July 18, 2021
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
From Paul’s letter to the Ephesians: God destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. In the Name of the one, holy, and undivided Trinity. Amen.
So as we endure this time of disease and death, into what new thing is God refining us?
In the end we practice hope, courage, and love. It’s the Christian thing to do.
COVID19 is commanding much of our attention this Lent. Indeed, it almost seems as if protecting ourselves and our loved ones from infection and helping our neighbors in any way we can has become our Lenten discipline
Why would God not want us to know good and evil? Isn’t the ability to judge between good and evil a good thing? Are we not supposed to make moral judgements? How can we be good human beings if we don’t know what is good and what is bad?
When Jesus was baptized, there was a voice from heaven that said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” This marked the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry.
Moses offers us a choice: life or death, blessing or curse. “Choose life!” he exhorts.
Well, that’s a nice thing for Jesus to say about us. Then come the implications. We cannot lose our flavor. We have to shine for the world. He goes on to say that he did not come to abolish the law or the prophets; he came to fulfill them. Fulfilling both the law and the prophets is a tricky thing, for there is a tension between the commandments and the prophets who bring the word of God to the people of God.
The Twenty-fifth Sunday after Pentecost E. Bevan Stanley November 10, 2019 Proper 27, Year C, RCL Haggai 1:15b-2:9 Psalm 17:1-9 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5, 13-17 Luke 20:27-38 Now he is God […]