Be dressed and ready for service and keep your lamps burning.

The story of the Good Samaritan is one of the most beloved and well-known of all of scripture for good reason. Deep down we know that we best share the gospel when we actually treat others as we would like to be treated. There is no substitute for kindness and compassion toward others, which demonstrates God's love in Christ more powerfully than our words.

Jesus sends the 70, two by two, to heal the sick and share the gospel. By enlisting the participation of his followers in spreading the good news of the coming Kingdom, he initiates an early Church version of the current advertising phenomena called viral marketing. To "go viral" is to "catch on" in such a radically enthusiastic way that your product, idea or event cannot NOT be talked about.l As Christians, our mission is to "go viral" by enthusiastically sharing the good news of God in Christ with those who will then carry it on to others.

Like Peter at the Transfiguration, our response to good experiences is to try to make them permanent. This attitude can be debilitating to the church’s ability to be responsive to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Compare and contrast the comfort and complacency of a rocking chair vs the people Israel called to follow a cloud by day and pillar by night or a Messiah who says pick up your cross and follow me….

After Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, Jesus defines what it means to be the Messiah: to suffer, be rejected, killed and raised on the Third Day. He then tells his disciples that "if anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it." Let us not be mistaken or sugar-coat the gospel: following Christ is risky business!

The story of the feeding of the five thousand reminds us of the importance of Table Fellowship throughout the New Testament. Holy Communion is a convicting and converting sacrament. This is why we have an open table and why it is so important to simplyl invite others to join you in worship. When we receive the sacraments, we receive Christ's very presence. So the easiest way to make disciples is to simply get others to join you in worship and let God take care of the rest!! Invite a friend Sunday?

Sunday Sermon

Sunday Sermon

In celebration of Children's Sabbath, Rev. Stella Burkhalter presents a sermon on the perfect love of children.

Sunday Sermon