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PENTECOST
May 20 - SEPT 2, 2018
Pentecost 14 - August 26, 2018
"Poetry and the Bible"
Scripture: Psalm 126; Isaiah 25:6-10; John 1:1-5, 14-17
There are many styles of writing in the Bible, and poetry is the most common. Why did the Bible writers choose poetic forms rather than prose? What gives poetry power? What is poetry? In this week's sermon, I propose that loving God means loving language, because we live in a universe created by the spoken word. That has tremendous implications for how we think of the world, God, one another, and Scripture.
Enjoy audio and pdf!
Peace to all! Pastor Seth
"Poetry and the Bible"
Scripture: Psalm 126; Isaiah 25:6-10; John 1:1-5, 14-17
There are many styles of writing in the Bible, and poetry is the most common. Why did the Bible writers choose poetic forms rather than prose? What gives poetry power? What is poetry? In this week's sermon, I propose that loving God means loving language, because we live in a universe created by the spoken word. That has tremendous implications for how we think of the world, God, one another, and Scripture.
Enjoy audio and pdf!
Peace to all! Pastor Seth
Pentecost 13 - August 19, 2018
"What books of the Bible would I leave in or take out?
Why are the books that are there in the Bible, there in the first place?"
Scripture: Joshua 1:1-9; 2 Timothy 3:10-17
The history of the Bible is thoroughly fascinating. The most fascinating part of the Bible is that it has changed several times over its history. What are those changes? What does it mean for our faith that the foundational text of that faith has changed over time?
I believe that the changing, living, growing aspect of the Bible is a sign of the Holy Spirit working through communities of faith to transmit and uphold faith in God and Christ in a changing world.
Enjoy the audio!
Blessings to all! Pastor Seth
"What books of the Bible would I leave in or take out?
Why are the books that are there in the Bible, there in the first place?"
Scripture: Joshua 1:1-9; 2 Timothy 3:10-17
The history of the Bible is thoroughly fascinating. The most fascinating part of the Bible is that it has changed several times over its history. What are those changes? What does it mean for our faith that the foundational text of that faith has changed over time?
I believe that the changing, living, growing aspect of the Bible is a sign of the Holy Spirit working through communities of faith to transmit and uphold faith in God and Christ in a changing world.
Enjoy the audio!
Blessings to all! Pastor Seth
Pentecost 12 - August 12, 2018
"How can/do Christians support/bring out the good in other religionists?"
Scripture: John 14:1-17; Ephesians 4:1-6, 11-16
This question is a difficult one because we live in difficult times. I am not sure it is really any different than any other time, but to me it seems as if conversations are more difficult, reaching understanding or common ground is compromised, and certainty is more important than discovering truth. Perhaps I am just more aware of these things now. Even so, there are at least mindsets we can adopt that seek to create the foundation for positive outcomes in difficult conversations and promoting the good that is happening in the world.
Enjoy the audio this week!
Peace and grace to all, Pastor Seth.
"How can/do Christians support/bring out the good in other religionists?"
Scripture: John 14:1-17; Ephesians 4:1-6, 11-16
This question is a difficult one because we live in difficult times. I am not sure it is really any different than any other time, but to me it seems as if conversations are more difficult, reaching understanding or common ground is compromised, and certainty is more important than discovering truth. Perhaps I am just more aware of these things now. Even so, there are at least mindsets we can adopt that seek to create the foundation for positive outcomes in difficult conversations and promoting the good that is happening in the world.
Enjoy the audio this week!
Peace and grace to all, Pastor Seth.
Pentecost 11 - August 5, 2018 - Bluegrass Sunday
"As a New-Ager, variations of Jesus' statement in Mark 11:24 appear in all my spiritual books, especially concerning 'How to Manifest'. BUT, this advice is very hard to do! How many of us do it, or even try to do it, or even know about this verse?"
This morning, we welcomed Miners Creek Bluegrass Band (click to go to Bandcamp page) once again! We love having them and the energy they bring to the entire service. The sermon explores the New Age movement and what we are to do with Jesus telling the disciples, "Whatever you pray for, if you believe it to already be, it shall come to pass" related to that movement.
I put the whole service on here so you can hear Miners Creek. Click on the picture to go to their Facebook page. Enjoy!
(no PDF this week)
"As a New-Ager, variations of Jesus' statement in Mark 11:24 appear in all my spiritual books, especially concerning 'How to Manifest'. BUT, this advice is very hard to do! How many of us do it, or even try to do it, or even know about this verse?"
This morning, we welcomed Miners Creek Bluegrass Band (click to go to Bandcamp page) once again! We love having them and the energy they bring to the entire service. The sermon explores the New Age movement and what we are to do with Jesus telling the disciples, "Whatever you pray for, if you believe it to already be, it shall come to pass" related to that movement.
I put the whole service on here so you can hear Miners Creek. Click on the picture to go to their Facebook page. Enjoy!
(no PDF this week)
Pentecost 10 - July 29, 2018
"When did humankind develop a conscience?
What do the Beatitudes of Jesus have to do with a conscience?"
What does it mean to have a conscience? And once we know we have a conscience, what do we do with it once we know we have it? The Beatitudes, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, are an excellent guide to understanding our conscience.
The PDF and the audio are both available.
Peace and grace! Pastor Seth
"When did humankind develop a conscience?
What do the Beatitudes of Jesus have to do with a conscience?"
What does it mean to have a conscience? And once we know we have a conscience, what do we do with it once we know we have it? The Beatitudes, Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, are an excellent guide to understanding our conscience.
The PDF and the audio are both available.
Peace and grace! Pastor Seth
Pentecost 9 - July 22, 2018
“Does the Bible give us permission to fit this day and age? When pressed, how can we refute the idea that the Bible forbids homosexuality in general?”
“Does the Bible give us permission to fit this day and age? When pressed, how can we refute the idea that the Bible forbids homosexuality in general?”
Scripture: Song of Songs 2, Matthew 15:10-20
Today we dived deep into Scripture to deal with one of the pressing issues of the day - homosexuality. Rather than dealing with specific verses, I dealt with the whole sweep of Scripture. Every since I was very young, I have been an ally to the LGBTQ community, and I believe Scripture supports me in my alliance.
The PDF and audio are available this week.
Peace and grace to all! Pastor Seth
Today we dived deep into Scripture to deal with one of the pressing issues of the day - homosexuality. Rather than dealing with specific verses, I dealt with the whole sweep of Scripture. Every since I was very young, I have been an ally to the LGBTQ community, and I believe Scripture supports me in my alliance.
The PDF and audio are available this week.
Peace and grace to all! Pastor Seth
Pentecost 8 - July 15, 2018
"How Can We Relate to the Good Samaritan Today?"
Scripture: Luke 15:25-37
The Good Samaritan is a familiar story, and the opportunity to shift the diamond and look at it from different perspectives often gets lost in our moral propriety about the parable. In our discussion we try to tease out the questions that make this parable present for us today.
PDF is linked above and the audio is all set below.
Peace! Pastor Seth
"How Can We Relate to the Good Samaritan Today?"
Scripture: Luke 15:25-37
The Good Samaritan is a familiar story, and the opportunity to shift the diamond and look at it from different perspectives often gets lost in our moral propriety about the parable. In our discussion we try to tease out the questions that make this parable present for us today.
PDF is linked above and the audio is all set below.
Peace! Pastor Seth
Pentecost 7 - July 8, 2018
"How Do We Forgive Without Reservation? Are there any qualifications to forgiveness?"
Scripture: Matthew 6:14-15; 2 Corinthians 2:5-11
This week we look at Christ-centered forgiveness and the difficulties around forgiveness, which is the core discipline of the Christian faith, I believe. There are all kinds of easy things to say about forgiveness, but it can be very hard to implement. Enjoy the PDF and the audio!
Peace and grace, Pastor Seth.
"How Do We Forgive Without Reservation? Are there any qualifications to forgiveness?"
Scripture: Matthew 6:14-15; 2 Corinthians 2:5-11
This week we look at Christ-centered forgiveness and the difficulties around forgiveness, which is the core discipline of the Christian faith, I believe. There are all kinds of easy things to say about forgiveness, but it can be very hard to implement. Enjoy the PDF and the audio!
Peace and grace, Pastor Seth.
Pentecost 5 & 6 - June 24-July 1, 2018
On June 24th, I was in San Diego for the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches. I served as a delegate for our church there. San Diego is a great city and I was glad to go. For this Sunday, my good friend Matt McDonald preached in my stead.
On July 1st, I updated the congregation about my trip to San Diego.
That is why there has been a two week break in my updating the website.
Peace and grace to all!
On June 24th, I was in San Diego for the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches. I served as a delegate for our church there. San Diego is a great city and I was glad to go. For this Sunday, my good friend Matt McDonald preached in my stead.
On July 1st, I updated the congregation about my trip to San Diego.
That is why there has been a two week break in my updating the website.
Peace and grace to all!
Pentecost 4 - June 17, 2018
Faith and the Bible
"When is/What is the End of the Earth?"
Scripture: Matthew 24; Rev 7:9-12, 22:1-7
I have been impressed with the questions I have received so far for this series.
They have been thoughtful, deep, and fun.
Enjoy this foray into one of the hot button issues of several branches of the faith.
Peace and grace to all!
PDF above, audio below.
Faith and the Bible
"When is/What is the End of the Earth?"
Scripture: Matthew 24; Rev 7:9-12, 22:1-7
I have been impressed with the questions I have received so far for this series.
They have been thoughtful, deep, and fun.
Enjoy this foray into one of the hot button issues of several branches of the faith.
Peace and grace to all!
PDF above, audio below.
Pentecost 3 - June 10, 2018
Faith and the Bible
"If I am worried and pray to God for relief, and then return to worrying,
can I expect God to answer my prayer?"
Scripture: Daniel 9:1-5, 15-21; Luke 11:1-13
I have received some great questions for the summer in our exploration of Faith and the Bible. This question led into an exploration of the nature of prayer and the nature of worry, and what it means to hope in a God who loves us.
The PDF is available above.
Peace and grace!
Pastor Seth
Faith and the Bible
"If I am worried and pray to God for relief, and then return to worrying,
can I expect God to answer my prayer?"
Scripture: Daniel 9:1-5, 15-21; Luke 11:1-13
I have received some great questions for the summer in our exploration of Faith and the Bible. This question led into an exploration of the nature of prayer and the nature of worry, and what it means to hope in a God who loves us.
The PDF is available above.
Peace and grace!
Pastor Seth
Pentecost 2 - June 3, 2018
Faith and the Bible
"The Bible is So Full of Violence, especially the Old Testament. What do you make of that?"
Scripture: Joshua 6:1-5, 15-21; Luke 12:48b-53, John 14:25-27
For the summer, I will be preaching on questions from the congregation. This week, we began with a question about what to do with all the violence in the Bible. It is a great question, and many people have written great things about that concern. I hope I addressed some of the broad issues with violence in my sermon.
Thank you to Dr. David Pier, who preached while I was out of town last Sunday.
You can read the PDF, linked above, or listen below.
Faith and the Bible
"The Bible is So Full of Violence, especially the Old Testament. What do you make of that?"
Scripture: Joshua 6:1-5, 15-21; Luke 12:48b-53, John 14:25-27
For the summer, I will be preaching on questions from the congregation. This week, we began with a question about what to do with all the violence in the Bible. It is a great question, and many people have written great things about that concern. I hope I addressed some of the broad issues with violence in my sermon.
Thank you to Dr. David Pier, who preached while I was out of town last Sunday.
You can read the PDF, linked above, or listen below.
Pentecost Sunday - May 20, 2018
"The Cross-Shaped Life: A Guiding Light"
Scripture: Acts 2:1-21; Philippians 4:4-7
We had a wonderful celebration of the Holy Spirit yesterday. The service was full of music, prayer, scripture, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. The sermon is a back and forth with the choir. I have a printed version above, but you really should listen to it instead.
Peace and grace to all!
"The Cross-Shaped Life: A Guiding Light"
Scripture: Acts 2:1-21; Philippians 4:4-7
We had a wonderful celebration of the Holy Spirit yesterday. The service was full of music, prayer, scripture, and the presence of the Holy Spirit. The sermon is a back and forth with the choir. I have a printed version above, but you really should listen to it instead.
Peace and grace to all!