sermon

Enigma Wrapped in Mystery

Rev. Dr. Jack J. Lolla, Jr. June 16, 2019 Text: Rom. 5:5, Old Testament: Prov. 8:1-4, 22-31, New Testament: Rom. 5:1-5 Milan, Ohio is a special place for me. That is where my grandfather, Simeon Lollo is buried. His stone is embedded in the base of an old oak tree that my grandmother must have planted when he died in 1918 from the influenza epidemic. Grandfather Lollo was a butcher and no doubt caught the…

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sermon

Life beyond Babel

Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. Text: Acts 2:6, Old Testament: Gen. 11:1-9, New Testament: Acts 2:1-21              Pentecost is one of the Bible’s great miracles that almost equals the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yet it goes unnoticed by most Christians. We don’t value what God’s Spirit did at Pentecost at any level near what God did at Easter. We should value Pentecost a whole lot more than we do. Perhaps our problem lies in…

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sermon

Holding Under Pressure

Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. June 2, 2019 Text: John 17:14, Acts of the Apostles: Acts 16:16-34, Gospel Reading: John 17:20-26 Our blessed Jesus gave us the Word of the Gospel to save the world. He entrusted His Word to us to share with others. It’s a message of love – God’s love for the world. It’s a message of hope – God’s love forgives us of our sins. It’s a message of faith…

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sermon

Life’s Newness

Rev. Dr. John J. Lolla, Jr. May 19, 2019 Text: Revelation 21:6, Acts 11:1-18, Revelation 21:1-6             Beth Shalom Synagogue sits on Beacon Street in Squirrel Hill. In 1970, this Conservative Jewish congregation embarked on a building campaign. The most impressive result of the building campaign lies in the lower lobby. I took a Palestinian student to Beth Shalom to speak as part of a youth dialogue on Middle East reconciliation, in 1990. When he…

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