Today’s gospel speaks to the intrinsic worth of all of the children of Israel — tax collectors and sinners included. Jesus is telling the Pharisees that, just like the angels in heaven, they should be happy when a sinner or tax collector repents (i.e. comes to Jesus) for such as these are the lost children of Israel, and, like a lost sheep or coin, are of great value.

No one with “ears to hear” (c.f. Luke 14:35b) should raise the bar for salvation higher than God has set it, or make it more difficult than it needs to be for tax collectors and sinners to return to the House of Israel. Likewise the Church, as the “New Israel” must not make it difficult for the lost children of the world to draw near to Jesus (c.f. vv. 15:1-2).

Jesus is the shepherd looking for his lost sheep. He is the woman looking for her lost coin. He rejoices when He finds us, and, if the angels rejoice too, it is because He has raised us eternal life with them and they welcome us into the company of heaven. As Christians we should imitate Jesus in His diligent search for the lost, even as we ourselves are continually being found by Him.

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Readings from 17 Pentecost, Proper 19, Year C, Track 2. Exodus 32:7-14; 1 Timothy 1:12-17; Luke 15:1-10.

Preached on September 11, 2016 at Holy Trinity Church Inwood.

Luke writes about the cost of becoming a follower of Jesus and says that becoming a disciple is a total commitment, the highest commitment that anyone can make, and will require all that a person has.

He warns the lukewarm, the curious, and the casual observer to back away from Jesus and declares up front for those truly called to follow Jesus what they must be prepared to give up. In our own day, when “spirituality” is casual interest for many, the Gospel reading reminds us that the stakes are actually much higher than we think.

Jesus shows us what this complete commitment looks like. He also shows us how high the stakes are in the spiritual realm. But he also shows us what a life transformed by him can become: from useless to useful, from slave to devoted brother (c.f. Philem. 11, 16) so that we can be “given back” to God.

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Readings from 16 Pentecost, Proper 18, Year C, Track 2. Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Philemon 1-21; Luke 14:25-33.

Preached on September 4, 2016 at Holy Trinity Church Inwood.

Luke speaks of the pride that is attached to wealth and rank in human society. He tells his readers that human systems of honor exclude many whom God still values, including the sick (14:3-4) and the poor, crippled, lame, and blind (14:13).

He specifically instructs his readers not to assume they hold a position of honor in the eyes of the world and especially before God. Instead, readers are told to take a lesser place (14:10) and to invite the marginalized to their feasts (14:13). In our own day, this means we should avoid a “pay to play” mentality and work to create opportunity for those who lack it.

Jesus Christ took the least position among us: He was born in a manger (Luke 2:7), He emptied Himself of His divinity (Phil. 2:7), and He became a curse for us (Deut. 21:23, Gal. 3:13, Phil. 2:8); yet God raised Him to the highest place of honor (Phil. 2:9). As Christians, when our own pride is wounded, when we face diminished prospects, or when we are flat-out rejected, we can take comfort knowing that we are still valued by God and that He intends to raise us up, just as He did His own Son. Likewise, when we find that we have the means to do so, if we willingly humble ourselves and find ways to include the excluded, we will be blessed in this life and repaid at the resurrection (Heb. 13:16, Luke 14:13-14).

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Readings from 15 Pentecost, Proper 17, Year C, Track 2. Sirach 10:12-18; Hebrews 13:1-8, 15-16; Luke 14:1, 7-14.

Preached on August 28, 2016 at Holy Trinity Church Inwood.

Today’s gospel from Luke speaks of the coming judgment and division of the human race into two camps, those who stand with Jesus and those who do not (12:49, 51-53). Luke tells us that this division cannot be avoided, either by appeals to “peace” or by deliberate (and hypocritical) ignorance of the signs that it is imminent (12:51, 54-56).

Luke was explaining to the early Christians why their new faith often put them at odds with their surroundings, including family, friends, and other associations they may have once had. In our own day, Luke reminds us that the only “side of history” that matters is the one that stands with the “cloud of witnesses” that looks to Jesus as the “pioneer and perfecter” of their faith (Heb. 12:1-2).

In Luke 12:50 Jesus speaks of a baptism He is to be baptized with. This is the Cross of Christ, on which Jesus obtained the mercy of God in the coming judgment for all those who know Him. The Cross is also the great dividing line of history between the Kingdom of God and the reign of sin. As Christians, when family, friends, and the world reject us for our faith, we are consoled knowing that this division was predicted by Jesus and is part of God’s plan to bring us into “the joy that was set before him” and for which Jesus suffered and died (Heb. 12:2).

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Readings from 13 Pentecost, Proper 15, Year C, Track 2. Jeremiah 23:23-29; Hebrews 11:29-12:2; Luke 12:49-56.

Preached on August 14, 2016 at Holy Trinity Church Inwood.

Hebrews 11:1-16 tells us about the faith of the saints of the Old Testament, of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and Sarah. Because of their faith, God “commended” them (gave them a good testimony, c.f. Heb. 11:2) and is not ashamed to be associated with them. In fact, He welcomes them into His own dwelling (11:16).

The author of Hebrews assured his readers that the same faith that saved those Old Testament heroes will save the community of early Christian believers too, and that their desire for a “better country” is not in vain. In our own day, we are reminded never to settle for an earthly home or identity, and to remain spiritually restless, until we too come to live in the city God has prepared for those who seek Him (11:6).

Faith allows us to understand the word of God (who is Jesus Christ) and to know — personally know — the creator of the universe (c.f. Heb. 11:3, John 1). By this faith we are commended by God and can therefore quiet our consciences and redirect our restlessness towards the hope that we will soon live in God’s own city.

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Readings from 12 Pentecost, Proper 14, Year C, Track 2. Genesis 15:1-6; Hebrews 11:1-16; Luke 12:32-40.

Preached on August 7, 2016 at Holy Trinity Church Inwood.