Margin Calls

Mark 7:24-37

We live in a world full of physical barriers. Everywhere we turn, at every level of human existence, we encounter gates, walls, fences, security systems, police forces, armies, air and naval forces. Some barriers are meant to keep undesirables out, and others are built to wall undesirables in.  But in all cases there exist two realities: people will go out of their way to define what makes others different from them, and people will be consumed with fear of what is different.

It is into this fearful, mistrusting world that Jesus sends his followers to “make disciples of every nation…” (Matt 28:19), acknowledging as he does that he sends us “like sheep among wolves” (Matt 10:16).  In order to fulfill this commandment of Jesus, his church will need to risk transcending the barriers that separate people from people, nation from nations—whether those barriers are physical, spiritual, or ideological. Jesus himself forgave sinners, healed the infirm and welcomed them, and was led by a Canaanite woman to grant her the gospel of love when he was tempted to dismiss her as someone “other.”

The high calling of the church is to find a way to move through the margins that divide our world, in order to bring the saving message of the gospel to all persons. As once upon a time doctors used to leave comforting confines of the hospital and make “house calls,” so now we are sent from the comfortable places in our pews to make margin calls among the people living at the borders and boundaries of our world.

Why Keep the Commandments?

Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

“What is happening to the church these days?” a leader asked.  He went on to recite a list of concerns: people wearing shorts and sandals to worship…people talking loudly before the service begins and walking out during the postlude…loud, obnoxious music… ”One congregation even has a coffee bar and tables in the balcony of the sanctuary!” For that church leader it seemed nothing but a blatant disrespect for God, bordering on blasphemy.

God’s people in every age have adopted various practices which were designed to protect the laws and commandments of God, and to keep believers walking in an upright manner. In Jesus’s time these practices were called traditions of the elders, and they became a kind of litmus test for faith.  If someone were to skip over one of these traditions, as was the case when Jesus’ disciples ate without first washing their hands, it occasioned much criticism, even to the point of being cast out by the religious authorities.

Jesus’ word on the subject is one of liberality. Traditions can be important markers for our faith, so long as they point toward God and a help us grow in God’s grace. The commandments themselves are meant to help us know the heart of God. But when our traditions become ends in and of themselves…they can become barriers to knowing God and keeping His commandments. We are therefore called by Christ to find our unity in the essentials matters of faith, and extend freedom to all in the non-essential matters. The place where the conversation about what is essential and what is not even has a special name. It’s called “church.”


Sam is currently out on medical leave, but the audio file of this sermon should be online around Labor Day. Thank you for your patience!

The Whole Armor of God: Therefore, Stand

Ephesians 6:10-20

Living a life of Christian discipleship faith requires both physical and spiritual engagement…a life of unceasing prayer and compassionate works of mercy. Because faithful living requires both body and spirit, the author of Ephesians calls his readers to renewed confidence in Christ. Confidence that death is conquered, confidence that Christ has defeated the powers in the heavens, confidence that the spiritual armor supplied to the church can withstand all that is arrayed against it. While the victory is Christ’s in heavenly places, the author knows full well that the gospel of peace must still be proclaimed upon the earth, in word and deed. The world in which we now live is personally and socially resistant to the transforming power of God and God’s word.  Thus anyone undertaking such a proclamation of the the gospel enters a arena in which he or she is called, under the protection of God, to make a stand.“Having done everything, therefore, stand….”  This is our solemn calling in Christ.


Sam is currently out on medical leave, but the audio file of this sermon should be online around Labor Day. Thank you for your patience!

The Whole Armor of God: Armed and Dangerous

Ephesians 6:10-20

The man we call “Paul the Apostle” has a fascinating background. As much as we are impressed with his writings, we forget that he didn’t encounter Christ until his conversion on the road to Damascus. He never saw Jesus in the flesh or heard him tell any of his transforming parables. And yet, Paul—apart from being the first church theologian—was an imaginative teacher and poet (e.g., 1 Corinthians 13), using metaphors, or word pictures, to make us all the richer.

Metaphors invites us to enter unexplored territory—and often without our realizing what they’re doing. So, when Paul says, “Put on the whole armor of God,” he not only gives us a lively lesson for kindergartners but also opens the whole area of spiritual conflict, an area not many of us are comfortable exploring.

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible tells us that there is a battle, a war between good and evil—think Noah and the flood; the Exodus story; the days of Judges; men like Abraham, Jacob, and David; and women like Ruth, Deborah, and Esther—all trying to restore God’s people.  The battle is complex—that’s why Paul wrote, “Put on the whole armor of God!”


Sam is currently out on medical leave, but the audio file of this sermon should be online around Labor Day. Thank you for your patience!

The Whole Armor of God: Know the Enemy

whole_armor_head_scrn.jpg

Ephesians 6:10-20

We live in a world that places the high value on projections of power and influence. With a deep sense of awe, note is carefully taken of the tallest buildings, the largest ships, the greatest armies, the fastest aircraft, and the most sophisticated computer networks. Those who have “the goods” have the respect (and more often than not, fear) of the “lesser thans.” Whoever holds the biggest and best has the freedom to go wherever and whenever they want, unencumbered by and indifferent to all others. Even some churches are not immune to this headlong pursuit of “bigger and better.”

Then there is Paul, an apostle of Jesus, who was “in chains” and under house arrest for preaching the gospel. Surrounded by Roman Soldiers—members of the mightiest and fiercest military force the world had yet known—he was prevented from moving about freely and limited in his access to others. In the midst of his imprisonment, Paul writes to the Ephesians,  urging them to grow in faith until they understand “what is the height, and length, and breadth, and depth” of God’s mysterious love. 

Hanging on to faith in a world where might makes right is a daily battle. But Paul wants his readers to know that the fight is not on the same field of battle that the world chooses. For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Knowing the nature of our fight, and who we are fighting, allows even the powerless in this world to become champions of faith.

Anointed: Pathway to Redemption

2 Samuel 12:1-15a

Welcome to our continuing summer worship series, “Anointed.”  Each week we’ll draw insight and inspiration from the lives of three figures from the Hebrew scriptures—Samuel, Saul, and David—and examine more closely the persistent love of God for an often rebellious people.

David, King and Shepherd of Israel, has strayed and lost his way. The people’s champion has forsaken his work and engaged in a sordid affair and a cover-up. The charges which could be leveled include breaking three of Moses’ “10 sayings”: coveting, adultery, and murder. But David is resourceful—he has covered his tracks and surrounded himself with subordinates who will keep secrets. As far as the people of Israel are concerned, the King has gotten away with it and is ready to move on.

But there is one more character in the story. What the people cannot or will not see, God sees. And God sends to his anointed King another anointed soul, the Prophet Nathan. In a conversation at one and the same time subtle, skillful, and bold, Nathan reminds David that a King’s power lies not in what he can take for himself, but what God has given him. On this day, what God gives is a deep conviction of sin, and the opening of a path to redemption. David will lay down the unbearable burden of his secrets, and come to know a peace beyond understanding.

Anointed: The Grip of Sin Gets Tighter Still

2 Samuel 11:14-27

Welcome to our continuing summer worship series, “Anointed.” Each week we’ll draw insight and inspiration from the lives of three figures from the Hebrew scriptures—Samuel, Saul, and David—and examine more closely the persistent love of God for an often rebellious people.

David, a King renowned for strength and savvy in defense of God’s people, is now engaged in a different kind of conflict: the battle for personal mastery. He has sinned, but has fallen prey to a commonly held notion that his sin is “private” and personal, and no one else needs to be involved. He is king, his word has authority, and he can do as he pleases.  In order for his transgression to remain private, he will use his authority to cover up any misdeeds.

The hard truth before us today is that all sin, no matter how privately it is held and how secretly it is kept from others, nonetheless impacts the whole community of faith. Sometimes the collateral damage from our personal misdeeds can be catastrophic. As David considers how to keep his private affair from becoming public, the grip of sin on his life actually worsens; the ripples will destroy a life and threaten the very Kingdom before God’s grace breaks through.

Anointed: Not to be Exploited

2 Samuel 11:1-13

Welcome to our continuing summer worship series, “Anointed.”  Each week we’ll draw insight and inspiration from the lives of three figures from the Hebrew scriptures—Samuel, Saul, and David—and examine more closely the persistent love of God for an often rebellious people.

In this week’s reading the “holy city” Jerusalem is now stable and prosperous, the renowned shepherd boy David has grown into a mighty King, and his place as leader of his people is well established. From the secure warmth of his palace David envisioned a final piece for his legacy: He would build a permanent resting place for the Ark of the Covenant in the form of a magnificent temple that glorified God!

But God would have it otherwise—the blood-stained hands of a battle-chief like David would not be the hands to build a temple for God.  David the campaigner now settled into a new role: David the ruler. Whether what came next was spiritual restlessness, boredom with routine, or a prideful sense that God’s anointed leaders are “above the law” and able to do whatever they want, David decided to do his own thing instead of listening to God. He stayed behind when the armies went out to battle, saw a woman bathing, sent for her, lay with her, and then tried to send her away...with increasingly dire consequences. In his  attempt to exploit the power God had given him, David was thrust into the most critical battle of his life.