Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, Aug. 20 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church. The text was Matthew 15:21-28. What’s wrong with Jesus? He just doesn’t seem like himself, does he? Of course, he recently lost his cousin John to a terrible death. He has been trying, not very successfully, to get some downtime by himself. Was he just having a bad day?  We’re used to our Lord being moved with compassion for the crowds. Here, he initially ignores a woman's cries and doesn’t answer her. When he does answer her, it is to inform her that he was only sent to the Jewish people. Ouch. She was hopeful, but she is not qualified to have her prayer answered. Then, to make matters worse, Jesus calls her a dog. There’s no way to soften this insult. Children and dogs do not get the same food.   A non-Jewish foreigner, the woman is one of Israel's traditional enemies.' They worshiped the false god Baal. (The Jewish Annotated New Testament). And yet, this unnamed woman knew enough of Jesus...

  This is the sermon I will be preaching tomorrow at St.Timothy Lutheran Church's Drive-In Service. If you're in the Bemus Point/Jamestown, NY area, join us a 10 for a 30-minute service in our parking lot. You can worship from the comfort and safety of your car. There are some oddities in today’s gospel story. A foreign woman approaches Jesus and the disciples. The disciples seem to rebuff her while Jesus ignores her and then insults her. Is this the Jesus we expect? No! But we need to remember that Jesus is also human and fully so. Who is this woman approaching Jesus and the disciples? She’s a Canaanite, meaning she’s a gentile and she is nameless. A gentile and a woman--that’s two strikes against her! However, there are three Canaanite women in Jesus’ lineage: Rahab, Tamar, and Ruth (Matthew 1:3,5). Her people’s blood runs through Jesus’ veins and Jesus’ people’s blood runs through hers. As the woman approaches, she starts shouting! The Greek ...

Here are some thoughts on Sunday's gospel reading. What do you think when you read it? This was shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church. Gospel: Matthew 15:21-28 21 Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 He answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed insta...

Here are some thoughts regarding this Sunday's gospel that were sent out to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.   Gospel: Luke 8:26-39 26 Then [Jesus and his disciples] arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27 As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me”— 29 for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) 30 Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion”; for many demons had entered him. 31 They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss.   32 N...

Here are some thoughts regarding the reading from James for this coming Sunday. This was sent out via email to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church .  Second Reading: James 5:13-20 13 Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. 17 Elijah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest. 19 My brothers and sisters,...

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, 10/9 at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran Churches. The text was Luke 17:11-19 . Today's gospel reading seems to be a simple healing account. However, it is not like most miracle stories. The healing is not emphasized as much as the reaction to it. The miracle is less important than its results. Lepers of ancient society were rejected. They were treated as outcasts and outsiders and were required to live outside the city in leper colonies. Whenever they walked the streets, they were to cry out to warn others to keep away from them. Like sinners crying out for mercy, the lepers approached Jesus crying out, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" Jesus had compassion on them and proceeded to grant their request. What is different about this healing is that Jesus sends the lepers away to see the priests. Jesus' directions call for faith, since the men must turn and go to the priests without any evi...

This is the sermon I preached on 8/21 at St. Timothy and S t. Mark Lutheran churches. The text is Luke 13:10-17. Some people are noticed wherever they go. You can’t miss them. But then, some of us are barely seen because of our stature or lack thereof. When you’re short, it is hard to get noticed in a crowd of much taller people. I will never forget a conversation that I had with one of the clerks at Microtel in Olean when I came for my interview with the church council of my first call. The clerk asked the Council president how he would recognize me.   The president's response was, “She’s very short!” In today’s gospel, Jesus was not teaching in the temple in Jerusalem, rather he was in a small town synagogue. The bent-over woman was likely well known in her village and people were so used to her that they no longer paid any attention to her and her ailment. After 18 years of being this way, she was invisible to other villagers. But Jesus saw her, not because sh...

This is the sermon I preached at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran Churches on Sunday, 6/5. How many of us enjoy going to a parade? Did you go the Memorial Day parade? Doesn't being at a parade make us feel like children again? Today's gospel describes a meeting of two parades —one of life (Jesus, and the crowd of followers) and a parade of death—(the dead man, his mother and the grieving crowd). Just what happens when these two parades meet? The parade of life   was on the move from Capernaum to the small town of Nain. Before they made their way into the town, they could hear the commotion before seeing the parade of grievers. Middle Eastern people do not mourn as we do. Their mourning is loud and passionate and may well be healthier than the way we try to be strong and not let our emotions get the best of us. One would think that in the parade of mourners, which is a funeral procession, the focus would be on the loved one who died. Of cour...

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, May 29 at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran Churche s. The scripture text is Luke 7:1-10. We have begun the time of the church year that is symbolized with the color green. It is called ordinary time, not because it is every-day, but because the weeks of this time are numbered. As many have said, "Ordinary time is anything but ordinary." The green season is a time for us to grow in our faith. As we grow, God will bring us people to share our faith with as we go along in the duties and pleasures of our everyday lives. Throughout this time, which can be most extraordinary, we will be concentrating on the works of Jesus in Luke's gospel. We are in this green season so that we can grow and go to share the good news. A lot of coming and going takes place in this story in Luke. Jesus had finished with the beatitudes, and was once again on the road. Note that Jesus did not seek out the centurion. Jesus was approached while he was on...