Today our Gospel lesson starts out by letting the reader know that Jesus told the disciples this parable as a way to teach them “about their need to pray always and not to lose heart” because we have a God who will quickly grant justice to his children. This is a good reminder to us […]
Today we have an interesting text for our Gospel lesson. In it we hear the apostles ask Jesus to increase their faith. This at first does not seem like a terrible request, for it is not as if they are asking Jesus to increase their income or their power, but rather their faith!
Using a dialog with Jesus about the particularly troubling parable of the dishonest steward, this sermon probes the story from a different point of view.
Today we have a Gospel lesson that speaks to our calling as Christians to be humble and welcoming. At the beginning of our lesson we are reminded by Jesus that any time is a good time to help those in need as Jesus heals on the Sabbath. And then Jesus reminds us that it is […]
For this sermon, Pastor Smail uses a story entitled “The Lonely Lady of Blairstown Park.” It was originally written by Dr. Richard Jenson, a past professor at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago and was adapted by Pastor Ed Markquart and now has been adapted by Pastor Smail for this sermon. Today Jesus teaches […]
Using the image of Jesus’ parable of the fruitless fig tree, this sermon explores our need to repent, or in the case of the created story for the sermon “There’s always a chance to live another day.” Not the usual way of understanding repentance. Let it alone and see what the gardener can do!
During this season of Lent, we are once again reminded of our need for God. And this happens not only as we realize our own shortcomings, recognizing in ourselves when we have given criticism when what was needed was a hug, as well as admitting those times when we can’t do it on our own […]
With what can we compare the Kingdom or God? Jesus asks, then uses little parables about seeds to explain. This sermon looks at our imagination of kingdom, and the reign of God alternative. Also,there is an illustration of a “preschool cookbook” that is analogous to the terse yet profound nature of the kingdom parables. Those […]
Using a bit of tongue in cheek on the Jonah narrative, and using the parable of the workers in the vineyard as Jesus way to tweak his disciples and us, this sermon admits that God’s ways are very, very, different than our ways….wait, what?
We are all weeds and wheat together, we are all simultaneously saints and sinners. And so as we grow in God’s field of love and grace we find that it is our job to not only let God take care of our nurture, but to also be welcoming to all others in the field as […]