Matthew 23:1-12 Servants and Leaders (Hoffacker)
Jesus criticizes scribes and Pharisees who fail to practice what they preach. It's easy for us to cheer Jesus on as he does so. After all, not one of us is an actual Pharisee or scribe.
Matthew 5:33-37 The Power of a Promise (Molin)
CONCERNING OATHS: The Snyder’s Drug Store in Dean’s neighborhood had one clerk on duty, so when Dean put a Swiss Army Knife in his pocket, and I put a package of Whoppers candy in mine, we thought we were home free. We had no idea that the store manager was watching us the entire time. On the front sidewalk, he grabbed each of us by the nape of our necks and said “Let’s go in and call your parents, boys.”
Matthew 11:25-30 Laboring for the Lord (McLarty)
The sermon this morning comes with two disclaimers: One, Labor Day is anything but a religious holiday. Two, the text this morning has nothing to do with labor, per se; as in what you do for a living. I chose it because it deals with two of the most common mistakes people make when they read the Bible.
Matthew 5:21-37 Raising the Bar (Sellery)
Even simple common sense laws seem to have a way of exploding into a morass of regulations. The Federal Register of Regulations is quickly closing in on a million pages. But it’s not a new phenomenon. In Exodus God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. But that was followed by 27 chapters of do’s and don’ts in Leviticus and 34 chapters more in Deuteronomy.
Matthew 11:25-30 Rest for the Weary (Kegel)
Have you ever seen the movie Groundhog Day with Bill Murray? It is one of the most excruciating films I have ever seen. Our life may seem like Groundhog Day. It is often the same old thing over and over and over.
Matthew 5:21-37 Instructions for Daily Living (Kegel)
Have you ever heard someone say, "I swear it is the truth," or "I swear on a stack of Bibles that it is the truth!" I do not know about you, hearing that always makes me think that everything else that the person says must be a lie.
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 Are You in the Loop? (Molin)
Several years ago, an 18 wheeler got stuck while going underneath a bridge--its roof lodged into the overpass. The officials consternated for hours as to how to remove this rig, but then an eight year old boy suggested that they try letting the air out of the truck’s tires. Now, why didn’t the experts think of that?
Matthew 5:21-27 The Best Place to See the Glory of God (Hoffacker)
In today's gospel, Jesus changes the rules. He expands them actually. He says, "But I say to you." Why is it that Jesus changes the rules? Why does he take established commandments and make them more demanding?
Matthew 11:16, 25-30 Old Hearts Young Again (Hoffacker)
People sometimes assume that Christian living means taking on a lot of stuff, making life more complicated than it already is. Jesus suggests that living the Christian life takes us in the opposite direction.
Matthew 5:21-26 Make It Right (Leininger)
ANGER AND FORGIVENESS: There is a church in Columbia, South Carolina near the seminary I attended which has a bulletin board out front. For several years there was one other thing on that bulletin board, one of those little "sentence sermons" that we see so often. It said, "The same Bible that says BELIEVE also says BEHAVE."