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The invitations are still out. It is not too late. When the king enters the hall, how will he find us? The classic hymn “On Christ the Solid Rock,” contains the lines, “O may I then be found, dressed in his righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne.” Christ Jesus has a graceful robe of rightness and wholeness and peace to give us. He wants us at the feast. So heaven’s sake, put your clothes on ..read more

We turn to the Word first and always on ourselves. Then, and only, then, out of our brokenness, out of the mercy we have received, out of our gratitude to God, do we dare to speak to others as God leads. In this way, we live within this text, “Judge not, that you be not judged ..read more

Psalm 110 directs us to a mighty king who brings peace, a priest who offers bread and wine and blessing. He already exists and yet is coming. He will share rule with the I AM himself. Remind you of anyone? This swirls our minds. But we need to realize the depth of the person of Jesus. To know him rightly, we need to see how Jesus alone pulls all the threads of Scripture together. He is our savior. He is our Lord. He is also our priest who offered the perfect sacrifice to God: himself on the cross. He also continues in the role of priest, connecting God and humanity ..read more

Sin isn’t a spiritual parking ticket, or a little too much dessert after a nice meal. Sin is adultery. It is a betrayal of our love, and a profoundly hurtful act. It’s saying we can be engaged to two fiancés at once, that the bloodshed, the life given up on our behalf is a laughable, somewhat provincial gift, and we’re trading it for the latest trending fashion to come across our phone. I’ve seen it happen to friends, parishioners, and fellow pastors. It seems so exciting and exotic for a moment, maybe awhile. But it leads to a “mouthful of gravel ..read more

What are you willing to wait for? It’s been said that you tell what you really care about by what you spend your money on, but I would argue that it’s even more telling to know what you’re willing to wait for. So many of us, myself included, are more than happy to wait for worldly things and then expect immediate answers when the Lord places us in a season of uncertainty. There’s a reason why it’s repeated constantly in Scripture, so take a note from Simeon and Anna. Wait on the Lord. #waiting #firstpresbyterianbr #sermon ..read more

What power is there that can ever bring sanity and healing to such a terrible world? Go to Bethlehem, and crouch in wonder at the crib of an innocent babe, and you will find that all the titanic might within the heart and mind of fallen man will be tamed, and he too will become a little child. #christmas #watchmen #firstpresbyterianbr #sermon ..read more

In Christ Jesus is life, and that life is the light of all. His light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. So, we join our hearts as our choir sings the ancient words, “Break forth, O beauteous, heavenly Light, to herald our salvation ..read more

It’s essential that we understand two things. One, our distinctiveness. Two, our mission. All of humanity lives plagued with darkness. We cannot see clearly who God is. We grope and stumble and sometimes do terrible things in the dark. But God has ever been calling his people out of darkness and into his marvelous light (I Peter 2:8). That makes us different. There is light where the people of God live ..read more

The way things are is not how they have always been. There was light before the sun. The way things are is not how they always will be. There will be light after the sun. And so right now comes the liberating truth. The LORD is your everlasting light. He longs to give you spiritual light so you can see, in your heart of hearts, his everlasting love and know him as your loving God. #everlasting #sermon #firstpresbyterianbr #worship #lightoftheworld #truth #spirituallight ..read more