Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have stripped off the old self with its practices and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator. – Colossians 3:9-10 Have you ever tried to do something wearing completely the wrong clothes for the occasion? I remember when I was a kid I went to a school where we had to wear uniforms, which meant polo shirts, dress pants, dress shoes and a tie every day. One of the first … [Read more...]
Will You Come and Follow Me – Sermon for June 30th
Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." – Luke 9:58 When you are about to embark on some big life change, like getting married, or having your first child, or going to university, starting a new job or retiring from one – you will often be told by someone that your life will never be the same, it will change so tremendously that you’ll barely recognize it on the other side. People have a tendency to speak in … [Read more...]
Demons – Sermon for Sunday June 23rd
Audio of this Sermon available at the bottom of the page. “The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." – Luke 8:38-39 In the modern Western world demons and demon possession is generally considered the stuff of fantasy or horror films – images like the young girl in Exorcist contorted and screaming in her bed – in ‘real life’ we would never give demons and demon … [Read more...]
Holding on to Heaven – Sermon for Easter 4
“What is heaven like?” If you ever had children, or maybe you taught children in Sunday school, you have probably been confronted with this question: What is heaven? What does it look like? What will it smell or feel like? Who will be there? What will we do? It makes sense that children ask these questions, we say the word heaven a lot in church, we say it’s important, we might even talk about it as a goal but we don’t actually talk about it very much. If you were only to watch … [Read more...]
Say my Name – Sermon for Easter 2019
What’s in a name? We all can likely remember times when our parents or our friends have called out our name with a deep sense of affection and love bottled up – perhaps after a long period of absence, or a parent calling a child over to offer a hug or a comforting shoulder to cry on. Our names are powerful. Just ask any child the power of a name, when their parent uses it to chastise them! When I was a child I would go around saying ‘I am not an Edddin! I am not an Eddin!’ because when I was … [Read more...]
Humble Service – Sermon for Maundy Thursday 2019
*Audio available at the bottom of the page* “Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” ~ John 13:1 Before becoming a father, it is unlikely that you would have ever got me excited at the prospect of feeding time or bath time for an infant. The idea of trying to force a young child to try food that they are not going to like, or to subject an infant to the potential for screaming and torture of a bath. Obviously some children love food and others love baths, … [Read more...]
The Funeral Party – Sermon for Palm Sunday 2019
*Audio available below* Have you ever received bad news in the midst of other people’s celebration and excitement? In those situations you try to go along with the occasion not trying to put a damper on things, you might even put on a brave face so no one knows the difference. I remember when I found out my mother was diagnosed with cancer two years ago, it rocked my world. It was the first time in my adult life that one of my immediate family members had been confronted with mortality … [Read more...]
Found when lost – Sermon for Lent 4
*Audio can be found at the bottom of the page* “We had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.” – Luke 15:32 There is something reassuring about old familiar stories: they are like the old family recipe that has been passed down for generations – warm cookies, cake with that special family ingredient. They are comfortable, they often bring warm memories to mind. Our story from the Gospel of Luke this morning … [Read more...]
Repent and Live – Sermon for Lent 3
*Audio Available at the bottom of the page* During the season of Lent we rightly focus on repentance and the call for us to confess our sins and such. It is a season of prayer and fasting, a season where we can assess our lives of faith and discipleship, determine where we are lacking and areas where we need to grow – on Ash Wednesday we are encouraged to observe a holy lent, by self-examination, penitence, prayer, fasting and almsgiving and meditating on the word of God. Repentance … [Read more...]
Who do you love? – Sermon for February 24th
*Audio available at bottom of the page* “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.” ~ Luke 6:27 If there was ever a time for us to hear Jesus’ words in the passage, we heard this morning from the Gospel of Luke it is now. Like no time in our lifetime, or at least my lifetime, has our society been so fractured and divided. We need only look at the complete polarization of the political landscapes across the globe: the rise of Trumpism in the US, the … [Read more...]