Claimed, gathered and sent

Here are some thoughts on Sunday's gospel. This was sent out to the people of S t. Timothy Lutheran Church, Bemus Point, NY. Gospel: Matthew 10:40-42 [Jesus said to the twelve:] 40 “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; 42 and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.” Yesterday, when Ray and I were reading from 30-Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer , the book we’re reading for our Adult Study session, I came across these words that hit me like a ton of bricks. See what they say to you regarding this gospel passage. “The exclusion of the weak and insignificant, the seemingly useless people, from everyday Christian life...

Here are a couple of thoughts on Sunday's gospel. How does this text strike you? If you are preaching this Sunday, what will your approach be? This went out to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church. Gospel: John 4:5-42 "Jesus defies convention to engage a Samaritan woman in conversation. Her testimony, in turn, leads many others to faith" (sundaysandseasons.com). 5[Jesus] came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.6Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.   7A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8(His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) 10Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a dr...

Here are some thoughts on the epistle reading for this Sunday, Good Shepherd Sunday that were shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.  Second Reading: Revelation 7:9-17 9 After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. 10 They cried out in a loud voice, saying,  “Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 singing,  “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom  and thanksgiving and honor  and power and might  be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”   13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?” 14 I said to him, “S...

This is the sermon I preached at St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran churches on Sunday, Jan. 7, 2018. The text was Genesis 1:1-5.   I’m sure most of us, at one time or another, have watched Sesame Street—either as children, or with our own children or grandchildren. One of my favorite things on the program is when they show a number of images and ask, “Which one of these is not like the other ones?” Well, I must say that those words came to me as I looked over the scripture lessons for today I understand how the gospel story of Jesus’ baptism and the story from Acts regarding baptism fit together, but Genesis? That seemed to be the one thing that was not like the other things. Let’s see if we can get a handle on the creation and how it relates to the Baptism of Our Lord. Have you ever seen an image from the Hubble telescope? I recently saw one that contains around 10,000 galaxies, including some that were not visible in previous imaging. It was so beautiful and was suc...

This is what I shared with St. Timothy Lutheran Church in our weekly eministry. It is my thoughts about the upcoming scriptures for this Sunday, the Baptism of Our Lord. Genesis 1:1-5 1In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. REFLECTION I’m sure most of us, at one time or another, have watched Sesame Street—either as children, or with our own children or grandchildren. One of my favorite things on the program is when they show a number of images and ask, “Which one of these is not like the other ones?” Well, I must say that those words occurred to me as I loo...

This is a picture of Jacob's Well by David Roberts from 1839. Below is the sermon I preached at Bethel Lutheran Church in Portville, NY. It is based on John 4:5-42. We all have different paths that have brought us to faith in Jesus. Some have dramatic conversion experiences from of a life of sin and unbelief to a life of faith. Others have a relationship with God from childhood and cannot remember a time when God was not real to them. God meets us wherever we are. Jesus engaged Nicodemus differently than he engaged the Samaritan woman in today’s gospel. He tailored the encounter to the needs of the hearer. Nicodemus was Jewish. We are told his name. He came to Jesus in Jerusalem. The Samaritan woman is a Gentile. We never find out her name. Jesus came to her. Nicodemus could not wrap his mind around a new, spiritual birth, while the woman struggled to understand what it meant to have living water. There are several unusual characteristics about Jesus’ meeting wit...