A sermon based on Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on July 12, 2020 by Rev. Scott Elliott When I first saw what Lectionary lesson from Matthew was up for today, I was a little disappointed. The parable is in the play Godspell and I like it, but I have read, rehearsed and […]
A sermon based on: Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio, on July 5, 2020* 2010 by Rev. Scott Elliott I LOVE THE FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND! Every year, as far as I can remember, it has been full of great feasts and celebration. Tastes. Smells. Sights. Sounds. Parades. Colors. Unified exaltation by many […]
A sermon based on Psalm 13 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on June 28, 2020 by Rev. Scott Elliott The scripture I an using to frame this sermon is the Lectionary Psalm for today. Psalm 13 is short. It starts with a lament over not sensing God’s presence in the midst of deep sorrow. The […]
A sermon based on Genesis 22: 1-14 Given at mount Vernon, Ohio on June 21, 2020 * by Scott Elliott The traditional interpretation of our lesson today is that Abraham prepares to cruelly sacrifice his son because he believed God’s voice told him to do so. While preachers and teachers have long lauded this interpretation […]
A sermon based on Matthew 6:24-33 Given at Mount Vernon Ohio on June 14, 2020* by Rev Scott Elliott Today’s scripture is most often heard as an instruction to just have faith God will take care of you, because, look, God takes care of the birds and the flowers and we are of even more […]
A sermon based on Matthew 28:16-20 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on June 6, 2020 by Rev. Scott Elliott In our last two worship services we discussed the Luke/Acts narratives of the Ascension and Pentecost. You may recall that the end story for Jesus – as a resurrected man– in that narrative is quite different […]
A sermon based on Acts 2:1-11 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on May 31, 2020 by Rev. Scott Elliott Last week we considered how The Book of the Acts of the Apostles reports in Chapter one that forty-days after Easter Jesus told his followers that they would be baptized by the Holy Spirit in a […]
A sermon based on Acts 1:1-11 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on May 24, 2020* by Rev. Scott Elliott In the Gospels accounts of Jesus it is recorded that he taught– even came back from death to teach– his followers about the Reign of God, what the reading today calls “The Kingdom of God.” Jesus […]
A sermon based on Acts 17:22-31 Given at Mount Vernon Ohio on May 17, 2020* By Rev. Scott Elliott One of the first words in today’s Lectionary reading from Acts is Areopagus. A word that is easy to stumble on. It’s the name of an open air place just outside of Athens where a local […]
A sermon based on John 14:1-14 given at Mount Vernon, Ohio on May 10, 2020* by Rev. Scott Elliott I am pretty sure I have mentioned before that a skill I learned as a lawyer worked really well at seminary. It was to take and flip opposing arguments or evidence and make them work for […]