John

Used Tombstone For Sale John 20:11-18When I began writing this sermon, it occurred to me that this is my 28th Easter sermon. I wondered how I could approach this sermon so that it would sound like the first time and not the 28th time. Then it occurred to me that there...

Punching Holes In The Darkness John 1:1-5John writes: "The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it"—but the darkness sure does try…John writes: "The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it"—but the darkness sure does...

This Is Dedicated To The Christ I Love John 21:15-19A few years back the noted religious writer, Dr. Lyle Schaller tried to slip one past the reading public. He wrote a book on the church called Survival Tactics in the Parish. He dedicated the book to "Shang". He...

Dan Quayle, Murphy Brown, And Jesus Christ John 4:5-42Incredibly, in the recent presidential election campaign, the most intense and the most heated debates involved not the three candidates for President, but a fictional TV character and the Vice President of the...

Checkmate! Game's Over! We Win! John 21:15-19Should you ever visit the magnificent Louvre Museum in Paris, you will see many of the world's greatest art treasures. Among them is a dramatic painting based on Goethe's "Faust." You will remember that Faust is the one who...

God Takes Our Little And Makes It Much John 6:1-14Here are three little stories tied together by a common thread of truth. See if you can find it… The first story is actually an old legend from India that tells about a huge elephant and a tiny mouse who became close...

Making Sense Out Of A Senseless Tragedy John 9:1-5Last Sunday, the people at our early worship service saw a sermon. That's what I said—they saw a sermon. Oh, they heard a sermon, too. I preached, and most of them, I suppose, heard. But much more importantly, they saw...

Holding On When You Want To Let Go John 15:9-17I don't know who counted them up, but whoever did gave us something to think about. In a total of 3530 years of recorded civilization, only 286 of those years have been spent without wars taking place on this globe....

A Call To Courage John 20:19-28For nearly 2000 years the two words have been repeated together so frequently that now they almost seem to be the man's first and last name. I refer to the one who is called “Doubting Thomas." But is that really an accurate description...

The Light Diet That Really Works John 8:12-20  The title of the article tricked me! It said: "We all need light diets." I assumed that the author was referring to lowering our calorie intake by limiting the food we eat. Instead, as I delved into the article, I...

The Marks Of A True Disciple John 13:1-10Dr. Armand Nicholi has been for many years the Chief of Psychiatric Services at Harvard University. Not very long ago in an address he delivered, he proceeded to list what he said were, in the opinion of the leading...

Give Yourself To Something Bigger Than Yourself John 6:57-67Today l would ask you to think with me about the subject of loyalty... Our text comes from one of the crisis moments in Jesus’ ministry. When He first began His itinerant preaching, people flocked to Him in...

Fifth Amendment Christians John 4:39-42Several years ago, I heard an address by Dr. John Meister in which he used the phrase "Fifth Amendment Christians." I was intrigued by that phrase and I have thought a lot about it since. Out of that thinking has come this...

The Man Born To Be King John 18:33-38Some 2300 years ago now, the prophet Zechariah announced to the city of Jerusalem: “Behold your king comes to you, triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding upon a donkey...” It must have seemed strange then. It certainly...

When Someone You Love Dies John 14:1-7The day the space shuttle exploded is a day which is written in pain upon our hearts. In the preparation leading up to that flight, those seven astronauts, especially Christa McAuliffe, had become a part of us. We felt that we...

If Christ Had Not Come John 15:20-27Some years ago now, a group of noted historians combined their talents to produce a book entitled, If...A History Revisited. The chapters of the book dealt with speculations as to how history would have been written if certain...

God Loves You John 3:16-21God loves you. Those three words, perhaps more than any others, sum up the message of the Bible, and the essence of the Christian faith, and the meaning of Christmas. "God loves you." To underscore that point, let's meditate together upon...

Love Is A Spendthrift John 12:1-8Paul Sherer wrote: "Love is a spendthrift; it leaves its arithmetic at home. It is always 'in the red.' And God is Love." The truth of these words is clearly revealed in this story from John 12. Jesus had gone out to Bethany, a suburb...

Joy Is A Five Letter Word John 15:1-11The Gospels tell us that many times Jesus went apart for private times, times when He walked the Palestinian valleys alone. Some people have suggested that He did this in order to be able to shed tears without anyone being aware...

The Most Beautiful Thing Jesus Ever Said John 15:12-17In the quiet beauty of this hour, I want to talk with you about what may be "the most beautiful thing Jesus ever said." It occurred on the night before he died when He said to His disciples, and, consequently, to...

In Search Of The Saviour John 12:20-26It is the cry of the ages summed up in five words. The scripture says very simply: "Some Greeks came to Philip and said to him, 'Sir, we would see Jesus.'" It is a request made in countless ways, countless numbers of times, by...