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Category Archives: New Testament
The Sending—A Sermon from Matthew 10
As we’ve been walking through Matthew’s story, we’ve walked with Jesus through several episodes that reveal his authority. Jesus teaches with authority and orders around demons with authority. He claims the authority to forgive sins, and points his finger at … Continue reading
Posted in Matthew, Mission, Preaching, Sermon Manuscript
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Kingdom Come: A Sermon about Matthew’s Genealogy
He was the “Son of God”, the “bringer of Good News”, the Lord, the Savior, the one who would restore order and justice to the earth—at least that was Rome’s official story about Caesar. History also seems to look favorably … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Discipleship, Matthew, Mission, Narrative Theology, New Testament, Power, Story
Tagged genealogy, matthew
7 Comments
Public and Private in the Sermon on the Mount
Reading through the sermon on the mount this morning, I was struck by the tension between public and private dimensions of faith that keep popping up throughout the sermon. Jesus teaches that there are certain parts of our life of … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Matthew, New Testament, Sermon on the Mount
Tagged Jesus, private, public, sermon on the mount
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Matthew’s Genealogy and the End of the Exile
After reading N.T. Wright’s The New Testament and the People of God, I read Matthew’s genealogy a little differently this morning. Reflecting on the way I normally read Matthew’s first chapter, I think I have typically read the counts that … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Matthew, New Testament
Tagged exile, Israel, Jesus, Messiah, N.T. Wright
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Living Resurrection—A Sermon from Mark 16:1-8
It is John’s gospel that tells us that if all the things that Jesus did while on earth were written down, the whole world wouldn’t have been able to hold all the books. Nonetheless, God chose to give us four … Continue reading
Posted in Mark, New Testament, Preaching, Sermon Manuscript
Tagged Easter, Mark 16:1-8, resurrection
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Unpolluted, Unstained
Growing up, I got the sense that when the church talked about being “different from the world”, that was more or less code for a fairly defined set of behaviors, things like cussing, drinking, and sexual activity. (Maybe smoking, but … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Discipleship, James, justice, New Testament
Tagged ethics, James, poor, religion, social justice
5 Comments
Do Not Judge—A Sermon from Luke 6:35-42
I told somebody this past week that the sermon for today could really only last a few seconds. Don’t get your hopes up, it’s going to be longer than that, but it seems like I should be able to just … Continue reading
Posted in Luke, Ministry, Preaching, Sermon Manuscript
Tagged condemn, Do Not Judge, grace, Jesus, Luke 6:37, sermon, Sermon on the Plain
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The Other Beatitudes—A Sermon from Luke 6:20-26
Everybody knows the sermon on the mount. Unfortunately, if I got up this morning and started reading, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who [yawn] mourn, for they will be…”, … Continue reading
Posted in Luke, Ministry, Preaching, Sermon Manuscript
Tagged beatitudes, Jesus, Luke 6:20-26, poor, poverty, rich, Sermon on the Plain, wealth
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Sermon on the Plain—Cedar Lane Edition
This past Sunday’s sermon was our introductory foray into the sermon on the plain, an extremely distilled dose of Jesus’ vision of what his disciples are like. Part of the challenge of this past week’s sermon was to get in … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Discipleship, Luke, New Testament, Preaching, Translations, video
Tagged discipleship, Jesus, preaching, Sermon on the Plain
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Be Like Me
One of the gutsier things that pops up repeatedly in Paul’s letters is his unapologetic claim that the churches he ministers should imitate him. I think a case could be made that this element carried more importance in Paul’s understanding … Continue reading
Posted in Bible Study, Community, New Testament, Philippians
Tagged boldness, integrity, Paul, Phil 3:7
2 Comments