MGCLT Sermons

In Luke 14:25-33, Jesus issues a bunch of hyperbolic statements cautioning all show would follow him that there is a cost to be paid in walking his path. What is the cost? What does it mean to take up a cross and follow? How can we faithfully follow as disciples of Jesus in our context? Join Missiongathering as we labor to find the answers to these questions and more.

Setting The Table Aug 28th 2022 by Missiongathering Charlotte

There is so much we don't know about Jesus's Disciple Tabitha. But what we do know is she was not a prop or some background character. In an age where are trying to deconstruct a faith based on patriarchy and colonialism, Tabitha's witness and ministry offer us new insight into what could be possible for the future of the church by looking to its past. Join us as we celebrate this mother of the faith.

In the Gospel of Luke we have this passage where it seems like Jesus just goes off. He speaks about being a source of division not peace. What do we do with this passage in time where we seem so divided? How do we navigate and embrace the changes that need to come and avoid just playing at it? Join Missiongathering Charlotte as we seek to find these answers together.

The anonymous author of the book of Hebrews wrote to a community that had been through so much. They were tired, drained, and continually knocked down by the circumstances of their time. They were ready to leave this new Jesus movement because it seemed like it cost too much. In our own time, we know all too well the feeling of being knocked down over and over again. Whether it is the politics of our age, the looming threat of climate collapse, or simply the rise in the cost of living in this sick system, we all are going through the same feeling of longing for something better. What if the key to finding that place is as close as your breath? What if faith is not about having the right beliefs or rules and is all about something much deeper? Join Missiongathering as we search for answers by asking better questions.

In the Gospel of Luke two brothers ask Jesus to settle a fight over an inheritance. Instead of resolving the dispute, Jesus tells a story about a man with a lot of grain. What about wealth or the lack thereof causes so much anxiety in us? Why is it that even in a time of abundance there is so much need? How can we navigate a time of inflation, climate collapse, and political turmoil to find a path forward where all people can flourish? Join us this Sunday as we attempt to ask better questions even if we do not yet have all of the answers.

Teach us how to pray. What a loaded question. If you grew up like a lot of us did prayer was only for two things. First, it was to make sure God wasn’t mad at you and didn’t make you suffer eternally, and second, it was to get things that you wanted. It seems like so much of our disappointment in the Divine comes from this misunderstanding of prayer. What if there is something beyond magic words and formulas? What if Jesus taught his followers a simple prayer layered with meaning and transformative power that could change the world? Join Missiongathering as we ask Jesus to teach us how to pray.

In the Gospel of Luke, there are two sisters. Both are leaders in the Jesus movement. Both are doing their best at the jobs they have chosen. But for one sister the stress of leading and caring for a whole village is burning her out and leaving her anxious. What if their story the one we all think we know could offer us a glimpse into our own moment in history? What if both medical treatment and spiritual practice could be a path to learning to live out of a sense of urgency instead of the shadow of anxiety? Join Missiongathering as we explore this and more.

Do you ever feel like the most religious people are the ones happy to watch everyone else suffer while the world burns? Does it feel like those who benefit the most from our society are the ones trying to drive it off a cliff? If you have a pulse of course you feel that way. But what if there was a choice to be made that could turn things around? What if we are not the first country to go through all of this turmoil? Could there be an answer to be found in how others drove headfirst into destruction? Join Missiongathering Charlotte this week as we seek answers and better questions from the book of Amos.

Why is it that we see so many creatures as being scary? Wolves, snakes, and scorpions all seem to evoke fear in us. Right now there are people whose use of our religion creates the same kind of fear. Unlike the creepy crawlies Jesus uses as poetic devices they are creating real harm. How do we interact with them? How do we resist them as we try to follow Jesus without becoming just like them? Could it be that this passage from Luke 10 provides us some insight into our response to the threat and actual harm of White Chrisitan Nationalism? Is there a pathway forward for those who still wish to make earth like it is in heaven? Join us this week at Missiongathering Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) to find out.

Jesus said follow me, but what does that mean?

In the 3rd Century CE, our ancestors found it necessary to discuss the complex idea of the “Trinity” as a means to differentiate themselves from a growing movement trying to pull Christianity into a polytheistic understanding of God. It is a concept that has confused and frustrated many over the centuries. It led to the schism between east and west, in the reformation Calvin executed those who preached against it, and in our own time, there are churches that require fully assenting to the concept of 3 in1 in order to participate in full membership of the church. But it is a concept that is missing in any true structured form within the text of the Bible. This leads some to reject it, claiming that there is too much baggage and frustration around it. But I really love the idea of the trinity, because in this confusing and hard to nail down idea we see the “Queering” of God. So join me and Missiongathering Charlotte as we dive into the Trinity.

Pentecost is one of those celebrations that can be so hard. Because the call of Pentecost is a call to action and imagination. Those frightened few gathered in an upper room still grieving the loss of what they thought could be were encountered by the coming of something new, something loud, something unexpected or planned for. In a moment when many of our own ideas of what could be are shifting, when many of our dreams have been buried in grief when it seems like nothing is ever going to change, this is a moment for the Spirit to get loud again. So join us as we seek a mighty Holy Wind to fall once again, to fill us with mystical purpose and vision for a kindom unlike this world has ever seen before.

We grieve with the families of those lost in the Buffalo and Uvalde shootings. We grieve for a generation of children who must grow up without a sense of safety in their own schools. We grieve for our nation, which has experienced over 200 mass shootings so far this year, and 27 in a school. We grieve that our politicians and lawmakers continue to allow this level of gun violence while focusing on stripping rights away from women and the LGBTQIA+ community. Thoughts and Prayers are useless if they don’t lead to actual action and liberation. Join us as we lament and gather our strength for the work ahead.

After yet another terrorist attack in Buffulo NY, Pastor Andrew has a message about how we got here and what we might be able to do to move beyond the lies of White Christian Nationalism and into a brighter future. Join us.

The need for control is at the heart of so much of what goes wrong in the religious world. The Apostle Peter thought that he could control the Spirit. He thought he knew to whom the Spirit would work through. But he was left surprised by the freedom truly found in her. This week we are going to dive into where it is we still limit the Spirit by trying to cage her up and how we can move into a posture of openness and freedom for ourselves and future generations.

There is so much we don't know about Jesus's Disciple Tabitha. But what we do know is she was not a prop or some background character. In an age where are trying to deconstruct a faith-based on patriarchy and colonialism, Tabitha's witness and ministry offers us new insight into what could be possible for the future of the church by looking to its past. Join us as we celebrate this mother of the faith.

John 21:1-19 has a story about a very awkward brunch Jesus throws for some of his friends after the resurrection. There are so many things that can be learned in these 19 verses that have a real impact on all of our lives today. Come and join us as we gather together this Sunday morning.

Anyone who says they don't have an agenda is trying to sell you something. But in the Gospel of John, there is an interesting pair of verses where the author lays out their agenda. As we continue our celebration of Easter, what agendas are we bringing into this time with us? Which agendas might we want to adopt moving forward? And what agenda will serve us as we begin the work of building something new together?

It is Easter 2022 and the Apostle Mary Magdelene has much to teach us about how we move into the new life beyond our sorrows. Join in the celebration and contemplation of that first Easter Sunday with all of us at Missiongathering Charlotte.