Do You Know What I Have Done To You? A Sermon
This sermon was preached at First United Methodist Church, Orange, Texas, on Maundy Thursday 2011. The Scripture is John 13:1-17, 31b-35. The camera pans out, and we see our hero, paralyzed, perhaps strapped to a chair. No escape. The James Bond villain, or perhaps an antagonist from CSI or some other police or mystery drama … Read more
Signs, Wisdom, and the Cross: A Call to Worship
A Call to Worship based on the epistle reading from the lectionary this week, 1 Corinthians 1:18-25 (CEB). Feel free to use this in your church on Sunday; just remember, this piece of liturgy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Where is God? Show me a sign that God … Read more
At Table in Jerusalem: A Hymn for Maundy Thursday
As it is now Holy Week, I’d like to share a hymn text I wrote for Maundy Thursday 2008. During that 2007-08 year, I taught a course on worship at Wesley United Methodist Church in Beaumont and that small group grew quite close to each other. I wrote this hymn in honor of that “Passionate … Read more
Ash Wednesday: A Poem
I never come to Lent prepared. Like much of life, I want to be ready but the little sandy dirty bits slowly clog the well-intentioned machinery I’ve built in my desires. How funny it is when I enter the sanctuary and see the pretty pottery holding the ashes of last year’s hopes– cold and damp– … Read more
O Emmanuel (December 23)
O EMMANUEL, our ruler and lawgiver, the expectation and savior of the nations: Come and set us free, O Lord our God. O come, O come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel, that mourns in lowly exile here until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O Rex Gentium (December 22)
O RULER OF THE GENTILES, their treasure and the cornerstone that binds them in one: Come and save those whom you formed from the dust. O come, Desire of nations bind all peoples in one heart and mind. From dust thou brought us forth to life; deliver us from earthly strife. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall … Read more
O Oriens (December 21)
O DAWN from on high, splendor of God’s light and sun of justice: Come and enlighten those who sit in darkness, in the shadow of death. O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer our spirits by thy justice here; disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death’s dark shadows put to flight. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel … Read more
O Clavis David (December 20)
O KEY OF DAVID and scepter of Israel: You open and no one shall shut; you shut and no one shall open. Come and release from the prison house those who sit in darkness, in the shadow of death. O come, thou Key of David, come, and open wide our heavenly home. The captives from … Read more
O Radix Jesse (December 19)
O ROOT OF JESSE: You stand as a signal before your people. Monarchs close their mouths because of you; to you all nations shall bow. Come and deliver us without delay. O come, thou Root of Jesse’s tree, an ensign of thy people be; before thee rulers silent fall; all peoples on thy mercy call. … Read more
O Adonai (December 18)
O ADONAI, leader of the house of Israel, you appeared to Moses in the burning bush, and at Sinai gave him the Law. Come and redeem us by your outstretched arm. O come, O come, great Lord of might, who to thy tribes on Sinai’s height in ancient times once gave the law in cloud … Read more
