Luke 7:36-50 A little survey to begin: When it comes to engaging an interesting story, would you rather read the book or watch the movie? There’s often a clear line of demarcation between the two. Book lovers tend to approach this in a condescending way: “Oh, the book is always better than the movie” (I …
Luke 7:18-35 Take a coin out of your pocket. What does it tell you (other than it’s not worth that much in today’s economy!). Take a look at the pictures and symbols. Of course there are pictures of Presidents on them—Washington on the quarter, Lincoln on the penny—the are some of our iconic American leaders. …
Luke 6:1-16 This is one of those passages that’s difficult for modern people to understand. In fact, it probably wouldn’t make anyone’s list of favorite Bible stories, given that it’s a squabble between the Pharisees and Jesus and especially because it’s about Sabbath. Of all the commandments God gave to the Israelites, this one about …
Luke 5:1-11 One of the things I love to do when I am with a confirmation class or a youth group is to offer them the chance to ask me any question they’ve always wanted to ask a pastor. It’s a fun thing for them and fun for me as well. I often get questions …
Luke 4:14-30 You’ve probably heard the old saying, “You can’t go home again.” Tom Wolfe, the famous American novelist, actually used it as the title of one of his books. It’s the idea that “home” is really more a product of our memories and that, in reality, the things we think are permanent about our …
You Can’t Go Home Again: Lessons from the Mount of Jumpification Continue Reading »
Luke 3:1-22 As Luke 3 opens we see that we’ve jumped ahead quite a bit in the story. When we left Jesus last week he was 8 days old and being dedicated in the Temple. The next scene finds him as a 12 year-old in the Temple, amazing the teachers with his knowledge and exasperating …
Luke 2:1-7; Colossians 1:15-23 “She gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger.” We love the manger scene as we gather here on Christmas Eve, but if you think about it, it’s not exactly the kind of place you’d want to have a baby …
Text: Isaiah 61 Good news! That’s how Isaiah begins last Sunday’s text from the Narrative Lectionary. In many ways it’s appropriate. I mean, we’d all like some good news at Christmas, right? Especially given that this year has had a lot of bad news. This is the time of year that we like to focus …
It’s the second Sunday of Advent, and our attention here at the church has turned completely toward the upcoming celebration of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. I’ve often said that this is like the Super Bowl for us who lead churches—it’s the time of year when we have the biggest crowds and the most expectation. …
Text: Exodus 12:1-13; 13:1-8 Several years ago, when I was serving another church, I became friends with the local Rabbi and we thought it would be great idea to do a joint study with our congregations during the season of Lent and Passover. It was a fun and fascinating experience as we had a chance to …
Genesis 37-50 One of the key tasks that every parent seems to take on is teaching your kid how to ride a bike. When I did that with our kids (seems like an eternity ago), I was struck about how different it is to learn today than it was back when I was a kid. …
A Sermon for the First Sunday of the Narrative Lectionary Genesis 2:4-7b, 15-15; 3:1-8 I’m very excited to begin our journey through the Narrative Lectionary this week, which will take us on a sweep through much of the Bible between now and Pentecost Sunday next May. I’m excited about this because I love to tell …
A sermon given at the Tri-Lakes United Methodist Church Camp Meeting on August 7, 2016 Text: Mark 12:28-34 Well, our Camp Meeting day has finally arrived. I’ve been looking forward to this for quite some time, and though we’re only here for the day, our history tells us that gathering in the outdoors for worship …
It’s the Sunday before Independence Day, when we celebrate our country’s Declaration of Independence from Great Britain and the tyrannical rule of King George III. In 1776, our Founding Fathers decided that kings should no longer rule us and that government by the people would forever be our system of independent self-rule. Well, at least …
Ten years ago this summer I had the privilege of going on a trip to England to visit some of the key sites in Methodist history. It was a great trip, but besides the obvious excitement of doing things like standing in Wesley’s pulpit in the New Room at Bristol there were some other things …