Michael Toy
Michael Toy is currently a Ph.D. candidate in Religious Studies at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington studying digital religion in New Zealand. He also serves as public theologian for the Student Christian Movement Aotearoa.
Sermons and Bible Studies
A Bunch of Sheep, Easter 4 (A) – 2023
[RCL] Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2:19-25; John 10:1-10 You’re a bunch of sheep! Today, those words are hardly a compliment. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, heightened political […]
Gifts, Lent 2 (A) – 2023
[RCL] Genesis 12:1-4a; Psalm 121; Romans 4:1-5, 13-17; John 3:1-17 In 2015 two psychologists reviewed six studies on gift-giving, looking in particular at the kinds of gifts chosen. They divided […]
Divine Unity, Easter 7 (C) – 2022
[RCL] Acts 16:16-34; Psalm 97; Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21; John 17:20-26 Today’s gospel reading contains the climax and culmination of what is known as the “Farewell Discourse” or “High Priestly […]
Wisdom and Understanding, Epiphany 6 (C) – 2022
[RCL] Jeremiah 17:5-10; Psalm 1; 1 Corinthians 15:12-20; Luke 6:17-26 There’s a piece of folk wisdom passed down each generation from violin teachers to violin students that when a string […]
Bible Study: Advent 1 (C) – 2021
RCL: Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:1-9; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36 During Advent and Christmas, we will be using study prompts and other activities tied to the sermon for the week. […]
Waiting, Advent 1 (C) – 2021
[RCL] Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-26; Psalm 25:1-9 It’s Advent again! It is that season where we are oriented—in everyday life as well as liturgically—toward Christmas. And yet, […]
The Wilderness, Lent 1 (B) – 2021
[RCL] Genesis 9:8-17; Psalm 25:1-9; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:9-15 Wilderness, we have arrived. On this first Sunday of Lent, the texts thrust us quite suddenly into the wilderness. To […]
Strange and Wonderful, Last Sunday in Epiphany (B) – 2021
[RCL] 2 Kings 2:1-12; Psalm 50:1-6; 2 Corinthians 4:3-6; Mark 9:2-9 What a beautifully strange and wonderful story we find in Mark today. Our gospel reading tells of Jesus’ transfiguration, […]
Pointing to Christ, Advent 2 (B) – 2020
[RCL] Isaiah 40:1-11; Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Mark 1:1-8 The perennial challenge during Advent and Christmastime is to hear anew the familiar story we all know. We all […]
Bible Study: Advent 2 (B) – 2020
RCL: Isaiah 40:1-11; Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13; 2 Peter 3:8-15a; Mark 1:1-8 Pointing to Christ The perennial challenge during Advent and Christmastime is to hear anew the familiar story we all […]
Lent: A Season for Dominance, Lent 1 (A) – 2020
[RCL]: Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7; Romans 5:12-19; Matthew 4:1-11; Psalm 32 “If, because of the one man’s trespass, death exercised dominion through that one, much more surely will those who receive […]
Zombie Ants, Baptism, and the Beloved, Epiphany 1 (A) – January 12, 2020
[RCL]: Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 29; Acts 10:34-43; Matthew 3:13-17 In the 1950s, a young Harvard professor, Dr. Ed Wilson, discovered something fascinating about ants. When an ant dies, after a […]
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