I have never enjoyed playing board games or cards. And I have never had much interest in watching competitive sports. The competition involved with such endeavors simply doesn’t interest or inspire me. I am aware that competition can be “friendly” and fun. My grandsons have had very positive experiences in… Continue reading
Throughout this blog I have referred to “the unconditional, indiscriminate, self-giving, and everlasting love of God.” Years ago, when I mentioned this kind of love, a church member asked, “Does God have to love? Can God choose not to love? And what happens if God chooses no longer to love… Continue reading
I am often asked if I believe in the Second Coming. My response is, “l believe in the parousia which is what the New Testament teaches.” Now that is not just a smart-alecky answer. As we shall see, what the New Testament teaches about the parousia (what most call “the… Continue reading
(Parousia is the Greek word used in the New Testament which is commonly understood as the Second Coming. Parousia simply means “presence” or “appearing.” It is one of the metaphors used in the Bible and theology to refer to the fulfillment of God’s purpose for creation. Like all metaphors, it… Continue reading
Read the scripture. Our passage is called a “floating pericope” by New Testament scholars. A pericope is a self-contained passage of Scripture. This familiar story of a woman caught in adultery is not found in most ancient manuscripts. In other manuscripts it’s located in John 7:53-8:11, at the end of… Continue reading
The great German preacher Helmut Thielicke, in an Epiphany sermon entitled “The Message of Redeeming Light,” said the following: If we take light seriously, we have also to reckon with the fact that there is a night in which it shines. This is the limit of all Christmas dreams. Light… Continue reading
Every place I have ever lived, people have complained about the unpredictability of weather. It’s astounding that with all our sophisticated computers, weather satellites, and complex algorithms, weather scientists are often wrong in their predictions. Why should this be? Around fifty years ago, a meteorologist named Edward Lorenz made a… Continue reading
One of my cherished yuletide traditions is reading Charles Dicken’s wonderful book, A Christmas Carol. Each Christmas season, Susan and I also watch several movies offering their interpretations of this classic novella. The films starring George C Scott and Patrick Stewart as Scrooge are my favorite adaptations of this Christmas… Continue reading
I have always been fascinated by creches. My childhood home had its own creche which was part of our Christmas decorations. Among my earliest memories is reenacting the nativity story as I choreographed Joseph and Mary with the donkey; the Christ Child in the manger surrounded by sheep and a… Continue reading
(In a sermon on this blog I wrote about joy and how it differs from contentment, happiness, and pleasure. That sermon is entitled “John 15:1-11 Rooted in Joy.” I would ask the reader to read that sermon first to appreciate what follows below. In this article, I will look at… Continue reading
