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Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 26—September 29, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Amos 8:4–7 | Psalm 113 | 1 Timothy 2:1–7 | Luke 16:1–13
Summary: Today’s Gospel story about the rich man and Lazarus is often used to talk about the evils of wealth, but it is part of a series of stories abut what draws us away from God and about how we are bound together in covenant. Years ago I took some youth to the National Youth Gathering. One of them broke one of the rules we had agreed on but would not confess his mistake. In the lesson from Timothy we hear about the good confession Jesus made before Pilate. The fault of the rich man in our Gospel is that his wealth makes him blind to others in need. We are all accountable to each other and the world we live in. We are called to make the good confession so that we are drawn in the life of God that is truly life.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 25—September 22, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Steve Jensen
Lessons: Amos 8:4–7 | Psalm 113 | 1 Timothy 2:1–7 | Luke 16:1–13
Summary: Earlier this week I was talking with my barber about his customers, and he said that the people who seem wealthiest are often the worst tippers. I also got to visit with people who had served with me on a ship in San Diego, and I remembered spending some time with a minister who offered seminars in church growth. As I got to know him, I was reminded that in every generation there are ministers who seem to think that they deserve material wealth because of their ministry. In our Gospel story of the unjust manager, Jesus tells us of religious leaders who want to increase their own stature, not share the blessings of God with the poor, and display their piety for all to see. Jesus says that the day of accounting will come. Of course everyone has the right to a decent livelihood, but we cannot put the god of wealth before the true God. Jesus praises the unjust manager for his cleverness and encourages us to be that diligent in serving God.
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Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 24—September 15, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Steve Jensen
Lessons: Exodus 32:7–14 | Psalm 51:1–10 | 1 Timothy 1:12–17 | Luke 15:1–10
Summary: In our Gospel Jesus tells stories showing how God reaches out to the lost. The first lesson seems to show that only the righteous are welcome, and this is reflected in the responses of the religious leaders in the Gospel. But the Gospel stories make it clear that with God there are no outcasts and no one who is not good enough. We may have tapes playing in our heads that tell us we are not acceptable, but each week Jesus invites us to his meal where we receive Christ broken and poured out for us. As we leave this place, we are called to live as shepherds for the lost.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 23—September 8, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Deuteronomy 30:15–20 | Psalm 1 | Philemon 1:1–21 | Luke 14:25–33
Summary: We are shocked when we hear Jesus say in today’s Gospel that we must hate our family members and life itself if we want to be his disciples. Years ago I met a transman whose family had shunned him. He found acceptance in the LGBT+ community but was afraid they would shun him as well if they found out he was Christian. He also found a Lutheran church and was afraid they would shun his as well if they found out he was trans. One Sunday, today’s first lesson from Deuteronomy—in which God challenges the children of Israel to choose life—came up, he found the courage to come out to his church family, and they accepted him. Later his LGBT+ friends responded the same way. Both families rejoiced that he had chosen the life as God had created him. When we live as true disciples of Christ, we welcome each person as a beloved child of God. Jesus tells us in the Gospel that God loves each of us and calls us to be part of the body of Christ.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 22—September 1, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Sirach 10:12-18 | Psalm 112 | Hebrews 13:1–8, 15–16 | Luke 14:1, 7–14
Summary: We live in a world obsessed with competition and winning. Today’s Gospel, in which Jesus tells us not to take the highest place at a banquet, is more than a lesson in good manners. Jesus is telling us that that in the Kingdom of God we are called to be concerned that our neighbor is doing OK. It seems like a small thing, but it is a radical approach to the world. We are concerned that each and every one is loved and cared for. This is why Rusty Walker, whose memorial service we celebrated yesterday, asked us to prepare backpacks for Honolulu’s homeless. When we look out for the people around us, we don’t focus on being number one and invite all people to the banquet of God’s love.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 21—August 25, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Isaiah 58:9b–14 | Psalm 103:1–8 | Hebrews 12:18–29 | Luke 13:10–17
Summary: Today’s Gospel is one of several encounters between Jesus and the religious authorities. In this one, Jesus is teaching on the Sabbath and heals a woman who has been bent over for 18 years, and the religious authorities complain because he is doing the work of healing on the Sabbath. Like this woman, Scrooge in the Dickens’ story is bound up in rules, selfishness, and himself; the ghosts reveal his bondage; and Scrooge is set free. The same economic system that Dickens blames for the misery of the poor (along with racism, social media, etc.) bind us. Jesus calls us to be free so we can stand up and praise God. In the Gospel, Jesus calls the crowds to give up some of their ideas about the nature of the Sabbath so the woman can be free. What do we need to give up so that our world can be free of what binds us?
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 20—August 18, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Jeremiah 23:23–29 | Psalm 82 | Hebrews 11:29—12:2 | Luke 12:49–56
Summary: In today’s Gospel. Jesus tells the people that discord and fire are coming. We can imagine that fire as a consuming judgment that wipes away everything, but elsewhere in the Bible we have the fire of renewal. There’s the fire of the sun that brings light at creation, the fire Moses discovers in the burning bush, the fire of sacrifice in Leviticus, and the tongues of fire that appear over the disciples at Pentecost. In the Gospel, Jesus is not so much calling for a do over as telling the people that when faith is taken seriously, it leads to change. While a relationship with God does bring comfort, it also calls us back to radical change so that we can truly love God and our neighbor.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 19—August 11, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Genesis 15:1–6 | Psalm 33:12–22 | Hebrews 11:1–3, 8–16 | Luke 12:32–40
Summary: There are times in our lives when we are anxiously waiting for the other shoe to drop, but that’s not the kind of waiting Jesus is talking about in today’s Gospel. Jesus says that God has already given us the kingdom, so we are called to joyful expectation. This week’s Churchwide Assembly declared the ELCA a sanctuary denomination, marched to post 95 theses on the door of the ICE office, and celebrated 50 years of women’s ordination and 10 years of ordaining LGBT pastors. Will we be ready to share Jesus’ welcome, or will we be paralyzed by anxiety? The greatest enemy of faith is fear that keeps us from receiving God’s love.
Time after Pentecost • Lectionary 18—August 4, 2019
Preacher: Pastor Jeff Lilley
Lessons: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12–14, 2:18–23 | Psalm 49:1–12 | Colossians 3:1–11 | Luke 12:13–21
Summary: In today’s Gospel, Jesus warns the people to be on guard against all kinds of greed. Greed seems to infect all parts of society, even beyond the love of material things. We want to make our points and exercise of opinions wen when it leads to the loss of life. Our first lesson from Ecclesiastes, where we hear about the emptiness of life focused on accumulating possessions, seems to go against the American dream. We want it all, but Jesus calls us to be rich in God and to give up everything for the sake of love. We are called to value human life and the life of our planet over riches.