Long and Short Biblical Sermons

Acts 2:14-28, The first Pentecost sermon (10/26/20)

Pentecost, also called the Feast of Weeks because it was held exactly 7 weeks after Passover, was one of the three holy days on which every Jewish man had to go to Jerusalem (Deuteronomy 16:16). As I understand it, Jews outside Palestine weren't required to attend every year, but many did. For this reason, just a few days after the Ascension the city was packed with people from out of town, many of whom did not speak Aramaic. Naturally they are surprised to hear a new message in their own languages. Peter immediately takes the opportunity to preach the first sermon after the death and resurrection of Jesus. He takes as his primary scripture text a passage from Joel 2:28-32. Just as we frequently have a reading from the Psalms in addition to the sermon text, Peter uses a second passage from Psalms 16:8-11.

One thing I like about the NET Bible is that it shows clearly where the NT quotes the OT. You need a Bible with cross-references. Have I ever mentioned that?

Acts 2:29-41, The first Pentecost sermon (10/27/20)

Preaching in the Church got off to a great start. Peter's powerful sermon, not to mention the miraculous presentation of the gospel message in their own languages, brought about 3,000 people to belief in Christ. Notice that only the basic message of the sermon was recorded; Peter apparently preached at some length (vs. 40).

Acts 3:9-26, An extemporaneous sermonette (10/23/20)

You might be surprised to learn how much time your pastor spends on the sermon each week. Probably the average is somewhere between 15 and 20 hours. The pastor gets an idea, spends a lot of time reading the scripture to see what it says about the idea, maybe consults the Hebrew or Greek, and probably consults some commentaries, and prays for guidance. And that's all before the writing starts! Very few sermons are given off the cuff. When a lame man asked Peter and John for alms (money, food, or clothing), they didn't have any. So they healed him instead, which as you can imagine drew quite a crowd. There was no time to prepare, but Peter preached a brief, completely off-the-cuff sermon anyway. He used the healing of the lame man as a illustration of the healing power of Jesus, and he said that Jesus' power is a sign that he is the Messiah of God.

Acts 6:8 – 7:8, The long history of long sermons: Steven (10/28/20)

A long time ago when I had to give a presentation as part of a day-long hiring interview, a friend who already worked there said he would come to the presentation and "nod and smile." He knew that getting listeners to nod and smile is important to the success of any speech. Stephen is put on trial for blasphemy, and his defense is a sermon. He begins with a long and accurate history of the Jewish nation. The members of the Sanhedrin knew all this history, and I suspect that for much of the first part of his sermon, they were nodding, whether or not they were smiling.

Acts 7:9-29, The long history of long sermons: Steven (10/29/20)

Stephen continues his sermon by summarizing the history of the Jews in Egypt.

Acts 7:30-43, The long history of long sermons: Steven (10/30/20)

Stephen continues his lengthy sermon with a summary of the history of the Jews in the desert. By now, if I were a member of the Sanhedrin, I'd be thinking, "Why is this guy being accused of anything? He really knows his history, and he seems to be a perfectly orthodox Jew."

Acts 7:44-54, The long history of long sermons: Steven (11/02/20)

I must have been about 12 when the pastor came to visit one evening and told us he wouldn't be coming back to our church for the next year. We liked him a lot and naturally wanted to know why he was leaving. He said he thought "it was better than being ridden out of town on a rail." The Church has a long history of long sermons, but as we see with Stephen, there's also a long history of rejecting preaching that we find uncomfortable. At least our pastor was in no danger of being stoned. When preaching pinches, possibly we should be paying very close attention.

Acts 6:1-6, 8:1, 4-8, 8:26-40, 21:8-9, Preaching by a Certified Lay Minister (11/03/20)

In the United Methodist Church, we have Certified Lay Ministers who can conduct worship, perform congregational care, preach, lead small groups, and so on, under the supervision of clergy. In the very early Church, the twelve Apostles were not able to take care of all the day-to-day details of ministry – remember that by this time the Church numbered well over 5,000 people! – without neglecting their own prayer, study, and evangelism. The Apostles appointed seven lay persons to do some of the work. We just read a sermon by one of them, Stephen, and now we learn that there was another powerful preacher and evangelist among their number, Philip. After Stephen's death, almost all of the Christians left Jerusalem. Far from wiping out the community, it gave them the opportunity to spread the Gospel throughout Judea and Samaria.

Acts 10:26-43, A Sermon to the Unchurched (11/04/20)

This little sermon in a gentile household is part of a much longer story that begins in Acts 10:1 and goes on until the end of the chapter, until 11:18, or until right now, depending on how you look at it. Peter's acceptance of Cornelius and his family and friends into the Church is the official beginning of evangelism to those outside the Jewish community.

Acts 13:13-25, Guest Preachers in Antioch (11/05/20)

Does your church ever have guest preachers? During the years I've been at St. John's, we've had a couple of bishops, several district superintendents, at least a dozen retired pastors, several missionaries, a few certified lay ministers, lay leaders representing several charitable organizations, and numerous lay speakers from St. John's in our pulpit – all as guest preachers. In first-century synagogues, a respected visitor might be asked to read the scripture or to speak to the congregation. (We see this numerous times in the ministry of Jesus, for example.) Today and tomorrow we will read a sermon delivered by Paul when he was invited to speak in the synagogue in Antioch.

Acts 13:26-43, Guest preachers in Antioch (11/06/20)

Paul continues to preach as a guest in the synagogue of Antioch. Notice how he interprets Jesus' death and resurrection completely in terms of the scripture, i.e., the Old Testament. Paul studied under the great rabbi Gamaliel, and this type of reasoning is second nature to him when he is speaking to a Jewish audience. Also note that the audience included "Gentiles who fear God." Many Gentiles believed in God and the teachings they heard in the synagogue, but for various reasons they did not convert to Judaism.

Acts 17:15-34, A relatively unproductive sermon in Athens (11/09/20)

Notice that Paul starts preaching to the Athenians right where they are (vss. 22-23). He doesn't say what he thinks, which is, "I can't believe these people! How can they possibly think that pieces of stone have any power?" Instead, he says, "Hey, you know that 'unknown god' that you already worship? That's the one I'm here to tell you about!" He quotes one of their own poets (vs. 28), and uses logical arguments of the type they were fond of (vs. 29). He makes a few converts, but apparently no lasting church is founded in Athens.

Acts 20:1-16, The long history of long sermons: Paul (11/10/20)

Have you ever fallen asleep during a sermon? Maybe the room was too warm, or maybe you were tired. Maybe the sermon just went on and on. One of Paul's sermons is famous not for its content but for its length. Poor Eutychus! It was late, and the room was warm, and Paul went on and on. We have no idea what he said, but apparently it wasn't engaging enough to keep Eutychus from falling asleep.

Acts 26:1-18, A private sermon in the court of Festus (11/11/20)

The politics of first-century Palestine were probably about as complicated as they are today. The whole area was under Roman control, and various parts were administered by governors, procurators, tetrarchs, kings, and whatnot, both Roman and Jewish. Today we see Paul in the court of the Roman procurator Porcius Festus, who has invited King Agrippa – who is Jewish – to help him understand the charges against Paul (Acts 25:24-27), whom he inherited as a prisoner from his predecessor, Antonius Felix (Acts 24:27). This Agrippa is Herod Agrippa II, one of four Herods and two Agrippas in the Herodian dynasty. Paul addresses himself primarily to Agrippa, on the grounds that Agrippa will understand what the controversy is about. Being who he is, Paul turns his legal defense into an evangelistic sermon.

Acts 26:19-32, A private sermon in the court of Festus (11/12/20)

The Pharisees believed in resurrection (as do some Jews today), and the Sadducees did not (as some Jews do not today). Agrippa, as a Jew, totally understood that part. Festus, as a Roman, thought the idea of resurrection was crazy. Both Festus and Agrippa agreed that Paul's theological opinions were not a crime under Roman law.

I'm interested in the NET Bible's translation of vs. 28 as a question: "In such a short time are you persuading me to become a Christian?" This isn't that unusual, as it turns out. Several other translations that I looked at have Agrippa asking an ironic question. On the other hand, several have something similar to the King James Version: "You almost persuade me to become a Christian." Remember that the original Greek manuscripts don't have any punctuation, and occasionally the text can be read either way; always read more than one translation.

Acts 20:17-38, A farewell sermon (11/13/20)

I've heard a variety of farewell sermons by pastors who were retiring and pastors who were moving to another church or another position within the church hierarchy. Most of them have some idea about what they will be doing. Paul doesn't (vs. 22-24). Commonly the pastors give some picture of what they've tried to accomplish at the churches they're leaving, and Paul certainly does that (vss. 18-21, 25-27, 33-35). They may present a vision or a warning for the future, and Paul does that, too (vss. 28-32). Paul's farewell sermon to the elders of Ephesus is also our farewell to the Sermon Series.

More of Sermon Series
Sermon Series - Part 1

Copyright 2019, 2020 and 2021 by Regina L. Hunter. All rights reserved. This page has been prepared for the web site by RPB.

Opinions expressed on this page are solely those of the author, Regina Hunter, and may or may not be shared by the sponsors or the Bible-study participants. Thanks to the Holy Spirit for any useful ideas presented here, and thanks to all the readers for their support and enthusiasm. All errors are, of course, the sole responsibility of the author.

Our Sponsors:

St. John's United Methodist Church, "Transforming Lives Through Christ."
2626 Arizona NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110

St. John's Music Ministries now has a YouTube channel, bringing you free concerts and choral music. Check it out!

Traditional worship services are held Sundays at 8:15 and 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary. Casual worship services are held Sundays at 9:30 a.m. in the Family Life Center. Jazz Vespers are held monthly on the second Saturday at 5:00 p.m. in the sanctuary. St. John's feels especially called to the worship of God and to the service of our neighbors through our music program.

Storm Dragon Software^TM

Ducks in a Row, Inc.

This website is supported in part by the generosity of Mrs. J. Jordan.