This is an adapted form of the sermon I preached this morning, the Sixth Sunday after Epiphany. The gospel reading was Matthew 5:21-37, the third consecutive reading from the Sermon on the Mount. The sermon presupposes two things: first, that you just heard the gospel reading. (Well, they all presuppose that, but this one more … Continue reading Jonah on the Mount (Sermon)
This is an adapted form of the sermon I preached this morning, the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany. The gospel reading was Matthew 5:13-20. This was a really gimmicky sermon, so I'm going to write it like a script. I think that's the best way to present it in written format. MICHAEL: So, in today’s gospel…In … Continue reading Letting Your Light Shine (Sermon)
This is an adapted form of the sermon I preached on Sunday, the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany. Many apologies for the lateness of this post -- it's been a busy week. The gospel reading was Matthew 5:1-10, the "Beatitudes." Today’s gospel is about being blessed. It’s about blessings. And we know that we have been … Continue reading Blessed are You (Sermon)
I had a very intriguing meeting at church this evening. Lent begins in about a month, and we were discussing what we would be offering this year as a midweek Lenten observance. Some years we offer a worship service, other years an educational opportunity. We decided that it was time to offer some sort of … Continue reading Stoking the Fire
A few weeks ago, I wrote about how hard it's been to be patient through the publishing process, how slowly everything seems to be moving, how frustrating that pace has been at times. You can read that post here. Things look a little different to me now, because I just had my first phone conversation … Continue reading Slow Telling of a Story 2: Waiting for the Edit
This is an adapted form of the sermon I preached this morning, the Third Sunday after Epiphany. The gospel text was Matthew 4:12-23. I'll have to explain how some of the sermon worked. I started by walking through the congregation, tapping five people on the shoulder, and telling each of them, "Follow me." I led … Continue reading Tap Tap (Sermon)
This is an adapted version of the sermon I preached this morning, the Second Sunday after Epiphany. The gospel text was John 1:29-42. We meet John the Baptist again, and he’s pointing to Jesus. John was always pointing. If you look at artwork of him over the centuries, you will find that quite often he … Continue reading Come and See (Sermon)
