November 2, 2014 - All Saints Day

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for November 2nd: Revelation 7:9-17; Psalm 34:1-10,22; 1 John 3:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12; Theme: All Saint’s Day Song: Marching to Zion UMH 733 1 John : This verse is the prequel to the book of Revelations. John is reminding us that one day we will all live in heaven with Jesus, but today we all still live on earth. In heaven life will be perfect, but we will be perfect also, but today we are all less than perfect. John tells us that we are not in heaven yet, but we should live as if we intend to get there. We need to purify ourselves and to purify our lives. We need to know that Christ gives us the power to live as perfect people here on Earth. We are perfect when we strive for heaven and do the will of God. The power of Christ lies in our ability to love one another. Matthew: This is the beatitudes. These are the keys to our happiness. Jesus us saying that it is in our struggles, our hardships our suffering, that we learn to have faith. He is saying that those who persevere in spite of those things, have to keys to happiness. God knows their hearts and will bless their efforts. Heaven is only for those who persevered in this life. It is only in this life that we truly come to understand who God is. If everything is going well, then we have no need for God. And if we have no need for God, when we meet God face to face then we will not even know who he is. So do not be afraid of the challenges and struggles. God will be with you through it all, and he will reward you afterward. We also remember the struggles of others, and we thank God that they are now at peace in heaven. Questions: What do you imagine heaven to be like? What would it be like to live in a perfect world? As a human would you get bored? How are you preparing yourself for heaven in your life now? How do you feel blessed? When was a time in your life when you know God bought you through? How were you different after that experience?

October 19, 2014 - 19th Sunday After Pentecost

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for October 19th: Exodus 33:12-23; Psalm 99; 1 Thessalonians 1”1-10; Matthew 22:15-22; Theme: Laity Sunday; Song: O how I Love Jesus UMH 170 Exodus: This section of Exodus shows a shift in where the people are. God has told them that they are to move from the wilderness and now it is time for them to come to the promised land. And the people are not ready to go – they like where they are. It takes Moses a year to convince them that it is time to go to a different place. In his leadership, Moses goes to God for assurance. He needs to make sure that it is really God leading them. As a matter of fact, God says that he will lead the people to where they have to go himself. Moses needs to sure that he is really talking to God, so he asks if God will appear to him, so that he can see his face. No one can look upon the face of God and live, but God appears to our lives, and more importantly, if we are paying attention we can feel God’s presence. Matthew: This is the section where Jesus is tested by the Pharisees. We learned last week that Jesus took no formal training to be a rabbi. He talked to the common people in common language. This was a direct threat to the power of the religious leaders. No wonder they spent so much time hunting him down and asking him questions. They were not supposed to have a coin with Ceasar’s face in the temple. Jesus uses this coin to show them that they are hypocrites. They are criticizing him, when they are not doing what is right. The lesson from Jesus is that we should do the things of God, and not man. Give what belongs to man to man, but give what belongs to God to God. Your heart and soul should belong to God. Questions: When has God appeared in your life? What did God look like? What did God do? Where has God led you in the last year? Where do you want to go in your faith? How can you give your heart and soul to God? What things do you do to test Jesus? What things does he do to test you?

October 12, 2014 - 18th Sunday of Pentecost

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for October 12th: Exodus 32: 1-14; Psalm 106: 1-6,19-23; Philippians 4:1-9; Matthew 22:1-14; Theme: Jesus’ Salvation is intended for everyone; Song: What a Friend we have in Jesus UMH 526 Philippians: Community is the key to being a Christian. You cannot be a Christian on an island. And yet sometimes living with others is the biggest challenge of the church. Paul understands that even the best of churches have conflict. It is conflict that can destroy the worst of churches. In this verse, Paul addresses conflict in the Philippian church head on. Two women are going at it and everyone is taking sides. Paul tells them that it time to cool out. He enlist the help of the local bishop to keep the women honest. He tells all churches that when conflict is destroying the church – the church should rejoice, pray, and once you give it to God to go forward in peace, knowing that God will take care of it. Matthew: Jesus is explaining to the powers that be, the authority that he has to teach people about God. He is the Son of God and received his authority directly from God. God does all that God can to get our attention. God sends all kinds of messages and all kind of messengers. The biggest messenger we can have is Jesus Christ. Coming to God is like taking part in a feast. We are all invited to the party. God learned that is was useless to have an exclusive list. People get so interested in coming to the party that they forget who invited them. Jesus reminds us as church people that we should not get to exclusive and thinking that we are special. We are only special because of God’s love. We have to remember, just because we get an invitation, doesn’t mean we will get in the party. We have to put on the fruits of the spirit, love, gentleness, peace, kindness and demonstrate them in all that we do. God does not need us, we need God. Questions: What happens in your church when there is conflict? What biblical principles are put in place to help solve it, who are the people that serve as mediators? What does it mean for God to invite all people to the table? What role do you play in making that happen? Is being a Christian a right or a priviledge? Is God’s party here on earth, in heaven or both?

September 28, 2014

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for September 28th: Exodus 17:1-7; Psalm 78:1-4,12-16; Philippians 2:1-13; Matthew 21:23-32; Theme: God always Provides; song: God will take care of you UMH 130 Exodus: You can survive for a few months without food, but only a few days without water of some kind. In our world we tend to take water for granted. All you have to do is to turn on the faucet, and the water flows. But what happens when you are in a place where there is not water? What happens when you are really thirsty and there is nothing available to quench you thirst? We have to remember that God knows what you need in order to survive. God will provide. We don’t know what is in store for us, But God does. God thinks ahead of us and behind us. We have to live in trust and pray for what we need. God provides for us in even the harshest circumstances. And if he has a plan for our future, he will provide for our survival. If we do not survive, there is no glory for God. God will take care us for his sake and his glory. Philippians: Paul reminds us that Christ is the glue for our unity. Paul reminds us that as Christians, we live in community. We are never alone in our faith journey, Christ provides a community that helps us to survive. So Paul reminds us what belief in Christ does for us. Paul uses a hymn that everyone is familiar with to remind us of the benefits of unity. There is encouragement, comfort, sharing and joy. He encourages us not to do anything to interfere with that unity. Faith is never about me, it is always about us. We have to remember that Christ showed us the way. God always provides so that we can live out his purposes. Questions: what do you do when you have a fear of losing your basic needs? Do you have the patience to trust God in those times? Do you complain or do you pray? How have you experienced the miracle provisions of God? what does unity mean to you? What does it mean to live in community? How do you practice community? How do you pull away?

September 14, 2014 - 14th Sunday After Pentecost

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for September 14th: Exodus 14:19-31; Exodus 15:1-11,20-21; Romans 14:1-12; Matthew 18:21-35; Theme: How to Forgive; Song: Help Us Accept Each Other UMH 560 Romans: John Wesley said that we should accept diversity and difference of opinion in everything but the salvation of Jesus Christ. There is never a time when we are all on the same page. But we have to learn how to live with one another anyway. We are always on different pages on our understanding of Christianity. We study on different levels. And yet no matter where we may be in our faith, we are all saved by grace. Paul says that if God has given you grace, then you should be able to give grace to others. There will never be a time when we are all on the same page, but the work of the Holy Spirit beings us together in spite of our differences. We just have to believe that the Spirit is at work, to trust and to move forward. Matthew: Last week Jesus talked about the importance of forgiveness. Today, Jesus tells us how to forgive and the difference it makes in the life of the community. This is a part of Jesus, sermon on the church. Jesus knows that being a Christian is hard work. He knows that being a part of a community is hard work. But that we have to be willing to go through the process. Forgiveness is what we do. Forgiveness is the key to salvation. Forgiveness is what sets us apart from the rest of the world. God forgives us, we need to remember that when it is time to forgive others. We follow in the footsteps of God’s actions, and we live according to them. God is a God of mercy, it is mercy that we depend on. Spread the word of mercy to the world. Questions: Who are those who are weak in faith? How do we take the time to understand them? When we see people doing something that we are not familiar with, do we correct them, try to understand them or both? What stands in the way of you being able to forgive others? How has God forgiven you? What does it mean to give others grace?

September 7, 2014 - 13th Sunday After Pentecost

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for September 7th: Exodus 12:1-14; Psalm 149; Romans 13:8-14; Matthew 18:15-20; Theme: Love others as God loves ; Song: Help Us Accept Each Other UMH 560 Romans: The way that we live our lives says everything about our faith. We don’t be Christian, just to those we like. The true test of our Christianity is how we treat everyone. We are encouraged to be transparent in our selves. Paul says to live in honor. Be the same in every situation, and around every person. It is important for us to learn to live in the light. It is the light that makes us strong and gives us strength. Jesus Christ is our strength. The more we claim Christ, the easier it is for us to do the right thing. We should always believe in the power of love to transform any relationship. Love makes the world go around. The love of Christians make a difference in the world. It is about Christ, and not about us. Matthew: Jesus takes Romans a little further. What we demonstrate to others, we must also demonstrate to one another. We have to love one another, but a part of that love is accountability. He have to be honest and to ask for forgiveness, to give forgiveness, and to learn to repent. Jesus says that the church is a safe place to do all of that. It is important to listen to our sisters and brothers. We have to let them judge us, so that we don’t place judgement on ourselves. When we isolate ourselves, sin is more likely to take over. When we are in community, the community has the power to fight our sin, and to bring it out of us. Questions: Is it easy to love everyone? Or is it easier to love people who are most like us? What do you need in order to love everyone the same? What does it mean to live in community? What do you do to intentionally forgive others? What do you do to hold other Christians accountable? Is it easy to be honest with them? Can the church really effectively judge others?

August 31, 2014 - 12th Sunday of Pentecost

Breaking Open the Scripture Scriptures for August 31st: Exodus 3:1-15; Psalm 105:1-6;23-26,45; Romans 12:9-21; Matthew 16:21-28; Theme: Being called by God for Such a time as this; Song: Take my Life and Let it be UMH 399 UMH Romans: These are instructions on how to live according to God’s will. We have to love one another. We have to forgive one another, we have to be intentional about putting love into the world. The only way to defeat the devil to be committed to doing what is right. It is easy to think that evil will prevail. The only thing to make evil win is for good people to stand by and to do nothing. Not only do we have to represent what is right, we have to be willing to teach others. We have to be examples for others. Once we are finally able to transform our minds, we have to transform others, and then have to courage to transform the world. Exodus: This is the story of the calling of Moses. Moses comes face to face with God in the form of the burning bush. God tells him what he must do to save his people. Moses goes away from the experience changed forever. The good news is that God is always in touch with what is going on in the day. God always raises people up to face the challenges of the day. God is always presenting himself in mysterious and miraculous ways. When God introduces himself he says I am who I am. He really says I will be, who I will be. God can see future, and he is preparing us for it. And when our time is up, someone will follow in our footsteps, prepared to lead God’s people into a new day. Questions: What do you need to have hope in the world? What do you need to believe in the power to transform? How do you treat those who mistreat you? What is going on in the world so that God needs a vessel to change the world? How is God appearing in our age today? Who is God raising up to be the new Moses?