Though our culture celebrates Valentine’s Day today, in the Church calendar, today commemorates the first Sunday in Lent—and I’m pretty sure you already know which of these two I’ll be focusing on! The word “Lent” actually comes from a Latin word meaning “fortieth” (quadragesima)[1] and traditionally it’s associated with the …
Today many Protestant churches celebrate Transfiguration Sunday which falls between the last Sunday after Epiphany—a season that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come as Savior not only to the Jews but also to the whole world—and the first Sunday before Lent. The Transfiguration is a reference to the day in …
This morning’s passage is the well-known “love” chapter from I Corinthians 13. You have probably heard it read at almost every wedding you have ever attended—and, yes, Ron and I had it read as part of our own wedding service. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with reading this Scripture at …
Our passage from Luke 4 this morning provides some important glimpses into Jesus’ life as well as his self-understanding. And one key to both Jesus’ life and mission is his anointing by the Holy Spirit, marking him as God’s chosen, Messianic servant, in fulfillment of the Scriptures—our Old Testament. In …
Last week we looked at a portion from Isaiah that addressed a prophecy he made to Jewish exiles-to-be-in-Babylon that offered them a word of comfort given to Isaiah by God two hundred years prior to their exiled existence. Our passage this week comes from the final section of Isaiah’s prophecy …
Last week as we considered Ephesians 1, we were focused upon the three Persons of the Godhead—the Father who elects us, the Son who redeems us, and last, but certainly not least, the Holy Spirit who seals and now indwells us. This week we’ll be focusing on the one true …
Today being January 3rd means that it’s a day that falls between two holidays, one cultural, the other ecclesial. The cultural holiday, of course, is New Year’s Day, full of promise of change and new beginnings and clean slates and resolutions and the hope that this year things will be …
Our passage this morning is one of the only places in all of Scripture where we’re told anything about Jesus’ life as a child. We have various accounts of his birth—which we’ve just celebrated!—followed by his circumcision as a baby but though we’d like to know more about what Jesus …
The Gospels in the New Testament focus upon the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus. And it’s interesting to note that of the four Gospels, only John begins with the adult Jesus. Matthew, Mark, and Luke—which are called the “Synoptic Gospels” because they provide synopses or summaries that touch …
Depending upon your source, this third week of Advent focuses upon joy, the shepherds, or John the Baptist—not that these are mutually exclusive! This morning we’re going to continue to look at the life of John the Baptist. Last week as we considered the Benedictus, or Zechariah’s Song, we saw …
