Claim OwnershipConcordia Sermon Podcast
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© 2025 Concordia Lutheran Church - Texas
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Sermons from the Pastors at Concordia Lutheran Church in San Antonio, TX.
185 Episodes
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When we begin to drift, it can chain us to empty tombs. We get caught in life’s currents, stray from loving God and others, and miss Easter’s victory. In a distracting world, we get stuck and lose track of the gratitude we should have for others. Our sense of duty fades as we drift away. Jesus’ resurrection breaks all chains. Jesus honored us by giving everything, including His life, for us. His empty tomb calls us to lives of honor… praising God and respecting others. It brings our duty into focus and unsticks us to live faithfully.
What we dream for our relationships is often not how they turn out. When a relationship falls apart, what gives us the best chance at making things better? Jesus answers, “A tender heart.” Hurt creates hard hearts. But Jesus invites us to choose tenderness rather than hardness.
When Jesus dies, it is not just him who feels forsaken by God. His disciples feel forsaken by God, too. But on Easter, Jesus’ cry of forsakenness melts aways in the reality of his resurrection.
The question Jesus asks his disciples on Palm Sunday is a question that will be a question the disciples get asked: “Why are you doing this” (Mark 11:3)? We have all asked this question of others, especially our kids when they are getting ready to get themselves into trouble. But we also ask it of God: “God, why are you doing this? Why are you taking whatever-my-colt-is from me?” And God’s answer is the same as Jesus’: “Because the Lord needs it.” Sometimes what is taken from us is used for us – for our blessing and benefit.
Our world can be a dark place. From hopelessness and despair to anger and violence: it can be hard to see our way through. But God has broken through the darkness. God shines the light of Christ into our lives. But God does more: He shines the light through our lives, too. We are the light of the world, shining like stars in the universe as we point others to true life!
The second candle of Advent is Peace. The angels announced peace on earth, but the wars still rage. Violence continues. Relationships fracture. Anxiety grows. So what kind of peace did Jesus bring? The peace of Jesus is not the absence of conflict. It is the presence of God in the middle of it. Jesus is our peace with God and our peace with one another. This week, we will see how the Prince of Peace offers rest for our souls even when the world around us is anything but calm.
Thanksgiving is the doorway into God's presence. The psalmist invites us to come before God not first with complaints or requests, but with gratitude. Why? Because gratitude reminds us who God is. He is good. His love endures. His faithfulness continues. When we approach God with thanksgiving, we acknowledge His track record and character. This posture changes how we pray, how we see our lives, and how we move through the world. As we prepare for Thanksgiving week, we will practice gratitude as worship and trust God to meet us in our praise.
Paul's command sounds impossible until we see the source. We give thanks in all circumstances, not for all circumstances. Gratitude is not denial. It is trust. Jesus has met us in every hard place, and He is present in every season. When we choose gratitude, we are choosing to see God's faithfulness even when the road is rough. Gratitude shifts our focus from what we lack to who we have. This week, we learn to practice gratitude as a daily rhythm that anchors us in God's love.
Love is not a feeling. Love is a sacrifice. Jesus spoke these words to His disciples the night before He died. He knew what was coming. He knew the cost. And He laid down His life willingly. Veterans know something of this love. They signed up. They trained. They deployed. They put themselves between danger and the ones they loved. Some gave everything. We gather today to honor their sacrifice and to say thank you. We also gather to remember that the ultimate act of love was Jesus on the cross. He laid down His life for us. He gave everything so that we might live. This week, we will reflect on the cost of freedom and the love that makes sacrifice possible. We will thank God for veterans and for Jesus, the One who gave His life for the whole world.
The saints are not distant. They are a cloud of witnesses. They ran the race. They kept the faith. They crossed the finish line. And now they surround us. Not as spectators watching from heaven, but as evidence of God's faithfulness. Their lives testify that the race can be run. Their example encourages us to keep going. The writer of Hebrews tells us to throw off what hinders us and fix our eyes on Jesus. He is the pioneer. He is the perfecter. He is the reason we run. The saints point us to Him. This week, we will honor the faithful believers who have shaped our faith and recommit ourselves to running the race set before us. They are with Christ. We are joined with them in the communion of saints. And Jesus runs with us. We are not alone. We never have been.
On Reformation Sunday, we celebrate the unshakable truth that the Gospel is the power of God for salvation. At the same time, Concordia gathers for Loyalty Sunday, committing ourselves to live by faith and stand firmly on God’s promises in every aspect of life.
Stewardship is more than money. It is whole-life discipleship. The Macedonian churches gave beyond their means because they had first given themselves to the Lord in gratitude. Generosity flows from Jesus, who became poor so that we might become rich. Living with open hands means offering God our time, talents, treasure, relationships, and influence. Because Jesus gave His whole life for us, we offer our whole lives back to Him.
Loneliness is one of the deepest wounds of our culture, but God does not leave us alone. In Christ, He comes to us as Father, Savior, and Friend. Through His Spirit, He sets us in a family called the Church. This week we remember: Jesus has not left us as orphans. He has placed us in His body, where we are known, loved, and sent. To be renewed is not only to find peace with God, but to find belonging with His people.
The world says you must earn your worth or reinvent yourself. Jesus says you are already His masterpiece. Baptized into Christ, you have a new name and a new path. This week is about leaving behind the false scripts of culture and walking in the Spirit’s leading, secure in your identity as God’s child.
Burnout is the result of carrying what only Christ can carry. In Him, rest is not laziness — it’s worship. Gratitude turns our eyes from scarcity to abundance, from pressure to praise. Sabbath becomes a holy protest against the world’s endless demands.
Depression does not disqualify you from God’s presence — it may be where His mercy meets you most clearly. Through the cross, Jesus knows your sorrow. Through His resurrection, He promises that sorrow will not have the last word. This week, we lament honestly, pray persistently, and fix our eyes on the One who walks with the brokenhearted.
Anxiety thrives in the shadows, but Jesus calls us into His light. We name the fear, test it against God’s Word, and surrender it to the One who reigns over all. Christ has already defeated the enemy who whispers lies — the cross and empty tomb prove it. Peace isn’t found in fixing everything but in trusting the Lord who holds everything.
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