| Sermons... |
These sermons were delivered at New Hope Baptist Church in Romulus, Alabama (unless otherwise noted). I've placed these sermons here for my non-resident members (or anyone else interested in some sermons). Some sermons are in HTML format, some are in PDF. Unless otherwise noted, all scriptures are from the English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. These sermons are not for profit; I'm not selling them, and you can't either. If they help you, please let me know. Feel free to share them if you think they're worth it. You should know that I rarely preach exactly from manuscript; things come to me as I go. (Most ministers will empathize.)
I rely heavily on Dr. Allen Ross' Old Testament studies for my Old Testament sermons. Dr. Ross is an Old Testament professor at Beeson Divinity school. You can find Dr. Ross' site at www.christianleadershipcenter.org. If the sermon text is from the Old Testament, you can rest assured I've visited his site.
For some time now, I've used the Book of Common Prayer Lectionary for my sermon texts. Since each Sunday contains 4 passages, I usually preach from the Gospel on Sunday morning; use the Psalm or Old Testament reading as additional scripture; and preach from the Epistle on Sunday night. I occasionally modify this and use the Old Testament or Epistle reading on Sunday morning.
I use the Lectionary because it forces the minister to approach the entirety of Scripture. Almost every passage is covered at some point during a 3-year period. Of course, we're also free to use non-lectionary passages as necessary.
I also follow the Church calendar, primarily because it helps tie us to other Christians who do the same. Actually, most Christians in the world follow the same calendar you'll find here. Our time is the LORD's, not our own and not the world's.
Sermons for 2005 are from the Year A readings through Advent, when Year B begins.
Other Sermons:
The Cost of Salvation. Sermon text: Mark 10:17-27 (the story of the young ruler).
Mighty Works, Mighty Wind. Scripture reading: John 14:8-17. Sermon text: Acts 2:1-11. This is a Pentecost sermon.
Psalm 51: Relationship Restored I preached this sermon in Preaching class on Friday after Ash Wednesday.
No Shortcuts I preached this sermon at Beeson's weekly Communion service 03 March 2004. Students typically deliver the homily for this service.
Too Blessed to Worry Preached at the Community Thanksgiving Service in Romulus, 2003.
Building on God's Foundation Based on a sermon I wrote for Preaching class.
Summation of the Trinity In 2003, I preached a series on the Trinity. This was the last sermon of the series.
The Cross Holds a King This is a poem, not a sermon.
The Choice of Eternity. Scripture reading: Amos 6:1-7. Sermon text: Luke 16:19-31. Note: this will be a very uncomfortable sermon for most readers, but it's time someone made the choice of life plain to everyone.
Epiphany
2 January (Second Sunday after Christmas): Worship the King. Scripture reading: Psalm 84. Sermon text: Matthew 2:1-12.
2 January p.m.: Called by a New Name. Sermon text: Isaiah 62 (from the Christmas II readings).
9 January a.m., First Sunday after Epiphany: The Baptism of the King. Scripture reading: Psalm 89:20-29. Sermon text: Matthew 3:13-17.
9 January p.m.: Delighting in the Servant. Sermon text: Isaiah 42:1-9.
16 January a.m.: Called to be Saints. Scripture reading: Psalm 40. Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9.
16 January p.m.: A Light to the Nations. Sermon text: Isaiah 40:1-7.
23 January a.m.: Joined by God. Scripture reading: Psalm 139:1-17. Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 1:10-17.
23 January p.m.: The Dawning of the Light. Sermon text: Matthew 4:12-23.
30 January a.m.: Building on God's Foundation. Scripture reading: Psalm 119:1-16. Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 3:11-22.
30 January p.m.: Fifth Sunday night singing.
6 February: Winter Bible Study 2005, taught by Dr. J. Norfleete Day of Beeson Divinity School.
Lent
9 February: Ash Wednesday. Joint worship service with Romulus Methodist Church.
13 February a.m.: When the Devil Shows Up. Scripture reading: Genesis 3:1-7. Sermon text: Matthew 4:1-11.
13 February p.m.: Wrecked by One, Restored by One. Sermon text: Romans 5:12-21.
20 February a.m.: The Promise of Faith. Scripture reading: Romans 4:1-17. Sermon text: Genesis 12:1-8.
20 February p.m.: God So Loved the World. Sermon text: John 3:1-17. This one consisted more of notes than of a manuscript.
27 February a.m.: Testing the LORD. Scripture reading: Psalm 95:1-11. Sermon text: Exodus 17:1-7.
27 February p.m.: Are You at Peace? Sermon text: Romans 5:1-11.
6 March a.m.: Looking on the Inside. Scripture reading: Psalm 23. Sermon text: 1 Samuel 16:1-13.
6 March p.m.: I Believe. Sermon text: John 9:1-38.
13 March a.m.: Seeing the Glory of God. Scripture reading: John 11:1-27. Sermon text: John 11:28-44.
13 March p.m.: The Dry Bones Live! Sermon text: Ezekiel 37:1-14.
Holy Week
Palm Sunday, 20 March a.m.: The Coming of the King. Scripture Reading: Matthew 21:1-11. Sermon text: Psalm 118:19-29.
Palm Sunday p.m.: The Suffering Servant. Sermon text: Isaiah 52:13-53:12.
Maundy Thursday, 24 March: Joint worship service with Romulus Methodist Church. This Is My Body. Scripture Reading: Exodus 12:1-14. Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26. We will celebrate Communion in this service.
Good Friday, 25 March: Joint Good Friday Service at Romulus Methodist Church. The Rev. David Lawrence will deliver the sermon.
Easter
Easter Sunday, 27 March: Looking for Jesus? Scripture reading: Romans 6:3-11. Sermon text: Matthew 28:1-10. We will celebrate Easter Communion in this service.
3 April 2005 a.m.: Remembering a Promise. Scripture reading: Psalm 111. Sermon text: Genesis 9:8-17.
3 April 2005 p.m.: Results of the Resurrection. Sermon text: 1 Peter 1:1-9.
10 April 2005 a.m.: The Ransomed of God. Scripture reading: Isaiah 43:1-12. Sermon text: 1 Peter 1:17-23.
10 April 2005 p.m.: Burning Hearts, Changing Lives. Sermon text: Luke 24:13-35.
17 April 2005 a.m.: Can God Really Provide? Scripture reading: Nehemiah 9:6-15. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:19-25.
17 April 2005 p.m.: Living Abundantly. Sermon text: John 10:1-10.
24 April 2005 a.m.: Goin' to the Promised Land. Scripture reading: Deuteronomy 6:20-25. Sermon text: John 14:1-14.
24 April 2005 p.m.: Why Are We Chosen? Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:1-10.
1 May 2005 a.m.: Coming to Know the "Unknown God." Scripture reading: Psalm 148. Sermon text: Acts 17:22-31.
1 May 2005 p.m.: Living in the Vine. Sermon text: John 15:1-8.
8 May 2005: Restoring the Fortunes of Jacob. Scripture reading: John 17:1-11. Sermon text: Ezekiel 39:21-29.
Pentecost
Pentecost Sunday, 15 May 2005 a.m.: Mighty Works, Mighty Wind. Scripture reading: John 14:8-17. Sermon text: Acts 2:1-11.
15 May 2005 p.m.: All of One Spirit. Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 12:1-13.
Trinity Sunday, 22 May 2005: No sermon. Instead, Andrea Carver will share her experiences from her mission trip to Haiti over spring break. Scripture reading: Matthew 28:16-20. Note: this is the Sunday after my graduation from Beeson Divinity School with my Masters of Divinity. Praise the LORD!
Memorial Day (U.S.), 29 May 2005: The Next Generation. Scripture reading: Psalm 31. Sermon text: Deuteronomy 11:18-21.
June sermons
5 June 2005 a.m.: "Follow Me." Scripture reading: Hosea 5:15-6:6. Sermon text: Matthew 9:9-13.
5 June 2005 p.m.: Hoping Against Hope. Sermon text: Romans 4:13-18.
12 June 2005 Homecoming. The Rev. Douglas Partrich will be preaching.
Father's Day, 19 June 2005: Valuable in His Sight. Scripture reading: Jeremiah 20:7-13. Sermon text: Matthew 10:16-33.
26 June 2005 No sermon today; I'm off on vacation. The Northport Gideons will provide a speaker for Gideon Sunday.
3 July 2005: Come to Freedom. Scripture reading: Romans 7:21-8:6. Sermon text: Matthew 11:25-30.
10-13 July 2005: Revival. The Rev. Clay Hahn will minister to the congregation.
17 July 2005 a.m.: Wheat and Weeds. Scripture Reading: Psalm 86. Sermon text: Matthew 13:24-43.
17 July 2005 p.m.: The Glory's Revealing. Sermon text: Romans 8:18-25.
24 July 2005 a.m.: More than Conquerors. Scripture reading: Psalm 119: 129-136. Sermon text: Romans 8:26-39.
24 July 2005 p.m.: A Righteous Request. Sermon text: 1 Kings 3:5-12.
31 July 2005: Feed Us! Scripture reading: Nehemiah 9:1-20. Sermon text: Matthew 14:13-21.
7 August 2005 a.m.: Sinking in the Storm. Scripture reading: Jonah 2:1-9. Sermon text: Matthew 14:22-33.
7 August 2005 p.m.: Glory in His Voice. Sermon text: Psalm 29.
14 August 2005 a.m.: Special service.
14 August 2005 p.m.: A House for All. Sermon text: Isaiah 56:1-7.
21 August 2005: No sermons. I'm on vacation.
28 August 2005 a.m.: Living in Integrity. Scripture reading: Jeremiah 15:15-21. Sermon text: Psalm 26.
28 August 2005 p.m.: Finding our Lives. Sermon text: Matthew 16:21-27.
A special note is in order here. The Sunday morning sermons for September and October will come from the book of Leviticus, not from the Lectionary. This series will rely heavily on Allen Ross' Book Holiness to the LORD: A Guide to the Exposition of the Book of Leviticus (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002).
4 September 2005 a.m.: Why Leviticus? Scripture reading: Leviticus 19:1-18. Sermon text: Leviticus. (No, not the whole book.)
4 September 2005 p.m.: The Power of Unity. Sermon text: Matthew 18:18-20.
11 September 2005 a.m.: Wholly God's: the Burnt Offering. Scripture reading: Psalm 19:7-14. Sermon text: Leviticus 1:1-4.
11 September 2005 p.m.: How Many Chances Do You Need? Sermon text: Matthew 18:21-35.
18 September 2005 a.m.: Guilty! Scripture reading: Leviticus 5:1-13. Sermon text: Leviticus 5:14-19.
18 September 2005 p.m.: Earning Our Pay, God's Way. Sermon text: Matthew 20:1-16.
25 September 2005 a.m.: The Seriousness of Sin: the Day of Atonement. Scripture reading: Leviticus 16:1-28. Sermon text: Leviticus 16:29-34.
25 September 2005 p.m.: There Ain't No Justice - Or Is There? Sermon text: Exekiel 18.
2 October 2005 a.m.: Communion with God: the Peace Offering and Meal. Scripture reading: Leviticus 3. Sermon text: Leviticus 7:7-16. We will celebrate Baptism and Holy Communion on this day.
2 October 2005 p.m.: What Is the Lord Doing? Sermon text: Matthew 21:33-43.
9 October 2005 a.m.: A Royal Priesthood. Scripture reading: Leviticus 8:1-15. Sermon text: Leviticus 8:30-36.
9 October 2005 p.m.: The Wedding Invitation. Sermon text: Matthew 22:1-14.
16 October 2005 a.m.: Careful in the Sanctuary. Scripture reading: Leviticus 10:1-11. Sermon text: Leviticus 10:12-20.
16 October 2005 p.m.: Giving Caesar His Due. Sermon text: Matthew 22:15-22.
23 October 2005 a.m.: The Time Is the LORD's. Scripture reading: Leviticus 23:1-22. Sermon text: Leviticus 23:33-44.
23 October 2005 p.m.: The Great Commandments. Sermon text: Matthew 22:34-46.
30 October 2005: The Joy of Jubilee. Scripture reading: Leviticus 25:1-7. Sermon text: Leviticus 25:8-24.
6 November 2005 a.m. (All Saints' Day readings): For All the Saints. Scripture reading: Psalm 149. Sermon text: Matthew 5:1-12.
6 November 2005 p.m.: Since We Believe. Sermon text: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.
13 November 2005 p.m.: The Thief in the Night. Sermon text: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-10.
20 November 2005 a.m. (Sunday of Christ the King): When the King Returns. Scripture reading: Ezekiel 34:11-17. Sermon text: Matthew 25:31-46.
20 November 2005 p.m.: Thanking the Giver of Gifts. Thanksgiving Service, Romulus Methodist Church. Sermon text: James 1:17-27.
(Beginning of Year B readings)
27 November 2005 a.m.: Shall We Be Saved? Scripture reading: Psalm 80:1-7. Sermon text: Isaiah 64:1-12.
27 November 2005 p.m.: Who Knows? Sermon text: Mark 13:24-37.
4 December 2005 a.m.: Comfort to the People. Scripture reading: Mark 1:1-8. Sermon text: Isaiah 40:1-11.
4 December 2005 p.m.: Restore Us! Sermon text: Psalm 85.
11 December 2005 a.m.: Thinking about Mary. Scripture reading: 2 Samuel 7:4-16. Sermon text: Luke 1: 26-38.
11 December 2005 p.m.: Annual Festival of Carols and Lessons.
18 December 2005: Christmas Cantata: God's Great Love. Sermon: What a Beautiful Name! Sermon Text: Matthew 1:18-24.
Christmas Day, 25 December 2005: A Child Is Born. Scripture reading: Isaiah 9: 2-7. Sermon text: Luke 2:1-20.