Sunday Services:
Sunday School: 9:45 am
Worship: 10:55 am
Directions to Cedar Cliff UMC: Map
From I-85/40 (Graham). Travel south 8 miles on NC-87 towards Pittsboro. Turn left onto Cedar Cliff Rd. Church is 1/2 mile on right
Please come visit us and our church family!
Greetings to our friends and neighbors!
(Isaiah 61:1-3; Luke 4:21-30)
Sunday’s sermon this week began with a simple question: “What do you expect from a sermon?” Several answers were given from the pews: knowledge of God… motivation… inspiration… comfort… hope… peace… truth… a challenge. I did not call out an answer of my own because I was focused on taking notes.
I was going to say meaning. I want to know what the pastor thinks about the scripture. “What does it all mean?” I want to ask him during Sunday School each week. He turns that very same question to us, to find out what we think it means, and then discussions often follow. I love Sunday School for that reason. Sunday School at Cedar Cliff is a well spent 45 minutes as we read the Books of the Bible, one Book at a time. These past several weeks we’ve been studying the book of 2 Samuel, learning about how King David’s sins have affected his family and the nation of Israel…. But I have digressed.
What do you expect from a sermon? I pass that question on to you to answer for yourself. I actually come to church for the sermon. Okay, well, I also come for worship: the hymns, fellowship, Sunday School (whether I attend adult SS or teach the children), and for Holy Communion. However, the sermon is the meat of the worship service for me. I believe that most of us come for that reason. I want there to be meaning in this one hour service. I want the words I hear to change me in some way. To make me a better person.
“A sermon should show how I’ve gone wrong,” … “how to get back on track,” … “should give me something easy to remember, something to take home with me.” These were some responses from a study done regarding that question. But when Jesus stepped forward in his synagogue, and read the Isaiah scripture (61:1-3), He told what the words from Isaiah meant for him, and for them, that very day. However, his words were not well received. They were filled with rage. Find out what Jesus said that enraged the town folk. Read Luke 4 verses 24-27 closely. They’re printed in red ink in my Bible because Jesus is speaking.
Those who heard him drove him out of town, fully intending to throw him off the nearby cliff. Somehow, though, Jesus was able to walk right through that angry mob unharmed, and went on his way.
Here’s the take-away from today’s sermon… God is God. And we are not. There is one God. He doesn’t think like we do. He is not made in our image. Often God does things that make us furious, like those people who drove Jesus out of town. Reading the New Testament confirms that Jesus is no longer that sweet little baby in the manger, but fully matured, fully human, and fully divine, willing and able to fulfill what he has been sent to do. What Jesus has to say and what he does often disturbs us. Might even make us angry.
So, what DO you expect from a sermon? It’s worth thinking about.
As disciples of Christ, it is our calling to follow Jesus’ footsteps. We will stumble and fall, I have no doubt, as the first twelve disciples stumbled plenty enough as they followed Jesus. They were called to follow him. As we are also called … to be who God has made us to be: Disciples of Christ. Our church mission is “Making disciples of Christ through the love of God, Neighbor, and Self.” Let’s not forget who we are.