Paul’s Letter to the Romans is filled with the Good News of God’s grace, which is Good News indeed. Now that we have received God’s grace, does sin even matter anymore. Can I just sin as much as I want and God will take care of it? Paul gives an emphatic “No.” Instead, God has given us new life in Christ. What does that mean for me? Hear what Paul teaches us about our identity in Christ and how this new identity changes everything.

It is not that we must be good enough or wise enough or obedient enough to gain God, it is that God has already gained us. That is good news. That is what grace looks like. And that is why the only adequate response for us who have been justified by faith is to work each and every day to extend that same radical grace to our deeply divided and suffering world. As Jesus charges the disciples in today’s gospel passage: you received without payment; give without payment.

What is the Holy Trinity, the God of Relationship and Love, doing in the midst of our current national turmoil? Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton points to the fullness of God as creator, incarnate, and present to give us both hope and call to be about the work of the Trinity.

Pentecost is a celebration of the gift of the Holy Spirit. In the power of the Spirit, God breaks through all the barriers that keep people apart; crosses all the obstructions that keep God at bay and speaks words of peace, grace, transformation. Do you hear what the Spirit is saying right now?

CHRIST DESCENDED AND ASCENDED

The Ascension of Jesus is an important part of Christian faith. But what is the Ascension? Where did Jesus go? More important, what does it have to do with how we live and engage our faith today? Does it mean that we’re on our own? That Christ has left the building? That’s not what his disciples concluded. Nor should we.

To love Jesus is to love and serve our neighbors, and it is through love that the presence of the Holy Spirit dwells within us, guiding us, inspiring us, and reminding us that even in the midst of uncertainty, we are never alone.

Don't let your hearts be troubled. Really Jesus? That's how you're going to start this conversation. Jesus has a message for our troubled hearts as he addresses the fear, anger, and anxiety that occupy the disciples. If your heart is troubled, there is a message of Good News for you.

Our guest preacher, Bishop Michael Burk of the Southeastern Iowa Synod, reflects on Jesus, who says he is our gate, our shepherd, our Lord. With this Jesus there is always much more life… especially when things don’t seems to be the way they should be.

Like so many of the stories of scripture, God came near on the way, in the middle of the journey. Maybe there is something to learn from that in this time when we don’t know where we are headed.

We live in the light of the Risen Christ and so we rest in the assurance that God will continue to show up even in the midst of our doubts, our fears, and those times when we just can’t believe. God, not death, light, not darkness, have the final say. Christ is risen, indeed. Alleluia!