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Sermons

Sermons from Zion's Pastors

Donkeys and Kings - The Donkey King

March 24, 2024 • Pastor Johnson • Matthew 21:1–9

As is often mentioned on Palm Sunday, Jesus is a king unlike any other king this world has known or ever will know. His entrance into Jerusalem highlights this very thing: A king riding on a donkey. This not only fulfills ancient biblical prophecy (Zechariah 9) but all the more highlights the stark reality of this king who is the King of kings (Revelation 19) yet doesn’t appear to be a king at all! Palm Sunday invites us to reflect and meditate on this King, a paradox of grandeur and humility, of disgrace and glory.

Jesus Hid Himself

March 17, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • Genesis 22:1–14, Psalm 43, Hebrews 9:11–15, John 8:46–59

Jesus Christ was judged by all, and entered even into the judgment of God the Father, so that God may judge us righteous and acceptable for His sake. Today, that message takes on sharp expression as the Church enters into the last two weeks of Lent, called Passiontide. Our focus on His sufferings for us intensifies, for He is no ordinary man! He is God Himself, immersing Himself into our sin and pain to deliver us into His mercy and life.

Leftover Fragments

March 10, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • Psalm 132:8–18, Galatians 4:21–31, John 6:1–15, Exodus 16:2–21

We have passed the halfway mark in Lent, and so how fitting that our Gospel speaks of a feast: the feast of the Bread of Life, our Lord Jesus Christ, who fed thousands with just a few loaves. In plenty or in need, God makes this feast available to us—it is as eternal as the Lord from whom it comes. But why this feast? What does it do? Why has He given it? To those questions our lessons lead us this day.

With Me

March 3, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • Luke 11:14–28, Exodus 8:16–24, Psalm 136:1–16, Ephesians 5:1–9

The reports of Jesus casting out demons can insult human reason. To think that mankind, who has gone to the moon and back, might be subject to such spiritual battle, and rendered helpless by unseen attackers! Yet the Holy Spirit has recorded these historical exorcisms for good purpose: they teach us who can really help, who is really the Strong One, Jesus Christ. He alone can deliver us from sin, death, and the devil, and graciously, He has taken up that very task on our behalf.

The Struggle is Real

February 25, 2024 • Pastor Johnson • Psalm 121, 1 Thessalonians 4:1–7, Matthew 15:21–28, Genesis 32:22–32

“Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and my servant shall be healed” (Matt. 8:8). Thus spoke a Centurion to Jesus. The Canaanite women echoed words similar to that of the Centurion: “...even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table” (Matt. 15:27). They both were Gentiles. They both interceded on behalf of others. They both went to Jesus. And both had their faith commended by Jesus. What can we learn from this desperation? What does teach us about the mercy of our God?

A Watershed in the Wilderness

February 18, 2024 • Pastor Johnson • 2 Corinthians 6:1–10, Matthew 4:1–11

The wilderness (Hebrew: mid-bar) was a frequent place of testing for God’s people, yet also a place of preparation for future glory. Israel wandered for 40 years in the wilderness before they could enter the Promised Land, and it was only by God’s grace they made it! Jesus was tempted by Satan for 40 days before His public ministry commenced. That very ministry signaled the end Satan and his grip on humanity, something that would be gloriously confirmed in Jesus’ resurrection.

Hidden for a Reason and a Season

February 11, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • 1 Samuel 16:1–13, Psalm 89:18–29, 1 Corinthians 13, Luke 18:31–43

Jesus told many stories, and He is the reality of them all. In today’s Gospel, that reality breaks forth as He reveals His true glory: His willingness to die for the world’s salvation. That glory opens the eyes of faith to a new vision of God’s grace. It also directs us to the goal of this coming Lent: a deeper trust in all that our Lord has done for our sake, so that the consolation of His mercy may strengthen our hearts and inspire our lives.

That’s Wasteful—Thank God!

February 4, 2024 • Pastor Johnson • 2 Corinthians 11:19—12:9, Luke 8:4–15, Isaiah 55:10–13, Psalm 84

 As wasteful as it seemed for Mary to anoint Jesus, preparing him for death and burial (John 12:3), so too does it seem wasteful for a farmer to cast seed here, there, and everywhere. Does he not know what he’s doing? Perhaps that’s one of the points of the parable in our reading for today. What to our eyes appears wasteful is to God a divine condescension. He scatters His Word here, there, and everywhere, knowing full well it may be “wasted” (though He is not the one wasting it!). May God so help us to treasure His Word, never wasting the life, the hope, and the joy provided in it.  

That’s Unfair—Thank God!

January 28, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • 1 Corinthians 9:24–27, 1 Corinthians 10:1–5, Matthew 20:1–16, Exodus 17:1–7, Psalm 95:1–9

Septuagesima, from the Latin for 70, marks about 70 days from Easter. By pointing ahead to that celebration, Septuagesima reminds us how all of our time flows from that great victory of Christ over death and carries us towards its fulfillment on the Last Day. We therefore take these next three weeks to prepare for Lent and Easter. Central to that preparation is remembering that all of God’s works come from His grace, His immense favor and kindness, and that grace is the focus of today’s Gospel reading.

The Veil Gets Torn

January 21, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • Matthew 17:1–9, Exodus 34:29–35, Psalm 2, 2 Peter 1:16–21

“He was bright as the lightning on the mountain and became more luminous than the sun, initiating us into the mystery of the future” (Gregory of Nazianzus, 329- 390 A.D.). So an ancient preacher described the transfiguration that we celebrate today, in which Jesus reveals more than the glory of God: He shows the future glory of mankind, when all who believe in Him are resurrected in the flesh to inherit a new creation. With this vision in mind, we prepare for the celebration of His suffering and death in the coming season of Lent.

Saving the Best for Last

January 14, 2024 • Pastor Johnson • Exodus 33:12–23, Psalm 67, Romans 12:6–16, John 2:1–11

In our Gospel lesson for today Jesus performs what Scripture calls His first “sign.” What is a “sign”? A sign is an act where Jesus manifests His glory as the only-begotten Son of God (John 3:16-18), and St. John’s Gospel includes seven of them. This first sign is quite remarkable: massive amounts of water transformed into massive amounts of wine. This, of course, will pale in comparison to Jesus, risen from the dead, transforming massive amounts of sin, indeed all of sin, into a massive heap of forgiveness, shared through the Church in Word and Sacrament.

Consider Your Calling

January 7, 2024 • Pastor Gjerde • Isaiah 42:1–7, Psalm 85, 1 Corinthians 1:26–31, Matthew 3:13–17

He appeared at Bethlehem, and His star appeared to the wise men in the east. Soon, He would make His glory known again at the Jordan River, where the heavens opened at His Baptism and God declared Him the Beloved Son. Still today, Jesus appears among us, revealed in Word and Sacrament, to share that good word of the Father with everyone: You are His beloved sons and daughters of God for Jesus’ sake. That Word is the light that scatters the darkness and brings health, life, and holiness to the world.

To Rise or Fall in Zion

December 31, 2023 • Pastor Johnson • Isaiah 11:1–5, Psalm 89:1–8, Galatians 4:1–7, Luke 2:33–40

Just as Jesus marks the line of division for history—B.C. (“Before Christ”) and A.D. (“Anno Domini” or “Year of our Lord”) — so too does He mark the line of division for salvation. Those found in Him will rise with Him by baptism (Romans 6:1-8) through faith in the only Name that saves (Acts 4:12). Those found outside of Christ and His body, the Church, will be shut out (Revelation 22:15), having fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4). But it’s not too late! The Day of Grace, having dawned in the birth of Christ, still is shining today, calling all people to His mercy.

He Took, He Broke, He Gave

December 24, 2023 • Pastor Gjerde • Exodus 40:34–38, Psalm 98, John 1:1–13, Exodus 40:17–21

Ever-Increasing

December 24, 2023 • Pastor Gjerde • Titus 2:11–14, Luke 2:15–20, Isaiah 9:2–7

This service, the Liturgy of the Shepherds, is a time to adore. Adoration is what the shepherds did when they ran to Bethlehem. They knelt before the King of heaven, now born as a humble, human servant on earth, and they adored the little guy. At this service of Christmas, we do the same, coming to Jesus as He comes to us in the Holy Supper, still in His humble humanity of body and blood, to receive Him with thanksgiving, adoration, and praise.

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