Asides

6th Sunday After Pentecost

Remember God’s Goodness and Act Toward Others with the Same Unflinching Generosity and Compassion

 

Collect: Proper 8 Almighty God, you have built your Church upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone:  Grant us so to be joined together in unity of spirit by their teaching, that we may be made a holy temple acceptable to you; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.  Amen

2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27. . . David sings a eulogy for the slain Saul and Jonathan

Psalm 130 . . . The call for healing

2 Corinthians 8:7-15 . . .  Paul encourages the Corinthians to offer their surplus of wealth to other communities who are in need

Mark 5:21-43 . . . Jesus brings the daughter of Jairus, a synagogue official, back to life in anticipation of his own resurrection.

Sermon:  Who Needs the Cure,  by the Rev. Lisa Cressman, Episcopal priest and Founder of Back-story Preaching.

Evangelism Matters by Presiding Bishop Michael Bruce Curry preached for the Holy Eucharist during the Evangelism Matters conference held at the Church of the Transfiguration in Dallas, TX, November 2016. Event co-sponsored by the Presiding Bishop’s Office and Forward Movement.

 

 

 

Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

Faith Cultivation Message: reminding and a reaffirming us of God’s complete command over all creation

 

Collect: Proper 7[I]

O Lord, make us have perpetual love and reverence for your holy Name, for you never fail to help and govern those whom you have set upon the sure foundation of your loving-kindness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and t he Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

1 Samuel 17: (1a, 4-11, 19-23), 32-49 . . . David can conquer Goliath only by relying on his faith in God

Psalm 9:9-20 . . . Great, Good News

Job 38:1-11;  . . . the majesty of God as the Creator and Ruler of the world

Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32 . . . The Mystery of God’s Limitless Mercy

2 Corinthians 6:1-13 . . . Paul commends the ministry of reconciliation to all Christians

Mark 4:35-41 . . . Jesus stills a storm at sea, revealing that he shares God’s power over creation.

Popular speaker, author, and retreat leader, Mary Ann McKibben Dana, preaches a sermon called “Other Boats Were with Him,” from Mark 4:35-41. “We are all out there navigating the stormy waters together. Local churches, each in a particular place, with a particular personality and mission and identity, but together a little fleet of sea vessels. What that means is that we aren’t really strangers. We are connected to one another through Christ.”

 

And one of Michell Curry’s talk on Evangelism  

Not a sermon, just a talk.  I’ll post his sermon on the subject next week, or you can find it yourself.

Fourth Sunday After Pentecost

Behold the seed (the word), the harvest (the 2nd coming) and hope (faith cultivation); how are we doing with that ?

Collect: Proper 6

 Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love,  that through your grace we may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion: for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

1 Samuel 15:34-16:13 . . . Samuel sees beyond outward appearances to choose the least likely son of Jesse to anoint as king

Psalm 20; . . . Prayer on the day of triumph

or

 Ezekiel 17:22-24 . . . Ezekiel  gives the Israelites hope that one day God will restore their strength.

Psalm 92:1-4, 11-14 . . . Wisdom’s vision

2 Corinthians 5:6-10, (11-13), 14-17; . . . Paul reminds his Corinthian communities that our eternal dwelling is not found here on earth but is with the Lord

Mark 4:26-34 . . . Jesus uses two parables to describe how God’s dynamic presence—the kingdom—grows in our lives.

Dr. Jim Somerville, Pastor of Richmond’s First Baptist Church and Co-Founder of A Sermon for Every Sunday, preaches a sermon from Mark 4:26-34 called, “The Mysterious Growth of the Mustard Seed Kingdom.”  “Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed and then takes a nap,” Somerville says.  “I think he means the growth of the Kingdom is a mystery.  Like the farmer there is nothing we can do to make it grow and like the farmer we might as well admit that we don’t know how it works.  I wish some of the so-called church growth experts would read this parable.”

 An 18-minute interview with the Episcopal News Service, Presiding Bishop-elect Michael Curry speaks about his priorities for leadership and administration, the role of the church in engaging God’s mission in the world, the state of race relations in the U.S., the importance of Anglican Communion partnerships, and his commitment to what he calls the Jesus Movement, to go out into the world “to bear witness to the good news of Jesus.”

 

Third Sunday After Pentecost

Exploring the pervading influence of sinfulness that makes humans stand in resistance and opposition to God

Collect: Proper 5

O God, from good all things proceeds: Grant that by your inspiration we may think those things that are right, and by your merciful guiding may do them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen

1 Samuel 8:4-11, (12-15) . . .  we begin a series of readings describing the development of kingship in Israel

Psalm 138  . . . An Invocation of the Divine Presence

Genesis 3:8-15 . . . we learn the meaning of human sinfulness from the story of Adam and Eve’s disobedience.

Psalm 130   . . . The call For Healing

2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 . . .  Paul encourages the Corinthian Christians to trust in the eternal power of God.

Mark 3:20-35 . . . when his opponents declare that Jesus is possessed by Beelzebul, Jesus warns them of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

 Sin and Forgiveness, by Joshua Gyson, Pastor at All Saints Lutheran Church, Lutz, Florida

The Rt. Rev. Michael B. Curry ’78 M.Div., Presiding Bishop-Elect of the Episcopal Church, delivers the sermon for morning worship at Yale Divinity School’s Convocation & Reunions 2015: “Love:”   . . .  

There is a balm in Gilead to make the sin sick whole” version ?

 

 

Second Sunday After Pentecost

The centrality of God in our lives

Proper 4[i]

O God, your never-failing providence sets in order all things both in heaven and earth: Put away from us, we entreat you, all hurtful things, and give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen

1 Samuel 3:1-10(11-20) . . .  As a child, Samuel  hears the call of God.

Psalm 139:1-5,12-17 . . . The psalmist reminds God’s people of God’s saving acts in history.

2 Corinthians 4:5-12 . . . Paul describes his ministry as God’s gift, manifested through Paul’s sufferings.

Mark 2:23-3:6 , , , Jesus asserts himself as Lord even of God’s sabbath.

Father Michael Renninger, Pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Richmond, Virginia,  sermon is  based on the readings from Psalm 139; 1 Samuel 3:1-10: and Mark 2:23-3:6 and begins with the words, “Jimmy, I love you.”

And a bonus: The second day of the Annual Convention of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut (ECCT) was a Sunday morning celebration of the Holy Eucharist with Presiding Bishop Michael Curry delivering the sermon. It was held Nov. 20 at the Hartford Convention Center with more than 1600 attending: “Look to the Rock”

First Sunday After Pentecost: Trinity

The mystery of the Trinity
Collect: First Sunday after Pentecost: Trinity Sunday[i]

Almighty and everlasting God, who hast given unto us thy servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory, of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity: We beseech thee that thou wouldest keep us steadfast in this faith and worship and bring us at last to see thee in thy one and eternal glory, O Father; who with the Son and the Holy Spirit livest and reignest, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

[i] Today’s readings invite us to experience . .  In today’s gospel,

Isaiah 6:1-8 . . . Isaiah responds to the invitation to speak for God, the Holy One.

Psalm 29  . . . The creative power of God expressed as word of voice

or

Song of Three Young Men  . . . A Song of Praise

Romans 8:12-17 . . . Paul explains that the Holy Spirit leads us to the Father, who adopts us as children and thus makes us “joint heirs with Christ.”

John 3:1-17 . . . Jesus explains to Nicodemus that being born of the Spirit, with faith in the Son, results in eternal life with God the Father.

Dr. Jim Somerville, Pastor of Richmond’s First Baptist Church and Co-Founder of A Sermon for Every Sunday, preaches a sermon for Trinity Sunday called “Baptipresbycostal,” in which he traces the trinitarian influences of his Presbyterian, Pentecostal, and Baptist upbringing

or

A written sermon on the  gospel called “The Three Persons of the Trinity” given to folks in the Anglican Parish of South Queens in the Diocese of NS and PEI in the Anglican Church of Canada . A good perspective.

or

The Rev. Dr. Amy Butler, Senior Minister of the Riverside Church in New York City, preaches on the most-memorized verse in the Bible, John 3:16, one that was such a familiar part of her youth and childhood she feels it deserves a closer look: “Cross or Cliché.”

 

The Day of Pentecost

The role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church.

 Collect: Day of Pentecost

O God, who on this day taught the hearts of your faithful people by sending to them the light of your Holy Spirit:  Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in his holy comfort; through Jesus Christ your Son our LORD, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Acts 2:1-21 . . . the Holy Spirit fills the community of believers with the boldness to proclaim “God’s deeds of power.

Psalm 104:25-35, 37 . . . Within the scope of the universe God has taken the chaos of the watery planet and turned it into a dwelling place for humankind and creatures of the earth.

Romans 8:22-27 . . . Paul details how, through a diversity of gifts, the Holy Spirit creates one Church, the Body of Christ.

John 15:26-27; 16: 4b-15 . . . Jesus promises his followers the guidance, comfort and power of the Holy Spirit.

Rev. Rachel May, Pastor of Boulevard United Methodist Church in Richmond, Virginia, preaches a sermon for Pentecost Sunday called “The Two ‘Theys'”

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Come together in a community characterized by love

Collect: Sixth Sunday in Easter

 O God, you have prepared for those who love you such good things as surpass our understanding: Pour into our hearts such love towards you, that we, loving you in all things and above all things, may obtain your promise, which exceed all that we can desire, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen

Acts 10:44-48 . . . Peter tells Cornelius of God’s work in Jesus Christ, thus opening the doors of the Church to Gentiles.

Psalm 98 . . . A New Song to the Holy One: passions of victory

1 John 5:1-6 . . . The author describes Jesus as God’s love for us, and calls us to embrace one another in that love.

John 15:9-17 . . . Jesus tells his disciples that they have been chosen to love one another; in this they will find perfect joy.

Dr. Lauren Winner, Episcopal priest and Associate Professor of Christian Spirituality at Duke Divinity School preaches a sermon called, “A Little Trite, Don’t You Think?”

The Rev. Carla Pratt Keyes, Pastor of Ginter Park Presbyterian Church in Richmond, Virginia, preaches a sermon called, “If You’re Going to Live in My Love,” from John 15:9-17.

 

Fifth Sunday in Easter

What it means to live in and through Jesus

Collect: Fifth Sunday of Easter

Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life: Grant us so perfectly to know your Son Jesus Christ to be the way, the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow his steps in the way that leads to eternal life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen.

Acts 8:26-40 . . . Philip explains to the Ethiopian eunuch the good news of Jesus

Psalm 22:24-30 . . .  The Cry of the forsaken.  Do you agree that whatever survives the ordeal is neither flippant nor naïve, but strong and sure?

1 John 4:7-21 . . . true faith becomes visible through the obedience of active love

John 15:1-8 . . . like branches connected to a vine, we abide with him and experience great fruitfulness

Sermon for the fifth Sunday of Easter.

Fourth Sunday of Easter

God’s constant, shepherd-like care.

Collect: Fourth Sunday of Easter.

 O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people: Grant that when we hear his voice  we may know him who call us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, forever and ever.

Acts 4:5-12. . . Peter preaches that salvation is to be found in Jesus Christ of Nazareth, crucified, but raised from death by God

Psalm 23 . . . A Song From the Flock of God

1 John 3:16-24 . . . because of God’s love shown in Jesus, we are now God’s children.

John 10:11-18 . . . Jesus explains how he, as our Good Shepherd, lays down his life because he cares for his sheep.

Sermon Preached at Holy Cross Evangelical Lutheran Church in Rocklin, California on the Fourth Sunday in Easter : “Jesus Christ the True Shepherd” by Pastor Todd Peperkorn