Revising The Agenda Cycle A

The reality is that the vast majority of people in a typical congregation do not want themselves or their world to be transformed by the gospel. Instead, they want the minister to help them make life easier to manage while they and their world stay the same in every important respect. The Christian life is a life of continuing conversion. Baptism may claim us as God’s own beloved, but the children of God must grow up and mature. Jesus invites his followers to “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me” (Matthew 11:29). This is a life of ongoing transformation, not merely by our own effort, but by welcoming Christ’s Spirit to make us more like him. In every sense, we are Christians who are still becoming Christians. If there was a governing theme for the sermons, that seems to be it.

-From the introduction