A Fresh Perspective

  This passage in John 17 is part of a larger passage that is presented by John as a prayer of Jesus for his disciples. Jesus had been preparing them to continue his work when he was gone. He knew his time was short. John, the writer, uses this prayer format as a means of continued instruction. The dominant theme seem to be the paradoxical relationship the disciples of Jesus have with the world. John speaks of the world in several different ways that appear contradictory. In one sense the disciples are part of the world and belong to the world. We are all part of God’s good creation and the human family. John says in his prologue in chapter one that the light of God enlightens every person coming into the world. As Paul says in Acts 17 we are all God’s offspring and in God we all live, move, and have our existence. So in one sense the world is God’s. We all belong to one another and are all connected by the Divine Spirit. There is also a sense in which disciples of Jesu...

What Matters Most (a sermon from Matthew 25:31-46) This parable is not really a parable – it is but it isn’t. One scholar calls it an apocalyptic drama. Scholars who have studied Matthew in detail see the author’s hand all over this. Some argue that the author probably composed it. Of course, there is no way to prove that. What we can say for sure is that the teaching of this apocalyptic story strikes a theme that is dominant in Matthew’s Gospel, namely, doing the will of God, expressing mercy and justice, engaging in acts of lovingkindness. These are the things that Matthew’s Gospel emphasizes and these are the things that matter most. I hope you know not to take this judgment scene literally. This is an apocalyptic story. Apocalyptic literature is full of symbolism, sometimes rather strange and bizarre symbolism, like the Beast with ten heads or the great red dragon in the book of Revelation. In apocalyptic symbolism everything is exaggerated; it’s full of hyperbole. And whe...

Did you notice how often the word “world” appears in this passage? v. 6: “I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world.” v. 9: “I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world.” v. 11: “And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. . . . protect them in your name that you have given me” v. 14: “the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world.” v. 15: “I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.” v. 16: “They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world.” v. 18: “As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” That last statement is the one I want to focus on today. Luke says the Holy Spirit will turn Jesus’ followers into witnesses. Here in John we are told that as the Father sent Jesus on a mission to the world, so the Christ sends us to continue his work.   ...

What does it mean to be spiritual? There is, of course, no one answer to that question. Such a question doesn’t solicit an answer like, “What is 2 plus 2?”   Our text raises the question today because Paul writes about being spiritual and being unspiritual. Based on Paul’s words here and the text in Matthew I can say three things about a healthy spirituality. Now, what I have to say is not any more exhaustive than what Paul says to the Corinthians is exhaustive. So, what can we say about being spiritual by looking at these two texts. The first thing I would like to say about being spiritual, is that authentic, healthy spirituality is rooted in gratitude. Paul writes, “Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God” (2:12). I think anyone who is spiritual, anyone who is being led by the Spirit understands that all of life is a gift, that we are alive because of the generosity and goo...

Biblical interpreters call this passage in Micah a lawsuit oracle. It is a proclamation of indictment or judgment against the covenant people, most likely the leaders of Israel toward the end of the eighth century BCE. The prophet rails against religion that is awash in liturgy and ritual, but devoid of substance. When we turn this in on ourselves the truth of it is that we might never miss a worship service, we might give a full tithe of our income to the church, we might serve in various capacities within the church structure and organization, and still, we might completely miss doing God’s will. What is God’s will? How does true religion express itself? Micah is quite explicit. O mortal, cries the prophet, what is good? What does the Lord require of you? To do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God. The three things Micah highlights that God requires are mentioned specifically in three of the beatitudes in Matthew 5. One could easily make the cas...