Sermons on Faith (Page 9)

Walk in the Light

Photo by Rostyslav Savchyn in Unsplash.com 1 Samuel 16:1-13 Ephesians 5:8-14 John 9:1-41 Psalm 23 I love the readings this Lent. They are all wonderful conversations. Two weeks ago Nicodemus came for a conversation about being born again, then last week the Samaritan woman was offered springs of eternal water and realized she was talking to the Messiah. This week’s story of the blind man, his neighbors, parents and the authorities is almost like an Abbott and Costello sketch. We…

Hunting for Fig Leaves

Photo by Sime Basioli @unsplash.com Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 Romans 5:12-19 Matthew 4:1-11 Psalm 32 My sister once said,” I think we must have come from somewhere very wonderful or we wouldn’t be so dissatisfied with what we have and filled with longing for something better.” Today we start Lent with part of the ancient Creation story. This narrative was developed by the ancient people as a way of explaining that longing that my sister voices, and explaining how things are. …

Get Up!

Transfiguration Sunday (Last Sunday of Epiphany) Sermon February 23, 2020 St. Benedict’s Episcopal Church, Los Osos, California Message from the Mountain (Invocation of the Holy Spirit, suggested by words in Celtic Daily Prayer)   Most powerful Holy Spirit, come down upon us and subdue us From heaven, where the ordinary is made glorious, and glory seems but ordinary. Open our spiritual ears, that we hear a word from God. Amen.   Transfiguration is a translation of Greek that happens to…

Discipleship and Forgiveness – Lorienne Schwenk

Reconciliation by Vasconcellos, Coventry Cathedral Photo by Martinvl [CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)] 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 Matthew 5:21-37 This morning I am going to continue the theme of discipleship we have been hearing in Epiphany. We will look at discipleship through two lenses: one much needed, the other a trap. Forgiveness and Idolatry. Our Gospel is full of provocations and that’s good. Like the question we discussed at our tables just three weeks ago at the Annual Meeting. As a reminder: “…in…

Salt of the Earth

Matthew 5:13-20 When I hear Jesus’ words to his disciples: “You are the salt of the earth: but if salt has lost its taste, How can its saltiness be restored? My brain goes contrary and asks: Just how can salt lose its taste? And of course, I’m thinking of those little salt granules We put on our food. To relate to Jesus’ teaching, it helps me To picture a salt lick out in a field; They’re put out for livestock.…

Discipleship = Stewardship

Photo: Around the Sea of Galilee, Matson Collection [Public domain] Matthew 4:12-23 Today we take a second look at discipleship. Last week we heard the call of the first disciples as told in John’s Gospel – two of John the Baptizer’s disciples intrigued by John’s description of him, asked Jesus where he was staying to which he replied, Come and see. They went and stayed with him. I reflected on what it means to stay with Jesus the Christ and…

God Calling

Photo by Andrew McKie on Pexels John 1:29-42 I wonder what the two disciples found when they went to see where Jesus was staying. I imagine he was probably living very simply like Ghandi, but just as likely he was living in a crowded household with no privacy. You can learn a lot about a person from the way they live in their own home, or the way they live in a communal home. Today’s gospel reading is about identity…

Did you bring the Myrrh?

Detail of the Three Kings from The Adoration of the Magi, tapestry, wool and silk on cotton warp, 101 1/8 x 151 1/4 inches (300 x 384 cm.), Manchester Metropolitan University. Matthew 2:1-12 I hope the year is off to a good start for you personally. On a wider front, I am sure that like me you have watched the fires in Australia and the murder of Iranian general Soleimani with deep concern. I am grateful for the night-time prayer from…

Love

Picture by Carlos Quintero, unsplash.com Matthew 1:18-25 Love.  It’s the reason for the season. It’s the center of the Christian narrative. Not sin nor guilt nor judgment but incredible love. Creation has been described as the pillow-talk of the Trinity. We were conceived in love and created in love and we are nourished in love. Here are some of our central understandings: “For God so loved the world that he sent his only begotten-son that all who believe in him…