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.
Micah 6:1-8
Commentary
Epiphany 4A
In the midst of the glory of Epiphany we encounter this sobering and bracing text about God’s lawsuit against his sinful people. How is this an Epiphany text? The only connection I could find lies in that little word “showed” in verse 8. After the whole court proceeding laid out in verses 1-7, God reveals…
Isaiah 9:1-4
Commentary
Epiphany 3A
Consistent with the season of Epiphany, the Lectionary readings from the Old Testament continue to focus on the Servant Messiah as the light of the world. It’s a message we need to hear because we live in particularly dark times, as did the nation of Judah to whom these words were addressed. The time of…
Isaiah 49:1-7
Commentary
Epiphany 2A
We met the famed Servant of Isaiah in last week’s Old Testament lesson, where God introduced him/them to us. Now in this reading, the second Servant Song, we learn more as the Servant reflects on his/their calling, ministry, failure, reassurance, and ultimate glory. The mixed pronouns in that last sentence reflect the long controversy over…
Isaiah 42:1-9
Commentary
Epiphany 1A
On this First Sunday after Epiphany, the world-wide church celebrates the baptism of Jesus because that event was the first manifestation of the glory of God in the adult ministry of Jesus. To help us see the magnificence of Christ’s glory, the Lectionary selects Isaiah 42 for its Old Testament reading. It is a fine…
Jeremiah 31:7-14
Commentary
Christmas 2A
So, Christmas is finally over, I mean really over. The visitors have all gone home, the tree has been put back in the box, the decorations are down in the basement, and the gifts, well, the gifts have been celebrated, enjoyed, used, broken, returned, or forgotten. But the Lectionary says, “Not so fast. Let’s keep…
Isaiah 63:7-9
Commentary
Christmas 1A
The Old Testament reading for this First Sunday after Christmas is a delightful little snippet of poetry commemorating what God has done to save his people. It’s neat and clean and lovely and it fits this liturgical season perfectly. The only problem is that its context is anything but neat and clean and lovely. This…
Isaiah 7:10-16
Commentary
Advent 4A
On this Fourth Sunday of Advent, just 3 days away from Christmas, our reading from Isaiah 7 doesn’t seem very Christmasy. Oh, it does if we focus only on verse 14 and the way our Gospel reading for today interprets it (Matthew 1:18-25). But if we read our text in its context, there’s no hint…
Isaiah 35:1-10
Commentary
Advent 3A
Advent in Year A of the Lectionary’s cycle of readings is a poetry lover’s delight. From the images of mountains and military in Isaiah 2 to the plants and animals and a little child in Isaiah 11, we now come to the images of a trackless desert transformed into a verdant paradise with a superhighway…
Isaiah 11:1-10
Commentary
Advent 2A
From the First Sunday of Advent to the Second, the imagery changes, but the message doesn’t. We move from mountains and military in Isaiah 2 to plants and animals and a little child in Isaiah 11. But both texts promise a day when there will be justice and peace on earth. Isaiah 2 was less…
Isaiah 2:1-5
Commentary
Advent 1A
What a text for this first Sunday in Advent! What a text for this moment in history! This promise of universal peace arouses hope in our war torn world. Or it sounds like an impossible dream. As I write this, President Trump has just removed all US troops from northern Syria and Turkish forces have…
About Stan Mast