Setting the Table

In this sermon celebrating Sterling United Methodist Church's 150th anniversary, Pastor Bert uses Isaiah 58 to illustrate how the church has been setting an expanding, imperfect table with Jesus for a century and a half. He contrasts superficial religious observance with God's true "table manners" - breaking chains of injustice, feeding the hungry, and welcoming the stranger - while challenging the congregation to continue "mashing tables together" to serve others as they move into the future.