Sermons from November 2020
Watching & Waiting
This is the fourth week of our Extended Advent series, and the first week of a the 20th century Advent model. This is also the first week of our in-person outdoor worship! When the Gospel of Mark was written, there must surely have been a sense of dread as upheaval and even violence were familiar occurrences. The end of all that was known must have felt immanent. The people must have been waiting for the straw to break the camel’s…
Wisdom & Revelation
This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday and our third week of our Extended Advent series. It may seem as though all of our scriptures so far have been focused on eschatology (the theology of the last days). This is a fair assessment. Even when we follow the shorter four-week Advent schedule, the first of these is always an eschatological selection. This is because our preparations for the arrival of the Christ child parallel our preparations for the second coming…
Uncertainty & Preparedness
Pastor Lea continues our Extended Advent series. Continuing with Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, Pastor Lea notes the imagery of labor pains for the suddenness of “the day of the Lord.” With this in mind, we might ask whether we actually recognize how much time we have to prepare for what is to come. Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 Don’t miss our Sermon Note for this week’s message available here.
Starting with Why
Pastor Bob begins our Extended Advent series this Sunday beginning with a scripture text that doesn’t necessarily seem as though it’s a the right choice for beginning the Advent season. But as we’ll hear, Paul uses a Greek word that specifically speaks to us in this time and helps us to prepare ourselves for the coming Christ. Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Don’t miss our Sermon Note for this week’s message available here.
Rejoice
Pastor Bob concludes this year’s Stewardship series on this All Saints Sunday with an invitation to rejoice! Perhaps the idea of rejoicing seems strange in this time on a day when we name those of our loved ones who have been lost in the last year. Our scripture remind us that there is nothing that God cannot make new! Scripture: Isaiah 65:17-25