the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK Most of us have received fraudulent emails that appear to be from a trusted friend but are, in fact, from someone masquerading as that friend. The goal of such communication is to defraud. This coming Sunday is Trinity Sunday—the celebration of God’s revealing of God’s self as Father, … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK If asked, most Christians would be able to tell me when Christmas and Easter occur. Sunday (June 5) is Pentecost Sunday and far fewer know when it falls. This should surprise us, since Christmas (the incarnation) and Easter (God’s vindication of the cross); Christmas and Easter exist for … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK Do you have some treasured invitations? There is a tradition in academic institutions like Oxford and Cambridge in England called High Table. It is a table on a raised platform at the end of a dining hall where the college fellows and professors eat along with there guests. I … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK Solitary confinement is difficult to endure. The Apostle John was in solitary confinement when he wrote Revelation. I could well imagine John, that Sunday morning, alone in the crush of exile praying, “Lord, Jesus what is going on?” I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, John tells … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK Does hearing how the movie ends or the final score of a game before you have a chance to watch the recording you made, spoil things for you? In some respects John’s Revelation—the last book in the Bible—should have been prefaced with “Spoiler Alert!” While knowing how a … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK On one occasion some people who resisted Jesus asked him for a sign. They wanted him to do something dramatic, something compelling—that he was the one in whom they should believe. Jesus refused to give any such sign. He refused for one reason. Once Jesus had given them the … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK It would be hard to overstate the influence of the Apostles Peter and Paul on Christianity. It is simply impossible to wrap your arms around the impact these two Apostles have had and continue to have on the church. And when you consider the integral role Christianity has … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK I, for one, am so grateful for the Apostle Thomas’ refusal to believe the other disciples. What they were asking him to believe—that they had seen the risen Jesus very much alive—was, frankly, unbelievable! The resurrection of Jesus is a one-of-a-kind event, after all. Thomas has the moniker … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK We are now in the middle of Holy Week, the week when, according to the gospel, everything changed! The events of this last week of Jesus’ life are the very hinge of history; the turning point of God’s plan for our salvation. Tonight we celebrate the last … [Read more…]
the life of your church….! FROM THE MINISTER’S DESK The church in many parts of our world will celebrate Palm Sunday this coming Sunday, marking the beginning of Holy Week. On Sunday we follow our Lord’s westward journey down the Mount of Olives and his entrance into Jerusalem amidst the cheering pilgrims who had come from … [Read more…]