30Apr 2019 by Kirsten Sauey Hofmann

Sermon for Easter Sunday 2019

Easter, Pastor, Sermons
Gospel: Luke 24:1-12 Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! We gather together today to celebrate new life, especially the resurrection of Jesus through which we believe God has granted new life to the world. And that’s the challenge of this day. There is so much that is hard to wrap our minds around. First, this idea of being raised from the dead… that is so outside of our box, even for us who have a greater understanding of science and how life works from 2000 years ago. Even with all our technology, we can’t bring people back from the dead. Especially those that have been dead for three days. We might have a chance if someone has just died, but not when their body has been lying in…
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17Mar 2019 by Kirsten Sauey Hofmann

Sermon for March 17, 2019

Discipleship, Lent, Pastor, Sermons
Gospel: Luke 13:31-35;First Reading: Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18 Today’s Gospel reading seems a bit obscure, and yet it is packed full of images and foreshadowing. The main image of the fox and hen is powerful. It’s almost like Jesus compares he and Herod - Herod is the fox, only focused on the here and now, and only on gaining more power, which means eliminating other competition. And Jesus is the mother hen protecting her chicks. Foxes are feisty, but so are mother hens, especially if you threaten the babies. If Jesus or God is the mother hen, and we are her chicks, we need not fear. I am grateful for this feminine image for God today. Those main images are flanked by foreshadowing. There are references all over that help orient…
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31Jul 2017 by Kirsten Sauey Hofmann

Sermon from July 30, 2017

Pastor, Sermons
Gospel text: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 Jesus has many parables to tell us today that give us glimpses of the kingdom of heaven. But to start, I wonder if Matthew’s phrase, “the kingdom of heaven,” is problematic? Because we’re not talking about heaven as that place in the sky you think you might get to go to someday. We’re talking about the kingdom of God, the holy realm, the place where God dwells, which would include, but not be limited to this earth in this present time. Jesus is opening our understanding, or challenging our understanding of how we might envision God’s kingdom to be. We like to think God’s kingdom is full of rule followers, law-abiders, people who are nice to each other, and hopefully our animals. But what Jesus…
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