Author Archives: Max Brennan

Friday’s Word

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Christ the King Sunday

This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. And yes—I know it’s also the Sunday before Thanksgiving. And yes—we’ll feast together with a big Thanksgiving meal after worship. (A very good Sunday to visit us!)

But my sermon will lift up Christ the King. This is the big shoutin’ day before the quiet beauty of Advent. Everything from Easter forward builds to this moment. It’s as big as Christmas!

It’s just that… nobody really knows it.
So I’m here to tell you.

This is the day we declare who Jesus is:

King of the universe.
Lord of lords.
Savior of this world—and any others that may exist.

And here’s something interesting—about time, right?
This exalted status I assign to Jesus is backed up by human experience.

Some people meet Jesus—literally, personally, unmistakably. And when they do, he is exactly the Exalted One the church proclaims.

Heidi Barr was a 16-year-old Jewish girl whose heart stopped when she was thrown from a horse. Suddenly, Jesus was there. He took her to see “the Father.”

The singer “Maya,” known worldwide as M.I.A., was raised Hindu. In a moment of deep crisis in 2017, Jesus appeared to her in a vision. She said simply, “He saved me.”

Jesus has been appearing to people for 2,000 years. I know thousands of these stories.
Why do people keep seeing him?

Because he is the Christ.

Christ the King Sunday.
Come sing Majesty with us.
Worship at 11:00 AM.

saintmatthewumc.com
revmaxb@tx.rr.com

Max’s Corner

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THE BIG DINNER!

Don’t forget it, especially if you are bringing food! We are celebrating both Thanksgiving and Christ the King Sunday.

I’ll be brief here. It is late, and I (of course) have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow morning. (One every day this week but Monday. I had one that day—the dentist—but I canceled it to eat out with Jim Bailey and nephew Chris Bailey. I can get cleaned later.)

My life will get easier after the knee surgery on Dec. 3. Fewer doctors for a while (I hope).

I have two more Sundays at the church before surgery. Only one more when I will preach. I’ll be in church on the first Sunday of Advent, but Mary will begin her Advent series.

(Someone—remember to get out the Advent wreath.)

I hope I get back to church soon after surgery. But I will not preach again until Christmas Eve.

Pastor’s Class

We continue to discuss where we are theologically after this journey we have been on. Some old beliefs have gone by the wayside—like the idea of an angry God. Join us at 9:45.

NO!!! Breakfast This Sunday

We will not have breakfast this Sunday. No place to put the food.

This Sunday

Sermon: Jesus Is Lord

We proclaim who Jesus is—and why we believe it.

A day of celebration. We will sing “Majesty,” “O Worship the King,” and “He Is Lord.”

Blake will share a solo.

We—shall—rejoice!

(And eat.)

God Bless — MB

REMEMBER: Blake’s school choir concert will be on Friday evening—Dec. 5—at 6:30. Mark your calendar!

Friday’s Word

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At age 19, I had an experience that pushed my life toward ministry.

We lived on a farm just outside Kemp, TX. In the country, we had a night sky that was glorious with stars.

Before going to bed, I often stepped outside to gaze into the starry sky and pray. One of those nights changed my life.

When I glanced up to pray, I was hit by joy.

I say hit. I could say seized. It was a joy so strong it shook me.

It was so much joy I couldn’t hold it. I thought I might die! I thought I might stop breathing.

I told God so.

I said, “Thank you, Lord. But I can’t take any more joy.”

And it slowly subsided. It had lasted, I think, less than a minute.

Overwhelming as it was, it was joy—ecstasy beyond anything I ever imagined.

It was a “God thing.” I knew that.

I just didn’t know what it was, exactly.

So, I headed for the library when I got to my junior college the next morning. It was there I found William James’ masterpiece, The Varieties of Religious Experience.

That’s what I had—

a “religious experience.”

I knew that joy was not from me. It came from some realm beyond this one.

And I knew that realm, that sacred realm, was available to us.

God is available to us.

We live our lives on the verge of glory. And even when life is hard, that joy is never far away.

If we ask for it, we will receive it. I believe that.

But I must add—you’ll want a lower dose of it than I got.

(Worship is at 11:00. Look for us online.)

saintmatthewumc.com
revmaxb@tx.rr.com

Max’s Corner

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First of all, some good news—Winston Dietrick-Kirkpatrick’s mom is doing better. Her car was sideswiped by another vehicle. She’s badly bruised on her left side, but nothing is broken. We give thanks that things are moving in the right direction.

The days are getting shorter—and somehow, the weeks are too. We’re moving up on Thanksgiving, just a week from this coming Sunday. Remember our big Thanksgiving dinner after worship. We started sign-ups last Sunday and will do so again this Sunday if needed. Mostly, remember to come to worship and bring family and friends with you. It’s a joyful day!

Not this Sunday—but the next—will be my last time preaching for a while. My knee replacement surgery is scheduled for December 3. I plan to be in church on the first Sunday of Advent, but may be out for much of December while I recover. Mary will preach during that time, and I’ll return to the pulpit for Christmas Eve.

Pastor’s Class

We continue to discuss where we are theologically after this journey we’ve been on. Some old beliefs have gone by the wayside—like the idea of an angry God. Join us at 9:45 a.m., followed by breakfast.

Breakfast This Sunday

It’s a “We-bring Sunday.” Help bring! We need food to share—breakfast begins at 10:30 a.m.

This Sunday

Sermon: “What If There Are No End Times?”

I’m going to preach this someday—it may as well be now. I’m not an “End Times” person. You won’t find me selling my house, putting on a white robe, and sitting on a mountaintop waiting for Jesus to return. Count me out.

The choir will sing an arrangement of the stirring hymn “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise.”

God Bless,

MB

Remember: Blake’s school choir concert will be on Friday evening, December 5, at 6:30 p.m. Mark your calendar!

Friday’s Word

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Are you looking for a theology that makes sense?

Are you looking for a faith rooted in Christ and His resurrection, but which also does not contradict science?

Are you looking for answers, and not always the standard ones you get in church?

I have a place for you.

This is what we are all about at St. Matthew — a faith that is based on the teachings of Jesus and on the actual experience of God.

Scripture.

And experience.

I teach a 9:45 class each week on my upcoming book, Discovering God.

We have some of the world’s best discussions.

We discussed recently whether God gets angry.

We decided “no.”

We checked our two sources:

Scripture and experience.

Jesus didn’t like anger. He warned against it.

Check out Matthew 5:22.

And what does the experience of God tell us?

In the thousands of religious experiences I have read or heard, not one person has met an angry God.

Yes, Paul talks about the “wrath” of God.

Paul got it wrong.

The teachings of Jesus and the experience of God tell us that Paul got it wrong.

God is not wrathful.

When Jesus and Paul disagree, we go with Jesus.

God is not angry.

You can get in on the discussions. We even have one person who attends the 9:45 class and heads off to another church to worship.

Class is over at 10:30.

Give us a try — class or worship or both. Visitors get a copy of my first book, whether you want it or not.

(Worship at 11:00.)

saintmatthewumc.com
revmaxb@tx.rr.com