Sermons on Grief
Grieve with Hope by Knowing the Author of Our Story
There is no wrong way to grieve. We can prepare for times of grief by nurturing our relationship with the author of our story; the story of our life and of our common human existence. The second coming of Christ and the rapture are details in one understanding of the story but not critical to our faith. Nurturing a relationship with God as the author of life, can help us to grieve with hope and ease our suffering.
Some Things Are Too Important to Forget
What’s so important that you can’t forget it? On this first Sunday in Advent, Pastor Billy preached on the prophet Habakkuk’s dual reminders: who God is and who we are called to be.
Unbinding Grief, Unbinding Life: Shouting in Windows and Mirrors
Our Lenten Sermon Series, Unbinding Grief, Unbinding Life continues with Pastor Billy’s sermon, Shouting in Windows and Mirrors. Jesus shouts at Lazarus to come forth in John 11:38-53. This is the first time John uses that verb and then he repeats it throughout the passion narrative to contrast Jesus shouting for life and the crowd shouting for death. How can we read the the Bible as both a window and a mirror (also called descriptive/prescriptive reading) and notice ourselves in…
Unbinding Grief, Unbinding Life: The Gift of Tears
In this short section from the story of Lazarus, Jesus comes down to earth. Breaking from his laser focus on his mission and his message, he falls apart. He break down. He weeps. In doing this, he learns what it means to be human, to be vulnerable, to be broken, and to grieve. He becomes human through his tears. We also can become truly human through ours.
Unbinding Grief, Unbinding Life: Whom do You Love?
In this week’s story, Jesus risks his life by returning to Judea to heal Lazarus, despite the warnings from his disciples. We’ll talk about what motivates us to take risks like that and how we can cultivate that kind of love throughout our lives.
Unbinding Grief, Unbinding Life: Part One
We begin a 5 Sunday series inspired by the story of the Raising of Lazarus. What does Jesus mean when he says Lazarus’ illness is “for the glory of God”? In this sermon Pastor Tom explores both the complexity of grieving and God’s transformative power to create new life from death.