This is something I regularly do with Tammy, the Associate at Lake Harriet. I do one half of the sermon, and she does the other half. It seems odd, but it works.
Normally when I preach, I preach from the gospel and the call of Peter, Andrew, James and John does have a pull. But I am drawn to the epistle for this coming Sunday: I Corinthians 1:10-18.
10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apollos," or "I belong to Cephas," or "I belong to Christ." 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power. 18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
This verse says a lot about the current state of the church. We divide ourselves on SO many issues, sexuality, war, the economy, inclusive language, that we forget what unites us: Jesus Christ. More often than not, I've learned that while I might not agree with my more conservative brothers and sisters, I do see many of them as seeking to find ways to love and serve God like I do.
I still need to do some thinking on this passage, but I think I know what I will be preaching on.
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