St. Peter's Fireside

Sarah Jeong preaches from Acts 4:5-14 and Luke 24:36-49. These passages demonstrate that when we continue the ministry of Jesus Christ and the apostles in witnessing the name of Jesus Christ our sole purpose will be making the name of Jesus Christ as visible and tangible to those who do not yet know His name or power.

The stories of the early church that we read in Acts are not merely a history or biography of the early church, but a work of theology: the story of how God is at work through the church. In this sermon Phill Pearson preaches from Acts 3:12-26 and John 20:19-31 looking for the stories below the stories and an understanding of the purpose of the church today.

Easter is the day of Alleluias, which just means "Praise the Lord!" The good news of Easter is that all people can be made alive in Christ, who died and rose again. "Christ being raised from the dead will never die again. Death no longer has dominion over him!" Easter is not just a celebration of Christ's resurrection, but also a celebration of our resurrection in Christ.

The crowds are celebrating on the road with palm branches waving, "Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" Then, just five days later, the crowds are crying out, "Crucify him!" Why do the readings for today move from Palm Sunday to Good Friday so quickly? We need to see that Palm Sunday is a prelude to Good Friday – they are inextricably linked: you can't have one and not the other. In this sermon, Phill Pearson preaches from Mark 11:1-11 and Mark 15:1-39 and explores how Palm Sunday leads to Good Friday and how they are inextricably linked.

Grady Buhler preaches from Hebrews 5:1-10 and John 6:1-15. Considering the story of Jesus feeding the 5000, we look at how Saint John wants us to read and interpret this story.

To the Apostle Paul, being alive means being close to the very source of life, God. Life is intimate proximity to God; death is separation from God. Today's sermon on John 12:20-36 and Ephesians 2:1-10 looks at the purpose for Jesus' life, death and resurrection, as well as how those events invite us into a new way of life.

In today's gospel (John 2:13-22) we read St. John's account of what is known as the "Cleansing of the Temple." Like so many passages in John's gospel, this passage contains layers of meaning. Jesus is fulfilling Old Testament prophecies and also speaks of himself as the meeting place between humans and God.

Grady Buhler preaches from Romans 8:31-39 and Mark 8:31-38 on following Jesus for who Jesus is, rather than for what he gives us.

Rob Collis preaches from Mark 1.9-13 looking at Jesus' baptism and temptation in the wilderness. We're invited to consider our own experience with temptation – and what baptism means for us as we walk through the wilderness.

This week Phill Pearson preaches from 2 Peter 1.13-21 and Mark 9.2-9, and explores the story of the Transfiguration. Throughout the Bible, people encountered God at the top of the mountain; but when Jesus went up with his disciples, they discovered that God was already beside them. As Phill unpacks the significance of this realization for us, he invites us to behold Jesus for ourselves, and by gazing upon him, to be transformed into his image.

“What is the mission of the Church in the world?” This World Mission Sunday Grady Buhler preaches from Revelation 7:9-17 and Matthew 28:16-20 and explores how Jesus gave a very precise answer to the question of what the Mission of the Church in the world is.

As we continue in the season of Epiphany, this week Grady Buhler preaches from 1 Corinthians 8.1-13 and Mark 1.21-28, and explores the significance of how Jesus taught with his own authority, and why it matters that all authority belongs to Jesus.

As we continue in the season of Epiphany, this week Rob Collis preaches from Mark 1.14-20, and explores the encounter Jesus had with his first disciples when he called them to follow him. There are three parts to this encounter: calling, following, and becoming. Looking at each of these in turn, he helps us to how, just as Jesus calls the disciples come and follow him, and promised to transform them by his power and presence working within them, so too is he calling each of us. The question becomes: Will we give him our ear to listen to what he has to say?

This week Phill Pearson preaches from 1 Samuel 3.1-20 and John 1.43-51, and as he looks at the two epiphany moments in these stories as people hear the God speaking, he explores the responses people have to hearing the word of the Lord.

Join us this Sunday as we celebrate the season of Epiphany! This week Grady Buhler preaches from Ephesians 3.1-13 & Matthew 2.1-12. Following the journey of the magi when they came to visit and worship Jesus as a baby, he identifies four moments in their journey which serve as a map for our own growth in the Christian life, as we seek to hear for ourselves how Jesus is calling us to himself.

This Chistmans Eve, Grady Buhler preaches from Luke 2:1-20, and unpacks the significance for how God came to us in the form of a baby, and how Jesus comes to be our Lord.

This week Grady Buhler preaches from 1 Thessalonians 5.12-28 and John 3.22-30, and as he unpacks Paul's instructions to rejoice always, he explores the questions: What is Christian joy? And how do we begin to cultivate it? He begins by helping us to see that joy is in some way related to grace, and is ultimately experienced through the recognition of grace; from there he looks at Paul's instructions to the Thessalonians, and encourages us to fan into flame the gift of joy in our own lives.

This week Rob preaches from 2 Peter 3.8-15, and explores how we can read and understand challenging passages of scripture. Using the collect for the Second Sunday of Advent, he encourages us to follow the pattern: hear, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest to read any passage of scripture, and shows us how to do that using 2 Peter.

Advent is a season of waiting as we prepare for Jesus to come -- both as he came first as a baby, and as he comes to us now, but more importantly, Advent prepares us for when Jesus will come again as judge and king. This week Grady Buhler preaches from 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 and Mark 13:24-37, and explains what it means that Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead.

This week Phill Pearson preaches from 1 Corinthians 15:20-28, and explains why the church celebrates Christ the King Sunday, and also what it means for Christ to be king.