Sermons on Mulberry:

New Wineskins

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on May 15, 2005

1. Wineskins were made to be filled with wine. 2. New wine calls for new wineskins. 3. Wineskins were made for pouring.

Blaise Pascal was a French mathematician and philosopher. In his writings, which were entitled Pensees, he traces the logical progression of his thought on many subjects. But something happened to Pascal which was beyond logic and rational thought. After his death, his servant found a piece of ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:1-13

Denomination: Methodist

Redemptive Relationships: Our Relationship With God Series

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Oct 13, 2003

If we are to enjoy our relationship with God, we must realize 1. God is for us. 2. You have to want it. 3. You have to enter into it completely.

Ferdinand Magellan was the Spanish explorer who led the first expedition to sail around the world. As he approached the tip of Argentina, in the year 1520, he came to the region he named Tierra del Fuego (land of fire), because there were natives on the shore tending several large fires. But as ...read more

Scripture: Acts 17:24-28

Denomination: Methodist

Blindness & Light

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Jul 23, 2007

This story addresses: 1. The question of suffering. 2. The reality of spiritual blindness. 3. The hope of a new world

A recent article reported, “The blind will be able to see the light with a new bionic eye implant which is said to be available within 2 years. The development of the bionic eye will at last restore blind people’s sight. The prototype high tech implant will be fitted to approx 50 to 75 patients, ...read more

Scripture: John 9:1-11, John 9:1-26

Denomination: Methodist

What Is Faith?

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Apr 22, 2007

1. Faith is born from doubt. 2. Faith brings a reward.

A recent headline in the Sacramento Bee read: “Ignorance of the Good Book Reaches Biblical Proportions.” You can say that pun again! The other day I read about a chain of supermarkets in the U.K. which decided to lecture shoppers about Easter. In a press release sent to the London Times ...read more

Denomination: Methodist

A New Attitude For A New Year

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Jan 6, 2007

1. Be authentic. 2. Be of good cheer. 3. Be aware of God.

Charles Swindoll says, “The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important: than facts, than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do, than appearances, ...read more

Scripture: Romans 5:1-5

Denomination: Methodist

Living The Life

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Oct 15, 2006

A look at the lifestyle of the Christian

The story goes that: “A young soldier and his commanding officer got on a train together. The only available seats were across from an attractive young woman who was traveling with her grandmother. As they engaged in pleasant conversation, the soldier and the young woman kept eyeing one another; ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:17-31

Denomination: Methodist

The Added Dimension

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Nov 13, 2006

The Holy Spirit 1. Inwardly transforms us. 2. Spiritually empowers us. 3. Liberates us from the bondage of sin.

Earlier this month one of the country’s leading evangelical pastors finally admitted to using drugs and being involved in homosexual relationships. The irony was not only that Ted Haggard was a pastor of a 14,000 member church and president of the National Association of Evangelicals, but that he ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:4-8

Denomination: Methodist

Looking For Pennies

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Nov 19, 2001

Looking for Pennies (story from Annie Dillard) is important because: 1. The created world is a window into the heart of God. 2. The created world provides opportunities to praise the goodness of God. 3. The created world is a source of joy for thankful

Annie Dillard, in her wonderful Pulitzer Prize winning book Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, tells a story about pennies. It was in her chapter entitled “Seeing” that I read her wonderful childhood story. I will let her tell it in her own words: “When I was six or seven years old, growing up in ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 3:15-17

Denomination: Methodist

Mary's Song

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Dec 9, 2001

Mary’s Song talks about: 1. Forgiveness 2. Victory and 3. Covenant

Many people have been waiting since last January for the mystery to be revealed. The Internet has been abuzz about it. Variously called “Ginger” or just plain “It,” entrepreneur Dean Kamen, a college dropout, has been claiming that his invention, the Segway Human Transporter, will transform the ...read more

Scripture: Luke 1:39-55

Denomination: Methodist

There Is Hope

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Dec 5, 2004

We have hope because of: 1. Who we are. 2. Whose we are. 3. Where we are.

On November 21, 1943, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a letter to his fiancee, Maria von Wedemeyer, while he was imprisoned by Hitler during World War II. In the letter, he talked about a spiritual lesson he was learning from his life as a prisoner. He wrote: “A prison cell, in which one waits, hopes, ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 12:14-21

Denomination: Methodist

Here Is Joy

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Dec 19, 2004

The things that rob us of joy are: 1. Living a life of isolation. 2. Living for the material world. 3. Living without Jesus.

How much money would it take to make you happy? A million dollars? Two million? Jack Whittaker, 57, won the largest undivided jackpot in U. S. History — $314.9 million — two years ago. But Jewel Whittaker, Jack’s wife, told the Charleston Gazette, “I wish all of this never would have happened. ...read more

Scripture: Luke 2:1-14

Denomination: Methodist

What On Earth Am I Here For? Series

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Feb 22, 2004

1. Why am I alive? -- To be loved by God. 2. Does my life matter? -- I was made to last forever. 3. What is my purpose? -- To get to know God.

(Note: The outline and some of the content of this sermon are from Rick Warren’s Forty Days of Purpose material.) In the scripture we have read today, Paul is speaking to a group of Greek philosophers. Now these men were not atheists or agnostics. Neither were they anti-religious. In ...read more

Scripture: Acts 17:22-24

Denomination: Methodist

Healing The Blind Man

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Aug 27, 2001

Jesus Christ rewards those who are: 1. Persistent with him. 2. Passionate about him. 3. Pursuing him.

Do you ever feel like life is passing you by? That is how Bartimaeus felt. He had been sitting on the sidelines of life. He was begging because he was blind and had no way of making a living for himself. He could not go on a trip as the people with Jesus were doing. The whole crowd was ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:46-52

Denomination: Methodist

Getting Balance Into Your Life

Contributed by Rodney Buchanan on Sep 9, 2001

In order to get balance into your life: 1. You must discover your purpose. 2. You must establish your priorities. 3. You must make your plan.

I receive somewhere between 25 and 50 e-mails a day — sometimes more. Faxes come into the office. There is a pile of mail at our home and the church every day. I hate to think of how many times the phone rings — and I even carry a cell phone to make sure I can always be reached. The ...read more

Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:1-11

Denomination: Methodist

"Genuine Faith”

Contributed by Dr. Jerry Morrissey on Sep 27, 2001

Year C. Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost October 7th, 2001 Luke 17: 5-10 Heavenly Father, thank you for genuine faith, which can accomplish what experience, reason, and probability would disallow. Amen. Title: “Genuine faith”

Year C. Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost October 7th, 2001 Luke 17: 5-10 Heavenly Father, thank you for genuine faith, which can accomplish what experience, reason, and probability would disallow. Amen. Title: “Genuine faith” Jesus teaches about faith as a quality and the quality of a disciple’s ...read more

Scripture: Luke 17:5-10

Denomination: Lutheran