Faith Lutheran Church Shumway

06/14/2026

Sermon

06/08/2026

Dear saints in Christ,

One of the hymns we will be singing is “Preach you the Word and Plant it home” (LSB 586)

This remarkable hymn by Martin Franzmann (1907-76) was written in January 1973 to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Concordia Theological Seminary, Springfield, illinois which had been observed during the 1971-1972 academic year.

The seminary relocated in 1976 to Fort Wayne, Indiana, has as its motto the opening exhortation of 2 Timothy 4:2, ‘Preach [you] the Word’). The hymn was first sung at an ‘Evening of Christian Poetry and Hymnody with Dr. Franzmann’ for seminary faculty, administrators, and wives held on February 8, 1973. Dr. Franzmann served at the time as visiting professor at the Springfield seminary…

The text resonates with numerous Scriptural allusions and direct quotations, weaving together Jesus’ parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-23) with prophetic and apostolic admonitions to those who preach the living Word of God. It is hard to overstate the stature of Martin Franzmann as a hymnist; his theological rigor and linguistic precision merge into poetry that grips both heart and mind…

The hymn is rooted in the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:3-23; Mark 4:1-20; Luke 8:4-15). Though the public proclamation of the Word of God is given to the Preaching Office, the Word is not the private possession of the clergy. Hence the hymn has application for both preachers and hearers. It focuses on the efficacious power of the Word of God, which always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it forth.

Stanza 1 underscores St. Paul’s exhortation to every preacher: preach the Word ‘in seasons and out of season’ (2 Timothy 4:2); that is, whether it is received favorably or not. For though all people fade like grass and the flower of the field (Isaiah 40:7-8), the Word of God continues on forever.

Stanza 2 addresses the hardship undertaken by faithful servants of the Word, who shepherd God’s flock not out of obligation but under His commission, motivated by His love and not by personal ambition (1 Peter 5:2). In Jesus’ parable, He deliberately leaves the identity of the sower out of His explanation, thus linking every sower who comes after Him with His own work of preaching and teaching. Stanza 3 wonderfully captures the wild abandon with which Jesus flung out the Word He received from the Father. His sole concern was that all would hear that Word and live forever.

As it was with Jesus, so it is with everyone who preaches in His name. Stanza 4 nicely contrasts the reception of the Word with the intrepid hearts of those who sow. Though some seeds fall on hard-packed ground, and others on rocky soil or among thorns, sowers still carry on with Christ’s own reckless love: ‘Oh, what of that, and what of that?’

But the Word of God is efficacious; it always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it forth (Isaiah 55:11). Stanza 5, which appears in a hymnal for the first time…predicrs the harvest.
Even if most of the seed is snatched or scorched or choked to death, some still grows to maturity and bears an abundant harvest. Observing this astonishing result of his labor, the sower takes no credit for himself, but cries out in wondering praise: ‘Ah, what of that, Lord, what of that!’

Stanza 6 emboldens every tired sower with the vision of impending harvest. The Lord who provides both seed and bread (Isaiah 55:10) will tend His growing crop until the day of His return. Despite the strain expended in planting, joy continually springs from His implanted Word” (Lutheran Service Book: Companion to the Hymns Vol 1:656-657).

Here is a recording of this beautiful hymn that we can enjoy as we prepare for the Divine Service on Sunday:

"Preach You the Word" was the Sermon Hymn from the February 2, 2025...

06/07/2026

Sermon

05/31/2026

Dear saints in Christ,

One of the hymns we will be singing this week is “Chief of Sinners Though I Be” (LSB 611).

“‘Chief of sinners though I be, Jesus shed His blood for me, died that I might live on high, lives that I might never die. As the branch is to the vine, I am His and He is mine.’ (611).

It is a striking statement by Paul, identifying Himself as the chief of sinners: ‘The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am foremost’ (1 Timothy 1:15). He said this because in his former life he had actively persecuted Christians: ‘I was a blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent (1 Timothy 1:13). But, of course, Paul is not alone — each of us justifiably lays claim to being ‘chief’ among sinners. God’s Law convicts us, allowing no excuses for our sinful actions, thoughts, and desires.

But, as Paul makes clear, Jesus came into our world for one reason only — to save sinners. He kept the Law perfectly on our behalf. By shedding His blood on the cross, He died so that we may live with Him eternally. Now He lives — as our ‘advocate with the Father’ (1 John 2:1) — so that we will not suffer eternal death. We hold fast to Jesus’ life-giving promise: ‘Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die’ (John 11:25-26).

Today’s hymn-prayer provides yet another precious truth: ‘Love that found me — wondrous thought! Found me when I sought Him not’ (st.2). We don’t seek Jesus — our sinful nature precludes that action on our part. We are not the actors; rather, Jesus, our Good Shepherd, seeks His lost sheep, finds us, and rescues us.

In His great love for us, Jesus came into the world to save each of us…

‘Oh the height of Jesus’ love, higher than the heav’ns above, deeper than the depths of sea, lasting as eternity! Love that found me — wondrous thought! Found me when I sought Him not. Amen! (LSB 611:2)” (Richard Resch and Daniel Zager, Abide With Us: Daily Hymns and Devotions, 295).

Here is a recording of our hymn as we prepare for the Divine Service for next Sunday:

"Chief of Sinners Though I Be" was the Sermon Hymn from the February 28, 2024 Midweek Lenten Worship Service.

05/31/2026

The Holy Trinity

05/27/2026

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

One of the hymns we will be singing this week is “Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty” (LSB 507).

“The canon of nineteenth-century English hymnody was never more ennobled than by the contribution of ‘Holy, holy, holy’ from the fertile pen of Reginald Heber (1783-1826). While serving as rector of a rural parish at Hodnet, Shropshire, this man of exceptional literary credentials sought to make what he called the ‘powerful engine’ of hymnody harmoniously serve the liturgy, lectionary, preaching, and calendar of the church. To this end, ‘Holy, holy, holy’ was written specifically for Trinity Sunday. Based on the festival pericope of Revelation 4:8-11, the hymn uses a judicious economy of language to profess the highest divine mystery. It is an objective and regal hymn without the pretentious ornamentation often associated with the pre-Victorian era in which the hymn was written.

A devout and beloved pastor, Heber was conscious of the holiness of God. He desired his parish members to voice the same. Whether mindful of homeland vices or pained by the specter of idol worship during the last three missionary years of his life serving in far-flung India, Heber would frequently write ‘Only thou art holy.’ It is said that the English poet laureate Alfred Tennyson regarded ‘Holy, holy, holy’ as an archetype of sacred poetry. Its greatness both in majestic trinitarian doctrine and in clarity of form had been recognized by nearly two centuries of uninterrupted usage, innumerable translations, and inclusion in nearly every English-language hymnal.

The pure adoration of heavenly worship absorbs also the church on earth. ‘All the saints adore Thee’ (Stanza 2) portrays the church’s unity of faith in song, whether the saints are in heaven or on earth. This certainly includes the participation of the angels as seen in the vision of Isaiah 6:2-4.

But it is the personal union of the Godhead in three persons, the blessed Trinity, that forms the core and substance of this hymn. ‘Holy, Holy, Holy,’ not only expresses the hallowed nature of God, but also the Trinity in the divine name. Reflecting the plurality of persons, the hymn writer uses triplets: God is ‘holy, merciful, and mighty’ (stanza 1); He is ‘perfect in power, in love, and purity’ (stanza 3); He is worshiped by saints, cherubim, and seraphim and is praised ‘in earth and sky and sea (stanza 4). Through repeated units of three, the hymn describes and worships the one true God in three persons.

In language that resists revision, the phrase, ‘which wert and art and evermore shalt be’ (stanza 2) likewise indicates that the trimless trinity of God as an echo to the angelic refrain of Revelation 4:8, ‘Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God almighty, who was and is and is to come!’ Attempts to retrofit stanza 3 with inclusive language, such as ‘the the eye made blind by sin’ (LW) or ‘Though the sinful human eye’ (H1982), have been clumsy. Heber’s clear enunciation of humanity’s universal sinfulness in contrast to God’s uninhibited glory underscores once more the church’s affirmation ‘only Thou art holy’” (Lutheran Service Book: Companion to the Hymns Vol 1:446-447).

Here is a recording of this beautiful hymn that we can enjoy as we prepare for the Divine Service on Trinity Sunday:

"Holy, Holy, Holy" was the Opening Hymn from the February 9, 2025 C...

05/24/2026

Sermon

05/18/2026

Dear saints in Christ,

One of the hymns we will be singing this week is “To God the Holy Spirit Let Us Pray” (LSB 768)

“‘To God the Holy Spirit let us pray for the true faith needed on our way That He may defend us when life is ending and from exile home we are wending. Lord, have mercy! (LSB 768:1)

Jesus promised His disciples, ‘And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, …the Spirit of truth’ (John 14:16, 17). The Holy Spirit is our Helper — our Comforter, our Advocate who pleads before God on our behalf. He works faith in our hearts to believe the truth about God’s gracious acts in Christ: ‘When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth’ (John 16:13).

Today’s hymn teaches us something important about our prayer lives — namely, what do we ask of the Holy Spirit? Do we pray daily for true faith? Or do we take that for granted? As Luther wrote in this hymn, we pray for ‘true faith’ so that the Holy Spirit may defend us — advocate on our behalf — when life here on earth is ending, when we are about to move from exile here to our true home, to live forever in the presence of Jesus, who redeemed us.

Do we pray that the Holy Spirit would teach us to know Jesus? Or do we take that for granted? One of the shortest and most pertinent requests in the Gospel accounts is put to the disciple Philip: ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus’ (John 12:21). That is our petition to the Holy Spirit as well, that we may know Jesus and ‘abide in the Lord who bought us, till to our true home He has brought us’ (St. 4).

God wants us always to pray (Luke 18:1). Today’s hymn teaches us to pray for true faith, to pray that we would know Jesus Christ.

‘Shine in our hearts, O Spirit, precious light; teach us Jesus Christ to know aright that we may abide in the Lord who bought us, till to our true home He has brought us. Lord, have mercy!’ Amen! (LSB 768:1)” (Richard Resch and Daniel Zager, Abide With Us: Daily Hymns and Devotions, 149).

Here is a recording of our hymn as we prepare for the Divine Service for Pentecost Sunday:

At the Reformation Hymn Fest, October 27, 2024, we sang "To God the Holy Spirit Let Us Pray," hymn #768 in the Lutheran Service Book. The first stanza of th...

05/17/2026

The Ascension of Our Lord

05/13/2026

Reminder about our upcoming OAFC event for this Saturday. We hope to see you there!