When we encounter Jesus, we are changed and will never be the same. Jesus can be revealed in a blinding light on the road, in an abundance of fish, in breakfast on the beach. God uses all sorts of surprising things—bread, wine, water, words of forgiveness—to convert us. Like baptism, this conversion is both a…
The texts for today explore what it means to be a witness: the power of seeing and experiencing the resurrection firsthand. For those of us who weren’t there in person to witness Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension, a question persists: How do we give witness? How have we experienced Easter firsthand? What do we need…
What is Easter anyway? Christians consider Easter to be the “first day.” From Easter comes the practice of worshiping on Sunday morning. It is the first day of the week. It is also the first day of new creation, sometimes called the “eighth day” of the week, for on it Christ restored the image of…
The movement of this day—from shouts of praise to words of denial and cries for crucifixion—mirrors the path of discipleship. The lives of Jesus’ followers hang in the balance between faithfulness and betrayal. For Peter, the act of denial is subtle and insidious. He claims not to know Jesus; he claims to have no place…
Critics of Christianity often point out that Christians are hypocrites. Christians publicly espouse a certain set of rules for living—including care for creation, serving God and neighbors in need, and loving our enemies—and, just as publicly, fail to live up to those rules every day and in every way. Pastor Tony Campolo often tells the…
The transfiguration is frustrating for disciples—past and present—who long for an unmediated experience of God. Jesus’ glory is revealed, and then, just as suddenly, a cloud descends and the vision fades. And even though Paul contrasts the Christian’s experience of God with Moses’s veiled experience of God, he notes that we see the glory of…
A fundamental decision is placed before us this day: Will we choose the way of blessing or the way of woe? The death and resurrection of Jesus is the pivot on which the decision turns. To be in Christ means that we get planted by streams of water and are rooted among those who thirst…
Epiphanies don’t just happen in church—a sudden insight can lead to a “Eureka!” in scientific experiments, an “Aha!” in a detective’s casework, a “Checkmate!” in a fierce chess game, and even a self-satisfied “Yes!” in Sudoku, crosswords, or finding a set of lost keys. So, too, epiphanies about the true nature of Christ come in…
Are you longing to hear God’s voice? What would it be like to hear God call you by name? For many it seems that God spoke to people long ago and far away, but now in this time and place God’s voice is much less clear and less audible. Perhaps we cannot hear the voice…
Today is Epiphany. Today and in the Sundays following we celebrate the in-breaking of God’s light. The readings help us understand that the manifestation of God is for all people everywhere. This is a message of radical inclusively. The magi are drawn from the east to come to pay homage to the Christ child. They…