A sermon preached on Trinity Sunday at Southminster Presbyterian Church. June 7, 2009 Today is Trinity Sunday, which is where the lectionary writers punish preachers who had so much fun last week on Pentecost Sunday by foisting upon us today the most complicated and obfuscating texts and expecting us to make the Doctrine of the…
A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian May 17, 2009 Acts 10 We live in a world of boundaries. And boundaries can be helpful. Like when they keep the Huns from invading China. Boundaries can mean different things to different people. Israelis argue this wall is to keep people safe.Palestinians argue that this wall keeps them…
John 10, 1 John 3:16-24 A Sermon preached at Southminster May 3, 2009 In John’s gospel, Jesus is known for making pronouncements. In the other gospels, he spends a lot of time teaching, or speaking in parables. But here, he just announces things that are seemingly disconnected from the action going on around him. They…
A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian ChurchApril 27, 2009 Luke 24:13-48 My friends and I pass books back and forth. If there is a book we enjoy, we’ll pass it on when we’re done with it. One of my friends sent me a book a few weeks back. I read it and loved it. I…
A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church March 15, 2009 1 Cor 1:18-25 This passage from Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth is one of my favorites. I love it because it best illustrates Paul’s gift of radical grace. But not all Presbyterians are fans of Paul, because he is often cited only…
A sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian ChurchMarch 1, 2009 Psalm 25:1-10 This is a Labyrinth. Labyrinths are not mazes. There is no dead end on this path, just a circuitous journey to the center. The Labyrinth is an ancient symbol, appearing in many different cultures. Christianity picked up the labyrinth as a metaphor for the…
A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian ChurchFebruary 1, 2009 Mark 1:21-28 There’s a word that the author of Mark’s gospel uses over and over again—immediately. English translators, in an effort to make his language easier on our ears, often leave it out. As they do in this passage. But, as we read through Mark this…
Ephesians 3:1-6 Matt. 2:1-12 A Sermon preached at Southminster Presbyterian Church Boise, ID January 4, 2009 Today we are celebrating Epiphany. This is an ancient Christian celebration, dating at least as far back as the 300’s. And it is the day we celebrate the arrival of the magi, or the Eastern Wise men who came…
A Meditation from Southminster Presbyterian Church Luke 2:22-40 Our reading this morning from Luke’s gospel picks up right after our Christmas Eve story. Mary and Joseph have presumably returned from Bethlehem to Nazareth, and then when the baby was 8 days old, they named him Jesus as they had been instructed by the angel and…
Many of you have heard that President elect Obama has invited Rick Warren, pastor of the conservative Saddleback Church of California, to pray at the inauguration. Now, I do not agree with Pastor Warren on much, I suspect. We approach our faith from very different places. And I completely disagree with him on his support…
Glass Overflowing 