Jesus is Lord. Caesar is not. Jesus riding on a donkey might seem foolish, but so was having a prayer service deep inside the old Iron Curtain. In the end, the man on the donkey will bring down the kingdoms of this world. Continue reading Sermon: Risky Business
Luke 10:25-42 Who Is My Neighbor Series First Sunday in Lent March 5, 2017 First Christian Church Mahtomedi, MN Click here to listen to the audio version. Supposedly the commedian W.C. Fields was reading a Bible one day. Fields was known for his kind of outrageous lifestyle of drinking and mistrisses, so having him reading a Bible seemed a little out of character. When asked why he was reading the Bible, Fields responded, “I’m looking for loopholes.” Today we are looking at one of the most well-known parables, the tale of the Good Samaritan. Even people who have never … Continue reading Sermon: Looking for Loopholes
“Borrowed Time” Luke 13:1-9, 31-35 March 12, 2017 Second Sunday in Lent Who Is My Neighbor Series First Christian Church Minneapolis, MN Click here for the audio version. A man leaves home to head into New York City and work in one the city’s tallest buildings. It’s the morning of September 11, 2001, and the man’s family never saw their husband and father again. On that same morning, a husband drops off his wife at Dulles Airport in Washington, DC. He kisses her, expecting to see her when she returns a few days later. The woman is on a flight … Continue reading Sermon: Borrowed Time
Luke 4:14-30 Mission First: Gathered Series Second Sunday of Epiphany January 15, 2017 First Christian Church Mahtomedi, MN If Donald Trump showed up at the door of this church, would you let him in? Just hold that thought for a bit. A few years ago, I was involved in helping the church I was at in sponsoring a refugee family. We worked with the Minnesota Council of Churches which has a good record of helping people from around the world settle here in Minnesota. We learned that we were going to sponsor a family coming from Somalia. This is not … Continue reading Sermon: “When the President Comes to Church”
Mark 8:27 – 9:8 During my freshman year in high school, I was introduced to Algebra. Math was always something that took a bit longer for me to comprehend and sitting in Ms. Collier’s class this was no different. I would look at the numbers and got stuck on the whole concept of x and y. Where did they fit in? How do you calculate an equation with these letters? Every piece of homework was like trying to decipher hyrogliphics. It made no sense. The result was of course that I didn’t do so well in Algebra. Actually, I crashed, … Continue reading X & Y, By & By
What this has in common with our text today is that in our Christian walk, we are called to allow God to work in the world and trust that God is working things for the better. We have learn that faith is not all about us. Continue reading Sermon: Automatic for the People
“Coexist?” 1 Kings 18:20-40 Twenty Fourth Sunday After Pentecost November 8, 2015 First Christian Church Mahtomedi, MN The scene is Mount Carmel. Thousands of citizens from the Northern Kingdom have trekked to this place to see a spectacle. Off to the side, they can see King Ahab and his wife Queen Jezebel seated on ornate chairs. In the center are two altars. On the right are the prophets of Baal, some 450 people. The people had been introduced to Baal worship only a few years before when Ahab married Jezebel, a Phoenician princess. Rumors have swirled that Jezebel demanded … Continue reading Sermon: “Coexist?”
Start Play Romans 6:1–14 | Seventh Sunday of Easter/Ascension Sunday | May 17, 2014 “If we are called to live as if sin is dead in us, then we are going to need help- we can’t do this on our own. This is what church is all about; it’s a place where we learn from each other, where we pray for each other, where together we strive to be better persons, to be the persons God created us to be.” Read the sermon text. Continue reading Sermon: Resumes and Eulogies
Start Play Romans 5:1-11 | Sixth Sunday of Easter | May 10, 2015 | First Christian Church |Mahtomedi, MN | Dennis Sanders, preaching “Paul wanted to remind people that they are not alone. Suffering can be just as isolating as having a serious illness like cancer. The hope isn’t that everything will be wonderful, but that we aren’t alone, that God is with us, that in the death of Christ, God understands suffering and stands with us.” Read the Sermon Text. Continue reading Sermon: Kick At the Darkness
Start Play Matthew 10:40–42 and Acts 13:1–3; 14:8–18 | Fourth Sunday of Easter |April 26, 2015 | First Christian Church | Mahtomedi, MN | Dennis Sanders, preaching “God is calling the church to be a place that is a colony of heaven, an example of what God’s kingdom is like. It is a place where people might disagree on various issues, but they know they are united together in Christ. In a society that is becoming more bifurcated, there is a need for a place where people can see each other as a child of God.” Read the Sermon text. Continue reading Sermon: All Is Level At the Cross
The Clockwork Pastor 