Christians observe Epiphany feasts because the manifestation of God’s glory in the person of Jesus Christ commands our attention and adoration in worship. The scriptures we have heard in this observance bear the record that Jesus of Nazareth who is co-eternal with the Father, anticipated by the prophets, born of a Virgin, was revealed to […]
Sermon Topic: Saint John the Baptist
Wisdom Piped, and Wisdom Mourned
Jesus, though he is truly God, is also truly human, and as such, during his earthly life, belonged to a human family. One of his kinfolk, a cousin, was named John; this is the same John that we call John the Baptist. Though not on the same level as Jesus, John’s conception and birth were […]
Trinity and Epiphany
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. I’m sure I’m not the only one who counts himself lucky this afternoon to be here for this service. The readings and prayers are those customary for this season following Christmas, but the Epiphany music of this service is a unique gift […]
Soon and Very Soon
In the Old Testament, the last twelve books are known as the minor prophets: Hosea and Joel, Amos, Obadiah, and the others. We call them “minor” prophets not because they are unimportant—they aren’t the farm team for the major league other prophets—but because they’re shorter than the others. Were you to sit down this afternoon […]
Repentance: The Highway to Joy
We have just heard a gospel reading that ends with some words of one of the Old Testament prophets, Isaiah: “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and […]
Weeping and Dancing: John the Baptist and Jesus
There are indications in the Gospels that the disciples of John the Baptist did not always “get” what Jesus did. Earlier in chapter 7 of Saint Luke, for instance, John sends two of his disciples to Jesus to ask if he is the expected one who is to come, or if they should look for […]
Herod, John the Baptist, and Jesus
Today’s Gospel story has many points, a number of which we will miss if we take it out of its context. That context, the sixth chapter of Mark, is a good ways into the Gospel (Saint Mark has all told only 16 chapters). Chapter 6 began with Jesus’ return to his home town. Jesus had […]
Be Careful What You Pray For
My wife, Aimee, and I met over seventeen years ago. Prior to our meeting, Aimee’s mom had enlisted the help of her church prayer group and was praying herself that Aimee would meet a man. When I first met Aimee’s mom face-to-face, she took me by the shoulders, looked me square in the eye, and […]
A Prophet for Christmas
In the gospel we heard read moments ago, we hear that John the Baptist was the greatest prophet ever born of woman. But all of John’s greatness could not keep him from suffering a prophet’s fate and so we find John sitting in prison. He couldn’t pipe a tune any other than the one God […]
We Piped for You, but You Would Not Dance
Sometimes the stories that Jesus tells are clear, straightforward, and easy to understand. That is not the case with this evening’s gospel, in which Jesus compares the people of his generation to children sitting in a market place, calling to one another, “We piped for you, but you would not dance; we wailed for you, […]
