Sermons & Worship (Page 29)

I John 2:5-6; Mark 1:1-11 It hasn’t been a good week for America.  Granted, America hasn’t had a good week in a long long time but this past week we hit a new low as rioters smashed their way into the Capital building, shouting obscenities and threats, and some carrying the confederate flag.  It was heartbreaking.  And the delight that the mob took in their own violence, the welcome offered them by the President who glorified this act as courageous…

Matthew 2:1-12 Most years, we celebrate the start of a new year with fireworks and gatherings with friends and family, but of course, this year because of the pandemic, things were a bit different.  We had to forego our normal activities, and watch firework displays virtually on our laptops and TVs.  Not only were our celebrations muted this year but few people have been much in the mood for the normal tradition of making New Year’s resolutions.  In years past,…

Matthew 2:1-14 This past Monday I finally decorated my house for Christmas, putting up my creches, my Santas, and hanging ornaments on my Christmas tree.   Like most homes, the Christmas tree is the centerpiece of my Christmas decorations.  I rearrange my living room in order to fit a tree in my small house where trees usually don’t belong and during these darkest days of the year I find comfort in the blurring of the boundary between indoors and outdoors,…

Isaiah 9:2-7 In “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” Lucy says to Charlie Brown, “Look, Charlie, let’s face it. We all know that Christmas is a big commercial racket. It’s run by a big eastern syndicate,” she whispers.  Lucy would have felt right at home on today’s internet where promoting wild conspiracy theories about secret syndicates and cabals has become a kind of parlor game for those stuck at home during the pandemic.  Browse the internet and you will read, for example,…

Luke 2:8-14 In the very familiar passage I just read from the Christmas story, the angel tells the shepherds, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.”  You’ve probably heard that verse a gajillion times in your life but have you really heard that verse?   “I am bringing you good news of great joy,” the angel says, “for all the people.”  All the people.  Think about what that means.  It means that this…

Isaiah 40:1-5     I want to talk for a second about the game of Peek-a-Boo.  Depending on where you’re from in the world, you may call this game “Peep-pie,” “Pee-po,” “Peep-ho,” or “Beebo,” but whatever you call it, the game involves covering your face in front of a baby and then uncovering it while announcing, “Peek-a-boo!”  Usually the baby responds by chortling in delight, to which you in turn respond by playing the game over and over again.  Much of the…

John 5:1-9     How many of you know which animal the World Wildlife Fund uses for its logo?   Probably more of you than you think.  The World Wildlife Fund is an organization that works to protect the habitat of declining species, and in 1961, it chose the panda for its logo, partly, the organization admits, because it could save printing costs printing in black and white, since pandas are black and white, but mainly because the Giant Panda was a…

Acts 16:16-40 Do you remember way back in the spring, as the disasters of 2020 were piling up, how we tried to find humor in the unbelievable catalogue of tragedies? “Wildfires, hurricanes, pestilence; what’s next?” we asked smiling, “locusts?” and then to our chagrin, gigantic swarms of locusts did descend on fields in Africa, about the same time that killer hornets were invading the west coast.  By the end of May, however, we had lost the will to laugh because our troubles…

The Book of Ruth Introduction to scripture On All Saints’ Day, we remember loved ones who have died, honoring them by speaking their names aloud and lighting candles as a way of expressing how much they continue to live in our hearts even though they are physically gone from us.  Though the ceremony occurs only once a year, the memory of loved ones gone is a constant in our lives; we wish they could be here to share our experiences…

Esther 1 I am preaching a series on what the Bible has to say to us in our times of suffering, and today I want to look at the Biblical word for those who are suffering under social, political, or personal oppression.  For that, I turn to the Book of Esther. The Book of Esther takes place in Persia during the 5th or 6th century BCE.  This was a time after the fall of the Jewish nation and the exile,…