April 19, 2026 | Word Out!
Download the Bulletin from April 19, 2026
READINGS
First Reading: Acts 2:14a, 36-41
14a Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed [the crowd]: 36 “Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” 40 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.
Second Reading: 1 Peter 1:17-23
17 If you invoke as Father the one who judges impartially according to each person’s work, live in fear during the time of your exile. 18 You know that you were ransomed from the futile conduct inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. 20 He was destined before the foundation of the world but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. 21 Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your trust and hope are in God.
22 Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual affection, love one another deeply from the heart. 23 You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.
Gospel: Luke 24:13-35
13 Now on that same day two [disciples] were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, 14 and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, 16 but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. 18 Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” 19 He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. 22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, 23 and when they did not find his body there they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see him.” 25 Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! 26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
28 As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. 29 But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” 33 That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem, and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. 34 They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then they told what had happened on the road and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.
SERMON—Pastor Dan Peterson
“Putting on Our Gospel Glasses”
Grace to you, and peace, from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, who is Jesus Christ. Amen.
Show of hands: How many of you have read, or would like someday to read the Bible, cover to cover?
Okay, pretty sizable. Here’s why that’s good: Saint Anselm defines theology as “faith seeking understanding.” And I can’t imagine a better expression of faith seeking understanding than the fact or the desire to read the Bible, to know what the Bible says, cover to cover, how it informs or even challenges our beliefs, our values and our way of life.
Or maybe it’s more basic than that. For those of you who have read or would like to read the Bible cover to cover, maybe you’re simply curious. Either way, I would like to lift up your achievement and or desire to read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation.
Now, another show of hands. How many of you are not so sure you want to read the Bible cover to cover? I knew it! I knew it would be a majority! Now, why would that be the case?
Maybe the Bible is a little bit daunting. I mean, after all, this is a long book, 39 texts from or that comprise the Hebrew Bible, 27 in the New Testament, all written in foreign languages, mostly Hebrew and Aramaic and then Greek, from a long time ago in what the theologian Karl Barth called “a strange world.” So, it makes sense that this book is daunting or intimidating, and to be very honest with you, and perhaps some of you feel this, some of the sections that you have read are either hard to understand or boring. How many of you have read the book of Numbers? Now why you have—okay, a few of you have, and that’s very puzzling. We’re going to talk about that after the service! The Book of Numbers is, in part, comprised of a census that was taken of the Israelites in the eighth century. For those of you who remember these things, that’s like reading a phone book. All the “begats,” all the names, all the strange wording, all of that is in the book of Numbers. And so, in that case, it’s understandable that instead of reading the Bible cover to cover, you might want to do a little skipping around. Besides, some of you might be saying to yourself, I don’t need to read the Bible cover to cover. I get that in church, or I get that at my Bible study, or I get that in our forums.
Well, this morning, I want to validate both attitudes, at least in so far as they make perfect sense to me. I love that some of you are so curious and committed to understanding that your faith that you have or would read the Bible cover to cover. On the other hand, I empathize with those of you who find the task daunting or perhaps even uninteresting.
When I was in high school, and I’ve told this story before, so pardon me for those of you who have heard it, when I was in high school, I tried to read the Bible cover to cover. I failed. Miserably. Obviously. I started with Genesis 1; I got to Genesis 16. I couldn’t take any more of the “begats”, so I flipped all the way to the end. I found that in the book of Revelation, things ended pretty well. I closed the book and I was done.
I mean, think about it, whether you’re a teenager or a senior, reading a book that was originally written in a foreign land, in foreign languages, parts of which are boring, many of which are complicated, is a daunting task. So I want to say this morning, or rather, lift up all of you this morning and say, I can see it from both points of view: for those of you who are curious and want to understand more of your faith, and for those of you who find the idea a bit daunting.
Now here’s the challenge. Both attitudes regarding reading the Bible, cover to cover, have a shortcoming. Let me explain
In today’s Forum, I presented on what I discovered in writing a book about the Bible that took me seven years to complete. Seven years to complete. Each chapter focused on a single passage of a book in the Bible. The one I used for an example today was Acts 17, where Paul meets a group of philosophers in the city of Athens, gives them a speech, unveils a version of God with which many might be unfamiliar, leaves it behind; a few are converted. He calls it a day.
What I realized was how much I didn’t know about this passage, and I’d read it many times before. More broadly, what I realize is how much a single reading, or even multiple readings, could miss important details in a passage. This is why, to people who say they have read or would like to read the Bible cover to cover, my reaction is “Great, but you have no idea how much you’ve missed.” And this is why to people who say I haven’t or don’t want to read the Bible to cover, cover to cover, my reaction is, “I understand. I get it, but you also have no idea what you’re missing.”
To illustrate my point, let me give you a quick example from today’s readings. Take a look, if you will, at Acts 2:36, our first reading for the day. There, Peter says in a speech, “Let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made Him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Let me repeat that: “God has made Him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Now consider Colossians 1:17, a different letter attributed to Paul that’s in the New Testament. It says that “Christ Jesus existed before all things, and in Him, all things hold together.” Let me repeat that. It says that “Christ Jesus existed before all things, and in Him, all things hold together.” Do you hear or see the discrepancy?
Acts has Peter say, God made Jesus, the man, both Lord and Messiah. In other words, he exalted Him. In Colossians on the other hand, we read that he was always exalted, that he was Lord and Messiah since the beginning of time.
So which is it? Did God adopt Jesus and make him Lord and Messiah in response to the life of obedience that he lived? Or is Christ Jesus co-eternal with God and Lord from the beginning? Now, if you think these two perspectives are easily harmonized, think again. This was a major nerd-debate in the early church that took several centuries to resolve.
My point in bringing it up is this, there is so much in these texts that we often miss, whether we’ve read the Bible cover to cover or not. There is so much in these texts that we often miss whether we’ve read the Bible cover to cover or not.
This puts us in a kind of predicament. What do we do? Is there a way to read the Bible that acknowledges its complexities, its discrepancies, its irresolvable tensions, while seeking out what really matters, or what is really important?
My answer is yes. But don’t take my word for it. We’re in a Lutheran church. Take Martin Luther’s word for it. There are lots of different interpretations of the Bible out there, he says, which can confuse Christians. Necessity demands, therefore, he writes, that there should be a notice or a preface, by which the ordinary person can be set on the right track and taught what they are to look for when they read the Bible.
Now, if only I had had that as a teenager when I started out. What do I need to know to look for, when I read the Bible? So let me ask that question to each of you. What should we look for when we read this book, according to Luther?
Well, his answer, some of you already know. We should look for the gospel, the message of grace, the promises of God’s grace and mercy, of God’s companionship of divine forgiveness and acceptance, that are embedded in the various texts of Scripture that require us to focus on them, and you might say, tease them out.
Now this is challenging. We need help. Some kind of special device that would help us find these passages; a power. We need to put on our Gospel Glasses.
In short, we need to put on our Gospel Glasses when we read the Bible to help us seek and find the promises that God makes to us, of mercy, of grace and of companionship. That’s what’s important.
It’s great then, if you’ve read the Bible cover to cover, but you need to know what to look for when you read it, you need to put on your Gospel Glasses. Otherwise, like me in high school, you will get lost and lose sight of what’s most important. And for those of you who are teens in the congregation today, whether it’s Lucas or Sonia, don’t try what I did at home. Talk to your parents, your pastor, your friends; learn how to read the Bible with Gospel Glasses on. Seek first, always, the message of grace and the promises of God’s grace and mercy embedded in the text. And there you will find what’s most important.
So let’s try this out. Take a look, if you will, at our gospel reading for today. I want you, figuratively to put on your Gospel Glasses and tell me where in the text you find a promise of God’s mercy or companionship.
Are you done? Okay, let me give you a hint. Look at verses 30 to 31 and ask yourself, “What is God promising to us in this passage?” I’ll read it:
When he was at the table with them. So when Jesus was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, and He vanished from their sight.”
Again at the end of the reading, verse 35: “Then they told what had happened on the road and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.”
What’s the promise here?
Where do we find Christ in a world where God seems distant sometimes and far away?
When we break bread together in his name.
So when you put on your Gospel Glasses, you see the promise, the message of grace, or in this case, companionship, embedded in the text. Again, whenever we break bread in Jesus’ name, in his fellowship, he is with us—on what basis? Because he promised! In the words of institution before communion, we hear it every week. “This is my body, for you. This is my blood, shed for you.” Christ is present in the breaking of the bread, not simply in the things themselves, but in the very act of sharing, as I learned from one of my pastoral colleagues sometime back.
Now, look, I know we live in an extremely uncertain world, a world of conflict, a world of war, a world of AI, a world of incivility, a world of division, a world of loneliness, a world of isolation, you name it. It is easy in this world, as it may have been in the time of Jesus’s world, to assume that God was distant, that God was absent. But our Gospel promise today says otherwise. We are not alone.
We are not alone. Whenever we break bread together, in Jesus’s name, he is with us. That is our assurance, Sunday to Sunday. That is the promise, and that is the essence of our faith. Faith is trusting in the promises of God.
Now, in the best of all possible worlds, yes, it would be nice as your pastor, if all of you read the Bible from cover to cover, if you had that kind of patience and curiosity and came to me every week and told me what you found. But this is a different world. It’s a fallen world. We don’t always have time to get to those things. Yet, even if you do, and you should, it is hard to know as you’re reading what to look for. This is why you have to put on your Gospel Glasses whenever you read it—and when you do, you’ll see what really matters: God’s grace, God’s mercy, God’s nearness and God’s presence. It’s all been promised, and you and I are People of that Promise, and it’s with that promise that we carry God’s presence with us, out into the world.
May Christ be present to you this day and always, whether it’s in the breaking of the bread together, or in the life you lead beyond these walls. In Jesus’s name. Amen.