This winter weather messed with a few Sundays for us (and we might not be over with that yet. It is Ohio.) We enter Lent with one less Sunday since we finished up the letter of James. What could we possibly do with the five weeks we have as we head toward Easter? With the subject matter from James' letter still fresh on our hearts, there are some passages from the Gospel of Luke that seem to speak well with those themes and words.   A bit of our time in James left us wondering if the little brother of Jesus might have been present at any of the discourse and events we see unfolding in the Gospels. With the Messiah's mother, Mary, being accounted for in much of the background we read it is not far fetched at all to think that James would have been around also. What items did he hear about second hand? How did any of that play into what he chose to write about? While there is no clear and definite way to interpret any of that it does leave one to ponder and do some holy w...

  We are finishing up the Letter of James today. Three sections in this final chapter.  As we have begun this season of Lent, we want to be attentive to the themes and ideas that give us inspiration toward what we can give up and leave behind as we seek to follow Jesus. You'll notice that the first section sounds as if James is finishing up his thoughts from the last couple of chapters. The middle section makes connection with where his letter began, thinking about persecution and trials, and gives coverage and connection to all that he has discussed in his letter. Finally, he touches on something that we have seen quoted and used over and over again in the church. Healing. Maybe we will spend some time today with anyone who needs a moment to share in prayer as we lift up the needs and cares of our own. Maybe even those who are not present with us today.  Where we see James beginning is with a thought he has been pushing for a bit. How we handle ourselves when we find our...

  When I was a kid, baseball and football trading cards were a big deal. Topps was the company cranking out those cardboard gems. The 1980s was an age to itself when the players union in the NFL had not yet caught on that these little rectangles actually cost a fortune. In the 90s, once players realized that these cards were in fact -their property- because this is, in fact -their picture- on that item. Then the price for a pack of card began to rise. But, in the 80's, it was a real trick and treasure to try and get your whole team together. If you were a Cleveland fan, like I was, you spent every last dollar you could scrounge up on a pack of cards. Especially, if you knew the local drug store had just bought a new shipment. You wanted to be the first one there to get a pack of 10 cards for a buck. Yep. One dollar bought you 10 shiny gems. Unless you had been collecting for a while. Maybe you had "multiples" on a certain player. A lesser known player that didn't mean...

Just a little something to set the mood here.  The weather has not been our friend through this winter season and we find ourselves a week behind now in this study on James. Lent is just around the corner and we need to finish up so we can move into the next season.  For those of you new to my preaching and leadership at 6th Ave, let me asure you that the title of the message today does not suggest that we will be passing shots around soon. Communion was last week, so put your little glasses away. We find ourselves in the 3rd chapter of The Letter of James with the little brother of Jesus speaking to his audience about the need to find a way to control our tongues. Failing to do so can leave us with a firey spectacle between our lips that can resemble something like a shot of the famous drink that has in turn tripped up many an unsuspecting person not ready for the unhelpful blast that it can give to a person's mind and heart. We are going to get through the entire third chapt...

  It has become one of the greatest, silliest, most misunderstood arguments in theological history. Faith and Works. "What must I do to be saved?" The words have flown across the debte lines from Calvanists to Wesleyans and back for centuries. Do I just need faith? Is it enought to just believe? Does there need to be evidence to what we believe? If so, why? Excellent questions. We going ear lobe deep into scripture. We are going to tackle the quandry setup up by people like Martin Luther pitting The Apostle Paul against James. Is one church father correct and the other wrong? If so, then why are they both in this canon of scripture together? Or, are they both trying to say the same thing?  This is our task for Sunday February 25. We want to know how to understand the role of faith and works together in our lives. Lets jump in and see where James is taking us.  Some might choose to think of faith and works (or deeds, as the NIV chooses to word it) as opposities. But, what ...