Despicable

"The one who showed him mercy," Luke 10:37.

What's this about? It's about loving one's neighbor. Since you can't just go around loving any and every body, you have to decide just who it is that Jesus requires that you love. So. We've got to ask: Who is this neighbor we're supposed to love? So. Jesus told a story about a guy that got a bad mugging and got left for dead. All sorts of good people walked by and didn't help the guy. But one fellow, a despicable one, did help the guy out and even covered his medical expenses. (Who's despicable: a Catholic? a Protestant? a Muslim? a Conservative? a Liberal? oh, well, there's a bunch of 'em out there.) So then. Jesus asked: Who was the neighbor? Well. It was the despicable fellow who showed mercy. That's the neighbor we must love. In fact, that's the fellow whose neighborliness we must do likewise. If we want to inherit eternal life. Sky kingdom.

When we get to see a brother or sister today, we remember Jesus helped us out and covered our salvation expenses. And, together, we praise God for his overwhelming mercy.

Bind

"Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven," Matthew 16:19.

Who's talking here? The Son of man. (I.e., Jesus. The Christ. The Son of the living God.) Who's he talking to? To Peter. (I.e., To Simon bar-Jonah. To Peter confessing Jesus' identity.) What has Jesus said to Peter? He's said that he, Jesus, will give to him, Peter, keys that bind or release requirements into the kingdom of God. He's said that what Peter requires will be required in the sky, what Peter releases will be released in the sky. So. Did Peter bind anything or release anything? Yes. Well. What did he bind? He bound baptism's requirement into Christ. What did he loose? He loosed circumcision's requirement. When? When he preached Christ on Pentecost and commanded all Jews to repent and to be baptized in the name of Jesus. And. When he preached Christ to the Gentiles and commanded them to baptism, and released them from circumcision's requirement. Binding this, loosing that. Sky kingdom.

When we meet with a brother or sister today, we remember God's washing away of our every sin. And, together, we give thanks to Jesus whose death opened heaven's gates to us!

Mercify

"Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!" Romans 11:33.

What in the world made Paul exclaim this about God? Well, actually, nothing in the world. The rich depth of God, God's wisdom, God's knowledge - yes! - God's mercy! This elicited that outburst of praise. God's mind to mercify all stuns every other mind with the Lord's unmeasurable and unfathomable ways. Nobody knew about that mercy. Nobody ever advised God about such mercy. God owes nobody nothing for such mercy. Everything points to God over it all. All! All things come from him, all things come through him, and all things are to him. To God be glory for ever! Mercy.

Visiting with a brother or sister today, we meditate on the merciful purposes of God. And, together, we praise God that he should pour out mercy on us all through the gospel of Christ.

Exquisite

"Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you," Isaiah 51:2.

God's talking. God's talking to people pursuing righteousness, to people seeking the Lord. So, what's God saying to these pursuers of righteousness and seekers of the Lord? God tells them to look back. Look back to where they came from. They were cut out of common rock to become precious stones for God's holy purpose. Look back to Abraham and Sarah - lonesome nobodies when God called. But God blessed and multiplied them into a holy nation. Just so, God takes present wastelands of human consumption and pollution and destruction. God takes the wilderness of human lives to turn them into Eden, the garden of the Lord. God reclaims into eternity.

As we meet with a brother or sister today, we remember the God who creates exquisite beauty from chaos, from even nothing. And, together, we yield thankful hearts to God who raised Jesus from the dead.

Assiduously

"Let the peoples praise you, O God!" Psalm 67:3.

Yes, Lord! You ever show us your grace. You bless us! Your face shines on us! When we pause, we reflect on your ways that extend throughout the earth. Your power to save shows up among all earth's cultures. The gospel is for all! You judge all nations in fairness. You guide all peoples. You deserve praise from us all. We pause for a moment, and your blessings continue moving to earth's farthest reaches. You are worthy of honor from every remote corner of earth's globe. You are worthy!

We pause in our visit with a brother or sister today in order to point to God's blessings. And, together in praise, we assert assiduously: God is good all the time!

Loud

"Here's water - why can't I be baptized?" Acts 8:36.

So. There they were, riding a chariot down that dusty desert road, the royal Ethiopian treasurer (a eunuch) and his driver. The Ethiopian had worshiped in Jerusalem lately, now headed back home. The charioteer drove, the treasurer sat and read his Bible out loud. The passage concerned a humiliated man being killed unjustly. God prompted the prophet Philip to join the chariot and explain the reading. With the Ethiopian's invitation, Philip stepped aboard, sat down with the official, and they rode along together. Philip said that Scripture spoke of Jesus, and told the gospel news about Jesus. Responding, the Ethiopian wanted to be baptized. So. They went down into the water (the chariot had stopped at a pool, right?), Philip baptized him, and then they came up out of the water. This man confessing right now to the story of Jesus - God qualified him for baptism. A new culture, the household of faith, continues growing in Christ.

We get together with a brother or sister today and remember the gospel by which we are saved. And, together, we continue faith's walk joyful in thanksgiving to God, the qualifier of souls.

Culture

"As many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ," Galatians 3:27.

And that means what? It means that the era of faith has fully come. That the impossible age of trying to get right with God by being good enough has died away. That Christ has redeemed humans from the curse. (What curse? The curse that if you're not good enough, you die and go to hell.) It means that the blessing God promised to Abraham comes to as many. To as many as of whom? As of those who believe. Who believe in. Who believe in Jesus. Who believe in Jesus' faith. The culture of law-keeping has passed, the culture of faith is begun. The sky kingdom is about rascals becoming saints. Becoming saints through the faith of Christ, and through faith in Christ. People enter that community of faith by putting on Christ. In faith.

We call on a brother or sister today acculturating to our common trust in Christ. And, together, we give glory to God who qualified us by faith to receive his promised blessings.

Answer

"Jesus did not answer the woman," Matthew 15:23.

So, this mother's child has a demon tormenting her severely. The mom, kneeling, keeps on begging Jesus for mercy. But Jesus ignores her - why? Well, what does the Good Book say? Here's what it says. It says: Because she was a Canaanite woman. Because she didn't belong to the right nationality. Because if the right culture were human children, her culture was dogs. Yep. It's all laid out pretty straightforward for us. Wrong language. Wrong race. Wrong color. Wrong gender. Wrong status. Now, we're a bit uncomfortable with the explanation, to be sure, but we get it. And, when Jesus' followers tell Jesus to tell her to get lost, we get that, too. But, suddenly, Jesus speaks directly to her: Woman, you have great faith - what you want is done! Hmm. Oh. God's children belong to the culture of faith. God's mercy is for all. Ah. We get it.

Meeting with a brother or sister today, we give thanks to Jesus that when we called out to him for healing, he did. And, together, we give thanks to God who receives children for himself by faith out of every nation.

Taxonomy

"God has hedged in all peoples into disobedience," Romans 11:32.

When the Scriptures present God dealing with earth's peoples, it does not categorize them in terms of race, culture, language, tribe, nationality, gender, social status, or those manifold ways as we humans do each other. No. God deals with people from the perspective of two categories: People belong to the family of Abraham and Sarah, or they do not. They belong to Israel, or do not. They are children of promise, or not. (Clearly, God knows all those categories by which we humans identify and classify! Nevertheless, God deals with us on the basis of those other two.) Humans are Jews, or they are Gentiles. And, God's taxonomy further identifies and classifies them all, every one of them, as rascals. Rebels. Disobedient. Unworthy. So that by this, God may extend mercy. Mercy. To all. Mercy.

When we meet up today with a brother or sister, we recognize our desperate need for grace. And, together into all coming ages, we, children of promise, glorify God for his mercy to us in Christ.

Belonging

"My house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples," Isaiah 56:7.

Thus saith the Lord. Yeah. That's what God says. So. His house. His temple. His dwelling. But, really, more than that. His house. That is, all those people that belong to him. (Too, it includes all those beings like angels and other monsters that we humans barely know about but that make us glance over our shoulders in dark times. Even us non-superstitious types.) A belonging place for all, all, among whom God dwells. And who are these people comprising the Lord's belonging place? Those who keep justice. Who do righteousness. Who keep hands from evil things. Even if it's an outcast. Or a foreigner. Or a eunuch. Or anyone! Anyone who chooses the things that please God. Who holds fast his covenant. And even more people to come than whom God has already collected. Sky kingdom.

Visiting with a brother or sister today, we recognize a belonging place of prayer with each other. And, indeed together, we offer prayers of thanksgiving in the new covenant of Jesus' sacrifice.

Inaccessible

"I love you, O Jehovah, my strength!" Psalm 18:1.

You, O Lord, are our Rock, our Fortress, our Champion, our Shield, our Salvation horn, our Stronghold. We call on you! You are worthy to be praised! You will save us from every hostility. Death's ropes looped around us. Destroying floods overwhelmed us. The grave's bindings held us tightly. Death's traps lay ahead of us. From a deep, dark place we called on you. We called out to you, O God! And from your temple. From the holiest, from the most humanly inaccessible recesses of your temple. From light's birthplace, you heard us. Yes! Our pleas reached your ears. Hosanna!

We meet with a brother or sister today and praise God's protection. And, together, we give worship to our God and Savior and Lord.

Practice

"We ourselves heard this very voice," 2 Peter 1:18.

Peter writes of his experience here. Whose voice did he hear? The voice of God's own Greatest Glory, out of the sky. What did that voice say? This is my son, I love him very much. Of whom did that voice speak? Of Jesus. What did Peter (and the others with him) see with their very eyes? They saw Jesus shining bright, getting honor and glory up on the mountain. (You had to be there to witness the awe-ful thing.) So what? So. The power of God's divinity has granted us a share in the nature of divinity. What?! Say again?! Yep. So. We become fellows in the divine nature. Providing. (Providing?) Providing we practice. Practice what? Practice the qualities of godlikeness diligently. Faith, virtue, self-control, and stuff like that. Love. Yep. The practice keeps us never to fall. The practice makes our calling and election sure. The practice provides a rich entrance into the kingdom.

We visit with a brother or sister today and share God's message about Jesus. And, together, we give thanks that the Lord Jesus shares his kingdom with us.

Sightless

"Stop wavering, but trust," John 20:27

That's what Jesus said to Thomas who had said he'd never believe Jesus had risen from the dead unless he had seen the scars and had actually touched the nail scars on Jesus' hands and had placed his hand on the scar from the lance impaling Jesus' side. So, Jesus invited Thomas to see and to touch and to experience so as to believe. It's not that everybody else was so much nobler in sightless faith than Thomas. No, not at all. Jesus had already made an exhibit of his hands and feet and side to the others. Their belief, too, arose from their sensory experience of the risen Jesus. That's why Jesus made them eyewitness to the gospel story. And that's when Jesus spoke of the rest of us, who were not there, who did not see the scars, who did not experience the risen Christ, but yet believe ... when Jesus said of us: Blessed are those. Sky kingdom.

We extend mutual encouragement with a brother or sister today by our common faith. And, amazed together, we offer thanks to Jesus for blessing us, who did not experience him, with life in his name.

Hand

"It's a ghost!" Matthew 14:26.

No, it wasn't a ghost. (We get it how a person might think this.) From their wave-beaten boat what they saw as a ghost was actually Jesus. Yeah. Jesus strolling on the waves against the wind toward them. Terror gripped them. Jesus said: No worries - it's just me! Peter said: If it's you, tell me to come to you! Jesus said: Come! So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water. Yes, he did. He walked to Jesus. Until he noticed the wind again and began sinking. Terror gripped him. Peter yelled: Lord, save me! So Jesus took Peter by the hand and they walked back to the boat. Jesus said: You tiny-faith man, why waver? (Having been there, we get it how a person might waver.)

We visit with a brother or sister today and confess our tiny-faith wavering. But, together, thankfully, we tell God we do believe yet ask his help for our unbelief. So he takes us by the hand.

Near

"But what does it say?" Romans 10:8.

What does what say? The righteousness based on faith. What does the righteousness based on faith say? It says this: God's teaching is as near to you as your mouth and your heart. (That's pretty close!) That is, the teaching of faith taught by Jesus' apostles. So, what is that teaching? Jesus is Lord. God raised Jesus from the dead. If you believe this with all your heart, you will be made right with God. If you put your faith into words, you will be saved. Hmm. Ok. Compared to what? Compared to getting right with God by working every commandment. Compared to trekking up into the sky to tether Christ down. Compared to questing down into the underworld to haul Christ up. Instead of such esoteric fancies, the Scripture says: Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. So we have. And we are. By the Lord. Grace.

We meet with a brother or sister today having mutually called on the name of the Lord. And, together, we speak thanksgivings for the simplicity with which God assures the saving way.

Where

"Where were you when I," Job 38:4.

You? You, who? You, Job. You, O Man. You. When I? Who, I? God. God, Designer of this and all worlds. God, Creator of this and all solar systems. Of all galaxies. Of all universes. God, the One and Only. Where were you, O Man? Where? Not here. Not there. Not where. Nowhere. Where were you when I ... what? When I formed the footing for the cosmos? When I anchored its universal constants? When I sunk its supports into the void? Or even when I set earth's ocean basins? When I set its rotation to bring dawn into view each day? When I made light's properties? When I made light even to have properties? O Man! Tell me if you can: Where were you when I?

We meet with a brother or sister today in awesome reverence for the God who created us from dust because he wanted to. And, together, we give thanks that he created us as expressions of unimaginable love and not of chance rage.

Good

"Give thanks to the Lord for he is good," Psalm 136:1.

O Lord, Jehovah God, God over all gods: Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever! Your love continues for ever!

We meet with a brother or sister today declaring God's steadfast love endures for ever! And, together, we give thanks to the God of the skies.

Received

"To all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God," John 1:12.

Who him? The Word that was with God (and was God) and was God's creative agency and was the light of humans and became flesh and was the only Son from the Father and was the Lamb. That's who. Jesus. And what did he do for humans? Well. For those humans who receive him, that is, who believe in his name, that is, whose faith is in him, that is, who trust in him, he gave to them authority. (Who gave it? Jesus did.) He gave to them power to act. He gave to them the right. He gave to them what right? He gave to them the right to be borne (and born) by God. To become God's children. Not by genetics, not by force of desire, not by male potency. By God's own blood, God's own desire, God's own will. Right to become children of God. New covenant.

As we visit with a brother or sister today, we express happiness to belong in God's new deal. And, forgiven together, we give glory to God that his son dealt us in on his rights.

Designs

"We are not ignorant of his designs," 2 Corinthians 2:11.

We who? We, those people sent out by Jesus to preach the gospel. And we, including people who have come to faith in Jesus. So. We are not ignorant of whose designs? Satan's. Satan has plans? Oh, yes. What are these plans? Well, we know them: To outwit us. To gain advantage over us. How does Satan think to overreach us? First, by overwhelming us with guilt and excessive sorrow. Second, by our failing to comfort and forgive repentant sinners. In short, to deny from us God's Yes! in Christ. So how do we not get outwitted by the evil one? Like this, in obedience to the Lord, to forgive as he forgave us. Sky kingdom.

We meet today with a brother or sister reminding each other of God's covenant of forgiveness. And, together, we extend joyful comfort in praises for our God's promises.

Thousands

"When Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there," Matthew 14:13.

When he heard what? That the king had chopped off the head of Baptizing John, Jesus' preacher cousin. So what did Jesus do? He left for a wilderness retreat. Did he find time to meditate? No. Why not? Because thousands and thousands (thousands!) of people second-guessed him and beat him there. How did Jesus feel about this? He felt compassion. So what did Jesus do? He treated their sick. What else did he do? He got 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish that evening and fed them all. None walked away hungry. Not one. So what's the moral to this story? The sky kingdom suffers inhuman violence from human kingdoms. The savior from that sky kingdom overcomes with compassion, healing, and sustenance for clueless humans. Grace.

We visit today with a brother or sister sustained by Jesus, our Lord and Christ, who loves us more than we know. And, together, we praise God for the overwhelming flood of his mercy in kindness toward us in Christ.

Unbranched

"So that God's purpose of election might continue," Romans 9:11.

Father Abraham had many sons. Many sons had father Abraham. And I am one of them. And so are you. (So says the song, rightly.) But not all offspring of Abraham are children of God's promise. (So says the Bible.) By promise, Isaac was born to Abraham and Sarah. By the flesh, Abraham had other children: Ishmael (with Hagar), Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, Shuah (with Keturah), yet others (with concubines). These all got blessed. But. God's purpose of election, of choosing, continues God's call for an unbroken, direct, unbranched line of promise from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, through David to Jesus. God elects and calls according to his plan, not according to the vagaries of our flesh. And God's grand promise of election continues to the present in adding all who call on the name of Christ to the number of his children of promise. The congregation of Christ.

We meet today, brothers and sisters chosen in Christ, as recipients of God's continuing purpose of election. And, together, we praise God for our security in Christ.

Cost

"Everybody without money! Come, buy, and eat! Come without money! There's no cost!" Isaiah 55:1.

(Who's that yelling? Oh, that's God peddling meals in the marketplace. He's got a different spin on things ...) Hey, everybody! Anybody at all! Everybody that's thirsty: Come, and drink! Come to the waters! Come! Buy wine! Buy milk! No need for money! It's free! No payment for it! Listen: Stop spending money on junk food! Why put hard labor into empty fluff? Listen up: Eat what's good! Enjoy food with yummy goodness! Listen up! Come to me! Listen to me, and you'll prosper! Your very own self will live good! I've got a deal for you! Trust me! I've got a deal without any expiration date! No expiration date at all! No small legalese print! Yeah. An everlasting covenant arising from my steadfast sure love.

We meet today with a brother or sister and speak of God's lavish generosity. And, thankful together, we enjoy the presence of our loving father, provider of all good.

Share

"Jehovah God is my share in life," Psalm 119:57.

Lord, we give our word to keep your words. We pray to you with all our hearts, as you've been so kind in your promises. We think about the trajectory of our lives, and we turn to obey your rules. We hurry to follow your commands. All sorts of evil pressures us away from you, but we don't forget your teachings. No, not at all! Even when we wake up in the middle of the night, we praise you because your laws are right! We befriend anyone who follows your orders. Yes! Your love fills the earth and you nurture us in your ways!

When we speak with a brother or sister today, we tell of God's good promises. And, together, we recommit our lives in thankfulness to his faithful word.

Secret

"We impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God," 1 Corinthians 2:7.

Who imparts this wisdom? Preachers of the gospel. Who preach what? The Good News. What Good News? The Good News of Jesus. What about Jesus? About the word of his cross. About Jesus and him crucified. Yes. Jesus' life, death, burial, and resurrection is the hidden wisdom of God. The rulers of this age didn't get this wisdom. Neither did the wisest humans get it. But God reveals this wisdom as preachers announce God's work in Christ. Gospel preachers preach the gospel's mystery. Yes. That's what it means to be taught by the Spirit from God. To receive spiritual truths, having the mind of Christ. God prepared these things for those who love him: Washed clean, made holy, made right in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in God's Spirit. Sky kingdom.

Today we share God's wisdom with a brother or sister visiting about Jesus' sacrifice. And, together, we're overjoyed for the saving work God's done in us. So we say, Thank You!

Marveled

"Where did he get this?"

He who? Jesus. Get what? These teachings. This wisdom. Such mighty powers. Where'd all this come from? (That's what the astonished neighbors who had watched Jesus grow up as a kid said when they heard him teach in their synagogue and saw him heal with his hands.) But, don't be fooled by this teaching, wisdom, and power! Nossir! He's still the carpenter we always knew. Yeah, he's just Mary's boy, and we can name his brothers, too (James, Joses, Judas, Simon)! And his sisters are right here! Who does he think he is? Hmm. By the way. Ever wonder about what Jesus wondered about? Well, here it is: He marveled at human unbelief in the face of God's handiwork. But, he went ahead anyway and healed and taught, himself personifying God's wisdom. Grace.

As we visit with a brother or sister today, we share the faith Jesus taught us. And, together, our hearts give thanks for his mercies in our weaknesses.

Storehouse

"He pulls out both new and old valuables from his storeroom," Matthew 13:52.

Who does? The owner of the house. What's he do? He draws new and old things from his treasure. Yeah, ok, well, so, is there a point? Yes. Of course. What is it? Jesus said a scribe trained for the kingdom of the skies is like that householder. Trained in the kingdom. People discipled for his kingdom have wealth from which to draw. How did they get trained? By putting all their worth into the kingdom. How?  By clearing their ears. Opening their eyes. And turning to Jesus for healing. No sloppy, half-hearted, double-minded, nothing-better-on-TV approach here. By seeking the kingdom first over anything else. By listening with intent to comprehend. By seeing deliberately to perceive. By focusing their hearts sharply to understand. Mindful. Intentional. Deliberate. Trained.

With a brother or sister today, we renew our common commitment to follow our Lord's ways. And, together, we thank God for opening his storehouse of grace to enrich us with Christ.

Plan

"Then his Son would be the firstborn of many brothers," Romans 8:29.

Whose son? God's son: Jesus. He would be what? The first kid born in a huge family of brothers and sisters. Why does Jesus get to be the first? Because that's what God decided. (God's God, not us.) How does Jesus become the first of many? By the many becoming like Jesus. Who made the many become like Jesus? God did. Who are the many that become like Jesus? The people whom God chooses. Whom does God choose? Those whom he calls. Who made this plan? God. When? God planned it way before anything. So, who did God call? God called the people who love God. For ever ago, God planned unimaginable glory for those who love him through thick and thin.

We visit with a brother or sister today as God continues our transformation into the image of Christ. And, together, we give deepest praise to God for securing glory for us in his son.