U-turns Permitted

This is the last service in the life of Trinity CRC in Broomall. We now conclude our ministry. But that doesn't mean the Kingdom has not been present, or that it will not be present going forward. Isaiah 61 and Luke 4 serve as our source of encouragement.

Romans 11:36 reads: "For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen." This verse sums up the story of the Bible that goes all the way back to Genesis, and it gives us enormous hope and purpose for the future.

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" is a well-known text from Philippians 4:13. Paul connects this to the concept of "contentment" in 4:11. Contentment means to "stand strong" and self-sufficient in Christ so that the waves of life don't overcome us. 

Today we read the famous "Parable of the Sower" from Matthew 13. R.F. Capon calls this a "watershed moment" in Jesus' teaching, and that it is. It is much more than "how to listen to a sermon". Your whole perspective on the world might change!

Today we read the famous "Great is Your Faithfulness" passage from Lamentations 3. We place these verses of hope squarely where they are - surrounded by despair. We don't ignore the despair, nor do we allow the despair to quench the light of hope. We hold both together.

As the ragtag people of Israel stand ready to enter Canaan, the Promised Land, God encourages them to be strong and courageous, and not to fear, because He will be with them always. Jesus promises the same to his ragtag group of disciples as He prepares to leave them after His resurrection. And the same promise is for us today.

Today we read Genesis chapter 1, the beginning of the Gospel, the good news, that God is creating out of welter and waste, and He invites us to join Him in that creative process.

We conclude this short series on 2 Corinthians with the famous statement from Paul in 12:10 that when he is weak, he is strong. And we note that Paul is fully in touch with himself here. He recognizes his weaknesses and he recognizes his strengths. And all because Jesus' power is made evident in him.

Today we read 2 Corinthians 5:13-20. Paul shows us the perspective he brings to bear on his troubles. It is a perspective that gives hope and sends us out with a purpose.

In the church, societal and personal crises of his time, Paul uses the term "jars of clay" to describe how weak and vulnerable he and his people were. But in those "jars of clay" is a treasure - the glory of Jesus Christ. "Death is at work in us, but life in you", he says in 2 Cor. 4.