Part I of the Series “Redeeming Sex” Let’s talk about sex. That’s not a sentence you often hear from the pulpit. It’s so unusual that when I advertised a summer sermon series on sex while I was in Park City, UT, the local radio station called me and wanted to interview me. They thought that …
Luke 19:1-10 We’ve come to the end of our series on Wesley’s Rules for the Use of Money, where we’ve talked so far about earning all you can and saving all you can. But now we come to the third rule which, in many ways, is the goal of the other two—that we “give all …
Malachi 3:8-12; Matthew 25:14-30 So, here’s another parable featuring money which indicates Jesus’ concern over its use or misuse, though this parable actually fits within the larger context of preparing for the coming kingdom of God. It’s sandwiched between the parable of the wise and foolish bridesmaids and Jesus’ warning about the judgment of the …
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Luke 16:1-13 This has to be the weirdest of Jesus’ parables. Everything seems backwards—a “dishonest” manager is commended? The children of this world are more clever in dealing with their peers than “the people of light” (i.e. God’s people)? Use worldly wealth to make friends for yourselves? It’s no wonder that a lot of preachers …
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First in the series, “Earn, Save, Give: Wesley’s Simple Rules for Money” I Kings 3:1-14 Wow, can you imagine God coming to you tonight and saying to you, “Ask for whatever you wish, and I’ll give it to you?” What would you ask for? Some would ask for wealth, no doubt, others for better health. …
John 15:12-17; Romans 8:9-21 We’ve come to the conclusion of our “Marks of a Methodist” series. So far, we’ve talked about the fact that a Methodist loves God, a Methodist rejoices in God, a Methodist gives thanks, and a Methodist prays constantly. These are all wonderful marks and foundational to who we are as the …
Romans 8:18-31; Luke 11:1-13 One of the interesting parts of getting up early on Sunday morning is listening to the radio in my truck on my way to church. Usually, I’m listening to classic rock or sports talk, but before 7:00 on Sunday morning every station that I listen to has a public service program …
I Thessalonians 5:18; Philippians 4:11-13; Luke 17:11-19 So far in this series we’ve looked at two of the marks of a Methodist that John Wesley laid out in his 1742 tract, The Character of a Methodist. The first mark is that a Methodist loves God—that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts …
James 1:2-8; Matthew 5:1-12 A few years back when I was serving another church, the Staff-Parish Relations Committee decided that I needed more “people skills” (hard to believe, I know) so they recommended that I go to a Dale Carnegie course. Some of you have taken this course—you know, “how to win friends and influence people.” …
Part I of the series “Marks of a Methodist” Deuteronomy 6:1-9; I John 4:7-20 What is a Methodist? That’s the first question that confronted me when I took my first ministry job as youth director at Faith United Methodist Church in Bellefonte, PA. I got the job, I think, largely because I was still and officer …
Jonah 3:1-10; Matthew 12:38-42 We have arrived at the third chapter of the Book of Jonah, and when we last left our dubious hero he had been barfed out on to the beach by the fish—this after his self-justifying prayer in chapter 2 and his flight from God’s presence and his mission in chapter 1. …
Jonah 1:17-2:10; Luke 18:9-14 So, let’s catch up on the story of Jonah. Last week we talked about Jonah as an advice tale for people in exile, living in a foreign culture and we learned that Jonah has a lot to say to us about how we Christians should live in a post-Christendom world. We …
Lessons from the Jesus Trail, Part III Mark 3:31-35 The trail from Nazareth down to the Sea of Galilee winds downward through small villages and gentle valleys dotted with dairy farms and groves of olive and banana trees. We don’t know for sure what route Jesus took when he left his childhood home and went …
Part III of “From Nazareth to Capernaum: Lessons from the Jesus Trail” John 2:1-11 One of the things that you discover when you travel to Israel is that people in the Middle East like a good party. I’m not talking about the “whoo hoo” kind of par-tee that we tend glorify in films and beer …
From Nazareth to Capernaum: Lessons from the Jesus Trail (Part I) Scripture Readings: Isaiah 61; Luke 4:14-30 A couple of years ago, I came across an article in Backpacker magazine about The Jesus Trail, which was established 8 years ago by an Israeli couple, Maoz and Schlomit Inon along with an American named David Landis. …