Words of Welcome

  Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 Philippians 2:5-11 We begin Holy Week today by waving palm branches and singing “All Glory, Laud, and Honor.” While Palm Sunday celebrates Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, we know that this path led to the cross of Good Friday. But, for a moment we get to join in the parade welcoming Jesus into the city and into our lives.   The reading from the 118th Psalm declares that God “is good; his steadfast love endures forever” (Ps. 118:1). It’s this steadfast love that endures forever that provides the foundation for our journey of faith with Jesus as we join him on the festal path of obedience. As we travel with Jesus through the gates of righteousness, we can join Jesus as he heads toward the Temple, so we can give thanks to God who is our salvation (Ps. 118:19-21). Therefore, let us give thanks to God, because “this is the day the LORD has made, [so] let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Ps. 118:22-24). The reading from Philippians 2 offers us a h...

Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” That’s what the crowd shouted when Jesus rode into Jerusalem. Perhaps they sensed that Jesus was enacting the 118th Psalm as he entered the gates of the city in triumph. Yes, this was the day the Lord had made, and so they rejoiced and were glad in it! ( Mk. 11:1-11 ) The Psalmist declares: “Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord.” We’ve been invited to join Jesus in entering those gates so we can give thanks to God whose steadfast love endures forever. Palm Sunday serves as a transition point between the season of Lent and Holy Week. The opening lines of the 118th Psalm serve as a perfect closure to our Lenten emphasis on the covenants God made with the people of Israel. That is because God’s steadfast love is the foundation for these covenants.  The Hebrew word that is translated here as “steadfast love” is chesed. This is a powerful word ...

  Philippians 2:1-13 It’s election season again. That means political ads bombard us day and night on TV, on the radio, on Facebook, and in emails. These ads remind us that we are a divided nation that seems unable to discern what is good and right. So, how do we heal this brokenness that afflicts our land? How might we find unity when our communities, our churches, and families, are so divided? It’s important that we remember that there can be no true unity without justice for everyone who has been denied justice.   While we may want to achieve wholeness in our broken world, we’ll have to start within the Christian community. We have to get our own act together or our witness will be diluted. That’s why Paul told the Philippians to conduct their lives in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ ( Phil. 1:27 ). Now Paul calls on this community he dearly loves to stand together and make his joy complete by being “of the same mind, having the same love, being in fu...

Hallelujah - Mike Moyers Philippians 2:5-11 Holy Week begins today. Normally the choir and the children would process into the sanctuary waving palms as we sang “King of Kings, Lord of Lords” This year Holy Week looks very different. We didn’t have a palm procession, though we did sing “All Glory, Laud, and Honor.” As Holy Week begins, we won’t be gathering in person to observe Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, or Easter. There will be a variety of online opportunities, but Holy Week will be different this year as we gather as the virtual body of Christ. The reading from Philippians 2 doesn’t speak of the Triumphal Entry that marks Palm Sunday, but it does take us on the way of obedience that moves from glory to glory. However, this path of obedience involves Jesus emptying himself of his divine stature so that he might become a human being and experience death on a cross. Thankfully the hymn doesn’t end with Jesus hanging on the cross. It goes on to celebrate God’s vindi...

Philippians 2:5-11 Do you remember starting each school day standing beside your desk, placing your hand upon our heart, and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance? Did you raise any questions with the teacher about this practice? Although, we probably didn’t understand the implications of our pledge, we recited the words and then sat down and began the day. It’s quite possible that the wording that some of you used was different from what I recited, but the implications are the same. We pledged to be good citizens of our country.   I do need to add that there was one child who stayed seated during the pledge. He was a Jehovah’s Witness. They refuse to say the pledge, because they believe that it is a form of idol worship. Since the rest of us didn’t have any religious qualms about the pledge or the flag, we did our duty and got on with our day without much thought. 

Matthew 21:1-11 This is probably the most confusing day in the church year. Some churches celebrate Palm Sunday by waving palm branches and shouting hosanna to the king of kings. Other churches observe Passion Sunday, with its emphasis on Jesus’ death on the cross. But maybe these two emphases belong together, because they reflect the tension that exists between how humans view power and how Jesus viewed it.  The reading from Matthew describes Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, which suggests that we’ll be focusing on the triumphal part of the story. But, there is a catch, because Jesus’ vision of triumph is different from the way most humans understand it.  The story begins with Jesus and his disciples drawing near to Jerusalem, which will soon be celebrating Passover. When the group arrived at Bethphage, near the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent out his advance team to locate a donkey and her colt, and then bring the animals to him. When the animals arrived, Jesus ...

Philippians 2:5-11 Athletes are easy targets for criticism. Prancing around and posing for the camera, acting like prima donnas as they do, the antics of contemporary athletes are often amusing. Football players strut across the field pointing their fingers at the camera, home run hitters stop to admire their handiwork, and basketball players try ever more entertaining high wire dunks, But sometimes these acts backfire, like when the ball falls short of the fence, making that would-be home run a very long single; or that power dunk that bounces off the rim and lands in the seats. Why do they do this? Well, it’s because the fans like it. So, should it surprise us that anyone whom we idolize, whether an actor, musician, politician, or athlete, may, on occasion, act as if they’re almost a deity? How do you stay humble if people idolize you? I mean, what if you rode into town and people started to proclaim you the Messiah? That’s what happened to Jesus the day he rode into Jerusalem on a ...