Faith, as it turns out, is not a requirement for healing, just as healing is not a product of, nor evidence of, our faith or of God’s favor.
Frustrating, I know. It really takes it out of our hands, doesn’t it?
It would be far simpler if our broken bodies, broken minds, broken hearts, could be mended through our own striving after this thing called faith. If we then could bring about our own healing.
Read MoreIn God’s economy, our individual value is not based on anything we’ve ever accomplished or failed to accomplish, you are valued first and finally because you are a beloved child of God. End stop. It’s one of the few things I can promise you confidently because it’s God’s promise. You are valuable because you are a beloved child of God. And because that is also true of our neighbors, the true measure of glory is the measure of how well we serve those around us who are also God’s beloved.
Read MoreJesus looks into his eyes and straight into his heart. He sees that what is holding him back is his attachment to his wealth, his comfort, his security. And most importantly, Jesus sees that at the root of it all is pride. His pride is the biggest obstacle to his spiritual growth. It is evident in his question to Jesus. What do “I” need to “DO.” He thinks it’s all about him. He wants to know how he can achieve his eternal reward, how he can earn his salvation. And Jesus tells him that it’s not all about him. It’s about being emptied so that he can be filled. Jesus invites him to follow him on a path of relinquishment in order to receive everything. And he cannot do it alone. That is why Jesus later tells his disciples, “For mortals, it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.” That is the paradox of the Kingdom of God. We cannot save ourselves. God alone can save us.
Read MoreIn the first creation story in Genesis, we hear how God spoke creation into existence. “God said, let there be light. And there was light.” With the sound of God’s voice, everything came into being. When we come together each Sunday, we listen for God’s voice so that we can participate in God’s continual re-creation of the world. We lift our voices in praise and thanksgiving in order to worship God and to put ourselves in a space where we can be reminded of our role as co-creators with God. And beautiful sounds are an important part of that experience. The aesthetics of worship matter. Genesis describes how God came over the formless void, and created beauty out of nothingness, and soon the formless void of the organ chamber will have a beautiful organ in it. We will see it taking shape over the next few weeks.
Read MoreHis way is a way of service, not power and prestige. And the whole social order in Jesus’ day, as in our day, was and is about power, prestige and privilege. When Jesus talks about attaining greatness by being a servant, it sounds shocking and non-sensical.
Read MoreThere is but one true Cross, and that is the Cross of Christ. It is why we can sing, “All my hope on God is founded” even “as tower and temple turns to dust” (The Hymnal 1982, #665).
Because the Cross bears a truth like no other: that even in our deepest sorrow, we are not alone. God never forsakes us. That even where evil lurks, Christ has ultimately prevailed. That neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, Almighty.
Read More