Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon for 5/17/20 for the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church . Here is the YouTube of me preaching the sermon if you're interested. The text is John 14:15-21 .   Today’s gospel is part two of Jesus’ final words to his disciples before his crucifixion. It is bookended by “Keep my commandments,” but not like the Ten Commandments. Rather, Jesus’ commandment goes back to Holy Week, to Maundy Thursday, when Jesus said to the disciples, “ I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another” (John 13:34). Today we find Jesus’ commandments also couched in terms of love. In fact, in John’s gospel, love is the only commandment Jesus gives. The gospel text begins talking about obedience through love. Jesus’ words begin with love and end with love. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Here and in the last verse of today’s gospel, “keep” means “to retain in custody, keep watch over, guard.” Anoth...

This was shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church . What are your thoughts? Gospel: John 14:15-21 [Jesus said to the disciples:] 15 “If you love me , you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.   18 “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”   I’ve highlighted a few verses in Sunday’s gospel to visually demonstrate how this read...