On Churches Disaffiliating from the PCUSA
A Sermon on Acts 10:9-16, 15:1-11, by Thomas C. Willadsen: "Peter had to give up his concept of what God wanted from him. He gave that up when he saw what the Holy Spirit was doing among different people. I do not think this was easy for Peter to do. The Holy Spirit pushed Peter to broaden his understanding of religion, faith and tradition, the very things that had told him who he was and who God was. I don’t think it was easy for Peter to do this."
Build Up the Body of Christ in Love
A sermon by the Rev. Sara Hayden: "So, they recalled his way of life. How Jesus went to the margins and borders of the cities, lakes and called to people who were hungry, outcast, forgotten, and otherwise lost. His ears and eyes were attentive as people called to him. Sometimes for healing, sometimes for money, sometimes for attention. Jesus went to them. He learned their needs. He developed their gifts. He recognized the spiritual gifts of exceptional people – many, like Martha and Mary – who had never been encouraged before to use them. Not merely for themselves, but for the world."
Rethinking Morality
A sermon on Mark 7:1-23 by the Rev. Dr. Dan Anderson-Little: "Yes, actually I do think we have Jesus to blame for this ongoing rethinking of morality—for that is exactly what he is doing in this story."
The Trouble with the Church
A Sermon by Dr. Mark Achtemeier: "The trouble with inviting Jesus into your home is you don’t just get Jesus, you get the friends who show up with him."
Absolutely Everyone
A sermon by Baron Mullis to Morningside Church, Atlanta: "... I love standing up here and telling our visitors that when we say welcome, we mean it. And what I want you to know, and to be able to share is this: we don’t say it in spite of scripture, we say it because of Scripture!..."
A Biblical Perspective on Homosexuality
A Sermon by Louise Westfall to Central Presbyterian Church, Denver, Colorado, on July 17, 2011.
Philip's Conversion
A sermon preached by Jon M. Walton to the First Presbyterian Church in the City of New York, May 6, 2012.
"You Can't Handle the Truth"
A Sermon on John 15:26-27 and John 16:7-15, by Meg Peery McLaughlin, Village Church, Prairie Village, Kansas.
In Praise of Unity
A Sermon on Psalm 133 and 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 by the Rev. Christopher A. Henry, Shallowford Presbyterian Church, Atlanta, GA, January 23, 2011
Boo Radley's Porch
A sermon on Mark 1:40-45 by the Rev. Dr. David Van Dyke: "Jesus was so moved by the unfair, dehumanizing plight of that leper that he actually reached out and touched him. He took into his own being the man’s situation and he healed him, but not before he touched the one who was considered unclean, thereby becoming unclean himself."
All Things to All People?
The recent meeting of the Covenant Network Board in Miami was ably hosted by Riviera Presbyterian Church. Preaching there on the following Sunday, National Organizer Tricia Dykers Koenig reflected on some of the questions engaging the Board.
"Free at Last...Now What?"
For all of us wandering in the wilderness, Co-Moderator Mary Lynn Tobin shares a prophetic word in her message during the closing worship service of the Conference in Durham.
Ordination Sermon for Scott Anderson
John Knox Presbytery ordained Scott Anderson to the ordered ministry of Teaching Elder on Saturday, October 8. Here's the sermon by the Rev. Dr. Mark Achtemeier.
Reclamation
From a Pentecost sermon by Mark Achtemeier: "In times such as these, we need the witness of the church to show our country that it is possible to reach our hands across these deep divides of race and ideology and religion, that a peaceful and united human community is possible, that even deep- seated differences can be overcome by the power of self-giving love."
Communion of the Different
Covenant Network's Co-Moderator and Pastor of House of Hope in St. Paul, MN, David Van Dyde, shares a message about Pentecost.
Tearing Down the Walls: More Than Tolerance
"Jesus showed us that you can bring who you are, all that makes you different, distinct, and unique, … all of your 'particularity,' bring it all into the household of God." (from this sermon by the Rev. Dr. Kenneth E. Kovacs, Catonsville Presbyterian Church.)
Once the Scales Fell, a Conference Sermon
"Our healing is wrapped up in one another. Apparently, that's the way God designed it." The Rev. Katie Morrison talks about the hard work of circling back, in her sermon preached at the 2010 Covenant Conference in Houston.