11 Pentecost A—8/20/17 Isaiah 56:1,6-8; Psalm 67; Romans 11:1-2a,29-32; Matt. 15:10-28 Pr. Scott Kramer Did you ever think you’d hear Jesus call someone stupid? Matthew 15 is a hard-hitting chapter in which Jesus exposes the hypocrisy and screwed-up priorities of religious people, including his own followers. It’s a chapter that speaks to American Christians in 2017, maybe especially over the past week following the events of Charlottesville, Virginia. The Christian who is deeply convinced of … [Read more...]
Fairy Tales?
8 Pentecost A—7/30/17 1 Kings 3:5-12; Rom. 8:26-39; Matt. 13:31-52 Pr. Scott Kramer I have with me this morning one of my favorite plants. Grevillea is an Australian native. I love this plant! It’s evergreen, it’s hardy in winter and blooms--even in snow! Hummingbirds love it, especially in winter. It is drought-tolerant, grows rapidly and can be pruned easily. And get this--it loves poor soil, which makes it a great fit for the unfertile soil of our Lakeridge yards! Jesus uses a variety of … [Read more...]
Wheat & Weeds
7 Pentecost A—7/23/17 Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 Pr. Scott Kramer I invite you to turn in your pew Bibles to the very end of John’s gospel, ch. 21. Beginning with v.24: This is the disciple who is bearing witness to these things, and who has written these things; and we know that his testimony is true. But there are also many other things which Jesus did; were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Now please turn back a … [Read more...]
Baptismal Candle
4 Pentecost A—7/2/17 Matthew 10:40-42 Pr. Scott Kramer Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Hospitality is at the heart of what it means to be Christian. But through the example of Jesus himself we discover that the welcome we extend to family or friends is only the barest beginning of God’s welcome. God’s welcome is more than a handshake or a greeting. Christian hospitality represents the wide embrace of God’s love that sets aside one’s own … [Read more...]
God’s Welcome
2 Pentecost A—6/18/17 Ex. 19:2-18a; Psalm 100; Romans 5:1-8; Matt. 9:35-10:8[9-23] Pr. Scott Kramer One of the highlights of this past week for me was a reunion with a friend I hadn’t seen in many years. Liz and I taught English in China together 30 years ago. She and her family are from Sacramento but I’d never met her husband so it was a joy to meet them and their 15 yr.-old son over dinner at our house. Next month we will welcome other visitors; this time, friends from Hong Kong that we … [Read more...]
The Language of Love
PentecostA17—6/4/17 Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:24-34; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13; John 20:19-23 Pr. Scott Kramer When the day of Pentecost had come, the apostles were all together in one place…All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. When I visit China, or if I simply visit a local Chinese restaurant, when I say a few words of Chinese the person I’m speaking to smiles, and surprised, might say, “Oh, you speak Chinese!” Well, I … [Read more...]
Cast All Your Anxiety On Him
7 Easter A—5/28/17 Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10,32-35; 1 Peter 4:12-14; 5:6-11; John 17:1-11 Pr. Scott Kramer It’s already been over six months since the election but in some parts of the country you might think we are still in campaign season! Driving through rural Washington recently I’ve seen huge signs still in place on barns and fences: “Make America Great Again.” We live in anxious times, and once anxiety takes hold of human hearts it’s not easy to let go! As those campaign signs and … [Read more...]
The Spirit of Truth
6 Easter A—5/21/17 Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:8-20; 1 Peter 3:13-22; John 14:15-21 Pr. Scott Kramer If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. The “Spirit of truth.” Was there ever a time when we were more in need of the Spirit of truth? Was there ever a time more than now when the world could not … [Read more...]
Mother’s Milk
5 Easter A—5/1417 Acts 7:55-60; Psalm 31:1-5,15-16; 1 Peter 2:2-10; John 14:1-14 Pr. Scott Kramer Father. Father father. Father Father Father. Father Father Father Father Father. Today, as you know, is Mother’s Day. Evidently, Jesus didn’t get the memo; in today’s gospel reading he mentions not his mother but his Father no fewer than eleven times! And yet…on this Mother’s Day, we remember that God is not a man. Did you notice? The first words from our second reading are about “mother’s milk!” … [Read more...]
Stranger on the Road
3 Easter A—4/30/17 Acts 2:14a,36-41; Psalm 116:1-4,12-19; 1 Peter 1:17-23; Luke 24:13-35 Pr. Scott Kramer A week and a half ago I stopped by the Renton History Museum for the first time. The museum features a traveling exhibit titled, “Sorting Out Racism,” which is excellent and continues through May 17th. While I was at the museum I learned about an event held at the museum this past Thursday, a panel discussion titled, Undoing Racism in Renton. The panel was an African-American pastor … [Read more...]
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