Guerrilla Christianity

Sermon #254

In his prophetic look at end-times, Mark records for us the words of Jesus to his disciples regarding what is to come at the end of all things.  In the middle of what we call the Olivet Discourse, Jesus is telling his disciples then, and us today, that because we do not know the day and hour of his return, we are to be alert, and to wait with great patience.  Some translations use the phrase "keep awake," as servants of a master who has gone on a long journey.  In the 21st century we have no patience for waiting.  Yet Jesus calls on us today to keep awake, to wait, and to look for his coming.

Mark 13:24-37

Recorded at Hudson UMC on December 3, 2017 (Originally published on December 2, 2020)

S.D.G.

Sermon #88

Advent.  So often we think of Advent as the Christmas season but in reality it is a time when we look forward to the return of Christ.  This week we begin to look at Old Testament prophecies with Isaiah 64 in which the prophet calls upon God to tear open the heavens and come down to earth.  It is a prophecy which was fulfilled in Christ's coming, and it will be fulfilled again when Christ returns.  So grab your Bible, open it to Isaiah chapter 64, and join us as we too ask God to tear open the heavens.

Isaiah 64:1-9

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on November 30, 2014 (Originally published December 15, 2014)

S.D.G.

Sermon #580

Advent is the season of anticipation for the coming of Christ.  The world seems to be enamored of the Christian holiday of Christmas but in reality it has become a secular holiday in which we try to outdo each other in gift giving.  The true meaning of Christmas is the gift of the incarnation of Christ, when God stepped off his throne to be born in Bethlehem, to live a perfect life and to die the death that we deserve.  The season of Advent looks forward to when Jesus will return in the clouds in power and glory, to take his elect home to heaven and to set all things right.  Until then, we as Christians are called to stay vigilant and to await his return with great anticipation.  

Mark 13:24-37

Recorded at Hudson UM on December 3, 2023

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S.D.G.

Sermon #418

Advent (the four Sundays leading up to Christmas Day) is the season of preparation for Christ's return.  In the same way, the secular season of Christmas (between Thanksgiving and Christmas Day) is a time when we prepare to receive guests into our homes. For the season of Advent 2020, we are looking at "Company's Coming," and we begin with the declaration: "This Place Is a Mess!"  We have been so long waiting for Christ's return that many of us live as if he is not coming at all.  Yet throughout the Olivet discourse we have been reading parables of the coming Kingdom that hint that he will return at a time when we least expect it.  Jesus said that no one knows the hour or the day, and that is good, because if we knew when Christ would return we would live however we like and then clean up at the last moment, and that is not how God calls us to live.

Mark 13:24-37

Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 29, 2020 (Originally published on November 30, 2020)

S.D.G.

December 3, 2023

Old Testament: Isaiah 64:1-9

Psalter: Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

Epistle Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Gospel Lesson: Mark 13:24-37

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #576

Throughout this series we have been looking at how we participate in the ministries of the local church, by our prayers, our presence, our gifts, and our service.  Today we look at what it means to support the church by our witness.  So often we as Christians hesitate to testify to our faith because we fear the backlash, or perhaps we are afraid that we will be challenged and not have all the answers.  These fears are ungrounded, however, when we consider the testimony of scripture.  When those touched by the presence of Christ, such as this Samaritan woman at the well, give witness to what Christ has done for them, even those who are outcasts have a powerful impact on their community.  And what we see in this final lesson in our Five Things series is that all these things - our prayers, presence, gifts, and service - are a witness to the impact Christ has had on us.

John 4:3-42

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on October 29, 2023

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S.D.G.

Sermon #417

On this final Sunday of the church calendar, which we call Christ the King Sunday, we observe the reign of Christ in all of his glory.  And we conclude our short series in Matthew 25 with what is often called "The Parable of the Sheep and Goats."  However, as we will see in today's teaching, it is neither a parable, nor is it really about sheep and goats at all.  It is about two different states in the human condition.  We are either in Christ or we are not.  And when we are in Christ, we naturally act as Christ does without giving it much thought; yet when we are in the world, we only think of ourselves.  In which group do you belong?  

Matthew 25:31-46

Recorded at Hudson UMC on November 22, 2020 (Originally published November 23, 2020)

S.D.G.

November 26, 2023

Old Testament: Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

Psalter: Psalm 100

Epistle Lesson: Ephesians 1:15-23

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 25:31-46

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #252

When we pursue an object of our love, be it a person or some other thing, we go after it with everything we have.  In the same way, Christ gave everything out of love for us.  Why, then, wouldn't we as a church respond in adoration for our Lord?

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on November 19, 2017 (Originally published December 13, 2017)

S.D.G.

Sermon #251

We continue looking at "Who We Are" as a church by examining the central message of everything we do: the Gospel (or the Good News).  But many modern Chistians face a dilemna: we don't know how to put the Gospel into words, and some of us don't really know what the Good News is, exactly.  In American society the Gospel has become watered down into a feel-good self-help message that doesn't challenge us out of our comfort zone.  Jesus said the Gospel would be an offense and a stumbling block.  But we are called upon to preach the gospel at all times, and so preaching the gospel as a church is what makes us who we are.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on November 12, 2017 (Originally published December 12, 2017)

S.D.G.