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Matthew 3:13-17 Sermon Commentary
Epiphany 1A
Poor John. It didn’t look right. What was going on here? This was not the public appearance of Jesus that John had set everyone up to see (cf. Matthew 3:1-12 for goodness sake!!!). As Matthew 3 ends, you can almost picture John the Baptist carrying on with the rest of that day’s baptisms with a…
Psalm 29 Sermon Commentary
Epiphany 1A
Psalm 29 is an ode to a thunderstorm. But this poem is not just that. The primary aim here is to move through the storm to the Lord of the storm, to the King of Creation, to the one, only true, sovereign God: Yahweh. As such, Psalm 29, for all its lyrical and poetic beauty,…
Acts 10:34-43 Sermon Commentary
Epiphany 1A
On this Sunday on which the RCL invites us to contemplate Jesus’ baptism, it omits the account of Cornelius’ baptism from its Epistolary Lesson. That may at least imply that the RCL is less interested in the Romans or even Jesus’s baptism than with the baptized Jesus (and his Church’s) mission. A mission that has…
Isaiah 42:1-9 Sermon 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…
Commentary posted on January 6, 2020
Epiphany 1A Sermon Commentary
The Epiphany 1A Sermon Starters include commentary and illustration ideas for Matthew 3:13-17 from the Lectionary Gospel; Isaiah 42:1-9 from the Old Testament Lectionary; Psalm 29 from the Lectionary Psalms; and Acts 10:34-43 from the Lectionary Epistle.
Related Reformed confession: Lectionary Gospel: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 74 (Lord’s Day 27)