First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL

Matthew 18:21-35 September 17, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry Jesus has been trying to get it through the disciples’ heads: he is not going to be what they expect. This chapter begins with an argument between Jesus’ closest friends about who is more important. Jesus answers their question by placing a child among them and saying, “Be like this, like this child.” Then he warns them that anyone who misleads a child would be better off dead. THEN he tells them how to settle conflict in the community, a tidy three-step process that, if it is unsuccessful, ends in exiling the offender. But the very next line is Peter asking Jesus how often he should forgive. Jesus seems to be giving a straight answer first, but follows with a parable that is rich in hyperbole, in exaggeration, and in imagery. Let’s listen for God’s word to us in Matthew 18:21-35: Then Peter came and said to him, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I fo...

Exodus 1:8-2:10 August 27, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry Today’s reading from the Hebrew scriptures begins with these foreboding words: “Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.” We ended last week’s scripture reading on a “happily ever after” with Joseph and his brothers hugging and weeping in a joyful reunion. Joseph and his eleven brothers, the forebears of the twelve tribes of Israel, lived out their lives in Egypt, where Joseph had provided for them during the time of drought in Israel. But Joseph died, he and all his brothers, and with the passage of time, the story of Joseph was forgotten. And when history is forgotten, the void makes a space for untruths. Let’s listen for the truth of God’s word to us in Exodus 1:8-2:10: Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. He said to his people, "Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly...

I'm back! After a three month sabbatical, it's great to be back in the pulpit at First Presbyterian Church of Sterling, IL. First Person Plural Genesis 45:1-15, Matthew 15:21-28 August 20, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry Our first reading today comes from the book of Genesis, the almost final chapter of a story we looked at six years ago. If you’ve ever seen “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” you’ll remember that this is the big moment, when Joseph and his brothers are reunited, and he urges them to escape the famine and join him in Egypt. The reason this is such a powerful story is the events that led up to it do not predict a happy ending. Joseph’s brothers, jealous of his position as the favorite, threw him in a pit, then sold him as a slave, and told their father Jacob that he was dead. Now, in Egypt, they have come to ask for food, not knowing it is Joseph they are asking. And Joseph has recognized them, but concealed his true ide...

1 Peter 2:2-10, John 14:1-14 May 14, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry Our first reading for today is from 1 Peter 2:2-10, a letter to the churches written sometime at end of the first century. The epistles of 1st and 2nd Peter were likely not written by the Apostle Peter himself, but by a later disciple. The sophisticated Greek and the scripture quotations from the Greek version of the Hebrew scriptures indicate that it is unlikely that a fisherman from Galilee was the author. The letters were written to Christians in what is now Turkey, and were written to them during a time of distress. In that time it was increasingly difficult, if not dangerous, to be a Christian. Slander, accusations, insults, and discrimination were growing, and would later turn into outright persecution for those Christians who refused to worship the emperor. This letter is meant to be encouraging, and fortifying, for this young church made up mostly of Gentiles. The temple in Jerusal...

1 Corinthians 1:4-9, John 10:1-10 May 7, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry The Apostle Paul is known to us because of his dramatic conversion to Christ on the road to Damascus, and because of his work with churches in the years that followed. Many books of the New Testament are attributed to Paul; those books are letters to churches, in which Paul advises, encourages, and confronts those new communities to help them become more Christ-like. Here is part of Paul’s greeting to one such church, the church in Corinth. . Let’s listen for his words of encouragement and God’s word for us from First Corinthians 1:4-9 I thank my God always for you, because of God’s grace that was given to you in Christ Jesus. That is, you were made rich through him in everything: in all your communication and every kind of knowledge, in the same way that the testimony about Christ was confirmed with you. The result is that you aren’t missing any spiritual gift while you wait for ou...

Luke 24:13-35 April 30, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling, IL Christina Berry The Easter season continues with another post-resurrection story. This story comes from Luke’s gospel, and was probably written around the year 80, for the communities of faith that had formed around the stories of Jesus, the risen Lord. They are house churches, gatherings that meet on the first day of the week, to eat a meal together, to sing and pray and read the scriptures. Some are well-off, most are not; they are Jews and Gentiles, men and women. They did not see the risen Lord face to face, but Luke’s gospel, and this beautifully written story in particular, shows them – and us-- how they can encounter Jesus. Let’s listen for the good news of the gospel in Luke 24:13-35: Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Je...

John 20:19-31 April 23, 2017 First Presbyterian Church, Sterling IL Christina Berry As the Easter season continues, the stories of Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances continue. These stories have been told so many times that many of them can be referred to by a single word or phrase to identify them. This story, from John’s gospel, has come to be known as the story of “Doubting Thomas.” Apparently, Thomas got stuck with that label sometime back in the 1600s and he hasn’t really escaped it yet. It’s a shame that he got that nickname, because it is really very unfair. If we can attune our hearts to listen, we can hear a powerful message of faith and trust in this story of Thomas. Let’s listen for God’s good news for us in John 20:19-31 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said t...