Words of Welcome

  Edwards Hickes, Peacable Kingdom Romans 15:4-13 This morning, we lit the Candle of Peace, which reminds us that this is not only the Second Sunday of Advent, it is Peace Sunday. Peace is something we all hope for, but which always seems beyond our grasp. World War I was supposed to be the war that ended all wars. Twenty years later, an even bigger war took place. This year, Peace Sunday falls on December 7th, the day Franklin Roosevelt declared would live in infamy. Having visited the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor on two occasions, I felt the presence of those lives lost that day. But that war didn’t bring an end to human wars. Many more were to come. There were wars in Korea and then Vietnam. I remember in the 1990s, after the fall of the Soviet Union, there was talk of a peace dividend for the American defense budget. But that talk didn’t last long because war came to the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Iraq. For nearly four years, we’ve watched the Russians devastate Ukraine, h...

Ruth 1:1-18 You may have noticed that immigration is in the news. That’s because it’s a major political issue in this election season. Nevertheless, most of us are descendants of immigrants, whether our ancestors came in colonial days or more recently. When it comes to the Bible, there are numerous immigration stories that might speak to our situation. Consider this confession in Deuteronomy about Abraham: “A wandering Aramean was my ancestor, he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous.” (Deut. 26:5).  This morning we hear the story of Naomi, her husband Elimelech, and two sons, Mahlon and Chilion,  who migrated to Moab when famine hit their homeland in Israel. While the family resided in Moab, they added to their family two Moabite women who became the wives of Naomi’s sons. Unfortunately, all the men in her life died. Nevertheless, Naomi’s daughters-in-law remained loyal to her.  One ...

    Mark 9:30-37 Muhammad Ali famously claimed he was the greatest. He said, “It’s hard to be humble when you’re as great as I am.” Now, Ali was a showman and that was part of his act. Politicians have been known to say something similar. You might hear them claim that only they can fix what’s wrong with our society. If you vote for someone else, the world might come to an end. Apparently, this messaging works because politicians keep making the claims, and people keep voting for them.  While people keep claiming greatness, I’m not sure God is impressed with these claims. Consider for a moment this word from the Wisdom of Solomon: “For the Lord of all will not stand in awe of anyone or show deference to greatness, because he himself made both small and great, and he takes thought for all alike.” ( Wisdom of Solomon 6:7 ). This morning we once again hear Jesus define his messianic calling in terms of his suffering and death, followed by his resurrection. His disciple...

Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 The Book of Ruth is rooted within the larger biblical story that recounts God’s faithfulness to the covenant of blessing first made with Abraham and Sarah and then reaffirmed with Moses, David, and Jesus. Even when the people of God break this covenant, God remains faithful to it. That’s because God’s steadfast love endures forever.  The story told in the Book of Ruth takes place during the period of the Judges. While Israel has made a home in the Promised Land, it’s nothing more than a loose confederation of tribes. These tribes face hostile neighbors like the Philistines, a challenging landscape, and a tendency to stray from the ways of God. The larger story of this period is told in the Book of Judges , where you will find a constant refrain: “the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.” Eventually, the people decided they needed a king, and so in the end God provided Israel with the monarchy of David and his descendants. What we read here pro...

Genesis 18:1-8 Today we begin a conversation I call “Eating with Jesus.” It’s my contribution to our emphasis on the relationship of an Open Table to our call to Mission, which is being underwritten by a  Vital Worship grant  from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. While most of the sermons in this series will draw from the New Testament, I thought it might be good to start with a story from Genesis about the day that Abraham and Sarah welcomed God to their Table. To give a bit of New Testament support to my thesis, consider this word from Hebrews 13: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it” ( Heb. 13:1 , CEB).

Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Lent is a season of reflection that begins on Ash Wednesday with words of confession, marked by ashes, and accompanied by a word of forgiveness. The journey continues with a word about how the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness where he fasted and prayed and was tested for forty days ( Luke 4:1-12 ). These forty days of Lent mirror the forty years that Israel wandered in the wilderness having their faith tested. The reading from Deuteronomy 26 invites Israel to bring in an offering of Thanksgiving to celebrate the completion of the exodus from Egypt and the arrival in the Land of Promise. In words attributed to Moses, the people of God are directed to lay down their offerings and recite a confessional statement that begins with the words: “A wandering Aramean was my Ancestor.”   

Romans 9:1-5 Did you see the article in Tuesday’s  Free Press  about  Rippling Hope ?  Although neither the Michigan Region nor Central Woodward was mentioned, we can read ourselves into it.  That’s because Carl Zerweck told the reporter that a couple of pastors from the area invited Rippling Hope to come to Detroit. That happened four years ago, and those pastors were Eugene James and me.  The reason why Rippling Hope made the paper and the  Channel 7 news  was because it was joining up with   Arise Detroit’s Neighborhood Day. Yesterday, I spent much of the day in Detroit, along with Diana Payton, David McCormick, and Kevin Murnaghan – an Irish co-worker of David’s who is on temporary assignment from the company headquarters in Germany.  We joined the Rippling Hope contingent doing some painting, gutter cleaning, yard cleaning, and caulking of windows.  David, Kevin, and I worked on Mr. Zachary’s porch.  It neede...

Matthew 10:40-42 In his book The Hidden Gifts of Helping: How the Power of Giving, Compassion, and Hope Can Get Us Through Hard Times , Stephen Post suggests that the “recipe for living a rich, less stressful, healthier, and more meaningful life than you thought possible . . . [is to] give of yourself to someone else” (pp. 27-28). The responses I heard from the Peace Week mission teams and from the congregations who helped support their work, such as by providing meals, confirm this observation.  Not only were the recipients of this help blessed, but so were the givers of help.   That is, giving and receiving help is circular – you give and you receive and you give again, and in this relationship between giver and receiver, there is great reward.         In this morning’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew,  Jesus debriefs his disciples after they have returned from a mission trip. He seems to want to know how they were treated. ...

Jonah 4:1-11 If you want to insult a chef or cook, tell them that the dinner was “fine.” Why? Because the word “fine” means: “it was edible, but I’ve had better.” Yes, the word “fine” means “tolerable” or “acceptable.” It could have been worse, but it also could have been better. When you hear the words accept or accepting, do you hear the words “fine” or “tolerable”? Do you hear a sigh of resignation in these words? If you do, hopefully that’s not what you hear in the core value that we focus on today. Hopefully, what you hear in these words is something positive and dynamic. Instead of resignation and toleration, I hope you hear words like including, welcoming, and embracing. 1. What a Day to think about being an Accepting Missional Congregation: It may be fortuitous that today is both World Communion Sunday and Reconciliation Sunday . To top it off, we will also be celebrating the 200th anniversary of Thomas Campbell’s Declaration and Address , a document that laun...