Second on the Mount

“The Calm Within the Storm” – Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32; Mark 4:35-41

Sermon by Dr. Carl Utley, Transitional General Presbyter of Presbytery of the Peaks, from June 21, 2020. "Our calling is to take up the boat’s oars and get to the other side with Jesus, not so that we can relax or get back to normal or simply be among our friends again, but so that we can be about the work of God: healing the sick, helping the confused, lifting up the weak, binding up the brokenhearted, confronting evil, recognizing God at the center of the world and of our lives, and Jesus as the head of the church."

“Hope Does Not Disappoint” – Romans 5:1-8

Sermon by The Rev. Rachel C. Thompson Orfield from her final Sunday as Second's Associate Pastor for Youth and Young Adults, June 14, 2020. "With everything you do, with every decision that you make, with everything you have: lean into the hope that the love of God could and does and will radically change this world."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/hope-does-not-disappoint/

“The Call Before the Storm” – Mark 1:16-20

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from June 7, 2020. "Storms are raging in our world right now. You can hear the howling winds of a pandemic and the thunder of protest. But this worship service provides a moment of calm when we can look to the distant mountains and remember that our help comes in the name of the Lord―which is also to say through the ways of God."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/the-call-before-the-storm/

“I Will Pour Out My Spirit” – 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13, Joel 2:23-29

Sermon by The Rev. Rachel C. Thompson Orfield from the Day of Pentecost, May 31, 2020. "Today, on Pentecost Sunday, we celebrate together this truth that our scripture passages so beautifully articulate―that each one of us bears in our being the outpouring of the Spirit of God. We might have different giftings, but it’s the same Spirit working in all of us."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/i-will-pour-out-my-spirit/

"Join Your Struggle to His" – I Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from May 24, 2020. "Peter is not asking his readers to see their struggle as a gift from God, but rather in the midst of whatever struggle that comes to remember the gifts of God’s love, grace and community. When you must struggle, join your struggle to that of Jesus."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/join-your-struggle-to-his/

“The Advocate” – I Corinthians 13:1-13, John 14:15-21

Sermon by The Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from May 17, 2020. "Brothers and sisters, you are inheritors of this advocate Spirit Jesus promises. And you cannot receive this Spirit and remain unchanged. The Spirit is among us, abiding within us, creating holy places where authentic, self-sacrificial human love can take root and flourish."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/the-advocate/

“Enough of Utopia” – Luke 15:11-24

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from May 10, 2020. A mother’s loving gaze; a father’s watchful eye. Seeking freedom through severing ties; longing to be reminded of who we are and that we are loved… In his sermon, “Enough of Utopia,” Dr. Anderson draws connections between the thoughts and feelings of the prodigal son, to the thoughts and feelings many of us may have in today’s age of information. "That imperfect but real community of faith is out there to be found."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/enough-of-utopia/

“By Faith” – Hebrews 11:1-10, 32-34; 12:1

Sermon by The Rev. Rachel C. Thompson Orfield from May 3, 2020. "In a sense, that’s what faith is, isn’t it? Doing the best that we can to do good, and love others, and follow God. Even when we’re exhausted. When we feel like we have nothing left."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/by-faith/

“Paradigm Shift in the Belly of a Whale” – Jonah 2

Sermon by Dr. George C. Anderson from April 26, 2020. "Getting to joy is a journey that inevitably involves spiritual side trips into places like confusion, anxiety, pain and grief. . . . Let’s hold each other up and get to that better place together."

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/paradigm-shift-in-the-belly-of-a-whale/

“Peace be with you.” – John 20:19-31

Sermon by The Rev. Elizabeth N.H. Link from April 19, 2020. "Jesus appears to Thomas in a body that is scarred and wounded. A body that openly bears its traumatic history. A body that refuses to hide its suffering, its sorrow, its brokenness. ...This is really Jesus. Jesus from Friday on the cross. Jesus who felt pain. Jesus who said, 'I am with you,' and meant it. 'I am with you where it hurts. I am with you where you are.'"

Read the manuscript on our website: http://www.spres.org/peace-be-with-you/