Lutheran Church Of The Savior Sermon Podcast With Rev. Andrew Tengwall

Fourth Sunday of Lent, Lectionary Year BEphesians 2:1-10On the day of our big Shots for Shots fundraiser, a basketball event for the ELCA Malaria Campaign, we ran into some adversity. God's grace is greater that this, or any, adversity.

Third Sunday of Lent, Lectionary Year BExodus 20:1-17I've long found the Ten Commandments to be quite vexing, especially since learning that Lutherans count the Ten differently than any other Christian or Jewish group. When we talk about God's Law, what are we really talking about?

Peter is a great biblical example of God using failure to accomplish God's intentions. Society teaches us to avoid failure at all costs, but Jesus shows us another way.

Each year on the first Sunday of Lent we hear about Jesus being tempted in the wilderness. Some temptations are not the straightforward ones about money, sex or power, but instead are unexpected and can more easily worm their way into our hearts. Watch out for these temptations that seek to keep us from the reign of God.

Ash Wednesday reminds us that God comes to us through mysteries. The rite of ashes and repentance has a sacramental quality that draws us into deeper relationship with God and into deeper knowledge of ourselves.

Transfiguration of Our Lord, Lectionary Year BMark 9:2-9One definition of an epiphany is "a moment in which you suddenly see or understand something in a new or very clear way." Sometimes these moments happen on our worst days, and God is with us in those times.

Fifth Sunday after Epiphany, Lectionary Year BMark 1:29-39Jesus frees us to follow him wherever he goes, loving and serving God and our neighbor.

Second Sunday after Epiphany, Lectionary Year B1 Samuel 3:1-20Young Samuel heard the voice of God, and Phillip told Nathanael to "come and see" what Jesus was all about. Our Psalm today describes our bodies as marvelously made by God, and Paul's letter to the Corinthians describes our bodies as temples of the Holy Spirit. How do we experience God in our bodies, with our physical senses? And why does God come to us in these ways?

Baptism of Our Lord, Lectionary Year BMark 1:4-11Today we remembered Jesus' baptism and our own by hearing that each of us is a child of God. Our sermon today was less a proclamation of the gospel than an explanation of the ritual that would proclaim the message more clearly. And what better way to receive this good news than from a child?

Second Sunday of Christmas, Lectionary Year BEphesians 1:3-14The Christmas season offers us so many ways to see and experience the overwhelming grace of God.

Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas EveLuke 2:1-20The Christmas narrative in Luke's Gospel is very familiar to us, with Mary and Joseph and the stable and the shepherds and the angels. That familiarity sometimes obscures the many surprises in this story. Mary and Joseph? Why them? A stable? Angels? Shepherds? Every part of this story surprises us when we look with fresh eyes at the amazing tale of God's gift of love to the world in the birth of Jesus. In order to emphasize the surprising core of this story, I tried something new on this Christmas Eve, a small gift to reflect the amazing gift God gave at Christmas.

Fourth Sunday of Advent, Lectionary Year BLuke 1:26-38As we celebrated another baptism on this Sunday, we remember that God always chooses us, and God's promises are so much greater than our own.

Second Sunday of Advent BIsaiah 40:1-11God's call of the second prophet Isaiah in today's lesson marks a new beginning in the life of Israel. The exile is over and God's mercy will shape their future. Today's baptism also marks a new beginning shaped by God's promise of love and mercy.

God does awesome deeds that we do not expect.

Christ the King Sunday AMatthew 25:31-46Christ the King, or Reign of Christ, is the final Sunday of the church year. Our Gospel lesson is Jesus' iconic judgment of the nations from his heavenly throne, surrounded by the heavenly host. In this state I like to call him cosmic awesome Jesus, king of the universe, Lord of heaven and earth. So how is it that I recognized the significance of this story while relaxing after yoga?

23rd Sunday after Pentecost AMatthew 25:14-30God gives us so much more than we expect. What do we do with God's unexpected abundance?

All Saints Sunday, Lectionary Year ARevelation 7:9-17Revelation has become my favorite book of the Bible. Hear why in this sermon for All Saints.

Reformation SundayMatthew 22:34-46 (alternate Gospel lesson)To reform is to change, and the church has a particular kind of change at the heart of our community: the change from death to life. Resurrection is the reformation we seek.

19th Sunday after Pentecost, Lectionary Year AMatthew 22:15-22The Pharisees' challenge to Jesus about whether or not to pay taxes to the emperor famously ends with Jesus' witty victory when he asks to see whose image is on the coin. Whose image do we bear, and whose image do others see in us?

Richard Paul DindaJanuary 19, 1954 - October 5, 2014Excerpted from his obituary: "Richard was a very active member of Lutheran Church of the Savior in Kalamazoo. At one time he operated the church sound system. Other church-related activities included playing guitar at folk services, organizing annual outings, and representing the congregation on the steering committee of the Greater Kalamazoo CROP walk organization."