Progressive Christian Sermons with Rev. David Wheeler

How do we know when something has become morally crooked—especially when we've grown so accustomed to it that it looks perfectly normal?
In Part Two of Faith Was Never Supposed to Be Silent, Rev. David Wheeler explores one of the prophet Amos’s most unforgettable images: God holding a plumb line against the life of a nation. What Amos reveals may surprise us. God isn’t measuring only private morality. God is measuring the kind of society religious people are helping to build.
Through Amos 7:7–9, 5:10–15, and 3:9–10, we explore what happens when injustice becomes ordinary, truth becomes inconvenient, and people lose the ability to recognize what is right. Along the way, we discover how deeply Jesus stands within the Hebrew prophetic tradition—and why Christian faith must help us think theologically about public life.
The most dangerous crookedness may be the crookedness we have learned to call normal.
But the plumb line is not only an image of judgment. It may also be an invitation to grace, transformation, and the courage to imagine a different kind of world.
Preached September 20, 2026, at New Covenant Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Oklahoma City.

When Elected Leaders Use God 
Scripture Readings: Amos 7:10-17 | Amos 5:21-24
What happens when faith gets too close to political power, and sacred language is used to shield rulers from accountability?
In Part 1 of our four-part series, Faith Was Never Supposed to Be Silent, we examine the ancient confrontation between the prophet Amos and Amaziah, the royal priest of Bethel. When Amos spoke out against systemic corruption and the mistreatment of the poor, Amaziah tried to silence him, declaring the temple to be "the King’s sanctuary and a temple of the kingdom". Somewhere along the way, the house of God had been co-opted to serve the interests of the crown.
Throughout history, politicians and leaders of all stripes have reached for the Bible, not necessarily to submit to its moral vision, but to borrow its sacred authority. But as Amos boldly proclaimed in Amos 5, God rejects performative worship that remains comfortable with injustice: "Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."
Join us as we explore:
The "King’s Sanctuary" vs. God’s House: How religious institutions risk losing their soul when they trade prophetic truth-telling for political access and cultural influence.
Guidance vs. Endorsement: Discerning the critical difference between political leaders genuinely asking for God’s guidance and weaponizing God’s name to claim divine endorsement.
Prophetic Preaching vs. Partisan Preaching: Why a truly biblical faith refuses to become campaign property for any party, holding leaders on the left and the right accountable to the standard of justice and human dignity.
Righteousness as Public Justice: Moving past privatized piety to reclaim the Hebrew scriptures' definition of righteousness as relational equity, protecting the vulnerable, and ensuring people are treated with dignity.
A Faith That Cannot Be Captured: Learning how to participate passionately in public life and vote with our values without surrendering our conscience or confusing any nation with the Kingdom of God.
The church does not belong to any empire, administration, or political party—we belong to God. Let us keep our faith free, our worship honest, and our voices clear as we seek the common good of all our neighbors.

Imagine (Sermon: September 6, 2026)
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 11:1-9
What is the difference between escapist fantasy and a truly holy imagination?
In the finale of our summer sermon series, Songs That Changed the World, we explore John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s iconic 1971 anthem "Imagine" alongside the ancient prophet Isaiah’s vision of the "Peaceable Kingdom" in Isaiah 11. Long viewed with suspicion by traditional religious institutions for daring to imagine "no religion" and "no heaven," Lennon's gentle melody wrapped a radical political challenge in three minutes of sweet simplicity—questioning how borders, wealth, and dogmas have historically been weaponized to divide the human family.
Rather than dismissing this critique, we place it in dialogue with the prophet Isaiah, who spoke into a terrifying world under the shadow of the brutal Assyrian Empire. Isaiah didn’t imagine a sterile world where difference is erased; he imagined an empire transformed—a green shoot sprouting from a dead stump, where the wolf dwells with the lamb, predators lay down their hunger to dominate, and equity is restored to the vulnerable.
Join us as we explore:
Fantasy vs. Holy Imagination: Why escapist fantasy ignores the pain of reality, while holy imagination looks directly at the world's wounds and begins the work of transformation.
Subtraction vs. Transformation: Comparing Lennon’s question of what must disappear with Isaiah’s deeper question of what must be redeemed and reordered around justice.
The Peaceable Kingdom in Context: Honoring the original Jewish context of Isaiah 11 as a bold critique of political corruption, predatory power, and systemic injustice.
When Religion Needs Pruning: Acknowledging why religion that blesses cruelty, nationalism, and greed deserves to be challenged so that genuine, loving faith can grow in its place.
"Practice Resurrection": Drawing from Wendell Berry and everyday faithfulness to remember that peace doesn’t arrive overnight from kings or congress—it sprouts shoot by shoot, table by table, and neighbor by neighbor.
We may not fix the entire world in a day, but we can refuse to let cynicism have the final word. Keep the vision alive, stand beside the vulnerable, and practice the holy work of resurrection right where you are.

We added Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors to our Songs That Changed the World series in honor of her passing.
Coat of Many Colors 
Scripture Reading: James 2:1-7
Who gets to decide what—or who—is truly valuable?
In this week's sermon from our summer series, Songs That Changed the World, we explore Dolly Parton’s deeply personal autobiographical classic, "Coat of Many Colors," alongside the piercing words of James 2 on the sin of favoritism. Stitched together from discarded rags by her mother in the mountains of East Tennessee, Dolly’s coat was mocked by schoolmates who only saw scraps and poverty. But where others saw deficiency, Dolly saw time, care, devotion, and love.
Centuries earlier, James challenged the early church with an uncomfortable reality check: what happens when someone in fine clothes and gold rings walks into your gathering, followed by someone in worn, dirty clothes? When we reserve our best seats for the influential while pushing the vulnerable to the margins, James warns that we have imported the world's broken hierarchies right into the sanctuary of God.
The Gospel consistently turns worldly price tags upside down. True faith does not measure human worth by wealth, appearance, or status—it looks through the eyes of love.
Join us as we discuss:
The Story Behind the Song: How Dolly Parton's childhood coat of scraps became a masterclass in seeing dignity where the world only sees poverty.
Price vs. Value: How culture constantly assigns monetary value to human lives, and why Jesus consistently upends those measuring sticks.
The Warning of James 2: Confronting the persistent temptation to practice partiality and flatter the powerful while sidelining those in need.
Giving a Better Story: Why one of the holiest ministries of a healthy church is telling people the truth about who they are—beloved, worthy, and never defined by their worst day or their bank balance.
Dignity at the Table: Recognizing that shared tables, food pantries, and mutual care are never just about calories—they are tangible declarations that no one is disposable.
You are far more than the patchwork of your past or the labels the world has handed you. Come as you are, take your place at the table, and discover a community where everyone belongs.

All You Need Is Love 
Scripture Readings: 1 John 4:7-9, 13-15, 18-21
Is "all you need is love" just a naive slogan on a bumper sticker, or is it the most radical, demanding criterion of the Gospel?
In Part 9 of our summer sermon series, Songs That Changed the World, we explore The Beatles' legendary 1967 anthem "All You Need Is Love" alongside the profound theological claims of 1 John 4. Broadcast to over 400 million viewers on the historic Our World satellite program during the height of the Vietnam War and deep global division, The Beatles didn't offer relationship advice—they offered a bold, countercultural message to a world at war.
Centuries earlier, writing to a Christian community fractured by internal arguments over who possessed the "real truth," the author of 1 John stripped away the theological jargon to establish the ultimate measuring stick of faith: "God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God."
Love is not sentimental softness or polite passivity; love is the home base from which we live, the standard by which all theology must be judged, and the tangible way God is made visible in a hurting world.
Join us as we explore:
Love as the Ultimate Test of Faith: Why correct doctrine, biblical knowledge, and theological debates mean nothing if they do not produce deeper, tangible love.
The Theological Litmus Test: Why an understanding of God that demands cruelty, exclusion, or dehumanization requires examining our theology, not abandoning our love.
Justice as Love in Public: Embracing Cornel West's reminder that justice is what love looks like in public—feeding the hungry, protecting vulnerable neighbors, and tearing down systems of harm.
Perfect Love Casting Out Fear: Understanding teleios (maturing love) not as flawless performance, but as a growing grace that refuses to let fear run the house or dictate how we treat our neighbors.
Living as "PR for God": Recognizing that whether we intend to or not, our everyday actions show the world what God is like—and committing to making that picture one of an ever-widening table.
We love because God first loved us. Step out of fear, make love your home base, and let your faith be known by the way you love your neighbor.

Happy 
Scripture Reading: Philippians 4:4-9
Can joy be commanded, or is there something deeper going on when scripture tells us to "rejoice always"?
In Part 8 of our summer sermon series, Songs That Changed the World, we explore Pharrell Williams’ universally infectious 2013 hit "Happy" alongside the Apostle Paul’s famous letter to the Philippians. While "Happy" radiates an undeniable, foot-tapping celebration of life, Pharrell actually wrote nine rejected songs before arriving at that melody out of creative exhaustion.
Centuries earlier, Paul wrote his famous instruction—"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice"—not from a sunny resort, but from behind prison bars under deep uncertainty. Paul was not offering a shallow slogan or demanding that hurting people paste on a fake smile. Instead, he was pointing to a profound distinction: happiness is a fleeting emotion, but joy is a resilient spiritual discipline and an act of resistance.
Join us as we explore:
Happiness vs. Joy: Why true joy does not require sadness to leave the room before it can enter, and how grief and laughter often sit at the very same table.
Training Our Attention (Philippians 4:8): In an economy built on capturing our attention through fear, outrage, and despair, what are we intentionally training our eyes and hearts to notice?
Joy as an Act of Resistance: How refusing cynicism and holding onto love declares to oppressive powers that they do not get to own all of us.
"We Put the Doors Back Up": Responding to the recent vandalism of our church lawn's rainbow welcome doors by cleaning, repainting, and setting them right back in place—because vandalism does not get to decide how wide God's welcome is.
A Shared Song: Remembering that joy was never meant to be a solo project; when your own heart is empty, the community is here to hold and carry joy for you until you can sing again.
If you are grieving, tired, or angry today, you don't have to manufacture happiness on command. Rest where you are, look for what is good and true, and let this community surround you with a joy strong enough to hold us all.

Don't Stop Believin' 
Scripture Reading: Romans 5:1-5
What happens when life gets heavy, certainty fades, and "just believing" feels difficult or overwhelming?
In Part 7 of our summer sermon series, Songs That Changed the World, we bring Journey’s classic 1981 rock anthem "Don't Stop Believin'" into conversation with Paul's deep reflections on grace, suffering, and hope in Romans 5:1-5. Journey’s anthem is famously written for "unfinished people living unfinished lives"—and it uniquely delays its famous title chorus until the very end of the song, mirroring how resolution, clarity, and healing so often come late in our real lives.
Drawing on the insights of New Testament scholar Marcus Borg, we explore how Christian faith is far richer than merely giving intellectual assent to a list of statements. True faith is about trust, loyalty, a new vision of reality, and giving our hearts to what we hold dear—or "be-loving". Losing certainty isn't the same as losing faith; often, it is simply losing arrogance and gaining deeper compassion.
Join us as we discuss:
The "Late Chorus" of Life: Why a delayed resolution isn't no resolution, and how Journey's song structure reminds us that hope travels through a long night before the chorus arrives.
Redefining "Belief": Exploring Marcus Borg's four Latin dimensions of faith—assensus (intellectual assent), fiducia (trust), fidelitas (fidelity), and visio (a way of seeing).
Faith as "Be-Loving": How the word believe connects to holding dear and giving our hearts to love, grace, and justice when certainty is unavailable.
Romans 5 & Tested Hope: Understanding Paul’s sequence of suffering producing endurance, character, and a hope that does not put us to shame because God's love is poured into our hearts.
When You Can't Sing the Chorus: How community holds hope for us when we are too exhausted to sing it ourselves.
When believing becomes hard, keep "be-loving" your neighbors, your children, and this wounded world. Let community carry you when your voice is weary, and trust that God's love is already poured out for you.

Hallelujah 
Scripture Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:7-10
What happens when our prayers don't lead to a neat, triumphant ending, but the thorn remains?
In this sermon, we explore Leonard Cohen's iconic song "Hallelujah" alongside the Apostle Paul’s famous passage on his "thorn in the flesh" in 2 Corinthians 12. Written over several grueling years and initially rejected by his record label as "unmarketable," Cohen’s song didn't become a global anthem through immediate success, but through a long journey of coming "undone".
Centuries earlier, Paul pleaded with God three times to remove a persistent, painful thorn. But rather than receiving an immediate cure, Paul heard a different word of promise: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness."
In a world that equates power with domination, noise, and winning, the Gospel offers a radically different truth: grace does not promise to erase every struggle, but promises that no struggle can separate us from the love holding us together.
Join us as we discuss:
The Story Behind "Hallelujah": How Leonard Cohen’s masterwork—initially deemed unmarketable—captures the honest, complicated mix of faith, doubt, love, and grief in actual human life.
Paul's Unnamed Thorn: Why leaving the thorn unnamed in 2 Corinthians allows anyone carrying chronic pain, unanswered questions, or unbroken grief to find themselves in the story.
Grace in What Is Unfixed: Dismantling the harmful idea that unanswered prayers mean inadequate faith, and discovering a God who meets us right inside our unfinished, messy places.
Redefining Power and Strength: Contrasting the world's obsession with domination and retaliation against the Christ-like power made mature in vulnerability, service, and solidarity.
The Holy vs. The Broken Hallelujah: Why a "broken Hallelujah" is not an inferior praise, but often the holiest praise of all—a language of survival, endurance, and grace.
You don't need a polished, perfect story to offer praise. Whether your Hallelujah is a song of celebration or a quiet whisper of survival, grace is present, active, and holding you right here, right now.