Prince of Peace

On this All Saint's weekend, Pastor Jonathan explains how those who came before us made the Church what is is today - not just Prince of Peace, but the global Church. We can look back at those saints and observe what 'Rooted in Faith' really means, and how that faith led those saints to share what they had to make the church a place that means so much to us. It us up to us to keep that faith going forward for the saints that come after us.

Pastor Hannah shares with us this morning stories of the Holy Spirit directing people to life journeys they never expected to take. From the lessons this morning, Jeremiah; from the founding of the Lutheran church; the story of Martin Luther; and her own journey. Just know that God has a plan for you.

In this sermon Pastor Michelle how the access to the blessing of God is meant for everyone in our community. When we serve the world, we remove obstacles from others so that they may have access to those blessings. We love because God first loved us and a we are called to love all.

In today's gospel lesson, Jesus feeds 5,000 people with 5 loaves and two fish. The disciples were initially concerned that there would not be enough, and as Pastor Jonathan explains, that is still common among us today. We are naturally concerned that what we have may not be enough for ourselves, and that makes us willing to share. But as Jesus proved then, God makes sure that there is always enough to share. We only need to look around to see modern-day examples of times when it looked like there would be a shortage, only to find God guiding generous people to provide more than enough.

Pastor Michelle uses these words from today's gospel lesson to introduce the theme for this capital campaign. God wants us to abide in his love, because he has plans to restore the world in grace an peace through us. This capital campaign isn't so much about building as it is about reducing our obligations so that we can expand God's presence in the world.

In this sermon, Pastor Michelle discusses Jesus' parable of two sons working at their father's vineyard. Just as the religious leaders were encouraged to consider which son in the parable did the will of the father, so too are we encouraged to consider if we are doing the will of the Father. Doing the will of God helps us to see God's Kingdom here on earth.

"The last will be first, and the first will be last." Pastor Jonathan uses these words from Jesus to explain some of what the group saw in Germany and Prague as they followed the life of Martin Luther and the Reformation . He explains that order and exclusion are things that God does not recognize - God's grace has no measure in fairness. The Jews were the first to hear the Good News, but the news was meant for all of us.

Today's lessons talk about slavery, debts' and forgiveness. Pastor Hannah explains that in biblical times, slavery was very different from the way we think about it - selling yourself into slavery was a way to pay off a debt you owed someone, and that slavery ended when the debt was forgiven or repaid. When Jesus tells the parable of the slave who's debt was forgiven, he is warning that we should forgive others sins (debts) against us because we ourselves have been forgiven a much greater debt. And when he tells Peter that he should forgive "seventy-seven times," he is saying that forgiving others should be a habit.

Pastor Michelle Terry - September 6, 2026

In today's gospel, a continuation of last week's, Jesus rebukes Peter for "setting your mind not on divine things, but human things." The world Jesus lived in tried to suppress his message of God's love and forgiveness as a way to keep the Jewish people under control. We see oppressive governments doing much the same today as the Romans were doing in Jesus time. But if the message of God's love is shared, there are no limits to how far it can go.