How do the words “The righteous shall live by his faith” go from a context of hope in hopelessness to the cornerstone declaration of the chief doctrine of the Christian faith?
As soon as people understand what crucifixion means, the cross becomes offensive.
This is the third installment in the 1517 articles series, “What Makes a Saint?”

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While so much remains the same week after week, the past years have taught me how much changes. And I kind of like it.
I want the beginning of my funeral to be focused on Jesus, as well as the middle, the end, and every point in between.
The gospel of Jesus’ coming out of death and the tomb alive so that we might be restored to our identity as God’s children establishes the most enduring reality there is.
There is perhaps no better observation about the nature of anxiety and depression than its fundamental desire for avoidance.
You might not know it, but every Christian hopes for the day when their faith will die. Really. I promise. Faith’s death is our celebration.
Christians do have a hope that those who sleep in death will be awakened and their joy will never end, and we yearn for that day.
God’s candle is not so easily extinguished. His promise is not some vague light at the end of the tunnel that we may or may not reach. In fact, God’s light has a name: Jesus Christ.
The early biblical stories about Bethlehem are dark and violent. They wreck us. They frighten us. In this little town, we see a microcosm of the vast and mangled mass of humanity, each individual thirsty for even a single bead of light to be dropped into the blackened depths of their souls. He who is born in Bethlehem is that Light.
Reading, understanding, and studying Scripture is a life-long process of contemplation in conversation with others.
The emphasis for All Saints Sunday is not on the saints, but the Sanctifier, Jesus Christ.
Martha’s pain is not met by a to-do list. Jesus’ reply is not that she should try harder or change her behavior
The entrance of children into the world reminds our world of the hope of redemption in Genesis 3:15.