United Methodist Church of Kent Sermon Podcast

As we share in God’s work, God provides for our need, often well beyond what we would imagine.

Jesus says that “the hairs of your head are numbered” and he acts powerfully in the lives of small, ordinary people. God is at work on the level of the small – here to work in us!

Jesus’ teaching draws us in a direction dramatically different from how people typically are inclined to live.

How can a servant also be a Leader?

All human beings have a longing for a greater reality. We have implanted within us a sense of the Ultimate. A true grasp of life acknowledges and moves toward this transcendent Reality, for it is only then that life makes sense. Truth finally is not a set of concepts, but a life in harmony with God.

We are called in an age of falsehood to be people to proclaim truth to the world.

Is Christianity the one true religion? When different religions make different claims, how do we know what is true? The Biblical message about Christ provides a very illuminating answer.

The Scriptures have enormous emphasis on personal truthfulness and God’s warnings against deceit. This is a pressing need in our time!

The truth of God has the power to shape our society and our lives for great good, if we focus our attention on God’s truth.

God’s truth is disruptive, as God brings about positive change in individuals and societies.

We need to consider the many signs that God has given us of God’s truth. But still more is needed: we must finally make a decision for truth, in order that Jesus’ words become true – “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free”

Falsehoods play to people’s fears. When we live in faith, we are freed from fear, and enabled to stand firmly in truth.

Life dominated by fear will result in life containing any sense of fulfillment. Isaiah speaks to all of us when he says, “Say to those who are of a fearful heart, ‘Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God…he will come and save you.” And when Jesus approached his frightened disciples caught in a storm at sea and said,”Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid”

History has often been a story of grand falsehoods, sometimes in the guise of religious truth, as in the case of American slavery. People of God are called to a struggle for genuine truth.

How do we find truth? This a central question for our lives – that we may live in the truth! There is sound guidance in Christian teaching.

Each year, our teens contribute the bulk of a service. Thank you for sharing your talents with the church!

The Scriptures say that “many deceivers have gone out into the world” (II John 7), and this is certainly the case in our time! We are bombarded with false and deceptive messaging. Biblical teaching guides us to be on our guard against the “deceivers” and to be able to discern what is actually true.

Do we each choose our own truth? Is it just my truth versus your truth? Pilate cynically asked, “What is truth?” But there is ultimate truth to be found in Jesus.

 “Big lies” have swept our country in recent times.  How do we recognize the big lie, and how do we know whether some religious claims are actually big lies?   We gain insight in the “big truth” of Jesus Christ.

We live in an era of competing truth claims. How do we know who is telling the truth? The Scriptures point the way.

Jesus’ wounds were still visible after his resurrection. He brings not only wholeness to the world but the scars and wounds as well.

God brings us out of darkness and ruin, bringing us into new life.

In contrast to all the demagogues in history who have proclaimed themselves to be the “saviors” of the nation and who often made “grand entrances” on the world stage, Jesus comes as the true Savior – in humility, self-giving love, and service.

God’s saving promises consistently unfold throughout the Bible. We can depend upon God’s promises today.

When we are in the most apparently hopeless circumstances – and are undeserving of God’s help – God acts in grace, with saving power and promise.