Sirach 35:12–17 Divine justiceLuke 18:9-14 Pharisee and the tax collector Jesus tells a story about two people, both trying to be faithful. One goes home feeling right about what happened, but not the other. What makes the difference? What leaves us feeling right and what leaves us just not feeling
Continue readingDeuteronomy 26:1–11 First fruits and tithesPsalm 100 Make a joyful noiseLuke 17:11–19 Jesus cleanses ten lepers Sometimes, expressing gratitude—simply giving thanks—is the last thing we think to do.That is tragic, because when we begin with gratitude, it transforms—blesses everything that follows, like a light that illuminates our way ahead in
Continue readingHabakkuk 1:1–4, 2:1–4 Complaint and replyPsalm 37:1-9 Trust in the LordLuke 17:5-10 Unlimited faith and the willing servant The prevalence of evil and apathy in the world seems to extinguish hope for our worldly existence. But hope is not so passive — rather it is an active choice to trust
Continue readingAmos 6:1a, 4-7 Ignoring the ruin of JosephPsalm 146 Put not your trust in princesLuke 16:19-31 The rich man and Lazarus A story of a rich man who refuses to help a poor man and then confronts the dilema of his own salvation. What a universal story! The answer is
Continue readingAmos 8:4-7 Condemning injusticePsalm 113 Praise to the LordLuke 16:1-13 Cannot serve two masters This manager cheats his master to help his friends. It is outrageous behaviour that shatters our sense of decency and propriety. Why would Jesus tell a story like this? Maybe for exactly that purpose: to shatter
Continue readingDeuteronomy 30:15–20 Choose lifePsalm 1 The two waysLuke 14:25-33 The cost of discipleship We all want to be followers — disciples — of something ultimate, something wondrously true. Something to which we can give ourselves without reservation and for ever. Something that warrants allowing ourselves to be remade, reshaped and
Continue readingAt Robertson-Wesley, we are currently expanding our communication — that is, our use of various communication media that are available to us today. We are pressing beyond the usual internal communications, such as newsletters, bulletin boards, pamphlets, and Sunday bulletins toward internet media such as this blog, our website, Facebook,
Continue readingSirach 10:12-18 On pridePsalm 112 Bessings of the righteousLuke 14:1, 7-14 Humility and hospitality How do we rightly understand humility in a world so bent on rising above the rest and cultivating an artificial self? Jesus offers a paradoxical truth. And it is just this contradictory twist that breaks us
Continue readingGenesis 15:1-6 • Abram’s trust in God Luke 12:32-40 • Watchfulness and trust There is so much in our world that is frightening, frustrating, discouraging; cynicism and depair are so near. Yet at the heart of our faith is a simple, vigilant trust. We are offered a way to see
Continue readingEcclesiastes 1:2, 12-14, 2:18-23 All is vanityPsalm 49:1-12 the foolishness of trusting wealthLuke 12:13-21 The parable of the rich fool Conventional wisdom directs us to get ahead and to achieve as much wealth and power as possible. But in truth there is a fatal error here. There is a very
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