Jesus liberates all people from power and oppression: 22nd after pentecost year b

One of the perks of doing pulpit supply in different contexts is that if an illustration works well two weeks in a row, I can use it both weeks.  This was one of those occasions.

The sermon was based on the gospel reading for today (plus the missing verses between last week and this week), using Archbishop and Saint, Oscar Romero, and the Catholic Church in El Salvador's story, including the acknowledging the u.s. role in the dictatorship that ultimately made a martyr of Saint Oscar. 

Additionally, Martin Luther's Freedom of a Christian connected well, reminding us that as followers of Christ we are simultaneously totally free subject to none and also servants of all.

I drew heavily on my queery for Mark.  If you have any questions about he connections to it, please let me know!

This is the image for my sermon.

I preached three different times over the course of my weekend and so the sermon itself grew and changed over time.  If you have any questions or insights, let me know!

jesus invites us into radical inversion: 21st after pentecost year b

This past weekend I preached at Capitol Hill Lutheran Church here in Des Moines.  While the sermon changed quite a bit from the first draft to the final, it remained rooted in my queerying of Mark 10:17-31.  I did record the sermon at one of the services, but don't have a way to host that much audio on my blog (but if you support me through ko-fi, I might be able to make it happen!).

This is the image I used for preaching.

In the gospel Jesus challenges a rich man who wants to know how to inherit eternal life and, in doing so, challenges notions of the Prosperity Gospel, inviting the man and all of us as Jesus' followers to a radical inversion of the way the world works.  As we celebrated Archbishop and Saint Oscar Romero's canonization, we also remembered the way God had worked that very inversion in Saint Romero in his lifetime.  If you'd like to know more about the sermon or connections to the queery, let me know!

Jesus gets serious about stumbling: 19th after pentecost b

This past weekend, I preached at a congregation I had never been to.  I drew heavily on both River Needham's queery of Numbers and my own queery of Mark to craft the sermon using my usual method.  The events of last week, especially the hearings for the Supreme Court justice, heavily informed my sermon.

Fun fact not included in my sermon: foot is frequently used in the bible to refer to genitalia,
so when Jesus says "If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off..." you know what that means!

If you have any questions or want to know more about my sermon, let me know!