Some of the most emotional and contentious debates I have had with other pastors and theologians have been about what exactly happened on Easter. Some feel there is no Christianity without a resurrection in which Jesus of Nazareth is literally brought back to walk bodily among his followers for 40 days. Others believe we are […]
Let’s answer the two questions with which we began: Is there a life after death for me? Shall I be with my loved ones who have already died? In the New Testament, the question is whether those who have died will be able to enjoy the future beloved community God promises. It answers that God’s […]
I began this series by suggesting most of us associate resurrection with questions about whether there is life after death and if there is, whether we shall enjoy the presence of our beloved. I probably should have added that some have fears about some sort of last judgment. I decided I would begin addressing the […]
Recently, my son, and my beloved brother in Christ with whom I shared 35 years of ministry, died within days of one another. Needless to say, I have been pondering resurrection. One thing has become glaringly clear. Although ”God raised Jesus from death” is the central proclamation of the Christian faith, we pretty much avoid […]
Most of us can’t help ourselves when we speak the last part of the Second Article, “On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.” Conditioned by simplistic popular ideas, we think […]
Matthew and Mark report that the message at the empty tomb sends the disciples back to Galilee where Jesus will meet them. Luke’s version tells them to remain in Jerusalem. At first, John seems to support Luke, seemingly ending his gospel with chapter 20. But then he continues with a Galilean appearance that offers all […]
If Matthew, Mark, and Luke thought Peter’s confession was central to the Gospel proclamation, John believed Thomas’ confession was even more important. He originally ended his Gospel with the colossal, “My Lord and my God.” This was the most far reaching confession in the Bible, perhaps the first time anyone proclaimed Jesus divine. Yet we […]
Both Bob from Italy and Lupe from Bolivia move us to acting for God as service rather than servanthood. Bob speaks of co-operation and individual acts of mercy, such as feeding the hungry neighbor. Some theologians believe we should make co-operation, in contrast to competition, a primary contemporary Christian emphasis. Lupe suggests looking at service […]
If you think of creation only as the origin of the physical world, the New Testament has little to say about it. It does speak quite a bit about a broader concept of creation. It builds on the Old Testament’s understanding that God creates everything by uttering words. “In the beginning was the Word, and […]
Let’s take a look at “hope” as we continue our study of the triad used to describe the Christian life. For what do we hope? A quick word search finds the object of Christian hope is usually our own resurrections or our sharing in the glory of God, two ways of saying the same thing. […]
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