This text focuses on Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness. Chronologically, Jesus has been baptized. His identity and vocation have been affirmed. Now he is led by the Spirit into the bleak Judean wilderness. Jesus is tested three times regarding making fast food, bungee jumping without a rope, just a little worship of the [...]

Babies are a threat. Any parent knows that. My kids came along two decades ago and turned my world upside down. They still do. I never knew how much love, fear, anger, sadness or joy I could experience as a parent. The fact that these emotions come because of little bundles [...]

In case you don’t know, Eddie and I follow the lectionary for these weekly comments. The last church year spent a majority of its time in the Gospel of Luke. With this new church year, beginning with this, the first post in Advent, will focus primarily on the gospel of Matthew. I never [...]

Read the words of Jesus , really read the words of Jesus and it is very difficult to come up with an idea that the lifestyle of a disciple of Jesus is an easy one. Again, in this passage, Jesus warns his followers that they are called to a difficult task, not for the faint [...]

Brian McLaren has a new book out–Everything Must Change: Jesus, Global Crisis, and a Revolution of Hope (Thomas Nelson, 2007). Buy this book and read this book. It will disturb you and challenge you. It just might make you angry. Read this book! We who live in a Western, capitalistic, individualistic world need to [...]

This is a difficult passage to read in an age of consumerism. Too much of the modern church is focused on: finding a need and filling it, it’s all about me, I need to be fed, served, catered to, made to feel good. Jesus missed the “how to market your church” seminar

Here is a classic example of religion missing the point. Here is the scene: a woman has been crippled for eighteen years. Jesus sees her and heals her. The woman praises God; but a religious leader becomes indignant because this healing took place on the Sabbath. Imagine, the religious leader is too busy [...]

We live in an age characterized by anxiety and consumerism. There is plenty around us to anxious about—war, environmental issues, terrorism, and more. I have a hunch that the reason The Simpsons Movie is doing so well at the box-office is because people need a break, a crazy, silly, mindless break from the anxieties [...]

The parable of the Good Samaritan is introduced with a question from a religious leader. The question is actually more the searching for a loophole. Who is my neighbor? is the surface question. The underlying question is: how far must I extend myself towards another? Jesus paints a picture of extravagant generosity. It [...]

Jesus is constantly reshaping the thinking and actions of his followers. They/we are works in progress. The work is never done. In this passage, Jesus is making his way towards Jerusalem and the cross. On the way, he makes preparations for a visit to a Samaritan town, but he is not [...]