Faith Speaks — Reverend Neil Taylor — Sermon Podcast

Read Acts 2:14a, 36-47; Psalm 116:11-16; 1 Peter 1:13-25; Luke 24:13-35

The Third Sunday of Easter (Year A)

But We Had Hoped

On this Third Sunday of Easter, we find ourselves walking a strangely familiar road—the road to Emmaus. It’s a road marked not just on a map, but etched into the experience of every human heart that has known disappointment, confusion, or the quiet temptation to give up hope.

If we listen closely, we recognize this road by a single, haunting phrase: “But we had hoped.” These are the words we speak when expectations collapse, and faith feels uncertain. And yet, it is precisely on this road that the risen Jesus draws near, often unrecognized, gently restoring what we thought was lost. Today, we walk that road again—together.

Read Matthew 28:1-10

Easter Sunday (Year A)

Do Not Be Afraid!

On this Easter morning, Matthew gives us a resurrection scene unlike any other—a moment of holy drama and divine power. The angel who appears at the tomb knows exactly how to make an entrance: a sudden earthquake, blazing like lightning, and a mighty flourish that rolls back the large sealed stone. This is no gentle figure from a greeting card—this is an angel with attitude. He rolls the stone away, then casually sits on it, crossing his great arms as he looks over at the guards—men who are now showing all the symptoms of sheer terror. Matthew says, “they became like dead men.”

But notice—this angel says nothing to them. The message “Do not be afraid” is not for the guards, nor for Caiaphas or Pilate, nor for the powers that tried to hold the Christ in the tomb. For them, the message is on hold. Instead, this angel’s words are reserved for those who seek the Lord—those women who come in love and faith to the place where hope seemed lost. The tomb will not be a prison, and death will not be the Son of God’s final resting place. On Easter morning, God turns every fearful silence into the sound of resurrection.

Read Isaiah 53:4-6

The Sunday of the Passion: Palm Sunday (Year A)

The Suffering Substitute

Why did Jesus die? That question has echoed through the centuries, and Isaiah 53 gives us one of the clearest answers in all of Scripture. The prophet tells us that Christ was “pierced for our transgressions” and “crushed for our iniquities,” showing us that the cross was not an accident, but the saving plan of God for sinners like us.

Read Matthew 21:1-10

Liturgy of the Palms Homily (Year A)

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, Matthew tells us that “the whole city was stirred up, asking, ‘Who is this?’” It’s a simple question—just three words—but it carries the weight of Holy Week. These weren’t the cheering crowds waving palms. They were the city folk, settled into the routines of power and politics, commerce and conversation. They heard the commotion at the gate, saw a small procession of peasants and children crying out “Hosanna,” and wondered, “Who is this?"

Read John 11 and Romans 8:1-11

Fifth Sunday in Lent (Year A)

Set Your Mind on the Spirit 

Today’s message for the Fifth Sunday in Lent is titled “Set Your Mind on the Spirit.” Drawing from John 11, Romans 8:1-11, and 2 Corinthians 6:2, we will listen for God’s voice in the midst of silence, struggle, and hope. In the raising of Lazarus, we see that what looks like delay or distance can become the very place where God’s life and power are revealed. Romans 8 then calls us to a new way of thinking and living—no longer according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit who brings freedom and life. And 2 Corinthians 6:2 reminds us that “now is the day of salvation,” inviting us to respond today to the Spirit’s gracious work.

Read John 9:1-13, 28-38

Fourth Sunday in Lent (Year A) 

Who Sinned?

Welcome to today’s message, titled “Who Sinned?”—a reflection on John 9:1–13, 28–38. It’s a natural question, isn’t it? When something terrible happens, our first instinct is to ask why. Why this city and not that one? Why this person, and not another? Earthquakes, floods, wars, wildfires—each disaster stirs our hearts to cry out, “Why here? Why now? Why them?”

We ask the same question in the deeply personal moments of life: Why did this man get cancer, and his brother didn’t? Why was one spared while another suffered? No question pierces us more profoundly than, “Why me?” The question of why pushes us to wrestle with the connection between God's goodness and the reality of human suffering—a tension that challenges faith for many and even leads some to doubt God altogether.

Into that universal struggle, John 9 opens quietly—with a man born blind, and a question on the lips of the disciples: “Rabbi, who sinned?”

Read John 4:5-42

Third Sunday in Lent (Year A)

Revelation Knowledge

“Welcome to today’s message, ‘Revelation Knowledge.’ You and I cannot change our own hearts, and God will not force our minds, but when we choose to change our thoughts, God begins to change our hearts. As we bring Him our doubt, our unbelief, the condemnation we’ve agreed with, and the scars of our past, the Holy Spirit moves through our thinking and into the deep places of who we are. In that mysterious moment, God reveals who He is in our lives and who we truly are in Him—that’s what revelation knowledge is all about.

Read John 3:1-17

Second Sunday in Lent (Year A)

Just One More Verse

When Jesus says, “God so loved the world,” it is not a sentimental slogan for coffee mugs and bumper stickers; it is a staggering claim about the very heart of God.  God loves people who don’t love him back, people who would rather stay hidden in the dark, even the very world that will eventually crucify his Son.  If we wanted to feel the shock of John’s language, we might almost hear it like this: “For God so loved the God-hating world that he gave his only Son,” and, “God did not send the Son into the world to condemn even this world that despises God, but so that the world that rejects God might still be saved through him.”

Read Genesis 2:4-9, 15-17, 25-3:7; Romans 5:12-21; Matthew 4:1-11

First Sunday in Lent (Year A) 

Identity Theft | Satan's Greatest Crime Against Humanity 

On this First Sunday of Lent, it’s a good time to pause and take stock—to reflect on where we are and what’s shaping our hearts. Think back to a moment when you felt inadequate or unworthy. Maybe it was just this past week, or sometime in the last month. Hold that memory in your mind for a moment—that attempt at “identity theft” when something tried to tell you that you are less than God says you are.

Today’s scriptures speak clearly and powerfully against that lie. They remind us that in Jesus Christ, God has declared you—and all of us—to be enough. In fact, more than enough. Because if you are following Christ, God has already claimed you as His own beloved child.

Read Joel 2:1-2, 12, 17; Psalm 103; 2 Corinthians 5:20-6:10; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Ash Wednesday Homily (Year A)

I wish you a holy and joyful Lenten season—a time to grow closer to the Lord and to turn away from sin. The Lord meets us with a unique grace in every season; may the grace He gives us in this Lent not be in vain.