Restored by Grace The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. The word for today is restoration. Both the Old Testament reading and the psalm speak of God’s restoration of the people of Israel, gathering them from sorrowful exile into joyful community. The gospel tells the story of…
The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Sharing in Your Glory: Success or Service? “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” Like James and John, we too are quick to assume that following Christ leads to…
The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Who Would Jesus Bless Today? Many Bibles include a heading before the latter part of today’s gospel reading (Mark 10:13-16) that says something like “Blessing the Children” or “Jesus Welcomes the Children.” In reading such a heading, we might begin…
The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Don’t Try to Stop God In Mark 9:38-50 the disciples—at least John—are upset because they saw somebody, not a disciple, “casting out demons” in Jesus’ name. Here John sounds strikingly similar to the Pharisees, who became upset when someone out…
The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. The Most Challenging Spiritual Practice The writers of today’s readings express to God their fears about death and those who do evil. They rage against the cravings, coveting, envy, and selfish ambition that lead to disorder and war, within…
We will resume taped services on September 19, 2021. An Unexpected Kind of Messiah Today we hear from three teachers. The prophet Isaiah calls himself a teacher, one whose words sustain weary people. James warns about foolish and hurtful use of our tongues, which should be used to “bless the Lord and Father,” but often…
God Is Partial We will resume taped services on September 19, 2021. Again and again throughout biblical history, God is partial to caring for the poor, the weak, and the outcast. Which is why, perhaps, Jesus’ response to the Syrophoenician woman takes us by surprise: “Let the children be fed first, for it is not…
Who Can Accept It? The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” (John 6:60). Jesus’ teaching about eating his flesh and drinking his blood isn’t something we can figure out and accept on our own. In his explanation of the…
You’re Invited The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Today Jesus invites us to a meal. It is an extraordinary invitation to do an ordinary thing: form bonds of love and community through shared food and drink. Like Wisdom inviting us to the feast of insight…
The Greatest Bread The sermon will be a post on our Facebook page. Please click on link to view sermon. Jesus uses the image of bread to demonstrate that, even compared to all the great things God has done before, God’s greatest miracle is in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus, the bread of…