Reading: Romans 6: 12-23 Verse 14: “For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace”. Paul is writing to the church in Rome because they are struggling with living righteous lives. Sin is present. Some people have even adopted the belief that they can do whatever they want because grace will cover all sin. This passage remains very applicable today – maybe even moreso than the day it was written. Paul begins by encouraging the followers of

Reading: Romans 6: 1b-11 Verse 6: “We know that our old self was crucified with him so that… we should no longer be slaves to sin”. At the end of chapter five Paul writes about Adam’s sin bringing death to the world and Christ’s death bringing new life to humanity. Through Christ’s death, through his act of obedience, grace and righteousness now reign. The power of sin and death were defeated. Establishing these truths, Paul goes on to ask a question to begin chapter six. It

Reading: Genesis 18: 1-8 Verse 2: “When he saw them, he hurried… to meet them and bowed low to the ground”. The church service has run long again and there won’t be much time before the next mini- congregation enters the sanctuary for their time of worship. You know from past similar experiences that the line will now be extra long at your favorite brunch spot. And your tummy is already growling. When the pastor finally says the last “Amen” you are ready to bolt for the exit.

Reading: 2nd Corinthians 13: 11-13 Verse 11: “Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace”. After being a missionary to Corinth and helping to establish a church there, Paul writes two letters to them. They have become known as a church that fights a lot amongst themselves. Much of what Paul writes about in 1st and 2nd Corinthians centers around loving one another and being one with Jesus Christ and each other. I suspect there is a church or two tod

Reading: Psalm 47 Verses 1-2: “Shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord most high”. In many churches today is known as Ascension Sunday. It is the Sunday after Christ’s ascension into heaven forty days after Easter. The response of those present as Christ ascended mirrors the call of the psalmist in today’s reading. In the opening verses we are called to “Shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord most high”. To lift our hands, to shout out our joy

Reading: John 17: 1-11 Verse 11: “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name… so that they may be one as we are one”. Sometimes people think a trial or time of hardship will draw a group closer together. Someone may cite a sacrifice made by someone to save a dear friend or fellow soldiers. Another may tell of how this church surrounded a family that experienced that traumatic event. While all of these things do occur, they are predicated on one fact: there was a bon

Reading: John 14: 15-21 Verse 21: “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me”. If I only had one word to describe God or Jesus it would be “love”. A one word description is woefully short, but all of God’s teachings and actions, all of Jesus’ too, can be traced back to love. Just as a one word description is left wanting, we have two earthly models that describe divine love. Marriage gives us a small glimpse into the love of Jesus for his church and p

Reading: Psalm 66: 8-20 Verse 16: “Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me”. The first half of our Psalm text dealt with the times when hardship or trial came and with how God was with the people of Israel. Each of these times of suffering or refining are part of the story of God’s people, just as are the stories of how God acted on our behalf. Each of our churches and each of us as followers of Jesus have these same experiences. When wa

Reading: 1st Peter 2: 4-10 Verse 5: “You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house, to be a royal priesthood”. Peter establishes a connection in today’s passage between THE living stone and the followers of Jesus. He opens with these words: “as you come to him”. Our process of becoming like the living stone begins by establishing a relationship with Jesus Christ. We must take the first step towards Jesus. As we choose to walk with the one who was precio

Reading: Psalm 23 Verse 4: “I will fear no evil, for you are with me”. Almost all people with a little church background would recognize verse four. Even those without church experience would recognize this verse as a statement of faith. Psalm 23 is one of the most recognizable and beloved Psalms. Verse four would not be most folk’s choice for ‘favorite verse of Psalm 23’. As a whole, the Psalm offers or reminds us of God’s provision and guidance, of his presence and blessing

Reading: Acts 2: 42-47 Verse 44: “All the believers were together and had everything in common”. The book of Acts records the early history of the church. In our passage today Luke writes about what makes the church the church. It remains true today. The early Christians learned about Jesus and God. They spent time together in fellowship meals (that included what we call communion) and in times of prayer. The Holy Spirit was present, filling them with awe and empowering the a