Nobody likes to think that they might have areas of hypocrisy in their life. That is an indictment we give to insincere Christians, or money-making charlatans. However, hypocrisy isn’t just unethical actions. Often, hypocrisy is mixed motives intertwined with good practices. In Matthew 6:1-6, Jesus warns against two ways that hypocrisy manifests itself among religious people….
If there’s one word that describes the Christian church the least, it would be the noun “unity.” This unfortunate reality seems to stretch all the way back to the earliest iteration of the Christian church. This lack of unity is the basis for Paul’s well-known metaphor, that the church is like a body. He creates…
There’s a lot going on in Paul’s letter to the Philippians. I think it’s worth a brief overview, because some of the issues being addressed in that letter are universal. If we cherrypick the verses that are easy to apply, we miss the depth of what Paul’s asking this church to do. Rejoice in the Lord…
Paul’s letter to the Philippians has a similar tone to his letter to the Thessalonians. Particularly in his desire to see them pure and blameless in the day of Christ. Our 21st-century ears hear a literal call to be perfect in his call to action, and yet that doesn’t sit well next to other scriptures—even…
The text I’m writing about today is from 1 Thessalonians, which is most likely the first of any of Paul’s correspondence with the early churches. This reading isn’t a list of generic instructions or theological topics, but rather Paul telling this church how much he wants to visit them. He’s also encouraging them to let…
And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified….
Then He said to them in His teaching, ‘Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.’ Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the…
How are you doing? Fine? Of course the answer is “fine.” When people ask us how we’re doing, the automatic response is fine. Sometimes when discussing this sociological phenomenon, people say they actually want an honest answer. I never know if I should believe them. In the past, I’ve given a more honest answer and…
Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Then many warned him…
While Jesus is teaching his disciples that his path involves a spiral of rejection and persecution, they miss that part of the lesson entirely. Instead they immediately discuss amongst themselves which of them is the greatest. They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it, for he was…
You know the saying, “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me”. This little chant from the last century was used primarily to mock victims of bullies for being “triggered”. Or at least that would be the modern translation of this rhyme. Different words, same mockery. At first hearing, this…
Why is it easier to weep along with a television show than it is to weep with a friend? Is it just me? Maybe it’s because writers know how to draw out our emotions unexpectedly. Do we listen better when we’re watching a show than when a friend is grieving? Maybe we would listen better…
