A Familiar Story! Is This Well-Known Parable Known Well? The danger of familiarity with the parable: well known =/= known well. Our narrative journey helps us place this parable in its proper context. The parable continues the message to the neo-pharisees from last week The Kingdom of Heaven Is Like a Prodigal Dad w/2 Lost Sons…
Responding To Grace With Gatekeeping Did you catch the common narrative in both of our texts? The grace & power of The Spirit is poured out on humanity. Amazing things happen in the power of the Spirit. Humanity creates rules and borders around The Spirit’s power. Also common to both texts is the explosiveness of…
Riddles, Science, & Philosophy Riddle:We hurt without moving. We poison without touching. We bear the truth & the lies. We are not to be judged by our size. What are we? … Words Science:TED talk about how the language we speak shapes the very way we perceive the world around us at a fundamentally core…
Irony: Following the Call & Sunday Following My Call Vote It’s kind of silly to inadvertently come up with this title this week But the book of Jonah is a bit of an absurdity too Both readings from Mark & Jonah have to do with responding to a call The First Four Disciples & Immediate…
Of Toddlers & Sharing Have you ever watched toddlers sharing what they have with other kids We Misunderstand the Infinite Nature of God’s Love Both of our Readings today, from Jonah & Matthew reveal this. Old Testament God vs. New Testament God That Crimson Thread of God’s Love throughout Scripture Jonah, a Jew, struggles with…
Forgiveness (Matt 18:21-35) This is getting Personal A personal story of forgiveness What’s the hardest thing YOU’VE ever had to forgive? What’s the hardest thing YOU’VE ever had to be forgiven? Forgiveness is Hard! What does Forgiveness mean? The struggle between justice & mercy Setting things right requires getting all the information, Forgiving someone requires…
Getting to know old Nicodemus the Pharisee Sometimes the strangest people come calling late at night. How can someone be reborn? Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Nicodemus is confused – Conversion isn’t really a…
Saltier than a Pharisee Intro/The Easy Part – Salt & Light a. Familiar with Different Kinds of Salt in W.MI 1. Table Salt 2. Road Salt 3. Don’t mix up the two! b. Paying Roman Soldiers – “Worth His Salt” c. Not Hiding Our Faith – Bringing Light Into a Dark World 1. Faith 2.…
Read: Genesis 5:1-5 and Matthew 1:1-17. What comes to mind when you hear me say, “Once upon a time?” Do you think of a particular story? Perhaps it’s a fairy tale from your childhood? As a kid I can remember going to the library to hear the librarian read from Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Flea and the Professor,” which as you might know…
What a big day we are celebrating, today. It’s so great to begin our fourth Sunday of Lent with a beautiful baptism and then end it with a marvelous feast. Lent is often a time to fast from the things that keep us away from God. But as I reminded (B.) at Wednesday’s service each Sunday during Lent is considered a mini-Easter; we are given a day…