John 13:18-34 Jesus says to you today: “A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” “Maundy Thursday” comes from the Latin words mandatum novum, or “new commandment,” taken from this verse (John 13:34.) Now why is love a new commandment? The commandments to love God and love your neighbor as yourself come from the Old Testament. But they are hidden away among 612 other commandments. ... Read more
John 16:1-22 I’ve chosen to meditate not just through verse 16 of John 16 (as the lectionary prescribes) but also through verse 22, which fleshes out Jesus’ teaching on His leaving His disciples. If today’s meditation were summarized in a single thought to help guide you on your life in Christ, it would be this: that Jesus Christ is joy, and where Jesus is, there is joy. For the Christian, therefore, this life is supposed to be a life of... Read more
John 15:1-16 In John 15, Jesus teaches us that we are to abide in Him as the branches abide in the vine. This is an image of the continuous life of feasting on Christ that we are to have, and there are 3 main truths about abiding in Christ for us to eat this morning. First, abiding in Christ means feeding off Him. As the branch only has life as it comes from the vine, we only have our spiritual... Read more
John 14:1-14 Many definitions have been given for postmodernism. To some, it is the end of the Enlightenment project with its belief in never-ending progress based on man’s reason, or the end of a single, overarching “metanarrative” that encompasses all of reality, or the belief that there is no inherent meaning in the universe because meaning is only constructed by people. Perhaps the one characteristic of postmodernism is that there is no agreement over what it means. David Harvey has... Read more
1 Corinthians 16:15-24 Every Christian household should be transformed into a house of God. Christian households are the backbone, the foundation, of the Christian church, and if they are not consecrated to the Lord, then the Church herself will be weak and sickly. Sadly, in the 21st century American church, both Church and family are weak and sickly. It’s one thing to spend five weeks on 1 Corinthians, examining in detail the problems of the Corinthian church and admiring the... Read more
1 Corinthians 16:1-14 “Let all that you do be done with love” (verse 14.) This is a fitting summary of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian: a fitting summary of the corpus of Paul’s letters of love and labors of love; and a fitting summary, indeed, of the Law and the Gospel. Jesus Christ Himself, when asked to name the greatest law, gave as His answer (which is the Answer): Love God and love neighbor. Every one of the Ten... Read more
1 Corinthians 15:50-58 We have a brief and somewhat variable form of Evening Prayer in my house every evening after dinner. Sometimes, when I’m instructing the children about the Bible lesson for the day and I’m struck by a particularly startling revelation which I think they’ll delight in, I yell in a stage whisper: “Secret!” This is their signal to rush pell mell into my arms and gather their ears close to their mouth so I can tell one of... Read more
1 Corinthians 15:35-49 For multiple millennia many men have done much mental maneuvering trying to meditate on the meaning of heaven. Others have been content to allow the question to answer itself on the Great Day when we shall be caught up in the heavenlies with Christ Himself and shall know even as we are known. Perhaps the most common version of what heaven is going to be like is the one propagated (like so many of our cultural myths)... Read more
1 Corinthians 15:20-34 My life is a frustrating and confusing one. God loves me and has redeemed me and even sent His Holy Spirit to dwell in me – and yet I still sin. I have been raised with Christ to everlasting life, and yet my body will still see death. When saints in Christ whom I love die, I rejoice that they are with the Lord, and yet I grieve as well. All of these are pictures of the... Read more
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Good Friday – John 19:1-37
John 19:1-37 Though the Morning Prayer lesson for this morning is John 18, I’ve chosen to meditate on John 19 instead, which is the Proper lesson for the Good Friday service. “Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing?’ The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us’” (Psalm 2:1-3.)... Read more