Acts 10:9-16 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | There may be no more divisive issue for the church in the 21st century than the issue of homosexuality. But, what we cannot deny, however, is that it is more than an issue; it is a reality that involves real people, and that our approach to gays and lesbians is affecting our witness of the gospel. Therefore, we must explore what a faithful engagement with gays and lesbians looks like. This sermon will look at how the gospel is implicated in the church's stance, how we can justify an open stance to gays and lesbians, and where open questions remain in light of being accepting and open.

Ruth 1:6-8, 22 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | The decision faced by Orpah and Ruth early in the story is whether they will be a family. Families don't just happen. They come from a radical fidelity in which you see yourself in another person. Ruth proves that the secret to any successful relationship is to invest yourself wholly in another, to demand nothing but to give everything. "Your people shall be my people, and your God my God" (1:16).

Ruth's determination not only allows there to be a family, but also lays a foundation for redemption and wholeness for both her and Naomi. (See also 2 Cor 5:17).

Ruth 1:1-5 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | In the opening lines of Ruth, the narrator sets the stage, unveiling an unusual family destined to have some difficult days. All families are unusual; there is no "perfect" family. And, all families are destined for some difficult days. The hopeful note in this dismal prologue, however, is that there is a family. Families give us a structure within which we can live out the challenges of life. They are part of God's gift to us. Naomi seems to have lost everything, but, alas! She has Ruth and Orpah. How can the families we have be a source of life and strength for us?

John 20:1-18 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | The first visitor to the tomb on Easter morning saw the displaced stone. The second visitor stuck his head into the tomb. The third visitor went all the way in. But, then, the second visitor took a second look, going in, and then he saw and believed. Our experience of salvation requires that we connect closely with the places of death in our lives and allow the truth of Resurrection to claim those places where death still holds sway over our imaginations, actions, and convictions.

Daniel 6:1-23 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | Prefects, governors, kings, lions? What is it that most threatens our worship of God? What is it that most vies for control over our lives and pretends to exert sovereignty? In a time of deep fear and despair at the might of a new ruling empire, the story of the lions’ den helped to restore Israel’s confidence in a holy, sovereign God. Whose mouths can we trust God to keep shut today?

Jonah and the Fish: Running from God by Avondale UMC

Matthew 6:25-34 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | Perhaps there is no commandment of God that has been so reduced to legalism in the history of Judeo-Christian religion than the commandment concerning Sabbath rest. If we do not reduce it to legalism, we are often tempted to lay it aside, to ignore it as impractical or an ideal unobtainable in our "modern" world. Sabbath reminds us that our time is not our own. It is a gift of God. Therefore, as the first act of God in the completed creation, Sabbath is a gift given to us so that we can better live within the domain of the gift of time and better relate to and serve the giver. This series will be an opportunity to explore the gift of Sabbath and how we can fulfill the commandment to "remember the sabbath day and keep it holy."

Isaiah 65:17-25 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | We do have a future. In the face of war and hatred and hardship and pain, that is good news. This future will be

wrought by the hands of God out of God’s vision, not by our hands out of our vision—even more good news! God will create something new—brand new.

Joshua 6:1-7, 11-21, 25 | Rev. Dr. R. Brandon Harris | The most prominent feature of the Jericho narrative is the continuous marching around the city. On the seventh day of

marching, the priests blew the shofar and the walls fell flat,

leading to an Israelite victory. Only, the Israelites were really just the beneficiaries of the victory. God had won the victory. The same truth applies to the fortified places in our world today. Only God can bring victory.

Rev. Dr. Bobby R. Green