Sermons

September 17, 2023
Texts:
1 Peter 4: 8-11
Hebrews 10: 24-25
First Peter is a letter written by the Apostle Peter between 62 to 63 AD and it was addressed to a group of small Christian communities scattered throughout an area now belonging to modern-day Turkey. Once an excitable fisherman whose passion and love for Jesus caused him to dare to walk on water, only to lose his nerve halfway to Jesus’ outstretched arms, Peter is now a seasoned leader, standing firm in his faith and giving encouragement to his Christian brothers and sisters who are suffering persecution at the hands of the Roman empire. Peter is writing from Rome, the belly of the beast, where the power of the empire is on full display. Only a fool would have thought that there was any way to challenge that power, any hope that things could be different. But Peter has witnessed the death and resurrection of Jesus and he knows that not only is there a power greater than the Roman empire, but there is a power greater than death itself.
And that is the power of God’s love. A love so strong that it raised Jesus from the dead and gave lie once and for all to the notion that might makes right and that hate and fear are a winning combination.
“Above all… Above all” Peter counsels his scattered flock, do not give into fear or anxiety, but rather love each other deeply. It’s not enough just to love each other, you must love each other “deeply” Why, I wonder did he add the qualifier “deeply”? There are a number of different words in Greek for love, depending on what type of love you mean, the three I was familiar with are the “eros” sexual love, “filial” brother/sisterly love and agape, self-sacrificing love. But Peter, in is letter, which was written in Greek, employes yet a fourth word for love, Philadelphia which translates as “genuine mutual love”. Perhaps Peter adds the qualify “deeply” because he knew just how hard it can be to practice this kind of love.

Sept 9, 2023
The Inward Journey mission group gave me the task, and privilege! of sharing with you about the Inward Journey aspect of our church's life. I'm using a chapter from the book by Elizabeth O'Connor, called "Journey Inward/Journey Outward," as a structure for this talk, as well as my own experience in experimenting what's right for ME in practicing this inward journey.
Early CoS:
In early Church of the Saviour, (which we older people may call “C of S”) back in the 1940s and 50s, through some experimentation, they came up with pairing the Inward Journey (time with God) with the Outward Journey (service to the world). Many churches do either one or the other, but the creative tension is between the two, and Community is the glue. Community is also the anchor for the Inward Journey.
Early on in the church's life, starting in 1952, they looked for a Retreat Center, a corporate expression of going inward. Throughout the 50s this small church raised money, bought the land, and, through their own hard work and sacrifice, almost all by volunteers, helped prepare the ground and build Dayspring.
One of my favorite stories involves a piece of art in the Yoke Room of the Dayspring Lodge: It's the brown paper head of Jesus. Robert Nathan was a well-known artist from NY, who donated this piece to Dayspring in 1955. He said, "most pictures of Jesus are not Jewish. This is a Jew. I did not know what to do with it, so I am giving it to you, because this is where I met him." My experience with this picture is, that when you soften your eyes, and have diffused vision, the face starts to move, and has many faces within it. It is a powerful focus for me to go deeper into the silence and mystery of Dayspring.

September 3, 2023
I have come to have a new appreciation for Jesus’ disciples, as early examples of what it’s like to be a follower of Christ. As I reflected in my sharing last May, at the time of Jesus’ death, the disciples showed themselves to be slightly confused, understandably uncertain, and still not quite getting what was going on.
In the scripture for today, Acts Chapter 2, the disciples are in Jerusalem on Pentecost, a Jewish feast day held 50 days after Passover, to celebrate the first fruits of the wheat harvest. One of the commentators I read to prepare for today noted that Jesus often used metaphors and stories about harvest in his teachings, which gives added meaning to what occurred on that specific Pentecost. By applying the harvest metaphor, we understand that the earliest disciples were not only called to spread the good news of Jesus Christ; they were also the first fruits of Jesus’ ministry. Jewish tradition teaches that Pentecost marked the day when the Law was given to Israel. Our tradition is that Pentecost is the day that the Holy Spirit was given to God’s people who would continue the work that Jesus had started. And like those early disciples, as we accept our place in this new covenant, we are both the harvest workers and the fruit of the harvest.
Peter himself is a perfect example of what this can look like in real life. In Matthew 16:15, while in Caesarea Philippi and before his death, Jesus asks his disciples who they think he is. Peter answers, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” and in verse 18 we read that Jesus said: “And I tell you that you are Peter. On this rock I will build My church. The powers of hell will not be able to have power over My church.” And this is the same Peter who later, shortly after Jesus’ crucifixion, denied knowing Jesus three times. The book of Acts shows us Peter’s maturation into that stalwart bearer of good news that Jesus was able to see. This is the path that all of us are invited to accept.

Though addiction to alcohol and drugs was part of my family history, I chose not to use drugs or drink alcohol. Ever. I never did either. I grew up believing that drugs and alcohol were evil and that they were always accompanied with misery and ruin. It was later, when I was in college and started deepening my walk with Jesus that I discovered that not drinking or using drugs was a way for me to feel superior, more righteous than others. Self-righteousness can be its own addiction in many ways so, when bad things happened to people who used drugs or alcohol I would feign concern, but inwardly, I felt a sense of detached satisfaction.
The veneer of righteousness began to crack when Marti and I lived and worked in an underserved neighborhood in Waco, Texas. I worked at an urban ministry and one of the ministries was a halfway house for men. The ministry strongly believed — as did I at the time — that drugs and alcohol needed to be abstained from entirely. So, the men went to AA and NA meetings almost every day and I drove the men twice a week to the meetings. I honestly loved going. I had some of the best conversations I think I have ever had on the way to and from those meetings. And it was during the meetings that I heard some of the best theology lessons I have ever heard; theology lessons generously laced with the F-word.
I remember one time driving when one guy who I really liked named Donnie was sitting behind me and as we were talking about fall that was about to begin, and he said, almost to himself, "Man, I miss Saturdays, watching football, drinking a beer, eating pizza, and then smoking a little after the game." No one else caught it, but I did. I caught his sadness; maybe it was sadness that he was addicted, or maybe it was sadness that he had spent a significant part of his young years in prison for possession of marijuana, or maybe, just maybe, Donnie really missed drinking a beer and smoking a joint. Maybe Donnie missed the feelings of calm and even a mild sense of euphoria he received. Maybe he missed the camaraderie of watching a game with his friends while they all experienced those same feelings. Whatever it was, it was clear to me through this and other conversations that Donnie really did not buy into healing through complete abstinence.

August 13, 2023
Texts:
1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13a
Matthew 14:22-33
Good morning loving community! It’s a joy to be with you. Gracias a Videlbina for the children’s teaching.
These readings are so rich! Although they are stories I’ve heard time and time again, they struck a deep chord this time around. Jesus’ steadiness in unsteady waters, Peter’s aliveness, Elijah’s listening.
As I was preparing for our time together, song after song kept floating through my head in response to these readings, so I thought I’d bring you with me on that sung journey.

About the first half of this recording is various scriptures (including some from the Bhagavad Gita) being read in various languages. These recordings are of variable quality. Matthias begins his teaching at about 11 minutes and 30 seconds into the recording.
Aug. 6, 2023
Reader’s note: Since I often preach from notes, the actual sermon that was spoken turned out rather differently from what is laid out below. Most of the points were made, but in a mixed order.

Here is a video about Life Pieces to masterpieces:  https://drive.google.c

I’d like to read a poem by June Jordan as an opening prayer:
These poems
they are things that I do
in the dark
reaching for you
whoever you are
and
are you ready?
These words
they are stones in the water
running away
These skeletal lines
they are desperate arms for my longing and love.
I am a stranger
learning to worship the strangers
around me
whoever you are
whoever I may become.
My friend Eric once said, while getting his blood drawn at the doctor’s office, “Oh good! I’m still alive!”

July 2, 2023
Text: Matthew 10:40-42
Pavel Selchuk found his was to freedom in Russia through breakdancing and found his way to Jesus through the love of a radical Christian community.