Embracing the Kindom: 2023 After Pentecost Sermon Seeds Series
“God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good.” –Genesis 1:31a
“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” –Matthew 28:18-20
The longest season of the liturgical calendar are filled with Sundays called “Ordinary Time.” It begins with Trinity Sunday and ends with the Reign of Christ. We move from concentrating on the event of Christ in the world and shift to the impact of being in Christ in the world. A life in the unity of the Trinity is one of being shaped and sent daily in the image and in the purpose of Holy Love.
“The kingdom, Jesus taught, is right here–present yet hidden, immanent yet transcendent. It is at hand–among us and beyond us, now and not-yet. The kingdom of heaven, he said, belongs to the poor, the meek, the peacemakers, the merciful, and those who hunger and thirst for God. It advances not through power and might, but through missions of mercy, kindness, and humility. In this kingdom, many who are last will be first and many who are first will be last. The rich don’t usually get it, Jesus said, but children always do. This is a kingdom whose savior arrives not on a warhorse, but a donkey, not through triumph and conquest, but through death and resurrection. This kingdom is the only kingdom that will last.”
Rachel Held Evans
After Pentecost I Scripture and Themes “Proclaim”
“The richness, beauty and depths of love can only be fully experienced in a climate of complete openness, honesty and vulnerability.” – Anthony Venn Brown
June 4, 2023 (Trinity Sunday): Matthew 28:16-20 | “Authority” | Sermon Seed
June 11, 2023: Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26 | “Mercy | Sermon Seed
June 18, 2023: Matthew 9:35-10:8, (9-23) | “Kindom” | Sermon Seed
June 25, 2023: Matthew 10:24-39 | “Life”
After Pentecost II Scripture and Themes “Welcome”
“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” – Matthew 10:40
July 2, 2023: Matthew 10:40-42 | “The Prophetic”
July 9, 2023: Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 | “The Weary”
July 16, 2023: Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 | “The Word”
July 23, 2023: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 | “The Seed”
After Pentecost III Scripture and Themes “Cast the Net”
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind.” – Matthew 13:47
July 30, 2023: Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 | “For Righteousness
August 6, 2023: Matthew 14:13-21 | “For Compassion”
August 13, 2023: Matthew 14:22-33 | “For Faith”
August 20, 2023: Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28 | “For the Heart”
After Pentecost IV Scripture and Themes “The Keys”
“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew 16:19a
August 27, 2023: Matthew 16:13-20 | “Identity”
September 3, 2023: Matthew 16:21-28 | “Confrontation”
September 10, 2023: Matthew 18:15-20 | “Accountability”
September 17, 2023: Matthew 18:21-35 | “Forgiveness”
After Pentecost V Scripture and Themes “The Vineyard”
“For many are called, but few are chosen.” – Matthew 22:14
September 24, 2023: Matthew 20:1-16 | “Made Equal”
October 1, 2023: Matthew 21:23-32 | “Going Ahead”
October 8, 2023: Matthew 21:33-46 | “Producing Fruit”
October 15, 2023:” Matthew 22:1-14 | “Filled from the Streets”
After Pentecost VI Scripture and Themes “Put to the Test”
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats,” – Matthew 25:31-32
October 22, 2023: Matthew 22:15-22 | “Truth”
October 29, 2023: Matthew 22:34-46 | “Love”
November 5, 2023: Matthew 23:1-12 | “Greatness”
November 12: 2023 Matthew 25:1-13 | “Wisdom”
November 19, 2023: Matthew 25:14-30 | “Investment”
November 26, 2023 (Reign of Christ): Matthew 25:31-46 | “Care”
The Rev. Dr. Cheryl A. Lindsay, Minister for Worship and Theology, United Church of Christ, (lindsayc@ucc.org), also serves as a local church pastor and worship scholar-practitioner with a particular interest in the proclamation of the word in gathered communities.