Pastor David's Sermons and other Worship Moments

Please read, listen, and enjoy. If you have any comments please email me. Please feel free to use or quote parts of my sermons, but you must credit me in accordance with normal academic standards, and I ask that you email me a copy because I'm always curious how others use my thoughts in this grand communal 2000-year old dialogue we call The Church.

February 12, 2012 Read and Listen	By touching a leper and making him clean, Jesus takes his place as an exile in the wilderness by taking the man's uncleanness upon himself in a sacramental and sacrificial act of love.
February 5, 2012 Read and Listen	Jesus makes clean the unclean and restores us to wholeness of being and wholeness of community.
January 29, 2012 Read Listen	The miracle of Jesus casting out the unclean spirit from the man in the synagogue is the miracle of restoring the man's dignity and right to exist in the religious community.
January 22, 2012 Read Listen	We learn, through Jonah's story of refusal then acceptance, that God ensures success whenever we follow God's will.
December 18, 2011 Listen	Listen to the children's Christmas Pageant, a retelling of the story from the point of view of Joseph, Mary, a shepherd, and a magi. (no text available; audio only)
Dec 4, 2011 Read Listen	The only "war on Christmas" is the one we Christians have been waging. It is time to wage peace on it.
October 9, 2011 Read Listen	The Israelites, anxious because Moses and God seem to be missing, demand that Aaron make a god for them. We need not let anxiety drive us to false idols that promise relief, but which create only more anxiety, because God keeps promises and is leading us to holy land.
October 2, 2011 Read Listen	On World Communion Sunday, we read the story of Moses receiving the first set of tablets with the Ten Commandments, and the parable of the wicked tenants.
September 25, 2011	The title "Jesus is LORD", used by Paul and other first generation Christians, was a hugely political message against the Emperor of Rome who thought of himself as the one and only lord of all the world. Guest preacher George Stecher delivered a meditation on the political and religious importance of this title for Jesus. (This title will play a huge role again on Nov. 20, which is Christ the King Sunday).
September 18, 2011 Read Listen	For the first time, God is a god of a whole people - and they begin to rebel because they are in the desert without food.
September 11, 2011	Guest preacher Rev. Jeanny House delivered the Good News today. Unfortunately, no recording or text of this message exist.
September 4, 2011 Read Listen	What kind of god slaughters the firstborn of all people and animals in an entire nation? Today we tackle a diffcult text - the first Passover; the night of liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. A great victory, but one that comes at a cost of human suffering beyond imagining.
August 28, 2011 Read Listen	Moses was told to take off his sandals because he was on holy ground. Do we notice the holy ground and holy moments with which we are constantly blessed?
August 21, 2011 Read Listen	Shiphrah and Puah, faithful women and our spiritual ancestors, save Moses and the male babies of the Hebrew women by saying "No!" to Pharaoh. Their faithful disobedience saves Moses' life.
August 14, 2011 Listen	Christian Education chair Kay Stecher preached about the beatitudes, which were the theme of the previous week's Vacation Bible School. No text available yet. For more fun, you can also listen to John's piano playing, the band playing I saw the Light, and Katy singing The Lord's Prayer.
August 7, 2011 Read Listen	Joseph's eleven brothers hate him and sell him into slavery. But even such reckless hate can't prevent God from finding room for grace to prevail.
July 31, 2011 Read Listen	Jacob spends a night wrestling with God which leaves him a changed person. And if he can, so can we!
May 15, 2011	When sometimes dramatically different voices claim to speak for Jesus, we can ignore the voices of chaos by listening only to those voices that sound like our shepherd's - words of love and grace, hope and inclusion, redemption and reconciliation.
May 8, 2011	Easter 3. Jesus is known through sharing bread, and in chaotic times we become Jesus for others by doing the same.
May 1, 2011	Easter 2. Thomas declares one of the great mysteries of our faith: Jesus is Lord and God.
April 24, 2011	Easter Sunday. Jesus rises from the dead to bring us new life in joy of the Kingdom of Heaven.
April 21, 2011	Maundy Thursday. Let tonight and this holy weekend be a time to let Jesus be the act-er and go deeply into the mystery of who Jesus is, what he has done, and what he is soon to do.
April 17, 2011	Palm/Passion Sunday. Not a sermon, but the script for the dramatic reading of the passion narrative based on John's account.
April 10, 2011	Fifth Sunday of Lent. Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, and can raise use to new life in the here and now as can bring new life to others.
April 3, 2011	Fourth Sunday of Lent. Jesus heals a man who has been blind since birth, and instead of marvelling at the transformation, the religious leaders are upset because it was an unauthorized healing done on the Sabbath.
March 27, 2011	Third Sunday of Lent. The Samaritan woman at the well from John 6 meets Jesus and allows herself to be transformed by his living water, and we can do so, too.
March 20, 2011	Second Sunday of Lent. How long, Lord? we people cry out so often. God keeps all promises, even when, as Sarai and Abram learn, it takes a while. In the midst of the Lenten/Wilderness times of our lives and our world, the promise of Easter is always at hand.
March 13, 2011	First Sunday of Lent. When faced with temptation, choose life.
March 9, 2011	Ash Wednesday meditation on meaning of ashes and dust on our journey to Easter resurrection.
March 6, 2011	(not in yet) Transfiguration Sunday. Mountaintop experiences of God must lead us back down the mountain to enter the muck and brokenness of the world, just as God did in Jesus Christ.
February 27, 2011	“Do not worry about tomorrow.” Fear is the enemy of faith, not doubt.
February 20, 2011	God says to be holy because God is holy. Holiness is lived out through radical love.
February 13, 2011	not in yet
February 6, 2011	Super Bowl/Souper Bowl of Caring and being light and salt to the world.
January 30, 2011	not in yet
January 23, 2011	not in yet
January 16, 2011	John the Baptist calls Jesus the “Son of God” and “Lamb of God”.
January 9, 2011	In response to shootings in Tucson as well as other bad things happening in the US and the world

Some other writings:

These are articles I wrote for the Leader-Telegram's "Matter of Faith" or "Quality Times" columns.

The Easter "Ahhhhh...."
Give Thanks With More Than Words - As the prophets in the Old Testament as well as Jesus constantly proclaimed, acts mean far more than words.
I Was Saved on The First Easter - not saved by some decision by me, or at some time in my life because of some experience I had; no, we and all creation were all saved the day Jesus rose from the tomb.
Not Mutually Exclusive The Bible does not deny the truth of science.
Read a Book - Intellectual engagement with the world, including through the arts, is an important Christian discipline. Books are one avenue to that end, so go read some!

I also have some articles at the Clergy Letter Project, which is dedicated to the truth that science and religion can exist together; that faithful people don't have to ignore science to stay true to the faith (as the creation science/intelligent design movement proclaims), and that scientific people don't have to disregard the truth of religious expression, belief, and experience (as some atheists proclaim). See also the UCC's Not Mutually Exclusive campaign.

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Plymouth United Church of Christ
2010 Moholt Drive
Eau Claire, Wisconsin, 54703
715-835-5475

Webpastor: Pastor David