Essential to the life of faith is recognizing that hope is rooted in reality, in what is actually possible. The gospel has no room for fairy tales or wishful thinking, only for what can be accomplished in this time and place.

And thus the work of maturity is to expand our vision for what is possible with God (short answer: healing, peace and restoration). The difference is subtle, but critical.

In a world that is hurting deeply (and this sermon was preached during the rapidly growing COVID crisis, only days after the death of George Floyd), the way forward is to see, as best we can, the world through Jesus's eyes - to see with compassion all the brokenness of the human condition and the in-our-midst process by which love is transforming the broken.

If you'd like to follow along, the passage is:

• Luke 5:12-16 (NRSV)

This sermon was preached on May 31, 2020 at Canvas Presbyterian Church (Irvine, CA).

If you'd like to share in the whole worship service or find previous sermons, they are available on the Canvas Vimeo page.  Or join us via live stream every Sunday morning at 10:30AM (Pacific Time)!

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