It was a mixed bag of people who were following Jesus, and now the size of the crowd that was traveling with him was getting bigger. He could tell that there were some who had thrown in their lot with him and were following along, but they weren’t going to make it with him to…
Sermon Text Study, “A Closer Look” In 2002, shortly before his death, country music legend Johnny Cash, my personal favorite, released his last album. The most notable song on that album was actually a cover of a song called “Hurt” that wasn’t even his. Soon the song became his, as it served as the gut-wrenching…
Sermon Text Bible Study Guide Sermon Text Bible Study Guide – Leader’s Notes Last week, I got out golfing and I got paired up with another guy about my age. We got to chatting and asked about each other’s jobs. Then it came, the question I’ve sweated for years, probably the single most frequent question…
Life Guide Have you ever wondered why we call this place Mount Olive? If I had to take a guess on why a church like Riverview in Appleton is called Riverview, well I’d have to guess it’s because they’re in a neighborhood with a view of the river. But our little Mount Olive neighborhood isn’t…
Life Guide Life Guide – Leader’s Notes In the Old Testament, when God set aside the priesthood to serve him and the people in the Tabernacle, he gave specific instructions about the garments that the priests were to where, especially the High Priest. The skilled workers from among the people were to make sacred garments…
Life Guide Life Guide – Teacher’s Notes In the name of Jesus Christ, the Risen One. Alleluia. I hate to break the joy of the Alleluias for a moment, but in keeping with the mood of those first women as they left for the tomb on the third day, I’m going to ask you to…
It was 3:37 pm on a Saturday afternoon, the day before last Easter. I was running down the sidewalk to the pharmacy to get a Covid test at 3:45PM, the last test of the day before it closed. I had scheduled the test about 10 minutes before when I found out I would need it,…
In the name of Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. Would you want to know when you’re going to die? It’s the kind of question that brings all kinds of different responses. I ran across an online poll of 29 people who were asked this question. 16 said “Yes I would want to…
As Satan Sifts, Jesus Confronts, Forgives, and Strengthens Lent is not the most wonderful time of year. There’s no Christmas trees and lights and carols. We even put the Church’s most jubilant songs, the Alleluia’s and Gloria’s away for the season. Instead, there’s purple and black, there’s minor keys and haunting lyrics, and there’s time…
Life Guide The renowned radio television and radio evangelist, Billy Graham, not a man from our church body, but a man who preached to millions of people, was jealous of our comparatively small little WELS Christian education system. He once sat in a WELS church just like this one, down near the Seminary in Mequon.…
