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Click on "Sermon Title" for PDF.
A Puritan Thanksgiving Service
November 22, 2015
Every year, we celebrate our tradition by having an educational and extended Thanksgiving service that teaches and preaches from the perspective of the Pilgrims and Puritans who founded the Congregational Way. I have posted the full service below,
along with the PDF for the whole service as well.
Thus endeth the 2014-2015 liturgical year!
Peace and blessings to you all!
November 22, 2015
Every year, we celebrate our tradition by having an educational and extended Thanksgiving service that teaches and preaches from the perspective of the Pilgrims and Puritans who founded the Congregational Way. I have posted the full service below,
along with the PDF for the whole service as well.
Thus endeth the 2014-2015 liturgical year!
Peace and blessings to you all!
SAINTLY LIVING IN DIFFICULT TIMES
From now until Thanksgiving, this 7 part series will explore ways of living in a difficult world.
How does Jesus help us? What does following the Christian Way mean in a rapidly changing and sometimes difficult world? We will let individuals and groups guide us in our journey.
October 11, 2015 - Pentecost 20 --"Saintly Living: Following"
Scripture: Amos 5:6-7,10-15; Hebrews 4:12-16; Mark 10:17-31
From now until Thanksgiving, this 7 part series will explore ways of living in a difficult world.
How does Jesus help us? What does following the Christian Way mean in a rapidly changing and sometimes difficult world? We will let individuals and groups guide us in our journey.
October 11, 2015 - Pentecost 20 --"Saintly Living: Following"
Scripture: Amos 5:6-7,10-15; Hebrews 4:12-16; Mark 10:17-31
October 18, 2015 - Pentecost 21 -- "Saintly Living: Leading"
Scripture: Isaiah 53: 4-6, 10-12; Hebrews 5: 4-10; Mark 10:35-45
Scripture: Isaiah 53: 4-6, 10-12; Hebrews 5: 4-10; Mark 10:35-45
October 25, 2015 - Pentecost 22 -- "Saintly Living: Needing"
Scripture: Jeremiah 31:7-9; Hebrews 7:23-28; Mark 10:46-52
Scripture: Jeremiah 31:7-9; Hebrews 7:23-28; Mark 10:46-52
November 1, 2015
Thank you, Dr. David Pier, for preaching today!
Thank you, Dr. David Pier, for preaching today!
November 8, 2015 - Pentecost 24 -- "Saintly Living: Giving"
Scripture: 1 Kings 17:8-16; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44
Scripture: 1 Kings 17:8-16; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44
November 15, 2015 - Pentecost 25 -- "Saintly Living: Believing"
Scripture: Psalm 16; Hebrews 10:11-25; Mark 13:1-8
Scripture: Psalm 16; Hebrews 10:11-25; Mark 13:1-8
Our Covenant at Rockland Congregational Church --
For the month of September, we will take apart and examine our Church Covenant. The Church Covenant is a primary part of what makes us Congregationalists, and as we begin to think about who we are becoming as a church, examining what we say about ourselves in our covenant will clarify who we wish to be.
This is a 5 part series. The audio and pdf will be linked here.
Peace and blessings to all!
September 6, 2015 - "Part 1: Committing and Learning"
"We covenant with God and with one another
to seek God's will as taught in Holy Scripture,"
For the month of September, we will take apart and examine our Church Covenant. The Church Covenant is a primary part of what makes us Congregationalists, and as we begin to think about who we are becoming as a church, examining what we say about ourselves in our covenant will clarify who we wish to be.
This is a 5 part series. The audio and pdf will be linked here.
Peace and blessings to all!
September 6, 2015 - "Part 1: Committing and Learning"
"We covenant with God and with one another
to seek God's will as taught in Holy Scripture,"
September 13, 2015 - "Part 2: Walking in the Ways of the Lord"
"to walk together in the ways of the Lord,"
"to walk together in the ways of the Lord,"
September 20, 2015 - "Part 3: Telling and Sharing the Gospel"
"to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people"
"to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people"
September 27, 2015 - "Part 4: Trusting the Spirit"
"to depend upon the continued guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth"
"to depend upon the continued guidance of the Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth"
October 4, 2015 -- "The Covenant: Covenant and Creation"
Today we welcomed a new member and celebrated the Lord's Supper. We sought, in other words, to fulfill our covenant with God and with one another here so we are strengthened to fulfill God's covenant in Creation beyond the walls of the Church.
Today we welcomed a new member and celebrated the Lord's Supper. We sought, in other words, to fulfill our covenant with God and with one another here so we are strengthened to fulfill God's covenant in Creation beyond the walls of the Church.
08/30/2015 - 14th Sunday of Pentecost
"Ask the Pastor Sunday!"
I love Ask the Pastor Sundays. The questions are thoughtful and the discussions following the service are always fruitful. If heresy trials were still a thing in the Congregational tradition, it is here that my fate would be sealed. Be that as it may, the back and forth, the challenging questions, and I hope the answers are all a deepening of our exploration of who Christ is calling us to be. Enjoy the audio!
"Ask the Pastor Sunday!"
I love Ask the Pastor Sundays. The questions are thoughtful and the discussions following the service are always fruitful. If heresy trials were still a thing in the Congregational tradition, it is here that my fate would be sealed. Be that as it may, the back and forth, the challenging questions, and I hope the answers are all a deepening of our exploration of who Christ is calling us to be. Enjoy the audio!
08/23/2015 - 13th Sunday of Pentecost
"Still Be My Vision" - Brian Harden, Moderator
Today, we welcome our very own Brian Harden to the pulpit. Brian is the moderator of our church and is a direct descendant of William Brewster, the leader of the Plymouth Colony in 1620.
Thank you for preaching and leading worship, Brian!
Click above for the PDF.
"Still Be My Vision" - Brian Harden, Moderator
Today, we welcome our very own Brian Harden to the pulpit. Brian is the moderator of our church and is a direct descendant of William Brewster, the leader of the Plymouth Colony in 1620.
Thank you for preaching and leading worship, Brian!
Click above for the PDF.
08/16/2015 - 12th Sunday of Pentecost
"Foolish Wisdom and High Strangeness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Proverbs 9:1-6; Ephesians 5:15-20; John 6:51-58
Ufos? Bigfoot? Men In Black? What does it have to do with Jesus and his "Bread of Life" discourse? You can read or listen to find out. God calls us to deal with things that are strange or we feel we cannot understand, and to a rigorous willingness to do the hard work of allowing ourselves to be taught by Lady Wisdom.
Peace and blessings to all!
Pastor Seth
"Foolish Wisdom and High Strangeness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Proverbs 9:1-6; Ephesians 5:15-20; John 6:51-58
Ufos? Bigfoot? Men In Black? What does it have to do with Jesus and his "Bread of Life" discourse? You can read or listen to find out. God calls us to deal with things that are strange or we feel we cannot understand, and to a rigorous willingness to do the hard work of allowing ourselves to be taught by Lady Wisdom.
Peace and blessings to all!
Pastor Seth
08/09/2015 - 11th Sunday of Pentecost
"Truthiness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ephesians 4:25-5:2; John 6:35, 41-51
Back in 2006, Webster's Dictionary put the word "Truthiness" in their dictionary. The word was coined by comedian Stephen Colbert. Today, we try to understand the difference between "truthiness" and "speaking the truth". Jesus' bread of life discourse gives us some foundation for how to get into the discussion. Enjoy the PDF or the audio.
Peace to all! Pastor Seth
"Truthiness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ephesians 4:25-5:2; John 6:35, 41-51
Back in 2006, Webster's Dictionary put the word "Truthiness" in their dictionary. The word was coined by comedian Stephen Colbert. Today, we try to understand the difference between "truthiness" and "speaking the truth". Jesus' bread of life discourse gives us some foundation for how to get into the discussion. Enjoy the PDF or the audio.
Peace to all! Pastor Seth
08/02/2015 - 10th Sunday of Pentecost
"Eating the Faith" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15; John 6:22-35
Somewhere in Calvin's Commentaries, he uses the phrase "eating the faith" to describe the Lord's Supper. I searched far and wide and couldn't find the reference. Maybe I extrapolated from what he said. Regardless, today we talked about food and sharing meals together and what it means to be the body of Christ.
Enjoy! Click on the sermon title for the PDF. Click below for audio.
Peace and blessings to all!
"Eating the Faith" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15; John 6:22-35
Somewhere in Calvin's Commentaries, he uses the phrase "eating the faith" to describe the Lord's Supper. I searched far and wide and couldn't find the reference. Maybe I extrapolated from what he said. Regardless, today we talked about food and sharing meals together and what it means to be the body of Christ.
Enjoy! Click on the sermon title for the PDF. Click below for audio.
Peace and blessings to all!
07/26/2015 - A Special Service in Honor of Annette Brooks
"Get Off Your Blessed Assurance"
Scripture: 1 Chronicles 16:8-15, 30-34; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; John 14:1-7
Today, we honored a pillar of our church. Annette Brooks was one of the most active people I have ever known. Right up until the day she died, her primary concern was everyone else - not herself. In her will, she made it clear she did not want a funeral, so we did the next best thing and had a church service in her honor. I have posted the entire service below. It is about an hour and a half with all the memories shared at the end.
Peace and blessings to you, and peace to you, Annette!
"Get Off Your Blessed Assurance"
Scripture: 1 Chronicles 16:8-15, 30-34; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; John 14:1-7
Today, we honored a pillar of our church. Annette Brooks was one of the most active people I have ever known. Right up until the day she died, her primary concern was everyone else - not herself. In her will, she made it clear she did not want a funeral, so we did the next best thing and had a church service in her honor. I have posted the entire service below. It is about an hour and a half with all the memories shared at the end.
Peace and blessings to you, and peace to you, Annette!
07/19/2015 - Eighth Sunday of Pentecost
"A Place Set Apart" - by Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 6:32-35, 53-56
Today we explored what it means to be "set apart" by God and Christ, and also what it means to seek a place "set apart" to heal, pray and set our minds right with God.
Audio is below. Enjoy!
Peace to all!
"A Place Set Apart" - by Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ephesians 2:11-22; Mark 6:32-35, 53-56
Today we explored what it means to be "set apart" by God and Christ, and also what it means to seek a place "set apart" to heal, pray and set our minds right with God.
Audio is below. Enjoy!
Peace to all!
07/12/2015 - Seventh Sunday of Pentecost
Sermon given by Martha Majunka
We were on a family vacation this weekend. Our very own Martha Majunka was our preacher this morning. Thank you, Martha!
Sermon given by Martha Majunka
We were on a family vacation this weekend. Our very own Martha Majunka was our preacher this morning. Thank you, Martha!
07/05/2015 - Sixth Sunday of Pentecost
"The Rebel Alliance" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 2:1-7; 2 Corinthians 10:2-17; Mark 6:6b-13
We discussed preaching from the American Revolution and what it means to be a Christian rebel in today's tumultuous world today.
Enjoy the audio below!
I will be out of town this coming Sunday. Please welcome Martha Majunka to the pulpit.
Peace and grace to all!
"The Rebel Alliance" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 2:1-7; 2 Corinthians 10:2-17; Mark 6:6b-13
We discussed preaching from the American Revolution and what it means to be a Christian rebel in today's tumultuous world today.
Enjoy the audio below!
I will be out of town this coming Sunday. Please welcome Martha Majunka to the pulpit.
Peace and grace to all!
06/28/2015 - Fifth Sunday of Pentecost
"God's Generosity...And Ours" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Lamentations 3:22-33; 2 Corinthians 8:8-15; Mark 5:21-24, 35-43
Today, I shared with the congregation my experience in Salt Lake City. I was the only one from our church who went, so I was also the delegate for the church.
I did not record the service, nor did I have anything written down. Apologies to all.
Peace!
"God's Generosity...And Ours" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Lamentations 3:22-33; 2 Corinthians 8:8-15; Mark 5:21-24, 35-43
Today, I shared with the congregation my experience in Salt Lake City. I was the only one from our church who went, so I was also the delegate for the church.
I did not record the service, nor did I have anything written down. Apologies to all.
Peace!
06/21/2015 -- Fourth Sunday of Pentecost
Today we welcomed Rev. Matt McDonald to the pulpit. He preached on "Where is God in the storm?"
I was in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (www.naccc.org). If you go to naccc15.wordpress.com, you can see updates from the meeting and what we discussed. Here is a picture of the view from my hotel window:
Today we welcomed Rev. Matt McDonald to the pulpit. He preached on "Where is God in the storm?"
I was in Salt Lake City, Utah, for the Annual Meeting of the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches (www.naccc.org). If you go to naccc15.wordpress.com, you can see updates from the meeting and what we discussed. Here is a picture of the view from my hotel window:
06/14/2015 -- Third Sunday of Pentecost
"Holy Homesickness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92; 2 Corinthians 5:6-17; Mark 4:26-34
Scripture has hints and moments throughout that suggest we are not living in our true home. Paul tells us we have a new citizenship in heaven, a new spiritual address. What do we long for in our lives? This is what we explored on Sunday.
Audio is below, PDF links above.
"Holy Homesickness" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92; 2 Corinthians 5:6-17; Mark 4:26-34
Scripture has hints and moments throughout that suggest we are not living in our true home. Paul tells us we have a new citizenship in heaven, a new spiritual address. What do we long for in our lives? This is what we explored on Sunday.
Audio is below, PDF links above.
06/07/2015 -- Second Sunday after Pentecost
GRADUATION AND NEW MEMBER SUNDAY
Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16
Today, there was no sermon or lectionary reading.
Instead, we celebrated our graduates - Rusty, Brian, and Rhiannon!
We also welcomed Pam into our fellowship.
Then, we all gathered at the table of the Lord and shared in the bread and cup, the body and blood, of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
So it was a busy, meaningful and blessed Sunday!
GRADUATION AND NEW MEMBER SUNDAY
Scripture: Matthew 5:13-16
Today, there was no sermon or lectionary reading.
Instead, we celebrated our graduates - Rusty, Brian, and Rhiannon!
We also welcomed Pam into our fellowship.
Then, we all gathered at the table of the Lord and shared in the bread and cup, the body and blood, of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
So it was a busy, meaningful and blessed Sunday!
05/31/2015 -- First Sunday after Pentecost
"Communicating the Mystery" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Psalm 29; Romans 8:12-17; Matthew 28:16-20
We celebrated Trinity Sunday today, which is the traditional recognition of the great mystery of the relationship of the three persons of the One God. I have only my notes from the sermon today, but you can follow along with the audio.
Thanks! Blessings to All. Pastor Seth
"Communicating the Mystery" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Psalm 29; Romans 8:12-17; Matthew 28:16-20
We celebrated Trinity Sunday today, which is the traditional recognition of the great mystery of the relationship of the three persons of the One God. I have only my notes from the sermon today, but you can follow along with the audio.
Thanks! Blessings to All. Pastor Seth
05/24/2015 -- Pentecost Sunday
"You Shall Live" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 37:1-21; Acts 2:1-12; John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15
Today is Pentecost, where we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Enjoy the audio and PDF of the sermon.
Peace and blessings to all! Pastor Seth
"You Shall Live" - Rev. Seth D. Jones
Scripture: Ezekiel 37:1-21; Acts 2:1-12; John 15:26-27, 16:4b-15
Today is Pentecost, where we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to the disciples. Enjoy the audio and PDF of the sermon.
Peace and blessings to all! Pastor Seth