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A Sermon about Sermons
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 7 Nov, 2021
One of the main things we do as part of our weekly worship services is have a sermon. But why? What is the purpose of a sermon? What makes a sermon good or not so good? How can you get the most out of even a mediocre sermon? Come on Sunday for a sermon about sermons. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Religion and Politics - 2 - Heavenly Leadership
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 31 Oct, 2021
It’s often taken as a given that politicians will be self-serving, corrupt, incompetent, or all of the above. They seem to rank just below lawyers as the butt of jokes. Yet the position of being a government official is in itself, or at least ought to be, a sacred one. Anytime someone enters into leadership they take on the responsibility to serve, and the higher the position, the greater the responsibility. This Sunday we will look at how leadership works in heaven (and by contrast, in hell) and see what we can learn both about our own governments and our own roles as leaders. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Religion and Politics, 1, Seeking the Lord's Justice in a Corrupt World
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 24 Oct, 2021
We don’t often talk about politics in church and with good reason. It can be done wrong in so many ways. And maybe it is better for there to be a “separation between church and state” in society. However, it’s not good for there to be that separation within an individual—it’s not good for there to be a separation between church and state in you. What can we do to try to better integrate our spiritual beliefs and our political beliefs? | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Are You a Pessimist or an Optimist
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 17 Oct, 2021
Are optimists better than pessimists? Are pessimists just realistic while optimists are naive? What about the Lord? Is He optimistic about our potential, or does He bemoan the woeful nature of humanity? We have those two broad categories of people that conflict with each other. And at times they may be useful. But this Sunday we will look a little beyond these two categories to try to find a more spiritual view of society, humanity, and our future. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
The 5 Senses - Part 3 - Touch
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 10 Oct, 2021
The last sense we’re going to cover in our series on the five senses is touch. Touch is a powerful sense and a big part of that is because of its role in relationships. Touch is one of the most powerful ways that we communicate and experience affection, comfort, and love; touch is also one of the most powerful ways that we communicate and experience anger, pain, and coercion. The Lord healed people through laying His hands on them. This Sunday we will reflect on touch and ask the Lord to bring us healing in this area of our lives too. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
The 5 Senses - 2 - Sight and Hearing
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 3 Oct, 2021
We are in the middle of a series on the five senses. Each one of these physical ways of experiencing the physical world around us corresponds to the spiritual ways that we engage with spiritual reality. Last week Malcolm talked about how our senses of smell and taste reflect our ability to detect what is good or evil and choose to take in that which is good. This week we turn to sight and hearing, and we will explore what they teach us about learning and obeying what is true. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
The 5 Senses, Part 1, Taste and Smell
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 26 Sep, 2021
Have you ever thought about why the Lord gave you a sense of smell or why He gave you a sense of taste? This Sunday we’re beginning a sermon series on the five senses and we will be focusing on taste and smell. We will look at some stories from the Lord’s Word that involve taste and smell and reflect on the spiritual significance of these senses in our lives. How can we become more sensitive to the things that the Lord wants us to notice? | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Strands Through Scripture - 3 - Covenants
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 19 Sep, 2021
We are continuing to follow threads of meaning through the many stories of the Word. This Sunday we will follow the idea of the Covenant, the special agreement between God and mankind. On the surface it appears that this agreement changes drastically from the very contractual, blind-faith based one of the Old Testament to the loving, caring relationship presented in the New Testament. In reality, these covenants are one and the same, seen from different points of view. We’ll look at how we can change how we see our own agreements with the Lord so that we can form a relationship that inspires and transforms our lives. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Strands Through Scipture -2- Precipitation
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 12 Sep, 2021
This Sunday we are going to look at another strand that runs through scripture from beginning to end: the imagery of precipitation. We might think of weather in the Bible as something going on in the background while the real story plays out between the human beings in the story but we can learn a lot about what’s going on in different stories by paying attention to the atmospheric conditions. We’ll look at the symbolism of the whole water cycle and also touch on things like dew, snow, and hail. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
So He Gives His Beloved Sleep
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 5 Sep, 2021
The Word is written in such a way that every word and concept has a deeper spiritual meaning. These meanings are threaded through the entirety of the Word, tying together disparate and varied stories into one story with one message. This Sunday we will follow one of these threads by exploring sleep and wakefulness. In this theme we learn about the need to be vigilant and awake spiritually, as well as the need to rest and sleep in the Lord. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
What Kind of God do You Believe In?
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 29 Aug, 2021
There are many ideas of God in the world. Over the history of the human race and in all the different religions around the world there is a huge variety of ideas about what God is like. So what God do you believe in? This Sunday we are going to look at a number of the different ways God is depicted and described in the Bible as an opportunity for you to reflect on your relationship with God. We’re also going to look at some common ways in which people’s beliefs about God can be hurting them. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Renewed Life
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 22 Aug, 2021
Sometimes we think fondly back on the simplicity of childhood. Our biggest concerns seem small in comparison to what we face as adults. It’s a pity we cannot go back to that simple mind-set of trust and innocence. Or at least, that’s what a cynical world tells us. But the Lord offers hope in the face of pessimism. Even though we may have exchanged childish idealism for adult realism, that does not mean we can never go back. In fact the Lord promises that we can regain our innocence and find abundant hope even in a troubled world. It’s not too late. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Genuine Goodness - 3 - Is it Wrong to Want Some Credit
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 15 Aug, 2021
We’ve been talking for a couple of weeks about genuine goodness and this week we’re going to venture into some of the thorny issues around motivation. Does it matter what our motivations are if the actions we do are good? Is it wrong to want some credit for the good things we do or does that somehow spoil them? Why does the Lord care about our motivations? Spoiler alert: the Lord cares about our motivations because He cares about us and He knows what will make us genuinely happy. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Genuine Goodness - 2 - Picking and Choosing
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 8 Aug, 2021
We all want to be good: but how do we decide which good things to do? No matter how much we do, there is always more to be done. When faced with just how many needs there are in the world we can become overwhelmed. We cannot possibly do it all. In order to be good we have to constantly make a judgment call about what good things we will do, and just as importantly, what good things we will not do. We’ll talk about how to make those choices this Sunday. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Genuine Goodness - 1 - Doing Good When You Don't Feel Like It
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 1 Aug, 2021
There’s something in each of us that wants to be good—that wants to make the world a better place. But how do we do that? There’s a lot to talk about here. For this Sunday we’re going to start with the rather mundane topic of the good things that we do that we don’t feel like doing. We all have things that we are asked to do, required to do, nagged into doing, or have to do because nobody else is going to do it. Often we don’t feel like doing those things. Should we do them anyway? Should we not? Let’s talk about it on Sunday. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Responding to Evil
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 25 Jul, 2021
Perhaps the clearest command that the Lord gives us in regards to evil-doers is that we ought to forgive them. This command is one of the hardest commands to follow and it is crucial for our spiritual well-being. Yet if forgiveness is our only response to evil then we miss the bigger picture. So in addition to forgiveness, what else does the Lord teach us about responding to evil? This Sunday we will explore how to broaden our view of that response. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Strengthen Your Heart
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 18 Jul, 2021
It has been a hard week. This Sunday we will have a special service with Joel, Malcolm, and the Rev. Bheki Dube each playing a part. In the Psalms we read, “Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!” (27:14). Join us online as we ask the Lord to strengthen our hearts. | By Rev. J. Bheki Dube , Westville, RSA
Our Relationship with What the Lord Teaches - 2 - Individual Experience
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 11 Jul, 2021
Last week we talked about some general principles as to what makes for a healthy or unhealthy relationship with what the Lord teaches. This week we’re going to talk about what it’s like to be an individual navigating the ups and downs of our individual relationship with what the Lord teaches. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Our Relationship with What the Lord Teaches - 1 - General Principles
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 4 Jul, 2021
Here’s one expression of our relationship with what the Lord teaches: “God said it. I believe it. That settles it!” It’s not quite that simple, is it? What should our relationship with statements in the Lord’s Word be? What if we don’t understand them or don’t believe them? Do we reject them? Do we tell ourselves to believe them anyway? There are big ramifications to how we hold our relationship with what the Lord teaches so let’s talk about it this Sunday. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Overcoming Avoidance
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 27 Jun, 2021
Avoiding is something we all do. We do it with small things, like when we ignore our body’s signals that it’s time for bed or when we procrastinate on the dishes. We do it with bigger things, like when we put off that important but difficult conversation we need to have or when we put future decisions out of mind. And we do it even with the most important things in our spiritual lives, when we know we have an issue but it is to challenging to face. But if we are to grow spiritually we cannot put off or ignore our flaws. We need to address them head on. This Sunday we will look at some of the reasons we avoid spiritual challenges and what we can do to overcome that tendency. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
What is the New Church - Part 3 - Picturing the New Church
Worship Service: Informal Family - 20 Jun, 2021
Every June, as New Church day approaches, we turn our attention to the book of Revelation. Revelation presents fantastic imagery of plagues and warfare, of dragons and angel armies, of a colossal city and a lake of fire. What it does not appear to do is lay out nicely and clearly what the New Church will be. Why did the Lord choose imagery over rational explanation to paint a picture for us of the New Church? This Sunday’s talk for the whole family will dive into what we can learn of the New Church through understanding John’s visions. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
What is the New Church - Part 2 - Being Different
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 13 Jun, 2021
In talking about what the New Church is we could focus on how the New Church is different from other churches but this Sunday I’m more interested in talking about how we hold those differences. Are we meant to be trying to be different? Do we feel embarrassed to be different or maybe superior? Let’s work to have the Lord guide our thinking about being different. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
What is the New Church? Part 1
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 6 Jun, 2021
Every year on 19 June we celebrate “New Church Day.” We treat this day as the birthday of our church. But what is it that we actually are celebrating? What is the New Church? How does the New Church fit into the broader world of religions and faith? How widely does it extend? How does it differ from any other faith? This June we will spend time looking at exactly what the New Church is, and especially how it fits into the world around us. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA
Being Born Again
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 30 May, 2021
Have you been born again? Or, to ask the same question in a different way, have you been significantly changed by trying to follow the Lord? That’s the point, right? To become a less selfish, more loving, more wise and useful person. Who could you become if you really gave yourself over to loving the Lord and loving other people? Sometimes it can feel like we’re not making much progress in that direction. Is that because we’re not trying hard enough or not letting go enough or just because it’s hard and it takes a long time to change? These are the questions that we’re going to wrestle with on Sunday. | By Rev. Malcolm G. Smith , Westville, RSA
Confirmation of Baptism
Worship Service: Childrens Talk & Adult Sermon - 23 May, 2021
Last week we witnessed a baptism. Malcolm talked about the importance of baptism as a mark of committing to a certain way of life. But he also mentioned how rarely many of us reflect on our own baptisms. In the New Church we practice infant baptism, meaning many of us were not even conscious of what was going on when it took place, and have no memory of it. How do we confirm and affirm that we as adults accept the promises made when we were infants? Or if baptised as adults, how do we confirm and affirm the promises made years ago when younger? This Sunday we will look at various ways of confirming the promises of baptism and making sure the commitment of baptised remains with us. | By Rev. Joel C Glenn , Westville, RSA