Grace Lutheran La Grange

Pastor Saïd preaches on Sunday August 20th.

There are some moments that happen in an instant but effect us forever. Moments where it seems like life itself is in the balance, where we aren't sure what will happen next but know that nothing will be the same after it's done. Peter has one of these moments when the chaos of the storm around him causes him to sink beneath the waves. In the midst of that chaos Jesus reaches out a hand and pulls him up. Jesus calls us to follow him. We may not be able to walk on water but Jesus reaches down to where we are, pulls us up and sends us out to rescue others. These moments in our lives may not be as dramatic as the one Peter experienced, but they change our lives and stay with us forever.

Jesus has compassion for the crowds who were hungry for healing and for food on the day he heard about the murder of his cousin John.

Dr. Kurt Hendal Preaches on July 30, 2017. Exploring the Matthean theme of "kingdom of heaven,".

This sermon focuses on Jesus' admonition for his followers to leave the "cleaning up the church rolls" to God, who alone knows which of us are "wheat" and which are "weeds."

Jesus tells a story about a sower and what happens to the seeds when they fall on different types of ground. Jesus is being followed by more and more people, so many that he has to hop into a boat to keep from being overrun by the crowd. Jesus begins this story by saying "Let anyone with ears to hear listen". 

 

The people following Jesus around were listening, and they heard something that caused them to leave their homes and their work for the day to go and follow a strange man hoping to hear another story. They heard much more than a parable of a haphazard farmer that day. Something Jesus said spoke to them and pulled them in. What do you hear Jesus saying to you today? Let anyone with ears to hear listen!

We all have things that we are passionate about, arguments we think have to be made right now, issues that we just can't seem to drop. While there's nothing wrong with being passionate about something, but we also have to know when to take a break, when to trust that God is in control and rest. That's not always easy to do! We get caught up in the moment and want to keep going until we have righted every wrong. 

The sermon will describe how God has given life since the beginning and continued to do so in Jesus, who came to give a different kind of life, the life of God, eternal life—life that can never be earned or deserved, but only accepted as a gift.  Because of that life within us, we do what Jesus did and loved as he loved.

When people passionately disagree with one another there are only two types of peace that can exist between them. There's an uneasy sort of peace that happens when people agree not to talk about or bring up a subject. Then there's the peace that can only come when all the cards have been set out on the table, when everyone has had a chance to tell the truth and say what they need to say. One of these is much messier and more difficult than the other... Unfortunately I think I know which one Jesus wants for us in this Gospel lesson... and it starts with telling the truth.

Telling the truth can be the hardest thing in the world. It doesn't matter whether you are a four year old who just broke a vase or a 40 year old trying to make it through thanksgiving dinner without fighting over politics, each of us has those moments where we struggle to tell the truth about what we've done, what we believe or what we think. 

Telling the truth can put our relationships in jeopardy, it can cut us off from those we love. It can put us at odds with powerful people and institutions, and even put our very lives in danger, but the only path to true peace goes straight through the truth and we never walk that path alone.

On the Job Training" 

In the Gospel lesson this week Jesus sends his disciples out to heal and teach and drive out demons and do all sorts of other amazing things. I wonder if the disciples felt ready for this job... there aren't any verses about them studying up for it at a trade school and none of them went through the prerequisite 4 years of seminary education.

Instead Jesus sent them out with nothing more than a command and the blessing of the Holy Spirit. They weren't ready for the task ahead of them, but Jesus sent them out to learn as they go. 

When God gives us a mission we are almost never prepared for what will lie ahead, but we have a God who firmly believes in on the job training. We have a God who sends us out as we are and teaches us what we need along the way, who calls us to do amazing things here and now. And it's time to step up and get to work!