Simply the Sermon for August 23, 2026: Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost

Our texts for Sunday, August 23rd, the 13th after Pentecost are: Jeremiah 15:15-21; Romans 12:9-21; and Matthew 16:21-28.

In Isaiah the people are advised to look to their spiritual ancestors as the rock from which they were hewn. Jesus declares that the church will be built on the rock of Peter’s bold confession of faith, even though Peter then sticks his foot in his mouth. God’s word of reconciliation and God’s mercy are keys to the church’s mission. Paul urges us to not be conformed to this world but to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, using our individual gifts to build up the body of Christ. From the table where we are nourished we are sent out to offer our spiritual worship through word and deed to neighbors, near and far.

August 23, 2026: Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for August 16, 2026: Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost

Our readings for the 12th Sunday after Pentecost are: Isaiah 56:1, 6-8; Psalm 67; and Matthew 15:[10-20] 21-28

In Isaiah we hear that God’s house shall be a house of prayer for all people and that God will gather the outcasts of Israel. The Canaanite woman in today’s gospel is a Gentile, an outsider, who is persistent and unflinching in her plea that Jesus heal her daughter. As Jesus commends her bold faith, how might our church extend its mission to those on the margins of society? In our gathering around word and meal we receive strength to be signs of comfort, healing, and justice for those in need.

August 16, 2026: Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for August 9, 2026: Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible readings for Sunday, August 9, the 11th Sunday after Pentecost are:1 Kings 19:9-18; Romans 10:5-15; and Matthew 14:22-33

Elijah finds the presence of God not in earthquake, wind, or fire, but in the sound of sheer silence. When the disciples face a great storm on the sea, they cry out with fear. Jesus says: “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Amid the storms of life, we gather to seek the calm presence of Christ that soothes our fears. In comforting words of scripture and in the refreshing bread and cup of the eucharist, God grants us peace and sends us forth to be a sign of God’s presence to others.

August 9, 2026: Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for August 2, 2026: Tenth Sunday After Pentecost

Our texts for Sunday, August 2 are: Isaiah 55:1-5; Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21 (as the call to worship); Romans 9:1-5; Matthew 14:13-21

In today’s first reading God invites all who are hungry or thirsty to receive food and drink without cost. Jesus feeds the hungry multitude and reveals the abundance of God. At the eucharistic table we remember all who are hungry or poor in our world today. In the offering we bring all that we have and all that we are to share with the people of God. As we share the bread of life, we are sent forth to give ourselves away as bread for the hungry.

August 2, 2026: Tenth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for July 26, 2026: Ninth Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible texts for Sunday, July 26 are: 1 Kings 3:5-12; Romans 8:26-39; and Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52.

Just like Solomon prays for wisdom, we seek to more deeply explore the treasures of faith, what are they, how will we receive them, is this something worth having. In today’s gospel Jesus offers everyday images in extraordinary measure that reveal to us the reign of God: a scraggly, invasive bush that becomes a sheltering home, yeast that penetrates and expands, a treasured pearl, a net that gains a great catch of both edible and inedible fish. Even as we seek the riches of God’s reign, the great surprise is that God’s grace finds us first!

July 26, 2026: Ninth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for July 19, 2026: Eighth Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible texts for Sunday, July 19 are: Isaiah 44:6-8; Romans 8:12-25; and Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43.

It is an age-old question: why is there evil in the world? In the parable of the wheat and the weeds Jesus suggests that both grow together until the harvest. With Paul, we long for the day that all creation will be set free from bondage and suffering. Having both weeds and wheat within us, we humbly place our hope in the promises of God, and from the Lord’s table we go forth to bear the fruit of justice and mercy.

July 19, 2026: Eighth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for July 12, 2026: Seventh Sunday After Pentecost

Our readings for Sunday, July 12 are: Isaiah 55:10-13; Romans 8:1-11; and Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23.

God’s word is like the rain that waters the earth and brings forth vegetation. It is also like the sower who scatters seed indiscriminately. Our lives are like seeds sown in the earth. Even from what appears to be little, dormant, or dead, God promises a harvest. At the Lord’s table we are fed with the bread of life, that we may bear fruit in the world.

July 12, 2026: Seventh Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for July 5, 2026: Sixth Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible texts for Sunday, June 5th are: Zechariah 9:9-12; Psalm 145:8-14; Romans 7:15-25a; and Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30.

The mystery of God’s ways is sometimes hidden from the wise and intelligent. Jesus associates with those often excluded from the religious community. Like Paul, we struggle with our own selfish desires and seek God’s mercy and forgiveness. We gather to be refreshed by Christ’s invitation: “Come to me, all you that are weary.” Gathered around word, water, and meal, we find rest for our souls.

July 6, 2026: Sixth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for June 28, 2026: Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible texts for June 28, the 5th Sunday after Pentecost are: Jeremiah 28:5-9;
Romans 6:12-23; and Matthew 10:40-42.

How do we know the way of welcome? How can we tell the true prophet from the false? The true prophecy doesn't give us all our wants and desires, instead it gives us guidance and hope and a welcoming seat at the table. In today’s gospel, Christ promises that the disciple who gives a cup of cold water to the little ones serves Christ himself. From worship we are sent on our baptismal mission: to both serve and be served by the little ones of this world and to be a sign of God’s merciful welcome.

June 28, 2026: Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for June 21, 2026: Fourth Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible texts for June 22, the 4th Sunday after Pentecost are: Jeremiah 20:7-13; Romans 6:1b-11; and Matthew 10:24-39.

God does not promise that the path of the disciple will be easy. Jeremiah feels the pain of rejection from those who do not want to hear what he has to say and yet he knows that God is with him and is encouraging him and giving him strength to go on. Jesus declares that his words may bring stark division. Even so, we need not be afraid, for God accounts for each hair on our heads. Though we may experience rejection, frustration, division, and death, God’s grace and love make us a new creation each day. Marked with the cross and filled with holy food, we are sent from worship to witness to Christ in the world.

June 21, 2026: Gospel Reading

The Bethel Worship Team

June 21, 2026: Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for June 14, 2026: Third Sunday After Pentecost

Our texts for Sunday, June 14, the 3rd Sunday after Pentecost are: Exodus 19:2-8a; Psalm 100; Romans 5:1-8, and Matthew 9:35—10:23

Moses tells the Israelites that they are called to be a priestly kingdom and a holy people. Jesus sends out the disciples as laborers into the harvest. In baptism we too are anointed for ministry, sharing God’s compassion with our needy world. From the Lord’s table we go forth to proclaim the good news, to heal the sick, and to share our bread with the hungry, remembering all the while that we are held in the palm of God's hand.

June 14, 2026: Third Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for June 7, 2026: Second Sunday After Pentecost

Our Bible readings for the 2nd Sunday in Pentecost (the Affirmation of Faith for Lolia) are Hosea 5:15—6:6; Romans 4:13-25; Matthew 9:9-13,

Though Jesus was a devout Jew who practiced his faith, he was criticized for eating with tax collectors and sinners—the religiously non-observant. Jesus criticizes the self-righteous and reminds us that mercy is to be at the heart of our religious practices. God continues to be made known in those on the margins of society, like Matthew the tax collector and the hemorrhaging woman. As we gather each Lord’s day we receive the healing that makes us well and sends us forth to be signs of God’s mercy for the world.

Jesus calls us and we can come running. No fear!

June 7, 2026: Second Sunday After Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for May 31, 2026: The Holy Trinity

Good day to you all!!

Our readings for Holy Trinity Sunday, May 31, 2026 are: Genesis 1:1—2:4a; Psalm 8; 2 Corinthians 13:11-13; and Matthew 28:16-20.

Though the word trinity is not found in the scriptures, today’s second reading includes the apostolic greeting that begins the liturgy: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. In the gospel Jesus sends his disciples forth to baptize in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. More than a doctrine, the Trinity expresses the heart of our faith: we have experienced the God of creation made known in Jesus Christ and with us always through the Holy Spirit. We celebrate the mystery of the Holy Trinity in word and sacrament, as we profess the creed, and as we are sent into the world to bear witness to our faith.

May 31, 2026: The Holy Trinity

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for May 24, 2026: Day of Pentecost

The readings for Sunday, May 24, the Day of Pentecost are: Acts 2:1-21; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13; and John 20:19-23.

Pentecost derives its name from the Jewish festival celebrating the harvest and the second giving of the law on Mount Sinai fifty days after Passover. Fifty days after Easter, we celebrate the Holy Spirit as God’s presence within and among us. In Acts the Spirit arrives in rushing wind and flame, bringing God’s presence to all people and creating a new community. Paul reminds us that though we each have different capacities, we are unified in the Spirit that equips us with these gifts. Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on his disciples, empowering them to forgive sin. We celebrate that we too are given the breath of the Holy Spirit and sent out to proclaim God’s redeeming love to all the world.

May 24, 2026: Day of Pentecost

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for May 17, 2026: Seventh Sunday of Easter

Our readings for Sunday, May 17 are: Acts 1:6-14; 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11; and John 17:1-11. This is the final Sunday in the Easter season. This coming Sunday we celebrate Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit following the ascension of Jesus. You are invited to wear red or any other color of fire; yellows, oranges or the like.

In these days between Ascension and Pentecost, we gather with the disciples in the upper room, waiting for the Spirit to transform the church around the world. In today’s gospel Jesus prays for his followers and for their mission in his name. Amid religious, social, and economic divisions, we seek the unity that Jesus had with his Father. Made one in baptism, we go forth to live our faith in the world, eager for the unity that God intends for the whole human family.

May 17, 2026: Seventh Sunday of Easter

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for May 10, 2026: Sixth Sunday of Easter

Our Bible readings for today, the 6th Sunday in Easter, are: Acts 17:22-31; 1 Peter 3:13-22; and John 14:15-21.

Our reading from John assures us that Jesus does not abandon his followers. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus comes to abide with his disciples of every generation. As Pentecost draws near, we are reminded that the risen Christ dwells in us as the Spirit of truth. We receive this Spirit in baptism and pray that in our gathering around the Lord’s table the Spirit will transform us to be the body of the risen Christ in the world.

May 10, 2026: Sixth Sunday of Easter

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for May 3, 2026: Fifth Sunday of Easter

Our Bible texts for May 3, 2026, the 5th Sunday in Easter are: Acts 7:55-60; 1 Peter 2:2-10; and John 14:1-14.

As we continue to celebrate the fifty days of Easter, today’s gospel includes Jesus’ promise, especially to the ones who disappoint him, that he goes to prepare a place for his followers in his Father’s house. Our baptism commissions us to share Jesus’ mission in the world. As 1 Peter reminds us, we are a holy people, called to proclaim the one who called us out of darkness into light. In words and deeds we bear witness to the risen Christ—our way, our truth, our life.

May 3, 2026: Fifth Sunday of Easter

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for April 26, 2026: Fourth Sunday of Easter

Our readings for Sunday April 26, the 4th Sunday in Easter are: Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2:19-25; John 10:1-10.

Today is sometimes called “Good Shepherd Sunday” but we at Bethel focused on the Acts reading where we hear the stories of the earliest Christians. Amazing as it might sound, the Jewish Christ followers shared all that they had and all that they were as they learned about the Way of Christ and the love that is given to all who believe.

We, as Christians, are still called to, freely and without qualifications, share the gifts that God has given us.

April 26, 2026: Fourth Sunday of Easter

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for April 19, 2026: Third Sunday of Easter

Our readings for April 19, the 3rd Sunday in Easter are: Acts 2:14a, 36-41;1 Peter 1:17-23; and Luke 24:13-35

Today’s gospel begins with two disciples walking to Emmaus, overcome with sadness, loss, and disappointment. They had hoped Jesus, who was crucified, would be the one to redeem Israel! Yet the risen Christ walks with them and then opens their eyes in the breaking of the bread. Each Sunday our hearts burn within us as the scriptures are proclaimed and Christ appears to us as bread is broken and wine is poured. The story of Emmaus becomes the pattern of our worship each Lord’s day.

April 19, 2026: Third Sunday of Easter

The Bethel Worship Team

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Simply the Sermon for April 12, 2026: Second Sunday of Easter "Holy Humor Sunday"

Our readings for April 12, the second Sunday in Easter, are: Acts 2:14a, 22-32;
Psalm 16; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31. It was Holy Humor Sunday so our liturgy was a bit wackier than usual. You might enjoy reading through the bulletin to experience it. We used noise makers and percussion instruments to share our joy at God's incredible gifts of love and laughter. Our sermon was shared by video by Bishop Brenda Bos. We hope you enjoy it.

In today’s gospel the risen Christ appears to the disciples and offers them the gift of peace. Even amid doubts and questions, we experience the resurrection in our Sunday gathering around word and meal, and in our everyday lives. Throughout the coming Sundays of Easter the first two readings will be from the Acts of the Apostles and the first letter of Peter. Even as the early Christians proclaimed the resurrection, we rejoice in the new birth and living hope we receive in baptism.