Words of Welcome

John 1:43-51 It’s been a while but you may remember our congregation-wide study of Martha Grace Reese’s book Unbinding the Gospel. She wrote the book because mainline Protestants seem uncomfortable with what she calls the “e-word.” That is, evangelism.  We talked a bit about this at a recent elders meeting in our discussion of Michael Kinnamon and Jan Linn’s book on Disciple identity. They bring up Paul’s word about being ministers of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5 ). They suggest that reconciliation isn’t a job entrusted to us, but “reconciliation is what Christians do as witnesses to God’s good news in Jesus Christ because reconciliation is who we are. Being in Christ has made us people of reconciliation, and being people of reconciliation is how we show the world we are in Christ.” [Kinnamon and Linn, Disciples , Kindle Edition].  There is great truth here. It’s important that we live out the message of reconciliation that God has implanted in us. This starts with the way w...

Matthew 14:22-33 When I was a kid, I went on a boat ride around Klamath Lake, which is probably the size of the Sea of Galilee. On the way home a storm kicked up and it bounced that boat around pretty good. Now, it wouldn’t compare to one of those big Great Lakes storms, the kind that would sink the Edmund Fitzgerald, but for a kid it was a bit unnerving. Back in the 1st century, storms, even on relatively small lakes, could be terrifying. Water was symbolic of life, but it was also symbolic of chaos. Remember those opening lines of Genesis, where the Spirit of God hovers over the “face of the waters,” and ultimately brings order out of chaos (Gen.1: 1-2). This morning’s text raises the question of faith – how much faith do I have, do we have, as we set out on an adventure with God? Sometimes our faith journeys are a bit like a boat tossed about on a stormy lake. We’re not sure where and how things will end, and our faith in God gets tested. This six-week adventure centered ...

Acts 2:14, 32-39 We’ve reached the half way point in our Lenten journey, and I believe that God is doing something important in our midst. With Gay Reese as our guide, we have opened ourselves up to being transformed as individuals and as a congregation. I do think it is appropriate to say that we’re becoming a converted community. That is, God is unbinding our hearts and minds so that we might be open both to the future and to the community that lies just beyond our doors.1 There’s a new spirit and purpose in this congregation. Not so long ago our congregation was wracked by conflict and division. We were broken and many were angry. Over the past few years God has been healing those wounds and preparing the congregation for something new. That new thing is beginning to happen. Oh, you may only see the first shoots sticking out of the ground, but it’s happening right before our eyes. As this new thing grows and develops, it will move us beyond these walls and out into ...

Luke 5:1-11 Ice fishing came up during a conversation after our Ash Wednesday service. I’ve never gone ice fishing, and from what I’ve heard, I don’t know if I ever will go ice fishing. I did learn something, however. Apparently, you have to move around the ice, searching for just the right spot – or you’ll sit there all day in the cold and not catch a thing. Indeed, it may be necessary to go out into deeper waters, where those elusive fish might just be hiding. This morning’s scripture text offers us another fish story. In fact, this one might sound a bit familiar, because just a few weeks ago we heard Mark’s version of the story of Jesus inviting Peter, Andrew, James and John, to join him in a fishing venture. Luke’s version is a bit different, because in this one, Jesus goes out onto the lake to do some fishing with his new group of assistants. Despite their apparent differences, both texts offer us an invitation to join Jesus in the work of evangelism – that is, sharing th...

Acts 9:1-19 Religion is a very personal thing that reaches down to the center of our being. Because it’s often hard to put what we believe into words, telling our faith stories can often be difficult. Not only that, but sometimes we can be intimidated by other people’s much more dramatic conversion stories. Charles Colson has it easy – after all he went from being a notorious political hack who ended up in prison to being a major religious leader. Then there’s St. Paul. Now, he had a story to tell. He started out as a major heresy hunter, breathing down the necks of Christians from Jerusalem to Damascus. That is, until the day Jesus knocked him off his horse and blinded him with a bright light. That’s a story that’s hard to beat. What are you supposed to say if you’ve been a Christian all your life, or even if you came to faith later in life, your story still isn’t as dramatic as Paul’s? Besides, since religion is personal, why can’t I just keep it to myself? 1. Witnes...

Acts 8:26-38 What’s the scariest thing you can think of? Is it a monster under the bed? Probably not – unless you’re very young. Could it be jumping off the high dive into a swimming pool? Possibly, but I’ve done that – I’ve even jumped off a cliff into a creek. But I was younger then. Or maybe it’s skydiving. Now that’s scary! Jumping out of an airplane at I don’t know, 3000 feet, with nothing standing between you and the ground except a lot of air. Yes, there’s that parachute on your back, but what if it doesn’t open? I think I’ll pass! Just thinking about it is scary enough! Now, here’s my question for the day: Would you put evangelism on that list of scary things? Is evangelism the terrifying “E-word?” I mean, is this word – evangelism -- so terrifying that you’d rather we not talk about it? For some reason telling people our faith story is frightening. Perhaps it’s because our relationship with God is personal and we’re not sure how to talk about such thi...

Acts 10:34-43 I know you’ve all been in a situation where someone tells you something "important" and then tells you – this is for your ears only. Don’t tell anyone. It’s just between us. It might be something about the job or a family situation, but whatever it is you’re sworn to secrecy. That kind of thing happens all the time, and often for good reason. Though, it’s tempting to tell others. When I’m told something like that, I often will try and clarify it. Is it okay to tell Cheryl? Or something like that. But the reason we’re told to keep it under our hat is that some things just need to be kept quiet and private – for the good of all. There are some things we just love to share – whether it’s the latest gossip or news of a friend or family member who has done something interesting or even heroic. We especially like to talk about our kids – if we have them. You know, like: Brett has received his acceptance letter to Cal State Northridge! 1. UNBINDING THE GOSPEL But th...

John 17:20-26 The bookstores are full of best-sellers warning us that religion is dangerous. Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens have written books that have caught the fancy of people who believe that religion, including Christianity, is at best irrational, and at worst “really does poison everything.” Religious fanatics who fly planes into tall buildings, blow up clinics, protest at funerals, or offer bombastic statements about any number of issues, only give support to these claims. And as for you and me, well, apparently we give cover to the fanatics simply by professing faith in God. I could try to ignore the critics, but some of their critiques are helpful, because they point out our tendency toward self-righteousness and feelings of superiority. And so when I saw the announcement that Pluralism Sunday would be observed on Pentecost, I decided to look into it and then I signed us up. Pluralism Sunday is sponsored by The Center for Progressive Christianity, and w...