Liturgy: Hope of Resurrection - Romans 6:1-14 (May 21, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

*Call to Worship (based on Romans 6:3-4)

Leader: Christ did not die to quell the wrath of a vengeful God.
People: Christ died to reconcile humanity with a God of abundant love.

Sermon: "I Am Learning...", Acts 10 (April 23, 2023)

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On Easter, we completed our journey through Matthew’s gospel, finishing the story of Jesus’ life with the account of his resurrection appearances to his followers. Last Sunday, we punctuated that narrative sentence by focusing on Jesus’ very last earthly words, what we’ve come to call “The Great Commission”: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you.” This week, the Narrative lectionary offers a story about one of the disciples’ earliest attempts to do exactly that.

Sermon: “Assumptions that Divide; Baptisms that Bind”, Matthew 3 (January 8, 2023 - Baptism of the Lord Sunday)

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Baptism is one of the most recognizable Christian rituals, possibly because it’s also one of the oldest. The form and function of many of our other traditions – hymn singing, corporate prayer, marriages, funerals, the liturgical year, and so on – are all relatively new; they’ve developed into their current form only after centuries of theological discernment and identity building. Baptism, on the other hand, has been practiced since the days of the Bible, with its form remaining more or less unchanged from what was handed down to us in Matthew’s gospel: we baptize with water (as demonstrated at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Matthew 3) and in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (as established towards the end, in Matthew 28). There remain, of course, plenty of disputes throughout modern Christendom about the specific prayers included, the age required to be baptized, and whether to sprinkle, dunk, or immerse, but the basic elements have remained largely unchanged for over 2000 years.

Liturgy: Jesus' Baptism - Matthew 3 (January 8, 2023)

*You are welcome to use or adapt any of my resources for free, but I ask that you provide proper citation AND comment on this post to let me know.*

Call to Worship

Leader: We hear the voice of John the Baptist crying out in the wilderness:
People: “Change your hearts and lives! The kindom of heaven is at hand!”

Sermon: "No, And...", Genesis 1:1-5/Mark 1:9-11 (January 10, 2021)

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The first creation account is one of the strangest yet most beautiful passages of scripture that we’ve inherited through our tradition. Although we often talk about God having “a divine plan”, creation is presented here almost as a spontaneous act, one where God, whether out of boredom or sudden inspiration, starts speaking the universe we know into existence. It’s like God’s decided to take up improv, and just starts throwing things out there: “Let there be light! And a dome to separate the waters! Oh, and dry land! Ooo, seasons, too! This is good stuff. Let’s add some living things…”

Sermon: “Expectations Defied: Gifts”, Mark 1:4-8 (December 6, 2020)

(This is the second of five sermons in our Advent series about our expectations around the holiday season. The first can be found here.)

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Let’s be honest: few things are as ubiquitous in “the Holiday Season” as gifts. And thanks to the United States Postal Service, it’s the one part of this December that’s unlikely to change too much. Sure, on December 25 we may be opening them in separate houses, but until then, we’ll still be compiling our wish lists, writing letters to Santa, and dropping pointed hints about what we hope to find under the tree on Christmas morning. We’ll still be humming Christmas songs about “All I want for Christmas” (whether the answer is “you” or “my two front teeth”); we’ll still be trying to recall all 78 gifts that we got from our true love; we’ll still be doing our best not to cry or pout because Santa Claus is still coming to town. Getting presents is a huge part of Christmas culture.

Sermon: "Turn the Page", Isaiah 42:1-9/Matthew 3:13-17 (January 12, 2020)

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With all that’s going on in the world today, it’s understandable that one might want to take a break from the news once in a while. Everyone has their own way to escape from the realities of life; one of mine happens to be reading. I particularly love fantasy novels. My favorites are the ones that follow the familiar quest narrative, the hero’s journey. They do tend to be fairly predictable, but that’s part of their appeal. The Wizard of Oz, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter…the literary landscape is filled with these sorts of beloved tales.

Sermon: "God Claims", Isaiah 43:1-7/Mark 1:1-13 (January 13, 2019)

1/13/19

(Second of four in a series of sermons during Stewardship Season)

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Here in the PCUSA, we recognize two sacraments: Communion and Baptism. We celebrate these two specifically because each of them is ordained by God and instituted by Christ. In other words, God commands it, and Jesus makes it happen.[1] The sacraments are more than just something that God wants us to do, though. They’re rituals that intimately connect us to the divine in a unique way. When we participate in the sacraments, we encounter Christ both in a mystical way as well as in a practical way, participating in these same acts the same way that Jesus did during his ministry. 

Sermon: "Every Step", Exodus 15:1-7/Numbers 14:1-4/Luke 19:28-40 (March 20, 2016)

3/20/16

(Video of this sermon)

Andrew and I obviously had nothing to do with scheduling Palm Sunday where it sits in the liturgical calendar, but it fits so nicely with the themes we’ve had this year that I’m tempted to try and take credit. First we had the stewardship campaign, where we talked about being “all-in” as our community travels together into the future. Then the “Journey to Bethlehem” that we undertook in December, tracking the miles that we walked, biked, and swam so we could experience the distance trekked in order for our Messiah to be born. And now, during Lent, we’ve walked the path of our worship together, reminding ourselves why we do what we do every week, and where we go from there. Journeys, all of them. And now, today, we talk about yet another journey—a shorter one, perhaps, but one just as significant. All four gospels recount this story of Jesus’ triumphant journey into Jerusalem, during which he’s met with the cheers and jubilation of the people—and yes, of course, palms. There are some grumbles from the religious authorities—some of them even have the audacity to try and stifle the celebration—but nothing on earth can stop the holy procession.