Holy Trinity Ankeny: Recent Episodes
Pastor Timothy Olson
The women we encounter in scripture provide a powerful witness to God's love and mercy. From Miriam to Mary, Hannah to Ruth, the women are empowered by God to preach, teach, proclaim, and praise. Pastor Paul Witmer, Lead Pastor of Women at the Well, a congregation in the Mitchellville Women's Correction Center, is our guest preacher and mission partner.
When Jesus sees the thousands waiting for him, he has compassion on them. The disciples see a problem. The people need to go home to eat. Jesus tells the twelve, "You give them something to eat." All they have is five loaves and two fish. It ends up being more than enough. Twelve baskets of leftovers remain after all are full. Perhaps Jesus gives us the same command when we see the overwhelming problems of the world and all the suffering. "You give them what they need." We are called to do all we can with all we have, in this place at this time.
Something in you has been asking whether this, whatever this is for you right now, might finally be too much. Too far gone. Beyond reach. Paul already asked that question, on our behalf, and searched the whole universe for an answer. Romans 8:26-39 | Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 | 1 Kings 3:5-12
What shall we do about the presence of evil in the world? Jesus' parable of the "wheat and weeds" gives us an answer. We can't really tell the difference between the two, so good and evil must grow up alongside each other. God will sort out the two in God's good time. That is hard news for us when we want to judge others. It is good news when we are being judged.
We keep asking the same question, just in fancier clothes: Am I enough? We measure. We compare. We keep score against the person in the next pew. But Paul isn't answering that question. He's ending it. Romans 8:1-11 | Isaiah 55:10-13 | Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
As the nation observes the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence we are called to give thanks and to tell the truth. We are called to live into a vision established not by our own patriotism, but the vision of the reign of God revealed in Christ.
There is a kind of hope that makes everything worse. We have all offered it. Most of us have needed it. There is another kind. It doesn't promise the weight will lift. But it will not leave you alone in it. Jeremiah 28:5–9 | Matthew 10:40–42
A core belief of our congregation is "God's love is not earned but is a free gift to broken people." The question is, does God's love revealed in Christ leave us broken? Paul says, "By no means!" To be baptized, to be a disciple of Jesus, is to leave the old life, the brokenness, behind and embrace a new life, even if it is hard to change.
We are remarkably committed to carrying things alone. Even when help is available. Even when the effort costs us more than accepting it. Somewhere in all that stubborn self-sufficiency, a belief settles in so quietly we don't notice it arriving: no one is coming. Matthew 9:35–10:8 | Exodus 19:2-8a | Romans 5:1-8
The world is very good at speaking final words over us. And we have been carrying some of them for a long time. But there is someone who keeps showing up, past the booth, past the crowd, past the bedside, and he is not done speaking. That word has your name on it. Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
We have been gripping for a very long time. Managing the unformed places. Performing a certainty we do not have. Because somewhere underneath everything, we believe that chaos means God has already looked away. But that is not how this story begins. Genesis 1:1-2:4a | 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 | Matthew 28:16-20
We have spent a long time on the bank. Watching. Admiring. Keeping ourselves dry and in control. But there is a current underneath all of it that has been moving the whole time, and it didn't ask our permission before it started. The question Pentecost keeps asking is the one we keep not answering. John 7:37-39 | Acts 2:1-21 | 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
We are waiting. We have been waiting. For the door to open, for things to resolve, for real life to finally start again. What if we've been wrong about which room we're in? John 17:1-11 | Acts 1:6-14 | 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11
We are exhausted. Not tired. Exhausted. And we cannot stop. We have been building altars about it for a very long time. And none of them are working. But there is another way. Acts 17:22-31 | John 14:15-21 | 1 Peter 3:13-22
An arrest. A sermon. A challenge. A response. The stones didn't come from the faithless ones. Just ask Caiaphas. Acts 7:55–60 |1 Peter 2:2–10 | John 14:1–14
There are a lot of voices. And most of them sound convincing. But not every voice gives life. John 10:1-10
When two of the disciples who followed Jesus left town after the crucifixion, they took the road to Emmaus. It was a road to nowhere. Their hopes for the Messiah were broken; Jesus' death brought grief and despair. The "powers that be" had one more crushed hope on the wheels of history. They could not even recognize Jesus when he began to walk with them on this dark road. Then, however, Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them and they could see him. Hope rekindled sent them scurrying back up the road to Jerusalem on the road to somewhere.
The response to Jesus' death in John's gospel is grief, fear, and unbelief. His followers are stuck and unable to set themselves free. The appearance of the resurrected Jesus sets them free and puts them on a new path. We are people who know about being stuck in grief, fear, and unbelief. These are hallmarks of our world. How does the resurrection set us free?
Resurrection announces that we live not driven by wishful thinking of a world that somehow gets better on its own, but by a living hope rooted in God's constant action that brings hope from despair, joy from mourning, and life from death.
Four words. There they crucified him. John doesn't linger. Doesn't explain. Just moves on. We do. Because the man on that cross didn't stay there because of what he was against. He stayed because of what he was for. John 18:1—19:42
Jesus commands us to love as he loved us. But words sometimes get bent and even a word like "love" can become vague or disputed. So, instead of just words, Jesus washes feet. That action shows us love instead of telling us about it.
Palm Sunday is supposed to feel like triumph. Palms waving. Hosannas shouting. But Matthew says the whole city was troubled. Shaking. And nobody could quite answer the question. Who is this? That tension, the beauty and the ache mingled together, that is glittering sadness. And there is a king who rides straight into the middle of it. Matthew 21:1-11 | Philippians 2:5-11
Emilie Bouvier from ELCA World Hunger shares stories and reflections on ELCA ministries and today's readings of breath, bones, and resurrection.
Jesus encounters a man born blind. He gives him his sight. That should be enough of a story to tell, enough to convince us Jesus is who he says he is – the light of the world. It is not. As the story unfolds, we find ourselves realizing that the blind can see and the sighted are blind. We see how our lack of compassion, fear, and insistence that we are right keep us from seeing the grace of God before our eyes, so the light never captures the heart.
She came to the well with a jar. She left without it. Not because it was filled, it never was. Because somewhere in that conversation she understood something that changed everything. Water in a jar is not living water.
Readings: John 4:5-42 | Romans 5:1-11 | Exodus 17:1-7
In a world dominated by markets, winners and losers, earning our keep, it seems like earning God's love would be our chief spiritual pursuit. This is true for many, if not the majority. That makes God's grace a product to be bought, bargained for, or earned. It means grace is for sale. But it's not. To think this way is to live by the law, which, as Paul says, can only bring wrath. So, how do we stand before God? Grace upon grace.
The Grand Inquisitor looks at Jesus and says: I know exactly who you are. And we are going to have to kill you anyway. Not because he is confused. Not because he lacks evidence. Because he understands Jesus perfectly — and finds him unmanageable. This Lent, we are confronted with a question. Do we actually want the kind of Savior Jesus is? Matthew 4:1-11
The story of the Transfiguration of Jesus is a challenge. On the mountain, three disciples witness Jesus shing with the light of heaven. It is a deeply spiritual moment, full of mystery. Maybe that is why it is a challenge. We tend to be materialistic people. If something can't be touched, measured or possessed it is not real. Spiritual things are just wishful thinking. This story, however, declares that Jesus Christ is both spiritual and material, both divine and human. Heaven and earth are united in Christ. That is the core of the gospel. In Christ, God united all things including our bodies and souls.
We're exhausted. We pray, we give, we show up, and the world is still on fire. What if God isn't asking us to try harder? What if the light we're struggling to shine is already in us? Matthew 5:13-20 | 1 Corinthians 2:1-12 | Isaiah 58:1-9a
The Beatitudes are among the most familiar teachings of Jesus. These verses proclaim blessedness - good news - to people we may not think are very blessed. That is good news for us.
The kingdom shows up in Galilee, not Jerusalem. Among fishermen, not scholars. On a cross, not a throne. We keep looking for God's power in the wrong places and missing the God who draws near in weakness, bleeds on a cross, and rises. Readings: Matthew 4:12-23 | Isaiah 9:1-4 | 1 Corinthians 1:10-18
The world will tell you that "seeing is believing." People seek "proof" before they commit to anything, especially matters of faith. Oddly enough, Jesus takes the opposite path. In John's gospel, Jesus invites people to "Come and see." The "seeing" (knowing, trusting, understanding) will come after we have followed. The relationship with Jesus will reveal the truth of Jesus that already is all around us. Come and see!
Baptism has come to mean lots of different things to different people. Maybe that is why it seems like baptism has no real impact on the world. If we really look at the Baptism of Jesus, however, we find an event that signifies a new age dawning. It is an age of peace instead of war, kindness instead of violence, order instead of chaos. We also learn that Baptism of Jesus is, in fact, our baptism too. Jesus gives it as a gift so that the world might be saved.
What do you do when you're troubled? Herod plots. Jesus raises the dead. The magi lay down their treasures and worship. Matthew's Epiphany story reveals two kingdoms: one that protects itself through fear, and one that gives itself away in love.
Matthew 2:1-12 | Isaiah 60:1-6 | Ephesians 3:1-12
The Holy Innocents of Bethlehem are the first martyrs. To destroy Jesus, Herod orders all the baby boys under two to be killed. What do we make of this evil? What hope can we gain from this story? Even as we pray "deliver us from evil" the evil persists.
There are a lot of words in the world. Many, maybe most, bear little meaning. At worst, they divide us and promote the worst in us. Jesus is proclaimed as the Word made flesh, and we might wonder if we can bear another word. This Word, however, brings life to a dying world, and light to the darkness of our existence.
It is easy to lose track of Jesus as we celebrate Christmas. Buried underneath layers of tradition, Christ's birth gets lost. We relegate the event to the distant past and remember it in ways that take faith to grasp who he is, where we find him, and why it matters to us. The truth of the story is that the savior and Lord, Jesus is found in obscure places among people who are considered nobodies. The truth is that he is born into this world for you.
Joseph was righteous. He was faithful. And he was completely stuck. Every option felt like loss. Every path forward felt impossible. He couldn't sleep. He just waited, faithful, afraid, and alone.
Matthew 1:18-25 | Isaiah 7:10-16
John the Baptist has announced the coming of the Messiah and called the people to repent and prepare. Sitting in jail, awaiting his fate, he sees none of the things he expected from the Messiah's coming. No conquering armies, no defeat of enemies, no judgment. He asks, "Are you the one, Jesus?" Maybe he got it all wrong. Jesus points to the signs of his reign – the blind see, the deaf hear, the poor receive good news. John was right about Jesus. He just had the wrong expectations.
Our theme for this season is either bold or foolish. In a world beset by violence, war, strife, and division, we declare that peace has dawned. Images of swords fashioned into plows and Paul's declaration that salvation is ever nearer call us to faith in Christ, not faith in a world gone mad. They call us to live anticipating what is promised instead of assuming life is just more of the same.
Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, with the scars still in his hands. What kind of king keeps his wounds? There's something about those scars that reveals who this king really is.
Luke 23:33-43 | Jeremiah 23:1-6 | Colossians 1:11-20
SIGNS OF THE TIMES The "signs of the times" can be frightening. Violence, division, warfare, government shutdowns, corporate layoffs leave us reeling. The "signs of the times" can leave us feeling helpless, sure that there is nothing that can be done. The "signs of the times" can make us passive, hoping someone else will deal with the problems. The "signs of the times" are passing away. People of faith are called to live and be "signs of the new age" inaugurated in Christ and his death and resurrection.
A woman marries seven brothers. They all die. The Sadducees think they've created the perfect trap: whose wife will she be in the resurrection? Checkmate, Jesus. Except Jesus isn't playing games. His answer flips everything and invites us to live as children of the resurrection, free from fear's grip. Wrong questions. Right answer.
Readings: Job 19:23-27a | Luke 20:27-38
Christians today don't like to think of themselves as "holy." That is reserved for superhero Christians. Perhaps a little false humility or a desire to keep expectations low makes us shrink from claiming our divinity as ones created in the image of God and redeemed by Christ's love. Christians today also don't want to get anywhere near thoughts of death or sadness, even though, in Christ, death has been overcome. That makes the Feast of All Saints hard to celebrate but essentially important. In a world of darkness, the light of God, as it shines in the lives of the Holy Ones of God, is our only hope.
Reformation Sunday isn't a history lesson. It's a mirror. God promised to write on our hearts - and that reformation is still happening.
Jeremiah 31:31-34 | Romans 3:19-28 | John 8:31-36
As we observe the Feast of St. Luke it is common to focus on stories of healing. Tradition holds that Luke, the writer of a Gospel that bears his name and the Book of Acts, was a physician. Luke's story of Jesus and the Church, however, is far more than a collection of healing stories. More than the healing of individuals, Luke tells us of how Jesus heals the whole world and sends his followers – the church – to do the same.
There is a lot of discussion and questions about "Christian Nationalism" these days. It is a not a new phenomenon. It happens whenever people mix faith and patriotism into a stew that becomes neither patriotic nor faithful. It probably first appeared when Emperor Constantine won the battle at the Milvian Bridge under a banner with a cross. From that point, using Christ as a tool for political power became part of history. Today, the American version seeks to victimize those we disfavor, call empathy and compassion, diversity, and equity evil. The Word of God, however, will not be chained to any nation or ideal. We are citizens of God's reign, not any country. The healing of one of the enemies of Israel, a citizen of another nation, makes the point.
Habakkuk stands on the city ramparts, watching violence rage below, crying "How long, O Lord?" Centuries later, Jesus' disciples hear impossible commands and plead, "Increase our faith!" Jesus' answer might surprise you: the faith you already have is enough. It's not about your strength — it's about God's.
Confederate bonds seemed like solid investments in 1862 - today they're worth $20 on eBay. Jesus's parable of the dishonest steward reveals which currency will outlast them all. Luke 16:1-13 | Amos 8:4-7
I don’t think I’m alone in being tired of the state of the world. What will address the warfare, violence, hatred, and just general meanness of this world? In a world where power, winning, material success, being number one, are the way we see things and what we strive for, there seems little hope of changing things. On this Holy Cross Day we are reminded that the way of the cross seems foolish in a winner-take-all world, but that foolishness has the power to save.
Being a disciple of Jesus is more than being a member of a church. There are costs to placing Jesus at the center of life to the exclusion of other things. Being a disciple leaves marks, and it begins with the cross affixed to our foreheads in baptism.
A grandfather's coffee cup, a splash of milk, and a kitchen table full of chaos. Sometimes the most profound truths about God's kingdom hide in the most ordinary moments. If you've ever felt like you're scanning the room with your plate in hand, wondering where you belong, turns out your place was never in question.
Proverbs 25:6-7a | Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16 | Luke 14:1, 7-14
Keeping the sabbath is often seen as an obligation. In this age, a time-worn, quaint vestige of a more religious culture. For Jesus, sabbath is not an obligation. It is a celebration of the freedom we’ve been given to be the people God calls us to be instead of filling the roles others give us. To observe Sabbath is to be fully human.
When Jesus announces that he has come to bring fire upon the earth and division to families it is a little off-putting, don’t you think? Is he announcing punishment or is there a message of grace and good news buried somewhere in the midst of the perceived threat? We should always be aware that baptism into Christ is a baptism that puts to death the claims of this world and ushers in a radical new way of living. We are marked with the cross of Christ!
What if Jesus isn’t guarding the locks but breaking them open—freeing us from the prisons we didn’t even know we were defending?
Genesis 15:1-6 | Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 | Luke 12:32-40
We build, we store, we cling. But beneath all that effort—what’s actually holding you?
Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23 | Colossians 3:1-11 | Luke 12:13-21
When Jesus’ disciples ask him to teach them to pray, he gives them the Lord’s Prayer (or Our Father). He then instructs them with parables that assure them of God’s attention and desire to give us what we need (not always what we want?). Prayer is about a relationship with the living God, not getting favors. Throughout scripture we can find God’s people asking for things in prayer only to have God answer with something else. God teaches us to pray by example.
When "crazy busy" becomes your default answer to "How are you?", maybe it's time to learn a different way to breathe. What if the story of two sisters arguing is about more than just dinner prep—and what if Jesus' response changes everything about how we serve?
Genesis 18:1-10 | Colossians 1:15-28 | Luke 10:38-42
What if eternal life doesn’t begin at the destination, but in the ditch? What if the most important part of the journey isn’t where you're going—but what interrupts you along the way?
Deuteronomy 30:9–14 | Colossians 1:1–14 | Luke 10:25–37
Jesus sends 72 (or 70) workers out to proclaim the peace of the reign of God and its imminent approach. The number is a symbol – Genesis says that there are 72 (or 70) nations in the world. Jesus is sending messengers to the four corners of the earth. There are only a few workers for such an enormous harvest. Times have not changed. As churches close, seminary classes dwindle and volunteers disappear we might wonder our fate as the church. This text is Jesus’ reply.
What if the only way forward... was to set fire to everything holding you back?
1 Kings 19:15-16, 19-21 | Galatians 5:1, 13-25 | Luke 9:51-62
We humans are good at applying labels to each other. Short, fat, black, white, loser, winner… We drop bombs on “enemies,” we feed (or chastise) the “hungry. We apply a label and we think we know a person. When Jesus encounters a gentile, demon-possessed, man who is as good as dead (he lives in the cemetery), Jesus sees none of the labels. Instead, he restores the man to his standing as a human, a child of God. Christ sees you for who you are, not for the labels you bear. And he sets us free.
Jesus once said, “You cannot bear it now.” We usually think of the unbearable as pain—and rightly so. But what if the unbearable isn’t only sorrow? What if it’s also joy too overwhelming to carry, love too deep to explain, grace too beautiful to hold?
Proverbs 8:1–4, 22–31 | Romans 5:1–5 | John 16:12–15
Pentecost is a festival that celebrates the gift of the Holy Spirit. For years, English-speaking Christians referred to the third person of the Trinity as “The Holy Ghost” (some still do). This always made me think of Casper when I was a kid. The Holy Spirit is not, however, an apparition, a paranormal anomaly. The Holy Spirit is the very being of God that is given to all who call on the name of the Lord. It is the indwelling image of God poured into us by grace. It stands against the spirits of the age that tempt us to greed, violence, despair, selfishness, and division. The Holy Spirit is God making us the holy people of God.
We live in the tension between ‘Come, Lord Jesus’ and ‘Come and see’ - crying out for Christ’s return while extending Christ’s invitation to a thirsty world. The church is called to be both bride calling out to Christ and wellspring offering living water to all who thirst. What does it mean to live faithfully in the in-between time, when the promise of ‘soon’ stretches across centuries and the prayer for unity meets our human divisions?
Acts 16:16-34 | Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21 | John 17:20-26
Scripture does not tell us much about Lydia, but we have enough to know that she begins the story as one who is always the outsider. A woman in a man’s world, a person of wealth and means, an immigrant, a gentile among Jews. Then she hears the gospel and is baptized, and all these identities are replaced. She becomes a child of God, “marked by the cross of Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit.” She becomes the leader of the church at Philippi. How does this transformation happen? How does it happen for us?
The Book of Revelation reveals the gift of a New Jerusalem as a symbol of the fulfillment of God’s reign of peace, justice, and love. In that gentle reign there will be no more tears. That is good news in a world where there is much to make us weep. The struggle is that God’s new Jerusalem transforms and redeems the old one. What if we like the old one, the old ways, the old ideas? The tears will continue to flow if everything stays the same; if we long for what once was. How do we imagine and allow ourselves to live in a city where there are no more tears?
They stood in silence and whispered a risk: “Jesus is Lord.” Not a slogan. Not a ritual. A choice that could cost everything. What kind of faith dares to speak when power says to stay quiet? This week, Revelation doesn’t give us dragons or end times charts. It gives us a vision—a multitude, a Shepherd, and a God who sees every tear.
Acts 9:36–43 | Revelation 7:9–17 | John 10:22–30
Ever been on the wrong road, headed the wrong way? Worse yet, even been on the on the wrong road and not know it? Peter and Paul are on the wrong road in the scriptures for this day. No map, GPS, or self-help will straighten them out, turn them around or get them headed in the right direction. Only an act of resurrection can do that. Thankfully Jesus intervenes to alter their courses – as he does with us, every day.
Last week was Easter — but the story isn’t over. For resurrection people, Easter never ends. After the crowds thin and the music fades, a quieter question remains: Is it still true? Is resurrection still real… even now? Like Thomas, we find ourselves reaching out — hoping to touch what our hearts dare to believe.
Acts 5:27–32 | Revelation 1:4–8 | John 20:19–31
Christians have come to worship not on the seventh day (Sabbath) but on the eighth day, a day that signifies new creation. When the women came to the tomb of Jesus, they were prepared to anoint a dead body. They expected nothing new, so they brought spices and cloth, grief and despair. They had no expectation that a new creation had dawned in the resurrection of Christ. The eighth day brought hope and is a day we celebrate every week as we gather, hear the bread, share the meal, and send the risen people of God back into the world to be the risen Christ.
They laid their cloaks on the road—not just as a gesture of welcome, but as a sign of surrender. A letting go. That moment asked something of them. And it asks something of us too. So here's the question: What are you still holding onto? What stays wrapped around your shoulders, even as Jesus passes by?
Luke 19:28-40
Soren Kierkegaard, Danish theologian and philosopher, said that Christ did not come to make admirers. He came to make followers. You can admire Abraham Lincoln, but you can’t become him. You can admire Michael Jordon or Caitlin Clark, but you can’t become them. To admire Christ is to live a life untransformed by his grace. To follow him is to become like him. May this be our Lenten journey.
A lost son in a distant country. A loyal son who never left. Both lost more than they realized. What if being found isn’t about where you are—but about who knows you? Joshua 5:9-12 | 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 | Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
Repentance is not one of our favorite topics of discussion. In the Season of Lent, and in the Gospel of Luke, the subject is unavoidable. If we believe that we have faith and repent so that we can earn God’s favor and avoid God’s punishment, repentance is like a bad report card. Luke’s message today unflinchingly declares that we cannot avoid the tragedy of life. We cannot assume that our prosperity means God loves us more than others. The day of death and judgment will come to all. Jesus' parable of the fig tree declares that though unavoidable, today is an opportunity for grace to turn us around and help us bear fruit.
What if Jesus had said yes? What if the story had gone differently? And what if his temptations aren’t so different from our own?
Deuteronomy 26:1-11 | Romans 10:8b-13 | Luke 4:1-13
The season of Epiphany begins at Jesus' baptism with a heavenly announcement, “You are my son, the beloved.” The season ends with an announcement from the cloud, “This is my son, the Chosen. Listen to him.” Epiphany is about the multi-faceted revelation of Jesus' identity. “Who is Jesus?” is the prime question we must sort out before we can follow him.
Jesus says hard things a lot. Perhaps no words uttered by the Lord are more difficult than “Love your enemies.” His call to forgive those who harm us and bless those who curse us are not mainstream. No Liam Neeson movie would garner an audience if he went around forgiving. No, we like revenge and retribution. We like to hold on to grudges. The question is, how does the reign of God – a reign of mercy dawn in a world based on revenge? Maybe it doesn’t.
Have you ever felt invisible—like you could walk through a crowd and no one would notice? We all long to be seen, to know that we matter. But what if the one who sees us best is the one we least expect? Jeremiah 17:5-10 | 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 | Luke 6:17-26
Holy Trinity welcomes Bishop Amy Current of the Southeastern Iowa Synod of the ELCA as our preacher. She shares a story of grace where the big story is not about the fish.
The doctor tells me I have cancer. That can make one stop and think. To walk the path ahead, I find myself thinking about what kind of God I need. A god who planned my cancer? Maybe one who will supply a miracle when all hope is lost? No, I am convinced that the God I need is the one who created a world where radiation and radiologists, scalpels and surgeons bring to bear the grace of creation. More important, I need a God who is not aloof and far off, inscrutable and impassive, but one who knows my sufferings and shares them. That is the God revealed in Christ and his cross.
Washington and Wall Street, magnates and millionaires all have agendas for the shaping of the world in their own image. The changes and fads come and go and most often create chaos. Jesus announced his agenda in his home synagogue. He came to give good news to the poor, release the captives, give sight to the blind, lift up the oppressed and set the world right. With each healing, teaching, and his rising from the dead he pursued that agenda. What does that have to do with us?
When the world cries out for answers, what does it mean to tug on the sleeve of Jesus? From empty wine jars to the cries of grief, moments of scarcity meet unexpected abundance. What happens when we plead, 'Do something about it? Isaiah 62:1-5 | 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 | John 2:1-11
So, why does Jesus need to be baptized? If he is sinless, what forgiveness is needed? Why does the Son of God submit to John’s baptism when even John claims he is unworthy to “untie the thong” of Jesus’ sandals? These are questions that have vexed the Church for centuries. Luke’s unique way of dealing with these questions places John in prison and flows the baptism with a family tree. The result is the gift of baptism given to us as children of God.
When we celebrate the Feast of Epiphany, we tell the story of astronomers from the east who bring three gifts. Christmas pageants and hymns portray these visitors as three kings. There are however, only two kings in the story. The fake one named Herod sitting on a throne in Jerusalem and the real one, Jesus, lying in a manger in Bethlehem. Isaiah saw the day when the nations would worship Israel’s kings, bringing gold and frankincense. The myrrh in Matthew’s story adds a substance used for burial and the cross looms. Jesus is not just a personal savior but a ruler who brings a new kingdom in his life, death, and resurrection.
As we step into the new year, Paul’s words to the Colossians remind us that the Christian life isn’t about striving to accomplish an impossible checklist. It’s about letting Christ—letting Christ’s peace, love, and word dwell in us and work through us. In a world focused on resolutions and self-improvement, Paul invites us to surrender, trust, and clothe ourselves in Christ.
Incarnation – the divine becoming flesh - is a wildly radical notion. Most religious thought in human history has firmly fixed a chasm between heaven and earth, between divinity and humanity. Yet we proclaim that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” What does this mean?
Calling the night of our Savior’s birth :silent” seems an historical stretch. After all there were noisy animals, singing angels, shepherds speaking, and a crying baby. There were also many voices in the world made it seem impossible that anything or anyone important could happen in Bethlehem. Our love of this carol seems to be rooted in not the facts of the event but the longing we have to find an end to the violence, cries of suffering, and voices of injustice and despair that are all around us. Perhaps that is what this savior brings.
Mary’s Magnificat isn’t a lullaby—it’s a revolution. The world is about to turn, and everything is changing. A humble girl sings of God’s justice, lifting the lowly and scattering the proud. This isn’t just ancient history—it’s the hope we hold onto today.
When John the Baptist addresses his congregation as a “Brood of vipers,” it hardly seems like good news. Rather than an insult, however, John is calling out the misguided notion that we can avoid judgment because we’re the right kind of people. We shall all be shaped for life in the reign of God through judgment or repentance. Repentance invites us to live in the presence of Christ now as people dedicated to justice, love, and compassion. It is very good news, indeed.
Worship features readings of the season and music by the Adult Choir and a small chamber ensemble.
Advent is more than waiting—it’s stewarding hope. In a world weighed down by uncertainty and injustice, how do we rise up and see signs of God's kingdom breaking in today?
To whom will we give our lives to? That is the question on the Festival of Christ the King. Will it be the kings, presidents, rulers, and powers of this world? Wall Street or Madison Avenue? Or will we serve the only one “who was, who is, and the one coming?” as the Book of Revelation names him? Will we trust the powers and people who will pass away or the one who is eternal?
Whenever the Bible speaks of suffering, war, or cataclysm of any kind we tend to assume it is speaking of God’s punishment. Jesus does not do that. Referring to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, “war and rumors of war,” he calls them “birth pangs.” This does not minimize the suffering and pain. It reminds us, however, that the birth pangs are not the baby. In these days of uncertainty and chaos, it is easy to fear the world is ending. It is in way. But these are the birth pangs, not the reign of God that will make all things new.
What does it mean to give everything when you don’t have enough to begin with? A widow’s offering of two small coins challenges everything we know about generosity, trust, and faith. In a world that devours us, how can we respond with faith that holds nothing back? What does it truly mean to offer our all?
If you don’t know where you are headed, you’re probably lost. This world seems lost, unsure of where we are going or who will lead us. As followers of Jesus Christ, we know where the world is headed and what the end looks like. It is what he revealed in his life, death, and resurrection. The reign of God is not yet here, but it is already dawning, all around us. On All Saints Day we remember all the saints who have lived into God’s future by being “already” people in a “not yet” world.
You are a beloved child of God. Know that you are accepted; you are loved by the one who made the universe.
It is common to look at the trouble of the world and ask why God does not do something about it all. But what if God has done something, and that something is you? Luke, the masterful storyteller, and evangelist offers some of the most beloved and memorable teachings of Jesus we know. In many of them, Jesus is not the miracle worker. Instead, after an encounter with the overwhelming love of God in Christ, miraculous things are done by people like you and me.
For people who live in a culture so grounded in material possessions and having “stuff,” Jesus’ instruction to “sell everything and give to the poor. And then follow me…” (Mark 10), is challenging to say the least. Is Jesus serious? When what we possess gets in the way of our relationship with what truly matters, when we see faith as yet another possession, maybe this command is what saves us.
Amid destruction and despair, Isaiah's words remind us that God's promise is both present and future—a hope that invites all to the table, where death is defeated and new life begins.
Isaiah 25:6-9 | 1 Corinthians 11:20-26 | Luke 24:22-33
In today’s gospel, Jesus speaks of plucking out eyes and cutting off hands—but what if we’ve misunderstood? What if true wholeness comes from letting go?
Numbers 11:4-6, 10-16, 24-29 | James 5:13-20 | Mark 9:38-50
Ever felt lost in confusion, even when you're right in the middle of faith? You're not alone. Sometimes the greatest lessons come when we’re the most uncertain. In our confusion, Jesus reassures us that he will always be with us. Jeremiah 11:18-20 | James 3:13—4:3, 7-8a | Mark 9:30-37
Peter thought he had it all figured out. He had the right title, but completely missed the meaning. What happens when we try to make Jesus fit our expectations?
Isaiah 50:4-9a | James 3:1-12 | Mark 8:27-38
Jesus and the Pharisees clash again—this time over handwashing traditions. Ever wonder if the rituals you follow are drawing you closer to God—or pulling you away? Sometimes, it’s time to uncover the dirt in our spiritual lives.
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9 | James 1:17-27 | Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
There are words and phrases that everyone needs to hear in their life. Sometimes it is simply “I love you” or “I am proud of you.” Other times, when life is really hard and we cry out “God where are you,” someone in our life brings us the good news that God is with us and God is with you. It is the good news of Advent, the good news of Easter, and the good news of Pentecost. The Lord be with you. Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-18 | Ephesians 6:10-20 | John 6:56-69
Imagine standing in a crowd of thousands, hungry for more than just bread. What if the bread you sought wasn’t just food, but a radical invitation? Proverbs 9:1-6 | Ephesians 5:15-20 | John 6:51-58
Have you ever felt like life is more valley than mountaintop? Elijah did too. He stood against kings, called down fire from heaven, and yet, he found himself alone, exhausted, and ready to give up. But it was in that dark valley, not on the mountaintop, where God met him with the most tender, sustaining grace. 1 Kings 19:4-8 | Ephesians 4:25—5:2 | John 6:35, 41-51
Have you ever felt the anxiety of not knowing where someone important is, especially after midnight? The crowd in John’s Gospel experienced a similar fear when they couldn’t find Jesus. But it just wasn’t that they couldn't find Jesus, it was that they had expectations that were not being met. Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 | Ephesians 4:1-16 | John 6:24-35
We all have that bucket of leftover parts sitting on a workbench. They are those extra bolts and screws that we just can't bring ourselves to toss in the garbage. In our Gospel lesson for today, Jesus tells the disciples to gather up the leftovers from the feeding of the multitude. There is good news for those of us who are left out and leftover. 2 Kings 4:42-44 | Ephesians 3:14-21 | John 6:1-21
Have you ever been so consumed by anger that it becomes a part of you, unnoticed by yourself but evident to everyone else? It is easy to get that way in our world today. We can be angry about pretty much anything. Staying angry is a lot of work. Being angry is exhausting. Jesus tells the disciples today to come away with him and rest -- something we all need to hear.
Jeremiah 23:1-6 | Ephesians 2:11-22 | Mark 6:30-34, 53-56
A plumb line measures whether things are vertical, straight, or up to snuff. Amos sees a plumb line measuring the nation of Israel and Israel is not plumb. They have tilted away from the ways of God, justice, and care for those in need. God will not let this stand forever. Either what is out of plumb must be straightened or it will fall. Christ is our plumb line revealing when we are out of sync with God’s reign. By grace, he can bring us back in line with the ways of God.
In a world where we ridicule “losers,” demean failure, and look for the strong and successful, it is hard to remember that God specializes in weakness. Paul prays that a “thorn in his flesh” be taken from him because it makes him weak. God says, “My grace is sufficient for you. Power is made perfect in weakness.” God makes strong when we are weak. Look to the one who died on the cross for this truth.
Mark’s Gospel moves swiftly, yet pauses with purpose to show us profound moments of healing and faith. Today we encounter a desperate father pleading for his dying daughter, and a woman, shunned by society for twelve long years, reaching out for a miracle. Lamentations 3:22-33 | 2 Corinthians 8:7-15 | Mark 5:21-43
In this world full of suffering and pain, we often ask God, “Why?” Some even assert that if there is suffering in the world it is proof that God does not exist unless a compelling answer can be given. What if “Why” is the wrong question? The message of the Book of Job offers no answer to Job’s asking God why. Instead, God is present to Job. When we suffer, the question to ask is, “Who?” and “Where?” Jesus is the embodiment of God’s answer. God is present in our suffering.
When confronted with the troubles of the world or the decline of our personal life we can long for something new, something that fixes things, solves our problems. We tend to look for the quick fix, the silver bullet, the latest and greatest advice. Scripture tells us that the reign of God doesn’t work that way. Mustard seeds, growing seed, sprigs of a cedar tree are signs that God is at work. The new creation dawns slowly, patiently and often, as something we can only observe as God works.
I grew up in a church that had an enormous sanctuary. It was filled with stained-glass windows. There was plenty of real estate for depictions of stories from the Bible. Not one inch was dedicated to depicting Jesus as a thief. In the Gospel today, Jesus tells a story about binding a strong man and plundering the house. Is Jesus the strongman or the thief? Genesis 3:8-15 | 2 Corinthians 4:13 - 5:1 | Mark 3:20-35
Keeping Sabbath is more than an outdated day off exemplified by the blue laws of a bygone age. The purpose of Sabbath is to rejoice and honor God’s creation and every creature. It is to proclaim freedom and assert that we are more than what we do, more than our accomplishments, more than economic cogs in the machinery. We are children of God! Jesus is himself the Sabbath bringing joy and peace to our lives.
Nicodemus comes to Jesus in the middle of the night when the shadows are long and the places to hide are easy to find. Nicodemus is a Pharisee and coming to ask Jesus questions can be problematic for him. That fateful night Nicodemus brings all of his questions and seeks confirmation for what he already knows. If his story ended that night, he would be just a nice little footnote. But his story doesn’t end there.
Isaiah 6:1-8 | Romans 8:12-17 | John 3:1-17
Ezekiel sees a valley full of bones that represent the people of God. Peter and the disciples see a world where God’s people are scattered, divided, and grieving the death of their Lord. Today, God’s people are a shrinking bunch, unsure of how to proceed in a world that thinks they are irrelevant. When we can’t imagine a way forward, the Spirit comes with power to create and a vision beyond our expectations.
Eternal life is not the same thing as the resurrection of the dead, nor is it simply this life extended past death. Eternal life is not something we earn or build from our efforts to get rich, successful, or busy. Eternal life always was, will always be, and is present right now. You just have to look at Jesus to see what is and trust that he has given it to you.
We can spend a lot of time waiting for God to do something about the brokenness of our world and the challenges of life. The Book of Acts, however, says that it is not our impatient waiting on the Spirit to act that is the problem. The Spirit has preceded us and plowed the ground already. The Spirit impatiently anoints even as we argue about who is worthy to be in the church. When we wonder what God wants us to do, is it possible we already know the answer? Has the Spirit already spoken and our preconceptions and biases, our resentments and self-justification, are just in the way of God’s grace and love in our lives?
The ancient Celtic Christians named the Holy Spirit the Wild Goose. The Holy Spirit is wild and untamed. Our Acts reading today is about Philip’s encounter with the Holy Spirit and his Wild Goose Chase. Acts 8:26-40 | 1 John 4:7-21 | John 15:1-8
In Jesus’ day, there would be times when multiple shepherds would bring their flocks together. Whether by accident or on purpose, they would gather them in a paddock, an area that was walled off to keep the predators out of the flock. The sheep would mingle together and do all the things sheep do. Now that presents a problem for the shepherd. How do you tell your sheep apart from the other shepherd’s sheep? When the shepherds would leave the paddock, they would call out to their flock. The sheep would hear their shepherd's voice and would follow. The shepherd's voice is key. The sheep know which shepherd is theirs and they follow. The sheep know… But sheep are still sheep. Sheep wander off… Sheep fall into ravines… The Shepherd still needs to go and find them when that happens. The shepherd’s voice is key. Jesus tells us today, “I know my own and my own know me. They know my voice.” Acts 4:5-12 | 1 John 3:16-24 | John 10:11-18
The resurrection of Jesus reveals that God’s way is the way of life, light, love, peace, hope, and wholeness. Whenever these things break through the darkness of the world it is a moment of resurrection. Sadly, we don’t see it, nor do we often want to accept this eruption of new life. We are resistant to the resurrection.
We live in the age of the individual. We are a lonely, fragmented people often at each other’s throats. The resurrection of Jesus binds people together in love to stand against the individualism that makes everything about “me.” “Doubting” Thomas struggled in despair and doubt because he was not with the others when Jesus first appeared. The church in Jerusalem in Acts “held” all things in common and lived in joy.
Readings: Acts 4:32-35 John 20:19-31
The Gospel of Mark ends at chapter 16, verse 8 (other endings were added much later). It is an odd, perplexing end that leaves us with an empty tomb and three women who say nothing to anyone. Yet, maybe Mark was less concerned with what happened then and more concerned with what happens now. The resurrection means that God is loose in the world, unrestrained and persistently confronting us with life, love, and grace. What do you say about that?
I grew up thinking that the word hosanna meant something triumphant. Knowing that it means something else entirely changes how I see Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.
Mark 11:1-11
The cross is the chief symbol of our faith, a sign of the saving work of Christ. What does it mean “to be saved?” Some would say it is assent to beliefs. Others point to a religious experience. Those are not, however, works of Christ. They are things we do. In John’s gospel, Christ’s work on the cross is bigger than forgiving sins. It is to judge the world, drive out the evil, and draw all people to himself.
Pastor Twila Schock, Vice President for Church Relations and International Programming for Mosaic, one of our mission partners, is our guest preacher. Mosaic empowers people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in their unique pursuit of happiness.
We often have an image in our head of what Jesus looks like and how Jesus should act. The Jesus of John’s gospel is not the safe, tame, domesticated Jesus of my childhood. A domesticated Jesus doesn’t have anything to say about how we live our lives and would never flip any tables. This Jesus is the undomesticated Jesus who isn’t afraid to flip the tables in our lives that get in the way of following Jesus. Exodus 20:1-17 | 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 | John 2:13-22
It seems like from the moment we enter the world the effort to find and follow our own way is what we are about. Every toddler at some point says “I do it myself!” To take up one’s cross and follow Jesus however, means not going our own way but following in the way of Jesus. Peter finds that out today as Jesus says, “Get behind me, Satan.”
In the swift narrative of Mark's Gospel, details may seem sparse, but depth and meaning abound. Baptized by John in the Jordan, Jesus hears the heavens tear open, affirming him as the beloved Son. Driven into the wilderness by the Spirit, Jesus faces real struggles. Mark, unlike Matthew and Luke, leaves the temptations ambiguous. Lent isn't about a triumphant superhero, but a vulnerable Jesus in our shared wilderness. In life's diverse wildernesses, Jesus guides us, proclaiming the Kingdom, and reconciling us to God. The torn veil assures: You are loved. Amen. Readings: Genesis 9:8-17 1 Peter 3:18-22 Gospel Reading • Mark 1:9-15
There is more to the world than meets the eye. By faith, we see things that others cannot. We see people and the world differently than others might. The Feast of the Transfiguration tells us how God pulled back the curtain of heaven to reveal radiance, glory, and grace in Jesus Christ. We get a glimpse of grace and see as God sees. It happens all the time. When we can see a person who suffers as a neighbor to love instead of a burden, we see through the eyes of faith. When we receive the bread and wine at the Table of the Lord and see Christ present to us, we see as Christ sees. It is these visions that sustain us. Readings: 2 Kings 2:1-12 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 Gospel Reading • Mark 9:2-9
The magi come from afar to seek the Christ child. They come seeking and find King Herod more worried about maintaining his power than seeking the newborn king. Herod doesn’t seek, the scribes and chief priests don’t seek either. It seems that God is determined to be found and it takes those who shouldn’t even be looking for the Christ child to find him.
Isaiah 60:1-6 | Ephesians 3:1-12 | Matthew 2:1-12
The vastness and immensity of the universe are held together and grounded in love. That love has come to us in Christ. Amidst the powers and rulers of this world, love has come in humility. Christ comes born in a manger, a baby crying as every other baby so we can know that love has come to us.
In today's Gospel, we delve into the Annunciation, a moment often overlooked in Protestant circles. Mary, a humble teenager from Nazareth, questions the angel Gabriel's surprising message. Yet, Gabriel points to God's unwavering faithfulness, echoing a history of divine promises fulfilled. 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 | Romans 16:25-27 | Luke 1:26-38
Worship features readings of the season and music by the Adult Choir and a small chamber ensemble.
The term “woke” has, for some reason, become polarizing. In this season of Advent, it is essential. To prepare for God’s salvation born in Christ, we must be “woke” to the brokenness of the word. We must be “woke” to the ways we participate in breaking the world. We must be “woke” to the fact that our attempts to fix the world are like lipstick on a pig – pointless. We cry out “Lord, tear open the heavens and come,” to call God to do new things in the broken places. We cry out, “Come, Emmanuel (God with us),” because it is our only hope.
The vision of the “Sheep and Goats” in Matthew’s gospel is a perplexing bit of scripture. On the surface, it reduces inclusion in the reign of God to those who do good works—no room for grace. On the surface, it condemns the unrighteous to eternal damnation and the fires of hell. Neither notion jibes with the story of Jesus very well. So, what is Jesus trying to teach in this last teaching of Matthew’s gospel? It is about grace and mercy, of course.
We tend to create God in our own image. In today’s Gospel, Jesus talks about what happens when we do not know who God is. Jesus tells the parable of the talents to show the transformative impact of shaping our lives by embracing a God of boundless grace, joy, and abundance, rather than succumbing to fear and self-imposed limitations.
The Church’s basic posture is one of anticipation, of waiting. Waiting for the Day of the Lord, the return of Christ. The consummation of the reign of God is a tricky thing. It is easy to become distracted by many things, to lose sight of the end and goal of life in Christ. Stay alert, stay awake, and center yourself on Christ.
In the Book of Revelation, we see a vision of the heavenly throne room with a myriad of worshippers dressed in white. A messenger asks, “Who are these people?” They are the saints. They are largely unknown because they worship one who is largely unknown. Who are the saints of God? It is a good and relevant question…
In a world where we constantly look back to the good ol’ days, we can become trapped by that nostalgia. It is easy to look back to our past, especially on Reformation Sunday, when we celebrate Martin Luther and the reformation he ignited, and get trapped with looking back. Christ calls us to be free and then sets us free to live and love and grieve in this world. Jeremiah 31:31-34 | Romans 3:19-28 | John 8:31-36
Faith and politics, it has been said by some, should never go together. The truth is that being faithful will lead us into political waters. Jesus says: “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matthew 22:21) - a very political statement. Paul calls on the name of the “Lord Jesus Christ” in direct opposition to the claim that “Caesar is Lord” in I Thessalonians 1:1 - Another political statement. How do we allow Jesus Christ to be Lord of even our politics?
'Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, Rejoice.' In a world marked by turmoil and trials, the call to find joy may seem daunting. It might even seem as an empty platitude, but the Apostle Paul knows there is reason to rejoice – as Jesus explains it in our Gospel reading for today. Isaiah 25:1-9 | Philippians 4:1-9 | Matthew 22:1-14
Wild grapes are good for nothing. They are sour and inedible. You can’t make wine or jelly with them. Birds won’t even eat them. The prophet Isaiah declares that God planted God’s people to yield the grapes of justice, mercy, peace, and grace. Instead, they became wild grapes, producing nothing but violence, injustice, and cries for God’s help. We too receive God’s richest blessings but end up being wild grapes. What are we to do?
Jesus comes to Jerusalem acting in ways that disrupt. The officials want to know who he thinks he is. He turns the question around on them. If they say they are faithful people of God, why do they not do the work he does? Knowing who we are determines how we live our lives.
We all have a keen sense of fairness. It is ingrained in us. We don’t like when people get more than us, especially if we do the same amount of work. Jonah and Jesus show us today the generosity of God, and if we’re honest with ourselves, we don’t always like the generosity of God. Jonah 3:10--4:11, Philippians 1:21-30, Matthew 20:1-16
Peter asks if forgiving someone seven times is sufficient. Since many of us find forgiving someone once a stretch, Peter was generous. Jesus, however, called for more. He says, “Seventy-seven times” or “Seven times seventy.” Given the symbolic nature of the number seven, the point is to forgive endlessly. Perhaps forgiveness is more than a duty or obligation. Just maybe forgiveness is the power of the resurrection raising dead relationships to new life.
There I am minding my own business, just trying to get through this thing called life, and I didn’t realize I was supposed to be offended – at least until someone told me that I should be offended. Amidst all the offense, we realize that words matter and words have power. Today, Jesus tells us “for where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” Those spoken words are powerful.
These are instructions from Jesus for all who wish to follow him. What does that look like? Putting to death all that keeps us from living as Christ in this world is also trusting in the new life Christ offers. Every day is full of countless crosses we must take up to become what God calls us to be.
Today Jesus asks his disciples a pointed question – "Who do you say that I am?" They have witnessed all the miracles and still wonder who this man they are following is. Jesus also asks us the same question. If we get the answer right, then we rightly know ourselves.
When Jesus encounters a Canaanite woman begging him to heal her daughter his response is, at best, curious. It seems offensive. He calls her a dog who is unworthy to eat at the table. To say this is out of character for Jesus seems obvious. But what if Jesus is not grumpy, but (as he is all the time in Matthew) in teaching mode? What if this story has a deep message that spoke to the disciples then and speaks to us today?
“Being saved” in our age seems restricted to concern over where we go when we die. It is more than that, according to scripture. We’re so concerned about heaven because we are so afraid of death. Faith saves us from our fear and sets us free today, while we live, not just when we die. Elijah is saved from his fear, Peter walks on the water because fear is overcome. They are saved because God is as close as their lips and heart.
Jesus retreats to the wilderness to be alone as he processes the death of John the Baptist. It was at a table that John’s execution was decided. A table full of death and chaos. It is a stark contrast to the feeding of the thousands that happen in today’s gospel reading. Here in the wilderness, Jesus feeds the people with five loaves and two fish. And they eat until they are full. A life-giving meal in a world that is so full of anything that isn’t life giving.
It seems we spend a lot of time assuming that the universe is set against us. Fear is the default posture of all of us who are always on defense against the next threat. What if, however, God is for us? That is Paul’s question. If God is for us, who (or what) can be against us? This leads to a life that overcomes fear and allows for joy. That is something more valuable than anything else, isn’t it?
Jesus uses a parable about weeds and wheat to address the presence of good and evil in the world. What do we do about evil empires, bad church members, and sinful people (weeds)? Jesus says let them be because it is beyond our wisdom to know the difference between good and evil even in our own lives. So what is a person to do?
It is easy to focus on the soil in today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus tells the Parable of the Sower and then explains it. He talks about four different kinds of soil. Human nature is to focus on the different soil types and how they would describe ourselves or others. The good news here is that the parable is not about the soil, but about the sower.
There are a lot of voices in our world that continually weigh us down. There are happenings in the world that can weigh heavily upon us. There are times when the burdens of this life get to be more than we can handle. Jesus has some good advice for those of us that have heavy burdens.
The Church is called to proclaim the Gospel – which means Good News. The paradox is that sometimes the good news can sound like bad news and vice versa. The prophet Jeremiah spent a lifetime declaring the good news, and it always sounded like bad news to the people who listened. He didn’t tell them what they wanted to hear. He declared that judgment was necessary if they were to become more and more God’s people. The same is true for us.
The Israelites were set free from slavery in Egypt by God’s grace. That was not the end of the story. In the wilderness they were formed by faith to be the people God called them to be. As Christians, we are set free from our slavery to the sin, evil, and darkness of this world. Paul says we die to those things in baptism. That is not the end of the story. We are raised from the waters of baptism to be formed by faith to be the people God made us to be.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus has some challenging words for his followers. It can make us nervous when we read the list of things on our to-do list. Go and cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. Go and touch. Go and heal. Go and resurrect. Go and make peace. Go and render believable the compassion of God.
But we are not sent alone. Jesus promises us that we are not alone and the Spirit of God will be with us wherever we go.
The Pharisees in today’s Gospel lesson ask Jesus’ disciples why he tolerates the presence of tax collectors and sinners at his table. In response, Jesus tells the Pharisees to learn what it this means, “‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.” And then Jesus proceeds to show them what mercy looks like.
The world is a chaotic place. The God of love, the Holy Trinity, brought creation out of chaos and sustains that movement to this day. The God of love, the Holy Trinity, brought peace and joy out of the conflict and chaos of the congregation at Corinth. That same God is at work in the midst of the chaotic world we inhabit today.
On this Day of Pentecost, we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit upon God’s people through the power of the resurrected Jesus. The Spirit comes in a mighty wind and flame of fire. It also comes as a word of peace and a breath. The Holy Spirit is the source of our life in Christ and it is persistent, powerful, and even pesky. Come Holy Spirit!
The struggle to make sense of suffering – and to escape it – is woven into the fabric of human existence. We ask, “Where was God when I suffered?” or “I pray to God, and I still suffer. Why?” The truth is that suffering is unavoidable. Some suffering is of our own making. Some is part of our being. Some happens when we encounter the reality of chaos and death. In this last case, the cross and resurrection of Christ provides answers.
We go through life trying to find meaning and purpose, and we often try to find that in the things that ultimately will not give us meaning and purpose. We might ask the question "Is there more to life than this?" We might wonder if we are loved.
The back wall of our chancel (the place of the altar) is made of limestone. Each stone is unique, stacked into a wall. If those stones could talk, what would they say? But they can’t talk – they are “dead” stones. First Peter says that we, the people of God, are “living stones” built into a temple that lives and breathes. What does that mean?
Jesus says that his “sheep” know his voice. There are, however, lots of other voices that compete for our attention. How do we know the voice of our Lord? He speaks the language of love.
The disciples on the road to Emmaus fail to see Jesus when he is standing right in front of them. I want to think that I would recognize Jesus if he was standing in front of me, but the truth is that I would most likely be like the disciples. My expectations would blind me, or all the things of this world would blind me. Jesus helps them recognize him. He takes bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to all to eat. Just like he has done in the past and continues to do. Jesus walks with us in this world and reminds us of his presence in the rhythms of our lives.
Some might be surprised that a preacher feels the weight of grief, wrestles with fear, and sits in the dreary confines of doubt. You shouldn’t be. Preachers are all too human. Sometimes all a preacher can offer is a path into God’s Word where we find those who grieve, like Mary Magdalene; those who fear like the disciples; those who can’t believe like Thomas. Then together we can see what Jesus has to say to us.
Paul asserts that we “have been raised with Christ.” (Colossians 3:1). He does not say, “You shall be raised,” or “You might be raised.” Resurrection is a present reality for us today. What does that look like?
We all love a good parade. Today, we hear about Jesus’ parade into Jerusalem. At the same time as Jesus’ parade, there is another one occurring on the other side of the city. The Romans are marching in to ensure law and order are maintained during Passover. And just as then, we are faced with the choice of which parade to attend. Which parade do we join? Jesus’ or Pilate’s?
The prophet, Ezekiel, sees a valley of dry bones and God asks, “Can these bones live?” We may respond, “No. Life is hard and then you die.” Death seems to get the final word. Yet, God has something else in mind as dry bones become Spirit-filled people. Jesus raises Lazarus from death. In baptism, we die to sin, evil, and death to live as resurrection people.
It takes little imagination to see that the world we inhabit is a pretty dark place. Hunger, violence, hate, war, failed banks, hungry people… all these things and more rob our souls of light and place a heavy burden on our shoulders. The gospel, however, tells us that “we are children of the light.” We need not solve the darkness of the world, we need only reflect the light of Christ given as we gather, listen, receive Christ, and are sent into the world to imitate the one who banished the darkness of death.
The woman at the well in today’s Gospel brings an empty jar to a well and has an encounter with Jesus. The woman brought a jar to fill up with water.
We all have jars that we carry around hoping to fill up with something. Most times it is with things that are not life giving.
Jesus offers us another way.
Our lives are filled with words – billions of them each week. Our conversations, our media, social media, and mail are full of words that try to tell us what to think, how to act, and who we are. These are generally dead words – they can’t give us life, love, grace, or mercy. Each week the church gathers around the Living Word Jesus Christ. Through scripture, hymns sung, sermons preached, prayers prayed, and creeds confessed Christ becomes a Living Word that grants new life.
It is not just by the effort of those in attendance to roll out of bed that the people of God gather for worship. It is an act of the Holy Spirit to create a desire to come into God’s presence, to draw us to the grace and mercy of God that brings us together. So, how do people who have fallen and failed, who have struggled to have faith prepare to come into God’s presence? We don’t. Through confession and forgiveness, God says, “You are my child. Come. Gather.”
We live in a culture where there are winners and losers. It seems like it doesn’t matter what we do, we are always in competition with someone. We compete for jobs and promotions, who has the best children, and who has the most stuff. And if we aren’t careful, we can think that we are loved because we are winners and we can feel unloved because we are not the winners. Living through the trials and tribulations of this world is a lot easier when we know we are loved; when we know we are chosen. When we too hear the words, you are my child, my beloved, with you I am well pleased.
Jesus says. “You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder.’” (Matthew 5:21) That sounds reasonable. I think I can manage not to murder anyone so I can live in God’s reign of peace, justice, joy, and grace. It is the least I can do. Jesus, however, wishes for us to live in a way that is more than “the least we can do.” Jesus wishes for us the abundance of the reign of God.
Salt in our day is cheap and plentiful. We even spread it on our streets. It was different in Jesus' day and culture. Salt was precious. Sometimes it is easy to forget that when Jesus calls us salt that he is calling us precious. Today we are reminded that we are precious.
God does not wish for us a world where peace officers beat a man to death, nor does God imagine a creation where shootings happen every day. In fact, God weeps over the ways of the world. In Christ, God has revealed the ways of God – justice, peace, mourning, and meekness. Christ’s way was rejected but in the resurrection, God said “yes” to our no.” We know what God desires. We know what will save us from the mess we’ve made. “To seek justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God” according to the prophet Micah.
I love the Choose Your Own Adventure books. They give you options as to what happens next as you read, and there is always the ability for a do-over if you don’t like how the story ends. In today’s Gospel lesson, Simon, Andrew, James, and John have a choice. Jesus gives them the choice to follow him. It is the same choice we get to make in our own lives. Whether we chose to follow or not, Jesus chooses us. Time and time again, Jesus chooses us. So, when we choose Jesus, we choose the one who first chose us.
Plants need good soil to grow. We all know this. Jesus tells a parable that affirms this basic bit of science as he teaches that we are the soil that receives the seed of the gospel. Sometimes the world can dry out the soil of our lives, our hearts. The waters of baptism and the call of the Spirit refresh us to be the light of Christ in the world.
The baptism of Jesus becomes his gift to all who follow him into the water. More than just repentance or forgiveness, baptism establishes our identity and purpose.
Today’s Gospel details the journey of the magi to find the Christ Child. The story of the magi is interesting and full of things that catch our attention. And if we’re not careful, we can focus on all the wrong things about the story. The journey of the magi is a journey we all take in some form or another. Let’s focus on what is important in today’s Gospel: Christ is with us.
John's Gospel account tells of creation. It tells of a God who created and who comes to us in the messiness of this world. Who isn't afraid of the messiness, and in that mess called life, claims us as children.
The story of the nativity in Luke’s Gospel is a story of somebodies and nobodies. Augustus and the governor of Syria are somebodies. Joseph, Mary, Jesus, and the shepherds are nobodies. We should note where God shows up in the world. We should note the people to who God is revealed. Love is revealed in places where no one would go to people who don’t matter. That should be terribly good news to each of us.
In today's gospel reading we hear about Joseph's reaction to hearing the news his future wife is now pregnant. His world was turned upside down.
It's at times like this God can feel far away. Matthew tells us that God is doing a new thing. That God will send a Savior. That this child that Mary is carrying will save us all.
The prophet Isaiah announces that a descendant of David will inaugurate a day when the “wolf will lie down with the lamb.” This incredible vision of peace that extends to the depths of creation is hard to fathom. How can we hope for such a thing to happen? According to Paul, Jesus Christ is that descendant, that “shoot from the stump of Jesse” and the peace he brings begins with the reconciliation of Jew and Gentile, black and white, slave and free, male and female. The peace begins when we, as shoots from that stump, forgive enemies and reconcile with those we hate. If that can happen, then maybe wolves being at peace with lambs is not such a miracle after all.
Holiday preparations are afoot, and they bring us some cheer. Advent, however, is about more than cheer, it is about hope. We hope for a world at peace. We hope that the violence and shootings will end. We hope the hungry will be fed. All these things can seem like wishful thinking, naïve longing for something that shall never be. So, how do we find hope in this season of hope?
This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. Today’s Gospel text from Luke sure doesn’t seem like it should be read on Christ the King Sunday. There is one word that can trip us up. “If” is a word that can cause us a lot of problems in our lives. Cause us to doubt ourselves. And it can cause us to doubt God’s goodness. On this day and every day, Christ is King and there are no if’s about that.
When Jesus and the disciples leave the Temple today, they comment on how grand it is. And Jesus, never one to forego an opportunity to teach, tells them that this temple will one day no longer be standing. I am sure that they heard this news as bad news. After all, the temple was the center of Jewish religious life. But this isn’t bad news. It is actually good news, especially to those on the margins of life.
When Jesus and the disciples leave the Temple today, they comment on how grand it is. And Jesus, never one to forego an opportunity to teach, tells them that this temple will one day no longer be standing. I am sure that they heard this news as bad news. After all, the temple was the center of Jewish religious life. But this isn’t bad news. It is actually good news, especially to those on the margins of life.
The Festival of All Saints is a day to remember the beloved dead who have gone before us. More than that, it is a day to ponder how the faithful people of God face the evil, suffering, and darkness of the world as the “communion of saints.” As people connected to Christ across time and space, we are bound together in love and bound for the promise of the kingdom of God. We are bound by love and bound for hope.
The Festival of All Saints is a day to remember the beloved dead who have gone before us. More than that, it is a day to ponder how the faithful people of God face the evil, suffering, and darkness of the world as the “communion of saints.” As people connected to Christ across time and space, we are bound together in love and bound for the promise of the kingdom of God. We are bound by love and bound for hope.
Most of us would proclaim that we are free. Free to do what we want, when we want; free to make choices and plan our life. Jesus questions our freedom. So does Paul. So did Martin Luther. Here is the question: If you have been made in the image of God to love as Jesus does, why don’t you do that? Maybe because you’re not as free as you thought you were.
Jesus tells a story of a religious leader who didn’t need God because he thought he was a big deal. The result was a joyless, judgmental, life with no room to trust anything but self. Jesus also tells us about a sinner who cries out to God, not with excuses but for mercy. Jesus teaches that the sinner went away with God’s blessing. The truth is that we are nothing and have nothing without God’s mercy and grace. As Luther noted at his death, “We are beggars.”
Jesus tells a story of a religious leader who didn’t need God because he thought he was a big deal. The result was a joyless, judgmental, life with no room to trust anything but self. Jesus also tells us about a sinner who cries out to God, not with excuses but for mercy. Jesus teaches that the sinner went away with God’s blessing. The truth is that we are nothing and have nothing without God’s mercy and grace. As Luther noted at his death, “We are beggars.”
In our age, anything called a “story” is suspected to be untrue. What is strange about that is that stories are the oldest human means of knowing the truth. Stories are how we get to know each other. Stories – narratives – are what we use to make sense of the world. Today we celebrate the Festival of St. Luke, one of the most gifted storytellers in scripture. Luke’s story of Jesus shapes the way we live, the way we see, and the way we make sense of the world. Luke’s story of Jesus is our story.
Ten people afflicted with leprosy cry out to Jesus for healing. Their affliction is much more than a medical condition. It makes them outcast, separates them from family, robs them of a livelihood. Jesus tells them to go to the priest to be declared clean. On the way, they are healed. The skin disease is gone, and they will be restored to life. Of the ten, only one returns to give thanks, to express gratitude. Only one is restored fully because gratitude is an essential part of being fully human. Does it seem strange only one returns? Not really. It seems about right. We are not good at gratitude.
There are so many challenges in this world and needs that are beyond us. Even those times of reconciliation might be asking more than we can give. The good news from Jesus is that the change the world and we need depends less on us and more on the words and deeds of a surprising God. You of "little faith" take heart as even your small word or action, might unfold into something wonderful for this world.
Jesus tells a parable about a very rich man who wears nice clothes and eats well (like most of us). Outside his door sits a painfully poor beggar. Apparently, as the man comes and goes, he never sees or hears the beggar. How is this possible? To be so callous as not to even notice seems unimaginable. But it’s not, really. The pursuit of material things hardens our hearts. The obsession with accumulation is supposed to lead us to happiness, but it never does. The gospel shows another way.
Jesus tells a parable about a very rich man who wears nice clothes and eats well (like most of us). Outside his door sits a painfully poor beggar. Apparently, as the man comes and goes, he never sees or hears the beggar. How is this possible? To be so callous as not to even notice seems unimaginable. But it’s not, really. The pursuit of material things hardens our hearts. The obsession with accumulation is supposed to lead us to happiness, but it never does. The gospel shows another way.
Jesus tells a parable of a man who is so morally bankrupt that he not only cheats his employer but then cheats him again to gain favor in the world. His employer admires him for his craftiness and pique. Then Jesus seems to wonder why it is we can be so imaginative at doing bad to further ourselves and not that imaginative when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God. Could the world be a better place if we spent as much time trying to give away our wealth as we spend trying to make it?
Jesus tells a parable of a man who is so morally bankrupt that he not only cheats his employer but then cheats him again to gain favor in the world. His employer admires him for his craftiness and pique. Then Jesus seems to wonder why it is we can be so imaginative at doing bad to further ourselves and not that imaginative when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God. Could the world be a better place if we spent as much time trying to give away our wealth as we spend trying to make it?
Jesus tells a parable of a man who is so morally bankrupt that he not only cheats his employer but then cheats him again to gain favor in the world. His employer admires him for his craftiness and pique. Then Jesus seems to wonder why it is we can be so imaginative at doing bad to further ourselves and not that imaginative when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God. Could the world be a better place if we spent as much time trying to give away our wealth as we spend trying to make it?
Jesus tells a parable of a man who is so morally bankrupt that he not only cheats his employer but then cheats him again to gain favor in the world. His employer admires him for his craftiness and pique. Then Jesus seems to wonder why it is we can be so imaginative at doing bad to further ourselves and not that imaginative when it comes to advancing the kingdom of God. Could the world be a better place if we spent as much time trying to give away our wealth as we spend trying to make it?
Jesus came to find the lost. That is good news… if I ever get lost. Admitting that we need to be found, encountered, and saved by Christ is hard because we want to be in charge and in control. We hate to admit our failings. Our worship is a celebration of the lost being found and the divine celebration that results… if we can just admit we’re lost.
Jesus came to find the lost. That is good news… if I ever get lost. Admitting that we need to be found, encountered, and saved by Christ is hard because we want to be in charge and in control. We hate to admit our failings. Our worship is a celebration of the lost being found and the divine celebration that results… if we can just admit we’re lost.
The journey of faith is – or should be – filled with moments of decision. When the way of Jesus contradicts what we think, what was taught, and what we value and love, we are faced with a choice to follow or not. These are moments where the cross comes into view, and we must either pick it up or lay it aside. These are “when push comes to shove” moments. The cross beckons us to follow Christ through the changes and challenges of this life to the transformation of eternal life.
The journey of faith is – or should be – filled with moments of decision. When the way of Jesus contradicts what we think, what was taught, and what we value and love, we are faced with a choice to follow or not. These are moments where the cross comes into view, and we must either pick it up or lay it aside. These are “when push comes to shove” moments. The cross beckons us to follow Christ through the changes and challenges of this life to the transformation of eternal life.
The journey of faith is – or should be – filled with moments of decision. When the way of Jesus contradicts what we think, what was taught, and what we value and love, we are faced with a choice to follow or not. These are moments where the cross comes into view, and we must either pick it up or lay it aside. These are “when push comes to shove” moments. The cross beckons us to follow Christ through the changes and challenges of this life to the transformation of eternal life.
The journey of faith is – or should be – filled with moments of decision. When the way of Jesus contradicts what we think, what was taught, and what we value and love, we are faced with a choice to follow or not. These are moments where the cross comes into view, and we must either pick it up or lay it aside. These are “when push comes to shove” moments. The cross beckons us to follow Christ through the changes and challenges of this life to the transformation of eternal life.
The world is an ever-changing place which means it is a world that drives us crazy and stokes our fears. We are divided and fragmented, and we live as isolated individuals with wrecked relationships. It doesn’t have to be that way. The people of God offer a way of living that gives us hope and is rooted in love. The ever-changing world meets Jesus, who is the same, yesterday, today, and forever.
We have all learned that vaccines create resistance to disease in our bodies. In the same way, we can be resistant to God’s grace. When Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath, people are angry. Jesus sets her free and gives her rest from eighteen years of suffering. That is what the Sabbath is about. Yet some fail to see her suffering and prefer keeping rules and traditions as they perceive them. Why are we resistant to God’s grace?
Jesus says that he came not to bring peace but division. Jesus said that judgment is unavoidable. How is that good news? In a world where we fear change and are convinced that we are basically “good people” with no room for improvement, let alone, confession, maybe judgment and transformation are never good news. Yet, what if there is a way to live in the image of God, to be what God has called us to be? What if there is one who can guide us through the change and judgment to a new and better way of life? That might be good news.
Is faith “believing the unbelievable?” Is it choosing to believe in religion or science? Is it accepting a certain set of teachings? Is it even possible in a world where many can’t believe in God when there is still suffering in the world? The writer of Hebrews says, “faith is the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things unseen.” The faith that sustains stands in the face of suffering, disappointment, grief, and pain and endured the journey. This is the faith of Abraham and Sarah, of Noah, Paul, and all who have labored to live the promises of God even as they are yet unfulfilled.
We live in a world driven by money and possessions. Our financial desires and accumulations can do harm to our relationships with God, loved ones, neighbors, and creation. Jesus tells three stories about this phenomenon in Luke’s gospel. Each tells us that money and possessions cannot raise us from the dead. Each call us to cling to that which is eternal. His name is Jesus.
We live in a world driven by money and possessions. Our financial desires and accumulations can do harm to our relationships with God, loved ones, neighbors, and creation. Jesus tells three stories about this phenomenon in Luke’s gospel. Each tells us that money and possessions cannot raise us from the dead. Each call us to cling to that which is eternal. His name is Jesus.
We live in a world driven by money and possessions. Our financial desires and accumulations can do harm to our relationships with God, loved ones, neighbors, and creation. Jesus tells three stories about this phenomenon in Luke’s gospel. Each tells us that money and possessions cannot raise us from the dead. Each call us to cling to that which is eternal. His name is Jesus.
The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is well known but little understood. Where Abraham grants lavish welcome to strangers and so, loves the neighbor, the messengers are threatened by the people of the city. The violence and cruelty to others is the evil (not homosexuality). We can ask, “How could God destroy whole cities?” God tells Abraham that if there are but ten righteous people in the cities they will be spared. Well, there are not ten, and so the question is also, “How can God not send judgment?” Evil cannot stand in the reign of God. In all of this, Abraham prays for mercy. Likewise, Jesus teaches us to pray for mercy upon our neighbors and the evil of this world.
Doing things is how many of us define ourselves. What we do determines who we are. The trouble is that when the doing gets interrupted or doesn’t go as planned, we become angry or hurt. The truth is that who we are determines what we do. Martha was “busy with many things,” like all of us. Being busy defined her and she thought it should define her sister Mary. Jesus, however, commended Mary not for what she did but for the identity she claimed as a disciple. Being a child of God, born of the Spirit is the starting place for all we do.
The parable Jesus tells about loving our neighbor is often called, “The Good Samaritan.” Yet, the main character seems to really be the man broken, beaten, and left for dead in the ditch. Two people pass him by offering no help. Maybe too busy. Then a despised person comes and helps. For the man in the ditch, the character of the three who came along the road mattered not. His neighbor, the one who loved, was the one who helped. We may pass by the suffering people of the world for many reasons. The good news is that God never passes us by. The good news is that tending the one in need is, in fact, eternal life.
The good news is that we are born of the Spirit and children of God. By God’s grace alone we are beloved and nothing can change that. The bad news is that we are born of the Spirit and children of God and so sent into the world as lambs among wolves to share God’s love with the world. That can be frightening. Yet, God never intended us to passively wait for Jesus to return to bring love, peace, justice, and joy. We are to be participants in the process of resurrection. How do we do that? Jesus tells us exactly what we need to know.
The good news is that we are born of the Spirit and children of God. By God’s grace alone we are beloved and nothing can change that. The bad news is that we are born of the Spirit and children of God and so sent into the world as lambs among wolves to share God’s love with the world. That can be frightening. Yet, God never intended us to passively wait for Jesus to return to bring love, peace, justice, and joy. We are to be participants in the process of resurrection. How do we do that? Jesus tells us exactly what we need to know.
Have you ever noticed how easy it is to do the wrong thing, the bad thing, the hurtful thing? It is easy to get angry, ignore someone in need, or yell at your child or spouse. Paul would say it is easy because we are enslaved by our desires and the expectations of the world. We have been set free in Christ from these slave masters. Through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection and through the Spirit’s call, we are free to be the people God made us to be. It all just takes some practice…
Have you ever noticed how easy it is to do the wrong thing, the bad thing, the hurtful thing? It is easy to get angry, ignore someone in need, or yell at your child or spouse. Paul would say it is easy because we are enslaved by our desires and the expectations of the world. We have been set free in Christ from these slave masters. Through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection and through the Spirit’s call, we are free to be the people God made us to be. It all just takes some practice…
So many times we overlook others due to the labels placed on them. Too many times we notice others but do not see them. In laying down the labels and seeing others, we change not only them, but ourselves and this world. This is our calling.
Theologians from Augustine to Bonhoeffer have said that a god who can be explained is not a god at all. The Trinity is ultimately a mystery that keeps us from ever being able to define or confine God. God must be so transcendent that the bounds of space and time can contain God. Yet, God must also be present in our time and place. God must be wholly other than us and yet somehow be in us. The Holy Trinity is the announcement of God revealed in the cross and resurrection. A boundless love between Father and Son that reaches out to all who hear the news.
On the Day of Pentecost, we remember the mighty rush of wind and the tongues “as of flame” that signified the coming of the Holy Spirit to the first followers of Jesus. We gather not really expecting the same kind of show. So, is the Holy Spirit a reality in our lives? According to Paul, whenever we cry out, “Abba, Father!” it is a sign of the Spirit. When we see the violence and suffering all around us, we cannot help but cry out to the one who has claimed us as “children of God” and “heirs of the reign of God.” We know the world is not as it shall be. We long for God’s reign to come. That is a sign of the presence of the Spirit.
Paul and Silas are in prison after a life-threatening beating. By all normal standards, they are not free. Yet, as the story in Acts unfolds, we find that the prisoners in jail are freer than the folks who put them there. The people of Philippi have become outraged that Paul healed a demon possessed young girl who was making money for her captors. Enslaved by greed they cannot see the cruelty and evil of enslaving a child for gain. The gospel of Jesus Christ has a way of redefining things. It turns the world we think we know upside down and reveals that freedom is slavery and slavery is freedom.
The Book of Revelation is full of frightening images and suffering which seem to fascinate many. Dragons and six-headed beasts rising from the sea certainly terrify. And yet, according to the news, the world we live in is just as terrifying. Shootings, war, pandemic. The goodness of God’s creation seems to be worked away by the evil around us. Into that, The Book of Revelation speaks of a New Jerusalem that promises hope, peace, and healing. In fact, the New Jerusalem is already under construction…
Jesus commands us to love others “just a I loved you.” (John 13:34) We usually love with limits. There are certain people who are beyond love’s reach: the unrepentant, those who do not believe as we believe, and those who commit grievous sins that are beyond forgiveness. And yet, that is not how Jesus loves. His love is limitless. He loves even you.
The Book of Revelation is a terribly misunderstood book. The images of death, destruction, and chaos are frightening – especially when used by preachers to frighten the faithful into more church attendance, giving, or volunteering. The question the terrifying images raises is not, “How can I avoid the struggle and suffering of the world?” Rather it is, “Who is worthy to lead us through the trials and usher in a new creation where our tears will be wiped away?”
Saul (Paul) was a terrorist. Ananais was a coward. Simon Peter denied Jesus three times. Yet, all three are subjected to the power of the resurrection and are changed. What does the resurrection do, not just to Jesus a long time ago, but to us in this place and time? That is the question…
In the opening passages of the Book of Revelation, God is proclaimed as “the one who is, who was, and the one coming.” It is a play on the divine name, given to Moses – I AM. It seems like we are pretty good about thinking of the God who was – safely tucked away in history. We also like to think of God as a future in some far-off heaven. The struggle is to see and hear God right in front of our faces; to apprehend that God is, right this moment, in this place. So was the struggle for the disciples, especially, Thomas. The resurrection is not just a future hope or a story from the past. It is a present reality.
Suffering is part of the human condition. It is unavoidable. That knowledge does not help us face it. Most of us search for answers – especially from God – for the reason we suffer. Most answers are unsatisfactory – just ask Job. The cross is God’s answer to suffering. No words or theological formulations. On the cross, Christ utters, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” In that moment we see a God who answers the suffering of the world by sharing it and making us forsaken no more.
Tonight Jesus gathers with his disciples for a meal. Jesus knows his time has come to leave this world and return to the Father, so on this night Jesus gives his love to his friends. I invite you to settle in, feel the emotion of the evening, put yourself at the table with Jesus, and use all your senses this evening as Jesus comes to you tonight.
Sometimes we think that we humans are so broken and incorrigible that we cannot possibly think about imitating Jesus. After all, we think, he was the Son of God! Yet, we too are created in the image of that same God. We bear the image of God within us. Christ shows us what being a human truly is supposed to look like. In the texts today, the apostle, Paul, and Mary (sister of Lazarus) emulate Christ. Judas, on the other hand, is stuck in his old self. What can we learn about renewing our lives by imitating Jesus Christ?
Today's family story is preceded by two other stories of lost and found. The first story is about 100 sheep where one is lost. The next story is about a woman who has 10 coins and loses one. Then we hear about a father who has two sons. This is a popular story from the Gospel of Luke, and so may be well known to you. Try to clear your mind and listen to it new. Ponder what it means to your life now in your family, in this faith community, and in the world situation.
We live in a world where everything has a price. Everything is a commodity to be marketed and sold. Our lives are accounted for in ways that keep track of debits and credits, what we pay and what we owe. This is so deeply woven into our ways of thinking that we treat God in the same way. Divine favor and blessing are to be earned. Bad things happen because we have not attended what we owe God. Into this transactional world, God speaks and says, “My ways are not your ways.” (Isaiah 55:8) Thank God, for that.
As he sat in a Roman prison awaiting his fate, Paul writes a letter to his brothers and sisters in Philippi that is full of hope and joy. How is this possible when you are locked in chains and facing death? It is a matter of citizenship. Paul is indeed a Roman citizen, which is why he has appealed to the emperor to judge his case. Yet, more than a citizen of Rome, he is a “citizen of heaven,” and that makes all the difference.
The temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is always a familiar but hard-to-understand story. It seems like an other-worldly struggle between “the devil” (all pointy tailed and horned) and the superhero of heaven, Jesus. That, however, makes the story of little use to us in our daily life. We don’t generally encounter “the Devil,” nor do we have divine superpowers. The truth of the story is that this devil is, in fact, all too familiar, part of our daily existences. The truth is that the trials and temptations we face are constant. The truth is that the way we are saved in the time of trial is readily available and close at hand.
Today the sign of the cross is made on your forehead. The ashes tell us who we are. "Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return." Dealing with the Covid-19 virus the last few years has reminded us that death is a part of life, and the transient nature of life is ever before us. The ashes are a sign of our death and of our sorrow for sin. Yet, God is calling us to life, to renew us.
The way we answer this question will determine the shape of our living and the life of the world. There are many answers available, but many of them leave us and the world unchanged, untransformed, unredeemed. The Feast of the Transfiguration reveals who Jesus is in ways that surprise, challenge and leave us free of our fear. Listen to him!
Our Gospel continues Jesus' Sermon on the Plain. Jesus preaches about mercy, which is manifested in our love for our enemies. Hear Jesus' radical, challenging sermon about living as Kingdom people and being like Jesus.
On this Super Bowl Sunday, a day when millions of dollars will be spent on ads, food, prizes, travel and gambling, Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor. Woe to the rich.” On a day when tables will be piled with food and drink, Jesus says, “Blessed are the hungry. Woe to those well fed.” What are we to make of this collision of values and worldviews? What is Jesus telling us about the reign of God, already here and not yet realized?
The Word of God, we are told, is a mighty and powerful force. Yet, most seem to think it is just religious words printed in a book. Does God speak to and call us as it happened in ages past? Most of us probably shy away from such thinking, assuming we will be thought crazy. If God is calling you, what shall you do?
It is easy to think Jesus is just like us, that he looks like us, votes like us and roots for the same team as we do. Today, Jesus' hometown hears who Jesus is and what love looks like. Jesus doesn't meet our selfish expectations; instead he reaches beyond us to bring good news to poor, release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, and gives freedom to the oppressed.
The constitutive action of establishing a new “normal,” a new reality on the midst of a broken world, is not a new program, a new building, a new idea, it is worship. Worship in our age has lost the power to create because we make it about us, and we expect so little. Nehemiah and the people of God knew better as they returned from exile. Jesus dared to declare that in speaking the promises of God, they actually happened.
The first of the seven “signs” reported in John’s gospel happens at Cana as Jesus transforms about 90 gallons of water into 90 gallons of fine wine. Pretty neat trick. John does not share this story to amaze us, however. Instead, as with all the “signs” in this gospel, they tell us something about the nature and identity of God revealed in Christ. Each of the seven signs tend to refute some misshapen understanding of God we hold. What does turning the water of purification into the wine of celebration say about God?
On this Sunday we celebrate the Baptism of Jesus. Why did Jesus get baptized? What value is Jesus' baptism to us today? This text is appropriately linked to Isaiah's message to a band of uprooted men and women living in captivity. We have our own times of captivity when we feel overwhelmed, adrift, afraid, and when we don't quite measure up. Listen to God's message for you.
Whenever bad things happen, someone inevitably calls it “God’s will” or “God’s plan.” The horrific wildfire this week in Colorado, the pandemic, perhaps even burning the toast in the morning can all become epiphanies – manifestations of God’s will. Are these things all part of God’s plan? In this preacher’s reading of scripture, not very often – if at all. God’s plan has been unfolding from before time, manifest in creation itself and in the Magi’s journey to Bethlehem. It is not a mystery. It is revealed in Christ. The writer of Ephesians outlines God’s plan clearly. It’s a plan that has nothing to do with explaining away life’s struggles and everything to do with divine love.
Jesus is twelve years old in our Gospel reading today. Having traveled to Jerusalem for the Festival of Passover, the family is on their way back home with a caravan of friends and family. After a day's journey, Jesus is nowhere to be found. Mary and Joseph return to Jerusalem to look for him. We, also, can lose Jesus. Find out how we lose Jesus and where we can find him. Learn how Jesus deals with our distracted nature and finds us.
As we observe the Nativity of Our Lord this year, there are lots of shadows and darkness around. The darkness of disease is still real, disrupting our gatherings and spreading through a new variant. The darkness of division seems to work its way ever deeper in families, communities, nations as we are all at each other’s throats for the smallest of things. The darkness of disaster brought about by climate change is frightening. We can put up some holiday lights, make cookies, and have a feast to divert our attention from the dark, but it does not last long. Isaiah, however, gives us a message about a child born who actually can and does bring hope, peace, healing, and life itself. The child’s name is Jesus.
The faithful people of Micah's day were longing for a shepherd king to be their hope, as they lived in constant fear of violence from the Assyrians. Hopes and fears meld before Mary comes to really understand that she is participating in God's actions to save the world. This year, like all years, has seen its share of changes in our lives. Hear Mary's prophecy of hope that the coming Messiah will bring. Hear how this hope will take away all fears.
When John the Baptist calls the gathering crowd a “brood of vipers,” he is not offering an insult. He sees in the mob a desire to run from the fire of judgment, just like snakes do. John warns that escape is impossible and that the whole of creation is subject to the correction of God. In a world where so much is so horribly wrong, John knows that God will not wait forever for things to be put right. So, what can we do in the face of judgment? John has an answer that is full of good news.
While celebrations and decorations begin to shape the holiday landscape spreading a form of cheer everywhere, the Church declares on this first Sunday of Advent – “The End is Near!” We know that in our bones. As Jesus points out the wars, pestilence, destruction, and cosmic threats of his age, they all sound a little too close to home to bear. Maybe that is why we need all the decorations – to distract us from the truth. So what is the good news? Jesus has some thoughts on that subject.
We live in an age where truth is relative. Everyone has "their own" truth. One result is that no common truth exists to hold communities together. We are divided over everything. Into that world comes Jesus Christ declaring, "I AM the truth."
Our Gospel reading seems strange, with a heaviness of doom surrounding it. The entire chapter of Mark 13 is a form of apocalyptic literature which was commonly used in the Jewish community during times of war. It contained code language that the Jews would understand and their oppressors would not. Mark is relaying to his community that even through the temple was destroyed in war, things are not what they seem. God is still with them but no longer needs the temple and sacrifices. When we go through hard times and it feels like the end of the world, we also can be confident that things are not as they seem. We have the constant undergirding of God's love, grace, and peace to give us hope.
On All Saints Sunday we celebrate that we are united, in Christ, with all the beloved who have died. We celebrate the faithful witness of those who were exemplars of faith in action. We also celebrate that, in the waters of baptism, we have been made saints – all of us. Yet, few of us feel very saintly. Saints are, in some sense, stewards – caretakers – of what has been given by God and the sufferings and pain of the world. When we embrace suffering, share what we have, and anticipate the future of God by living it right now – we are God’s saints.
On this Reformation Day, we remember the search for truth that Martin Luther experienced and the conflict it generated within the church. Whenever the church drifts from the truth, a reforming is necessary. But what is truth? What does it look like and act like? Jesus tells us of Truth and how to find it.
Today's sermon is based on Mark 10:46-52 which tells the story of Jesus healing a blind man. Bartimaeus wants eyes to see so he can follow Jesus and the spiritual eyes that tell him Jesus is the Messiah. Through the eyes of Jesus we will see the world differently. Jesus gives us the sight to see the world as he does.
Today we commemorate Saint Luke - Evangelist. Luke is considered the author of the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles. Luke's account of the birth of Jesus is probably the most familiar in the gospels. It is the version complete with the shepherds in their fields who follow the star and the singing angels described in Christmas carols. Luke wants us to know that Jesus is a God who includes all people. His gospel describes the generosity and recklessness of God's love and forgiveness. Hear about stories unique to Luke's Gospel. We thank God for his witness!
We meet a man who approaches Jesus asking for advice. "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus gives him an answer that he was not expecting. Jesus gives an answer that disappoints and grieves him. His story is our story.
Observing the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi is about love. Francis exemplified a love that sought unity with all things rather than seeing them as objects of mere affection. To objectify creation, other people, or God is to hold them at arm’s length and ask, “How does this object serve me?” To take something into our own being is to love. Francis learned that the yoke of Christ was light and easy to bear because Christ shared the burden.
Jesus grabs our attention with calls to chop off limbs and pluck out our eyes if they keep us from embracing the reign of God lest they send us to the fire of hell. Happy thoughts, huh? Before we dismiss the text as lacking “positivity” or an example of religious hyperbole, we should listen to what is said – because it is Jesus speaking! What do we think about judgment and hell when Jesus points to those realities? What keeps you from embracing the way of Jesus Christ?
The ancient Mediterranean world lived in a culture of vengeance which is a vicious cycle that continues to this day in some countries. Poverty is also a vicious cycle that pushes people to the edge of society and robs many of a future. Matthew was probably one who lived on the edge of society, on the edge of being able to support himself. Matthew was probably in dire straits with nowhere to turn but to a lousy job as a tax collector. Then Jesus comes and says, "Follow me." Matthew's life is changed through the mercy of Jesus. Jesus calls you also, saying, "Follow me." Learn how you receive mercy and the difference it can make when we follow Jesus. Share it with others.
You know the old saying about sticks and stones. It ends by saying the words can’t hurt us. It’s a lie. Words can inflict some of the deepest and most abiding wounds we bear. According to James, our tongues – the words we say – both betray our true selves and do great damage to each other and the whole community. In a world where social media, media, and our speech is full of hate, intolerance, misinformation and lies, cause so much harm, the gospel has a word of how we train our tongues to guide our lives and make the world a better place.
With all of the struggle and suffering in the world, it is good that scripture reminds us God has promised to redeem everything, someday; to wipe away tears, someday; to put an end to even death, someday. But when? How long must we wait? Scripture also tells us that the coming of God’s kingdom (future) is perhaps closer than we think.
In today's gospel Jesus is confronted by the scribes and Pharisees because his disciples are not following the tradition of the elders. Instead they are eating with unclean hands. Jesus instructs that evil comes from within a person. So how can we be cleansed from this evil? Listen as we explore external traditions and the mending of our hearts.
We live in a world of choices. From the car we drive, to the cereal we eat; from the career we choose to the place we live we have choices. Very few of these choices, however, are life or death choices. Scripture tells us that faith is about a choice that does bear life and death consequences. First, God has chosen us. How do we respond? Do we chart the course of our daily living dedicated to the ways of death and division, the habits of the past, the way we have always done things? Or do we choose the God of life to shape us and our journey? As for me and my house…
In John’s gospel, one of the most challenging things Jesus says is that we must “eat his flesh and drink his blood.” What does this mean? Is it cannibalism? Is it a ghoulish take on the gentle Jesus we all know and love? It is about incarnation – the way in which God is manifest in Jesus Christ in flesh and blood. It is also about how Jesus becomes more deeply incarnate in each of us as we allow him to be the life blood that flows through our veins.
Elijah is tired – sick and tired. He’s fed up and beat down. He’s at the end of his rope and out of ideas. So, he sits under a broom tree and waits for death – that final rest. Instead, God gives him bread and all else he needs to go on. That is what Christ, the living bread, offers each of us – everything needed to sustain our hope when despair is all we can manage.
All three of our readings address hunger. There is hunger for food as the Israelites journey in the wilderness. In our Gospel reading, the crowd is hungry and wants Jesus to feed them again as he did when the 5000 gathered and they received bread and fish. Today we also hear about spiritual hunger and the one who can feed us; Jesus the Bread of Life. In the Letter to the Ephesians, the author directs us to live our lives according to our calling, and part of that calling is to live in a faith community. Hear more about life in the beloved community.
Life is filled with expectations. Expectations we have of others and expectations we have of ourselves. Today, John's account of the Feeding of the 5000 relates a story about expectations placed on Jesus and how he responds.
The opening words of the well-known 23rd Psalm bring most people comfort. The pastoral images of still water, pastures and a table set are idyllic. The assurance of protection in the face of trouble gives us peace. That first line points to the source of this comfort and peace – The Lord. No other shepherd will do – and there are many pretenders. For those who feel lost, outcast, broken, forgotten; for a world full of violence and division, only one shepherd can bring us together and grant us a place. The Lord.
Tragic events happen, but how do we live in a world that sets priorities of pride and ambition ahead being a beloved community? There is another way of living, another kingdom that Jesus proclaims. This is a kingdom in which you are claimed and baptized to live God's mercy and justice.
Isn’t it strange sometimes how Jesus seems to think just the way I think, believe what I believe, and get annoyed with the same kind of people that annoy me? Strange indeed. When this happens, we know that we have domesticated Jesus the Messiah. We have turned him to our purpose and made him in our own image, instead of the opposite. This robs Jesus of the power to redeem and save. It is the wild, uncontrollable Jesus we need.
Mark’s gospel tells us a parable of soils – no soil, rocky soil, thorny soil, and finally good soil – places where the gospel produces joy and faith. Who exactly is good soil? It is not who you might expect. Status, education, social concerns, right thinking, wealth – none of these things matter. The good soil is born of faith and the realization that only Jesus can help us. The good soil is Mark’s way of talking about the Beloved Community that is knit together by faith and the love of Christ.
Job wants answers. In his suffering, he wants to know why life is unfair, why he suffers, why bad things happen to him. Job wants explanations, information, reasons. He received no such things. His friends answer with ignorance. God, however, does answer – and the answer is quite unexpected.
Jesus told parables about the reign of God that were often puzzling and misunderstood. Using simple, everyday images, he taught that God’s work went on in hidden ways, sometimes with our help and often in spite of us. In a world where we despair about the size of our problems and the seeming smallness of our abilities and efforts, Jesus points us to sprigs, seeds, thistles, and poppies to find hope.
It doesn’t take much to see that humans have a gift for division - for blame and self-justification. If we are honest, love does not come easy to the children of Eve & Adam. When God asked if they had eaten of the fruit of the forbidden tree, man blamed woman; woman blamed snake; and all blamed God. Even family provides no assurance of love. The presence and love of Christ is a game changer. Only when we are first beloved by God and then able to love the forgiving grace and mercy of God do we stand a chance of loving anyone else – including our family.
On Holy Trinity Sunday, trying to understand the triune nature of God can be difficult. There is one we must not forget…
On the Day of Pentecost, it is easy to focus on the fire, you know, the fire that rests on the apostles who then go out and declare the gospel in many languages. That would be something, wouldn’t it? To see the fire resting on us. Don’t be distracted by the fire. The thing to notice is the fingerprints of God that start to be left behind as this Spirit leaves signs, marks, evidence all over the place to show us the resurrection in action. The shape of those finger prints are love, reconciliation, unity. Just look – and be prepared!
Listen to the full worship service broadcast for the parking lot worship gathering on May 16, 2021.
Many people think that eternal life is something that is far away and happens after death. Neither notion is really all that eternal, is it? It makes faith into a desire for escape from the world and all its suffering and pain. Yet, Jesus did not teach his disciples anything like this. So, what exactly is eternal life all about? It is about this world. It is about right now, not later. Come and see.
Jesus asks this question of Peter three times after the resurrection. Each time Peter says, “Yes.” Certainly, we would do the same, right? But how do we love God? What does that look like? In John’s gospel and the First Letter of John, the answer is simple to understand, but challenging to do.
While we may all agree that, in principle, we are all part of family, community, church, we’re mostly rugged individuals making our own way in the world. We praise individual rights, individual choices, self-help, self-improvement, and self-actualization. Then comes Jesus saying, “I am the Vine, you are the branches” which threatens our individualism and replaces independence with mutual dependence. Is that good news?
The image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd is near and dear to the hearts of many. The pastoral scene of grazing sheep on green hillsides gives us a sense of peace. And with the good shepherd nearby and on watch, what could be better? Scripture, however, has more to say about sheep and shepherds. If we are the sheep of God’s pasture, what does it mean that Jesus is the Shepherd? Is this image more than a comforting ideal? That is the question for us today.
Listen to the full worship service broadcast for the parking lot worship gathering on April 18, 2021.
At times we are all in the dark about God’s message of salvation. Let your mind be open to the truth of the Good News!
Easter was a week ago and Jesus is safely risen into heaven and reset in his historical context. Like Thomas, we probably doubt there is much more to it than that. After all, is there anything real about resurrection today? Right now? According to the writer of I John, Jesus is as concrete right now as ever, and resurrection is nothing less than living in a way that allows Christ’s presence to lighten the darkness of the world.
For the second Easter in a row, we are shrouded in the grip of a pandemic and a world of violence and death. What does the resurrection have to do with us? The women at the tomb share our shrouded joy. It is the prophet Isaiah who point us beyond to the culmination of the work Jesus began on that “eight day” of the new creation.
During his trial, Jesus tells Pilate he has come to testify to the truth. Pilate’s response is, “What is truth?” We live in an age when the truth is a slippery thing. Jesus, on the cross, however, reveals the truth about all the people in the story and about each one of us. Further, the cross reveals the truth about God. This is why we adore the cross on Good Friday.
On this evening, Jesus gathers with his disciples for dinner, but they received much more. Jesus does something to his disciples. He gives them a new experience along with a new command. Jesus shows them how to love. Not any kind of love, but how to love like Jesus. He does this through his actions of washing their feet. Jesus doesn't just stop there. Jesus will continue to live love as his beautiful feet take their final steps to the cross.
The passion of Jesus Christ is an enactment of love. It tells us the lengths to which God will go to embrace the world and love each and all of us. The Passion of Jesus Christ is the most powerful story of the generous undertaking Jesus embraced in his death.