Zebaoth Lutheran Church was an amalgamation of two mission congregations. One of them, Elias, had started two years earlier at 11th Street and Finn Place. The other congregation, Good Hope Mission, was located at 6th Street and Mill (now Melvina), the present location of Zeboath.

In the early years of the 20th century, the area around Zebaoth was still farm land. There were no utilities and streets were simple dirt paths.

Pastor Arthur B. Tacke, who was serving a mission congregation in Nebraska, received a call. On July 29th, 1917, he was installed as pastor of Zebaoth.

The congregation started off with 33 adult members. As Milwaukee grew and people began settling this area, Zebaoth grew as well. Only ten years later our congregation had grown to 470 souls with 327 adult members. This growth brought many blessings. The congregation was able to pay off debts and even hire a janitor to relieve Pastor Tacke of his janitorial duties! Growth also brought a challenge as well: where to put all the people?

There was a small chapel just east of where the parsonage is now located. In 1919 the chapel was enlarged to accommodate the harvest the Lord was granting the congregation. In 1920 Zebaoth purchased another lot, and the present parsonage was built. Shortly after this, foreseeing the future needs of the growing congregation, Zebaoth purchased three more lots. By 1926 council minutes record discussion about the lack of space in the existing building. By 1929, every member was convinced that more room was needed to accommodate the constantly increasing attendance at the services. In March of that year a permanent building committee was established and began meeting weekly.

Below is a table of notable dates in the planning and construction of our present building.

The old and new buildings of Zebaoth church.

As with many building projects, there were challenges. Zebaoth members had raised $32,500 in order to secure a building loan. The trust company that held the money went bankrupt in 1931 during the Great Depression. Imagine the dismay of the members when they found that their money had not been put in trust. Instead, the company president had mingled the church's funds with the company's general fund. Zebaoth lost the entire sum, an amount equal to $500,000 today. That loss - plus a 37% cost overrun - put the congregation in a tough spot.

Still, members were confident the Lord would work things out. The congregation and friends of Zebaoth were able to come up with enough money to make up for the lost funds. The final cost of the church was $134,000, or just over $2 million in today's money.

By the 25th anniversary of Zebaoth, voting membership had grown from 12 to 325. Contributors increased in number from 33 to 900. Within the first 25 years there were 771 baptisms, 859 confirmations, 325 marriages and 192 burials. Zebaoth had many programs for its members: a senior choir, a junior choir, a male chorus, a men's club, a ladies auxiliary, a senior society, and a young peoples society.

During the turmoil of World War 2, many members of Zebaoth were called to serve in the armed forces of the United States. On the wall of the staircase leading from the north entrance to the basement there is a memorial dedicated to these men and women.

In the early 1960s a portion of Interstate Highway 43 (I43) was built just west of the church property, displacing many members from their homes and interfering with the growth of the congregation. Many members started to move to the suburbs.

Pastor Tacke served the congregation from its beginning in 1917 until May 1966, a period of almost 48 years.

In November of 1965, Pastor Theodore J. Horneber was installed as pastor of Zebaoth, and served alongside Pastor Tacke. Following Pastor Tacke's retirement, Pastor Horneber continued to serve the congregation until November of 1971, when he was called to Slinger, Wisconsin.

Pastor Rolfe Westendorf from Siloah Church served a vacancy pastor until Zebaoth received a graduate from the seminary. Arthur Koepsell was installed as pastor in July of 1973. Pastor Koepsell served the congregation until June of 1980, when he accepted a call to a congregation in Waukesha, Wisconsin.

The congregation was blessed to have another seminary graduate, Mark Haefner, assigned as its pastor. Pastor Haefner was installed as Zebaoth's pastor in July of 1980. He served until April 1985, when he accepted a call to a congregation in Decatur, Georgia.

Pastor Philip Merten had served Zebaoth as a part time vicar during his final year of seminary training. He returned to serve as Zebaoth's pastor from a congregation in Lehigh Acres, Florida. Pastor Merten served until June of 1989, when he accepted a call to serve as a pastor for the Wisconsin Synod's institutional ministries program.

The congregation was blessed to receive another graduate from the seminary. David Moore was installed as pastor in July of 1989. Pastor Moore served almost 12 years at Zebaoth before accepting a call to an exploratory mission in Flagstaff, Arizona in June of 2001.

Our current pastor, Michael P. Sullivan, graduated from the seminary in June of 2001. He was installed as pastor of Zebaoth in July of 2001.

The history of this church is more than just the history of its called workers or a building. A church is a gathering of believers. The history of Zebaoth is part of God's story of gathering and loving all of his children, from every race, nation, people, and language. The devil certainly struggles against unity, and Zebaoth has not been spared from his wiles. But the love of God has overflowed from the hearts of many faithful members, and has blended us into a united family of believers.

The history of Zebaoth started when God gathered some German speaking immigrants together to hear about his Son. He guided them through the early years of this congregation, blessing their efforts to spread his message of salvation. It became clear that many non-German speaking people also needed to hear the Gospel, and the congregation adapted to this need, to ploclaiming the love of Christ to all who spoke English. Zebaoth's history reveals God's guiding hand as the congregation made its way through the troubled and uncharted waters of social change through the 1960s up to the present day. Although a number of pastors have been present during this time of change, God's presence has always been among us to accomplish his will of proclaiming the Gospel.

Especially in recent times, God has presented this family of believers with many opportunities for spiritual growth, and opportunities to serve. Many Christians talk the talk about equality and being one in Christ, but Zebaoth members have walked the walk, arm in arm, Black and White for well over a quarter of a century. At a time when many city churches were closing their doors in favor of suburban settings, Zebaoth members made the decision to stay and continue to fight Satan's influence in the same place they always have, at 6th and Melvina.

The Lord, who has united us and brought us this far, promises to continue to be with us as we march forward into the future. The devil will continue to assault us, because he knows we are God's children, the Lord's army on this earth, armed with the Gospel, and ready to proclaim it. But remember the verse upon which the name of our congregation is based: "The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge." (Psalm 46:7) God will continue to accomplish his will through us. Praise the Lord for the Gospel! May he ever keep us faithful to him and his word!

A more recent picture of Zebaoth church.