ReNew Ames Messages

This sermon is a little different. For about the first half we're simply going to walk slowly through the story and notice some things. My hope is this will give us all some practice in reading scripture. So let's talk about a theme that pops: Looking. Other way to say this: Seeing and finding. Now let's think through the question: "What are you looking for?" When we come to church, pray, read scr...

Since we're talking about the baptism of Jesus, we'll start by thinking about the importance of water. After that, we'll talk about how our spiritual ancestors also recognized the value of water. Turns out, they were pretty smart. The image of water is all over the place in the scriptures, from the OT to the life of Jesus. Perhaps when we get to the life of Jesus, we should bring all those stories...

Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year. It's wonderful because Christmas brings us all kinds of things. Gifts, goodies, time with friends and family, great lights and decorations, the list goes on. But most of all, I think, Christmas brings us love. This story really is all about love. God isn't always what we might expect - power, awesomeness, majesty - but love - love born among...

Christmas decorations make us see the world differently, through the eyes of children. During Advent, the stories we read in the Bible invite us into a new way of seeing as well. Today we are talking about the stories of Mary (in Luke) and Joseph (in Matthew). The inward vision of Mary: she responds to the personal call of God. She was open enough to hear the call of God. Then she was daring enoug...

So, John the Baptist in the Wilderness. Why do we do Advent in the wilderness? Well, maybe there's some deep thinking here about the nature of power. The Word of God comes to John in the wilderness. Luke gives us a long sentence about all the people in power; yet, the word comes to the one without power. What is it about power that makes people unable to hear a fresh word from the divine? In the w...

Speaker: Christa Mooi Scripture: Luke 2:8-16 http://bible.com/events/49533308

We're goin' Thanksgiving Mode on Sunday - gettin' into the gratitude groove. The words - thanks, thanksgiving, grateful, and gratitude - aren't in this psalm. But you can hear the word, the idea resonating underneath this entire psalm. It's an acrostic; each new line begins with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It's an artsy fartsy way of communicating completeness - wholeness - fullness. E...

This is the part where Jesus gets interrogated by Pilate. It's this weird little story that hinges on questions. Are you the king of the Jews? What is truth? Are you the king of the Jews? Pilate wants to know if Jesus is going to lead a violent overthrow of the government. He wants to know if Jesus is a threat and eventually doesn't see him as a threat. But in reality, Jesus is a threat. Not to ov...

Yeah, this one's a tough one. Jesus gets all apocalyptic up in this place. In this passage, the disciples and Jesus have just come from Samaria. In Samaria, they would have been surrounded by people who were different from them in every way imaginable. So when they finally get to Jerusalem, they're feeling good. They're now on home turf. They see the temple and they're awestruck. A bit about the t...

Let's begin by talking about Paul, Silas, and Timothy. Paul planted churches and then sent people like Silas and Timothy to check up on those churches. Way too many for Paul to keep track of all by himself. Then they would then report back to Paul and Paul would sometimes write them letters back to help them. So in a way, Paul was a kind of spiritual physician giving these churches regular checkup...

The Psalm talks about a way - a path - to lead a happy or blessed life. Let's start by talking a little bit about a path - the movement toward living a blessed life. We'll sum it up like this: living life with the divine is a constant oscillation between emptying yourself and allowing yourself to be filled again. Emptying yourself - when you hear the definitions of the word "sinner" and the word "...

Speaker: Marlin Vis Scripture: Luke 18:9-14 http://bible.com/events/49509609

The parable of the Widow and the Unjust Judge. I'll start here by comparing Jesus' parables to the stories we read to kids at bedtime. Yes, they're a lot alike. Let's have some fun with it. This parable really does make for a good children's book. Of course, we have all kinds of adult sized questions after hearing this story. No, we may not have any answers for these questions - but I always think...

I'll focus on the phrase "foreigners and exiles" or, "strangers and aliens" to begin. We have all probably been places that left us all feeling what it feels like to be a stranger in a strange land. In the context in which Peter is writing to these early Jesus people, they felt like strangers in a strange land because of their connection with Jesus - they would have avoided cultic rituals and woul...

We'll start off by talking a bit about the Spirit - cuz that's where Paul starts. We are the church because of the presence of the Spirit. Then Paul talks about how we are the body of Christ - that's the image he uses. The miracle of the human body is a complex wonder that shows us how every part is valuable, no matter how small or unnoticeable it might seem to us, especially if we feel that way a...

Speaker: Bev Modlin Scripture: The Book of Jonah

Jesus isn't holding anything back - he's letting the crowd know what it's going to cost to actually follow him. I appreciate that about Jesus - let's get all the cards on the table! We're going to spend a lot of time asking some questions, and these questions aren't necessarily going to be easy to answer. That's okay. Here are the questions that will help us get at the heart of the "cost of discip...

(Apologies for the late upload, this sermon was previously posted the week of the 24th but didn't process correctly the first time) The calling of Abraham next to the calling of Matthew. I've done this before - this time we come at it from a very different angle. Change for us human beings is difficult. It's less of a point I'm making, and more of a way for us to feel something as we enter into th...

This is one of my favorite - if not my favorite story about Jesus. It's not a healing - it's not miraculous - it's Jesus' first sermon. In it, he pretty much frames what his whole life has been and will be all about. I'm going to help us visualize the story by describing in detail what things might have looked like. Let's talk through the movements - the scroll, the attendant, the pointer, the Mos...

We've got the end of the story of Noah and the Ark. This will be a broad, sweeping retelling of the story starting in Genesis 6. This is a conventional divine judgment story. God looks at the state of humanity and has some regrets - decides it's time to wipe the whole thing out - system reboot - clean slate. God decides to do what nearly all Near Eastern deities do - start over. But then, in Israe...

Speaker: Sara Nielson Scripture: John 4:10-15 http://bible.com/events/49472871

Speaker: Suzanne Vogel Scripture: Romans 1:18-32; 2:1-4 http://bible.com/events/49469584

This is the story of the Valley of the Dry Bones. To put it mildly - Israel probably felt like those dry bones - disconnected and isolated - alone and probably a bit dead inside during this time. Captivity, forced separation from loved ones, oppression, isolation in a new land. We know what those dry bones feel like. Then God asks a curious question: "Can these bones live?" Uh, they're dead, God....

The expert in the law wants to know how to experience life to the fullest. No, he's not talking about heaven when he asks about eternal life. He's asking about how to experience life deeply - now - in the present. Jesus turns the question around on him (we'll have a little fun with this here). He responds, "love God, love your neighbor." Jesus says, "good - do this and live!" Then the expert asks...

Speaker: Brian Gelder Scripture: Jonah 3:10; 4:1-4 https://www.bible.com/events/49460035