[RCL] Acts 5:27-32; Psalm 118:14-29 or Psalm 150; Revelation 1:4-8; John 20:19-31 Today’s sermon illustration is that odd picture that’s included. It’s an old Charles Addams cover from a 1981 New Yorker magazine. The image shows a typical affluent Addams New Yorker standing at the door inside his apartment. The door is made of steel…

Jesus came and stood among his disciples. Anywhere else in the Gospel story and this would not be a strange statement. It must have occurred countless times before this particular moment, yet this time was different. This time, the presence of Jesus in the midst of his disciples was not only unexpected, but it was…

Doubt is a complicated matter. It can indicate a critical mind, one that asks questions, and never takes things at face value. The opposite is a gullible mind: one that is the delight of unscrupulous sales persons, dangerous politicians, and many televangelists. There’s another type of doubt, one driven by deep emotion, an emotion stimulated…

We all yearn for peace and quiet, at least some of the time. We live in a noisy, intrusive world to the point when moments of silence may feel terrifying. Even when we are relaxing, there’s a good chance that the telephone will ring – a sales pitch for something we don’t need – or…

Every night the same routine played out. It happened around the time the 11 o’clock news was on. As a child she usually slept right through it, but there were those occasions when she’d rouse from sleep, hearing the familiar gait of her father’s footsteps walking first to the kitchen door, then to the front…

Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia! Well, here we are again on Thomas Sunday. Good old doubting Thomas. Thomas could be the patron saint of modern people. Thomas was reported to have been a twin, and it’s possible he was an identical twin—as such, he would have known all about mistaken…

Once when a certain preacher launched into a children’s sermon, she was confronted by a visiting child, an eight-year-old friend of a regular member. The boy was new to this church, but was a regular attendee at another congregation that did not have children’s sermons. Nevertheless, the visitor tried his best to follow the line…

John tells us of a very special meeting between Jesus and ten of his disciples. Let’s go back for a few days so we can better understand what John has to tell us. Jesus and his twelve disciples had gathered for, what we think was the Passover meal, on Thursday (Maundy Thursday) in fellowship –…

This gospel reading ends with, There were many other signs that Jesus worked and the disciples saw, but they are not recorded in this book. These are recorded so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and that believing this you may have life through his name. The Gospel…