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The Scots Confession: Aspiring to the True Kirk

July 1, 2012Genesis 3:1-15; Revelation 12:1-17Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Throughout this summer we are looking through the church family picture album at “snapshots of faith.” We’ve seen the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Cree...
The Life and Institution of the Church

June 24, 2012Acts 15:22-35; Galatians 2:1-10Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis I invite you to look closely at these two banners, representing the Apostles Creed and the Nicene Creed. The Apostles Creed �...
The Nicene Creed: Proclaiming a Mystery

June 17, 2012Colossians 1:15-23Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis This morning, we continue our series called “Snapshots of Faith,” where we are looking at some of the creeds, confessions, and catechisms that the church has written in the...
The Apostles’ Creed: Recovering a Tradition of Experience

June 10, 2012Acts 2:42; Ephesians 2:11-22Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Imagine what it would be like if Christianity did not have a New Testament. No collection of Gospel accounts of the birth, life, death, or resurrection of Jesus, alth...
A Church’s Prayer for our Graduates

May 20, 2012John 17:6-19Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Our Scripture reading this morning is a portion of a portion of a story, so it needs some context. First, as you can tell from the language, we have read a portion of a prayer. Incidental...
Imitating Love

May 13, 2012John 15:9-17Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Everything sounds different when your feet are still wet. It is one thing to hear someone go on and on about love. It is another thing when your feet are still wet. It is one thing to h...
Nudged and Yanked by the Spirit

May 6, 2012Acts 8:26-40Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis The story in our Scripture reading today is one of those marvelous stories that has just enough familiarity and strangeness to make for a good story worth reading again and again. It is a ...
Intolerance at Its Best

April 29, 2012Acts 4:5-12Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis The very last part of our Scripture reading this morning will be Acts 4:12, which reads: “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals...
So Send I You

April 15, 2012John 20:19-23Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis As you heard from our International Mission Committee, we are focusing our attention during these Sundays after Easter on what it means to be a “missional” church. If you type the ...
Seeing Easter Through a Veil of Tears

April 8, 2012John 20:1-18Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis I want to begin this morning by sharing a Facebook conversation with you, which began on Good Friday. The original post was given by a friend of mine who – if I may tell her story ...
The Garden as a Sacred Place

April 1, 2012Mark 14:32-42Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Throughout this Lenten season we have been visiting sacred places in Christ’s journey to the cross. Today, we come to a place where Jesus faces his greatest challenge – in the p...
The Hour Has Come

March 25, 2012John 12:20-33Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis Well, the hour has come! The world’s best kept secret is stepping into the big time; finally getting the attention it deserves! Up until now, it’s been great, marvelous in fact...
Judgment and Salvation

March 18, 2012John 3:14-21Heartland Presbyterian ChurchD. Mark Davis I’m convinced that one of the most beloved and well-known Scriptures in the Bible is largely misunderstood. I’m talking about the verse known popularly as “John 3:16.” If yo...
Words Embodied in the Temple

March 11, 2012 John 2:13-22 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis I heard a fascinating discussion on Friday about a book entitled, Taste What You're Missing: The Passionate Eater's Guide to Why Food Tastes Good. As the title indicates, ...
On the Road. Again.

On the Road. Again. March 4, 2012 Mark 8:31-38 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis A Communion Meditation: On the night of his arrest, Jesus sat at a table with … Simon Peter. You know Simon Peter. He’s the guy that, when he took ...
Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are February 26, 2012 Mark 1:9-15 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis It is a rather common story across various religions. The Great One – whether this high god is described as the sun, the Great Spirit, Mother Eart...
Some Days Jesus Can't Do Anything Right!

Some Days Jesus Can't Do Anything Right! February 19, 2012 Mark 2:1-12 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis I don't remember what year it was, but it was a year when our delegation to El Salvador took a trip to visit a community that lives a...
Healing in Compassion and Anger

Healing in Compassion and Anger February 12, 2012 Mark 1:40-45 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis This morning we are reading a story of a man who comes to Jesus for cleansing. Our story, however, poses a curious problem for a reader. Ther...
A Provocative Liberator

A Provocative Liberator January 29, 2012 Mark 1:21-28 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis Imagine going to see someone in the hospital who is being tested to try to locate the cause of some seizures. You visit for a bit, then you notice the...
Wired Differently

Wired Differently January 15, 2012 Romans 12:1-2, 9-13 Heartland Presbyterian Church D. Mark Davis I spent 2½ days this week in conversation with brothers and sisters from the Roman Catholic, Episcopal, United Methodist, and Presbyterian tradition...