St Marcus Mke Sermons

When we pray, we’re often hesitant. Hesitant to believe that our small voices will be heard by the sovereign God reigning in heaven. Hesitant to think we even have the right words to say. But Jesus gave His disciples—and us—the Lord’s Prayer as a guide in our prayer life. This prayer contains words of confession, thanks, recognition, need, and praise; it’s the perfect prayer model from our perfect role model.

This week we'll be studying 2 Kings 6:8-23 under the theme "CONFIDENCE - RULE 1 "Stand up straight with your shoulders back." Humans, like animals, all fit into an invisible social structure called a dominance hierarchy that impacts our health, wealth, and and overall wellness. Much of this is based on confidence and aptitude. But is there a way to find healthy confidence without slipping into arrogance? Is there a way to be strong without dominating others? The promises of a gracious God offer exactly that.    SERIES SUMMARY: Once a year we build a worship series around my favorite book, Christian or secular, from the past year :) This year we're structuring that series around Jordan B. Peterson's "12 RULES FOR LIFE: An Antidote to Chaos." Peterson has been labeled by NY Times as "The most influential public intellectual in the Western world right now." Though not a Christian himself, he is a clinical psychologist who certainly challenges many of the secular assumptions of modern America. We'll deconstruct s

Pastor Jeske continues his series on the parts of the Divine Service with today's study on the Nicene Creed.  We use two creeds in our worship services from week to week: The Apostles' Creed and The Nicene Creed.  Because the wording of the Apostles’ Creed developed over several hundred years, its authorship is unknown. It is clear that the apostles did not write the creed. Rather, the creed expresses the biblical teachings of the apostles. The Apostles’ Creed offers a simple summary of the Christian faith. For that reason, it has a long history of being associated with Baptism and instruction in God’s word. The Nicene Creed was the result of a church council that met in Nicea in 325 A.D. The Second Article of the Creed is much longer than that of the Apostles’ Creed because the council was addressing false doctrines about the person of Jesus Christ.

This week we'll be studying Luke 9:23 under the theme "Biblical Discipleship." Biblical Discipleship is the 3rd of our St. Marcus Core Values. We often talk about discipleship as allowing ourselves to be mentored by a Christian more seasoned than us and then helping mentor someone who is perhaps a step or two behind us. This is clearly God's design for the development of his Church. Furthermore, for the Church to grow in Christ-likeness, it requires believers to take up their own personal crosses to follow Jesus. In other words, the development of the Church requires personal sacrifice. But it works. And that's proven by the sacrifice Jesus made for us on his cross. 

Settings of the Gloria in Excelsis find their origin in the song of the heavenly host to the shepherds near Bethlehem (Luke 2).  Today's service focuses on the meaning and importance of the Gloria in Excelsis Christians across the world use in their liturgies.  It is a heavenly song that the angels sing, one similar to the songs of heaven found throughout Revelation; for example: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing"  (Revelation 5:12).  That evening some two thousand years ago, heaven met earth as the Son of God was born of the Virgin Mary, sent forth from His Father's throne to do the work of salvation. What a blessing it is to join Christians around the world who have for centuries before us sung this song of praise to our God.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 6:10-24 under the theme "Spiritual Warfare." As a deceiver and accuser, Satan's primary methodology is to trick us into think something that's not the real problem is the real problem. He convinces us to believe that our struggle in life is against flesh & blood - people, organizations, ideologies. In reality, the real struggle is spiritual. And if we don't demonize the actual demons, then we'll demonize others. Paul reminds us that Jesus won the cosmic war with an ultimate victory at the cross. This encourages to get up and fight the (right) battles daily.

Pastor Jeske's sermon series on the Divine Service begins with a message on 'Kyrie,' the ancient Greek contraction of the phrase "Lord, Have Mercy on Us." The focus of this morning's study is based on Luke 18:35-43.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 6:1-9 under the theme "The Ministry of Authority." Americans have an interesting, sometimes unfortunate history with authority. We're a nation born out of revolution. While authorities do, in fact, need to be held accountable, they are nonetheless an establishment of God to bring peace and protection into our lives. Whether we're talking about parent/child relationships, or employer/employee relationships, or others, this lesson gives us unique resources to navigate admittedly flawed institutional authorities.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 5:21-33 under the theme "The Ministry of Marriage." The first human relationship, and the most fundamental relationship for society, by God's design, is marriage. When it's ungodly, there's arguably nothing on earth closer to hell. When it's godly, there's perhaps nothing on earth closer to heaven. God ministers to us powerfully through marriage partners. And every believer, as the Bride of Christ (Church), will ultimately be married to Christ. This lesson therefore teaches each of us something important about our relationships. 

Today's theme is "Rest in the Lord".  Pastor' Leyrer's study "On Vacation with Jesus" dives into Mark 6:30-34. I.   When Physical Rest Disappoints  II.  His Rest Always Delivers.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 5:3-20 under the theme "Guided by the Spirit." Paul is starting to get very specific in his applications of the gospel in the lives of believers. This week, he addresses two major issues for believers - sexual immorality and drunkenness. For instance "How far is too far?" in our dating relationships?  What does it mean to be filled with the Spirit rather than being filled with alcohol? Where do we find the motivation to resist common pleasure outlets in a fallen world? Paul will tells us how the Spirit guides us.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 4:17-5:2 under the theme "The Christian Lifestyle." After the Apostle Paul told us the basis of our salvation by God's grace in chapters 1-3, he's now giving us the details of what it looks like to apply that salvation to our daily lives. In this text, he tells us to "put off the old self" that consists of worldly values, and "put on the new self" by aiming for honesty, calm, hard work, positive talk, and forgiveness. These new behaviors do not contribute to a new status, but flow out of the new status that has been gifted to us, as "dearly loved children of God." 

This message is based on John 15:1-8.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 4:1-16 under the theme "A Gifted Body: Principles of the Christian Walk." This week, we shift into the second half of Ephesians, which gives us careful instruction for our walk with Christ in this life. Specifically, we'll be looking at God's desire for unity amongst Christians, the reality of the Church's giftedness, and our capacity to mature, transform, and develop as his body. 

As a follower of Jesus, our citizenship first is in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Our allegiance lies with His values, with His family, with His heart for the world, and with His commands.  Being a Christian in America means that we can gather with the church freely, that we can speak and work for justice and truth, and that we can share my faith with others.  We celebrate today recognizing that there is beauty in America, and there is also deep brokenness to which we move towards with faith, believing the Lord can and will redeem this nation to Himself.  Pastor Jeske's bible study focuses on the theme Respect Your Government as he digs into Nehemiah 2:1-8.  

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 3:14-21 under the theme "The Experience of Christ." In this text, Paul offers his second lengthy prayer of the letter. He's asking here that the believers in Ephesus would experientially come to grips the dimensions of God's love. He's articulating the distinction between knowing about Jesus, and knowing Jesus personally. For some, this seems like an arbitrary distinction, but we'll discuss this week the importance as well as strategies to keeping the relationship.

Pastor Jeske's bible study walks through I Timothy 6:17-19. Paul encourages his readers to know that there is great gain in godliness when it is combined with content­ment in the basic necessities of life (1 Tim. 6:6, 8). Our God is a God “who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment” (1 Tim. 6:17).

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 3:1-13 under the theme "The Mystery of the Church." Paul has taught us in this letter that our salvation was God's plan executed by Jesus (Ch 1), and it's based on grace, which forms the basis of the Church (Ch 2). In Ch 3 he explains implications of grace in our relationships. Grace causes the Jew to love the Gentile and vice versa. Grace is an absolute "mystery" to the world and therefore the defining characteristic of Christ and his Church.

Today is the annual Juneteenth worship celebration. Pastor Jeske and Darlene Grams have been leading the annual celebration at St. Marcus since the 1990s. St. Marcus' Juneteenth celebration is a time honored tradition, an opportunity to include people in the central city who may not know about our Savior and a way to learn more about the African-American community through their story of freedom. President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. But it was not until June 19, 1865, that all of the slaves in the former confederacy recognized that they had been freed. It is our Christian joy to evangelize our communities and tell people who groan in the slavery of their sins that they have already been freed by Jesus Christ, their Savior.

This week we'll be studying Ephesians 2:11-2 under the theme "Christian Unity." This lesson will clear up for so many of us why we see the divisions we see in the world. Spiritually speaking, sinful pride leads us to naturally create "dividing walls" that we deem lesser than us, to try to establish our own identity. But those of us who are "in Christ" are given unique resources to break down dividing walls of society as Jesus has broken down hostility for us.