Series: Advent 2022

12-15-22 Why Do We Sing? (MHLS Advent Service)

December 15, 2022
Why do we sing? We have heard some beautiful song this evening, and we’ve done some singing ourselves. Why do it? Why sing? We could justify singing right away from the beauty of it. Certainly singing can be done poorly, but no one who hears good singing calls it ugly, especially good singing to God, as the psalmist says, “It is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant, and praise is…

12-11-22 Gaudete

December 11, 2022
It’s amazing that John the Baptist has any disciples at all at this point. He’s done his best to get rid of them. James and John, Andrew, many others, left John to follow Jesus. John told them to. What else do you do when your teacher points to Jesus and says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world?” And then when he does it again the next day, “Behold…

12-7-22 Advent Midweek 2

December 7, 2022
The virgin Mary may at first sight seem like a strange candidate to put before you tonight as the model of Christian courage. Maybe a model of humility, of faith, of purity, but how is she courageous? You think of men like David stepping out to confront Goliath, there’s courage. You think of Elijah standing up alone against 450 prophets of Baal, that’s courageous. You think of Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego telling King Nebuchadnezzar that…

12-4-22 Populus Zion

December 4, 2022
“Straighten up and raise your heads,” Jesus says. This is the posture of the confident, of the triumphant and the joyful. When all these horrible things are happening around you – distress of nations, people fainting with fear and foreboding of what is coming on the earth – Jesus tells you to straighten up and lift your head high. And this is not because you’re simply watching bad things happen to other people while you…

11-27-22 Ad Te Levavi

November 27, 2022
“Behold, your King is coming to you.” Today is the First Sunday in Advent and a new Church Year begins. The old has passed, and Jesus still comes, ushering in another year of grace. Of this we are unworthy, as unworthy as the people of God were on Palm Sunday. Consider for a moment the history of the Church in the Old Testament. The Lord brought the people of Israel out of Egypt, and they…
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