1. This is the message of Lent. We are not called to sacrifice for Jesus in order to earn our salvation. Rather, we are called to remember the sacrifice that Jesus made for us.
  2. Zephaniah has given us something more visceral to help us understand the love of God: the sound of salvation.
  3. Predestination, Jim knew, is no longer a frightening doctrine of mystery when you understand that God makes his choice about you in the simple word of God, given from one sinner to another.
  4. Even as he was dying, the heart of God poured itself out for the sake of sinners.
  5. 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.
  6. The further up and further into the season of Epiphany we get, the bigger the grace of God in Christ is, the brighter the Light of Christ shines, and the more blessed we are in Jesus' epiphany for us.
  7. The usual acclamation when one becomes King is: “Long live the King!” But this King of kings, this son of David, has come to die.
  8. If Jesus shows up and you are a sinner, ‘tis more blessed to receive than to give
  9. 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.
  10. A theologian is a passive receiver of God’s active revelation about Jesus Christ, his words, works, and ways.
  11. Who is God really? He is offensive, anarchic by the world’s standards, and far too gracious to people who don’t deserve his time or attention.
  12. Even though All Saints is a day for remembering the dead, it is not a day of mourning.