Romans 5:1-5 “Therefore since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance…

Acts 2:1-21 This morning’s reading is the story of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the followers of the Risen and Ascended Lord. People were very nice to me and said “yes,” when I asked them to read the passage in different languages so we could imagine what it was like that day. There is an insert in your…

Luke 24:44-53  44Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” 45Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to…

John 14:23-29  23Jesus answered him, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; and the word that you hear is not mine, but is from the Father who sent me. 25”I have said these…

John 10:27-30 “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”” I…

I asked to read the scripture today to share some context before it is proclaimed. This was my plan even before yesterday’s synagogue attack. The Gospel of John from which this morning’s reading comes was composed later than the synoptic Gospels, Mark, Matthew and Luke, and while John contains some beautiful stories not found in the other records the loss of which…

Luke 24:1-12 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, taking the spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body. While they were perplexed about this, suddenly two men in dazzling clothes stood beside them. The women…

Luke 19:29-40 Palms or Passion? That’s the question worship planners ask as Holy Week begins. On this final Sunday in Lent, will we celebrate with a Parade, or bear witness to the suffering and death of Jesus? A while back Eric saw the scripture reading we’ve just heard and wrote me an email saying something like, “Now that I see we’re doing…