“Essential Reminders About the Role of Government” Romans 13:1-7 September 11, 2016 Robert Wilson, in his book Character Above All seeks to answer one fundamental question: “What is the relationship between the President’s character and presidential leadership?” He asks the question because it is his observation that as a group, the American people “‘started out […]
Read More Sermon: Essential Reminders About the Role of Government“Accused and Condemned” Romans 3:19-20 August 28, 2016 A number of years ago singer Billy Joel talked about his spiritual life: “I wasn’t raised Catholic, but I used to go to Mass with my friends and I viewed the whole business as a lot of very enthralling hocus-pocus. There’s a guy…nailed to a cross and […]
Read More Sermon: Accused and Condemned“The Weightiness of Sin” Pt. 5 Romans 3:18 August 21, 2016 Unless you are a fan of rock climbing, you likely don’t know the name of Alex Honnold. But among a particular group of climbers — solo climbers — those who climb without a rope or any protective equipment of any kind, and often even […]
Read More Sermon: The Weightiness of Sin, Pt. 5“The Weightiness of Sin” Pt. 4 Romans 3:15-17 August 14, 2016 Like many of you, I get news updates on my phone; several times a day I’ll get a notification on my home screen about some breaking news event: it’s hot in Texas; it’s raining everywhere but in Texas; someone won a gold medal at […]
Read More Sermon: The Weightiness of Sin, Pt. 4“The Weightiness of Sin” Pt. 3 Romans 3:13-14 August 7, 2016 A blog that I occasionally read recently published, “50+ Old Fashioned Insults We Should Bring Back.” In the author’s estimation, we have lost the ability to insult others in “clever, nuanced, descriptive, and… amusing” ways. So he made an appeal to reincorporate some older […]
Read More Sermon: The Weightiness of Sin, Pt. 3“The Weightiness of Sin,” Pt. 2 Romans 3:10-12 July 24, 2016 In 1990, our country was embroiled in a nationwide debate over a decision that had been made in Washington D.C. President George (H. W.) Bush made a decision that not everyone appreciated, but it was one that he had been contemplating for many years. […]
Read More Sermon: The Weightiness of Sin, Pt. 2“The Weightiness of Sin” Romans 3:9 July 17, 2016 Every year for the past four years, Zimbabwe has hosted a most unusual pageant. You know there are beauty pageants for women and there are a few for men, but this one in Zimbabwe is quite different. It has been held now for four consecutive years; […]
Read More Sermon: The Weightiness of Sin“God’s Judgments and God’s Faithfulness” Pt. 2 Romans 3:1-8 July 10, 2016 A few weeks ago, a woman took the book Myths and Legends of Maoriland back to her Auckland, New Zealand library. It was a little late and she was concerned about the potential fine. Actually, it was checked out in 1948, making it […]
Read More Sermon: God’s Judgments and God’s Faithfulness, Pt. 2“God’s Judgments and God’s Faithfulness” Pt. 1 Romans 3:1-8 July 3, 2016 Life is filled with perplexing questions — What color is a chameleon on a mirror? Where does weight go when you lose it? Why are Chinese fortune cookies written in English? Why is abbreviated such a long word? Is there another word for […]
Read More Sermon: God’s Judgments and God’s Faithfulness, Pt. 1“Rituals, Religion, and Transformed Hearts” Romans 2:25-29 June 12, 2016 A few months ago a sealed leather trunk that had been stored in a museum in the Netherlands was opened and what the researchers found was astounding — 2600 undelivered letters, perfectly preserved from the 17th century. About 600 of those letters were never opened; […]
Read More Sermon: Rituals, Religion, and Transformed Hearts“Remember Your Sin…And Christ’s Work” Ephesians 2:11-13 May 29, 2016 Many years ago I called a friend and when he answered his cell phone, he was noticeably quiet and subdued. So I asked him, “Are you ok?” “Yeah — I’m in D.C. on a business trip this week and I’m at the Vietnam Memorial, and […]
Read More Sermon: Remember Your Sin…And Christ’s Work“Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy: Why Practicing What You Preach Matters” Romans 2:17-24 May 22, 2016 A few years ago, Washington state Representative, Jack Metcalf revealed that the U.S. Forestry Service and a Washington state agency were working together to spend $18,000 to dye rocks on a scenic route to the Cascade Mountains brown and gray. It […]
Read More Sermon: Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy – Why Practicing What You Preach Matters“The Conscience: What It Is and How to Help It” Pt. 2 Selected Scriptures May 15, 2016 Jerry White provides a picture of how most people think about the conscience: Willie, in the comic strip Moon Mullins, is slumped in a chair in front of a TV set, coffee cup resting on his pot belly. […]
Read More Sermon: The Conscience – What It Is and How to Help It, Pt. 2“The Conscience: What It Is and How to Help It” Selected Scriptures May 8, 2016 In 2007, a 44-year-old Frenchman — happily married with two children and a white-collar job — went to a hospital in Marseille complaining of some mild weakness in his left leg. The ailment in his leg was remedied fairly quickly. […]
Read More Sermon: The Conscience – What It Is and How to Help It“Is God Fair?” Pt. 2 Romans 2:12-16 April 17, 2016 When I was in seminary, the professor for an introductory missions class had the same assignment for his students every year. They were to write a short paper answering the question: “will the heathen who have never heard and responded in faith to the gospel […]
Read More Sermon: Is God Fair? Pt. 2
Words of Grace 