Sermons

This passage tells how Jesus met and rescued a madman in the region of Gerasa who was tormented by many demons and wandered among the tombs. People had driven him out of the village because of his uncontrollable strength and destructive behaviour, but Jesus had compassion on him, a man enslaved to Satan, drew out the demons' commands and set him free. The demons acknowledged Jesus' authority yet made sophistic arguments to push their own plans through, and in the end they entered a herd of pigs and perished.

Through this event the sermon points out how Satan takes away a person's reason and will and destroys their life, and that a church that does not stand together can easily fall to Satan's attacks. It also criticizes how the demons hinder Jesus' work of saving souls, and how people treat the loss of property as more important than the salvation of a soul. Just as Jesus gave up a great many pigs to save one soul, it stresses that God is doing his utmost for the salvation of each person.

The sermon asks why believers must not be taken in by Satan's sophistry and must stand united within the church community. It also leads us to stand before Jesus' salvation, look back on our lives, and consider how we will carry out the mission of sharing the gospel with our families and neighbours on the strength of the freedom restored to us.

Through the parable of the mustard seed and the storm on the sea, this passage deals with the nature and growth of faith. It explains what faith is that looks like a small mustard seed yet can grow into a great tree, and how that faith leads the expansion of the kingdom of God. Through the fear and failure the disciples went through, it also shows that faith can grow by the power of the Holy Spirit even in suffering.

The sermon stresses that the doubts and worries that come when faith is weak are in fact tests for spiritual growth. Rather than turning away from the Word as Judas Iscariot did, the disciples gained assurance of the truth through suffering, repented and grew; through them it leads us to reflect on where our faith is rooted now. It also points out that we need the mission of lifting up the lamp to light the darkness, and the attitude of trusting the Lord's presence and facing things calmly even in the storm.

We consider how the small faith we have can grow into a great tree, and how we can grow in spiritual discernment through suffering.

Through the parable of the seed that fell on the ground, which Jesus told by the sea, and the parable of the weeds, this passage explains how the state of the listener's heart affects spiritual fruit. The seed the farmer sows falls on the path, on rocky ground, among thorns and on good soil, and this pictures how hard or shallow the listeners' hearts are, and how blocked they are by the worries and desires of the world. In particular, a heart like rocky ground looks zealous at first but easily collapses in the face of hardship or testing, while the thorns stand for a state that has life but cannot grow.

The sermon stresses that we must go beyond simply hearing the Word: we must apply it to our lives, persevere and bear fruit. It points out that many people neglect to plough up their own hearts and clear away the world's thorns before they ask for God's grace. Through the parable of the weeds it also notes that the weeds sown by the evil one grow together with the wheat until the harvest but are finally separated on the day of judgment, and it conveys the need for believers to keep their faith and persevere to the end. This means living a life that is not swayed by one's own feelings or circumstances, but serves God as Lord and gives him glory.

The sermon asks the reader to reflect on whether their heart is now like the hard path that cannot receive the Word, like shallow rocky ground whose passion is only for a moment, or like the thorns, blocked and unable to grow. It also leads us to think deeply about how we must first make an effort and devote ourselves to overcome these states of heart, and how we must persevere to the end and hold on to God's promises.

This passage deals with the difficulty Jesus faced from his family's unbelief even while he was proclaiming the truth, when his mother and brothers accused him of being out of his mind and tried to take him away by force. When the scribes accused Jesus of acting by the power of Beelzebul, Jesus pointed out, by reasoning that Satan cannot cast out Satan, that their words were a contradiction that fell short of common sense.

The sermon points out specifically what the sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit is. It warns that slandering pastors and teachers, setting people against one another and hindering the church, as well as complaining constantly even while serving, amount to the sin of resisting the Holy Spirit. Using the examples of the king of Tyre and the fallen angel, it also explains that when people oppose God in pride amid his special grace and abundance, they are judged in the end. Because Satan has no mercy and tempts people and drags them into darkness, believers must give up their own righteousness and humbly depend on the Holy Spirit.

The sermon declares that those who do God's will, rather than blood relations, are true family. Because Satan is watching for an opening to divide the church, believers must bear with one another, love one another and not give Satan a gap to attack. It asks what kind of heart we must have to be believers who put Satan to shame, giving thanks for the grace God has given and keeping an unchanging faith in a lowly place.

Today's passage describes how Jesus called his disciples, lived with them, and appointed them as preachers and as apostles with authority. At the time, the Pharisees were fixated on the formal keeping of the Law and ignored love and mercy, the true meaning of the Sabbath; they condemned Jesus' good deeds and looked for a chance to kill him. But Jesus, as Lord of the Sabbath, declared that it is right to do good and save life, and broke through their stubborn preconceptions.

Jesus appointed the disciples so that they would be with him, so that he could send them into the world to preach the gospel, and so that he could give them authority to drive out demons. Peter and Judas Iscariot were both called as apostles, yet because of their own greed and fear they came to completely different ends. Peter went through deep repentance after his failure and became a foundation of the church, but Judas did not repent and in the end fell from his place of mission. This shows how important humble faith and obedience to the truth are, rather than position or power.

We need to ask ourselves whether we are trapped in our own thoughts and feelings and turning away from the truth, and whether we fall to Satan's temptations and easily throw away what is precious. As the lives of Peter and Judas Iscariot warn us, we must not forget that the choices we make now determine eternal outcomes. Today's passage asks how we should set our hearts so that we can live as believers who stay with Jesus and boldly proclaim the gospel.

This passage covers Jesus healing a paralyzed man, calling Levi (Matthew) the tax collector to be his disciple, and his conflict with the Pharisees. It shows that seeing miracles or hearing the Word is not enough; a true relationship is decided by a person's own choice and decision. In particular, Jesus came to the sick and to sinners, and opened the way of salvation through their repentance and faith.

The sermon warns against hypocritical faith and formalism, and emphasizes a sincere faith that truly worships God. It points out that fasting and religious practices must not become a source of pride or a mere habit, but are only for deep fellowship with God. It also urges us to prepare new wineskins that can hold the life of the gospel, rather than a faith trapped in old traditions and forms.

As those who have been set free from the chains of sin and saved, how should we carry out the mission of seeking out sinners who cannot repent and sharing the gospel with them? We also need to think about what concrete attitudes will let us live as people of faith built on the word of truth, not bound by form and tradition.

This passage shows Jesus calling disciples by the Sea of Galilee and meeting a man possessed by a demon in the synagogue in Capernaum. Peter, who had caught nothing all night, obeys Jesus' word, experiences a miracle, and confesses him as Lord; this is set against the demon, which knows who Jesus is and fears him, yet opposes him to the end.

The sermon points out that Satan does not rule people by force; he exercises spiritual control by slowly deceiving people's hearts and persuading them to push God away. It also warns that false spiritual phenomena such as past lives or fortune-telling are nothing but Satan's tricks, imitating God to lead people astray, and that faith can be shaken if we cannot discern the truth. It stresses that believers must not give in to Satan's threats and lies but stand firm in the Word and in faith, and wash their unclean hearts clean through repentance.

How should we obey the Word and fight the spiritual battle, so that we can be free from Satan's attacks and enjoy the life of the kingdom of heaven?

Today's passage covers how Jesus, after being baptized by John, was led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness and tempted by Satan. Jesus was baptized in order to bear the sins of humanity and become the atoning sacrifice, and this is the starting point that leads to suffering and the cross. John the Baptist knew that his mission was to transfer sin onto Jesus, yet seeing Jesus' holiness, he did not want to baptize him. But Jesus said that he must do this in order to fulfill all righteousness, and he was baptized.

Afterward, when the Holy Spirit drove Jesus out into the wilderness, Satan set three temptations before him: making bread, putting on a miracle, and the offer of the glory of all the kingdoms of the world. Satan tried to use Jesus' identity to put God to the test, demanded a miracle to draw people's attention, and tried to make him covet worldly power. But Jesus drove off every temptation with God's word, and made clear that God alone is to be worshiped and served. This shows that the heart of salvation is a relationship with God and following the truth, more than miracles or worldly glory.

We must follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and worship in spirit and truth, not be deceived by Satan's cunning temptations, and obey the Word. Take time to reflect deeply on what it means to drive back evil spirits with the boldness the Holy Spirit gives, and to live relying on the truth rather than on what can be seen.

This passage deals with how the gospel of Jesus Christ began. Drawing on the spiritual knowledge he gained as Peter's interpreter, the writer vividly recounts the deeds of Jesus, who came to this earth as a lowly servant. In particular, the scene at Jesus' baptism, when the Holy Spirit comes down like a dove and a voice is heard from heaven, shows the triune God working together. It stresses that this is not simply one individual's ministry but the moment God's plan of salvation is fulfilled.

Through the life and ministry of John the Baptist, the sermon points to the meaning of true repentance. Though John came from a distinguished family, he lived simply in the wilderness, laid himself aside, and prepared the way for the Messiah. He called not for formal religious ritual but for a repentance that confesses sin and restores one's relationship with God. The sermon also explains the difference between baptism with water and baptism with the Holy Spirit, emphasizing that faith is not mere ritual but a time of decision in which the old self dies and is born again as a new self.

The sermon points out that the church today is losing the truth as it leans toward form and pretense. It warns that boasting of one's own righteousness and refusing to repent, as the Pharisees did, is like being offspring of vipers, and says that believers must admit their weakness and keep laying themselves aside. Since growth in faith takes time, it asks what it looks like for a community to wait for weaker brothers and sisters with love and consideration.

Through the deep meaning of the Lord's Prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, this passage deals with how our relationship with God is restored. Just as Adam set up his own standard of judgment by eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and this led to separation from God, human judgment often puts our relationship with God out of joint. So the Lord's Prayer is not simply a form of prayer; it sets out a direction for life that heals the root of sin and restores our relationship with God.

Through his own precious blood, Jesus opened the only way to restore the broken relationship. When the veil of the sanctuary was torn, the way into the Most Holy Place was opened, and this shows God's will: he wants not formal sacrifices but a heart that sincerely loves him. At the center of this restored relationship is Jesus, the Lord of the Sabbath. The Lord's Day is not simply a day for keeping rules; it is the time when church members who come carrying spirits wounded in the world meet the Lord of the Sabbath and are restored.

Worship should not be something we attend out of habit, but a precious time of one-on-one fellowship with God in which our souls find peace. The praise and the Word offered on the Lord's Day are the place where we lay down the pain and worry of the past six days and take in spiritual food. Through the Lord's Day our relationship with God must be restored and the direction of our lives set right; without this peace, it cannot be called true worship. Today we should reflect deeply on how we are restoring our relationship with God through the worship we offer on the Lord's Day, and on what peace we receive through it.

Through the lives of Abraham and Joseph, this passage shows how God accomplishes his plans even in human weakness. Through failure after failure on the way to having Isaac, God still made Abraham the father of many nations; Joseph went through the suffering of his brothers' jealousy, slavery, and prison, and became prime minister of Egypt and an instrument for saving his family. These stories of biblical figures are not mere historical records; they are examples that show how God is at work in the trials and temptations believers face today.

The sermon stresses that the direction of believers' lives changes depending on what they choose between the world and God. When Joseph refused the temptation of Potiphar's wife and chose the suffering of prison, God set him in the seat of prime minister; this means that when believers make God-centered decisions moment by moment, God changes their circumstances. Also, Abraham's failure in trying to have a son, Ishmael, by his own will, and Joseph's forgiving his brothers and fulfilling God's prophecy, show that only when people abandon their own righteousness and obey God can they enjoy true blessing.

Because Christ bore our sins and sacrificed himself on the cross, we have received the right to stand blameless before God. But if we do not treasure this amazing grace and pursue worldly gain or comfort instead, we may give in to Satan's attacks and lose the opportunity of salvation. What is the sacrifice of Christ, and his authority, that we must carry in order to stand blameless before God, and how are we keeping his grace now?

This passage warns about what false teachers really are and the confusion they cause in the church, and describes the life of a true believer as being filled with the Holy Spirit. False teachers, servants of Satan, pretend outwardly to preach the truth but actually lead souls to destruction, and believers must keep checking whether their choices have Christ at the center, so that they are not deceived by those teachers' words. Emphasizing that salvation is not a mere declaration but something that shows itself in good character and actions in life, it points out that God looks not at outward appearance but at the thoughts and judgments of the heart.

Through a parable of two servants, the sermon explains that believers' faith makes a difference, like the amount of water filled into a jar. Even if people outwardly receive the same grace, the reward they receive on the last day differs according to their thankfulness and devotion, and the sermon warns that those without the Holy Spirit live by instinct and fall into sin. In particular, it teaches that a mature believer, rather than judging or condemning those who doubt, has compassion on them and embraces them, and that such patience and love become a blessing that in the end lets the church stand unshaken.

The sermon asks in depth how believers filled with the Holy Spirit should discern the temptations of falsehood and embrace a doubting brother or sister, and how they should transform the suffering and strife they meet along the way into something higher.