Sermon Archive

We know that making it to church on Sundays doesn’t always work for everyone. At St. John’s, we’ve got you covered. If you’d like to watch or listen to Sunday’s sermon during the week, you can do so right here. Simply click the Sunday below to access the sermon as a podcast or watch it on YouTube.

Each week, we share Sunday’s sermon featuring our clergy and special guest preachers. Whether you’re revisiting a message that spoke to you or catching up when you can’t be with us in person, this offering helps you stay connected and nourished in faith.

At St. John’s, we are called to live with Deep Roots, True Belonging, and Abundant Grace—and we hope this new way of sharing God’s Word supports that vision in your daily life. Join us each Monday, wherever you listen to podcasts.

19th Sunday after Pentecost (10/4/26)

In Matthew 21:33–43, Jesus tells the story of a landowner who carefully plants and prepares a vineyard before entrusting it to tenants. Deacon Melanie invites us to notice what happens before the tenants ever arrive: the vineyard is already there. They receive something they did not create, and something has been entrusted to their care. Drawing on Isaiah 5:1–7, where the vineyard represents God’s people and God looks for the fruits of justice and righteousness, the sermon asks us to consider our own lives in the same way. Before we are givers, we are receivers. Life, grace, love, community, our abilities, our resources, and even the Church itself are gifts we have received from God. At the heart of Jesus’ parable is also the astonishing generosity of a God who keeps giving—even sending the Son—offering God’s own self to us in love. That understanding gives us a place to begin as we enter October, our month of stewardship at St. John’s. Rather than beginning with a budget or asking, “What does the church need from me?” we begin with gratitude: What has God already given me, and what has been entrusted to my care? Deacon Melanie reminds us that vineyards are not planted simply to be preserved; they are planted to bear fruit. As Isaiah reminds us, that fruit looks like justice and righteousness, while Jesus’ parable points us toward lives in which love received becomes love given, mercy received becomes mercy offered, and resources received become ministry, service, healing, and hope. As St. John’s prepares for Consecration Sunday on October 25, this year’s invitation is “Grow One Step”—to prayerfully consider the next faithful step God may be calling each of us to take with the gifts we have received.

October 4, 2026 9:00 am

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18th Sunday after Pentecost, 9/27/26

Deacon Pierce Withers’ sermon weaves Sunday’s Gospel reading, Matthew 21:23–32, with moments from his own road to the priesthood. Through the parable of the two sons, he explores what it means to say “yes” to God—not simply with our words, but through our actions. Whether we enter the vineyard early or late, we are invited to embrace the work of sharing God’s love and grace with the world, finding meaning and purpose as we follow where God leads.

September 27, 2026 9:00 am

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17th Sunday after Pentecost, 9/20/26

Deacon Melanie Salsgiver reflects on Jesus’ parable of the workers in the vineyard, focusing not first on the question of fair wages, but on the people who spent the day waiting to be chosen. The workers hired at five o’clock had spent hours making themselves available, watching others get picked while they remained behind. Their persistence becomes a picture of hope—not cheerful or easy waiting, but remaining open to the possibility that God may still call us. In the landowner’s repeated return to the marketplace, Dcn. Melanie sees a reminder that God keeps showing up, even when we have begun to believe it is too late. The parable also challenges us to make room for God’s generosity toward others. Just as the latecomers receive a full day’s wage, God’s grace is not limited by our ideas of who has earned it or who should have to wait longer. Dcn. Melanie connects this with Jonah’s struggle to accept God’s mercy toward Nineveh and with the Church’s calling to keep gathering, praying, serving, and making room for one another. The final message is one of hope: “It is five o’clock—the day’s not over. And God is still coming down the road.”

September 20, 2026 9:00 am

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15 Sunday after Pentecost (9/6/26)

Deacon Melanie’s sermon centers on Jesus’ command to “Go!” when relationships are damaged or someone has sinned against us. Rather than avoiding conflict with a polite “bless their heart,” Christians are called to move toward one another, speak truth, listen, and seek restoration. Drawing on Ezekiel’s image of the watchman and the prophets’ call to name what is broken, Deacon Melanie emphasizes that confronting wrong is not about winning, punishment, or proving who is right—it is about calling people back to life and relationship. She also makes an important distinction between reconciliation and simply avoiding conflict. Reconciliation requires truth and accountability, while still leaving room for people to change, rebuild trust, and experience restoration. It never requires someone to put themselves in danger, particularly in situations involving abuse or coercion. Ultimately, Deacon Melanie reminds us that Christian love is a love that moves toward others—even when things get messy—because God continually calls us back to God, to one another, and into communion. The goal is not to win or punish, but “life” and “reconciliation.”

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14th Sunday after Pentecost (8/30/26)

Fr. Lonnie Lacy's sermon explores what it truly means to be rich—not simply in what we possess, but in what we give of ourselves. Through generosity of time, attention, compassion, service, forgiveness, and acceptance, we discover that true riches are found in the shared humanity, belonging, and connection we create with one another. When the world hurts, we give. When someone rejoices, we rejoice. We refuse to hate back and overcome evil with good. These are our marching orders.

August 30, 2026 10:00 am

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12th Sunday after Pentecost (8/16/26)

This sermon reflects on Paul’s teaching in Romans and the question of what it means to “be the Church together.” Paul makes clear that God has not rejected Israel or replaced one people with another; instead, God’s love and calling are irrevocable. God does not operate through winners and losers, addition and subtraction, or by pushing some people out to make room for others. In baptism, we are reminded that we are “marked as Christ’s own forever”—a promise that depends not on how tightly we hold onto God, but on how tightly God holds onto us. The grace of this truth is that no one is disposable in God’s eyes: we do not secure our place by excluding someone else, and God never has to love another person less in order to love us more. Because God is the one who holds the Church together, our calling is to live into that indissoluble bond, trusting God’s faithfulness and embracing the good news that, like it or not, we are in this together.

August 16, 2026 10:00 am

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11th Sunday after Pentecost (8/9/26)

Fr. Lonnie’s sermon centers on Paul’s image of “beautiful feet” in Romans, reminding us that our feet are beautiful not because of how they look, but because of where they go and the good news they carry. On a Sunday filled with baptisms, backpack blessings, music, and joyful celebration, he connects the newly baptized children and students beginning a new school year with the whole congregation: every one of us leaves church carrying the good news that Jesus is alive, grace is abundant, love is stronger than death, and every person is precious to God. The Gospel is not meant to sit still—it is sung, poured out, carried into classrooms and workplaces, and walked out the church doors into the world through each of us.

August 9, 2026 10:00 am

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10th Sunday after Pentecost (8/2/26)

Fr. Lonnie reflected on St. Paul's words in Romans, emphasizing that while nothing can separate us from God's love, Paul also grieved the divisions between Jewish believers and those who did not recognize Jesus as the Messiah. He reminded the congregation that Christianity is deeply rooted in God's covenant with Israel and that our faith is not a replacement for that story but a continuation into which we have been graciously grafted. Just as we have inherited the faith from generations before us, we have also inherited the life and ministry of St. John's, with all its traditions, joys, and challenges. Rather than claiming ownership, we are called to receive this gift with gratitude, faithfully tend it for a season, and pass it on so that future generations may experience "deep roots, true belonging, and abundant grace."

August 2, 2026 10:00 am

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