Sermon Archive
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February 2021
Greater Works and the Means to Accomplish Them
As I was reading my way through chapter 14 this week I was brought up short by something Jesus said. In verse 12, Jesus explains to His disciples, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do, and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” At this point in our study through the Gospel of John we have become accustomed to Jesus saying surprising and thought-provoking things, but this statement is one of the most startling. …
January 2021
A Thumbnail Image of Heaven
Back in 2011, for our tenth anniversary Sarah and I talked her Mom into watching the kids for a week and we made reservations at The Clement Hotel in Monterey, California. We had originally planned to do something really, super-duper splashy for our tenth but then reality and certain pesky things like budgets, car repairs and babies intruded. Still, with some help from family, we managed a week away in Monterey. Although we were living in California at the time, I had never been to Monterey…
Disciple In Training
In the book of 1 Peter the Apostle Peter writes to his fellow believers scattered abroad and encourages them, among other things, not to fear those who would seek to harm them because of their association with Christ. “Have no fear of them, nor be troubled…,” he writes. Then he continues, “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you…” Given all that we know about Peter…
Counterfeit Disciple
Have you ever seen a counterfeit bill? I’ve never actually seen or handled one myself, but I have seen some pictures online that looked pretty convincing. I suppose if it’s done well a counterfeit bill will look and feel very much like the real thing.
This Sunday as we continue our study through the Gospel of John we’ll be doing a character study on one of the most tragic figures in all the Bible. That is Judas of course. Judas was a counterfeit disciple of Jesus. A disciple is a sin…
Exploring a Mystery
In Acts 20:27 Paul told the Elders of the Ephesian church, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” It is because we desire to receive the whole counsel of God that we have set out to study our way through an entire book of the Bible. We want to hear all that God has to say and not just sound bites and snippets. When Bible teachers only talk about passages that interest them we are more likely to be getting their take on things, but when we set out to unpack an…
Stealing Pennies From A Golden Bowl
A family dinner creates connection, and, as Christians, we ought to know this from church. Too often when churches speak about “creating community” they mean some new program or a small group strategy or something slick and new that they feel will get people together. But in the Bible the focus of community is not found in some slick new program, but more often it is found around the table, around sharing a common meal.
If you read through the gospel accounts of Jesus’ earthly …
December 2020
Things Come to Those Who Wait
There are many crossroads in life that we come to, and New Year’s strikes me as a sort of little crossroads moment where the meandering path of our life, all the days that have come before, brings us to this new day, this new turning of the calendar. At the beginning of a new year we pause alongside the trail of our life’s journey and consider the way forward. As Jeremiah 6:16 says, “Stand by the crossroads and look.” Is the direction in which I’m traveling a good one? Will it bri…
Surprised by Joy
Luke 2:8-20 describes three startling and unexpected visitations. First the shepherds were visited in the most spectacular and awe-inspiring way by a whole heavenly host of angels who proclaimed to them the savior’s birth, and then the shepherds in turn visited Bethlehem to see this sight for themselves and to tell anyone who would listen what had been told to them concerning the child they’d found in the manger. One gets the impression from reading this account that the news of Jesus’ …
Why the Manger
What an Incredible Story We Are Living In! (Matthew 1:21; Philippians 2:6-8; Isaiah 9:6; Luke 2:7, 10-12, 52; John 13:5; Matthew 26:39 NIV)
She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins…Jesus Christ- King of kings, Lord of lords, Son of God
Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,…For to us a child is born, to us a s…
November 2020
Christams Surprise
The Christmas story is an old familiar one to most of us, isn’t it? In sermons and Sunday school lessons, Christmas pageants, carols and Bible readings, we have all heard the story loads of times. And besides just hearing the story, sometimes I feel like I have actually seen it. That’s probably because of all of the Christmas cards and nativity scenes I’ve seen that depict the old familiar images of a cozy stable, a newborn wrapped and laid on a bed of hay, awe-struck shepherds, and e…
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