Paul writes, “For freedom Christ has set you free,” meaning that Christian freedom is given for the purpose of loving and serving one’s neighbors. This is contrary to our often self-centered understanding of freedom, which can mean doing what I want when I want at the expense of others. Guided by the Holy Spirit, Christian […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Second Sunday after Pentecost
As we step into the season after Pentecost, we remember and give thanks for our unity in Christ Jesus. In Holy Baptism we are clothed with Christ and given a new identity as children of God. No matter what our world or culture says about us, or about who we are supposed to be, in […]
View the Sermon (PDF)The Holy Trinity
Today we celebrate The Holy Trinity, one God in three Persons, the mystery of our faith revealed in Jesus Christ. Through Jesus we have peace with God whose love, by the work of the Holy Spirit, pours into human hearts through faith, giving lasting hope. We celebrate the eternal One-in-Three, the Three-in-One, knowing that through […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Day of Pentecost
On Pentecost, we celebrate the Holy Spirit, the Advocate who abides in, helps, and leads the church. Jesus calls the Advocate “the Spirit of truth” whom those who love and keep Jesus’ commandments will see and know. Through the Holy Spirit, God speaks to humanity in every language so that the reality and truth of […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Seventh Sunday of Easter
In Jesus’ high priestly prayer, Jesus prays for us, for those who believe in him through his word. In holy baptism, through water and the word, we have had our robes washed in the forgiveness and righteousness of Christ, and we have become inheritors of the gift of life forever with all the saints. As […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Sixth Sunday of Easter
Jesus gives his peace not as the world gives peace, and Jesus promises to send the Holy Spirit. Revelation offers a vision of the new Jerusalem where there is no night, the gates will never be shut, and where all nations bring their glory and honor. As we near Pentecost, we are reminded that visions […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Fifth Sunday of Easter
The messianic event in Jesus Christ makes all things new. Jesus is alive and his love is the criterion of our Christian identity. Love is the way that God makes a home among mortals, wiping away tears and giving water to the thirsty. Jesus commands his followers to witness with love for one another so […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Second Sunday of Easter
In a world filled with unbelief, violence and evil, it is often hard to believe in the miracle of the risen Lord Jesus. Yet precisely because it is hard to believe, Christians are called to be “witnesses of these things” – the messianic event of Jesus’ cross and resurrection. We are witnesses that Christ is […]
Resurrection of Our Lord / Easter Day
“The last enemy to be destroyed is death,” Paul writes. Today Christ is risen, and we gather together with astonishment and joy. Christ is risen, and we have been set free from the bonds of death. Christ is risen, and we are forgiven. Christ is risen, and with the women at the tomb and Peter, […]
View the Sermon (PDF)Good Friday Service
At the heart of the Good Friday liturgy is the Passion according to John, which proclaims Jesus as a triumphant King who reigns from the cross. The ancient title for this day – the triumph of the cross – reminds us that the church gathers not to mourn this day but to celebrate Christ’s life-giving […]
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