Tag: hope

Let’s Not Begin with Jesus – A Sermon for Advent 1

A. G. SiegristLeave a comment

Texts: Psalm 80:1-19; Mark 13:32-37

God, grant us wisdom . . .

I want us to begin today by not thinking about Jesus. Remove the pictures of baby Jesus or old Jesus, dead Jesus or living Jesus, nice Jesus or stern Jesus, black Jesus or white Jesus, long-haired Jesus or short-haired Jesus, tall Jesus or short Jesus—remove them all from your mind for a moment. Now I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, “I’ve been to church before. The answer is always Jesus. Something strange is going on here.”

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Thinking Big: What are Christians Hoping For?

A. G. Siegrist1 Comment

One of the most persistent questions I hear about the Christian faith relates to what we believe about the future—our future, the future of our communities, the future of the world. In the midst of our suffering and confusion, what are we hoping for? There was a time when responses to this question were dominated by the idea a spiritual future in “heaven.” This vision didn’t include our bodies and didn’t have much of anything positive to say about God’s beautiful creation. The concept of heaven is important to the scriptures, but not as the dominant picture of the future for which we hope. That spot belongs to “new creation” or “creation renewed.” II Corinthians 5 is one key passage here, as are Ephesians 1 and Revelation 21 & 22. The first chapter of Colossians is important too, as is the prayer Jesus taught his disciples. What we anticipate is the renewal of the world God created. We believe that God’s peaceful economy will realized in the place we were designed to enjoy and keep. Continue reading “Thinking Big: What are Christians Hoping For?” →