Westminster Presbyterian Church, Alexandria VA

"As we move towards Bethlehem this year, not needing to slouch, I pray we will welcome, despite all odds, the Savior born there, welcome, perhaps less alone this year than last, welcome with a glimmer and sparkle in our eyes that reveals a broad and joyful smile that not even our masks can hide." Rev. Larry Hayward preaches on the Second Sunday of Advent. A reading of “The Second Coming” by Willia...

Reverend Olivia Patterson preaches on the first Sunday of Advent. The scripture lesson is Luke 21:25-36.

Daniel’s vision of a “Son of Man” who comes down from heaven is a vision of a savior whose kingdom takes root in the kingdom of the world – the reign of the “one like a human being” is a reign of God that renders secondary if not illegitimate the reigns and rules we know on earth. Jesus Christ as “Son of Man,” this “one like a human being,” can lift us above the disease that has become endemic in...

"Because the power of sin and evil impact the entire created order, “fixing things” involves more than “forgiving an individual’s particular sins” or “saving an individual’s soul.” It involves more than helping us as individuals come to spiritual and psychological peace – in light of what we have done or what has been done to us. It is rectification." Rev. Dr. Larry Hayward preaches on the Thirty-...

"I want to share today a few brief texts and stories from the tradition of our faith that affirm the call to service many of us feel. Whether we hear these texts as praise from the pulpit, as a renewal of a call we may be questioning, or as encouragement which even the most committed among us need from time to time, these texts can remind us of what originally led us to vocations of service and wh...

"The truth is that all of us come to worship – at least in large measure – because we want to feel better: about ourselves, our family, our work, our health, our world, the condition of our souls and psyches. If we are willing to confess and face the reality of Sin, we want to do so only followed by a full-throated assurance of pardon. In this series on the crucifixion of Christ, I want to stress...

"When the unknown writer of the Letter to the Hebrews closes his epistle, he blesses his readers with a benediction: 'Now may the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, make you complete in everything good so that you may do his will, working among us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Chri...

"Job is a book that asks really hard questions. It's a long read, but it's worth sitting down and reading start to finish. Today, I'm going to focus on Job and Job's relationship to God, and Job's relationship with the world. The two loudest messages that I received from Job this week: the importance of engaging with God across the whole spectrum of human emotion, and the need to surrender control...

The rich man of Mark chapter 10: many scholars and sermons disparage this man; they treat him as a lost cause. But this man, with all his flaws, was also this: he was someone Jesus loved. And that love, more than anything else, defines who he was, and who he is as a citizen of the commonwealth of heaven. Rev. Patrick Hunnicutt preaches on the Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Scripture le...

"As we look at the Crucifixion, we will be talking about the shame and degradation it entails, and we will even consider the possibility that the Crucifixion of Christ was godless. Thus, this may be the darkest and most challenging of the sermons in the series, but my hope is that it will prepare us for the larger hope entailed in the death and resurrection of Christ as Father, Son, and Spirit for...

"What is unique about the death of Christ – and what makes the Crucifixion so definitional to our faith – is not that another heroic martyr has died. Rather, what makes the Crucifixion of Christ unique is the claim (which I affirm) that on the Cross it is the fullness of God who dies – not just God’s spokesperson or representative or proxy or Spirit or shadow or even simple human Son; rather, it i...

In Hebrew, the word for widsom is "Chokmâh," or a person with a wealth, and a depth, of spiritual, moral, and relational intelligence. What James alludes to, and what we as Reformers must in fact hold fast to, is that wisdom is not solely a contemplative attainment - it's most faithfully expressed when made manifest in particular actions. Rev. Dr. Jacob Bolton preaches on the Twenty-fifth Sunday i...

"Today’s sermon will be different than most, in that its primary aim is to introduce you to the preaching I plan to do over the course of the next several months and perhaps beyond. Why do I think a series on the crucifixion fits now? With the appearance of Delta, with its quick spread, with vaccines for children as yet unannounced, we are not likely to be free of COVID for several months (if we e...

In Hebrew, the word “generous” literally means “good of eye.” My friends, even though we are a largely white church, there are ways we can develop more goodness of eye, ways we can learn what people of different colors and backgrounds experience in this world, so that we might be part of a new day in our church and in our country. Rev. Dr. Larry Hayward preaches on the Twenty-third Sunday in Ordin...

Rev. Patrick Hunnicutt preaches on the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Scripture lesson is Ruth 2:1-10.

Rev. Jean Coyle, Westminster Parish Associate, preaches on the Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Scripture lesson is John 14:15-27.

When we consider the last few hours of Jesus’ life, three people involved in his death stand out in our memories. The third person who plays a role in the last hours of Jesus’ life shows a different kind of character: not the character that comes when we change, but the character required when the situation around us changes. Rev. Dr. Larry Hayward preaches on the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time...

Today we encounter Elizabeth, who is a paragon of patience, who listens to God speak through the prenatal movements of her son John the Baptist, and who prepares both her son and Mary the mother of Jesus for the roles they play in the birth and life of Jesus Christ. Rev. Dr. Larry Hayward preaches on the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Scripture lesson is Luke 1:39-45.

"Today’s character in our summer sermon series is Uriah the Hittite, Bathsheba’s husband, David’s military officer. Though we might forget about Uriah – or never have noticed him – the Biblical narrator does not forget Uriah. So what about Uriah’s character?" Rev. Larry Hayward preaches on the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The Scripture lesson is 2 Samuel 11:6-17.

Today in our summer sermon series on Characters with Character, we encounter another strong female from the Old Testament: Abigail. Abigail is a woman described as beautiful but who uses her intelligence to navigate between two powerful and angry men—one of whom is her husband, one of whom is King in waiting—to defuse a situation which could have been the end of all of three of them. Rev. Dr. Larr...

Today’s character, Lois, is only mentioned in one verse in the Bible. In order to get a feel for the character Lois had, we have to follow the life of her grandson Timothy, whose faith he attributed to her influence. Perhaps it is the length and steadfastness of Timothy’s faith that comes directly from the length and steadfastness of the faith that “lives in” his grandmother Lois. No drama is repo...

I start today’s sermon with stories of three women who were tremendous in their financial support of the work of the church; their model, Lydia, was also a woman. Lydia’s generosity grows out of her character, and her character develops because the because the Lord opens her heart and she listens eagerly. Lydia realizes so much of what she has is more beneficial to the growing movement of the chur...

The five daughters of Zelophehad –Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah – go to the leadership of the people of Israel to demand the right to inherit their late father’s property since had no sons as heirs. This text is a terrific example of a particular people – the people of God – using words to work together within the culture of their day and time to implement a change which made their soci...

In the overview of Miriam we get from the Books of Exodus and Numbers, we can see that it is her trust in God that leads Miriam to act boldly, quickly, and with great ingenuity. For these character traits, Miriam earns the title of Prophet, the third person and first woman to be so designated in scripture, a title by which she is remembered centuries later. Rev. Dr. Larry Hayward preaches on the T...

Before Jesus says, “Let us go across to the other side,” he had been teaching. Immediately following this story, Jesus starts his work as a healer. There is a clear ministry shift. We, too, find ourselves amidst transition: crossing over to another side, another side of life in whatever we end up calling the season of pandemic. Rev. Dr. Jacob Bolton preaches on the Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time...