St. John's Franklin Podcast

Kenny Benge preached a sermon entitled “What Time Is It?” for the First Sunday of Advent on November 26, 2011.  The bizarre events of "Black Friday" remind us that societies mark their priorities and organize their memories by their calendars.  Our calendars tell us how to use our time, they tells us what to do at various times in the year, but more than that, the calendars we subscribe to form us, they shape our desires and tell us how to act. 

The liturgy of the Christian year is not magic, and it can become rote to us if it is not made alive by God’s Spirit.  But it is the collected wisdom of the church over 2000 years. Through the waiting of Advent, the joy of Christmas, the illumination of Epiphany, the repentance of Lent, the celebration of new creation in Christ that is Easter, God can reshape our desires to want what He wants, to remake us into the image of Christ.

First Sunday of Advent

Isaiah 64:1-9

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19

1 Corinthians 1:3-9

Mark 13:24-37

Direct download: What_Time_Is_It.mp3
Category:Sermons -- posted at: 11:00pm CDT

Kenny Benge preached a sermon entitled “Holding On To Hope” for The Feast of Christ the King on November 19, 2011.  Our belief that Jesus is already Lord and that He will appear again as judge of the world protects us from both idolatry and despair as we seek to serve Him in the world, and provides the strength and courage we need to be faithful in our present, everyday life.

This week's lectionary:

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24

Psalm 95:1-7a

Ephesians 1:15-23

Matthew 25:31-46

Direct download: Holding_On_To_Hope.mp3
Category:Sermons -- posted at: 11:00pm CDT

Brad Perry preached a sermon entitled “Are You Ready?” based on Matthew 25:1-13 on November 12, 2011. Jesus' instructions in this parable remind us that we are to live our lives from a different point of view. Readiness for Jesus' Second Coming involve living our lives according to the values of His Kingdom now.

Direct download: Are_You_Ready.mp3
Category:Sermons -- posted at: 11:00pm CDT

Kenny Benge preached a sermon entitled “Teach Us to Number Our Days” based on Psalm 90 on November 5, 2011. Our finitude, sinfulness and mortality threaten our sense of significance.  Will our lives end and amount to nothing?  We need God to come if we are to experience a different kind of human flourishing.

Direct download: Teach_Us_to_Number_Our_Days.mp3
Category:Sermons -- posted at: 11:00pm CDT