Acts 2: 29-42 Those who heard Peter explain how Jesus was the Messiah and reiterated the promise of the Father to send the baptism of the Holy Spirit asked what they should do in response to what they heard. Peter said they should repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the…
Category: Uncategorized
What Does This Mean?
Acts 2: 1-21 Jesus told his friends and followers not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for the promise of the Father – “You will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1: 4, 5). Jesus told them before he ascended to wait for the promise of the Father…
To Make A Ruckus
Matthew 21: 1-11 Back in January of 1993, April, Eli and I visited my family in Baltimore. While we were there, the inauguration of Bill Clinton was scheduled. We decided to go to D.C and see the inauguration parade. April and I met in Washington while in seminary years before, but we never saw the…
You Don’t Have to Go Far
Luke 16: 19-31 The rich man dressed well and feasted sumptuously. Lazarus laid at the rich man’s gate, longed to eat his crumbs, and dogs came to lick his sores. What is the one thing consistent with both? They both died. Bertha Jones was a middle-aged woman who had a heart attack and was taken…
When We Learn to Pray
Luke 11: 1-13 Jesus prayed and that prompted his disciples to ask him to teach them to pray. They asked him to teach them. A retired minister made it a practice to visit the parish school one day each week. The fourth graders were learning about the states, so when he dropped in on the…
Welcome Him In
Luke 10: 38-42 As I mentioned last week, to me, all of Luke chapter 10 prompts us, its readers, and hearers, to consider who we are and who we long to be as followers and disciples of Jesus. This story of Mary and Martha puts a simple cap on this consideration. Four friends went deer…
Who We Long to Be
Luke 10:25-37 Since I’ve been here, I’ve shared with you two scriptures that exemplify the simplicity of our faith. From Psalm 102 in The Message paraphrase we heard, “God heard the groans of the doomed and opened their death cells.” Today, we heard from Luke 10 to be merciful to the ones who need mercy….
A Story in Itself
I remember walking home from kindergarten holding my father’s hand. Our family church was where I attended kindergarten in the suburbs of Baltimore, Maryland. After we crossed Harford Road in front of the church and headed home, I asked my father what he thought it was like to be a preacher. He was silent for…
Into All the Truth
John 16: 12-15 Once upon a time there was a piece of iron which was very strong. One after another, the ax, the saw, the hammer, and the flame tried to break it. “I’ll master it,” said the ax. Its blows fell heavily on the iron, but every blow made its edge more blunt until…
Not Quite There Yet
Acts 2: 1-21 A Sunday school teacher had cleverly taught her class to recite the Apostles’ Creed. Each student was assigned a portion of the creed to memorize and recite in order. It was the day for her class to recite the creed in worship. The first child began, “I believe in God the Father…
Psalm 102 in The Message 