Luke records a Sabbath day when Jesus was invited to the home of a prominent Pharisee for a meal. A first-century meal like this would have resembled an ancient game of Musical Chairs. Guests tried to guess their place at the table based on their importance and who else had been invited. Naturally, Jesus took…
Jill and I host a small group in our home. We share in great fellowship, a meal together, and then a little devotional time called S.O.A.P. This is a practice we learned in Wayne Cordeiro’s excellent book, “The Divine Mentor.” Essentially, we read a scripture together (S), offer our observations (O), discuss the practical application of the…
Practicing Lent In Matthew 6:1-18, Jesus is right in the middle of The Sermon on the Mount. His sermon begins with The Beatitudes, which turn conventional wisdom upside down, and goes on from there, inviting us to upend everything we’d always considered normal in favor of his in-breaking Kingdom and its priorities. In Jesus’ kingdom,…
Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:13-14 Have you…
“The Voice” Luke 3 records the story of Jesus’ Baptism like this:‘When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he waspraying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am…
Things in the Garden started so beautifully–the unspoiled beauty of creation; living face to face with the Creator. But what began in such primeval perfection was ruined by carnal rebellion. From that moment, all creation groaned under the weight of separation from God. What, or better Who, could mend this gaping rift?You and I know…
Pastor, are you a thermostat or a thermometer? Get the idea? No?Here is the question: do you set the “temperature” or try to read the “temperature?” In Luke 4, Jesus has just returned from the wilderness temptation. He entered a first-century Judaism that had grown stale. Though God broke the silence of the intertestamental period…
Yesterday Jill and I had the chance to visit a unique ministry site in Carrol, Ohio. A ministry led by Pastor Kevin Seymour called, Three Strands, meets at this location. The setting is kind of a biker hangout and fight club all together. Most of the interior is painted black, but a closer look reveals…
On January 7th, I wrote the following: “…Today we celebrate God’s revelation to us. The Gentile kings knew it, God the Father announced it, and Jesus gave his closest friends a glimpse of it. May the glory of Jesus shine on our minds and hearts today.” The next morning I awoke to the reminder that 68 years…
We are quickly approaching the Day of Epiphany on January 6th, a day when the church has historically remembered the visit of the Magi to Bethlehem bringing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Many cultures have celebrations on the Day of Epiphany, or as it is often called, Three Kings Day. One of the traditions…
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