Second on the Mount

"Not Just a Children's Story" – 1 Samuel 17:1a, 4-11, 19-23, 32-49

Sermon by the Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from Sunday, June 23, 2024. "[David and Goliath] is a story the people of God need to remember. It’s a story that reminds us God’s help can come from unlikely places. It’s a story that tells us outward appearance isn’t everything. It’s a reminder that we have an invisible ally who loves and supports us."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/not-just-a-childrens-story/ 

"Family Recognition" – Luke 15:11-32

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, June 16, 2024. "At the end of God’s day, we are all related. At the end of God’s day, we’re all family; Jew and Gentile, sinner and saint, male and female. In the biblical worldview, all human issues are family issues, and all human problems are family problems. . . . When harm is done to another, whether of the spirit or the body, the Father is saying, 'Oh, this brother of yours. This sister of yours.'"

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/family-recognition/ 

"Say That Again" – Luke 15:3-10

Sermon by the Rev. Tom Are, Jr., Interim Pastor at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago, IL and our Evening VBS guest speaker, from Sunday, June 9, 2024. "Jesus is telling us that we have no idea how much joy God finds in us. In you. That just your existence is a source of joy for the living God. Jesus is clear. God knows an unreasonable amount of joy because of you—and that is something Jesus evidently thinks we need to hear more than once."

"God's Memory" – Exodus 16:2-13, Psalm 105:37-45

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, June 2, 2024. "When God saw Israel, God remembered Abraham. . . . The psalmist is reminding the people of faith of God’s remembering for a reason: they are to remember, too."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/gods-memory/

"Buying In" – Acts 8:1-24

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Trinity Sunday, May 26, 2024. "We can all lose perspective at times and think it is about us. We can all get tricked into believing that this world is going to be saved by some pristine political or social ideology or agenda and the church just needs to fall in line and help. What our passage reminds us is that all we do even in addressing issues and serving others will not solve the world’s problems. What it all can be is a witness to God’s unconditional love and saving grace."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/buying-in/ 

"Seeing What Cannot Be Seen" – Acts 2:1-13, Romans 8:22-27

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Pentecost Sunday, May 19, 2024. "Here we don’t have to get lost in God told me this or God showed me that. We can focus on this inner realization that the person sitting beside you in the pew right now, and the people you least understand out there, and the people who are constantly being defined to you as different—and maybe even people to demonize—every single one of them is connected to you. They are no different from you. We are all children of God. We all need the same grace, and the same hope."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/seeing-what-cannot-be-seen/ 

Sung Prayer for Illumination: Spirit of the Living God. TEXT and MUSIC: Daniel Iverson, 1926. Text and Music © 1935 Birdwing Music (admin. EMICMGPublishing.com). CCLI Song #23488. Used by permission, CCLI #20105821.

"Bridging the Gap" – John 17:6-21

Sermon by the Rev. Ben Brannan from Sunday, May 12, 2024. "Jesus was sent into the world, set apart for a unique purpose to reveal the love and grace of God to a world that he knows will not listen, yet it is the same world that God so loves, as the famous verse puts it. As the Son of God and the Son of Man, Jesus bridges the gap between God and humanity, between heaven and earth, between power and principalities and the poor and the oppressed. Being sanctified in the truth of God’s word, the disciples then—as we, the disciples now—are set apart to do the same."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/bridging-the-gap/ 

"Upside Down Kingdom" – Mark 10:17-31

Sermon by the Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from Sunday, May 5, 2024. "Jesus’ love leads. It leads and redirects and corrects and turns us right around. It isn’t afraid to offend. Jesus’ love shows us what we really are, not to shame or defeat us, but to deliver us. Are we ready for this kind of loving gaze?"

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/upside-down-kingdom/ 

"Church: Seen and Unseen" – Matthew 18:15-20

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, April 28, 2024.

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/church-seen-and-unseen/ 

"Owning Up or Doubling Down?" – Acts 4:5-22

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, April 21, 2024.

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/owning-up-or-doubling-down/