Tag Archives: way

Preaching, Sermons

A Third Way in a Mad World

Caitlin Trussell with Augustana Lutheran Church on January 25, 2026

[sermon begins after two Bible readings; one more Bible reading is at the end of the sermon]

Matthew 4:12-23 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the gentiles
16 the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.”
17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishers. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
23 Jesus went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Isaiah 9:1-4There will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time [the Lord] brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
2 The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness—
on them light has shined.
3 You have multiplied exultation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
as with joy at the harvest,
as people exult when dividing plunder.
4 For the yoke of their burden
and the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Midian.

[sermon begins]

Last week at my gym, the question of the day was, “What is a skill you have and the aha moment that took it to the next level?” My skill was caramelizing onions. The aha moment was that caramelizing onions will NOT be rushed. They just take time and tending. Don’t believe those five-minute recipes. Once I got my head around the time they take, yum. Time I’m willing to take because I love to cook. And time I’m willing to take because there was a time in recent years when cooking the things I love to eat wasn’t available to me. The sensuality of cooking manifests in taste, touch, smell, and sounds. And the artistry of it shows in colors, textures, and layers. Combining edible things into more than the sum of their parts reminds me that the world is an enchanted place. An enchanted place that sustains our bodies with all that we need. Wouldn’t it be nice if the world worked the way that cooking does? A list of ingredients, combined in just the right way at the right time and temperature, blend to sensually and artistically nourish life. Alas. The tragedy is that we keep returning to the same tricks to turn the world in our favor.

In our reading from Matthew, Jesus’ ministry begins after John was arrested. We’re given no details about John’s arrest but it’s a really big, ultimately deadly deal. John didn’t survive his imprisonment. Remarkably, Jesus used the same words that John used to inaugurate his ministry, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” That’s a bold move by Jesus given that the one who had been saying those words was now in the custody of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee who also answered to Rome. Jesus repeating John’s proclamation isn’t less risky because it’s already been said. Jesus’ risk increased because he knowingly connects his message with John’s.

More than just turning away from bad things, repent in the Bible means to be of a new mind.[1] Herod Antipas wasn’t a fan of new perspectives. He liked his own ideas, thank you very much. Hence, John’s arrest. Jesus didn’t let that slow him down. If fact, he doubled down on repentance and the kingdom of heaven coming near in light of the abiding promise quoted from Isaiah:

The people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.

Matthew quoted the Isaiah reading that we heard today, too. Isaiah was a prophet when the Northern Kingdom of Israel was invaded by the Assyrians under the reign of Tiglath-Pileser III. Into this dark time, Isaiah prophesied about God’s presence and abiding promise in that moment and into the future. A future that introduces a third way, a way of joy and exultation and a new light dawning.

In Matthew, Jesus’ ministry reveals this dawning light by calling people to a new mind. I can’t express just how much his call means to me as someone who grew up in a fundamentalist Christian tradition. Due to that upbringing, I resist fundamentalism in all its forms. Fundamentalism is any religious movement that advocates strict conformity.[2] I would tweak that slightly to say that any movement can develop a religious fervor that advocates strict conformity and creates fear.

A few weeks ago, it was my turn in Children’s Chapel with the Augustana Early Learning Center kiddos. The celebration of Epiphany about the wise men who followed a star to see the sweet little Jesus had just passed, so I read them the story from the Spark Bible that are in our pews. We talked about camels, and the star, and the scary King Herod (Herod Antipas’ dad) who was afraid of what a newborn king would mean. When I read to the kids that King Herod was afraid, a few of the kids said and repeated, “I’m never afraid!” As a former nurse, I paused the story to talk about fear and that we all feel afraid sometimes. I taught them that there’s a small part of the brain in our heads called the amygdala and that we can feel afraid before we even know what’s happening. And when we feel afraid it’s really important to find someone to talk to, to say we’re afraid, and to have them help us calm our bodies down. Then we continued with the Bible story, sang the Hippo Song at top speed, and ended our chapel time sitting with our eyes closed while I led us in taking 10 deep breaths. I count out loud. Breathe in one…breathe out. Breathe in two…breathe out. Their lungs are smaller than mine, so I try to pace that for them.  And then we prayed.

I tell that story in depth because we have some of those kids and their families joining us for preschool Sunday today. But also because we’re in a time in our country that stirs up fear and where there is fear there is fundamentalism. And fundamentalism draws hard lines between worthy people and unworthy people, makes us afraid of them, and makes it easier to hate them. After cancer and remission a few years ago, I cannot hold hate in my body. I won’t do it. That’s not to say that I don’t get scared or frustrated or even angry. But hate doesn’t solve anything and my body can’t sustain it. Hate is a choice and a behavior much like love is a choice and a behavior.

In a sermon titled “The Most Durable Power,” Reverend Doctor King preached against this very thing. He said, “Let no man pull you so low as to hate him.”[3] Let no man pull you so low as to hate him. Reverend King went on to argue that love doesn’t attempt to defeat and humiliate but to bring justice for all, the oppressed and the oppressor. A new way of living together. Dare we say a third way in our mad world.

Just as Jesus went through Galilee proclaiming a new mind, he also reached out in mercy, “curing every disease and every sickness among the people.” This wasn’t just a nice thing to do. We’ll see throughout the gospel of Matthew that mercy and wholeness are an essential part of Jesus’ message. We’ll hear it next week as he begins preaching the Sermon on the Mount in chapter 5. He’ll preach about life lived in opposition to the things that bring suffering and death.[4]

Paul’s first letter to the Corithian church touches on the third way. Thank God for that first century church in Corinth. Their disunity and factionalism meant that Paul had to write to them and in Paul’s writing we’re privy to the early church’s teachings.[5] He doesn’t shame the congregation in Corinth or lecture them to be nice. He preaches about the cross and the different kind of community that’s possible because the cross is the great leveler. In that community, in that world view, power and might are not the way forward. Love is the way forward. Love is the most durable power.

Jesus invites people to follow him in this Way of love. He doesn’t conscript people by force and fear to wage a war against his opponents. In fact, it’s the opposite. He invites people into the ministry of mercy that he began in Galilee of the gentiles. He invites us to follow his third way in a mad world. To follow him in love and see where it leads. Thanks be to God. And amen.

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[1] Metanoia is the Greek word. Literally “a new mind.” #1065: Third Sunday after Epiphany – January 25, 2026 – Working Preacher from Luther Seminary

[2] Britannica

[3] Martin Luther King Jr. “The Most Durable Power,” Excerpt from Rev. Dr. King’s Sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church on 6 November 1956. “The Most Durable Power,” Excerpt from Sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church on 6 November 1956 | The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute

[4] Matt Skinner, Professor of New Testament, Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN. Sermon Brainwave podcast.#1065: Third Sunday after Epiphany – January 25, 2026 – Working Preacher from Luther Seminary

[5] Ibid.

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1 Corinthians 1:10-18 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you but that you be knit together in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been made clear to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel—and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.
18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Preaching, Sermons

Trouble-Hearted Ones on the Way in a Beloved World – John 14:1-14

**I was diagnosed with lowgrade follicular lymphoma at the beginning of March. You can read about my treatment and reflections here: CaringBridge – Caitlin Trussell

Caitlin Trussell with Augustana Lutheran Church on May 7, 2023

It’s been a minute since I’ve been in the pulpit. Quite a few minutes, actually, since Ash Wednesday. Hearing a good word from our preachers in the pews who are retired clergy including, by his own description, one “recycled Bishop,” has been personally comforting during this time of my treatment and the other kinds of pastoring that needs attention since Pastor Ann retired. Gratitude doesn’t begin to describe my feelings, but it will have to do for now. The preacher-of-the-week model will continue to engage our hearts and minds for a few yet but I’m so happy to be standing here today, in this way, at this time, with you.

Jesus said to his trouble-hearted disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.” A couple sentences later, he reassures them that they “know the way” because he is “the way.” They know him.  “The Way” is also code for what the earliest Christians used to call the church. The Gospel of John in its entirety helps us understand that Jesus as “the way” is not exclusive. We’re the ones that get that turned around with notions of in and out crowds. We forget that Jesus doesn’t belong to us. It’s the opposite. We belong to Jesus as does the world God so loves. The disciples are just as separated from God as the religious leaders that Jesus regularly challenges and so are we. In John’s Gospel we hear that Jesus was co-existent with God in the beginning and that Jesus is the light and life of all the people, of the entire world that God loves. Jesus slips on skin in solidarity with us to shine a light that cannot be overcome by any kind of darkness. The darkness did not, can not, never will, overcome it.

All that stuff that I just said is a 30,000 foot view of the Gospel of John. The high view is important because it holds us to an expansive interpretation of this reading. Our reading drops us into the meal and teaching that Jesus was sharing with his followers before he was killed on a cross. We often hear Jesus’ teaching about the many dwelling places in the Father’s house as a funeral reading. There are hymns and artwork aplenty that imagine this as a literal home. In John’s gospel, God is eternal. Abiding in the Father, in God, is abiding in the eternal one today, tomorrow, next week, and forever because that is who God is. God is the eternal one who is timeless – that’s a tricky concept for humans on a timeline.

Jesus said to his trouble-hearted followers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…you know the way because I am the way and you know me.” His followers have seen him sit with strangers in the land who were ostracized, teach a religious leader – who opposed him by day – in the middle of the night, talk with a woman in the light of day who no one else would talk to. They experienced Jesus’ patient way in the middle of this reading today, coaching Thomas and Philip as they struggle to understand his teaching. The trouble-hearted followers will get into trouble by denying, betraying, and abandoning Jesus as he is executed for his ministry of radical inclusion, touching the untouchable and loving the unlovable. They will receive his radical love themselves after he is raised from the dead on the third day. They will know the way because they saw the way in Jesus – in his ministry, death, and resurrection.

Jesus said to his trouble-hearted followers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…you know the way because I am the way and you know me.” You may have heard that we’re in a pastoral transition at Augustana. Senior Pastor Ann Hultquist retired in March. In the long, long, almost 150-year life of this congregation, a pastoral retirement is nothing new. But in each transition there’s a wide range of reactions. Some people are totally chill, others are anxious. Some people are grieving, others excited about the future. Some people are knee deep in transition details, others are not reading their weekly Epistles…you know who you are. 😉

Last week I had a chance to meet with our Bridge Pastor Gail Mundt who will join me in the pastoral ministry of the congregation. We got to know each other better. She was briefly at my family’s church which I was away at seminary in St. Paul. I brought her up to speed on Augustana’s last few of months – if that’s even possible. And we planned immediate logistics for her start with us on June 1st. Her expertise in congregational transitions and with congregations around the U.S. and abroad will be a gift that keeps on giving. It was good to pray with her and celebrate this new beginning even though Bridge Pastors by definition are temporary.

I also met with our Transition Consultant Pastor Dominic Palacious who will specifically lead the Transition Team in the work needed to be done before a pastoral call process may begin. He and I also planned a few logistics. He’ll join us on Sunday, May 21, for worship and in between services for Adult Forum. And he’ll be at our staff meeting this week and schedule 1:1 conversations with the staff. Having been through Augustana’s last search for a Senior Pastor, I’m curious to see how this new kind of transition process works for us.

Jesus said to his trouble-hearted followers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…you know the way because I am the way and you know me.” In preparation for this sermon, I re-read several favorite papers and articles about the Gospel of John. One of them was my Christology paper from seminary. It’s not a favorite because I wrote it, although I do have a fondness for this one. It’s a favorite because my mother’s husband of almost 19 years, Larry, read it and wrote a bunch of comments in it – all capitalized in red in the body of the paper. He was a deeply faithful Christian and college professor and a good friend of mine. I can hear his voice in my head when I read his responses to my fledgling theological construction about what God is up to in Jesus. He had fatherly pride about my pastoring.

Larry died peacefully in memory care last week after a distressing struggle over the last few years. Larry’s questioning faith and curious mind meant that his confession about who Jesus was resisted easy answers or anything that smacked of certainty. He read more original works of early and current Christian thinkers than most of us combined. Larry’s immersion and prayer of the Psalms is an example for all of us. By the time he died, he could not rely on knowing Jesus in any coherent way. He could only rely on Jesus knowing him and bringing him to dwell in the eternal God who was already holding onto him throughout his life and in his declining health.

Jesus said to his trouble-hearted followers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…you know the way because I am the way and you know me.” There’s much that mystifies us on our planet, in our communities, in our homes, and in our bodies. The mystery of suffering’s existence is unanswerable. Oh sure, we can hold people accountable for crimes against humanity and each other. We can hold ourselves accountable to the ways we hurt each other and ourselves. We can even say that the diseases in our bodies are similar to our behaviors that don’t always serve us or other people, our bodies behave in ways that don’t always serve us. And still, Jesus promises that we’re known by God no matter what is happening in our minds, bodies, and spirits.

Dear trouble-hearted ones, Jesus promises that our death dealing exclusive instincts are no match for the expansive love of God. This is an Easter promise that we can take with us on our way as Jesus’ way. Thanks be to God. And amen.

Sermons

A funeral homily for E.J.: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven – Matthew 5:3 and John 14:1-6

A funeral homily for E.J.: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven – Matthew 5:1-4 and John 14:1-6a

Matthew 5:1-4  When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

John 14:1-6a “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. 4 And you know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.

Elizabeth Jane, E.J. – a daughter, a niece, a sister, a cousin, an aunt, a friend, a flight attendant.  All of these titles belong to E.J.  And all of these titles communicate a relationship of one sort or another.  Born and baptized in Fargo, E.J.’s life was filled with relationship both through what I like to call the accident of family and through the choices of friends and work.

These relationships sustained E.J. through thick and thin.  Her work for the airline fueled and fed her love of travel as well as gave her access to the art that brought her joy.  Her work also brought her enduring friendships that stuck through long hours in the air, on the ground, and over the holidays. Friendships with Marianne and Wendy sustained her through to the end. And her work brought her stories.  Stories that engaged the funny bone and entertained many of you over the years.  Leaving you with the satisfied feeling that only shared laughter with someone who loves to laugh can gift you.

The relationships of family carried E.J. through some tough times, including her last years when her health took a turn.  Some of the organizing and conversations were hard on everybody, including E.J.  But, this case, family sticks together even amid the practical challenges of E.J.’s outer world and the darker effect of E.J.’s inner world.

It was E.J.’s inner world that became her greatest challenge.  Beginning in her teens and lasting through her life, anxiety and depression were regular companions.  Her attempts to quiet the anxiety and mask the depression with alcohol only made matters worse for her and for the people who love her.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  This is the verse out of the Matthew reading that came to mind as I listened to stories about E.J.  “Blessed are the poor in spirit.”  There isn’t a lot of agreement about what “blessed” means in this reading.

Because Jesus was Jewish and likely had some rabbinic training, I hang my hat with the rabbis on this one; that a blessing is something that already exists and occasionally we get a glimpse of the blessing that already exists. The rabbinic view is in opposition to the different view that a blessing is something akin to being tapped by a fairy wand and something good happens because of how deserving we are.

The Jewish notion of “blessed” helps us see E.J.’s life in full, revealing what belongs to her even though she herself could not see it as one who was “poor in spirit.”  Hers is the kingdom of heaven.  In the John reading, Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”

He says this because he knows that your hearts already are troubled.  How could they not be?  Along with the laughter that E.J. shared with you was her struggle with herself.  Also in the reading, Thomas says to Jesus, “Lord, we do not know where you are going…how can we know the way?”  Jesus’ reply? “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”  What is Jesus’ way?  Jesus’ way goes through a cross.

And the cross is God speaking in human terms.  The human terms of self-sacrifice to save someone else.  For instance, when we hear of someone who dives into a raging river to save someone from drowning, saves that person but succumbs and dies in the flood waters themselves, our first thoughts are often respect and awe.  We also honor the soldiers who return again and again to the firefight to save fallen friends and then die in the firefight themselves. Jesus says, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”  After all, how much more can be given?[1]  Jesus was tried, crucified, dead and buried.  In every way that the cross could be offensive, it is.

It’s offensive to think that the cross, and Jesus hanging there, was effective in any way.  That we even need saving is offensive.  That Jesus’ execution can change anything about real life seems a deception at worst and an utter folly at best.  And yet, quite surprisingly, it does.  Jesus’ self-sacrificing death on the cross changes everything.  Time and again in the gospel, we hear that God and Jesus are one.  Jesus is God and God is Jesus.  And Jesus focuses on the goal of bringing people back into relationship with God.

The self-sacrificing love of God, given fully on the cross, draws us back into relationship with God. [2]  Jesus as “the way, the truth, and the life,” means that he has already opened up whatever we perceive the barrier to be between us and God.  The poor in spirit often experience life as a series of barriers in one form or another.  Jesus says, “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  Jesus calls the poor in spirit blessed because their relationship with God is not dependent on their own mindset and agency.  The poor in spirit are blessed because their relationship with God already exists through no effort of their own.

We do not make a way out of no way on our own.  Like Thomas, we do not know the way.  Jesus makes the way to God through the cross on our behalf.  The way is made by Jesus which means that the movement is from God to us, from God to E.J.  And because it is God’s movement to us, God’s movement to E.J., God gives us a future with hope as God also brings E.J. into a future with God.

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[1] Craig Koester, class notes, Luther Seminary: Gospel of John class: John’s Theology of the Cross.  December 1, 2010.  I am sincerely grateful for Dr. Koester’s faithful witness as a master of holding aspects of Jesus Christ’s life and work in formative tension.  His work is beautiful, articulate, and draws me more deeply into faith and love of Jesus.

[2] Koester, course notes, 12/1/2010.  For further study see: Craig R. Koester, The Word of Life: A Theology of John’s Gospel (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008).