Sermon for Pentecost 11

Pentecost XI, July 31, 2005

�You Give Them Something to Eat�
Matthew 14:13-21

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

During this past year, I�ve had the opportunity to see what the daily life of a pastor is like. I have visited people in the hospital and people who are not able to leave their houses. I�ve visited many who were sick and some who were dying. I�ve been present at weddings and funerals, baptisms and confirmations. I�ve prayed with many of you and for you. I assisted Pastor T. in giving into your hands and mouths the precious Body and Blood of our Savior, Jesus. I have shared God�s Word with you from this pulpit and in Bible studies. I have experienced the challenge of dividing time between my �job� and my wife and daughter. I have learned from you what it means to be the people of God in a particular place; what it means to be at the same time saints and sinners, family, the Body of Christ.

And I have also learned that there never is, nor will there ever be, enough time to do everything that a pastor is expected to do, or even everything he would like to do. The role of a pastor is, in its essence, delivering forgiveness of sins through the preaching God�s Word and through the Sacraments. There are things that go along with that, like bringing God�s Word and Holy Communion to those who cannot receive it in the church, or bringing comfort and peace to those in the hospital or those who have lost loved ones. In order to do those things, the pastor continually has to be studying. Jesus says in Matthew 13:52, �Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.� Bringing out the new and the old from the treasure of God�s Word requires that a pastor be engaged in continual study of that Word. Beyond that, there are fellowship meals, meetings, counseling, and above all, prayer. And with all of those things, the pastor still needs time for his family. I have learned that it is not easy, and yet the joy of the Lord runs deep.

Good Music Zw�lf

[See some previous entries: 11, 7, 6, 2, 1 ]

What’s good recently? (Is that sentence grammatically correct?)

1. The new Starflyer 59 cd, Talking Voice vs. Singing Voice. Their last few cds do not differentiate themselves in my mind. This one sticks out. Strings? Horns? Yes, this is Starflyer, and Jason Martin rocks. They have reissues of their classic Gold and Silver albums here.

2. I know I’m late here, but Iron and Wine is good! I just picked up Our Endless Numbered Days, and I can’t stop listening. Get it!

3. At the same time that I got Iron and Wine, I got Sufjan Stevens‘ new one, Illinois (or: “Sufjan Stevens invites you to come on, feel the Illinoise!”). Genius. As far from mainstream as it gets. Amazing. It’s so popular it’s out of stock at Asthmatic Kitty (see link above). If you like Sam Beam’s voice (Iron and Wine), you should like Sufjan.

4. Finally (for this edition), am I glad that Chris Staples didn’t stop making music! If you know who twothirtyeight is, you know who Chris Staples is. If you know who twothirtyeight is, I don’t need to tell you to get Discover America, Psychology. While you’re at it, get this one too.

[By the way, I’m looking forward to this.]

Timotheos

Two Fears

The account in Holy Scripture concerning the crossing of the Red Sea provides an outlook on two types of fear. As the Israelites shook in their sandals as Pharaoh and the Egyptian army chased them to the water, Moses addresses God’s people: “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today” (Ex. 14:13a, ESV). God’s people were not to fear this enemy.

And then the rest of Scripture provides similar admonitions–“Fear not…” (Isaiah 41:10), “I will fear no evil…” (Psalm 23:4), “whom shall I fear?” (Psalm 27:1), “for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim. 1:7), and “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18a).