St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York17 November 2024 + Advent 2 (Lectionary 33b)Mark 13:1-8Rev. Josh Evans “There is one sin which I have come to fear above all others.Certainty.Certainty is the great enemy of unity.Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance.Even Christ was not certain at the end.[‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York27 October 2024 + Lectionary 30b (Reformation)Mark 10:46-52Rev. Josh Evans I can’t help but wonderhow long he had been sitting there. I can’t help but wonderwhat stories, or news, or town gossip he had heard,just sitting there –ignored and out of sight…but certainly not out of earshot. This beggar,this nobody,except …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York20 October 2024 + Lectionary 29bMark 10:35-45Rev. Josh Evans “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” What could go wrong? Even so, Jesus entertains their request:“What is it you want me to do for you?” And without skipping a beat, they name it outright:“Appoint …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York13 October 2024 + Lectionary 28bMark 10:17-31Rev. Josh Evans “You know the commandments.”Do you, Jesus?Because you only named six of them.You couldn’t even name all ten of the big ones –let alone the other 603 that are outlined in the law of Moses.Did you forget a few –hoping (as apparently …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York6 October 2024 + Lectionary 27bGenesis 2:18-24; Mark 10:2-16Rev. Josh Evans We almost know the story by heart:When God began to create the heavens and the earth… Over the course of the six days of creation,God speaks something into existence,and so it appears:Let there be light.And there was light. Let …
Evangelical, Poestenkill & Faith, Troy22 September 2024 + Lectionary 25bMark 9:30-37Rev. Josh Evans (no video this week) I wonder what prompted their conversation about greatness. Were they planning for the future?For Jesus’ replacement?For which one of them would naturally take over when he is killed,a fact he has told them (at least) twice now? Were …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York15 September 2024 + Lectionary 24bMark 8:27-38Rev. Josh Evans The stage is set, and the debate is ready to begin.Each party has taken their place at the podium,ready to defend their platform,and the moderator asks the first question:“Who do people say that I am?” The disciples, in turn, offer various …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York8 September 2024 + Lectionary 23bMark 7:24-37; James 2:1-10, 14-17; Psalm 146Rev. Josh Evans It sounds like Jesus didn’t read James:“If you show partiality, you commit sin…” But of course that’s an anachronism.Jesus would have had no occasion to read James,a book written many years after his lifetime. But surely …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York7 July 2024 + Lectionary 14bMark 6:1-13Rev. Josh Evans It’s not always easy, this life of being a disciple. Take nothing. No bread, no bag, no money. Nothing but your staff, the clothes on your back, and the sandals on your feet. Take nothing. Utterly rely on the providence of …
St. John’s Lutheran ChurchAlbany, New York23 June 2024 + Lectionary 12bMark 4:35-41Rev. Josh Evans A mysterious new alarm appears on the console. “It’s probably not important,” they say, dismissively. Such is where we leave the intrepid crew of personified emotions – Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust – safely in “Headquarters,” having navigated now 12-year-old …
Pastor Josh Evans 