Luke 24:36-49 Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! Beloved in the Lord, It’s been a long weekend. Death has come. Death came for Jesus it will come for us, so think the apostles. It’s been a long weekend and the one in whom they trusted, the one whom they hoped would redeem Israel . . . has been crucified, dead and buried. The stone has been rolled. The tomb has been sealed. The guards have been set. The disciples are afraid. They are very afraid. They are huddled together, hiding behind locked doors, keeping quiet. It’s a been   More…

St. John 20:1-18 Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia!   Beloved in the Lord, We must all face death.  Death is everywhere about us and we must all face it in our loved ones and eventually in ourselves.  But unless we face death in Christ we shall forever be afraid, we shall forever despair.  Death is everywhere and seemingly consumes everyone is comes upon.  We see it, we see it right before our very eyes – the entire world is being snatched away one person at a time. Emperors and kings, great and small, young and old, rich and poor, the healthy, wealthy and wise   More…

St. Mark 16:1-8 In the Name X of Jesus.  AMEN! Beloved in the Lord, Our enemies never cease to assail us.  The sight of our sin shames us.  The power of the grave frightens us.  Death’s pall hovers over us waiting for an opportune time to strike.  Such a pall has covered our Lord.  The women make their way to the tomb because death has stricken their hope. Jesus is crucified.  His blood spilt upon the earth like a dog.  His flesh assaulted by his fellow man as though he were less than human.  Those who loved him abandoned him. But the women have not forgotten.  Though assailed by the same enemies they   More…

In the Name X of Jesus.  AMEN! Beloved in the Lord, Behold Your God!  There upon the wood of the cross hangs your creator.  “All things were made through Him and without Him nothing was made that was made” including you.  Jesus unites Himself to death!  Though Jew and Gentile assume their providence in the matter, the sovereign God surrenders Himself to their whims, to the whims of His rebellious creation. Behold your God!  Jesus is crucified.  He has borne the cross along the way and now He suffers its consequences.  His body is torn but not broken.  His flesh seeps blood, blood which sprinkles the soil like rain in the   More…

Beloved in the Lord, The Lord moves toward us that we might drawn near to Him.  Therefore the Christian’s life is one of following and receiving.  When asked where they might celebrate the Passover, Jesus tells them to follow the man with the jar of water and go where he goes, enter where he enters and there make ready for the feast. During the Feast the Lord moves nearer than could be imagined.  He does the work of a servant.  He bows low and bends the knee.  He does what no disciple chose to do for each other, nor even for Him.  He washes feet and   More…

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. John’s gospel account the 12th chapter (John 12:12-19).   Beloved in the Lord, The whole world chases after power.  The Pharisees know this.  The Pharisees echo this.  ”You see that you are accomplishing nothing.  Look!   The world has gone after him.”  The crowds are after Jesus.  Jesus does signs.  Lazarus is back from the dead.  Thousands are fed with little bread and a few fish.  The blind are made to see.  Water becomes wine.  ”No one can do these signs unless God were with   More…

  Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s gospel account the 10th chapter (Mark 10:32-45).   Beloved in the Lord, Jesus Goes on Ahead of Them “And they were on the road going up to Jerusalem.”  The Savior is walking His way.  It is the Narrow way.  It is the way of love, the way of salvation for you and me and it is the way of suffering for Him.  It is the only way. He goes to Jerusalem, the city which   More…

  Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. John’s gospel account the 3rd chapter (John 3:14-21).   Beloved in the Lord, Moses’ Fiery Serpent – The Pole When God gives a sign for salvation it’s unlike any other.  It doesn’t make sense.  It is contrary to our usual way of thinking.  Nicodemus has seen such signs in the ministry of Jesus. “”We know that you are teacher come from God for no one can do the signs you do unless God were with Him.”  Jesus   More…

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. John’s gospel account the second chapter (John 2:13-25).   Beloved in the Lord, The Passover is approaching.   The day of our redemption is at hand.  Jesus is in Jerusalem with His disciples.  The city itself swells with pilgrims from all over the Roman Empire.  Everyone is making their way to the temple.  The temple is everything to the Jews. The temple is the house of the God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  The temple is   More…

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s gospel account (Mark 8:27-38) the eighth chapter.     Beloved in the Lord Satan’s Words in Peter’s Voice (Saving your Life) Satan, lusting to usurp our Lord’s kingdom, power and glory abandons the arid regions of the wilderness, where thorn and thistle thrive and wild beasts wander about looking for someone to devour.  Instead the serpent takes his quest to the crowds, the highways and byways of God’s people, to rumors   More…

Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s gospel account the first chapter (Mark 1:9-15)   Beloved in the Lord, In Jesus, the Lord has broken through the devil’s ramparts.  With His birth in Bethlehem a new King stakes His claim not only on Israel, but on humanity.  The King has come and the dominion of this world’s prince is challenged.  With His baptism in the Jordan the heavens are rent asunder, they are opened for the Spirit to descend, the Father   More…

Grace, mercy, and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s gospel account the 9th chapter. (Mark 9:2-9)     Beloved in the Lord, Who Wouldn’t want to Go Up? It’s been six days, just a bit less than a week.  It was then that Peter got it right. “You are the Christ!”  But when Jesus set before them the work of the Christ, that He would be a rejected Christ, a suffering Christ, one who dies, Peter would have none of that.  “This shall never happen   More…

Beloved, The sermon for this morning is based upon Mark 1:29-39. Blessings, Pr. Sikora     Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!  AMEN!  Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s Gospel account the first chapter.   He enters the House – Jesus Brings Salvation Beloved in the Lord, having put the devil to flight by the authority of His Word our King advances from the Synagogue to the home of Simon Peter.  He enters the House.  Wherever He steps the kingdom marches on and the cobra is   More…

Beloved, John 1:43-51 serves as our text for the Second Sunday after Epiphany. Blessings, Pr. Sikora   Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. AMEN! Our text for this morning’s sermon is taken from St. John’s gospel account the first chapter. Beloved in the Lord, Jesus Calling His Disciples Full of the Father’s delight and still dripping with the Spirit’s blessing Jesus steps out of the water and sets His heart towards fallen sinners in a broken, depraved world. Wherever He goes there goes the Gospel. Wherever He   More…

Beloved, St. Mark gets us right to Jesus in the Water. The sermon below proclaims Him in the Water. Blessings, Pr. Sikora   Grace, mercy and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. AMEN! Our text for this morning’ s sermon is taken from St. Mark’s gospel account the first chapter. Beloved in the Lord, Jesus in the Water St. Mark gets right to the point. The Point of all of this is Jesus. Therefore, Mark gets us to Jesus. Getting us to Jesus St. Mark gets us to the gospel.   More…