The Best News Ever: Recent Episodes
Ben Bouwers
Notes to be published
Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
Final Instructins May 31, 2025 Jack Morris
Notes here
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Absent or Present, John 7:37-39, May 24, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
Jesus and the Bible, Luke 24:44-53, May17, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Anatoly Semenov on Unsplash
ReOrientation, John14:15-21, May 10, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by David Trinks on Unsplash
Go Big or Go Home, John 11:1-45, March 22, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Hossein Nasr on Unsplash
Born Blind, John 9:1-41, March 15, 2026 Jack Morris
Notes here
Photo by David Bumgardner on Unsplash
In This Sign - Conquer, John 13:1-5, 32-35, March 8, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Eleonora Patricola on Unsplash
Dust to Destiny, Romans 5:12-19, Feb. 22, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Alicia Quan on Unsplash
Standard of Righteousness, Feb 8, 2026 Jack Morris
Notes here
Photo by Jusdevoyage on Unsplash
Contrast of Kingdoms, Feb. 1, 2026 Jack Morris
Notes here
Photo by Christopher Sardegna on Unsplash
Joining Jesus, John 1:35-43, Jan 18, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Pop & Zebra on Unsplash
Choosing Connection, Matt. 3:13-17, Jan. 11, 2026 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Jadon Johnson on Unsplash
God with us in the mess, Matt. 1:18-25, Dec. 21, 2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Austin Hervias on Unsplash
Finding Life when it all collapses, Luke 21:5-19, Nov. 16, 2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Bruno van der Kraan on Unsplash
Who Gets to tell the Story? Luke 20:27-38, Nov 9, 2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes here
Photo by Stefano Zocca on Unsplash
The Scandal of Mercy, Luke 19:1-10, November 2, 2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes here (soon)
Photo by nikhil uttam on Unsplash
Total Eclipse of the Heart, Oct. 26, 2025 Jack Morris
Notes here
Photo by Daniel Morris on Unsplash
Measureless Mercy, Lam. 3:19-23, October 19, 2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes Here
The Jesus Way - Hospitality, Luke 14:1,7-14, Heb.13:1-3, Aug. 31,2025 Ben Bouwers
Notes Here
Horatio Spafford. “It Is Well with My Soul.” Manuscript hymn, 1871. Manuscript Division, Library of Congress (8)
Notes here
Photo by Jari Hytönen on Unsplash
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God in Christ tells a story to tell to His friends that night, that is so much more than just walking on water - He has invaded the realm of uncertainty, fear and destruction to tell another story. You are not alone - storm, darkness, uncertainty are not a hindrance or barrier in fact they are exactly where He comes to meet His disciples and us; Take courage, it is I, do not be afraid. The very elements that threatened to destroy the disciples became the environment in which they recognize Jesus as the Son of God. Jesus revealing Heaven where and in what they concluded was hell. What they perceived as certain death they now recognize as new life, hope and salvation and that beloved is good news.
Empty – is not a hindrance of what is present in the heart of God compassion that reveals the satisfaction of His love that is enough. Our empty has nothing on the measureless compassionate love of God and that is Good News.
Beloved the Good News we proclaim is that in the midst of the unending headlines filled with human suffering, harm and pain - God has come to tell a story to weave a tapestry of His Grace - that every detail of our lives is touched by this Grace to tell an eternal story that we have become a part of - this is the mystery of our confession. We believe in a Grace that will make all things work together - so we can say - all shall be well.
The Good News we are proclaiming today is simple yet true - Stone Pillows are real but the Gospel of Christ proclaims Bethel; The Gospel we proclaim is that God's presence is NOT something we attain or achieve but a reality that He has once again restored to man. Beloved the Good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that He is God with us right now!
God becomes what God makes and what God makes is always good.
Ancestral sin is real, we see its effects everywhere and in all. We are sinners, as we confess every week in the Liturgy. Sin is a power that afflicts us…no doubt about it…but it is important to recall that we are not our sins. They are not our identity. They do not define the human person or any human. The human God does. And that is good news.
The Good News we proclaim today is that there is a place called TOV. Not a pin on a map but a place where the presence, peace and personality of the godhead are experienced. TOV - where the good way of a good God becomes visible in the lives of men and women in the present by a community of men and women led by love. A place of light, life, order and beauty, where lives experience and encounter the goodness of a good God. TOV - heaven revealed on earth, and that is the witness of 2000 years of the church and our invitation in the present to reveal what God revealed in the Garden - a powerful God who cares about and for His creation.
The good news we proclaim in a world filled with empty confessions - Jesus invites us to a life of open confession. The confessional is about a life anchored in the love of God - while not absent of conflict but anchored in love that is revealing the life of the another age and that is good news!
Beloved this is the Good News we proclaim today - In God’s Kingdom - God sees the vulnerable, the helpless, the harassed - He sees and has acted as He always does in love and compassion not in anger or wrath. This Kingdom is led by a God who sees the vulnerable and His action is to partner with His friends to usher in the restoration and renewal of all that He had in mind when He created mankind. And that beloved is what this Kingdom is all about and it is how He still operates - His miracle is not about exceptional-ism it is Christ in you and that is good news!
So, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of adoption and the Spirit of grace, since grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit, for those who have been born by the power of God.
Mercy dares us to believe that the truest thing about us in not that we are broken or flawed but that we are beloved and that beloved is Good News!
Beloved the Good News Jesus reveals in this beatitude is that longing for the light and life of Heaven in a dark and dying world IS the place where He reveals the Kingdom of God!
Think about this - Jesus proclaims to the nameless and the powerless ( those who are literally hungry) those who felt helpless against the powers that dominated their lives. The reign of God is not measured by power or dominance but rather by the revelation of Heaven on earth in real lives in real time - in self giving love! The Gospel IS JUSTICE for all who live under the weight of the works of the devil that manifest in shame, hatred, poverty, despair, darkness, disconnection and unforgiveness. To view the gospel as anything less is to miss so much of what the scripture declares and Jesus reveals in His life.
Jesus confidence was in the Fathers love towards Him and He embraces a posture of humility - He wash’s the disciples feet - using His strength to serve the worth of others! Blessed are the Meek
Beloved the Good News that Jesus reveals in this beatitude - 'Blessed are those who mourn” - is His confidence to in the Father to bring solace as we face the pain.
The Good News we proclaim today is this: Jesus knew by experience that it is possible to live in open handed trust towards His father.
The Gospel proclaims that God has always seen the real you. You are the lost sheep He went to look for - you are the Pearl of great price that He sold everything to attain. He sees the real you intended from the foundation of the world and beloved discerning that we are more than just forgiven and tolerated but cherished loved and delighted is to discern the depth of Mercy and Grace! His Mercy sees past our wounds and facades and invites us to surrender to His point of view - wholeness - loved valued sons and daughters partakers of a divine inheritance - Grace that is greater that could boldly agree with the anthem of Heaven worthy are you for you purchased men for God - He knows you are worth what He paid. Beloved to surrender to His vision is to become whole!
Faith is not about how much you have ( currency of accomplishment, accumulation or information) but rather how we are living in love and trust in our relationship with Jesus, ourselves and others.
You see the good news of Jesus words to us today is that His Kingdom is an open table of abundance given freely to those who will choose to surrender their hearts to Love for God and one another.
Lost and found is not the result of man’s search but God’s and all of Heaven rejoices in His recovery of what was lost. And Jesus calls this repentance - the place where the lost are found and their presence is restored.
Following Jesus is All In - its not a buffet its full surrender to a different empire a different King and different Kingdom! A Kingdom led in Love and surrounded by His justice, mercy and faithfulness and that beloved is Good News!
Unfortunately we have a lot of religious tourist that have cheapened the truth of this Gospel but beloved it does not change its depth or meaning! Our call is to locate its truth in our lives - not by duty, date or obligation but by reflecting the love of the Father revealed in Christ the real Sabbath place of freedom for the children of God. Jesus reveals that the Sabbath is meant to free you not to bind you - beloved Jesus is our Sabbath and that is Good News!
God's giving is better than our getting and gaining so the best thing thing to do right now is to Relax in His work – Rest!.
What we have here is Jesus proclaiming that He is the source of Rest! He is more than rest - like a vacation - a day off or a time away - He is Sabbath Rest! Today the good news we proclaim is that Jesus is our Sabbath person, place and promise!
Jesus invitation to become rich toward God is not achievement or the accumulation of good behavior but in the storing up of what is true - we have a Good Father who in intent to provide and protect us that we can trust. That Father wants to protect us from what can in the end control and take His most treasured gift to us - life. That life is found not storing but in giving what we have been freely given - love, mercy, compassion and forgiveness.
The point of Prayer is that God gives God in relationship and presence and its all the answer we need! There really is nothing like someone being there that is Good News.
One Thing is not so much about one ‘part’ of our life over the other but being present to the Love of Christ where we are - and that is actually Good News especially in a culture of hectic schedules and the relentless pursuit of productivity, we are tempted to measure our worth by how busy we are, by how much we accomplish, or by how well we meet the expectations of others.
In a world defined by division that invites us to fear and ‘other’ people - nothing is more powerful than the Love of God revealed in human lives. No barrier or boundary there is no place or person that Mercy cannot reach!
All the virtues of empire are not the basis of the Kingdom – living in and from Peace is the basis of the Kingdom beloved!
The Good News of the Love of God revealed in Christ is the Masterpiece of the Ages that we are invited to be fascinated and captivatied in the greatest resource of the human heart and life.
The good news of the Gospel is that Jesus did come to the planet to just upgrade our religious cage....but to be the incarnate voice of the likeness and image of God in human form! He came to reveal and redeem the image of God in us! His mission was to mirror the blueprint of our design, not as an example for us but of us! ( He is the image of the invisible God and you have been fullness in Him Col 1 and 3).
God knows there is such a thing as the unbearable and He has NOT left us alone but rather has come to us. He has not just come to free us from sin but to embrace us in our pains and speak life to the lie of aloneness and if we will allow Him He is never more present that when we are walking in the unbearable. The God who bore our sin bore our sorrows and our grief is the God who still meets us in the unbearable.
Don’t be afraid, church! Don’t be afraid to reach out and connect with those who are hurt and angry. Don’t be afraid to grieve with them and feel their pain. Don’t be afraid to confess and repent often. Don’t be afraid to love when you’d rather sneer, to welcome when you’d rather condemn.
Don’t be afraid of what others may say. Don’t be afraid of awkward conversations. Don’t be afraid of being marginalized and misunderstood by the powerful if you stand in solidarity with the weak and vulnerable. Don’t be afraid to speak the truth in love, saying no to violence and hate while letting your heart be broken by it.
Don’t be afraid to wade into the sea of heartache that is our broken world and open your heart, for God is always present and at work, his grace goes ahead of you, and the gates of hell will not prevail against the church.
This good news remains the same today to people looking for a Lion or a Hammer Jesus the lamb has come to reveal the Justice and Hope of Heaven to the human heart and that is Good News!
the resurrection Gospel comes not to ‘escape’ from life but to become alive - and that is really good news!
We all have places of grief, fear, doubt and shame that can stand tall and cast a very long shadow that attempts to define who we are...so that we begin to believe somethings can never change.... The Power of the resurrection beloved is the God who now brings Good News - that makes the impossible possible:
‘The stone has been rolled away’ is NOT so Jesus could get out - but so that we can see in!
The Good News we proclaim today is that God’s story has invaded mankinds story and forever changed the narrative - He died - but He is NOT dead! Freedom to bondage, Hope in the face of despair and life over death. Jesus died - but He is risen - He is risen indeed!
Jesus entry into human life IS the triumphal entry and the path of peace. The triumphal entry is Jesus bringing good news to the poor, healing the brokenhearted, giving sight to the blind, release to the captive, letting the oppressed go free. The triumphal entry is Jesus including the outcast, setting a place at the banquet for the unacceptable, forgiving sinners, loving the enemy, giving life to the dead. Everywhere he goes Jesus tramples the cloaks that hide the fullness of life. Everywhere he goes he reveals new life, new hope, new possibilities.
There was a man... that Father is our Father - the Father who always trusts His love for His children more than He does the words, decisions, and actions of His children. And That beloved is Good News!
In the face of every deception of Power (military, monetary or otherwise) Jesus path is not about overcoming Power with power - His work is complete as He gives His own life to bring life to the most vulnerable by becoming vulnerable. In the face of life stealing fangs and claws He still offers His wings of Love bringing healing and giving life - that really is good news!
The Good News we proclaim as we begin this season of Lent are not lessons in how well we can say no to temptation but how we answer this same question in our wilderness ‘who is that?’ the Beloved of God participating in the story of God on the earth. Any other definition apart from our true identity as the beloved of God is an illusion.
Into world that is filled with the distortions of loss, sadness, violations, un-provoked pains not to mention real fears about tomorrow - into this world the Son of God Jesus still comes to embrace humanity in all of our disfigurations and transforms what has been deformed to reveal the beauty of the Love of the Father.
In a world divided by wounds, fears and innumerable barriers God’s Kingdom comes as we surrender to His Mercy! Mercy that enables us to freely love our enemies. Not as a spiritual task but as a result of mercy being rooted in us.
In a world defined by power, prestige and prosperity God is till revealing another Kingdom led by mercy and defined by the Love of God revealed in Christ - beloved God still loves the world through you and through me today!
This Justice has come in a person whose name is Jesus - and today this is still being fulfilled in your hearing - the forgiveness, favor and freedom of God for every man woman boy and girl that is the liturgy of Jesus.
God is no longer relating to man on the basis of purity rites and codes in a temple of progression. He has come in abundance and generosity to fill the empty spaces of our lives and hearts with His goodness and mercy. He has prepared a table for you and me!
Epiphany is about Manifesting what is actually true. The hope of nations is hope for you and me! It will never be found in the Empire of Power but in the Fathers love revealed in Christ Jesus - Epiphany!
John describes in our text today “And the Word became flesh and lived among us” is Good News because the true gospel declares that Jesus arrives where we are! It is not a message about ‘changing the world’ by our efforts its about becoming different people who live in a different world called the Kingdom of God.
This is the good news - Christ has come to where we actually are...not where we would like to be.
In a world filled with danger and no matter how much distance we have found ourselves in – Jesus remains Immanuel – God with us! God has come to us and called us by name to rescue us and bring us into His Love for eternity – He is Immanuel.
The Good News we proclaim on this day in Advent is that Christ has come in the darkest hour to proclaim you are not forgotten, you are free and in Him you are home and that is something we can sing and shout about.
Jesus came from His home to bring us home. His journey filled with betrayal, fear, manipulation and death had one clear goal to destroy the power that held humanity and creation under the grip of fear and death. He comes to a people living in exile from the garden of created order with God as an exile to bring the back home!
The good news we proclaim is that the meaning of life is not Power to control life - the meaning of life is Love!
God is still revealing the story of the Lamb and filling the earth with a new sound - the sound of restored humanity - no matter how dark the hour is Jesus has given a vision and song of Hope!
In a world frozen in fear and shame God is still revealing the logic of the Kingdom where Love is freely chosen over the fear of not having enough, being enough or doing enough. This is ground zero for the in-breaking of God’s Kingdom of mercy and Grace - He is still telling another story of redemption, restoration and recovery of the human heart, life and story and that is Good News!
The Revolution that brings solution is not found in the power systems of man but in a God who gives His life in love!
God know hows life has attempted to define us and yet He still sees us! Jesus is still passing by and He sees you and He hears every cry for Mercy. And the Mercy of Jesus is enough - its enough to change the story of your life.
Gods lasting Memorial on the earth where His story is told in new and living ways is not found in a building, in a statue or a shrine but people the Church!
The strategy of Heaven while confusing to the world is still about revealing the Freedom, Forgiveness, Joy and Peace of Heaven to the human heart - not through a complex process of theology and self denial but through the largeness of the Fathers Mercy.
Even though man still tries to be like God - God choose to become man to restore man. He became 1 Cor 1 the Power of God and the Wisdom of God the perfect mirror of humanity. When we look into this mirror whose name is Jesus we gain the wisdom of our actual story and identity. Little wonder that Paul would say in Him we live and move and have our being.
Out of love God has given to man freedom to participate in life or death. Healing or harm from one of the smallest parts of our body - our tongue. Talk about Power! Power to create and give life and power to kill and destroy. James proclaims Life or Death is in your mouth.
Something has come into being that has changed the whole story of humanity - Mercy has triumphed over judgment! And that is Good News especially as we live in a world drowning in harsh judgment against one another and ourselves - Mercy Still Triumphs! God is still in the business of telling another story in your life and mine. Men and women held in captivity for years by addictions, abuses, failures and wounds - The Gospel proclaims God is still telling another story - a story of Mercy.
Words matter - they can be like a bullet to the heart that wounds and tears - or they can be a seed that grows into something amazing. They can wound and kill or the can heal and bring life. Jesus promise is that His words are life!
Jesus proclaims in John 6 to a world filled with disappointment, despair and disconnection that no matter how hard they tried ends in death. Jesus invitation is Eat Well - Bon Appetite. He reveals food that changes everything - it restores, makes whole and imparts life!
In a world filled with hunger, disconnection and death Jesus has revealed life, union and abundance - Bread that is real - He is real Bread. He came into where man had found himself no longer in living in Eden - the place of connection, abundance and meaning. Beloved His mission was not to help men and women do a better job of making life work. He restored us to real life - He invaded our world filled with Fabulist promises and said I am....
His is a King who is actually revealing the Love of God and what it means to be an actual human being on earth living in communion with God.
This is Good News beloved - God knows what it means to be a King of a Kingdom and He knows what it means to be a human. Gods great goal is so much more than removing mans sin problem and giving him a hope of heaven after they die! Gods great goal is NOT to snatch people away from the earth and all of its problems....this is NOT what we see in the Kingship of Jesus. Jesus is not interested in Herods throne or Ceasars throne He is revealing the life of Heaven on earth in real time. And then inviting us to do the same!
Jesus is not teaching us that we can never rest Otherwise he would not have said come to me all you who are weary Why say that if he did not see or care about weariness? He is inviting his friends to Rest and the invitation leads them to another place encounter the Father’s Compassion – without compassion we cannot know rest.
What needed to be awoke according to John? Not a public, social or moral out cry.....one word.... Love and that beloved is Good News! The most important message the world needs to hear is the Love of God revealed in Christ. The most important posture of the Church is to live in and from that love! Little wonder that Jesus would say I am giving you one commandment – Love!
God has not left man in a world of darkness and confusion. To a world of darkness, confusion and chaos - Jesus proclaims with clarity I am the Light of the World!
There is something greater and broader more powerful and life-giving than the forces that push to divide and separate us - its called the Love of God revealed in Christ.
What God always had in mind that He has taken up residence in us- we are talking about a real place - not a geo political structure but the place where Gods love grows and is revealed in real time in actual human lives surrendered to that love.
Grief will come because in this world we will have trouble, but we are never alone: we have our family of believers but much more, we have a loving God who promises us victory, which he has already won. He promises us these earthly sufferings will only be for a moment and we need to put that promise as part of our full armor so we can have peace as we stand.
The contradictions in our lives - and all of us have them - as powerful as they are....they are NOT OUR STORY! The Gospel the love of God revealed in Christ has become our story. God is telling a Story of His amazing love in and through those very contradictions that actually change’s as His Love touch’s our life and our invitation is to surrender to that good news. How about if we stop looking at our relationship with God as a means to fix life and make it work and start allowing Him to tell an amazing Story!
Pentecost is the bold proclamation that God has fulfilled His promise to make all things new; A new family has come into being called the Church, the culmination of the crucifixion, resurrection and ascension is the birth of the Church. One family many languages, countries and names telling One story - the Love of God revealed in Christ! The place where God has chosen to put heaven on display in human lives.
The Ascended Christ is King of a Kingdom that was not just present to the suffering and pain of 1st century Palestine but is present in and to all of reality today! His ascension has changed everything - namely that Heaven has come to earth. That the Grace, Mercy, Forgiveness and Love of Heaven are not just possible realities are the very reality of His Kingdom. A Kingdom that has connected Heaven to earth.
The Safest place on earth when darkness surrounds and outcomes are uncertain - the place that consistently produces life and joy is not the place of protection from external and internal harm but in the place of self giving love!
Jesus is the True Vine who has given true Peace, provision, security, belonging and significance to mankind. He is the Planting of the Lord (Is 4) that is great and glorious and we have been grafted into that Vine whose fruit has touched every corner of the globe.
Jesus Found His Friends going in the wrong direction and in the wrong place. The Good News is that their future was not dependent on their sense of direction but on God’s Mercy and Grace revealed in the Cross and Resurrection - Jesus is confident in the power of resurrection life!
To a people whose best imagination of Good Shepherd was being under someone’s control or resisting that control through violence and force.... Jesus gives another picture of Care and Compassion.
As Jesus enters Jerusalem His is not a parade of Power but Peace and that is Good News. Especially to the powerless, weak and vulnerable. A King has come who not just a keeper of Peace by force but who forever secured Peace and Freedom through self giving self emptying love and forgiveness.
In a world and to a people that was filled with images of God Jesus is the Perfect Picture of the Father and that is Good News! He spoke life, removed darkness and restored beauty! In a moment struggling to find clarity we do not need fake buildings and trappings of religion to catch a glimpse of how God feels about you and me. If you want to know what God is like look at the Perfect Picture of Jesus.
In this moment flooded with information delivering promises of light, life and order - Jesus has become Wisdom from God - restoring light in the darkest places, life to dead hearts and wholeness to broken places.
The longer I gaze at the beauty of the Gospel its as if I hear so the thundering whisper of the eternal lover of my soul saying ‘I knew what it was all along - I know that you were worth it - I know your beauty - I know what you were created for’
The Glory and Power of the gospel is NOT ever going to be taken away by the scrupulous guardians of human power, human achievement or even human weakness. The Glory and Power of the Gospel is Gods Total victory over evil and His unchanging Love for you and me!
In a world distracted overwhelmed and even sinking towards hopelessness the Hope of the Gospel has not changed - repentance is our invitation to surrender to the Love of the Father.
To a people left in the dark by their sin and the sin of others - Jesus has come not to conduct a legal inquiry to assign blame and to prove who is right and who is wrong. Jesus has come - jumping into the dead of night and layed down His life to save life, to redeem and restore life! This is Authority gives life and freedom
Repentance is Good News To a world and people stuck in the echo chambers of religion, power, status and success. This is a defining moment - not another shift of power as you have known it but an invitation to Repent. Repent meaning not to just stop sinning to change the way you think. To find freedom in life as He has always intended in the wide open freedom of Gods Love - its called the Kingdom of God.
In the desert Jesus reveals life that is not found in human ability, achievement or empire. Jesus goes into the desert to be tempted and tested in His humanity to reveal life in the Promise of the Father! A Promise that He has give us.
In a world asking will anything be the same - Mark locates the good news not in a political savoir or the hope of personal security ( something most followers of Jesus had no real hope for ). Mark locates the Good News not in empire or emperor but in a the Good News of Jesus Christ the Messiah.
Beloved today we locate the Good News here of our life in a man Jesus Christ the Messiah.
The Good News we celebrate this season is the most magnificent of all is nothing less than Outrageous Love. Love that defies boundary and limit but given for you and me. Even more that God has invited us into this story of outrageous love! That this day we live in the benefits of love not because of anything we have done or earned but what He has freely given in His Son. - we can live loved!
The One who made us did not give Presents but His Presence. He came to what He formed who would never be able to come into His presence because of their brokenness and Became ‘God with us’ the greatest gift for all of humanity the opportunity to be restored to His Presence in their life. He gave it all, His life His love to restore love to all to Himself.
Jesus came not reveal a better method of doing Christmas but to restore and reconnect man to Life. Life as God intended from the beginning - Life with God. His name will be called Emmanuel God with us! Love has always been the invitation and destination.
Beloved Advent is an invitation to Good News - to be present to the God who is with us! Today in this season we proclaim Christ has come and continues to come to man and will one day come again to fully restore all that has been marred and disfigured by sin and brokenness.
Jesus Christ came to humanity that had been deformed and disfigured by the wasting sickness of Sin....in a wasteland of trying to find life yet utterly unable to fend off the affects of this wasting sickness. The scripture declares He took our disease, our sorrow our sin upon Himself for our healing, our hope and life. Not only did He bring healing but a whole new way to live - called the Kingdom of God.
In a world convinced that hope and change can only come as result of Power or Privilege - God has entrusted us with a ‘talent’. Something we did not create but we have been given - the Good News of the Gospel - that will actually change the world - the Love of God revealed in Christ.
In a world filled with empty promises of joy and delight our invitation to live in and from Jesus Kingdom is an invitation that is not about Duty and Drudgery but and invitation to Delight – in real life a partnered life with Jesus.
The Good News of the Gospel is all about what God has done - His Grace His Mercy His Faithfulness. His decision to relate to us on the basis of what He has done and is doing! That is called Grace! That Grace is an assault on everyone one of my well painted facades.
The hope, victory and life of the Kingdom of God is not based in the systems of this world but in truth of the love of God revealed in Christ Jesus.
In a world filled with contradiction, confusion and consumption - God has come in the person of Jesus not only to rescue man but to provide what cannot be secured on our own; contentment settled in the real peace and the joy of His presence with us!
God has come in the Person of Christ - in this we rejoice and place our confidence there is no safer place to be. When religion tells us our confidence and identity is what we know or what we have done or not done. The Gospel proclaims what God has done in Christ and IS doing in us now!
Repentance is not about Remorse and Regret how sorry we are for the mistakes we have made. It is an invitation to reconsider rethink and re-calibrate our thinking and our life to what has always been true. We have a Father who is Good, Compassionate, Generous, Forgiving and Welcoming. Because His love is extravagant and unchanging. He really is better than we think so we need to change the way we think - that is beloved is a gift called Repentance.
Jesus reveals an economy that is not based on the merit of what is deserved or not deserved. But in the kind Generous Merciful heart of our Father whose loving-kindness gives at His own expense people not what they deserve but what need!
The Kingdom of God is based in the limitless supply of Gods love and mercy! When we are not enough or when we have had enough He is more than enough! The well of Gods love and forgiveness is deep enough for both the injured and injurer!
The primary practice of the Christian life is not just a duty or obligation but the very essence of the Kingdom of God where we can experience what it means to be fully alive - to live in and from love.
Real Life can be found even in the face of death and decay. The Keys of this Kingdom are found in being bound to the Cross and loosed to Love God and One another.
What if we could then catch even a glimpse of what it means to be part of this new community authorized and empowered as agents to exercise the task of forgiving and welcoming in the name of a God who desires "mercy and not sacrifice"
The Mercy of God that is abundant fierce unchanging and based in His Goodness is greater than any personal failure or brokenness at the hands of others. His Mercy is greater than any obstacle to love!
Mans lack does not limit the love of God. The same God who met hungry bodies with abundance in Matthews gospel (14:13-21) generously meets the hungry soul today.
The change the world around me needs will not come as a result of me pretending to be like Jesus but it will be when the living word Jesus changes me.
The Gospel that Jesus proclaimed to us was not first by words but in a life poured out in love for us and now imparted in us! The Mysteries of the Kingdom are not secrets – the mystery is that God has chosen to reveal to every human heart what they most need to know that they are loved.
Jesus still reveals the truth about His Father who is available to all, who is generous and unreserved and who is easy to please! And He invites us to become real humans who live by a new rhythm of His mercy and grace.
Because He is better than we think - we need to change the way we think!
In a world marked by division, suffering, violence and uncertainty - the heart of the Gospel becomes most visible as we embrace the practice of welcoming the least , the last - even our enemies! In the act of Hospitality we can begin to embody the Way of Jesus in the face of Hell.
Jesus recognizes that fear will also cause the failure of discipleship. So he alerts them to be prepared for and expect opposition. In doing so he let’s them know he did not ‘overlook’ the fact this might happen and he reminds them of who they are in their relationship with God and their significance to God!
Jesus in love has forever bound Himself to His Bride and has loosed the shackles of sin, death and the grave forever. This new community His Kingdom on earth - He is building on the earth will not be overcome or destroyed. The Keys of this Kingdom are found in being bound to the Cross and loosed to Love God and One another.
Go and Make disciples does NOT mean 'do more and try harder'! It is an invitation to Surrender today to living Present to the God who invited us to come and follow and is present and at work. Go and Make means; as you are going, live alive to the Love of God revealed in Christ today!
There is a River in you! A River called Holy Spirit - Pentecost Power is the Power from on High to enable us to live in the crossfire of a polarized culture and proclaim Peace - even more to become a Peacemaker! Those who are actively a part of seeing wholeness come to the hearts and lives of men and women around them.
The Gospel has forever exposed the greatest illusion and lie of the devil to every human heart - ‘you are alone and God has left you, you have no future and have everything to fear.’ The Gospel proclaims reality in Christ - He is with you, you have a future and you have nothing to fear’ - He is for you and because of that everything has changed!
In a world marked by every other form of religious distinction - what makes us distinct and extraordinary will NOT be how good we do what everybody else does - lights sound - programming - teaching....our goal beloved is not to do the best job at marketing ourselves ( that is called exceptional-ism ) ...beloved the good news as we anticipate the coming days is
Beloved the Good News we proclaim today is that in a world marked by Fear and Phobias about the future - Christ has come - He is present and at work today. As the Father sent Him He has sent us in Self giving self sacrificial Love revealing the ‘Awe’ of the Gospel - lives changed by the Love of God revealed in Christ.
What does Love do to fear - more than drive it out - it reveals a new economy a new atmosphere that leaves everyone in ‘Awe’.
What is fascinating as we celebrate this season of the resurrected Christ and His appearances to His friends....is what Jesus does NOT say....you should have done more tried harder....Its as if He is more confident in what He has done to awaken who they were created to actually be! Beloved the Good News we proclaim today is that no skepticism doubt or compromise can change the quality of Jesus invitation to live in the Freedom of Love.
The Good news we proclaim is what Jesus had to say in Quarantine to His friends - He proclaims to His friends today - Peace to you - Receive and Believe. You are not alone and you will never be alone!