Sixth Sunday of Easter — May 10, 2026

What this episode covers

Immanuel Lutheran Church Sixth Sunday of Easter — May 10, 2026 Sixth Sunday of Easter Joplin Missouri — On May 10, 2026 — Mother’s Day — the congregation of Immanuel Lutheran Church gathered for the Sixth Sunday of Easter to hear God’s Word on what it means to live as baptized Christians in a world that doesn’t always welcome the name of Jesus. Pastor Christopher Ramstad preached on 1 Peter 3:13–22, naming what many Christians feel: we are “profoundly blessed and sometimes profoundly stressed.” DCE Jason Glaskey connected Noah’s ark to Holy Baptism in a children’s talk that reminded God’s people — young and old — that we are never alone. Sixth Sunday of Easter — Mother’s Day Worship Service at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Joplin, Missouri (10:30 AM) Sixth Sunday of Easter in Joplin Missouri: Profoundly Blessed, Sometimes Profoundly Stressed On Sunday, May 10, the congregation at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Joplin, Missouri celebrated the Sixth Sunday of Easter at our 8:00 AM and 10:30 AM worship services. Pastor Christopher Ramstad preached on 1 Peter 3:13–22, and DCE Jason Glaskey connected Noah’s ark to baptism in a children’s talk that reminded God’s people — young and old — that we are never alone. This was also a joyful celebration of mothers and all who hold this vocation among us. Pastor Ramstad named what many Christians feel: we are vocationally blessed by God with callings as parents, workers, neighbors, and church members, yet sometimes profoundly stressed when living out those callings meets resistance. Peter wrote to scattered Christians facing the same tension and gave them this direction: always be prepared to make a defense of the hope that is in you — yet do it with gentleness and respect. As Pastor Ramstad put it, “God calls us with the gift of your tongue, with the gift of your words, to share the hope that we have with your neighbor.” DCE Jason Glaskey shares a children’s talk connecting Noah’s ark to Holy Baptism during the Sixth Sunday of Easter worship service at Immanuel Lutheran Church, Joplin, Missouri — May 10, 2026. “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.” 1 Peter 3:15–16, ESV Scripture Readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter The readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter carried a common thread: God does not leave His people alone. In Acts 17:16–31, Paul stood before the philosophers in Athens and proclaimed the God they worshiped as unknown — the God who made the world, gives life and breath to all, and raised Jesus from the dead. In John 14:15–21, Jesus promised His disciples, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” And in 1 Peter 3:13–22, Peter pointed God’s scattered people back to their baptism as the anchor that holds through suffering and slander alike. Theological Reflection: Defending the Faith with Gentleness Pastor Ramstad unpacked the word “apologetics” from the Greek — apo (from) and logos (word). A defense of the faith is literally “from words.” God calls His people to speak Christ to their neighbors, not with hostility, but with gentleness, respect, and a good conscience. The sermon connected this directly to the Eighth Commandment: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” Luther’s explanation calls us not only to avoid hurting our neighbor’s reputation, but to defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way. When our own name is slandered for Christ’s sake — and Peter says when, not if — the temptation is to attack back. But that is not the way of our Lord. Instead, Peter pointed to baptism: “Baptism now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurr