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[Jesus said,] “These things I have told you, that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you.” Remember. Not overcome. Remember. And that remembering is not left to you; it is the Spirit’s work. He brings to your remembrance what Christ has said. He testifies of Christ. “Of Me,” Jesus says. And the Spirit does so, not from within you. No, rather, He speaks to you, from without: through the apostolic word, the word that has come down through the centuries, the word

Due to a technical issue, the sermon video did not record Readings: Old Testament: Numbers 21:4-9 Epistle: James 1:22-27 Holy Gospel: John 16:23-33 Sermon audio: listen Sermon manuscript: download Sermon: Sermon based on John 16:23-33 In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Alleluia! Christ is risen! [Congregation: He is risen indeed!] [All: Alleluia!] Dearly beloved by the Lord: “In the world you will have tribulation.” Jesus doesn’t soften it.

“For if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you.” His going away is the condition of that coming. And what comes, or more precisely, who comes in His going away is the Spirit of truth, the Comforter, the One who will take what is [the Lord Jesus’] and declare it to you. Namely: the forgiveness Christ won on the Cross, the righteousness He earned in that perfect life laid down, and the life that burst from the tomb on the Third Day. None of it reaches you without His

Thus, Jesus appeared after periods of “a little while.” Seven times the phrase is spoken in this Gospel—seven, a number which calls to mind the days of the week. So that we might learn what it is to live in that “little while,” between His coming to us in the Gospel and the Sacraments. This cannot be overemphasized. It has profound significance for you in your daily life. It’s not that the “little whiles” disappear, or that the waiting ends, or—even—that you are lifted out o

Readings: Old Testament: Ezekiel 34:11-16 Epistle: 1 Peter 2:21-25 Holy Gospel: John 10:11-16 Sermon:

Jesus lives! And because He lives, the hope and trust that died now live again within me. And yet I know how I spoke and how I withdrew and what it was to be apart from my dear friends and companions, my family in the faith. I know now I was wrong not to be with them, not to be there when Jesus came and stood in their midst that glorious Easter day. But thanks be to God, He has shown me mercy: He gathered me back to Himself so that I could receive what He gives. And so, God

This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day: the Day of days, long awaited, our triumphant holy day. This is the day when Abraham receives back his son, as from the dead. This is the day when Israel stands on the far shore of the sea, safe, the waters having drowned their enemies. This is the day when Joshua and the people shout with a great shout, and the walls of Jericho come tumblin’ down. This is the day when David stand

This is the hour. He was wounded for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. And this is the work, this is the doing, and this is what is accomplished. For what is laid upon Him is not only what they do; it is what you—your sin and your guilt and your death, all of it—lay upon Him. He does not set it aside or hold it away or leave it unnamed and untouched; He takes it up and carries

One by one, He washes their feet; each moment more humiliating than the last. Until, finally, Jesus, with water in hand and a towel wrapped around Him, is right there. “No!” cries Peter. “This is not proper, this is not right; this is not what You, Lord, should do. You shall never wash my feet! ” Jesus, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. You are God of God, the eternal Word, begotten of the Father before all worlds. You are holy and righteous. To You belongs all

“Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD.” So they spoke, rightly and better than they knew, for He does come. He comes in the name of the LORD , and He comes to save. Yet the salvation He brings is not the salvation they expect. For this is the day that the LORD has made. And so, this is the day when the King enters His city, saying, “The hour has come that the Son of Man should be glorified.” This is the day the One stronger than the strong man comes to bind him