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Keeping Christ at the Center
Christmas in May I’m pretty sure it was Stephen Covey, back in the day ( The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People ) who originally said, “The main thing is to let the main thing be the main thing... -
lectionary
13th Sunday after Pentecost
Preaching Commentary A Bombshell Confession Simon Peter’s confession that Jesus was, indeed, the “Messiah, the Son of the living God” is the climax of Matthew’s account of Jesus’ earthly ministry. ... -
liturgy
Prayer Based on Philippians 2:5-11
Jesus, you do not exploit Power over Power used as advantage Power plays You empty yourself of power’s privileges You choose solidarity, even with slaves You choose womb and flesh vulnerability and b... -
Quote
Christ is not American. The church is global. Our neighbors are all of humanity. The national anthem is not a gospel song. -
liturgy
Colossians 2:6-7
Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Romans 4:13-25
Ancient lens What's the historical context? Ancient Boundaries The world of Jesus and of the early church saw a Jewish people that had well-established boundary practices. These were behavior... -
illustration
The Centrality of the Cross
The fact that a cross became the Christian symbol, and that Christians stubbornly refused, in spite of the ridicule, to discard it in favour of something less offensive, can have only one explanation.... -
liturgy
Ephesians 3:17-19 "May Christ may dwell in your
May Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, to the end that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be strengthened to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Philippians 3:4b-14
Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? Broader Context of Philippians Paul is concerned that Judaizers (those that require Christians to follow the Torah) are going to corrup... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, John 1:1-14 (Guide A)
God expressed Himself J.B. Phillips paraphrases the first line of John 1:1, “At the beginning God expressed himself ”. God’s word is more than mere speech. His word is action. When God speaks in Gen... -
illustration
Our Faith
Our faith is not a matter of our hearing what Christ said long ago and “trying to carry it out. The real Son of God is at your side. He is beginning to turn you into the same kind of thing as Himself.... -
liturgy
Embracing New Life in Christ
Pastor: We who have been given new birth into a living hope, are sent now into the world, People: to look, live and love more like Jesus. Pastor: Go in peace to serve the Lord! People: Thanks be t... -
illustration
Christianity: A One-Way Ticket to Heaven?
Most people today imagine that the point of Christianity is “to go to heaven when you die.” That’s what most believers believe. It’s what most unbelievers unbelieve. It’s certainly what journalists, b... -
liturgy
Christ's Ascension, Our Spiritual Journey
Grant, we pray, Almighty God, that as we believe your only-begotten Son our Lord Jesus Christ to have ascended into heaven, so we may also in heart and mind there ascend, and with him continually dwel... -
liturgy
Though Christ was by nature divine
Though Christ was by nature divine, Christ did not cling to equality with God, but in utter self-emptying, took the form of a slave, and was born as a human. God have mercy. Appearing in h... -
illustration
Never an Only Child
Whether we like it or not, the moment we confess Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, that is, from the time we become a Christian, we are at the same time a member of the Christian church … Our membe... -
liturgy
The Founder and Perfecter of Faith
Leader: O come, let us fix our eyes on Jesus, People: the founder and perfecter of our faith, Leader: who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, ... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Mark 4:35-41 (Guide B)
Note: This was originally part of a guide for the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost (RCL Year B) , which includes Job 38:1-11 and Mark 4:35-11. I have adapted the discussion of each of these two... -
lectionary
Fourth Sunday in Lent
AIM Commentary Introduction Leaning Toward the Light What does it mean to lean towards the light of Christ? What does it mean to be open to the work of God? For the Pharisee in Jesus’ time, the an... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, 2 Timothy 1:1-14
God as the Thanksgiving Hub Given how pervasive the theme of gratitude is in Scripture—and how my wife and I try to condition our children always to say “thank you” to anyone who shows them even the ... -
lectionary
Third Sunday of Easter
Preaching Commentary Context Post-Resurrection Appearances The four Gospel writers vary in which and how many of Jesus’ thirteen post-resurrection appearances they choose to record. Luke reserves ... -
lectionary
Christmas: Nativity of the Lord
Preaching Commentary God expressed Himself J.B. Phillips paraphrases the first line of John 1:1, “At the beginning God expressed himself ”. God’s word is more than mere speech. His word is action.... -
illustration
Waking People up to Christ
It takes a great deal of freedom and love to be therapeutic with a group. Many years ago when Emil Brunner, the great Swiss theologian, was lecturing in this country, it was reported that when he prea... -
Quote
In Christianity faith in the Mediator is not something optional, not something about which, in the last resort, it is possible to hold different opinions, if we are only united on the ‘main point’. Fo... -
Quote
Christ became our Brother in the flesh in order that we might believe in him. In him the love of God came to the sinner. Through him men could be sinners and only so could they be helped. All sham was... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Mark 6:1-13
Context As we read the opening chapters of Mark, it becomes clear that Mark is not primarily interested in telling us things about Jesus but showing Jesus to us. We see Jesus the healer, the exor... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide 2 Corinthians 5:6-17
Eyes of Faith Verse 17 summarizes the Apostle Paul’s argument in this passage: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Throughou... -
lectionary
Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
Context As we read the opening chapters of Mark, it becomes clear that Mark is not primarily interested in telling us things about Jesus but showing Jesus to us. We see Jesus the healer, the exor... -
illustration
The Church at the Center of God’s Purposes
What is the place of the church in relation to God’s mission? Pastor John Stott offers some crucial thoughts, For the church lies at the very center of the eternal purposes of God. It is not a div... -
Quote
Christian character is not an act but a process, not a sudden creation but a development. It grows and bears fruit like a tree; it requires patient care and unwearied cultivation.
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