Sermon: "So That All May Know", 1 Kings 8:28-30, 37-43 (October 27, 2024)

Before we dig into today’s scripture reading, I want to read just one verse from Genesis, which we’ll come back to later on. Remember that in chapter 12 of Genesis, the focus shifts from the world’s primeval history to the patriarchs (and matriarchs) of our faith. In particular, it zeroes in on God’s specific interest in the lineage that will result in the people, and eventually kingdom, of Israel. As soon as the third verse of this chapter, God communicates God’s intentions to Abram without any ambiguity: “All the families of the earth will be blessed because of you.”

Liturgy: The Kingdom Divided, 1 Kings 12:1-17 (October 29, 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.*

Hymns:

GTG #275, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”

GTG #379, “We Shall Overcome”

GTG #313, “Lord, Make Us More Holy”

Sermon: “Like Re-Formed Clay”, Psalm 139:13-18/Jeremiah 18:1-10 (September 4, 2022)

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When you think about building God’s kindom, what sorts of metaphors come to mind? Paul uses gardening imagery: we plant the seeds and care for the plants, while God provides the growth.[1] Several of the prophets use a marriage metaphor to describe how God works together with the people,[2] and Jesus talks about the kindom of heaven in terms of a master entrusting his servants with his money.[3] In each of these images, the act of bringing God’s kindom to earth is depicted as the joint effort of partners. Now, granted, these partners have varying levels of responsibility and authority in each metaphor, but the general dynamic seems to be one of colleagues or teammates working together to accomplish something.

Sermon: "The Most Important Word", Deuteronomy 6:1-9/Mark 12:28-34 (Reformation Sunday--October 31, 2021

This sermon was preached to supplement a beautiful Reformation Sunday Worship service written by Rev. Carol Holbrook Prickett that we adapted for use in our congregation.

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I frequently hear (and maybe you have, too) a criticism of religion that goes something like this: “Why should I live my life according to outdated documents written by people who lived thousands of years ago?” And I mean, it’s a fair question. Modern society faces issues that our forebearers could never have imagined—healthcare, gun violence, climate change, bodily autonomy, and many more. The world we live in today is very, very different from the world in which people first proclaimed that “the Lord our God is one”.