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Matthew 1:18-25
Advent 4A
We don’t know much about Joseph but what we do know is of pretty good quality. Even in our passage this week—where Joseph doesn’t even utter a word—we are given a number of positive characteristics to understand what kind of person Joseph is. Joseph is righteous; he also is not one to bear a grudge….
Romans 1:1-7
Advent 4A
When I read this Sunday’s Epistolary Lesson, I think of the English Standard Version’s translation of John 1:16: “From [Christ’s) fullness we have all received grace upon grace” (italics mine). Since Paul layers Romans 1 with grace upon grace in both obvious and subtle ways, it offers preachers an opportunity to explore how God’s grace…
Matthew 11:2-11
Advent 3A
Even the stalwart in faith wonder during times of difficulty. Of course, we know this to be true even for Jesus, who prays to have the cup of suffering taken from him in the Garden. But in our passage today, we see it on full display in the strong-in-faith-and-purpose John. John was the one who…
James 5:7-10
Advent 3A
Except in response to various crises, I don’t hear many Christians express impatience for Jesus’ return. Most of Jesus’ friends who I know (including, candidly, me) would just as soon Jesus wait a while to come again. After all, for many of us life on this side of the new creation can, at its best,…
Matthew 3:1-12
Advent 2A
It’s time for our annual Advent trip to the banks of the Jordan River and to come to terms with whether we are ready—prepared—to repent and receive the kingdom of heaven. One like John the Baptist was prophesied by Isaiah: a voice crying out in the wilderness, both as a prayer and a call to…
Romans 15:4-13
Advent 2A
My wife and I recently accepted our friends’ invitation to join them in their home for supper on Friday night. At first glance, little seems to be unusual about that. We have, after all, joined our friends for no fewer than 10 meals over the course of our 10-year friendship. We are very comfortable in…
Romans 13:11-14
Advent 1A
Preachers might consider opening a message on this Sunday’s Epistolary Lesson with an anecdote that’s similar to mine. As I write this, my wife and I have just returned from a two-week vacation in Hawaii. While both the scenery and people were lovely, we’re exhausted. The current five-hour time difference between Hawaii and the US’s…
Matthew 24:36-44
Advent 1A
Advent begins with the humbling reminder that though we can be confident in Christ’s return, and there is plenty “knowing” and “unknowing” to go around. Jesus’s opening words in our passage this week make rather clear that “no one knows” the day of judgment that will usher in the new heaven and new earth—not even…
Colossians 1:11-20
Proper 29C
The contrast between the images of the Son of God presented by this Sunday’s Epistolary and Gospel lessons could hardly seem starker. Preachers might find fertile homiletical ground in that space – perhaps especially on this Christ the King Sunday that falls so close to the beginning of the Christmas season. Preachers might follow the…
Luke 23:33-43
Proper 29C
On this the last Sunday of the year, we remember Christ as the one who reigns, or, Christ the King. In the upside-down kingdom of the gospel of Luke, it seems so fitting for us to be here at the cross of death, even as the hope of Advent is about to begin. At every…
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