Sermons from July 2022
God Had Spoken By His Son
Athanasius: Constantine Augustus and his sons wrote letters to St. Anthony seeking divine wisdom. Anthony told his disciples: “Do not be astonished if an emperor writes to us, for he is a man. Wonder rather that God wrote the law for man and has spoken to us through his own Son.” The first coming of Jesus was the climax of redemptive history and his second coming marks its culmination. This hybrid sermon-letter opens with a comparison between Christ and the…
God Spoke By The Prophets
Hellen Keller lost her ability to see and hear at 19 months (scarlet fever?). She learned about 50 signs in order to communicate with her family. When she was six-years-old, the family hired a visually impaired instructor named Anne Sullivan. The first thing she taught her was how to spell words. She gave her a doll spelling “d-o-l-l” into the palm of Keller’s hand. Keller didn’t realize that a different word was used to identify each object. After a month…
Jesus Is Greater Than….Part 2
We’re considering two things: 1. The Author 2. The Audience Why does this matter? They will have a significant impact upon our interpretation (hermeneutics). • Historical-Grammatical: Treats the Bible as God’s Word and understands that it conveys objective truth. Seeks to understand the original intent of the author. • Historical-Critical (Higher Criticism): Treats the Bible like any other text assuming no possibility of miraculous activity. Seeks to understand the author’s intended meaning. • Reader-Response: The Bible conveys subjective truth to…
Jesus Is Greater Than….
Jesus Is Greater Than… (Hebrews) It is anathema to compare two cultures and declare one to be superior. Cultural relativists will accuse you of ethnocentrism before you can finish your sentence. The author of Hebrews, himself a Jew, unashamedly argues that Jesus is greater than every prophet, priest, and king who came before him. He points to the supremacy of Christ over everyone and everything belonging to the old covenant. 1. Jesus > Prophets 2. Jesus > Angels 3. Jesus…