More than Water Scripture: Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 All of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. Galatians 3:27 A childhood memory of church was a pastor walking down the aisle, challenging us to “remember the waters of our baptism.” Remember the waters? You ask. How can you remember water? He then proceeded to splash everyone with … Read More
Scripture: Matthew 2:1-12 Can you imagine what it was like? What were Mary and Joseph thinking when some men, clearly from a distant land, got down on their knees in front of a child… not the child of a king or noble but the child of a carpenter? Rich men, men of learning, men from the East worshiped Mary’s son … Read More
Our Father’s House Scripture: Luke 2:41-52 What a rare, precious gift of insight into the development of not just a godly man, but the God Man! At 12 years old, many a boy of talent verges on the preciousness, plain spoken, if not presumptuous and arrogant. Do we see these traits in Jesus, with his quick-witted response to the question … Read More
For God Will Always Travel with Us Scripture: Luke 1:39-45 Traveling has always been part of the Christmas story. Traveling has always been part of the entire Christian story. But more than that, traveling IS the story of human life. From ancient ancestors crossing the land bridge in the north or heading across vast seas on rickety little boats, we … Read More
The Unconquerable Gift of Joy Scripture: Luke 3:7-18 Happiness is an emotion that can disappear as quickly as it rises to the surface. Joy, however, is a choice. We have a choice. God gives us a joy that is unconquerable. We can choose to live in an attitude of resentment, anger and fear or we can choose to pursue the … Read More
Scripture: Luke 3:1-6 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of … Read More
Scripture: Luke 21:25-36 This week we begin the season of Advent, a time of anticipation for deliverance and salvation. All of our readings today warn disciples of the Lord to prepare themselves for both tribulation and rescue. We start Advent by remembering that we are a pilgrim people, not destined to be of this world but to be in it … Read More
Beware That No One Leads You Astray Scripture: Mark 13:1-8 The disciples marveled at the size and majesty of the temple. The heart of Judaism. A big, impressive, monumental building. That, one day, would all come tumbling down. By the time Mark was written, the temple was already gone. We are still in the grip of a world-wide pandemic that … Read More
What Might He Say to Us? Scripture: Mark 12:38-44 The word “economy” means “the process or system by which goods and services are exchanged among people.” It comes from a Greek word which referred to the management of a household. At its root, it means how a community of people choose to cooperate with one another. Into this system comes … Read More
The First Commandment ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Mark 12:31 Scripture: Mark 12:28-34 Whenever you read “the scribes” in the Bible, imagine a small-town lawyer. They were the local experts on the law as a means of structuring community life – marriages, divorces, contracts, mortgages, etc. Some assumed powerful positions as administrative assistants to the ruling class. In … Read More
