Justin Ariel Bailey

Failing Forward – Matthew 14

In a society where we are so often obsessed with success, with the question, “how can I succeed?” we often don’t know what to do with our failures. This sermon clocks in at 22 minutes, but keep listening for Jim Belcher's excellent Communion meditation at…

justinbaileyFebruary 15, 2016

Books

First Five: If you could only save five books, what would they be?

When we started planning our move to California, we initially thought that we would only be able to bring what we could fit in our little Honda Civic plus six suitcases (Mel and the kids flew). This meant downsizing 15 (lawyer) boxes of books down…

justinbaileyJanuary 21, 2016

Articles & Essays

Braving the New World (Wide Web): An Essay!

People often wonder exactly what it is that a PhD student does. We read. And we think. And sometimes we write. Sadly, much of what we write is unreadable, filled with specialist language and academic jargon. It's mostly for our own benefit, a recorded…

justinbaileyJanuary 15, 2016

Gospel of John New Testament NT Narrative Sermons

Expectation and Encounter – John 2:1-11

I have a very wise mentor who once said to me that there are two truths that he clings to, two things he knows about God: God loves me, and I can’t control him. He loves you. You can’t control him. Since he loves you, you…

justinbaileyJanuary 13, 2016

Favorite Sermons Jonah Old Testament OT Narrative

Passivity and Participation – Jonah 1

Familiarity doesn’t just breed contempt; familiarity can breed passivity. And we can become so familiar with cherished biblical narratives that we are inoculated against their power. When this happens, we lose our spiritual fitness and begin to suffer from a condition we might call spiritual…

justinbaileyJanuary 3, 2016

New Testament NT Letters Romans Sermons

Free and Faithful – Romans 9

Paul takes us into the deepest part of the theological ocean, where we will struggle to plumb its depths. Paul will show us that God has always reserved for himself the right to decide who his people will be, and that God has always been…

justinbaileyNovember 29, 2015

New Testament NT Letters Romans Sermons

The Tape Recorder Test – Romans 2

Maybe it’s true that in modern times we feel less guilt, less internal conviction that we’ve violated God’s law. But what we do feel, what will not go away, is a deep sense that things are not right with us. And with this we fear…

justinbaileyOctober 11, 2015

Ecclesiastes Old Testament OT Poetry Sermons

Wisdom for the End – Ecclesiastes 11-12

This is wisdom for those who struggle to find meaning in the mundane. This is wisdom for those who find life moving too fast. This is wisdom for those who feel like they don’t fit in the world. This is wisdom for those who caught…

justinbaileyAugust 23, 2015

Articles & Essays Confessional Short Articles

Game of Thrones and Theodicy

I'm not a Game of Thrones fan, though I did read the first book on my trip to Denali in 2011. Martin is an excellent writer and has created a dense, believable world. Salacious material aside, I'm not surprised that the show has had so much…

justinbaileyJune 16, 2015

Confessional

The heart of my hopes by day and my dreams by night…

If hours and hours of research sometimes brings me to tears, it is usually because of the ordinary pressures of being a doctoral student. But every once in awhile I am seized by unlooked-for tears of a different, but more welcome sort. I've been researching the…

justinbaileyMay 30, 2015