sermon

Soul Healing – sermon Dec 18, 2022

The soul is the deepest part of our selves, the seat of our deepest longings, desires, and joys. Rather than being a separate entity inhabiting a body, a shell, the Bible teaches that the soul is inseparable. When we have lack in the good things we desire, the soul is empty, and God brings healing by meeting our deepest desires with his greatest good.

 

On the left is how most of us view the soul, like Plato, a spirit in a shell, a ghost in a physical body. But in the Bible it’s an inseparable part of our selves, and the part that is most connected to God in the Spirit.

 

Healing the Body - sermon Nov 27, 2022

Healing the body is about the whole self, and that view has been in the Bible for centuries. Miracle cures are actually fairly rare, and occur mostly when either a prophet, Jesus, or one of the twelve disciples comes around. Instead of debating miracles, we should be looking to God for the healing of our whole selves, body, mind, soul for true health and renewal.

Because I got covid again, I had to pre-record this sermon and have it played back on Sunday to keep everyone safe, hence why it's not a live recording during the service. - Pastor Lars Hammar

First Sunday in Advent. November 27, 2022.

Thank God I'm Not Them - sermon Oct. 23, 2022

Our spiritual practices should make us more loving and compassionate people, especially those that require us to give things up for our faith. But behind ever abstention lies the danger of both envying those who don't make the sacrifice, as well as judgment for their perceived lack of self control. The fast that makes you a self-righteous snob is not one that God wants. By Pastor Lars Hammar

You Can't Scare People Into Faith - sermon Sept 25, 2022

In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, we see not a proof of a literal, eternal, physical hell with flames and pitchforks, but, on the contrary, a lesson that fear of punishment after death does not motivate people to change their ways. Instead, Jesus wants us to focus on living in this life, according to the teachings we already have, and promote the Gospel without trying to scare people into faith and good works. Based on Luke 16:19-31. By Pastor Lars Hammar.

Not Peace but Division - sermon Aug 14

One wonders, with Jesus being such a peaceful person who never used violence against people, how he could have become a justification for so many wars. Much lies in one line of one passage where he says, “I come not to bring peace but a sword” (Or “division” in one version). But is Jesus really saying he came to start wars of conquest? Or is he saying much the opposite, that being a loving, compassionate, follower of God who speaks up for justice and the weak will cause division and violence by those who benefit from the cruelty of the system? Sermon by Pastor Lars Hammar, August 14, 2022

Faith is a Journey into Things Not Seen

When we look into the universe, and are filled with awe and wonder at how beautiful and complex it is, and how little we know, we should be motivated, as Christians, to seek more, learn more, and dig deeper into the mysteries of the universe that God made. Faith is not about having immutable rules and truths, but about a journey with God, into the unknown. It's about the things we don't see, as it says in Hebrews 11:3. Sermon by Pastor Lars Hammar. August 7th, 2022

Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 1Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. 3By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible

Your Legacy Is Out Of Your Hands - sermon July 31

Try as hard as we may, we cannot extend ourselves past our time on this earth. All the things we accumulate - the buildings and dishes and collections and investments - will be out of our hands, and may mean nothing to those who inherit them. You can't spend your life trying to control the future after it. Instead, enjoy the life you have with family and church and community, and extend the fruits of your work with giving. Based on Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23 by Pastor Lars Hammar.