Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. November 4, 2018 Text: Deuteronomy 6:3, O.T.: Deuteronomy 6:1-9, N.T.: Hebrews 9:11-12 Tree of Life Synagogue was showing the same challenges we are seeing as Presbyterian Christians. The people who died, and the descriptions of the congregation suggested an aging population were in worship on a Sabbath day that was not a “high holy day.” All too many Jewish and Christian congregations are seeing a similar pattern. Younger…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. October 28, 2018 Text: Job 42:3, Old Testament: Job 42:1-6, New Testament: Hebrews 11:19-31 Elie Weisel and the prisoners of Auschwitz stood before a gallows where a child was hanging. One of his Jewish friends looked at the child and muttered, “Where is God?” Elie quietly responded, “He is there, on the gallows.” Elie Weisel’s response was remarkably similar to the Christian confession about the Cross. There on…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. October 21, 2018 Text: Job 38:2, Old Testament: Job 38:1-7, 31-34, New Testament: Hebrews 5:1-10 Arial footage of Mexico Beach, Florida was stunning. What had been a tourist destination for thousands of people was reduced to wasteland by a Category Four hurricane. Insurance companies cannot restore the community that once lived in the Florida Panhandle. FEMA cannot recreate the relationships that existed in Mexico Beach prior to…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. September 30, 2018 Text: James 5:16, O.T.: Psalm 124, N.T.: James 5:13-20 Imagine a church where you could share the deepest shadows in your heart that darken your relationship with God. What would it take for Christians to be freely accepted for their warts and blemishes with joyful love and compassion? Our nation is in the season of casting blame for the behavior of public leaders that we are…
Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. September 23, 2018 Text: James 4:1, O.T.: Habakkuk 1:1-4, N.T.: James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a On Tuesday, September 11, 2012 Northmont’s Presbyterian Women were gathering in Polley Hall to promote Jesus Christ’s mission. That mission is the Gospel of Peace. As the Apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 2, “Christ is our peace who has made us one and broken down the walls of hostility that divide us.” The women were…