In Home Worship – Sunday, February 1, 2026 – Fourth Sunday After Epiphany

Image Credit: Petar Milošević, 2015, Love padlocks on the Butchers’ Bridge in Ljubljana, Slovenia, WikiCommons.

Matthew 5: 21-26: “Not a Nation of Hate, but a Nation of Love”

Today’s Gospel reading is part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. It spans three chapters in Matthew’s Gospel. The sermon has a distinct theme, namely, to live your faith in all aspects of your life, a theme of discipleship. It is not enough not to murder a person. You should also not feel angry about them. It is not enough to not commit adultery. You should also not fantasize about it. It is not enough to love your neighbor. You should also love your enemy. Jesus wants the whole you. Not only the Sunday person, but also the Monday to Saturday one. Not only your brain or your heart, but your whole body with all muscles, bones, feelings, hormones, and neurotransmitters.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows us that the regulation of our feelings is an important part of discipleship. While all feelings are natural and valid, not all of them are helpful in every situation. Jesus asks us to reduce our anger and to increase our love when we deal with other people. Later in the sermon, he says: “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies.” This is a command to love and not hate: a command to love all people. But how do we do that in a nation in which hate rules?

Come this Sunday at 10 AM and find out at Our Savior Lutheran Church, 745 Front St. S, in Issaquah and on YouTube.

– Pr. Kristin-Luana