Sermons Archive - Manchester United Methodist Church

You Gotta Show Up

May 16, 2022
The risen Jesus was not a ghost, and to show his disciples that he was bodily present, he does a very basic human thing - he eats. In doing so…

The Long Walk-Along

May 9, 2022
The risen Jesus walks alongside the disciples in their grief and confusion, not trying to fix it. And then he stays present with them as they arrive at Emmaus and…

You Should Eat Something

May 2, 2022
The risen Jesus introduces himself to the fishermen by giving them fishing advice, then cooking some of the fish they caught. This strikes us as a very ordinary thing, an…

April 25, 2022
Following his resurrection, the Bible teaches that Jesus appeared to his followers several times. Explore lessons from one of those encounters and discuss how it should guide the church today.

The Easter Encounter

April 18, 2022
The risen Jesus introduces himself to Mary at the tomb by asking her why she is weeping. He approached her with empathy and a desire to know her, to share…

The Silence of Saturday

Experience a unique Holy Saturday service in the Manchester UMC Historic Chapel, with a message from Rev. Winter Hamilton.

Here, but Not Yet

April 11, 2022
Palm Sunday is the celebration of a divine reign that is both here and not yet here. It is the fulfillment of a promise that has yet to be fully…

Expansive Love is Costly

April 4, 2022
We might rather rush to Easter, getting through the self-reflection of Lent. Nobody wants to watch Jesus walk to Golgotha, carrying the cross; we do not want to deal with…

Clearly A Mess

March 28, 2022
Nothing that we can do ourselves can “fix” the world; “we do not have the power within ourselves to abolish sinful systems.” It seems easier to remain a slave to…

It’s Not Their Job

It is not the job of the people with disabilities to explain disabilities to the able-bodied. It is the responsibility of the people of God to be “all-in” and to…

Kind of Like Jesus

March 14, 2022
Sometimes we want a Gospel that avoids suffering. Jesus offers a rebuke to that kind of thinking, and reminds us that suffering is inherent to living.

Not the Thing

March 7, 2022
The physical healing of the “healing stories” is not the point. People who are able bodied are temporarily able-bodied. Redemption has nothing to do with our physical ability - God’s…

How Far I’ll Go

Moana is Moses, called to go beyond the boundary of slavery, beyond the boundary of the reef, but uncertain as to her worthiness. She is called to lead the people…

He Lives in You

We tend to forget ourselves, to forget who we are. Peter “forgets” who he is when he denies Jesus. When we remember our story, our ancestors, the saints of the…

Dying is Worth Living For

February 15, 2022
Death makes us aware of how precious life is, even the most ordinary and mundane life. Joe’s reaction after playing his dream gig points out the vanity of wishing for…

Remember Me

February 7, 2022
We have to remember our story, to remember our ancestors. If we do not remember our ancestors our story will fade into non-existence. If we do not tell the story…

A Jar Never Empty

January 31, 2022
As a gentile, a woman, and a widow, the “Widow of Zarephath” would have been completely powerless in her context. Yet she is called by God to provide food for…

Anointed

January 24, 2022
As Jesus begins his work, he claims an anointing by the Spirit, connected to the prophecy of Isaiah. To be anointed is to be sent by God, to be consecrated…

The Spirit Chooses

January 18, 2022
After baptism, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to prepare for public ministry. The Spirit prepares us for our work by giving each of us gifts “as…

Called by Name

January 10, 2022
God calls us “by name,” which means that we are known by God. Just as God’s voice calls Jesus a beloved child at the moment of his baptism, so also…

Shepherds Guard and Angels Sing

January 3, 2022
The birth of Jesus is the initiation of the restoration of the remnant. The presence of both shepherds and angels means that the Messiah has come to gather in the…

The Island of Misfit Toys

Watch Nick Reinhardt's sermon on the Island of Misfit Toys.

The Gift of the Magi Revisted

Watch Rev. David Bennet's sermon on the Gift of the Magi Revisited.

Christmas Eve Online Service (2pm)

Join Manchester United Methodist Church and celebrate the birth of Jesus in this special online only worship service full of music, scripture, and stories. The birth of Jesus is the…

A Ruler for the Remnant

December 20, 2021
Micah’s prophecy was early on, before even the Northern Kingdom fell. In the midst of his warnings, he also promises a restoration of the remnant, the lame and afflicted who…

Gathering the Outcast

December 13, 2021
Zephaniah is prophesying before the exile, during the time of King Josiah. He is both warning the people of God’s impending judgement and offering a word of hope that a…

Refiner’s Fire

December 6, 2021
Malachi’s prophecy is post-exile, the temple was rebuilt, the walls of the city rebuilt, yet the people still did not follow God’s ways. In response God promises a messenger who…

Stand Up and Raise Your Heads

November 29, 2021
The Babylonian Exile challenged the faith of the people, who had been promised God’s presence would be with them always, in the land and the temple itself. With all of…

Anticipating What Will Be

November 22, 2021
The next few years in the life of this congregation will be directed by a new strategic plan currently being developed. This plan will take us from here into “Century…

Salt, Light, and Life

Jesus says we are salt of the earth, light of the world. Briny and bright, we are God’s faithful people. We shall be who we are meant to be in…

Remembering What Was

November 15, 2021
The past few years have been directed by a strategic plan known simply as the “2021 Plan.” Good work has been done in multiple ministry areas by a wide cross…

Always in the Presence of God

Watch Rev. Stephanie Lendt's sermon, Always in the Presence of God.

Those Who Conquer

November 8, 2021
The saints of the church are those who have come before us and made it possible for us to be where we are now. Though technically the UMC does not…

The Vulnerability of Healing

Jesus is toward the end of his journey from Galilee to Jerusalem. He has been sharing with his disciples the importance of genuine faith all along the way…and then, from…

The Living Bridge

November 1, 2021
Watch Rev. David Bennet talk about the living bridge and Jesus offering us a different view of the world.

Look Out

October 25, 2021
Followers of Jesus believe that the way we treat others is equivalent to the way we treat Jesus. And that is especially true of the way we treat “the least…

Look Within

October 19, 2021
God knows us intimately, even better than we know ourselves. We can learn how to see ourselves as God sees us, to see our intentions, our deepest inner longings and…

Look Up!

October 11, 2021
Participating in the life of the church (prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness) turns our focus “upward,” meaning toward God. First and foremost, our priority is aligning with God, obedience…

Upward, Inward, Outward

October 4, 2021
Discipleship accountability has always been a part of Methodism. Ever since the Wesley brothers’ college days, they met weekly to check in with one another on their spiritual health in…

The Mountains

September 27, 2021
Just like being able to look at the sky and know something about the weather, the signs of God’s presence are all around us. Instead of demanding a sign from…

Season of Creation: The Sky

September 20, 2021
Just like being able to look at the sky and know something about the weather, the signs of God’s presence are all around us. Instead of demanding a sign from…

Season of Creation: Humanity

September 13, 2021
We claim that human beings are created in the image of God, which should humble us and bring a sense of awe. There are so many and various ways that…

Season of Creation: The Earth

September 7, 2021
Until we find something else, this planet is all we have. For our own sake and the sake of future generations, it is our obligation to care for it. In…

God Doesn’t Give US More Than We Can Handle

August 30, 2021
The idea comes from a misreading of 1 Corinthians 10:13 regarding how we face temptation. When Jesus encounters a person suffering, his response is to heal them, not to offer…

God Helps Those Who Help Themselves

August 23, 2021
This idea is not biblical at all; it arises from a distinctly American context. The idea of individual freedom is important in U.S. culture, but not in the Bible. Throughout…

Love the Sinner; Hate the Sin

August 15, 2021
There is wide recognition that this very common phrase is not biblical, but some will say that the concept is, citing Jude 1:22-23 for example. However, Jesus cautions against this…

I Accepted Jesus as My Personal Lord & Savior

August 9, 2021
Salvation is not dependent upon us accepting Jesus; grace is prevenient for everyone. Nor is following Jesus only a personal matter; it is lived out in community as the Body…

Look, Here is the Water!

August 2, 2021
The Ethiopian Eunuch is both a foreigner and someone whose sexuality is non-normative. It is scandalous that God’s grace is available to one who is on the margins of the…

Remember Me

July 26, 2021
A convicted thief, sentenced to death, as he was being executed for his crime … appealed to Jesus for grace. And he got it. The scandalous grace of God is…

Who Touched Me?

The woman who touched the hem of Jesus’s robe was audacious in her faith. Jairus was audacious in his privilege. The juxtaposition of these two stories illuminates the scandal of…

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Manchester United Methodist Church