Federated Church Sycamore Sermon Podcast

In this message on Father's Day, Pastor Eric uses the shortest verse in the entire Bible (at least in English): "Jesus Wept" (John 11:35) to reflect on the kind of masculinity Jesus embodied. Looking at Jesus, he then contrasts these with the ways we imagine what it means to "be a man" in our own society, and asks: how does the socialization process from "boys to men&q...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on the bold and counter cultural community found in the Book of Acts—a community where everyone gave what they had to share with all such that “there was no one in need among them.” Drawing on a quote from the influential theologian, Jurgen Moltmann, that “the opposite of poverty is not property. The opposite of both poverty and property is community,” Pastor...

This message given on Pentecost, known as the “birth of the church” 50 days after Jesus’ death and resurrection, reflects on the famed story of The Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 alongside the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2 to explore the vision of community, diversity, and belonging they offer us and our world—and how it contrasts with how our world tends to operate. Is it possible that these...

In this message, Pastor Eric explores the overlooked and undervalued images of God in scripture as a mourning woman, mother, and midwife. The foundational understanding of God in the Old Testament--the tradition in which Jesus was raised--was not a philosophical construction as God became after the Enlightenment (with a focus on omnipotence, omniscience, etc.). Rather, as a people who knew immense...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on how our habits—things we do regularly and without thinking—shape us and our world, shape our reactions to everything from receiving good news to dealing (or not dealing) with pain and grief. What might happen if we added intentional rituals to our everyday lives? What might this look like and how might it shape us and our world differently? With these quest...

In this message, in the early weeks after Easter, Pastor Eric invites us to reflect on Judas: How is it that scripture remembers him? How much of this negative image may be a projection of the rest of the disciples own shame for having deserted and denied Jesus during his greatest hour of need? Does Judas become a sort of scapegoat? And similarly, how have we done that--projected our own shame ont...

As we continue in the season of Easter, Pastor Eric reflects on one of the primary ways that the earliest followers of Jesus came to understand the resurrection: they were now called to be his living body. As they opened themselves to receiving his life-giving Spirit, they found themselves animated and empowered to love boldly and courageously, just as Jesus had loved (and in spite of their grief,...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on the mysterious nature of Jesus' resurrection appearances. Drawing on the Apostle Paul's description of the "risen Lord" as a "life-giving Spirit" rather than just a "living being," he explores the resurrection story of Jesus feeding the disciples breakfast in John 21 and three times asking Peter, "Do you love me?&q...

In this Easter message, Pastor Eric helps us differentiate between "fact" and "truth" as we consider what it is that we are invited to believe, encounter, give ourselves to, and proclaim when it comes to Jesus' resurrection. While we don't know all the facts of that first Easter, or the precise "nature" of Jesus' resurrection, we do know that something pow...

In this message*, Pastor Eric invites us to imagine the unfolding events of "Palm Sunday" from the perspective of Jesus's disciple, Peter. The challenge is that Peter and the disciples, while constantly at Jesus' side during his ministry, are nowhere to be found in this moment. But scripture is clear: Jesus's entry into Jerusalem on a donkey and his actions in the Temple--fli...

Continuing our Lenten journey of figuring out faith with Peter, in this message Pastor Eric reflects on Peter's hunger to learn; his willingness to stay open, keep showing up, and learn--even after last week when Jesus rebuked him quite strongly. What is it that Peter is hungry to learn about in this scripture? Something many of us are hungry to learn about--and struggle with: forgiveness. What ro...

In this message, Pastor Eric continues exploring the scripture story began with last week's message where Jesus asks his disciples: "Who do YOU think that I am? For a moment, Peter and Jesus see, name, and bless one another in a powerful exchange. However, it quickly becomes clear that while Peter gives the "right answer," he has the wrong understanding. His understanding of wha...

In this message, we continue our journey of figuring out faith alongside Simon Peter and his winding, wandering heart. Over the first two weeks for his series, we've reflected on the very human and relatable qualities of Peter. We've seen him question, doubt, give in to fear, and mistake courage for bravado. But this week, for at least a moment, we pause as he alone among the disciples has...

This week, as we continue our Lenten series following the Apostle Peter, Pastor Eric explores how Peter reacts when caught in a violent storm on the Sea of Galilee, and in doing so invites us to consider how we tend to react when faced with forces beyond our control that threaten to "swamp our boat" and "sink" us, and how these reactions--and our understandable desire to contro...

With this message, Pastor Eric launches us into the season of Lent. Introducing us to our theme, "Wandering Heart: Figuring Out Faith with Peter," we are spending the season following Peter's journey. In Peter, we see a person who is both steadfast and unsteady, a dear friend and a betrayer, a follower and a wanderer. In Peter, we are invited to see something of ourselves. By following Peter’s jou...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on the story of Jesus' transfiguration--a "coming out" story of sorts. Atop a mountain with his three closest disciples, Jesus reveals a truth about him that up to this point had not been fully seen or understood, even by them. The question that follows--for the disciples is how will they respond. Will they "listen to him," as the voice...

In this message, Pastor Eric explores a passage from the Gospel of Mark that includes a story of "casting out demons" and physical healing. How are we to understand these stories? What are we to make of demons? Is this just ancient superstition? Does this just reflect an antiquated worldview that we, with modern medicine, no longer have? Introducing us to the wider context of Jesus'...

Oftentimes, when we imagine God, we imagine a sort of superhero Being far beyond humanity. We imagine One who is "all powerful" and "all knowing." And yet, at the center of Christian faith is the God of incarnation--a God who is neither of these, but rather a God who is "all-vulnerable." A God who is not "self-sufficient" or "self-reliant," but a &...

In this Christmas message, Pastor Eric explores not only the meaning of God's incarnation--"God with us"--but what kind of "flesh" God took on: where, when, and to whom. How does the particularity of the story of God's incarnation illuminate the meaning of God with us in new ways? How might we hear the "good news" of God's salvation and peace and joy for all the world when we hear it in this way?...

In this message, Pastor Eric takes us more fully into the world of Mary in order to better understand who this young woman is that sings out in the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-56) about God toppling tyrants from their thrones and lifting up the lowly. It is only in understanding the context in which she lived that we can truly understand what it means--how profound and world-altering it is--that God wou...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on the story of the birth and naming of John (the Baptist), within the larger story of both Elizabeth and Zechariah's journey of grief, suffering, shame, weariness, and hopelessness and that of the brutal world in which they lived. The words and actions of Elizabeth and Zechariah reveals a profound transformation from where they began. How did that transfo...

In this message, Pastor Eric invites us to hear the story of the first Advent in Palestine—the story leading up to the birth of Jesus—by drawing us deeper into the story of Mary and her cousin Elizabeth. By helping us imagine their lives—their hopes and fears, their struggles and weariness—he invites us to consider our own. In a world so focused on self-help and individualistic journeys of healing...

In this message, Pastor Eric invites us into the Advent season with this question: "How does a weary world rejoice?" What does hope look like in the face of the devastations of war? In the face of griefs that can't be wished away or fixed? Through the ancient story of a simple couple named Zechariah and Elizabeth, we are reminded that true joy and hope can only grow from this soil. O...

In this message, Pastor Eric invites us as individuals and as a church to consider: what is it that you primarily see yourself as stewarding and passing on to the next generation? Many of us probably think of material things. We pass on buildings/homes, collected treasures, money. We often think of our primary focus as ensuring that we have something of this sort to pass on. And yet, this is not w...

In this message, Pastor Eric reflects on the historical shift that took place in the centuries after Jesus--from actively following Jesus and the Way of Love that he modeled to building and maintaining an institution. Going back to the early church, he invites us to imagine what it might look like for us to boldly and courageously embody this Way once again, to keep growing as a dynamic movement o...