Sermons (Page 67)
Fourth Sunday after Epiphany
“When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain” (Matthew 5:1). That was the first verse in today’s gospel. At first glance, it seems like a transitional statement to get us to a place for Jesus to teach. However, real estate agents have taught us that location matters. A location provides or limits access to resources which often communicates value. So too, a location can reveal something about identity, including someone’s socio-economic status or their values. And, when Jesus went up on that mountain, it was more than a transitional sentence…
Third Sunday after Epiphany
We heard Jesus proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” And arguably, this is one of the most important phrases in Matthew’s gospel. It’s the same phrase that John the Baptist used. It’s a similar phrase used by Jesus when he sent the disciples. It’s the summary of the whole gospel of Matthew in one sentence. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has drawn near…”
Baptism of Our Lord
In our readings, over the past few weeks, Jesus went from being born in a manger, to being a toddler with some interesting gifts, and today, he was baptized in his late 20s or early 30s. The Bible doesn’t tell us much about those twenty-five or so years since last week’s story. Perhaps, there wasn’t anything special going on; maybe, Jesus was just like every other young child–with times of celebration and sorrow, with awkward moments and proud moments, a childhood filled with the ordinary and the memorable. Today, we explicitly heard about one of Jesus’s life-defining moments…