Claimed, gathered and sent

  This is the message on this coming Sunday's gospel that will go out to the people of S t Timothy Lutheran Church. Gospel: Mark 1:29-39 29 As soon as [ Jesus and the disciples ] left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. 31 He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.   32 That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33 And the whole city was gathered around the door. 34 And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.   35 In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and his companions hunted for him. 37 When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for ...

  This is the sermon I preached last Sunday, 1/28/24 at S t. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text  was Mark 1:21-28.   In today’s gospel, we see the kingdom of God on the move. Where King Jesus is, there is the kingdom. Where we are, with Christ in our lives, is the kingdom.  One thing that stands out to me in this reading is, how can there be a man with an unclean spirit in the synagogue where Jesus is teaching? Isn’t that supposed to be a safe place where worshipers would not encounter evil? His shouting out to Jesus was so disruptive. Where are the ushers when you need them? We don’t have much experience in our daily lives with demons. However, if you talk with missionaries, they likely have knowledge in this area. For us, the best definition of a demon or unclean spirit is, “…anything that has power that is not of God” (Eric Fistler and Robb McCoy, pulpitfiction.com). It’s all about the source of power and authority.  One would think that a sanctuary would be ...