Jesus is mean. We don’t like mean Jesus. Mean Jesus is too much for us. Can you imagine Jesus insulting someone or treating anyone like a second-class person? You don’t…
Now, everyone was always eager for Jesus to do some miraculous sign, some awesome work. They weren’t looking for parlor tricks. People around them were sick, crippled, blind, deaf, hard-hearted…
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Those are funeral words, graveside words, goodbye words. I’ve baptized many, marking them with water. Today, I mark you with ashes. Nothing in Scripture…
John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed…
The Offering of Common Kindness—Mt 25:31-46 In the age of cellphones, it’s even easier to pass by people who may be in need. Surely, they have phones too. Surely, there’s…
Jesus has been telling those who want to be his followers about the sort of life they are to live. He has been telling them about the disposition of the…
Jesus went up on a mountainside. What’s it like to be on the mountain? We tend to think of the high hills of Israel as grassy, like mountain meadows, maybe…
One thing I can guarantee you: if you follow Christ, it’s eventually going to get you in trouble. There are many in situations of authority and influence who do not…
“Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming” (5:7). Easy for him to say. A sense of helplessness can make it hard to wait; so, too frustration, and…
Growing up, I’d sometimes ask my father for some money. He didn’t often have much, but I don’t recall him ever saying no. Later, when I was away at college…