Sermons from September 2010

By The Rev. Sherry Crompton September 26, 2010 Read: Luke 16:19-31 The story of the rich man and Lazarus. The contrasts in this story told by Jesus are as stark as its message. We are seemingly left here with good or bad, right or wrong, stark black or white with no gray areas in between. We have a rich man, clothed in purple. Purple, as you know, is traditionally the color of royalty. Virtually any commentary will tell you that…

By The Rev. Sherry Crompton September 19, 2010 Read: Luke 16:1-13 Picture yourself as the owner of a small-town hardware store. One day it strikes you that you have been working too hard. So you hire a store manager and you go off on a well-deserved and long-overdue fishing trip. And then, a number of filled creels later, you come home. It has been a great trip. You’ve had your fill of fishing. You have not been so rested in…

By The Rev. Sherry Crompton September 12, 2010 Read: Luke 15:1-10 So, today we hear from Luke that Jesus was welcoming sinners and eating with them. The Pharisees and scribes were grumbling about this. Jesus was keeping company with sinners. We must admit, that they kind of had a point. -Bad company leads to bad conduct. Wise parents encourage their children to seek out wholesome friends. – Table fellowship implies acceptance, and Jesus could leave the wrong impression by eating…

By The Rev. Sherry Crompton September 5, 2010Read: Luke 14:25-33 Luciano Pavarotti, the immensely talented operatic tenor who crossed the boundary into popular music, once commented on a lesson he learned from his father. “When I was a boy, my father, who was a baker, introduced me to the wonders of song. He urged me to work very hard to develop my voice. A professional tenor in my home town took me on as a student. I also enrolled in…