The Goodness of God

Our tendency, as Jesus triumphally enters Jerusalem, is to keep our eyes on Jesus. Fair enough. He's the protagonist for the entire Gospel narrative. He's also the Son of God, the Divine Logos, etc. If anyone deserves our attention, it's Christ. However, if we look beyond who is in the center of the shot, we see something powerful - a massive group of disparate people coming together to spontaneous worship and begin to understand who this Jesus guy is. This is a potent image of the fulfilled Kingdom of God: Jesus at the center, victorious and people being brought together to be transformed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

During the long Exile, God's people faced a reasonable question: can things get better? How does it all go back together. To answer this, God led the prophet, Ezekiel, out to the desert to observe some dry bones coming back to life. God can breathe new life into God's people. That was true 2,500 years ago, and through God's sanctifying grace, is true in your life as well. God can breathe new life into you and transform you into something truly new. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The remarkable rhythm that keeps playing out between humanity and God is that God starts by loving us. Christ's death on the cross is the most extreme example of that. Humanity kept failing. Humanity put Jesus on that cross. He bore that out of love for us all - even though we were not worthy of that love. It is that love that unleashed God's grace into the world. Even before we are even the tiniest bit righteous, we get counted that way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John 3:16 is an incredibly recognizable piece of Scripture. We hold it up as a Gospel in miniature. We memorize. We emblazon it on t-shirts, lettermen jackets, mugs, and wall art. It's at the top of the list of hit Scriptures. So, what is this Pharisee doing in this scene? We know the Scripture so well that we can lose sight of its context. Jesus lays it on in a respectful but pointed debate with Nicodemus - a leading Pharisee. What about Jesus drew him into this conversation? How did it change him? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The snake, Eve, and Adam, each in their own way, find fascinating ways to mess up. The snake attempts to tempt another. Eve gives into ambition and gives Adam a chance eat as well. Adam neither tries to stop Eve nor heads God's instruction himself. We view this series of events as the origin of sin, and theologians, including John Wesley, have wrestled with how to guide folks through their own moments of temptation. For Wesley, he broke down three general rules: 1. Do no harm. 2. Do good. 3. Stay in touch with God. If only ANYONE, snake, Eve, or Adam had thought to do ANY of that. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's one of those scene that we see every year. Jesus goes up the mountain with Peter, James, and John. Moses and Elijah show up. God speaks claiming Jesus as God's Son. Then, they all have go back down the mountain and back to work. Matthew says that Jesus is "transfigured" before them. Yes, he looked different, but it was reality that was revealed. Peter, James, and John caught a glimpse of who Christ really is, and it is that power of God that is transforming our world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If asked some version of "What do you think God wants you to do?" we could all probably spit out something like "God's will" or "Follow Christ" or "Answer the Great Commission" or "Be a good person." The Prophet Isaiah puts a lot more meat onto the bones of what God really wants. God wants us to stop fighting with each other and instead liberate the oppressed, feed the hungry, and clothe the naked. He lays it out directly and in black and white. Religious ceremonies aren't the core. Caring about people often left behind sits there right alongside having a relationship with God. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do we really change things? We might feel powerless or angry. We might feel paralyzed or the urge to rush out into the street. God calls us to seek justice, but in our hyperpolarized world, perspectives on justice vary wildly. It's a wrestling process - wrestling with God and your place in the world. It's a discerning process - thinking about where you are capable of making an impact. It's also back recognizing that people change more often in relationship than in an argument with a stranger. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In his argument with the Corinthians, that we called 1 Corinthians, Paul does something surprising. He doesn't put the Corinthians in their place by pointing at this own greatness or accomplishments. Paul doesn't make it about him at all. He makes it about Christ, and in that way, empties himself and seeks to level the playing field. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John the Baptist, Peter, and Andrew go directly against what's good for them. John has become the leader of a religious movement. People wonder if he's the Messiah. John repeatedly points to the reality that Jesus is the far greater. Peter and Andrew leave behind a comfortable life to follow Jesus into unknown discomfort. They set an example that undergird being part of God's work and God's call to justice. We have set aside our interests and go in the direction that God points us. We have to care not primarily for ourselves but for the things that God cares about. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A children's movie about King David? It's a musical for some reason. It's made by Angel Studios. The entire concept created a lot of skepticism. Will it be terrible? Will it be wildly theologically conservative? Will it just be a nonstop preach-fest? It's none of those things. Instead, they made a weirdly decent children's movie that grasps a decent junk of what the Bible wants you to know about Biblical kings. We are as shocked as anyone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The story of the Magi's arrival is as much about who isn't there as who is. Three gentile astronomer priest journey from afar, show up, get filled with joy, worship the infant Lord, and work to protect. Missing are the priest, scribes, and King Herod. They all know better than the Magi what's happening, but none of them show up to pay homage. Instead, Herod hatches a plot to kill Jesus. The contrasts are stark and remind us that Christ troubles the powerful but welcomes the previously excluded. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Christmas represents the tension between the vastness of God's grandeur and the lowliness of the Christ's birth. Jesus was born to a working family, in a shed, surrounded by farm workers. He's also the Lord of all creation, the divine word, who built the underlining foundation of all things. We welcome an infant born to a brave, faithful, and average young woman. This baby is God among us. This tension means to invite. You should see yourself in Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds and see that you belong in God's family. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The New Testament works at a way different scale than the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, we work at the scale of nations, kings, prophets, princesses, emperors, and generals. We mostly remember the high and mighty. The New Testament is largely about teen moms, fishermen, lepers, tent makers, a few rich homeowners, and a bunch of shop keepers. The story of Christ's birth focuses on a godly, brave, and loving carpenter who turns out to be the perfect earthly father for Jesus. Joseph's might doesn't come from his position or social standing. Instead, we remember him purely because of how faithful he turns out to be. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mary is extremely brave. She risks at lot and at an young age, yet she greets all of this with joy. The Magnificat, Mary's beautiful song at the beginning of Luke, boldly declares exactly what her soon to be born child means and excitement and amazement at the whole thing. Mary gets it far earlier than anyone else in the New Testament, more so than the Disciples, or anyone else who met Jesus in his earthly life. May we all gain Mary's clarity and joy at the birth of a savior. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the Root of Jesse's tree (AKA the House of David) will come one who makes all things well. When Isaiah spoke these words, the king who arrived made things better, but they didn't stay better for long. Destruction and exile eventually came. These words of the prophet point to what a messiah, a savior is and does. They come from the House of David, and they set things right. Some Old Testament kings did that in limited ways and for a while. Christ does it for everyone and for always. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jesus is actually quite clear about trying to predict the end times. He essentially says, "Don't bother. Even I don't know." Instead, we should focus on being spiritually ready, living our lives with hope, and trust that at some unknown point, God will make all things well. That there is an end point is meant to motivate discipleship - not rampant speculation. We begin each Christian year with an image of the end to remind us of what God has done, is doing, and will do. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine yourself at your worst moment. Picture in your mind's eye being pushed, painfully, to the brink of death. How would you react to the people responsible for putting you in that situation? How would you treat those around you? This is the context of Jesus offering forgiveness to persecutors and to the penitent thief as he hangs on a cross. Jesus is actively and painfully dying and spends his remaining breath offering forgiveness to the guilty. This is the brutal hope of God's grace. It's forgiveness that can contain the breadth of human brokenness. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The ending of Isaiah projects a beautiful image of the world made right. Jerusalem restored. People live to an advanced aged. The lion eats straw. The serpent is not longer a problem. For a people deeply traumatized from the experience of exile and now returned home, there are probably images that felt both comforting and true. There world, once rocked and destroyed, had massively improved. However, it was not yet the perfection described in Isaiah's vision. Indeed, that level of perfection still eludes us. So, we find trust in the promises already kept to find hope in the promises still out there to be fulfilled. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Purity Culture is a thing - quite a thing. It was all the rage in youth groups across the nation and fed in part by Joshua Harris's I Kissed Dating Goodbye. It put an extreme focus on saying literally everything until marriage and turned pre-martial sex (particularly for young women) into a kind of uber sin, a sin that there's no coming back from. Good news! None of that's in the Bible, and Joshua Harris has disavowed his own book that he wrote at the age of 21 (the age where everyone always has it all figured out). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.