Imagine, if you will, yourself on the shores of the river Jordan. Down by the river is a man—long-haired, dressed in camel skin—yelling at the top of his lungs.
Category: Advent/Christmas
Redemption Draws Near
(The Year is a series of occasional reflections on the Sundays and Holy Days of the church calendar, featuring scripture readings from the Revised Common Lectionary.) Readings: Jeremiah 33:14-16| Psalm 25:1-10 | 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 | Luke 21:25-36 “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by…
The Good King
(The Year is a series of occasional reflections on the Sundays and Holy Days of the church calendar, featuring scripture readings from the Revised Common Lectionary.) Readings: Daniel 7:9-14 | Psalm 93 | Revelation 1:4b-8 | John 18:33-37 To him was given dominion and glory and kingship,that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him.His dominion is an…
Advent 4: The Reconciler
In the story of redemption, the grievance is from one direction and the reconciliation from the other.
Advent 3: Joy?
It’s easy to get depressed when circumstances don’t go as we plan. Happiness in wavering, though. What we must rest on is joy.
Advent 2: Peace
Year A Readings: Isaiah 11:1-10 | Psalm 72:1-19 | Romans 15:1-13 | Matthew 3:1-12 So, this post is a day late. That’s somehow fitting for an Advent post. I mean, the prophets and Jesus himself spoke of his second coming as a seemingly close event, but we’ve been waiting almost two thousand years. And while time beats…
Advent 1: Prepare
It feels unbelievable sometimes, yet it is a promise given to us. There will be a day when the nations of the world will not make war. The disunity of humanity will end, and the Lord will come to establish his Kingdom. But what do we do until that day of peace?
Advent is Not Christmas
The season of Advent is directly related to the season of Christmas, but it is not Christmas. Christmas itself begins Christmas Day and lasts for twelve days, followed by the also-related season of Epiphany. Often, we confuse Advent for Christmas itself. It’s easy to do with manger scenes, Christmas trees, festivities, and such things. There’s certainly…
For the Eve of Christ the King
On Good Friday, one man knew Jesus was a king: the condemned thief dying right beside him. Jesus was mocked by Romans, rejected by Jews, and abandoned by his own disciples that day. But for a man at the end of his rope, the only hope was in Jesus being the king he claimed to be.
How Advent Saved Christmas
I hate Christmas. The stress, the materialism, the consumerism, the deception, and the overall empty, kitschy, humanist messages unsettle me. Then came Advent.
