From the Pulpit @ Bethlehem
"The Stone That The Builders Rejected" | Matthew 21:33-46 | Pastor Huebel
Jesus tells a parable about tenants who beat the servants sent to collect the harvest and then murder the owner's son, and the religious leaders listening to him understood right away that he was describing them. Pastor Huebel follows that rejected stone through the long history of Israel, into the courtroom where false charges were brought against Jesus, and on into the church that inherited the promise, including the centuries when the gospel was buried under human tradition and the day it broke back into the light in a small German town. The warning at the end of the parable was never meant for Israel alone, and it comes with the comfort that the cornerstone itself cannot be moved. This episode draws from the Holy Gospel reading in St. Matthew 21:33-46, with the Epistle reading from Philippians 3:4b-14, along with Peter's Pentecost sermon in Acts 2:22-23, Joseph and his brothers in Genesis 50:20, the warning about broken branches in Romans 11:17-21, and the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-13. Key themes include Christ as the rejected cornerstone, the history of Israel and the prophets who were sent to it, justification by grace through faith, the recovery of the gospel in the Reformation, testing every teacher against Scripture, and watchfulness without fear as the last day approaches. Bethlehem Lutheran Church is a Bible-centered, mission-focused congregation of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (LCMS), located in Palestine, Texas. We invite you to join us in person at 1515 South Loop 256, Palestine, TX 75801 (across from Palestine High School). Sunday School begins at 9:00 AM Divine Worship at 10:15 AM. Learn more at belctx.org or call (903) 729-6362. Soli Deo Gloria. To God alone be the glory.
