Salvation – Fr. Mike Seiler

Mistaken Identity

Aug 23, 2026Fr. Mike1 CommentSermonsDiscernment, Identity, Jesus, King, King of Kings, Kingdom, Lord, Mark Twain, Prince and the Pauper, Salvation, Sin, Soteriology

Lectionary Readings: Year A – Proper 16 In 1882, Mark Twain published a little story here in the United States, which I’m sure all of you have heard about. It’s called The Prince and the Pauper, and it follows the lives of two young boys. One is Prince Edward VI, son of King Henry VIII…

Heavy Burdens?

Jul 5, 2026Fr. Mike1 CommentSermonsGift, Injustice, Jesus, Justice, Religion, Rest, Righteousness, Salvation, Social Justice, Social Standing

Lectionary Readings: Year A, Proper 9 I want you to take a moment and imagine with me: You’re out, running errands. Even though you’ve planned the best you can, you’re coming a bit late for the church-wide landscaping and cleanup day. When you get into the parish hall, you realize that no one else is there,…

Exceeding Reality

Jan 6, 2026Fr. MikeSermonsChrist, Epiphany, God, Salvation, Wisdom, Wise Men, Worship

Have you run across the TV show called The Great British Bake Off? Multiple amateur contestants try to impress the judges with their creations. Anything from cake that looks like a beaver to pastries that look like fruit, to whatever else. There’s other shows that do the same thing – always a contest of some sort – with varying degrees of success. For those who are still too amateurish to get onto a show like this, they will often post their attempts to recreate something from one of these shows and usually in the form of a before and after picture – an “expectation” picture versus the “reality” of what they created. Usually, the reality is far from the expectation.

A Child and an Heir

Dec 28, 2025Fr. MikeSermonsAcceptance, Adoption, Children of God, Choice, God, Grace, Heir, Inheritance, Jesus, Mercy, Redemption, Salvation, Self-Acceptance, Spiritual Family

Lectionary Readings: Year A, First Sunday after Christmas There’s a story I heard once, and I’m sure many of you can relate to at least a part of the story. A father and his son are at home together, the father trying to get some work done, and the son is pestering his father with…

Lord Have Mercy

Oct 26, 2025Fr. MikeSermonsBlessings, God, Grace, Jesus, Mercy, Salvation, Seeking God, Sin

The parable is concerned with how we understand justification. Now, in theological terms, to be justified means to be “righteous in God’s eyes.” And, justification is the word we use to describe how we become righteous in God’s eyes. That is, the word justification is all about what God sees when God looks at us, and this word – justification – is interested in explaining what it takes for any of us to become righteous in God’s eyes. How do we get there? How do we end up looking good to God?

Eating Our Weedies

Jul 19, 2020Fr. MikeSermonsForgiveness, Justification, Salvation, Sanctification, Self-Examination, Self-Justification, Sin

Lectionary Readings – 7th Sunday after Pentecost Since I grew up in northern Alaska, I have never spent much time farming, nor have I seen much in the way of wheat when it’s young. But from what I’ve been told is that when wheat is young, it looks very much like grass. More to the…