Seen, Heard and Have Come
We worship a God who is characterized by the cross – the ultimate sign of love known to humanity, not an angry storm god who needs to be appeased. I find it troubling when people of God do not appear to see God’s love and
All posts by Gary Simpson
Prophet Versus Grace
Our reading comes from the one of my favorite versions of the Bible – the Black Bible Chronicles. The Black Bible Chronicles takes the stories of the Mosaic books and makes them very now and very relevant. Many people who have read from this particular
Queer Eye for the Straight World
Preached at Lambda Christian Community Church in Edmonton Your employer asks you to run over Staples and purchase a box of paper clips. You do things right, so you order one of everything Staples sells to be delivered to your office. What would your employer
Doers of the Word
This is second of a series of sermons on the book of James. You may recall the book of James was written to the Jewish Believers living outside of Israel. Many of the Jewish Believers were the descendants of slaves or freed slaves. Judaism and
Scattered Peace!
Rabbi Harold Kushner says the words of religion are words of encouragement, not words of condemnation [1]. Through James, the Lord is encouraging us to live in such a way that our faith in Jesus is a positive force in the world. James is not
Craving Heavenly Wine
Ancient Jewish weddings were different than modern weddings. People did not fly to Hawaii for a honeymoon. For about a week, the couple had an “open house.” [1] During the week, the couple was treated as royalty. Wearing crowns and fancy clothes, they were addressed
Serving From a Prison Cell
We arrived in Rome, and Paul was allowed to live in a house by himself with a soldier to guard him. 17 Three days after we got there, Paul called together some of the Jewish leaders and said: My friends, I have never done anything
Spiritual Magna Carta
And they took to him little children, so that he might put his hands on them: and the disciples said sharp words to them. And when Jesus saw it, he was angry, and said to them, Let the little children come to me, and do
Roadside Encounters
So be ready yourselves, for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Matthew 24:44 (Moffatt Bible) This text is usually applied to eschatology, the Lord’s return, to the parousia. But there is an element of this text than can
Touched By An Angel
But the angel said to him, “Fear not, Zechariah, your prayer has been heard; your wife Elizabeth will bear a son to you, and you must call his name John. It will be joy and gladness for you, and many will rejoice over his birth: