Sunday’s Coming
Comfort and hope (Isaiah 40:1-11)
There is comfort, and then there is comfort.
What do we expect? (Isaiah 64:1-9)
During Advent, the cry of Isaiah should be our cry.
Lamb and shepherd (Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24; Matthew 25:31-46)
I once cared for a sick and vulnerable lamb.
Deep in the hole (Matthew 25:14-30)
Once the servant digs the hole, is there any way out?
Hope in the face of death (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Matthew 25:1-13)
Everybody dies. My mother-in-law intended to be ready.
Rest and resurrection (Revelation 7:9-17)
From dust I came and to dust I shall return—but not forever.
Keeping an eye on our demands (1 Thessalonians 2:1-8)
How can people tell the difference between a prophet and a phony?
God knows our names (Isaiah 45:1-7)
We want to know God, but we also want to be known.
When Paul sounds like Pollyanna (Philippians 4:1-9)
What does true joy require of us?
My work in God's garden (Matthew 21:33-46)
I enjoy the tomatoes I grow, but they aren't really mine.
Get yourself a new heart (Ezekiel 18:1-4; 25-32)
God is calling us out.
Parable and interpretation? (Matthew 20:1-16)
It's a pithy proverb, but it doesn't capture Jesus' story.
A faith without food rules (Romans 14:1-12)
Maybe we need to be pushed in different ways than the Romans did.
Getting forgiveness (Matthew 18:15-20)
Christ’s love binds up our broken hearts and broken ways.
The body arcs away (Matthew 16:21-28)
In Matthew 16, I see a particular classical ballet step.
Look to the rock (Isaiah 51:1-6)
Isaiah invites us to remember our origins.
God's foreign service (Isaiah 56: 1, 6-8)
God builds “a house of prayer for all peoples.” All means all.
When God changes our plans (Romans 10:5–15)
It's not always what we would choose for ourselves.
Paul's concern for his kin (Romans 9:1–5)
This text is a painful confession.
A deeper, wiser story (1 Kings 3:5–12)
The left/right/center narrative helps us avoid difficult work.