First Congregational of Hamilton

I hope you are staying cool during these warm days. The heat and heavy circumstances can quickly sap us of energy and spirit. But there is refreshing hope from Jesus! We were reminded last week of our place in the grand cosmic story of God, as those once alienated, now reconciled, with a glorious destiny: presented holy, blameless, and irreproachable before God ( Col 1:21-23 ). Of this gospel Paul...

It was such a delight last week to gather for our first summer worship service of the year, all together in Heritage Hall. (Not to mention the fantastic burger I enjoyed at the picnic afterwards!) Glenn gave us a spectacular vision of the cosmic preeminence of Jesus Christ. As we pray for refreshing and recentering of our hearts, Jesus is the center of it all. But maybe you feel a little lost in t...

Colossians 1:15-20 displays the multifaceted preeminence of Christ, but in a manner often foreign to our way of thinking. Careful attention to the text helps us to understand Christ's humility and glory in a foundational manner for salvation and Christian life. Dr. Glenn Butner

Colossians is a wonderful letter towards this end, as Paul encourages the church there not to be swayed by wayward philosophies (more on these later!), but to be fixated on Christ and his supremacy and sufficiency in all things. I’ve been praying for this to be a summer of spiritual renewal. This is my prayer for you this summer and a picture for us of what this renewal might look like, inspired b...

This week we will be concluding our series on "God's Welcome" in the Gospel of Luke. We will spend time in Luke 24 which tells of the resurrection of Christ. We will look at the evidences of the resurrection and how this brings hope to our lives today!

We’re coming close to the end of our journey through Luke’s Gospel. I wonder, through the months of studying Luke, what has stood out to you? What are some themes or encounters that have been memorable for you? What grabs you most about Jesus? Take a moment now and reflect on how God has spoken to you through this gospel. Today, we will look at Luke 23 and the crucifixion of Jesus, highlighting hi...

Earlier in Luke’s gospel Jesus climbed a mountain with his sleepy disciples ( Lk 9:32 ) to pray. It was a spectacular revelation of his glory in his transfiguration! As we approach the summit of Luke’s gospel, Jesus again goes to a mountain, to the mount of Olives ( Lk 22:39 ). He goes to pray and again his disciples are sleepy… but this time there is no glorious display. There is agony, betrayal,...

This week, we move from the very public debates and teachings of Jesus in the temple courts to the intimate gathering at Passover before his arrest. Luke's gospel, uniquely, adds the note that Jesus greatly desired to eat this Passover with them. Why? What does Jesus' innovation say about who he is and what communion means for us? In preparation read  John 13:1-17  and  Luke 22:1-39 . It will be g...

What does Jesus mean by "Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's" ( Luke 20:19-26 )? Come find out how this might shape our own understanding of our relationship with the state, and indeed, our own sense of meaning and identity.

As Jesus drew near to Jerusalem, he lamented the doom he saw coming for the city he loved. We will reflect this week on how Jesus’ proclamation of looming judgment on Jerusalem carries a message for ourselves as well. Please read  Luke 19:41-48  (and time permitting,  Luke 21:5-36 ) to prepare for this Sunday. 

The 'fog of war' is the uncertainty in situational awareness experienced in military situations. As we contend with the 'fog' of information in our world, how do we see clearly? In  Luke 18:35-19:10,  the final stop before we reach Jerusalem, Jesus passes through Jericho and encounters two men, short of seeing (one for his blindness, the other for his height). Come and find out what they see. 

This week, we begin the final weeks of our survey of Luke's gospel. Jesus continues to show the depth of God's love and the "all-in" nature of joining his Kingdom. Things that are valuable often have a high cost. A common question for Christians is what does following Jesus take? What is the cost of discipleship? The answer as challenge and inspiration is what I hope we will consider as God's peop...

Easter certainly is a high point in the life of the Church calendar. But it can't be just a special weekend - it changes everything. We will pause this week in our usual Luke preaching series in order to consider a follow up to Easter - how then do we live in light of the Resurrection? You may like to read  2 Corinthians 4:7-18 ,  Colossians 3:1-17  and  Romans 6:1-14  in preparation.

Death is a dastardly villain, a merciless conqueror. The Bible calls it the last enemy. But the hope of Easter is that the conqueror is conquered! Join us Sunday as we explore what it means that "God raised Jesus up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it" ( Acts 2:24 ). This is a great message to share with friends and family who may not know this hope, a...

Passion Week begins! Jesus rides into Jerusalem to the shouts of the people: Hosanna! They were quoting from  Psalm 118  and would soon reject the chosen “stone.” But as the same psalm states, God would make him become the “cornerstone.” Welcome to Palm Sunday. 

Two of the most important questions we ask throughout our lives are: Where am I going to live? and How am I going to pay for it? This week we will ask related, but even more important, questions as we explore the parable of the unrighteous steward (aka the parable of the shrewd manager) in  Luke 16:1-13 .

This week we turn to  Luke 15 . Come, be found and refreshed by our compassionate God who invites you to his table. But caution: you might be surprised who is there with you.

This last month, we have been exploring more of what it means to follow Jesus through the Gospel of Luke. This week we will consider the cost of following Him. Is Jesus really worth giving our entire life to and what does that look like?

Do you see the gospel as an invitation and extension of God’s hospitality to all kinds of people? What people in your life need to hear of that welcome from you? Through actions and stories at a dinner, Jesus shows the extravagant and surprising hospitality of God and how it marks our lives as his followers. Read through  Luke 12 & 13  as you prepare to hear from God’s word and join in the great o...

This week, we turn to  Luke 12:13-34  and consider how following Jesus shapes the way we think about our wealth. Jesus beckons us to give to the needy ( Lk 12:33 ). Sounds hard, but remember, he says this after the amazing assurance and comfort that it is already the Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom ( Lk 12:32 )! Let’s learn how we can be moved to wise, selfless, and eternal investmen...

How do you feel when you talk with a close family member? You probably approach your boss differently when you are reporting on your job or asking for extra time off. Telling someone you made a mistake is almost always hard. When we talk with someone, our confidence, tone, and ease in the conversation is based on the relationship we have with that person and the content of our conversation. Jesus...

Have you chosen the good portion? This week in  Luke 10:38-42  we continue our journey with Jesus to Jerusalem, learning to follow him. We’re given a picture from Mary of what it is to “love the Lord your God” ( Luke 10:27 ). Not long ago, Pastor Jeff preached on  Luke 10:25-37  on loving our neighbor – I encourage you to listen:  The Good Samaritan . This week, we see that our service flows from...

Are you following Jesus? What does that mean for us? We turn in Luke’s Gospel to Jesus’ travel journey, his face set upon Jerusalem, calling his disciples to follow him. For the next few weeks, we will be uncovering different aspects of our call to follow Jesus, beginning with his sending of the seventy-two and how that informs missions today and our part in it!

This week, put on your hiking boots as we ascend a mountain together, beholding the glory of Jesus transfigured in  Luke 9:28-36 . Why does Jesus give his disciples this glimpse and at this point in his ministry? Answering this question will help us see how immensely relevant this glorious self-disclosure is to our current circumstances.  

In the last several months, I have received phone calls from various businesses asking for Chris Hayes. Somehow “Chris” or whoever he is has been giving my number when he looks for houses, cars, vacations, etc. The salespeople who call me are quite apologetic because their expectation is to talk to Chris about their product and instead they get me. In many ways people’s thoughts about Christianity...