Christ Church Sermons by The Rev. Dr. Richard Miles (Page 4)

He’s coming! That’s what the word advent means: a coming. But this advent isn’t about just anyone’s coming. It’s about God’s coming; coming to us. Today begins the Holy season of Advent; a time to get ourselves ready for God’s arrival among us in the form of a baby; Jesus. There’s only one thing to do now: get ready. Be Prepared!

There are countless reasons for giving thanks on Thanksgiving Day. The Apostle Paul, however, only lists six in our passage from his letter to the Colossians. In each one, though, we see how God’s presence has caused a difference in the living of our lives; real reasons for this season. I only preach on two of these. So, this sermon is considerably shorter than most, and is yet another reason for thankfulness.

What would Utopia look like to you? Would it be a place of endless recreation, or learning, or perhaps, simply a place where everyone gets along and everybody cares about every other persons’ happiness? There are as many ideas of Utopia as there are human beings to imagine it. The Prophet Isaiah lays out a vision for Utopia this morning, but in this case it’s not his vision, but God’s vision. As such, this vision has real power to heal…

Should a church be first about building a building, or should its first concern be ministry for the needy? This question is often asked of congregations, and even by congregations; especially when money is being sought to build or maintain a building. But this question creates a false dichotomy. The Bible does not call us to make a choice between these two ideals. As the Prophet Haggai makes clear, both things are required. Serving God by building a place for…

It’s All Saints Sunday, and today we celebrate the lives of the saints; all those who have lived life with love, and now live in peace and joy with God. But, that’s not all there is to this day of celebration. Today we also recognize that we are the saints now, in training. That training is all about learning to do one thing: spreading light, being light, in a darkened world.

Where would you rather be? We seem to live these days wishing to be somewhere else than where we are. For many of us, just about any other place would suffice. But, for our Psalm writer, there is only one place that he would rather be, and that is in the House of the Lord. It’s no wonder; being in the presence of God is where paradise is found, and where we can learn how to bring paradise to others.

OK…this is a stewardship sermon. It’s about giving to God’s work in the world. WAIT! Don’t click away! Keep reading! This sermon is my personal story of how I became a “First Fruits” giver and tither. The words of the Prophet Malachi were a big part of what guided me there. In those words, God asks us to put him to the test; a test to see if he will bless us for our faithfulness or not. This is my…

What would it be like to have no regrets? We all have things we are sorry for: people we have hurt, opportunities we’ve missed, good things we could have done better. But, what if there is a way to live so that our lives can be set free of the burden of regret? Is that really possible? In our Gospel lesson from Luke, Jesus’ story of the Rich Man and Poor Lazarus tells us how this can be done.

Honestly! What kind of a parable is this? Is Jesus really telling us to emulate a crook? In a word, no! But there is a piece of information missing from this story that will explain the whole thing. Take a look, and see how the “Dishonest Steward” has an honest lesson for us.

“Who needs to get up, get dressed, drive in, be harangued, and then be asked to pay for the experience?”  That’s what a lot of people think when asked to come to Church. If it’s such an ordeal, then why bother?  I get it! As one who has often experienced and worshiped God on my own, I really do get it. So, if we can worship God on our own, then why go to the effort to do it together,…