John 6:41-51
A Sermon for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost
The last verse from the text for today, John 6:51says: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
That’s dynamite. That changes everything. He is the living bread, and that gives us life.
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A Sermon for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost
Many people think that going to church is like going to the dentist. It’s one of those things you should do, but don’t necessarily want to do.
But there’s a big difference between the two. Some parents say to their children: “You are to go to church with us as long as you live in our house. When you’re on your own, you can decide what to do.” But you would never say that about your teeth.
Another way that people think of church is like a social group one enjoys but, in a take-it-or-leave-it sort of way.Select here to read more or here for a pdf document.
Ephesians 3:14-21
A Sermon for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost
Every Sunday in the Prayer of the Day, we pray for all those who have a particular sorrow, need, or difficulty. Sometimes that that goes by us as kind of a general statement without thinking that there are particular sorrows, needs, or difficulties. They are among us and also in our own hearts and lives. It sometimes important to try to be specific about that because we struggle ourselves, and sometimes are asked by others. Someone will come to you and say: “I’m 93 years old, and what’s the point of it? I’m sitting here. It hurts to move. I have nothing worthwhile to do, and I’m no good to others. Why is God doing this?”
Ephesians 2:11-22
A Sermon for the Nineth Sunday after Pentecost
Many years ago, in the weeks after a baby was born, people would ask: “Has the child been done?” By which they meant: “Has the baby been baptized?”
That question, “Has the baby been done?” strikes us as old-fashioned, but it’s right about the main thing. There are three basics to the main thing.
The first of the basics is: What has God done? What God has done is summarized in the Apostles’ Creed or more usefully in the Nicene Creed, which is the far more universal creed among Christians.
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Ephesians 1:3-14
A Sermon for the Eighth Sunday after Pentecost
One of the greatest engineers of all time was Archimedes (287-212 BC). We know that he shouted “Eureka!” when he figured out how to weigh things in water, and we know his statement about the lever: “Give me a long enough lever and I will move the world.”
But what happened at the end of his life is equally as important. According to the story, he was in the gymnasium in Syracuse in Sicily, during the Siege of Syracuse. At that time, it was a Greek colony. He doing calculations in the sand when the barbarians stormed into the gymnasium. Engrossed in solving his math problem, Archimedes held up his hands and said: “Don’t disturb my circles!” But they didn’t speak Greek and thought he was resisting them, so they killed him.
That is in a way what this text in Ephesians 1:3-14 is about. This is the classical spot, the place where it says: “God did it; God does it.” It says there in verse 4: “. . . he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” Well, what does that say in terms of what’s happening around us today?