Sermons from Saint Christopher's By-the-Sea, Portland Texas

The parable of the Prodigal Son is one that is familiar to many people, both Christian and non-Christian alike.  It is a story that rings true throughout different times and cultures.  But, what happens if we look at it with rather fresh eyes?  Father Blackburn's sermon examines all the characters in this story and asks us, "Who are we today?"

Lent is a season that calls us to repentance.  But sometimes, we really don't know what repentance means, or how to go about it.  And, something else that we tend to do from time to time is to worry about everyone else's sins and short-coming instead of our own.  In today's Gospel Lesson, Jesus is asked questions about where or not people who die tragically are more sinful than the...

As Christians, we are already Citizens of Heaven.  Saint Paul is explaining this to the Church in Phillipi, which is a Roman city and province.  But, what does it look like or what does it mean to be a citizen of heaven?  Fr. Blackburn discusses this in his sermon during the Second Sunday in Lent.  The Scripture reference is Philippians 3:17-4:1.

Spiritual warfare is something that is a reality that all Christians face.  It is in the world around us, in our thoughts, our habits.  Jesus himself underwent warfare with the world, the flesh and the devil.  Today's sermon is about the Temptations of Jesus as they are recording in the Gospel of Luke.  Father Blackburn is the preacher, and explains to us what Jesus' temptation...

Today is the First Day of Lent, commonly known as Ash Wednesday  Lent is a season of fasting, penance, prayer, and seeing some of the places where we all fall short of God's will for us, and were we love sin rather than love God.  Father Blackburn preaches this sermon on Ash Wednesday Evening just before we are called to repentance and to have ashes imposed upon us.

Today is the Last Sunday of Epiphany, also known as Quinquagesima, or approximately 50 days before Easter.  With the revision of the Lectionary in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, each year we read the story of the Transfiguration from one of the Gospel accounts.  This year, the reading come from the Gospel of Luke.  But, we are also only a few days removed from the outbreak of War i...

Jesus gives us a difficult teaching in our passage from Luke 6:27-38

This is an audio version of the Sermon from the Burial Services for two sisters, Elizabeth Ann Bradford Taylor Brown and Susan Elaine Bradford.  Both sisters had died over a year ago, but because of the Covid-19 global pandemic, the families did not think it wise to gather family and friends together until now.  The sermon is preached by Father Blackburn, the Priest-in-Charge of Saint Ch...

Saint Luke's Gospel presents us with a version of the Beatitudes that are different from the account we have in Matthew.  Alongside the "blessed are those", Luke records Jesus pronouncing a series of "woes" upon the rich, upon those who are fed.  Father Blackburn's sermon for this, Septuagesima Sunday, calls on the parish, and each of us as individuals, to evaluate if we are truly living...

One of the most stupendous episodes in the Hebrew Scriptures is Isaiah's vision of God seated on a throne in the Temple in Jerusalem, which is found in Isaiah 6.  It is the episode that defines Isaiah's life as a prophet.  Each week, we as Christians gather in "temples" all of the globe, and we encounter God each week; but what do we do because of it?  In this Sermon, Father Blackbu...

In the Gospel according to Saint John, the Second Chapter opens with Jesus, his mother, and the disciples attending a wedding in Cana.  During the festivities, the wine runs out, and Jesus is pressed to do something by his mother.  What occurs is the first of the Signs that Saint John records Jesus performing while on earth.  But, what does changing water in six stone jars really me...

Sometimes, we ask ourselves questions that are more existential in nature; questions about who we are and why we are here.  Through the Sacrament of Baptism, we as Christians take on a new identity, and it is that of Christ.  The question then becomes, "How do we live into that identity and purpose?"  Father Blackburn preaches a sermon today, on the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord,...

The only story that we have in the gospels from Jesus' childhood is the story of him in the temple, sitting with the teachers there, while Mary and Joseph look franticly for him.  In that story there are many subtle hints that we can draw about not only who Jesus is, but also who we should be as well.  Fr. Blackburn explores this passage and asks the question of all Christians, "How well...

Names, like brands, sometimes define who we are, or at least who we want to be.  But, as Christians, we bear the Name of Jesus out into the world.  On the Feast of the Holy Name, Fr. Blackburn explains, using the image of marketing and branding, what names mean to us.  As we all begin this new year, let us commit to wear the Name of Jesus daily so that we may draw others unto the Lo...

This morning, the world learned the news that The Most Rev'd Desmond Tutu, the former Archbishop of Cape Town died at the age of 90 on the Day after Christmas.  One of the phrases that "The Arch" used in his sermons and talks was that we are all "God-bearers", people made in the image of God.  How does that square with celebrating the second day of Christmas?  In this morning's serm...

On Christmas Morning, we hear the Prologue to Saint John's Gospel.  In this portion of the First Chapter of Saint John's Gospel, John unfolds the Mystery of the Incarnation.  Using images that relate back to Genesis 1, John tells us who Jesus is, and what it means for Christ, the Word to come into this world.  This Sermon was preached by Father Blackburn on Christmas Morning.  ...

On Christmas Eve, we remember the story of the Birth of Jesus, the angels singing to the shepherds, of Mary and Joseph unable to find room in the inn.  It is a story that we all know rather well.  Tonight's sermon, preached by Father Blackburn, asks us to consider the message of the angels to the Shepherds, and who it is that we celebrate this night.  The Scripture references that F...

Sometimes we are rather unkind to Saint Thomas.  But, one of the things we should do is look to Thomas as one of our examples of a life of faith and reconversion.  This sermon was preached by Father Blackburn on the occasion of his First Anniversary of his Ordination to the Priesthood.

The Magnificat, sometimes known as the Song of Mary, is a song of praise and remembering to God for the wonders he has done, and will do in Creation.  Mary's song is a look back to what to coming of God looks like, but also is a look forward to what we know the world looks like when God comes again.  On this, the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Father Blackburn looks into the joy of Mary's song...

Today we are introduced to Saint John the Baptist and his fiery sermon on the banks of the River Jordan.  Sometimes we can't get past the image of John and move into the heart of his message of repentance.  Part of what John says is needed for repentance is learning to live a life pleasing to God and in compassion for your neighbor.  Father Blackburn asks the question today, "Are we...

One of the beloved Canticles that is found in the Gospel according to Luke is the Song of Zechariah, which is would in the first chapter of Luke.  In that Song of Praise, Zechariah is telling all who would hear that God has come, and the birth of his son, who would be known to many as John the Baptizer, is the signal that God was beginning to do a new thing--the coming of the Messiah.  

Today is the First Sunday of Advent, and it is the beginning of our new Liturgical Year.  What does that mean for us as Christians, and why do we even worry about liturgical years.  The Gospel for today, Luke 21:25-36, is one of the passages of Jesus giving us a glimpses of things yet to come.  But, the focus of the passage is one our preparedness.  What are we to do to get rea...

This sermon was delivered on Thanksgiving Day, 2021 during a service of Holy Communion.  Father Blackburn preaches on the theme that someone who is truly thankful shows it not only by saying "thank you", but by living into thankfulness.  The phrase "Thanks-living" comes from one of his former professors, the Rev'd Dr. Terry York, who has been a guest in the pulpit at Saint Christopher's...

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of Christ the King.  It is a day for us to reflect about Christ's sovereign rule of heaven, the world, the cosmos and even other our very lives.  Fr. Blackburn describes what the Kingship of Jesus looks like in this world and in this present age.  The Scripture passage for today is John 18:33-37.

Jesus and his disciples have come into Jerusalem for the Passover Festival, and the disciples are in awe of the Temple Structure and Complex.  As they are looking around, Jesus gives a prediction and prophecy concerning the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem.  In the life of Saint Christopher's Parish, we are living on the other side of a traumatic event that occurred 35 years ago....