Claimed, gathered and sent

This is what I preached last Sunday, 10/18 at St.Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran Churches. The gospel text is Mark 10:35-45. Does it seem like Mark's gospel is repeating itself? Didn't we just hear something about being servants and that the first shall be last? It's like being on a merry-go-round that never stops to let us off. The disciples had to hear this teaching again because they didn't get it when Jesus taught them earlier. Today's gospel story occurs after the third time Jesus tells his disciples about his coming passion. After the first prediction (8:31), Peter objects and rebukes Jesus, after the second prediction (9:31), the twelve discuss who will be the greatest of them. After the third prediction, which is the most detailed one, we find the Zebedee brothers asking for favored positions in glory. James and John approached Jesus innocently enough, "Teacher, we have something we want you to do for us" (v. 35). Doesn't thi...

This is the message I shared with St. Timothy and St. Mark Lutheran churches this past Sunday, Oct. 11. The scripture text was Mark 10:17-31. . Throughout today's gospel, the one topic of conversation is that of money and possessions. Today, Jesus and his disciples are on the move, making their way to Jerusalem and Jesus' passion. Over the past few Sundays, we have heard radical demands from Jesus followed by confusion from the twelve disciples. True to form, Jesus' call to all today is uncompromising. There are three separate conversations in today's reading. The subject of each is money and its relationship to eternal life. The rich man wants to know how to get eternal life, the disciples want to know who can have eternal life. Jesus responds with the good news that no one has a chance "at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. [But you have] Every chance in the world if you let God do it" (v. 27). The first conversation is be...