Thoughtful Reflections on Faith and Life
I am coming close to the end of my pastoral ministry. In less than two weeks, I will no longer be a pastor. I will be a full-time military chaplain. Many pastors who go into chaplaincy plan to return to pastoral ministry when they are done. That is not my intention. I do not know … Read More “The Part of Pastoral Ministry I Want to Continue” »
Preachers sometimes joke that sermons are “three points and a poem.” That is an exaggeration but we can easily get into a rut. I will confess that I prefer a teaching model, where I exegete the text and present and an application that arises from the text. Expository sermons should be the cornerstone of our … Read More “Experimenting With Preaching” »
While pastoring is more than preaching, developing my preaching skills is high on my priorities. There is one thing I do that I find is very helpful in this area. I always write out a full manuscript for my Sunday morning sermons. I don’t bring them with me when I preach, but I still write … Read More “A Helpful Exercise For My Preaching” »
I love my church, especially in its diversity. We are have a variety of ethnic groups, ages and people with disabilities. It is something to celebrate but it is also a challenge, especially for preaching. What segment do you aim for? Do you preach toward one group or another. I attempt to cast a wide … Read More “Preaching to a Diverse Audience” »
I am so happy with my new routine for writing sermons. I wish I started doing this twenty years ago. The funny thing is I began this out of necessity. My wife has started at seminary and I drive her to and stay at the school on Tuesdays. Tuesdays are not my day off and … Read More “I Wish I Wrote My Sermons Like This Before” »
While I consider myself an apologist, my primary role is that of a pastor of a local church. But I don’t find these roles to be contradictory. I try to include apologetics in my pastoral ministry. There are many ways to do this but one way is through preaching. Often in the summer I offer … Read More “Apologetics and Preaching” »
In smaller churches, pastors are equated with preachers. But even in larger churches, many pastors have preaching as one of their responsibilities, although perhaps not every week. After preaching for a number of years, it is is easy to get complacent when it comes to sermon preparation and delivery. It would be a good idea … Read More “31 Days to Become a Better Pastor: Invest in Your Preaching” »
When you think about an accessible church, what do you think of? Perhaps the installation of an elevator or a wheelchair ramp. Maybe hearing assisting devices or specially designed washrooms. Those are good but there is another way to make your church accessible and it will not cost you much, if anything. Have you ever … Read More “A Simple Way to Make Your Church More Accessible” »
As a pastor of a local church who preaches weekly, I’m always looking to improve my craft. This includes reading books on preaching. But how many ways can someone tell you to find the meaning in a text and communicate it in a relevant and engaging manner? I often fear that I’m just going to … Read More “Preaching With Cultural Intelligence – Review” »
One of my favourite activities as a pastor is the writing and preaching of sermons. I love finding the intersection between biblical truth and the real needs of my congregation. But what should a sermon look like? How many points should there be? My homiletics professor in seminary suggested that every sermon should have at … Read More “Four Ways That I Structure Sermons” »
I don’t think that there is any one answer to how long a sermon series should be. At the same time, there are some good decisions we can make to help our messages be most effective. Part of our consideration should be how the content informs the length of the series. For example, I love … Read More “How Long Should a Sermon Series Be?” »
For many years I preached from a manuscript. There was no way that I was going up to a pulpit with a full manuscript. I actually introduced a welcoming time (passing of the peace) at First Baptist Church Meaford because I realized part way during the service that my manuscript was still on my desk! … Read More “Why I Don’t Preach From a Manuscript” »
A sermon based on Luke 6:43-49 preached at Queen Street Baptist Church. Introduction When I talk to skeptics about why they reject Christianity, their responses generally fall into two camps. One, which I’m not going to get into now, is that they believe the claims of Christianity are false. I have done a lot of work … Read More “The Secret to Living the Christian Life” »
This is the Easter sermon that I preached at Queen Street Baptist Church. Easter Sunday is by far my favourite Sunday of the entire year. Christmas is wonderful with all of the carols and nativities and everything else that goes with it. But it is Easter that really fills me with joy and gets me … Read More “4 Things You Need to Know About the Resurrection” »
I remember the feelings that I experienced as I began my pastoral ministry, especially around the role of preaching. I knew that I had to work hard at writing the message and presenting it in a clear way. At the same time, I was very aware that I needed to trust in God through the whole … Read More “Pastors Should Take a Compliment” »
A sermon based on Mark 11:1-11 preached at Queen Street Baptist Church. Introduction I have been stuck in traffic many times in my life. Once I was even an hour and a half late for church when I was commuting to Toronto. But there is one traffic jam that sticks in my mind, and not … Read More “What is So Triumphal About the Triumphal Entry?” »
Now that I am back in pastoral ministry, I am doing some more reading in the area of preaching. One of the books that came my way was A Vision for Preaching: Understanding the Heart of Pastoral Ministry by Abraham Kuruvilla. Kuruvilla organizes this book around his definition of preaching, which is: Biblical preaching, by … Read More “A Vision for Preaching” »
I have attended and visited churches that have different philosophies of preaching. Some churches seem to be purely topical. Each week is a topic such as mental health, finances, prayer and so forth. These can be quite popular. Other churches are extremely expository. The preacher will pick a book and go through it verse by … Read More “Expository or Topical Preaching?” »
I have been preaching sermons for almost twenty years. Hopefully my skills have developed during that time. I know that I have learned a lot, both through the good responses and the less than good responses. How do I write a sermon? It is slightly different if I am writing a sermon for a church … Read More “How I Write a Sermon” »
It is important for pastors to prepare their congregations for apologetic encounters. It may be difficult to get people to an apologetics small group or Sunday school class, but a pastor can still make an impact through sermons. Here are five ways to preach apologetically. 1. Preach from 1 Peter 3:15. There is enough material … Read More “5 Ways to Preach Apologetically” »
When people leave a church, the most common reason is, “I just wasn’t being fed.” So they go to some other church where they are fed, until they find another church that will feed them more. It happens all the time. With this in mind, I would like to share some biblical perspective. I have … Read More “Pastors, Congregations and Expectations” »
Pulpit ministry is both a tremendous privilege and responsibility. For many people in the congregation, it is their only interaction with the Bible. A pastor cannot take this lightly. It is not enough to just throw something together and fill up a chunk of time during a Sunday service. Here are four things that a … Read More “4 Things for a Preacher to Remember” »
I remember when PowerPoint was first introduced into preaching. All that mattered was that you had PowerPoint, it did not matter how you used it. Now people have seen it so often, they know the good from the bad. Using PowerPoint or other programs can be helpful but it has to be done right. Michael … Read More “Preaching With Powerpoint” »
Luke 14:27-33 Introduction I’m afraid that the Church in general has not always been completely honest with the people that we have tried to bring in. I don’t think we have been purposely dishonest, but we have perhaps given a message that is not completely accurate. What kind of message do we give seekers and … Read More “Cross Bearing Disciples” »
This is my final sermon a pastor of First Baptist Church Meaford. Romans 15 Introduction The time has come for my last message to the church. I wanted to share something that would be helpful for the church as you look to the future and at the same time remain faithful to the passage we … Read More “A Vision For a Healthy Church” »
Romans 14 Introduction In John 17, Jesus prays a prayer for the future church, a prayer that is aimed at us. In his prayer, Jesus prays for something very specific. It is not for beautiful buildings or healthy budgets. Jesus prays that the church would be one as the Father and Son are one. Jesus … Read More “How to Disagree” »
Romans 13 Introduction There are a number of moments in my life that were turning points. One of them was when I got my eyes checked for the first time. After being encouraged to get my eyes checked by a high school teacher, I finally went to an optometrist. I had my eyes checked and … Read More “I Can See Clearly Now” »
Romans 12 Introduction There are many things that people of different religions and philosophies disagree on but there is one thing that almost everyone agrees on: the importance of love. It doesn’t matter of you are a Christian or an atheist or any other belief system, people instinctively know that love is important. We see … Read More “The Power of Love” »
Romans 11 Introduction Know your place! Have you ever heard someone say such a thing? Such a concept could be terribly abused. In more innocent forms, it could be used by parents to try and control their children. In harsher forms, it could be used to promote racism or sexism. The idea of knowing our … Read More “Knowing Our Place” »
Romans 10 Introduction Pastors are well aware that there are certain subjects that congregations do not like to hear sermons on. One of those topics is that of hell. The entire concept of hell is extremely unpleasant and few people want to hear about it. That does not mean it should not be preached on, … Read More “Preach the Gospel” »
Romans 9 Introduction It is very interesting for me to see the change in perspective from being a son to being a father. This is especially true with regard to ideas of fairness. Now things were a bit different for me growing up as an only child. There never were questions about what I received … Read More “Let God Be God” »
Romans 8 Introduction What is Christianity all about? Is Christianity all about bad news or about good news? I have seen descriptions of churches that were completely about what they were against and not at all about what they are for. It is easy to tear things down and much harder to build things back … Read More “Abundance of Blessings” »
Romans 7 Introduction Look at your life. Is it the way you want it to be? I do not mean do you have the possessions you want or have you accomplished what you want. I mean, how is your inner self? Are you the kind of person that you want to be? Do you find … Read More “Trapped” »
Romans 6:15-23 Introduction How do you understand your relationship with God? Do you see yourself primarily as a worshipper? That would mean that your main role would be to praise God. Do you see yourself as a follower? That would mean that you try to figure out the rules and follow them to the best … Read More “Being a Slave” »
Romans 6:1-14 Introduction I believe that there is one question that is essential for all of us to ask: So what? You say you love your children? So, what does that look like in reality? You say that you care about the poor? So what does that look like in practice? There should be some … Read More “Living in Grace Land” »
Romans 5:12-21 Introduction Why do things happen to us? Why do we experience some good things and some bad things? In our society, we pride ourselves in personal autonomy. We want to believe that things are within our control. Do you want to get ahead in life? Roll up your sleeves and get to work. … Read More “Two Men and a Sin Baby” »
Romans 5:1-11 Introduction I like it when things make sense. I enjoy it when things are logical and reasonable. This is the challenge of being a parent. Amanda and I look at some of the bad things our kids do and instead of getting mad, we look at each other and ask: “why?!” It is … Read More “Peace and Joy” »
Romans 4 Introduction I find family resemblances to be very fascinating. Physically, I do not look much like my dad. However, I am now at the age that my dad was when I have some of my earliest memories. I find myself looking in the mirror and trying to see my dad. How do I … Read More “Father Abraham” »
Romans 3:21-31 Introduction What do you want first? The good news or the bad news? Whenever I am asked that question, the answer is very easy. I want the bad news first. There are a number of reasons why. Sometimes the good news is the solution to the problem of the bad news. Sometimes the … Read More “Now, the Good News” »
Romans 3:9-20 Introduction So, how bad are we? Now that is a dangerous question. Do we really want to ask that? Imagine putting yourself out there, taking a risk, and doing something outside your comfort zone. Then you turn to someone, someone who is really good at what you just tried and ask them that … Read More “So, How Bad Are We?” »
Romans 3:1-8 Introduction Think about the people you know, your family and friends and acquaintances. What are the virtues that you value and admire most? There would be things like politeness and kindness and intelligence and humour. All of these things are good and should be appreciated. What about faithfulness? How important is that? It … Read More “Faithfulness of God” »
Romans 2:17-29 Introduction How do people feel about religion? My experience is that people are quick to dismiss “organized religion.” They don’t mind faith in God or even spirituality but they hate organized religion. There are all kinds of problems with this attitude, common as it is. What is the God that one has faith … Read More “Unmasking Religion” »
Romans 1:18-32 Introduction Paul’s letter to the Romans is very much about being in right relationship with God. No matter what subject he is looking at, he connects it to our relationship with God and how it can be restored. But why? Why is this so important? Why not just live our nice, happy and … Read More “A Bad Exchange Rate” »
Romans 1:8-17 Introduction What is it that you are really passionate about? For many people, it would be family. We love our spouse, our children and grand children. Nothing makes us happier than to be with them and to see them enjoying life. For other people, it is their career. Their career is not just … Read More “A Gospel of Hope and Power” »
Romans 1:1-7 Introduction What is it that is essential for us to get right? Do we need to get the style of our worship music right? Do we need to get the balance of liturgy and spontaneity exact? What about the architecture of our churches or the translation of our Bibles or the length of … Read More “Miracle of the Incarnation” »
James 5:13-20 Introduction Each Sunday, we have an opportunity to share our prayer requests. Very often people share requests for physical healing, either for themselves or for their sick loved ones. Have you ever thought about what we expect to happen? Is saying a prayer for a sick person, simply a show of solidarity, like … Read More “Does God Still Heal?” »
Luke 25:13-35 Introduction Have you ever been really down in the dumps? Have you had your plans, your expectations and things went the complete wrong way? Have you ever been deeply disappointed? I think that it is okay to feel that way. This is one of the differences between Christianity and Buddhism. Buddhism sees the … Read More “Things Are Not What They Seem” »
James 5:7-12 Introduction I want you to imagine the perfect life, the life of comfort and ease where everything goes according to plan and you always get your way. I want you to take that image and I want you to wake up. It is never going to happen. I am not a pessimist, I … Read More “Patience in Suffering” »
James 5:1-6 Introduction What is the purpose of life? According to one bumper sticker: “The one who dies with the most toys wins.” Look at almost every area of life and it would seem to point in that direction. Education is not just to broaden the mind or create well rounded people but to train … Read More “You Poor Rich People” »
James 4:13-17 Introduction I am a person who always likes a plan. By a plan, I don’t mean just some general hopes to one day do such and such. I like timelines and concrete goals. Having studied leadership, I know that there is wisdom in this. It is good to have a short-term plan and … Read More “You Want to Do What?” »
James 4:1-12 Introduction How to become a Muslim? Did you come to the right place? I want to reassure you that I am not preaching a form of Chrislam. Chrislam is a view that puts Christianity and Islam on the same level, seeing them as equal paths to God and suggesting that they have pretty … Read More “How to Become a Muslim” »
James 3:13-18 Introduction If you could have any of the God-given abilities of people in the Old Testament, who would you want to be like? You could be like Abraham and Sarah and be able to have children at a very old age. That does not sound good. You could be like Moses and part … Read More “So You Want to Be a Wise Guy?” »
James 2:14-26 Introduction One of the distinctives of Christianity is that we believe that salvation is by faith alone. There is no religious ritual or level of good deeds that will bring about our salvation. The thief who died on the cross hours after meeting Jesus for the first time is just as saved as … Read More “Dead Faith” »
James 2:1-13 Introduction I want you to imagine the perfect church. New people would come in and the church would be completely oblivious to their outward appearance or circumstances. I don’t mean we wouldn’t care if someone was in need. I mean there would be no judgment as to value, there would be zero partiality. … Read More “For Richer and Poorer” »
James 1:19-27 Introduction A long time ago there was a man who was very active in church. He had a great desire to live a life pleasing to God. There was only one problem. He was all too aware that he was sinful and that he was unworthy of God’s love. He tried everything, from … Read More “Hearing and Doing” »
James 1:1-18 Introduction Why do bad things happen to good people? It is a question that has crossed most of our minds. We have all seen people, that from our perspective, deserve an easier life than they experience. Where is God in all of this? There are a few options. One is that God cares … Read More “Trial by Fire” »
Galatians 5:16-26 Introduction What should the Christian life look like? That is not an easy question to answer and every tradition has struggled with it. I can see this in my own church background. I grew up in a church where there were no expectations about lifestyle or behavior. There were no sermons about what … Read More “The Fruit of the Spirit” »
Jeremiah 31:31-34 Introduction I want you to imagine that you were in some serious legal difficulty. You hire a lawyer and you discover that he is an expert in Canadian law and he has read every law and every related court case… up to 1920. How would you feel? Pretty good if you were living … Read More “The New Covenant” »
Luke 19:1-10 Introduction New Years is a time for people to think of new beginnings. People think about losing weight, working out, quitting smoking, picking up a hobby and so on. That is a good thing. It is very good that we want to make positive changes in our life. Unfortunately, we know too well … Read More “A New Start” »
John 1:1-13 Introduction One of the things that I find very interesting is the near universal fear of darkness, at least at some point in our life. We do not teach children to fear darkness, they figure it out on their own. My children will ask to have their light left on or their door … Read More “You Light Up My Life” »
Luke 1:5-20, 26-35 Introduction Growing up, I did not realize how easy my parents had it at Christmas. Since I was an only child, not only was it cheaper to buy presents for only one child, it was also lacking in dangers of jealousy or competition. As a father of five children, I have to … Read More “Have Some Faith” »
Mark 1:1-8 Introduction What are the images that we have of Christmas? Probably the typical nativity scene. We see a proud Joseph and Mary with adoring shepherds and wise men and submissive animals, all surrounding the Christ child sleeping peacefully in the manger. We are left wondering what the purpose of all this is for? … Read More “Sin is the Reason for the Season” »
Acts 16:25-34 Introduction There are things about church that you just do not need to know. You do not need to know why churches started using pews or organs or why other churches have stopped using them. You do not need to know all the differences between all the different denominations. You do not need … Read More “Which Way to Heaven?” »
Nehemiah 8:1-3 Introduction Imagine if I announced today that we were going to radically change the style of worship in the church. I don’t just mean a change of songs, moving from traditional hymns to newer songs. I mean a complete change. We would remove all musical instruments from the sanctuary. Not only that, we … Read More “A New Kind of Worship” »
2 Chronicles 6:1-21 Introduction I was raised as a church-going kid. But even that statement says something about how we thought. The Bible speaks of the church as the Christian people but in my mind the church was the physical building. I do not want to go too far down that issue, except to say … Read More “The Big House” »
Genesis 12:1-7 Introduction Everything gets more complex over time. Even though technology improves and there are important advances, the fact is that things get more complicated. We often hear people talk fondly about the good old days. The truth is that the good old days were not necessarily better than today. But they were likely … Read More “Worship Before the Temple” »
Psalm 95:1-6 Introduction I remember being hired by my first church and being scared of one particular part of my job description. One of the things that I was expected to do was to be involved in worship leading. Why would that scare me? In my mind, a worship leader was a person with a … Read More “What is Worship?” »
Philippians 1:9-11 Introduction Most people would agree that love is one of, if not the greatest virtue. Television shows, movies and music are all drawn to the notion of love. But what is love? Is love the emotional excitement as two people feel attraction and take the first steps toward relationship? Is love a possessiveness … Read More “Love and Understanding” »
Ephesians 1:15-23 Introduction Who was the Apostle Paul? Well, he was the author of much of the New Testament. He was a church planter and missionary. He was a theologian and a deep thinker. But Paul was also a pastor. If you read Paul’s letters, you will see that he had a cranky side. He … Read More “A Pastor’s Prayer” »
1 Samuel 2:1-10 Introduction Why bother praying? Have you ever wondered how the first person started praying? In Genesis 4:26, it says in the days of Enosh, son of Seth, son of Adam, that people began to call upon the name of the Lord. Was that the first prayer? If so, we are not told … Read More “Prayer of a Thankful Mother” »
I love the Psalms. I love the Psalms for numerous reasons. There is the beauty of the language. I am not sure there is anything that is more beautiful than the 23rd Psalm. I love the raw expression of feeling. The Psalms do not hide emotion, when the Psalmist feels forsaken by God, he shouts … Read More “ABCs of the Bible” »
“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found … Read More “What Does It Mean to Be Alive?” »
“To the angel of the church in Thyatira write: These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first. … Read More “Naked Souls and Minds” »
“To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a … Read More “Rich and Yet Poor” »
“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim … Read More “Falling Out of Love” »
“Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God. So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We … Read More “Tearing Down Stumbling Blocks” »
“It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man has his father’s wife. And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship the man who did this? Even though I … Read More “What About Sin?” »
“I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among … Read More “Divided We Fall” »
“He called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the … Read More “Twelve That Changed the World” »
I have been enjoying Andy Stanley’s leadership podcast. It is a great resource that I would highly recommend. One of the podcasts that I particularly enjoyed was on effective communication. This would include preaching as well as other forms of communication. Andy offers five questions that should always be asked when you are trying to … Read More “5 Questions for Effective Communication” »
