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Day of Pentecost - Sermon Text and Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer, IN

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Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer, IN Day of Pentecost   Numbers 11:24-30   Acts 1:1-21   John 7:37-39 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. (2 Cor 1:2)  If we lived and worked in Jerusalem in AD 33, even if we did not keep a daily calendar, we would know that the feast of Pentecost was in process. Pilgrims from across the Empire came and went regularly throughout the year in Jerusalem. The faithful came to the city to fulfill their observance of the Mosaic law and to participate in different festivals. The multi-day feast that culminated in the night of the Passover feast affected everyone. But, Pentecost is the farmer’s festival. Natives would note that there was a surge of farmers traveling the streets. During the feast of Pentecost farmers came to the temple with a sample of their first fruits of harvest.  The male head of the family would put a sample of the farms first fruits into a basket, bring ...
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Art, Craft, & Bake Sale at Lutheran Church of Our Saviour

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Lutheran Church of Our Saviour 122 Condo Street Monticello, IN 47960  
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Sermon Text for the Divine Service of the Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter

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Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter  Ezekiel 36:22-28 John 15:26-16:4 Alleluia, Christ is risen. He is risen indeed, Alleluia! O Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.  I was struck by the reason that God articulates for his decision to save His people that is found in Ezekiel. I generally think of God’s mercy toward us as coming from His love. John 3:16 comes to mind regularly. Love appears to be at the root of God’s desire for a formal relationship with His people as expressed through the covenant of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Parental Love appears to be the motivation behind God giving Moses the law. Through the Mosaic Law, God is stating expectations of behavior, providing clear boundaries, and explains what happens when boundaries are crossed. The Psalms regularly speak of God’s love as expression of mercy. Psalm 136 tells the story of creation and Israel’s rescue from slavery in Egypt with...
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An inspirational and thoughtful speech by Ben Sasse

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  Ben Sasse will not be with us for long.  He has a terminal disease. He has decided to contribute to our national conversation about the future for as long as he is able.  Here is the text of a speech he gave at the Manhattan Institute's Hamilton Awards dinner May 6, 2026.   Mr. Sasse says many useful things.  I particularly appreciated his comments on four habits that young families need to inculcate into their way of being a family.  1. Develop the habit of intension reading books: good fiction, history, biography, etc. Reading should be apart from digital distractions.  2. Develop the habit of hard work 3. Develop the habit of a regular tech Sabbath. He also mentions his family's observance of a religious sabbath.  4. Develop the habit of intentional travel to experience and learn from families and different cultures. Sasse explains that this is more than "vacation."  
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Seventh Sunday of Easter - Video of Divine Service and Sermon Text

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7th Sunday of Easter - Video of Divine Service - St. Luke, Rensselaer   The seventh Sunday of Easter     Acts 1:12-26   1 Peter 4:12-19; 5:6-11   John 17:1-11 Alleluia! Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia!  O Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen. The prayer that we commonly call THE LORD’S PRAYER is found in two places: Matthew 6 and Luke 11. Sometimes it can be a surprise to Lutherans that the doxology that we end the Lord’s Prayer with, “ For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen, ” is not found in either Matthew 6 or Luke 11. These are words of praise that were added on later. The earliest written record of Christians using this little doxology is found in the Didache. The word Didache means “Teaching.” It is shorthand for the longer title “Teachings of the Twelve Apostles.” The Didache is one of the writings that we have from Ch...
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The Ascension of Our Lord - Video of Divine Service and Sermon Text

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Divine Service at St. Luke in Rensselaer    Thank you to Pastor Dave Mueller of Trinity, Goodland and St. John's, Rensselaer; and to Pastor Andrew Keller of St. James, Reynolds for helping to lead the Divine Service at St. Luke.   2026 Ascension of Our Lord Acts 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:15-23 Luke 24:44-53 Alleluia! Christ is risen.  He is risen indeed. Alleluia!  O Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen. At the beginning of his Gospel of Jesus, Luke informs Theophilus that he, himself, was not an eyewitness of the ministry of Jesus Christ. His gospel is the result of a thorough investigation. He consulted other gospels of Jesus. I presume that he talked to eyewitnesses. He certainly had access. He writes to Theophilus that he wants to provide an orderly account so that Theophilus can have “certainty concerning the things that you have been taught.” After reading any of the other go...
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Sixth Sunday of Easter - Video of Divine Service and Sermon Text

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Video of Divine Service at St. Luke, Rensselaer   Sixth Sunday of Easter    Acts 17:16-31   1 Peter 3:13-22   John 14:15-21 Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed. Alleluia! O Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, my rock and my redeemer. Amen. One of many things I enjoy about being called to serve St. Luke and Our Saviour is the relatively sane driving conditions I enjoy as I travel around the region. I enjoy the two-lane roads, except, of course, when I get behind a large vehicle that is going less than the speed limit and I have somewhere to be.  The challenge of the two-lane road is safely passing the one, two, or three vehicles that prevent expeditious travel. Often, we, or I, cannot see around the vehicles enough to know what is coming and whether the oncoming traffic is far enough away. And, is the person driving slower because they will soon turn left at the next road or driveway?  ...
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