Maitland Presbyterian Church

Which Abimelech? The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins July 5, 2026 Genesis 20 & Judges 9 Summary Two leaders. Same name. Completely different legacies. On this July 4th weekend, we dig into Genesis 20 and Judges 8–9 to meet two men named Abimelech — one who leads with integrity even outside the covenant, and one who buys his throne with temple money and murders...

Outgrowing the Oldest Theology The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins June 28, 2026 Genesis 18 & 19 (Sodom & Gomorrah) Summary The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is one of the most misread texts in the Bible — and the Bible itself knows it. In this sermon from the Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible, Pastor David Collins looks at what the story actually says, why G...

Hagar in the Wilderness The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins June 21, 2026 Genesis 16 & 21 Summary What do you do when you find yourself in a season that makes you want to run, hide, or give up? In this message, Pastor Megan Collins explores the wilderness — not just as a place, but as an experience every one of us knows. Drawing on the story of Hagar in Genesi...

The Church Was Not Born to be Vague Pentecost, truth-telling, and the kind of community the Spirit creates Preacher: The Rev. David Collins May 24, 2026 Acts 2 Summary Pentecost is the birthday of the church, but Acts 2 is more than an origin story. It shows us what the church is supposed to become: a people shaped by the Spirit, where failure is not the end of the story, the truth is told clearly...

More Than the Sign The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins May 17, 2026 Genesis 15 & 17; Deuteronomy 10 & 30; Galatians 5; Colossians 2 Summary What is the difference between wearing the symbol of a relationship and actually living into that relationship? In this sermon, Rev. Megan Collins begins with childhood friendship bracelets, then moves through the bibl...

Pessimistic Hope Genesis 13 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins May 10, 2026 Summary In Genesis 13, Abram and Lot stand in the boarding line of history: with too much fear, too little space, and everybody grasping for what they can get. Lot chooses the obvious opportunity. Abram chooses trust. In this sermon, Rev. David Collins explores the difference between opti...

Introducing Abraham Genesis 12 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins May 3, 2026 Learn more or read past sermons:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.maitlandpres.org/blog/categories/sermons

Babel: When God Breaks the System Genesis 10-11 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins April 26, 2026 Summary What if the Tower of Babel isn’t about punishment…but about liberation? In Genesis 10–11, Babel is stitched into a larger story of human diversity. Instead of explaining where languages come from, it exposes what happens when people consolidate power and buil...

"When Everything Changes" Genesis 9 & Matthew 15 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins April 19, 2026 Summary What do you do when everything starts to change? This sermon explores one of the Bible’s most confusing and misused passages—Genesis 9—and how it has been twisted to justify injustice. Tracing the story from Noah to Jesus and the Canaanite woma...

The Flood | Genesis 6:1-9:19 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins April 12, 2026 Summary What do we do with a story where God floods the world… and then promises never to do it again? This sermon explores the tension at the heart of Noah’s story, challenges easy answers (...dumb ones too) and uncovers a deeper truth: the problem isn’t what we think it is, and neith...

Rev. Megan Collins April 5, 2026 Luke 24: 1-10 What do you do when something in your life feels too far gone? In this Easter message, Pastor Megan explores a simple but powerful idea: resurrection doesn’t happen to people who have everything figured out...it happens to people who show up. The women who first discovered the empty tomb in Luke 24 weren’t expecting a miracle. They came with spices to...

Rev. David Collins March 29, 2026 This Palm Sunday sermon follows the Gospel of Mark through the tension of Holy Week…from the crowds waving palm branches to the cross where Jesus cries out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” We explore how Jesus’ life, his confrontation of injustice, and his refusal to turn away...even when it cost him everything,...reveal a different kind of God than ma...

Lamech - Genesis 4:17-26 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins March 22, 2026 Summary Lamech is usually a person who gets skipped over on the way from Cain and Abel to Noah and the Flood, and for an understandable reason. He was the first polygamist in the Bible, and doubled down on Cain's foundation of violence and vengeance. But we should skip past him so quic...

Cain & Abel - Genesis 4:1-16 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins March 15, 2026 Subjects Genesis 4, Responsibility, Resentment, Violence, Brotherhood Summary The story of Cain and Abel is more than the Bible’s first murder. It’s about resentment, responsibility, and the question that still echoes today:  “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  Genesis 4 shows how violenc...

Genesis 3:16-19 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins March 1, 2026 Subjects Genesis 3, Sin and Grace, Image of God, Breaking Patterns, Hope, Romans 5, Spiritual Growth Summary Why do we keep doing the very things we know won’t end well? From carrying too many grocery bags in one trip (and cleaning tomato sauce off a church parking lot) to repeating the same unhealt...

Genesis 3:1-13 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins February 22, 2026 Subjects Sin, Temptation, Original Sin, The Fall, Adam and Eve, Garden of Eden, Genesis 3:1-13 Summary In this episode, we take a fresh look at Genesis 3 — the story of Adam, Eve, the serpent, and the garden — and ask a different question than the one many of us grew up with. What if this story i...

Genesis 2:18-24 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins February 15, 2026 Subjects Creation, Loneliness, Women, Patriarchy, Hebrew, God, Genesis 2:18-24 Summary Birthdays used to mean new privileges. Now they mean colonoscopies—and sometimes ruined pumpkin spice candles. This week’s sermon begins with humor but moves into something deeper: how beautiful things can bec...

Genesis 1:31-2:3 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins February 8, 2026 Subjects Sabbath, Rest, the Nature of God and the Universe, Creation, Genesis 1:31-2:3 Summary In this sermon from The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible, Rev. David Collins explores a deeply common belief many of us were taught…that everything that happens in the world must be the will of God. Tu...

Genesis 1:26-31 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins February 1, 2026 Scripture Genesis 1:26-31 Summary In this sermon, Pastor Megan begins with a childhood story about wanting the power of being a patrol...and discovering instead the responsibility that comes with it. Turning to Genesis 1, we explore what it really means to be made in the image of God and entruste...

Genesis 1:2-23 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. David Collins January 25, 2026 Scripture Genesis 1:2-23 Summary Genesis 1 isn’t about scientific certainty. It’s about hope in the middle of chaos. This sermon explores how bad biblical readings shaped faith, power, and community, and how Genesis offers a different vision: light without violence, life before usefulness, and God...

Genesis 1:1-2 The Untitled, Open-Ended Study Bible Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins January 18, 2026 Scripture Genesis 1:1-2 Summary Where did "In the beginning God" go in updated Bible translations like the NRSVUE and why? Join Rev. Megan Collins as she digs into what it means that creation didn't just happen once. Learn more or read past sermons: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://www.maitlandpres...

By the Rivers of Babylon Memory, Exile, and the Making of Scripture Preacher: The Rev. David Collins January 11, 2026 Scripture Psalm 137 Summary This sermon launches a multi-year project exploring what the Bible is and isn’t, and how it has been used, misused, and sometimes rescued in moments of crisis. Beginning with the image of a box of memories and turning to Psalm 137, we look at how Israel’...

Grace for the New Year Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins January 4, 2026 Scripture Luke 15:11-32 Summary The start of a new year often comes with big hopes—and a heavy dose of exhaustion, self-criticism, and pressure to do better. In this sermon, Rev. Megan Collins invites us to begin the year not with shame or impossible resolutions, but with grace. Drawing on Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son in...

Living Faithfully in the Middle A Christmas Eve Sermon about Hope, Peace, and Unfinished Stories Preacher: The Rev. David Collins Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, 2025 Scripture Luke 2:1-15 Summary What do you do when the world feels unfinished…when peace feels partial, hope feels fragile, and answers don’t come quickly? On Christmas Eve, we gather around a familiar story and discover that the good news do...

The Incarnation According to Mary God With Us: The Doctrine of the Incarnation, Preacher: The Rev. Megan Collins Third Sunday in Advent- Dec. 14, 2025 Scripture Luke 1:46–55 Summary In this Advent sermon, Rev. Megan Collins explores Mary’s song—the Magnificat—not as a sentimental Christmas poem, but as a bold declaration about what the incarnation really means. Using a surprising analogy from earl...