Lutheran - St. Paul's Sydney Podcast

When reading through this week’s Scriptures I noted the explanation below our Luke passage in my bible. The author writes beautifully about Jesus teaching us to pray. “The pattern for prayer that Jesus gives his disciples is short on our wants and big on God’s wants. Half of what Jesus tells us to do in prayer is worship God, keep him holy, and ask that his kingdom and his will take shape, not our...

This week we hear the story of Mary and Martha, and their different approaches to having Jesus visit. This is a familiar story to many of us, and at times I’m sure we have seen ourselves as either the frustrated Martha or the quiet, listening Mary. Linking this story with the second reading from Colossians, Colossians 1:15- 28    Pastor Mike Semmler gives us a message of hope: reminding us that wh...

“Go and do likewise.” These are the final words of our Gospel reading this week (Luke 10:25-37). Jesus is speaking about the Samaritan’s actions in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. He could also say this of his own actions. This week God reminds us that we have received mercy from God through Jesus so that we can pass this mercy and love on to others. Sometimes that’s easy, isn’t it? When your c...

This week our second reading is Galatians 6:1-16. Paul’s words to the church invite attention- ‘So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.’ (v9) There is a lot around us currently that might make us ‘grow weary’; laying heavy burdens on our hearts, family lives, community and culture- even before we start thinking about ‘doing what is r...

This week’s Gospel Luke 9:51-62   reminds us that there can be no half-heartedness in following Christ. We know as Christians that God is the ultimate King of the World (apologies to Leonardo De Caprio!) and that God has already triumphed over evil and sin. We are already on the winning team if we are followers of Jesus. However, it doesn’t always FEEL like that, does it? There are times in our li...

This week we remember that God is our help when we are in tough times. Our sermon reminds us that Elijah, God’s great prophet- a man who had seen God’s great works and healing for himself- also experienced feeling alone and being disappointed in God. When tough times come we lose our sense of perspective and even small things can appear overwhelming. We can get stuck in that feeling and unable to...

This week we celebrate Trinity Sunday. The Triune nature of our God is a mystery ‘more than we can bear’ (John 16:12b) as this week’s Gospel reading says. Have you ever tried to use a tripod and have one leg collapse? Or have you put one on the ground and noticed it wouldn’t stand until you made sure all the legs were the same length? When you get it right you have a really steady camera stand, or...

Today we celebrate the gift of Pentecost- when the Holy Spirit was poured out for us. What a wonderful blessing! This is a fantastic reminder that the best gifts often don’t come in boxes and can’t be wrapped in fancy paper. The best gifts are those we receive with our hearts- and that can be passed on to others in love. The greatest love we can pass on is the love of Jesus. God sent the Holy Spir...

This week we look both forward and back- as we examine the ways we see Jesus in God's Word after Easter. Next week we will celebrate Pentecost with a Multicultural Celebration and shared lunch at St Paul's- please come along if you are able! The lunch will offer an opportunity for fellowship and sharing with one another- a chance to see the face of Jesus in those around us. Our Gospel re...

This week's Gospel reading John 5:1-9 recounts the story of an invalid Jesus encounters at the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem. In this encounter Jesus asks, 'Do you want to get well?" Jesus does not presume to know what is wanted, but reflects God's goodness in giving us our own 'free will'. God does not pressure creation to come to Him, but instead asks gently and extends H...

This week's focus is on the unity all people have in Christ through the gift of the Holy Spirit. In our Acts reading Acts 11:1-18  we hear that the Holy Spirit helped Peter to understand this. He was encouraged to eat things, and spend time with people, he usually wouldn't. The message God's Holy Spirit was bringing was that God's family would include people from all nations. P...

Happy Mother's Day to all Mothers, Grandmothers, Great-Grandmothers, and those who care for us as a mother would. May God bless you today!  Our Gospel reading John 10:22-30   this week reminds us that Jesus is our 'Good Shepherd', and that He will never leave one of His sheep behind. That means you and I! These days there can be a negative connotation around being a 'sheep&apos...

This week's Gospel John 21:1-19   reminds us that we can rely on Jesus to give us all we need. We are blessed to be members of God's family. We are so loved that we are provided with every good thing, just as Jesus blesses His disciples with an extra-large catch of fish, and gives them a freshly-cooked breakfast! Jesus then asks His disciples to carry on the work He has begun. He gives P...

This week's Gospel reading John 20:19-31 recounts the story of Thomas, the disciple who heard that Jesus was alive but did not believe because he had not seen Him.    The good news is that Jesus meets Thomas' disbelief with compassion, gentleness and love. We too may have moments where we are unsure of God, or don't see His promises coming true in our lives. God also continues to co...

"He is Risen!" "He is Risen indeed!"  This is the call and response we delight in on Easter Sunday, reminding us of the wondrous promise-come-true of God's Word. But phew! -there's a lot to get through in Holy Week before we say those heart-lifting words. Jesus enters Jerusalem to shouts of joy- then He gathers with His closest friends to institute His holy meal of th...

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This week we hear again the story of Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem. It is a moment of great joy and excitement before the trials and sadness of Holy Week. We may have heard this story many times over our Christian lives- yet we are challenged each time to hear God's Word with fresh ears. This week I have been struck by Jesus' final words- "....if they keep quiet, the s...

This week's sermon and theme focus on our reading from Philippians 3:4-14.  Here Paul explains to the Jews that, although he is fully 'qualified' to belong to their cultural and religious family, he considers his identity first to be in Christ. Paul insists that he may be recognised as 'belonging' in other ways, but his priority is to 'press on towards' fully joi...

In this week’s Gospel Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32   Jesus tells the parable of the Prodigal Son. This is a familiar story to most Christians. Why is it so familiar? Perhaps not only because we have heard it often- but also because we really can identify with the characters in the story. There may have been a time you resented someone who gained advantages over you whilst doing less, or a time you received...

This week's Gospel Luke 13:1-9 contains a warning from Jesus about where we focus as we live here on earth. Jesus tells those around Him to turn away from sinful and selfish things, and reimmerse themselves in His teachings.   Jesus then tells a parable about a fig tree which bears no fruit. Our theme for this week draws upon that parable- we investigate the idea of being 'freshly fertil...

This week's Gospel reading Luke 13:31-35  recounts Jesus' ongoing mission despite persecution, and His frustration that the people of Jerusalem are not willing to be gathered safely to God. Instead, their hearts are hardened; despite knowing that something is 'not right' with their city even their ruler seeks to destroy the Good News.    Although we often go our own way, Jesus...

This week's Gospel reading Luke 4:1-13 , tells us of Jesus' testing in the desert. Jesus was put to the test with offers of food, wealth and power. How pertinent a reading for today's times! It seems that everywhere we look there are examples of those who want to control the world, lead it towards their own ends, or sacrifice the good of some for the benefit of a few. If we look int...

In this week’s Gospel Luke 9:28-43 we have Jesus shining with the full glory of God, in front of regular humans like you and me. We all know the feeling when sunshine reflects off a window or some other shiny surface directly into our eyes- it forces us to look away. Now imagine someone you know and love very much being transformed into an image of that brightness- do you think you would be able t...

Dear friends- God calls us to be different! This week's Gospel reading outlines how. In today's world we are drawn by opposing forces- both to conform and be 'like' (or 'liked') by those around us, and to be 'individual' and stand out in the crowd. Many people spend lots of time, especially on social media platforms, trying to show what makes them special. O...

This week God's Word blesses us with reassurance for those who trust in Him, and who use their lives to proclaim Him. It seems a pretty scary thing to do- opening our minds and hearts to others and sharing with them that Jesus is our everlasting hope. We pray that those around us see our lives of joy and expectation- yet we often are hesitant to speak about why we have this joy. Today's...