Sermons on Life of Christ (Page 15)
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Being an Apostle
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 “The Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him…” In Greek, the word for ‘he sent’ is apesteilon which has the same root as the English word apostle. When we talk about “the apostles” we are usually referring to the disciples after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, when they were sent by Jesus to preach the gospel. But in today’s gospel reading, we see that apostleship is not limited to twelve men; 70, or some…
Practicing Peace
Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5 John 14:23-29 Today our Easter journey with the resurrection Jesus nears its end. This Thursday is the feast of the Ascension which marks the end of Jesus’ appearances to his disciples and in a couple of weeks we’ll be celebrating Pentecost and the beginning of the Church’s ministry. You will remember that Jesus’ ministry started after his time of prayer in the desert and his temptation. In Matthew’s account we read, “the devil took him to…
The Way of Transformation – Good Friday, March 25
The Way of Transformation John 18:1 – 19:42 The Gospel reading for Good Friday tells us the story of a Jewish man who was rejected by Jewish religious leaders and then crucified by Roman soldiers – and in re-telling this story, we have heard the words Jew, Jewish, and the Jews twenty times. This Gospel was written in the late first century by a Jew, for a community of Jews – and when the author wrote ‘the Jews’ he meant…
Contemplative Prayer with John’s Gospel – March 13
Contemplative Prayer with John’s Gospel This contemplative exercise can be done with any Gospel story. You will need a little time, a quiet space for prayer, and your imagination. An introduction to John 12:1-8 If you are reading through the Gospel of John, this chapter comes just after Jesus rescues Lazarus from his grave, and a week before Jesus himself dies on the cross. The story takes place in Bethany – a village whose name probably means ‘House of the Poor’…
Baptism – Saved or Called?
Baptism: Saved or Called? All four gospels begin their stories of Jesus’ ministry with his baptism. In today’s gospel reading Jesus has come, along with many others, to be baptized by John. And Luke tells us that When Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. Luke 3:21-22 The book of Acts tells of other baptisms – of all the people who were…
Mary didn’t know it was Easter
Mary is in shock. Something is terribly wrong. She has been distraught since Friday and now she is finally able to go to the tomb where the remains of her beloved Jesus are… and they’re not there. And in her grief she sees Jesus but she does not recognize him. This week we have witnessed the shock and horror of a terrorist attack in Brussels. People just going about their regular lives suddenly had everything turned upside down. Lives lost,…
Remember Who You Are
We began the season of Epiphany with the baptism of Jesus and this morning, the First Sunday in Lent, we get a flashback to what happened next. Jesus spent a long period of time in the desert, fasting and preparing for his ministry. And while he was there he was confronted by the sin matrix personified in the devil aka Satan. Some people get very bothered by the idea of Satan – they can’t wrap themselves around the medieval Satan…
What do you see?
This morning is the last Sunday in the season of Epiphany – the season of the revelation of Christ – this coming Wednesday is Ash Wednesday when we start to prepare for the bittersweet events of Holy Week and the great mystery of Easter. Since the date of Easter Sunday varies from year to year depending upon the moon, the number of Sundays in Epiphany also varies from year to year. But two of those Sundays always have the same…
Encountering the Christ
Matthew 2:1-12 A few weeks ago we read some of Luke’s account of Jesus’ birth and I mentioned that some scholars think we can look at these early stories as a kind of prologue to the gospel itself; a narrative that sets out the key theme of the gospel. Today we hear from Matthew. Matthew starts with a genealogy to show that Jesus was descended from Abraham and then David through the male line even though he too makes it…