“Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.” ~ John 12:3 ‘Do you believe in Resurrection?’ You might think this an odd question with a full week left in Lent, after all, we need to get through Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, his final days and final meal with his disciples on Maundy Thursday, his betrayal and trial before Pilate and finally the … [Read more...]
One Love – Sermon for Lent 4
“For our sake he made him be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” ~ 2 Corinthians 5:21 There are some weeks when I look at the readings set out by the lectionary and wonder about how the Gospel speaks into our context. But then there are weeks like this one where it seems that the Spirit inspired the Scripture’s authors or the compilers of the lectionary to address what is going on in the world. As I prepared to write this sermon, Russia continued … [Read more...]
Jubilee Road – Sermon for Jan. 23 2022
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favour." ~ Luke 4:18-19 One of the unfortunate realities of our modern society is the amount of debt each one of us carries around. In 2020 the average household debt in Canada rose to $1.71 for every dollar of disposable income, meaning that on … [Read more...]
Learning at the Feet of the Master – Sermon for Jan 16 2022
“Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.” John 2:11 When we think about discipleship, about following Jesus, we probably begin to think about learning. After all, much of the Christian life is about learning from Jesus, learning about Jesus and learning to live the life that God is growing in our lives. We make a big deal about learning. Jesus is described in the Bible as a teacher, as a Rabbi a great religious … [Read more...]
There’s Something About Mary – Sermon for Advent 4, 2021
There’s something about Mary…. This morning I want you to think about what words or images come to mind when you think about Mary. If you want, you can take a look at the stained glass window of the Nativity here in the Sanctuary, which I’ve included in the PowerPoint for those of you at home. The scene depicts Mary and Joseph bowed over their new son Jesus, Mary is small in stature and has a position of humility and gentleness, bowed down to take care of her infant son. As you look at … [Read more...]
Divine Delight – Sermon for Advent 3, 2021
“The LORD, your God, is in your midst, a warrior who gives victory; he will rejoice over you with gladness, he will renew you in his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” ~ Zephaniah 3:17 What do you delight in? Delight is a word that we don’t often hear nowadays – in fact, usage in print and other media has dropped significantly in the last century – and when we do hear the word I think we don’t necessarily hear it or appreciate the full weight of the word. A person can be … [Read more...]
Prepare the Way O Zion – Sermon for Advent 2, 2021
If you were here last week, you will know the great relief it was to be able to sing together again. As lovely as the voices of our soloists and choir have been over the last 2 years, there is something special about congregational singing. It doesn’t matter if you sing flat or sharp, loud or softly, combined it creates a sacred chorus, it was truly a joy to behold. Singing is in many ways the universal language, you do not need to understand the words of a song to necessarily understand its … [Read more...]
Waiting, Watching – Sermon for Advent 1, 2021
“Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and stand before the Son of Man." - Luke 21:25-36 Waiting can be hard at the best of times. Several years ago at Christmas time, you’ll remember that there was the ice-storm. Christmas services across the city were threatened as many people and churches experienced days without power. For many of us, it was a back-and-forth week. Is the power on yet? We knew that the power would … [Read more...]
The King and the Cross – Sermon for Nov. 21
“Through him, God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.” – Colossians 1:20 Through the blood of his cross… it might seem odd to you that today our scripture readings are focused on Jesus’ death, on his crucifixion, on the blood of the cross. After all, today is the last Sunday of the Christian liturgical calendar – next week we begin the season of Advent; we get to begin again the journey of preparation … [Read more...]
Broken Stones, Broken Temples – Sermon for Nov. 14
‘Then Jesus asked him, "Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down."’ ~ Mark 13:2 When I was a teenager I had the wonderful and privileged opportunity to travel to several European cities for conferences, sports tournaments and the like. Throughout my three years living in Moscow, Russia, I travelled to Zagreb, Prague, Warsaw, Dublin, The Hague and more if you include the trips we took as a family. During these trips, we often had … [Read more...]
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