Sermon Archives

love
December 15, 2013

Waiting at the door with Elizabeth and Mary

All of this happens in the doorway. Mary arrives at Elizabeth’s house ‐ the cousins exchange greetings. We could ask the same question of Mary that Mary asked of the angel some months ago. When the angel came to Mary she wondered what kind of greeting this might be. Now we get a strange greeting […]

November 17, 2013

Jesus’ Disaster Preparedness Plan

I can’t say that reading the scripture text for this week is a reassuring exercise. There appears to be nothing in it that will calm anxiety. It’s unsettling enough that Jesus says that the temple, known far and wide for its beauty, will be no more. But then he goes on to say that some […]

November 10, 2013

Charmed

If you have lived a charmed life, this sermon will not make much sense to you. if things in your life have almost always gone your way, if you have had lots of money, if you have had good health, and if success has come easily to you, then the rest of this sermon will […]

November 3, 2013

How Long, God?

How long, God? 1 in 7 Americans live in poverty. 14%! That’s 4% more than the 10% tithe you ask us to give you for your mission in the world! I know one of those Americans who live in poverty. His name is Sam. Lives right here in Indiana. Has a full-time job working 40 […]

October 6, 2013

The Gifts of Lament

One evening, you and your spouse are caravanning back home from a soccer game. You and your spouse are driving separate vehicles because each of you went to the soccer game right after work. During the trip home after the game, your spouse is up ahead while you follow in the rear. As your spouse […]

September 22, 2013

A Generous God Whose Love Knows No Limits

This parable is known by a couple of titles: The Dishonest Steward, and The Shrewd Manager. The commentaries are consistent on one point about this parable: that it is the most difficult one that Jesus told! After that, they go off in a variety of directions and interpretations. And who can blame them, for Luke […]

August 18, 2013

Pyromaniac

Today the gospel of Luke confronts us with some very difficult words of Jesus. Jesus sounds as though he’s come to bust up the nuclear family: 51Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! 52From now on five in one household will be […]

July 14, 2013

Collaborators

The parable of the good Samaritan might be Jesus’ most famous parable. If you interviewed random people on the sidewalks of downtown Goshen and asked them whether they know Jesus’ parable of the alert slaves in Luke 12:35‐40, they’ll probably stammer around a bit, then admit they don’t know that parable. But if you ask […]

June 2, 2013

Fools in Love

I believe that one of the great purposes of the Church is to receive encouragement from one another and to learn from each other’s experiences. There are two life lessons I would like to share with you today that I have learned through my experiences. These lessons are quite precious to me. The first is […]

April 28, 2013

Lost in Wonder, Love, and Praise

I was talking a while back with my friend Paul. He told me one morning at dawn he was driving into Goshen for a meeting. Just outside of Goshen the sun started to rise over the horizon, radiating pinks, yellows, and oranges across the landscape. “It was so stunning I had to pull my van […]

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