Reformation Sunday Know God, Know Ourselves This is a Sunday packed with beautiful images, deep-seeded ideas, and a rich history. For life-long Lutherans, these things can provoke a sense of pride in our denomination, but Reformation Sunday is not “Lutheran Pride Day.” Instead it is a day focused on knowing God truthfully and in the…
What’s in Your Wallet? Not Enough. The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Gospel: Matthew 22:15-22 After Jesus begins teaching in the temple, religious leaders try to trap him with questions. First they ask if God’s people should pay taxes to an earthly tyrant like Caesar.…
Jesus, Cornerstone of Our Faith The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Gospel: Matthew 21:33-46 Jesus tells a parable to the religious leaders who are plotting his death, revealing that their plans will, ironically, bring about the fulfillment of scripture. [Jesus said to the people:] 33“Listen to…
Jesus, Cornerstone of Our Faith The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. God has showered humanity with gifts and blessings, but humanity continues to abuse those gifts. We have been entrusted with a creation to care for, and in our shortsightedness we abuse and pollute the…
An Invitation to Grace The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. It is so easy and so tempting to build ourselves up at the expense of others. “I can’t imagine ever doing that.” “How can people live like that?” “Who would do such a thing?” At…
An Invitation to Grace The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Gospel: Matthew 21:23-32 After driving the moneychangers out of the temple (21:12), Jesus begins teaching there. His authority is questioned by the religious leaders, who are supposed to be in charge of the temple. 23When [Jesus] entered…
Discomfort: Sign of Grace? The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Poor Jonah. The guy never could get comfortable. He was uncomfortable with his God-given call to preach to Nineveh; he was uncomfortable in the arms of the sailors as they hoisted him over the boat’s…
New Perspective The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Being a disciple requires an expansive perspective on forgiveness. Today our perspective is broadened by the good news that God’s forgiveness is not based on our idea of fairness, but rather on abundant, unimaginable grace. God “does…
1 Corinthians 12:4-11 4Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; 6and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. 7To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8To one is given…
Gospel Matthew 16: 21– 28 After Peter confesses that Jesus is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (16:16), Jesus reveals the ultimate purpose of his ministry. These words prove hard to accept, even for a disciple whom Jesus has called a “rock.” 21From that time on, [after Peter confessed that Jesus was the…