“Nothing accursed will be found there anymore. But the throne of God and the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.” Revelation 22:3-4 The book of Revelation is in some serious need of image rehabilitation. If I ventured a guess, I would bet that the Book of Revelation doesn’t sit atop any of your lists as your favourite book of the Bible, probably not even close. It’s a book filled with cryptic imagery, with … [Read more...]
Praise You – Sermon for Easter 5
“Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights!” ~ Psalm 148:1 What is the purpose or meaning of life? I remember back in high school, my biology teacher used to joke that biologically speaking he was a failure of a human being, that he had not fulfilled his biological purpose, because he had never had children. You see, from a purely biological perspective, the purpose of any creature is merely to continue the existence and thriving of its species beyond its … [Read more...]
Shepherd of My Soul – Sermon for Easter 4
“The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.” ~ Psalm 23:1 If you were to say this verse to anyone that grew up in Canada or another part of the British Commonwealth, they would likely know the source and many could probably continue the passage at least a few more verses. Whether you learned it in school, Sunday school or have heard it at countless funerals – the twenty-third psalm is easily one of the most recognizable passages of scripture. It has also found a place in our culture’s … [Read more...]
Tear the Fences Down – Sermon for Easter 3
“But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name." ~ Acts 9:15-16 The saying goes “Good fences make good neighbours.” But do they? From the earliest pre-historic hunters who built walls around their hunt camps with mammoth bones to the walls of Athens that differentiated them from the nation-state of Sparta to the defensive … [Read more...]
Serve the Servants – Sermon for Maundy Thursday
“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going to God, got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself.” ~ John 13:3-4 For all that we talk about servanthood being at the centre of the Christian life, the path that we are all called to follow, we can be mighty squeamish when it comes to foot-washing. From a friend’s church in the deep south of the United States that was so uncomfortable with … [Read more...]
Pour Your Love – Sermon for Lent 5
“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...]
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