Sermons (Page 30)
Look For Jesus In Every Face: Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve, December 24, 2018 Year C, Christmas Eve: Isaiah 9:2-7; Psalm 96; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14, [15-20] There was no recording of this sermon. “They were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see – I am…
We, Too, Must Magnify The Lord: Advent 4
Advent 4, December 23, 2018 Year C, Advent 4: Micah 5:2-5a; Canticle 15; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke [1:39-45, (46-55)] CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. My soul magnifies the Lord. Or in another version, “my soul doth magnify the Lord.” Today we hear the Magnificat, that great song of Mary that the author of Luke and Acts has blessed us with. We heard it in Canticle 15 and we heard it repeated in the Gospel. Beautiful words. Glorious words for the…
Are We Living Out The Baptismal Promise? Advent 3
Advent 3, December 16, 2018 Year C, Advent 3: Zepheniah 3:14-20; Canticle 9; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18 CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. If you’ve ever been a part of an Altar Guild and set up for the third Sunday in Advent you probably know that this particular Sunday is known a “Rose Sunday” or “Gaudete Sunday”. “Gaudete” means “rejoice” in Latin, so it is quite literally a day of joy and expectation as we are midway through the…
God Is Always Calling Us: Advent 2
Advent 2, December 9, 2018 Year C, Advent 2: Baruch 5:1-9; Song of Zechariah; Philippians 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6 CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. What many of you may not know about me is that I like to watch TV. I can become a couch potato with the best of them. And one thing I’ve come to realize is that TV shows can teach us a lot about how to live our lives. Or not. Never fear. Dr. Oz…
May We Abound In Love: Advent 1
Advent 1, December 2, 2018 Year C, Advent 1: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-9; Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36 There was no recording for today’s sermon. It has officially begun. The Christmas Rush! From now until Christmas Day will seem like a 100-meter dash with the rush of Christmas and all its demands, distractions, details, dilemmas, delights and duties. For retailers, it’s a “make-or-break” time of year. Or maybe it’s make-and-break, because the more exhausted and overworked they become, the better their…
Christ’s Kingdom Is All Around Us: Christ The King Sunday
Christ The King Sunday, November 25, 2018 Year B, Last Sunday after Pentecost: 2 Samuel 23:1-7; Psalm 132:1-13 (14-19) ; Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37 CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. Someone asked me earlier this week about this Gospel passage. He found it rather ironic that we should have this particular reading from John as the Gospel lesson for today. We’re a week away from Advent, and a month from our celebration of Christmas, and yet here we have…
The Real Test Of Faith: Pentecost 26
Twenty-Sixth Sunday after Pentecost, November 18, 2018 Year B, Proper 28: Samuel 1:4-20; Canticle: The Song of Hannah (Samuel 2:1-10); Hebrews 10:11-14, (15-18), 19-25; Mark 13:1-8 There was no recording of this sermon. If you can imagine the first time you went to a city like New York or Miami, or if you’re like me the first time you saw real mountains and the awe you felt, you get something of what Jesus’ disciples must have felt when they saw…
God Is The Great Multiplier: Pentecost 25
Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, November 11, 2018 Year B, Proper 27: Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17; Psalm 127; Hebrews 9:24-28; Mark 12:38-44 CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. The second part of today’s Gospel is often referred to as “The Widow’s Mite” and is quite often used in relation to stewardship and sacrificial giving. The widow gives of her poverty, putting everything she had into the temple box. Jesus draws the attention of his disciples and out attention to a woman…
Funeral Sermon for Mary Lou Lee
Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Woodstock, VA November 7, 2018 “The forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.” This is the faith that we will profess in a few minutes in the Apostles’ Creed. This is the faith that Mary Lou professed throughout her life. It is the faith into which she was baptized. These are gifts given us by the Good Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ. They are gifts given to Mary Lou. I pray that…
Hope Is Stronger Than Death: All Saints Day
All Saints Day, November 4, 2018 Year B, Proper 26: Ruth 1:1-18; Psalm 146; Hebrews 9:11-14; Mark 12:28-34 CLICK HERE to listen to this sermon. I generally don’t recommend Wikipedia as a highly reliable reference source, but its article pertaining to All Saints’ Day is pretty good. What the article says is this: “Christians who celebrate All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day do so in the fundamental belief that there is a prayerful, spiritual bond between those in heaven…
Transforming Blindness: Pentecost 23
Twenty-third Sunday after Pentecost, October 28, 2018 Year B, Proper 25: Job 42:1-6, 10-17;Psalm 34:1-8;Hebrews 7:23-28;Mark 10:46-52 CLICK HERE to listen to the recorded sermon. This morning we hear that Jesus is on the road. He has set his face towards Jerusalem. He knows he is going there to die. His apostles and other disciples are on the road with him, although they do not have the same certainty about what is to come. The original twelve have been joined…
Open Hands Can Receive And Give: Pentecost 21
Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost, October 14, 2018 Year B, Proper 23: Job 23:1-9, 16-17; Psalm 22:1-15; Hebrews 4:12-16; Mark 10:17-31 CLICK HERE to listen to the recorded sermon. As I was thinking about today’s readings, I couldn’t help but think about the last several weeks and it suddenly occurred to me. Are all the material things I have here to serve me or am I here to serve them as I desperately look for storage spaces for more clothes than I…