First Presbyterian Church Of San Anselmo

2 Corinthians 9:6-13: Paul desperately wants the Corinthians to contribute to the needs of the Jerusalem church. He seems to promise they will benefit if the give. Is this true? Yes, and no. While "the prosperity gospel" (material rewards for faith) is magical thinking, generosity does in fact give us joy and even a larger sense of health and well-being.

Matthew 23:1-12: The parable of the ten bridesmaids reminds us that the Church still waits for the fulfillment of God's kingdom. How shall we wait? The oil points to practices that no one else can do for us that help us prepare for the long haul, the "slow kingdom coming." These practices add up to "Keep awake." At First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo, we also know that the best way to wait is to serve in Christ's name.

Matthew 5:1-12, Psalm 34:1-10, 22: The psalmist told his own story of God's activity in his life because we all need that hope and encouragement. This All Saints' Sunday sermon explores the ways our own stories offer that hope and encouragement to others. We are blessed to be a blessing to others whatever our stories.

Matthew 22:15-22: Jesus silences the religious leaders trying to trick him by reminding them that while it's fine to pay taxes, we bear God's image, we belong to God, and we are to give God nothing less that our whole heart, mind, soul and strength.

Matthew 21:33-46: Jesus tells this difficult parable to call the religious leaders to account for their failure to care for the people. We, too, are called to speak truth to power when our leaders fail to make the life, liberty, safety and just treatment of the people a priority.

Matthew 21:23-32: Jesus tells the parable of the two sons to illustrate that there is no authority without integrity - that in addition to talking the talk, we need to walk the walk. The Church forfeits its authority when it forgets this.

Matthew 20:1-16: The parable of the workers in the vineyard seems unfair, and Jesus says the Kingdom of God is just like that. What Jesus is doing is introducing a new model: Rather than "That's not fair!" and "I didn't get enough" and "I should get what I deserve," Jesus introduces God's economy: lavish grace for all who deserve it and for all who do not.

Matthew 18:21-35: Forgiveness is hard, but it is unavoidable if we want to be in relationship, and the refusal to forgive is its own punishment. We are the ones who suffer if we fail to forgive. However, no one can "command" us to forgive; it doesn't work that way, because like love, forgiveness must be chosen. Perhaps what we might do it accept God's forgiveness, and let that unimaginable grace help us turn towards mercy.

Matthew 18:15-20: Matthew's deep concern is authentic Christian community, which takes work: collaboration, humility, compromise, patience, cooperation and showing up. It is worth it. Christian community promises that Jesus is there in the midst of us, so that we have the strength, spirit and resilience to do God's kingdom work.

1 Corinthians 12:4-12, 27: Each year on the Sunday before Labor Day, three church members describe how they live out their calling as Christ's disciples in the workplace or in their "vocation." Our three speakers today were Cheryl Prowell, Senior Water Resource Control Engineer at California Regional Water Quality Control Board; Daniel Ferreira, Baker, M. H. Bread and Butter; Jo Gross, Spiritual Director.

Proverbs 3:5-6: Through 3 personal encounters, guest preacher Nick Morris illustrates three points: Don't believe everything you think; those you believe you are helping are likely helping you as well; love from the heart, not the head.

Mark 8:34-37 and 1 Corinthians 13: Although 1 Corinthians 13 is often thought to be a romantic passage, read at weddings, it describes the disciplined practice of cross-carrying love to which Jesus calls us. "Take up your cross" means "Do the hard work of love, even when it's painful, and even when hating is easier."

Luke 4:16-21; Isaiah 5:5-10: The Rev. Bentley Stewart, guest preacher, issues a wake-up call, noting the way the chant of white supremacists in Charlottesville, VA, "Blood and soil!" is both a slogan of the Third Reich and a phrase that points to all our conflicts over the eons. Humanity has fought and shed blood over land and religion for thousands of years. The challenge as God's people is to live into the peace with justice to which God calls us.

John 14:9-14, 25-27; Philippians 2:5-8: This sermon explores how Jesus' ministry was "doing love." He assured us that not only is it our ministry as well, but that we'd receive the Holy Spirit to help us to live into that ministry. As the Body of Christ, we are tasked with doing his work in the world, which means "doing love."

Matthew 5:43-48: This sermon explores the nearly impossible request Jesus made in the Sermon on the Mount: "Love your enemies." The Rev. Scott Clark asks, "Who does that?" The answer is that Jesus does. And while we may never be able to "be perfect" in meeting this challenge, we can move toward it. Clark offers three notions about "the least we can do" in order to move in this direction.

Mark 5:1-20: Jesus' encounter with the Gerosene man afflicted by demons reminds us that God's relentless love and healing addresses us even as we suffer.

Psalm 139: Even though people commonly think it's their task to "find God," Psalm 139 describes a God who never gives up on finding us, being present with us, and loving us.

Leviticus 19:13-18; Mark 12:28-34: In the second sermon in our summer sermon series, "The Summer of Love," we explore what Jesus meant by "love" when he said that the second great commandment is to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Genesis 32:22-32: This summer, we’re exploring Scripture’s prime directive and giving a nod to the 50th anniversary of that summer in Haight-Ashbury that changed American culture with a summer sermon series, “The Summer of Love.” Today, our guest preacher, the Rev. Yolanda Norton, introduced the series with "Tough Love." Jacob gave up his privilege in order to wrestle with God, and he has the scars to prove it. Likewise, when we are to wrestle with love, which is tough, messy, complicated, but our calling through Christ.