how God punished those who turned away from him with three examples. Jude 5–7 (ESV) 5 Now I want to remind you, although you once fully knew it, that Jesus, who saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. 6 And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day— 7 just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.”

Jude exhorts to contend for the faith that was delivered to us from the apostles and do not give in to false teachers and Jude does not pull punches when describing false teachers. Jude 8 (ESV) 8 Yet in like manner these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones.” Jude 10 (ESV)10 But these people blaspheme all that they do not understand, and they are destroyed by all that they, like unreasoning animals, understand instinctively.”

What is truth? How do you know what is true? Do you, like a growing number of people, follow the ways of unreasoning animals and understand instinctively by following your feelings, or do you abide in the truth of God delivered to you in the words of Holy Scripture? Do you follow your feelings — or the Bible?

Jude 17–19 (ESV) 17 But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18 They said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” 19 It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.”

A very great danger that has lurked from the earliest days of the Christian Church is false teachers who want to abuse the grace of God to permit, and even promote, sexual sin and other sins. These minions of the evil one; these wolves in sheep’s clothing, want you to follow your feelings and be led onto the road to hell. Jude warns against giving in to these false teachers.

Jesus’ return for judgment is troublesome. God punishes sin and you are a sinner. Jesus is coming back for judgment and you are by nature sinful. How do you stay ready for Jesus’ return? Jude tells you how, he does not leave you in fear. Jude points you to the truth of scripture, that Jesus is the savior from sin; the one who paid the price for you out of love.

Jude 20–21 (ESV) 20 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, 21 keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.”

Build yourselves up in your most holy faith. As Jesus teaches in Matthew 7:24 (ESV) 24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Build yourself on the solid rock of Christ. Keep yourself in the love of God. As God the Father tells Peter, James and John at the transfiguration, Matthew 17:5 (ESV) 5 …“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” Listen to Jesus and do what He says.

Pray in the Holy Spirit. As a baptized child of God your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Bring your praise and concerns and desires and confessions and thanksgivings to the Lord. And when you do not know what to pray, the Holy Spirit will pray for you Romans 8:26 (ESV) 26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

Keep yourself in the love of God. Jesus loves you, this you know, for the Bible tells you so. John 3:16 (ESV) 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus the Lord. Come to worship. Hear your sins are forgiven. Hear God’s Word declaring His love and forgiveness. Receive the Body and Blood of Jesus. Keep yourself in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life.

Jesus is coming back. You are in Christ. You know that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Abide in Christ. Abide in His Word. And look out for each other on this journey toward the Last Day. Jude 22–23 (ESV) 22 And have mercy on those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.”

As brothers and sisters in Christ you are called to care for each other. Jude here speaks of three levels of caring for those who are in danger of going astray. There are those who are uncertain in their faith. They have doubts. They wonder, “Is forgiveness really true? How can God do that? Am I really saved?” To these we admonish them to trust the promises of Christ and put aside their doubts.

To those who have almost been led astray by false teachers we should snatch them like a burning stick of wood from the fire and get them away from the eager claws of the devil wanting to pull them down to hell.

To those who are on the verge of turning aside from the narrow path to heaven to go on the wide and easy path to damnation you offer loving and merciful assistance, but you do it in fear and humility lest the one offering help is pulled in by the temptation. Lutheran theologian Paul Kretzmann writes about dealing with others getting caught up in sin, “In our entire attitude there should not be the least indication of pride and presumption, but only a holy horror of sin, of the spotted garment of the flesh. And as for ourselves, it must be our constant effort to keep the garment of salvation, of the merit of Christ, with which God has clothed us, unspotted both by false doctrine and by carnal life…” When helping others caught up in sin you need a healthy fear of the attractiveness of sin and the power of temptation.

Jude ends his short letter with a wonderful conclusion pointing you back to the one who has the power to save. The one bringing mercy and forgiveness. The one who makes you holy. Jude 24–25 (ESV) 24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever.

Jesus is coming back and you don’t know when. In Christ you are ready. Stay awake. Amen.