3 Easter C—4/10/16 Acts 9:1-20; Psalm 30; Revelation 5:11-14; John 21:1-19 Pr. Scott Kramer This past Thursday Elon Musk announced that after only one week over 325,000 pre-orders had been made for the much-anticipated Model 3. Elon Musk is CEO of American electric carmaker Tesla Motors, and the Model 3 is the company’s first vehicle priced under $40,000. Elon Musk was co-founder of Paypal and SolarCity and is currently CEO of SpaceX, the company that a couple of days ago successfully landed a … [Read more...]
Sermons Archive
Faith & Doubt
Third Sunday of Easter April 10, 2016 by Melody Kroeger This is my favorite gospel story! Oh who am I’m kidding – they’re all my favorite! But the story of Thomas – doubting Thomas – is especially dear to me because he is so much like us – or at least like me: uncertain – even doubtful – in the face of betrayal, emptiness and tragedy. And given Thomas’ situation, who among us would not be filled with a measure of doubt mixed with a certain amount of fear? Within the short span of five days, … [Read more...]
Room for You
Easter C16 Acts 10:34-43; Psalm 118; 1 Corinthians 15:19-26; Luke 24:1-12 Pr. Scott Kramer Years ago on a trip to Israel my wife and I planned to visit some of the places that were important parts of Jesus’ life. One of these was the traditional place of his birth in Bethlehem. It’s a small, cramped space, with room for only a few people, beneath the floor of a church that was built above it. The traditional place of Jesus’ birth is not a shelter for animals, such as we find in the Bible. It’s … [Read more...]
Through the Cross
Palm Sunday—3/20/16 Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 31:9-16; Phil. 2:5-11; Luke 23:1-49 Pr. Scott Kramer The whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully… “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven.” If it weren’t Palm Sunday you might think it’s Christmas. Remember what the angels sang on the eve of Jesus’ birth? Something similar: "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he … [Read more...]
Winter Into Spring
5 Lent C—3/13/16 Isaiah 43:16-21; Psalm 126; Philippians 3:4b-14; John 12:1-18 Pr. Scott Kramer Imagine yourself taking a walk this afternoon with a friend. After worship, you set out through the neighborhood. Looking around you, you say, “Wow! Look at the magnolias, the azaleas, the daffodils, the camellias, the cherry trees, the plum trees, the hyacinths, the forsythias—all in bloom! Look at the color! And oh, the fragrance! Not only that, but as of today we have an extra hour of daylight. … [Read more...]
The Father’s Love
4 Lent C—3/6/16 Joshua 5:9-12; Psalm 32; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:1-3,11b-32 Pr. Scott Kramer Our bank statement came in the mail a few days ago. This month, just like every other month, we need to check to see if the bank’s figures and our checkbook figures agree. You do this, too. We call it reconciling the checkbook. The word “reconcile” shows up in some form no fewer than five times in today’s short reading from 2 Corinthians. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: … [Read more...]
Hen and Chicks
2 Lent C—2/21/16 Genesis 15:1-12,17-18; Psalm 27; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35 Pr. Scott Kramer You may recall that Sunday readings for the season of Lent began last week with the story of Jesus’ temptations. We were reminded that the temptations Jesus experienced during his life were much like those that we face: very ordinary, very every-day. One of the greatest of these ordinary temptations is the desire to create a God in our own image. You may remember from the Book of Genesis that … [Read more...]
Stoned Prophets
Second Sunday in Lent February 21, 2016 Luke 13:31-35 Melody Kroeger The Attorney General of the United States came to warn him. “We have reports that there’s a sniper in the outskirts of Montgomery waiting to shoot Dr. King.” King refused to leave his supports behind and seek safety in a northern state. “I don’t care what happens,” Dr. King told his advisors, “I have to march and I have to be in the front line”. Martin Luther King was in trouble. The same sort of trouble that … [Read more...]
God’s Generosity and Goodness
Second Sunday After Epiphany 1/17/16 By Melody Kroeger “They have no more wine,” Mary, mother of Jesus, tells Jesus. What happens to a celebration – any celebration - when the wine runs out? Yikes! Weddings were large, raucous communal events in the ancient Jewish world and the feast was a big part of the celebration – involving entire villages and often lasting beyond the week. Our readings today illustrate for us how weddings and feasts loom large throughout scriptures as metaphors for the … [Read more...]
Word(s) to Live By
2 Christmas C—1/3/15 Jeremiah 31:7-14; Psalm 147:12-20; Ephesians 1:3-14; John 1:1-18 Pr. Scott Kramer Week after week we hear these words: Word of God. Word of Life. And the people respond: Praise to you, O Christ. This morning when you hear “Word of God, Word of Life…” your response is: Thanks be to God! As we conclude the Christmas season, what is the word of God for us? What is the word of life that will feed and sustain us as we move forward into this New Year? Each of the readings for … [Read more...]
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