Mark 4:1-34 Parables of sower and mustard seed Parables are something we spend a lot of time on in the church. Jesus uses parables to teach us things. Often we end up with a superficial reading, which domesticates the parables, or we go so deep that we lose the relation of the parable to our lives. Sometimes Jesus explains the parables, but…
Mark 2:1-22 Jesus heals a paralytic and eats with tax collectors With the speed of the Gospel of Mark, the people learn that Jesus is home in Capernaum. And they gather, and gather. So many gather that they can’t all fit into the house, and some enterprising, compassionate, driven people climb up on the roof and make a way for their friend…
Mark 1:21-45 Jesus heals a man with an unclean spirit, Peter’s mother-in-law, and a leper. In Mark’s Gospel, Jesus gets right into things. Of course, in Mark’s Gospel everything happens immediately. There are not wasted words or wasted energy in Mark. In just 25 verses of today’s reading, Jesus confronts and casts out an unclean spirit, heals Simon’s mother-in-law, heals the…
John 1:1-14 – One of Us? Granger Odum preaches.
Join us in worship as we tell the old story of the birth of Christ in song and Scripture. We gather at Christ’s table, and go out to a candlelight singing of Silent Night.
Luke 1:5-13 [14-25] 57-80 John the Baptist’s birth; Blessed be the God of Israel who has looked favorably on his people. This is a narrative that should be familiar to Zechariah. He and his wife Elizabeth are both of lineages of the temple and priesthood. Both of them are descended from Aaron, and they are named as righteous before God, living…
Ezra 1:1-4; 3:1-4, 10-13 Return from exile and rebuilding the temple. Here we are in Ezra, with the people who are about to return from exile in Persia back to Jerusalem. This passage, and the narrative of return isn’t good news for everyone. The people who were left behind in Jerusalem, and the people who had married foreigners end up…
2 Kings 22:1-10 [11-20]; 23:1-3 Josiah’s Reform (Luke 24:30-32) When the temple is rebuilt, like when we renovate or remodel, surprises are found. In this case, there is a scroll found, a book of the law. It’s a surprise. It’s old fashioned. And it is not really good news when it comes to Josiah. Josiah hears the words, and realizes how…
Isaiah 5:1-7; 11:1-5 Isaiah’s Vineyard Song(Mark 12:1-3) Isaiah’s prophetic voice is not to be underestimated. With 66 chapters, there’s a lot to consider, read, and hear. Isaiah’s use of metaphor is wide and varied, and today we hear two different images, both of which have to do with plants and growing. The vineyard is a major investment. Hills are selected…
Hosea 11:1-9 Hosea(Mark 10:13-14) The benefit of hindsight is great. Often we see things we had no way of seeing before, or we see things whose significance we did not recognize in the past, or in the moment. We receive warnings in advance, and yet we do not heed those warnings. We say that we’ll never do that, and then…