Brewing Theology With Teer Hardy

The entire prophetic tradition culminates in John the Baptist’s words, and we convince ourselves that what we’ve done is just too much. John knew the time had come. He knew the Messiah was here and that it was time to change. Things were already changing. The coming of Christ is good news. It is awesome news, yet due to the “darkside of ourselves” we see the darkside of creation and think there is no changing this. Things are too far gone for G-d to work through a baby or a grown man. We see war after war and think things are too far gone for repentance. We see an environmental disaster on the horizon and think it is just too much, nothing can be done. We see poverty, racism, classism, extremism, homophobia, nationalism, and violence and think that creation is too far gone. It seems creation as a whole cannot even praise G-d let alone prepare the way of the Messiah. We see these things, we think it is too much, we become crippled by fear, and then the preparations that were underway cease. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

It is easy in Advent to become so focused on the babe in the manger that we forget Christ’s promise of return and vindication. The shininess of the tinsel and glow of the lights make it easy for us to lose focus. It is easy in our attempts to control the peace, hope, joy, and love of the season through packages from Amazon and Target we forget G-d is in control, holding all things in a vision that is boarder and more intricate that we can either think or enact on our own. Advent is a time when we remember the Kingdom of God is coming, it is not just a season for the gathering of a family celebrating and making memories together. Through the manger and in the return of Christ we see the fulfillment of a promise “made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.” A promise that has already been fulfilled and not fully realized. A promise that will be celebrated by all of creation. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

November 25, 2018 - Mount Olivet United Methodist ChurchLuke 18:33-37, Christ the King SundayWhen we are baptized, named and claimed as beloved by our Creator, we proclaim Christ as our Savior and promise to serve Him as Lord. That was a bold profession to make 2000 years ago and it continues to be so today. It is a declaration that Christ is Lord and everything else is secondary. Our allegiance lies with Christ, because of the promises made at our baptism which means the truth for our lives looks different from those who do not make the same proclamation. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

November 4, 2018 - Mount Olivet United Methodist ChurchMark 12:28-34, All Saints SundayThe saints of the past and us today have flaws. They, we, fell short of what Christ describes as the greatest of the things we are supposed to do. But in Christ loving us as himself, the saints and each of us are made righteous. What once was thought to separate us from the love of G-d is no more and Christ invites us to join him and the saints around His table. Clothed in the righteousness of Christ through our Baptism into His life, death, and resurrection, and not our own self-righteousness, we are declared holy. The greatest commandments, loving “the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength” and loving your neighbor is a little less daunting knowing that before we ever attempt to fulfill it, Christ first loved us. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

In the darkness we experience today, a world-wide refugee crisis, a criminal justice system in desperate need of reform, wars that seem to have been accept as the status quo without end in sight, bigotry and hatred that has percolated out of the holes it had been hiding in, and a children who still have not been reunited with parents, in these situations it easy to allow the darkness to adjust our vision so that we miss what John told us from the very beginning, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” In the darkness each of us experience the grace of our Lord and Savior is present. The Light will not give way to darkness. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

October 28, 2018 - Mount Olivet United Methodist ChurchJob 42Much of what we do as followers of Christ is based upon mystery. From the basics of how exactly did Jesus turn water into wine or how the feeding of the 5000 actually happen to the sacraments - Baptism and Communion - there is much that we claim to know but what we think we know pales in comparison to the mystery that still remains. There are aspects of creation that I will never understand - violence, illness, and hate. I’m sure many of you have similar questions. Throughout the Holy texts, in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and in our own encounters with the divine we find that G-d is faithful. The covenant established by G-d remains with us. This covenant sustains us and there is nothing we can do to change that. G-d does not turn a back on us today just as G-d did not abandon Job. One day, all things will be revealed by our Creator to each of us. In the meantime, we live in the confidence that G-d, our Creator, will remain faithful even when we do not fully understand. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

October 14, 2018 - Mount Olivet United Methodist ChurchMark 10:35-45What Jesus said to the disciples shapes our lives as followers of Jesus, individually, and as a community. Discipleship means following Jesus with childlike reliance and living a cross-bearing life that resists the power and prestige we grasp for when our own security is in question.Jesus lived this cross-bearing life to the point of death so that we can do likewise, faithfully, evening though, like James and John we continue to allow fear to consume and drive our decisions, worrying about the security ourselves and our families, our status, and our station. Christ’s ransom for us frees each of us from slavery to fear-based decision making and invites us to serve one another. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

October 7, 2018 - World Communion SundayMount Olivet United Methodist ChurchMark 10:2-16By quoting Genesis instead of echoing Deuteronomy Jesus told the Pharisees that the Kingdom of G-d, G-d’s disruptive reign, will empower those previously without power. Social structures designed to keep people groups in their place will be disrupted. This point is driven home further when Jesus double-down, using children, a segment of the population viewed as property, to illustrate what kind of dependency, reliance on G-d, will be necessary to be apart of the Kingdom building world Jesus has begun in his own ministry. Jesus told the disciples and the scriptures remind us today that in the Kingdom of G-d there is a greater equality and hospitality for those who are most oppressed. Not seeing or understanding this is a trap we all fall into, because while Jesus is talking about equality, inclusion, and humility, the Pharisees, we, continue to think that the Kingdom of G-d is about us. Childlike dependance on G-d relieves us from debating the finer points of the law & instead invites us to step into the grace of G-d made known to us by Christ who extends the same invitation despite how many times someone else sets a trap for us or how many times we set the trap. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

September 30, 2018Mount Olivet United Methodist ChurchLuke 19:1-10Extravagant generosity is about us participating in the extravagant kingdom-building work G-d is engaged in. G-d’s act of “loving, saving, and healing” in our community and around the world. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Mount Olivet UMC - September 23, 2018Genesis 411 Corinthians 16:1-4The culture of now tells us that we earned this and thus we deserve it, but when we read stories like Joseph we see that the plenty we enjoy is a gift from God, a generous gift placed in our lives by our Creator. Stewardship means caring for something that ultimately is not ours, which is why talking about stewardship of creation is so easy while talking about stewardship of money is so difficult.Stewardship means caring for something that ultimately is not ours, which is why talking about stewardship of creation is so easy while talking about stewardship of money is so difficult. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Mount Olivet United Methodist Church - September 16, 2018Proverbs 3:13-16Luke 16:1-13How we earn money is a clear and accurate indicator of our priorities. We might speak out in favor of honest work that others should be doing but do we follow the same prescription in our own businesses? We can earn by following the footsteps of someone else but at some point we have to begin living into the calling G-d has place on our lives because what you are called to will look different than what your mentor has been called to. We can preach about Sabbath and ethical practices but if we are not observing them ourselves our true commitments become more apparent. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Ephesisans 4:25-5:2So then, the new life offered to us by G-d in Christ is an invitation to claim the renaming and claiming done by G-d in our baptism. This is not a new list of things we must do to be renamed “beloved child of G-d” and claimed. It is not a list of things we must to do experience G-d’s grace. Instead, in speaking truthfully, resisting evil speech, and resisting anger we are able to don that which G-d has offered to each of us through Christ, a way of life that is different from the “but that’s the way we’ve always done. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

The power of G-d’s blessing should not be used for personal or political advantage over another person or group of people. Jesus never said “G-d Bless America," or for the context of His time “G-d bless Rome,” because while overlooking our blessings and theirs, ignoring the fullness of what G-d is doing and was doing, G-d already gave a blessing and continues to do so.G-d has blessed us, but in some cases we have yet to reach the inner-spiritual harmony, the same harmony Jacob lacked, in order to fully realize and live into what G-d has given us. On a day like today with the events that are happening across the river and in Charlottesville we are reminded of our nation’s corporate lack of inner-spiritual harmony and unity. G-d, thank you for blessing America, please help us find the inner-harmony necessary to fully live into what you have given us, as we work to eliminate intolerance and hate and truly live Christ’s command to love each other Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

July 22, 2018Matthew 27:15-23Which Jesus do you want? Jesus Barabbas or Jesus of Nazareth? Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

July 29, 2018Deuteronomy 23:12-142 Timothy 3:14-4:5The Bible says a lot of things. It is a collection of books telling the story of the people of God. It is a book of covenant, heartache, promise, lament, renew, and hope. But “The Bible says it, I believe it, and that settles it,” creates a problem. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

When Jesus flipped the social structure of first-century Israel on its head in the Beatitudes, He did not leave it to the disciples to figure out. He laid out a detailed plan for how His followers are to become a force for transformation, filling in the spaces He opened up.Don’t get me wrong, I love the church. When followers of Jesus Christ come together to further the Kingdom of G-d great things happen. So often though, inviting someone to church is about great programming or a fabulous new preacher when instead we are called to be proclaimers of G-d’s unwavering grace, lived out by Jesus Christ, and witnesses to the power and promise of the empty tomb. It is not that we should not invite people to church. Instead, our lives are to be a force of transformation, a living witness to the Word of G-d made flesh in Jesus Christ, and that is a far greater invitation than anything else we can offer. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Mount Olivet UMCIsaiah 55Romans 10The saving work that we proclaim has been done by Jesus. Words and actions do matter, both are necessary but the former leads to the latter. While faith without works might be dead, works without the Gospel proclamation only point others to the self-righteousness we want to put on display. Proclamation is not about us. It does not start with us and it does not end with us. So when we are stuck starring at a blank page in a notebook or feel as though we do not know what to say, the Good News is that the “work” has been done by Jesus, now we get share it with the world. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

In the redundancy of love the sinner hate the sin we overlook that Jesus calls us, each and every one of us without exception, to love. The redundancy of love the sinner hate the sin blinds us to the role of God in all of this, as we try to assume the agency of the divine. It is God who judges, not us. Especially not religious leaders like me. Jesus did not let the adulterous woman off the hook. In showing mercy and forgiveness (we call this grace) Jesus also shows that holiness matters as he acknowledged her past, forgave her, and then telling her to sin no more and inviting her to step into grace. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit seals the Church’s identity in the resurrection and ascension of Christ. Our identity is not found in local church politics, denominational dysfunction, or theological impasses but instead in the One who calls us to transform the world. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

May 6, 2018Year B, Easter 6John 15:9-17While we might want to think of ourselves as Joey saving Ross, more often than not we are Joey saving his sandwich Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

I'm not talking about throwing Bibles as weapons, I am referring to the weaponization the Holy Word of God to do battle against your enemy. This is not in a spiritual warfare scenario but rather to battle back against secularization in an attempt to reclaim the Church's position of authority and power in the United States. All of this to maintain the status quo for churches who thrive on a combination of nationalism, patriotism, and bad praise music. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

April 22, 2018Easter 4, Year BJohn 10:11-18, Good Shepherd SundayThe community created by the Shepherd is open and inclusive. All are invited to join the flock. There is no one who is outside the reach of this Shepherd and no one so far gone that they cannot become part of the flock. Because the risen Christ is the Shepherd, and people like me are not, our deepest fears, insecurities, and separations can be healed by the Shepherd. Whether you drive a Jeep or a Prius, whether you eat processed grains or are an organic vegan, the risen Christ invites you to come through the gate and join the flock. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

April 18, 2018 - Wesley Theological SeminaryEzekiel 37:1-14Irrelevancy and decline are the undead among us, preventing us living the called life we were born into through the waters of baptism. Without living into the new life we experience through the waters of baptism we are not only those trying to survive the post-apocalyptic zombie-infested world, worst yet we are the living dead, reaching, pulling, and ripping the life out of anything we can get our hands on. Without the living waters, we emerge from and the new life promised to us in that exit we are wandering through the world struggling to survive. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

April 15, 2018Easter 3, Year BLuke 24:36-48The part of Christianity that is most necessary is at times the hardest to not only explain to outsiders but also to explain to someone who has faithfully attended worship for 40 years. We start thinking of ghosts instead of bodies, creating for ourselves the same tricky-wicket the disciples experienced. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

April 8, 2018 - Mount Olivet UMCYear B, Easter 2John 20:19-31 Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Easter 2018Mark 16:1-8The ending of The Gospel of Mark does not fit the new life, new hope feeling we enjoy each year as we use Easter to signal the return of new life in spring. On a day when we expect to feel the overwhelming presence of the risen Christ, the ending of Mark’s gospel is entirely underwhelming. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

March 25, 2018Palm Sunday, Year BMark 11:1-11To challenge those who are paraded through the empire in up-armored vehicles and with military escorts is a dangerous business. In doing so you run the risk of being mocked by people you have never met. In doing so you run the risk of being betrayed by your closest friends. In doing so you run the risk of being assaulted by the very power you are standing up to. To challenge the status quo, to be the counter-cultural voice, to put on a piece of political street theater, requires you to be willing to enjoy the carnival-like atmosphere while it lasts because if you challenge things enough, if you push the empire enough the empire will push back. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Because there is so much going on in this story, and the writer of Mark wrote such a condensed account of the ministry of Jesus, and on top of that uses misdirection, we miss it. The people in the synagogue did not miss it. Yes, they were astounded by the spirit being cast aside but they knew what was going on. They saw something different happening. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

But what happens when God incarnate is the one calling us to repent and believe? It is easy to blow off the street preach as we walk out of Starbucks or to flip the channel when the slick-haired televangelist begins preaching. It’s easy to not make eye contact with someone on the street or turn off the television and go play with our kids. It is easy to write off the story of Jonah, but what are we to do when Jesus calls upon us to repent and believe?Year B, Epiphany 3Jonah 3:1-5, 10Mark 1:14-20 Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Year after year we see the wise men as minor characters in our children’s Christmas pageants and fail to see that for us, Gentiles, the wise men’s visit to Bethlehem signaled, just as Simeon declared in the Temple, that Christ had come for all people. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Simeon and Anna were ordinary people. Neither of them held the title of Reverend in front of their name. Simeon and Anna were ordinary people faithfully waiting for God to move. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

We almost have a great story in the Nativity. All we needed was for sweet baby Jesus to defeat the empire. Instead of fleeing to Egypt as a refugee, we needed sweet baby Jesus to raise an angelic army, wielding Luke’s lost light saber, defeating the empire, releasing Israel from the rod of their oppressor. As Mary and Jospeh are being counted to calculate the tax to be handed down by Emperor Augustus we need Jesus to say, “Stand back Mom and Dad. I’ve got this. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

God empowered Mary to this journey and just as God awaited Mary’s response of “Here I am, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to you word” God waits for us today to respond in a similar manner. The story of the incarnation is not a story to keep in the books, 2000 years ago. Each day we are invited to see God’s favor upon us and respond, even when we feel unworthy to the task. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

On Christ the King Sunday I was joined in the pulpit by Jim Dake to discuss what it means to be called to ministry, both as clergy and a laity.All of us are called to be in ministry. Each of our calls will look different. No one person will have the same call as their mentor colleagues. Whether you are called to ministry in your home, neighborhood, or on the other side of the world, you are called by the same Jesus who called His disciples to follow him. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

We can look to what is to come with confidence, not worrying about what will or won’t happen, because Christ has already sealed the deal for us. Christ has already conquered death, atoning for our sins, making us righteous before God, acting as our mediator, and ensuring that when he comes again in the fullness of his glory all will participate. Regardless if we died yesterday and Christ comes tomorrow, we are assured through the promise of scripture and the strength of our faith that we too will spend an eternity with Christ.1 Thessalonians 4:13-18Mount Olivet UMCNovember 12, 2017 Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

1 Thessalonians 2:1-13Revelation 7:9-17What we miss in avoiding the tension between Thessalonians and Revelation is that while it may be hard in this life we have the confidence of knowing what happens at the end of the book: God wins. We win. Christ’s holiness wins over “failure and disappointment,” “separation and abandonment.” Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Matthew 22:15-22We keep the lights on because we are returning ourselves to the One whose eikon was stamped onto our lives when we were formed in our mother’s womb and through the new life we receive when we die to ourselves in the waters of baptism. We keep the lights on because we have not mixed up God and Caesar. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Jesus is pretty clear about children in the Kingdom of God. This is one of the subjects within Jesus' teaching where it is hard to twist the meaning of His words. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

What I do matters because you depend on me. What you do matters because a community of disciples is impossible without you. They way we speak of one another matters because when we speak poorly of other disciples we are showing to the world how we fail each other. We are then telling the world that our differences are bigger than the One who created and the One who was present at creation. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

September 10, 2017 - Matthew 18 - Proper 18The three-part confrontation of sin that Jesus outlined was not merely a recommendation. Hauerwas said Jesus’ style of confronting sin is, “an indication of the kind of community that Jesus has called into existence.” Because we love God, and we love one another, and it is God’s love that binds us together, we must “refuse to risk the loss” of one person to sin. This is why Jesus tells us that our “Father in heaven” rejoices when one of the lost sheep returns. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

When we accept the invitation to take up the trials and troubles that come in the life of discipleship and bear them bravely as Jesus we are accepting the passive piece of cross-bearing. But active cross-bearing calls us to something different. Active cross-bearing calls us to lose our independence entirely, submitting to the Kingdom of God over the kingdoms we are striving to build for ourselves. Jesus told his disciples, "For those who want to save their life will lose it." We have the choice. Discipleship is a choice we make. Discipleship, following Jesus, is a decision that enables us to turn away from the independence we seek and live a life without the self-aggrandizing independence tells us we need. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

We are being commanded to step out of our boat, it is time to jump in, witnessing to Jesus in a world where the waves of hate and injustice seems to be coming at Christ’s body from all sides. We will fall in the water every time we refuse to see the humanity in one another. We will fall in the water every time we say that they are less than we are. And we will fall in every time others speak those words and we fail to act. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Jesus is offering us an alternative. An alternative where it does not matter if 5000 or 10,000 are fed. What matters is that all are fed. The reality of what we have to offer Jesus is something that should discourage us. There is no agenda of pride, arrogance, or power. The only agenda is an agenda of compassion.In world of fakes and alternatives, let us be a church where the alternative offered by us is the same alternative the risen Christ is embraced. Not so we can further the standing of our own agenda but so that we can be a part of the miraculous work of our Lord and King. Our scripture reading today is one of an alternative politic that we all know, now let us all live it out. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

We all love a success story that begins from modest means. In the modesty of Jesus’ power and ministry, we discover the reality of the Gospel and who Jesus really is. Our natural reaction to this discovery is to go out joyfully being faithful disciples, selling all we have not out of a nagging obligation but instead compelled to do so because we have experienced grace that is only available to us in the same kingdom we joyfully participate in. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Matthew 13The parable of the sower is more so about the sower and less about how we change our lives, creating good soil where the seeds of our faith can grow. The sower, God, will continue to cast seeds where God knows they will not grow. Or where they will grow but will later be scorched. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Prayer is a way for us to yoke ourselves alongside Christ. The Son of God is offering to come alongside us, to share the load so that we can keep moving forward. We can keep moving forward being fathers and mothers, sisters and brothers, friends and neighbors, and people who have committed to living lives together, living as a witness to the resurrected Christ. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

If we are truly going to live as a church with “Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors,” truly being welcoming and anxiously awaiting the opportunity to receive new disciples of Jesus Christ, then we need to understand that because our relationships with one another, those sitting next to us and upstairs are a witness the the community declaring that our hearts, minds, and doors have been opened. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Jesus talks about his coming death on the cross. Peter has another idea. However, there is one way for reconciliation to happen. Jesus outlines how and the disciples are confused because they don't have the benefit of seeing the empty tomb yet. Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe

Get full access to Brewing Theology with Teer Hardy at teerhardy.substack.com/subscribe