Sermons on Matthew (Page 5)
October 11, 2020
October 11, 2020 Matthew 22:1-14 Here is a rather strange parable. Jesus says that here is what the Kingdom of Heaven is like…Now, if you are listening as I did. You would expect Jesus to tell a story of wonder and delight with rainbows and angels crowding round the gates of heaven. But listen to the parable: A king gives a wedding banquet for his son. This sounds delightful! The king sends his servants out to call all who…
October 4, 2020
October 4, 2020 “The Truth of the Matter” Isaiah 5:1-7 Philippians 3:10-14 Matthew 21:33-46 May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our strength and our redeemer. Amen. OK, I am going to start with a confession. I found this week’s scripture passages to be extremely challenging and difficult – they talk of murder and death and destruction – hardly “feel good” passages. However, not every passage…
September 27, 2020
September 27, 2020 Exodus 17:1-7 Matthew 21:23-32 Jesus entered the temple courts and while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?” I was a student minister at a church out west. I was in the middle of my theological studies and took the my third year of studies to work full time for this church. I…
September 13, 2020
September 13, 2020 Genesis 50:15-21 Matthew 18:21-35 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” That is how it is recorded in the New International Version of the Bible but in the New English Bible it says, Jesus said to him, “I tell you not up to seven times, but up to…
September 6, 2020
September 6, 2020 “Where Two or Three are Gathered” Ezekiel 33:10-11 Romans 13:8-14 Matthew 18:15-20 May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our strength and our redeemer. Amen. Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” Certainly, in these days of social distancing and adapting to life during a pandemic, these words of Jesus can take on…
August 23, 2020
Exodus 1:8-2:10 Romans 12:1-8 Matthew 16:13-20 “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” I am struck by two things, the first of which is the image of Peter being the rock on which the church of Jesus is built. The second is that Jesus invokes the notion of Hades or Hell in this passage. Not even Hades will be able to…
August 16, 2020
August 16, 2020 “Do the Right Thing” Isaiah 56:1, 6-8 Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32 Matthew 15:10-20 In our Old Testament passage for today, God instructs the people, through the prophet Isaiah, to “maintain justice” and “do what is right.” When I read those words my mind immediately went to a movie my children and I recently watched. Over the course of these past months of sheltering in place I have been very grateful to have my children with me. And…
August 8, 2020
August 9, 2020 “The Deep Surrounded Me” Jonah 2:1-9 Matthew 14:22-33 A couple years ago we took a group of 10 youth to Germany. The easy part was flying from Columbus to Germany. The easy part was climbing the tower stairs of the 13th century church. The easy part was learning how to negotiate the wonderful train system of the country. But the devil was in the details. The hard part came when you did not understand the electrical outlets.…
August 2, 2020
August 2, 2020 Matthew 14 In one of my first ministry callings, I was in the mountains of NE Washington State. Isolation. Mountains. Streams. Great distances from one town to another. My nearest UCC colleagues were 60 miles south in New Port and 60 miles to the West in Colville. It was isolated. For a number of years some seminary colleagues who had ministries in the big cities of Washington and California would hold a week long retreat for study,…
July 26, 2020
July 26, 2020 “A Wise and Discerning Mind” 1 Kings 3:5-12 Romans 8:26-39 Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 I love the Old Testament passage for today from 1 Kings. When given the chance to ask God for absolutely anything, King Solomon asks God for wisdom. So, here’s the thing about Solomon asking God for wisdom. It takes a certain degree of wisdom in the first place in order to understand the need for gaining more wisdom. Does that make sense? Just as…
July 19, 2020
July 19, 2020 “The Wheat and the Weeds” Isaiah 44:6-8 Matthew 13:24-30 In todays passage from Matthew 13:10 we have the disciples coming to Jesus and asking him :”Why do you speak to (the people) in parables?” Basically what Jesus says in answer to that is: you must listen AND understand; look AND perceive and then understand with your heart. So then, today’s reading in Matthew offers us a parable and also the reading for today is about the reason…
July 12, 2020
July 12, 2020 “What Do We Sow?” Isaiah 55:10-13 Romans 8:1-11 Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 I am guessing that most of us grew up knowing this childhood rhyme: Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me. I looked up this expression, and there are varying accounts as to where it originated, as well as its intended purpose and meaning. But I think even as a child I understood it had a much deeper meaning than…