Words of Welcome

  Twenty-Third Psalm by Frank Wesley Revelation 7:9-17 This morning we encounter a great multitude gathered around the throne of God. Once again John of Patmos serves as our eyes and ears, interpreting the scene for us. John sees a crowd of people clothed in white garments and carrying palm branches. One of the elders tells John that this multitude is composed of the saints of God who went through the great ordeal. They’re drawn from every nation and tribe and people and language. Together they declare that “salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” They are accompanied by the angels,  the elders, and the four living creatures. They sing a song of praise to God and to the Lamb: “Blessing and honor and power and might to our God forever and ever! Amen!” What a grand sight this is. It’s hard not to be overwhelmed. If you’re like me and you love to sing the great hymns and songs of the faith, you’ll want to join this heavenly choir. Oh, what ...

  Psalm 23; Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 Mark 6 is a busy chapter that begins with Jesus’ rather disastrous return home to Nazareth. When he began to teach in the synagogue, he quickly discovered that you can’t go home again. That experience leads to his decision to send his twelve closest disciples out on a mission trip. That leads us to the story of John the Baptist’s execution by Herod after Herod’s rather infamous dinner party. It’s after John’s execution and the return of Jesus’ disciples from their mission trip that we pick up the story in this morning’s Gospel reading.  When Jesus’ disciples, whom Mark calls apostles, return from their mission, they tell Jesus all about what they had done. Although Mark doesn’t go into details here, if you read between the lines you can tell they’re excited about all the powerful things that happened along the way. It’s also clear that they are exhausted from this effort. So, Jesus invited them to join him on a retreat to a deserted place s...

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24 We’ve made it to the end of the road and it’s judgment time. We began this cycle of our life together as church on the first Sunday of Advent, and now the church year has wound its way to this moment when we declare that “Jesus reigns where’re the sun does its successive journeys run; his love shall spread from shore to shore till moons wax and wane no more.” We’ve heard a word of encouragement this morning from the prophet Ezekiel. The prophet spoke these words to exiles living in Babylon. He told them that God is the shepherd who brings the scattered sheep living in exile back home to their own land. In doing this, God seeks out the lost, binds up the wounded, and strengthens the weak. When it comes to the “fat and strong sheep,” well, God will “feed them with justice.”    There are parallels between Ezekiel’s message and the Twenty-third Psalm . Like the Psalmist, the prophet speaks words of comfort and compassion to the flock, but as Wil Gafne...

Note:  This sermon was shared as part of our annual outdoor service, which is less formal. Because of the nature of the text for the day, it is laid out as a more participatory sermon. Psalm 23 “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” These opening words of the 23rd Psalm are deeply embedded in many hearts and minds. We turn to this Psalm in times of grief and doubt and fear. We look to this Psalm in the hope that the Lord is with us, restoring and protecting us, as we journey in life. Since most of us are deeply familiar with this Psalm, and because we’ve gathered for worship in a different space, I want to make this a more participatory sermon. We’ve already heard the Psalm read from the NRSV, but I’m going to read it again a couple of times from other translations, including the King James, and then I have some questions for us to discuss. 

Revelation 7:9-17 On this fourth Sunday of Easter we continue our journey through the Book of Revelation. When we last gathered, we found ourselves standing before the throne of God. We were singing praises to God and to the Lamb who was slain. This morning, we again find ourselves standing before the throne of God. We look around and we see a great multitude that is drawn from every nation and tribe and people and language. Together we declare that “Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!”  There is a company of people robed in white garments standing in the midst of this multitude. One of the twenty-four elders asks John: “who are these, robed in white, and where do they come from?” While John didn’t know the answer, he learned that they are the faithful witnesses who stood firm in the midst of persecution at the cost of their own lives. These martyrs stand before the throne of God waiting to receive their reward. This is their rewar...

1 Peter 2:19-25 The reading this morning probably could have begun with  verse 18:  Slaves, accept the authority of your masters with all deference, not only those who are kind and gentle but also those who are harsh.  You can understand why the creators of the lectionary omitted this verse. I doubt any of us approve of slavery, but back in the first century a sizable portion of the Roman population were slaves.  So it makes sense that Peter would write to Christians who’d been enslaved and advise them to keep a low profile and do what they were told. If they experienced suffering, then they should look to Jesus who also suffered.  Even though he suffered, he did so for the right reasons. Although none of us are slaves, slavery continues to exist even in Michigan.  We call it human trafficking, and its one of the issues that the  MCC  is working on.  We’re working to assist victims and bring perpetrators to justice. Because ...

John 10:11-18 As far as I know, none of us here has direct experience at being a shepherd.  Whatever we know about sheep and shepherding probably comes from books, movies, and our imaginations.  But, large numbers of people living in the ancient world did know a lot about sheep and shepherding, and so we shouldn’t be surprised to find both images present in the biblical story.  There is David the Shepherd King, and Jesus the Good Shepherd.  One of the most beloved passages of Scripture is the 23rd Psalm, which declares: “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want . . .”   For many, the image of sheep and shepherds is rather serene and comforting.  If you Google Jesus and shepherd, you’ll find lots If you Google the words Jesus and shepherd you’ll find lots of pictures of a smiling Jesus surrounded by adoring sheep.  But, as both the 23rd Psalm and John 10 remind us, the life of the shepherd is anything but peaceful and serene.  There ar...

Psalm 23 Today Bryan and Felicia are following the example of Joseph and Mary, who brought Jesus to the Temple to be dedicated. But, not only are they dedicating Eric to God’s care, they’re also dedicating themselves to being faithful Christian parents in the hope that Eric will grow in “wisdom and years, and in the favor with God and with people” (Lk 2:52 CEB). And, not only are they dedicating their child, but they’re also asking that we their family and their church will walk with them in this journey. In preparing for this service of dedication, may we attend to the words of this most beloved of scriptures, which I’d like to read again, this time in the King James Version. If you’ve committed this passage to memory, you might even say it along with me. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, thou...

John 10:22-30 I would like to begin this morning by reading the Twenty-third Psalm from the King James Version, because it is the version that we know best.   2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.    3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.   4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.   5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.   6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever. ( Psalm 23 , King James Version ) It’s a commonly held belief that sheep are dumb animals. This belief has given rise to the phrase "to fleece," which is used in reference to stealing from a...

Psalm 23 Who do you trust? I expect we’ve all discovered that trust is easily broken and difficult to regain once it’s broken. That distrust is the foundation of all kinds of political and religious division. Nations distrust nations, neighbors distrust neighbors, spouses distrust spouses. Sometimes this distrust leads to silence and at other times it leads to violence. Distrust is often the result of broken promises. A husband tells his wife: "I love you" and then has an affair. A fellow employee, who seems like a friend, goes to your boss and accuses you of things you didn’t do. A doctor promises that a certain medicine or surgery will cure what ails you, but the treatment fails to deliver the cure. A stock broker promises good things from a company, but then the company goes bad not long after you buy the stock. It’s things like that which undermine our faith in other people. I. REALITY CHECK The idyllic statements about green pastures and still waters may seem a bit unre...