This Sunday’s Worship: July 25
(Sunday, July 18 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person)
Scripture: John 6:1-21 and Ephesians 3:1-21
Hymns: Morning Has Broken; In Christ There is No East or West; Light Dawns on a Weary World
Sermon Preview:
“The Mystery of Christ (or, Why Jay Frazier and Charlie Young Could Eat Lunch Together)” by Rev. Mark Harper
“Of all the places we should hope and expect to see the diversity of God’s family, it is not in the shopping malls and bars but in the church. But reconciliation begins on a small scale. It must begin in living rooms and at dinner tables.” - From Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, by Shane Claiborne and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
This Sunday’s Worship: July 18
(Sunday, July 18 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person)
Scripture: Leviticus 19:9-10 and Matthew 25:31-40
Hymns: Be Thou My Vision; Amazing Grace; Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
Sermon Preview:
“Gather the Gleanings of Your Harvest” by Members of the Property Ministry
This Sunday’s Worship: July 11
(Sunday, July 11 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person)
Scripture: Exodus 35:4-29 and Matthew 25:14-30
Hymns: The Church’s One Foundation; I’m Gonna Live So God Can Use Me; Let us Build a House
Sermon Preview:
“A Church for All People” by Members of the Property Ministry
“Lord our God, all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you.” 1 Chronicles 29:16
This Sunday’s Worship: July 4
(Sunday, July 4 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person)
Scripture: Deuteronomy 10:17-21 and Matthew 5:43-48
Hymns: This Is My Song; Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory; Lift Every Voice and Sing
Sermon: "Independence Day" by Rev. Carolyn Tilley, Parish Associate
This Sunday’s Worship: June 27
(Sunday, June 27 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person)
Scripture: Numbers 11:24-29 and I Peter 2:2-10
Hymns: Come, Christians, Join to Sing; Christ Is Made the Sure Foundation; What a Fellowship, What a Joy Divine
Sermon: “Ministers: All the People of the Church” by Rev. Jim Reisner
The priesthood of all believers was one of the primary principles of the Reformation. Its headwaters are found in our text from I Peter: “Like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
This Sunday’s Worship: June 20
(Sunday, June 20 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom and in-person for those whose last names begin with L through Z)
Scripture: I Peter 4:7-11 and Matthew 11:28-30
Hymns: For the Beauty of the Earth; How Clear Is Our Vocation, Lord; Called as Partners in Christ’s Service
Sermon: “Called as Partners in Christ’s Service” by Rev. Jim Reisner
“Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins.” Indeed, love does just that, and it’s a good thing it does. I Peter acknowledges that we humans are pretty hard to tolerate at times. We screw up. We miss the mark. We fail to see beyond our own noses. We sin. Yet, we are called to come together and be the church together.
This Sunday’s Worship: June 13
(Sunday, June 13 At 10 AM, Hybrid Worship Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Isaiah 43:16-21; Revelation 21:1-7
Hymns: Praise Ye the Lord, the Almighty; Every Time I Feel the Spirit; The Church of Christ in Every Age
Sermon: “Something New: Permission to Experiment” by Rev. Jim Reisner
The church is as good at resisting change as any institution. Christians who want to stay set in their old ways will often quote scripture: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). “God’s Word doesn’t change so we shouldn’t either.” What they fail to see is that in scripture God is always changing, always on the move, always adapting to circumstances. And when God does something new in scripture, God’s favorite tool in the toolbox is forgiveness. Old wounds and grudges are erased, and God once again “makes all things new.”
This Sunday’s Worship: June 6
(Sunday, June 6 At 10 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: I Samuel 8:4-20; Mark 3:19b-27
Hymns: Holy! Holy! Holy!; In an Age of Twisted Values; Rejoice, the Lord is King!
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Something Old: the Authoritarian Instinct” by Rev. Jim Reisner
Our text from First Samuel tells of when Israel asks for a king. The old prophet warns the people of all the suffering and servitude they will experience under the rule of a king, but the people nonetheless persist in their desire for an earthly ruler. Then God says to Samuel, “Let them have what they want.”
This Sunday’s Worship: May 30
(Sunday, May 30 At 10 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
This Sunday is our annual Memorial Day weekend "Worship on the Steps," which isn't on the steps even in the years we meet in person. We'll gather on the virtual steps by Zoom. We invite you to take your computer or phone into your garden and we'll sit together. Please join us and come prepared to share.
This Sunday’s Worship: May 23
(Sunday, May 23 At 11 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Acts 2:1-13; John 14:15-16,18-19,25-27
Hymns: Come, O Spirit, Dwell Among Us; Like the Murmur of the Dove’s Song; We Are One in the Spirit
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “In a Fearful and Broken World” by Rev. Jim Reisner
At the table of the Last Supper, Jesus promised his disciples that he would not leave them orphaned or desolate. He tells them that God will send to them the Holy Spirit, the Advocate and Comforter. The Day of Pentecost when the Spirit appeared as wind and fire is the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise. What God promises over and over again is God’s presence. We experience that presence as the Holy Spirit.
This Sunday’s Worship: May 16
(Sunday, May 16 At 11 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: I Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11; Acts 1:1-11
Hymns: All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name!; Today We All Are Called to Be Disciples; Crown Him with Many Crowns
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Our Work is to Love the World”
The Ascension of Jesus into heaven is another one of those Biblical stories that challenge scientific principles. Unless Jesus had a jet-pack on, how did that happen? What I like most about the Ascension story is what happens immediately afterward. Two men appeared from seemingly nowhere and told the apostles, “Why are you gazing up into heaven? Get to work.” In other words, don’t waste time speculating on how that just happened. Focus on what Jesus told you, and do it.
This Sunday’s Worship: May 9
(Sunday, May 9 At 11 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Jeremiah 31:31-34; John 15:9-17
Hymns: New Songs of Celebration Render; We Rejoice to Be God's Chosen; For the Healing of the Nations
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Chosen” by Rev. Jim Reisner
Our text from the Gospel of John includes the most Presbyterian thing Jesus ever said: “You did not choose me but I chose you” (John 15:16). We Presbyterians are sometimes referred to as the "Frozen Chosen." Our belief is that we come into relationship with God not out of anything we can do, or out of any sense of our own goodness, but only through God’s grace. The Christian life is not about doing what we can do to get to heaven; the essence of the Christian life is responding to God’s grace with a gratitude that expresses itself (to paraphrase the prophet, Micah) in acts of justice, kindness, and humility.
This Sunday’s Worship: May 2
(Sunday, May 2 At 11 AM, Communion Sunday, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: I John 4:7-15; John 15:1-9
Hymns: Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me; Loaves Were Broken, Words Were Spoken; Love Divine, All Loves Excelling
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “ The Dude Abides” by Rev. Jim Reisner
Jesus says to his disciples, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit.”
The word "abide" appears no less that 15 times in our two scripture lessons this Sunday. It has multiple meanings: remain, stay; or live, dwell; or last, endure, continue. The image that Jesus uses is a branch attached to a vine that receives its nourishment from the vine.
This Sunday’s Worship: April 25
(Sunday, April 25 At 11 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Psalm 23, John 10:7-16
Hymns: The Lord’s My Shepherd, I’ll Not Want; My Shepherd Will Supply My Need; Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “By Hook or by Crook” by Rev. Jim Reisner
The fourth Sunday in Eastertide is referred to as Good Shepherd Sunday because the Gospel scripture lesson is always from the 10th chapter of John where Jesus says, “I am the Good Shepherd.”
This Sunday’s Worship: April 18
(Sunday, April 18 At 11 AM, Earth Day, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Genesis 2:4-10,15; Romans 8:18-28
Hymns: All Creatures of Our God and King; Many and Great, O God, Are Thy Works; God of the Fertile Fields
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Earth Shall Be Fair” by Rev. Jim Reisner
God had more than humanity in mind in the work of redemption. Paul recognized this when he wrote, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now” awaiting redemption.
This Sunday’s Worship: April 11
(Sunday, April 11 At 11 AM, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Hebrews 13:1-3; Luke 24:11-35
Hymns: Come, You Faithful, Raise the Strain; Because You Live, O Christ; Thine Is the Glory
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “When Did We See You?” by Rev. Jim Reisner
Where is God? That’s an age-old question that seems more appropriate than ever. Amidst a world pandemic, school shootings, racial strife, social injustice, crushing poverty, and unending wars, where is God, indeed?
This Sunday’s Worship: April 4
(Sunday, April 4 At 11 AM, Easter Sunday, Communion, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Colossians 3:12-17; Mark 16:1-8
Hymns: Jesus Christ Is Risen Today; The Day of Resurrection; The Strife Is O’er
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Is That It?” by Rev. Jim Reisner
The conclusion of Mark’s Gospel is startling and abrupt. It seems to cut off in mid-sentence. We are left with the women at the tomb running away and remaining silent because they are afraid. Is this any way to end a Gospel?
This Sunday’s Worship: March 28
(Sunday, March 28 At 11 AM, Palm Sunday, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Psalm 118:1-2,19-29; Mark 11:1-11
Hymns: We Are Marching in the Light of God; All Glory, Laud and Honor; Hosanna, Loud Hosanna
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Hosanna!” by Rev. Jim Reisner
When Jesus rides a donkey into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday he is a lit torch entering a firecracker factory – an explosion is inevitable. Jesus evokes images of the Passover, the prophecy of Zechariah, and the Maccabean revolt, all of which speak of political liberation from an oppressive force. No wonder that merely days later the people turn on him when Jesus preaches the power of love and not the love of power. Jesus is proclaiming liberation from an oppressive foe, but his enemy is far greater than Rome.
This Sunday’s Worship: March 21
(Sunday, March 21 At 11 AM, Fifth Sunday of Lent, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Jeremiah 31:31-34; John 3:1-17
Hymns: Beneath the Cross of Jesus; My Song Is Love Unknown; O Jesus, I Have Promised
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “We want to see Jesus” by Rev. Carolyn Tilley
“When we reach beyond our fears to the One who loves us with a love that was there before we were born and will be there after we die, the oppression, persecution, and even death will be unable to take our freedom. Once we have come to the deep inner knowledge – a knowledge more of the heart than the mind – that we are born out of love and will die into love, that every part of our being is deeply rooted in love, and that this love is our true Father and Mother, then all forms of evil, illness, and death lose their final power over us”
Henri Nouwen, Our Greatest Gift: A Meditation on Dying and Caring
This Sunday’s Worship: March 14
(Sunday, March 14 At 11 AM, Fourth Sunday of Lent, Live-Streamed On Zoom)
Scripture: Numbers 21:4-9; John 3:1-17
Hymns: What Wondrous Love is This; My Shepherd Will Supply My Need; Lift High the Cross
Service Preview (Online):
Sermon: “Nick at Night” by Rev. James Reisner
“We are on the road to heaven already if today we walk with God. For eternal life is not a possession conferred at death, it is a present endowment. We live it now, and continue it through death. And that is why belief in life to come should only increase our commitment to life now and here.” -- William Sloane Coffin