Everybody worships something. Even the folks who'd swear they don't.

Pastor G opens this week with a question that's easy to answer wrong: what actually has your heart? Not what you'd say on a Sunday morning, but what you trust when things get shaky — where you look for security, for hope, for control. He works through the first commandment, but he starts somewhere you might not expect: not with the "shall not," but with the grace that comes before it. Before Israel is ever told what to do, God reminds them they're already free.

From there it gets personal — the things we let quietly take God's place without ever meaning to.

"What we worship shapes who we become," he says. And that's the whole sermon in one line.

Wherever you're listening from today, this one's worth sitting with.

What does it take to matter in God's kingdom? Not a title, not a platform, not a grand gesture; according to Jesus, sometimes it's nothing more than a cup of cold water, offered at just the right moment.

This week Pastor G steps outside the lectionary for a message rooted in one of Jesus's smallest-sounding promises: that even the simplest act of welcome, water for the thirsty, an open door, a caring word, carries eternal weight. Drawing on harvest fields, hot July ballgames, and the quiet routines that hold a community together, he makes the case that God's kingdom rarely grows through headlines. It grows through ordinary kindness, done faithfully, day after day.

What separates an admirer of Jesus from an actual disciple? That's the question sitting underneath this week's gospel, and it's not a comfortable one, especially on a Father's Day weekend.

Jesus is sending his twelve disciples out into the world, and he's honest with them about what's ahead: opposition, rejection, even division within their own families. Three times he tells them the same thing, don't be afraid. Not because the road will be easy, but because they won't walk it alone. Not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from God's knowing. Every hair on your head is numbered. You are known, completely, even in the hard parts.

This message asks us to look honestly at our own faith, not in dramatic, headline-making moments, but in the thousand small decisions that make up an ordinary day. Choosing forgiveness over resentment. Showing up when it would be easier not to. Loving someone who's hard to love. That's where discipleship actually lives.

Casual disciples show up when it's convenient. Something else entirely is being asked of us, and it starts today, right where you are.

What if grace doesn't wait for you to have it all together? In Matthew 9, Jesus walks into the most ordinary places a tax booth, a dinner table, a crowded street, a home full of grief and something unexpected keeps happening. Grace shows up before anyone has time to qualify for it.

A man marked by judgment hears two words: follow me. A woman who has suffered for twelve years and spent everything she had reaches out in quiet desperation and Jesus stops. Not later. Not when it's convenient. Right then. A father's grief becomes the site of something impossible.

None of these people were ready. None of them had cleaned themselves up first. And that's exactly the point.

Jesus says it plainly: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." God isn't looking for the most polished guest. God is setting a table where mercy is the main dish and there's a seat there for you, exactly as you are, right where you are.

Wherever you're listening from today whatever you're carrying this message is for you. Ordinary people are still being met by extraordinary grace.

Pentecost Sunday. Listen to Pastor Gordon with this Pentecost sermon.

Worship with us LIVE every Sunday at 11 am central time https://online.oberlinumc.org/live

Perspectives: How does our perspective deal with inviting others to hear the story? Listen to Pastor Gordon's message on Perspectives.

Thank you for listing to our Oberlin UMC Sermon Podcast. May the message you hear inspire you and help you on your faith journey. We invite you to join us for worship either in person or online.

Join us this morning as we worship Palm Sunday and learn about the Triumphal entry that Jesus made as we kick off Holy Week 2020.

Record your attendance and download today’s bulletin: https://go.oberlinumc.org/attendance

Have a prayer concern? Contact Pastor Gordon via email: [email protected]

Want to Tithe or Donate to Oberlin UMC? Send a Check: 102 N Cass Ave Oberlin Kansas 67749

OR

Drop off your check in the locked drop box on the south side of the church.

Praise Team Set Playlist:

In His Time – CCLI Song # 25981

Hosanna, Hosanna – CCLI Song # 1388919

O How He Loves You and Me – CCLI Song # 15850

Filled with Excitement – CCLI Song # 354470

Tell Me the Stories of Jesus – CCLI Song # 2627445

Hosanna, Loud Hosanna – CCLI Song # 6329873

Copyright Information:

Oberlin United Methodist Church -CCLI License # 1467347CCLI Streaming License #20199538

Oberlin United Methodist Church 102 N Cass Ave Oberlin Kansas 67749

[email protected]

oberlinumc.org

Join us as we worship together online and learn about Mary, Martha, and Jesus from Pastor Gordon.

Have a Prayer Concern? Contact Pastor Gordon – [email protected] or 785-475-3067

Have an Offering or Tithe to Oberlin UMC? Mail a check: Oberlin United Methodist Church 102 N Cass Ave Oberlin Kansas 67749 Or leave your check in the locked mailbox on the south side of the church.

Praise Team Sunday Set

Lord I Lift Your Name on High – CCLI: 117947

Just a Closer Walk with Thee – CCLI: Public Domain

In the Garden – CCLI: 62858

I Sing a Song of the Saints of God – CCLI: Public Domain

Cares Chorus – CCLI: 23974

Hymn of Promise – CCLI: 4820130

Oberlin United Methodist Church

102 N Cass Ave Oberlin KS 67749

oberlinumc.org [email protected]

CCLI License number: 1467347, 20199538

It's Not About Us.

Join us this morning as we hear the message via online using YouTube Premiere.

This mornings Gospel Lesson comes from John 9:1-41.

May you be blessed by today's message from Pastor Gordon

Oberlin United Methodist Church 102 N. Cass Ave Oberlin Kansas 67749

Visit our website: oberlinumc.org