Called into New Life and Service, Mark 1:14-20, 1 Corinthians 7:17-24

Jesus went forth preaching about the Kingdom of God being at hand and calling disciples to follow him. Are we all called to drop the work we are doing to follow Jesus or can he call us to follow him in the midst of the work he has given us? Father Jeremiah considers this as he teaches about the change that Jesus brings to us through his work.

Image: Calling of Peter and Andrew, by Duccio Di Buoninsegna. Public Domain. Image Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Duccio_di_Buoninsegna_-_Calling_of_Peter_and_Andrew_-_WGA06774.jpg

Vineyards and Vocations, Matthew 20:1-16

The Master of the vineyard is free to reward and give to his workers as he pleases. In his freedom to do that, the workers are freed to do their work with no fear of not receiving good things from the master. Likewise for us, we are free to work in our vocations because God has given us the Kingdom and made us partakers of it through Jesus Christ.

Image: Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, by Meester Van Antwerpan. Public Domain. Image location: https://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/YR0035483/Parable-of-the-workers-in-the-vineyard

Walking Wisely in Vocation, Ephesians 5:15-6:9

Image: J'aimelart, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

www.gracegastonia.com/sermon-blog/2021/8/22/walking-wisely-in-vocation-ephesians-515-69

The Vocational Life: Work and Rest, Luke 10.38-42

Father Jeremiah completes his series on the vocational life with this teaching on Mary and Martha. What is the one thing necessary that Mary had found and that Martha needed? How do work and rest come together in vocation? How do we both rest and toil at the same time? Listen to Father Jeremiah’s conclusion now.

Image: A an etching by Jan Luyken from the Phillip Medhurst Collection of Bible illustrations housed at Belgrave Hall, Leicester, England, photo taken by Phillip Medhurst [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]. Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jan_Luyken%27s_Jesus_15._Martha_and_Mary._Phillip_Medhurst_Collection.jpg

The Vocational Life: The Task Impossible, Luke 10.25-37

The story of the Good Samaritan is an iconic story. You can find references to it in nearly every facet of our culture. However, what was so revolutionary about Jesus’ words that made this such a message that would go beyond time itself? It is because of the impossibility of the task that Jesus sets forth to his questioner. It is an impossibility that continues to exist for us today. What can we do with this impossible task in our daily vocations?

Image: The Good Samaritan, Rembrandt [CC0]. Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Good_Samaritan_MET_DP814420.jpg

The Vocational Life: Empowered to Serve, Luke 10.1-20

Father Jeremiah continues to lead us through his series on the vocational life. In this third sermon, he shows us how we are empowered to serve by the Holy Spirit in all of our vocations because Jesus has called to be in those vocations.

Image: Image from page 72 of "The works of John M. Synge .." (1912), posted by Internet Archive Book Images, no known copyright restrictions. Location: https://www.flickr.com/photos/internetarchivebookimages/14595127770/in/photostream/

The Vocational Life: The Cost of Grace, Luke 9.51-62

When we think of vocation, we often don’t think about the cost of living in these varied relationships. However, Jesus reminds us that to follow him comes with a cost and brings transformation to all of our relationships and work.

Image: by Henri Cassiers [Public domain]. Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rodenbach_%E2%80%93_La_Vocation,_1895_Illustr._p_087.png

The Vocational Life: Cross-Bearing, Luke 9:18-24

When we are called to take up our crosses daily, Christ is calling us to a cross shaped life, one that is focused on the cross upon every one of our vocations. All of our vocations, that is our relationships and the work we do in those, are all under the cross and given grace by Jesus through the Holy Spirit. We are called into the Vocational life through our cross-bearing.

Image: Christ Carrying the Cross, Albrecht Dürer, 1509 [Public domain]. Location: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Albrecht_D%C3%BCrer_-_Christ_Carrying_the_Cross_(NGA_1943.3.3653).jpg