Sermons from February 2008

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonFebruary 24, 2008John 4:5-42 Wow! John’s gospel story is rich, it’s loaded with meaning….deep, spiritual meaning. I can’t begin to touch everything that’s happening in this story today, but I’ll share what seems important for us now, here, today. First of all, it is a surprising story….a remarkable story….because the conversation between Jesus and the Samaritan woman shouldn’t have happened. The barriers to the conversation are great. Jesus is a Jew and the woman is…

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonFebruary 10, 2008Read: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 and Matthew 4:1-11 This morning we hear two very familiar stories…Adam and Eve with the serpent, eating the forbidden fruit. And Jesus in the wilderness being tempted by Satan. Temptation is a prominent theme. But what about temptation? What about Satan? What about the serpent? It seems that the temptations we face are really the same temptation, to take charge..to take control and not let God be God. Or…

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonFebruary 6, 2008 (Ash Wednesday)Read: Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 Tonight we are reminded that we are all sinners…that we are all in need of forgiveness. We are also reminded that we are God’s property. God is the ultimate forgiver. God is the healer who begins to change us from the inside when the sick soul cries out for help. God is the one who creates a clean heart. The Gospel doesn’t guarantee our physical well-being, or…

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonFebruary 3, 2008 Transfiguration (Last Epiphany)Read: Matthew 17:1-9 The Transfiguration. Jesus on the mountaintop transformed, an awe-inspiring vision of the presence of God for Peter, James and John. Unmistakable. And I wonder, what can I say about such an experience. The Bible is filled with these encounters, these epiphanies. There is Moses and the burning bush, Jacob and the ladder full of angels, Job and the voice out of the whirlwind. “They are all cracked…