Bethel Community Sermons

Guest Preacher Rev. Lynice Pinkard joins us on Transfiguration Sunday to share her powerful vision of transfiguration with us. Rather than intellectualizing about the transfiguration, she shares from her own embodied wisdom and lived experience as a pastor and spiritual director about what it means to truly love, see, and recognize one another in ways that bring about newness. Rev. Lynice Pinkard...

Pastor Michael preaches from Luke 6:27-38 about the ethics of non-violence and what it means to choose peace in the face of Empires that rage. How do we continue to remember our own worth and live rightly when violence and evil surrounds us? How might we wrestle with our own tensions and doubts regarding the efficacy of non-violence in our lives and our world?

Pastor Erina preaches from Jeremiah 17:5-8 and shares some reflections on what God has been doing in the life of Bethel Community after 100 weeks together on Zoom as a result of the pandemic. She shares some of the fruit that has been borne in this time of difficulty- the fruit of evolving faith, the fruit of our true selves, and the fruit of church reimagined. 

Guest preacher Sean Watkins continues our sermon series on the lectionary by preaching from Luke 5:1-11 and providing a fresh perspective on a familiar passage. By examining how Jesus interacts with his first disciples, Sean shares the ways that Jesus is always stepping into our exhaustion, defying human logic, and calling us to small acts of obedience as we "Run That Back" and experience the impo...

Guest preacher, Peace Lee, preaches from Luke 4:22-30, about the role of preaching in a community- to invite the community of faith to be co-conspirators with the Spirit of God as we inhabit the story of God together. She reminds us that the Word of God can never be contained by our expectations, coming to us through unlikely prophets who shatter our boundaries and borders, and she invites us to p...

Pastor Michael preaches for us from Luke 4:14-21, about the work of the Holy Spirit that instigates resistance to Empire and anoints Jesus to enact God's disruptive purposes in the world. How might the Holy Spirit similarly be leading us to the encouraging yet also confounding work of "good news" that Jesus was anointed for?

Pastor Erina preaches from John 2:1-11, about the first "sign" of Jesus as a miracle of the collective that subverts hierarchy and centers those who are normally on the margins. She discusses the ways that the slow, tedious, work of subversive faithfulness allows us to experience the miraculous power of God, and invites us to consider our part in that work. On MLK weekend, she also reminds us that...

Pastor Michael preaches for us on the Feast of the Baptism, about the ways that Christ's baptism is a cosmic confrontation between the realm of God and the realm of Empire. How does the declaration of Jesus as beloved stand in contrast to the violence of Empire and forge a pathway to live into an ethic of love, peace, and enjoyment? What are the ethical implications of our worship, particularly wh...

Pastor Erina preaches on the 9th day of Christmastide, continuing the Luke narrative of the birth of Jesus and examining what it meant for Jesus to be a growing, developing, evolving human. How might we find encouragement in the fact that Jesus couldn't rush through his own development and had to grow in maturity? How might we, like Jesus, experience a village who will bear witness our own growth...

Pastor Michael preaches on the 2nd day of Christmastide from the Gospel of Luke about Simeon and Anna encountering baby Jesus. How did Simeon and Anna know that the birth of this baby meant so much? How can we know that the presence of God in Christ has meaning for our lives, our families, our communities?

Erna Kim Hackett joins us for the 3rd Sunday in Advent to reflect on the lives, leadership, and bodies of both Elizabeth and Mary. How do these two women remind us of the joy-filled community that is forged among unlikely and marginalized bodies? How do they invite us to attend to our bodies in this season with gentleness and kindness? Erna is the founder of  L iberated Together- a space...

Pastor Erina continues our "WILD BIRTH" Advent series by looking at the Annunciation and examining Mary's response to the angel Gabriel. While the force of patriarchy has often painted Mary as an empty vessel lauded for submission and obedience, how might we re-read Mary's interactions with Gabriel to see the ways she takes up space and claims her own agency before God? How does Mary's understandi...

Pastor Michael kicks off our sermon series titled "WILD BIRTH" by reflecting on the story of Zechariah and Elizabeth. He reveals how the coming presence of God- in our lives and our world-  is always disruptive, silencing the powerful while giving leadership to those who are normally unheard. What new voices and new stories might be amplified for us in this season, as we allow our worlds to b...

Guest Preacher Tamice Spencer concludes our sermon series on the Psalms by sharing about her own journey with Psalm 16, and exegeting the Scripture alongside her own embodied experience.  She discusses her own story of discovering God as she discovered joy, and reflects on how the beautiful boundary lines of God have helped her to find healing and resurrection. At the end of her sermon, she r...

Pastor Michael continues our sermon series on the psalms, wrestling with both the challenging and encouraging aspects of Psalm 127. He explores the relationship between what we do and what God does, and describes God's vision of life as one that includes rest for God's beloved, as well as the use of privilege and power to protect the vulnerable.

Pastor Erina continues our sermon series on the psalms, reflecting on the communal nature of the invitation of Psalm 34:8- "Taste and see that the Lord is good!" Sharing her experiences of trying new foods, witnessing the collective faith of Korean immigrant churches, and struggling to believe in God's goodness in this current moment, Pastor Erina reminds us that we never come to the banquet table...

Guest Preacher Peace Lee reflects on Psalm 119, and the ways that God's law is a manifestation of God's love for us. In a culture that has often misused and abused God's law to oppress and harm, Peace reminds us of the ways that God's law is a gift to remake Gods peoples and provide them a pathway towards life, justice, and restoration. She also shares insight on the acrostic nature of Psalm 119,...

Pastor Michael continues our sermon series on the psalms by preaching from Psalm 126 and the human experience of waiting for restored fortunes. He specifically explores the powerful and effectual nature of our tears in the midst of waiting, and reflects on the ways that crying is a fundamental part of what it means to be human. 

Pastor Erina continues our sermon series on the Psalms by looking at Psalm 8, and the interconnectedness between humanity and the rest of creation. How is the vocation of humanity- to have dominion- meant to mirror a God of generosity and self-giving love? What might it look like for human worship to include extending the same mindful care, generous attention, and love that God shows us, to the en...

Rev. Riana Shaw Robinson, continues our sermon series on the Psalms by preaching from Psalm 124 about the importance of both remembering and retelling of God's work of deliverance in our lives, particularly for the oppressed and marginalized. How do we encourage ourselves and one another in these difficult times by choosing to speak and even sing our testimonies of what God has done, even when the...

Pastor Michael continues our sermon series on the Psalms by talking about the importance of singing in the life of faith. He shares the need for a holistic range of expressions in song, including songs that declare "yes," songs that cry "no," and songs for the waiting of "not yet."

Pastor Erina continues our sermon series on the Psalms, by looking at Psalm 116 and the movements of faith that happen in it- from orientation, to disorientation, to reorientation. She also examines the key role that assertion plays in our life of faith, and shares how asserting ourselves before God might be a key to experiencing a return to rest.

Pastor Michael kicks off our sermon series on the Psalms with a reflection on Psalm 146. How is the call to praise God and the call to cry out for help connected? How is true praise distinct from toxic positivity, and how does true worship grow our appetite for justice in this world?

Pastor Michael shares a reminder about the meaning of our baptism and what it means to be students of our Rabbi Jesus together in community with other disciples. His reflections helped prepare our congregation to celebrate the baptism of Kaleb Enoh JohnEtebom! 

Pastor Erina concludes our sermon series on Daniel by examining his prayer in Daniel 9. How does prayer help us engage God in the midst of uncertainty, confusion, and cognitive dissonance? How are the prayer practices of praise, confession, and petition acts of resistance against the forces that lead us to spiritual amnesia, entitlement, and numbness?