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Sermons

Palm Sunday’s Passion: Following a Politician for the People (Lk. 19:28-44)

For Sunday, March 1, 2009

 

Last Sunday’s paper carried the story of Leonard Abess, Jr.[i]  You may have also seen Abess during last week’s Presidential speech.  Abess is CEO of City National Bank.  He recently sold a majority stake in the bank. The sale netted millions of dollars.  Then, Abess did something unheard of—he took $60 million of the proceeds and gave it to his employees.  Tellers, bookkeepers, clerks—all 399 workers on staff plus the 72 former employees received the $60 million.  Abess didn’t publicize what he had done.  He didn’t even show up at the office on the day the bonus envelopes were distributed.  Asked what motivated him, he said he simply had long-dreamed of a way to reward his employees. 

There is a man with passion.  There is a boss passionate about his employees.  What about you?  What are you passionate about?  Who or what would you do something crazy for? 

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The Offering: How Relationships Transform When You Offer Community (Rom. 12:13, 15)

For many, these are difficult times.  Most of us have been touched by the economic struggles in some way.  Some of you have lost jobs.  Some of you have had pay cuts.  Most of us know people who are struggling.  A couple of weeks ago my family took our first hit.  Kendra’s supervisor sat her down and told Kendra that her hours were being cut.  Her salary would be reduced by 20%.  Of course, we thankful she still has a job.  Nonetheless, it was a significant cut.

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The Offering: How Relationships Transform When You Offer Blessing to the Bad (Rom. 12:14, 17-21)

I heard a story about an elderly couple who couldn’t get along. Though they had been married for 60 years, they constantly argued and engaged in shouting contests. Even when they had to move into a nursing home, they kept fighting.  The couple spit and spat from breakfast time to bed time.  It became so bad that the nursing home threatened to throw them out. Finally, the wife said to her husband: “I’ll tell you what, Joe, let’s pray that one of us dies. And after the funeral is over, I’ll go live with my sister.“  The story is an imaginary example of a real fact in life: relationships don’t always work out the way we hope.

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The Offering: What Happened When God Offered All (Rom. 12:1-2)

Steve Prothero is a Boston University professor and author of the book Religious Literacy.[i]  When Prothero began teaching twenty years ago he found that few students could name the authors of the Christian Gospels.  Fewer could name a single Hindu Scripture.  Almost none could name the first five books of the Hebrew Bible.  This concerned Prothero.  He believes that many political conflicts in world history have had religious roots.  Thus he feels it imperative for students to know something about the religions of the world.  Most of his Boston University students, however, knew nothing.  Thus, this non-Christian professor proposes in his book that students should be required take a course in Bible and World Religions before graduating from high school.

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