Category: Sermons

The Baptism of Our Lord (A)—Acts 10:34–43

Proclaimed at Trinity Lutheran Church in Pleasant Valley, PA.

It’s nice to have a chance to be back here at Trinity, after more than a year away. Spending October before last with you was a lot of fun, though I have to admit that I enjoyed 2019 even more. Some of you may remember that I was going to Malaysia, to teach for a year at Malaysia Theological Seminary. It was a wonderful place to be, and leaving there was very difficult. The land is beautiful, with thick jungle and expansive seacoasts and fantastic architecture. The culture is interesting, and the shape of faith is often a joy. But the true asset of Malaysia, its true gift to the world, is the people. Continue reading

Sermon for Epiphany (A): Isaiah 60:1–6 and Matthew 2:1–12

Proclaimed at St John’s Lutheran Church in Sinking Spring, PA

It was a dark time in Israel when the prophet of the third part of Isaiah spoke. His words acknowledge that there will come a day when “Darkness shall cover the whole earth, and thick darkness the peoples.” This worldwide darkness was a larger reflection of the darkness that already hovered over God’s people. Certainly, things were a little better than they had been. A hundred years earlier, Israel was captured by the Babylonians, who took the wealthy, powerful people away into exile, and left the poor and destitute in the land to become more poor and destitute. By the time the prophet speaks, the people have returned home and begun to rebuild. But they are still under the oppression of the Persians. The community is constantly in conflict—the elites who returned opposed the farmers who stayed. And the ruins of the old civilization are a constant source of despair. Remember the great nation that God once built here? How can we ever be like that again? Continue reading

Alleluia! Christ is risen!
[He is risen indeed! Alleluia!]

Good. Now that’s over with. I mean, sure. It’s still the Easter season, and it’s Good News, sure. But it is worth taking a moment to notice that Easter isn’t always full of joy for everyone. Alleluia, we say. Christ is risen, we say. And so he is. But not everybody feels like resurrection.

Sermon for Maundy Thursday on Ezekiel 1 and John 13:1–17, 31b–35. Proclaimed at Semenari Theoloji Malaysia.

Bear Creek Camp is the largest of the Lutheran Outdoor Ministries in America. Over twelve square kilometers of forest are there, with rivers, swampland, mountains, and incredible wildlife. Starting when I was just six years old, I spent eleven joyful summers there, playing games and going on hikes and falling in love with God’s creation. It is the place I first learned about God’s unconditional love for each person and thing that He made, and not just from studies and good talk. In my group, I was always the one in the back. The fat kid who never exercised and couldn’t keep up with everyone else. The distracted kid who was too busy looking at the bugs and rocks and ferns to realize that the rest of the campers were hundreds of meters ahead. In any other place, the other children would have hated me. But here, I never felt like a burden, and I always felt like I mattered. Like I really was the beloved child of God that they said I became when I was Baptized.

Continue reading

Blue Christmas Sermon on Isaiah 40 and John 1. Proclaimed at Zion Spies Lutheran Church in Oley, PA.

Sermon on Luke 3:1–6 and Baruch 5:1–9. Proclaimed at Zion Spies Lutheran Church, Oley, PA.

One night in April, I decided I was having a heart attack. The key word here is “decided.” I was perfectly fine. But, you know, there are plenty of people who think that Elvis is still alive, or that the world governments are actually controlled by three people sitting in an underground room in Lisbon, or that aliens will control their mind but for the tin foil they wear under their hat, so in the scheme of things, I don’t think my own momentary insanity is all that bad.

Sermon on Luke 21:25–36 and Jeremiah 33:14–16. Proclaimed at Zion Spies Lutheran Church, Oley, PA.

When I was in high school, I was pretty scatter-brained. My friend Tamineh called me the “absent-minded professor.” Well, honestly, she still calls me that. She likes to tell about a chemistry experiment that turned the wrong color because I put the chemicals in in the wrong order. Always forgetful, that was me. But my biggest problem in high school was homework.

Sermon on Daniel 7:9–14, Revelation 1:4b–8, and John 18:33–37. Preached at Becker’s St. Peter’s Lutheran, Fleetwood, PA.

The people of St. Bartholomew Lutheran Church knew exactly what they wanted in a pastor. Good preaching, engaging worship, children’s ministry, and tending the old Swedish traditions of the congregation. What they got was Pastor Jane. She looked right at first. But preaching wasn’t really her strong suit. Children liked her, certainly, but she didn’t really know what she was doing there either. Her idea of engaging worship was a little out of the ordinary. And those old traditions? Well, Jane noticed that the church’s neighbors didn’t know those old Swedish traditions. They brought other traditions from Mexico, and if we wanted to attract them to church, we’d better think about replacing the Santa Lucia pageant with Las Posadas.

Sermon on Mark 13:1–8. Preached at Zion’s Lutheran, Shoemakersville, PA.

The end of the world. With all the work I did with teenagers in my ministry up north, I learned that there were a few things that would always come up when we’d just get talking. This was one, and no surprise. We’ve been fascinated with the idea forever. I am no exception; I can remember as a teenager reading the book of Revelation over and over again. I had heard about one way to “decode” the visions in that book, and was confused. It didn’t quite make sense, and it certainly didn’t match with the rest of the faith I had been taught. But I couldn’t imagine an alternative.

Sermon on Mark 12: 38–44 and 1 Kings 17:8–16. Proclaimed at Trinity Lutheran in West Hazelton, PA and St. Luke Lutheran in Freedland, PA.

The widow’s two pennies, as taught by my Sunday school teachers, involved the kind of financial accounting appropriate to second-grade minds. The rich put in large sums of money, but had more where that came from. Maybe a 5% offering. And the widow put in much less, but it was all she had, so that makes 100%. 100 is bigger than 5, so of course God loves her more. Just do the math.

This story isn’t about math.