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The Kingdom of Heaven
By Pr. Lisa Rygiel

How does one explain the unexplainable, describe the indescribable, or comprehend the incomprehensible? Such was the challenge facing Jesus as he attempted to paint a picture of the Kingdom of Heaven to us mere mortals. Jesus resorted to telling parables, earthly stories with heavenly meanings. Instead of trying to tell it like it is, Jesus told it like it might be.

On Sunday, we will hear a string of parables that describe the kingdom of heaven, and then we hear Jesus’ question: “Have you understood all this?”: The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, a little bit of leaven, a treasure hidden in the field, a pearl of great price, a dragnet of fish. Let those who have ears to hear spiritual things be alert to these little similes of Jesus.

9th Sunday After Pentecost, July 26

 

Announcements

  • Fellowship: Join us after worship each Sunday in the Fellowship Hall for coffee & conversation. All are welcome.
  • Wednesday Book Club: Book Club is on hiatus until September.
  • Summer Supper Gatherings: At 5:30 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each summer month, we gather in the Fellowship Hall for food and fun. The next supper is at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12. There is a sign-up sheet in the Fellowship Hall for food and activities. If you have questions, please let Julie Wersal or Jo Moss know.
  • Annual Garage Sale: The annual Zion’s Garage Sale will be Saturday, Aug. 1. If you have items to donate, please let Julie Wersal know. We will begin accepting drop offs beginning July 24. Remember that, while Zion’s can accept most items for the sale, we cannot take electronic or computer items and we do not accept clothing and shoes.
  • 5-Loaves Volunteers: We need volunteers to help with 5-Loaves deliveries and preparation this coming weekend Friday, July 24, and Saturday, July 25. If you can help, please let Jo Moss, Terri Watson, or Norine Hazen know.
  • Save the Date: God’s Work Our Hands Sunday for Zion’s will be Aug. 30 details will follow in E-Formation, the Bulletins, and the Newsletter.
  • We’re Here for You: For pastoral care, call Zion’s at 719-846-7785 or send an email: zionsluth@gmail.com.

 

A Special Congregational Meeting is called for Sunday, August 2, 2026, to authorize the Church Council to withdraw $11,000.00 from Zion’s Lutheran’s trust fund. This $11,000 amount is needed to pay for materials and labor to replace the Fellowship Hall's carpeting with new, skid-resistant Commercial Grade Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring & trim.

The meeting will be held in the Sanctuary immediately following Sunday's service. During discussion, all points of view, whether for, against, or neutral, will be provided an opportunity to be heard.

As defined in our constitution (Chapter 8), voting members are confirmed members of Zion’s who, during the current or preceding calendar year, shall have communed in this congregation and shall have made a contribution of record.

 

E-formation

The gospel reading for this coming Sunday includes six very brief parables about what Matthew calls “the kingdom of heaven.” At worship, choose which picture of the mercy of God is most appealing to you, and at the Lord’s Supper, take this treasure into yourself.

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52
As in the Sermon on the Mount, so in the third discourse in chapter 13, the evangelist has grouped many small sayings into one long coordinated passage. That the righteousness of believers might be hidden is one message of the Matthean parables of the mustard seed, the leaven, the buried treasure, the pearl, and the fish net. It appears that Matthew is continuing his caution concerning a community too prone to judgment. The evangelist reminds the hearers that God will punish evil doers at the apocalypse. The last line of this selection illuminates Matthew’s method: Judaism has provided the old, Jesus Christ the new.

1 Kings 3:5-12
Formed by the theology of Deuteronomy, the sixth-century author of 1 and 2 Kings narrated a history from the death of King David through the defeat and destruction of both the northern and southern kingdoms. This historian viewed the downfall of the split kingdoms as divine punishment for the sins of many kings and queens and for worship practices held outside the Jerusalem temple. Even the great king Solomon ended his reign in unfaithfulness; but early in his reign, he had looked to God for wisdom, a term used in Jewish tradition for the law of God. The historian imagines that the king has been approached by God through a dream, a common religious idea in the ancient Near East.

Romans 8:26-39
In a rhetorically magnificent passage, Paul culminated his discussion of the relationship between law and gospel by proclaiming the love of God despite the sufferings Christian experienced. The selection contains the primary Pauline themes of the love of God, the death and resurrection of Christ Jesus the Son of God, and the power of the Spirit transforming the lives of suffering humanity.

Zion's Lutheran Church
zionsluth@gmail.com
719-846-7785