Second on the Mount

"When Wrong is OK" – Luke 5:29-32

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Preschool Sunday, November 13, 2022. "...I am suggesting that the way to authentic self-esteem begins with authentic self-acceptance. And the first thing to accept is that we’re human. We’re going to mess up. We want to get it right, but we are going to make mistakes. We want to be right—to be good and decent human beings—but we are going to do what is wrong. . . . What I hope for children at home and children in this preschool is that they be seen and loved for who they are. . . . What I hope for is that they know grace, which helps them gain an honest and thus healthy self-acceptance and true self-esteem. We all need that grace. We all need to know that it is OK to be human."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/when-wrong-is-ok/ 

"That Still Small Voice" – 1 Kings 19

Sermon by Dr. Ben Witherington III, renowned New Testament scholar and our guest speaker for the 2022 Edmunds Lecture Series, from Sunday, November 6, 2022. 

"Zacchaeus" – Luke 19:1-10

Sermon by the Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from Sunday, October 30, 2022. "Jesus is once again turning our world upside down. He doesn’t see Zacchaeus the ways his neighbors saw him. Jesus doesn’t see you the ways your neighbors see you—or, for that matter, the ways you even see yourself. Jesus sees deeper than that. Jesus sees who and what you truly are—your deepest self, who God made and called you to be."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/zacchaeus/ 

"What Wonder Below" – Psalm 8, Genesis 1:26-28

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, October 23, 2022. "And among the creatures placed upon the land are humans; 'male and female he created them.' There is something different about these creatures for there is placed within them the image of God. This means at least in part that humans are to be God’s representatives—God’s stewards—on earth. They are put in the garden to tend it and keep it. They are not put there to be owners of the land who are accountable only to themselves. They are put there to be stewards of the land accountable to God. Progress is encouraged: 'Be fruitful and multiply.' But, progress should not mean exploitation; expansion should not lead to extinction. The reason is simple. As God’s representatives, we are here to love what God loves."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/what-wonder-below/ 

"Covenant Hearts" – Jeremiah 31:31-34

Sermon by the Rev. Ben Brannan from Commitment Sunday, October 16, 2022. "Into the darkness God is speaking. From the darkness the light of hope glimmers, if only we see it faintly, forcing us to seek it out and respond. And in the darkness of exile, in the darkness of generational trauma, generational blame that made the people point fingers saying, 'The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge'... into this generational darkness, Jeremiah lights a candle of hope, a bright light that will roll back the exile’s darkness."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/covenant-hearts/ 

"The Fruits of Faith" – Philippians 2:12-13, Galatians 5:22-23 

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, October 9, 2022. "Paul is not writing to individuals but to bodies of believers. Considering the fruits of the Spirit that he listed, he would want us as a body of believers . . . to consider the impact we can make if you would bear the fruit that comes of knowing that we are loved by God and saved by grace. We can look for the best in each other while seeing with grace the worst in each other. We can be forgiving. We can be patient and kind. We can be generous and giving. We can show some self-control as we place a priority over what benefits us all over what benefits just ourselves."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/the-fruits-of-faith/ 

Narrative Budget Video: https://youtu.be/_Y2G_qNmuvg 

"The Man Who Said Thank You" – Luke 17:11-19

Sermon by the Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from World Communion Sunday, October 2, 2022. "At first glance, this is a healing story. Ten men were healed, and one man said, 'Thank you.' But on a deeper level, our story is about gratitude from an unlikely place. . . . And it’s about the kingdom of God. It tells us something important about who is invited, who belongs, and who thrives in the realm where God dwells."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/the-man-who-said-thank-you/ 

"Moral Joy" – Philippians 2:1-11

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Sunday, September 25, 2022. "The Gospel doesn’t promise happiness. The promise is for a life with God, and that comes with an 'Uh oh!' as much as an 'Oh boy!' . . . When happiness is the promised blessing of faith, then being unhappy is just one more thing to feel guilty about. Here’s the problem: We speak of God’s blessings, and then we confuse 'happiness' with what the Bible calls 'joy.' They are not the same…. at least as far as scripture is concerned."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/moral-joy/

"Who Counts?" – Luke 15:1-10

Sermon by the Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from Sunday, September 18, 2022. "In the Christian tradition, people often understand parables as allegories. For example, many consider the sheep and the coin to represent repentant sinners; and the man who seeks the lost sheep or the woman who searched high and low for the coin are symbols for God. I have often interpreted them this way. But I want us to consider an additional understanding—that these stories are meant to tell us something about counting, about searching for what is missing, and celebrating becoming whole again."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/who-counts/ 

"The Middle Rings" – Philippians 2:14-18

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from Rally Day Sunday, September 11, 2022. "[Paul's] whole letter goes back to what I read as our scripture lesson: 'Do all things without murmuring and arguing. Shine like stars in your witness to give cause for what we all need, for we are living in a crooked and perverse time that needs cause to rejoice.' Paul writes with his heart on his sleeve in writing the church in Philippi because he knew the world needed faith communities like it to be a force of reconciliation and peace. I preach this sermon with my own heart on the sleeve of this robe because I think our world today needs faith communities like this one more than ever. I say that because I feel and sense what Dunkelman talks about—that there has been an erosion of middle ring communities that are formed to bind us rather than to reinforce what divides us."

Read the manuscript on our website: https://www.spres.org/the-middle-rings/