Rev. Zach

Malachi 3:1-4      Philippians 1:3-11      Luke 3:1-6 Well, you’ve survived another Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and Giving Tuesday. Some of us ignore these days. Some of us embrace them. A colleague and friend recently noted a theological response his session made to these attempts to frame our experiences of consumerism and generosity. They resolved to call last Wednesday, “Give it a rest Wednesday.” In like manner, today could be called “messenger Sunday”. Our Old Testament reading is from Malachi, whose name means, “my messenger.” Our New Testament reading from Philippians is a message of love and hope from Paul, and our Gospel reading is confirmation that John is the one preparing the way of the Lord as promised in Isaiah. We hear this same message about this time every year, and I think that – if we aren’t careful – it can become like the Christmas music in the shopping mall. We hear it, but we don’t listen. It makes us feel good to know it’s there, ...

Jeremiah 33:14-16        Psalm 25:1-10         1 Thessalonians 3:9-13        Luke 21:25-36 The season of anticipation has begun! Of course, you know what I am talking about, right? Star Wars! Surely you are aware that this film has already raised over $30 million in ticket sales and it doesn't even show for 19 more days. Not only that, but it is expected to gross $300 million – and that’s just ticket sales! Now, far be it from me to add to this hype from the pulpit, but I think it is interesting to note what we value, culturally, as a human community. There is something about this story of good versus evil that connects with our own struggle. There is something in this story about the use of force and power and the role of sacrifice for the greater good that connects with what we value as human beings. That is why we – in the church – take time every year to prepare for the story of what we believe is good and true and valuab...

2 Samuel 23:1-7        Revelation 1:4b-8        John 18:33-37 “In times like these, in times like these, O I need you Lord to help me!” So the song goes, filtered through memories of campfires and blissful nights when the worst problem was getting a cabin of children to go to sleep. We teach these songs – and the stories of our faith – in times of peace so that they will be “in the bag” that we reach into during darker times. This week seems pretty dark, as we struggle with a correct response to human suffering in the greatest refugee crisis to hit Europe since World War II. Likewise, the stories from France and Mali continue to break our hearts. Meanwhile the earth continues to shake in Mexico and Japan. And, regardless of how you voted, we are all unsure of what’s to come from those who were elected as public servants in yesterday’s election. All of this may have you wondering where God is and what God is going to do about all this mess down h...

Hebrews 10:11-14, 19-25        Mark 13:1-8 It has been an interesting week. We have moved from the serious responsibility of taking care of our military veterans to the silliness of debates over who is offended – or even defending against attacks from – red coffee cups to the severity of terrorism and absolute suffering. Much of this drama has played out though social media in ways that make it all seem both highly personal and totally virtual at the same time. Of course, violence is not some virtual reality. Oh that it were so, and we could spawn and re-spawn countless numbers of lives! When we hear the terrible truth of lives lost to violence we cannot help but turn to God. We ask questions of purpose. We make declarations of judgement, and we make vows and speak prayers that expose our fear even as we are called to hope. Some may even think that it is time to abandon hope in the present and place all of our trust in the future. When the world seems to be chan...

Ruth 3:1-5, 4:13-17        Mark 12:38-44 On the turning away From the pale and downtrodden And the words they say Which we won't understand Don't accept that what's happening Is just a case of others' suffering Or you'll find that you're joining in The turning away" This is, of course the opening stanza to Pink Floyd’s, On the Turning Away , written by David Gilmore. Interestingly these words were written in the mid-1980’s, a time that researchers say began a trend toward income inequality that has now become greater than at any other time in our nation’s history. You can blame whomever you want for that, but the reality is – according to a paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research – the top .01% of income earners control 22% of our nation’s wealth. Now, I’m no economist, and I’m certainly not a politician. I’m also aware that figures can be manipulated to work for each side of an argument. And yet we live in a time where we argue over...

Isaiah 25:6-9      John 11:32-44 Today is the day we celebrate All Saints day in the church. But wait a minute, isn’t sainthood something the Roman Catholics believe in? It’s true. When we aren’t talking about football, the most common references to Saints and sainthood are found in the Roman Catholic faith. For them, Saints are people who lived holy lives and are recognized by the church as protectors, mediators, and agents of action for God’s grace and mercy. Saints are able to comfort and intercede for us when we feel that God has become too distant, or that we have fallen too far away to approach God. In the Reformed tradition we reject the idea that we need someone other than Jesus to intercede for us, and yet in the Apostles Creed we say that we believe in the “Holy Catholic church and the communion of the Saints.” And in many cities across the United States you can find Presbyterian churches named after St. Andrew or St. Paul. How can this be? The s...

Job 42:1-6, 10-17     1 Corinthians 3:1-10     Mark 10:46-52 Words are important. That may sound like a silly thing to say, but words matter. Words help us understand and interpret our world in ways that no other creature can interpret. When words are foreign or unfamiliar they trip our tongues and leave us feeling embarrassed or unsure if we have even communicated what we intended. This happens in restaurants across the land every day. I ’ ll never forget the night when I learned what steak tar-tar was, right in front of my date for prom. Sometimes we even remake words to fit our own objectives. Although there are plenty of examples of public gaffs in the news, my favorite is a personal experience. Several years ago my father (pronounced in southernese as “ fah-thah ” ) was writing down my itinerary for an international flight. I told him we would be flying into Accra. He asked me how to spell it. I told him. He repeated, “ You ’ ll be flyin...