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St. Stephen's Episcopal Church

215 N. 7th, Terre Haute, Indiana

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A Word: In My Backyard

Sermons · February 16, 2020

blessing and abundance in a stuck-together world
Epiphany 6A | Matthew 5:21-37

In My Backyard
Photo by Caio Resende from Pexels

Sometimes I walk up here eager to tell you a story. Often it’s reminding you of the grand arc of the Gospel. Sometimes its poetry. Usually, though, I look for a hook. Something to pull you into the story so we can explore a problem and the grace.

And sometimes we get a really different story. We get a gospel that jumps from one fire to another and then another and then another. In those moments it seems that direct is best.

So here we are the Sermon on the Mount. Matthew 5. We’ve heard the blessing of the beatitudes and the universality of God’s grace. Then suddenly we’re tackling commandments.

Do you think God’s not into murder? God’s not into thinking about murder.
Adultery? Same deal.
Divorce? Guess what?
Swearing oaths? You’re not going to like this one!

It is easy to be confused by this hostility. In a sense it comes out of nowhere. And to many well-meaning Christians, this passage is truly outrageous.

So let’s dig deeper…


The full text may be found here.

For a limited time, you may find the audio here.

Filed Under: Sermons Tagged With: blessing, Epiphany 6A, Matthew 5:21-37, Sermon on the Mount, The Law

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CONTACT

St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church
215 N. 7th St
Terre Haute, IN 47807

812-232-5165

officeadmin@ststephensth.org

ABOUT

St. Stephen’s is a sacramental community following Jesus’s Way of Love.

We worship on Sundays at 8 & 10.

AFFILIATIONS

St. Stephen’s is a member of The Episcopal Church and congregation of the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis.

St. Stephen’s is a member of the Wabash Valley Homeless Coalition

PARKING

St. Stephen’s is across from Indiana State University. Nearby parking lots are run by ISU and are free after 5pm weekdays and are free all weekend long. 

Five marked spots in the lot directly behind the church are available during the week.

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