Concordia Sermons

While we know God will heal all believers on the Last Day, there's plenty of hurt and pain in this life that still exists. Pastor Paul Teske proclaims God's glory through Jesus's death and resurrection, and the healing He still does today.

Pastors Tucker and McIntosh answer faith-related questions at Concordia, live!

Pastors Tucker and McIntosh answer faith-related questions at Concordia, live!

Pastors Tucker and McIntosh answer faith-related questions at Concordia, live!

The holidays are the busiest travel days of the year. People visit relatives from all over. The first Christmas too began with a trip as Mary and Joseph traveled to the Bethlehem to be registered in a census. But this is nothing compared to the distance the Son of God traveled to be with us on the first Christmas.

Dealing with family members during the holidays can be stressful! Joseph was very stressed as he tried to figure out what to do with his fiancée who had turned up pregnant. Rather than immediately jumping on Mary, he carefully considered what to do. When family members frustrate you, do you carefully consider your response?

When Mary hears that she will be the mother of the promised Messiah, she bursts into song. In her song, she sings specifically about the special place God has in His heart toward those who are poor and lowly. In a Christmas that is marked by consumerism, how can a simple poverty reflect and reveal God’s glory?

Between holiday parties and kids programs and lots of shopping and visiting relatives, Christmas calendars can get jam packed. What’s more, just one unexpected thing can turn your calendar upside down and add to the stress of the season. The first Christmas turned Mary’s calendar upside down. Yet, out of a stressful situation came the world’s greatest gift. How can God use your stressful situations?

Worry is one of the most besetting sins of our age. From whether we will get a raise to how our kids will turn out to what the weather will bring, worry infiltrates every part and portion of our lives. Jesus calls us, instead of trying to control tomorrow, to trust in God.

Most people would never call themselves “lazy.” But we are lazier than we think. We simply call our laziness “distraction.” How much time do we spend surfing websites or checking sports scores or just, generally, wasting time? The command against laziness is a call to focus our efforts on what actually truly matters.

There is no mistaking it: we are a culture that is sexually confused. But before we point our fingers out the sexual confusion “out there” in the world, we must take an honest look at the sexual temptation “in here” – in our hearts. God’s boundaries for human sexuality are not meant to be restricting, but loving. They allow us to model God’s love in our relationships.

With an election only two days away, tensions are high! As Christians, rather than getting angry at others, we are called to be forgiving of others. Instead of exacting vengeance, we wait for God’s justice.

The riches we have received, ultimately, have nothing to do with our goodness, but with God’s grace. When was the last time we truly took stock of just how recklessly God has blessed us and just how freely God forgives us?

The Christian churches in Macedonia were impoverished. But that did not stop them from being generous. So often, we create excuses not to be generous. But if we truly took stock of what we had, we might just find that we can give in ways we never imagined!

Jesus tells a story where three men receive lavish amounts of money – years’ worth of wages – from their master. Two invest the money wisely and joyously. The third is fearful and foolish. We have been lavishly blessed by God! When we spend our money, are we wise and joyful, or fearful and foolish?

It can be tempting to fall into a pattern of praying only in church and, perhaps, before a meal. But prayer is not an occasional activity. It is a whole way of life! When we “pray constantly,” we begin to see life differently – through God’s eyes.

We have all probably had a moment where we prayed for something and God said, “No.” We sometimes call these prayers “unanswered prayers.” But these are really “transforming prayers.” Even when God says, “No,” He uses His “no” to strengthen us and draw us closer to Him.

There are ways not to pray. James discusses some of these ways in James 4:1-3. But in the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus gives us a model for all prayer. Praying for things like God’s glory, God’s provision, and God’s forgiveness are vital to prayer. Praying for these things also orients us around what matters most.

The power of prayer is on its receiving end. When God receives our prayer, He answers it according to His will. Turning to God for help and guidance, then, is powerful. When we spend time in prayer, we begin to see how God has worked through prayer, which grows our faith in Him.

The thought that the God of the universe would be interested in conversing with us can seem improbable to some. Doesn’t God have better things to do? Hebrews 4 reminds us that the proof of God’s care for us in Christ. If God has come for us in His Son, we can come to Him through His Son.