Tag: New Testament

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The Transfiguration – Matthew 17:1-9

What comes up must come down. The Transfiguration is the ultimate mountaintop moment – whatever it is that brings us to the height of emotion, whether spiritual highs or Super Bowl championships, eventually fades away. The Transfiguration was a moment like that, but also calls forward to a mountaintop moment that will never fade.

Jesus brought Peter, James and John with him, fulfilling the instructions in Deuteronomy around bringing witnesses. That explains the disciples, but why Moses and Elijah?

Both had their own literal mountaintop experiences – Moses receiving the Law, Elijah defeating the priests of Baal. Both of those lofty experiences were followed immediately by times of trial and despair. Moses descended to find his people worshipping an idol, while Elijah ended up on the run from Jezabel and falls into a deep depression. This happens in all our lives, as the memories of the high points fade, and sometimes we turn to harmful things in an attempt to recapture those feelings.

Similarly, the disciples were heading for their own disappointment and despair in Jerusalem when Jesus is crucified. Peter, who is gung how on the mountaintop, ready to build shelters for each glowing person there, seeking to capture and control the experience – soon he will deny even knowing Jesus.

But the temporary nature of these experiences here on Earth is not a reason to avoid them. Jesus brought Peter, James and John for a reason, and their experience of awe and worship was valid and valuable.

So, too, were the words of God, spoken from the cloud – “Listen to Him.” The words and instructions of Jesus are pearls of great price. God wants us to listen to them – and to do so in the context of the Law and the Prophets, as represented by Moses and Elijah. It’s a reminder not to become fixated on individual verses or statements in the Bible, but to understand the call of God in the broader context of the live story told all throughout scripture.

Then Jesus demonstrates that love directly – he places his hand on the terrified disciples and consoles them – “Get up – do not be afraid.”

And that’s what he’s telling each of us in our own lives. If we will just follow the three instructions given on the mountain here, we will be in good shape. Listen to Jesus – Don’t be afraid – Get up.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, February 15, 2026

Image: “Iesu transfigurato (Mark 9:4f)” by Salvador Dali

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Mary’s Song

Mary’s song is a song of reversals – the high brought low, the rich made humble and the lowly raised on high. It’s an echo of Hannah’s song in the Old Testament.

Key to understanding the song is the biblical theme of waiting on the Lord – patience through times of silence and wilderness, finally rewarded in ways that are beyond our understanding. Hannah had been waiting and longing for a child, while Israel had been waiting and longing for a savior.

Unlike Hannah, Mary did not sing this song upon discovering that she was pregnant – instead of wasn’t until meeting with her cousin Elizabeth and receiving confirmation of what had been promised her.

Many of us have gone through this ourselves many times in smaller ways, and God is always bigger and always has these problems in his hand.

Mary’s song also pulls us away from our tendency towards individualism. She began her story as an individual, burdened with a great and terrible blessing. But when she meets Elizabeth, and feels the connection between their unborn children, it’s a reminder that we are all connected. Her song calls back to ancestors and calls forward to descendants, it rejoices with her nation and with all generations.

We can all do the same, rejoicing together, waiting together, looking ahead to the fulfillment of God’s promises together. This Christmas, let that be our goal.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, December 21, 2025

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No Peace Without Repentance – Matthew 3:1-12

John the Baptist was playing the role of the Grinch to the celebrations of the rich and powerful of his time. He was the ultimate party-pooper, bringing down the vibe and warning the Pharisees that their time was coming. You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, John’s telling you why – the Messiah is coming to town.

He warned them not to rest on their ethnicity and generic heritage. He warned them that an axe was at their roots, and “unquenchable fire” is in the offing. It’s not what we generally think of as a Christmas message.

But John is calling us to do exactly what Advent is there for – preparation, clearing the way, and removing those things that get in the way of our straight path to the savior.

How can there be peace when we have oppression and violence and sin? Ultimately, there can’t be peace without repentance, and there can’t be repentance without confrontation. There is real sin that impacts others and must be addressed before we can have peace – in our lives, in our neighborhoods, in our nation.

What are the obstacles in the roads of your heart that need to be flattened? Where are we going in the wrong direction and need to turn around? How do we as a church be prophetic and speak the truths that need to be told?

Where are the places we need to repent? Where are the wells we go back to that are not life-giving? What does repentance look like for us in our lives individually? What does it look like as a nation collectively? Where do we have privilege and position that we can use for the good of others?

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, December 7, 2025

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Hostility to Hospitality to Family – Hebrews 13:2

This exhortation comes at the end of the book of Hebrews, a part of a list of closing instructions – love each other, minister to those in prison, be sexually moral, and this one. “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”

The term is philoxenia, a combination of the terms philos or affection, and xenos or stranger. We see this same instruction in Romans 12:13 – “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” Both the people of God and the stranger, the xenos, are covered here.

The concept of welcoming the stranger is a continuance of the same instructions in the Old Testament where it is often connected to the people of Israel living as strangers, whether in Egypt or in Babylon.

But there is an additional angle here, this idea that there is more to these encounters than just the practical. At one level, it’s a reference to the story in Genesis where Abram and Sarai welcome and show hospitality to angels and are blessed in turn – or the reverse of that story that results in the destruction of Sodom. This negative example gives us a strong sense of how important hospitality is to God.

Beyond that is the promise that when we serve others in this way, we are touching something more than human, beyond the material world. It’s echo of the promise that when we serve others we are really serving Jesus in a very personal way. There is a magic to hospitality that transcends the practical effects, as valuable as those are.

And if we look at the “sin of Sodom” we also see that there is a negative magic as well, associated with hostility towards the stranger. This should give us pause, and give pause to the portions of the American church in particular that have set themselves up in opposition to the strangers and immigrants in our midst, painting them as criminals and as taking resources from deserving Americans.

In reality, immigrant churches are driving forward the kingdom of God across the country, especially in urban areas where white churches have declined or closed. A majority of the baptisms performed by the Evangelical church today are by immigrant churches. Immigration of non-Christians is bringing the mission field to the USA, while the work of immigrant pastors and churches are evangelizing Americans, reversing the typical ministry flow.

We must seek to go from hostility to hospitality to family as we engage with the strangers and immigrants around us. We should seek to learn from the ways of worship and teaching that seem foreign to us instead of putting up walls. We know that the ultimate destiny of the church is exactly this congregation from all peoples and all tribes.

But this unification of all voices can look a lot like a loss of control if we are used to being the only voice being heard. We must put that fear aside and instead step into the supernatural opportunity we are given to show hospitality to strangers–and possibly even to angels.

–Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, November 2, 2025

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Giving and Receiving Hospitality – Sermon Notes, Acts 28:1-10

It can be difficult to accept help – it can be embarrassing, demoralizing and overly vulnerable. But we are also commanded to give help and assistance to those in need – this means that if we are not careful, we can fall into a pattern of paternalism, making a separation between those who Have and those who Need. But this dichotomy is not biblical – biblical hospitality is a two way street. You cannot truly give unless you can receive.

We see that in this story in the book of Acts. People serve each other throughout the story – even at the beginning, the people of Malta rescue Paul and his companions, while Paul works to build a fire.

When he is bit by a snake, Paul’s reputation swings wildly from being a murderer to being seen as a god. This miracle does not result in an immediate conversion of the people there – they do not turn to Jesus but interpret what happened within their own pagan framework.

But even so, Paul heals the father of Publius, the chief official, and then heals many others on the island – in turn, they are given hospitality by Publius for three months, and are greatly honored by the people there, “in many ways”, finally sent off with all the supplies they need

We don’t see Paul preaching the gospel here, but rather we see him “doing life together” with the pagans around him, accepting their help and providing his own.

We can learn a lot from this passage about receiving hospitality in God’s economy. First, God’s people aren’t immune from need. If we pretend we do not have any needs, we will miss opportunities to receive help. And we will be surprised by those who step in to help. Christians are not the only people who work the will of God, just like we see on Malta. As we also see on Malta, receiving hospitality creates community. Paul and his shipwrecked companions created a community for three months with the people of Malta, a combination of cosmopolitan Jews, superstitious islanders, maybe a few sailors in the mix. And in that community, like this motley crew in the Mediterranean, we can experience home and life.

As a people, our hospitality muscles have atrophied – between the pandemic and the general drift of culture, as Paul says later in Acts 28, our “heart has become calloused.” This is true on an individual level but also on a national level.

If we as individuals and as a nation could reflect more on how we have received help and wisdom and gifts of other people and peoples, perhaps there would be less calloused behavior, and more celebration.

We, as a church, are called to be openhearted, to both give and receive hospitality with joy and gratitude. We are to be expansive in both directions as we expand our family circle and God brings all of us to His banquet table.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, September 21, 2025

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The Bread of Life – John 6:28-35

We eat for many reasons – sustenance, comfort, taste, specific health purposes, business meetings, social connection, family connection and much more. In scripture, food is extremely important because in life it is important. Food is discussed throughout the Bible, and food as a component hospitality in particular. There are also many food-based spiritual metaphors, because the nourishment – and more – that food provides is also needed spiritually. We come together for the Lord’s Supper today, and look forward to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb in the future, and in between coming together for meals and fellowship together.

What shape do you think the Table of the Kingdom of God is? Likely not a hierarchical rectangle, but a round table of equality – or perhaps even a shifting, amorphous shape that modifies itself based on the needs of those coming to eat.

The food metaphor here is one of the most important. It is the first of seven “I AM” statements in the Gospel of John, as Jesus connects himself to the YHWH of the Old Testament while also describing who He is in more detail. The Bread of Life, the Light of the World, the Door of the Sheep, the Good Shepherd, the Resurrection and the Life, the Way the Truth and the Life, the True Vine.

Jesus used these statements to point people to himself from the things they were familiar with. It does often confuse them, as it does here. In part this is because Jesus has just come from feeding the 5,000, with 12 baskets of food left over. That miracle of compassion and abundance is the backdrop of his discussion of Himself as the Bread of Life.

The crowd has followed him from one side of the lake to the other, asking what they should do, perhaps in order to keep the gravy train coming. They even reference the manna given by Moses in the wilderness, more physical sustenance provided miraculously.

But Jesus corrects them on multiple points. First, it wasn’t Moses who gave the manna, but God. And second, the physical sustenance, while important, is secondary to the Person of the God who gave that Manna – He Himself is the Bread of Life, who comes down and gives Himself for the world. The work of God, he explains, is simply to know and be in relationship with Him.

Jesus’ I Am statements are more than just theological statements of his identity, but they are invitations into relationship with Him as a natural and inescapable outgrowth of His divine identity.

Even so, we see the confusion of the crowds here, which may give us some comfort in our own confusion. Jesus, in the midst of our confusion, misunderstanding and tendency to go our own way, stands before us and says “I Am.” We can be still and know the He Is.

At the great feast of the Kingdom of God, it will be full of every kind of food, all the wide diversity of sustenance, connection and joy that food brings. We are called to serve and to invite others to this feast, tearing down every door and barrier that could keep people from this feast. The Great Feast of the King is abundant and generous – it is an open invitation to all – it is as diverse as humanity itself – and it is live giving in a supernatural way.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, September 9, 2025

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Activated – Matthew 8:14-17

Many of us are impacted by emotional inertia – objects in motion tend to stay in motion, abs objects at rest tend to stay at rest. We have difficulty moving ourselves from one mode to another – getting ourselves going when we have been passive, or giving ourselves needed rest when we keeping ourselves busy.

But those moments of activation, when we step into those activities and work that energize us and bring us to where we were meant to be, are special times. We see that in Jesus’ ministry here, another part of the epilogue to the Sermon on the Mount.

The story takes place at Jesus’ home base – he spent significant time in Capernaum throughout his ministry, and Peter’s family home in particular. (This home eventually appears to have become one of the first ever church buildings, in fact). It was a place of rest and hospitality – and hospitality was taken very seriously in that time and place. Peter’s mother in law would likely have been the driving force for that, prevented from that duty by illness.

So when Jesus heals her, he returns her not just to health but to her role and contribution of hospitality. This is a reminder that Jesus’ healing is more than physical, but a holistic restoration of people and their identities.

We see that Jesus physically touches a woman to bring healing, stepping across taboo and custom to demonstrate love in both a practical and emotional way.

We see that he treats women with dignity in a society that often did not. We see that he heals with authority and power, both purely physical ailments and those with dark spiritual roots. We also see him intimately involved with those sick and outcast. Matthew cites the passage in Isaiah in which the Suffering Servant pays a price for the healing he provides. Salvation, then, goes beyond forgiveness and info healing. The atoning work of Jesus goes beyond justification into sanctification, rebuilding and remaking our very selves into the person we are meant to be.

Finally, Jesus not only heals but activates – we are “renewed by God for the renewal of our neighborhoods.” We are loved by God to let us love our neighbors. Peter’s mother-in-law was healed to enable her to serve, living into her vocation of hospitality.

So when we come to church and are healed even in small ways from our hurts, we should seek to do the same. When we are activated by Christ, how do we step into that and take it forward? Can we see service as an act of power imparted by the the Holy Spirit?

Where do we see people today lying in metaphorical “fever”- isolated, suffering unseen? How can we, like Jesus, extend healing through presence, touch, and word? What does it mean for the Church to fulfill Isaiah’s vision of bearing others’ burdens?

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, August 24, 2025

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Epilogue to the Sermon on the Mount – Matthew 8:5-13

Am important question to ask in order to get deeper in your study of scripture is “Where is this text located?” What is the location on the page – what comes before, what comes after, and why did the author put it there? What’s the geographic location of the event and the writing? What’s the social location? What are the relationships involved? What are the power dynamics and social expectations or assumptions?

On the page, this particular story takes place immediately after the Sermon on the Mount, and serves as an epilogue that reinforces many of the themes from Jesus’ teaching, in the form of action.

Geographically, this takes place in Capernaum, a fishing town on the northern coast of Israel, a crossroads where many ethnicities mingled, including Jews, Roman soldiers, and migrants and merchants from surrounding regions.

Socially, the centurion represents the power of Rome and the oppression of the Jewish people. Beyond that, there was a strong bias against mixing between Jews and gentiles. Many aspects of this story cure against the social norms of the time. The centurion lowers himself to asking for help from an itinerant native teacher – and does it on behalf of his social inferior and servant. For his part, Jesus, a rabbi of growing reputation, ignores the social taboos and immediately offers to go to the house of this gentile, this oppressor. And then the centurion goes beyond, demonstrating an even deeper faith in Jesus’ power and authority than his own people.

This entire interaction is a demonstration of what Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount. He has come to fulfill the law in a way that will look like overturning it. Things are being turned upside down, and the insiders are becoming outsiders and the outsiders are being brought inside the kingdom of God.

This interaction is part of a slow roll-out of what Paul calls a great mystery – the expansion of the promise of the kingdom of God to the gentiles. We see this also in the conversation with the Syrian woman later in the book, and even at the beginning of Matthew, in the genealogy. Matthew explicitly calls out the gentiles in the lineage of Jesus (and, incidentally, King David as well).

We have access to the same authority and power of Jesus that we see the centurion seek. The way to the kingdom is narrow but the gate is wide open, regardless of social status, ethnicity nationality, family. This is not a side aspect of of the gospel that can be segregated into a 2-3 week Bible study. This is central point, because it is about human relationships, and Good stepping into heal them and being reconciliation.

This also isn’t just a thing for “Bible times.” This is live and ongoing, happening right now all around us. This is something we are called to participate in, to step out in faith like the Centurion did, being a part of the work Jesus is doing. Like the Centurion, we can “interrupt” Jesus on behalf of others. We can intercede for those near us and those at a distance. May we be a people of prayer.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, August 17

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Wolves and Fruit – Matthew 7:15-23

Last week, we heard Jesus lay out the binary choice we have – the wide, easy, popular path or the narrow, challenging one that follows Him. This week, he warns against the voices and influencers that would draw us onto the wrong path – voices that may even look and sound like they have our best interests in mind.

Jesus uses two images here – first the pastoral image of sheep and wolves, then plants and their fruit. Jesus uses that sheep/wolf imagery multiple times in the gospels, warning in Matthew 10 that his followers will be sheep among wolves. This is a direct echo of Jesus’ warning about the narrow gate and the challenges that come with it, but also the reassurance earlier in the Sermon on the Mount, not to worry, and that those persecuted are in fact blessed. He promises that the Holy Spirit, the real time, relational Person of the Trinity, will be with us and give us the words and the way to navigate this narrow path crawling with wolves. There is pushback to love and justice and mercy in this world. There is pushback to the good news of the gospel.

We also get this sheep/wolf metaphor in John 10 – Jesus calls himself the gate for His sheep, as well as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep when the wolf comes. The “hired hand” is scared off because he has no stake in or real love for the sheep, but Jesus knows and is known by His sheep.

We get two flavors of false prophets here – both those who are actively antagonistic to the truth of Christ, even if they disguise themselves as His followers, as well as the “hired hands,” the leaders and influencers who are only there for the material gains – even if they aren’t actively malicious, their lack of real love and foundation means they abandon the flock when needed most. They lack the courage to stand up for the truth of Christ and continue down the narrow path.

The next metaphor Jesus uses is that of plants and fruit, along with the clear warning that not everyone who claims to follow Him is really doing so. Not everyone who claims to know Jesus really does. Jesus warns about this in multiple parables in Matthew 25 – the Ten Virgins, the Talents and the Sheep and Goats. In each of these, we have people who actively say “Lord, Lord” but who find that they never truly knew the person of Christ. The measure we give is the measure we receive. When we truly engage in relationship with Christ, His love spills out into action, concrete compassionate behavior that loves the broken, the poor and the oppressed.

There is an unbreakable connection between knowing Jesus and doing His will. Jesus paints us a picture of sheep, constantly vulnerable and under threat, with threats on either side. There are temptations everywhere – temptations to abandon that vulnerability, to reject the promises of the beatitudes, to seek a world that is right side up rather than the upside down world Jesus promises, where poverty is blessing and powerlessness is power. Our good shepherd is calling us to “stay on target,” to keep following Him and ignore the wolves around us.

— Sermon Notes, Dave Sim, Renew Church, Lynnwood WA, July 27, 2025

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Narrow Gates – Matthew 7:13-14

We often allow ourselves to live in an illusion and thus make decisions based on avoiding pain and hardship rather than what is best. M. Scott Peck writes:

Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult-once we truly understand and accept it-then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.

That comes from Peck’s book The Road Less Traveled, named for Robert Frost’s poem that echoes Jesus’ words here about the paths that we choose, the ways that we can go.

Early Christians were often called People of the Way, a reminder that life with Christ is a journey, along a path. We choose the path, we choose the gate, but then we must continue along that path making choices all along the way.

But the gate and the path Jesus calls us to is narrow – constricting because of the persecution that path brings with it. And perhaps because of that, it is unpopular. Jesus is clear here about who his followers are – they are not the dominant culture, they are not the popular, not the trending.

Justice is difficult. Loving our enemy is difficult. Humans are built to love, but our fallen nature makes that hard. Compassion is looked down upon and hatred becomes easier than the love we are built for.

But walking the narrow path means turning our lives over to Jesus and the Holy Spirit, seeking God’s will for our life over our own. This, Jesus promises, will lead to problems. If everyone in your life is happy with you, are you really on the path Jesus wants for you?

As we look at the choices and paths we have ahead of us, may the words of Christ guide us to the narrow path and the narrow gate. May he give us the wisdom to discern the party courage to choose the more difficult road,