Stan Mast was the Minister of Preaching at the LaGrave Avenue Christian Reformed Church in downtown Grand Rapids, MI for 22 years. He graduated from Calvin Theological Seminary in 1971 and served four churches in the West and Midwest regions of the United States. He also served a 3 year stint as Coordinator of Field Education at Calvin Seminary. He has earned a BA degree from Calvin College and a Bachelor of Divinity and a Master of Theology from Calvin and a Doctor of Ministry from Denver Seminary. He is happily married to Sharon, and they have two sons and four grandchildren. Stan is a voracious reader and works out regularly. He also calls himself a car nut and an “avid, but average” golfer.
Stan wrote weekly sermon commentaries for the CEP website from 2012 to 2019.
Romans 8:12-17
Commentary
Trinity Sunday B
Comments and Observations Not many of our congregants will get excited about Trinity Sunday, because most of them think of the Trinity as an impenetrable mystery. The Trinity is a set of ideas that have befuddled theologians for centuries and, thus, leave ordinary Christians cold. With tongue firmly in cheek, one theologian put it this…
Romans 8:22-27
Commentary
Pentecost B
Comments and Observations How should we celebrate Pentecost? What should our mood be, given the very different emphases of the four lectionary readings for Pentecost, 2015? As I pondered that, I recalled some wry comments made by Orthodox theologian Frederica Mathewes Green on the very different ways we celebrate Christmas and Easter. “It’s that time…
1 John 5:9-13
Commentary
Easter 7B
Comments and Observations Many scholars have noticed that I John reads more like a sermon than a letter, since it lacks so many of the elements of other New Testament letters: the greeting that usually identifies both author and readers, the introduction that so often previews the issues to be covered in the letter, and…
1 John 5:1-6
Commentary
Easter 6B
Comments and Observations This is a hard text to preach in our day, not only because of the complexity of John’s argument, but also because his argument runs counter to the prevailing cultural currents of our age. That’s precisely why we should preach on it. Here’s what I mean. The postmodern philosophy that dominates the…
1 John 4:7-21
Commentary
Easter 5B
Comments and Observations When I read this passage, I hear the Beatles’ famous song, “All You Need Is Love.” But I don’t hear John agreeing with John, Paul, George, and Ringo–not completely. Though he insists on the absolute importance of love, John has more important things to say about love than “all you need is…
1 John 3:16-24
Commentary
Easter 4B
Comments and Observations Rarely is taking a test a joyful experience, but the author of I John has woven four tests into his letter/sermon designed to bring his readers joy. “We write this to make our (yours and mine?) joy complete.” (I John 1:4) The way to complete joy, he says, is to be sure…
1 John 3:1-7
Commentary
Easter 3B
Comments and Observations As I meditated on these words, two pictures from my last church came to mind. I saw 50 fresh faced, neatly dressed girls, ranging in age from 8 to 13, sitting behind me in the choir loft as I preached from this text. This was on a Sunday that honored those girls. …
1 John 1:1-2:2
Commentary
Easter 2B
Comments and Observations All of the readings from the epistles for the season after Easter are from I John. That’s an interesting choice, since the theme of I John is certainty, assurance of salvation. “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know…
1 Corinthians 15:1-10
Commentary
Easter 1B
Comments and Observations I’ve always thought that Easter is one of the toughest preaching dates on the calendar. That’s counter-intuitive, I know, since the resurrection of Christ is arguably the most exciting event in the drama of salvation. The problem is that everyone already knows the story backwards and forwards. Even little children know that…
Philippians 2:5-11
Commentary
Lent 6B
Comments, Observations, and Questions For this sermon commentary, I am going to zero in on the question asked by the Palm Sunday crowd in Matthew 21:10. As Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, surrounded by the acclamation of the crowd, “the whole city was stirred and asked, ‘Who is this?’” The crowds around Jesus…
About Stan Mast