In this sermon we talk about the line from the Creeds about the ascension of Jesus. We connect the ascension to the reality of Christ’s Lordship over everything in our Game of Thrones world where so many things fight for our devotion. We remember that Christ’s ascension to the throne of God means that God is sovereign over the chaos (Daniel 7; Revelation 5). We talked about how even though we as American’s don’t like thrones, freedom doesn’t mean we’re not going to have to serve somebody (thanks, Bob Dylan). We consider the love of power versus the power of love. In the end, the question is what does it mean to act in the world as if Jesus is on the throne?

In this sermon we consider the question of fear the disciples face as Jesus is about to leave them. We talk about the term “culture of fear” and what it means for us today. We talk about fear as self-preservation and security that usually leads into a fight or flight mode. We consider love as a third way. Love is not about suspicion, preemption, and accumulation, but about hospitality, peacemaking, and generosity. All of this is with the aid of a wonderful book by Scott Bader-Saye called, *Following Jesus in a Culture of Fear*.

In this sermon we begin with three stories about a falling tree, the time I learned “Tall Terry” was HIV positive, the moment I realized I had no idea, and how it all relates to the movie, Men in Black. We talk about how Peter became unclean, what doing right has to do with goodness, truth, and beauty, and the (not so) new commandment to love. 

In this sermon we begin with a Simpsons clip about giant advertisements rampaging through Springfield, then a passage from John 10, a brief history of the Feast of Dedication, and some thoughts on what it means to “follow” Jesus is our culture of social media influencers. We touch on Neil Gaiman’s, American Gods, and a documentary called American Meme. We conclude with the wisdom of Ecclesiastes on futility of everything, and the gift of an eternal kind of life in Jesus.