Sunday, November 29, 2015

Bible Study: Job 37:1-38:21, November 29, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 29, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Job 37:1-38:21. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sermon Audio: Luke 19:28-40, November 29, 2015

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 29, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Luke 19:28-40. The text of this sermon may be found by clicking this link and you may play the audio of the sermon here.

Sermon Text: Luke 19:28-40, November 29, 2015

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this morning is from the Gospel according to Luke, the 19th chapter:
And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’ ” So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. As he was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.” 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     Advent is intrinsically tied to the Lenten season.  That is why this first Sunday of Advent is paired with a reading we would expect in Holy Week.  Advent and Lent are both penitential seasons, where we specifically look at our sin and repent so that we might better see our Savior.  In Lent, we examine our sinful state so that we might more cherish the cross of Christ, upon which the King of Glory took your place and died for the forgiveness of your sins.  And in Advent, we examine our sinful state so that we might more cherish the incarnation of Lord, that He came into our flesh to bear our sin and be our Savior.  And so He is.  But that’s not all of Advent.  In Advent, too, we examine our sinful state so that we might more look forward to the second coming of Christ, where He will finally, for all time, take away our sinful flesh and give us His glorified flesh in the resurrection from the dead.

     Perhaps this is not what we expect.  After all, the world moved on to Christmas after Halloween.  You all saw the decorations, the chintzy Christmas- and Winter-themed songs on radio stations, the advertisements.  The world expects us to skip this Advent season and just move into the feely-good season where everyone is happy, where gifts are given, where all is well, and Rudolph is on the TV.  But the Church does not move at the speed of the world.  We take our time.  We take four weeks of preparation, four weeks of introspection, four weeks or prayer, so that we might come to Christmas fully in awe of our Lord and what He has done, and even what He shall do again in His return.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Sermon: Luke 12:13-21, November 25, 2015, Thanksgiving Eve

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 25, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Luke 12:13-21. The sermon recording may be accessed by clicking here or in the title of this blog post and playing it in your browser.


Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this evening is from the Gospel according to Luke, the 12th Chapter:
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” ’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.” 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     I just bought 35 pounds of peanut oil.  My sister and her fiancée are coming up for Thanksgiving, and we’re going to deep-fry a turkey this year.  You should have seen me in the store.  Here I was, in the store, trying to figure out how many gallons 1134 tablespoons made.  I mean, come on.  Who buys by the tablespoon, moreover, who eats peanut oil by a tablespoon serving size?  And who buys by the pound?  Why couldn’t they just give me the number of gallons?  That would just make sense, that’s why.  It equals about 4.4 gallons, by the way.  But I bought it.  All 35 pounds of peanut oil.

     And I’m excited. Deep-frying a turkey sounds delicious.  We also bought five pounds of sweet potatoes, three big bags of celery, a huge thing of butter, a ton of eggs, a bunch of stuff for pies.  And that’s just what we bought.  My sister is bringing up a bunch more.  They’re driving all through the night to spend a short part of the weekend with us.

     They’re driving to our home, a house that, in my opinion, is quite homey.  We’ve got a TV, a few beds, all of Elias’ toys.  We’ve got all of our toys, the computers, the devices, the things that make life a little more fun.  We’ve got beer, running water, some soda.  We’ve got a riding mower, a snow blower, and various other tools.  We’ve got furniture, the couch, the bookcases, the books, a desk, a crib, a dining room table.

     And none of it matters at all.  Not one bit.  The house, the stuff, the food, the beer, none of it matters.  And none of what you have matters for you.  At least, not really.  Like I said, it makes life more enjoyable, doesn’t it?  I mean, we here have all been so incredibly blessed by God in this country.  We have our freedoms, or liberties, our responsibilities, our stuff.  But none of it matters.  Because, when it all comes down to it, the saying is true: “You can’t take it with you.”

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Bible Study: Job 35:1-36:33, November 22, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 22, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Job 35:1-36:33. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sermon Audio: Mark 13:24-37, November 22, 2015

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 22, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Mark 13:24-37. The text of this sermon may be found by clicking this link and you may play the audio of the sermon here.

Sermon Text: Mark 13:24-37, November 22, 2015

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this morning is from the 13th chapter of St. Mark’s Gospel:
“But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 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. 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— lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     Stay awake.  Good advice.  Good advice if you’re driving through the middle of the night with your family in the car.  Caffeinate, caffeinate, caffeinate.  Stay awake.  Bad advice if your baby keeps waking you up at three o’clock and you can’t really get back to sleep.  Of course, the prescription to make it through that day is the same: caffeinate, caffeinate, caffeinate.

     But, Jesus doesn’t give you an option here.  It’s not good or bad.  Stay awake, He says.  You must stay awake.  You fall asleep, it’s bad news.  You could miss His return.  Stay awake or miss the show.  Stay awake or, like the parable in the text indicates, the Master won’t be happy and pleased with you.  Stay awake.

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Bible Study: Mark 13:24-37, November 18, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on Mark 13:24-37 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on November 18, 2015. This Bible Study will help to lay a foundation for the sermon that is preached the following Sunday. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sunday, November 15, 2015

Bible Study: Job 33:31-34:37, November 15, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 15, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Job 33:31:-34:37. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sermon Audio: Hebrews 10:11-25, November 15, 2015

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 15, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Hebrews 10:11-25. The text of this sermon may be found by clicking this link and you may play the audio of the sermon here.

Sermon Text: Hebrews 10:11-25, November 15, 2015

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this morning is from the tenth chapter of Hebrews:
And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,” then he adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.” Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     What would you do?  What would you do if you were one of those on the streets of Paris, facing an imminent threat, facing the very real chance that anything could happen and you could be next?  What would you do if you watched people around you gunned down or taken out by bombs?  What would you do?

     What would you do if the doctor gave you a diagnosis of cancer tomorrow and a prognosis of a few weeks to live?  What would you do if you lost all of your future plans in that moment?  What if you walked into work tomorrow and your boss fired you, downsized you, shuttered the doors of the business?  What would you do?  What would you do when the world goes down the tubes, when your life seems to be falling apart, when everything you thought you knew and loved turned out to be false or a lie?  What would you do?

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Bible Study: Hebrews 10:11-25, November 11, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on Hebrews 10:11-25 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on November 11, 2015. This Bible Study will help to lay a foundation for the sermon that is preached the following Sunday. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sunday, November 8, 2015

Bible Study: Job 33:1-30, November 8, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 8, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Job 33:1-30. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sermon Audio: Hebrews 9:24-28, November 8, 2015

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 8, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Hebrews 9:24-28. The text of this sermon may be found by clicking this link and you may play the audio of the sermon here.

Sermon Text: Hebrews 9:24-28, November 8, 2015

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this morning is from the Letter to the Hebrews, the fourth chapter:
For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     Imagine you are a Jew.  Imagine you live in the time before Jesus.  Imagine that you live a hundred miles away from Jerusalem and every year you must make the long trek, by foot and caravan, to that holy city and its Temple in order to bring the sacrifices required for the atonement of your sins.  Every year.  Every year, you have, not a vacation, but a journey to give to the priests bulls and goats and doves so that your sins may be taken away.

     It has to be every year, because only once per year is the high priest of the Temple allowed to go into the Holy of Holies.  The high priest, a sinner, is only allowed to approach God once per year, walking into the Holy of Holies with bells on his robe so that you can hear him when he moves.  And you want the high priest to keep moving, because if he doesn’t, he’s been killed for his sin, for his breaking the Law of God.  And if he dies, he has a rope tied around his ankle so that the other priests can pull him out without entering the Holy of Holies and dying themselves.

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Bible Study: Hebrews 9:24-28, November 4, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on Hebrews 9:24-28 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on November 4, 2015. This Bible Study will help to lay a foundation for the sermon that is preached the following Sunday. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sunday, November 1, 2015

Bible Study: Job 32:4-22, November 1, 2015

A Bible Study taught by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 1, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Job 32:4-22. Play the audio by clicking here.

Sermon Audio: Revelation 7:2-17, November 1, 2015

A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on November 1, 2015 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bemidji, MN, on Revelation 7:2-17. The text of this sermon may be found by clicking this link and you may play the audio of the sermon here.

Sermon Text: Revelation 7:2-17, November 1, 2015

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Amen.

The text this morning is from the Revelation of John, the seventh chapter:
Then I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, with the seal of the living God, and he called with a loud voice to the four angels who had been given power to harm earth and sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.” And I heard the number of the sealed, 144,000, sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel... After this I looked, and behold, 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, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. “Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” 
Thus far the text.

My dear friends in Christ,
     John has got to be amazed as he is in the middle of this revelation from God.  First, he seems to be taken from where he is, sitting in exile on the island of Patmos, and taken up to witness the largest, grandest, loudest, more joyful divine worship service he has ever seen.  That’s right, what John is witnessing is akin to what we do each and every Sunday when we gather; incidentally, that’s a reason why we do what we do.  John has witnessed it happening in heaven, we continue to do it on earth.
But beside that, John has got to be surprised and amazed.  He sees so much in heaven, but so much that seems to be beyond the languages he knows, and so he writes what he can, putting it in a way that we only scratch the surface of.

     For instance, take the 144,000.  Now does that mean that only 144,000 will be saved?  Of course not.  But to get 144,000, you multiply 12 by 12, 144, and then by 1000, a prophetic age, and you end up with John’s number.  Here this is signifying the church under the time of the 12 tribes of Israel, and then the church under the time of the twelve apostles, which is still today, and then the full completion of time.