If you’re like 48% of families in the United States, then you say grace before meals. And if you do, it might include a thanksgiving or a blessing of some kind. You might be surprised to find that Jesus and Paul said prayers before their meals too. There is almost a rhythm to it in Scripture. Taking bread, giving thanks, breaking it, and sharing. Today I want to stop and think about the humble practice of praying before meals. And, more importantly, I want to reflect on giving thanks.

Today we conclude our series on Jonah. The book is just four short chapters but is chock full of biblical themes. Salvation stands at the center of it all and is flanked by themes of grace, mercy, repentance, calling, abundance, and so much more. But if you thought that Jonah had repented of his ways and began to follow God whole-heartedly, the final chapter of the book comes as a surprise. But even at the end, God is not finished with him. God does not give up on him. And God is not done with you either.

The book of Jonah is about the abounding grace of God. Grace is, of course, not deserved. It is a gift that is not earned or demanded but is freely given by God to those in need of it. And we are all in need of it. Though Jonah’s job is to tell the Ninevites of their desperate estate, salvation belongs to our God.

Listen as we dove even deeper into Jonah for week 3 in our Jonah Series!

Today we continue with the second week in the book of Jonah. There is a theme that arises in the first chapter that might be easy to miss if you’re not looking for it: FEAR. The fear comes in different forms. Fear of the storm. Fear of the situation that Jonah has created. And, most importantly, fear of God. Scripture says quite a lot about the fear of God. It is typically encouraged as a path to wisdom, but why and what that looks like is not always clear. There are certainly healthy and unhealthy fears. Let’s spend some time today thinking about how to cultivate a healthy fear of God.

The story of Jonah is perplexing. He is a prophet, but he does not act like a prophet. He hears the Word of the Lord, but he is reluctant to share it. He experiences God, but at every turn he is pushing away from this experience. After his famous near-death-experience, he gets himself back “on track.” But when he watches God demonstrate mercy on the city of Nineveh after the people repent, instead of rejoicing, he complains. The story of Jonah is indeed perplexing, but it is also compelling, and what it can teach us about God is illuminating. Let’s dive in.

In our reading from Matthew today, we see two stories that are clearly connected. The first is what looks to be a simple, one-verse, narration of Matthew’s own call to discipleship. The second is the Pharisees’ questioning of Jesus over who he chooses to surround himself with. By choosing Matthew, a tax collector and therefore a sellout to the Romans, Jesus demonstrates that he can see what others cannot see. When Jesus looks at Matthew, he does not see a sellout. His eyes of mercy allow him to see beyond the faults and the failures into the heart of someone who needs healing. But even beyond that, he sees a heart that—once healed—will write the story of Jesus that will bring untold healing in Jesus’ name.

It’s Labor Day weekend, and I want to spend a little time thinking about labor. Not so much the labor you do at your job. Or that other kind of labor. I’m talking about kingdom work. This summer we spent a good deal of time on “sanctuary” and what that means for our church. One theme that arose again and again, for me, was the relationship between resting and working. It’s something I’ve continued to wrestle with, and as we head into a new church year, I want to return to it one more time.

Jesus tells Martha that she’s doing many things, and it is causing anxiety and worry. But he praises Mary for doing one thing, because she has chosen the one necessary thing. One necessary thing. What is it? What has Mary figured out that Martha has not? It is the same thing that the psalmist has figured out when he says, “One thing have I asked of the Lord . . . that I may dwell in the house of the Lord."

Life can be hard. For many of us, this week has been hard. News from Afghanistan and the increased spread of the Delta variant has many of us saddened about our past, confused about the present, and worried about the future. Add to this, we all have personal trials and fears that are too deep to mention aloud. Keeping faith in the middle of life’s storms can be difficult, but we are not left to our own devices. When belief and unbelief rise up side-by-side within us as the storm clouds surround us, let us continue to walk step-by-step together in the grace God has given us, trusting that our affliction is momentary and God’s goodness is infinite.

Last week, through the story of the fish and the loaves, we encountered God’s abundant provision, the hurdles of faith experienced by Philip and Andrew, and the deeper rhythms of faith that God is calling us into as followers of Christ. This week, Jesus builds upon this same story and continues the conversation. Jesus takes the opportunity to clarify what might have been missed in the miracle of the feeding of the 5000. He proclaims one of his famous one-liners saying, “I am the bread of life.” Let us not miss the deeper significance at work here.

The story of Jesus turning five loaves and two fish into a feast for 5000 people is a story that most Christians learn early on in their spiritual training. Sunday school lessons and children’s Bibles inevitably have this story in them. Thank God! Because the earlier we embrace that there is an abundance in God’s economy that we have no human measure for, the sooner we can begin to live into the fullness of life available to us through Jesus. This is no children’s story. It is a roadmap to a new reality.

It’s not often that we get a living, breathing object lesson standing before us. So I wanted to take today – a special day where we baptize two sisters into the family of God – and talk about the topic. What does it mean to be baptized? What is happening in our baptism? And why have Christians, since the dawn of Christianity, insisted on practicing this rite? Let’s dig in!

Let’s talk about forgiveness. I have a hunch that I’m not the only one who needs to hear what God has to say about this topic. We can pick back up with the sanctuary series in a few weeks, but, for now, this is important. This year has been filled with opportunities for hurt and pain. Political strife, racial strife, and strife from being in a pandemic have collided into the most unlikely of years. Navigating it all has undoubtedly left us with wounds that need to heal. And if we’re honest, we have likely wounded others too. Forgiveness isn’t a minor topic in Scripture. It stands at the very heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let us today remind ourselves of where we came from, who we are, and where we are going, all because of the love of God.

We have spent considerable time digging deep into the scriptural vision for sanctuary. There is a temptation, however, to make sanctuary a self-centered, inward-focused ideal, whether that focus is on the individual self or the broader church. We think: it is MY sanctuary or OUR church’s sanctuary. But to do this limits God’s intentions. As we will see in Solomon’s prayer for the consecration of the temple, the nations have a role to play too. They will be drawn to the glory of the temple. Likewise, Jesus, who embodies all the attributes of sanctuary, calls all people unto himself. Therefore, as we attempt to embody what it means to be a sanctuary, let us be reminded that our church sanctuary is not for us alone but that we might share it with the world around us drawing them to the very presence of God.

The word “sanctuary” in the Hebrew language is a derivation on the word “holy.” This should not come as a surprise really. The tabernacle, or sanctuary, is a holy place. In it is contained the Holy of Holies. It is holy ground in the holy land. It is where the holy people of Israel go to meet the Holy One of Israel. Holiness is everywhere in the Old Testament! So as we continue thinking about what it means to live into our value of sanctuary, we must consider what it means to live into holiness. That is our task today. Let’s dig in!

Continuing our series on “Sanctuary,” today we dig down deep into the building of the tabernacle. From our text for today, Exodus 25 and continuing into the last chapters of the book of Exodus, we find clear and explicit instructions for the building of the tabernacle. We find these instructions not just once but twice. It is clear that this building is of utmost importance. It is the very dwelling place of God. The creation of this sanctuary space requires intentionality, artistry, and labor. It requires listening and obeying the will of God. And, not to be missed, it requires the willing hearts of the people of God who must offer their contributions to this sanctuary space.

We continue to think about the sanctuaries of Scripture. The places where heaven and earth come together. Where God and humanity commune. And where rest and refuge happens. In the Exodus 3 passage for today, we find that it is God reaching out to his people through the person Moses as God desires this kind of sanctuary. He desires that Israel, who is in bondage in Egypt, not only be freed from it, but that they find their way to a land that promises God’s very presence and peace. God was, and is, and will always be in the business of sanctuary building.

In our Scripture reading today from Revelation, we find a large group gathered around the throne of God in heaven worshiping. Heaven is the domain of God, and because of this, heaven should be understood as the sanctuary of all sanctuaries—the place where God is most fully present. To find that worship goes hand-in-hand with sanctuary comes as an important revelation. Today we continue our sanctuary series with a sermon titled, “Made to Worship.” It is my contention that we are designed for worship, but worship means far more than we often think. Let’s dive in.

We will spend the coming weeks drilling deep down into what it means for our church to value sanctuary. In Scripture a sanctuary is a place where one meets God. The tabernacle and the temple are examples of sanctuaries where Israel experienced the presence of God. However, sanctuary is more than a place. In the New Testament, it is a person—Jesus Christ. Jesus is the new temple in whom the full presence of God dwells. And yet there’s still more! Paul doesn’t stop there. He says that you and I are temples too! That God dwells in us and others can find God when they're with us. There’s a lot to unpack here, which is why we will take some time with this topic. Today we will start at the bookends of the Bible, Eden and The New Jerusalem, two places where God and humanity live together in perfect peace.