Jesus Talks about Forgiveness…

Times like the one we find ourselves in seem to bring out the best and the worst of us all. I am always amazed during times of crisis to see the heroic acts of ordinary people to serve the world around them––only to then see the same person who has preformed the heroic act get caught up in some petty self-entitled rage over an insignificant issue. I have seen this in other people and I have seen this in my own life. I have decided over my lifetime that this is an indication, especially in times of prolonged public distress, that we are working out the sanctification of our innermost being. 

One of the areas of inner development most often mentioned in the Gospels is that of forgiveness. In fact I have come to believe that the act of forgiveness is one of the most fundamental human needs we have to grow into, if we are going to become the women and men God created us to be. This week we will be looking at the need we each have to live into a life of forgiveness and how it becomes essential for riding out the good and especially the bad times of life. Please take a few minutes over the next few days to watch the video, read the scripture and reflect on the questions below.

Also, there might be neighbors, family and friends that are looking for a word of hope and are open to worshiping online. Invite them to joins us this Sunday at 9:30 a.m. See you online!

Scripture Reading:

Matt. 18:21 Then Peter came to him and asked, “Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?”

Matt. 18:22  “No, not seven times,” Jesus replied, “but seventy times seven!

Matt. 18:23  “Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven can be compared to a king who decided to bring his accounts up to date with servants who had borrowed money from him. ²⁴ In the process, one of his debtors was brought in who owed him millions of dollars. ²⁵ He couldn’t pay, so his master ordered that he be sold—along with his wife, his children, and everything he owned—to pay the debt.

Matt. 18:26  “But the man fell down before his master and begged him, ‘Please, be patient with me, and I will pay it all.’ ²⁷ Then his master was filled with pity for him, and he released him and forgave his debt.

Matt. 18:28  “But when the man left the king, he went to a fellow servant who owed him a few thousand dollars. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded instant payment.

Matt. 18:29    “His fellow servant fell down before him and begged for a little more time. ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it,’ he pleaded. ³⁰ But his creditor wouldn’t wait. He had the man arrested and put in prison until the debt could be paid in full.

Matt. 18:31  “When some of the other servants saw this, they were very upset. They went to the king and told him everything that had happened. ³² Then the king called in the man he had forgiven and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave you that tremendous debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ Shouldn’t you have mercy on your fellow servant, just as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ Then the angry king sent the man to prison to be tortured until he had paid his entire debt.

Matt. 18:35  “That’s what my heavenly Father will do to you if you refuse to forgive your brothers and sisters from your heart.”

Reflection Questions:

1. See if you can retell this story of forgiveness in your own context.
2. Why do you think Jesus calls Peter to forgive “seventy times seven times?”
3. How would you work today in your life to forgive “seventy times seven times?”  

Jesus Feeds the Multitudes

My favorite book (actually a trilogy) of all time is the Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien. Most of you know of this classic story of the battle between those things which are good against those which are evil within creation. In the first volume of the LOTR trilogy is one of my most beloved quotes:

“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. “So do I,” said Ganfalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” (J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring)

The rapidly changing events of our world have caused me to return to this quote several times over the past week. I am convinced that right now is one of those events (probably for many of us a once in a lifetime) that can cause us to make a similar declaration as Frodo, while knowing, in reality, that we have to ask ourselves the question, “What am I going to do with this time that is given me?” This Sunday we will be dealing with this question and as we do we will have the great wisdom/example of Jesus Christ to lead us in our response.

I hope you will take time to watch the video, read the scripture and reflect on the questions below as you prepare for the Life Feed Worship Experience this Sunday.

Scripture Reading: 
“Jesus returned to the Sea of Galilee and climbed a hill and sat down.A vast crowd brought to him people who were lame, blind, crippled, those who couldn’t speak, and many others. They laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all.The crowd was amazed! Those who hadn’t been able to speak were talking, the crippled were made well, the lame were walking, and the blind could see again! And they praised the God of Israel.
Then Jesus called his disciples and told them, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been here with me for three days, and they have nothing left to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, or they will faint along the way.”
The disciples replied, “Where would we get enough food here in the wilderness for such a huge crowd?”
Jesus asked, “How much bread do you have?” 
They replied, “Seven loaves, and a few small fish.”
So Jesus told all the people to sit down on the ground.Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, thanked God for them, and broke them into pieces. He gave them to the disciples, who distributed the food to the crowd.
They all ate as much as they wanted. Afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food.There were 4,000 men who were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children.” (Matthew 15:29–38 NLT-SE)

Reflection Questions:

1. What does it mean that Jesus “Healed them all?”

1. Why do you think Jesus, “Felt sorry for these people?”

1. How would you tell this story in modern America?

1. How do the disciples participate in the story?

Week Two: The Story of the Sermon on the Mountain

This weekend we get to learn from Jesus’ most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount. As you prepare for the weekend I encourage you to read all of chapters 5 through 7 in Matthew and then come back and focus on the first 10 verses of Chapter five (printed below). There is so much good stuff here in Jesus’ sermon and this Sunday I hope to take it a step further as we consider the implications of this message to the ministry of Jesus. 

Also, as you prepare for Sunday I invite you to continue to let your creativity flow as you think of potential names for our new congregation. We will have cards to fill out with your potential names on Sunday!

Scripture Reading: Matthew 5:1-10

One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, ² and he began to teach them.

³ “God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs. ⁴ God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ⁵ God blesses those who are humble, for they will inherit the whole earth. ⁶ God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. ⁷ God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy. ⁸ God blesses those whose hearts are pure, for they will see God. ⁹ God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God. ¹⁰ God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

Questions to Consider:

1. Why do you think Jesus begins this sermon by listing these eight Beatitudes (blessings) from God?
2. Of the eight, which is your favorite Beatitude?
3. Its been said that as Christians we are always living into one of the Beatitudes at every stage of our lives. What Beatitude are you living into at this point in your life? And, how is God using this to grow you in your faith?

Week One: The Story of the Baptism

I find myself entering into Lent with an eager anticipation this year, as so much is happening within our church, our community, our nation and the world around us. Often, I talk with people who find themselves living at some level of stress over the situation of our changing world. There is an old quote that I heard years ago that can be taken as either a blessing or as a curse, “May you live in interesting times.” I have come to believe that for the Christian this should be our desire––to live in interesting times. Jesus lived in one of the most interesting times in all of history. Literally, a cosmic shift was taking place through his life and ministry that would change the very foundations of the universe. Over these next six weeks of Lent I hope that we can explore his life, see Him as both our Lord and Savior, but also see Him as the preeminent example of how to live in interesting times.  

As we prepare for this weekend, I invite you to watch the video, read our scripture for Sunday and spend some time in reflection on the questions below. I look forward to seeing you on Sunday!

Scripture Reading:  Matthew 3:13-17

“Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?”

But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So, John agreed to baptize him.

After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.””

Questions for Reflection:

Why do you think Jesus insisted on being baptized by John?

Baptism is one of the two sacraments observed by the United Methodist Church. Why do you think baptism is important today?

FAITHFUL: Plugged In

I write this EBlast today from Jerusalem. We have had one of the most amazing weeks of my life. Today we spent most of the day in and around Old Jerusalem; following the Via Dolorosa, Touring the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and ending the day taking communion at the Garden Tomb.  That was just today!  We can’t wait to share about our trip next Wednesday at our Grow Night Dinner, but this weekend you will already get a taste of our trip as we continue to look at what it means to be FAITHFUL in our call to community.  Please take time to watch the video read the scripture and reflect on the questions below as we prepare for worship this Sunday.

Scripture: Acts 2:43-47

And everyone was filled with awe; the apostles worked many signs and miracles. And all who shared the faith owned everything in common; they sold their goods and possessions and distributed the proceeds among themselves according to what each one needed.

Each day, with one heart, they regularly went to the Temple but met in their houses for the breaking of bread; they shared their food gladly and generously; they praised God and were looked up to by everyone. Day by day the Lord added to their community those destined to be saved.

Reflection Questions:

What sticks out to you within the passage as it relates to the beginning of the Church?

What would this kind of community look like today?

How could we produce this kind of community today?

An extra video from Israel...

FAITHFUL

I have always loved a Groucho Marx quote I heard when I was a college student, “I refuse to join any organization that would have me as a member.” There’s something to what Groucho said. Most of us probably realize that we don’t have “the right stuff” to be part of any organization that would have us, yet it is us messed up, imperfect, struggling people  who are called to be part of the church. 

No matter who we are, what we look like, what we’ve done, or even how messed up our lives, Jesus calls us to join his Body, typically through joining a local church. Even though all are accepted, there is expectation for us once we’ve joined. When we welcome new members into the United Methodist Church we give five expectations: prayer, service, gifts, presence, and witness. We are not called to do these five things perfectly, but we are invited to be Faithful. 

This Sunday, as we celebrate our sixth birthday and as we welcome in new members we will also begin a new sermon series on living faithfully as members of Christ’s church. I can’t wait to be with you on Sunday as we celebrate faithful family living.

PRAY!

Recently, while doing some research online, I learned about two seemingly contradictory trends happening in the prayer lives of American Christians. It seems that over the past decade most of us have begun to pray more often and for longer durations than we have been doing for several decades but at the same time more of us than ever feel defeated and that our prayer lives are not as good as they should be. After learning about these prayer trends I found myself contemplating what would cause so many of us to be praying more while also feeling inadequate and defeated in our acts of prayer. At first I wondered if it was pastoral guilt that we clergy have been pushing on our good willed congregants. But as I read a couple articles about this trend I decided this was not the case and also found that most pastors are struggling through the same fate. The conclusion that I ultimately reached was that...   Oh, wait, that’s my Sunday sermon! I can’t give the answer away too soon, so I guess we will just have to come together this Sunday as we dive deeper into our prayer lives.  

As you prepare for worship this Sunday I invite you to spend some time watching the video, reading the scripture and contemplating the reflection questions below. And, as always this is a great Sunday to invite a friend to church.  I look forward to seeing you Sunday!

Scripture Reading
Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. Ephesians 6:18, NLT

Reflection Questions

1. Spend a few minutes thinking about your own prayer life. Do you find that your frequently and duration of prayer is growing or is it in decline? Why do you think this is happening
2. Do you feel satisfied with your prayer life? Think about your answer and contemplate why you answered the way you did.