Guerrilla Christianity

Sermon #477

On Epiphany Sunday, we celebrate the revealing of Christ, not just to the Jews, but to the world.  We commemorate the end of the 12 days of Christmas with the story of the wise men coming from the East to see the new born King of the Jews.  What we find in today's text from Matthew, familiar though it may be, is that the actions of the religious people in Jerusalem belie their true heart.  They had become accustomed to having Rome in power, and did not wish to shake their existence.  And so, though the wise men go to Bethlehem, the priests and scribes stay behind in Jerusalem in their comfortable lives.  We can be like that as well.  And so on this first Sunday of the year we also reaffirm our covenant with God as Methodists, to dedicate our lives to God completely and without reservation.

Matthew 2:1-12

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on January 2, 2022

S.D.G.

January 2, 2022

Old Testament: Isaiah 60:1-6

Psalter: Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14

Epistle Lesson: Ephesians 3:1-12

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 2:1-12

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

December 19, 2021

Old Testament: Micah 5:2-5a

Psalter: Luke 1:46b-55

Epistle Lesson: Hebrews 10:5-10

Gospel Lesson: Luke 1:39-45

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #313

Often when we respond to God's invitation of a relationship with Him, our first response to all that God has done for us is: What can I do?  Sometimes when we feel a sense of obligation, the question becomes: What do I have to do?  These are both questions that the people of Judea - both Jew and Gentile, religious and apostate - brought to John the Baptist in the wilderness.  On this third Sunday of Advent, we also look at the joy we celebrate when we consider all that God has done, all that he is doing, and all that he will do for us in the future. 

Text: Zephaniah 3:14-20 & Luke 3:7-18

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on December 16, 2018 (Originally published December 19, 2018)

S.D.G.

December 12, 2021

Old Testament: Zephaniah 3:14-20

Psalter: Isaiah 12:2-6

Epistle Lesson: Philippians 4:4-7

Gospel Lesson: Luke 3:7-18

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #143

On this second Sunday in Advent, we come to the person of John the Baptist, who is preaching a baptism of repentance.  His coming was foretold by the prophet Isaiah and those prophetic words were repeated in all four gospels.  He is the voice crying out in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord.  In today's message, we see how John's words echo across the centuries to today, and how we can apply them in our lives.  So the question for us today is not whether Christ will come again, but rather, are we preparing the way for his coming?  So grab your Bible, turn it to Luke chapter 3, and prepare your heart and mind as we ask the question, Are we ready?

Luke 3:1-6

S.D.G.

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on December 6, 2015 (Originally pulished December 21, 2015)

Sermon #312

The process of refining is destructive.  It involves heating to the melting point, skimming off the impurities that rise to the surface, and discarding the unwanted, keeping only the pure metal.  When metal like gold or silver is refined, it does not seek to reincorporate those impurites back into itself; yet we, in our sinful nature, demonstrate a desire to reacquire those sins that the Holy Spirit removes from us by way of sanctification.  In this season of Advent we need to allow the Holy Spirit to refine us, to prepare the way for the Lord to enter into our hearts and lives.

Text: Malachi 3:1-4 and Luke 3:1-6

Recorded at Hudson UMC on December 9, 2018 (Originally published December 10, 2018)

S.D.G.

December 5, 2021

Old Testament: Malachi 3:1-4

Psalter: Luke 1:68-79

Epistle Lesson: Philippians 1:3-11

Gospel Lesson: Luke 3:1-6

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #142

The word "Advent" comes from a Latin word that means "to draw near."  That is what we are doing with the Advent season, drawing near to the coming of Christ.  But as most of us associate Advent with the first coming of Christ, perhaps the more important focus of the Advent season is the anticipation of Christ's return.  While we don't cower in shadows or hide in sanctuaries impatiently awaiting the second coming of Christ, we are to live our lives prepared for when he does come - and the words of Jesus today in Luke's gospel advise us to do just that.  So as we begin a new liturgical year, let us also draw near in anticipation to the return of Christ.  So grab your Bible, turn it to Luke chapter 21, and prepare your heart and mind as we consider Christ's return and the end of all things.

Luke 21:25-36

Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 29, 2015 (Originally published November 30, 2015)

S.D.G.

Sermon #311

On this first Sunday of Advent (2018) we begin a new series titled "Prepare the Way."  Throughout the Advent season we will be looking at old testament prophecy and how Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of that word of God.  Advent is a time when we celebrate the three incarnations of Christ.  First, he came as a babe in Bethlehem, born to become a man who would bear the sins of the world on the cross.  Next, he lives in each of us in word and in spirit.  Finally, at the end of all things he will come again in the clouds in great glory and power.  At that time, we who have put on Christ may stand in the presence of our God.

Text: Jeremiah 33:14-16 and Luke 21:25-36

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on December 2, 2018 (Originally published December 7, 2018)

S.D.G.