Week of April 12th, 2026
Encouragement from God's Word
Our celebration of Jesus’ resurrection wasn’t just for one day on Easter Sunday, but it continues through the Easter Season. Today, we will read a brief portion of a sermon from Martin Luther that he preached on John 20:11-18 about Jesus' appearance to Mary Magdalene on Easter Sunday.
All of us are saints, and accursed be he who does not call himself a saint and glory in it. If you believe the words of Christ, you are a saint as well as St. Peter and all the other saints; for, depend on it, Christ will not lie to you. Therefore, if you do not say: I have as much as St. Peter and am as saintly as St. Peter, then you are ungrateful to your Lord Christ. My friend, I and you have in the past denied entirely too much. Do we want to do more of this? Nor is such glorying in our sainthood arrogance but modesty and thankfulness. In fact, he who does not do it is slandering Christ and Baptism. What Luther Says, pages 675-676
The gospel message that Jesus died and rose is not Bible trivia, but the life-changing message of God’s eternal love for you. Through faith in Jesus, you live in the “living hope” of Jesus Christ and his resurrection. This doesn’t excuse any sin, but inspires hope and confidence in us. Let your Savior’s resurrection inspire you for your life of service in his name! By his resurrection, you have already attained a glorious status in God's eyes!
Philippians 3:16
Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
