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Tag Archives: Pharisees
Sermon: Preserving the Vineyard
The problem I always have with the Hebrew Prophets is that the God they describe is indiscriminate in punishing the people. The Song of the Vineyard is directed at wealthy landowners, but when Babylon conquers Judah, everyone suffers, not just the wealthy. If the vineyard that is going to be destroyed is the whole house of Israel and the entire people of Judah, rich and poor alike will suffer when the Lord of Hosts turns it into a wasteland. It may be my twenty-first-century perspective, but I do not believe that an entire nation should suffer for the crimes of its leaders or the accumulation of the rich. Continue reading
Sermon: Welcomed into an inclusive Israel
We are recipients of the gift of an inclusive Israel. We exist as a Christian community, worshipping the God described in the Hebrew Scriptures, the One who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it, because a small group of Jews invited Gentiles to join them in walking the way of Jesus. Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged Baptism of Jesus, Christianity, Christmas Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, Gospel according to Matthew, inclusion, Isaiah 42:1-9, Judaism, Matthew 3:13-17, new Israel, Pharisees, scribes, Second Isaiah, Second Temple Judaism, Suffering Servant, Year of Matthew
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Sermon: We will not use the Bible to justify genocide
Reflection for North Balwyn Uniting Church 5th of November 2023 Joshua 3:7-17 Matthew 23:1-12 Members of this congregation have occasionally asked me why I always preach on a Bible reading from the Revised Common Lectionary. One answer is that by … Continue reading
Posted in Sermons
Tagged anti-Semitism, Antisemitism, Gaza, Israel, Joshua 3:7-17, Matthew 23:1-12, Palestine, Pharisees, scribes
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