The 23rd Sunday after Pentecost

/in , /by
Read more

All Saints Sunday

/in , /by
Read more

What Are Your Fears For The Future, Both Now and Long-Term?

/in , /by
What Are Your Fears For The Future, Both Now and Long-Term?
Jeremiah 31:27-34

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of humans and the seed of animals. And just as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will watch over them to build and to plant, says the Lord. In those days they shall no longer say: “The parents have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.” But all shall die for their own sins; the teeth of everyone who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt– a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

– – – – – –

The days are surely coming. The phrase itself feels ominous, scary even. As we look around at what fills our current days, chronic stress and fatigue, political divisiveness, social unrest, climate crisis, and ongoing pandemic (just to name a few), thinking about what future days will hold can feel like an exercise in exploring our own nightmares. Yet here in Jeremiah, we hear God confirming that indeed the days are surely coming, although they won’t be filled with the terror and calamities that we fear. Instead, God promises that there will come a day when there are no more sour grapes, and the vineyard of Israel will be lush with fruit that grows from the seeds sowed from God’s promise. We are reminded that while the history of God’s relationship with the chosen of Israel is one of broken covenant, it is also a history of continued invitation and commitment to communion with one another. Grafted into that covenantal relationship, we are also invited into the promise of God. The days are surely coming, and though they may be ripe with the disasters and tragedies of life, so too will they be days when God proclaims: “I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

  • What are your fears for the future, both immediate and long-term?
  • What does God’s promise of a future of redeemed relationship do to those fears?
  • How might the belief in a future in which God calls out, “I will be their God, and they shall be my people” affect and influence your present?
This Bible study, written by the Andrew Gordon

580 Cafe Back To School Love-Your-Neighbor Pizza Party and Ice cream Social.

/in , /by
580 Cafe Back To School Love-Your-Neighbor Pizza Party and Ice cream Social.

Grab a fellow or former student and join us tonight, October 12th, 5-7pm for our Love Your Neighbor Dinner with 580 Cafe. Meet college students and share laughs and wisdom as they embark on a new school year.

Our New Senior Care Ministry Seeks Your Donations

/in , /by
Our newly established Senior Care Ministry is seeking your support in making a financial donation for much-needed resources to our elderly seniors who have little or no support. Remind our home-bound or nursing center parishioners that they are remembered and loved with resources and support provided by our Parish that also keeps them connected to church life. For more details contact Deacon Mossman at: deacon@stalbanswestwood.org

Understanding Ourselves & Belonging To God

/in , /by
Understanding Ourselves & Belonging To God
2 Timothy 2:8-15
Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David– that is my gospel, for which I suffer hardship, even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, so that they may also obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; if we are faithless, he remains faithful– for he cannot deny himself. Remind them of this, and warn them before God that they are to avoid wrangling over words, which does no good but only ruins those who are listening. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.

– – – – – –

Tradition tells us this letter was written by Paul, though scholars widely agree that it was someone writing under Paul’s name. The letter is addressed to Timothy, a leader of a young Christian community facing serious divisions. The author writes to instill confidence in Timothy to lead his church. As long as he follows the right path, he will find support in God. We may feel restrained in this world, “but the word of God is not chained” (2 Tim. 2:9, NRSV). The world may seem to be one of scarcity, but in God, there is only abundance.

Talking about Jesus, the letter promises, “If we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us” (v. 12). Will Jesus give up on us if we reject him? Perhaps instead of offering a threat, the letter reveals how closely we are united with Christ; denying him is equivalent to denying ourselves. Our true natures abide in God. The next line continues, “If we are faithless, he remains faithful” (v. 13a). Both are true at the same time: rejecting Jesus is as dire as denying our true selves, and yet, Jesus remains faithful, regardless of our wavering.

In what ways are you “chained” in life, and how does God’s word offer abundance?
In what way does our self-understanding change when we see ourselves first as belonging to God?

This Bible study, written by the Rev. Daniel Johnson, OPA