Daily Liturgy and Scripture

The day of Pentecost is a pivotal event in the history of Christianity. Jesus as a visible person had departed… what came next? How would they know what to do? But God was not going to leave his people out to dry. He came through in a major way. The outpouring of the Spirit meant God’s presence with his people, from that point forward.

The growth of Jesus’ Kingdom was about Jesus, and wasn’t based on the sparkling personalities of his followers. All of them pointed to him. Because of that, replacing Judas was the first ordination of many over thousands of years. The power of the Spirit and the working of God are equally present in our ministry today, just as it was for the original apostles. That includes Matthias, who was chose...

As this letter of John shows us, Christian ministry isn’t always outwardly focused. Certainly, Christians are to be examples of love to the world around them, but that must include other Christians. Not like Diotrephes, who “loves to be the leader,” and puts his own ambition ahead of the church. This is the very opposite of the humble way of our Savior.

Jesus’ lordship is a pillar of our faith. If he were not lord of all, we shouldn’t worship him as we do. He is, and his followers are heirs to a Kingdom. As we start the book of Acts, we will see that Kingdom expand, and see the ways in which it broke out in the first century. How exciting!

These four little verses from Luke say a tremendous amount about the climate of the world of the apostles. Certainly, Jesus made a big splash. There were probably many people who were writing about Jesus who had never even seen him, a lot like Jesse James from the Wild West. Luke is in a different tradition. Luke’s Gospel was written to help people come to belief, not just circulate a fantasy stor...

Once again we’re talking spiritual things. Not only are we secure in Christ, but John says if we have Christ, we have life. But didn’t we already? Weren’t we breathing and walking around and holding down jobs? Certainly, but that isn’t the life God has given us. That life is eternal, starting now, and leads us to obedience. If we are obedient and follow the way Christ set forth, that life will be...

To say that God is love really isn’t enough. God is love embodied, and the love that he shares should be shared by those who live as Jesus did. John makes a good point: how can we love God who we can’t see, if we don’t love the neighbor we can see? It’s easy to love an idea, because ideas aren’t generally hard to live with. Sometimes God is just an idea, we make him safer than he really is. The in...

Life in the Spirit REALLY is life in the Spirit. Perhaps sometimes we really don't believe that fully, because it is rather odd. Not only is there a different Spirit living in us, but it drives us to be different. Not because we have been made into some fantastic creature, but because the author of life lives and moves with us. To be in contact with that Spirit is truly to be transformed.

As Christians, we should be excited about the idea of seeing Jesus. We should also realize that the people with whom we are in community, the people with whom we will spend eternity, will see him too. Do you you want to spend eternity with someone you despise? That may be a bit of an overstatement, but it’s a command of Jesus to love one another, and love as Jesus loved. That sometimes includes so...

Eternal life isn’t only something that begins when we die, it begins when we start following Jesus. Eternal-style life is not just for spiritual giants, it’s extended to both the mature and the young, who share the Spirit equally.

It’s really amazing, the way the Spirit passes among the church and gives the body of Christ its life. In this book, John (the same one who wrote the Gospel) opens by observing that passing. The purpose of those who follow Jesus is to walk in such away that when others follow, they are following Jesus and not us. This walking together gives us belonging in a community formed in our Savior.

The book of Jude is thought by some scholars to have been written by a brother of Jesus. Regardless of its author, there is some good instruction here for dealing with false teachers. It's also a caution against letting pagan culture become part of the life of a Christian. Followers of Jesus should be different, and that difference should be obvious.

All this talk of destroying the earth by fire certainly does make it seem like God is out to get us. Why else would this happen? But destruction isn’t God’s final plan. The new Heaven and New Earth are. Creation is still God’s, and was made to worship and serve God. When sin and death are burned away, this new experience will become what God always intended our world to be.

In this passage from 2 Peter, we have a pretty clear picture of what a false prophet looks like. Smooth words and persuasive language are not the only thing that those who claim to speak in God’s name need to deliver. An interior life formed in the Spirit should follow with words of the Spirit, not selfish ambition. God takes this very seriously, because the body of Christ is the recipient of God’...

There’s a neat little formula of spiritual life in this passage from 2 Peter. Faith > moral excellence > knowledge > self-control > endurance > godliness > brotherly affection > love. This isn’t the only way, of course. And some of us will struggle with some of those. It’s also not our ticket to Heaven. God gives us our citizenship in the Kingdom of Jesus as a gift of grace. W...

Is this kind of leadership seen anywhere else in the church? Those called to be leaders are not called to be kings, but to be humble servants of those around them. This is good news for the younger members of the church, because the bond of love that is given by the Spirit is what drives those in authority. Only Jesus could have brought something like this about.

As Peter closes out the book, he again emphasizes the importance of holy living. Of course, this is not what punches our ticket to Heaven, but it is critical to be a follower of Christ. We are given gifts to serve God and one another, and we should also submit to both one another and Christ. Peter has covered this ground before, the bizarre Kingdom of Heaven that honors those who honor others abov...

The submission that Peter asked us to learn in the previous passage now becomes more important, because it trains us for the suffering we must endure. This is what Christ did, and we are his followers. John Stott once said, ““If we Christians compromised less, we would undoubtedly suffer more.” This is certainly food for thought, but it’s also consistent with the pattern of Jesus. To be uncompromi...

To follow Christ is to learn humility and submission. This isn’t just for one group of people over another. Peter’s point is that we should all learn it in the places where we are: slaves to masters, wives to husbands, husbands to wives, and all of us to the government authorities. This isn’t some hierarchy that Peter lays out so we can see who should be the boss of someone else. The point is thos...

There is no denying the identity of Christ, and Peter here calls him the “cornerstone.” He also calls believers living stones, and those stones depend on the cornerstone for their support. Such should be true of our lives if we are following Christ. It’s not an easy way, or everyone would do it.

Today we start 1 Peter, a short book written by one of the best-known of the apostles. He’s talking about persecution and enduring, but also being bought by the blood of Christ. Peter should know this better than anyone. He certainly suffered persecution, and even denied knowing Jesus during his life. He’s also the one who stood up to preach at Pentecost and the author of this letter to churches i...

A note about the Old Testament reading: Kings and Chronicles tell many of the same stories, they were just written at different times in Hebrew history. If you think this sounds familiar today, you probably remember it from our Chronicles readings. But on to James! Actually aware from James, since today is the end of the book. This has been a lot of holiness living, which is important to the Chris...

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” seems kind of goofy. Almost like we’re doing all the work, because we have to coax God over. That’s not how it works. The Spirit of God lives in us, so he is always there. Our job is to apply ourselves to the work of recognizing him, and that awareness creates a unique fellowship. Not only with God, but with one another.

(Short reading today!) Some things in the Bible can be found in common sense, and “watch your mouth” seems like one of them. Moments like this remind us that being a follower of Jesus isn’t wrapped up in complicated theology, it’s human. There are things that make us better people, as Jesus chose to become a person. Speaking kindness to one another is certainly one of those.

What we do doesn’t earn God’s love, but it does show our love for him. Just as the Spirit produces fruit such as love, peace, patience, and kindness, our lives should be defined by the love of God and the moving of that Spirit. That Spirit is life, and the life of God should be shared.