Shows
Sandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesJesus looked at him and loved him.Mark 10:17-22. God has looked at our broken lives and our miserable attempts at righteousness, even when we still are in the midst of our deception and he has loved us nonetheless.2024-10-1719 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesSpiritual Conversations Sermon Series: Week 5 -- Everyday Conversations(1 Peter 3:13-17). Even amid suffering, when we talk about Jesus in our everyday conversations, we do this with “gentleness and respect.” Learn more about the Spiritual Conversation Curve in a free course offered by Lutheran Hour Ministries called “Prepared to Respond” at lhm.org/curve2024-10-0619 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesSpiritual Conversations Sermon Series: Week 4 --Becoming Eager Conversationalists(Ephesians 6:10-20). Becoming more eager to share our faith is something that we all can work toward. Action step: To examine oneself, and work on a piece of Armor of God that we don’t have strapped on tight enough take the online course at lhm.org/learn called “Eager to Share”.2024-10-0317 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesSpiritual Conversations Sermon Series: Week 3 -- Beautiful Conversations (Isaiah 52:7-10)Sharing our faith is good, it has utility, and it is beautiful. But often we make assumptions about ourselves and others that get in the way of us faithfully sharing our faith with non-believers. Epistle reading: Romans 10:11-17 and Gospel Reading: Luke 4:14-30. This sermon begins and ends with the image of the Great West Window of Winchester Cathedral. You can do an Internet search of the image or click on the link: Wikimedia Commons, CC Licence Other resources for this sermon series: Lutheran Hour Ministries: www.LHM.org. The Spiritual Conversation Curve Card: https://www.lhm.or...2024-09-1917 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesSpiritual Conversations Sermon Series: Week 2 -- Why We Stopped Talking(Luke 22:54-62) Peter denied Jesus. Before we get too harsh in our thinking of Peter, how often do we find ourselves in similar situations. And through God’s Word, Jesus helps us overcome our fears. Epistle reading cited: 2 Timothy 4:1-5.2024-09-1016 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesSpiritual Conversations Sermon Series: Week 1 --How Will They Hear? (Romans 10:13-17). As we consider Paul’s words that people need to hear the story of salvation from God’s people – the Gospel – we need to deeply consider how we are currently doing this. Other readings: Acts 2:42-47 and Luke 24:44-53. Resources: Lutheran Hour Ministries: www.LHM.org. The Spiritual Conversation Curve Card: https://www.lhm.org/curve/ and the book, “The Reluctant Witness” is available at https://www.amazon.com/Reluctant-Witness-Discovering-Spiritual-Conversations/dp/0830845674. 2024-09-0921 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesNothing Apart from Christ.Ecclesiastes 1:1–14 and Mark 7:1-13. As we consider all that we do in this place, all that we desire for our school, our children, and our lives, we proclaim, “Jesus is the one thing needful!” Apart from Him, all is vanity.2024-08-2617 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWalk in the Way of Wisdom.Proverbs 9:1-10 and John 6:51-69. Christ has given us a new path to walk, unlike the ways of the world. 2024-08-2017 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesUnexpected Sabbaths1 Kings 19:1–8 . The Lord graciously sustains Elijah during his unexpected sabbath. We may tell God, “I’ve had enough,” but Jesus comes to give us more than enough. 2024-08-1321 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe is always near.Psalm 145:10-21. The Psalmist declares, “The Lord is near.” The new man whom God has raised up in Baptism will rejoice at the presence of God so near to us. This psalm connects to the Old Testament Reading (Ex 16:2–15), in which God miraculously provides the manna from heaven out of the generosity of his hand. It is the Lord God who provides for the needs of his people. It also connects to the Gospel reading John 6:22–35. Jesus refers to himself as “the bread of life” who has “come down from heaven” (Jn 6:35, 38).2024-08-0815 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe House Not Made with Hands(II Corinthians 4:13-5:1) The old building looks a little long in the tooth. I am passing away along with everything else. Mortality seems to cling to me heavily these days. Yet, God has made a promise and I turn my faith to things unseen, yet expected.2024-06-1016 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLord of the Sabbath – Lord of MeMark 2:23-28 (See also the Old Testament reading for the second Sunday after the Pentecost: Deuteronomy 5:12-15).“The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” God gave His people the Sabbath as a time of rest to remember the greatthings He has done for us. In receiving Word and Sacrament, we find true Sabbath rest—Jesus Christ.2024-06-0218 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLORD!Acts 2:14a, 22-36. Theme for Holy Trinity Sunday (May 26, 2024): The Father, by raising Jesus from the dead, has revealed Jesus of Nazareth to be the Son of God and the LORD of all and that this same Lord Jesus has poured out the life-giving Spirit on us.2024-05-2914 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLife in His Son, Life in UsI John 5:9-15. John wants to address that fearful person today who has doubts, “I feel like I am an imposter.” John’s answer is to believe the stronger testimony of God.2024-05-1315 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLiving as the Child of God I John 3:1-7Theme: God has called us His children. And so we are. Our own eyes are still of this world and we struggle to see it ourselves. But the one who believes/hopes in this, is being made like that (purifying self).2024-05-0819 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesPeace with joy and the wounds of Christ in the middleJohn 20:19-31 Theme: The world loves the idea of peace, but most of the solutions which it offers are really just a form of coping with problems. Jesus bestows peace upon his disciples, real peace. And in the middle of that peace are the wounds of Christ and holy joy. 2024-04-0817 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesOur Humble PriestHebrews 5:1-10Theme: Although the connection between God and humanity had been severed by sin, that connection is restored through Jesus, our humble priest.2024-03-2919 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod’s Workmanship Ephesians 2:1-10 (11-22)Theme: There are good works which are ours to do right now. We are God’s workmanship with a purpose. Jesus wants to do something good right now. That means the Christian community, this Christian community is living and walking in the light of Christ, a different operating principle than the divisiveness, factionalism, or tribalism which is dominating the world in which we live right now. 2024-03-1816 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Foolishness of GodI Corinthians 1:18-31Theme: God is only to be found in His Word made flesh, the one nailed to the cross. “How foolish! How impotent!”, all people, whatever their culture, think. But God’s children are determined to know nothing but Christ crucified.2024-03-0421 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesReconciled through His Death and Saved through His LifeRomans 5:1-11 Theme of the Day: Jesus, by losing all, gains all. That is imprinted upon our lives as well. Paul, in this reading, does a deep dive into just what that means. Sermon preached on February 25, 2024.2024-03-0421 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesTemptedJames 1:12-18 Theme: James says that God tempts no one. James is right.God may test my faith to show me what He has done, but he never leads me astray. The following readings are also referenced in the sermon:Old Testament: Genesis 22:1-18 and Gospel: Mark 1:9-15.2024-02-2018 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWe are Very Bold2 Corinthians 3:12-18; 4:1-6 Theme of the Day: What inspires us to be bold, showing the face of Christ to everyone?Other readings for Transfiguration Sunday: Old Testament Reading: Exodus 34:29-35; Holy Gospel: Mark 9:2-9. The Feast of Transfiguration brings the season of Epiphany to a close. Once again, a voice from heaven declares Jesus to be the Son of God, the beloved. Today we see him garbed in light, as he is even now, a brilliant figure whose glory is hard for Peter and the rest to behold. The light is part of this message, an impo...2024-02-1321 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAll Things to All PeopleI Corinthians 9:16-27Theme: If I am all things to all people, do I have any integrity left? Who or what am I? Paul’s integrity and ours is the Gospel itself. 2024-02-0622 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod Knows You 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 Theme of the Day: The one who loves is known by God. That is the knowledge that makes all the difference in the world.2024-02-0319 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesNot Yours to KeepI Corinthians 7:29-35 Theme of the Day: I am just so busy! So many things demand my attention. This list never ends. Now Paul wants to extricate me from my anxiety, but who will silence all these demands? God does.2024-01-2324 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesYou Are Not Your Own – You Have Been Bought at a PriceI Corinthians 6:12-20. Theme of the Day: Jesus shed real blood for your real body. Your body today is a means for you to glorify God. He has made it important and sacred by sending his Holy Spirit into it in your baptism.2024-01-1619 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesNew LifeThe Epistle reading and sermon text for the Baptism of Our Lord Sunday is Romans 6:1-11. The Gospel reading is Mark 1:4-11. Theme of the Day: Paul believes that sinners can change. We all have been baptized with Christ and that means the power of the Holy Spirit, the new life into which we have been raised, is truly ours. Considering baptism? Talk to a pastor. I recommend a Lutheran pastor serving in one of the nearly 6,000 LCMS churches in the United States of America. Go to https://locator.lcms.org/church and enter in your address to find...2024-01-0917 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLord Now Let Your Servant Depart in PeaceLuke 2:22-40Theme of the Day: Mary and Joseph bring two turtle doves because they were poor. Simeon is about to die. Anna was widowed for many years. Jesus came for them all. Our eyes have seen God’s salvation!2024-01-0117 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesJesus Stands Among ThemJohn 1:6-8, 19-28 Theme of the Day: John does not bring the Messiah nor do we bring Christ to the nations, but we point out the One who is right there. 2023-12-1817 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Patience of the LordSermon text: 2 Peter 3:8-14. Theme of the Day: Peter wants us to know just what a precious thing it is for us that God is patient and not coming today in wrath and power. The Lord is patient with you and me! How does that shape our lives? The texts for the second Sunday in Advent, December 10th are from Isaiah 40:1-11,Psalm 85, 2 Peter 3:8-14, Mark 1:1-8. 2023-12-1417 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Patience of the Lord Sermon text: 2 Peter 3:8-14. Theme of the Day: Peter wants us to know just what a precious thing it is for us that God is patient and not coming today in wrath and power. The Lord is patient with you and me! How does that shape our lives? The texts for the second Sunday in Advent, December 10th are from Isaiah 40:1-11,Psalm 85, 2 Peter 3:8-14, Mark 1:1-8. 2023-12-1422 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesEnriched in every way, in all speech and all knowledge1 Corinthians 1:3-9 Paul wants to bring the Corinthians and us from a language of poverty to one of wealth and plenty. We are enriched in knowledge and speech! Paul is eliciting the response from the Corinthians and from us the primary response which we associate with this season – repentance.2023-12-0522 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Parable of the Sheep and the GoatsMatthew 25:31–46Theme of the Day: Homeless Jesus is a bronze sculpture created in 2013 by Timothy Schmalz. Schmalz’s artwork lays the foundation for Christ’s parable about the sheep and the goats. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homeless_Jesus2023-11-2915 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Parable of the TalentsMatthew 25:14-30Theme of the Day: You Had One Job. That’s a website featuring people who had one job and didn’t do it. In today’s parable, Jesus tells us, “You had one job.” What would that be?2023-11-2317 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Parable of the Faithful ServantMatthew 24:45–52“Begin with the end in mind.” Stephen Covey said this. Jesus addresses this. We ask the Holy Spirit to help us live it out!2023-11-1517 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAn Angel Flying Directly Overhead with an Eternal GospelRevelation 14:6-7 Oct. 29th, 2023John sees this angel flying high – but who is he? It is true, in a dark time Martin Luther’s voice rang clear and true and called many to glorify God, fear Him, and worship Him who made all things. But it is an angel who proclaims this – and the word angel means messenger --someone who is sent. On this Reformation Day we are thinking about the mission of the Church as a whole.2023-10-3120 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesFor the Sake of My Chosen ServantIsaiah 45:1-7 October 22, 2023May the hearer, beset by forces beyond his/her control, trust that God works the events of this world for the blessing of His people!2023-10-3119 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI rejoice. Isaiah 25:6-9 October 15th, 2023Other readings for this Sunday: Psalm 23, Philippians 4:4-13 and Matthew 22:1-14. We confront what looks like incontrovertible truth in the death of loved ones and our own death. We see a world which fills us with sorrow and Satan wants us to believe that is the way it is and the way it will always be, that he has won. But it is not so. Jesus has risen, the sheet that covers us all is swallowed up in his Easter truth. On that day, every Sunday, we say that we have waited a...2023-10-1722 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWhat More Could He Do?Isaiah 5:1-7God has filled our lives with blessings but we are quick to say that this is mine and the fruit of my labor. We fight and squabble and drive some away. We do not trust God like the Israelites who went out every morning to gather manna in the wilderness. But God has one more card in his hand which He will play – He will send His Son.2023-10-1118 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAll Life is MineEzekiel 18:1-4, 25-32 Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML) Sunday and Pentecost 18. (The other text prominently cited in the sermon is the Epistle reading from Philippians 2:1-4, 14-18.) Life is not really mine. It is God’s. It has always been His or it is death. He is life, after all. What are the implications of God’s claim that “All life is mine”? God’s divine claim on our life means that He gets to define it (not me), he gives it purpose (I am not the center of this picture), and I am accountable to Him (not to m...2023-10-0221 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThoughts above my thoughts, ways above my waysIsaiah 55:6-9 and Matthew 20:1-16 September 24, 2023)Too often we let the economy and dynamics of the world enter our relationship with God. There is no free lunch out there, but here, God is gracious, a giver of free gifts to us. How can we simply rest in the grace of God?2023-09-2824 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAm I In the Place of God? Yes!Genesis 50:15-21 and Matthew 18:21-35September 17, 2023 We want to notice what it is that Joseph does today and has already done in Genesis. Who is it in my life that needs forgiveness? Should I forgive them? I can forgive them, but I can never forget! Forgiving others is hard, so we take our cue from Joseph who becomes an instrument of showing God’s grace. May the hearer forgive the people in his/her life who need forgiveness.2023-09-1821 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe WatchmanEzekiel 33:7-9 9/10/2023The Gospel reading is Matthew 18:1-20. Ezekiel is supposed to proclaim a warning: God’s judgment of sin is real. God continues to call “Watchmen” to proclaim the Law and Gospel to us and through us. This sermon wants to remember the purpose of the Law in this process. We have all too often jumped to the Gospel which then becomes no good news. Today, we sing “The Law of God Is Good and Wise” (LSB 579). How is this most certainly true? For reasons which defy understanding, God has made his appeal through us (II...2023-09-1317 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI AM With YouSeptember 3, 2023 Jeremiah 15:15-21Disappointment. Does our Christian expression even allow for disappointment in God? Or do we tell people that Christians never feel these things? Are we subtly and not-so-subtly telling them that these feelings are not Christian feelings? Jeremiah experiences rejection from the hearers of his day because of his faithful proclamation of God’s Word. He and God’s message gets rejected. In turn Jeremiah expresses his disappointment in God and God responds to his prophet and to us with his gracious word of promise. – I AM with you.2023-09-0618 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAssaulting the Gates of HellMatthew 16:13-20 August 27, 2023Gates are not offensive weapons. They are defensive positions. Jesus is not calling us to hunker down behind the walls of our church here, but he is sending us out on a seek and liberate mission. We are on the offensive here. May the Holy Spirit embolden and equip the hearer to assault the gates of hell and free, through the power of Christ’s Word, those whom our enemy had claimed. Pastor Jon concludes the sermon by meditating on the Christ Pantocrator Mosaic from Hagia Sophia. Here is a link to this...2023-08-3120 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesA Lesson LearnedMatthew 15:21-28 August 20, 2023Old Testament reading for Pentecost 12 is Isaiah 56:1, 6-8. The disciples had been wondering why they were all the way up in Tyre and Sidon. Jesus is about todemonstrate to them that he is calling people to faith from every tribe, and nation, and people (see Rev 5.) We can still learn more, and we are never done growing into the heart of Jesus. His heart is very large and it has room for everyone, even the folks we find difficult. But he is always teaching his church this lesson. He is here today teac...2023-08-2320 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod is in the Boat!Matthew 14:22-33 August 13thJesus tips his hand here by calming the storm and walking on the water. He is God. The disciples recognize that here. They bow down and worship. It is all one can do when in the presence of God. We might feel like the world, worship and life has become disenchanted but this reading helps us to see things anew in the light of the incarnate presence of God…and to act accordingly. May the Spirit of God inspire a holy awe in the hearer so that he/she can tremble before the presence of God and delight...2023-08-1521 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Table Is Set! We’re Invited. Who’s Inviting?Isaiah 55:1-5.Other readings: Psalm 136:1-9 (23-26); Romans 9:1-5 (6-13) and Matthew 14:13-21. Isaiah 55 is a celebration meal. The Lord’s servant has been victorious. It’s time to feast. The worship theme for this day focuses on food—and all that that connotes in God’s eternal provision. The Psalm is often prayed at dinner tables and is traditional also for Thanksgiving Day (see 136:25). And all are themed by the feeding of the five thousand in the Gospel (Mt 14:15–21). In the Old Testament text, we see how Jesus has set and invited us to a wonderful table of f...2023-08-0723 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesParadox Maintained – God’s All-Powerful and Resistible WordIsaiah 55:10-13 & Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23Pastor Jon’s message was originally preached on July 16, 2023 but is being released about the time that he will be attending the LCMS Church Convention this summer. It is also worthwhile noting, just for some context, that Pastor Jon worked in the cornfields for a couple of weeks prior to giving his July 16th message, helping out his father’s family business in southeast Nebraska. He saw firsthand how careful the farmers have to be in planting and harvesting a crop. This gave him some insight into the rather reckless love that the...2023-08-0118 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe is Our Rock – We Know No OtherThe text is Isaiah 44:6-8. Eighth Sunday after Pentecost (July 23, 2023). We know the rock that is God, but we first know Him in His incarnate self, as He has made Himself known to us: Jesus Christ, crucified for our sins and raised for our justification. May the Holy Spirit build a durable faith in the hearer which is able to withstand the assaults of the devil and this world. Pastor Jon is using an image based sermon structure. The image used is called “God’s Thumb” from the Movie, “Holes.” You can access the image referenced at https://holes.fandom.com...2023-07-2821 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesProclaiming our History, Proclaiming our Future in ChristThis sermon was preached by Pastor Lonnie (Jake) Jacobsen at the occasion of the 50th Anniversary for Faith Lutheran Church – A big thank you to the members of Faith Lutheran Church (Fawn Lake Rd and Highway 61 in Cherry County, NE) for hosting their 50th anniversary celebration, to all who join us on Sunday June 18th, to everyone who has supported Faith with their financial gifts, encouragement and prayers over the years, and to Pastor Jake and Penny Jacobsen who represented the LCMS NE District. All Glory to God alone!2023-06-2814 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAll the People a ProphetThe sermon text for the Day of Pentecost ( May 28th, 2023) is from Numbers 11:24-30. May the Holy Spirit of God move all people to speak God’s beautiful words of grace and hope!2023-06-1221 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! RichOn the Seventh Sunday of Easter (May 21st), the sermon is based on Acts 1:12-26. May the hearer be open to the risen Savior’s gifts to fulfill his mandate to be the agents of his love to our community.The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the initial chapters of Acts seems clear. Jesus is not absent but present, but if you want to s...2023-06-0721 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! FlexibleOn the Sixth Sunday of Easter (May 14th), the sermon is based on Acts 17:16-31. May the Holy Spirit teach us the things that matter and those that do not as we “canoe the mountains” of contemporary culture.The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the initial chapters of Acts seems clear. Jesus is not absent but present, but if you want to see Him, look to His pe...2023-05-2824 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! EqualOn the Fifth Sunday of Easter (May 7th), the sermon is based on Acts 6:1-9; 7:2a, 51-60. May the Holy Spirit give us to see our fellow human beings as Christ sees us – a redeemed and precious child of God! The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the initial chapters of Acts seems clear. Jesus is not absent but present, but if yo...2023-05-2318 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! GenerousOn the Fourth Sunday of Easter (April 30th), also known as Good Shepherd Sunday, the sermon is based on Acts 2:42-47. This is also Confirmation Day for two confirmands who publicly confessed their faith in their Good Shepherd. Others readings for this day include Psalm 23 and John 10: 1-10. May the Holy Spirit work in us the gifts which He brings through faith, particularly the life which is lived generously!The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too...2023-05-1616 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! TrueOn the Third Sunday of Easter (April 23rd), the sermon is based on Acts 2:14a, 36-41. The Gospel reading for this Sunday is Luke 24:13-35. May the Holy Spirit open the hearts, minds, and ears of the congregation and the hearer to delight in God’s call to them!The sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The point of the initial chapters of Acts seems clear. Jesus is not absent but...2023-05-0917 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI See Jesus! -- CourageousThe sermon series for the Sundays of Easter will be based on the readings in the Book of Acts, a text of great import which often gets too little attention from God’s people. The sermon series is called "I See Jesus!" The presumption here is that Jesus, risen from the dead, is inhabiting and working through His people today. He is not sitting idly on some heavenly throne listening to celestial top 40. The point of the initial chapters of Acts seems clear. Jesus is not absent but present, but if you want to see Him, look to His peo...2023-04-1717 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAgain!Happy Easter! Christ is risen! The Old Testament reading for Easter this year is Jeremiah 31:1-6. It provides rich insight into the joy of Easter and God's Again for His people. May the hearer rejoice in God’s great reversal – death is undone, sins are forgiven, and devils flee in terror! God has promised his Again to us.2023-04-1015 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesCross Purposes Philippians 2:5-11 Palm Sunday/Passion SundayPastor Jon focuses on the words of Paul in the Epistle reading to frame or introduce the massive and massively important account of Jesus’ passion and death. The homily on Philippians 2:5-11 is about 10 minutes in duration. After his homily, Pastor Jon keeps the recording going to let the hearer listen meditatively on a reading of the Gospel for Passion Sunday: Matthew 27:11-66. During this Holy Week, may the Spirit of God guide the hearer of this Gospel lesson to a faithful hearing of Christ’s great gift to us!2023-04-0429 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe puts His Spirit Within Us!This sermon is based on the Old Testament reading from Ezekiel 37 for the Fifth Sunday in Lent. Readings for the Fifth Sunday in Lent include the following: Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 130; Romans 8:1-11: John 11:1-53 Pastor Jon starts with a central image based on a painting by Edvard Munch entitled, "By the Death Bed." It would probably help to look at this painting prior to listening to the sermon and having it available to look at again at times during the sermon. Here are the details of the painting with its link for viewing online:Munch, Edvard, 1863-1944. At the Deathbed, fr...2023-03-2718 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod’s Unrestrained Goodness Isaiah 42:14-21 Lent 4AAll human hearts produce idols, that is, false-god substitutes for the one, true God. Idolatry preys on us by blinding us to the unrestrained goodness of God the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. We may think that God is absent. In our text from Isaiah 42:14-21, God makes us aware that He is active in our lives with his goodness (42:13-15). God shows his great goodness by leading the blind because the blind can’t lead themselves (vv. 16-17). Finally, God’s great goodness has taken our death and blindness to Himself, in His Servant Christ, our Lord and...2023-03-2020 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Lord is Among UsThe sermon entitled, "The Lord is Among Us," is based on Exodus 17:1-7, which is the Old Testament reading for the Third Sunday in Lent. The Gospel reading for Lent 3 is John 4:5-26. May the hearer confess and marvel at the presence of Christ!2023-03-1318 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesFather AbrahamThis sermon, based on the Old Testament reading (Genesis 12:1-9) for the Second Sunday in Lent, is called, “Father Abraham.” May the Spirit of God conform the hearer to the pattern of Abraham – the man of faith.! The Epistle reading is Romans 4:1-8, 13-17 and the Gospel reading is John 3:1-17 and both are referenced in the sermon. The sermon outline is a definition of faith and is provided here for your convenience:Faith is confidence in God ….A. Trusting His promisesB. And acting on His promises,C. Lookin...2023-03-0620 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Crushed Satan’s HeadThis sermon on Genesis 3:1-21 for the First Sunday in Lent will focus on that promise made to Eve and Adam that one day her descendent, a seed, would crush Satan’s head. The New Testament of course identifies that head-crusher: Jesus. May you, dear listener, engage in an earnest battle against sin and temptation since Christ has broken Satan’s final power over us all.2023-02-2818 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Fasting Which the Lord Requires Isaiah 58:3-9a -- Originally preached on the Fifth Sunday of Epiphany, February 5th, 2023 at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Hyannis, NE. Pastor Jon is back with the sermon podcast. As we consider this reading from Isaiah, may the Holy Spirit work lives of mercy, justice, and service in the hearer. 2023-02-2118 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesOvercoming Through God's WordJeremiah: Overcoming Through God’s Word (March 3): God’s Word is the compass for our hazardous journey called what? Life! What two letters are in the middle of the word “life”? IF! Life is one big IF! Without God’s Word we’re doomed. We turn to Jeremiah 1:1-5 for direction.Jeremiah: Overcoming Life’s SorrowsWhat do you do with your disappointments? Sorrow? Pain? Jeremiah becomes a God-given example of how to overcome. When you wonder where sorrow fits into your faith and belief that God is merciful, just, and kind...2022-03-1415 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings GloryHe Brings Glory– (February 27th) -- Luke 9:28-36 Jesus sets his face toward Jerusalem – Jesus leaves the glory of this sort for the glory of the cross. Here we get the steely resolve of Jesus to see this mission through. In this sort of an approach, the transfiguration would be a last moment of heavenly bliss for Jesus before undertakes his bitter suffering and death. Is it almost a temptation for him to stay on the mountain? During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of co...2022-03-1215 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings LoveHe Brings Love (February 20th, 2022) -- Luke 6:27-38 May the hearer, enabled by the Holy Spirit, to love his/her enemies and foes with the same Love which came down at Christmas, walked the shores of Galilee, died on a cross, and rose from the dead.During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Epiphany is when we get to unwrap it slowly, marveling at each facet of this gem. But this series is also looking ahead – tow...2022-03-0721 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings BlessingHe Brings Blessing – (February 13th) But how shall we preach this? Law and Gospel are the only way. The Law serves the Gospel. The woes are not final judgments, but the instrument by which God calls people to trust in Christ and in Christ alone. May the hearer be crushed by the reality of sin and restored by the reality of Christ. Other helpful readings: Jeremiah 17:5-8 and Psalm 1.During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Ep...2022-03-0219 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings PurposeHe Brings Purpose (February 6, 2022) Why am I here? What is your purpose? One of the gifts that Jesus brings is purpose. The miracle of the catch of fish and the call of Peter, first among the 12 disciples, is an occasion for the Holy Spirit to awaken or strengthen a sense of purpose in the hearer – God’s church is His net cast into the sea (Matt. 13:47).During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Epiphany is wh...2022-02-2324 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings Rescue from our FoeHave we displaced Jesus from his lordly place of being our rescuer and deliverer from all afflictions, the world, our own sin, and the Devil’s schemes? In our meditation on the Gospel reading, Luke 4:31-44, may the Spirit of God expose the vulnerability of the sinner and comfort that sinner with the protection of Christ! Jesus brings rescue from our foe.During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Epiphany is when we get to unwrap it slowly, ma...2022-02-1819 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings LifeHe Brings Life (January 23rd, 2022): In Exodus 1-2, the unnamed Pharaoh creates his own version of Heartbreak Hotel in three stages: State Slavery, Private Infanticide, and Open Genocide. It’s against this backdrop that Moses is born. Five courageous women align themselves with life instead of death. All for Moses. Someone who will bring Israel out of Pharaoh’s Heartbreak Hotel! We’re all stuck in sin—call it Heartbreak Hotel. Jesus doesn’t recoil, run, or retreat at the sight of our ugly prison. Instead, Jesus sheds His blood for us and for our salvation. 2022-02-1518 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings JoyHe Brings Joy -- Jesus cares about your joy. John wrote in another place that “your joy will be complete” (Jn 15:11). Jesus brings joy. How does God then make our lives places of joy as a result? How can we view the brokenness of God’s creation? How do we become more Christ-like with this gift of joy?During this season of Epiphany, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Epiphany is when we get to unwrap it slowly, marveling at each f...2022-02-0319 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHe Brings the Holy Spirit and FireIntroduction to a new Sermon Series for the Season of Epiphany -- Unwrapping the Gift: Having just completed the Christmas season with its gift giving and receiving traditions, we are using the idea of unwrapping a gift. Jesus is of course the gift to us, given at Christmas and Epiphany is when we get to unwrap it slowly, marveling at each facet of this gem. But this series is also looking ahead – toward the fulfillment of God’s promises in Holy Week and Easter. This series will ask what this gift means for us.He B...2022-02-0222 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Death of Division- Ephesians 1:3-14Yes, God has redeemed and forgiven us, lavished grace and wisdom upon us, but all this is because God has a purpose, a goal which in fact is not about making me happy or meeting my perceived needs. He is uniting his whole creation, heaven and earth, once more. My forgiveness, my resurrection, all of it, belongs to that purpose.2022-01-1813 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesRedeemedMerry Christmas! With a better understanding of the redemptive nature of the Incarnation, it is our prayer that the Spirit of God would push the hearer out of the pew/their chair and into life as a new person, bought back from sin, death, and devil to be a witness to Christ’s love. A sermon for the First Sunday after Christmas based on Exodus 13:1-3a, 11-15, Colossians 3:12-17 and Luke 2:22-40.2021-12-2907 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod's KingdomLuke lets us see this through the eyes of a Jewish peasant girl from a nowhere village called Nazareth. How does God’s kingdom see this world? We see through the eyes of power, money, etc., but is that accurate or the best lens? Mary, visited by an angel, pregnant with a child by the Holy Spirit, greeted by a yet-unborn John the Baptist might just give us a better lens by which to view this world as God sees it. What is more, as Luke notices for us, she was inspired by the Holy Spirit.2021-12-2015 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesHopeful Expectations for God's Advent PeopleThe previous two Sundays have given us an opportunity to reflect on watchfulness for the (final) coming of the Son of Man and on the appearance and mission of John the Baptist. This Gospel of the Third Sunday of Advent brings these two figures together and addresses the matter of expectations from a variety of perspectives: John’s expectations of the Messiah, the crowds’ expectations of John, and this generation’s expectations of Jesus.2021-12-1720 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGlad Repentance, Bearing it's FruitSermon Outline: To Faith, the Voice That Urges Us to New Life in Christ Is a Glad Sound . . . I. . . . Even when it calls us “You brood of vipers!” II. . . . Surely as it commands us to “Bear fruits in keeping with repentance.” III. . . . So that we gladly reply, “What shall we do?”2021-12-1119 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesGod is Making Me BlamelessThe sermon theme for the First Sunday of Advent is God is making me blameless. The Epistle reading invites the hearer to abound in love for one another and for all people. This sermon would connect this life we lead right now with the second coming of Christ.2021-11-2921 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesI ExpectThe text for Christ the King Sunday is Revelation 1:4b-8. Reading and hearing this text gives us the hopeful expectation that the Lord of time and life, Jesus the Christ, comes to save, restore, and reveal the eternal life which belongs to the hearer by baptism. The other readings for this day include Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 and John 18:33-37.2021-11-2522 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesDrawing Near to GodThis text from Hebrews 10:11-25 invites and inspires us to draw near to Him with a holy confidence as we love one another and this world, all of which Christ has rendered holy with his life’s blood. 2021-11-1715 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesAll Saints Day SermonAll Saints Day has this great prayer: “Almighty and everlasting God, You knit together Your faithful people of all times and places into one holy communion, the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ. Grant us so to follow Your blessed saints in all virtuous and godly living that, together with them, we may come to the unspeakable joys You have prepared for those who love You; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.” The text starts with this prayer, the assertion that God...2021-11-1322 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesReformation Day SermonIn thanksgiving we gathered on Reformation Day to celebrate the 10 anniversary of Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church worshipping in Hyannis, NE. This church previously worshipped as Swede Valley Lutheran Church located south of Ashby, NE. We also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Sandhills Lutheran Ministry now comprised of three congregations: Shepherd of the Hills, Bingham and Faith Lutheran Churches. All three congregations have at least two things in common. First, they are located in the beautiful, rolling Sandhills of Nebraska. Secondly, they are Lutheran Christian congregations. This year marks the 504th anniversary of the Reformation. Reformation Sunday...2021-11-0113 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLord, Restore My Sight Faith sits in the center of our readings today (Jeremiah 31:7-9 And Mark 10:46-52). I suppose faith sits in the center of all the readings every Sunday, but it is far more central and prominent this Sunday than many other Sundays. It is our prayer that the Holy Spirit would open the eyes of faith for the hearer to see God’s great love for his fallen creation.2021-10-3121 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLove One Another From a Pure HeartThey say a picture is worth a thousand words. You can picture today’s sermon by looking at the logo for LWML, “Our Hearts are in His Hand.” You can view the logo at http://www.lwml.org/lwml-sunday. Think about a heart in a hand. The cross comes through Baptism into your heart, into my heart, into each of our hearts. And each new, purified heart is surrounded by a much bigger heart. That’s the church, a big-hearted place, where all our hearts are together in His hand, coming together in worship, God makes us a big hearted...2021-10-1921 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWhen the Church Seizes the DayWhat happens when the Church “Seizes the Day?” What does that look like? This sermon based on Psalm 90 and Hebrews 3:12-19 is about the Church. Sermons about the Church sometimes can be a difficult topic. But when understood as a sermon about an act of Jesus, a creation of God, and the Holy Spirit, it fits better into our usual ideas about the Church. May the hearer in the Body of Christ take advantage of the time given to them to delight in the fellowship of the Church and be moved to its healthy mutual love.2021-10-1620 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesFor the Kingdom of Heaven Belongs to Such as TheseToday’s Sermon, “For the Kingdom of Heaven Belongs to Such as These” invites us to believe that you are such a person as Jesus takes into his arms today. Not because of some imagined innocence but because God loves his whole creation and every part of it, including you. He hates to see it hurt, broken, dying, or in any way marred.2021-10-0916 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesA Cup of Cool WaterThe title of this sermon based on Mark 9:38-50 is “A Cup of Cool Water.” The text is inviting us to be drawn into the very life of Christ — both as the redeemed child whom Christ has raised from death and as the agent of Christ’s love into this world.2021-09-2819 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesServant of All: Revealing a Hidden HopeWhere is true hope revealed? Is true hope revealed in goodness? Is it revealed in success? Society esteems the morally pure and “good people” (as it’s currently and popularly defined in the new morality observed) or the powerful and wealthy and capable people and puts them on the top. However, Jesus reveals the true hope that lies hidden in his suffering, death, and resurrection and in the suffering service of all who follow in his way. A sermon on Mark 9:30-37.2021-09-2221 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesOnly By PrayerThe father in our text prayed, “Lord, I believe! Help my unbelief.” Jesus didn’t wait until the father’s faith got stronger, immediately he saved his child. Jesus has conquered all our foes, even our own foolish and wavering hearts, and delivered us into the hands of his and our loving Father. Are you ready to take the “Only by Prayer” adventure with Jesus?2021-09-1822 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesThe Frustrated ChristJesus has all the power of God at his disposal. Why does he not get what he wants in today’s text? We have heard these stories so often that we might have forgotten to be shocked at this. Is my Lord unable to get what he wants? Have I just misunderstood this? Do I need to be more cynical or be more realistic? This is a sermon about the inexorable progress and presence of God’s Kingdom in this world and in our lives.2021-09-1121 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesArmed and SafeThe local police department puts out the dire warning about a fugitive from justice: “Armed and Dangerous.” Paul speaks of arming oneself against the evil one. Members of Christ’s body are best described as “Armed and Safe.” Paul ends his letter to the Ephesians strong, with a powerful martial image of a Christian wearing the armor of a Roman legionary. 2021-09-0220 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesMembers of His BodyWhat shall we do with the opening line of this text? Let's acknowledge that there's a bit of a misinterpretation minefield about submission in the marriage sphere that we need to deal with first, and then we can turn to what holy submission looks like and what it doesn't look like.2021-08-2821 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWalking as the Children of the LightLurking in every human heart is a problematic lover who loves the darkness. Our culture has defined the best life as the life which always gets to do what it wants-a life lived without limits.2021-08-2221 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesA Worthy WalkPaul makes use of a favorite image here- our life as a walk; a journey from here to there, one step at a time. 2021-08-1223 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesWalking in the Love of ChristIn today's sermon, Paul continues with the metaphor of life as a walk, but contrasts the Christian walk with another walk- the world exerts a strong pull on us, but the path of worldly success is a cruel and demanding idol.2021-08-1220 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesMeasuring God's Love from the InsideHow are you doing? Although we might answer this question with "I'm fine", in our "inner being" we feel beaten down, beaten down by our own sin and by the world. 2021-08-0122 minSandhills Lutheran Ministry Podcast SeriesLiving in the SonHow will I discern the truth from a lie? I'm not able to navigate the simplest aspect of my life without getting made into a fool. How will I navigate heaven itself? 2021-06-0521 min