Sermons from October 2021

Sermons from October 2021

Keeping In Character

Mark 12:28-34                In a church that I previously served, there was a small group of members who shared an interest in the dramatic arts. A few of them had experience performing with a local theater group. Others had no experience but a lot of interest and enthusiasm for acting. So, we decided to create a “drama ministry” in the church. The director would periodically submit scripts for me to review, and those that were a good match for a particular…

On the Way, By the Way, or In the Way?

Mark 10: 46-52 The four Gospels all tell the same story of Jesus’ life and ministry, but each one tells it in its own unique style. Reading Mark’s version can feel like sitting in the back seat of an Uber whose driver is careening down city streets and running red lights to get you to your destination as quickly as possible, while avoiding any small talk on the way. Jesus is portrayed as always active, always on the move. Some…

Frequently Asked Questions

Job 38:1-7, 34-41 If life in the digital age has taught me anything, it is that I don’t need to know everything. And that’s OK, because there is always someone else who knows whatever I think I need to know. The place where I learned that lesson is on the “Frequently Asked Questions” pages of websites. Whether it is figuring how to reset the clock in my car twice a year or how to recover a lost password, or any…

A Naked Intent Toward God

Job 23: 1-9, 16-17 and Mark 10:17-31 There’s an old story, more of a parable really, that is attributed to the philosopher Heidegger. It tells of a carpenter who owned a well-equipped workshop. The carpenter never had to worry that he might lack the right tool or the right material for any project he had to do. Until one day when the carpenter is working and his hammer breaks. Despite all the other equipment in the shop, the carpenter’s work…

What’s in Front, What’s Behind

Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-12 We have already made our silent, personal prayers of confession before God this morning. But I have a public confession to make. I’m not a big fan of preaching on the Epistle to the Hebrews. It’s not the easiest reading book of the New Testament, which doesn’t exactly make it “preach well.” Hebrews relies on obscure Biblical characters like Melchizedek and high-churchy words like Sanctification to gets its message across. So, the challenge of making that message…