Mark 6:1-29 Jesus rejected at Nazareth; sending of the Twelve; death of John the Baptist. Jesus is the only one who knows what’s going on in this passage. It’s a long chunk of text, and not quite chronological, but Jesus is the only one who seems to have a grip on what’s going on. In the synagogue on the Sabbath, in…
Mark 5:21-43 Jesus heals Jairus’ daughter and the woman with the flow of blood. Again Jesus crosses over to the other side. Getting out, a crowd is gathered waiting to see Jesus. A leader of the synagogue comes to see Jesus, with a daughter who is close to death. Jesus goes with Jairus. And on the way something happens. The…
Mark 5:1-20 Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac By the time we get to this part of the story, we know that things happen when we cross the river, or the sea, and get to the other side. So, we shouldn’t be surprised to see something big happen here. They go across the sea, and land in the land of the Gerasenes. More…
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…