Weekly Sermons, Announcements and Events
First Mennonite Church April 14, 2019 Taking the Body of Jesus Text: Mark 14:22-72 Today we are continuing our journey with Jesus as he goes to Golgotha and then to his rising up on the third day. Easter Sunday is this coming Sunday. (But let us be mindful that every Sunday is the Lord’s Day; … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church April 7, 2019 I Am the Resurrection John 11:1-45 Every time I officiate a funeral service, I quote the words of Jesus from two verses of this story. As we can see, the story of Lazarus’ resurrection is both a story of grief and exceeding joy, of love and empathy, and of … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church March 31, 2019 Stand Up and Raise Your Head Text: Luke 21:25-36 Luke precedes the passion narratives with Jesus’ eschatological teaching. Eschatology is the study about the end of time. In dealing with this passage, I want to avoid the typical temptation there is when studying eschatological material—the attempt of answering the … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church March 24, 2019 Jesus, Loved and Hated Text John 12:9-19; Luke 11: 39-40; Matthew 12:10-11 For many years two of my very good friends worked tirelessly for a Christian institution. Work made them go away from home for weeks at a time, sacrificing their time and families many times. They worked long … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church March 17, 2019 A Cross-bearing People Text: Matthew 16:21-28 From Matthew’s perspective, Jesus came to a point in his life where he openly began telling his disciples what awaited him. The future that awaited Jesus was a scary one and one which the disciples were not expecting. The disciples were expecting either … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church March 10, 2018 Subversive Grace and Unwanted Truth Texts: Luke 22:47-53; John 1:14 As we begin to focus our attention on Easter Sunday, let us remember, once again, that the resurrection of Jesus is a fundamental part of our Christian confession. Much of the Christian faith is grounded on the fact that … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church March 3, 2019 Let us Never Go Hungry! Text: John 6:25-35 Chapter six begins with the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand people by the mountainside, across the lake from his base town–Capernaum. As Jesus arrives at the site, he notices a large crowd coming to hear him teach and to … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church February 24, 2019 Stagnant or Flowing Stream? Text: John 7:37-39 7:37 On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, 7:38 and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church February 17, 2019 Jesus and the Samaritan Woman: A Model of Honest Conversation Text: John 4: 1-42 Who is this woman? Her name is not given, but there is a lot of clues that can give us a good portrait of who she is. Her going to the well at noontime suggests … [Read more…]
First Mennonite Church February 10, 2019 “Nicodemus and His Quest for Faith” Text: John 3:1-21 Today and next Sunday, we will be looking at two characters in the gospel of John. Today we will be looking at Nicodemus, whose name literally means the “Conqueror of people or for the people” and next Sunday we will … [Read more…]