Scientists in Britain recently made a fascinating discovery. After centuries of mystery and debate, they finally located the body of King Richard III, who was killed in battle in 1485. The location of his grave was lost to history until February 2013, when DNA tests confirmed that they had indeed found the late king.
Meditations on Luke: The Depth of Darkness
August 23, 2023 by
One the greatest measures of human creativity is our ability to rationalize almost anything. No matter how destructive our actions, no matter how foolish our choices, no matter how selfish our behaviors, no matter how dark our impulses, we can always come up with a good excuse or a reasonable explanation for them.
Meditations on Mark: The Transfiguration
July 5, 2023 by
It is an obvious fact that you cannot look directly at the sun. Expose your eyes to that much intense light for more than a fraction of a second, and you can do permanent damage. And yet it is also an obvious fact that were it not for the sun’s intensity, life on Earth wouldn’t be possible.
Meditations on Mark: Prepare the Way
June 7, 2023 by
This is the promise John the Baptist makes in the opening chapter of Mark’s Gospel. Mark doesn’t begin with the story of Jesus’ birth. Rather, he jumps into the middle of the story with Jesus already as an adult, ready to begin his ministry. This is the urgency in Mark: The Messiah has come.
Meditations on Luke: Forcing Our Way In
October 19, 2022 by
It would be hard to count the gallons of ink that have been spilled over the years trying to interpret verse 16. For one thing, the wording in the original Greek is terse and difficult to translate into an English equivalent. Beyond that, the phrase deals in imagery that is awkward and feels out of place.
Meditations on Luke: Our Given Identities
December 7, 2021 by
When my wife was pregnant with each of our daughters, we felt a degree of stress in coming up with names for them. For one thing, we didn’t want to offend anyone in our families of origin. Use names from only one side of the family and you may alienate folks on the other.
Meditations on Luke: The Last Laugh
August 18, 2021 by
The ministry of Jesus is such a ridiculous thing that it draws laughter. Everywhere he goes, he says and does things that are so out of step with what seems to be obvious reality that people think he is crazy. Imagine what the neighbors said when Jesus, somewhere around the age of thirty, walked away from his father’s vocation as a carpenter.
Meditations on Mark: Family in the Kingdom of God
June 16, 2021 by
Few wounds cut deeper than those inflicted on us by our families. I have known plenty of otherwise strong and accomplished adults who still carry in their spirits the pain of broken relationships with parents, siblings, or children. This is an indication of the family’s importance in God’s plan for humanity.
Meditations on Mark: The Soldiers’ Cynicism
April 8, 2020 by
One wonders what prompted the soldiers in this passage to act like they did. Why are they so mean and hateful towards Jesus? This is their first interaction with him.
Meditations on Luke: Maundy Thursday
March 29, 2018 by
These words, straight from Jesus’ lips, have a haunting tone. Jesus is fully aware of what is about to happen. Nothing about our Lord’s passion is an accident, a mistake, or a coincidence; it is all part of the Father’s plan, and Jesus knows it.
Meditations on Luke: A Judas Living Inside Each of Us
March 13, 2018 by
In his memoir Telling Secrets, writer and preacher Frederick Buechner tells about his childhood after his father committed suicide. In addition to the trauma of losing his dad was the grief of being forbidden to speak of what happened.
Meditations on Luke: “Do Not Be Afraid”
December 26, 2017 by
Over Christmas one of my daughters asked me a question. “Daddy, why is it that every time an angel shows up in the Bible, he always says, ‘Do not be afraid’?” I responded, “Well, what would you do if an angel suddenly appeared in your room one night?”