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Sermons

Grace and Action – For God so Love the World

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
For some followers of Jesus today, this passage from the Good News of John is familiar. It is comforting. All we need to do is say “John 3:16,” and many can quote the verse: “For God so loved the world…” For God so loved the world. For others of us, this text from John is unsettling. These are words that have been used to establish an exclusive, Christian, path to God. In my own faith journey, I have had to pause and prayerfully reflect on what is revealed of God for me in this passage. Scripture is one lens to the Holy for me, but not the only place of revelation. My personal relationship ...
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See and Flip Over

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
Last week, we took a look at the first third of the mission statement that proclaims “we are a community of faith called by God, to gather for worship and reach out in ever-widening circles.” This week our reflection shifted to the next section of our vision which states, we are witnesses "to God' all-inclusive love in Jesus Christ." Hear these words again: We are witnesses “to God’s all-inclusive love in Jesus Christ.” Now. HERE. So how do we… how are we… (or are we?)… keeping our eyes on Jesus today? For in the Gospel of John, the story is all about God coming near. From the beginning....
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Gather and Follow

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
The jump. The shift. The naming. The life. The living. The sacrifice. The covenant. The interconnections that shatter the boundaries between past, present and future. This is the journey we are on. Right. Now. For 3 weeks during Lent, in worship, we will be focusing on God’s covenant with us—and on our covenant with one another—in this faith community. We will use Memorial UCC’s mission statement to guide our 3-part reflection. Whether you are a covenanted partner of the congregation (i.e., a member), a friend of the church, or a visitor, you are welcome to join our prayerful reflection. ...
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#RippedOpen

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
I open this reflection with a cautionary note. I want to prepare you. I want to prepare you for a tearing open of the heavens. For the urgency of the Spirit driving us out into the wilderness places of our days. For the need to identify and name the devils with which we are tempted. Here. Now. I want to give you a heads up that my use of hashtags* as I share this Word with you today might be unsettling. Unnerving. In fact, I hope that it is unsettling. It should be unsettling. For a shift is urgently needed. A transformation. A tearing open. A revealing of God’s kin-dom here… God’s Word her...
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Love Entrusted: Let’s Go…

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
This is… a Möbius strip sermon. An endless loop immersed in love. Whether you are close, whether you are far away, whichever side you are on—God is there. There is hope. The shape of this sermon is one of my all-time favorite things: a Möbius strip. In part, I am somehow captivated by vowels that have an umlaut. And I am intrigued by this: A twisted rectangle. A shape with one continuous side. An infinite loop. This is… a sermon of refugees. The book of Isaiah is understood to have been written in 3 separate sections, over the course of hundreds of years. Today we hear from Second Is...
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The Intrusiveness of God

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
Last week, in the middle of the sermon, I asked a simple question. I asked each of you to pause and see if you knew Memorial UCC’s mission statement. If you are visiting us, or are new to our faith community, you might have seen the statement posted on our website. If you have been a member, or a friend, for any length of time, you might remember something about “ever-widening circles.” But, can you repeat the entire mission statement? And if you can – does it still resonate with who we are as a congregation? This year we will have an opportunity to prayerfully reflect on how we hear and re...
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Set In Motion

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
It is set in motion. The seeds for a new vision. A new hope. There is a lot of change swirling about. And there is urgency. Urgency to proclaim the good news. Whatever THAT is. The “word of God came to Jonah a second time” (Jonah 3:1, NRSV). “Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God” (Mark 1:14). In a third reading assigned for today, Paul notes that “the present form of this world is passing away…” (1 Cor. 7:31). The thought that “the present form of this world is passing away” might unsettle us. But then we read the news. As we read headlines packed with governmental shutdo...
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Boundaries Torn

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
(Genesis 1:1-5, Mark 1:4-11) We want to shout it out! Go tell it on a mountain! We search for the joyous good news that must still be resonating from the holiday season. The carefully wrapped gifts. The delicately decorated cookies. The thoughtfully written cards. The well-planned family get-togethers and work Christmas parties. The halls that were decked out with greenery and lights. But instead, suddenly, everything is all packed away. Instead of magi, instead of a star, instead of the silence of the night—here we are, down by the riverside. Time shifted. Boundaries torn. The story...
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Gathered: Cross-Generational Hope

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
(Luke 2:21-40, NRSV) The presence of a newborn stirs so many emotions in those around her: love, joy, hope… uncertainty, anxiousness, worry, elation, calm, warmth, vulnerability, a sense of blessedness. A cry stirs us to respond with care. A sleeping child causes us to lower our voices and step into the quiet. A movement, a grimace, a coo, sparks smiles. THIS. This is how God reminds us of the eternal, creating, all-encompassing Divine Love, into the world. James Howell notes that, “God came down, not to thrash evildoers or crush the Romans, but as an infant, to elicit love, to nurture tend...
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The Work of the Christmas Begins

Posted on by Kristin Gorton
Throughout Advent I have become fascinated with the many both/ands of our faith. For we have been both waiting for the birth of Jesus – and yet Jesus has already been born. As we gather here with family and friends this evening…or have come here on our own…as solitary wanderers…seeking…some connection with the Holy. We. Have. Come. We have some in part, because this is what we always do. For some, going to church on Christmas Eve is woven into the family tradition. Of course, we are going to church on Christmas Eve. For others, maybe some of you that did not grow up in the life of the churc...
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