Claimed, gathered and sent

This is the reflection I shared with the people of St. Timothy for our weekly e-ministry.  Gospel: Luke 24:44-53 44 [Jesus said to the eleven and those with them,] “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures,  46 and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day,  47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.  48 You are witnesses of these things.  49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”    50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them.  51 While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven.  52

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, May 6 at  St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text was John 15:9-17 . Ask any child who has moved to a new place and they will probably tell you that their biggest worry was if they’d make new friends. As parents, we worry if our teenager, young adult or older adult has friends that will be kind and generous, if our son or daughter will find mutually beneficial relationships when they move far from us.  When my son Christian and his wife, Marisa moved from Syracuse to Kansas City, Kansas, we were concerned about them. They had wonderful neighbors and great friendships in Syracuse. Would they make friends in Kansas? Well...they have and we are thankful for that.  We are not immune either from our own relationship trials. Busy lives, competing priorities, transitions, and death can mean the end of a sustaining relationship. Bullying, fear-tactics, and misuse of others are common problems, so friendship is precious. We treasure new frien

This is what I preached on Sunday, April 22 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church . The text was the second lesson, 1 John 3:16-24 .  Last week we talked about being witnesses by verbally sharing our faith. This week, we celebrate Jesus the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for his sheep. The reading from 1 John can be summed up in one word: click here . Yes, that's right--love. Today’s emphasis is on the importance of actions over words.  In today’s reading from 1 John, we see love exemplified, love enacted and love rewarded. Concerning love exemplified, John writes, “This is how we’ve come to understand and experience love…” (v. 16). What is the “this?” It is the love that was demonstrated by and has its model in Jesus, who sacrificed his life for us. He loved others to “completion” or “perfection” in his decision to sacrifice himself on behalf of others. Jesus is the One held up as the great exemplifier of love. In the gospel reading, Jesus speaks of laying down his life f

This is the sermon I preached on Sunday, April 15 at St. Timothy Lutheran Church. The text is  Luke 24:36b-48 . Today ’ s gospel reading is the third resurrection appearance and yet, the disciples are still afraid and doubtful. How in the world can God use these people to spread His word throughout the world? The good news is that God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Jesus did not reproach his doubtful disciples, but empowered them to witness to all God had done.    No matter how bright and learned one may be, it does not mean that he or she is ready to share the faith. We see that Jesus here commissioned his disciples and that ’ s really exciting. However, they still needed more preparation. You would think the three years they had spent with Jesus would have been more than enough to make them ready.    Before Jesus sends his followers into all the world, he proves that he is risen from the dead, he opens the disciples ’  minds to understand scripture an