Sermons from May 2022
Easter – The Promise of New Life Makes Disciples Fearless
Easter – The Promise of New Life Makes Disciples Fearless One of the most common phrases in the bible is “Do not be afraid” in all its variations, like, fear not, have no fear, fear him not. That of course depends on the translation, it can also be fear thou not, fear ye not, etc. There is a legend out there that this phrase is in the bible 365 times, once every day. I have counted, or I have let…
The Resurrected Christ
The Resurrected Christ, John 20:19-31 These past two years have been quite an experience for our confirmation students! First classes were canceled due to the pandemic, then taught over zoom, then in-person again, then two classes combined. And, of course, all this happened in a general climate of disruption, insecurity, and danger. If we look at our gospel reading today, we will see that Jesus’ disciples are experiencing their own time of disruption, transition, and worry. After three years of…
Palm & Passion Sunday – Some disciples follow Jesus and pay the ultimate price.
Palm & Passion Sunday – Some disciples follow Jesus and pay the ultimate price. Mark 14:40 Our saint for today is Jimmie Lee Jackson. He was the youngest deacon of St. James Baptist Church in Marion, Alabama. In 1965 he was shot by an Alabama State Trooper and died 8 days later in hospital. At a voting rights march, the state troopers clubbed the marchers. Jimmie Lee, his sister, mother, and 82-year-old grandfather fled to a restaurant. They were pursued…
Lent 4 – God works through disciples
Lent 4 – God works through disciples – John 3:17 We meet our saint today in Ukraine, when it was devastated by another war, the Crimean war from 1853 to 1856. Mary Seacole lived from 1805 to 1881. She was a black woman from Jamaica and she comes from a tradition of Jamaican and West African doctresses, as they were called at the time. She was trained in traditional medicine with a strong focus on what we today would call…
Lent 3 – The Price of Theological Certainty
Lent 3 – The Price of Theological Certainty – Genesis 3:16 Throughout the Season of Lent, I will preach on saints who might not be known as such. Today, we will learn about Ann Glover, an elderly Irish widow, who was prosecuted and executed as a witch by influential theologian Cotton Mather in 1688. New England Puritan Mather’s ancestors had come to the shores of America fleeing religious persecution in England. Despite their own experience, they did not build a…
Lent 2 – Discipleship is vacating God’s throne and submitting to the law of love
Lent 2 – Discipleship is vacating God’s throne and submitting to the law of love; Matthew 7:15-20 Throughout the Season of Lent, I will preach on saints who might not be known as such. Today, we will learn about Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb. What made a scientist work on such a dangerous, destructive weapon? The threats that the world faced through Nazi Germany were real and immediate. He thought he was saving civilization by developing the…