Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church

06/07/2026

The First Sunday After Trinity

The Prelude: "Glorious Praise" by John A. Behnke

ONE LICENSE: A-744083

June 7, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Johnson City, TN

06/07/2026

Our youth group had a blast at the beach!!! We’re back in town for 2 weeks, and then we’ll be at Teen Servant Event Week at Camp Linn Haven in Linville, NC. We’ll partner with Habitat for Humanity, host a VBS for Crossnore School, serve in area schools in Appalachia, and so much more. We’re looking forward to how God will use us, in a variety of service projects, during the week. Lastly, our middle schoolers will be at the middle school week in July. It’s a busy summer for us. Stay tuned for more pictures and testimonials. To God be the glory!!! Oh yeah, feel free to come to our rummage sale next Saturday!!!! All proceeds go to help offset the cost of our youth attending church camp.

06/01/2026

Today, the church commemorates Justin, martyr.

Justin (c. 100 – c. 165) was an early Christian apologist, philosopher, and martyr for the faith. A Greek, he converted to Christianity from Platonism as an adult, after which he established a school and debated with other (non-Christian) philosophers. During the reign of the emperor Marcus Aurelius (r. 161–180), Justin was reported as a Christian to the authorities by the cynic philosopher Crescens. Justin, along with six friends—two of whom were slaves he had educated—were arrested and tried for their faith. Justin was beheaded at an unknown date, the form of ex*****on used for Roman citizens, including the Apostle Paul.

Most of Justin's works are, sadly, lost to time. However, three works survive, most notably his First Apology. In the work, Justin defends the morality of the Christian life to a Roman audience, specifically, then-emperor Antoninus Pius, who was at that time persecuting Christians. The LCMS joins many other church bodies in commemorating Justin, like the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. He is referred to as both Justin Martyr and Justin the Philosopher.

Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Justin_Martyr._Great_St_Mary%27s_church_in_Cambridge.jpg

05/31/2026

The Holy Trinity

May 31, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Johnson City, TN

ONE LICENSE: A-744083

05/26/2026

For those interested in the Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrate, which we discussed in Bible study this past Sunday, here's a very good summary of the Magdeburg Confession of 1550. While Rev. Sullivan is not an LCMS pastor, I would still recommend most of his videos on various topics.

To be sure, the Magdeburg Confession helped lay the theological groundwork for Christian resistance theory that eventually shaped Anglo-American ideas about lawful resistance to tyranny. Were it not for the Lutherans in the 16th century paving the way, we may never have secured independence in our own nation.

So all that to say, it is an important document and an important conversation.

Enjoy!

- Rev. Shemwell

What is the Magdeburg Confession? How do Lutherans view it? What does it teach us about resistance to the governing authorities? Want the script for this epi...

05/25/2026

This Memorial Day, we would like once again to share the story of Rev. Markus Ewald Lohrmann, U.S. Army captain and Lutheran chaplain who died trying to save his fellow soldiers in the Second World War.

Rev. Lohrmann was born on 26 December 1910 in Covington, Illinois, and died on 6 March 1944 in Milne Bay in Papua New Guinea; he was 33 years old. Lohrmann served in the U.S. Army during World War II in the 24th Infantry Division. The 24th arrived on Goodenough Island in early 1944, and the island served as an important medical outpost during Gen. MacArthur's "island hopping" campaign in the Pacific Theater of the war.

On March 6th, 1944, Lohrmann and the other men of the 24th Infantry Division were in a small boat off the coast of Goodenough Island when their power failed. As they began to drift closer to Japanese waters, Rev. Lohrmann and two other men volunteered to swim back to land to get help. Rev. Lohrmann did not reach land with the other two swimmers, who found the chaplain's body while swimming back to their ship. They pulled him ashore and attempted in vain to resuscitate him. They buried him on Goodenough Island, and his body was re-interred at Oakridge Cemetery in Effingham, Illinois several years later.

In 2017, Rev. Lohrmann's daughter, Marcia Luecke, travelled to Papua New Guinea to retrace her father's steps and see the site of his original grave. Marcia was only 18 months old when her father died. The story of Marcia's pilgrimage and a wonderful tribute is available at the Find a Grave memorial website for Rev. Lohrmann: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/182682512/markus-e.-lohrmann

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13

05/25/2026

May 25th is the day that the Church honors Bede the Venerable – Theologian, who lived in England AD 673-735. Bede, the last of the Early Church Fathers, was the first person to compile the history of the English church. Seven years after his birth in Northumbria, his parents placed him in a monastery in northern England. He devoted his entire life to teaching and writing, rarely leaving the monastery. Bede was the most learned man of his time, especially noted as a prolific writer of history. He is best known for his book “The Ecclesiastical History of the English People.” His careful use of sources made his book a model for historians in the Middle Ages. He also had a talent for interpreting Scripture and wrote several commentaries on several books of the Bible. “His most famous disciple, Cuthbert, reported that Bede was working on a translation of John’s Gospel into English when death came and that he died with the words of the Gloria Patri on his lips. He received the title ‘Venerable’ within two generations of his death and is buried in Durham Cathedral as one of England’s greatest saints.” (p. 376)

Let us pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, You want all to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. We give You thanks for sending Bede the Venerable to the Christian Church. Protect and encourage all pastors who confess the true faith among the nations by proclaiming Christ crucified; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.” Amen.

Prayer and description adapted from “Treasury of Daily Prayer,” p. 376.

Image: “The Last Chapter” by J. Doyle Penrose. Venerable Bede translates the Gospel of John on his deathbed. 1902. Public Domain.

05/25/2026

The Feast of Holy Pentecost

May 24, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Johnson City, TN

The Feast of Holy PentecostMay 24, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Chur...

05/24/2026

The Feast of Holy Pentecost

May 24, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Johnson City, TN

ONE LICENSE: A-744083

05/24/2026

Luther and the Three Estates - Session 7

Rev. Vincent Shemwell

May 24, 2026 - Bethlehem Lutheran Church - Johnson City, TN