Reflexion, A Spiritual Community

Since our text begins with a quote from Psalm 95, let’s go there first The psalm begins with a call to worship Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! (Ps. 95:1-2) Next, the psalm tells us why we worship For the LORD is a great God, and a great...

Is there anything in the Bible you wish were not there? I may be hypersensitive to manipulation – a by-product of growing up in my religious subculture • a typical statement would be, “If you love the Lord, then raise your hands” ◦ the peer pressure was intense ◦ what would the others think if I didn’t raise my hands? • so whenever I hear an “if,” ◦ I assume someone is trying to coerce or manipula...

In every news source, the Coronavirus dominates the headlines Some of us are obsessed with following the most recent statistics – how many new cases in Europe, the US, in New York • how many deaths in Orange County as it creeps closer to our street? – it seems we have to navigate our way between two extremes • Jesus described both in his end-of-the-world sermons ◦ those like Chicken Little, who be...

We have seen that there is an overall structure to whole book It is a wave-like pattern that alternates between revelation and warning – the first revelation came in chapter 1, • and now in chapter 2 we have the first warning ◦ the warning sections can be severe ◦ but the writer also softens them softened with encouragements

I am going to begin with the verses we covered last week, only this will be my own “interpretive paraphrase” of the first four verses of Hebrews. God spoke in the past and God has spoken in our time. There are differences in how he spoke then and now. In the past he spoke • many times in many ways • to our ancestors in the faith • through the prophets

The author of Hebrews is a credible guide – he is an excellent resource for those of us who are always longing to live closer to God • Hebrews takes us on an adventure of discovering Jesus ◦ it unfolds the mystery of his person • in Hebrews we look at Jesus through a different lens than other New Testament books ◦ in the gospels, Jesus reveals God; in Hebrews, God reveals Jesus . . . no one knows...

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. And on the eight day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch anything holy, nor c...

We will skim through the details of this chapter, – but first, we want to mark the key words: “to make a distinction” • our ability to distinguish one thing from another is serious business ◦ in the extreme, it can be difference between life and death ◦ for instance, when picking berries for a pie, it’s best to know which ones are wholesome and which ones are poison • chapter 11 has to do with mak...

For some time I’ve wanted to walk us through the Book of Hebrews When we come to it, you will discover why it is so extraordinary  - but the same reasons that make it extraordinary,  • also make it difficult to comprehend  • it's content, style and logic are sometimes difficult for us to follow  - Hebrews is built on stories and symbols from the Hebrew Scriptures  • we need to be familiar wit...

The bit of dialogue I read doesn’t mean anything right now, – but it will after I bring you up to speed • the subject of biography is Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham • his story unfolds as one long and complex road trip ◦ it will eventually bring him before Egyptian Pharaoh ◦ when Jacob was asked his age, he characterizes his life as a journey The days of my sojourning are 130 years. Few and e...

Can we take moment to think about why we’re here? What does it mean to say we are Christians? – we believe that “all this”–oceans, mountains, planets, nebula– • all of it came from somewhere – from Someone ◦ a Creator infinitely intelligent and infinitely powerful • yet the Creator is not in the universe like any other created object – Jesus drops a line here that gives me the chills: your Father...

Intro: Anyone who knows anything about the Bible, has heard of the Ten Commandments Israel had been a slave people before God rescued them – now they were just beginning to know their God • they needed to know how to order their lives in his sight • at their work, in their families, in society, and in the world – above all, they had to know how to live in relationship with God • so it is this come...

This passage seemed fitting at this time – there are only a couple of days left in this year, and then, 2020 • no one can say what will happen in the next twelve months, • but we can be sure it will not be boring – we spent the past four weeks of Advent preparing for Jesus • now that Christmas has come, and Jesus is here, ◦ let’s use this year to deepen our relationship with him ◦ to love him more...

 It seems to me that the traditional Advent themes are jumbled The first Sunday is hope, then the second, third, and fourth are faith, joy and peace – if I had lived in the 4th century–and anyone had asked me • I would have suggested that we put faith first ◦ faith is what enables us to hope ◦ so hope would be the theme of the second Sunday • then, feeling secure about the future, we would be at p...

 I’m going to begin by asking you two questions First, What makes you feel happy? – take a moment and give this some thought Second, What makes you feel joy? – again, take a moment with this question

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him." When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people,...

Should we celebrate Christmas?      - irritable Christians who write blogs or post on social media,          • remind us that it’s not likely Jesus was born in December              ◦ that the “church” took over a pagan holiday,              ◦ and to this day much of the Christmas celebration is still pagan (1)          • if that’s so, should we not celebrate the birth of Jesus?              ◦ not...

There are Christians whose interpretation of this is rigidly literal – they will tell parents who have lost a child, • even if it feels wrong or is difficult to do, they must give thanks • “It’s what the Bible says, so that’s what you must do” – since this is their belief, • they have to somehow justify this practice ◦ the authoritarians might say, “God moves in mysterious ways” ◦ the rationalists...

Romans 1:18-23 Paul has a lot to say about giving thanks in his letters – in fact, he sums up God’s will for us with these basic practices: . . . always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you (1 Thes. 5:15-18)

Psalm 118 opens with a chorus that has a long history We first hear it immediately following a big event – the day King David brought the ark of the covenant into his city • the ark was the heartbeat of Israel’s religion and relationship with God • David wanted to place it at the geographical center of nation – he invited all Israel to participate in the procession

Thirteen years ago, I stopped going to church That summer, our church was listed in a survey of Christian ministers – we rated among forty of the most creative and influential in the U.S. • but I was broken, burned-out, feeling alone and like a failure – Barbara was with me and helpful through a slow process of healing • conversations with Fr. Romuald steered me closer to Jesus • Barb and I spent...