Calvary Presbyterian Church San Francisco

A sermon delivered by Rev. Marci A. Glass on November 18. The scripture reading was from Isiah 43: 14- 21. The profit Isaiah tells his people that God is about to do a new thing. He asks if they can perceive it. But his people are in exile in a foreign country and the 'new' things they've experienced have been terrible. When God promises a new thing, it is good news, and it is not something we cou...

A sermon delivered by Rev. Joann H. Lee on November 10, 2024. The scripture reading was from Jonah 1:1-17; 3:1-10 [4:1-11]. The story of Jonah is one of a God who will not let us go, even when we're on the run. This whale of a tale is one of a God whose mercies and grace abound even to people whom others hate and cannot forgive.

A sermon delivered by Rev. Marci A. Glass on November 3, 2024. The scripture reading was from 1 Kings 17:1-24. In the story of Elijah, he delivers a word from the Lord that is not good news. The punishment for the evil of King Ahab is that a drought will come upon the land. Where do we think God is when we hear news of droughts, famines, earthquakes and other disasters? We understand how the weath...

A sermon delivered by Rev. Marci A. Glass on Sunday, October 27, 2024. The scripture reading was from 1 Kings 5:1-5; 8:27-30, 41-43. As we read the story of Solomon building a house for God, let's think about what we're building in our world, in our families, and in our community.

Does God anoint the unjust to rule over us? Many Christians currently say so. After all, God chose King David, and he was far from virtuous. But God's covenant transcends David. God's covenant promises us a society of dignity, freedom, and community.  The sermon was delivered by Rev. Victor Floyd on October 20, 2024. Preceding the sermon, Reverend Victor played Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" on the...

Today we hear a story of a woman whose faith in God is so complete that she hands her only child, the one she prayed so desperately for, over to the Temple, as an offering. She's all in. What would it take for us to have that much faith in God, that we could be 'all in', give up our illusions of control and entrust things to God? The sermon was delivered by Rev. Marci A. Glass on October 13, 2024....

When the Israelites are waiting in the wilderness for Moses to come back down from Mt Sinai, they get restless and anxious. They take matters into their own hands and fashion their own golden god by melting down their earrings and their grandmother's candlesticks.  Why are we like that? What makes us forget who we are the minute we get anxious and worried? How can we build up our resilience to pro...

The story of the Passover and subsequent Exodus is THE defining story of the Israelites. When God liberates the Hebrew people from slavery and bondage in Egypt, God proclaims a preferential option for the poor and oppressed. Liberation is the promise of Passover, and God's work in the world. Let us join God in that work! The sermon was delivered by Rev. Joann H. Lee on September 29, 2024. The scri...

The story of Joseph and his brothers includes generational trauma, dysfunction, and the grace of God. How do we tell our own family stories? Can we claim the good, bad, and ugly of what happens and see a path through it toward God? This sermon was delivered by Rev. Marci A. Glass on September 22, 2024. The scripture reading was from Genesis 37:3-8, 17b-22, 26-34; 50:15-21.

A sermon by guest preacher Rev. Bruce A. Barkhauer delivered on September 15, 2024. The scripture reading was from Luke 21:5-28.

In the second creation story in Genesis 2, God creates one human. And then God creates birds, mammals, reptiles, and all other kinds of animal life because 'it is not good for the human to be alone'. The final (should we say pinnacle?) of creation is woman, meant so humans will be helpers for each other. What does it mean to be created as helpers? Join us as we kick off our program year! T...

Augustine of Hippo declared, “The one who sings prays twice.” This end-of-the-summer worship service celebrates the Spirit’s movement onstage—God alive and still speaking to us through plays and musicals. The scripture readings were from Ecclesiastes 4:7–12, 1 John 3:11-18, and 1 Corinthians 4:9-13.

In the final of our series of three sermons on Jesus disturbing parables, Matthew’s gospel challenges us on what we are investing in our lives of faith, and what motivates us in our lives together. Given the generosity of God to us, are we investing that generous love in others, and in our communities? The sermon was delivered by Guest Preacher Rev. Scott Rennie. The reading was from the Book of M...

In the second of three sermons on famous parables of Jesus, we look at the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. Parables are meant to disturb us and upend the usual way we think about the world. I guess like me, you wish the world were a more just place. We could settle for that, as far from reality as that seems! But what if God calls us to live beyond justice, and to live an unmerited generos...

In the first of three sermons on famous parables of Jesus we look at the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Parables are meant to disturb us, and upend the usual way we look at things and think about the world. If Jesus’ story was about a shameless son, then there is another character who is also shameless—the parent. What would it mean for us to think about God as being utterly shameless? The sermon wa...

The Book of Daniel offers us resurrection hope for this current time of division, lawlessness and disinformation. If something is false, it is not of God. If something is not of God, it must not stand. Daniel tells us that we will rise—from the dust of the earth—we shall rise! There sermon was delivered by Rev. Victor Floyd on August 4, 2024. The scripture reading was from Daniel 12:1-13.

Spoiler Alert: The four world empires of Daniel's time are depicted as ferocious beasts. In what ways are empires beastly and predatory still today? And what is God's relationship to the powers that be? The apocalyptic writings of Daniel are simply a revelation of God's sovereign rule and love of all God's people. So let the apocalypse be revealed, and may we continue to resist and...

There are stories in scripture and in our lives where people act as if doing the right thing is impossible because of certain rules. It happens in our passage in Daniel, sending Daniel to the lion's den. It will happen when Jesus is on trial at the end of his life.  We each have different levels of authority, power, and influence. Are we using our privileges to do the right things?  The sermon...

King Nebuchadnezzar made a golden statue whose height was sixty cubits and whose width was six cubits. If my biblical math is correct, that’s about 90 feet tall, and about 9 feet wide, which is maybe not a hallmark of strong engineering. It doesn’t have a base wide enough to support the weight of it. What are we building? And are we building it in a way that will last, or idols to draw attention t...

Do you remember your dreams? I try to pause when waking and think about my dreams, because I know they will scamper away the minute I get busy with my day.  Having a dream is one thing. Interpreting its meaning is another. And turning a dream into reality is a whole different level. What are your dreams? Where is God in your interpretation of them and your implementation of them?  The sermon was d...

In some of the most beautiful verse in scripture, the psalmist calls us to remember how deeply we are known by God, and how deeply we are loved. And it matters deeply. Sometimes in life we feel alone, we worry that either we have strayed beyond where God would follow, or we feel life has taken us past the limits of where God’s love would extend. It is a lie we tell ourselves—that we are beyond God...

A concerted band of doomsayers bind us with their messages: the world is ending, we're all gonna die, the sky has fallen and we just haven't noticed yet. God's Word tells us of an alternative plan: The Great Unwinding. Shed your funereal outlook! Rewrite your story! Let's dance!  The sermon was delivered on June 23, 2024 by Rev. Victor Floyd. The reading was from Psalm 30.

We often think of the word "bless" in the context of God blessing us. But Psalm 103 tells us five times to "Bless the Lord." What does it mean to bless God?  This Father's Day, as we look at a psalm that describes God as a father who has compassion for his children, we acknowledge that not all human fathers are this way. And we remember that God is described as much more th...

We gather in worship for praise. We also gather for worship in lament. In our life of faith, we should be able to bring to God, and bring to our community, the entirety of our lives. What kind of community grows in a place where people can be honest about the pain and the joys of their lives?  The sermon was delivered on Sunday, June 9 by Rev. Marci A. Glass. The scripture reading was from Psalm 1...

Psalm 100 is a psalm of praise. In it, the entire earth is called to praise, because praise is a job description of those God has created. Orienting our lives toward praise and gratitude is not an act of putting on rose colored glasses and refusing to see the broken and painful parts of the world. It helps keep the broken and painful parts of the world in the right perspective, which gives us the...