At the establishment of the Lord’s Supper, the Lord Himself occupied the position of the server. Who is greater, He asked, the one who sits and eats, or the one who serves? And yet, He, the Lord, was the one who served. More than this, He has done the same thing at every celebration of …
Avoiding Moral Incongruities
The Lord’s brother warned us about the problem of incongruity in speech. With the same tongue we praise God, in a service of worship, and we also curse those who are made in God’s likeness — whether in traffic, or in family irritations, or in self-righteousness censure. Gossip during the week is inconsistent with what …
The Armory of Slander
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Hear my voice, oh my God, Hear my prayer to You now. Preserve me from fear, From fear of my enemy. Hide me away from the secret counsels of the wicked, From the plotting and insurrection Of those who love to work …
The Table and the Ball
Once there was a table, and on the surface of the table there was a ball. For a long time they both just sat there, but one day the ball—who had been taking some philosophy classes at the local community college—spoke to the table. “I don’t know why you think you’re so important,” said the …
Do Not Shrink Back
You have not come to a mountain that can be touched. You have not come to a mountain covered with smoke and fire, and with a backdrop of gun-metal thunderheads. You have not come to a mountain that is cordoned off, so that if even an animal strays onto the holy ground it must be …
Regal Communion
The disciples, Jesus said, were those who continued with Him in his temptations. And closely associated with this, He said that He appointed to them a kingdom, just as the Father had appointed one unto Him. Confession of sin is certainly appropriate in the worship of God, but it belongs in our first approach to …
Upside-Down Conquest
At the establishment of the Lord’s Supper, the Lord Himself occupied the position of the server. Who is greater, He asked, the one who sits and eats, or the one who serves? And yet, He, the Lord, was the one who served. More than this, He has done the same thing at every celebration of …
The Voice of Many Waters
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! The Lord reigns! His cloak and clothing are majesty. The Lord is clothed with strength, He has tied His strength on as a belt. The world is founded, And cannot be moved. Your throne, Oh, God, is established of old, You are …
Much Better
Once there was a high school girl who decided that she wanted to become a fighter pilot. She had decided this after watching a movie with her brother, and in the movie it had all worked out perfectly. She knew that it would involve a great deal of hard work, but to be honest, she …
Convenience Store Holiness
We too often want convenience store holiness. We are impatient with our sins in the wrong way, meaning that we want and demand quick fixes for our problems. We want a holiness that will straighten out the pressing problems we have created for ourselves, and we want that holiness shrink-wrapped, hanging on a rack on …