Beautiful Savior Ev. Lutheran Church

Beautiful Savior Ev. Lutheran Church Streaming services, sermon videos, blogs, and information from Beautiful Savior Ev. Lutheran Church.

We are a confessional Lutheran church and a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. Beautiful Savior Evangelical Lutheran Church is dedicated to getting to know God better through his holy Word, the Bible, and to showing love to each other and our neighbors.

06/21/2026

Service

06/08/2026

My final sermon at Beautiful Savior. How blessed I have been to share the gospel here! What a beautiful reminder for my last Sunday of Jesus' grace and healing.
The Second Sunday after Pentecost, June 7, 2026
On Matthew 9:9-13
He gathered his friends and family to share the bad news. I brought you all here so that you will be the first to know. I have tinnitus. They all stared. Wait, tinnitus, you mean ringing in your ears? He nodded his head soberly. There's no cure. They're going to ring until I die. That's your news? You can't be serious.
All illnesses, injuries, and diseases are on a spectrum. Minor inconvenience to moments to live, and we know better than to talk about ringing in your ears or seasonal allergies than we do about stage 4 cancer or a heart attack.
Sometimes, though, we talk about these ailments almost with pride. We veterans like to compare our wounds. The VA will even tell you what percent disabled you are. A favorite past time of those more advanced in years is to compare aches and pains and medication lists. Having certain things on that list can give you a certain amount of street cred, a little clout at the VFW or the Senior center. Or when we hear what others are going through, we might not feel like complaining so much, I may have this, but at least I don't have that.
It is understandable that we want to view sin in such a way. From a worldly point of view, even from the perspective of the civil authorities, some sins are much worse than others. Coveting barely registers as a sin, adultery is poopooed as long as there's consent, but racism, robbery, murder, child abuse, those are real sins. Some sins carry social stigma, we wouldn't want anyone to know that stain is on my heart, others barely register, some are even sources of pride.
But while we can distinguish between sins when it comes to their effect on others, on the people closest to us, on our responsibilities, on society itself, when it comes to sin's effect on the soul, it isn't a spectrum. All sin is cancer to your soul. All sin drives you away from God. All sin is terminal. He who keeps the whole law and stumbles at one point is guilty of breaking all of it. And the wages of sin is death. Your sin is killing you. Sin will always kill you. Whatever sin you want to ignore. Whatever sin you continue to excuse, whatever sin you tell yourself isn't so bad, that is the sin Jesus exposes in his light. Today, in these words he rebukes you and your sin. Today, he calls you, you who continue to struggle against sin, to repentance.

05/07/2026

Sermon for Easter 5, May 3, 2026
On Acts 4:8-12
You can tell the difference between something built with the right materials, selected precisely for the purpose they serve, and something made with whatever is lying around. We have had that inner debate, is it worth that extra trip to the store for the right piece or will this thing I found in my garage be good enough? How long does it have to last? Will anyone notice the sloppy work?
On what should a person build their life, their hope, their eternity? What materials should they use? Their limited knowledge? The every changing science? Their small window of experience, the collective experience of others? Tradition? Power? Ease? Utility? Those things might work for a time. Some might not see what was missing here in this life, but when that life is tested, when pressures rise up, when the winds blow and the storms batter against it, when pieces are found to be missing, when death draws near, will that life stand? Will it last to eternity?
We think we see churches shrinking. We remember a time when more people sat in the pews. Maybe, well not in Oregon, but maybe you remember when most people spent Sundays with family in their Sunday best. We see a church divided, even denominations that claim to teach the Bible disagree on what God says, and churches that wander from the Bible are barely able to be called Christian. Where is the power of Jesus name?
Dear Christians, are we really going to be surprised that the stone the builders rejected, even as God set him as the perfect foundation with miraculous power, are we surprised he is rejected today? Have we forgotten what the church is or how his Church is built?
When God builds, he does not build with a plan for the present moment. God builds for now and for all time. It is for this that he sent his Son into the world, fulfilling every prophecy of Scripture, so that at the right time, the right place, and with the perfect fit, all of salvation would find its foundation. For this Jesus lived his perfect life and taught with authority, he was without fault or blemish, unshakable and unbreakable. On this Cornerstone, God builds his church. On this promise the Old Testament believers built thier hope. On Jesus, the chief cornerstone, the apostles built, the Church stands, and you stand secure. God's church is never shrinking, even if it feels like congregations are. Every soul that is baptized, every soul that hears and believes is built on him. When a person passes away in faith, they do not leave the Church, but their place is secured in Christ forever. The believers you have gathered with here as you gathered around Christ's presence, by the power of his name still gather with you when you come to him. The Church, that is all believers, those living stones built on Jesus' name, will stand long after even the most glorious Cathedrals have fallen. When you are built on him, when we are united to him, we will stand together with all believers forever.

Good Work, Lydia!
05/04/2026

Good Work, Lydia!

04/21/2026

The Truth Cuts Deep
Sermon for the Second Sunday of Easter, April 19, 2026
On Acts 2:32-41
The doctor asks the standard question. So, are you in any pain today. No, not really, just the usual amount. The doctor pauses from her notes. The usual amount is zero.
Aches and pains often begin subtly and grow slowly. A mild discomfort we ignore and dismiss. We change the way we walk. We don't use that arm to reach for the top shelf. We take antacids and stop eating red sauce. We take it slow so that our heart doesn't start pounding. If I just adjust normal life so that it doesn't hurt, I can pretend nothing is wrong. Until you bend down to pick something up and your back freezes or your granddaughter trips and something pops as you reach out to catch her. Ignoring the pain by avoiding anything that causes it is almost never the right answer. Pain sends the message, something is wrong, something that may be fixed, or strengthened, or managed before it gets worse.
The pain of guilt and shame are sending the message that something is terribly wrong. And yet, we as a society have adjusted just about everything, we will change, or try to change anything to minimize their effect. We treat them as the problem instead of treating the problem itself. But ignoring the cause of our guilt and shame won't heal what is broken inside.
I do not act as I know I should. I do not live the virtues I claim to admire. I do not treat others with the dignity, love, and respect they deserve. My words are not fully true, encouraging, helpful. For every good I do, I leave many more goods undone. Worst of all, I do not serve my Creator with all my heart. I get distracted from following Jesus. I do not make his word and his commands and my prayers my top priority. I have not honored him in this world. I have set aside my cross and refused to follow him. He is God and Lord and Christ, but I imagine that he should exist to serve my will and my desires. I get angry and resentful when his ways are not my ways. I have in every way each and every day contributed to the evil of this world, the world that rejected Jesus, the sin that nailed him to the cross, even when I do know better, I do know what I am doing. I have contributed and keep contributing to his suffering. And after all I have done, God has exalted him, he sits enthroned. His Spirit testifies to the whole truth. He will be my judge. Ignoring this guilt won't make you innocent. Hiding your shame won't heal your heart or strengthen you for the life God has given you to live. You need this truth. This harsh word of God must cut through every barrier, deep into the heart.
Men, brothers, what should we do? The crowds cried. What sacrifice needs to be offered? What payment do we need to make? What contract do we need to sign? What good deeds, what penance do we need to accomplish? What rite or ritual do we need to follow? To what righteous cause do we need to devote our lives? Tell us! Make the pain go away. Tell us what to do and we will do it.
But Peter doesn't make any demand of them. He didn't devise a test. He didn't hold out his hand for an offering, instead he held up God's invitation. Repent and be baptized, every one of you, for the forgiveness of your sins. Turn. Turn from your sin. Turn away from your guilt. Leave behind your shame. Turn from them and turn to Jesus. Be washed. Cleansed not just outwardly with water, but the washing of rebirth and renewal. God offers you forgiveness. He applies that forgiveness to you. You have nothing you can offer him, but he has everything to offer you, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. A broken and contrite heart, you will not despise. He will not take his Spirit from you, but he will dwell in your heart by faith.

04/14/2026

Sermon for the Second Sunday of Easter, April 12, 2026
On Acts 2:22-32
Not every person in this crowd stood in Pilate's courtyard yelling crucify, even fewer accused him before the high priests, and only a small handful could have joined the mob that stormed Gethsemane to arrest him. You killed him. Peter said. You who remained indifferent to his words and refused to follow him, You killed him, you who listened to the lies of your leaders, You killed him. You who fled in terror, who denied knowing him, who shuttered your doors in his time of need, you killed him. You stiff-necked people who looked for a Messiah to destroy Rome and rebuild David's earthly throne, who took offense at the humble man from Galilee, and did nothing to support him, you killed him. Not all of you took an active role in his death, the authorities signed his death sentence, no Israelite drove the nails into his hands, but you killed him by having lawless men nail him to a cross.
Peter's words are meant for us still today. No, none of our hands drove those nails home. We did not hoist him up to suffer on the tree, not directly. But Peter can say, you killed him. You who have remained silent instead of confessing his name, you killed him. You who have stood by while injustice is done, you killed him. You who cling to your own ideas of what a good life should be, and refused to commit to following his commands, you killed him. You who trust in human authorities, you killed him. You who continue to live in fear, in doubt, in indifference, in selfish sin, in cowardly inaction, you killed him. In your unbelief and with every sin you continue to commit, this man, the man God recommended, the man you claim to love, this man you killed.
You killed him, but no sin of evil humanity, could thwart God's mercy. This man, who was handed over by God's set plan and foreknowledge, you killed. His people would reject him, and God would hand his Son to them. Our sins cry out for punishment, and God would lay those sins on the one with whom he is well pleased. As St. Paul would say, he was delivered unto death for your sins. As only God can do, the greatest act of evil, he used to accomplish the greatest good.
God had one more testimony to give. You killed him by having lawless men nail him to a cross. He is the one God raised up by freeing him from the agony of death. He was raised to life for our justification. All the worst, the worst of humanity, the worst of evil, of cowardice, the worst of death itself failed to defeat him. death was not able to hold him in its grip.
Peter and the other disciples had already experienced God's great mercy. They failed to understand. They refused to believe. Thomas even demanded, unless I place my hand in his side, even after all they had seen and heard, they doubted, but God did not reject them. He stood among them, Peace be with you. The crowds had every opportunity to follow the Lord to trust in his words to worship their Messiah, but they had rejected him, but God did not reject them. He raised Jesus from the dead. He sent these men to proclaim his work. His testimony resounded throughout Jerusalem.
Many hearts are still clinging to sin and self-righteousness, afflicted by fear and doubt, refusing to see what god has so clearly revealed. God's testimony about Jesus resounds throughout the world still today! The tomb is empty. Your sins brought him to the cross, but death could not hold him. Your sins are forgiven. Hear God's testimony, it is never too late! He continues to call. He will drown you doubt and sin, and raise you up with Christ. He will feed you, bless you, keep you, sustain you. For all the times we have failed to live our lives in God's love, God delivers Jesus into your hands, so that he will destroy your sin and rise up from your death to life.

04/06/2026

Sermon for Easter, 2026
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
This past week the single coolest event in 50 years took place, but to most Americans, it was met with indifference. We are going to slingshot people around the moon, the first step to establishing a moonbase on the southern pole of the lunar surface, perhaps as the staging area for missions to Mars. And yet, the story has barely touched our lives. It is just one story out of many. I forgot that it was happening and watched it the next morning. How is it that we aren't all glued to our TVs or phones getting constant updates? It's cool, but it seems to make no difference.
Christ has risen! That news makes all the difference! We cannot let other things, other events, our busy schedules, even the major tragedies of life keep us from making the good news our good news! Christ has risen, he truly has risen, he has risen for you. Your sins are forgiven. Your life will never be the same. God's love and mercy will be with you always. Christ has risen! He lives for you. His righteousness covers everything you do. God smiles over your life. This changes your identity, you belong to Christ. It changes your relationships as his love dwells in you. What confidence this gives you! What joy in the trials of life! Christ is your victory. Christ has risen! Wipe away your tears. Your death is but a sleep. Your grave just another bed. You too will rise! All who died in Christ will rise with you. Eternal life is yours. This is THE news we need every day. This is THE news we can share to comfort the hurting. This is THE new that changed the world and is still changing the world. This gospel of God's grace is never ineffective. Christ has risen! Alleluia!

04/05/2026

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
Come and celebrate with joy 10:15 AM.

Address

2605 NW 13th Street
Corvallis, OR
97330

Telephone

+15417578953

Website

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