Gospel of Luke
The Help We Need the Most
April 30, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
This Sunday Redeemer will do something we have never done before. Redeemer takes the individual spiritual care of our members more seriously than anything else we do. Supporting your communion with God is the top priority of our leadership. In order to better do this we have been working hard over the last year to expand our team of leaders who provide our members with loving and proactive spiritual care. In the past this work was done primarily by our elders, but as the Redeemer community has expanded our six elders have struggled to provide all our members with the shepherding care they need. A year ago the members of Redeemer recommended to the elders a handful of godly women to be considered to serve on the shepherding team as diaconal assistants with the elders and deacons. This Sunday, after months of training, five women will be appointed to serve in this capacity. Christie Brewer, Nancy Cox, Stephanie Handley, Emily Patterson and Anita Regehr will all be appointed to join the shepherding team and work closely with the elders and deacons to provide each member of our church with the shepherding care they need to thrive in their communion with God. Consider allowing your older children to stay in the worship service during the sermon to observe and participate in the appointment. A shorter sermon describing the significance of this appointment will be followed by a ceremony for these women as we thank God for their service to Redeemer and charge them to faithfully carry out their duty. This is an important day in the life of our church. I am excited to share it together. Pastor David
The Ascension of our Lord
April 23, 2017 • Rev. Adam Feichtmann
Do you ever think about Jesus’ ascension? As the church, we think regularly about Jesus’ birth, life, ministry, death, and his resurrection, but the ascension is more often than not an afterthought. The ascension is how Luke concludes his gospel account, but for most of us it is the forgotten ending. This Sunday we are finishing our preaching series on the Gospel of Luke. As the grand finale of Luke’s gospel account, he describes the ascension of Christ our Lord. As we end our study of Luke, may Jesus’ ascension not be a forgotten ending. To best let Luke’s finale stick with us and to prepare for our text, read, meditate, and pray through the Gospel of Luke 24:49-53. As you do, reflect on Jesus’ absence. Jesus is gone. He is gone! His presence turns to absence. How would you feel if someone you loved, depended on, and enjoyed is gone? Now what? For the disciples this is what they are facing with the ascension of Jesus. Yet, the absence of Jesus moves them to worship and experience joy. How is that possible? We feel and know the absence of Jesus. Is joy possible for us? I look forward to gathering with you this Sunday to see if Jesus’ ascension and absence can move us to worship and experience joy in the same way it did for the disciples! Pastor Adam
The Last Week - Friday Afternoon: The Death
April 9, 2017 • Rev. Adam Feichtmann
What is the worst thing you can imagine happening to you? On what is believed to be Friday, April 3rd, AD 33, the worst thing imaginable in all of history happened. Jesus Christ was crucified. It was the middle of the day and darkness covered the whole land and the feeling of God’s judgment was palpable in the air. This Sunday is the sixth and last Sunday in Lent. As we head toward the bright light of Easter, we will conclude our Lenten preaching series on the final days of Jesus’ life by studying the darkest and worst thing imaginable, Jesus’ death from Luke 23:44-49. Even though the cross and the scene in Luke 23:44-49 is humanity’s worst nightmare, Luke in this text shows us how God transforms our worst nightmare into the fulfillment of our grandest dream. Take a few minutes this weekend to read, meditate, and pray through these verses. Reflect on the darkness and also the beauty of what happens on the cross. I can’t wait to worship together this Sunday! Pastor Adam
The Last week - Thursday Night: Betrayal
March 26, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
You be the judge. Make an assessment of the statement below: “I know what God wants me to do, the path he is calling me to walk, but with every ounce of my will, in the deepest most visceral sense of my being, I want to go another way.” When one is having this experience is it wrong? Is it sinful? Is it even possible to overcome such a deep conflict of will and follow God where we don’t want to go? On Thursday night after the Passover meal, Jesus speaks directly to his disciples about what is about to happen within the next hours. In the words of Andreas J. Kostenberger and Justin Taylor, “Jesus promises restoration even as he predicts [the disciples] failure.” Jesus tells them that their wills will turn against him and they will betray him. However, this betrayal will not have the final word. Take a few minutes this weekend to read and pray through Luke 22:14-53. For those who have been betrayed, for those who have betrayed others, for all of us, Jesus shows us, gives us, a way to health. Pastor David
The Last Week - Thursday Night: Given for You
March 19, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
Hungry? We celebrate the Lord’s Supper every week at Redeemer, but have you ever paused to reflect on what it is and why we do it? In Luke 22 we find that the Lord’s Supper, also called Communion or the Eucharist, was given to the church by Jesus himself (see also Matthew 26, Mark 14 and 1Corinthians 11), but why? They may be familiar words to some of us, but it is quite odd to talk of eating someone’s body and drinking their blood. What is a covenant in blood? What is the significance that Jesus does this all at the important Passover celebration of the Jews? We will see from Luke 22 that Jesus, like a master chef, is taking many ingredients – images, promises and expectations from the Old Testament – and combining them into one magnificent meal that both highlights the essence and significance of those original ingredients and makes something surprisingly new. Jesus then sets the table, lays out the feast, and invites all who trust him to join him at this banquet. As you prepare for worship this Sunday, read Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 22 and 1Corinthinas 11. Pray through these passages with your family and friends, and come to worship hungry. Pastor David
The Last Week: Tuesday & Wednesday
March 12, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
Sunday and Monday of Jesus’ last week proved to be quite dramatic. Entrance into the city with rejoicing crowds, weeping over a city whose eyes were closed, then rage in the temple. Surely the powers that be in Jerusalem are trying to get their bearings after such an entrance, weighing their options. What would they do with Jesus the rabble-rouser, the instigator, the charismatic rebel leader? Who does Jesus think he is anyway? Tuesday and Wednesday prove a bit more subdued, but only on the surface. Jesus spends most of his time teaching in the temple and verbally sparring with the religious leaders and their spies. It is here, in these back and forth dialogues that Jesus exposes why these leaders are really opposed to him. It is there, at the motivating center, the heart of a person, the real reason behind our actions, that the real battle rages. The battle is always there. Lent is a time to look at the battle that rages within us. It is a battle over loyalty and love. Who we will give them to and who we won’t. Who or what will hold our chief affections. Read, meditate, pray and contemplate Luke 20. What is Jesus exposing in the hearts of his opponents? What might he be lovingly exposing within us? The only way to the life we long for is to give it away. Will we follow Jesus with love and loyalty on that path? This is where he is leading us during his last week, these 6 weeks of Lent, and all of our weeks. Pastor David
The Last Week - Sunday & Monday: Rejoicing, Weeping, and Rage
March 5, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
Was Jesus an emotional wreck or what? This Sunday marks the first Sunday in Lent. Starting on Ash Wednesday, which was last Wednesday, Lent is a season of 46 days, 40 days not including Sundays. It is a season of repentance and preparation as the church journeys together toward the cross of Christ on Good Friday and the resurrection of Christ on Easter Sunday. During the six Sundays of Lent this year, our sermons will focus on the last week of Jesus’ life. In the words of authors Andreas Kostenberger and Justin Taylor, this time is “the most important week of the most important person who ever lived.” During our study of Luke these last months, we have followed Jesus on his last journey to Jerusalem. His last week begins with his last entrance into that troubled city, and it closes up around him, to consume him. The sermon this Sunday will focus on Sunday and Monday of Jesus’ last week, and it is a storm of emotion. Read, meditate, pray, and contemplate Luke 19:37-46. Notice the emotion Jesus expresses. The crowds rejoice and Jesus praises and encourages the rejoicing. Then he weeps. Then he rages. This is our invitation into the journey of Lent. Are we ready to rejoice, to weep, and to rage? Pastor David
Seek & Find
February 19, 2017 • Rev. Adam Feichtmann
Jesus came eating and drinking. Most of Jesus’ ministry was done around tables and in homes. Tables and shared meals are powerful settings and Jesus clearly takes advantage of them as a venue to do some teaching. In Luke 14 Jesus is in the home of a Pharisee enjoying a meal, and then he begins to stir the pot by giving the host and other guests some lessons in table etiquette. It is fascinating to hear the way Jesus teaches. Listening to him almost makes the hairs on the back of our necks stand up, while at the same time we can feel more loved than we could ever dream. Read, meditate and pray through Luke 14:1-24. Imagine yourself at the table eating with Jesus. What would you be feeling? What would you leave the table thinking about? I can’t wait to worship together! Pastor Adam
Lost & Found
February 12, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
Surprise! Imagine it. There is a celebration and all the rejoicing is over you. Some of us may hate the idea of a surprise party, but try to remember a moment when you felt genuinely and deeply celebrated. Even if specific memories don’t come to mind I think we can all imagine what that feels like. Life-giving. Beautiful. Powerful. Last week I asked all of us to get honest about the ways we are trying to build a life for ourselves apart from Jesus. Then, sincerely and honestly, to pray the same prayer as the tax collector from Luke 18:13, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” Now with three stories recorded in Luke 15, Jesus shows us how God responds to those honest prayers of repentance. We all need to hear how God responds. When we learn to hear God’s response day in and day out, we will finally find the transforming life-giving power to become the people we long to be and that God is shaping us into. Read, meditate and pray through Luke 15. I can’t wait to worship together. Pastor David
Who Do You Want To Be?
February 5, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
There are no good options here. None. Read this parable from Jesus in Luke 18:9-14. Pick a character to identify with. Let’s set aside our pious right answers. Who do you want to be? Let’s just say that we want the right thing. That deep within us we have at least a vague notion of the good and the beautiful, of what will bring us the lives we long for. However, the way we go about trying to get it is so backward and tangled up that our progress is not only hindered, but we set off in the completely wrong direction. We all do this. Both men in this parable have done this. Jesus shows us how to untangle and actually get what we long for. I will pray for you. You pray for me. We need this message from Jesus. Will we declare dependence or pursue independence? Read, meditate, and pray through Luke 18:9-14. Who do you want to be? Is it time to switch paths? Pastor David
Time & Faithfulness
January 29, 2017 • Rev. Adam Feichtmann
Our time is ours, right? This Sunday we will continue walking with Jesus on his last journey to Jerusalem as he gives instructions to his closest followers regarding what they do with their time. In the Gospel of Luke 12:35-48, Jesus tells two parables on the topics of time and faithfulness. Read, meditate, pray, and listen to God speak to you in these parables prior to Sunday morning. Let Jesus’ words both deeply encourage and lovingly challenge you in how you think about and also spend your time. I can’t wait to worship together. Pastor Adam
Old Moneybags
January 22, 2017 • Rev. David Juelfs
Money speaks, but we give it the script. What words have you given your money to whisper back into your ears? We are walking with Jesus on his last journey to Jerusalem. We are listening in to his instructions given to his closest followers who will continue his movement after he wins the victory on the cross that defines it. Throughout the many illustrations and instructions in this section of Luke, we hear Jesus call his first followers and us to declare complete and utter dependence on him. He tells us that to the extent that we learn to depend on him and trust in God’s fatherly care, we can be free from crippling anxiety and able to walk with confidence and hope no matter what we face. Over the next few weeks we will look at a few of the chief culprits that Jesus warns us can threaten to pull our dependence away from him and on to themselves, thereby stealing away our confidence and joy, replacing it with anxiety and insecurity. Read, meditate and pray through Luke 12:22-34 again this week. Focus on verses 32-33. Let’s ask ourselves, “What does our money whisper into our ears? How might Jesus correct or confirm those words?” I can’t wait to worship together. Pastor David
Declaration of Dependence
January 15, 2017 • Rev. Adam Feichtmann
The new year is underway. What have you declared? Any new commitments? Have you asserted or announced anything about how 2017 will be different? This Sunday the sermon will focus on a passage from the Gospel of Luke in which Jesus is calling for a declaration and a new commitment, a declaration of dependence. What we depend on forms the foundation upon which our day-to-day experience is built. No matter what circumstances we face, what we choose to depend on shapes how we experience them. Over the next weeks we will complete our study of the Gospel of Luke. During Epiphany we will walk with Jesus on his final journey to Jerusalem through to Luke 19. We will hear his call to declare our utter dependence on him and listen to several of Jesus’ evocative stories revealing God as the one who lovingly seeks to find and care for the lost. Then during Lent we will focus on the last week of Jesus’ life beginning in Luke 19 and culminating with the celebration of his resurrection at Easter. In preparation for this Sunday read, pray, and meditate on Luke 12:22-34. Ask yourself how declaring dependence on Jesus in this way might change your life. Imagine. Imagine life in full dependence on Jesus free from anxiety. This is what Jesus is offering. Are we ready to declare dependence? Pastor David