Words of Welcome

    Jeremiah 29:1-7 I’ve lived in small towns and big cities, but I think you could call me a city boy. After all, I was born in Los Angeles and have spent the past seventeen years living in Metro Detroit! So, while I enjoy visiting small towns, I like the amenities that come with living in a metropolitan area. But big cities, like small towns, present their own kinds of challenges. The word we hear this morning from Jeremiah raises an important question. Are we willing to invest ourselves in making our communities more livable?  This word from the prophet Jeremiah comes in the form of a letter sent to the first wave of Jewish exiles that King Nebuchadnezzar sent to Babylon. When Jeremiah sent this letter, Jerusalem, along with its Temple, still stood. But, while these exiles, including the former king and his court, may have hoped they would return home soon, Jeremiah warned them that their exile would last for a long time. He told them to ignore the false prophets w...

  Romans 5:1-5 According to the liturgical calendar, today is Trinity Sunday. On a Sunday like this, we get to reflect on who God is. As history has proven, finding an answer to the question “who is God” has proven difficult. The Creeds define God as being one in substance but at the same time three persons. The first verse of our opening hymn declares:  Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty! Early in the morning  our song shall rise to thee. Holy, Holy, Holy! Merciful and Mighty! God in three persons, blessed Trinity! At least since the fourth century, the majority of Christians have affirmed that definition of God’s nature, even if we still struggle to make sense of our confession. So, if you don’t completely understand the ins and outs of the Trinity, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Nevertheless, together with the majority of Christians throughout history, we proclaim that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This morning, we have heard a reading from the...

Romans 8:14-17 It is written that on the Day of Pentecost, the streets of Jerusalem were filled with pilgrims celebrating one of Judaism’s most important festivals. At the same time, one hundred and fifty of Jesus’ closest followers gathered for prayer in an upper room in that very same city. This gathering took place just ten days after Jesus departed from his disciples. At that time, Jesus commissioned his disciples to take the gospel message to the ends of the earth. However, they would need to wait until the Holy Spirit came upon them ( Acts 1:8 ). This promise was fulfilled on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit swept through the upper room like a mighty wind and rested on each of them like a flame of fire. Then the Spirit empowered them to preach the Gospel in the diverse languages of the people gathered in Jerusalem ( Acts 2 ). With the coming of the Spirit, the church’s missional calling went into action.  This morning, I decided to set aside the reading from Acts...

    Romans 13:8-14 Let me tell you how it will be There's one for you, nineteen for me 'Cause I'm the tax man Yeah, I'm the tax man Should five percent appear too small Be thankful I don't take it all 'Cause I'm the tax man Yeah, I'm the tax man  -- - Beatles Thus, sang the Beatles. It’s true that no one really likes the “tax man.” That’s true today and it was true in the ancient world. Nevertheless, Jesus told the people to give Caesar what belonged to Caesar and to God what belonged to God ( Mt. 22:21 ). Paul seems to have agreed with Jesus. Here in Romans 13, he told his readers in Rome to obey the authorities and pay their taxes. Yes, it’s the right thing to do “to pay taxes for the civil authorities are appointed by God for the good purposes of public order and well-being. Give everyone his legitimate due, whether it be rates, or taxes, or reverence, or respect!” ( Rom. 13:7 JB Phillips ). As the saying goes, there are only two t...

  Romans 7:15-25a Next Sunday, Dan will begin a series of sermons from the Book of Romans that starts in chapter 8. The first verse of Romans 8 declares that “there is, therefore, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death.” Now that’s good news! Now, before we can hear the good news, we need to hear the bad news. I get to deliver the bad news. So, once again I get to set the stage for Dan to deliver the good news, even if I chose this passage!  I think Paul’s words in Romans 7 might resonate with many of us because it offers a rather realistic picture of human life. That’s because it speaks of the kinds of inner conflicts that we all face in life. You see, Paul wants to do the right thing, but he can’t seem to follow through. Why this is true, could be rooted in anxiety or a failure to recognize our own limits? We can even know what’s expected of us, and still fall ...

  Genesis 12:1-4 The words bless, blessed, and blessing, appear regularly in the Bible. Jesus offers nine blessings to begin the Sermon on the Mount ( Mt 5:1-12 ). We find many words of blessing filling the Psalms. The same is true of the Book of Genesis. In the first chapter of Genesis, we read that God blessed God’s human creation and then told them: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” ( Gen. 1:28 ). This morning in our reading from Genesis 12 we hear God make a covenant of blessings with Abram, better known to us as Abraham. God tells Abram to pack up the family and head off to an unknown land. If Abram does this, God promises to bless him and make him a blessing to all the families of the earth. The promise of blessings sounds good, but on the flip side, this promise involves quite a bit of risk on Abram’s part. Nevertheless, ...

  Lorenzo Scott, Baptism of Jesus Matthew 3:13-17 Who do you think you are? That question might sound a little harsh, but I mean it in a positive way. Since this is Baptism of Jesus Sunday, we get to reflect on Jesus’ baptism as well as our own. In our reading from Matthew 3 this morning, God reveals something important about Jesus, but also about each of us. Paul writes in Romans 6 that baptism allows us to participate in the life of Jesus. So how might the word that God speaks concerning Jesus’ identity at his baptism help us define our own identity? Might we also be numbered among the beloved children of God, with whom God is well pleased? It wasn’t that long ago that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus. We got to sing carols, light candles, and ponder the message of Jesus’ birth. That celebration continued through Friday when the season of Epiphany began with the magi’s visit to the Holy Family. This morning we jump forward several decades. The baby Jesus is now a full...