Below, you will find the text of Pastor Brad’s sermons (and occasionally the sermons of guest speakers.) If you would like to see all the sermons pertaining to a particular topic or series or book of the Bible, or even if you would like to view sermons by the date they were preached, please click on the appropriate box to the right.
But on this day, as I think back to a few moments ago and looking out on all the people who have served God as leaders in this congregation in the past year and who are committed now to serving God as leaders of this congregation in the coming year, I am reminded and inspired that God is very much alive and active, that God’s Spirit STILL calls and offers me new life in Christ, still offers me the chance to be born of the Spirit in the week to come and forever.
Because it’s very likely we’ve become accustomed to the ways of the world’s kingdom, so accustomed to the ways of the world’s kingdom that we’re going to have to be open to some RADICAL CHANGE if we want continue Jesus’ ministry of ushering in a different kingdom, God’s kingdom, a kingdom devoted 100% to God’s desires with NO DISTRACTIONS, here on earth.
January 14, 2018 Sermon A Kingdom of Abundance Scripture Reading: John 2:1-11 2 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said […]
And so, on this Epiphany Sunday, this Sunday on which we celebrate Jesus’ identity made known, I am asking you to consider how Jesus’ identity is being made known in our time, in YOUR life. Somehow, for some reason, you’ve made Nathanael’s choice. You’ve decided to “come and see”. You’ve decided to give up certain things that other people cling to so you can follow this Jesus. Like Nathanael, I’m guessing at least SOME of you, maybe most of you, needed a little more convincing to follow Jesus than could be had by simply listening to some other people tell you you should follow him.
In other words, when we say that Santa and reindeer and mistletoe and snow are Christmas to us….are we settling for TOO LITTLE? After hearing God’s words through the prophets anew this year, I really think we are. Because, while fireplaces and the joy of family are nice, they don’t even BEGIN to compare to what Christmas really should be to us….what God promised Christmas would be. Amen.
Y’all, today is Christ the King Sunday. Today is the day when we proclaim with hope and with confidence that the whole earth will someday be Christ’s kingdom, that someday everything that divides people from people and even people from God will fall away. Today is the day when we celebrate the coming fulfillment of all that we hope for, all that we dream for, all that we trust in, through Christ Jesus! Amen.
Y’all, today is Thanksgiving Sunday. Wherever you are in the journey of life, I hope you’ve got some reasons to give thanks and praise to God. But even if you’ve got some things, some barriers, getting in the way of your giving thanks and praise to God, even if it’s still raining for you, I hope God’s message delivered to the exiled Judeans through the prophet Jeremiah gives you reason to give thanks and praise to God, even amidst the barriers. Because whatEVER difficulties you’re facing in life, God is there to face them with you and to give you comfort and strength in their midst. And whatEVER difficulties you’re facing in life, even if you’ve been facing them for a long time with no relief at all, God STILL has plans for you, “plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.”
Y’all, God didn’t provide the commandments – and God didn’t send the prophets…or Jesus – primarily to threaten us, to tell us what will happen if we mess up. No God has done everything God has been doing since the creation of humankind PRIMARILY for one reason, one reason stated very clearly through the prophet Amos, “that you may live.”
And so I leave you with this question: are you allowing God’s glory to DISRUPT your life, or are you choking off God’s glory in your life in your efforts to keep things orderly, in an effort to be like everyone else, in an effort to live like a good citizen in the kingdom of people?
Y’all, when God first called a people to be the people of God, God told them God wanted them to be holy, to be SET APART, for God. And God spent thousands of years showing them what that meant, and a big, HUGE part of what it meant was looking at the world differently than everybody else, seeing differently and acting differently, acting out of love instead of hate, goodness instead of anger, justice for all instead of hoarding for a few. And then Jesus came, and he said the same thing.