JR.'s Sermons

The Virgin Birth is a difficult belief to swallow for many in our contemporary world. But when we take a hard look at Isaiah's original prophecy we find surprising depths to what Matthew is doing with Jesus' birth story - depths that offer hope and meaning for a world that desperately craves peace. The Virgin Birth means that God is with us, and that changes everything.

For those with less-than-perfect lives, the Christmas season can sometimes feel like wandering in a desert, thirsty for the holiday cheer that seems to come so easily for others. The prophet Isaiah spoke to a people living in a sort of wilderness of their own, and his words help us see how we can pursue life and hope even in the midst of our own deserts because the desert is where we learn to love God best.

In a world where the powerful exploit the vulnerable, how can we find peace? Isaiah's vision of wolves and lambs offers us an invitation into a world where both flourish in the wake of God's judgment.

When faced with conflict, we all tend toward either fight or flight. But neither of these options creates peace. If we want to be the peacemakers God calls us to be, we must learn to cultivate conflict into flourishing community.

Loving those who are different from us is difficult. But Jesus tells us loving even our enemies is the path to a flourishing life. How can we learn to love those we see as enemies - especially when they are not across the world, but next door to us?

Most of us feel as though we just don't have enough. But God calls us to be faithful with what we have - to use whatever influence, power, money or means we have as gifts from God to invest in the world around us. What does it look like to love God with all of our means?

We struggle to discern God's will, as though it is a deep mystery. But learning to see the world from God's perspective is how we love God with our minds. To learn to see "upside down", we immerse ourselves in the Scriptures. They provide a God's-eye view of the world, of our neighbors and of us. God's will is not difficult to discern. God wants us to see from God's point of view.

We are bad at drawing healthy boundaries. We give and give and give until we have nothing left to offer anyone. Neither God nor our neighbors get our best. The practice of Sabbath helps us learn to say No, to live within the healthy boundaries God created us for.

We're told to "Follow our hearts," but we know desires can be destructive. How do we know the difference between desires that bring life and those that lead to hurt? Jesus invites us to love God with all our hearts, and discovering what he meant by that gives us the key. When we allow the Spirit to order our desires, we find the path to a fully human life!

Forgiveness seems impossible - even when we know we should. We find the power to forgive when we forgive with God, empowered by the Holy Spirit to participate in Jesus' sacrifice. When we forgive, we join God in creating a new reality - a gift of living free from the charge of the guilt of our sin.