I am not pointing fingers. I am not getting political. Do not read anything into the message. I think it is important to point out that “mockery and derision” are frequently the tactic of the “rich and the powerful” to besmirch someone’s character. It is historic. It has happened for centuries. It goes way back […]
So, I played with some words. What comes to your mind when I say these words? Reckless. Blow. Foolish. Throw Away. Wasteful. Lose. Splurge. Consume. Misspend. Deplete. Misuse. Exhaust. Carelessly. And, drain. All of these words in “one way” or “another” relate to the word “prodigal.” If you want to know what a “prodigal” son […]
What are “our standards?” “How do we respond” to those who break our standards? “Are there even standards anymore?” “Who” determines your standards for you? Does your voice “even matter,” today? Jesus was “notorious” for many things…one of the things he was notorious for (much to the chagrin of the Pharisees and scribes) was that […]
I’ve preached on “suffering” before. In fact, one lady at the door told me, “Preacher, I never knew “what suffering was” until I heard you preach. Now I know, for sure.” Once a long-winded preacher had been going at it for about an hour straight and it didn’t seem at all like he was even […]
Throw out everything you know! Get rid of it! Dump it! Toss it! Jesus is about to do “another reversal” on you! He was just chock-full of surprises, this itinerant rabbi from of all places, Galilee! This is the stuff of “shock and awe” for his poor audience…they were not expecting THIS! Nor were they […]
Some had seen him…and he was all they could talk about. Was he everything the people said he was? Did he really heal people? Did he really feed People? …Did he really offer wisdom like that of one of the prophets of old? Was he really “that charismatic?” Did he “really” offer forgiveness? This Jesus […]
The Psalmists of old “loved the imagery” of “being sheltered by God.” Was there anything better than being in his sanctuary, spending time with him? Was there a time when you were more at peace, more serene? Enter into his holiness and be sheltered by him…for he cares for you. I can give you “six […]
“World-acclaimed illusionist” Roy Horn goes to work on Friday evening, October 3, 2003, amid a “celebrative atmosphere.” It is his 59th birthday, and more than a thousand friends have just thrown him a huge party. And now an audience of fifteen hundred people “waits excitedly” inside the Mirage Hotel for a show – Horn and […]
“The wilderness of temptation” is a 425 square mile desert between the Dead Sea and Jerusalem. To this day it is mostly uninhabited – – a desolate place with large hills, deep ravines, dry crusty soil, minimal vegetation, and dangers galore. This is the area that Jesus was thrown into by the spirit. It was […]
We are all aware – of life’s many temptations. They are constant. They can be daily. Sometimes even hourly! Even the simplest decisions can be full of temptations…sometimes with “devastating consequences”…and sometimes, “not so much!” Big Mac or Salad sans the dressing? Exercising or playing the couch potato? “Little white lies” aren’t really lies, are […]