Communicating Christ
April 14 2024 — A platitude is a statement aimed at helping soothe some sort of emotional unease. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Or “Life is a mystery.” Or “Good things come to those who wait.” While platitudes may be well-intentioned, at best they come off as trite. And since platitudes provide no…
April 7 2024 — In most world religions, the alleged foundational event was experienced by only one person. A self-proclaimed prophet would allege he alone had some special encounter with God. “No really! Just trust me. It really happened.” The resurrection reality is so very different. In the Great Resurrection Chapter (1 Corinthians 15, which…
March 17, 2024 — As we approach Holy Week and prepare to watch Jesus’ suffering and death, the natural question to ask is “why?” This Sunday, God’s Word answers that question. All of it, this fulfillment of God’s plan of salvation for us, gives glory to God. Throughout the season of Lent, we’ve seen Jesus…
March 10, 2024 — Throughout Lent, Scripture has shown us that being a sinner in a sinful world has its challenges: temptations, the cross, distraction from the heart of worship. Today we see the solution for our failures. While we are tempted to focus on the difficulty of the struggle, God lifts up our…
March 3, 2024 — Throughout Lent, we are seeing the battle between Christ and Satan. Today, the arena is worship. Satan tries to distract us from doing the Father’s will at worship. If He cannot keep us from going to the house of the Lord, He tries to blind us to its beauty by either…
February 25, 2024 — In the season of Lent, we witness a battle as Jesus takes our place in His passion. As the battle continues, Satan redoubles his attacks. This time, he attacks Jesus by placing temptation in the mouth of Jesus’ friend, His most ardent supporter, the “rock”—Peter. Every Christian knows the truth that…
February 18, 2024 — In the season of Lent, we witness a battle as Jesus takes our place in His passion. This week the battleground is temptation. We know temptation. While we’ve never been asked to sacrifice a child, as Abraham was in our Old Testament Lesson to see if we trust God and place…
February 11, 2024 — Following the visit of the Wise Men, the revelation of Jesus this Epiphany season began with His baptism in the Jordan River, where God the Father called out from heaven. “This is my Son whom I love. Listen to Him.” From that day, in word and deed, Jesus began to…
February 4 2024 — “Epiphany” comes from a Greek word that means “reveal.” Today our Lessons reveal Jesus as filled with loving-kindness, mercy and power. Jesus shoulders all the effects of the devil, from weariness and weakness (Old Testament Lesson) to anxiety and stress (Epistle Lesson) to disease and ignorance (Gospel). He never wearies and…
January 28, 2024 — “Epiphany” comes from a Greek word that means “reveal.” Today our Lessons reveal even more about just who Jesus is and how we should regard him. In our Old Testament Lesson God foretold through Moses that a Prophet greater than Moses would come, whose Word the whole world must listen…