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Danville Iowa Methodist Church, PO Box 187, 201 S Main Street, Danville, IA (2026)

05/31/2026

Below is an excerpt from our worship service this morning. God's peace be with you! - Pastor Jacob

GOSPEL READING - Luke 1:39-57
39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, 40 where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit 42 and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43 And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me? 44 For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her by the Lord.” 46 And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant.
Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
and holy is his name;
50 indeed, his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
51 He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 He has brought down the powerful from their thrones
and lifted up the lowly;
53 he has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away empty.
54 He has come to the aid of his child Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
55 according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
56 And Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home. 57 Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son.

SERMON

Before you check your calendars, let me confirm that it is indeed the last Sunday of May! Last week was Pentecost, and Christmas is still several months away. This Gospel reading describing how Mary, the mother of Jesus, visited her cousin Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, feels like it was dropped in by the lectionary out of nowhere. We can’t even say that we are trying to celebrate Christmas in July! It doesn’t seem like we should be hearing about these events yet when we have just been talking about Jesus’ ascension into heaven and the gift of the Holy Spirit. So, why now?

When we look ahead to our annual celebration in December of the birth of Christ, the timing of this reading at the end of May is a reminder that God was already at work long before that night in Bethlehem to bring about the world-changing event of the Incarnation. The arrival of the long-awaited Messiah had been put together carefully according to God’s wisdom and timing! For centuries when people searched the scriptures and watch for signs, it may have seemed like nothing was happening. They may have even wondered if God was really going to keep His promise to send a Savior to deliver them. However, we can see even from the scripture passages we have heard today that God is always at work bringing about His Kingdom for our good and His glory!

We get a glimpse of the extent of God’s careful planning and timing through our Old Testament reading this morning. This passage described how a woman named Hannah prayed in the temple with a similar tone and theme as Mary in our Gospel reading. Hannah and Mary were both rejoicing and trusting in God, giving thanks for what He had done for them, and for the ways that He lifts up the lowly and humbles the proud. In Hannah’s case, she gave thanks to God for giving her a son unexpectedly after years of prayer and grief at not being able to have children. She gave birth to Samuel and dedicated him to serve the Lord. Samuel apprenticed under the priest Eli and became a great prophet in Israel (1 Sam. 3). In fact, Samuel eventually became the one to anoint David as king over Israel. If we look at the genealogies available in the Gospel of Matthew (1:1-16), we can see that David was an ancestor of Jesus. This was in order to fulfill the prophecy that the Messiah would come from the “house of David” (2 Sam. 7:12–13). So even back in Hannah’s day, God was at work bringing about His Kingdom for our good and His glory!

Scholars who have studied the historical context of Jesus’ incarnation have said that he was born in just the right place at just the right time for the Gospel to spread among the nations. The Roman empire was extensive, and there was enough trade and travel happening in the areas where Jesus did his ministry that news of his teachings and miracles—including his death and resurrection—was able to be exchanged quickly through word-of-mouth. Even as the time drew closer for Jesus to be born, there was still more that God was doing to prepare, as we saw in our Gospel text. As we know from the rest of the story in the New Testament, John the Baptist was sent ahead of Jesus to “prepare the way of the Lord.” The timing of John’s birth ahead of Jesus’ birth to Elizabeth and Zechariah, a couple who had previously been unable to have children, was no accident! It was another case of God providing what was needed at just the right time.

Last but not least, Mary was visited by an angel of the Lord who told her what God’s plan was to give the world a Savior. Mary’s visit to her relative Elizabeth became an affirmation of God’s Word to her when Elizabeth spoke through the power of the Spirit and the baby in her womb “leaped for joy” (verse 44). Mary herself affirmed her belief in God’s mercy and provision in her famous words that we often refer to as “The Magnificat” (verses 46-55). The two women who were becoming mothers unexpectedly were likely a comfort to one another as they put their trust in God’s plan that, in both cases, was being brought about in very unusual circumstances. Even so, they believed that God was at work bringing about His Kingdom for our good and His glory!

We know from so many stories in scripture, including the stories of Hannah, Elizabeth, and Mary that we caught glimpses of today, that God can do great things. He is all-powerful and all-knowing! It is also amazing to think of the great series of events that took place leading up to some of these milestone moments. God was laying the groundwork long before anyone realized what was going on. His ways are truly higher than our ways, and His thoughts are far higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-11). His Word is purposeful and life-giving, and we can trust that He will keep His promises…even when we cannot see how or when it will happen!

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer together in worship each Sunday, we say, “May Your Kingdom come, may Your will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven…” Do we pray these things with a sense of expectation? Let these scriptures give us hope this morning that God will do it! As followers of Christ living in the New Covenant by water and the Spirit, we believe that we are being made into a new creation day by day and that God is bringing about His Kingdom even now until one day Christ comes again to usher in the New Heaven and the New Earth. As a reminder of this, we say to one another: “Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again.” Even when that day feels far off, I pray that we will put our hope in God’s promises and trust that His Word is true.

No matter what we are facing this week…whether we are rejoicing in a long-awaited answer to prayer, or we are still lifting up our hearts to the Lord and waiting…I pray that we will have faith in who we have seen God to be in these great stories of faith. I pray that we will listen to the stories of our brothers and sisters in Christ who have experienced God providing in just the right way at just the right time. I pray that we will share our own stories with others to encourage them as well and listen when the Holy Spirit invites us to become part of the story of what God is doing! Even when it is hard to see, we know that God is always at work bringing about His Kingdom for our good and His glory! Thanks be to God! Amen.

05/24/2026

Below is an excerpt from our worship service this morning. God's peace be with you! - Pastor Jacob

NEW TESTAMENT READING - Acts 2:1-21
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

5 Now there were devout Jews from every people under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. 7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” 12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.”
14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Fellow Jews and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.

15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
17 ‘In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit,
and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

SERMON

The day of Pentecost has finally arrived! This is the holiday 50 days after Easter where we remember when God first sent the gift of His Holy Spirit to dwell in followers of Christ. As Christians, we look at this event as the “birthday” of the Christian Church—the start of a new era of relationship between humanity and God the Father, through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus, the Son, by the indwelling presence and power of the Holy Spirit. All three persons of God are always (and have always) been present, but on Pentecost, we recognize and give thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit that we have received as believers. This is such an important day because the Holy Spirit came to transform our hearts and to transform the world as we move closer each day to God’s new Creation. Praise the Lord!

Although we naturally associate this holiday with the New Testament, Pentecost marks the moment Moses had longed for that we heard about in our Old Testament reading when others besides him were briefly given the gift of prophecy (Num. 11:27-29). After many generations, Christ came and made it possible for us to live in fuller communion with God. Then God did indeed pour out His Spirit on all of His people as we heard about in this reading from Acts so that they would each be able to share in His work in the world. This includes us too! At this point we are perhaps used to talking about the presence of the Holy Spirit in the world and in our lives, but take a step back and consider—what difference does it make that this is true?

In recent weeks leading up to Pentecost, we have heard Jesus telling his disciples that he would be sending them a Helper or Advocate so that they would have godly guidance and reassurance, and so that the truth of his teachings would continue to be brought to mind and revealed to them even after he ascended into heaven. This is actually unique among the various religions of the world—as Christians, we worship a God who does not leave us alone with the task of finding Him and growing in faith. Instead, we can experience a lifelong journey of growth and learning in constant connection with God because of the gift of the Holy Spirit!

As Wesleyan Methodists, the presence and movement of the Holy Spirit is a key component of our experience of faith. We believe God calls us to Himself even before we realize it through the work of the Spirit and what Wesley called God’s prevenient grace. We believe the Holy Spirit is actively a part of confirming our personal faith. This is when we know deep in our hearts that Jesus is our Lord and Savior and we receive justifying grace. Jesus came to reveal the glory and love of God among us, and his death on the cross removed the power of sin over us. This is part of the Good News, but, thanks be to God, that is not the end of the story! We are called to be more than just forgiven—we are called to be God’s reconciled and restored people, refined by the fire of sanctifying grace administered by the Spirit until we reveal the image of God once again!

We have so many reasons to be thankful for the Holy Spirit who came to transform our hearts and to transform the world. The Spirit of God that we received when our hearts and minds were moved to follow Christ as our Lord and Savior dwells personally within each of us as believers, and the Spirit then equips us with wisdom and other gifts as needed throughout our lives. These gifts are not only for our own benefit, but so that we can share those blessings of God with others for His Glory until the whole world hears the Good News! This is why Pentecost is a holiday for us as Christians! It marks the foundational moment when our way of relating to God changed forever because, through the gift of the Spirit, each believer was personally equipped for knowing God in a whole new way, for being refined and restored in the image of God, and for participating in the mission of spreading the Gospel!

Whatever shape our particular calling takes, we are all called to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ wherever we are sent. It is truly amazing to consider how the Spirit of God knows exactly what we need to spread the Good News faithfully in a particular time and place! For example, the gift of language was given by the Holy Spirit specifically to help spread the Good News, as we heard about in this reading from Acts. There were many people from all over visiting Jerusalem for a religious festival when the day of Pentecost came. Knowing this, we can see how receiving the Holy Spirit gave Jesus’ disciples exactly what they needed to be sent out to share the Gospel with those who had gathered in the city from many different places at that time. The Spirit will give us gifts as needs arise, and we can trust in the wisdom of the Spirit as we seek to follow God’s call.

As we engage in God’s mission to reveal Himself and bring about His Kingdom, we have to take action in faith, and we can do that in relationship with God because of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit moves in ways that are sometimes beyond our understanding, and our goal is to pay attention and move with it. As I read verses 2 & 3 in this passage from Acts describing the outpouring of the Spirit as a “violent wind” that filled the house where the disciples were gathered and “tongues of fire” that rested on each of them, the full, life-giving power of the Spirit that is beyond our understanding or control really hit home. Anyone who has intentionally lived by the Spirit can testify that it can be a bit of a wild ride!

At the same time, we can trust that we are gifted according to God’s purposes, and we can faithfully listen to the Spirit who has bestowed these gifts and who calls us to live as part of the body of Christ in different ways at different times. We do not always know what will be needed in a situation, but God knows and God provides for us. There are a variety of spiritual gifts talked about in the New Testament, and the Holy Spirit will equip us as needed throughout our lives. By living in this way through the power and presence of the Spirit, we will spread the Gospel and bring God’s Kingdom near! Let us join with Christians around the world and throughout the ages as we celebrate today that the Holy Spirit came to transform our hearts and to transform the world. Thanks be to God! Amen.

05/17/2026

Below is an excerpt from our worship service this morning. God's peace be with you! - Pastor Jacob

*GOSPEL READING - Luke 24:44-53
44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46 and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” 50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. 51 While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and they were continually in the temple blessing God.

SERMON

Our scripture readings this morning paint a dramatic picture of the full spectrum of what it looks like to follow Christ faithfully as we wait for the day of his return. There is great joy and celebration as well as a call to perseverance in the face of suffering. In the Gospel text, Jesus had given the disciples directions to wait in Jerusalem until they were “clothed with power from on high,” and then he was carried up into heaven (verse 49). After witnessing this, the disciples were filled with joy and spent their time in the temple worshiping God! This was a high point, a mountaintop experience where their faith was strengthened, and they were anticipating more of the same when they received the Helper Jesus had promised. We will talk more about the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost next Sunday. What an amazing time it would have been, though, to be among the disciples that day of his ascension!

In contrast, our New Testament reading is a letter from the apostle Peter, and the atmosphere was much less of a celebration for Christians at that point. He was writing about 30 years or so after the Ascension and only a few years before he was martyred. Followers of Christ were still waiting for Jesus to return, were continuing to spread the Good News, and were still working out their faith in community with each other, even under very challenging circumstances. They were seen as outcasts, or even worse in some cases: as rebellious people whose different way of life was trying to overthrow the ruling Roman powers, or upset the agreements between the Romans and the Jewish people, or both. Therefore, they faced significant persecution that was on the verge of taking a turn for the worse.

It was in this context that Peter wrote to encourage Christians to remain faithful.
The realities of being a follower of Jesus were hopeful, but their hope rested in the promises of Christ, not their earthly circumstances. The rest of the letter is full of similar moments of acknowledgement from Peter that what they were facing was very difficult, as well as encouragement that they were not alone in their suffering. Peter also reminded them of the suffering of Christ himself as an example to them. His purpose was not to be pessimistic, but to give them a more realistic idea of what to expect as faithful people. As he said in the beginning of the passage we heard earlier, “do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12). We can imagine in the earliest days of the church, the apostles and other new Christians were perhaps expecting that Jesus would be returning very soon. Maybe they even expected that the Advocate or Helper that Jesus had promised would keep them from experiencing any suffering at all.

Instead, they were learning that the “power from on high” they had been given, the Holy Spirit of the Triune God, was sent to help them in both peaceful and turbulent times. Peter wrote, “If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you” (1 Peter 4:14). In other words, hostilities and even persecution by the world are to be expected if we are living faithfully in the power of the Spirit! Peter described the situation with a famous comparison, saying in his letter that “Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sisters in all the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.” (1 Peter 5:8-9) Peter went on to remind them that suffering did not mean that God had forgotten them, and eventually He would “restore, support, strengthen, and establish” them (1 Peter 5:10). These are powerful and comforting words for us to remember today as well.

There is so much that could be said about both of these scripture passages, but one takeaway for us today is to keep watch for mountaintop moments of witnessing the presence and power of Christ, like they did on the day of the Ascension. These are times to savor, to share with other believers, to worship God in awe and wonder, and to celebrate! However, we should also expect that there will be times in the journey when things get extremely tough…when we will be treated like outsiders, outcasts, or even rebels, because we live differently than the world around us. That doesn’t mean we are off track. That doesn’t mean that God is absent, or that Christ was wrong in what he promised. It is just the reality of waiting faithfully for Christ’s return in the midst of a broken world. We do not need to be afraid or discouraged! We can instead remember Christ in all his glory, ascending into heaven, and trust in his promises to us now and for the future. Thanks be to God for abiding with us on the mountaintops and in the valleys of life! May we boldly proclaim in all circumstances just as the early Church did that Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again! Amen.

05/10/2026

Below is an excerpt from the worship service this morning. God's peace be with you! - Pastor Jacob

*GOSPEL READING - John 14:15-21
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him because he abides with you, and he will be in you.
18 “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me, and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

SERMON

For some of us as we heard the Gospel reading this morning, we may have heard a “four-letter word” that caught our attention. The NRSV translation, along with many others, goes easy on us with the English word “keep,” but other translations opt for the word that might ruffle our feathers a little bit more: “obey.” Jesus said at the beginning of this passage in verse 15, “If you love me, you will keep [or obey] my commandments.” Whether you think of it as keeping or obeying, the idea of doing what we have been taught or commanded to do is sometimes challenging. Like many things, though, Jesus reframes it and transforms it in this conversation with his disciples. Even if we have had negative experiences in earthly situations with keeping commandments we’ve been given and showing obedience, Jesus is teaching his disciples (and us) how to see it (and live it out) as an act of love. As followers of Christ today, we are called to keep his commandments not just “because he said so,” but because he loves us and we love him. Because we love Jesus, we will keep, or obey, his commandments. And because God loves us, He will send us the gift of a Helper or Advocate to do this faithfully. Not just any help, but the gift of Himself—the Holy Spirit—to dwell within us.

Before you check your calendars, no, it is not Pentecost yet! As we follow the church calendar year, next Sunday we will celebrate the Ascension of Christ, and then it will (finally) be Pentecost when we celebrate the giving of the Holy Spirit. Our Gospel reading today is a bit of a preview, though, because Jesus is trying to prepare his disciples for what is coming next. They haven’t read the New Testament, of course, so they are living through the exciting but confusing time of the first Easter season. They didn’t have a liturgical calendar to guide them. All they knew was that Jesus had died on the cross, and now he was risen. He had been appearing to them and revealing the power and mystery of the resurrection. Like we heard about last week, he had also been teaching them that his victory over the grave would be their victory, too. He had already been preparing them for the idea that he would be leaving, but we can imagine that this was confusing and concerning to them… They thought they had lost him when he was crucified…they rejoiced when they realized that he was risen… Were they now going to lose him all over again?

In this part of the conversation, which picks up where we left off in the Gospel of John last week, Jesus is starting to explain the new dynamics of their relationship that will shift when he leaves… He reassures his disciples that he is not leaving them to fend for themselves, but that he will be with them. We will save the longer discussion on the dynamics of the Trinity for another Sunday, but the point is that Jesus is not telling his disciples to keep his commandments “or else.” He is not saying to keep his commandments and wishing them luck. He is explaining that their relationship with him will live on even after he goes on ahead of them to be with God the Father, and part of how that will be accomplished is through keeping his commandments.

As he says in verses 19 and 20: “In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me… On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.” The way that this new relationship will be possible is through the same love languages that God has related to humanity through for all time…abiding and obedience. God gave His commandments to the Israelites through Moses, and He abided with them through the pillars of cloud and fire, the ark of the covenant, and eventually the temple in Jerusalem. The disciples who spent time abiding with Jesus knew how he had commanded them to live. By following those commandments, the disciples would demonstrate their love for Jesus, and he will then fulfill his promise to send the Holy Spirit to abide with them. The Holy Spirit will guide them in wisdom and power as they grow in love and faithfulness and continue in obedience, and, just as Jesus said in verse 21, “those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

In other words, the way to be in right relationship with God is through Christ, and the way to be in relationship with Christ is through obedience…following his teachings and living as he did. God has mercy on us though, because He knows this is not easy, and so Jesus sends the gift of the presence of the Holy Spirit to abide within us and be with us always. The Spirit abiding within us teaches us how to live in even greater obedience, not by force, by out of love, as God calls us into deeper relationship with Himself. As time goes on, then, as faithful people, we are transformed through the Spirit and obedience into God’s holy people—for our good, and for His glory!

The heart of the Christian life begins to be laid out for us in this conversation with Jesus… It is not about hanging onto our experience of God as we have always known it… It is not about completing a checklist of righteous activities…it is not about guessing at what God wants for us and then hoping for the best… It is about living each moment in a living relationship with our living God who is love. He loves us so much that He comes to us to abide with us and reveal Himself to us so that we may know him and love Him better. He loves us so much that he sent His only Son to be with us…to die for us…to lead us back to God…to show us the way to everlasting life. He asks for obedience to lead us to the full and abundant life He has for us, but first He gives us love, and when we walk in His ways and obey, we room for even more of His love in our lives.

No matter what our past experience with obedience has been, I encourage you to look at Jesus’ words with open eyes and an open heart this week. How are each of us being invited to love him more this week through keeping his commandments? How are each of us being helped and supported and guided by the Spirit as God gives us more and more of Himself as we obey? How is our living relationship with our living God transformed even in just one week of living in this way? How is the world around us changed by it? God’s commandments call us to be holy as He is holy so that His Kingdom, which was already brought near by Christ, will be revealed that much more. I pray that we will trust in the love of Christ and say “yes” to the guidance of the Holy Spirit this week so that we may know the God we worship more deeply and share His great love with a world in need. May it be so for you and for me. Amen.

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PO Box 187, 201 S Main Street
Danville, IA
52623

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+13193924768

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