Sermons & Worship from January 2023
Stand Tall
Scripture: Exodus 20:8-10; Psalm 119:97-104; Luke 13:10-17 She had come to the Temple on the Sabbath as was her custom to worship God. The walk to the Temple was difficult because of her physical condition. It had happened gradually over the years, something in her back that caused great pain. She had sought treatment, but the physicians had been unable to help her, and over time, her condition had grown far worse. Now, she wondered how much longer she would…
Decisions Matter
Scripture: Deuteronomy 8:1-3, 6:16-17, 6:13; Psalm 40:1-8; Matthew 4:1-11 Have you ever walked in the wilderness? Sometimes we have an opportunity to actually visit a desert situation; sometimes we find ourselves walking, not in an actual wilderness, but in a wilderness feeling in our lives. Today we journey with Jesus into the wilderness. Jesus has just experienced perhaps the highest spiritual moment in his life so far. After his baptism by John, there came the voice of his Father God…
Dreams, Visions, and Realities
Scriptures: Joel 2:28-29; Psalm 95:1-6; Matthew 4:17-22 The prophet Joel lived where all of us live – in the past, in the present, and in the not yet. Reading the words of the prophet Joel is as current as reading today’s newspaper or listening to World News Tonight. The world in which Joel lived and spoke for God could be the world in which we live today. The reports and the pictures that fill our television screens from around the…
To Fulfill All Righteousness – the Baptism of Jesus
By Larry Casey, a member of UUC who preaches from time to time. Scripture: Psalm 29; Isaiah 42:1-9; Matthew 3:13-17 I think it’s safe to say that most everyone participating in this service today has been baptized. Baptism is probably the earliest of Christian rituals. Depending on denomination, or tradition, baptism is performed by either aspersion, affusion or immersion. I just learned two of those words this week. They are another way of saying an individual is baptized with water…
The Magi and the Despot
Scripture: Jeremiah 23:5-6; Psalm 33:1-5; Matthew 2:1-12 Although the account of the visit by the Magi is recorded only by Matthew, we have heard the message about them proclaimed every year at this time. Epiphany, the day of their discovery, is celebrated in the Western Church on January 6 every year. So what do we “know” by tradition and what does Matthew record? We are very familiar with all of the “facts” recounted in that famous Christmas carol, We Three…