James Liggett
The Rev. James Liggett is the retired rector of St. Nicholas’ Episcopal Church in Midland, Texas. He is a native of Kansas and a graduate of the University of Houston and the Episcopal Divinity School. He has served parishes in Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma and has been a contributor to Sermons That Work since the 1980’s.
Sermons and Bible Studies
A Call to Relationship – Epiphany 2 (A) – 2014
This doesn’t happen very often with our new lectionary, but today there’s one theme that can be found in all four of our readings from scripture. It’s the notion of being called. The readings from Isaiah and from Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians both begin with words about being called, about being set apart […]
The Light of Christ, Christmas 1 – 2013
Have you ever noticed that when you get together with your family and start telling stories about when you were growing up or what happened years ago, the same events sound very different as different people tell the story? Depending on who’s describing it, the guy who used to live across the street was a […]
Powerful Stuff…, Proper 15 (C) – 2013
Powerful stuff in today’s readings. Everybody seems to be on a tear; Jesus and Isaiah are full of wrath and judgment, and even the author of Hebrews slips out of his Platonic abstractions long enough to get downright graphic about the costs of discipleship. All pretty grim for a Sunday in late summer. This abundance […]
An Invitation to Intimacy with God, Holy Name Day – 2013
When we think about January 1st, usually, what comes to mind isn’t the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus – also know as the Feast of the Circumcision. Nonetheless, today was the Feast of the Holy Name long before it became New Year’s Day. In fact, January 1 has only been called “New Year’s […]
God Gives Us Bread…, Proper 14 (B) – 2012
Let’s begin today with a familiar verse from Deuteronomy; it’s not in today’s lectionary readings, but it lies behind this whole series we’ve been hearing from John’s gospel. It also shows up in the temptations stories in Matthew and Luke, and is tied to the reading from First Kings. Moses is giving the Law to […]
That Same Grace Is Offered to Us, Epiphany 5 (B) – 2012
It’s a simple little story, but the reading we just heard from Mark is one of the most moving, and most challenging, parts of this gospel. It’s from the first chapter of Mark, and it describes the second part of a sort of model day in the ministry of Jesus. We heard the first part […]
The Darndest Parable, Proper 23 (A) – 2011
Isn’t today’s gospel reading the darndest parable? The whole thing just sort of jerks along, and doesn’t quite work – especially when you get to the poor fellow who is tossed into the outer darkness for violating the dress code. Puzzling. Let’s unpack it a little and maybe make it a bit easier to grasp. […]
Jesus, Master…, Proper 23 (C) – 2010
âJesus, Master, have mercy on us.â Thatâs a good prayer to know. The story of the ten lepers is really a story about life and death. It is really a story about our lives, and about our deaths â and about the choices we have. Itâs a simple story, very familiar. But it is easy […]
Let’s Look For A Minute…, Proper 7 (C) – 2010
[NOTE TO READER: Gerasene demoniac is pronounced JER-uh-seen de-MON-ee-ak] Letâs look for a minute at the story of the Gerasene demoniac; itâs about time somebody did. The story doesnât get a lot of attention in preaching these days, and thatâs a shame. Thereâs some really good stuff here, and itâs pretty funny if you come […]
Sometimes We Are So Familiar…, Proper 22 (B) – 2006
Sometimes we are so familiar with something that we donât even notice it anymore. The little bit from the second chapter of Genesis that we just heard, and that we just heard Jesus quote, is like that. Itâs so familiar itâs invisible. But it is dreadfully important and says some absolutely basic things about our […]
Over Thirty Years Ago…, Trinity Sunday (B) – 2006
Over thirty years ago, Karl Rahner, one of the finest theologians of this century, lamented the fact that most Christians are âmere monotheists.â By this he meant that if the doctrine of the trinity were eliminated from the faith, then the bulk of popular Christian thinking, preaching, writing, and singing, and the mind set it […]
Everybody Knows That Oysters…, Easter 7 (B) – 2006
Everybody knows that oysters sometimes make pearls; and that fascinating reality has been used to illustrate many a point. But hereâs an old truth said in a new way, a way that gives it more power. It seems pearls arenât automatic. When an oyster — who must ordinarily have an enviably calm life lying around […]
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