Recent Sermons
from Revs. Janet and Jerry Duggins
2nd Quarter 2008 Sermons
From "The Church in the Marketplace" based on Matthew 14:13-21 and 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 ~ Rev. Jerry Duggins ~ June 29, 2008
"...When the church starting using this consumer metaphor a few years back, most
mainline congregations were suspicious. The idea of “marketing the church” to
the community was caricatured as a kind of telemarketing ministry. Many churches
said “We don’t knock on doors… end of discussion.”
"But I want us to consider the
enormous difference between picking up the phone to an unsolicited sales pitch
and receiving good service when walking into a store; between the knock on the
door and the welcome offered to a guest who walks through our door.
"We may not be selling something
in the church, but we do have something to offer. And people who walk into a
church for the first time may not be looking to buy a product, but they’re
looking for something."
read the whole sermon
From "Discipleship: Stewardship of All God's Gifts" based on Matthew
6:25-34 and 1 Chronicles 16:23-36 ~ Rev. Janet Robertson
Duggins ~ June 22, 2008
"Environmental concern is both religious and biblical. To destroy nature is to act as if it
belongs to us, not to God, and as if we have a right to do anything we want
with it. It’s acting as if we (not God)
are in charge. And that’s what
traditional religious language calls ‘sin.’
It is fundamentally a matter of
the heart, and only a real and deep transformation will make any permanent
difference. I hope maybe we are ready
for that spiritual and cultural transformation… but I’m not ready to start
celebrating yet.. Because if the surge
of interest in conservation we’re seeing now is only because gas is $4 a
gallon, it may be that we have a ways to go before selfishness, greed, and
apathy have been truly transformed."
read the whole sermon
From "Discipleship: Building Pathways of Belonging" based on selections from the gospel of Luke
~ Rev. Janet Robertson Duggins ~ June 15,2008
"We
need to be about more than great worship, programs and ministries, more than
warmth and loving relationships, more even than a rich spirituality rooted in
good theology and biblical understanding.
We need to be about building pathways of belonging. You will understand, of course, that by that
I don’t mean figuring out how to get people to join the church and get their
names on the rolls. I mean avenues that
enable people to find their way in… to genuine community in which they are
helped and supported in finding connection with Christ. Because it’s near to impossible for us to
help anybody develop and grow in a life of discipleship, of following Jesus,
until they begin to feel they belong.
And that means making room not just in the building but in our hearts and
our lives for them."
read the whole sermon
From "The Disciple's House" based on Matthew 7:21-29
~ Rev. Jerry Duggins ~ June 8, 2008
If you could have only one portion of scripture, there are many who would choose
these three chapters from Matthew that we call the “sermon on the mount.” Just a sampling of its
teachings:
Happiness is not the exclusive
property of the rich, the comfortable, the strong, the ambitious, and those
adept at the ways of the world.“You are salt for the earth.”
You’re not here to serve your ends and enrich yourself at the expense of others,
but to be a blessing and to serve others.... Settling for satisfying the
letter of the law will gain you nothing. The law is intended to build character,
not impose compliance. ... Treat others in the way that you
would like to be treated yourself.
Do these things and you will
truly live. Had the church been more faithful in living out this kingdom ethic,
its history would be very different and the world would not be what it is today.
This is not to say that the church hasn’t sometimes followed Jesus. It has played its role in loosing the bonds of
injustice from South Africa
to Central America. It has loaned its wisdom to
liberation movements for women and men, for black and white, for citizen and
stranger. Its ethic gave power to fight Apartheid, to advocate for civil rights,
to break down all manner of walls that divide. But for such things to happen it takes
disciples attending to and enacting the words of Jesus.
... There is nothing
more important for the disciple of Christ than attending to his words and
applying it in our lives."
read the whole sermon
From "Claiming the Church's Identity as Disciple-Maker" based on Matthew 28:16-20 and Ephesians 4:1-16
~ Rev. Jerry Duggins ~ June 1, 2008
"...the call to make disciples has not only an individual application, but also a
corporate character. Not only are individual Christians called to extend the
invitation for others to join them on the path of following Jesus, but the
church exists for this very purpose.
The church does not exist to
provide like-minded people a place to worship. It does not exist to provide
refreshment and fellowship. It does not exist to alleviate the needs of
suffering and marginalized people. It does not exist in order to make the world
a better place. Its primary purpose is to invite others to follow Christ. Yes,
churches do those other things, but they do so as expressions of following
Jesus. All churches, insofar as they are being the church, engage first and
foremost in making disciples. Churches are composed of disciples who have come
together for this very purpose. Why? Because we believe that following Jesus
changes lives for the better."
read the whole sermon
From "Being a Disciple" based on Matthew 28:16-20
~ Rev. Janet Robertson Duggins ~ May 25, 2008
"Being a disciple means identifying
yourself with Jesus and with his people. What does it mean for you to identify
yourself with Jesus?
It says something about how you
understand who you are, and who you belong to.
It implies a commitment to genuine connection with other people who also
identify themselves as followers of Jesus.
(More about that another time!)
It doesn’t mean you give up your unique identity
as a person; it means simply saying “yes” to following Jesus, and trying
everyday to figure out what that means in your
life, and taking the next step.
It implies a certain humility; you’ve got to realize that you aren’t the
one in charge, that you aren’t on a solitary quest, and that you need help
sometimes. "
read the whole sermon
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