Sermons

ReadingsJoshua 5:9-12Psalm 322 Corinthians 5:16-21Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32 In today’s Gospel passage we get one of the best-known parables found in the Gospels: the parable of the prodigal son. Or perhaps…

ReadingsExodus 3:1-15Psalm 63:1-81 Corinthians 10:1-13Luke 13:1-9 We now find ourselves smack dab in the middle of Lent. The language of our worship and images from scripture call us to repentance.…

ReadingsGenesis 15:1-12,17-18Psalm 27Philippians 3:17-4:1Luke 13:31-35 In today’s Gospel story we encounter Jesus in the midst of his ministry in Galilee. In it we are told that some Pharisees come to…

ReadingsDeuteronomy 26:1-11Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16Romans 10:8b-13Luke 4:1-13 In my lifetime I have from time to time struggled mightily with temptation. It has come in many forms, the most obvious of which…

ReadingsExodus 34:29-35Psalm 992 Corinthians 3:12-4:2Luke 9:28-36, [37-43a] Today we hear the story of Jesus’ transfiguration before his closest disciples. In it we hear of Jesus becoming radiant and his clothes…

ReadingsJeremiah 17:5-10Psalm 11 Corinthians 15:12-20Luke 6:17-26 How many of us, even taking into account the current inflation, are doing ok financially? Even if we don’t have significant investments, how many…

ReadingsIsaiah 6:1-8, [9-13]Psalm 1381 Corinthians 15:1-11Luke 5:1-11 I grew up with a dad who liked to fish. For many years he and I would share this pastime and I have…

ReadingsMalachi 3:1-4Psalm 24:7-10Hebrews 2:14-18Luke 2:22-40 I want to start this morning’s homily with a question. Would you describe your life as holy? If the answer is no, then I would…

ReadingsNehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10Psalm 191 Corinthians 12:12-31aLuke 4:14-21 Today we encounter Jesus after his sojourn in the wilderness. We hear that he’s been preaching in towns and villages throughout Galilee…

ReadingsIsaiah 62:1-5Psalm 36:5-101 Corinthians 12:1-11John 2:1-11 Today’s story is a troubling one. Oh, it may not appear so on the surface. But if we take time to consider what the…

ReadingsIsaiah 43:1-7Psalm 29Acts 8:14-17Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 Today we hear again the story of the baptism of Jesus. For most of us this is a very familiar story. We hear in…

ReadingsMicah 5:2-5aCanticle 15Hebrews 10:5-10Luke 1:39-45, (46-55) Today we have the familiar story of Mary, who is pregnant with Jesus, visiting Elizabeth. But we would be wise not to romanticize what…

ReadingsZephaniah 3:14-20Canticle 9Philippians 4:4-7Luke 3:7-18 Traditionally today, the third Sunday of Advent, is called “Gaudete” Sunday. “Gaudete” is the Latin word for “rejoice.” It is the Sunday when our focus…

ReadingsJeremiah 33:14-16Psalm 25:1-91 Thessalonians 3:9-13Luke 21:25-36 When I was a kid, probably in the first or second grade, my parents took me to Disneyland for the first time I can…

ReadingsDaniel 7:9-10, 13-14Psalm 93Revelation 1:4b-8John 18:33-37 Today is the last Sunday after Pentecost before we transition to the season of Advent. It is a day we commonly call “Christ the…

ReadingsDaniel 12:1-3Psalm 16Hebrews 10:11-14 (15-18) 19-25Mark 13:1-8 I have a cute story to start out with today that I may have shared with some of you before. There once were…

Readings1 Kings 17:8-16Psalm 146Hebrews 9:24-28Mark 12:38-44 Today we hear the perennial story of what is commonly referred to as the “widow’s mite.” For many of us who grew up in…

ReadingsWisdom of Solomon 3:1-9Psalm 24Revelation 21:1-6aJohn 11:32-44 On this All Saints Sunday I want to ask you a question. “What is a saint?” It may seem like an obvious question…

ReadingsJeremiah 31:7-9Psalm 126Hebrews 7:23-28Mark 10:46-52 Over the last few weeks, we have had a theme of blindness and recovery of sight in what we have read from the Gospel of…

ReadingsIsaiah 53:4-12Psalm 91:9-16Hebrews 5:1-10Mark 10:35-45 In today’s Gospel passage we have a very human story about James and John, the sons of Zebedee. You see, these two guys are the…

ReadingsAmos 5:6-7,10-15Psalm 90:12-17Hebrews 4:12-16Mark 10:17-31 In today’s Gospel Jesus is approached by a rich young man, who asks him, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus responds by…

ReadingsNumbers 11:4-6,10-16,24-29Psalm 19:7-14James 5:13-20Mark 9:38-50 I think many of you already know this, but I was once the Rector of a church in Salt Lake City. It was, to say…

ReadingsJeremiah 11:18-20Psalm 54James 3:13-4:3, 7-8aMark 9:30-37 You know they say that confession is good for the soul. So let me confess to you that when I was younger, I was…

ReadingsIsaiah 50:4-9aPsalm 116:1-8James 3:1-12Mark 8:27-38 As I reflected on our Gospel passage this past week, I recalled an event from decades ago. Thirty-one years ago, I started my seminary education,…

ReadingsIsaiah 35:4-7aPsalm 146James 2:1-10, [11-13], 14-17Mark 7:24-37 I don’t know about you, but when I heard today’s Gospel I found it to be a difficult and challenging story about Jesus.…

ReadingsDeuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9Psalm 15James 1:17-27Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 I want to start with a story that I have shared with some of you in different contexts that strikes me as…

ReadingsJoshua 24:1-2a,14-18Psalm 34:15-22Ephesians 6:10-20John 6:56-69 Have you ever wanted something so bad you could taste it? It consumed your waking thoughts and sometimes even crept into your dreams. Whatever it…

ReadingsProverbs 9:1-6Psalm 34:9-14Ephesians 5:15-20John 6:51-58 For the fourth Sunday in a row, we hear Jesus talk about himself as bread. The truth is that, for me as a preacher, it…

Readings1 Kings 19:4-8Psalm 34:1-8Ephesians 4:25-5:2John 6:35, 41-51 Who here remembers Wonder Bread? It was my favorite bread as a kid. It was soft and just a little sweet. It was,…

ReadingsExodus 16:2-4,9-15Psalm 78:23-29Ephesians 4:1-16John 6:24-35 My mom was a great cook. She was from Virginia, and she excelled at all of those wonderful southern dishes that taste so good, even…

Readings2 Kings 4:42-44Psalm 145:10-19Ephesians 3:14-21John 6:1-21 We once again find ourselves in a political season marked by all the stuff that goes with it. Already we are being bombarded with…

ReadingsWisdom of Solomon 1:13-15; 2:23-24Psalm 302 Corinthians 8:7-15Mark 5:21-43 Following on last week’s Gospel story, today we have a second story about the power of Jesus. In fact, we have…

ReadingsJob 38:1-11Psalm 107:1-3, 23-322 Corinthians 6:1-13Mark 4:35-41 Whether looking at our current political state, our current social state, or the state of the environment it is, for many of us,…

ReadingsEzekiel 17:22-24Psalm 92:1-4,11-142 Corinthians 5:6-10, [11-13],14-17Mark 4:26-34 I’ve always been fascinated by plants. It is nothing less than a wonder and a mystery how something can start out as a…

ReadingsGenesis 3:8-15Psalm 1302 Corinthians 4:13-5:1Mark 3:20-35 I’ve been thinking a lot about the current state of affairs in our world. How divided we have become and how quick we are…

ReadingsDeuteronomy 5:12-15Psalm 81:1-102 Corinthians 4:5-12Mark 2:23-3:6 The difficulty with Gospel passages like the one we have today is that, for many of us, the words are so familiar that we…

ReadingsIsaiah 6:1-8Psalm 29 or Canticle 13Romans 8:12-17John 3:1-17 On Sundays like this one I often like to start my sermon with humor, but you know what? There really aren’t a…

ReadingsActs 2:1-21Psalm 104:25-35, 37Romans 8:22-27John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 On this feast of Pentecost, this fiftieth day of Easter, we hear again the story of the gift of the Holy Spirit, and…

ReadingsActs 1:15-17, 21-26Psalm 11 John 5:9-13John 17:6-19 Today, as we near the end of Easter, we do something interesting in terms of our Gospel reading. We go back. Back before…

ReadingsActs 10:44-48Psalm 981 John 5:1-6John 15:9-17 In today’s Gospel we once again hear the call to love one another. At first reading it almost seems like a repeat of last…

ReadingsActs 8:26-40Psalm 22:24-301 John 4:7-21John 15:1-8 What is it that makes us Christians? What is it that makes me, or you, someone who can claim that name? It may seem…

ReadingsActs 4:5-12Psalm 231 John 3:16-24John 10:11-18 When I was a child I slept with a nightlight. It was a porcelain statue of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. On many occasions…

ReadingsActs 3:12-19Psalm 41 John 3:1-7Luke 24:36b-48 Whether looking at the fraying of our social fabric, the extreme polarization in our politics, the rise of Christian nationalism (which by the way…

ReadingsActs 10:34-43Psalm 118:1-2, 14-241 Corinthians 15:1-11John 20:1-18 Happy Easter. We have come together to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. To celebrate that he is risen. But I ask you. What…

ReadingsJeremiah 31:31-34Psalm 51:1-13Hebrews 5:5-10John 12:20-33 Today’s dramatic Gospel passage brings to a head what it means to understand the purpose of Jesus’ crucifixion. In this passage we hear Jesus speak…

ReadingsNumbers 21:4-9Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22Ephesians 2:1-10John 3:14-21 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may…

ReadingsExodus 20:1-17Psalm 191 Corinthians 1:18-25John 2:13-22 Looking at today’s gospel I am reminded of a saying my mother was quite fond of: “you can’t judge a book by its cover.”…

ReadingsGenesis 17:1-7, 15-16Psalm 22:22-30Romans 4:13-25Mark 8:31-38 “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” It is with these iconic…

ReadingsGenesis 9:8-17Psalm 25:1-91 Peter 3:18-22Mark 1:9-15 Today we hear once again on this first Sunday in Lent the story of Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. But in light of the…

ReadingsIsaiah 40:21-31Psalm 147:1-12, 21c1 Corinthians 9:16-23Mark 1:29-39 Today’s Gospel passage picks up where last week’s left off. If you recall, Jesus proclaiming the kingdom of God in the synagogue in…

ReadingsDeuteronomy 18:15-20Psalm 1111 Corinthians 8:1-13Mark 1:21-28 Today, I want to do something different with you. Rather than focus on the Gospel passage for my homily, I thought we might instead…

ReadingsJonah 3:1-5, 10Psalm 62:6-141 Corinthians 7:29-31Mark 1:14-20 Most of you don’t know, but in my past I was a long-distance cyclist. For a number of years, I would ride in…