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Showing posts from February, 2025

Sermon - Trinity XVII, 2026 - Luke 14:1-11

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The Peasant Wedding , Pieter Bruegel the Elder, 1567 Honor in the Kingdom of Heaven The exalted ones are humbled The humbled ones are exalted “ When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you be invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this person,’ and then you will begin with shame to take the lowest place. But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table with you. ” Jesus isn’t just talking about party etiquette. Sometimes Jesus uses ridiculous parables to teach a heavenly truth, other times He uses ordinary and relatable and uniformly understood parables to teach a heavenly truth. Today Jesus uses a well understood and practiced social custom about seating at wedding feasts. Everyone knows, regardless of you...
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Sermon - Epiphany 6, Year C, 2025 - Luke 6:17-26

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The Sermon on the Mount , Cosimo Rosselli, 1481 Blessed are you who trust in the Lord Abundance in this life often leads us to love this life and ignore greater comforts Sorrow in this life directs us towards greater comforts We are not blessed because of our sorrows, but because of our faith in Christ “ Woe to you who are rich. Woe to you who are full now. Woe to you who laugh. Woe to you when all people speak well of you. ” Those are difficult words to hear! We like to hear the beatitudes and that God is blessing us, but the woes are challenging, especially these, because we identify with them so concretely. We live in a land and an age of abundance. Some of you probably consider yourselves rich, others of you probably wouldn’t, but even if you’re not rich your level of poverty is pretty manageable, since none of us are starving to death or naked.  But does this mean that rich, full, laughing people can’t go to heaven? No it doesn’t! The Bible is full of rich Christians. The Old ...
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Sermon - Purification and Presentation 2025

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To Dwell in the Temple of the Lord What is the Temple? The Temple is where God dwells on earth with His people. When the first temple was built, God’s glory descended on it, and when it was destroyed the glory of the Lord departed. When the second temple was built, God’s glory did not return, until Jesus entered because Jesus is the temple of the Lord. How do we dwell in the Temple of the Lord? Samuel was given to the Lord and dwelt in the temple his entire life. God makes our bodies His temple when He dwells in us through faith, therefore our whole lives are dedicated to the Lord. When we depart this life we go to dwell in the nearer presence of the Lord. We prepare for death by: Prayer and Devotion; Expecting it soon; Waiting patiently; Live holy lives as though every hour were the last; Keeping a calm and quiet heart; We lay hold of Christ the Prince of Life and Conqueror of death. A blessed feast of the Presentation of Jesus and Purification of Mary to you dear brothers and sisters...
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