Sermons written for a variety of occasions, mostly following the Revised Common Lectionary
God’s Hero in the Conflict between Good and Evil Mark 1:9-15 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. This is the beginning of the Gospel, the story that Mark has to tell. Up to this point what he has written has been prologue, introduction. The ministry …
The Mount of Transfiguration and Mount Calvary Mark 9:2-8 From the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the beloved, listen to him.” You could wonder, why wasn’t the transfiguration enough? All that is needed to be known about Jesus is put on display there. In a way everything is summed up right here. …
All Things to All People 1 Corinthians 9:16-23 I have become all things to all people. This is one of St. Paul’s most famous declarations about himself. Talking about his work as an apostle he famously declares that he has done all that he can to get close to the people he is trying to …
A Sermon for the Fifth Sunday after Epiphany (07/02/21): All Things to All People Read More »
Not What He Does But Who He Is Mark 1:21-28 “They were all amazed and kept asking one another, “What is this? A new teaching – with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey him.” There is a profound irony in preaching. As a preacher I find my self doing the very …
A Sermon for the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany (31/01/21): Not What He Does But Who He Is Read More »
Follow Me and Fish for People Mark 1:14-20 One day Jesus appeared in Galilee. One day he wasn’t there. And the next he was. And not very long afterwards it seemed everyone had heard of him. Some tried to fit him into what was already happening, as if he were the outcome of a trend or a movement that was …
A Sermon for the Third Sunday after Epiphany (24/01/21): Follow Me and Fish for People Read More »
Christian Freedom, Christian Ethics 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Paul says: “All things are lawful to me.” Paul summarises the effect of his theology of grace in a single phrase. This is the outcome of God’s grace. What God has done in Jesus Christ has fundamentally changed the way things are. By sending Jesus God has transformed the relationship between …
The Beginning of the Good News Mark 1: 4-11 John the Baptist appears in the wilderness. Something new is happening. Out of nowhere, in the middle of nowhere, John appears. His appearing has no context. There is no backstory. There is no build up. John does not fit into anything that is already happening. He is not the effect of some direct …
A Sermon for the First Sunday after Epiphany (10/01/21): The Beginning of the Good News Read More »
Unexpected Homage, Unexpected Opposition Matthew 2:1-12 The birth of Jesus is announced in Jerusalem by the arrival of a group of foreign magicians! We call them wise men, and in comparison to most of their contemporaries they seemed wise. They studied the stars, and other natural phenomena, in order to discern what was happening or …
The Meaning of Christmas Galatians 4:4-7 What is the meaning of Christmas? That is the sort of rhetorical question which a preacher is likely to ask at this time of year. Or perhaps it might be posed more sharply, or even bitterly: What is the true meaning of Christmas? The implication of asking the question that way is …
A Sermon for the First Sunday of Christmas (27/12/20): The Meaning of Christmas Read More »
The Birth of Jesus Luke 2:1-7 We all know that the focus of Christmas, the very reason for our celebration, is that scene which we can picture in our mind’s eye. Mary and Joseph are bending over the manger gazing at their new-born son Jesus. But in telling the story Luke has us look somewhere else first: …
A Sermon for Christmas Day (25/12/20): The Birth of Jesus Read More »