Sermons

When we affirm Christ is our King, therefore, we are saying our highest authority is our good Shepherd, who is committed to defending the afflicted and eliminating all forms of oppression and harm.

I want to remind you of how the Christian practice of gratitude is supposed to make us different from other people, like the standout few in the story, and why we are called to embrace the practice of gratitude as a way of transforming both our lives and our world. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22; Colossians 2:6-7 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0V_J73onCnQ

Jesus gave him a story instead, one which asked him not just to think about his duty, but also to feel another’s need. To understand the reason for the Law, the lawyer had to feel for the victim on the road.

Everywhere you look, people with itchy ears are listening to voices leading them and the world into harm rather than blessing.... because the truth is that humanity has always had itchy ears, not just now or in his day.

Whatever your faith tradition, or even if you don’t claim a particular tradition, maybe this Sunday can remind us of some basic beliefs, beliefs that are not so tightly bound to one tradition that they can’t cross into and bring meaning to many faith journeys. Psalm 84; Luke 18:9-14 Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paD09wPGLHI

Everywhere you look, people with itchy ears are listening to voices leading them and the world into harm rather than blessing.... because the truth is that humanity has always had itchy ears, not just now or in his day.

God is love and therefore the essence of the Gospel is love, not just for those we think are deserving, but for everyone. Jesus commanded that we who call ourselves his disciples must “love our neighbors as ourselves,” a command that requires empathy to fulfill.

Today, we will throw caution to the wind and dine not only with friends and family and strangers, but also with people we perceive to be antagonists, apostates, weirdos, sinners, and perhaps even enemies.

Because we have access to this kind of hope the rest of the world does not, our job is to witness to it as Jeremiah did, so that others will not despair, but be inspired instead to lean into that future in faith.

He may have been partially motivated by self-interest. But he also was able to do good in a way that benefitted the poor and his boss, by making his reputation better. As his master recognizes in the end, he was really shrewd with what he was given.