1 Peter 5:8-14 “What went wrong?” This is a question that the Church in every age has asked herself. We should not think that we’re alone in rightly asking this question. It was certainly a question many churchmen asked themselves before, during, and after the Reformation period. In 1833, the Church of England was in sad shape. Remnants of the feudal system and Erastian church – one in which the State has a large say over Church affairs – were... Read more
1 Peter 5:1-7 When my oldest daughter Renee was 2, I began to write Renee Stories, one of which was Renee’s Upsee-dee-dee (her word for “Upside”) Down Day. In this story, her bed and all the books she had not put away from the night before were all on the ceiling, and a light fixture was on the floor. She was glad when she heard Mom come in, because she knew that meant breakfast. Except Mom was wearing a... Read more
1 Peter 4:12-19 It seems to be strange, hearing Peter talk about Christians suffering after Easter, after we’ve celebrated the Resurrection of Christ. But because we are still in this fallen world, though Christ has passed into glory, we are still living out a movie, our life story that might be called The Passion of Christians. The truth is that we as Christians suffer. As our Lord first suffered, we must suffer. This isn’t a very popular teaching. You won’t... Read more
1 Peter 4:7-11 The Lord’s Prayer is a microcosm of our spiritual lives. It’s easy for it to become boring, repetitive, and stale, but for those who are laboring to see and serve the Lord, it’s always new. There is always some new way of looking at it that gives new meaning in my life. As with the spiritual life, you must first pay attention. Second, sometimes it’s wise to focus on one small part exclusively and milk it for... Read more
1 Peter 4:1-6 THWACK! ! ! Do you know what that sound is? It’s the sound of one of God’s cosmic “spankings.” Though our first instinct is naturally to cry, it’s a cosmic mistake to misinterpret one of God’s spankings. So let’s get rid of a few misconceptions about God’s spankings right here and now. As parents who discipline their children, you’ll immediately recognize that this is the way things work in your family, or at least the way you... Read more
1 Peter 3:13-22 What’s the answer to the problem of suffering? Sanctify the Lord in your heart. Like St. James and St. Paul and Jesus Himself – pretty much the whole New Testament – St. Peter assumes that there will be suffering in this world for the Christian. Theologically, there is the so-called problem of suffering, as in “How can there be suffering in this world if there is a good and loving Almighty God?” I’m interested in the problem... Read more
1 Peter 3:1-12 In a world that has more people in it than ever before, there is also more loneliness in the world than ever before. We often live away from our families – either geographically or in degrees of harmony. We don’t know our neighbors. People are looking for a genuinely loving community to belong to. Some look in clubs and some talk to counselors. Some choose to spend more time at work, and some join gangs. But what... Read more
1 Peter 2:18-25 One year when I was teaching freshman English at All Saints Episcopal school in Tyler, Texas, and we began the year by coordinating some of the literature with ancient history, I taught my students about Greek philosophy and religion so that they might understand Greek literature. I had them compare and contrast Christianity and the Greek religion, and in my meditation on this comparison, a humorous idea took hold of me (many do, when I’m teaching and... Read more
1 Peter 2:11-17 The writer Gertrude Stein coined the term “The Lost Generation” for the generation of Ernest Hemingway in the 1920s. But perhaps every generation is a lost generation. Many people today – even those who call themselves Christians – have no sense or real purpose or meaning. 20th century philosophers and thinkers have convinced us that there is no meaning to life and that everything comes from chance. And so the blind are leading the blind. A few years... Read more
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Monday of Easter 3 – Ephesians 1:1-14
Ephesians 1:1-14 Have you ever been excited to be a part of something bigger than yourself? To be in on a very important goal whose greatness brings you glory? In the book of Ephesians, we find that God has let us in on the Greatest Goal of All – to bring blessing to mankind, who does not deserve it. St. Paul’s message is that as a result of God’s blessing us, we live in a new cosmos, a new world. ... Read more