The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio  Today is Pentecost: the day that the Church was born.  After Jesus ascended into Heaven, he sent the Holy Spirit to the believers in Jerusalem.  Tongues of fire appeared over their heads, and they began speaking in tongues.  Actually, they began speaking in such […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio Jesus is up or he’s down.  He’s in or he’s out.  There was a time when our culture thought worshipping him was a core American value.  Now, in some circles, we are seen as an antiquated prescientific spiritual worldview that upholds intolerance — and […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio I was reading the Gospel Lesson for today and it struck me: I think I know why people are not going to church the way they used to, although the trend seems to be changing.  Actually, there are several reasons why, but there is […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio I wonder how Jesus would speak to a modern audience.  He used examples and metaphors that would have been familiar to his listeners in first-century Palestine.  This is why he used farmers, fishermen, and shepherds as characters in his parables.  Today, he would probably […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor  © 2024, Dr. Tamilio We don’t talk about politics in this church.  It isn’t just because we do not want the IRS to rescind our nonprofit status, which can happen if a church endorses any candidate running for any office.  That is why the “No Politics” signs have […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio Today is Thomas the Doubter Day.  Poor old Thomas.  He happened to be absent when the resurrected Jesus appeared to the other ten disciples (Judas had committed suicide at this point), so, when they told Thomas about the event, he said what most people […]

The Rev. Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio A huge tornado struck Joplin, Missouri on May 22, 2011.  If you go to YouTube and do a search, you will find video footage that is utterly astonishing.  Your jaw will hit the floor as you watch the horrific devastation caused by the F5 […]

© 2024, Dr. Tamilio So here is the Palm Sunday sermon.  The one I have given many times over the past twenty-five years, the same one many a preacher will deliver today.  Jesus enters Jerusalem triumphantly as the King of kings and Lord of lords.  The atmosphere is festive.  It is a parade.  People yell […]

Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor © 2024, Dr. Tamilio These are the big ten.  The top ten.  The Ten Commandments.  No, not the Cecil B. DeMille film starring Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner.  These are ten — the emblematic, key laws that the Israelites are to follow.  There are actually 613 commandments in all of […]

Dr. John Tamilio III, Pastor 2024, Dr. Tamilio If you made a list of the most popular and the most memorized Scripture passages, John 3:16 would probably be at the top.  Millard J. Erickson agrees, writing, “Of numerous biblical references, John 3:16 is probably the best known.”[1]  Even nonbelievers know that it begins, “For God […]