Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026 – June 7

On June 7, 2026, we will celebrate the Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026 and welcome Deacon Nate Irvine as he leads worship with us for the first time as Deacon in charge. This will be our first Deacon Mass in a long time!

This Sunday’s readings invite us to reflect honestly on the true nature of faithfulness — focusing not on the performance of religion but on the posture of the heart. God desires steadfast love rather than sacrifice. He calls sinners instead of the self-sufficient, and He can bring life from what seems as good as dead.

Join us for worship in the way that suits you best! You can worship with us in person, via Live Stream, Video Replay, or Podcast.

If You Cannot Join Us In Person for the Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026!

We understand that you may not always be able to attend in person, so we offer several virtual options.

Livestream/Playback

Join us live at 8:50 AM for the organ prelude, then the service begins at 9:00 AM. After the livestream ends, you can watch the video replay anytime.

Podcast

Did you know that we are available on all major platforms? Our podcast covers everything from the opening hymn to the sharing of the peace.

The Collect for the Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026

O God, from whom all good proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Readings for the Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026

First Lesson: Hosea 5:15–6:6

I will return again to my place until they acknowledge their guilt and seek my face. In their distress they will beg my favor:

“Come, let us return to the Lord; for it is he who has torn, and he will heal us; he has struck down, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. Let us know, let us press on to know the Lord; his appearing is as sure as the dawn; he will come to us like the showers, like the spring rains that water the earth.”

What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah? Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes away early. Therefore I have hewn them by the prophets, I have killed them by the words of my mouth, and my judgment goes forth as the light. For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

Psalm 50:7–15

Second Lesson: Romans 4:13–25

For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation. For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”) — in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become “the father of many nations,” according to what was said, “So numerous shall your descendants be.” He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was already as good as dead (for he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his faith “was reckoned to him as righteousness.”

Now the words, “it was reckoned to him,” were written not for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be reckoned to us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was handed over to death for our trespasses and was raised for our justification.

Gospel: Matthew 9:9–13, 18–26

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.”

While he was saying these things to them, suddenly a leader of the synagogue came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” And Jesus got up and followed him, with his disciples. Then suddenly a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak, for she said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.” Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. And the report of this spread throughout that district.

Reflection on the Readings for the Second Sunday after Pentecost 2026

What God Actually Wants – Hosea 5:15–6:6

The prophet Hosea delivers a message that is both tender and piercing. God speaks of withdrawing—returning to His place—until the people acknowledge their guilt and sincerely seek His face. The people respond with what seems to be devotion: “Come, let us return to the Lord.” They speak of healing, revival, and resurrection on the third day, describing the Lord coming to them like spring rains watering the earth. It is beautiful language.

But God is not impressed. “Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes away early.” The people’s devotion is real in the moment and gone by midday. They know how to say the right things and how to perform the rituals. What they have not learned is steadfastness — the kind of love that endures when it is costly, when nothing dramatic is happening, and when God seems absent.

And so God names what he truly desires: “I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” This is not a rejection of worship; it clarifies what worship is for. Sacrifice without steadfast love is theater. Offerings without genuine knowledge of God are empty gestures. God wants the real thing — a relationship of faithful, enduring love that shapes how we live every day, not just how we perform on holy days.

The God Who Owns Everything – Psalm 50:7–15

The psalm opens with God speaking directly to his people — not to accuse them of neglecting their sacrifices, but to redefine what sacrifice means. God does not need the bull-calves from their stalls or the he-goats from their pens. Every beast of the forest already belongs to him. Every bird in the sky is known to him. The whole world is his.

This is not a rejection of offerings, but rather an invitation to present what truly matters. The psalm states, “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and fulfill your vows to the Most High.” It goes on to say, “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor me.” God desires a relationship with us—one in which we call upon Him, He responds, and we honor Him through our lives, rather than through mere transactions of livestock.

The psalm aligns beautifully with the book of Hosea. Both texts dispel the confusion that can affect faithful individuals—namely, the belief that God desires only correct religious practices. Instead, what God truly seeks is a people who know Him, trust Him, call upon Him, and maintain a sincere relationship with Him.

Faith Reckoned as Righteousness – Romans 4:13–25

Paul turns to Abraham as the definitive example of true righteousness. The promise God made to Abraham — that he would become the father of many nations and that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars — did not come through the law but through faith. Abraham believed God, and that faith was reckoned to him as righteousness.

What makes Abraham’s faith remarkable is its context. He was about a hundred years old, and Sarah’s womb was barren. Every human indicator pointed to impossibility. Yet Abraham did not waver. He did not weaken. He grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, fully convinced that the God who had made the promise was able to keep it.

Paul insists this is not merely ancient history. The same faith that was reckoned to Abraham as righteousness will be reckoned to us — to all who believe in the God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. The resurrection is the ultimate demonstration that God keeps his promises, even when death itself seems to have the final word. Abraham hoped against hope. We, who stand on the other side of Easter, are invited into that same hoping faith.

The Physician Who Calls Sinners – Matthew 9:9–13, 18–26

Matthew’s Gospel places two scenes side by side, and together they reveal Jesus’s character with startling clarity.

In the first, Jesus walks past a tax collector’s booth and says two words: “Follow me.” Matthew — despised, collaborating with Rome, and ritually unclean in his neighbors’ eyes — gets up and follows. Jesus then sits at the table with Matthew and a crowd of tax collectors and sinners, and the Pharisees are scandalized. Jesus’ answer cuts to the heart of everything: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” He then quotes Hosea directly: “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.'” The thread running through all of today’s readings tightens in this single moment.

The second scene reinforces the same idea. A synagogue leader, a man of high status and religious respect, approaches Jesus in desperation because his daughter has died. On their way to his house, a woman who has suffered from hemorrhages for twelve years reaches out and touches the edge of Jesus’ cloak. Although she is considered ritually unclean and has no standing to make such a request, Jesus turns to her and says, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” Instantly, she is healed.

At the leader’s house, the mourners laugh at Jesus when he says the girl is only sleeping. He puts them outside, takes her by the hand, and she stands up. The news of this spreads throughout the district.

Both healings hinge on the same thing: faith reaching toward Jesus in a moment of utter need. The woman with no social standing and the leader with every social advantage both come to Jesus with nothing to offer but their desperation and trust. And Jesus responds to both with life.

The Second Sunday after Pentecost Wrap-Up

This Sunday’s readings present a unified message about God’s desires and His ways of working. Hosea tells us that God seeks steadfast love rather than mere religious performance. The psalmist reminds us that God owns everything and needs nothing from us; what He truly desires is a genuine relationship — a willingness to call upon Him and receive deliverance. Paul illustrates through Abraham the type of faith that God honors: it is not about achievement or strict observance, but rather about trust in the God who raises the dead. Lastly, Matthew depicts Jesus sharing meals with sinners, walking alongside the desperate, and comforting the grieving — always reaching out to those who recognize their need for a healer.

The green season after Pentecost is a time of growth. It begins with the understanding that God does not ask for impressive religious efforts, but rather for a more honest, trusting, and steadfast love. The same Spirit that was poured out at Pentecost is working in us now—drawing us closer to a God who desires mercy, calls sinners, and raises the dead.

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The Old Testament, New Testament, and Gospels readings are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Collect and Psalm are from the Book of Common Prayer, 1979.