Words of Welcome

Psalm 34:1-8 Taste and see that the Lord is good! Taste and sight are two of the senses that help make life what it is. For instance, when we sit down to a meal, we take in the smell, the sight, and then the taste. It might be sweet or savory. Some like the sweetness of cake and others like the savoriness of chips. Some like kale and others don’t. So, when it comes to taste, we’re all different.  If you want to know more about such things, I suggest watching episodes of Good Eats with Alton Brown. He makes a big deal about how our taste buds work. He likes to illustrate his message, since the viewer can’t smell or taste the food he is demonstrating. He might show a chart of the tongue, pointing out the  different sensory areas found on the tongue. There is sweet, salty, savory, sour, and even bitter. Yes, there is a sensor in our tongues that looks for bitterness.

Matthew 16:13-20 Maybe a pollster has called you wanting your opinion on a product, issue or politician. Politicians don’t want their approval numbers to dip under 50%. There’s a problem when your numbers dip below that mark.  Jesus once took a different kind of poll. What he wanted to know was what people were saying about him. Who did they think he was? The disciples reported that based on what they were hearing, most people thought he was a prophet, like John the Baptist, Elijah, or Jeremiah. It’s interesting that Matthew chose these three prophets, because they all had run-ins with the authorities. John was executed, Elijah was chased out of the country, and Jeremiah was sent into exile. That put Jesus in dangerous company! 

Romans 12:9-21 Sometimes you come across a passage of Scripture that could take several months of sermons to explore.  This is true of today’s reading.  With sentences coming at us in rapid-fire fashion, it demands a great degree of reflection.  Since I’m not planning an extended series at this moment, I will try to refrain from dwelling too long in every nook and cranny of Paul’s message.   Each statement is an imperative sentence that speaks to what it means to live the Christian life.  It’s fitting that this reading comes on Labor Day Weekend, because it will take a lot of work to fulfill Paul’s expectations.   The key to this passage is the call to “let love be genuine” (vs. 9).  Everything that follows is an expression of genuine love.  It’s not romantic love.  It’s not just friendship.  It’s Agape love.  When it comes to defining love, I’ve been turning to theologian Tom Oord for help.  His basic definition...

Hebrews 11:29-12:2 The saying goes: "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." It’s a saying you hear before a tough race or game or a big decision. It’s supposed to be a word of encouragement when things seem too difficult and you’re thinking of giving up. Marathoners especially know what it means to keep going when things get tough. Running 26 miles that seems insane – at least to a non runner like myself. I do well to run a couple of blocks. Now my brother is a bit crazier than I am and he’s training to walk the Portland Marathon in October. From what I hear the training is hard, but the reward of finishing is great. It’s a sense of accomplishment that no one can take away from you. The image of the marathon runner stands behind this text from Hebrews. The story of the first marathon, the one ran by the courier who brought the good news that the small Athenian army had held off the great Persian army at the plains of Marathon. It was a famous dash that inspired a ra...