Brown Memorial Park Avenue Presbyterian Church

We were studying the meaning of communion with our Catholic and Episcopal sisters and brothers across and down the street. And I gave the Presbyterian perspective: our real concern with the Catholic understanding of communion where the bread is transformed into the real presence of Christ is idolatry. The reason we don’t bow before our … Continue reading Reformation: The Polemic Against Idolatry

I was going to preach on the Priesthood of All Believers this week until I heard a conservative commentator on Wednesday morning defending his pro gun politics using Reformed theology. “On the one side we call this mass murder,” he said; the other side calls it “gun violence.” “One [side] focuses on the person,” he … Continue reading Reformation: Law and Gospel

Whenever our family travels, I usually handle accommodations which is surprising since those accommodations have caused a fair amount of whining and complaining. There was the hunting shack in Montana featuring empty mounted animal heads on the walls and crushed beer cans scattered across the floor. “We’re here for Glacier Park, not for the accommodations” … Continue reading Strike Rock

In 1452 and 1455 Pope Nicholas V authorized the seizure of all non-Christian lands by white Europeans in the name of God, encouraged the enslavement of native, non-Christian peoples in Africa and the Americas. These two papal bulls – known as “The Doctrine of Discovery” – encouraged Europeans to “invade, search out, capture, vanquish, and … Continue reading The Difference Between Judgment and Accountability

But what if Paul’s words could be read a different way? What if instead of always thinking about God’s intervention coming at the end of time, on our two-dimensional timeline, we read Paul to mean that God’s healing had come near to us? – Like, spatially near to us, if you want to try to visualize it that way.

I took a risk and ventured a sermon title today. But the one that’s now in the bulletin is a change from earlier in the week. The original title was “True Christians in a Fake News World.” The first thing that prompted the change was a fierce debate with an epistemologist, who also happens to … Continue reading True Love in a Fake News World

I was just a kid, maybe seven or eight years old, and playing church basketball. I was awkward and quiet and not good. Thank God for the First Baptist Church of Elkin, North Carolina, who – because of their commitment to the love and grace of their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ – allowed me … Continue reading Who Do You Say That I Am?

A while back, I sat down with Michael to choose the preaching texts for this week. God bless the musicians who are constantly forcing us to look ahead and plan these worship services! For those of you who don’t know, we preach from the lectionary, which is a three-year cycle of Scripture passages selected by … Continue reading To Tell The Truth

What comes around goes around.  Jacob, the young buck who tricked his firstborn brother, ends up stuck with the firstborn daughter of his Uncle Laban.  Biblical karma at its best.  I know we’re supposed to be rooting for Jacob.  He is God’s chosen, and Esau isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but I get … Continue reading Biblical Karma

When he was a young man, Tony Campolo hated Sunday evening church. He could handle Sunday mornings – they were generally well put-together. Prime-time. The sermons had a structure you could follow – three points and a poem – and you could count on them to wrap it up in a timely manner. The evening … Continue reading In The Garden