THE EIGHTH DAY: APRIL 20, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Christians have come to worship not on the seventh day (Sabbath) but on the eighth day, a day that signifies new creation. When the women came to the tomb of Jesus, they were prepared to anoint a dead body. They expected nothing new, so they brought spices and cloth, grief and despair. They had no expectation that a new creation had dawned in the resurrection of Christ. The eighth day brought hope and is a day we celebrate every week as we gather, hear the bread, share the meal, and send the risen people of God back into the world to be the risen Christ.
info_outline
CLOAKS AND STONES
Holy Trinity Ankeny
They laid their cloaks on the road—not just as a gesture of welcome, but as a sign of surrender. A letting go. That moment asked something of them. And it asks something of us too. So here's the question: What are you still holding onto? What stays wrapped around your shoulders, even as Jesus passes by? Luke 19:28-40
info_outline
ADMIRERS, ASSOCIATES OR FOLLOWERS? APRIL 6, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Soren Kierkegaard, Danish theologian and philosopher, said that Christ did not come to make admirers. He came to make followers. You can admire Abraham Lincoln, but you can’t become him. You can admire Michael Jordon or Caitlin Clark, but you can’t become them. To admire Christ is to live a life untransformed by his grace. To follow him is to become like him. May this be our Lenten journey.
info_outline
THE FATHER'S HOUSE: MARCH 30, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
A lost son in a distant country. A loyal son who never left. Both lost more than they realized. What if being found isn’t about where you are—but about who knows you? Joshua 5:9-12 | 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 | Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32
info_outline
REPENT! MARCH 23, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Repentance is not one of our favorite topics of discussion. In the Season of Lent, and in the Gospel of Luke, the subject is unavoidable. If we believe that we have faith and repent so that we can earn God’s favor and avoid God’s punishment, repentance is like a bad report card. Luke’s message today unflinchingly declares that we cannot avoid the tragedy of life. We cannot assume that our prosperity means God loves us more than others. The day of death and judgment will come to all. Jesus' parable of the fig tree declares that though unavoidable, today is an opportunity for grace to turn...
info_outline
GOSPEL OF LUKE: MARCH 16, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Pastor David Cline served as our guest preacher this week.
info_outline
WHAT IF.... MARCH 9, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
What if Jesus had said yes? What if the story had gone differently? And what if his temptations aren’t so different from our own? Deuteronomy 26:1-11 | Romans 10:8b-13 | Luke 4:1-13
info_outline
WHO IS JESUS? MARCH 2, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
The season of Epiphany begins at Jesus' baptism with a heavenly announcement, “You are my son, the beloved.” The season ends with an announcement from the cloud, “This is my son, the Chosen. Listen to him.” Epiphany is about the multi-faceted revelation of Jesus' identity. “Who is Jesus?” is the prime question we must sort out before we can follow him.
info_outline
DIFFICULT WORDS: FEB. 23, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Jesus says hard things a lot. Perhaps no words uttered by the Lord are more difficult than “Love your enemies.” His call to forgive those who harm us and bless those who curse us are not mainstream. No Liam Neeson movie would garner an audience if he went around forgiving. No, we like revenge and retribution. We like to hold on to grudges. The question is, how does the reign of God – a reign of mercy dawn in a world based on revenge? Maybe it doesn’t.
info_outline
SEEN AND KNOWN: FEB. 16, 2025
Holy Trinity Ankeny
Have you ever felt invisible—like you could walk through a crowd and no one would notice? We all long to be seen, to know that we matter. But what if the one who sees us best is the one we least expect? Jeremiah 17:5-10 | 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 | Luke 6:17-26
info_outlineWhen John the Baptist addresses his congregation as a “Brood of vipers,” it hardly seems like good news. Rather than an insult, however, John is calling out the misguided notion that we can avoid judgment because we’re the right kind of people. We shall all be shaped for life in the reign of God through judgment or repentance. Repentance invites us to live in the presence of Christ now as people dedicated to justice, love, and compassion. It is very good news, indeed.