A blind man healed by Jesus perceived who he was while the Pharisees, the people with the most knowledge about God were totally blind to his identity. This shocking story is meant as a warning for the religious that pride can blind us to what God is doing, and even lead us to oppose it…

When Jesus rejects Satan's offer of a kingdom in exchange for worship, he's rejecting both Satan's kingdom and its self-elevating vision of coercive power. Jesus instead demonstrates that God's reign comes through self-emptying power. Christians face the same choice: we can use Satan's tools of power--even in pursuit of an agenda we presume to be…

In our media-crazed age, we often focus on ensuring more people hear about Jesus. But we don't think it's as important that when the world sees Jesus' people, those people are faithfully following Jesus' commands. From the church, Jesus needs Faithfulness over Exposure. When Satan attempts to tempt Jesus to throw himself off the temple…

After Jesus has fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, Satan tempts him to turn stones into bread. Why would it be wrong for Jesus to indulge? First, Jesus would be acting as though physical needs were the only needs that we have that are important. Second, by taking matters into his own hands, Jesus…

Peter, James & John are excited that Jesus gets a visit from Moses and Elijah on the Mountain. What they don't realize is that it is Moses and Elijah--who have each seen God imperfectly on the mountain before--are the ones who are privileged to finally encounter God face to Face. Moses and Elijah represent an…

For Christians, the law, or Torah, has negative connotations. And it is true that salvation isn't something people earn by keeping the Torah, but at its heart, the Torah is meant to communicate God's expectations for his people once they are already a part of his people. But that doesn't mean that Keeping Torah as…

Christians who emphasize holiness often do so by forsaking the church's mission. God's people shouldn't avoid interactions with those outside for fear of sin, but instead, follow the example of Jesus in the incarnation who is both present (God with us) and other (human in a different way than we are). This sort of incarnational…

Human wisdom seeks what's good in our own eyes, which leads us to interpret right and wrong in a self-interested way. The result is that people with power get what they want, and people without do not. The logical conclusion of this is empire, where one person gets what they want, and everyone else becomes…

Peter, Andrew, James & John leave their jobs and their families to follow Jesus. The crowd also follows Jesus, but in a far less costly way. What's the difference? Disciples give Jesus their whole selves. While they make many mistakes, they are willing to follow in a way that is costly. The crowd, on the…

In the life of St. Peter, we see God's determination to use his people in spite of their flaws. Jesus calls him a rock long before he becomes dependable. His story is meant to remind us that God looks at us and sees what we will become rather than what we are right now. And…

Mary and Joseph endure a travel nightmare and end up having baby Jesus in a stable so that Jesus can inhabit the lowest place because the lowest place is the only place everyone can access. This way Jesus can be a Savior for Everyone. Jesus shows us God's hospitality by taking on flesh. He calls…

Most of us have plans for our lives, but those plans seldom look like the lives we end up living. Sure, most plans require adjustment over time, but when we follow Jesus, God redirects our lives. God isn't interested in ensuring we have greater happiness, comfort, security or a good reputation. Instead, he's more interested…