The archive of the online Bible study of the book of Psalms is available here or as a YouTube playlist.
The archive of the online Bible study of the book of Acts is available here or as a YouTube playlist.
Lent 3C …… An Entire Life of Repentance
Luke 13:1-9 “Have you heard the news?” they asked Jesus. A terrible thing had happened. Jesus added another tragic event to their concern. But the question looming behind the question was “Why? What does this mean?” Like them, we want to connect the dots. We want answers. Jesus’ answer is helpful not only in what he says but also in what he does not say. In the end it all comes down to repentance. In fact, as Luther teaches us,…
Lent 2C …….. I Would yet You Would Not
Luke 13:31-35 Jerusalem is a wonderful city. Yet when you are there looking down at it from the Mount of Olives, the absence of the temple is a reminder of Jesus’ words regarding the desolation that would happen. Jesus’ desire was to gather the people of Jerusalem to himself but in so many cases they would not go to him. This gives us pause today to reflect on our own openness or resistance to Jesus. Are there ways in which…
Lent 1C…….. Suffering Before Glory
Luke 4:1-13 The season of Lent is not easy nor is it meant to be. It calls for discipline and devotion. And sometimes that can reveal in us a desire to take the easy way and even bypass discipline or suffering. Lent then teaches us and trains us in the way of the kingdom which is suffering before glory. It was that way with God’s Old Testament people and with Jesus as demonstrated in both his passive and active obedience.…
Transfiguration: The Theology and Experience of Transfiguration
Luke 9:28-36 The account of the Transfiguration is full of wonderful theology. The questions that you naturally ask as you read this account lead into deep theological thinking and meaning. Seven of them readily surface starting with the somewhat unusual phrase “after about eight days”. But we are not done when we have reflected theologically. For theology rightly leads us into experience. Here is how theology leads to experience. Sermon Date: March 3, 2019
Epiphany 7C Life as Gift Giving
Luke 6:27-38 Being always proceeds doing! So Jesus teaches us it is for his disciples in this sermon. This text is just a long string of imperatives presenting a high standard of conduct for his disciples. Yet we also understand that this conduct proceeds from who we are, the blessed in Christ (see Epiphany 6C sermon). Since Christ lives in us we can do better that the world’s principle of reciprocity (the Golden Rule). We live by the Golden Rule…
Epiphany 6C “The Two Ways”
Luke 6:17-26 “The Two Ways” is a didactic technique that stretches all the ways back to Moses in Deuteronomy where he sets before the people the way of life and the way of death; two paths. In this tradition, Jesus in the first part of his teaching to his disciples sets forth two paths; those of blessing and woe. The blessings express the being of his disciples. This is who they are in him, they are the blessed. It is…
2/10/2019 Epiphany 5C Beneficiaries and Agents
Isaiah 6:1-8 and Luke 5:1-11 “Let George do it!” It is an old saying rarely used today but still a reality of everyday life. How often have we tried to shift responsibility to others? I don’t want to do that! I can’t do that! I don’t have time for that! But both Isaiah and Peter came to understand that as recipients of God’s grace they were also then called to be God’s agents. Reflection on their experience can move us…
Feb 3, 2019 Epiphany 4 Known by God
Jeremiah 1:4-10 One of the things that hamstrings us in our service for God is the excuses we make. We often see ourselves as inadequate in one way or another. For Jeremiah it was his age. He thought he was too young. But God would have nothing of his excuses. From before the time he was conceived God had consecrated him for a purpose. God also has a purpose for each of us from before our creation in the womb.…
1/27/2019 Epiphany 3
Acts of Mercy, Advocacy and Proclaiming the Gospel Luke 4:16-30 In his first recorded sermon Jesus quotes Isaiah 61 and declares that in that moment the prophecy is fulfilled in himself. Jesus is the Christ! And the Christ has a mission which is also defined by Isaiah 61; to do acts of mercy (sight to the blind), to advocate for justice (proclaim liberty), and to preach good news. This become programmatic for the body of Christ as well.
1/20/2019 Epiphany 2 John 2:1-11 Faith that God is Good
Have you ever felt rebuffed by God, like your prayer gets about as far as the ceiling and just bounces back? It is not an uncommon experience and something that Mary, Jesus’ mother, experienced too. Feeling rebuffed can lead us down a bad path of bitterness and non-responsiveness to God. But there is another way. Mary shows us what that is.