Simply the Sermon for September 20, 2026: Seventeenth Sunday After Pentecost
Our readings for Sunday, September 20, the 17th Sunday after Pentecost are Jonah 3:10—4:11; Philippians 1:21-30; and Matthew 20:1-16.
Matthew narrates one of Jesus’ more controversial parables in which Jesus says that the reign of God is like that of a landowner who pays his workers the same wage no matter what time of day they began to work. When God changes God’s own mind about punishing Nineveh for their evil ways, Jonah is angry. Yet God is gracious and merciful, abounding in steadfast love. In baptism we receive the grace of God that is freely given to all. As Martin Luther wrote, in the presence of God’s mercy we are all beggars. And sometimes that irritates us, to no end!
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