Eutychus

This sermon is about a young man named Eutychus, who fell to his death from a third-story windows, and was raised back to life by the apostle Paul.  The text is Acts 20:7-12.

In this message, I ask and seek to answer a number of questions:

• Did Eutychus really die, or was he just knocked unconcious?
• Did Paul raise Eutychus, or was it God?
• Why this miracle?
• How do we apply this today?

Peter, Do You Love Me?

This sermon by Rev. Gilbert Jansen focuses on John's account of the events surrounding the disciples waiting at Galilee, after the resurrection, to meet the Lord Jesus, and of the famous post-breakfast questions of Jesus, "Peter, do you love me?"

The texts for this sermon were:

• John 21:1-17 (main sermon text)
• Mark 16:5-7
• Psalm 138

Some points of interest from the sermon:

• The differentiation between agape and phileo love is discussed extensively (trust me: it's not boring).
• Pointing out that John 21:5 is better-translated in the NIV.
• Quote: "I phileo my wife, alright!"

There were many memories evoked for me in the rest of this service, too.  I can hear my brother Peter coming over the top in the choir, and what I presume to be his six-week old son Danny crying throughout.  In the pastoral prayer, Dad prays for Dorothea Meyer and Jean and Jimmy Goodsell.

The apology about the problems with the delivery of the hymn books made me smile, and helped me date the sermon - Dad only labelled the tape "10/4", so the hymn books reference helped me be certain it was 1988.

I also felt, more than ever, the truth of these words for my Dad as I heard him sing them again:

I’ll praise my Maker while I’ve breath,

And when my voice is lost in death,

Praise shall employ my nobler pow’rs;

My days of praise shall ne’er be past,

While life and thought and being last,

Or immortality endures.

Links:

• The Sermon Only
• The Entire Recording

What are you doing here?

Our family arrived in Rockhampton in late 1985, just in time for me to finish grade two in a third school. Dad started leading the church services and preaching at St Stephen's immediately, as a "licentiate".  That basically means that he had completed theological training at "The Hall", but that he hadn't yet been ordained or "called".

Sunday 30 March 1986 was Dad's first Easter as minister of St Stephen's.  The church was packed.  Some ministers would have been glad, or flattered, or impressed.  Some.

After this sermon, most of the Christmas-and-Easter crowd refused to come back to hear the "crazy Dutchman" again, but some came back the very next week, and stayed.

The texts for the service were:

• Mark 16:1-13 (sermon text)
• Luke 24:13-27 (sermon text)
• Psalm 16 (not on the recording, but referred to)

Links:

• The Sermon Only
• The Entire Recording