When you step into the Lord’s house, he gives you a liturgical imagination to see with eyes of faith all of his goodness and grace.
The thief is the prophetic picture of all of us, staring hopelessly hopeful at the Son of God, begging to hear the same words.
The Solas are not just doctrinal statements. They are the grammar of Christian comfort.

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The following is the first installment of an adaptation of John T. Pless' Advent Preaching Workshop. In it you will find an order of service, suggested hymns and readings, and notes for sermon preparations.
The following is the second installment an adaptation of John T. Pless' Advent Preaching Workshop. In it ou will find an order of service, suggested hymns and readings, and notes for sermon preparations.
The following is an excerpt from Handing Over the Goods: Determined to Proclaim Nothing But Christ Jesus & Him Crucified - (A Festschrift in Honor of Dr. James A. Nestingen), edited by Steven Paulson and Scott Keith (1517 Publishing, 2018). Edited and used with permission.
Advent is the church’s entrance once again into the holy rhythm of Christ’s life. The bride who longed to see her Bridegroom come in glory, now longs anew to see Him come in humility, gently, even swaddled up in a manger.
I must admit, I have never liked preaching on (or reading) a Palm Sunday text to begin Advent. All three years in the lectionary include this option, but in nine years of pastoral ministry I went this route only once (It was my first year). Why did I not do it again?
I think we can all agree that there is not a more popular writer on Christ Hold Fast than Chad Bird.
It is important to note the “mission” character of this text. Indeed, these would have been strange words for Isaiah’s audience. The Israelites had taken the covenantal promise and the language of separation and chosen to mean that the message of salvation and restoration was meant for no one but them.
It is somewhat rare that preachers get a blessing as a sermon text, but that is what Jude gives us. The genre is entirely fitting for the Last Sunday of the Church Year, especially if your congregation has had a tough year (you know what I mean).
Stay alert! Stay awake! Do not get too comfortable. Do not grow complacent. Whatever you do, do not fall asleep. The day is coming. It is coming soon. Time is short. So, stay awake! Stay alert!
When our mind betrays us, our body fails us, and our soul can’t be comforted, our Jesus now saves us.
This week we come to the end of our readings in Hebrews for Series B. There is a lot here, so rather than argue about the cohesion of the text, which I hope becomes obvious, let us get right to a few avenues for preaching. The pericope from 10:11-25 fits beautifully with the week’s theme and church’s preparation for Christ’s return.
Christian preaching always has an eschatological ring to it. It takes place during the “in-between” times—the days between Jesus’ first and second comings. But this eschatological perspective tends to fade into the background as Christians (and preachers) go about their business week-in and week-out. The end of the church year provides an opportunity to reorient the Christian life around Jesus’ promise to return.