Sermons from 2008

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton December 24, 2008 – Christmas Eve Read: Luke 2:1-14 Teenage girl, much too youngUnprepared for what’s to comeA baby changes everything Not a ringOn her handAll her dreams and all her plansA baby changes everythingA baby changes everything The man she loves she’s never touchedHow will she Keep his trustA baby changes everythingA baby changes everything And she cries, oh she cries She has to leave, go far awayHeaven knows she can’t stayA baby…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton December 14, 2008 Read: John 1:6-8, 19-28 We have John the Baptist with us again this Sunday. John, a man sent from God to be a witness to the Light. John seemed pretty clear about who he was and who he was not. When he was under interrogation about just who he thought he was, he didn’t waver. He was clear about who he was not and as for who he was, he said.…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton December 7, 2008 Read: Mark 1:1-8 “In the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God”. Isn’t it striking how Mark begins his gospel? There are no angels appearing, no wise men from the East, no long list of geneology, no journey to the Inn; but an intriguing statement: “In the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” and a strange messenger in the wilderness.…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton November 30, 2008 Read: Mark 13:24-37 Chapter 13 of Mark’s gospel is often referred to as “The Little Apocalypse” based on it’s similarity to the Great Apocalypse of the Revelation of John. Our piece of scripture today is taken from that chapter, The Little Apocalypse. Last week I asked the question, what if today were the end of the world? As C.S. Lewis said, once the author walks onto stage, the play is over.…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton November 23, 2008 (Christ the King) Read: Matthew 25:31-46 Judgment Day. Our Last Sunday in Pentecost, this Christ the King Sunday, gives us imagery of Judgment Day. A great lead in to the season of Advent. I’ll begin with the words to a song by Johnson Oatman entitled “If Today Were the End of the World”. “If Today Were the End of the World,” By Johnson Oatman. The chorus is: If the sun should…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton November 9, 2008 Read: Matthew 25: 1-13 Today Matthew gives us the parable of the ten bridesmaids–Five are wise and five are foolish. This parable can seem, on the surface, to be a tough one. There is the uncomfortableness surrounding staying awake, the wise not sharing their oil with the foolish, and the seemingly closed door. That’s on the surface, though. Let’s dig deeper. Jesus says, “The Kingdom of heaven WILL BE like this.”…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton November 2, 2008 Read: Revelation 7:9-17 and Matthew 5:1-12 This morning, for our opening hymn, we sang a classic Episcopal hymn: For All the Saints. I was reminded at Bible study how comforting the words can be: For all the saints, who from their labors rest,who thee by faith before the world confessed,thy Name, O Jesus, be forever blessed.Thou wast their rock, their fortress, and their might:Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;thou,…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton October 26, 2008 Read: Matthew 22:34-36 “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” And Jesus answers with this: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and first commandment, and the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets”. On these…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton October 12, 2008 Read: Exodus 32:1-14 and Matthew 22:1-14 So what in the world is going on for us today? There is much anxiety on and about Wall Street, the stock market moving up and down at alarming speed. In just a few weeks, we will be participating in a national election and there is some fire in the belly regarding just who one might be voting for. There is much fear and anxiety…

By The Very Rev. Sherry Crompton October 5, 2008 Read: Matthew 21:33-46 Today’s parable about the landowner and the vineyard is present in all three of what are called the synoptic gospels: Matthew, Mark and Luke. For me, that implies a significance to this story, that it made it in all three tellings of the story of Jesus’ life. It’s an important story, with important messages. And recall last Sunday, I suggested that we look at these stories in the…

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonSeptember 28, 2008 Read: Matthew 21:23-32 In Matthew’s Gospel story today, we once again hear Jesus speaking with the chief priests and the elders of the people. I want to issue a challenge to all of us today about just who we think we are in this story; where we place ourselves. It is easy to read this story in Matthew today and sit back and say, “You go, Jesus”. Those elders and chief priests…

By The Very Rev. Sherry CromptonSeptember 14, 2008 Read: Matthew 18:21-35 Today’s topic is forgiveness. It’s a tough one. I think it’s safe to say that we have all been in a position where we were hurt or injured by another’s actions and forgiveness proves to be a difficult act. Even Peter recognized that difficulty when he asks Jesus how often he should forgive another member of the church. Peter thought he was being very generous by offering 7 as…