Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon for St. Timothy Lutheran Church that I will be preaching tomorrow. The gospel text is Matthew 28:16-20. If you want to see a video of the sermon, press here .  Do you feel a bit off-balance? We just get used to all the news being about COVID 19 and now there is another hot topic. As Bishop John Macholz recently wrote: The  killing of  George  Floyd by policemen in Minneapolis continues to play itself out across my television screen as I watch it over and over again…out of a  place of deep sorrow and disbelief that this has happened again. Only a few days ago we watched videos regarding the killing of Ahmaud Arbery that took place in February and … only now being brought to light. And after Ahmaud Abery there was Breonna Taylor and last October … Atatiana Jefferson and before her was…a  long, long list of black and brown people whose  lives were needlessly taken by violence in a society that continues to not only remain broke...

This is the reflection on Sunday's gospel that was sent to the people of St Timothy Lutheran Church. Gospel: Matthew 28:16-20 16Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” These four verses are chuck full of so many things, but I want us to look at the second half of verse 17, “they worshiped him; but some doubted.” Apparently, you can still worship even though you have doubts. Something else I find interested concerning those who doubted. Jesus did not send them away. He did not reprimand them, but he commissioned them as...