Imagine you were the angels sent to not only proclaim the birth of Jesus Christ, but do so for human beings who repeatedly break the heart of God, and ignore God’s will.  Knowing that instant transformation was unlikely, the angels did what God asked, not because it was futile, but because they knew that things […]

In a time when men were expected to bring forth a male heir, Joseph was asked to embrace a child that was not his as his own.  He risked public ridicule, condemnation, and humiliation for his faithful response to God’s call.  The Christmas story would not have happened, if Joseph had followed his own will […]

This year our season of Advent will focus on those who heeded the call of God to go and serve the Lord in doing so.  We begin with Mary, a young woman in her teenage years, who was called to be a vessel of the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Lord.  Rather than […]

Our final martyr of our worship series, is the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  All too often he is recognized by secular authorities as simply the Doctor, but long before that he was ordained clergy.  King’s faith was the force behind his willingness to tackle institutionalized racism, and that enabled him to persevere through […]

At the 2008 General Conference, Dietrich Bonhoeffer became the first martyr to be officially recognized by the United Methodist Church.  What was so compelling about this man and his death?  An ordained Lutheran clergy person and scholar of theology, Bonhoeffer was given the opportunity to flee from Nazi Germany during World War II, but he […]

At the age of nineteen, Joan of Arc was accused of witchcraft, convicted of heresy, and then burned at the stake.  Her crime?  She heard the voice of God at the age of thirteen calling her to lead her fellow French citizens to victory in battle against the British military.  She did just that and […]

This month our message series will explore the mystical realm of Christianity’s martyrs.  A martyr is one who is persecuted and killed for their religious beliefs.  Jesus foretold such deaths for those who followed him, and this is what Stephen experiences in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles.  Was his death pointless?  Was […]

As our Scriptural Speed Bumps Worship series draws to a close, we confront one final text that causes Christians to cringe: the exhortation of Jesus to sell all that we own.  While we take stock of all that we own and how hard we worked to acquire it, we wrestle with what Jesus appears to […]

Christians in the past century have wrestled deeply with the implications of this Sunday’s Scripture. Does God set women apart and demand their submission to their husbands?  Complementarianism, a theology of separate roles, says that headship roles in marriage belong to men, while support roles are assigned to women.  What does the United Methodist Church say […]

In an era when we seek economic prosperity, Jesus’ words sting.  Should we not strive to be financially secure and have an estate to leave to our loved ones upon our death?  Were not a great number of our biblical heroes wealthy, such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, King David, and King Solomon?  Some have used […]