1. Rightly distinguishing between law and gospel, as Paul helps us see in 2 Corinthians 3, is, quite literally, a matter of life and death.
  2. Even as he was dying, the heart of God poured itself out for the sake of sinners.
  3. I think the problem with the idea of eternity is that we do not have any direct experience of it, but we encounter enough of its possibility to be unsettling.
  4. All of Scripture, every last syllable of it, is meant to drive us to "consider Jesus," the One who comes to "make us right" by gifting us his righteousness.
  5. Jesus not only healed her daughter, but he also gave himself to her. Wherever she went from then on, he was with her.
  6. We assert, we herald, the truth about God becoming King of the world in and through Jesus of Nazareth alone. It is our public announcement.
  7. The sign of the cross, according to the earliest centuries of Christians, is “the sign of the Lord,” and every baptized Christian was “marked” with it.
  8. The law had to have its way with the expert to bring him around (and back) to Abraham's response.
  9. Maybe, just maybe, our goal for 2023 should not be to live more but to die more.
  10. The lesson of Malachi reveals God’s love for his people. When the people ask for proof of God’s love, he reminds them of their election.
  11. By his first Advent in the flesh, through his second Advent with bread and wine and water and Word, we await his third Advent at the end.