Steve Thomason

This sermon explores the vision Isaiah had in Isaiah 6:1-8 and the three responses it evoked in him. It also connects Isaiah's context to our own context in 2020. Isaiah's vision came in "the year King Uzziah died." It was one of "those years." That was the year the Assyrian Empire began its invasion, and things went from bad to worse. We're not having a great year in 2020 either. See how the new perspective Isaiah gained in this vision can evoke the same three positions in us and bring about the healing we need.

How quickly they forget. The children of Israel had just be miraculously rescued from slavery in Egypt. God spoke directly to them from the mountain and entered into a blood covenant. They were to be God's treasured possession among all nations, God's holy priesthood. They simply had to keep their end of the covenant. They didn't last 40 days before they turned to the status quo and crafted a Golden Calf. This sermon explores how we, too, are regularly tempted to turn away from the wild claims of God's love for the whole world and hunker down into our familiar safety zones.

Abram began to doubt God's promise. God took Abram under the night sky and said "count the stars" that's how many children you will have. Abram's "Amen" needed reassurance. He said Amen and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

This sermon steps through the story of Paul in Philippi in Acts 16:11-40 and demonstrates how the Kingdom of God intersects with the Kingdom of Human Power Structures. What is the Good News in these difficult times?

The Apostle Paul wanted to visit Rome. He probably never imagined that he would have to first sit in jail for two years and then be carried there as a prisoner in order to fulfill this plan. Have you ever had plans disrupted? How do we deal with it when our life gets thrown upside down? Where is God in all of the chaos? This sermon explores those things as we look at Paul's story in Acts 25:1-12.

Saul encounters the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus and is blinded. Ananias encounters the risen Christ and is told to help Saul. Both men learn a new way to see in Acts 9:1-20.

How do you navigate conflict in the church, or in the world? What does love look like in a pandemic? The church in Corinth was riddled with conflict and arrogance, even around the topic of spiritual gifts. The Apostle reminds the church that each of us is one part a larger whole. He shows them the most excellent way....love. This sermon walks through 1 Corinthians 13 and explores what love looks like when the world is arguing over how to reopen in a pandemic?

Peter and John gain a new perspective as they encounter the man begging by the Temple gate in acts 3:1-10.

This sermon explores Mark 10:32-52 and asks "What do you see when you look at Jesus?" So much of what we see, in anything, is the result of what we have been culturally conditioned to see. James and John saw Jesus as a tool to get them to fame, power, and glory. Bartimaues saw Jesus as a merciful healer. What do you see?

This sermon explores how the Transfiguration of Jesus provided a glimpse of hope for his disciples as they were about to face a most difficult journey.

Rejection is painful. Much of our energy is spent avoiding it. Jesus encounters rejection in the text this week, Mark 6:1-29. This sermon explores how we can prepare ourselves for the inevitable rejection that will come when we proclaim the Good News that Jesus brought to the world.

Rev. Dr. Karoline Lewis is a pastor and professor of Biblical Preaching at Luther Seminary. In this interview we talk about the purpose of preaching as a performative act in which the word is embodied. The goal of preaching is to join Mary Magdalene in John 20 and say, "I have seen Jesus."

Have you ever felt like a lost cause, or know someone or something that seems like a lost cause? This sermon explores Mark 4:35-5:20 and how Jesus rescues a man who was the lost cause of his town. The curious part of the story is to see how the townspeople react to it. Are we willing to do whatever it takes, and no matter what it costs, to include everyone in the Good News?

A sermon on Mark 1:1-20. What did Jesus mean when he said, "Repent and believe the Good News?"

Change is hard. Even when we know it is coming, change is a disruptive force that brings stress and anxiety. This sermon uses Mark 2:1-22 and Jesus’ comments about New Wine and Fresh Wineskins to explore how to deal with change in life.

This sermon explores, both visually and dramatically, the metaphor of God as a parent to a wayward child. The disobedience of God’s child, Israel, breaks God’s heart. Yet, in the end, God’s compassion for Israel wins out over any feelings of retribution. Love wins. That is the heart of God. View this post to see […]