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Grief and WorshipRevelation is a book that makes a lot of us nervous. We tend to avoid it as Lutherans. Today's second lesson focuses us in on a picture of true and complete worship when we bring our total selves into the throne room of God, where God encounters us.
Acts 9:36-43 | Psalm 23 | Revelation 7:9-17 | John 10:22-30 |
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Resurrection LifeToo often we fail to recognize the resurrection in our own lives. Todays' Gospel reading helps us to see that Jesus comes to us in our daily lives.
Acts 9:1-20 | Revelation 5:11-14 | John 21:1-19 |
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He Came BackJesus comes back for his disciples. He comes back again so that Thomas can experience what all the rest did. He comes back to all of us. And He will keep coming back.
Acts 5:27-32 | Revelation 1:4-8 | John 20:19-31 |
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He Is Risen! - EasterThe women at the tomb went to care for the body of their friend Jesus. What they found was an empty tomb. They were asked a question by angels - why do you look for the living among the dead? We too are like the women; we look for life where there is no life. Thankfully, Jesus is with us even now.
Acts 10:34-43 | 1 Corinthians 15:19-26 | Luke 24:1-12 |
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To Serve or to be a ServantExodus 12:1-14 | 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 | John 13:1-17, 31b-35
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Two ChoicesPalm/Passion Sunday is the start of Holy Week. Jesus' procession into Jerusalem was one of two processions that day. The other procession that day was of Pontious Pilate with the full force of the Roman army. These processions offer us two choices. And then there is also Jesus on the cross - and we have two choices there also.
Isaiah 50:4-9a | Psalm 31:9-16 | Philippians 2:5-11 | Luke 22:14--23:56 |
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The Scent of SalvationTodays' Gospel reading is full of smells. Mary anoints Jesus' feet with an aromatic scent. She does this because she knows who he is and what is about to happen. Her actions are at odds with the actions and desires of Judas. And the question before us today is Jesus enough for us?
Isaiah 43:16-21 | Philippians 3:4b-14 | John 12:1-8 |
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The Parable of the Lost SonsWe all become lost at times - lost to ourselves and lost to the world. Sometimes we need to be reminded of who we are. In the Father's house we come to be reminded who we are.
Joshua 5:9-12 | 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 | Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32 |
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Un-Ask the QuestionWe love to ask the question Why? Often times Jesus doesn't answer the questions about why - but answers questions that were not asked. Sometimes our questions are too small and not life-giving and he asks us to un-ask our question so that we can ask a better question.
Isaiah 55:1-9 | 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 | Luke 13:1-9 |
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The Not Yetness of the KingdomGenesis 15:1-12, 17-18 | Philippians 3:17-4:1 | Luke 13:31-35 |
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Mountains and ValleysGrowing up I always heard one side of the Transfiguration story, the story on the mountain top. If I heard about the valley it was to ensure that I knew that life cannot be lived on the mountain. So - why does every Gospel writer include the story of the boy suffering in the valley?
Exodus 34:29-35 | Psalm 99 | 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 | Luke 9:28-43a |
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Escape Hatch?When we hear the words of Jesus from his Sermon on the Plain, we might get a little uncomfortable. The words are hard to hear, and Jesus even acknowledges his words might cause a bit of discomfort. Jesus doesn't just leave us in our discomfort though.
Genesis 45:3-11, 15 | 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50 | Luke 6:27-38 |
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SeenWe all have been there - in that place where it seems like no one notices our presence. It can be an awkward place. It can be a place that causes fear and anxiety.
Jeremiah 17:5-10 | 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 | Luke 6:17-26 |
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Too CarefulAll too often we go through life ensuring that we are being careful. It is ingrained in us as little children and we carry that need to be careful into our adult lives. Living out our faith is rarely safe...
Isaiah 6:1-13 | 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 | Luke 5:1-11 |
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The UnexpectedFaith shows up in the most unexpected places at times. Sometimes we have enough faith to get through the day and then there are other times when life hits us hard, and we wonder if we have enough faith to get through the day.
Jeremiah 1:4-10 | 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 | Luke 4:21-30 |
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Signs Signs Everywhere SignsOur world is full of signs. They tell us all sorts of different things. A lot of the time, they point us in some type of direction, they convey to us information. In John's Gospel, he calls the miracles signs. But what do these signs point to?
Isaiah 62:1-5 | 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 | John 2:1-11 |
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Burn the ChaffIsaiah 43:1-7 | Acts 8:14-17 | Luke 3:15-17, 21-22
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QuestionsMary pondered all this in her heart. It isn't the first time that we have heard those words. In fact, this is the third time that Luke has told us that Mary pondered something in her heart.
We all have questions. God is big enough to handle our questions. What are you pondering in your heart? 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26 | Colossians 3:12-17 | Luke 2:41-52 |
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Do Not Fear - A Christmas Eve MessageIt feel as though we are being pushed and pulled by the river of time. There are times when it is calm and we like these times. Other times, it feels like a white-water river rafting experience.
Sometimes, we need to hear the angel's words to the shepherds, "Do not fear!" Isaiah 9:2-7 | Titus 2:11-14 | Luke 2:1-20 |
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UnrecognizableThere are days that I look in the mirror and wonder who it is staring back at me. I look around and wonder what happened to this world. Some things have become unrecognizable. Good news is that God has something to help with that.
Zephaniah 3:14-20 | Philippians 4:4-7 | Luke 3:7-18 |
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Thy Kingdom ComePilate asks Jesus a question - Are you a king? But the next unasked question is - if you are a king, where is your kingdom. We look around this world and we can question the kingship of Jesus. And that is why we pray - Thy Kingdom Come.
Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 | Psalm 93 | Revelation 1:4b-8 | John 18:33-37 |
