Here we are, right in the middle of Holy Week, when we recall the events of the last week of Jesus’ life on earth. The week that started with Jesus, welcomed as the hero by the crowd, the one who would begin the insurrection, get rid of the Romans, and make everything right again. The week that ends with Jesus hanging on a cross, dying a criminal’s death, abandoned by the crowd and even by almost all…
“The Pharisees then said to one another, “You see, you can do nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.” John 12:19 The Pharisees don’t get it. They say this after seeing the crowds who swarmed Christ during the “triumphant arrival” in Jerusalem. But Christ doesn’t get his power from people. It’s the other way around. I get where the Pharisees are coming from. They feel threatened. They already lo…
“But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place to share the rich root of the olive tree, do not vaunt yourselves over the branches. If you do vaunt yourselves, remember that it is not you that support the root, but the root that supports you.” Romans 11:17-18 One of the (not so) secret pleasures that is enjoyed in this world is the pleasure we …
"If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly." (John 10:24) Have you ever been having a conversation with someone who's trying to beat around the bush? I don't know that there are many things that annoy me more than that. Just tell me what you want to tell me, don't try to hide it. Sometimes I will ask someone "What's the real question here?" when they're trying to ask me…
I know very little about sheep. They are cute and fuzzy and make funny noises. I have sweaters because they have donated their fuzziness. They graze in fields. To me, all sheep look alike; I can’t tell them apart. I don’t know any more about the shepherds who take care of the sheep. I always assumed that being a shepherd involved things like feeding them and getting them safely from their pens and…
