Sermons

Hit Me With Another – a Sermon

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This sermon was preached at Capitol Hill United Methodist Church on June 4, 2017 – Pentecost Sunday.

Happy Birthday, church! On Sunday, June 4, 2017 we celebrated the birth of the Church universal as we celebrated Pentecost and the gift of the Holy Spirit that draws us together.

In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible (aka Old Testament), the Greek form of “Pentecost” is used for the Jewish festival, Shavuot (aka Feast of Weeks), when both the gift of the wheat harvest and the gift of the Torah (or Law) were commemorated. This Jewish celebration that occurs 50 days after Passover was a time to bring a gift of the first fruits of one’s harvest to God in the Temple. So, there would have been Jewish pilgrims from all over in Jerusalem for Pentecost when we read about the wind and fire of the Spirit that enlivened the disciples 50 days after Easter as we read in Acts 2:1-6 (and following).

So, birthdays are times to give and receive gifts, right? Pentecost has always been about gifts – wheat and Torah in our Jewish heritage and the Holy Spirit in our Christian tradition. That makes me wonder:

  • How you have experienced the Holy Spirit as a gift?
  • Has the Holy Spirit allowed you to be a gift? If so, how?

I invite you to consider Psalm 139:1-12 as you consider the questions above and to consider that and the Acts passage noted above as a way of preparation for listening to this sermon.

Listen to the sermon here:

Right-mouse-click this link to download the audio.

Psalm 139:1-12
1O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
2You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away.
3You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.
4Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely.
5You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it.
7Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence?
8If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
9If I take the wings of the morning and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
10even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me fast.
11If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,”
12even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you.(NRSV)

Acts 2:1-6
1When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

5Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. 6And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. (NRSV)

Jesus 007 – A Sermon

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This sermon was preached at Capitol Hill United Methodist Church on Sunday, February 19, 2017 as a part of the series, Will the Real Jesus Please Stand Up?

Can you keep a secret?

Is keeping a secret something easy or difficult for you to do? Can you be stealthy with a secret, or do you find yourself almost giddy wanting to share that secret with others? Does knowing a secret ever change the way you live, even a little bit?

Think about how you think we are to live our lives of faith. Should our faith be “loud” or “easily recognizable” as Christian; should it be lived in “secret;” or should it be some combination to the previous two? I ask, because this week, we’ll be considering Jesus as 007. How do those two images – Jesus and a Secret Agent Man – fit together in your mind, or do they at all?

To guide our ponderings, we’ll look to Matthew 13:31-33 and 1 Peter 3:9-17. So, I hope you’ll take some time before listening to consider what light these passages might shed on the questions above.

Right-mouse-click this link to download the audio.

1 Peter 3:9-17
9Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing. 10For “Those who desire life and desire to see good days, let them keep their tongues from evil and their lips from speaking deceit; 11let them turn away from evil and do good; let them seek peace and pursue it. 12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.” 13Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? 14But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, 15but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you;

16yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. 17For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil. (NRSV)

Matthew 13:31-33
31Jesus put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” 33He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.” (NRSV)

Employed & Gifted to Unite – A Sermon

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I was blessed with the opportunity to wrap up a sermon series entitled Employed by the Spirit on spiritual gifts at Capitol Hill United Methodist Church on Sunday, June 23, 2013. 

You can listen to it here:

Right-mouse-click here to download audio.

This sermon was inspired by:

Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-16
1I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. 7But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

11The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love. (NRSV)

Reason: Well, What Do You Think? – A Sermon

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I was blessed to be able to preach today at Capitol Hill United Methodist in Washington, DC where my wife, Sandra, and I have been attending since moving to the DC area in March. In this sermon, I continued an on-going series on the Wesleyan Quadrilateral, particularly reason.

Listen to it here:

Right-mouse-click here to download audio.

The Scripture passage that provided inspiration for the sermon was:

Mark 4:10-12; 33-34
10 When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. 11 And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; 12 in order that “they may indeed look, but not perceive, and may indeed listen, but not understand; so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.’ “

33 With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; 34 he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.

Something to Believe In – A Sermon

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This is my farewell sermon given at First United Methodist Church in Wichita Falls, Texas on February 26, 2012.  I felt it was very personal and really only something beneficial for that church.  Yet, I’ve had much positive feedback from people from other UM churches as well as people from other denominations.  Thus, I decided to share it here.

The primary Scripture passage for this sermon is John 14:12: “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.”

Knowing Isn’t Everything – A Sermon

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Here is a sermon I shared at First United Methodist Church of Wichita Falls on August 7, 2011. 

Listen to the sermon here:

Right-mouse-click here to download the audio.

The Scripture text that served as inspiration was 1 Corinthians 8, which is provided here from The Message translation:

1 The question keeps coming up regarding meat that has been offered up to an idol: Should you attend meals where such meat is served, or not? We sometimes tend to think we know all we need to know to answer these kinds of questions – 2 but sometimes our humble hearts can help us more than our proud minds. 3 We never really know enough until we recognize that God alone knows it all. 4 Some people say, quite rightly, that idols have no actual existence, that there’s nothing to them, that there is no God other than our one God, 5 that no matter how many of these so-called gods are named and worshiped they still don’t add up to anything but a tall story. 6 They say – again, quite rightly – that there is only one God the Father, that everything comes from him, and that he wants us to live for him. Also, they say that there is only one Master – Jesus the Messiah – and that everything is for his sake, including us. Yes. It’s true. 7 In strict logic, then, nothing happened to the meat when it was offered up to an idol. It’s just like any other meat. I know that, and you know that. But knowing isn’t everything. If it becomes everything, some people end up as know-it-alls who treat others as know-nothings. Real knowledge isn’t that insensitive. We need to be sensitive to the fact that we’re not all at the same level of understanding in this. Some of you have spent your entire lives eating “idol meat,” and are sure that there’s something bad in the meat that then becomes something bad inside of you. An imagination and conscience shaped under those conditions isn’t going to change overnight. 8 But fortunately God doesn’t grade us on our diet. We’re neither commended when we clean our plate nor reprimanded when we just can’t stomach it. 9 But God does care when you use your freedom carelessly in a way that leads a Christian still vulnerable to those old associations to be thrown off track. 10 For instance, say you flaunt your freedom by going to a banquet thrown in honor of idols, where the main course is meat sacrificed to idols. Isn’t there great danger if someone still struggling over this issue, someone who looks up to you as knowledgeable and mature, sees you go into that banquet? The danger is that he will become terribly confused – maybe even to the point of getting mixed up himself in what his conscience tells him is wrong. 11 Christ gave up his life for that person. Wouldn’t you at least be willing to give up going to dinner for him – because, as you say, it doesn’t really make any difference? But it does make a difference if you hurt your friend terribly, risking his eternal ruin! 12 When you hurt your friend, you hurt Christ. A free meal here and there isn’t worth it at the cost of even one of these “weak ones.” 13 So, never go to these idol-tainted meals if there’s any chance it will trip up one of your brothers or sisters.