Open Hands

Sermon begins at 30:39

Mark 10:35-45

I. “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”

So, just for practical advice in the life of prayer, this sort of attitude toward Jesus is probably not the best way to deepen your own spirituality.

But there’s a bigger problem going on with James and John in today’s gospel than the fact that they are a bit rude and forceful with their request to Jesus. It’s that they are treating Jesus as someone who is only good for what they can get out of him. But there’s so much more to Jesus than just what we can get out of him, isn’t there.

We were talking about this the other night at EfM. What was it about Jesus? What led so many people to embrace his cause, to leave their homes, families, and livelihoods to follow this preacher around Galilee and into Jerusalem? He wasn’t wealthy. He wasn’t preaching some easy message of self-help. One person pointed out his emotions seem to run pretty hot. So why did they follow him?

The word we came up with was charisma. Jesus surely had some sort of magnetic personality to him. But after thinking about it for the last week, I think I have an even better word.

Grace.

A Child Among Us

Sermon begins at 24:40

Mark 9:30-37
I. In the scenes that happen just before this week’s gospel, a number of incredible things have come to pass. Things that speak to all of the expectations Jesus’s followers had about who he was and all that he meant.

First, is the gospel we read last week. Jesus is gathered with his disciples and asks them that important question, “who do you say that I am.” And Peter gives that remarkable, courageous answer, “You are the Messiah.” In other words, “you are the one we’ve been waiting for. You are the one who has come to save us.” Imagine you were there that night, gathered around the fire realizing, perhaps for the first time, the importance of Jesus. Imagine your heart beating faster – “this is it. The one we’ve been hoping would come.”

Next, one of the most amazing events in all of the Bible happens. Jesus climbs the mountain with a few of his disciples and is transfigured before them. He glows with God’s glory, sending out a blinding light. A voice comes from heaven, declaring him to be God’s beloved son. Moses and Elijah appear out of nowhere affirming that Jesus is who he says he is.

Then, just before today’s gospel, Jesus comes upon a child who is possessed by a demon. No healer can manage to cure the boy of his suffering, but at the mighty word of Jesus the demon departs and the boy is healed.

Three incredible events in the life of our Lord. Three amazing demonstrations of who Jesus is, of his power and glory. Three announcements of the Kingdom of God, which arrives with Jesus, turning the world upside down.

Also… three set ups for monumental disappointment.

Roots for Risk Taking

Sermon begins at the 14 minute mark.

James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8,14-15, 21-23

I. Last weekend I went with Andrea, Ryan, and 11 of our 8th graders on a Confirmation Retreat to Sewanee. It was a great weekend. We had a chance to talk about a lot of things, but we focused on the themes of trust, community, and tradition.

Two of these are pretty easy to get middle schoolers talking about. Trust and community are things we really miss when we don’t have them in our lives. But there’s something sort of stuffy about tradition. At least we sometimes think that’s the case.

But Andrea thought of a great way to get us talking about tradition – and as you probably know, Sewanee is rich with tradition. She led us out on a hike along Sewanee’s Perimeter Trail. We hiked the section between the Memorial Cross and Morgan’s Steep. If you know Sewanee, you know that that section of the trail has a landmark right in the middle – Proctor’s Hall.

Y’all, Not You

Sermon begins around 30:45.

Ephesians 4:25-5:2
John 6:35, 41-51

I. Women and men who study the New Testament have an ongoing debate about who wrote the letter to the Ephesians – maybe it was Paul, maybe it was one of his followers, and I’d love to talk about that with any of you at some other time. But it’s another scholarly discussion that I find truly interesting, and it’s the question of who, exactly, the letter was written to.

The Real Miracle

Sermon starts about 17:20 – note, my mic is off right at the beginning, but comes on after a few seconds.

Ephesians 3:14-21
John 6:1-21

I. I attended a men’s Bible study fairly regularly at my last church. It was populated by mostly retired Navy men and was a ministry of a group called the Brotherhood of St. Andrew – some of you may know that group. And each Saturday morning, a room full of these mostly retired Navy guys would strike up an old hymn – “Jesus calls us o’er the tumult” – to begin the Bible study. This hymn has been rolling around in my head all week, thinking about today’s gospel.

How Not to Put a Prophet’s Head on a Platter

Sermon begins around 32:30.

Ephesians 1:3-14
Mark 6:14-29

It feels like – after our Urban Prayer hike a month ago, a week on a youth mission trip in New Orleans, and two Sundays away with my family – I kind of need to reintroduce myself! So, my name is Quinn, and I’m one of the Associate Rectors here at St. Paul’s. Nice to see you! It has been too long. Rachelle, the kids, and I enjoyed our time away, but I really can’t tell you how good it is to be back here, to worship with you, the wonderful people of St. Paul’s!

And how lovely it is that greeting us all on this Sunday morning is such a touching, gentle reading as today’s gospel. We get dancing, a nice party, and the head of John the Baptist on a platter.

Living the Trinity: Here we Are. Send Us.

Sermon audio begins at 20:45

Isaiah 6:1-8

I. Good morning!  It is wonderful to be with you all on this great Feast of the church, when we celebrate the Holy Trinity.

I was talking to Keith Reas, our organist, this week. Talking – ok, maybe whining a little – about preaching Trinity Sunday. As you may know, it can be a very tricky Sunday to preach. Keith joked – I think – that I should just give a sermon on the latest, most up to date Trinitarian theology out there.

It was tempting, but I decided that’s probably not the best direction to go this morning.

Into Divine Life

The sermon begins at 28:50.

Galatians 3:23-25;4:4-7
John 1:1-18

Today we will have the joy to do something that we don’t always get to do during the Christmas season. We will baptize two babies – Evelyn Rebecca Johnson and Hawthorne Brown Thomas. Getting to know those we will baptize and preparing them, their parents, and godparents for the baptism is a part of my vocation and my pastoral role here at St. Paul’s for which I give thanks. But I am particularly thankful for this baptism at this time of year because it has me thinking over a number of connections between Christmas and baptism that I wouldn’t otherwise have made.

God in the Middle of the Mess

Broadcast live streaming video on Ustream
The sermon begins at the 43:50 mark. But seriously, you should listen to the music!

Luke 2:1-20

I. The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.”

It is a great joy for me to welcome you here tonight as guests of Christ, guests of this Holy Child we’ve come to adore. It is a delight to be with you as we worship our newborn king.

But before we dive into the goodness and joy of Christmas, I need us to take a step back. I need us to deal with a little bit of a disconnect between the message we get from the angel this evening and the way our world so often works.

The Guilty Sheep

(The sermon starts at 26:30.)

Matthew 25:31-46

I. It is very easy to hear the parable Jesus gives us today, and to find it so incredibly familiar that we are sure we know it’s meaning. There are sheep, there are goats. The sheep go to heaven because they’ve done nice things for the poor. The goats are given over to eternal punishment because they haven’t. It’s all very neat and simple. But trying to get away from our familiarity with this story, and looking at it from a bit of a different angle, we can see that today’s gospel isn’t really meant to be such a tidy story.

Zoom out with me a little.