The newest edition of the Arlington UMC podcast is live!
This weeks' message is called "Asking for Wisdom", and it's based on 1 Kings 3:5-12.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, on the media player below, listen to/download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe in iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Romans Series- slight tweak and reading schedule
After reflecting some more, I think the sermon series title "Jesus is for Everybody" might be misleading and suggest some kind of Christian exclusivism. Jesus did not come for his own sake, and I don't think Jesus is as preoccupied with his own glory (nor is God, despite what some suggest), so while Jesus is a huge part of what Paul is talking about in Romans, Jesus is not the ultimate point. The radically inclusive, barrier-breaking nature of God's grace is.
So we're going to call this series "Grace is for Everybody".
Also, as promised, here is the schedule of scriptures and tentative sermon titles for Arlington's two months reading through Romans together. On Monday, I'll post some initial thoughts and questions regarding the passage for the following week. Your input here will be part of my sermon preparation.
In the absence of a physical sermon discussion group the way I did at Bethlehem (and I hope to do at Arlington), we'll go virtual for this one.
August 7- Romans 1:18-23; 2:1-6 (I’m a sinner, You’re a sinner)
August 14- Romans 3:21-31 (Righteousness by Faith)
August 21 Romans 6:1-4, 15-23 (Law and Grace)
August 28- Romans 7:15-20; 8:31-39 (Nothing can Separate Us)
September 4- Romans 11:1-2a, 13-24 (Branches Grafted on to the Tree)
September 11- Romans 12:9-21 (Marks of the Renewed Creation)
September 18- Romans 14:1-8 (People with Different Needs)
September 25- Romans 15:14-22 (What We’ve Learned)
The following Monday we'll be posting the podcast of the final product, so those of you who aren't able to worship with us in person at Arlington (if you're in Nashville and not currently part of any church, come check us out!) can see how your input affected the sermon.
Tune in Monday as we begin talking about the first two chapters of Romans.
So we're going to call this series "Grace is for Everybody".
Also, as promised, here is the schedule of scriptures and tentative sermon titles for Arlington's two months reading through Romans together. On Monday, I'll post some initial thoughts and questions regarding the passage for the following week. Your input here will be part of my sermon preparation.
In the absence of a physical sermon discussion group the way I did at Bethlehem (and I hope to do at Arlington), we'll go virtual for this one.
August 7- Romans 1:18-23; 2:1-6 (I’m a sinner, You’re a sinner)
August 14- Romans 3:21-31 (Righteousness by Faith)
August 21 Romans 6:1-4, 15-23 (Law and Grace)
August 28- Romans 7:15-20; 8:31-39 (Nothing can Separate Us)
September 4- Romans 11:1-2a, 13-24 (Branches Grafted on to the Tree)
September 11- Romans 12:9-21 (Marks of the Renewed Creation)
September 18- Romans 14:1-8 (People with Different Needs)
September 25- Romans 15:14-22 (What We’ve Learned)
The following Monday we'll be posting the podcast of the final product, so those of you who aren't able to worship with us in person at Arlington (if you're in Nashville and not currently part of any church, come check us out!) can see how your input affected the sermon.
Tune in Monday as we begin talking about the first two chapters of Romans.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
The Theme of Romans Is...
not quite that easy to pin down.
As I've reflected more on what I want to be an overarching theme for a sermon series, it's occurred to me that the concept of there being a thesis around which Romans is wrapped is a very modern one.
Paul's epistle is not a work of systematic theology, so we can't read it like we do Aquinas or Barth. In fact, I suspect that if Paul was a Divinity School student, Romans would not get a very good grade.
Instead, Paul is writing very much stream of consciousness, addressing the problems in the Roman Christian community as he understands them. So while the question of a central thesis is one that I don't really think Romans is trying to answer, I do think there are some ideas that keep coming up in Paul's writings that reflect what he thought was most important about being a follower of Jesus.
As the "apostle to the Gentiles", Paul spent a lot of time thinking and arguing with others about just what new thing God was doing in Jesus. Paul did not cease to be Jewish, and thus probably didn't see Christianity as a separate religion the way we do today, but neither did he believe that one had to go through all the steps of conversion to Judaism, such as circumcision, to be part of this new thing God was doing. So as hyper-critical as Paul can be of others whose ideas or practices he disagrees with, Paul's vision of what God is doing is radically inclusive for his time.
So, all that being said, the theme for Arlington's upcoming two months exploring the Book of Romans is
"Jesus is for everybody"
thoughts?
As I've reflected more on what I want to be an overarching theme for a sermon series, it's occurred to me that the concept of there being a thesis around which Romans is wrapped is a very modern one.
Paul's epistle is not a work of systematic theology, so we can't read it like we do Aquinas or Barth. In fact, I suspect that if Paul was a Divinity School student, Romans would not get a very good grade.
Instead, Paul is writing very much stream of consciousness, addressing the problems in the Roman Christian community as he understands them. So while the question of a central thesis is one that I don't really think Romans is trying to answer, I do think there are some ideas that keep coming up in Paul's writings that reflect what he thought was most important about being a follower of Jesus.
As the "apostle to the Gentiles", Paul spent a lot of time thinking and arguing with others about just what new thing God was doing in Jesus. Paul did not cease to be Jewish, and thus probably didn't see Christianity as a separate religion the way we do today, but neither did he believe that one had to go through all the steps of conversion to Judaism, such as circumcision, to be part of this new thing God was doing. So as hyper-critical as Paul can be of others whose ideas or practices he disagrees with, Paul's vision of what God is doing is radically inclusive for his time.
So, all that being said, the theme for Arlington's upcoming two months exploring the Book of Romans is
"Jesus is for everybody"
thoughts?
Monday, July 25, 2011
Shameless Self Promotion- Christmas in July Edition
It's Christmas in July week over at Ministry Matters, and I've contributed an article about presenting the Nativity story using first person monologues. The article covers both the process of collaboratively producing the dramas, as well as some examples that I've used in worship services before.
There are lots of other great Christmas in July articles being posted all week, especially one by Mike Slaughter- "Santa Claus Jesus". Keep checking back during the week for more great stuff!
As always, feedback is always appreciated, either on Ministry Matters or here.
There are lots of other great Christmas in July articles being posted all week, especially one by Mike Slaughter- "Santa Claus Jesus". Keep checking back during the week for more great stuff!
As always, feedback is always appreciated, either on Ministry Matters or here.
New Podcast
The newest edition of the Arlington UMC podcast is live!
This weeks' message is called "Wrestling With God", and it's based on Genesis 32:22-31.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, on the media player below, listen to/download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe in iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
This weeks' message is called "Wrestling With God", and it's based on Genesis 32:22-31.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, on the media player below, listen to/download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe in iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Response to Romans Question
Wow, I'm amazed at how much traction my simple question from yesterday's post has gotten. My little corner of the intranets usually goes unnoticed by most people, so this is kind of fun.
There have been several very thoughtful comments left on this blog, and a number on James McGrath's blog, who put the question out there as well. Tim Gombis (a NT scholar whose work I am now just discovering), blogged his own response.
One of the reasons I put the question out there is that there are some folks at Arlington who like to make altar displays and other visuals to enhance the sermon theme, and they are thinking of making one big display for the whole Romans series, so I'm hoping to state the overarching theme in a way that could be visually represented.
While we're on the subject of visuals, if you're in Nashville, come worship with us at Arlington UMC tomorrow, where you'll see a cool altar display (and hopefully hear a decent sermon) about Jacob wrestling with God.
But back to the question at hand. What do you see as the overarching theme of Paul's Epistle to the Romans?
There have been several very thoughtful comments left on this blog, and a number on James McGrath's blog, who put the question out there as well. Tim Gombis (a NT scholar whose work I am now just discovering), blogged his own response.
One of the reasons I put the question out there is that there are some folks at Arlington who like to make altar displays and other visuals to enhance the sermon theme, and they are thinking of making one big display for the whole Romans series, so I'm hoping to state the overarching theme in a way that could be visually represented.
While we're on the subject of visuals, if you're in Nashville, come worship with us at Arlington UMC tomorrow, where you'll see a cool altar display (and hopefully hear a decent sermon) about Jacob wrestling with God.
But back to the question at hand. What do you see as the overarching theme of Paul's Epistle to the Romans?
Friday, July 22, 2011
Help for an upcoming Romans Sermon Series
Paul's epistle to the Romans occupies much of the lectionary this summer, so I'm going to be preaching on Romans for eight weeks, through August and September. Since I know that at least one colleague is going to be doing the same thing, and since I haven't yet started some kind of sermon roundtable at Arlington (it will be forthcoming, though), I'm going to use this blog for some collaboration.
I'll be covering roughly two chapters a week, although we won't be reading the entire text aloud in worship. I'll post a schedule as soon as I have it finalized, but I'm wondering if I should have some kind of overarching theme.
So my question for you all today is whether there is an overarching theme in Romans. Any and all ideas are welcome, but please be more creative than the old "Romans Road". That's just shallow proof-texting, and we're going to be diving deeper than that.
Discuss!
I'll be covering roughly two chapters a week, although we won't be reading the entire text aloud in worship. I'll post a schedule as soon as I have it finalized, but I'm wondering if I should have some kind of overarching theme.
So my question for you all today is whether there is an overarching theme in Romans. Any and all ideas are welcome, but please be more creative than the old "Romans Road". That's just shallow proof-texting, and we're going to be diving deeper than that.
Discuss!
Sunday, July 17, 2011
New Podcast- The Long and Winding Road
The newest edition of the Arlington UMC podcast is live!
This weeks' message is called "The Long and Winding Road" (please don't sue me, Paul McCartney), and it's based on Genesis 28:10-22.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, on the media player below, listen to/download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe in iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
This weeks' message is called "The Long and Winding Road" (please don't sue me, Paul McCartney), and it's based on Genesis 28:10-22.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, on the media player below, listen to/download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe in iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
Friday, July 15, 2011
A Prejudice I Didn't I Know I Had
I haven't been blogging much lately because I've been adjusting to my new congregation and trying to figure out how to structure my day and my week. It's a work in progress, but I'm determined to keep posting for my dozen-ish loyal readers (hi, Mom!)
I have prejudices. We all do. Unlike Stephen Colbert, we see things like race, gender, clothing, body size/type, etc, and we automatically make assumptions about people based on our previous experiences of people with similar characteristics. Sometimes these snap judgments are correct, sometimes they're not, but we all make them. I've come to believe the key to not letting these things control us is to acknowledge they're there so we can get to know a person, and perhaps have those snap judgments proven wrong. Prejudices are only dangerous when we don't realize that they're there.
So I was surprised recently to discover that I had a prejudice I didn't even know was there. One of the things that I love about Arlington is that we have a food pantry that is open every weekday. When I'm in the office, I try very hard to go out and talk with the folks that are coming for food assistance, and I've found myself being very surprised at who is coming.
Some of the folks coming to the food pantry have the "homeless look" (a very bad stereotype we need to purge from our culture)- shabby clothes, haven't showered in a while, etc. But a surprising number of folks coming for assistance don't look like they're homeless or even poor. They're not someone that you'd pass on the street and think that they didn't have enough to eat.
Thankfully, I've been smart/lucky enough to keep my mouth shut and not say something stupid about them not looking like they need help or question the sincerity of their needs. I've seen the statistics about how many people in our country don't have enough to eat, but I think I understand them now in a different way. We pass people every day who don't have the basic necessities of life, and most of the time we don't bother to notice that someone is suffering right before our eyes.
I was reminded of this again not long after when I was driving home and saw a vendor selling The Contributor at an intersection. (for non-Nashvillians, The Contributor is a newspaper sold by homeless people who are trained and assigned a "zone" where they can sell the paper as a way to make money other than begging)
I have friends who are very involved with The Contributor and other homeless ministries here, and I've heard them complain when people won't buy a paper from a vendor because they don't "look homeless". The reason they don't have the "look" is because selling the paper has enabled them to have enough money to get a place to stay and begin to build a life off the streets. The reason many of the vendors don't "look homeless" is because The Contributor is succeeding at getting people off the streets!
All of this reminded me that we don't know what is going on with somebody by their outward appearance. Someone who doesn't appear poor or homeless might still be in need of assistance. Someone who looks like they have their whole life figured out might falling apart inside, just waiting for you or I to ask how it is with their soul. Poverty, be it economic, emotional, or spiritual, is all around us, even if we don't see it on the surface.
I'm grateful to my new church and my city for helping me see a prejudice I didn't even know I had.
I have prejudices. We all do. Unlike Stephen Colbert, we see things like race, gender, clothing, body size/type, etc, and we automatically make assumptions about people based on our previous experiences of people with similar characteristics. Sometimes these snap judgments are correct, sometimes they're not, but we all make them. I've come to believe the key to not letting these things control us is to acknowledge they're there so we can get to know a person, and perhaps have those snap judgments proven wrong. Prejudices are only dangerous when we don't realize that they're there.
So I was surprised recently to discover that I had a prejudice I didn't even know was there. One of the things that I love about Arlington is that we have a food pantry that is open every weekday. When I'm in the office, I try very hard to go out and talk with the folks that are coming for food assistance, and I've found myself being very surprised at who is coming.
Some of the folks coming to the food pantry have the "homeless look" (a very bad stereotype we need to purge from our culture)- shabby clothes, haven't showered in a while, etc. But a surprising number of folks coming for assistance don't look like they're homeless or even poor. They're not someone that you'd pass on the street and think that they didn't have enough to eat.
Thankfully, I've been smart/lucky enough to keep my mouth shut and not say something stupid about them not looking like they need help or question the sincerity of their needs. I've seen the statistics about how many people in our country don't have enough to eat, but I think I understand them now in a different way. We pass people every day who don't have the basic necessities of life, and most of the time we don't bother to notice that someone is suffering right before our eyes.
I was reminded of this again not long after when I was driving home and saw a vendor selling The Contributor at an intersection. (for non-Nashvillians, The Contributor is a newspaper sold by homeless people who are trained and assigned a "zone" where they can sell the paper as a way to make money other than begging)
I have friends who are very involved with The Contributor and other homeless ministries here, and I've heard them complain when people won't buy a paper from a vendor because they don't "look homeless". The reason they don't have the "look" is because selling the paper has enabled them to have enough money to get a place to stay and begin to build a life off the streets. The reason many of the vendors don't "look homeless" is because The Contributor is succeeding at getting people off the streets!
All of this reminded me that we don't know what is going on with somebody by their outward appearance. Someone who doesn't appear poor or homeless might still be in need of assistance. Someone who looks like they have their whole life figured out might falling apart inside, just waiting for you or I to ask how it is with their soul. Poverty, be it economic, emotional, or spiritual, is all around us, even if we don't see it on the surface.
I'm grateful to my new church and my city for helping me see a prejudice I didn't even know I had.
Monday, July 11, 2011
New Podcast
The latest Arlington UMC sermon podcast is live!
This week's message is called "A Story of Seeds and Soil" and is based on Matthew 13:1-9- 18-23.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, listen on and/or download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe on iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
This week's message is called "A Story of Seeds and Soil" and is based on Matthew 13:1-9- 18-23.
You can listen on Arlington's webpage, listen on and/or download the file from sermon.net/arlington, and you can subscribe on iTunes.
If you are on iTunes, please rate us and write a review so they'll promote our podcast!
As always, feedback is gratefully appreciated.
Monday, July 04, 2011
Arlington UMC Podcast
The inaugural episode of the Arlington United Methodist Church sermon podcast is live on the web. Each Monday (probably some weeks it will be Tuesday) we'll be bringing you the audio of the sermons from Arlington's 10am worship service.
This week's message is called "A Church Like That", and is based on Ephesians 2:19-22.
You can listen on Arlington's web page, listen on and/or download the file from sermon.net/arlington.
Sermon Network is kind enough to host our podcast and those of thousands of other ministries, and has a very user friendly database for sermons on all kinds of scriptures, topics, etc.. Big thanks to Rev. Jill M. Howard for directing my attention to this site.
You can also subscribe to our podcast on iTunes.
This week's message is called "A Church Like That", and is based on Ephesians 2:19-22.
You can listen on Arlington's web page, listen on and/or download the file from sermon.net/arlington.
Sermon Network is kind enough to host our podcast and those of thousands of other ministries, and has a very user friendly database for sermons on all kinds of scriptures, topics, etc.. Big thanks to Rev. Jill M. Howard for directing my attention to this site.
You can also subscribe to our podcast on iTunes.
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