Order & Condition | Proper 22, Time After Pentecost +19 | October 4, 2026
The Ten Commandments are not merely a list of rules for measuring righteousness or judging others, but are given within the context of God’s covenant and faithfulness in freeing his people from slavery. The commandments describe how God’s people are called to live together in love of God and neighbor, with the first commandments establishing our relationship with God as the foundation for all the rest. Through confession and Holy Communion, Christians continually receive God’s grace and forgiveness in Christ and are called to extend that same grace and forgiveness as they walk together in faith.
Resentment | Proper 20A | Time after Pentecost | September 20, 2026
Jonah’s story and Jesus’ parable of the vineyard reveal how easily we become resentful when God’s mercy and grace disrupt our human expectations of justice, fairness, and who deserves reward or punishment. We want God to recognize our sacrifices and punish wrongdoing, yet God’s grace is freely given, unearned and unearnable, extending even to those we believe are undeserving. The cross reveals a Kingdom that overturns our moral order, calling us to let go of resentment and embrace the truth that “the first shall be last, and the last shall be first.”
Toot Toot | Proper 19A, Time After Pentecost | September 13, 2026
The Christian life is not about perfection, keeping score, or determining how much forgiveness others deserve, but about recognizing that we ourselves live entirely by God’s extravagant grace and forgiveness. In Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant, Peter asks the wrong question—“How many times must I forgive?”—because forgiveness is not a debt to be calculated but a gift we are continually given and invited to share with others. The Kingdom of Heaven is therefore like an imperfect orchestra whose music is forgiveness: people bound together by grace, receiving God’s mercy and freely extending that mercy to one another.
In Christ’s Name | Proper 18A, Time After Pentecost | September 6, 2026
Gathering in Christ’s name requires humility, which demands recognizing our common human condition: sin. Humility grows when we accept God’s forgiveness and extend that same forgiveness to others. Ultimately, receiving divine grace depends on our willingness to remain open, humble, and reconciled with those around us.
This is Real | Proper 17A, Time After Pentecost | August 30, 2026
Holy Baptism and Holy Communion are sacred moments when the invisible realities of God’s grace, forgiveness, and love become visible and tangible. The tension—the “gap”—between the kingdom of God revealed in Christ and the broken, often false world we experience, reminds us that faith calls us to meet that gap with compassion, sacrifice, and trust rather than seeking control or avoiding suffering. Through baptism, communion, and following Christ to the cross, we are invited to give our lives away, embrace what is real and holy, and discover that suffering and sacrifice are not the end but the path to true and everlasting life.
As If! | Proper 16A , Time after Pentecost | August 23, 2026
Despite Pharaoh’s tyrannical decrees to oppress and destroy the Hebrew people, his cruel plans are continuously undermined by the quiet, courageous defiance of women. Midwives Shiphrah and Puah use Pharaoh’s own prejudices against him to save newborn boys, while young Miriam and Pharaoh’s own daughter conspire to rescue the infant Moses from the Nile. God’s power operates through human compassion and unexpected acts of bravery, proving that systemic cruelty is no match for the defiant strength of everyday people.
Learning Surprise | Proper 15A , Time after Pentecost | August 16, 2026
This surprising story reveals Jesus challenging the boundaries of religious tradition and, through his encounter with a Canaanite woman, confronting his own assumptions about who belongs within God’s mission. Her persistent faith opens Jesus’ heart, leading him to recognize that God’s grace extends beyond Israel to all people, and that even Jesus can learn, grow, and be transformed. The story calls us to keep our hearts open to surprise, allowing grace to challenge our ideas of fairness, abundance, and belonging so that we, too, may be transformed into something larger than ourselves.
Deep Faith | Proper 14A , Time after Pentecost +11 | August 9, 2026
The story of Jesus walking on water emphasizes that faith and discipleship are not about safety or calm seas, but about taking risks and trusting God amid uncertainty and trouble. Peter’s willingness to step out of the boat allows him to experience both the vulnerability of sinking and the saving presence of Jesus, while his courage strengthens the faith of the entire community. The story reminds us that when the winds are against us, God has not abandoned us, and the courage of one person’s faith can become a gift that strengthens us all.
More than Enough | A Proper 13, Time after Pentecost +10 | Aug 26, 2026
Failure and making mistakes are essential components of growth and learning. Just as the disciples mistakenly believed they lacked the resources to feed a crowd, modern believers often fall into the trap of thinking they do not have enough to offer. When we surrender our limited resources to Jesus in faith, God transforms our perceived shortcomings into more than enough to sustain ourselves and others.
Disruptive Kingdom | Proper 12, Time after Pentecost +9 | July 26, 2026
Jesus teaches in parables not to obscure the truth, but to disrupt comfortable assumptions and awaken those who are genuinely open to the Kingdom of God, especially amid the political, religious, and social tensions of his time. Through images that are surprising, unsettling, and even paradoxical, the parables expose the conflict between God’s kingdom and the world’s familiar systems of power, inviting listeners beyond passive curiosity into active faith and transformation. Rather than offering easy answers, Jesus’ parables challenge us to see the world through the values of the Kingdom—where humility, sacrifice, mercy, and wholehearted devotion become the true treasure worth giving everything to possess.
Distinctive Rock | A Proper 11, Time after Pentecost +8 | July 19 2026
The ancient formation of Baraboo quartzite with the deep, parallels the layered history of scripture and human faith. Just as quartzite is shaped over eons into a distinct, resilient foundation despite its impurities, believers are formed through history, carrying both saintliness and sinfulness. Our faith and hope in God as an unseen yet enduring rock, relinquishing human judgment to rest in divine grace that feeds and sustains the world.
Seeds | Proper 10, Time after Pentecost +7 | July 12 2026
This sermon reflects on the parable of the sower as a story of God’s abundant grace, while emphasizing Matthew’s challenge to the church to examine the ways fear, distraction, and human weakness can keep that grace from taking root. God’s judgment is not condemnation but an expression of steadfast mercy, reminding believers that they answer to God alone and that their lives and faithfulness matter deeply to God. Concluding with the image of unexpected flowers growing among neglected garden paths, the sermon illustrates how God can bring new life and beauty from places we might overlook, nurturing fragile seeds until they are ready to flourish.
Doing No Good | Proper 9, Time After Pentecost +17 | August 30, 2026
In this first sermon at St. Paul’s in Baraboo, Pr. Craig introduces the tension between the Apostle Paul’s honest confession of human weakness in Romans and Jesus’ promise of rest in Matthew. Through the story of a congregation whose ministry to homeless families ended in disappointment and exhaustion, Pr. Craig shows how even our best efforts cannot guarantee the outcomes we hope for. The good news is that Christians are not responsible for perfect results but are called to trust God’s grace and mercy, finding rest in Christ rather than in the impossible burden of trying to make everything right on our own.
