2023 Small Group Lenten Bible Study

Rachel Wolf • February 8, 2023

Lent is a time to prayerfully reflect and reconnect with God. You are invited to join us on a Lenten journey to deepen our faith and deepen our community as we walk towards Jerusalem in search of new life and resurrection.

 

This year’s theme is The Currency of Christ: A Devotion Through Coins in the Bible . Using excerpts from Jill. J. Duffield’s book Lent in Plain Sight: A Devotion through Ten Objects , we will explore the ways the imagery of coins is used again and again in scripture. In the Bible, coins are precious items to be found when lost; they are sometimes given to God in offering or used as a means to cheat innocent victims. Coins were used to test Jesus and to betray Jesus. Coins symbolized more than just currency in Jesus’s day, and money (in the form of coins, cash, checks, credit cards, and NFTs) continue to play a large part in our own society. How might coins help us experience the holy in our everyday lives? How can these ordinary objects serve as a means of grace or a connection to the divine?

 

Our Lenten Small Groups begin on Sunday, February 26 with a Kick-Off Luncheon in Calvin Hall following worship and the Congregational Meeting. Whether you’re new to Bible study and small groups or whether it’s your favorite part of church, all are welcome to join us!

DOWNLOAD 2023 LENTEN BIBLE STUDY GUIDE
Bold colored image of 2 women and an angel - Do Not Be Afraid by He Qi

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By Rev. Marci Glass • April 20, 2025
At the start of Lent, the children 'buried' an alleluia in worship. We put the word away during a season. On Easter, we bring it back. On the first Easter morning, the women went to the tomb, assuming their alleluias were going to stay buried forever. Their rabbi was dead. Their hopes and dreams, buried with him. An encounter with the angels in the empty tomb makes them reconsider what they thought they knew of death, of endings. Maybe you've buried a lot of your hopes and dreams recently too. What might the Easter story have to say to us anew this year?
The Disciples Peter and John running to the tomb on the morning of the Resurrection 1889

Sermon 04.20.2025: 7am Sunrise - The Beloved Disciple

By Rev. Marci Glass • April 20, 2025
Calvary's 7am Easter Service
3 Black Power fists holding green palms, the text reads 'protest as an act of faith'

Sermon 04.13.2025: Palm Sunday: Protest is an Act of Faith

By Rev. Marci Glass • April 13, 2025
As Jesus enters Jerusalem, he is greeted by raucous crowds. It is a celebration of him. It is also a counter protest to Rome. The crowds have gathered and are crying out "hosanna", which means "save us". Save us from injustice. Save us from cruelty. Save us from crushing poverty. Jesus does not silence the crowds. And he responds to their cries by weeping over Jerusalem and by turning over tables in the Temple.
Zacchaeus by Lauren Wright Pittman - Jesus at tree holding out his hand to man in tree

Sermon 04.06.2025: Lent 5: Calling Each Other In

By Rev. Marci Glass • April 6, 2025
It is easy these days to say who we are against. Maybe it has always been easy to do so. What is harder is to create space for people to change their minds, change their views, change their behavior. As Jesus approaches Jerusalem, he stops in Jericho and accepts an invitation to eat at the home of someone who society wanted to cancel. How can the story of Zacchaeus help us give space for each other?

Sermon 03.30.2025: Lent 4: Find Your Way Home

By Rev. Victor Floyd • March 30, 2025
The Good Shepherd calls home all of the sheep, even "those" sheep. No matter how far you've wandered, no matter who has tried to separate you from God's fold, Jesus is waiting. It's time for a homecoming. 
A blooming fig fruit on a fig tree

Sermon 03.23.2025: Lent 3: Fear, Faith, Figs, and Foxes

By Rev. Marci Glass • March 23, 2025
Jesus continues his journey to Jerusalem and his disciples ask him a question as they walk. They want him to answer the questions we always want God to answer for us too—why do bad things happen to good people? Join us as we consider Jesus' answer to the question.
Mary & Martha by Lauren Wright Pittman - A golden, green, and blue depiction of Mary, Martha & Jesus

Sermon 03.16.2025: Lent 2: "Everything In Between" Faith & Works (Deacon Sunday)

By Rev. Joann Lee • March 16, 2025
The story of Mary and Martha is often painted as a story where one does right and one does wrong. We know, however, that life is often more complicated than that. We know that faith is embodied through being present and taking action—and everything in between. Join us on this second Sunday in Lent as we consider, how can we live along the spectrum of faith and works.
Cover image of the 2024 Annual Report.

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An image of two palms facing each other - text reads

Sermon 03.09.2025: Lent 1: Half Alive

By Rev. Marci Glass • March 9, 2025
In today's scripture reading, someone asks Jesus who, exactly, qualifies as a neighbor. Jesus tells the story of a person found half dead on the side of the road, but seen by at least one passerby as half alive, a neighbor worthy of care. Join us as we consider the question for today's world.
The Transfiguration by Augustin Kolawole Olayinka - a colorful triad of men in robes and a halo

Sermon 03.02.2025: A Woke Church

By Rev. Joann Lee • March 2, 2025
Stay woke! Or we might miss the glory of God (at least according to Luke's gospel). The Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record the story of Jesus's transfiguration on the mountaintop. But only Luke records that the disciples witnessed this amazing transformation because they had stayed awake. In a time when we are tired and overwhelmed with exhausting news, how can we stay awake to witness what God is doing in the world and in our lives?
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