Your Faith Journey - Finding God Through Words, Song And Praise

Prelude from First Cello Suite by J. S. Bach performed by Coulton Theuer on viola on February 28, 2016 at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Special music by the Faith Lutheran Chorale of Okemos, Michigan

Special music by the Faith Lutheran Bells Choir on February 28, 2016

Asked about current tragic events, Jesus turns a lesson about whether suffering is deserved into a hard call to obedience. He then tells a parable that holds out hope that the timeline for ultimate judgment will be tempered by patience.

In our baptism, we are marked with the cross of Christ and sealed by the Holy Spirit. We are named as Christ’s own forever. And, we are charged with the call to love with a fierce, trusting and vulnerable love. We are called to love like that mother hen who opens her wings wide and exposes her heart to the foxes of the world, because that is the love we have been shown in Jesus the Christ. Vulnerable love like this is a sign of true courage, and it is the mark of true leadership.

Special music, Call to Lent arranged by J. Jerome Williams performed by the Chancel Choir of Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Special music from January 31, 2015 by the Chancel Choir of Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan

Today's sermon is based on the Gospel of Luke 4:21-30. In this verse:  People in Jesus’ hometown are initially pleased when he says that God will free the oppressed. Their pleasure turns to rage when he reminds them that God’s prophetic mission typically pushes beyond human boundaries so that mercy and healing are extended to those regarded as outsiders.   In this week’s gospel reading we get what former radio personality, Paul Harvey, would have called, “the rest of the story.” If you remember last week’s gospel reading, Jesus had gone to his hometown synagogue and read words from the great prophet Isaiah, saying: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, to preach good news to the poor.” Then, he sat down. The people’s eyes fixed on him, and he said, “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” The first public word spoken by Jesus himself in Luke’s gospel is the word “today.” That word is a favorite of Luke’s. It appears twelve times in Luke’s gospel. “Today” conveys a real sense of immediacy. Furt