Ernest F. Campbell Selected Sermons

  Proper 20 (A) Fair Deal or Loving Gift! September 19, 1987 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell In today’s lectionary we are presented with two skillfully crafted stories calculated to disturb us into a new way of living. The Old Testament story of Jonah is aimed at those Jews who rejected the hope that God’s love and forgiveness was a gift to all . The Gospel story of the last-minute workers is aimed at those in the Church who reject the concept that God cares for all and in His sovereign wisdom can include who He wants, when He wants them, and under what conditions. Both stories are intentionally unfair. Jonah would say it is not fair for a city with a notorious reputation for bloody violence and murder to go unpunished. And the early workers would say that it is unfair for the last-minute workers to receive equal pay with those who worked twelve hours through the heat of the day. Both stories allow us to examine our attitudes and beliefs in contrast to God’s concern and response to H...

  Proper 19 (A) The Forgiveness Initiative September 16, 1990 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell The theme of Sunday’s propers is forgiveness. With that in mind I would like to begin my sermon with a confession. When I sang in the Men and Boys’ Choir at Christ Church Winnetka , I can remember hearing sermons on sin. After several sermons, I figured out that sin was bad. I also know that bad people were put in jail. I was not in jail; therefore, the sermon, I presumed, was not for me. What was my sin? I was in a spiritual coma . A coma is a physical condition in which one is conscious of nothing. It is a very serious state and can lead to death. From a spiritual point of view, according to Louis Evely in his book The Word of God , there are innumerable souls in a state of “coma.” The process of sin goes something like this: We think of something that will not be good for us, or some other person. We savor the possibilities. We act upon the idea. We form a habit of acting. We fall into a...

  Proper 17 (A) Transformed August 29, 1999 By Rev. Ernest. F. Campbell The verse I want to focus on is from today’s Epistle to the Romans : “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.” The same verse reads like this from The Message : (keep in mind this is a paraphrase and not a strict translation) – “Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out.” I might express the same thought like this: I try – we all try – to fit in where we live. Where that promotes God’s purpose…. good. Where it gets in the way…. help us to change, to be converted, to be transformed. Transformed into recognizable disciples.  One of my favorite hymns says it like this: “Take my life and let it be consecrated, Lord to thee.” Becoming a Christian disciple i...

Proper 16 (A) The Question August 26, 1981 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell Today’s Gospel contains the essential question asked by Jesus to all those who would be his disciples. The fact that Jesus asked the question implies our freedom to respond to it from the truth of our own experience. Jesus asks, “Who do you say that I am?” Never mind what somebody else says, never mind what it says in some book. Who do you say…not think…but who do you say I am? What do you confess with your lips…out loud, so others can hear it…about who I am? The answer that came from Peter’s lips must have shocked his own ears. Peter was a Jew. The Jews believed that the name of God was so holy that it must never be spoken aloud. So, in response to Jesus’ question, Peter says…“You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God .” He says what a pious Jew would hardly dare to say: “You are God.” Why didn’t the other disciples appreciate that Jesus, the carpenter’s son, was at the same time God Almighty? Why only Peter...

Proper 14 (A) When We Have That Sinking Feeling August 12, 1984 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell How do we grow in faith? We know and understand the process of growing in knowledge.  You begin as a beginner in some subject or field of study—weather prediction, writing, arithmetic—and, as we master the basic fundamentals, we advance to more challenging exercises and complicated problems. Normally, we can track our advance by comparing grades or grade levels with other students working in the same field. When a dedicated student produces superior work over a prescribed period of time, they may earn the right to be called Doctor, as a recognition of their ability to apply their understanding in creative ways and so advance their field of knowledge toward new frontiers. Our growth in faith is not nearly so orderly or systematic. When Nicodemus , whom we might call Dr. Nicodemus, came to Jesus to discover more about Our Lord’s powerful faith, Jesus told Nicodemus that he would have to rely o...

Proper 12 (A) Kingdom Building July 27, 2008 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell I grew up in Winnetka, Illinois . “Winnetka” was the Indian word for “beautiful land.” Winnetka is located on the shores of Lake Michigan and it truly is a wonderful place to live. If you were a kid growing up in Winnetka, you could consider yourself fortunate indeed! I was a member of the Christ Church Winnetka Men and Boys’ Choir . Over the fourteen years of membership in that choir, I heard a lot of sermons. The one text that really troubled me was our Lord saying, “If your enemy strikes you on the cheek, turn the other cheek.” That, I thought to myself, would be a very hard, dumb thing to do. That is not how things work in the real world. However, as it turns out, turning the other cheek would be easy compared to additional expectations for citizenship in God’s Kingdom . Jesus said, “Love one another as I have loved you.” What kind of love was that? As our Lord lived it, it would be a forgiving, understanding,...

Proper 11 (A) God Gets the Last Word! July 21, 1996 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell People have told me that when they attend a funeral they have sometimes wondered if they were at the right church. They hear the minister recount a list of the deceased’s praiseworthy attributes, none of which seem to match their experience of the departed. Having been the minister at many funerals for people I have never met, I hope you would agree that the minister is on-the-spot. It would be inexcusable to make the eulogy sound like headlines from the National Enquirer with no chance for rebuttal. The truth is, we see life only in parts. We can never know the entire person. You don’t know all there is to know about me (thank God), and I don’t know all there is to know about you (thank God). It is possible that someone we think of as a saint is…. through the eyes of another…. A despicable scumball! Carl Jung wrote: “The brighter the halo the smellier the feet.” As one bishop explained to me, “You can only...

Proper 10 (A) We Never Know July 14, 2002 By Rev. Ernest F. Campbell What I am holding in my hand, I learned as a young boy to call a “ lucky stone .” It was one of the many special rewards of some serious beachcombing on the shores of Lake Michigan in Winnetka, Illinois. I still think they’re pretty neat. Not long ago Margaret and I found this one on the Oregon coast. I see it as one of Mother Nature’s works of art. The result of many years, decades, centuries (who knows how long) of the eroding effects of the friction of sand and water. I offer it today as a symbol; not of luck, but of perseverance . Action: Put the red ribbon through the hole of the stone—then hang it around my neck. If there is any luck in this “lucky stone” it would be the luck of finding it in time to use it as a sermon illustration. The way I see it, my chances of good fortune were about the same as anyone else walking the beach. Admittedly, I may have a more practiced eye. I’ve never had much faith in luck. ...