Sermons on reaching in love (Page 10)
All-Vulnerable God
Matt’s message is rooted in Matthew 9.35-10.8 and Richard Rohr’s The Divine Dance: Trinity and Your Transformation. On this Father’s Day, we’re invited to rethink the power of God as powerlessness & love. How might the vulnerability of God restore us to community and call us to invite others into the Divine Dance?
The Rumbling Continued…
Matt’s message is rooted in John 14. 15-21. Jesus promises the disciples that God will not leave them orphaned. God is sending the Holy Spirit as another paraclete, or helper, to accompany them. How might this promise guide us in rumbling with the stories of our lives as we Rise Strong in and through God’s love?
The Rumble
Linda’s message is rooted in John 14.1-14. Linda draws upon the writing of Brené Brown to invite reflection on how we might rumble with the emotions & stories that arise when we find ourselves face down in the arena. Jesus promises to share the truth with his followers. How might we uncover the truth of our own lives by rumbling with the stories we tell ourselves about our disappointments and failures?
Palm Sunday: Silence is Not an Option
Palm Sunday at The Table focuses on the parody & street theater of Jesus processing into Jerusalem atop a donkey and her colt. Matt’s message is rooted in Matthew 21.1-11 and invites us to join the march for love, justice, & hope by raising our voices in support of Bishop Karen Oliveto. #allmeansall #tobishopkowithlove #nosuchlaw
Rethink John 3:16
Linda’s message challenges us to rethink John 3.16 in context; Nicodemus coming to Jesus in the night (John 3.1-17).
Compassion
Matt’s message is rooted in Isaiah 49.8-16. Isaiah writes, “Can a woman forget her nursing child?” God loves us even more deeply than any mother could love her nursing child. This means God needs us. God needs you. Not just abstractly, but intimately.
Holy
Linda’s message is rooted in Leviticus 19: 1-18. To be Holy is to seek God in all things that we do. May we seek to love others just as God loves us each and every day.
Controversy
Matt’s message is rooted in Micah 6: 1-8. In this chapter, God brings from the shadows into the light a great controversy with the people. What does the Lord require? We look back at the prophet Micah to discern how God might call us today to doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God.
Light
Matt’s message is rooted in Isaiah 9.1-4. The people of God in Isaiah’s time found themselves in a “land of deep darkness.” Matt draws upon the prophetic witness of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Valarie Kaur to invite us to see parallels in our day. Valarie asks, “what if the darkness isn’t the darkness of a tomb, but the darkness of a womb?”
Justice
Linda’s message is rooted in the call to justice found in Isaiah 42: 1-9. The name for our worship series, Life Together, is taken from a book by this name by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a prophetic Lutheran pastor who led a resistance movement during the rise of Hitler in Germany. Linda’s message sketches Bonhoeffer’s life and weaves his writings with those of the ancient prophet Isaiah. We hope this worship series on Life Together will embolden and challenge us to follow in the…
An Ending that is a Beginning
Matt’s message is rooted in readings from Jesus’ infancy at the beginning of Matthew & the ending of Jesus’ life on earth near the ending of Matthew. The infant Jesus became a refugee with his family. What might this mean for us today? Jesus’ message to his followers at the end of his life challenged them: “just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.” What…
Dream
Matt’s message is rooted in the dream of Joseph (Matthew 1.18-25). On this fourth Sunday of Advent, we remember God’s call to Joseph in a dream. How might we follow Joseph in saying yes to the power, mystery, and scandalous love waiting to be born amidst shame & disgrace?