... . I need to express myself." Some live and breathe and work for the applause, but not Fred. Nor was ego the motivation for John the Baptist. He could easily have stolen center stage. He had the crowds, he had the attention, and he baptized Jesus. Yet he ... think this is getting close to the attitude that Paul suggests, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances" (vv. 16-18). It's not about the money. It's not about the personal praise. What is it? It has to be that last part where ...
... the goddess of love. After Rome took it over, the city was cleaned up a bit, but its reputation remained. Chapter 18 of Acts tells us that Paul came to Corinth after his sojourn in Athens. We are also told in Acts 18 that it is in Corinth that Paul solidifies in his mind the idea that God is calling him to preach ... given, the treasure that is ours to share: Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen. 1. Roger Omanson and John Ellington, Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians (New York: United Bible Societies, 1993), p. 82.
... Day ever got off the ground, but it is certainly a great idea. Particularly with regard to our lesson for today. Jesus says in Matthew 18:15, “If your brother or sister sins [against you], go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to ... the first step in healing any ruptures in relationships with others. You may know the story of the famous feud between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The feud began when Jefferson defeated Adams in his bid for a second term as President. On ...
... though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool." - Isaiah 1:18 (KJV) If anyone wonders how political that is, simply recall that it was one of the most favorite expressions of one of our generation's most ... ultimately in charge. And that makes all the difference. 1. William Sloane Coffin, Credo (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox, 2004), p.69. 2. Rick Beyer, The Greatest Stories Never Told: 100 Tales from History to Astonish, Bewilder, and ...
... into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. - John 3:16-18 (NIV) God personally wants to touch your life. Will you let him? Amen. 1. Jan Karon, Patches of Godlight (New York: Penguin Books, 2001), npn. 2. Charles Swindoll, Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life (Portland: Multnomah Press, 1983), p. 118. 3. Patrick Morely ...
... news, as Jesus was, is, and will always be. In Jesus, God’s own self became flesh and lived among God’s people (John 1:14). Jesus did not use his carpentry skills to build some sort of shrine near his Nazareth home and then use ... . He listened to their ideas, endured their insults, and continued to “tell the good news about Jesus and the resurrection” (Acts 17:18). What would happen if you walked the walk around the communities and neighborhoods where your congregation is located? What if you made ...
... son is not "ben" but bar. Perhaps you recall that Simon Peter's real name was Simon Barjonah, or "Simon, son of John." Another example is Bartholomew, meaning "son of Talmei." Now the name is Barabbas. Perhaps your mind is already recognizing what it means. ... out to what is called The Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha. There they crucified him. (vv. 13-18) And Barabbas? Barabbas went free and disappeared. Or did he? Barabbas... Barabbas! Do you hear me, Barabbas? Are you listening to me ...
... us to be afraid of these days – terrorism, political divisions, the threat of war, not to mention all of our personal fears. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University reported 30 years ago that the greatest fears of grade school children were: 1) Animals, 2) Being in a dark room, 3 ... are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older (18.1% of U.S. population) 6.8 million Americans suffer from General Anxiety Disorder 2.2 million Americans suffer ...
... off in a corner, and when the meeting was over he was going to sneak out so that nobody saw him. But one professor, John T. Edsall, one of the great names in science, came up to him, patted him on the shoulder, and said, “Interesting idea.” That’ ... the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?” 1. Robert C. Morgan, Lift High the Cross (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1995), pp. 17-18. 2. Ibid., p. 21 3. Selling Power, June 2000, p. 96. 4. Shaun Biakeney and Wallace Henley, Energy Zappers: Dealing With People ...
... now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. (John 4:35-36) So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants ... shepherd is not new to scripture. It’s found many times in scripture (Num 27:16-17, 1 Kings 22:17, 2 Chronicles 18:16, Jeremiah 50:6, Zecharaiah 11:15, among others). Each time, it was an indictment of Israel’s leaders. Here too, Jesus is ...
... by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.’ (Zechariah 8:18-23) Prop: onion (outside layer with dark spots) and strong cheese and an apple (that looks good on the outside but has bad spots inside ... earlier, you can’t peel off what you’re actually made of –your character, your content, your context, your condition of soul. John Wesley knew this well. That’s why each week at his Methodist class meetings in old Britain, he would ask each person ...
... Jesus says. “Peace…be with you.” Based on the Story Lectionary Major Text The Goat of Atonement (Leviticus 16:20-22) John’s Witness to Jesus’ Post-Resurrection Appearance to Thomas Didymus (20:24-29) Minor Text Rebekah Tricks Isaac into Blessing Jacob ... Meribah (Exodus 17:1-7 and Numbers 20) The Story of Gideon’s Conversations with God and the Sign of the Fleece (Judges 6) Psalm 18: Praise Be the Rock Psalm 25: In You I Put My Trust Psalm 34: Taste and See that the Lord is Good Psalm 42: Put Hope ...
... Elizabeth (Luke 1:39-56) Minor Text The Lord Blesses Abraham with Children (Genesis 15) I Will Raise Up a Prophet from Among You (Deuteronomy 18:14-22) Hannah’s Prayer (1 Samuel 2:1-10) Psalm 33: We Put Our Hope in You Psalm 47: God Reigns Over the Nations ... before them, contains an important ingredient that sometimes we tend to leave out –repentance. These songs remind us of what John Wesley liked to call our “heart religion” –that we cannot praise God only with our heads. Repentance is part of ...
... portions of Scripture. For example, the apostle Paul told us that God “reconciled us to himself through Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:18). In Ephesians 2:11-16, he explained that Jesus had reconciled both Jews and Gentiles to the Father. Furthermore, he added ... well. That could be why he was so harsh with them. He may have wanted to shake them out of their darkness and into his light. In John 9:5 he told us, “While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” He is no longer in this world. He left ...
... Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3372.htm. 5. Bonne Steffen; source: Larry Libby, No Matter What, No Matter Where (WaterBrook Press, 2000), pp. 5-6. 6. “Ancient Egyptian religion” by John R. Baines, Peter F. Dorman Encyclopaedia Brittanica, May 18, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/topic/ancient-Egyptian-religion/Sources-and-limitations-of-ancient-and-modern-knowledge. 7. “World’s Oldest Candle Company: Keeping Ireland Lit Since 1488” by Kate Phelan, Theculturetrip.com ...
... the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you ... But when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father ... he will bear witness to me" (John 15:18-19, 26). When we choose to be faithful witnesses for Christ, we may encounter rejection and hostility in the world. If we remain faithful to our call, in spite of our suffering, we will experience the blessing that comes from faithful obedience to God. There is ...
... , is history.(6) It happened because somebody listened to a sermon. Anybody listening? 1. Thomas W. Gillespie, "The Ministry of God," Opening Convocation, Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, NJ, 18 September 1983. 2. Jonathan Edwards: Basic Writings, ed. Ola Elizabeth Winslow (New York: The New American Library, Inc., 1966), pp. 150-167. 3. John Duckworth, Joan 'N' the Whale (Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1987), p. 101. 4. David Rhoads and Donald Michie, Mark as Story: An Introduction to ...
... with the words, "It is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost" (Matthew 18:14). None of us little ones wants that either. But the mystery of "why some, not others" remains. Think of Judas and be ... give this piece of bread when I have dipped it into the dish." He gave it to Judas. "He immediately went out. And it was night" (John 13:21-30). Just ... tonight ... Jesus tried to make Judas a child again that night, to make him just again. Judas would not. Jesus knew and ...
... lepers were restored to community life. 3. David Owen, "No Thanks," The New Yorker 18 December 1995: p. 128. 4. Edgar Lee Masters, Spoon River Anthology (New York: Signet Classic, 1992), p. 10. 5. Craddock, 121. 6. Curiously, this saying does not appear in the four gospels, causing some scholars to doubt its authenticity. 7. As quoted by B. A. Gerrish, Grace and Gratitude: The Eucharistic Theology of John Calvin (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993), p. 45. 8. George Herbert, "Gratefulnesse," The English ...
... prophet Ezekiel put it this way, "The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge" (Ezekiel 18:2). We parents can bless or scar our heritage. Generations as yet unborn to us can be cursed or redeemed because of ... passed away. Behold, all is brought into newness of life." How can this be? Jesus has given his disciples a ministry of binding and loosing (John 20:23). And the fact is, by his authority we can remove the curse that clouds our legacies. So, though one cannot do anything ...
... be lived the same. It can no longer be business as usual. And the evidence is all over the place for those who have the eyes of faith. And so, in the remainder of chapter 18 and Jesus' trial before Pilate, the trial takes on an unusual shape. Even though officially Jesus is on trial before Pilate, in John's way of telling, the roles actually get reversed. Pilate is put on the defensive. Pilate has to justify himself. Pilate gets so unnerved and bewildered that finally he asks in desperation, "What is truth ...
... heart is sick ... I mourn, and dismay has taken hold of me. Is there no balm in Gilead?" (Jeremiah 8:18, 21-22). Is there no salve, no soothing ointment, no medicine for our souls? The hymn we'll sing after ... think my work's in vain, but then the Holy Spirit revives my soul again."5 Black slaves in the South wrote those words after hearing the white Methodist John Wesley preach about Jesus Christ. They believed it. I believe it. "There is a balm in Lima to make the wounded whole, there is a balm in Lima to ...
... at Kansas City's Nazarene Theological Seminary and helped edit The New International Version of the Bible, often told the story of John G. Paton who was a pioneer missionary to the New Hebrides. Dr. Paton soon discovered that while the natives had words for ... frustration and mediocrity. The sage of Proverbs put it this way, "Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18, paraphrase). Before the Reverend Ilona J. Buzick would accept a call to be associate pastor of Kansas City, Missouri's ...
... happens in many different ways, so do not be surprised if you hear those words, too. Jesus said, "Follow me," and the exciting thing is that they did. Simon and Andrew, James and John decided to follow Jesus, but they weren't the only ones. All kinds of people responded. Not everybody decided to follow Jesus, but a lot did. From Simon and Andrew to us, ... the sake of us all, all God's children are essential personnel. 1. Letty Russell, Church in the Round (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993), p ...
... Lord was full of wrath ... Yet he rained down upon them manna to eat, and gave them the grain of heaven" (Psalm 78:18, 21, 24). Since the time before Jesus, this bread the Israelites ate has been known to be a sap that is sucked from ... deepest hungers? What does God want from us? God wants our trust that our heavenly Lord will provide for us and satisfy our deepest hungers. John Killinger tells a story I think will help us to understand what it means to trust God, knowing that God is present to satisfy our ...