St. Paul Podcast

Luke uses a communal banquet scene as the setting for Jesus to teach what true glory is, and how it differs from acclamation and success in simply human terms.

Preaching text: Luke 14:1, 7-14

Bible for Worship is a weekly introduction to the scripture passage that is likely to be the basis for the sermon on the following weekend. It correlates with the Revised Common Lectionary as it is used at St. Paul. With Peter A. Pettit, teaching pastor.

Katy Warren preaches on noticing. The goodness of God is all around us, waiting for us to notice. There is so much power in seeing and noticing God all around us. We can be consumed by so many distractions around us, that we miss what’s right in front of us. We are sometimes more concerned with the proper order of things that we forget to live with love and compassion as our first and crucial impulse.   

Preaching text: Luke 13:10-17 

In one of the dramatic episodes that Luke portrays of Jesus in a synagogue, we hear the core value of life affirmed and re-affirmed — affirmed from within Jewish life for all of God's people. 

Preaching text: Luke 13:10-17

Bible for Worship is a weekly introduction to the scripture passage that is likely to be the basis for the sermon on the following weekend. It correlates with the Revised Common Lectionary as it is used at St. Paul. With Peter A. Pettit, teaching pastor.

Mark Niethammer preaches on divisions. The world that God dreams of isn’t just going to happen. It’s going to take work on our part. It will force all of us to change and that will not be easy. Sometimes division comes from this change and is necessary for us to become more fully who God intends for us to be. For this world to heal and deep peace to flood in, truth has to be spoken to power and the divine love in each person must be lifted up.  

Preaching text: Luke 12:49-56 

Luke portrays the profound importance of understanding God's power over the worldly forces of death as a fire and division that splits communities and families. In Jesus' mouth, the words bring reassurance about God's ultimate power even over those divisions.

Preaching text: Luke 12:49-56

Bible for Worship is a weekly introduction to the scripture passage that is likely to be the basis for the sermon on the following weekend. It correlates with the Revised Common Lectionary as it is used at St. Paul. With Peter A. Pettit, teaching pastor.

Peter Pettit preaches on reframing. Without the larger context, we look at things only from what we know but there is a bigger frame. Greatness in God’s frame doesn’t mean we become God, it doesn’t mean we have all the answers or have to make it happen by ourselves. Greatness in God’s frame means living with the godly virtues right where it is that God has led you. Seeing in a larger frame is seeing in faith.  

Preaching text: Genesis 15:1-6  

With a look back to the earliest ancestors of the people of Israel, Genesis tells a story that reorients a desperate community from their difficult situation to a source of hope and promise that is far beyond what the threats in their lives can reach.

Preaching text: Genesis 15:1-6

Bible for Worship is a weekly introduction to the scripture passage that is likely to be the basis for the sermon on the following weekend. It correlates with the Revised Common Lectionary as it is used at St. Paul. With Peter A. Pettit, teaching pastor.

Sara Olson-Smith preaches on looking outward toward others. Our desire for more is often a need to fill a hole we have in ourselves. When we focus on only ourselves, we live lives which are isolated and insular. It is not our things which bring us contentment. A ‘toward’ life, turning outward toward others, protects us from this insular living which isolates us.  

Preaching text: Luke 12:13-21 

A dramatic encounter leads to a parable with a dramatic confrontation in this story from Luke. Together, they can help us understand what we might do with any parable.

Preaching text:  Luke 12:13-21

Bible for Worship is a weekly introduction to the scripture passage that is likely to be the basis for the sermon on the following weekend. It correlates with the Revised Common Lectionary as it is used at St. Paul. With Peter A. Pettit, teaching pastor.

Katy Warren preaches on prayer. Many of us desire to have a rich prayer life but are wondering what to pray, how to pray, wondering if we’re doing it right or if anyone is listening to the words we’re saying. If your prayers feel unanswered or the thought of even figuring out what to pray for feels daunting, it doesn’t mean you’re not a faithful person. We don’t just speak the words, we live them.  

Preaching text: Luke 11:1-10