Second Sunday after the Epiphany (Year 1, NL)

And what would happen if we didn't?

If temptation were all about blatant wrongdoing, it would be far easier to avoid.

Leadership is big these days. And I've become suspicious of our emphasis on what looks more and more like leadership for leadership's sake.

This week’s readings are generally about the faithful. Deuteronomy describes God’s faithful care of a “wandering Aramean” or “Syrian about to perish”—most likely Jacob. The psalm echoes God’s faithful care of God’s own, safely abiding in the shadow of the Almighty. Paul reminds the Romans how uncomplicated it is to come by salvation: it only takes faithful hearts and faithful speech. And we see Jesus’ profound faithfulness as he survives the devil’s temptations in the wilderness.

Preaching these texts looks easy enough, maybe even uninspiring. It doesn’t get much more basic than faith.

Epiphany is the season uniquely applicable to us who are Gentiles, the grafted-on branches to the tree of salvation, those who do well to marvel at the magnitude of the grace of God Christ that includes us. This is not common in our religiously pluralist setting, especially in our part of the world where the common assumption is that we're not grafted on at all--we're mainstream.

There are places where Epiphany light shines through people who do the best of things in the worst of times.

Light is light. And only light can bring our fragmented darkness into proper perspective and allow us to see things whole.

The Tempter will return again and again. But we are never left alone.

Neither the journey nor the wilderness comes naturally to Americans anymore.

When two or more are gathered, factions lurk.