The Joshua Victor Theory

(Singing with the Exiles Series, Rev. Reed Lessing)  “Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel, for I myself will help you, declares Yahweh, your Restorer, the Holy One of Israel.” Isaiah 41:14.   If you could become any animal in the world, which one would you choose?   Maybe like Isaiah you would soar on wings like an eagle. Or like Amos perhaps the lion is your animal of choice, because you love to rumble in the jungle! Or maybe like Elisha you boast in the bear because when it comes to obstacles you maim and you maul. Or if your name is Caleb – which in Hebrew means dog – you just might choose to be a sweet and faithful little dog. Question. How many of you would like to become a worm?   May I see a show of hands? That’s just what I thought. None of you are worm wannabes!   I don’t blame you. Worms have no arms, no legs, and no eyes! They’re small and insignificant and, if you ask me, worms don’t have a lot of personality! No one ever stops their ...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Today on Ash Wednesday, we begin the journey following Jesus to His cross and resurrection, taking stock of our sin and our need for repentance or turning away from sin, and witnessing the perfect love and sacrifice of Jesus for our sins. To aid our meditation during Lent, we’re going to study and meditate deeply on the Beatitudes. A few months ago on All Saints’ Day I preached on the whole set of the Beatitudes, and described them as “Christ-colored glasses” through which the believer in Jesus sees how they stand before God. They are not descriptions of the Christian life only and not about Christ—and neither can we understand them as only descriptions of Christ and not reflecting on the Christian life. Instead, they show Jesus as the source and strength of the Christian life and how it takes shape from Jesus’ own life. Since this is the first in the series, let’s briefly introduce them. There are nine “Blesse...

Podcast available here The First Commandment

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. In our western, American culture, we have a great admiration for the icons of “rugged individualism.” There’s something that appeals to us about the pioneer spirit of those who forged their way westward across our country, and were tough, self-reliant individuals. They took their destiny into their own hands. In the wild West some of them even took the law in their own hands. But whatever the merits of self-determination may be, individualism pushed to its extreme can lead us into isolating ourselves from others in our community. It can lead us to pursue things harmful to us, against God’s guiding. The mindset of many today is that “life is better in my hands.” When I’m at the control seat, things will be better. As we contemplate our reading from 1 Peter tonight, I want us to see why those words: “Life is better in my hands” are better heard coming from God than us. It’s better for us to hear God’s calling, and t...

Note: This is Part 1 of a Six-Part Lenten Sermon Series on the Subject: "Questions about Jesus that they don't want answered." Keep posted for the remainder of the series. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. Today with Ash Wednesday we begin the solemn season of Lent, a time for putting to death our sinful passions, a time for heightened awareness of our sin, and most importantly a time for focusing on the sufferings of Jesus Christ for our sins. The ashes on your forehead remind you that ever since the Fall into sin, the curse of death is that “Dust you are, and to dust you shall return” (Gen. 3:19b). In keeping with the focus of Lent on Jesus’ death for sinners, our Lenten sermon series that will lead us forward to Holy Week and Easter is going to be titled: “Questions about Jesus they don’t want answered.” These sermons will center around six questions about Jesus to test who He was, that come from the Gospel of Matthew. As we look ...