A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church September 25, 2011 Matthew 21:23-32 Between the parable we heard last week, and the one we just heard this morning, Jesus did a few things you might want to know about. Minor little things. Like a triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a colt. And a small little moment…
Here is my newsletter article for October. It is likely controversial, and so I wanted to publish it here so that we may begin the conversation that needs to take place. I don’t presume that everyone will agree with me about this topic, and so, especially if you do not, please help me understand your…
A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian in Boise, Idaho July 31, 2011 Matt 14:13-21 This is the only story about Jesus that is told in all 4 of the gospel accounts. There is more agreement about this story than there is about his birth or his death and resurrection. In Mark and Matthew’s gospel, Jesus…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church in Boise, Idaho July 24, 2011 Gen 29:15-28 When I read this story, I feel like I’ve just read someone’s diary and exposed the hidden secrets of a family. It just doesn’t seem right. Surely Rachel and Leah deserve some privacy so that they can deal with the…
A sermon preached at the Massanetta Middle School Conference, July 2011 Luke 8:26-39 (The theme of the conference was “I of the Storm” and we looked at the Matthew 14 account of a storm where Peter walked on water.) Luke’s text picks up right after Jesus has calmed a storm and rebuked the wind on…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church, Boise, ID June 26, 2011 Isaiah 56:1-8 Thus says the LORD: Maintain justice, and do what is right, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed. Happy is the mortal who does this, the one who holds it fast, who keeps the sabbath, not profaning…
A sermon preached on Trinity Sunday at Southminster Presbyterian, Boise, Idaho Gen 1:1-4 In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, “Let there…
These are the comments I shared with our congregation this morning in worship. As you may have seen on the news, a radio evangelist with no formal religious training determined by a careful reading of the King James Bible that he could determine, without a doubt, that the world will end. Yesterday. Never mind that…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church May 22, 2011 Acts 7:44-8:8 Wasn’t the joyful gospel proclamation of Stephen so well received by his audience!? We didn’t hear the entire story of Stephen, which begins in chapter 6, but he offers the crowd a sweeping narrative of the Hebrew story, culminating with Jesus standing in…
A Sermon preached at Boise Presbytery meeting May 14, 2011 John 10:1-19 We are in good company when we disagree over interpretation of Scripture. In our text this morning, we’re told that the community was divided because of Jesus’ words. They weren’t even dealing with issues of translation or cultural context, as we must, when…
