Claimed, gathered and sent

Here are some thoughts for Sunday, the 4th Sunday of Advent. These were sent to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.  SCRIPTURE FOCUS    Gospel: Luke 1:46-55   46 And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,    47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,   48 for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;   49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.   50 His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.   51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.   52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly;   53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty.   54 He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy,   55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” RE...

Here are a few thoughts for Advent 3 that were shared via email with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.  Second Reading: Philippians 4:4-7 4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.  5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.  6 Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.   This Sunday is the third Sunday of Advent, Joy Sunday. The reading from Philippians is very fitting for that theme. We will also experience the joy of the cantata, “The Light Before Christmas,” done by our choir.  Paul was in prison when he wrote these words and yet he was able to tell the Philippians to rejoice. There are many aspects of joy and many things that bring us joy. For Paul, it’s obvious that his rock-solid relationship wit...

This is the sermon I preached at St. Timothy Lutheran Church on Sunday, 12/9/18. The text was Luke 3:1-6 We have in the very beginning of today’s gospel a list of 7 rulers of that time. Imagine these verses as a movie in which we see the known world, the center of which is Rome and we slowly zoom in – but not where we expect. Now , who of all of these does God choose? Emperor Tiberius-nope Pontius Pilate—nope Herod-nope Philip-nope Lysanius-nope Anna’s and Caiaphas-nope John…yep…wait…who? Once again, God chooses the most unlikely candidate in the most unlikely place. After all, Judea, in which were Jerusalem and Bethlehem, was a mere backwater of the world and John the Baptist was a nobody. But what God is doing through him will affect everything—even up to the emperor. In this list, we also have a foreshadowing of what was to come in Jesus’ confrontations with Annas and Caiaphas, Herod and Pilate. This, after all, is the world of a God who is completely involved i...

Here are some thoughts I shared regarding this Sunday's gospel for Advent 2.  This was sent to the people of St. Timothy .  SCRIPTURE FOCUS Gospel: Luke 3:1-6 1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene,  2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.  3 He went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins,  4 as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.   5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth;   6 and all f...

This is the sermon I preached on Dec. 2, the First Sunday of Advent, at St. Timothy Lutheran Church.  The text was Luke 21:25-36 Waiting is hard. Children on road trips cry out, “Are we there yet?” A friend of ours in PA. tells of when her son, Luke, was younger. When he knew a package was coming, each day he would sit out on the front steps of the house waiting for its arrival. Today is the first Sunday of Advent, itself a time of waiting for the  coming of something far more precious than a package. We await two comings of Christ: his first as one of us on earth and his second when he returns in glory. Today we focus on the second one. In today’s gospel text, Jesus moves his listeners from the realm of cosmic signs, to the realm of the listeners’ experienced world of nature and finally to their personal realm. Jesus first talks about the realm of cosmic signs (vv. 25-28). “ Sign, sign, everywhere a sign Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind Do this, don...

Here are some thoughts on this Sunday's gospel reading for the first Sunday of Advent. It was sent to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.   SCRIPTURE FOCUS  Gospel: Luke 21:25-36  [Jesus said:]   25 “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves.   26 People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.   27 Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in a cloud’ with power and great glory.   28 Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”     29 Then he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees;   30 as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near.   31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the k...

Here are some thoughts on this coming Sunday's gospel sent to the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church .  However, I will not be preaching. For the first time in many years, we'll be home with part of the family for Thanksgiving. Hope yours is a blessed one of wonderful time with family and friends with much to give thanks for. Gospel: John 18:33-37 33 Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”   34 Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?”   35 Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?”   36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.”   37 Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a ...