Changing Views on the Law Many of the laws we read in the Old Testament seem odd to us. We don’t encourage people to put tassels on the corners of their garments. We don’t prohibit the consumption of pork. We don’t require younger brothers to marry their sisters-in-law if their older brother dies without producing…

The Kingdom of God takes shape in a community of people who are called by God to embody a new kind of life. In the call of Peter, Andrew James, and John--Jesus' first apostles--we see some themes that apply to our call as well. They are called, but unremarkable. God takes what they have and…

Our culture is obsessed with human bodies (like the photos we see at the checkout at the grocery store). As the church, however, we can overcorrect and focus exclusively on the spiritual aspects of life. But while faith is something internal, it always works itself out in our actions. So we need to focus on…

Why does Jesus get baptized, if he's sinless? He's taking a ritual that signifies repentance and transforming it, by showing that Christian repentance is a gateway to becoming a part of the new creation that God is bringing into existence. In this week's sermon, we look at the origins of baptism, and how it is…

How does God show us his love for us? He pitches his tent with us. In the incarnation, Jesus shows us how God's glory isn't about riches, wealth or power, but instead he is glorified by showing how much he loves his children. God pitches his tent with the lowest and the least. If we…

While our culture tells us to pursue happiness, Christians can pursue joy instead. Joy can be a sense of well-being grounded in what God has done for us, rather than in our current circumstances. Peter tells the believers that because their salvation is assured, that they can be glad even if their current circumstances are…

Conflict is Messy We like our stories to have clear good guys and bad guys. In real life, though, there is often moral ambiguity when conflicts are involved. So for example, we like to think that the Allies were the good guys in World War II. While Hitler was undoubtedly evil, there were things our…

Jesus didn't appear on anybody's radar because while he was saving the world, he didn't look as grand doing it as we might expect. God does great things through the humble obedience of his people. Just as he transformed the world through Jesus' humble acts of obedience, so he continues to change the world by…

When we read our Bibles, we can make the mistake of seeing it more as a theology textbook, rather than as a love letter from God. Ideas that are meant to express God's love can come across as dry and technical. A great example of this is our reading of Ephesians 2:4-10. "By grace you…

In the Scriptures, God often emphasizes the importance of remembering what he has done for his people. So this week we take a look at the big-picture story of God and his people. God has made promises and he has kept his promises. Remembering that helps us to trust that he will continue to be…

We often expect truly 'important' people to do important things. But our view both of who is important and what things are important is shaped by our culture. Jesus' example asks us to question what it means to be important. He shows us that humble service in love is the true measure of importance in…

Christians can often pride themselves on avoiding the sin of idolatry, but they can easily indulge in self-serving piety that is idolatrous. Salvation is a free gift from God, not a benefit God gives us in order to wring acts of piety from us. So piety offered as payment for God's saving work insults the…