“The Church exists to tell anyone and everyone who knocks on her door wondering what’s inside: Come and see” (pg. 58). Such reminders make The Church a worthwhile read.
The way of the cross is the actual way of victory. Jesus absorbs the worst of what humanity and even the devil can do to him, and he spurns the shame of it all.
The IRS says churches can endorse candidates from the pulpit. But just because they can doesn’t mean they should.

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He was a beggar on the streets. And, he was as good as dead if he didn't receive a blessing. The words, "you're cursed" haunted his mind.
When we say in the benediction, “The LORD make His face shine on you,” grace is what we mean.
It is important to note the “mission” character of this text. Indeed, these would have been strange words for Isaiah’s audience. The Israelites had taken the covenantal promise and the language of separation and chosen to mean that the message of salvation and restoration was meant for no one but them.
It is somewhat rare that preachers get a blessing as a sermon text, but that is what Jude gives us. The genre is entirely fitting for the Last Sunday of the Church Year, especially if your congregation has had a tough year (you know what I mean).
Stay alert! Stay awake! Do not get too comfortable. Do not grow complacent. Whatever you do, do not fall asleep. The day is coming. It is coming soon. Time is short. So, stay awake! Stay alert!
When our mind betrays us, our body fails us, and our soul can’t be comforted, our Jesus now saves us.
This week we come to the end of our readings in Hebrews for Series B. There is a lot here, so rather than argue about the cohesion of the text, which I hope becomes obvious, let us get right to a few avenues for preaching. The pericope from 10:11-25 fits beautifully with the week’s theme and church’s preparation for Christ’s return.
Christian preaching always has an eschatological ring to it. It takes place during the “in-between” times—the days between Jesus’ first and second comings. But this eschatological perspective tends to fade into the background as Christians (and preachers) go about their business week-in and week-out. The end of the church year provides an opportunity to reorient the Christian life around Jesus’ promise to return.
Two major themes seem to be running through the readings for the 25th Sunday after Pentecost. The first weaves together the widow who gave of her poverty in Mark 12 and the story of the widow of Zarephath from 1 Kings 17, who also gave to the prophet everything that she had… However, the other theme comes by way of the Epistle from Hebrews 9:24-28, which is about the temple made without hands.
Both the scribes and the widow were in the temple that day. They were close in proximity, but, in relation to the kingdom of God, they could not have been farther apart. Jesus himself highlights the contrast, which invites us to pay close attention.
Jesus is the Word of God. God’s Word—on two legs (John 1:14). I’d read it in the first chapter of John’s Gospel many, many times.
There is a man in this text—a scribe, nonetheless—who is not far from the kingdom of God. Jesus says so himself. That is no small thing, especially considering what had been happening to Jesus ever since his triumphal entry into Jerusalem.