Matthew 9:35-10:23 Dear Partner in Preaching, Where do we start? Do we start with the recognition that Jesus warns his disciples not about outsiders but insiders? The wolves aren’t the Gentiles or the Samaritans… or the immigrants or illegals; they’re the synagogue leaders and council elders, the magistrates and political officials that will threaten the mission of the disciples. Israel’s problems are with Israel or, in Pogo’s words, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” Or do we start with the fact that Matthew says their names. Twelve apostles about whom we know next to nothing, twelve among admittedly far, far...

Dear Partner in Preaching, Two notes to you late in this week on this text and day. 1) I will admit that Holy Trinity Sunday is perhaps my least favorite Sunday of the year. On any given day, the doctrine of the Trinity seems remote and inaccessible, if not downright confusing, and barely touches on the realities of my life. And in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and the massive and world-wide protests that has sparked – not to mention that we’re still coping with a pandemic that has now claimed more than 100,000 lives in the United States and countless more around the globe – the Trinity has never seemed so unimportant...

Acts 2:1-211 Corinthians 12:3b-13 Dear Partner in Preaching, This will be a very different Pentecost. On one level, that’s pretty obvious, as it’s been a very different everything – Lent, Easter, spring, Memorial Day, and more – this year. On another level, however, this particular Sunday will be even more different in light of the now national debate on opening up church buildings. It seems that nothing these days – wearing masks, the death toll of the virus, congregational worship – can escape the taint of partisan politics. As a result, many of us are now making decisions that we hope are informed by the best...

John 17:1-11 Dear Partner in Preaching, You won’t often hear a Lutheran preacher or theologian talk about glory. At least not positively. Luther frequently railed against theologians of glory, those who trusted and elevated the role of human reason and ability with regard to our salvation. He argued instead for a theology of the cross, one that trusted completely in God’s mercy and grace as revealed in the cross of Christ. No, you won’t often hear a Luther preacher talk positively about glory. Except today. Or, at the very least, I can’t help but acknowledge how important “glory” is in this passage and, it would...

John 14:15-21 Dear Partner in Preaching, If last week was a time for lament, perhaps this week is the time for promise. Neither of those ever happens in isolation, I realize. Endless lament that doesn’t lead to an openness to a new and different future is simply despair, and a promise that is offered too quickly or blithely is meaningless, even insulting. But… just as we took Thomas’ and Philip’s challenges to Jesus last week as permission to name our own fears, insecurity, and confusion, so also we might this week take Jesus’ words about the coming Spirit as permission to hear and claim and be transformed by God’s...

John 14:1-14 Dear Partner in Preaching, Tucked into the middle of the passage from John appointed for this 5th Sunday of Easter – yes, it really is Easter even though the RCL has dragged us back to Maundy Thursday in the narrative – tucked into to the middle of this passage are some of the most memorable, even iconic verses from the Fourth Gospel: “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” “In my Father’s house there are many rooms.” “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” And “If in my name you ask for anything, I will do it.” Each of these could be a sermon in and of itself, often wrestling with some of...

I’ve had a few folks reach out of late to ask what I’m reading these days. Truth be told, in recent years I haven’t had nearly as much time to read as I wish, and that has only been more true while leading my congregation through this present crisis. But…. I have been trying to carve out a little more time for books, especially reading a bit at the end of the day if only to clear my head. And so I thought I’d share three books I’ve enjoyed immensely, one fiction, one non-fiction, and one theological (though not necessarily in that order 😀). The Grace of Dogs You’ve likely seen one or more of the memes that describe...

John 10:1-10 Dear Partner in Preaching, It feels like a good time for a message about abundant life! The tenth and final verse of this passage is one of my favorites in Scripture and, in many ways, sums up the Fourth Evangelist’s distinctive take on the ministry and mission of Jesus: “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly!” Abundant life. Not just getting by, but flourishing. Not just eking out an existence, but thriving. Not just prolong one’s existence, but living life to the fullest. Abundant life – what a promise! But before rushing to that promise too quickly, it may be of some value to slow down...

Luke 24:13-35 Dear Partner in Preaching, How are you doing? It’s been six or seven weeks now of doing ministry we didn’t expect and weren’t trained for, and that’s hard. In the few spare minutes between overseeing things in my own shop, I occasionally visit other congregations via the web and have been so encouraged by all that you are doing and trying. What I see regularly is creativity and resiliency and faithfulness that swells my heart with gratitude. Thank you. As we look at this week’s passage, I’m struck that there is also a fair amount of creativity, resiliency, and faithfulness on display as well. Luke,...

Like most congregations around the country, we at Mount Olivet are trying to capture and share our worship online. We’re also trying to connect with our folks in a variety of ways, including via written and musical devotions, recording mid-week Lenten messages, and more. But in addition to trying to take what we normally do and put it online, this current crisis and challenge is also inviting us to try out some new things; in particular, to not simply adapt our usual content to the mediums available to us, but to also allow those various media and channels suggest different patterns of connecting (at least different for us)....