Have you ever heard the phrase “putting lipstick on a pig”? It sounds silly and it certainly makes for a funny picture in one’s imagination. But it also makes a serious and important point. A pig with lipstick is still…a pig. If I put a fresh coat of paint on a broken down old jalopy it is still a broken down old jalopy. If I put a spritz of cologne on a manure wagon it still smells like manure.
We must begin today with a warning. Some of what you hear in this sermon may be jolting. Kids, you are going to be told to do something today that you may have been told you should never do. You are going to be told to fight! Now, we should be clear on the fighting we should do. You are not going to be told to fight with your brother or sister. You are NOT going to be told to be a bully! That’s not okay. But there is a fight we can fight; a fight we Christians MUST fight. It’s a fight we must Fight to the Finish!
This past week I became aware of something I had never heard of before. I learned about “the overview effect.” The “overview effect” is what some astronauts experience when they look back on earth from space. The “overview effect” is characterized by a feeling of awe, a feeling of being connected with the other humans on the planet, and the feeling of how frail and vulnerable earth appears to be with the universe in the background. It must be weird to see the world like this!
“Who’s in charge?” That’s an important question. There are many times and places in life where we need to know the answer to that! Children in school need to know who is in charge of the classroom. Players on a team need to know who is in charge and gets to choose the plays and the players. In your place of work you need to know who is in charge. Soldiers going to battle need to know who’s in charge. And if you’ve ever had to have surgery, you sure want to know who’s in charge and calling the shots in the operating room!
The Service of Darkness centers on a series of lessons, psalms, and liturgical texts that reflect on the Lord’s crucifixion and our repentance. As the service progresses, the candles of a sevenfold candelabrum are extinguished until only one remains. This candle is not extinguished but is removed from the chancel, leaving the church in darkness. The service is closed by a loud noise (known as the strepitus) that foreshadows the rending of Jesus’ tomb on Easter. After the strepitus, the last candle, still burning, is returned to the chancel. It thus anticipates the light of the paschal candle. The service ends without a benediction. We exit in silence to reassemble on the Festival.
There are a number of incredibly profound sentences at the beginning of our text that we might miss if we’re not careful. In the very first verse, John tells us, Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. (v. 1) Jesus knew that the rescue mission that had begun with his conception in the womb of the virgin Mary was soon coming to an end and he would be returning to Father in heaven!
Pastor Jordan Ertl from Peace Lutheran in Sun Prairie lead us in Worship today.
The Lord many times comes to rescue his people. The entire Old Testament tells story after story of the Lord’s gracious and powerful intervention on behalf of his own. Perhaps the greatest and best-known story in the Old Testament of rescue is the story of how the Lord brought the nation of Israel out of slavery in Egypt.
“Christmas is a little bit of heaven!” Have you ever heard anyone say something along those lines? Some people will say it because it is the time of year when the entire family is able to get together. Children may feel that way because it is a two week vacation from school and teachers may say it because it is a two week vacation from children. For some, maybe seeing the smiles of children make this time of year a little bit of heaven. Whatever it may be, people have their reasons for saying, “Christmas is a little bit of heaven.” But very few, if pressed, would say Christmas is LITERALLY a little bit of heaven.
This Sunday Pastor Luke Werre is leading our worship service. He serves at Peace Lutheran in Sun Prairie.
