If Jesus is always teaching, he is also preparing his followers.  He has something he’s asking them to do, wants them to be doing.  In much of the first part…

Power, Promise, People

March 28, 2024
“On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus’ disciples asked him, ‘Where do you want us to go and…
I dread getting God’s Word wrong.  In the interests of full disclosure, this proclaimer of God’s Word also dreads parts of God’s Word.  There are parts that seem hard to…
I pastored a church in Illinois, right out of seminary. A fellow pastor in that presbytery served two congregations. Those of you who remember Rev. Swinney remember that sort of…

Let Your Sword Be Prayer

April 19, 2019
Where did Peter get a sword?  How long had he been carrying that around?  He has it with him, that night, there in the garden.  He had a bad feeling:…

Spirit and Fire

January 13, 2019
John didn’t look like a Messiah, didn’t act like a Messiah, but some thought that maybe he kind of spoke like a Messiah, so they wondered: Is John the Messiah? …

A Way in the Wilderness

December 9, 2018
We hear this list of names at the beginning of this third chapter of Luke’s account, and we probably don’t think much about it.  There are so many lists of…

Preparing Ourselves

December 2, 2018
We are preparing ourselves for the days.  Being prepared is not a matter of externals.  Do you have your jumper cables in your trunk?  How about flares?  Anybody keep flares…