10/29/2026
Rev. Mark's Weekly Note:
Dear St. Andrew Family,
This Sunday we’ll conclude our Echoes from Exile series with the message “At the Table, Not the Throne,” drawing on 2 Kings 25:27–30 and Luke 22:24–27.
In the story from 2 Kings, the Judahites are still living in Babylon, far from home. After thirty-seven years in exile, the captive king Jehoiachin is released from prison. While he’s not permitted to return home to Jerusalem, he is—in a surprising change of circumstances—treated like royalty. Babylon’s new ruler speaks kindly to him, restores a measure of dignity, and gives him a regular place at the royal table. His situation improves, but exile continues. He must still eat Babylon’s bread.
There’s something honest about this ending to the book of Kings. We, too, live within political, economic, and social systems we cannot fully endorse or escape. Every day, we work, build friendships, and interact with neighbors whose beliefs, politics, and priorities differ greatly from ours. Yet we must still depend on one another. We know we cannot retreat into private enclaves of religious or ideological purity or exclusion. Whether we like it or not, we must eat at Babylon’s tables every day.
In Luke’s gospel, the disciples are sitting at another table—the Last Supper—when an argument arises about which of them is greatest. It’s a reminder that, even at Jesus’ table, among his most faithful followers, the hunger for status, power, and control must be challenged. So Jesus points to rulers who exercise power over others and calls his followers to an entirely different way of life: “I am among you as one who serves.”
Today, a growing number of people conflate their seat at the table of Jesus with their place within the institutions of power and government. Christian nationalism conflicts with Jesus’ challenge to eschew domination for the life of a servant. Seeking to secure Christian identity through national power and control is idolatry. When Christians pursue the authority to impose faith on others, we must ask whether we are simply swapping seats with the leaders of empire.
As we approach the midterm election, these are questions about our own discipleship, too. Political decisions matter for our neighbors’ lives. So does the way we participate in our civic responsibility to work for the common good—and how we treat one another after the votes are counted.
This Sunday, we’ll explore what it means to practice a faith that is secure enough to become involved, humble enough to receive, and discerning enough to resist domination—including our own. In addition to celebrating the Sacrament of Holy Communion, we’ll take a moment—as part of our All Saints Sunday tradition—to name publicly those dear to us who have died over the last year.
I’ll be preaching live at all three Sunday services: 8, 9, and 10:45 am.
We’re excited to welcome Carrie Newcomer in concert this Friday, October 30, at 7 pm. Carrie is a songwriter, recording artist, performer, educator, and activist. Rolling Stone comments, “Rapturously tuneful, Newcomer’s material asks all the right questions and refuses to settle for easy answers.” You can purchase tickets by clicking here. If you can’t be here Friday night, Carrie will also share her music with us Sunday morning at both our 9 and 10:45 am worship services.
I look forward to worshiping with you! In the meantime, be well, be blessed, and abide in love.
Yours in Christ,
Rev. Mark
