Sermons from 2023 (Page 2)

16 Pentecost, Proper 19 – September 17, 2023 Matthew 18:21-35           “How many times do I need to forgive my brother or sister?” That’s the question which prompts the parable of the unmerciful servant that we hear today. This passage follows on last week’s reading, which Jesus concluded by assuring us that wherever two or three are gathered in his name, there he is, in our midst. And Peter,…..well he doesn’t allow us to linger in that moment. He knows…

15 Pentecost, Proper 18 – September 10, 2023 Matthew 18:15-20          “We need to talk.”  How do you feel when someone says these four words to you?  “We need to talk”.  What happens in your body when you hear them? Most of the time, if another person approaches us with those words, they’re not saying they want to chat about the weather, or relive highlights from yesterday’s football game, or share the latest celebrity gossip.  They’re saying, “Something is broken…

14 Pentecost, Proper 17 – September 3, 2023 Matthew 16:21-28 Last Sunday we heard Jesus saying to Peter, you’re “the rock on which I will build my church” and this Sunday he’s calling Peter “a stumbling block.” That’s not just great word play – from cornerstone to stumbling block – but such a reversal of relational fortune that it had to be incredibly painful for Peter. Can you imagine? And perhaps that’s the difficulty. Peter couldn’t imagine. He couldn’t imagine…

13 Pentecost, Proper 16 – August 27, 2023 Matthew 16:13-20 In our reading from Matthew’s gospel this morning, and by the way, it also appears in Mark and Luke’s gospel, Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” It’s instructive that this question was raised, and that it survives in our three gospel accounts. It indicates that the memories of the earliest believers varied considerably about the identity of Jesus. Exactly who was he? From then until…

12 Pentecost, Proper 15 – August 20, 2023 Matthew 15:10-28          I recently learned how a lobster grows.  Did you know that a one-pound lobster can grow to be a three-pound lobster, even a ten-pound lobster?  So, the question is, how does a lobster grow while protected and confined by a hard shell?  I learned that when a lobster becomes crowded in its shell and cannot grow anymore, by instinct, it travels out to some place in the sea, hoping…

11 Pentecost, Proper 14 – August 13, 2023 Matthew 14:22-33          Jesus sent the disciples ahead by boat to the other side of the sea, while he went up on the mountain to pray, by himself.  By evening, the boat was battered by waves. The Greek “basanizo” literally means torture, torment or harassment; figuratively it means severe distress. The boat is far away from land, and the wind was against them. After a night-long battle for their lives, the disciples were understandably…

The Transfiguration – August 6, 2023 Luke 9:28-36          The Transfiguration is not just an event in our Christian history, it is not simply a beginning and an end story. It is a condition or way of being. The Transfiguration reveals a present reality. In other words, the transfiguration is already within us and the world.  But are we awake enough to be able to perceive it? The spiritual journey is always a battle between falling asleep and staying awake,…

9 Pentecost, Proper 12 – July 30, 2023 Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52          Given a choice most of us would probably prefer a “what you see is what you get” kind of life and world. We want to look at the world and know what is coming and what will be asked of us. We want to know that if we work hard and do the right thing we will get the result we expect and think we deserve. We don’t…

8 Pentecost, Proper 11 – July 23, 2023 Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43          We live in a world where judgment and criticism are a way of life. A day never passes when we do not make a negative comment about something someone else has done. We criticize people for the way they dress, for the way they talk, and for the things they do. But in today’s gospel story, we hear Jesus tell a parable about wheat and weeds, good and…

6 Pentecost, Proper 9 – July 9, 2023 Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30          Jesus describes a generation that cannot recognize the truth that is right front of them. They thought that John the Baptist was a demon and considered Jesus to be “a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.” Interestingly, they describe Jesus by the company he keeps.  Jesus, on the other hand, compares them to children. They are oblivious, like children who are preoccupied with…

5 Pentecost, Proper 8 – July 2, 2023 Matthew 10:40-42          When Jesus sent his disciples out into the world to share the good news of God’s kingdom, he sent them out as vulnerable outsiders.  They had no religious institutions to back their efforts.  No political tools to wield.  No cultural capital to spend.  They had no power at all, save the power of the Holy Spirit moving through them to heal and serve. Remember, Jesus told his first messengers…

3 Pentecost, Proper 6 – June 18, 2023 Matthew 9:35-10:23          There is a LOT in our gospel reading this morning! Do you remember the Peanuts cartoons? And Lucy. Lucy, the psychiatrist of Peanuts fame, who sits waiting in her booth. Frieda comes seeking help. “My problem is that I’m afraid of kindergarten. I don’t even know why! I try to reason it out, but I can’t … I’m just afraid … I think about it all the time ……