Rev. Zach

Ephesians 4:11-13 “The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us, come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-13) This is the third of four sermons on the letter to the church in Ephesus, and as we’ve said before, this letter was written to be shared amongst the congregations of followers in the way of Jesus, and it assumes the authority of Jesus as given to Paul, the apostle, who wrote many passionate letters from prison. The interesting thing about that is that Paul did not write these letters as a warning, at least not as a warning against being imprisoned. If anything, being in prison was a part of his calling card. Come to think of it, there are a lot of people through the years that have used the same calling card whe...

Ephesians 2:11-22; Matthew 28:16-20 “So that God might create in God’s self one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace.” So says the author of the letter to the church in Ephesus, and so begins the second of four sermons on readings from the letter to the church in Ephesus! We started out last week by looking at what it means to live into the promise of salvation that is “Sealed in the Spirit of God.” We talked about finding our salvation in the understanding that God’s love and forgiveness are based on God’s choice to love us and to include us in the work of God to “gather all things into God.” Everything we do is in response to the one thing God did through Jesus Christ. Reject it. Accept it. Ignore it. Celebrate it. Whatever you do, it is in response to what God has done, and God had it in mind to demonstrate love and forgiveness from the beginning of all things. Last week’s readings reminded us that Jesus promised that the gift of the Holy Spirit would follow him, and...

Ephesians 1:1-14; John 14:25-27 Today begins a four-part series on the book of Ephesians with verses selected by the Narrative Lectionary, a resource which is developed by Luther Seminary to be a little more comprehensive than the three-year Revised Common Lectionary. While this may take us off the common path of those who are guided by the Revised Common Lectionary, there are a few other congregations in our presbytery – and many others in various flavors of the Reformed tradition of followers of the way of Jesus – that use the Narrative Lectionary as well. Given that we are using selected verses of Ephesians over the next few weeks, I would like to encourage you to consider reading the book of Ephesians and any kind of commentary or study Bible notes that you have access to along the way. It’s only about six chapters, and it may give you greater insight than I can give you just to read your Bible and see what the Spirit encourages in you through it. That said, I do want to call your...

1 Corinthians 11:17-34; Mark 14:12-25 Earlier I gave each of you a sparkler, which is based on a design of handheld fireworks dating back to 1850 and originating in Germany. If you’re like me you probably don’t care about that, and you are instead remembering some time in childhood when you twirled a stick of fire around, and maybe spelled your name. Maybe you remember the smell of the sulfur or hear the voices of family members...trying to keep you from setting off the rest of the fireworks...no? Just me? Fireworks fascinate us and do weird things to our brains. Studies have been made over the years to try to figure out what they do to our brains and why they fascinate us so much. Some studies have shown neuron patterns that fire off in the exact same shape as the clouds of colored lights we see. Some suggest that even talking about them creates similar patterns that can create a similar sense of euphoria just by recalling the memory of them. Other studies focus on the way that these ...

Amos 5:21-24 This is the third Sunday in a series about the expectation that Living Waters will flow from the hearts of those who believe in Christ. I’ve offered this series as a way to connect our exploration of God’s word with that of children and youth from across our Presbytery – which includes Presbyterian followers of Jesus from all over southern Louisiana – who will be at Camp Agape at the Feliciana Retreat and Conference Center next week. I will be offering spiritual direction, and thanks to the generosity of this congregation from previous and current offerings, I’ll be joined by one of my children and two other grandchildren of the church. Over the last two weeks, we have talked about these living waters as an indicator of the providence of God. Jesus called out to invite belief in God’s providence on the last day of the Festival of Booths, which was a harvest festival and a reminder of the way God heard the Israelites in the wilderness and commanded Moses to strike a barren ...

Isaiah 43:1; John 7:38 As Jordan mentioned before reading the New Testament passage, it is a bit of a repeat. That’s because “Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water” is the theme for Camp Agape this summer, and I want to share a bit of it with you. For those who do not know, I’ll be leaving after worship next Sunday to go lead worship throughout the week at camp. As the Spiritual Director, I choose the scriptures, set the theme, write the Bible studies for 6-12th graders, and lead morning and evening worship services. It’s a lot to do, but I love it! I love it because I get to be a part of the spiritual growth of children and youth from across our Presbytery, and I get to work with some of the most creative and passionate volunteers and staff that I’ve ever known! Sometimes I’m not sure who grows in faith more from it, them or me! Usually, I wait until I get back to share themes from camp with you, but this year I thought it might be good to work some of these id...

Psalm 1:1-6; John 7:10-18, and 37-39 Tomorrow is a day of reverence, mourning, and celebration in our nation. It is Memorial Day. While I do not normally entertain national holidays in worship, I recently learned something about the origins of this holiday that I think bears repeating in light of our scriptures today. Before getting into that I want to lift up John 7:18. “Those who speak on their own seek their own glory, but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and there is nothing false in him.” I want you to know that is my hope every Sunday. In fact, it goes to the heart of who we are and what motivates us as followers of Jesus every day. If we are wise, then we will ask ourselves constantly, “Who does this glorify?” Now, back to Memorial Day. I’ve learned that there are multiple cities that claim to be the place that started the tradition of honoring fallen soldiers and that it dates back to the period just after the Civil War. One of the most publicly witnesse...