A Simple Word for Complex People

We love a good victory party. Successes are fun to celebrate and easy to identify with. But as Christians, our victory comes at a terrible cost. How often do we celebrate the victory, without remembering the cost?

 

How do you understand the darkness of life? Is it a place of intentional misdeeds, or a place of abandonment after chasing misleading lights?

 

What, exactly, is the "foolishness" of the Christian message and way of being in the world?

If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? Also, what would that evidence look like?

Jesus shows no ambiguity about His identity, so why does God need to affirm it at His baptism? I believe Jesus' habit of prayer -- evident throughout the stories of His life -- began long before adulthood, and may have included the question, Who am I? It's certainly a prayer common to the human condition. Just as Jesus' identity was confirmed as He emerged from the water, so is ours.

Peter, James, and John were privileged to share time with Jesus alone at critical junctures in His life. They remained after the crowds fled. They told the stories of the miracles and the mountaintop, as well as Gethsemane. Because they (and others who came after them) shared what they witnessed, we know the Lord. What will others know in 1,000 years?

When life gets uncertain, we tend to do everything we can to gain control of what we can. But, time and again throughout scripture, God tells us, "Trust Me." What would happen if we really did?

Everywhere Jesus went, something happened ... and that something was often uncomfortable for the pious. How would Jesus be disruptive in our midst today?

This week our youth presented the Christmas story through an amazing play written by our talented friend Jeni Nielsen. This is the brief message I offered afterward. Frankly, the play was so good, I kind of forgot what I was going to say!