This sermon was delivered by Pastor Akers at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection on August 3, 2025.

Jesus Restores Paradise and Feeds Us Freely. In the Garden of Eden, our first parents received food freely from the gracious hand of God, apart from any burdensome work. But after the fall, food would be received only through toil and labor. “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). But the Lord made a promise to His people: “Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your salvation comes’” (Isaiah 62:11). Therefore, Jesus the Messiah came to restore creation. Having compassion on the weary multitudes, He renewed the bounty of Eden on the third day, freely granting an abundance of bread to the 4,000 (Mark 8:1–9). So also our Lord Jesus, having endured the burden of our sin, was raised on the third day to grant us Salvation. He now miraculously turns the bread of death into the Bread of Life in the Sacrament, giving you His very body and blood for your forgiveness. For “the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).