Category Archives: Sermons
Sermon on Trust
Niki, I want this message to be special for you. This is your Confirmation day! So I decided to come down from the pulpit and sit here like this. I want to share with you a few things that are … Continue reading
Alive to the Voice of God
On Sunday afternoons I like to read a sermon or two. Today it was from a volume of sermons by Francis Schaeffer that I have had for over thirty years. He is preaching on Romans 12:2, on not being conformed … Continue reading
The Spiritual Principles of the United Methodist Church 1
There is a document called The Social Principles of the United Methodist Church. I wrote once about it here. I wish there were a comparable document on The Spiritual Principles of the United Methodist Church. The best place, I believe, … Continue reading
Sermon on the Prodigal Son
Michael Marsh preached a wonderful message on this text here. Below is my effort Luke 15:11-32 RSV And he said, “There was a man who had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me … Continue reading
Sermon on the Ten Commandments
Over in the education wing, right across from Nancy and Stacey’s office, are three posters hanging on the wall. One is of the Golden Rule, Do for others what you want them to do for you. One is of the … Continue reading
Sermon On Luke 4:14-21
“And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee.” I am thinking about the power of the Spirit today. Jesus has a spiritual power. In the Bible the word for power is dunamis; where we get our word … Continue reading
The Good Wine
Beautiful sermon today from Michael Marsh on the Wedding at Cana. Regardless of how it feels or what we think about it, the day the wine runs out is the beginning of a miracle. Christ does not simply refill our … Continue reading
Sermon On Ecclesiastes 3
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a … Continue reading
The End of the World
Michael Marsh preached last Sunday about the end of the world, according to Jesus, and how at various times in our life we face an end to our world. Think about a day your world ended and you will recall … Continue reading
Sermon On a New Revelation
John, to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, … Continue reading
God’s Mission
[Sermon preached on October 28, 2012] They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was … Continue reading
Three Rs of Sermon Preparation
My sermon preparation follows the three Rs: read, write, and rehearse. Monday and Tuesday are reading days. I love to read scripture in the Latin Vulgate, for example; Frederick Buechner recommends that you get out of your native language so … Continue reading
Sermon On Wisdom
[Sermon preached on September 30, 2012, at the First United Methodist Church of Adrian.] Before there were global positioning satellites (GPS), when people traveled they were guided by the stars. If they journeyed by day, the sun in the sky … Continue reading
Walking In the Dark
[This message was preached at The Gathering Worship service, September 23, 2012, at First Christian Church of Adrian.] John 9:1-12 CEB As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who was blind from birth. Jesus’ disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned … Continue reading
Dress Code
You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according … Continue reading
God Planted In the Ordinary
I preached yesterday on the parables of the growing seed and the mustard seed (Mk 4.26-34) but didn’t write anything down other than a sketchy outline. Nothing to post. But I commend to you Michael Marsh’s sermon on the same … Continue reading
How the Holy Spirit Is Like a Tattoo Artist
Words With Friends (Sermon on Romans 8:22-27) We know that the whole creation is groaning together and suffering labor pains up until now. And it’s not only the creation. We ourselves who have the Spirit as the first crop of the … Continue reading
Sermon On Psalm 1
“God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” The Serenity Prayer, written by Reinhold Niebuhr, a pastor in Detroit. The prayer … Continue reading
Sermon on Prayer 2
[Sermon on Prayer 1 is here] The 3 Rs of Prayer And now, friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that … Continue reading
Sermon on John 3:16
The Gospel in Miniature John 3.16 has been called the gospel in miniature. If you want to summarize the Christian faith in one sentence, you can do no better than John 3.16. I want to spend a few minutes today … Continue reading
