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Sunday, June 26, 2022
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"Learning to Listen"
Galatians 3:23-29 1 Kings 9:1-18 |
Archived Audio Sermons & Bulletins
Audio sermons and bulletins for our worship services prior to March 15, 2020 are posted below. For videos of worship services from March 15, 2020, onward, please visit our Facebook page. We began simulcasting to both Facebook and our YouTube channel on January 16, 2022, so video worship services from that date onward can also be found on YouTube.
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2020 Lenten Series: "Going Deeper"Lent is a season of preparation for the events of Holy Week, when we remember the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Contemplating the meaning of these events for our lives can often feel a bit like a wilderness journey, but in the midst of that desert, Jesus points us to a well, from which we are invited to draw deeply and drink from the waters of the Holy Spirit. This Lenten season, we invite you to join us for a journey of “going deeper” in our relationship with God. |
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Called to Community:
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Matthew’s R-Rated Epiphany:
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Advent Sermon Series: Glimpses of HopeDeep blue is the color of the clear, predawn sky—the color that covers the earth in the dark, cold hours before the sun rises. This Advent, we are using deep blue as our liturgical color. It represents our hope in the promised light of dawn that the birth of Christ will bring, breaking over all of our horizons with healing and holy splendor.
The theme of our Advent sermon series is thus "Glimpses of Hope." As earth's hour tilts toward dawn, the prophet Isaiah points us to glimpses of hope on the horizon: peace among the nations, the reconciliation of enemies, the renewal of life, and the gift of God-With-Us. Next time you're at church, look for the two large, paper-lace banners in the Narthex (shown at the left). Look closely at the full-sized banners hanging on the walls in the Narthex for the following "glimpses of hope": plowshares and pruning hooks, the wolf and the lamb, the stump of Jesse, crocuses blooming in the desert, the star of Bethlehem, the wise men, the angels above, the shepherds and their sheep, and Mary, Jesus, and Joseph behind the inn. |
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Foster's Pie PanCharles (Charlie) Davidson, a retired Presbyterian pastor and psychotherapist with Pastoral Counseling Services of Central Virginia, was the Darrel Rollins Professor of Pastoral Theology, Care, and Counseling at Virginia University of Lynchburg. He is the author of Bone Dead and Rising: Vincent van Gogh and the Self Before God (Cascade Books). Charlie attends New Hope and has taught classes for us on the life and spirituality of Vincent van Gogh. He is married to Georganne Spruce.
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The Transforming Love of GodWe welcome the Rev. Russ Moxley to the pulpit on November 17, 2019. Russ is an ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church and was trained as a facilitator by the Center for Courage & Renewal, founded by Parker Palmer. Until 2002, Russ was a senior fellow at the Center for Creative Leadership. Afterwards he served there as a part-time faculty member until 2018. Russ is an associate member of New Hope, and his wife, Jean, is a member. They live across the street from New Hope at Givens, and together they share six daughters and twelve grandchildren.
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Fall 2019 Stewardship SeriesThe theme of this year's Stewardship Season is "Growing Deep Roots." Since last year’s theme was “Sowing Bountifully,” we are building on that theme this year with an exploration of what it means to grow our roots deeply into Christ, as the Letter to the Colossians says: "Since therefore you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, abounding in thanksgiving." (Col 2:6-7) We will be looking at Scriptures that call us to be "Rooted in Christ," "Rooted in Our Local Community," "Rooted in the Communion of the Saints," and "Rooted in Gratitude."
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God's EconomyWe were grateful to have been able to welcome the Rev. Michael Poulos to the pulpit on October 13. Michael serves as the director of Asheville Youth Mission, a non-profit that hosts groups of young people for mission experiences in the Asheville area. Isaiah 55 is a passage that is close to Michael's heart. Why would we spend our time, energy, and money on things that don't satisfy us, when God invites us to eat for free?
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Sermon Series on Elijah & ElishaKing Ahab "did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than had all the kings of Israel who were before him" (1 Kings 16:33). So, God called the prophet Elijah to confront Ahab and his corrupt ways. What was it like for Elijah to be called to that kind of challenge? How was his life sustained in the midst of hardship? And where was God during such rampant political evil? Join Pastor Kim as we sojourn with Elijah and Elisha through the Books of First and Second Kings.
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July SermonsWe are so grateful that, while Pastor Kim was away in July, we got to hear messages from several of New Hope's resident pastors! Buddy Olney is a retired PC(USA) pastor and served churches in Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina before retiring to Asheville. Ed Hillman is a pastor in the United Methodist Church and currently serves as the head chaplain at Givens Estates. Ken Meeks is our Parish Associate for Visitation and most recently served as the Executive Presbyter of the Northeast Georgia Presbytery before his retirement to Asheville. On the last Sunday of July, our own Louden Young preached here for the first time since his graduation from Columbia Theological Seminary.
July 07: Rev. Buddy Olney July 14: Rev. Ed Hillman July 21: Rev. Dr. Ken Meeks July 28: Louden Young, M.Div., MA |
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Peter, Paul, and Mary:
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EastertideAlleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! With joy we proclaim Christ's resurrection from the dead. Joined to him, we too are raised to new life. Even before the old has fully passed away, a new creation is being made. Let us celebrate this good news together!
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Lenten Sermon SeriesThis Sunday we begin our Lenten journey toward Easter alongside Jesus, who, after his initial ministry in Galilee, resolutely “set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51). This verse begins Luke’s “travel narrative,” which tells the story of Jesus’ journey from Galilee to Jerusalem, where the events of his passion will soon take place. Along the road to Jerusalem, Jesus teaches those he encounters about the ways their lives must “turn around” if they want to be his followers. This Lenten season, as we too follow Jesus on the road to Jerusalem, we will explore the “you-turns” that Jesus is calling us to make as we prepare for Holy Week and Easter. What are we called to turn away from, and what are we called to turn toward?
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Sermon Series on the Gospel of LukeMatthew, Mark, and Luke are often referred to as the "synoptic" Gospels. From the Greek root words meaning "with the same eye," the word "synoptic" refers to the fact that these three Gospels use much of the same original source material to compile and tell the story of Jesus. While these three Gospels do share many of the same stories, the Gospel writers still pull these materials together in such a way as to emphasize their own particular theological themes.
This year, we will be stepping through the "Luke"-ing glass to see Jesus from Luke's particular point of view. In Luke's world, the Holy Spirit is active and ever-present, outcasts are brought to the center of our attention, and the good news is proclaimed not just for a few but so that "all flesh shall see the salvation of God" (Luke 3:6). |
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Christmas & EpiphanyOn Christmas we celebrate the birth of Christ and the mystery of the incarnation. Epiphany, meaning "to shed light on," and which we celebrate on January 6, is marked by the visit of the wise men from the east and begins the season of interpreting what Christ's birth means to the world.
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Advent SeriesThe theme of this year's Advent series, “Every Longing Heart,” comes from the well-known Advent hymn, “Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus.” The first verse of this hymn concludes with the words, “Israel’s strength and consolation, hope of all the earth thou art; dear desire of every nation, joy of every longing heart.”
What did Israel long for in exile? And what do we long for as we experience "exile" in our own lives? What are the deepest longings of the human heart? Join us this Advent season as we explore some of our fundamental human longings and where the fulfillment of those longings resides. |
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December 9, 2018
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No worship due to snow closure
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Christ the King SundayChrist the King (or Reign of Christ) Sunday is the culmination of the Christian calendar. It centers on the exalted Christ, who rules over the whole universe. As the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, Christ is the center of the universe, the ruler of all history, the judge of all people. In Christ all things began, and in Christ all things will be fulfilled. In the end, Christ will triumph over the forces of evil. As sovereign ruler, Christ calls us to a loyalty that transcends every earthly claim on the human heart. To Christ alone belongs the supreme allegiance in our lives. Christ calls us to stand with those who in every age confessed, “Jesus Christ is Lord!” In every generation, demagogues emerge to claim an allegiance that belongs only to God. But Christ alone has the right to claim our highest loyalty.
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Sermon Series on GenerosityWe all love enjoying an abundant return on our investments. However, making an investment to begin with can give us more pause, regardless of whether we are investing money, time, or our hearts into something. What will happen if I take a risk? Will I have enough in the meantime? Will my investment really yield a worthwhile return? To all these questions, the apostle Paul says, “The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (2 Corinthians 9:6).
This stewardship season we are exploring the challenge and the joy of "sowing bountifully" as we seek to live lives of generosity. |
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Sermon Series on JamesOne of the biggest complaints about the church is that Christians don’t always “walk their talk.” As Christians, we ourselves demonstrate that we don’t always believe what we say we believe. When times are difficult, our actions reveal that we’d prefer to take our lives into our own hands rather than trust God. When our faith is tested, our doubts make us vulnerable to the allure of self-sufficiency and material security, and our neighbor becomes our competitor rather than the one we’re called to love. Yet, James challenges us to live with real integrity, such that our words and actions reflect the faith we profess in a generous God.
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