St. Paul's United Methodist Church

The fact that the "lion" of the tribe of Judah is actually a slain lamb completely upends our assumptuons about power, empire, and what Jesus will do when he returns. The implications of this are far-reaching. Revelation 4 and 5.

In this sermon, we look at the short messages to the seven chirches in Revelation 2 and 3.

We begin our six-week series on the book of Revelation by asking the question of how it should be read. Is it a book about the future or something else? Why does it seem relevant to every generation? Revelation 1:1-20.

We conclude our sermon series with a closer look at the last few kings and the exile. 2 Kings 23:36-24:4; 24:8-13; and 25:1-6.

Josiah was a great king, leading the people to repentance and covenant renewal to God. Yet, God was determined to destroy their kingdom anyway, due to the things a previous king had done before most of them were even born. Why? I preached last week that it's never too late to repent and seek God's favor, and the greater biblical witness supports this. So what gives with 2 Kings? The scripture includes 2 Kings 22:1-3, 11-20.

Manasseh was consodered the worst of the worst by the authors of 2 Kings. Yet, 2 Chronicles 33 teels a different story. Could he have repented? Is anyone beyond God's grace? 2 Kings 21.

Hezekiah had bold faith as he led the people back to the worship of Yahweh and trusted in God during hard times. 2 Kings 18:5-8.

Jehu was a very violent king, and the Bible is not clear on whether or not his actions were sanctioned by God. How do we figure this out? 2 Kings 9:6-10; 10:18-27.

What do you do when those in power are corrupt and use their power to exploit and hurt others? 1 Kings 16:29-33; 21:1-16.

In this story in 1 Kings 12:1-17, we see that leading by might and strength as the world defines it can lead to great harm. True strength is found in the ability to work with others through compromise and compassion, as Jesus did.

In this sermon, we look at how the world defines greatness vs. what the Bible defines as greatness. 1 Kings 3:4-15; 10:23-25.

In this story, we look at the disfunctional family dynamics that led to a coup from one of David's own sons. 2 Sanuel 15:1-14.

David's story is one of many high and low points. Was he a man after God's Own Heart? 2 Samuel 7:8-16; 11:1-5.

In this sermon, we look at the reign of Israel's first king. What is a kingdom to do when their leader becomes ineffective and mentally unstable? We will also look at some very difficult, violent passages of scripture and discuss a better way of reading them. 1 Samuel 10:17-24; 15:10-11.

We begin our summer sermon series on the kings of Israel and Judah with a look at the transition from Samuel as a leader to their desire for a king to lead them. We explore why Samuel thought this was a bad idea - mainly because unchecked power corrupts. 1 Samuel 8:1-22.

In this message for graduation Sunday, we look at the importance of looking back with gratitude, looking forward with hope, and becoming more like Christ. Philippians 3:10-16.

We wrap up our sermon series with good news. Romans 8:28-39.

Why is it so hard to know God's will for us if it is so important? Is God's will a detailed plan for our lives or more of an outline that we get to fill in in collaboration with God? Romans 12:1-2; Colossians 1:9-10.