Faith United Methodist Riverdale: Recent Episodes
Faith United Methodist, Riverdale GA
Matthew 22: 15-22 Jesus tells the Pharisees to give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to give to God what belongs to God! Paul tells the Thessalonians to exhort in Presence, Power, Passion by giving our best to God— then we find happiness in the way of God’s holiness in our lives!!
Matthew 22:1-14; Philippians 4: 1-9 Jesus tells the parable of the Kings Invitation to the Banquet— Paul tells us how to live rejoicing!— receive Christ’s invitation.
Yesterday Rev. Dr. Michael T. McQueen was installed as District Superintendent of the North Georgia Central North District – of which Faith became a member earlier this year. Due to safety restrictions associated with Covid-19 the event is available to our members online.
Matthew 21:33-46 tells the story of the “ wicked tenants” and how they showed greed and worked some evil to try and get what they wanted. Jesus was trying to show that we are to be good stewards of all that God has given and do God’s good works on earth!
Matthew 21: 28-32 is known as “ The Parable of the Two Sons.” Jesus taught us to be faithful and honest! We look to the scriptures for guidance in fulfilling life’s demands. * Special thanks to President Jimmy Carter for “Sources of Strength.”
In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the “Laborers in the Vineyard.” Jesus gives the controversial and shocking notion that those who are late in being hired receive the same wages as those who came early. Essentially, Jesus is telling us it is never too late to come to God! I think it’s better to make it to the last dance than not to have danced at all! God is truly gracious!
Jesus tells the parable of forgiveness and reconciliation. The message is clear if we expect to be forgiven, we must forgive! ( Special thanks to President Jimmy Carter for his “ Sources of Strength” devotional stories).
In today’s Gospel, Jesus teaches us to forgive ( as is a common theme). What should we do in a church situation, family situation, societal situations, etc. We should strive to reconcile when possible!
The Apostle Paul tells us how we should treat each other in all situations. Jesus taught us the same. Special thanks to President Jimmy Carter for passages from his book, “ Sources of Strength!” Let’s out do each other in doing good works and treating people as we would like to be treated!
Our special offering for the month of September is Wellroot Family Services. It might be easy to take the concept of home for granted, but there are thousands of children and young adults in the state of Georgia who don’t know what a stable home feels like. Wellroot Family Services, formerly called The United Methodist Children’s Home, is dedicated to identifying, recruiting, training and retaining incredible foster parents who will answer the courageous call to welcome these children into their home.
Jesus asks his Disciples who do people say that I am? They give the usual responses of being John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or some other prophet. Simon the son of Jonah declares that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God! Jesus calls Simon, Peter ( which means rock), and proceeds to tell him that upon this rock, “ I will build my church!” Traditionally Pentecost is considered the birthday of the Christian Church; however, some commentators say this moment was actually when Jesus declared the birth of His Church. We will take a look at what is this new “ Community of Faith and Love” Jesus proclaimed and its relevance to the entire world.
Much to the disappointment of our congregation, this past Sunday marked a return to quarantine measures for our church, pursuant to the North Georgia Conference’s recommendations that churches whose positive Covid test results number more than 10 cases per 100,000 people. Every day we consult a website created by the Harvard Global Health Institute to look for our county’s testing rate to drop below the dangerous threshold.
The Bishop has directed churches in the North Georgia United Methodist Conference to consult a county-by-county “heat chart” on website globalepidemics.org. Counties shown in RED or ORANGE are urged to suspend meeting, and counties shown in yellow should take extreme care when meeting. As of today Clayton County is in RED.
It’s the third Sunday after Pentecost! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, June 21st, 2020. While this marks the fifteenth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held physical services due to the COVID-19 pandemic we currently plan to reopen NEXT SUNDAY – June 28th. We will be following strict social distancing rules. Please bring a mask if you plan to attend our service.
It’s the second Sunday after Pentecost! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, June 14th, 2020. While this marks the fourteenth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held physical services due to the COVID-19 pandemic we currently plan to reopen on June 28th. We will follow strict social distancing rules.
It’s the first Sunday after Pentecost – Trinity Sunday! This is the day we recognize our Almighty and everlasting God, who revealed himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, living ever and reigning in the perfect unity of love. This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, June 7th, 2020. This marks the thirteenth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held physical services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
Fifty days after Easter we commemorate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles. This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, May 31, 2020. This marks the twelfth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
Forty days after Easter we celebrate an important episode in the life of Jesus: his ascension into Heaven. Today, many United Methodist congregations recognize Jesus' ascension during regular worship services on Ascension Sunday, the Sunday immediately following Ascension Day (which was this past Thursday, this year). This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, May 24, 2020. This marks the eleventh week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's the 6th Sunday of Eastertide! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, May 17, 2020, the 6th Sunday after Easter. This marks the tenth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Eastertide!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's the 5th Sunday of Eastertide! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, May 10, 2020, the 5th Sunday after Easter. This marks the ninth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Eastertide!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's the 4th Sunday of Eastertide! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, May 3, 2020, the 4th Sunday after Easter. This marks the eighth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Eastertide!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's the 3rd Sunday of Eastertide! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, April 26, 2020, the 3rd Sunday after Easter. This marks the seventh week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Eastertide!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's the 2nd Sunday of Eastertide! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, April 19, 2020, Easter Sunday. This marks the sixth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Easter!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's Easter Sunday and He has Risen!!! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, April 12, 2020, Easter Sunday. This marks the fifth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Happy Easter!! We hope that you will stay safe and well until our family and community may all reunite safely at Faith!!
It's Palm Sunday!!! This is Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, April 5, 2020, for the 6th Sunday in Lent. This marks the fourth week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that you have a Blessed Palm Sunday and that you will stay safe and well until we may all reunite at Faith!!
Reverend Sid Chapman's sermon for Sunday, March 29, 2020, for the 5th Sunday in Lent. This marks the third week that the congregation of Faith United Methodist in Riverdale, Georgia, have not held services due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that you will join us at Faith when services eventually resume.
Reverend Sid Pastor delivers his sermon online this week, as the church cancels services due to the Coronavirus.
Faith United Methodist wishes you a beautiful and bright Christmas, with views from outside and inside our sanctuary. Music by our wonderfully talented Pianist, Gail Ayers.