Names are powerful makers of meaning both in the scriptures and in our lives. Consider how much we associate people with their names. A name is merely a word, a sound, yet it can completely represent a person. And our names can be powerful. Think about the resurrection account in John 20 when a distraught Mary…
In this season of Advent we stand in the discomforting quiet of waiting for the salvation of the Lord while simultaneously seeing that very salvation breaking into the world around us. Like John the Baptist we ask Jesus “are you here, or should we still wait?” The answer to this question is “yes.” Yes, Jesus…
John the Baptist is a fitting messenger for the season of Advent, a time for the church to prepare for both the nativity of the Christ and for his second coming. John’s call to repentance in preparation of Jesus’ arrival carries a challenge for us to rid ourselves of everything that obstructs our view. His…
In the gospel today, Zacchaeus joyfully welcomes Jesus into his home, where Jesus prompts a changed heart and mind in his host and proclaims salvation. All this reveals an undercurrent of hospitality and welcome that propels much of the narrative of the Bible. As in other instances of practiced hospitality, something important changes. Salvation is…
Through the lens of the gospel, today’s texts offer a clear identification of God’s work. What is God doing? God is reaching out to the bound-up to proclaim release from captivity. God is lifting up the oppressed. God is satisfying the needs of the afflicted. God raises up foundations. God restores and rebuilds, reconciles and…
Close your eyes and picture Jesus and his followers together. Most likely people either picture Jesus sitting around with the twelve disciples or standing in the midst of thousands preaching and teaching. Yet in today’s gospel Jesus has seventy followers close enough that he trusts them to be sent out in pairs to heal the…
We feel powerless when life’s storms rage about us. Despite our best efforts, we cannot navigate those dangers without the hand of God to guide and free us. In the gospel, the man with demons was unable to help himself. His affliction had caused him to be chained and shackled by his community. Yet even…
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…