October 6, 2019 We Are Called to The Lord’s Supper
Growing up the church my family belonged to would share the Lord's Supper every Sunday morning. When we were on a weekend family vacation, we would always rush back to attend the Sunday evening worship service where those who were absent in the morning could share the bread and cup together.
Sharing in the Lord's Supper isn't simply an obligation, the fulfillment of a commandment. It is obvious from Scripture that it is central to our life together as the Church, the Body of Christ. Gathering around the table is the moment when we "declare the Lord's death until he comes" (I Cor. 11:26). It is a declaration of and witness to our faith in Jesus and the saving power of the cross. It is where our weary souls can receive spiritual manna to carry us through the days ahead.
This week's sermon scripture from I Corinthians 11 reminds us that Jesus instituted this holy meal not during the heady days of adoring crowds crying "Hosanna!" but "on the night in which he was betrayed." As the shadow of the cross fell upon him, he reminded us through the bread and the cup that it was not for the praise of men that he came into the world - it was for the cross of Calvary, there to die for you and me in order to break the curse of sin.
I look forward to gathering with you at the table of our Lord this Sunday!
In Christ, Pastor Bob
1 Corinthians 11:23-32
- Oct 6, 2019We are Called to the Lord’s Table
We are Called to the Lord’s Table
October 6, 2019 We Are Called to The Lord’s Supper
Growing up the church my family belonged to would share the Lord's Supper every Sunday morning. When we were on a weekend family vacation, we would always rush back to attend the Sunday evening worship service where those who were absent in the morning could share the bread and cup together.
Sharing in the Lord's Supper isn't simply an obligation, the fulfillment of a commandment. It is obvious from Scripture that it is central to our life together as the Church, the Body of Christ. Gathering around the table is the moment when we "declare the Lord's death until he comes" (I Cor. 11:26). It is a declaration of and witness to our faith in Jesus and the saving power of the cross. It is where our weary souls can receive spiritual manna to carry us through the days ahead.
This week's sermon scripture from I Corinthians 11 reminds us that Jesus instituted this holy meal not during the heady days of adoring crowds crying "Hosanna!" but "on the night in which he was betrayed." As the shadow of the cross fell upon him, he reminded us through the bread and the cup that it was not for the praise of men that he came into the world - it was for the cross of Calvary, there to die for you and me in order to break the curse of sin.
I look forward to gathering with you at the table of our Lord this Sunday!
In Christ, Pastor Bob
1 Corinthians 11:23-32
- Sep 29, 2019We Are Called to Follow Jesus
We Are Called to Follow Jesus
September 29, 2019 We Are Called to Follow Jesus
There's probably no command in the Scriptures more filled with both challenge and hope than the call to follow Jesus. The challenge is to take up your cross, giving up control of your life's direction and sacrificing the "normal" life led by the majority of those around you. The hope is the promise of eternal life both now and forever.
This week's sermon scripture from Luke 9 shares the reality that answering His call is not always as simple as raising a hand or going forward when the preacher invites you to "accept" Jesus. It is a call that supersedes every other demand of life.
Blessings on your homes and families until then....
In Christ, Pastor Bob
Luke 9:56-62
- Sep 22, 2019We Are Called to Be a People of God’s Word
We Are Called to Be a People of God’s Word
September 22, 2019 We Are Called to be a people of God’s Word
I'll confess that my Bible reading habits have changed since I was a teen-ager. Back then I was a "Bible moth,"* hovering over the thin leather "Preacher's Bible" my parents had given me. I would carefully turn the tissue-like pages, underlining and highlighting and writing notes while monitoring a printing press in my dad's print-shop.
Times have changed since the early 70's when I read the Bible for the first time. The variety of ways we can access God's written Word is astonishing. On our phones, tablets, laptops, televisions.... the Bible is everywhere. What hasn't changed is the mission of the Bible - to tell the never-changing story of God's saving grace through Jesus Christ. I will always be thankful for those simpler days as a teen-ager when God first sewed the seeds of His sacred text in my heart, seeds of faith that grew and became the roots that still anchor me to my Lord and Creator a half century later.
This Sunday in the 11:00 service we'll explore our call to be a people of God's Word; trusting in the sacred Word that endures forever. I hope to see you in worship!
Blessings on your homes and families until then....
In Christ, Pastor Bob
Psalm 119
- Sep 15, 2019We Are Called to do Justice
We Are Called to do Justice
September 15, 2019 We Are Called to do Justice
Growing up I was a huge Superman fan. The Superman in comic books. The black and white TV Superman of the 1950's with George Reeves.
Remember that Superman? (Bonus points if you remember the two-part episode "Superman and the Mole-Men").
Do you remember what he stood for? "Truth, justice, and the American Way!"
That's right, not only was he a "superman" because he was "Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings at a single bound!"
He was a superman because he stood for something greater than physical strength. He stood for the very ideas that help give our lives meaning.
Those first two ideas, truth and justice, are primary themes in the Bible. This week we'll focus our Sunday message on the idea of justice. What does justice in God's Word look like? How might it differ from our culture's understanding? What would it look like if our church intentionally answered God's call to "do justice" while loving mercy and walking humbly with our God (Micah 6:8)?
I hope to see you this Sunday morning! Blessings on your homes throughout the week.
In Christ, Pastor Bob
Micah 6:6-8
- Sep 8, 2019We Are Called To Care
We Are Called To Care
September 8, 2019 We Are Called to Care
Lydia and I have a dog named Sadie, a rat terrier. Sadie cares about a lot of things. She cares when it thunders. She cares when I'm eating something that smells good. She cares when Lydia and I have been gone on vacation and come back home. (Her shaking, wagging tail gives it away).
I love Sadie because she cares. She cares when I have a bee sting. Somehow she knows the sting is there and applies a few good healing licks. She cares when I sit down with her on the porch and scratch her behind the ear. She never makes an excuse about having to "get going."
She cares enough that every evening there comes a time when she jumps up on the sofa, puts her paws on my shoulders and looks me straight in the eye with the clear message "I want to play with you because you're my best friend." We wrestle a bit and I take her for a walk.
I know that no dog has ever taught a class or preached a sermon on caring. But every day Sadie reminds me that she cares for me with all her heart.
May we all remember that God has called us to be his caring, healing presence in this often broken world. He gave us dogs to teach us how.
In Christ, Pastor Bob
Luke 10:30-35
- Sep 1, 2019We Are Called to Share Good News
We Are Called to Share Good News
S
September 1, 2019 We Are Called to Share Good News
Romans 1 1:6, 16-17
eptember 1, 2019 We Are Called to Share Good News
Romans 1 1:6, 16-17
- Aug 25, 2019Evidence That Demands A Verdict
- Aug 18, 2019Solid Rock
Solid Rock
August 18, 2019 Solid Rock
Wow! The summer is coming to a close and the rush of autumn isn't far away.
In our newsletters we can only provide an outline for what is coming - only God can fill in the gaps. It is in those gaps that we find miracles and spiritual growth and the sacrificial love of God's people for friends and strangers alike. Thank you for asking God to use the gaps in your lives to be a blessing to others.
This Sunday we will look at Matthew 7:24-27 and the well-known story of a wise man and a foolish man who made very different choices on where to build a house. I hope to see you in worship and Sunday School... and don't forget to bring a friend!
In Christ, Pastor Bob
- Aug 11, 2019Jesus Defines “Great”
Jesus Defines “Great”
August 11, 2019 Jesus defines “Great”
Well, it's back-to-school week for our community! Looking back on my grade-school years, that's about a month less than the summer break we enjoyed (or endured once we ran out of things to do!).
We pray for and appreciate the teachers, staff, administrators, and yes, the parents who support their children's education in public, private, and home school settings. May God make this a year when young minds grow, faith blooms, and every child learns the meaning of Jesus' call for us to care for and cherish each other. May the light of Christ outshine the darkness that sometimes tragically invades our public places.
And may we all learn again that what makes a people great is not the power of the purse but the power of the love in our hearts that moves us to become the servants of even the least among us.
Please keep in your prayers the shut-ins, those facing surgery and recovering from surgery, and all those whose hearts have been broken by the loss of a loved one.
This Sunday we will look at Mark 9: 33-37 and hear Jesus define what makes a person great. I hope to see you in worship and Sunday School!
In Christ, Pastor Bob
- Aug 4, 2019Bittersweet
Bittersweet
August 4, 2019 Bittersweet
We all know that life is a mixture of the bitter and the sweet. The story of God and humanity in the Scriptures acknowledges this reality. The sweetness of the creation story is followed by the bitter experience of sin entering the world. The sweetness of Israel escaping the bonds of slavery in Egypt is followed by the bitterness of their rebellion against God. The sweetness of the birth of Jesus in Luke's Gospel is tempered by the prophecy of Simeon to Mary that her baby boy would
The sweet and bitter experiences of life are present throughout the ministry of Jesus. But there is no event that more powerfully represents their blending than Jesus' last supper with his disciples where fear and betrayal clash with the hope of redemption.
This Sunday we will look at Mark 14: 16-26 and contemplate how our God uses the sweetness and bitterness of life to bring forth our own redemption and salvation.
Come join us this Sunday as we gather around the table of our Lord and feel the power of God's redeeming love.
In Christ, Pastor Bob
