Sermon: Masters of Mercy
Masters of Mercy explores how our habits form us in an age when Americans spend nearly 49 hours each week consuming digital content. Moving through Matthew 15—from the Pharisees’ obsession with purity to the persistent faith of the Canaanite woman—the sermon reveals the widening reach of God’s saving mercy. Isaiah and Romans confirm that God gathers outsiders and extends grace beyond expected boundaries. Because we ourselves have been gathered and welcomed to a table we did not earn, Christians are called to become “masters of mercy,” formed by Christ and sent to gossip the good news.
Hymn: Upon the Height of Tabor's Mount
I have worshipped in parishes in the almost forty years of my life, I have become increasingly aware that the wonders of our hymnal (TEC 1982) include a surprising lack of options for certain days of the year or biblical themes. The Transfiguration is one such story. Occurring twice in the lectionary with its own feast day and Last Epiphany, the hymnal has a rather thin set of offerings to commemorate this incredible hinge moment as Galilean ministry becomes Jerusalemite mission.