Unexpected Gospel
A sermon on Matthew 21:23-32 and Philippians 2:1-13 [for an audio recording of this sermon, click here. Photo by Denis Oliveira on Unsplash]. It’s hard to predict the changes our future might hold. As a case in point, at this time last year I never would have expected I would now be spending roughly 30 hours a week in 5th grade! That wasn’t my plan! Nevertheless, I’m grateful for the flexibility to be able to support my son in remote learning. And I deeply appreciate the hard
When it's OK to be Unfair.
A sermon on Matthew 20: 1-16. [for an audio recording of this sermon, click here. Photo by Jonathan Pendleton on Unsplash] After hearing the Parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard, I would be willing to bet that at least a few of you just asked yourselves some version of the question: “how is that fair?!” I mean, we know that we are always supposed to agree with Jesus in the gospel stories, but… come on! The people who work only an hour in the cool of the evening get the sam
A Different Part to Play
A sermon on Matthew 18: 21-35 [for an audio recording of this sermon, click here. Photo by Javier Allegue Barros on Unsplash.] Well, we are back in the same space! I get to look into these faces that I love as I preach. AND we have a parable in our gospel reading!
As I have mentioned once or twice (or twenty times), I love to explore the parables by “playing all the parts.” The process of intentionally taking on the different viewpoints of the various characters is a powerfu
Calling In
A sermon on Matthew 18:15-20. [For an audio recording of this sermon, click here. Photo by James Sutton on Unsplash] One of my favorite resources for sermon preparation is The SALT lectionary commentary, because it always focuses in on the relevance of the scripture lessons for our current context. This week, the connection was easy to make. This week’s essay begins with a comment on the relevance of teaching about conflict in our current societal context: “wisdom (regardin
