There is something emboldening and celebratory about the gathering of a sports team or even a military unit that knows that it is going to win a contest. It is this sense of celebration that we are invited to take into "the lockerroom" of our faith as we don the armor of God to fight in a contest that He has already won in Jesus Christ. We are invited not to take on abstract pieces of armor, or abstract rules from Deuteronomy, but rather, these pieces of armor point to the totality of what Paul ...
Sep 02, 2015•19 min
This section of Ephesians 5 is wildly unpopular among many brides. The notion of submission in a marriage is a stumbling block that it is very hard for us to overcome, the clear reason for this is that like in Mark 7, "submission" is so often couched in the external "law" of submission that has nothing to do with this verse. Instead, this verse seeks to show a wonderful relationship between two lovers: Christ and His Bride the Church. We transition to talking about how we "Celebrate Gifts Given"...
Sep 02, 2015•16 min
It can be hard to live our lives in a way that reflects Christ. This was no less true when Paul was writing to the Ephesians than it is today. Paul's letter here shifts the focus of how we live in community with one another (gifting one another with community) as the Church to how we live in the community of our everyday lives which are mixed with believers and non-believers. As we consider Paul's words, we consider their wisdom and how we might use them to "walk not as unwise, but as wise" in o...
Aug 21, 2015•15 min
There are many whom we can give ourselves to as gifts, and we can give of ourselves in many different ways – but the “Gifting” of living in Church community with one another is a distinct kind of gift that we can share with our Brothers and Sisters in Christ. We can share in a counter-cultural community that seeks to give grace instead of punish wrongdoing, but also provides wisdom for living together in community. In this new life, we are fed and nourished by the Body of Christ, those who are a...
Aug 14, 2015•14 min
Missionary to Kenya, Rev. Dennis Meeker shares his sermon about what God is doing in all congregations in the world in His power. Visit Rev. Meeker’s site, 4kenyaskids
Aug 14, 2015•13 min
God’s gift of Communion or the Lord’s Supper is a particularly powerful gift, as it unites us with the “breadth and length and height and depth” of the love of Christ that we may find our root in Him. This gift is a miraculous gift – every bit as miraculous as walking on water or sending a flood, and like the rainbow in the sky, is a sign of God’s covenant faithfulness with His people, encouraging us to believe His Word.
Aug 14, 2015•15 min
We continue our “ReGifted” series with a consideration of our Baptisms, looking at what it means to be granted access to the Trinity in one Spirit, as well as to be united with brothers and sisters in Christ through this sacrament. We were once far off, but God has granted to us His gift of inclusion so that we might be included in His sheepfold and shepherded by Jesus Christ. The other readings have an overt “Shepherding” theme, which leads us to consider how we are being shepherded in our Bapt...
Aug 14, 2015•14 min
God's love for us never ceases, but there are times at which we might question the compassion of God when we see the suffering of people around us. Jeremiah wrote the book of Lamentation as he was watching his people being carried off into exile, but he was still able to have hope in God's provision for his people. As we see Alexa and Wyatt baptized this morning, we reflect on the hope that we have for their lives, and how God will show them compassion - even in those times when they will suffer...
Jun 29, 2015•12 min
Job asks God for an answer, and when God gives Job the answer, we may wonder if Job regretted ever asking the question. At times it may feel to us that God has not really answered our questions in the way which we would like them to be answered. We want small answers, but God gives us big ones. God gives us answers that cause us to ask new questions and marvel at the new world in which we live, as the disciples must have when they saw Jesus calm the storm.
Jun 23, 2015•15 min
As we enter into the Sundays after Pentecost, our attention within the series shifts to the Epistle lesson, specifically when St. Paul talks about the "Spirit of Faith" who gives us faith. This is especially contrasted with the Gospel reading and its threats against the "blasphemy of the Holy Spirit".
Jun 11, 2015•18 min
We continue our conversation about the Holy Spirit, especially in the Spirit's relationship to the Father and the Son, and how that relationship helps us to understand our relationship with the Trinity ourselves. We are born into the kingdom of God by the work of the Holy Spirit, especially through the new birth offered us in Baptism.
Jun 02, 2015•15 min
About Easter 7/Matthias – Matthias is our last disciple in “Cameo”, and we know the least about him. Nevertheless, his story is not without meaning for us. Matthias is the ultimate cameo as his story gives the ultimate in witness of Jesus Christ, that the Church is not built upon the foundation of the disciples ultimately, but upon the foundation of Jesus Christ.
May 19, 2015•15 min
About Easter 6/John – John is the disciple who is known as “the beloved” and possibly the last living disciple out of the Twelve. As we consider John from his first letter, we consider what it is to “overcome the world” as one of Jesus’ disciples.
May 12, 2015•16 min
About Easter 2/Thomas - Thomas is a conflicted disciple. We first hear him ready to give his life for Jesus in the story of Lazarus, but when we catch up with him in John 20, he is unwilling to even muster the faith and belief to accept Jesus' Resurrection. As we look to Thomas' story, we find our own story of conflicted faith in the presence of a hard-to-swallow Resurrection from the dead, and we see the larger picture of the Risen Jesus.
Apr 14, 2015•18 min
About Easter: Our celebration of Easter begins with the Psalmists’ words “Glad songs of salvation are in the tents of the righteous!” and continues with the themes of steadfast love from Good Friday, proclaiming that we shall not die but we shall 118horizweblive! As we recount the story of Jesus’ passion anew in Psalm 118, we do so with special emphasis on the celebration of our new lives.
Apr 06, 2015•17 min
About Palm Sunday: Palm Sunday is now concurrent with the celebration of the Sunday of the Passion (these used to be two separate liturgical celebrations). As such, the story is not only of Jesus' triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, but is also concerned with the entire Passion (Suffering) of Jesus. We open the series in the middle of Psalm 118 where the Psalmist proclaims "Open to me the gates of righteousness that I may enter through them," and we can imagine Jesus going through those gates of...
Mar 30, 2015•9 min
About the Fifth Sunday in Lent: We approach the end of our fast with humility, and considering the humility of Jesus, who connected the status of the least with the status of the greatest in His suffering the death of a thief and traitor upon the cross. We are given the gift of seeking to be least and humiliating ourselves, and in this, finding the blessing of God as we walk in the shoes of the Son.
Mar 23, 2015•18 min
About the Fourth Sunday in Lent: This Sunday is a rare time when the theme verse for the annual focus (Ephesians 2:8-10) coincides with the Epistle reading. As we look at the context of the theme verse of our annual focus, we see that Paul is encouraging us to look at our new lives in Jesus Christ as gifts – that we are made dead to sins and alive in Him. The gift of new life given to us is one that simply does not come without the death of Baptism and Repentance. As the Psalmist says, precious ...
Mar 16, 2015•16 min
About the Second Sunday in Lent: Most of us would say that we understand the “New Covenant” of the New Testament books and how Jesus saves us, but often we find that we are uninterested in the Old Covenant given to Abraham and how that forms and shapes our rejoicing. As we look to Jesus Christ as the “AND” who brings together these two covenants in Himself, we learn not to despise the Old
Mar 02, 2015•22 min
About the First Sunday in Lent: As we gather on Sunday, some have been with us as we declared the fast on Wednesday, but many have not. We re-tell the sense of duality that we embraced on Wednesday, describing Christ as the “AND” who connects our Lent with Easter, and today especially our sacrifice with His provision. As we look to the story of the binding of Isaac, we consider how Abraham’s sacrifice was not necessarily of his son, but of His will and control, and how we are given the gift of s...
Feb 24, 2015•21 min
About Ash Wednesday: We begin Lent by declaring the fast before the feast of Easter, but even in this season of Lent, we find joy. We find renewal in the declaration that we are dust and to dust we shall return. As Paul says: We are sorrowful and always rejoicing, poor and making others rich, having nothing yet having everything. It is the AND that describes our life in Christ, it is Christ who connects our suffering with His Glory, and our fast with His feast.
Feb 23, 2015•19 min
The Gospel of the "Because He" series comes to a zenith here in the Transfiguration. As we see Jesus glorified and having conversations with Elijah and Moses, we know that we too will be glorified with Him and will have conversations with all of the saints in glory forevermore.
Feb 17, 2015•18 min
About this Sunday: While the notation in the Gospel reading is almost easy to skip over, the role of Jesus' life of prayer cannot be underestimated or detached from Jesus' ministries of healing and preaching. Likewise, we are called to pray "in His Name" meaning praying in His identity and character.
Feb 09, 2015•13 min
About this Sunday: It may shock us that the same authority that Jesus used to cast out the demon in this Gospel reading is the authority that confers to us in our Baptisms. When we are His disciples we are called to live out His authority. This means that we are called to speak with authority when we speak in His identity and through His Word.
Feb 03, 2015•11 min
About this Sunday: Jesus followed the will of the Father, and because of that, we are called to follow Him in order to do the Father’s will. We continue to talk about what it means for us to be disciples of Jesus Christ and how that cannot mean anything but being set in a community where we both receive and give discipleship in Jesus Christ
Jan 27, 2015•12 min
This Sunday is the first Sunday in Epiphany that we consider Jesus' call to discipleship. Normally we think about Jesus' action of calling the disciples as calling us to discipleship, but if we take seriously the idea that we have Jesus' identity in our Baptisms, we also need to take seriously the audacious responsibility that we have to call others to discipleship. We are called to be disciples who make disciples.
Jan 19, 2015•13 min
The last Sunday before Christmas is here, and now it is undeniable that it will come. As the reality of Christmas day comes nearer, our hope seems to become more "fact" as we see what God is doing in our lives. Faith, that trust that we have in Jesus, tells us that His coming and our salvation is "a sure thing".
Dec 22, 2014•16 min
The third Sunday in Advent is traditionally a jubilant Sunday, noted by the presence of the color pink. This week is also close enough to Christmas day that it starts to “really feel like” Christmas. Christmas movies are starting to pop up on television and the messages of Christmas coming near seem more insistent. This week the proclamation of our hope in Christmas is the key theme throughout the readings. We celebrate the coming of Christmas as the message of Christmas begins to ring clearer a...
Dec 16, 2014•19 min
The texts for this Sunday give us a sense of preparation by cleaning. John the Baptists plays a key role as being the “Voice who cries” – and when He is calling people to repent, He is calling them to clean-ness of life. Cleaning is a concept that seems to fit our sinful lives in much the same way that it does our messy desks, dirty dishes, and unkempt rooms. We would love for things to be cleaned, but we fear what it will take.
Dec 08, 2014•16 min
The first Sunday in Advent is a sort of “alarm clock” that rings the bells that it is time for us to prepare for the coming of gift – or if we are found ill prepared, the gift might pass us by. Thinking about this question vocationally, we are given new tasks within our vocations all of the time – and if we are unprepared for their coming, we can appear inept and/or watch an opportunity fly past us.
Dec 02, 2014•18 min
