Sermons
Magnify
This Sunday we move into the Gospel of Luke, where we will be through Easter. My hope is that this deep dive into Luke opens up new ways of thinking about Jesus, God’s work in this world, and how “The Gospel” works. Luke is rich with powerful stories, many of which only appear in Luke. It should be an enlightening journey. -Pastor Paul SCRIPTURE: Luke 1:39-56 (NRSVUE) 39 In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in…
There’s More
This Sunday is Advent III, and this year that means it’s our last Sunday in the Hebrew Bible. What a journey. This week we get another prophesy from Isaiah, but a whole different kind. It’s a beautiful passage, rich with powerful imagery around equity and justice. It’s so great, even Jesus quoted it! So, I suppose if it’s good enough for him, it’s good enough for us. The third Sunday in Advent is also the Sunday we light the pink…
What Dreams May Come
This Sunday is Advent II, when we light the candle of Peace. In addition we will be looking at one part of Joel’s Prophecy/Poem wherein Joel calls us to “return to the Lord with your whole heart.” And when we do this, we enter into God’s dream for the world, and become dreamers ourselves. Dreams have been a big theme in our journey through the Hebrew Bible this Fall, and now it’s our turn. So let’s come together this Sunday,…
This Is Not the End
I’m so excited for this Sunday, as it’s the first Sunday of Advent! The word “advent” comes from the Latin verb “to come”, and it speaks to a season of waiting for the arrival of the Christ-child. It begins on the 4th Sunday before Christmas Day, which this year just happens to be December 1st. So this year, if your Advent calendar starts on December 1, as most do, it will be accurate, but in many other years it starts…
Burned On Our Hearts
This week is traditionally known as “Christ the King Sunday.” But there’s a lot of problematic stuff in that. It’s not all bad, but in a very real way, it’s just another extension of Western European imperialism and colonialism, so I tend to downplay it a little. Ok, actually a lot. That said, what it also means is that it’s the last day in the Christian year, which means that the Sunday following, we officially hit the Advent Season! But first,…
The Answer is a Question
SCRIPTURE: Jonah 1:1-17 (NRSVUE) 1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it, for their wickedness has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.…
Desperation Needs Company
SCRIPTURE: 1 Kings 17:1-16 (NRSVUE) 17 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe[a] in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 2 The word of the Lord came to him, saying, 3 “Go from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Wadi Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. 4 You shall drink from the wadi, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” 5 So he went and…
Thin Spaces
This Sunday in worship we get a little bonus story. The way the calendar works this year, there are more Sundays than usual so we get a story not normally in the Lectionary. It’s kind of a part two to last week. Last week we looked at David and the temple he wanted to build for God, which God did not want. But we also know that eventually a temple is built. How does this happen? And why? And who…
God Is Still Speaking
This Sunday we move on from 1 Samuel and into 2 Samuel: It’s interesting that these books are named for Samuel, when actually they’re mostly about David. And this week we will finally be introduced to David. Yes, that David, King David, of David and Goliath fame. But that’s not the story we’ll be looking at this week. Watch the sermon above to find out where we’ll land and what David’s life and work has to say for us here…
Which Way is Up
This week we take a massive leap in the narrative and dial into a woman named Hannah. She offers one of the most authentic prayers in all of the scriptures, and then recites what is often described as a “song” which will echo into the early chapters of the Gospel of Luke. Hannah is fierce, strong, and determined, and she gives to us a glimpse into why we may often find ourselves frustrated with the state of the world. -Pastor Paul…