Trinity Lutheran Church Brattleboro

Epiphany of our Lord January 10, 2021 Our re-creation in baptism is an image of the Genesis creation, where the Spirit of God moved over the waters. Both Mark’s gospel and the story in Acts make clear that is the Spirit’s movement that distinguishes Jesus’ baptism from John’s. The Spirit has come upon us as upon Jesus and the Ephesians, calling us God’s beloved children and setting us on Jesus’ mission to re-create the world in the image of God’s vision of justice and peace. Sundays and Seasons Texts for Sunday, January 10, 2021 Genesis 1:1-5 Out of chaos, God brings order. Out of the formless void, God brings light. This familiar story was good news for the Israelites, who experienced much chaos in their history. It remains good news for us. God created and continues to create new life. Acts 19:1-7 In Ephesus, Paul encounters people who had received John’s baptism of repentance but had never heard of the Holy Spirit or of baptism in the name of Jesus. After Paul Baptizes them, the Holy Spirit comes upon them and empowers them with gifts of the Spirit. Mark 1:4-11 Mark’s gospel reports the story of Jesus’ baptism with some irony: the one on whom the Spirit descends is himself the one who will baptize others with the Holy Spirit.

The feast of Epiphany (“manifestation”) concludes the Christmas season with a celebration of God’s glory revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. In Isaiah and Ephesians, that glory is proclaimed for all nations and people. Like the light of the star that guided the magi to Jesus, the light of Christ reveals who we are: children of God who are claimed and washed in the waters of baptism. We are sent out to be beacons of the light of Christ, sharing the good news of God’s love to all people. Sundays and Seasons Texts for Sunday, January 3, 2021 Isaiah 60:1-6 Jerusalem is assured that nations will make a pilgrimage to her because the light of God’s presence is in her midst. The bountiful food of the sea and the profits of international trade will come streaming to Jerusalem and thereby declare God’s praise. Ephesians 3:1-12 What had been hidden from previous generations is now made known through the gospel ministry of Paul and others. In Christ both Jews and Gentiles participate in the richness of God’s promised salvation. Matthew 2:1-12 God’s promise shines bright in the night as magi follow a star to honor a new king. Strangers from a faraway land, they welcome the long-awaited messiah of Israel.

It is Christmas Eve at Trinity Lutheran Church, Brattleboro, VT! Join us today for our beautiful Christmas Eve Service. John said "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it." We seek the light. We are children of the light. Pastor Randy Wilburn presiding, Kris Grotz-Kuch is assistant minister and Laura Josephs on piano.

Fourth Sunday of Advent December 20, 2020 The Angel tells Mary that God will give David’s throne to her son Jesus. She is perplexed by Gabriel’s greeting and by the news of her coming pregnancy, but she is still able to say, “Count me in.” We who know that Jesus is called king only as he is executed still find it a mystery hard to fathom, but with Mary today we hear the news of what God is up to and say “Count us in.” Sundays and Seasons Texts for Sunday, December 20, 2020 2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16 Instead of David building a house (temple) for God, God promises to establish David’s house (dynasty) forever. Centuries later, after the Babylonian exile, no king sat on the throne. Even then, however, the people of Israel remembered his promise and continued to hope for a king, the messiah, God’s anointed. Romans 16:25-27 Peter closes his letter to the Romans by praising God because, in the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, God has revealed the promised, divine plan of salvation for all humanity. Paul proclaims this gospel of Christ in order to bring about the obedience of faith among all nations. Luke 1:26-38 Luke makes clear that God comes with good news for ordinary people from little known places. The king will not be born to royalty in a palace, but to common folk in a stall. Mary said “Here I am, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.”

Third Sunday of Advent December 13, 2020. JOY! The Season of Hope Texts for Sunday, December 13, 2020 Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11 Though the people had returned to Jerusalem from exile in Babylon, they continued to face hardship and oppression. In the language of the jubilee year described in Leviticus 25, the prophet, moved by the spirit of God, announces deliverance for those who are oppressed and comfort for those who mourn. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24 Paul concludes his letter to the Thessalonians by encouraging them to live lives of continual joy, prayer, and thanksgiving. The closing blessing is grounded in the hope of Christ’s coming. John 1:6-8, 19-28 John’s gospel describes Jesus as the “light of the world.” John the Baptist is presented as a witness to Jesus, one who directs attention away from himself to Christ, the true light.

John calls people to repent, to clear the decks, to completely reorder their lives so that nothing gets in the way of the Lord’s coming. The reading from Isaiah gives the context for this radical call: the assurance of forgiveness that encourages us to repent; the promise that the coming one will be gentle with the little ones. Isaiah calls us all to be heralds with John, to lift up our voices fearlessly and say, “See, your God is coming!” We say it to one another in worship, in order to say it with our lives in a world in need of justice and peace. Sundays and Seasons Texts for Sunday, December 6, 2020 Isaiah 40:1-5,11 In grand, flowing, poetic lines, the prophet announces that the exile of God’s people in Babylon is over. God will deliver Israel and will care for her as a shepherd cares for the sheep. This word can be trusted, because the only enduring reality in life is the word of God. 2 Peter 3:8-15a The author of this short letter calls on Christians to anticipate the promised coming of the Lord through conduct dedicated to God. Mark 1:1-8 The Gospel of Mark does not begin with a story of Jesus’ birth but with the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord.

First Sunday of Advent November 29, 2020 Stir up your power and come! The Psalmist’s plea in Psalm 80:2 has become familiar to us in the Advent prayers. Isaiah wants God to rip the heavens open. Both cry out for an apparently distant, angry God to show up, to save, to restore. When we hear Jesus describing the coming of the Son of Man with stars falling from heaven, it can sound dire and horrible, not like anything we would ever hope for. But when we really look at the suffering of people God loves, we can share the hope that God would tear open the heavens and come. Sundays and Seasons Texts for Sunday, November 29, 2020 Isaiah 64:1-9 This lament comes from a people who have had their hopes shattered. The visions of a rebuilt Jerusalem and a renewed people of God, spoke of in Isaiah 40-55, have not been realized. Instead, the people experience ruin, conflict, and famine. This lament calls God to account - to be the God who has brought deliverance in the past. 1 Corinthians 1:3-9 As the Christians in Corinth await the advent of Jesus, Paul reminds them how the Lord has already enriched them through spiritual gifts, and will continue to strengthen them until the coming day of the Lord. Mark 13:24-37 Jesus encourages his followers to look forward to the day when he returns in power and glory to end all suffering. “Keep alert, for you do not know when the time will come.”

Today is Sunday November 22, 2020, and it is Christ the King Sunday. This is the second Sunday since in-person worship service was suspended due to a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases in Vermont. It is also the Sunday before Thanksgiving. We live-streamed to Trinity's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/trinitybrattleboro/) and apologize for the glitches. Today we explore what it means to "See with hearts enlightened". We are truly thankful, grateful and blessed for all that we have, and for all that we are able to share with each other, and with the Brattleboro community as a whole. Despite all, we know we are blessed. At this special time of year we offer deep thanks and gratitude to Pastor Randy Wilburn for keeping us UNITED and IGNITED during these difficult Covid-19 days. Presiding today is Pastor Randy Wilburn, and Ron Solberg as Assistant Minister, and Laura Josephs on Piano. We reaffirm Trinity's Mission: To Serve God and His Creation with love, respect and dignity.