Ever wonder what God is thinking? What God is feeling? What God is saying? I think about that a lot. I can’t imagine the anguish God feels when God sits through the kind of experience we had last Sunday after worship with our Presbytery’s Engagement Team. God’s heart must be breaking! Is this really what Christianity is about? As I’ve shared with so many of you this past week, what we experienced on Sunday was not “of God,” it is the Church’s fighting to retain control, dominance and the subordination of our lives.

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Do you ever feel “small?” Do you ever feel like your life has no, or little, significance? How does your life compare to Jesus’?

This Sunday we’re going to focus on those questions. Or more accurately, on Jesus’ answers to those questions.

In John’s Gospel there is a large section (chapter 14, verse 1 thru chapter 17, verse 26) that is called “Jesus’ farewell discourse and prayer.” This “farewell discourse” is an amazingly intimate conversation Jesus has with his followers right before his own death. It’s one of those last “heart to heart” conversations that everyone yearns to have before the death of a loved one. It’s that “one last,” that one “final” chance to tell someone how much you love them and perhaps to leave them with final words of love, thanks, blessing or request.

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This Sunday we will once again explore the topic of heaven and hell. It’s not the easiest topic to preach on since the Bible doesn’t provide us with a clear picture on the subject. In fact, Scripture doesn’t seem to dwell much on the subject at all (most of Scripture is focused on this life) and the texts that do refer to “heaven” and “hell” are a bit confusing. Take for instance the odd passage we looked at last week in which Jesus tells a wealthy young person to sell his stuff, hand it out to the poor, and follow him to gain “treasure in heaven.”

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Rob Bell rocked the religious world earlier this year with the release of his book “LOVE WINS – a book about Heaven, Hell and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived!” For progressives, Rob’s writing wasn’t all that revolutionary; but Rob is not a progressive. He’s one of an emerging group of clergy called “the young, new evangelicals.”

Historically and within church circles, the word “evangelical” (lower case “e”) refers to Christians whose primary emphasis is on salvation through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ as one’s personal “Lord and Savior.” When the term “evangelical” first began being used it was in no way connected with the religious right as a political party or movement. It was in fact, used by Baptists, Four-Square Gospel churches and others who found “earthly things and certainly politics” quite suspect of sin and the work of the devil. Their emphasis was on “witnessing” and inviting others to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. Some people know that as “being born again.”

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We join in Worship & Communion with the Members of Altadena Community Church (United Church of Christ)
10 AM worship service!
Following Worship there will be a time of conversation with members of West Hollywood Church and Altadena Church.
Location: Altadena Church is located at:
943 E. Altadena Drive
Altadena, CA 91001
* There will be NO WORSHIP at WHPC this Sunday! *

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Israel had some pretty awful “holiness laws.” Leviticus is the book that is full of them. Leviticus 18: 22 is the infamous “clobber text: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman.” And Leviticus 20:13 adds “the punishment:” If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall be put to death, their blood is upon them.” In the same book, women get put down as well. There are countless decrees against women in the “holiness codes” and an awful lot of them have to do with menstruation. For a people of faith whose entire existence depended on having babies – and preferably MALE babies, they were awfully hard on the very folks who made that possible!

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This Sunday we welcome the Rev. Dr. Joe McGowan. Just this spring Joe completed and was awarded his Doctor of Ministry degree! Congratulations, Joe!

Joe is the pastor at Altadena Community Church, a member of the United Church of Christ. Joe has a long relationship with our congregation. When he was first ordained, Joe was the Associate Pastor of St. Stephen Presbyterian Church in Chatsworth (San Fernando Presbytery). I’ll let Joe tell you his story on Sunday about how he “transitioned” from the Presbyterian Church to the United Church of Christ. It’s quite a story of how, even in the midst of some of the most painful times in our lives, God is present and “there” when we least expect it! Joe’s story is also a living testimony of God’s call “from death to life.”

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Dan and I are in the midst of a fun series of sermons called “Bad Boys and Bad Girls of the Bible – and the Gifts of Faith They Have Given Us.” It’s kind of a “reality-show version of the Bible” but the truth is, the Bible is full of stories of less-than-stellar characters! There are a lot of “Bad Boyz and Bad Gurls” in the Bible, and they give us wonderful gifts of faith. What’s more amazing and assuring for those of us who are “less-than-perfect Christians” is that God, yes God, is able to use us and our lives for good.

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If you’ve ever had one of those moments where you thought your family was the most dysfunctional in the world, relax – there are worse! Jacob’s family outshines us all! Jacob’s family makes the Kardashians, “Brothers and Sisters” and even “Desperate Housewives” seem mild. Jacob’s family has more deceit, envy, jealousy, sex and out-of-control craziness than even our current Reality-TV shows.

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Beginning this Sunday, Kobie and I will be preaching a fun series of sermons during June and July (on the Sundays when we are not having UCC Discernment experiences) called “Bad Boys and Bad Girls of the Bible – and the Gifts of Faith They Have Given Us.”

This Sunday we’re going to begin with an all-time favorite, one that is especially fitting for GLBT Pride Sunday. That is the story of the woman accused of adultery. From this story comes one of the most-quoted verses in scripture. It’s the story where Jesus says: “Let the one who is without sin cast (throw) the first stone” and of course Jesus’ concluding words to the story: “Neither do I condemn you.”

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