Matthew 14:22-33-“The Weight of Fear”

Synopsis:

After feeding the multitude, Jesus sends the disciples off to set sail while he finally gets away to pray. During the night, a great storm rises and the disciples are battered to and fro. Early in the morning, Jesus defies gravity and transverses the waters to meet the disciples exactly where they are. They think he is a ghost, but Peter asks to be invited onto the water. He begins to walk on the water. Not until he looks around he sees the storms and rising tide and begins to sink with fear. Jesus catches him, but still asks him, why didn’t he trust God with what was first firm beneath his feet. FDR said to our nation in a time when we were facing a Great Depression and an impending World War, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” and in this Gospel story we see how Peter’s fears cause to sink, rather than being still and trusting God is the God of the wind and the waves.

Matthew 14:13-21-"A Table in the Wild"

Synopsis:

Psalm 78 asks, “Can God set a table in the wilderness?” Jesus does just that when he feeds a multitude with a few fish and loaves. The wilderness desert is a dangerous, inhospitable place, but God continues to show up in our wilderness and help us find our way back to the Table. Like in the children’s book “Where the Wild Things Are” one child psychologist notes how the book is a story about a rambunctious little boy who is put in timeout, feels his feelings in a far away land of his imagination, and is draw back into the real world by the smell of supper and the warmth of his mother’s love. On this Sunday, we share Communion and are reminded how God sustains us and calls us home no matter how far into the wilderness we might be.

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52-"Eighth Sunday after Pentecost"

Synopsis:

Jesus offers two of his shortest parables about how God grows greatness from small beginnings. Much like St. Patrick of Ireland and Father Greg Boyle of Los Angeles who let God planted them in small places, great growth came to change the world around them. Although, we have a hard time seeing what God is growing in us and around us. Part of our call as people of faith is to bear witness by holding up a mirror and telling others, “Look was God has grown!”

Matthew 13:1-9- " Sixth Sunday after Pentecost"

Synopsis:

Jesus shares a beloved parable (an earthly story with a heavenly meaning, as the old preachers would say). This is one of the few parables where Jesus tells his disciples exactly what he means because specificity matters. Like saying “Black lives matter,” rather than “All lives matter,” it is important to speak with specificity, so Jesus warns his disciples about the different “soils” of the soul–hard, shallow, and thorny–but that there is good, soft soil in which God is growing good fruit. Within each human heart are all of these soils–no one is 100% evil or 100% good. We all have hard places to till up, but we also have good, soft soil where God is at work in our lives. In David Wilcox’s Carpenter Story, we hear a story about the power of creativity and compassion to help till two hard hearts and reconcile two neighbors, turned enemies, turned friends again by a traveling carpenter.

Matthew 10:40-42- "Fourth Sunday after Pentecost"

Synopsis:

On the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, we continue with Jesus teaching to his disciples as he prepares them to be sent into a dangerous world. Finally, he tells them to look for those who will offer cups of cold water to them, those agents of hospitality and grace in unexpected places. We live in a world hungering and thirsting for justice, and each of us have a cup of cold water to share with God’s beloved, but the needs are so great feels like watering the desert. And yet, if we all share our cups of cold water, God will continue to quench every thirst.

Matthew 10:24-39-"Third Sunday after Pentecost"

Synopsis:

On the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Jesus calls his disciples to fearless discipleship in a dangerous world. What does fearless love look like in our world today? It doesn’t take long to see such grace. In Louisville, we saw images of protestors protecting a police officer who was separated from his partners in downtown underneath the Bearno’s Pizza sign. Love compels us to listen, to learn, and to do as the great, Black theologian Howard Thurman says we must follow Jesus and, “Jesus stands with those whose backs are against the wall.”

Acts 2:1-6- "Pentecost Sunday"

Synopsis:

Pentecost brings the Holy Spirit upon us all. With the aid of the Holy Spirit we can reach out in love with one another, understanding each other’s hurts, needs, and joys.

Acts 1:6-11- "Ascension Sunday"

Synopsis:

On Ascension Sunday, Jesus tells his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit arrives. Waiting is a place where we find ourselves so often, but especially during this time of quarantine. When we find ourselves in seasons of waiting, what dreams will God stir in your heart? What unimagined futures is God germinating in your for whatever comes when the fog clears and the road opens up?

John 14:15-21- "The Orphans of God"

Synopsis:

On the Sixth Sunday of Eastertide, Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit, the Paraklete or the Advocate, who will come beside them and walk with them after Jesus has left. Yet, Jesus leaves them in the body but his promise of the Holy Spirit is to not leave them orphaned. In the story of the Exonerated Five (formerly called the Central Park Five), we see the resilience of love and what it means to be not left orphaned but advocates for those our society forgets who God will not ever forget.

John 14:1-10- "All the Way Home"

Synopsis:

On the Fifth Sunday of Eastertide, Jesus shares his final meal and swansong words with his disciples before his crucifixion. The promise he makes to them is that they will not be abandoned, even though Thomas says they don’t know the way to follow him. Jesus replies, “I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” and they already know him so they will know how to make it all the way home to God’s loving arms.

John 11:1-6- "Clearing the Way for Christ: Seeing Life with Fresh Eyes"

Synopsis:

Jesus’ dear friend Lazarus dies, and he delays his arrive in Bethany. To return to Judea means the threat of execution for Jesus, so the disciples (all except Thomas, who gets the unfair reputation as Doubting Thomas) urge Jesus to not go, while Thomas is ready to die with his Rabbi. Mary and Martha are deep in grief and blame Jesus for Lazarus’ death because he did not come sooner. Jesus shows them that he is “the resurrection and the life,” and calls Lazarus forth from the cold tomb smelling of rotting flesh. Death is an inevitability we must all face, but the the Gospel bears witness to our hope that God of Love and Life leaves no child behind and collects us all into the loving arms of our Savior. Believing in the life beyond this life changes our posture and orientation as we recognize that success does not have to mean the accumulation of belongings or the assurance of longevity, but in the continual sacrifice and decluttering of all that charms us most–titles and treasure are all trash and trinkets before the Immortal, Invisible God only Wise. In a consumerist culture, we are taught our possessions are what give us purpose and value, but in an instant death can arrive at our doorstep. What matters truly to us? Who will call us forth from the depths of our own white-washed tombs filled with the stuff we hoard? Jesus invites us to see our life with fresh eyes in the light of resurrection.

John 4:5-14-" Clearing the Way for Christ: Seeing Our Circumstances with Fresh Eyes (COVID #2)"

Synopsis

So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink’. (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?’ (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink”, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’ The woman said to him, ‘Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?’ Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.’

Luke 23:33-43 - "Christ the King"

Synopsis: On Reign of Christ Sunday, we celebrate the culmination of the Christian calendar with the coronation of Christ the King. Although, our King is not crowned with gold but with thorns; Christ is not crowned with glory but with our shame. Even in these final breaths, Jesus takes time to tell the criminal beside him, “today you will be with me in Paradise.” People have puzzled over these words for millennia, but the mystery points us to a deep comfort and confidence that even in his final hours, Jesus did not stop speaking for the most vulnerable people around him–even a heart-broken criminal being executed. Christ’s crucifixion continues to call us to not crown ourselves with glory and honor through success, popularity, or comfort, but to humble ourselves and speak out for those who hang on history’s crosses.

Keywords: Reign of Christ Sunday, Christ the King, Jesus, cross, crucifixion, glory, honor, shame, justice, humility, compassion, grace, liberation

1 Timothy 6:6-19 - "Founded for Good Works in 1870"

Synopsis: We conclude our Stewardship Campaign with these words from these words traditionally attributed to Paul writing to his young protege, Timothy. Since her beginnings, the Church has always been a people of not only prayer and faith, but also action and good works. Paul tells young Timothy to remind his people that their security will not be founded on the accumulation of wealth and worldly security, but in lives filled with generosity, commitment, and acts of compassion and kindness for neighbors and enemies alike. This counter-cultural way of Jesus invites us into an abundant life founded for good on the life of Christ and the love of the Triune God.

Keywords: Jesus, Trinity, good works, hands and feet of Christ, stewardship, firm foundation, compassion, justice, joy, love

Luke 16:1-13 - "Founded for Good Risk in 1870"

Synopsis: High rewards demand high risk. Jesus tells this parable of the shrewd manager who risks life, limb, and livelihood to secure for himself a future when his prospects looked bleak. Because of this risk, he was rewarded greatly. This problematic parable sits strange in our souls because the protagonist is a cheat and a liar, but Jesus message is clear as day: you have to risk something big for something good. As we reflect on our past and dream about our future, what are the bold risks God is inviting you to consider in your life and in our life as a church family?

Keywords: Jesus, shrewd, courage, wisdom, risk, security, stewardship, gamble, challenge, bold, brave, love, vision

Luke 15:1-10 - “Founded for Good News in 1870”

Synopsis: Broadway was built for sharing Good News of great joy. For almost 150 years, we have broken bread, tended souls, and welcomed in strangers who become family as we grow together in wisdom and courage. Jesus didn’t discriminate between his dinner dates. He broke bread with Pharisees, Tax Collectors, and those who ached under the weight of poverty and oppression. The offense of the religious leaders inspires Jesus to tell them a parable of a shepherd searching for lost sheep and a woman searching for her lost coin. The experience of lostness and loneliness, of hopelessness and desperation, are universal human experiences, and God invites us to join in the rescue mission of bringing light and love to all people and places.

Keywords: Jesus, love, hope, welcome, inclusion, mission, wonder, stewardship, generosity, invitation

Luke 14:25-33 - "Founded for Good Dreams in 1870"

Synopsis: Dreaming is difficult, but necessary work. When we give ourselves the chance to dream and imagine future possibilities, we open ourselves up to the Holy Spirit and the opportunity to dream God’s dreams for our lives. But, the real work comes when we begin to make those dreams into a reality. Jesus tells this parable to illustrate discipleship, because following Christ requires preparation, planning, and pledging yourself to finish the task you start. Together, we begin this stewardship campaign looking into the future and dreaming God’s dreams as we count the cost of discipleship.

Keywords: Jesus, kingdom of God, dreams, vision, hope, wonder, stewardship, generosity, commitment, cost of discipleship

Luke 14:1, 7-14 - "An Honorable Mention"

Synopsis: Jesus is invited to his third dinner party in the Gospel of Luke, and has two important bits of wisdom to share with the guests (who scramble for seats of honor) and the hosts (who only invite people who can provide a quid pro quo of power, access, or position to them). Honor/Shame matrices are foreign to us as Americans, but this teaching from Jesus is saturated in his cultural situation. To rise above your station on your own without an invitation from a higher-up, is a bold, risky move that usually ends with a shameful dismissal. Although, God is God who lifts up the lowly and bestows honor to those who otherwise might be ignored by most folks in society.

Keywords: Jesus, honor, hospitality, justice, compassion, love, grace, inclusion, Kingdom of God

Luke 13:10-17 - "Closed 'Til Sunday"

Synopsis: Jesus gets in a dispute over whether or not it was ethical to heal this woman on the Sabbath. The leader in the synagogue chimes in, angry and worried about the precedent set by Jesus’ violation of sabbath rules. Jesus dresses the crowd down by saying they are more compassionate with their pets than their own sister in the family of God through Abraham. Jesus always chooses rules over relationships even when we want every issue and situation to be cut and dry.

Keywords: Jesus, compassion, sabbath, rules vs. relationships, law, grace, love, legalism, ambiguity

Luke 12:32-40 - “Stories Jesus Tells: Fight to Keep the Fire Burning”

Synopsis: Jesus says, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,” and then tells a parable of servants waiting for the master to return from a wedding feast. Weddings were sometimes multiple days and in an era before cellphones, a watchman had to keep the fires burning to welcome the master home at any time day or night. This watchfulness is like a fire burning inside, too, where we keep focused on our heart’s deepest desire and duty. According to Jürgen Moltmann, at the core Christianity is a religion on promise. There is a hopefulness to our faith which challenges the despair or numbness of our culture. We are called to keep the fire of hope and love burning through the night time of our fears.

Watch Christian Picciolini’s story on TED.com

(The sermon title comes from the song, “Fight to Keep,” by the band Korean-American Indie Rock band Run River North)

Keywords: Parables, Jesus, Kingdom of God, hope, promise, despair, violence, evil, white supremacy, racism, justice, peace, peacemaking, relationship, transformation, salvation, longing, belonging