Welcome to this time of worship.
- Our service begins with the singing of one of two hymns, the more contemporary song being found here and the traditional hymn being here.
- The video and audio-only versions of the service are both located above.
- Following the blessing you are again invited to join in the singing of either a contemporary song or a traditional hymn.
Leading in worship today are: Anne and Robin.
To view the sermon only, copy & paste this link into your browser:https://youtu.be/s_lpQ1bDMmg?si=yQ4cF4sNij7i59kF
Sermon Summary and Questions:
Jesus’ parable of the tenants and the vineyard invites us to look beyond the surface and awaken to what is already true within us. The vineyard is not only the world God entrusts to our care, but the sacred inner landscape of the soul — lovingly planted, protected, and called “very good.” Yet within this vineyard live “tenants,” the egoic patterns we develop: fear, grasping, control, self‑protection, and the illusion of separateness. These inner forces resist the servants God sends — moments of truth, compassion, and awakening — and even reject the Son, the Christ‑presence within us, because He reveals our deepest truth: that we are beloved, capable of bearing fruit, and made for union with God.
Jesus’ parable exposes the inner dynamics that sabotage our sense of belovedness and keep us from living the life God planted within us. The cornerstone we often reject — our True Self, our God‑image — is meant to be the foundation of our lives. When we allow our egos to fall on it and “break,” it is not punishment but the breaking open of everything that keeps us from awakening. The fruit God desires is already within us: compassion, justice, generosity, courage. The invitation is simply to awaken, to welcome the Christ‑self rising within our awareness, and so to tend the vineyard of our souls with honesty, gentleness, and courage so that our lives may bear the fruit of Love.
Questions for Reflection
Where do I notice the “tenants” within me — fear, control, self‑protection — resisting the invitations God keeps sending?
What moments of truth, compassion, or awakening have I recently dismissed or ignored, like servants sent to my inner vineyard?
What part of my True Self — my God‑image — do I find hardest to trust, and why might I be rejecting the cornerstone meant to break me open as well as ground my life?
What fruit of Love is quietly trying to grow in me right now, and what would it look like to nurture it with gentleness and courage this week?