St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York10 August 2025 + Ninth Sunday after PentecostProper 14 / Lectionary 19cLuke 12:32-40The Rev. Josh Evans Three years ago,I decided to shake things up in worship.That summer, while I was still in my previous call,I opted for the alternate set of first readings –sometimes called the “semi-continuous” first readingsfor the …
St. John’s Lutheran Church3 September 2023 + Lectionary 22a (14 Pentecost)Matthew 16.21-28Rev. Josh Evans Everyone remembers Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Many of us could probably quote whole parts of it. We remember the most defining moments in King’s early ministry through the civil rights movement — the Montgomery bus boycott, the …
St. Philip Lutheran Church10 July 2022 + Lect. 15c (Pentecost 5)Amos 7.7-17; Luke 10.25-37Rev. Josh Evans You know the feeling: Enough is enough. Maybe you’re overwhelmed with work or household chores. Or maybe you’re someone who has raised children or grandchildren. You’re exasperated. You’re tired. Your patience is running thin. It’s just…too much. You’re fed …
St. Philip Lutheran Church15 November 2020 + Lectionary 33AMatthew 25.14-30Rev. Josh Evans, preaching #2020. It’s become a bit of a trope for the past year. Something bad happens? Pin it on 2020. The year that always makes us wonder, “What will happen next?” 2020 has certainly kept us on our toes, hasn’t it? Maybe 2020 …
St. Philip Lutheran Church27 September 2020 + Lectionary 26AMatthew 21.23-32; Ezekiel 18.1-4, 25-32Rev. Josh Evans, preaching So you think you’ve got it all figured out? Think again. The proverb that stands at the beginning of our reading from Ezekiel was a common understanding of justice: The children will pay for the sins of their parents, …
Lutheran Center Chapel, Chicago23 October 2019 + Lectionary 29CGenesis 32.22-31; Luke 18.1-8Rev. Josh Evans, preaching Over the past year, I have become deeply acquainted with the commute between Milwaukee and Chicago. I’ve seen I-94 through various stages of construction, but only recently, have I started to notice the signs that read “Stay In Your Lane.” …
This week, I was invited to preach at the weekly Eucharist at the Churchwide Office ("headquarters") of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), where I have also recently started a position as Interim Coordinator for Global Service Events with the Global Mission Unit of the ELCA. Pictured above, from left to right, is me, …
Continue reading A Sermon about Sabbath, Life, and Liberation: Lectionary 9 / Pentecost 2
Augustana Lutheran Church 7 May 2017 + Fourth Sunday of Easter 1 Peter 2.19-25 Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Fourth Sunday of Easter brings us to Good Shepherd Sunday. It’s tempting, isn’t it, to dwell in the midst of the idyllic early Christian community described in our reading from Acts, or to linger beside the …
Continue reading A Sermon about Resistance in the Face of Suffering
Augustana Lutheran Church 22 January 2017 + Third Sunday after Epiphany (Lectionary 3A) Matthew 4.12-23 How are your New Year’s resolutions going? I won’t make us do a show of hands (though that would be kind of fun), but I’m willing to bet most of us who made some sort of resolution for 2017 will …
Continue reading A Sermon about Change and Being Called as Dearly Beloved Disciples
...which started out as a Facebook post that became a wee bit too long. The first class I took in seminary was The Theology of Martin Luther King, Jr. I learned so much in that class -- from readings from King, from classmates, and of course from the brilliant Dr. Pete Pero. One of our …
Pastor Josh Evans 