Preachrblog

  “A Kingdom of Grace” “My kingdom is not of this world” Jesus once said. And if you had any doubt, take a look at the parables he tells about his kingdom. Here we have another. The parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. As a story it's simple enough. Even the meaning is easy to determine. But fully appreciating the mysterious sense of Divine justice that lies underneath - this is something that takes great faith. For our Lord and Master is generous with us, and in Christ has given us more than what is fair. The kingdom of this world is a kingdom of rules and laws. We live under them and know them well. You stand in line at the grocery store and get a ticket at the deli counter. First come, first served. When you get to a stop sign, the person there first has the right of way. And when you do your job, you expect every two weeks or so, for that little piece of paper you can take to the bank. It's the way the world works – you earn something, it's yours. Those are the...

  Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, usually when you hear a parable from Jesus, you have to stop and think about it carefully. What deep truth about his kingdom did the Lord weave into the story? How do the various elements of the parable apply to your faith and life? What lesson is your Lord teaching you? Those are great questions, but today’s parable isn’t like that. Jesus didn’t hide his intent at all – indeed, the great challenge in this parable is not in determining what Jesus was teaching, but rather in the sobering ramifications of that teaching. Your Lord’s words leave no options or excuses for anyone. A man owed a debt he could not repay. That’s understated, actually, as this debt was so great that only a few of the richest people who have ever lived in the history of the world had those kinds of resources. Its equivalent worth today would be billions of dollars. It was a debt on a scale that is usually reserved for states and nations; not individuals. The debt was ...

We sinners have a problem with authority.   It’s not just the hippies from the 60’s, or the rioters a few summers ago.   It’s a natural inclination in every human heart to rebel against God, and against those who represent him in our lives.   But God’s gift of authority is a good thing, and it is meant for our good.   We see this in many ways.   All of our readings today touch on, in one way or another, God’s good gift of authority.   Ezekiel is set to be a prophet, one who speaks a hard word, an authoritative word, to wicked people.   And God charges him that whether they listen or not, it is still his duty to speak God’s word to them.   He speaks for God, with authority from God.   In Matthew 18 we have a number of topics, different aspects of sin and forgiveness.   But in verse 18 Jesus reiterates that what his representatives, his pastors, “bind on earth is bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is loosed in heaven”...

  We preach Christ crucified.   At the center of the Christian faith stands the cross of Jesus Christ.   It can be no other way.   This is because, for Jesus, it can be no other way.   On the heels of his great confession, where Peter got it right, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”.   Now Jesus unpacks what exactly that means.   And Peter gets it oh-so-wrong.   Today’s reading is a continuation of the conversation we heard last week at Caeserea-Phillipi.   Let’s pick it up where we left off:   “From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”   With the cat out of the bag for these disciples, knowing and confessing that Jesus is the Christ – Jesus, from that time, began to show them the full implications of what being the Christ means.   And it is star...