Church Plant Update

Fall of 2010, myself and a group of friends planted "Eucharist Church" in downtown Hamilton, which has been an amazing adventure.

However, it has also been a lot of work, and I no longer have the time to update this site with any of the most recent teachings.

That said, all Eucharist teachings, including my own, will be available on our website, and will be updated regularly.

Come visit Eucharist, and Hamilton; which is probably the greatest city in the world.

Grace/peace/love

Kevin

eucharistchurch.ca

facebook.com/eucharistchurch

eucharistsermons.tumblr.com

Two Crucifixions

Proverbs 16:25 - 11.07.2010

Two Crucifixions

From the series: "Peril"

Hope Fellowship asked me back again, and were hoping I could speak from the Proverbs on the theme: "We rationalize our sin to our own peril".

We got to ask some great questions about what sin is, why God stands against it, and what it means to be living in the Kingdom of God.

Download "Two Crucifixions" from Hopefellowship.ca

An Empty Tomb

Mark 16 - 27.06.2010

An Empty Tomb

From the series: "Who is This?" - Irony in the Gospel of Mark

Mark has acted as a skillful tour guide, taking his readers from the River of Jordan to Jerusalem, from the height of a mountain to the lows of a Roman Cross.

And in the end there is only one place left to take us: an empty tomb.

Download "An Empty Tomb" from Freechurch.ca

The Upside-Down Kingdom

Mark 10: 35-45 - 13.06.2010

The Upside-Down Kingdom

From the series: "Who is This?" - Irony in the Gospel of Mark

Glory can be described as: "the quality of splendid, remarkable appearance".

We've seen his glory revealed on a mountain, in miracles, on his entrance into Jerusalem; but all of these pale in comparison to his moment of greatest glory.

What is Jesus' greatest moment of glory, and what does that mean for those of us following him?

Sermon not recorded

Preaching Demons

Mark 1, 3, and 5 - 30.05.2010

Preaching Demons

From the series: "Who is This?" - Irony in the Gospel of Mark

Jesus said to the storm "Peace. Be still."

And the chaos calms, the wind dies down, and the waves subside.

And the disciples look at each other and say "Who is this?" "Who is this man, that even the wind and the waves obey him?"

"Who is this?"

This is the question that runs through the book of Mark, and the answer lies in the most unexpected places.

Download "Preaching Demons" from Freechurch.ca

"What is that to you?"

Proverbs 11:13, 29:19; Leviticus 19:16; John 21 - 09.05.10

"What is that to you?"

I was invited to Hope Fellowship Church in the Oshawa area, and asked to speak about gossip from Proverbs. It seemed to connect well with an older teaching I did called "What is that to you?" that never got recorded, so I decided to tie it all together.

Sometimes when we gossip we think we are talking about them, but really we are talking about ourselves.

Download "What is that to you?" from Hopefellowship.ca

Walls

Heb 4.12; Eph 6.17; Rev 1.16 - 02.05.10
Walls

Everyone has a story. Every story has it's own "good-news," it's own Gospel. What happens when the story of Jesus collides with all these other gospels?

Download "Walls" from Freechurch.ca

Influences:

Wall and Piece - Banksy

How can the Bible be Authoritative? - N.T. Wright

What you can't hear:

In this sermon you can't hear the stain of the empire! A little back story? In the live sermon I mentioned a few brands by name, intending to tear them down and reveal some of their agendas. It was all well and good until a wise friend of mine pointed out (after the service) that I had actually just given them advertising that money can't buy! This made me really frustrated (they played me like a fool!), and so I vowed to not let it exist online forever, but to censor out all the branding.

So this is the clean version... you can let your children listen to it without fear of them becoming corrupted by evil companies!

Lay Down Your Branches

Luke 19 - 28.03.10
Lay Down Your Branches

Jesus is riding a donkey, entering into Jerusalem, knowing it will lead to his death. The people see him coming and run out, dropping their clothes on the road, ripping palm branches off the trees and laying them down before him.

But they've done this before.

This is how they treat a Messiah, a warrior, a deliverer, a king.

But Jesus is making it very clear: "I'm not that type of King"

A look into the counter-cultural, subversive Kingship of Jesus.

Download "Lay Down Your Branches" from Freechurch.ca

Fruit of the Spirit: Self-control

Galatians 5 - 21.03.10
Fruit of the Spirit: Self-control

Our journey through one of the most life-filled sections of Scripture concludes! When someone asks you: "What is Christianity all about?" I imagine that you (like me) take them to the Fruit of the Spirit! You say to them: "Being a follower of Jesus is all about love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and ... self-control?" ... Really? That's where it ends?

Because to many of us, self-control just sounds so dead. When contrasted with all of these beautiful things that hum with life, self-control sounds like a let down. But maybe this is because we don't understand it properly? Maybe if we really understood self-control, and understood why we need it, it would change everything!

Download "Self-control" from Freechurch.ca

Watch the music video that accompanied "Self-control"

Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness

Galatians 5 - 28.02.10
Fruit of the Spirit: Goodness

Throughout scripture we see different sides to the sea. The sea first appears in Genesis as this raging chaos, until the Spirit calms it. It violently destroys in the story of Noah, but in the Exodus, the sea becomes a protector and guardian for the Israelites. To the Israelites, the sea is a place of uncertainty, a place that could be good to them, or could be evil.

Throughout scripture, we learn that the human heart is like the sea.

Download "Goodness" from Freechurch.ca

Watch the music video that accompanied "Goodness"

Fruit of the Spirit: Joy

Galatians 5 - 31.01.10
Fruit of the Spirit: Joy

Joy is a strange thing to dissect. What is joy? It it happiness, or something deeper? Is it temporal? Where does it come from?

Download "Joy" from Freechurch.ca

Watch the music video that accompanied "Joy"

Influences:

Nothing influenced me more than this. Take the time to meditate on it.

Reconstructing Christmas: Celebrating

Revelation 5 - 20.12.09
Reconstructing Christmas: Celebrating

In the book of Revelation we are given the image of a scroll. Inside of this scroll are written all of the promises of God: peace, love, reconciliation, redemption, comfort, glory, joy... but no one could be found who was worthy to open the scroll.

Download "Reconstructing Christmas: Celebrating" from Freechurch.ca

Reconstructing Christmas: Feasting

Genesis to Revelation - 06.12.09
Reconstructing Christmas: Feasting

In the book of Genesis, the story starts with people, God, and food. At the end of the Bible, in Revelation, there are people from every nation, God, and a feast.

When Jesus tells his disciples that he is going to be betrayed, he is sharing a meal with them, and when he resurrects they eat again.

Why is there such a focus on food in the Bible? What does the meal say about the new creation? Why should we feast?


Download "Reconstructing Christmas: Feasting" from Freechurch.ca

What you can't hear:

On the Tuesday after this sermon we gathered together for our Winter 09 Love Feast. It was a real feast, complete with a five course vegan meals, beautiful aesthetics, live music, and great people from our Church and the neighborhood. In the center of it all was a seat of glory for God, to remind us where He belongs in our feasting. It was one of the most serene experiences of my life.

Influences:

Love Feasts!

I think you're in my seat...

2 Corinthians 5: 17-20 - 22.11.09
I think you're in my seat...

A lot of people talk about how we can tell people about Jesus, but there is another question that is just as valuable: why? Why should we should bother telling people about Jesus and the gospel of reconciliation?


Download "I think you're in my seat..." from Freechurch.ca

What you can't hear:

The throne above was there for the whole sermon... just so you know.

Influences:

Surprised by Hope - N.T. Wright
II Corinthians - Frank J. Matera

Deepest Magic

1 John 4: 7-8 - 01.11.09
Deepest Magic

Every story has a force that propels it, a fuel, an engine. The Christian story claims to be the true story of the universe, the story that holds together all the other stories: what is its engine?

A sermon about a God who is eternally committed to the seemingly absurd and illogical notion that this place and these people are worth saving, and who refuses to be motivated by anything but pure, true, good, break-you-open-pour-you-out love.

Download "Deepest Magic" from Freechurch.ca

Influences:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
Harry Potter series - J.K. Rowling
The Drama of Scripture - Craig G. Bartholomew and Michael W. Goheen

"Going" and "Being"

Acts 2: 42-47 - 11.10.09
"Going" and "Being"

It's simple. So simple. But we forget it every day: church is a family.

Not a building, not a time in the week; a group of people coming together as family. We say its obvious, but we ask people: "What church do you go to?"

"What family do you go to? How was family last night? I am family shopping."

If we think of church as something that we go to, then we show up, smile, consume our spiritual goods, and go on our way. If we think of church as something that we are, then everything will change. There is a world of difference between "going" to something, and "being" something.


Sermon not recorded properly.

Influences:

Derek Webb - She must and shall go free (album)
No Perfect People Allowed - John Burke
George Hunsberger's essay in Evangelical Ecclessiology - John Stackhouse Jr.

"What is that to you?"

John 21 - 20.09.09
"What is that to you?"

There is this moment in John's Gospel where Peter betrays Jesus three times next to a charcoal fire. He is broken, ashamed, and lost. Later, the resurrected Jesus sits Peter down next to a charcoal fire and asks him three times if he loves him. Peter is forgiven, empowered, and given the most important mission of all time. His response to this incredible, personal, history-altering moment? He points to someone else and says "What about him?"

We have all been forgiven, equipped, and trusted with a mission that will change the world. Each of us has an individual calling to do things that only we can do, to bring God's Kingdom in ways only we can. How often is our response to point to the person next to us and ask "What about him? What about her? Why does he get that house? Why is she so good at that?"

Jesus' response? "What is that to you? You follow me."

A sermon about always asking "What is that to me?"

The sermon was not recorded at FreeChurch, but a similar one was at Hope Fellowship. Click for the download.

Influences

Name (Nooma) - Rob Bell
A hundred conversations with a hundred people who feel the same thing

dead people's bones

Matthew 23: 27-28 - 23.08.09
dead people's bones

Jesus points out two ways of existing. In one we are filled with living waters that overflow into life. In the other we are like a tomb filled with dead people's bones.


Not recorded.

Wrestling

Matthew 15: 21-28 - 09.08.09
Wrestling

In the ancient world, your name was more than just a title, it spoke to the core of who you were. The name of God's chosen people? Israel.

Israel means "wrestles with God."

A teaching about wrestling with God and man.

Download a clip of "Wrestling" from Freechurch.ca

Influences:

The Orthodox Heretic - Peter Rollins (specifically the parable "The Final Trail")
Kester Brewin's parable "Footprints" (http://www.kesterbrewin.com/2009/09/04/winning-a-parable-competition/)
Derek Webb - Stockholm Syndrome (album)
Being able to be honest with God about things He already knows

more like Rome

Matthew 6: 9-10 - 02.08.09
more like Rome

Earth, glory, sin, death, order, chaos, anti-kingdom, redemption, cosmos, escapism, justice, dancing and the reconciliation of all things.

What is Christianity really about?


Download 'more like Rome' from Freedomize.com

Influences

Books:
Surprised by Hope - N.T. Wright (or any of his other work, specifically 'Simply Christian')
The Drama of Scripture - Craig G. Bartholomew and Michael W. Goheen

Other:
Mockingbird - Derek Webb (Album)