Year: 2003

Sermon for January 5, 2003Scripture: John 1:1-18 I have a number of things on my mind as we come into a new calendar year and begin a new season of the church’s life as well. The week between Christmas and New Year both Ava and I were on vacation and although we stayed in town, … Read more

Scripture: Mark 1:4-11 I debated some about what to call this sermon. I knew in broad terms what I wanted to talk about. I knew the sermon was going to be about how Jesus is revealed to us, this being epiphany season and all. How do we come to see Jesus, maybe whether we see … Read more

Scripture: Jeremiah 6:10-16 and 8:18-21 On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King gave a high profile speech. Nothing unusual. By that time all of Dr. King’s speeches and sermons were very high profile. Every word he said, everything he did in public attracted attention. This speech of April 4, 1967 was especially high profile. It … Read more

Scripture: Mark 1:14-20 Those of you who were at the King Day celebration last Sunday night will remember that the speaker, Tyrone Crider, spoke about having given the eulogy at his 101-year-old grandmother’s funeral. He referred to the program which listed her dates of birth, as we do at memorial services and on tombstones. In … Read more

Scripture: Deuteronomy 26:5-11 I’ve been wondering this week what Black History Month has to do with me as a white person. I’m not wondering because I don’t think it has anything to do with me as a white person. I’m wondering because I’m pretty sure there is more to say about that than what I … Read more

Scripture: Isaiah 59:9-11 and Psalm 27 “Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us; we wait for light, and lo! There is darkness; and for brightness, but we walk in gloom…We wait for justice but there is none, for salvation but it is far from us.” Those words from Isaiah describe … Read more

Scripture: Genesis 32:22-32 and Job 38:1-18 I have been struggling with this sermon for several weeks, which is to say that I have been struggling with God about this sermon for several weeks, which is in part the reason for choosing the scripture about Jacob wrestling with the mysterious stranger—angel, God, but I’ll get back … Read more

Scriptures: Mark 1:12-13 I originally thought I would be taking a little different approach to the sermon this morning from what it turns out I am taking. I won’t bother to take any time telling you what that other approach was since that would mean that I was talking about this other thing that I … Read more

Scripture: Genesis 1:26-27; Isaiah 66:7-13 I have to warn you that I expect my words this morning to be somewhat unsatisfying. They are unsatisfying to me. Unsatisfying like when you sit through an hour television show and at the end it says, “Continued next week”. I didn’t start out to do a two-part sermon, but … Read more

Scripture: Psalm 84 and Acts 8:26-35 I lied. I said last week that I had resisted the temptation to make last week’s sermon part two of a three part sermon. That wasn’t exactly a lie because I thought it was true at the time, but I came to writing the sermon for this week and … Read more