The Word of God Written: Part 1, 2 in a Series

Posted on March 4, 2019 by

This morning I am continuing a short series of sermons on the Word of God. In the Bible the Word of God appears in three forms: 1) The Word of God Spoken, 2) The Word of God Written, and 3) The Word of God Incarnate or Made Flesh in Jesus Christ.

Last week, we talked about the Word of God, spoken.  We saw that when God wanted to Speak to his people, he spoke through one of his prophets. More than 109 times in the Hebrew Bible we read, “The word of the Lord came to” one of God’s prophets, male and female.  Thus God spoke to Isaiah saying, “I have put my words in your mouth.” And God spoke to Jeremiah saying, “If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you will be as my mouth.” Continue reading →

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Lent on Hawthorne Road

Posted on February 25, 2019 by
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We have a very excited Lent beginning with Communion in the Sanctuary between 6:00 and 7:00 p.m. Ash Wednesday, and ending with Holy Week and Easter.

Shrove Tuesday March 5th

Pastor’s Tea from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the Downstairs Library.  Ladies only.  Arrive 15 minutes early to greet your friends., and expect the tea to be over precisely at 3:00 p.m.  Contact the pastor if you want to attend and have not been contacted.  Pastor’s Email: frieschurch6@gmail.com

Wednesday March 6th

Drop by the church sanctuary from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. The pastor will be serving the Holy Communion to individuals and small groups every 15 minutes.  You are invited to read scripture, pray and meditate until you are ready to receive the Lord’s Supper.

Sundays

Most of our Lenten Programing will take place on Sunday night at 6:30 to 8:00 p.m.  We will gather at 6:30 p.m. for fellowship and refreshments.  Special programing will follow at 7:00 p.m., and we will be out by 8:00 p.m.

Continue reading →

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The Word of God Spoken: 1 in a Series

Posted on February 25, 2019 by

The Word of God Spoken

This morning I am beginning a short series of sermons on the Word of God. In the Bible the Word of God appears in three forms: 1) The Word of God Spoken, 2) The Word of God Written, and 3) The Word of God Incarnate in Jesus Christ. Today, I am going to talk to you about the Word of God, spoken.

109 times in the Hebrew Bible, our Old Testament we read that “the word of the LORD came to” one of God’s prophets.

God uses a prophet to make God’s Self heard. Thus God spoke to the prophet Isaiah saying, “I have put my words in your mouth.” (Isaiah 51) And God spoke to the prophet Jeremiah saying, “If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as my mouth.” (Jeremiah 15)

The prophet of God speaks the Word of God to the people of God in times of trial or crisis.  Thus, in the days of Ahab the king,  the prophet Elijah spoke to the people of Israel when they were flirting with the worship of Baal saying: Continue reading →

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Life Long Leaning: Psalm 71

Posted on February 4, 2019 by

Last week I told you that Jesus was a life long learner.  In Luke 2:11 we read that, as a boy he grew in wisdom and knowledge, and in favor with God and human kind. And in Hebrews 2:9,  we read that as an adult, by the grace of God, he tasted death for everyone.  If I may borrow a phrase from Whittier, Jesus had “…knowledge never learned of schools.”

Every believer ought to be a life-long learner.  John Calvin said that Christian maturity is based upon our maintaining a kind of perpetual adolescence. No matter how old we are, we have got to be ready to learn the lessons that God still wants to teach us, and ready to take-on the tasks that God still sets before. This is true for the youngest and oldest among us. We may retire from a life of labor, but as Christians we never retire. In Revelation 2:10 we read that it is those who are “faithful unto death” that receive “the crown of life.” 

This morning, I want to point out that the author of Psalm 71 was a life long leaner.  The psalmist reverses the logical flow of life, but he beautifully describes what it means to be a child of the covenant.  In verse 5 he writes, “O Lord, you are my hope and my trust from my youth.”  Remember the words, “hope” and “trust.” We will come back to them.  Then in verse 6 he writes, “Upon you I have leaned from my birth.” Continue reading →

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New Directions: Luke 4:14-30

Posted on January 28, 2019 by

Luke 4:14-30

In Luke 4 we read that, after his temptation, Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee, and he taught in a number of Galilean synagogues.  And the people who heard him “glorified” him, and talked him up to all their friends and neighbors.  That word glorified is an interesting one.  It means that people put Jesus on a pedestal and said he was special. At this juncture in the ministry of Jesus, this mean that people were already calling Jesus a prophet, like Elijah, or Elisha, or one of the other Spirit empowered prophets of old.

Now it was not long before Jesus came to the village of Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and he went to the synagogue, as his custom was, on the Sabbath day. 

I think it is interesting that Jesus had “the custom” or “the habit” of going to the synagogue on the Sabbath.  This is important for two reasons: Continue reading →

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