Matthew 25:31-46

Christopher Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

October 9, 2015
National Coming Out Day
Matthew 25:31-46

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Babel’s Disasters and Sharing Another Vision

Christopher Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

March 15, 2013
Genesis 11:1-9
Isaiah 43:14-21

Reading the story of the Tower of Babel in the age of climate crisis calls us to ask new questions about an old story. What is God’s concern in this text, where do we see God’s concern today, and what does that concern call us to do about such matters as the extraction of petroleum from the Alberta tar sands and the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline across the United States? Listen to the sermon.

The Awakening

Christopher Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

March 30, 2012

Psalm 118, Mark 11:1-18

It’s a familiar ritual, this processional entry of a messiah into Jerusalem. It often becomes for us a time for palm-waving and half-hearted hosannas, celebration that quickly moves offstage as we prepare for the somber and more deeply spiritual events of Holy Week. But what if the Judean Spring of long ago is a key to Jesus’ genuinely revolutionary mission? What if we find in these stories the wild upsetter of our habit of getting used to the world as given to us? No wonder we hurry to get this troublemaker on to a cross! Listen to the sermon.

The Faith of Thomas

Christopher Elwood

Professor of Historical Theology

April 29, 2011
John 20:19-31

Christ is risen! But, even after Easter, there’s still bad news and the world may not feel redeemed. How do we respond, genuinely and faithfully, to tragic events that shake us to the core? Perhaps we can learn something from the exemplary faith of Thomas ….Listen to the sermon.

After the Whirlwind

Christopher Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

October 16, 2009
Text: Job 23, 24, 40, 41 (selections); 42:1-6

After the whirlwind encounter with God—vividly depicted in the story of Job—how do we live? Is it appropriate to expect a victim of disaster to repent? How can we interpret the winds of life that shake us to the core, and live with faith and integrity responding to God’s close involvement with us and with all of creation? Listen to the sermon.

Restless for Righteousness: How to Cleanse Your Life of Idols and Worship God the Right Way

Christopher Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

2 Kings 22:8-23:23
October 31, 2008

When Hilkiah accidentally turned up a long-lost book of the Law in the temple, Josiah, the king, was so upset to learn how far the nation had departed from what God ordained that he tore his clothes. Then he set about a vigorous campaign of worship reform. This seems a good passage to reflect on as we mark Reformation Day. The Reformation was about many things, but—at least for those who helped build the traditions that would become Reformed Protestantism—“getting our worship right” was always a central task, though always fraught with difficulty. How do we get worship right today, in a time and in places marked by enormous cultural differences? Listen to the sermon.

I Cried to God

Christopher L. Elwood

2 Samuel 12:7-25
September 14, 2007

This story, in which David pleads to God for the life of his infant son, reminds us that sometimes when we cry to God “from out of the depths” (Ps. 130) we don’t experience rescue or relief. In times when we struggle with God’s apparent silence, where is the Good News to be found? Listen to the sermon.

The Politics of Jesus

Christopher L. Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

Psalm 27
Mark 15:6-20

Originally preached on April 7, 2006

We continue our summer series of most-downloaded sermons with the question: is there politics in this story? The familiar story of Jesus’ passion is surprising in its relevance. As together we seek ways to embody God’s call for justice, we may find we cannot do without the politics of Jesus. Listen to the sermon.

The Case for Seeing

Christopher L. Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

John 20:19-31
Originally preached on April 1, 2005

We continue our summer series of most popular sermons…
The old hymn tells us that "We walk by faith and not by sight..." And so, in most traditional interpretations of the story of so-called doubting Thomas, we are encouraged not to imitate the disciple who insists on seeing and touching the resurrected Jesus. But a closer reading suggests that visual experience is closely related to a biblical account of faith. The demand to see a real and tangible redemption just might be the touchstone of faith rather than its denial.

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A Death in Egypt

Christopher L. Elwood
Professor of Historical Theology

Genesis 49:29-50:14
February 9, 2007

What would we do if we were in Joseph’s position? This narrative of Jacob’s death and burial (the only passage in scripture that gives us a close account of a funeral) encourages us to wrestle with questions of cultural difference and faithfulness. Listen to the sermon.