This is an expansion of some quick thoughts I shared on Facebook last night in response to some of the criticisms I’ve seen of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s sermon. I write both as someone who has given my fair share of feedback and criticism over the years, and as someone who has received plenty of… Continue reading What did you come out to see?
Tag: sermons
Why I don’t like using quotes in sermons
I recently saw this little quote on Twitter. I think the general sentiment is true for preachers in that a bigger point is being made. We need to ensure that the voices heard and examples used in church are not limited to narrow group of people within the church. Do we use illustrations about women? … Continue reading Why I don’t like using quotes in sermons
Grace (Ephesians 2:1-10)
Here’s the outline notes of a sermon I preached yesterday. Introduction As a church we want to be a grace filled community – a radical alternative to the world and culture around us. This means that every aspect of what we do and how we live is saturated in this thing called grace. We need… Continue reading Grace (Ephesians 2:1-10)
Preparing the Christmas Carol Service Sermon
Over the next few weeks we are going to be doing something that we’ve not had the opportunity to do for the past couple of years, inviting people to come along to a Christmas Carol service. It’s one of the few times of year when it’s reasonably easy to invite people along to a traditional… Continue reading Preparing the Christmas Carol Service Sermon
When did you last hear a pastor addressing abortion?
I’m planning over the next week or so to look at how we as churches address some of the ethical and pastoral issues that matter to people in our congregations. Last week, I ran a twitter poll asking my followers about when they’d last heard a pastor talk about particular issues. The first issue was… Continue reading When did you last hear a pastor addressing abortion?
Do we need to make Scripture relevant?
Over the weekend we saw a crisis start to take shape. It was in effect self-inflicted. Warnings that there might some pressure on fuel supplies led to panic buying and over the weekend the pumps ran dry. In this article on Sunday, I commented that it would be peculiar if the crisis we were facing… Continue reading Do we need to make Scripture relevant?
How much application?
We are usually told that we need “more application” and that our sermons shouldn’t become boring technical lectures, so this article from Chris Thomas may prove a surprising read to many. For balance, you may want to read this from Steve Kneale showing that there are still people arguing for more application. I also want… Continue reading How much application?
Light and Beginnings – Matthew 4:1-17
Last year, the lady who lived next door but one to us died and her daughters sold the house to another family. They haven’t moved in yet. The house was quite dated in many ways and too small for them. They have ripped it apart, tearing out fixtures and fittings, replacing windows, knocking down an… Continue reading Light and Beginnings – Matthew 4:1-17
Beginning (Matthew 1:1-7)
This is the first in our new series of sermons on Matthew’s Gospel. Here we start to see how Jesus is the promise of the ages who brings a new Genesis, a new beginning. Catch up with a look back at the live stream video here
Jesus thank you
Jesus Thank you (Isaiah 53:10-12) Introduction How much do you value your status? Think about it. You may initially say that you don’t care but you know how you react when you are wrongly accused, when you are unfairly turned down for a job or when someone makes a mean joke about you. We want… Continue reading Jesus thank you
Faithroots 