May 10, 2026 | Sixth Sunday after Easter @ Holy Trinity Lutheran Church – Buffalo, NY
Scripture References
Micah 6:8; John 14:15-21
What Is the Purpose of the Church?
What would you say is the purpose of the Christian Church?
Not just Holy Trinity … not just Lutherans … but all congregations everywhere around the world?
We may think of loving, serving, welcoming, learning, growing, and advocating for justice.
What I don’t hear any Christian say is that our purpose is to judge … to exclude … to condemn … or to tell people, “I’ll help you … if …” or “I’ll help you, but only under conditions.”
It is one thing to say or to hear what our purpose is … and is not, but it’s quite another thing to live it when there is a living, breathing human being in front of us who is in need.
The world has a whole lot of needs.
What it doesn’t need more of is judgement — there’s already an abundance of that.
What the world desperately needs is mercy.
Doing Justice With Mercy
You may recall Bishop Mariann Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, D.C. She delivered a sermon at the National Cathedral in the days following the inauguration in which she focused on mercy.
She received a whole lot of condemnation after that sermon. Even death threats. And why? Because she lifted up mercy as a deep value for Christians.
You may recall Micah 6:8 — one of my favorite verses — “God has shown you what is good and what the Lord requires of you — to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.”
Even though I’ve studied and referred to this verse so many times, I saw something new in it this week.
“Do justice” is the first thing mentioned as it says, “God has shown you what is good and what the Lord requires of you … to do justice..
What if loving mercy and walking humbly with God spoke to the manner in which we “do justice”? In other words … God requires that we do justice and that we do justice with mercy and humility.
Learning Mercy the Hard Way
When I was about 13 or 14 years old, I had some friends who taught me about shoplifting. Yes … shoplifting.
On the day that a friend and I were caught, the store manager asked if I wanted him to call the police or my mom. It took a minute for me to answer that one!
You didn’t know my mom, but even though she was 5-foot-nuthin’ … she was powerful.
Her faith in God was so intertwined with her life. Jesus was very personal for her. And her love, approval, and trust were so very important to me.
There’s a lot more to this story, but let’s just say that I definitely experienced my mom’s judgement.
I knew I broke her trust that day, but I didn’t break her love. Somehow she found a way to do justice with mercy and humility that actually made our relationship stronger and increased my love and respect for her.
I heard a strong statement of mercy recently:
We are not defined by the best or the worst moments of our lives.
Thankfully, my whole life was not defined by that one moment.
Mercy Requires Proximity
Bishop Budde wrote in a recent blog post:
Mercy … is less about sentiment than it is about connection and our common humanity.
Mercy is a discipline that requires self-awareness, proximity, and a commitment to stay in relationship when retreating into our safe corners would be easier.
That feels especially important right now.
We’ve been talking over the last few weeks about our wake that follows us and impacts the people around us — like the wake of a boat.
On Mother’s Day, we could all talk about the wake that follows our mothers. Our lives have been impacted by their wake … their values, their love, their support, and their failings.
As we celebrate Anna and Miriam’s First Communion, we give thanks to God for the close proximity of the Holy Spirit that affects our lives with God’s wake.
As we remember the fourth anniversary this week of the 2022 Buffalo Tops grocery store murders, we see that the hatred stirred up by racism also has a wake.
The Wake We Leave Behind
In all the complexity of life, the Holy Spirit does not stay far away at a safe distance.
Instead, through the Holy Spirit, we experience close proximity to God where you and I receive hope, we receive the Spirit of Truth, we receive love, where we are moved and loved into community … a community whose wake includes doing justice with mercy while walking humbly with God.
Reflection Questions
- Where do you see judgment overwhelming mercy in the world right now?
- What does it look like to “do justice with mercy and humility” in your daily relationships?
- What kind of wake are you leaving behind in the lives of others?
Epicurious Lutheran 
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