Sermons & Worship Audio

  View Archived Sermons     Isaiah 65:17-25    Our scripture text for today comes from Isaiah 65:17-25.  These are the words of God as recorded for us in the tradition of the prophet Isaiah sometime in the post-exilic period of Israel.  (oral recitation of Isaiah 65:17-25)In these verses, the prophet Isaiah reveals to us God’s promise and desire to create new heavens and a new earth.The poetry, symbols and images of Isaiah give us an important glimpse into God’s desires…

    View Archived Sermons    Scripture: Matthew 5, Micah 6: 8    Part 1 – Remembering the victims of violence I remember, Je me souviensI remember, but mostly I’d rather forgetMostly I’d rather sit in my corner and cry, wail, lament I remember the things we do and don’t do to each other: war, injustice, poverty, torture, broken relationships, bullying, meanness, gossip, betrayal, …I remember, but sometimes I’d rather forget Yeah, I’d rather forgetDenial tempts meBecause I don’t care?or…

  View Archived Sermons   Colossians 3:15-17 15And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 17And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks…

View Archived Sermons   Luke 11:1-9 Jodie: Matthew chapter 6 – And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Doug: Luke chapter 11 – He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” He said…

  View Archived Sermons   Exodus 20:1-17; Matt. 5: 17-20       On the surface this morning our scripture texts do not seem to have much to do with Gratitude or Thanksgiving.  I propose this morning that not only do they have something to do with Gratitude or Thanksgiving, but within them one may find a foundation for Gratitude. I begin this morning with a personal story of gratitude.     Earlier this week, on Monday in fact, I was reminded of how…

View Archived Sermons     Ephesians 2:11-22 Welcome and inclusion have become really important words/ideas in the church.  – and for good reasons.  We are a mobile society and one of our fundamental needs is to find and experience a community where we belong or feel at home.  The fulfillment of this need often eludes many in our society. From TUMC’s declaration of Values and Identity (in a listening process that this congregation undertook in 2008)I find the following list…

View Archived Sermons     Deuteronomy 6:4-25   On August 27, the following headline appeared on CNN.com: “Author: More teens are becoming ‘fake’ Christians”.  A link to the article, and some related links, can be found at the bottom of the sermon. The article begins: “If you’re the parent of a Christian teenager, Kenda Creasy Dean has this warning: Your child is following a ‘mutant’ form of Christianity, and you may be responsible.” I know that with Gathering Sunday, we…

View Archived Sermons Psalm 139 and Jeremiah 18:1-12   Just like the clay in the potter’s hands so are you in my hands O house of Israel. Clay is a malleable substance – something that can be formed and transformed in a literal hands-on relationship between the potter and the clay. Just like the clay in the potter’s hands so are you in my hands O house of Israel. Do you think that the house of Israel was comforted by…

View Archived Sermons   Luke 12:32-34 Our Summer theme as many of you are aware has been Holy Headlines:  News and Good news.I wondered as we approached this theme whether the news as we hear it or read it and the Good news of scripture might be mutually exclusive.  If you are an avid “news junky” you will realize that this is not always the case.  A couple of weeks ago I preached a sermon entitled,  “who is my Neighbour?” …

View Archived Sermons       (Psalm 112; Luke 14:1, 7–14) Years ago I was a graduate student in religious studies at McMaster University. One of the required seminars was on method and theory in the study of religion. Every week the professor assigned a reading from philosophy, theology, sociology, or the like. One week he handed out a reading that was only five pages. One of my colleagues commented that this was very short. The prof looked at him…