What’s in a word? Amen. That’s the word I’m talking about. Amen.

What’s in a word?

At the end of each sentence we are used to seeing a mark, or a symbol. Punctuation we call it. Fullstop. Question Mark? Exclamation mark!

Is that what Amen is? A bit of punctuation at the end of the sentence? A mark to tell us the prayer is over?

Amen is an ancient word – thousands of years old – handed down unchanged from ancient Hebrew through to ancient Greek through to modern English and many other languages. Amen. It is an expression of confidence, of faith, of trust, that what is said is true. It is an expression of agreement, of solidarity, of participation. It is a promise of commitment, of assurance, of engagement. It shall be so! Amen.

Notably, Jesus used Amen not at the end of his sentences but at the beginning! Often twice, just to make sure no one was in any doubt.

In fact, Jesus himself is the Amen. Our Amen. And God’s last word to us in the Bible is Amen (Revelation 22:21).

I don’t think that’s just punctuation.

~ Pastor John Strelan

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Penicillin was discovered in 1928 when Alexander Fleming accidently left a petri dish uncovered and noticed that a mould had killed the surrounding bacteria.

The microwave oven was invented by Percy Spencer in 1945 after he noticed the radar equipment he was working on melted a chocolate bar in his pocket.

Way back in 1754 the English author Horace Walpole had already coined a word for such events: serendipity. He formed the word after reading an ancient Persian story known as the Three Princes of Serendip in which the main characters are always making accidental discoveries of things they weren’t intending or looking for. Serendipity, then, is the phenomenon of finding valuable, pleasant, or agreeable things you weren’t actively seeking (such as discovering that ‘Serendip’ was the historical Arabic name for Sri Lanka).

Way, way back in around 33AD Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field which someone found”.

Serendipity.

~ Pastor John Strelan

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If you are unable to access spotify, 2026 sermon recordings can be found here

Some history:

1839 First Lutheran synod founded by Kavel.

1846 Fritzsche splits from Kavel, forms Bethany-Lobethal Synod which becomes Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Australia (ELSA). Kavel heads up Langmeil-Lightpass Synod.

1858 Tanunda-Lightpass Synod splits from Langmeil-Lightpass Synod. Joins with Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Victoria.

1902 Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Australia (Old Basis) splits from Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Australia, joins United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia.

1966 Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia joins with United Evangelical Church in Australia, becomes Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA).

2024 Lutheran Mission Australia splits from Lutheran Church of Australia.

It all sounds a bit Monty Pythonesque, doesn’t it? Lutherans, it seems, know better than Jesus when it comes to tending the garden.

~ Pastor John Strelan

Click here for a link to our new spotify podcast containing the latest sermon recordings.

If you are unable to access spotify, 2026 sermon recordings can be found here