Sermons from September 2011

By The Rev. Sherry Deets September 25, 2011 Matthew 21: 23-32 In our gospel today, Jesus and the Pharisees are exchanging trick questions. The Pharisees ask Jesus where he gets his authority to teach and heal, and they’re hoping to trap him to saying something stupid. And Jesus asks a trick question of his own, having to do with John the Baptist, and any answer the Pharisees offer will back them into a corner, so they play dumb. It is…

By The Rev. Sherry Deets September 18, 2011 Matthew 20:1-16 Be honest. When you heard the reading of the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard just now, did your heart leap for joy? Were you thrilled when you heard that the workers who’d toiled and slaved all day long in the hot sun were going to get the same day’s wages as those who’d worked only one hour? I doubt it! Let’s face it, this is not one of…

By The Rev. Sherry Deets September 11, 2011 You may have heard the story of the woman who spent the first day after her divorce sadly packing her belongings into boxes, crates and suitcases.1 On the second day, she had the movers come and collect her things. On the third day, she sat down on the floor in the dining room by candlelight, put on some soft background music, and feasted on a pound of shrimp, a jar of caviar,…

By The Rev. Sherry Deets September 4, 2011 Matthew 18:15-20 So…Matthew wants everything to be perfect, and that includes his church. Conflicts have arisen among some of the members of Matthew’s congregation, and he just can’t stand it. He wants everything to be perfect and in order, and conflict, if nothing else, is a messy business. I can imagine him lying awake at night, thinking about how to deal with the problems he’s encountering among the fellowship. He remembers what…