Galloway UMC ”Living the Word”

This sermon, the final installment in a series called "The Gospel According to Broadway," uses the beloved musical Les Miserables as a lens to explore the core themes of the gospel: mercy, grace, identity, and redemption. Drawing on Victor Hugo's story of Jean Valjean, the pastor illustrates how grace interrupts cycles of judgment and transforms not only the one who receives it, but also the one who extends it. Just as the bishop's undeserved mercy toward Valjean set him on a new path, so too does God's grace, made complete in Christ, rewrite the story of every broken and fallen person.
The sermon also draws on Matthew 9, where Jesus calls a despised tax collector to follow Him and then shares a meal with sinners, declaring that He came not for the righteous but for those who know they need a physician. The pastor challenges the congregation to see themselves as the "miserable ones" who have been found by grace, and to respond by becoming people of mercy toward others. The great theological claim of the sermon is that received mercy must become offered mercy, and that in Jesus Christ, mercy truly does triumph over judgment.

This sermon, part of a series called "The Gospel According to Broadway," uses the musical Ragtime as a lens to explore one of the deepest longings of the human heart: the dream that this broken world can become something more. Set at the dawn of the 20th century, Ragtime weaves together the stories of three groups divided by race, class, and nationality, each searching for a better life and a better future. The sermon connects this longing to Hebrews 11, where the faithful are described as strangers and foreigners who desired a better country, and to Revelation 21, where God promises to make all things new. Pastor Raigan challenges the congregation to understand that the Christian hope is not simply about escaping to heaven, but about God's kingdom coming down to earth. Christians are called to live between the "already" and the "not yet" of God's kingdom, acting as a preview of the world God is redeeming. Just as the musical's anthem "Make Them Hear You" calls people to carry the story forward, the church is called to make the world hear the gospel not by shouting louder, but by living differently: welcoming strangers, feeding the hungry, working for justice, and embodying the reconciliation and renewal that God has promised.

This sermon explores the story of Beauty and the Beast as a lens through which to examine the human condition and the transforming power of God's grace. Pastor Raigan draws a parallel between the Beast's hidden inner darkness and the brokenness that exists within all of us, pointing to Romans 7 where Paul confesses his own struggle with sin. Just as the Beast's outward appearance came to reflect what was already true on the inside, our own pride, anger, fear, and selfishness reveal a need for God's transforming work in our lives.
The sermon then traces the path of transformation through what Pastor Raigan calls the ABCs of change: Admittance, Belief, and Commitment, which together form the process of repentance. Through the sacrificial love modeled by Belle and ultimately by Christ at the cross, the message declares that no heart is too hardened and no life is too broken for God's grace. Using the real-life story of Larry Trapp, a KKK Grand Dragon transformed by the radical love of a Jewish family, Pastor Raigan illustrates that beasts are not changed by force or argument, but by the kind of selfless, sacrificial love that the gospel calls agape. Salvation, in this view, is not only about where we go after we die but about what God is doing in us right now.

In this opening sermon of the series "The Gospel According to Broadway," Pastor Raigan uses the beloved story of "The Wizard of Oz" to illuminate what it truly means to follow Jesus. Just as Dorothy is given a road to follow, many people spend their lives chasing false promises at the end of their own yellow brick roads, whether career success, relationships, wealth, or achievement. But when they finally arrive, they pull back the curtain only to find emptiness. The sermon challenges us to recognize that Jesus is not a distant wizard waiting to reward us at the end of a long journey. He is a living Savior who walks beside us every step of the way.
 
Pastor Raigan draws a powerful contrast between following a road and following a person. Dorothy was told which way to walk, but followers of Christ are told with whom to walk. Jesus does not offer symbolic tokens like diplomas or medals in place of real transformation. He offers genuine renewal of the mind, a new heart, and the power of the Holy Spirit. The sermon also emphasizes that this journey was never meant to be taken alone. Like Dorothy's companions on the road, the church community serves as a rope that holds us together when we slip, believing for one another when personal faith runs dry. Ultimately, the greatest adventure is not found somewhere over the rainbow, but in walking daily with the one who is the way, the truth, and the life.

In this concluding sermon from the Book of Jonah, Pastor Raigan uses the musical concepts of consonance and dissonance to explore how Jonah's heart responded to God's grace being extended to his enemies, the Ninevites. Just as a dissonant chord creates tension that longs for resolution, Jonah experienced God's grace as beautiful when it was given to him, but as deeply offensive when it was offered to those he despised. The sermon reveals that Jonah's anger was not simply about Nineveh. It was a symptom of deeper idols: nationalism, comfort, and the desire to be right, all of which had grown larger in his heart than God's compassion.
 Pastor Raigan challenges listeners to examine their own 'Nineveh,' the person or group they secretly believe has gone too far for God's grace. The book of Jonah ends without resolution, leaving God's question hanging in the air for every reader: 'Should I not be concerned about them?' Pastor Raigan points to Jesus as the greater prophet whose cross became the place where every dissonant note of human sin finally found resolution. The resurrection is God's triumphant final chord, and the invitation is for every believer to allow their heart to come into harmony with God's boundless, pursuing grace.

This sermon, drawn from Jonah chapter 3, centers on the God of second chances. After Jonah's spectacular failure in chapters 1 and 2, God does not move on or lower His expectations. Instead, the word of the Lord comes to Jonah a second time with the same assignment: get up and go to Nineveh. Pastor Raigan uses the image of a pencil with an eraser to illustrate that mistakes are part of being human, but they do not have to be permanent. Grace, however, goes far beyond what any eraser can do. It reaches back into our past, covers our worst chapters, and restores our purpose.
When Jonah finally obeys and delivers what may be the shortest and least inspired sermon in history, something astonishing happens. The entire city of Nineveh, from the king on his throne to the animals in the field, repents before God. The sermon draws a contrast between Jonah, the reluctant prophet, and Jesus, who willingly carried a cross so that grace could be available to everyone. The central message is clear: no person, no situation, and no past failure is beyond the reach of God. Your story is not over, and God is still speaking.

This sermon continues a journey through the Book of Jonah, focusing on chapter two, where Jonah prays from inside the belly of a great fish. Pastor Raigan highlights how Jonah's downward spiral, running from God's call, leads Him to rock bottom before He finally cries out to God in desperation. The key insight is that the fish is not God's punishment but God's rescue, and that what feels like it is swallowing us may actually be what God is using to save us.
The sermon draws a powerful connection between Jonah and Jesus, showing how Jonah's story is a rough sketch that points toward the finished masterpiece of the gospel. Just as Jonah spent three days in the belly of the fish before being delivered, Jesus spent three days in the heart of the earth before rising in victory. Pastor Raigan concludes that Jonah is ultimately a comedy in the deepest sense: not because it is funny, but because joy wins, hope wins, and Jesus gets the final word.

his sermon opens a new series on the Book of Jonah, framing the story not primarily as a tale about a runaway prophet but as a revelation of a pursuing God whose grace is relentless. Using the analogy of a GPS that keeps recalculating no matter how many wrong turns we take, Pastor Raigan shows that God never gives up on us, even when we deliberately run in the opposite direction. Jonah is called to preach in Nineveh, the capital of the feared Assyrian Empire, a city that represented everything Israel hated and feared. Rather than obey, Jonah boards a ship headed for Tarshish, the farthest point in the known world, choosing isolation over obedience.
The sermon highlights the rich irony woven throughout Jonah chapter one. Pagan sailors pray while the prophet sleeps. Jonah's disobedience becomes the very crack through which the truth about God spills out to people who had never known Him. The sailors, moved by what they witness, end up worshiping Yahweh, turning a cargo ship into a place of genuine devotion. Pastor Raigan challenges each listener to identify their own personal Nineveh, the place, person, conversation, or act of obedience they have been avoiding, and to trust that no wrong turn is beyond the reach of God's recalculating grace.
 

Dr. John Howard - From Pilgrims to the Present: 400 Years of Church Music in America
 
This sermon explores the powerful role of sacred music in the life of faith, drawing from the Old Testament story of King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20, where God's people sent musicians ahead of their army into battle and experienced a miraculous victory without fighting. Dr. Howard uses this story as a launching point to argue that music is not merely an accessory to worship but a frontline spiritual weapon that helps believers connect to a God who is bigger than their fears, failures, and battles.
 
The sermon also traces the rich 400-year history of church music in America, from the metrical psalms of the Pilgrims and Puritans, through the singing schools of the 18th century, the spirituals of the revival era, the hymns of Lowell Mason, the gospel songs of the Moody era, and into the contemporary worship music of today. Throughout this history, the pastor highlights a consistent pattern: whenever people longed for God, music found a way to help them reach Him. The congregation is challenged to increase the role of sacred music in their personal and family lives as a means of spiritual growth and strength.

This Father's Day sermon draws from Colossians 2 to address the deep human longing for wholeness, acceptance, and belonging. Pastor Brandon acknowledges that Father's Day carries different emotions for different people, from celebration and gratitude to grief and pain, and reminds the congregation that our faith is ultimately rooted not in the quality of our earthly fathers but in the perfect love of our Heavenly Father.
Drawing on Paul's letter to the Colossians, the sermon challenges the lie that we need anything more than Christ to be complete. Just as false teachers in Colossae told believers they needed extra knowledge, experiences, or spiritual achievements, the world today tells us our worth is tied to performance and accomplishment. Paul's counter-message is clear: in Christ, we have already been brought to fullness. The greatest gift a Father can give is not perfection or success, but a life visibly rooted in Christ, growing not for acceptance but from acceptance, and living with eternity in view for those He loves.