Sermons from March 2023

5 Lent Year A – March 26, 2023 John 11:1-45          We have two very powerful stories presented to us today…the story of the dry bones and the story of Lazarus. Two big and powerful stories.  Both remind us of the physical realities of our experience of death. In Ezekiel the prophet is dropped in the middle of a valley of dry bones. In John, Jesus weeps in response to the lamentations of Martha and Mary and the others. And…

4 Lent – March 19, 2023 John 9:1-41          I’ve asked Betty to hand out a picture for you to look at. What do you see — one vase or two faces? That is the optical illusion made famous by the Danish psychologist Edgar Rubin (1886–1951), who specialized in “figure-ground perception.” When shown a simple picture of his Rubin Vase, as it’s known, some people see a black vase on a white background. Other people see two white faces on a…

3 Lent – March 12, 2023 John 4:5-42          This morning we hear the story of the woman at the well. It is one of my favorite stories, and that is partly because it is a complex story, it is so much more than a simple conversion story. I’ll start off by sharing some important things to be aware of: This is the longest conversation Jesus has with anyone in the New Testament and it is with a woman from…

2 Lent – March 5, 2023 John 3:1-17          Our gospel story from John this morning invites us to eavesdrop on the visit that Nicodemus pays to Jesus shortly after Jesus clears out the temple. The fact that Jesus and Nicodemus have their conversation at night seems fitting not just because the darkness offers a measure of protection and secrecy for Nicodemus, away from the eyes of his fellow Pharisees, but because Jesus speaks here of a mystery. In response…