Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the sermon I preached at St. Timothy Lutheran Church on Pentecost Sunday, 2024, May 19. The text was  John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15. Today is Pentecost. We celebrate the birth of Christ’s church. However, Pentecost is far more than simply the birthday of the church. This was just the beginning of God's work after Jesus went to heaven with his Father.   Especially in the Book of Acts, we read of many miracles being done through the apostles as the Holy Spirit worked through them. Miracles also continue today as God the Holy Spirit works through God’s people.   The fastest growing churches are those in the global south, countries south of the equator, not those in the United States, despite the number of megachurches there are. There, people walk for hours to get to church. Their commitment puts many of us to shame. Perhaps this is why these churches are growing exponentially. This is the work of the Holy Spirit in and through God’s people.  This past week, Ray and I were at Elim B

  This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, May 5 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text was John 15:9-17, It can be hard to make friends in a new place. We have lived here for just over nine years. I was pretty excited about already knowing people here. But, shortly after we came, Becca and Will moved! Then we got a bit closer with another couple and they moved! Then another female pastor and I used to hang out after our weekly pastors’ Bible study, and she stopped coming. However, the arrival of a clergy couple has helped. We’ve become colleagues and friends. I feel much less lonely, and this extrovert is grateful. I am also making friends outside church-related places: the Boys’ and Girls’ Club Pool and Zonta.  The creator of the universe calls us friends, which is the most amazing thing. Friendship implies a give and take. Jesus completely upends the old ways of master and slave in the accord of friendship with himself, saying, “I do not call you servants any longer, because the

  This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, April 28 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text was J ohn 15:1-8.  Have you ever been so hungry that you felt like you were about to faint? You are at a friend's house, and you see that on the table in front of you is an inviting, delectable-looking bowl of fruit. It must be there to be eaten. You grab one of your very favorite fruits--your mouth is watering, you can almost taste it-----and then, much to your disappointment, you discover that it is a piece of wax fruit, the fruit is fake. It may look good, but it is phony. We are a church that loves to eat, aren't we? We love our fellowship time with coffee, tea and all kinds of goodies. And today, we have pancakes! Thank you, Mike, and To all your helpers as well.  Food is something we know a lot about. This passage from John's gospel is not some hard to figure out parable. Vines and grapes and branches were very familiar to the disciples, just as they are to us. It was and sti

  This is the sermon I preached on Sumday, April 21 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text was J ohn 10:11-18 . I like sheep. They’re so cute and warm and fuzzy. And in the Holy Land, they come in different colors! A bird's-eye view of a flock will reveal blue, red, or another hue on the sheep's back. This way they can be identified.  Today’s reading from the gospels says that Jesus is the good shepherd. The I AM Jesus is using is emphatic and could be translated as, “I, I am” (Rob Myallis, lectionarygreek.blogspot.com). Throughout John’s gospel, Jesus identifies himself as many things: 6:35 I am the bread of life 8:12 I am the light of the world 8:58 I am that I am  10:7 I am the door for the sheep (10:9 I am the door) 10:11 I am the good shepherd; lays down life; know voice 11:25 I am the resurrection and life 14:6 I am the way, truth and life 15:1 I am the true vine (15:5 vine) (Rob Myallis).  In each instance, he uses “I, I am,” for emphasis.  It’s interesting that Jesus

  This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, April 14, at St. Timothy Lutheran Church. The text was Luke 24:36b-48. This has been an exciting week with the Great American eclipse, hasn't it?  We didn’t have quite the view some areas did, but it was nonetheless amazing. What has stuck with me is the concept of totality. During those few minutes, there was a distinct change in the air. Besides the darkness, the atmosphere grew tranquil, as Ray, the dogs, and I sat on the parsonage steps.  Author, Annie Dillard wrote a poem called "Total Eclipse" that shows this. It was an abrupt black body out of nowhere; it was a flat disk; it was almost over the sun. That is when there were screams. At once this disk of sky slid over the sun like a lid. The sky snapped over the sun like a lens cover. The hatch in the brain slammed. Abruptly it was dark night, on the land and in the sky. People are still talking about Monday’s experience. It’s all over the news and yet, two Sundays ago we