Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 – Two Versions of Creation
I’m going to devote the next few posts to one of the most important, although under-rated, theological topics in the Bible: the role of God... Read More
Priesthood of Believers
I preached a version of this a couple of weeks ago at my wife’s Church, St. Andrews Episcopal. It was well received, and I was... Read More
Abraham Blesses His Neighbors, Part 2 (Genesis 18:16–33)
“If one day God does not punish NYC for its wickedness, he will have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah” – John E. Herbst. My... Read More
Abraham Blesses His Neighbors, Part 1 (Genesis 14)
What does it look like for God’s people to “be a blessing?” The earliest biblical example is Genesis 14, a passage that introduces us to... Read More
“Be a Blessing:” The Call of Abraham (Genesis 12)
As the new year dawns, many of us think about renewing and enhancing commitments to things that matter to us. I hope that this causes... Read More
The Christmas Message
“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” (Isa. 9:2... Read More
Struggling with God’s Calling: Reading Exodus 3–4 in Light of Exodus 1–2
This is the third of three posts about Exodus 3 (and, here, Exodus 4). While I tend to avoid getting into ALL the details of... Read More
Sharing Names: A First Step to a Relationship With God
My last post looked at a couple of the main ideas of Exodus 3, the story of Moses’s “first encounter” with God. I explained there... Read More
Exodus – Intro
I’m going to start this series with a few posts on the theologically most important book of the Old Testament, Exodus. Not only is Exodus... Read More
Exodus 3, Part 1 – Meeting God
First impressions are important. Whether or not we’re purposely trying to impress the people we meet, we know that a first encounter can set the tone for a relationship. When people are an important part of our lives, we usually remember the first time we met them – what they said, what they didn’t say, how they made us feel. This means, of course, that when we are going to meet people for the first time, we do what we can to make the right impression.
Exodus 3–4 is about a first meeting, not just between God and Moses, but between God and Israel, since Moses becomes the go-between for God and the Israelites. As we look at this chapter, we should think about how this first meeting affects the ongoing relationship between God and God’s people – not just the Israelites, but us, the people of God today.