Pastors' Conference -- Christ Our Rock Lutheran Church, Rochester, Minnesota

On Monday, October 12 and Tuesday, October 13, the pastors of the Red Wing Conference of the Minnesota District of the WELS met at Christ Our Rock Lutheran Church of Rochester, Minnesota.  Here are some photos of the church.

Minor Festival -- St. Luke, Evangelist (October 18, 2026)

Festival of St. Luke, Evangelist

               Lutheran worship is liturgical.  While that often refers to an order of worship, it can also refer to the calendar of the Church Year.  The Church Year includes major festivals, such as Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Pentecost, etc...  On Sunday, October 18 we will recognize a minor festival, the Festival of St. Luke, Evangelist.

               St. Luke was a close companion of St. Paul.  St. Paul refers to Luke a number of times, particularly that Luke was with Paul in the final days of Paul’s life (2 Timothy 4:11).  Luke wrote the gospel that bears his name and the book of Acts (which also demonstrates his association with Paul in the portions that talk about what “we” did).  Not only was Luke a physician (Colossians 4:14), he was obviously a historian which is seen throughout Luke’s Gospel and the book of Acts where Luke is careful to date events and cite people and places.  We are especially grateful that, under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, Luke “carefully investigated everything ... so that (we) may know the certainty of the things (we) have been taught.” (Luke 1:3,4)

YouTube -- 20th Sunday after Pentecost (October 11, 2026)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, October 11, 2026.

Sermon -- 20th Sunday after Pentecost (October 11, 2026)

LET US PRESS ON TOWARD THE GOAL.

PHILIPPIANS 3:12-21

In the name + of Jesus.

     If you ever get to take a trip to northern Michigan, I highly recommend you visit Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.  The dunes rise about 400 feet above Lake Michigan, and the views are spectacular.  The recommendation, however, also comes with a warning.  You will find a large parking lot in front of a dune simply called The Climb.  As the name suggests, you are encouraged to climb up.  The highlight of The Climb is running down it.  But to run down, you have to climb up.  Climbing up a sand dune is exhausting work.  Because the sand gives way went you press into it, your progress is very slow.  The top of the dune seems almost unreachable as your calves are burning from the climb.  Many stop along the way to rest.  But resting doesn’t get you to the top.  You have to strive and labor to reach the goal. 

     The Christian faith has a goal, as well.  As St. Paul noted, “Our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20).  The everlasting glories, peace, joy, and rest of heaven is our goal.  Your greatest comfort is that Jesus has secured this goal for you.  He has taken away every splotch of sin in you which would have kept you out.  He has clothed you in garments of salvation through holy baptism.  These cover you in the righteousness you need to enter its pearly gates.  He has overcome the grave and holds the keys to death and Hades.  Therefore, Jesus assures your release from death to eternal life.  When he comes again to judge the living and the dead, “he will transform our humble bodies to be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:21).  All these things Jesus secures for you.  So, if you keep your minds and hearts set on Jesus Christ, you have every confidence that you will reach the heavenly goal.

     But we are not there yet.  As St. Paul wrote, “Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus also took hold of me.  Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it yet, but there is one thing I do: Forgetting the things that are behind and straining toward the things that are ahead, I press on toward the goal, for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14).  Let us press on toward the goal.

     The Apostle Paul reminds us that we are still in the Church Militant.  We continue to struggle, battle, and strive toward that goal.  One of the enemies that we must battle is the world.  Worldly attitudes are constantly around us.  Worldly people live by them.  St. Paul noted, “Many walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.  I told you about them often, and now I am saying it while weeping.  Their end is destruction, their god is their appetite, and their glory is in their shame.  They are thinking only about earthly things” (Philippians 3:18-19).  That sounds wicked, and it is.  Surprisingly, it does not appear wicked when we encounter it.  And we are enticed to join in so that we feel like we belong.

     When St. Paul says that their god is their appetite, he is saying that people will pursue whatever pleasures satisfy them.  They not only dedicate themselves to them, they are celebrated for them.  How many people are congratulated for their promiscuity?  How many people boast about how drunk they got?  How many seek approval for ripping people off?  And how many Christians have accepted this same kind of attitude or behavior because their friends have embraced it?  If your glory is in your shame, then your goal is completely different.  St. Paul warns about the end goal for such worldly thinking: “Their end is destruction” (Philippians 3:18). 

     Do not be deceived into thinking that Jesus’ promise and his enduring mercy gives you license for wickedness.  Do not be fooled into thinking, “If salvation is so sure, then it does not matter what I do or think.”  This is not doing battle with the sinful nature; it is conceding the battle to it.  And it is surely not striving toward the heavenly goal; it is clinging to the world.  The world is marked for destruction.  Those who cling to it will be destroyed with it.  That is why St. Paul urges you: “Only let us … walk in line with what we already have attained” (Philippians 3:16).

     Let us press on toward the goal.  The Lord Jesus Christ has delivered you from the curse of sin and from the fear of death.  He has set you apart for godliness and leads you on the path of righteousness.  Since he has put you on this path, keep your focus on Jesus and his words to guide you on the way.  Flee to this altar for the sustenance that strengthens you for the journey and for the battle.  This is how we “walk in line with what we already have attained” (Philippians 3:16).

     Let us press on toward the goal.  We are not there yet.  Even the likes of the Apostle Paul recognized that his place in God’s kingdom was not yet his place in the heavenly kingdom.  He was still in the Church Militant.  He still had to struggle and battle against the devil, the world, and the sinful flesh.  So do we.  But St. Paul also encouraged us to keep our focus on the goal.  He wrote, “There is one thing I do: Forgetting the things that are behind and straining toward the things that are ahead, I press on toward the goal” (Philippians 3:13-14). 

     We do well to forget the things that are behind.  It means that we do not rest on the achievements of the past.  Many here have observed the Rite of Confirmation.  In that rite, you were asked, “Do you intend to continue steadfast in this confession and Church and to suffer all, even death, rather than fall away from it?”  You swore before Christ and his Church that you would.  Perhaps that day stands out in your mind as a significant moment in your Christian faith.  Even though you can present a confirmation certificate, that day is long in the past.  No matter how much you benefited from your catechism studies, it was a step on your way to the heavenly goal.  But it was not the end. 

     Perhaps a comparison can be made to your wedding day.  No doubt, it was a highlight of your life.  But your wedding day was just the first day of your marriage.  Then came the work—learning to live together, work together, communicate with each other, and demonstrate patience with each other.  The blessings of marriage continued only as you worked on it together.  Gazing at your wedding photos did not resolve current tensions.  The goal is not just the wedding day; the goal is a joyful marriage.  The struggle to preserve it is on-going.  In the same way, the goal is not just that you are in church today—although it benefits you for the struggle; the goal is the heavenly kingdom.  Therefore, we do not live in the past.  “Forgetting the things that are behind and straining toward the things that are ahead, [let us] press on toward the goal” (Philippians 3:13-14).  We give thanks to God for the blessings of the past.  We don’t dismiss them, but neither do we dwell on them. 

     Perhaps the things of your past which continue to resurface in your mind are not the blessings.  Perhaps you are plagued by your shame and your regrets.  We all have words and moments that we would like to have erased from our memories.  For good reason, King David taught us to pray, “Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways.  According to your mercy remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD” (Psalm 25:7).  Even if there are not life-long consequences to remind us, Satan gladly will. 

     How can one forget the sins of the past?  Perhaps you won’t.  Do you think St. Paul ever forgot that he had persecuted Christians?  Do you think David ever forgot that he had orchestrated the death of Uriah, the husband of Bathsheba?  Do you think Simon Peter ever forgot that he had denied Jesus while Jesus was being beaten and condemned in the court of Caiaphas?  If you are haunted by your past, you can be sure they were, too.

     If you can’t forget your past, God may use that to prevent you from repeating it.  But if you can’t forget your past, then remember what God has done for you in the past.  He sent his Son into the world for the sole purpose of gaining for you your place in his holy kingdom.  To bring you into his holy kingdom, he had to cleanse you from all unrighteousness.  And he has.  Do not dwell on your sins; rather dwell on these words: “The blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).  When the devil vexes you, shove those words in his face.  For, Jesus has wiped clean the record which stood against you.  You’ve been washed in the blood of Christ in your baptism.  You partake in the blood of Christ which was shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.  The things that Jesus achieved for you in the past are delivered to you here and now. 

     Let us press on toward the goal.  We do not dwell on the past—whether it was filled with blessings or regrets.  Nor do we dedicate ourselves to what is temporary in this world.  For this world and everything in it—whether good or bad—is passing away.  But your goal does not.  As St. Paul wrote, “Our citizenship is in heaven.  We are eagerly waiting for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.  By the power that enables him to subject all things to himself, he will transform our humble bodies to be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:20-21). 

     If your goal is to be perpetually healthy and strong, then press on toward the goal.  For Jesus Christ will raise you up with a body that will be eternally glorious.  If your goal is to live without pain or sorrow, then press on toward the goal.  For Jesus is restoring all things to the perfect state in which the world was first created.  If your goal is to live free from shame, regret, anxiety, stress, or suffering, then press on toward the goal.  For Jesus is preparing for us a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness, which will be forever free from every effect of sin.  If your goal is to dwell in Paradise with the Lord, then continue to come to God’s house and to devote yourself to God’s word and sacraments.  For here, God comes to serve you.  Here, God delivers to you the blessings which will deliver you to that heavenly goal.

     Let us press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus also took hold of us.  Here, in this world, we are strangers; our goal is our citizenship in heaven.  Here, in the Church Militant, we struggle and battle and strive against the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh.  Our goal is the Church Triumphant where our Lord will give us rest from all our enemies.  Let us keep our focus on Jesus Christ and press on toward the goal.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

A Pastoral Concern: The need for Bible Class

It has been an interesting morning at St. John's Lutheran School.  I invite the Catechism Class to ask questions outside the materials we are covering in the Catechism.  They produce some interesting questions which sometimes involve some complex answers.  They have a genuine interest in God's word--both the content of God's word and in how it applies to their lives.  

Just moments ago, I was invited into the 4th-5th grade classroom to answer some questions those students had.  And it wasn't just a few questions.  I think I could have spent half an hour in there with all the hands that were shooting up.  They are an inquisitive group, and their questions show that they are giving serious thought to the Bible and Christian doctrine.  Again, some answers were quite complex.  I hope that I was able to answer them simply enough--or at least that the Holy Spirit could make sensible my attempts at answering their questions.

I suspect that such questions never cease.  In our Bible Basics Class, we have life-long Christians attending (sadly, no prospective members this time).  Even though these Christians have studied the Bible and heard lessons and sermons for years, they are still growing in faith and knowledge of God's word.  They still have questions.

The Church meets regularly for word and sacrament.  The sermon is preached.  But as carefully crafted as any sermon might be, it is not designed for follow up questions to explain something more clearly or to address a related topic.  The pastor can hope the sermon answers all questions, but he is certain that no sermon can.  Bible Class allows for people to ask their questions.

God's people are encouraged to ask their questions--no matter how bold or contentious they may seem.  It may be a question that has lingered in your mind.  It may be a question that was posed to you, and you are wondering how it should be answered.  Such questions rarely just go away.  God uses them to lead us to grow in faith and knowledge.  Satan uses them to convince us that there are no good answers and leads us into false belief and despair.  

The obvious solution is to join us for Bible Classes and Sunday School.  Discipleship is a life-long endeavor.  No one will master it all or graduate.  God continues to speak to us in his word, to enlighten us to see his truths, to cause us to marvel at mysteries, and to fill us with comfort and confidence in his promises.  

The law of the Lord is perfect. It revives the soul. The testimony of the Lord is trustworthy. It gives wisdom to the inexperienced. The precepts of the Lord are right. They give joy to the heart. The commandment of the Lord is bright. It gives light to the eyes. The fear of the Lord is pure. It stands forever. The just decrees of the Lord are truth. They are altogether righteous. They are more desirable than gold, even better than much pure gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the honeycomb. (Psalm 19:7-10)

Worship Notes: Focusing on Jesus' words and works

When we gather for worship each Sunday, our liturgical order is designed to keep our focus on the Bible and on Jesus in particular.  The Common Service is based on what is called "the western rite," distinguished from Eastern Orthodox liturgies.  Its roots go back centuries.  Some might say that our service looks Roman Catholic.  Some say it as an observation; others say it as an accusation.  I will agree with catholic, but not Roman.  In other words, we are doing what the Church has done for over a millennium.  

Most of our Lutheran worship pre-dates Luther by centuries.  Luther and the Lutheran Reformers did not stage a revolution against the Church.  They preserved as much as possible.  What the Church needed was correction, not destruction.  As Lutherans, we are still the church catholic.  That is recognized in our liturgical worship which follows the western rite.

Consider how our service flows, how much it proclaims God's word, and how much it focuses on the life of Jesus.

THE COMMON SERVICE

Invocation -- It is the name into which we are baptized. (Matthew 28:19)

Confession -- To confess is to say the same thing.  God's word shows us that we are sinners (Romans 3:20) who have earned God's curse (Ephesians 2:3).  Therefore, we say the same thing, confessing our sinful nature, our sinful thoughts, words, and actions, and the punishment we have earned for them.  

Kyrie Eleison (Lord, have mercy) -- We appeal to our Lord for mercy. (Mark 10:47)

Absolution -- In the name and in the stead of Christ, the pastor applies God's forgiveness to the penitent based on the name into which we are baptized. (Matthew 18:18; John 20:23)

Gloria in Excelsis (Glory be to God on High) -- We join with the angels who joined in song at the coming of the Savior into the world. (Luke 2:14)

The Service of the Word

The little ordination -- The pastor greets the people in the name of the Lord.  They respond, "And also with you," acknowledging the pastor as Christ's ordained minister.  

Lessons -- God speaks to us in his word.  The Old Testament looks forward to the Christ who is promised.  The Epistles guide us in godly living and sound doctrine.  

Psalm -- We sing the hymns of the Old Testament Church.

Gospel -- We acknowledge that all our Scripture readings are the word of God, but we stand only for the Gospel reading.  The reason?  We stand to honor Jesus whose words and works are proclaimed.  In the other lessons, we hear about Jesus.  In the Gospel, we hear Jesus.

The Creed -- To confess is to say the same thing.  God has told us who he is and what he has done for us.  We say the same thing in the Creed (whether Apostles', Nicene, or Athanasian), summarizing the Christian faith in a clear, concise expression.  The Creeds are recognized as a true Christian confession by all faithful Christians. (Romans 10:9-10)

Sermon -- The pastor proclaims the word of the Lord based on one of the readings, usually the Gospel reading.  He reveals our need for a Savior and then applies the saving work of Jesus to the listeners.  He also delivers guidance, encouragement, and comfort for godly living.

Create in me a clean heart, O God -- Having heard God's word, we pray for the Holy Spirit to work in us to will and to work according to God's will.  (Psalm 51)

Offering -- We present our gifts to support the work of the church both in the local congregation and in the church at large.  We return to God a portion of what he has chosen to give us.

Prayers & Lord's Prayer -- We call upon God's name with our petitions and intercessions, entrusting to God's wisdom, mercy, and rule to do what is best for us.

The Service of the Sacrament

The Preface -- This greeting goes back to the 200's in the Chrisitan Church.

Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy) -- We sing the song of the angels in heaven (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8); for we recognize that our holy Lord is coming to us in a tangible way in the sacrament.  At the same time, he is not coming to stir up fear, but to work salvation in us.  He does not come in his bare glory, but hides his glory in humble form just as he did when he rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.  Therefore, we also sing our Hosannas with the Palm Sunday crowds. (Matthew 21:9)

The Consecration of the Elements -- The elements of bread and wine are set apart for God's holy purpose as we repeat the words of Jesus which he used to institute this blessed sacrament (Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-25).  The words do what they say.  As St. Augustine commented, "The word is added and it becomes a sacrament." 

Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) -- The body and blood of Christ are present.  We acknowledge it by praising the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world and grants us his peace. (John 1:29; Revelation 5:12)

Distribution of Christ's body and blood -- The feast of heaven has come to earth.  The holy ones receive the holy things, and look forward to the feast that will never end in God's heavenly banquet. (Revelation 19:6-9)

Song of Simeon / Nunc Dimittis (Now Let us Depart) -- We have seen and smelled and touched and tasted the living body and blood of the Lord under the bread and wine we have received.  Having been given the gift of salvation, we are able to depart from the Divine Service and, in fact, this life in peace, just as aged Simeon confessed upon holding the baby Jesus.  (Luke 2:29-32) 

Benediction -- Before God's people depart, God imparts one final blessing.  We end the service as we began it, with God putting his name upon us to mark us as his own and to bless us.  The pastor may use the Aaronic benediction (Numbers 6:25-27) or the Apostolic benediction (2 Corinthians 13:14).

YouTube -- 19th Sunday after Pentecost (October 4, 2026)

Here is the service from Sunday, October 4, 2026.