Sermons on the First Readings
Series II, Cycle A
Tony S. Everett, Schuyler Rhodes, Stan Purdum, David J. Kalas, Timothy J. Smith

Modern life presents many difficult and challenging situations -- but as the Hebrew scriptures tell us in rich detail, that's nothing new for God's people. Indeed, the Bible shares the epic story of how God's faithful followers were formed and shaped through centuries of trial by fire. In this inspiring collection of powerful messages based on the First Readings from Cycle A of the Revised Common Lectionary, five master practitioners of the homiletic craft explore passages from the Old Testament and the Book of Acts, and show how the wisdom contained in those ancient texts offers vital moral and spiritual guidance for contemporary living. Building on stories in which God moves ordinary people to extraordinary heights, these sermons for each Sunday and major celebration throughout the entire church year passionately proclaim the good news of God's continuing presence -- and the possibilities that offers for our lives, our churches, and the world.

This essential resource is useful for:
* Fresh homiletical approaches to the lectionary texts
* Inspiring preaching illustrations and sermon starters
* Understanding scripture passages
* Bible study and discussion groups
* Personal devotions and inspirational reading

Tony S. Everett is currently the Dewey F. Beam Professor of Pastoral Care at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, South Carolina, where he also consults with congregations in spiritual growth, leadership training, and conflict management. Everett previously served in the parish ministry in Ohio and Massachusetts, and during his teaching ministry he has served as an interim pastor for numerous congregations. He has also directed a community health center in Angola, New York. Everett has written pastoral care articles for The Clergy Journal and daily devotions for Christ in Our Homes (Fortress Press), and he is the author of Where Is God in All This? (CSS). Everett is a graduate of Youngstown State University (summa cum laude), Hamma School of Theology, and Boston University School of Theology.

Schuyler Rhodes is the pastor of Temple United Methodist Church in San Francisco, California. Prior to that he was the executive director of the Wesley Foundation, a broad-based campus ministry at the University of California, Berkeley. Rhodes has served as a delegate to several consultations of the World Council of Churches, secretary of the Social and International Affairs Committee of the World Methodist Council, and chair of the board of directors for Pastors for Peace and the Interreligious Foundation for Community Organizing. He has also been a consultant on Peace and Justice Ministries for the United Methodist Church's General Board of Global Ministries. Rhodes is currently the "Preaching the Psalms" columnist for Emphasis (www.sermonsuite.com). He is an honors graduate of the State University of New York at Potsdam and Drew University Theological School.

Stan Purdum is the pastor of Centenary United Methodist Church in Waynesburg, Ohio. He has served as the editor for the preaching journals Emphasis and Homiletics, and has written extensively for both the religious and secular press. Purdum is the author of New Mercies I See (CSS) and He Walked in Galilee (Abingdon Press), as well as two accounts of long-distance bicycle journeys, Roll Around Heaven All Day and Playing in Traffic. Stan is a graduate of Youngstown State University, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, and Drew University Theological School.

David J. Kalas is the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Whitewater, Wisconsin. Prior to moving to Wisconsin in 1996, he served for 15 years in youth and pastoral ministries in Virginia and Ohio. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia and Union Theological Seminary of Virginia.

Timothy J. Smith is currently the senior pastor of First United Methodist Church in Millersville, Pennsylvania, and he has served several other congregations in eastern Pennsylvania during the past two decades. Over 100 of Smith's sermons have been published in the periodical Dynamic Preaching, and he is the author of the CSS titles No Particular Place To Go and Lectionary Tales for the Pulpit (Series II, Cycle A), as well as a contributing author to Sermons on the First Readings (Series I, Cycle B). Smith received his M.Div. degree with an emphasis on preaching and worship from United Theological Seminary and his B.A. degree in American history from Millersville University.