Jesus turns their concept of the world upside down. Neither power, knowledge, nor wealth determine your identity or place in God’s kingdom – God does.
Read MoreWe have heard it many times. But as Luther said, we are both sinners and saints. As James put it, both fresh and brackish waters flow from our lives.
Read MoreWhat is clear is that James calls on his community to treat all visitors with the same respect and welcome. By doing so they would be demonstrating that in Christ there is no distinction.
Read MoreWhile we do not know for sure, it seems that James’ community would rather sit around and try to be theologians than to do the work of Christians. It also sounds like they argued and criticized each other to the point of getting angry with each other. Which was destructive to the community and did not show the unity they had in Jesus. It also seems that many of their arguments were just empty words.
Read MoreAs I have told you before there is not a correct way to read the Bible. Instead, there are a great variety of ways to read it.
Read MoreInstead of being content with the gifts God has given us we want more. Sometimes we try to bargain with God to give us more. Other times we get angry and blame God for not giving us what we desire. Jesus’ promise was never to give us what we want or to make life easier. His promise was to be with us to the end of the world no matter what happens.
Read MorePaul is so concerned about our anger he mentions it twice. It is not your anger that is the problem, it is what you do with it that might be. If you hurt others it is wrong. If it motivates you to do right it is good. But anger can stew. That is why Paul tells you to deal with it quickly – before sundown.
Read MoreWe begin with Paul’s list of the characteristics of Christians. Those are humility and gentleness, patience, and bearing with one another in love in order to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Read MoreBoth images remind us that the world meets God through us. It is through our words and deeds that people experience God and God’s salvation.
Read MoreLeft to ourselves we tend to divide the world into us and them. We base this upon arbitrary criteria: the color of our skin, our income, our sexual identity, our education, our nationality, our political beliefs. If we truly are the community built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets and held together by Christ we will work to break down these human walls to bring to the world the Word of God who is our peace.
Read MoreAmos, a simple herdsman and dresser of sycamore trees was called to confront the king. What a challenge that was. The powerless giving God’s message of destruction to the powerful. Only with God’s support could Amos have done that.
Read MoreBeing a Christian is difficult. While some may experience God in the way those ‘super apostles’ did, most Christians live in this world with real every-day struggles. That is where we truly meet God – through the struggles we share with our sisters and brothers in Jesus.
Read MoreGifts that God has given to us so that we may live the life God desires for us. That life is one that involves sharing the gifts that God has given us.
Read MoreWhat good is faith if you don’t share it with others?
Read MoreGod made our world and ourselves for one reason: so that we may live lives of love filled with peace and justice.
Read MoreThe members of the church started to rank God’s gifts to boost their individual self-image, claiming that one gift is more important than another. Paul disagrees with them telling the Corinthians that their lives were built by God. Their identity came from Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection not the gifts God had given them. Those gifts were to be shared.
Read MoreIf we are not careful, anger and hurt can take over our lives and prevent us from living the way God desires. We can allow our hurt to take hold in our families, among our friends, in our neighborhood, and, like the Corinthians, in our church.
Read MoreBy talking about being born from above as John, or about adoption as Paul, we are reminded that it is God who initiates this relationship. In fact this has always been true.
Read MoreIn our brief text from Romans today it seems that Paul is addressing the age-old question of why do God’s people suffer. The Christians in Rome were no different. After becoming Christians their lives had not changed for them. Why was God not answering their prayers?
Read MoreAll of the first Christians spent their time proclaiming the good news of Jesus. No one stood out but the few because everyone worked together. As the community grew there were more diverse roles for the members of the community.
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