17 Pentecost A—9/27/20 Ezekiel 18:1-4,25-32; Philippians 2:1-13; Matthew 21:23-32 Pr. Scott Kramer The religious “influencers” were outraged. Jesus had just disrupted the business of the church—or, the temple in this case—by turning upside down the tables of the moneychangers, and so they confront him: By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority? Just who do you think you are, Jesus of Nazareth? Well, in the eyes of the religious power … [Read more...]
Onto the Podium
1 Lent B—2/18/18 1 Peter 3:18-22; Gospel: Mark 1:9-15 Pr. Scott Kramer I’ve been enjoying the Olympics, and maybe you have been, too. One of the most surprising events of the first week was the women’s Super-G Slalom. This is a downhill ski race, and American Mikaela Shiffrin was the favorite to win gold. Earlier in the week she’d won gold in a different event, but this Super-G Slalom is her specialty. In the end, though, she failed in that event even to make the podium—no medal at all! Part … [Read more...]
Reformation to Transformation
Reformation Sunday—10/29/17 Romans 3:19-28; John 8:31-36; Matthew 22:34-46 Pr. Scott Kramer (Below in italics is content provided to the congregation as a reference for the sermon following) Christian Formation Personal faith: God’s love for me and mine Work: Christian basics of prayer, Bible study, worship, service Emphasis: Keeping laws and following rules Goal: Personal salvation Christian Reformation (RE-formation) Public faith: God’s love for me and many others Work: Changing or … [Read more...]
Short, Changed
24 Pentecost C—10/23/16 (Reformation Sunday) Isaiah 1:10-18; Psalm 32:1-7; 2 Thessalonians 1:1-4,11-12; Luke 19:1-10 Pr. Scott Kramer I grew up in the church so I often heard the word “stewardship”--and I didn’t like it. This was before I even understood what it meant! I just didn’t like the sound of the word. I guess to my young ears it sounded too much like the word “sewer,” which is neither a beautiful-sounding word, nor a beautiful thing! What I learned just recently didn’t help those … [Read more...]
Saved to Save
3 Lent C—2/28/16 Isaiah 55:1-9; Psalm 63:1-8; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9 Pr. Scott Kramer Three weeks ago yesterday, on February 6th, at 4:00 in the morning, my wife and I were awakened by windows rattling and the building shaking. I looked at her and she said, “Earthquake”, and…we both fell back asleep! Maybe not the safest response to an earthquake (!) but the next morning we heard news that she was right. It was an earthquake—the same one you read about in the news--on the … [Read more...]
I Spy
Holy Trinity B—5/31/15 Isaiah 6:1-8; Psalm 29; Romans 8:12-17; John 3:1-17 Pr. Scott Kramer Funny the things we remember from childhood. I don’t remember much but for some reason I think of toys. Some of the first toys I remember were spy toys. Those of you of a certain age may remember decoder rings, invisible ink pens. One of my favorites was a toy gun from 1964. I didn’t know anything about the Cold War but I knew that I liked this spy gun. It looked like a portable transistor … [Read more...]
Love and Transformation
16 Pentecost A—9/28/14 Ezekiel 18:1-4,25-32; Psalm 25:1-9; Philippians 2:1-13; Matt. 21:23-32 One of the best TV series I’ve seen this year is The Roosevelts. Ken Burns recently did a week-long PBS series on Teddy, Eleanor and Franklin. They were no saints. Like the rest of us they were sinners. Their lives included chapters of disappointment, self-interest and betrayal. But what I remember most from the Roosevelt story is the power of love to shape who these leaders became. … [Read more...]