Sermon Preview: Sunday, November 30

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, Dr. Gaddy will deliver a sermon titled, "The Worst Christmas Ever! Really?"  

The scripture reading will be Isaiah 64:1-9b.

Sermon Preview: Sunday, November 23

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, Dr. Gaddy will deliver a sermon titled, "A Thanks-giving."  

This reflection will complement a choral presentation at the end of the service titled, "A Song of Thanksgiving."

Sermon Preview: November 16, 2008

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, Dr. Gaddy will deliver a sermon titled, "Predictable Unpredictability."  

The scripture readings will include the following:

Judges 4:1-7

1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, after Ehud died.2 So the Lord sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim.3 Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly twenty years. 4 At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel.5 She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment. 6 She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, "The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you, "Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. 7 I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin's army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.' 

Matthew 25:31-46

31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, 33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. 34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, "Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.' 37 Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? 38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? 39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?' 40 And the king will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,  you did it to me.' 41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, "You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' 44 Then they also will answer, "Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?' 45 Then he will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' 46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

Sermon Preview: Sunday, November 2

The title of the sermon will be "Come Wednesday," and it will reflection theologically on Election Day.

The Scripture Lesson (Psalm 97)

1 The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad!2 Clouds and thick darkness are all around God; righteousness and justice are the foundation of God’s throne. 3 Fire goes before God, and consumes God’s adversaries on every side. 4 God’s lightnings light up the world; the earth sees and trembles. 5 The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth. 6 The heavens proclaim God’s righteousness; and all the peoples behold God’s glory. 7 All worshipers of images are put to shame, those who make their boast in worthless idols; all gods bow down before God. 8 Zion hears and is glad, and the towns of Judah rejoice, because of your judgments, O God. 9 For you, O Lord, are most high over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods. 10 The Lord loves those who hate evil; God guards the lives of God’s faithful; God rescues them from the hand of the wicked. 11 Light dawns for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart. 12 Rejoice in the Lord, O you righteous, and give thanks to God’s holy name!

Sermon Preview for Sunday, October 26

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, Dr. Gaddy will deliver a sermon titled, "Re-forming the Church."  

The scripture readings will include the following:

Romans 3:19-24

19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For "no human being will be justified in his sight" by deeds prescribed by the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin. 21 But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, 23 since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; 24 they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

 

Matthew 16:13-19

13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" 14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." 15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah,  the Son of the living God."17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock  I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." 

Sermon Preview for Sunday, October 19

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, October 19, Dr. Gaddy will deliver a sermon titled, "The Backside of God."

Key concepts in this sermon will include the following: when dealing with God, the importance of mystery, the fallacy of certainty, and the need for humility.  It's interesting that the Gospel lesson is on religion and government.  Nowhere has our arrogance regarding our knowledge of God caused more problems than in relation to our certainty about civil government and partisan poliltics.

The Hebrew Scripture Lesson (Exodus 33:12-23)

12 Moses said to the Lord, "See, you have said to me, "Bring up this people'; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, "I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.' 13 Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people." 14 He said, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." 15 And he said to him, "If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. 16 For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth." 17 The Lord said to Moses, "I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name." 18 Moses said, "Show me your glory, I pray." 19 And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, "The Lord'; F95 and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. 20 But," he said, "you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live." 21 And the Lord continued, "See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; 22 and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; 23 then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen."

The Gospel Lesson (Matthew 22:15-22)

15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said. 16 So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?" 18 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, "Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin used for the tax." And they brought him a denarius. 20 Then he said to them, "Whose head is this, and whose title?" 21 They answered, "The emperor's." Then he said to them, "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's." 22 When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away."

Sermon Preview for Sunday, October 12

We invite you to use the following sermon preview to prepare for worship on Sunday morning.

This Sunday, October 12, Rev. Carl Gregg will deliver a sermon titled, "Stability in Unstable Times."  The focus of the sermon will be on what resources the Christian tradition offers us for stability in these unstable times.  

To prepare for worship, you are invited to consider the following questions: 

What people and activities bring you the greatest consolation.  What are you most grateful for in your life?  When do you feel most loved, most energized, or most connected to God and those around you?  

And, conversely, what people or activities bring you the greatest desolation.  When do you feel alienated, drained of energy, or disconnected from God and those around you?  

In short, what people or places or activities might God be calling you to let go – because they make your life less stable, less centered, less joyful.  

And what people or places or activities might God be calling you to seek more of – because they bring you joy and stability in an unstable world?  

The Christian Scripture Reading (Luke 6:47-49)

47 I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them. 48 That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house."