About these posts
These posts grow out of sermons I’ve written for my local church community. You’re welcome to use them—for teaching, small groups, preaching, or personal reflection. If you share them elsewhere, please include a simple attribution. If you’d ever like to share how they’re being used, you’re welcome to reach out through the Contact button.
We’re in the first week of Lent. The season has long been marked by fasting and reflection. Mardi Gras — Fat Tuesday — is the last day to feast before Lent begins. And this week our Muslim neighbors began the fast of Ramadan. Other religious traditions may contain similar practices, as a way of moving toward God. But as Christians, we do not fast to earn mercy, or balance the scales, or gain acceptance. We fast because we belong to the Crucified One. We are being re-centered in His self-giving love. Lent is not just a new season, or a cycle. It is a RETURN…to the One who has already received us in Christ. Lent can feel like a ‘performative’ season. Maybe you grew up with the practice of giving something up for Lent. It’s a few weeks where you feel bad, so you try harder, and then maybe God will accept you.
The word ‘return’ can also have an edge to it. ‘You need to return to the office.’ Uh oh. ‘I returned it to the store,’ because something was defective. ‘Please return to your seat,’ sounds like a demand. Subconsciously, you may hear: ‘God is disappointed’, ‘I’m in trouble’, ‘I’m being called out.’ But in Scripture, return is never driven by guilt. It is always drawn…by mercy. Today we come to the Table of Return.
We begin with a text from Joel 2: a passage often used at the beginning of Lent. The invitation is to look inward, to examine our souls, and our relationship to God, our Creator.[1] But the prophet Joel invited God’s people, not to try harder, not to practice performative religion, but to return to God. That’s why Joel’s words matter so much. And he uses VERY dramatic language.
Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is close at hand—2 a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come. Joel 2:1-2 NIV
The Day of the Lord was an image of God’s intervention in history—to save—and to judge![2] The Day of the Lord is a way of talking about God taking sin and injustice seriously. If God never judges, then evil wins, oppression stands, and violence has the last word. Judgment is part of God’s commitment to set the world right. The common descriptions of this ‘Day’ portray a calamity that is bigger than anything ever seen or experienced before.[3] Joel envisions this here as the invasion of a foreign army, possibly in the form of locusts.[4] God’s people are in a season of devastation —
a locust plague, economic collapse, spiritual confusion. Signs of God’s displeasure? This is how humans interpret painful seasons. When life unravels, we look for meaning, too. Did I do something wrong? Where is God in all of this? In our world, we face constant bad news cycles, cultural hostility and division, rising costs and financial anxiety, relationships that are breaking apart, and physical struggles that weigh us down. Those are the kinds of things that make us wonder if God is disappointed in us, or that make us feel far away from God. We may not experience the same kind of devastation as the people in the time of Joel, But we know what it feels like when life unravels and the future feels uncertain.
Joel speaks into that moment, and he wants the people to act![5] The proper response to the Day of the Lord is a radical repentance and a return to God.[6] And so he calls the entire community to come together—not just one person, or a singled-out group. It’s a community, a solemn assembly. Even the bride and bridegroom should gather! And that’s what Lent is for us—a shared journey toward the cross.
God takes sin seriously…and he wants restoration. It may feel a bit scary though. How do we RETURN to God in light of that kind of judgment? So, Joel doesn’t say, ‘The Day of the Lord is coming. Good luck.’ No. He says, “Yes, things are broken — but the door home is still open.” Judgment is the reason the invitation is urgent — but he redirects them to God’s character. Later in chapter 2, Joel writes:
“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” 13 Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. 14 Who knows? He may turn and relent and leave behind a blessing—grain offerings and drink offerings for the Lord your God. Joel 2:12-14 NIV
“Even now…” says the Lord. Even now — after the wandering. Even now — after the devastation. Even now — when it might feel too late. Return to the Lord your God. Return, not with surface value religiosity. Not with spiritual performance. In ancient Near Eastern repentance, people tore robes and put ash on their skin — external signs. But Joel says: Stop tearing clothes. Tear your hearts. God doesn’t want a show! He’s looking for a returning of trust, affection, and loyalty—that begins in the heart. Why? Remember who God is! He is: gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, a God who relents from sending calamity. This is an invitation that is grounded in the character of God. It’s Not: ‘You’d better come back’! But: ‘You can come home’. Not: ‘Fix it first’. But: ‘Even now’. Joel 2 is a text about coming home to God, not groveling before God.
And ‘who knows?,’ Joel writes. GOD may turn—and relent—and leave a blessing. The offerings in this text stand for a new harvest, coming after the army destruction, the plague and famine—that will make the offering possible.[7] It’s images of grain, wine, and oil. It’s table language! When you return…God feeds you! He is a Table-setter. We see that in other places in Scripture: In Psalm 23, where he prepares a table, even in the presence of enemies.[8] In the prophetic picture of Isaiah, where God prepares a feast for all nations.[9] In the New Testament, when Jesus eats with sinners, when he sits the people down and feeds the 5,000, in his story of the father of the prodigal who runs and prepares a feast for his returning son, and in the Last Supper, as Jesus offers himself at the table—to his disciples, and to the world.
The God who calls us to return is the God who has already prepared the table.
Even the small bowl on the table in the picture today holds an olive branch —in Scripture a sign of peace, healing, and restoration. The table we come to is not a place of judgment, but of welcome. The table is a place of intimacy where God invites us to find fellowship, and taste His goodness. Taste and see that the Lord is good. (Psalm 34:8) In the ancient world, you did not eat with someone you were still at odds with. A shared meal was the sign that peace had been made. When the relationship was restored, the table was set. In Luke’s gospel, table fellowship is a primary symbol of acceptance and restored relationship.[10]
When Joel said, ‘Return to the Lord,’ he likely could not have imagined how God would one day set a Table where sinners and disciples, deniers and doubters, the broken and the beloved, would all be fed the same grace. But Luke saw the threads that connected. In Luke’s writings in Acts, he highlights Joel’s imagery that is recited in the speech of Peter on the Day of Pentecost.
‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized… They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 47 …And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:17-21, 41a, 42, 47 NIV
When Peter sees the Spirit being poured out, he understands Pentecost as evidence that the last days have begun, and that the eschatological ‘Day of the Lord’ foretold by the prophet is approaching.[11] It’s the time of God’s judgment… and deliverance.[12] But after mentioning the threatening Day of the Lord[13], similar to what Joel does, Luke…alters the pattern of Joel.[14] In Joel 2, no one was safe from the Day of the Lord.
God’s army was huge, and it comes against the people. But in Acts 2, in the last days, as prophesied by Joel, the emphasis is on the new believers in Jesus, who outnumber the members of God’s army in Joel 2.[15] The “last days” are no longer described as an unstoppable army, but by an unstoppable outpouring of the Spirit, an unstoppable multiplication of people being saved. Instead of God’s army invading, we get God’s people expanding! Joel asks, “Who can survive the Day of the Lord? Luke writes: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” The emphasis shifts from inescapable judgment to inescapable mercy, not because the Day disappears, but because Jesus absorbs it.
In Joel, the Day of the Lord comes like an army no one can number. But when Peter stands up in Acts to speak, suddenly the thing that cannot be counted is not an army of judgment —it is a people being gathered by grace. Return to the Lord is met by welcome. Return to God is met by inclusion. And where do the believers in Acts go after this? To a table—to break bread together.
People of God, Lent doesn’t begin with shame. It begins with an invitation. Lent says: Life is fragile, we are dust, the cross is necessary…AND…Return is possible, mercy is present, restoration is open. The Day of the Lord does not disappear. It is absorbed into the cross. Now, the call to return to God is not: Come face the Day. It’s: Come to the table of the One who has faced it FOR you. The God who calls us to return is the God who has already prepared the table. So, let us return—and be received at His table.
PRAYER: Gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, you are the One who calls us to return. We come to you now, not with performance, but with open hearts. Meet us in your mercy, feed us with your grace, and receive us again as your beloved. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.
—
Celebration of Communion — The Table of Return
Communion is not something we perform for God. It is something we receive from God.
Today, on this first Sunday of Lent, we hear again the words of the prophet Joel: “Even now… return to me with all your heart.” This table is God’s answer to that invitation. Before we return, He prepares. Before we confess, He makes room. Before we speak, He sets the table. This is not a table for the polished. It is not a table for the impressive. It is not a table for those who have it all together. It is a table for those who return.
If your faith feels steady — come. If your faith feels fragile — come. If you have walked closely — come. If you have wandered — come. If you carry gratitude — come. If you carry regret — come. The God who is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love invites you here. Come, not because you are strong,
but because Christ is faithful. Come, not because you deserve a seat, but because one has been set for you.
The Words of Institution
Brothers and sisters, on the night he was betrayed, our Lord Jesus took bread. He gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying: “This is my body, given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” (bread is passed)
Take, eat, remember and believe that the body of our Lord Jesus Christ was given for the complete forgiveness of all our sins. (Eat the bread)
In the same way, after supper, he took the cup. He gave thanks and said: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.” (juice is passed)
The cup that we drink is our participation in the blood of Christ. Receive the cup of salvation. Take and drink. (Drink the juice)
Every time we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the death of the risen Lord until he comes again. Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again.
Prayer: Gracious and compassionate God, thank you for calling us home. Thank you for meeting our return with mercy. Thank you for feeding us with grace. As we leave this table, teach us to live as people who have been received —quick to forgive, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. Anchor our hearts in Christ, and shape our lives by His mercy. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Bibliography
- Bartlett, David L. and Barbara Brown Taylor, Editors, Feasting on the Word, Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year B, Volume 2, Lent Through Eastertide, Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008.
- F.F. Bruce, The Book of the Acts, New International Commentary on the New Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988.
- Finley, Thomas J., Joel, Amos, Obadiah, The Wycliffe Exegetical Commentary, Chicago: Moody Press, 1990.
- Green, Joel B., The Gospel of Luke, New International Commentary on the New Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997.
- Keener, Craig S., Acts: An Exegetical Commentary, Vol. 1: Introduction and 1:1–2:47, Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2012.
- Sweeney, Marvin A., The Twelve Prophets, Volume One, Berit Olam Studies in Hebrew Narrative & Poetry, Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 2000.
Articles
- van de Sandt, Hubertus Waltherus Maria, “The Fate of the Gentiles in Joel and Acts 2: An Intertextual Study”, Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses, 66 no 1 1990, 56-77.
—
Going Deeper Questions
- What’s a place or table in your life where you always know you are welcome?
Read Joel 2:1-2
- What words or images stand out to you? What emotions do they create?
- The “Day of the Lord” includes both judgment and salvation. Why is it important that God takes sin and injustice seriously? How does that change the way you hear this passage?
- The people in Joel’s time interpreted their devastation as a sign that God was displeased. When life unravels today, what are the questions people tend to ask about God?
- Joel calls for a solemn assembly later — everyone gathered together. Why do you think return and repentance are meant to be communal, not just individual?
Read Joel 2:12-14
- What do you think “performative faith” looks like today?
- In what ways can Lent (or our spiritual practices in general) become about trying harder so God will accept us?
- What is the difference between tearing garments and tearing hearts? How is it different than trying to earn forgiveness?
- Joel’s invitation to return is grounded in who God is: gracious, compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love. Which of these do you most need to believe right now? Why?
- How does God’s character change the way we think about repentance?
Interactive/Group Practice
As a group, create a short, spoken litany using Joel 2:13:
Leader: “Return to the Lord your God…”
Group: “For He…”
Fill in the phrases together.
- Why do you think Joel uses uncertain language (‘who knows?) instead of a guaranteed outcome? (vs14). What does that teach us about humility, trust, and our need for control?
- Joel says God may leave behind a blessing. Where have you seen — or where do you hope to see — signs that God is already doing that in your life?
- Grain, wine, and oil are all table images. In the ancient world, eating together meant reconciliation and peace. Why do you think God’s promise of renewal is pictured as a shared table rather than simply the removal of suffering or the return of material blessing? What does a table offer that survival alone does not?
Read Acts 2:17–21, 41a, 42, 47
- What connections do you see between this passage and Joel’s prophecy?
- In Joel 2 the focus is on an unstoppable army. In Acts 2, what keeps growing and increasing instead?
- Acts 2:47 shows the believers gathering, breaking bread, and sharing life together. How is the table central to the life of the early church? What do you think they experienced at the table that helped them live as one body?
The God who calls us to return
is the God who has already prepared the table
- How does this imagery deepen your understanding of Communion?
Personal Reflection
- Which of these do you most relate to right now?
-returning after wandering -returning after devastation
-returning when it feels “too late” -simply returning again
- What would it look like for you this week to live as someone who has been received, fed by grace, given a place at the table?
- Finish this sentence: “For me, returning to God right now looks like…”
Prayer: Gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, thank you for preparing the table before we arrive. Teach us to return — and to receive your mercy. Amen.
[1] David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, Editors, Feasting on the Word, Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year B, Volume 2, Lent Through Eastertide, Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008, 2, (Jane Anne Ferguson column).
[2] David L. Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor, Editors, Feasting on the Word, Preaching the Revised Common Lectionary, Year B, Volume 2, Lent Through Eastertide, Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2008, 4, (Jane Anne Ferguson column).
[3] Marvin A. Sweeney, The Twelve Prophets, Volume One, Berit Olam Studies in Hebrew Narrative & Poetry, Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 2000, 162.
[4] Thomas J. Finley, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, The Wycliffe Exegetical Commentary, Chicago: Moody Press, 1990, 40.
[5] Thomas J. Finley, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, The Wycliffe Exegetical Commentary, Chicago: Moody Press, 1990, 40.
[6] Feasting on the Word, 4, WM. Loyd Allen column.
[7] Finley, 55.
[8] Psalm 23:5
[9] Isaiah 25:6
[10] Joel B. Green, The Gospel of Luke, New International Commentary on the New Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997, 243-247.
[11] F.F. Bruce, The Book of the Acts, New International Commentary on the New Testament, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988, 64.
[12] Craig S. Keener, Acts: An Exegetical Commentary, Vol. 1: Introduction and 1:1–2:47, Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2012, 946.
[13] van de Sandt, 64.
[14] van de Sandt, 77.
[15] van de Sandt, Hubertus Waltherus Maria, “The Fate of the Gentiles in Joel and Acts 2: An Intertextual Study”, Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses, 66 no 1 1990, 56-77, 66.
Optional Small Groups Study—Yogurt Parfait Table (After Communion Sunday, before Zacchaeus)
Items Needed
- Bible verses printed (Mark 2:13-17)
- Printed facilitator notes
- Paper towels / wipes
- Hand sanitizer
Food
- Plain yogurt
- Dairy-free yogurt option
- Toppings (choose a variety):
- Fresh or frozen fruit
- Granola
- Nuts or seeds
- Coconut flakes
Serving Items
- Bowls (extra for non-eaters)
- Spoons
- Napkins
Room Setup
- Tables again
- Bowls of yogurt
- Toppings in separate bowls
- Clear space in center of table
- Spoons and napkins
- Empty bowls available for anyone who wants to assemble but not eat
- Signage (or verbal reminder (Eating is optional)
Opening
Last week we shared bread. Today we’re sharing a table again—but in a different way. This is an assemble-your-own table. Participation doesn’t require eating—just presence.
Prayer: Gracious God, we come to this table carrying many things—some of us tired, some grateful, some unsure, some hopeful. Thank you for meeting people at tables—in ordinary places, with ordinary food, and doing extraordinary things among them. As we sit together today, help us slow down, help us receive what is given, and help us notice your presence in one another. May this table be a place of welcome, honesty, and grace. We offer ourselves to you, just as we are, trusting that you are already here. Amen.
Scripture
This is one of the first meals Jesus shares in Mark’s Gospel. It happens before anyone has their life figured out. And it raises the same question people still ask today: What does it mean to welcome someone without losing what matters? Read Mark 2:13–17 slowly.
Brief Reflection Questions (printed on separate piece of paper)
- “What helps you lower your guard enough to feel welcomed?
- “Where is receiving grace harder for you than offering it?”
Parfait Practice
Invite people to:
- Build a parfait
- Help pass bowls
- Or simply observe and sit with others
You might say: “Notice how different everyone’s bowls look. Jesus welcomes people as they are, but he never leaves them untouched. Everyone comes to the table carrying different stories. What we share is not sameness—but openness. Conversation can remain light or reflective.
Closing–On Sunday we’ll hear the story of Zacchaeus—someone Jesus welcomed openly and called into new life.
Prayer: God, thank you for meeting us as we are, and for the grace that makes room for all of us. Amen.
Bible Reading Mark 2:13-17
Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him. 15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Mark 2:13-17 NIV
13-14 Then Jesus went again to walk alongside the lake. Again a crowd came to him, and he taught them. Strolling along, he saw Levi, son of Alphaeus, at his work collecting taxes. Jesus said, “Come along with me.” He came. 15-16 Later Jesus and his disciples were at home having supper with a collection of disreputable guests. Unlikely as it seems, more than a few of them had become followers. The religion scholars and Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company and lit into his disciples: “What kind of example is this, acting cozy with the misfits?” 17 Jesus, overhearing, shot back, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? I’m here inviting the sin-sick, not the spiritually-fit.” Mark 2:13-17 MSG
“What helps you lower your guard enough to feel welcomed?
“Where is receiving grace harder for you than offering it?”
Preach it Sista 