Reading: John 19-21, Psalm 111 What is truth? The question posed by Pilate is put to a practical test in today’s reading. John gives us a picture of the crucifixion of Jesus that shows the powers that be, those of the High Priest and those of the Emperor of Rome,
Reading: John 16-18, Psalm 110 So Jesus has just upended the disciples’ understanding of power, authority, and the means by which everything they want will come to pass. He has accepted their designation that he is the master and teacher. Then, as master and teacher, he says to serve one
Reading: John 11-12, Psalm 108 Today’s reading is the unexpected plot twist. We begin the story with the death of Lazarus, whose family were supporters and friends of Jesus and his disciples. This famous story contains not only the unexpected resurrection of Lazarus, but the unexpected response of the religious
Reading: John 9-10, Psalm 107 One of the most devastating misuses of spiritual authority is that of the false teacher. There are numerous examples in the history of the church. Right in the gospel accounts we get Jesus warning against false teachers, and the same warning appears in the epistles.
Reading: John 7-8, Psalm 106 Among the most well worn character concepts in stories humans tell is the hero’s guide or mentor. In my context as a nerdy kid who grew up in the 1980s, the paradigm for the hero’s guide can be none other than Obi-Wan Kenobi from Star
Reading: John 3-4, Psalm 104 One of the big questions facing the early church was how to be a community of both Jews and Gentiles. Up to that point, the returned exiles living in Judea had largely maintained their national identity by separating from the people around them. Remember the
Reading: John 1-2, Psalm 103 Among many other things, I spent much of my adolescence watching science fiction TV shows. One of the difficulties such shows encountered was showing how the “regular people” lived their lives. It is all well and good to see what the captain and his cohort