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Mark Ellingsen

Mark Ellingsen, a minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA), has been a professor of Church History at the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia, since 1993. He graduated magna cum laude from Gettysburg College (Pennsylvania) and Yale University, from which he received three master's degrees in divinity, arts, and philosophy, as well as his Ph.D. He has authored 26 books including his latest, Wired for Racism? How Evolution and Faith Move Us to Challenge Racial Idolatry, published by New City Press and Reality and Waves: A Quantum Physics Cosmology, Philosophy of Religion, and Ethic (Lexington Books). He and his wife have three grown children. When he is not writing or teaching, Ellingsen enjoys discussing politics, sports, and playing guitar.
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Commentary

Illustration

Emphasis Preaching Journal

Sermon Illustrations for Ash Wednesday (2014) -- Joel 2:1-2, 12-17, 2 Corinthians 5:20b--6:10, Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 -- Mark Ellingsen, Ron Love, Scott A. Bryte, Derl G. Keefer, Bob Ove -- Ash Wednesday - A -- 2014
Joel 2:1-2, 12-17
A 2012 poll conducted... -- Romans 8:12-25 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 11 | Ordinary Time 16 - A -- 2014
A 2012 poll conducted by Politico indicates that 3 in 5 Americans are pessimistic about the f
A 2006 Barna Group poll found... -- Matthew 20:1-16 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 20 | Ordinary Time 25 - A -- 2014
A 2006 Barna Group poll found that Americans have a good opinion of themselves.
Ash Wednesday is a... -- Joel 2:1-2, 12-17 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Ash Wednesday - A -- 2014
Ash Wednesday is a time for repentance, for turning around.
Sermon Illustrations for Proper 12 | Ordinary Time 17 (2014) -- Genesis 29:15-28, Romans 8:26-39, Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 -- Ron Love, Mark Ellingsen, Bob Ove, Derl G. Keefer, Scott A. Bryte -- Proper 12 | Ordinary Time 17 - A -- 2014
Genesis 29:15-28
Sermon Illustrations for Proper 24 | Ordinary Time 29 (2014) -- Exodus 33:12-23, 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10, Matthew 22:15-22 -- Ron Love, Mark Ellingsen, Derl G. Keefer, Bob Ove -- Proper 24 | Ordinary Time 29 - A -- 2014
Exodus 33:12-23
We are full of... -- Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Ash Wednesday - A -- 2014
We are full of pride and hypocrisy.
Americans are a lot... -- Genesis 29:15-28 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 12 | Ordinary Time 17 - A -- 2014
Americans are a lot like Laban, willing to do whatever it takes to make more money.
In our narcissistic ethos... -- Jeremiah 31:31-34 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Reformation Sunday - A -- 2014
In our narcissistic ethos, a preoccupation with identity or the quest for self-consciousness and fin
Sermon Illustrations for Lent 1 (2014) -- Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7, Romans 5:12-19, Matthew 4:1-11 -- Bob Ove, Ron Love, Derl G. Keefer, Scott A. Bryte, Mark Ellingsen -- First Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7
Growing the Kingdom of... -- Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 12 | Ordinary Time 17 - A -- 2014
Growing the Kingdom of God and our churches does not come easy.
Freedom is such a lovely word... -- John 8:31-36 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Reformation Sunday - A -- 2014
Freedom is such a lovely word, a compelling concept. But what kind of freedom does Jesus afford?
Americans do not want... -- Romans 5:12-19 -- Mark Ellingsen -- First Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
Americans do not want to hear much about sin.
Sermon Illustrations for Lent 2 (2014) -- Genesis 12:1-4a, Romans 4:1-5, 13-17, John 3:1-17 -- Scott A. Bryte, Ron Love, Mark Ellingsen, Bob Ove, Derl G. Keefer -- Second Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
Genesis 12:1-4a
Sermon Illustrations for Proper 13 | Ordinary Time 18 (2014) -- Genesis 32:22-31, Romans 9:1-5, Matthew 14:13-21 -- Derl G. Keefer, Bob Ove, Scott A. Bryte, Mark Ellingsen, Ron Love -- Proper 13 | Ordinary Time 18 - A -- 2014
Genesis 32:22-31
The essence of sainthood... -- 1 John 3:1-3 -- Mark Ellingsen -- All Saints Day - A -- 2014
The essence of sainthood, our text makes clear, is love.
God elected/loved... -- Genesis 12:1-4a -- Mark Ellingsen -- Second Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
God elected/loved Abraham without reservation.
Though anti-Semitism has... -- Romans 9:1-5 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 13 | Ordinary Time 18 - A -- 2014
Though anti-Semitism has been on the wane in recent years in America, a 2011 poll by the anti-Defama
Sermon Illustrations for Proper 26 | Ordinary Time 31 (2014) -- Joshua 3:7-17, 1 Thessalonians 2:9-13, Matthew 23:1-12 -- Mark Ellingsen, Ron Love, Bob Ove, Derl G. Keefer -- Proper 26 | Ordinary Time 31 - A -- 2014
Joshua 3:7-17
We all have a... -- John 3:1-17 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Second Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
We all have a lot of Dr. Gregory House's self-righteousness in us.
Sermon Illustrations for Proper 14 | Ordinary Time 19 (2014) -- Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28, Romans 10:5-15, Matthew 14:22-33 -- Mark Ellingsen, Ron Love, Scott A. Bryte, Bob Ove, Derl Keffer -- Proper 14 | Ordinary Time 19 - A -- 2014
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28
Twentieth-century English... -- Joshua 3:7-17 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 26 | Ordinary Time 31 - A -- 2014
Twentieth-century English actor Norman Wisdom speaks for many of us when he once said, "I like consi
Sermon Illustrations for Lent 3 (2014) -- Exodus 17:1-7, Romans 5:1-11, John 4:5-42 -- Bob Ove, Derl G. Keefer, Ron Love, Scott A. Bryte, Mark Ellingsen -- Third Sunday in Lent - A -- 2014
Exodus 17:1-7
The lesson recounts Joseph... -- Genesis 27:1-4, 12-28 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 14 | Ordinary Time 19 - A -- 2014
The lesson recounts Joseph being sold into slavery, the beginning of Israel's slavery in Egypt.
John Calvin well captures the main... -- Matthew 23:1-12 -- Mark Ellingsen -- Proper 26 | Ordinary Time 31 - A -- 2014
John Calvin well captures the main point of Jesus' teachings in the gospel: "For those who fear God.

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Mark Ellingsen
These lessons all testify to Jesus is our all-in-all. The Good Shepherd theme could also be stressed.  

Acts 4:5-12
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The hymn, “The Church’s One Foundation” was written by Samuel J. Stone around 1866. It was part of a collection of twelve hymns that emphasized a part of the Apostles’ Creed. “The Church’s One Foundation” speaks specifically to article nine of the Apostles’ Creed, and it emphasizes that Jesus is the one upon whom the church is built. According to C. Michael Hawn, the song became known as the “battle song of the church.”

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John E. Sumwalt
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff — they comfort me. (v. 4)

Are there angels among us who save people in danger?

One of the stories I tell in response to this question, was sent to me by Robyn Bradley of Oxford, Wisconsin. She’s a therapist and licensed clinical social worker who is the Director of Psychological Health for the Wisconsin Army National Guard.

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Object: A hearing aid.

* * *

Hello, everyone! (Let them respond.) Are you ready for our story today? (Let them respond.) Great! Let’s go!

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Janice B. Scott
There was a farmer living in a remote part of the Norfolk countryside who had been burgled a number of times. On the last occasion he was disturbed in middle of the night, he went downstairs with his gun and when a torch was shone into his face, he pulled the trigger several times.

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Stan Purdum
(See Lent 4, Cycle A, and Easter 4, Cycle C, for alternative approaches.)

If asked how many images of God this most familiar of all psalms includes, most people would probably say one, that of shepherd. (And, while saying it, there's a good chance they'd actually be picturing Jesus with a lamb in his arms, thanks to the famous painting of that scene hanging in Sunday school rooms all over America.) But, in fact, there are two images of God in this psalm -- the shepherd (vv. 1-4) and the host at a banquet in the temple (vv. 5-6).

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... the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep...

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__________

I have spent nine years here at the hospital. In the course of those nine years I've witnessed and experienced many strange things. I've watched events occur that made me stop and think and wonder. I've found myself doing something or I've found others doing something that made me scratch my head. I've come across many coincidences that made me wonder if indeed they were coincidences.
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It is hard to find a more bold expression of the Easter faith than what we hear from Peter today in our first lesson.

Peter and John had just healed a lame beggar at the gate of the temple. Without hesitation Peter proclaimed to the astonished crowd that the healing was the work of God who had raised Jesus from the dead. Almost immediately, the Sanhedrin arrests Peter and John and puts them on trial. They ask. "By what power or by what name did you do this?" (v. 7).

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Easter is in springtime for a reason. Springtime is that time of year when new life emerges from the old. Easter is that time of history when New Life emerged from the old.

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