Frustrated, Jeremiah cries to heaven, “You enticed and deceived me, prevailing over me.” Earlier, God told him this, “I am making you into an iron pillar.” To be God’s prophet will require him to stand “against Judah’s kings, its princes, priests, and commoners” (1:18). No, God didn’t mislead Jeremiah but spoke the truth, instead. A […]
June 16, 2020 by
The Red Sea miracle through the “water like a wall on their right and on their left” (Exodus 14:29) brought a frightened and fleeing people through the drowning waters. A hymn of thanks soon rises from their lips (Exodus 15:1-21), celebrating the God who came to free them. In short order, they will find themselves […]
Matthew 28:16-20: The Holy Trinity
June 10, 2020 by
The Scripture begins by unveiling God, revealing who He is by how He operates. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth,” meaning God made everything. The word for God here is Elohim, a masculine plural, referring to a singular God. Ah, the divine mystery starts in Scripture’s first sentence. Next, the moving […]
Ezekiel 34: Who’s the Shepherd?
April 26, 2020 by
In Ezekiel 34, we find God’s people in a time of duress–a defeated nation in exile. But what made this worse was Israel’s leaders, their shepherds, failing in their callings. Unfaithful, they cared more about themselves than the flock God charged them to serve and lead. So, how did God respond? He said that He […]
John 20:19-23: Forgiveness Jesus’ Way
April 19, 2020 by
The One raised from the tomb breathes on His disciples, “Peace be with you.” Next, He shows them the injuries He suffered in His crucifixion. Again, the words, “Peace be with you,” leave His mouth. An unbreakable bond must somehow exist between our Lord’s wounds and the peace He brings them. In His sacrificial death, […]
Palm Sunday Service Link
April 5, 2020 by
Since we don’t have video capability at Shepherd of the Hills, here’s a link from a seminary friend, Pr. Chris Tiews, for his on-line Palm-Sunday Service.
John 11:17-27, 38-53: The God Who Cries at Funerals
March 29, 2020 by
Though uncommon to our ears, in times past, the Church delighted in describing Jesus as a “lover.” Today, we might find this as odd, perhaps perverted, as word meanings shift and change, and “lover” now refers to one’s sexual partner. Ah, but the word “lover” can contain so much more! The root for “lover” is […]
Lent 4A: John 9: Why?
March 22, 2020 by
The disciples approach Jesus with an age-old question, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, for him to be born blind?” (John 9:2). My mother lived this view of the world with me. Say something terrible happened to me. At the ready, her words came dripping out with this wisdom, “God’s punishing you!” How […]
Genesis 3:1-15: The Promised Sin-Crusher
March 1, 2020 by
In His image, God created the first man and woman, giving them a beautiful, tranquil home, providing for their every need. Neither destitute nor dispossessed, they are happy, safe, and secure—though God did prohibit one activity. “In the day [you eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil], you will die” (Genesis […]
John 1:1-4, Hebrews 1:1-3: The Word and the Son
December 27, 2019 by
Today, the 25th of December, far removed from unknown ages, when our God created the heavens and earth, forming Adam in His image. Much time elapses, and God sends a flood, required to rescue, not destroy, this humanity gone rogue. A rainbow emblazons the sky as a sign of His covenant to save. Many centuries […]
