Like the hypocrites do, part one (Matthew 6:1-18)

“The church is full of hypocrites.” That’s what people say. I’ve heard it said. It’s hard to argue with that statement, mostly because I look in the mirror. I go to church. I have huge gaps between what I do and what I want to do. I say noble things and don’t do them. That’s […]

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A prayer for the third Sunday after the Epiphany

God- We need you. Sometimes when we say that we mean that we need you to do something. Sometimes when we say that we mean that we need you to say something, to fix something, to change everything. But today, this week, this year, we’re not sure what exactly we want you to do, how […]

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Be like God (Matthew 5:43-48)

“Be like God. Love your enemies.” That’s what Jesus is saying in Matthew 5:43-48. It sounds like an impossible standard. Jesus starts by talking about God’s treatment of enemies. In an arid country, rain is life. And when it rains, it rains on everyone. Though we wish there were little clouds that followed some people […]

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But you said. . . (Matthew 5:33-37)

We make promises all the time. They often come in a series. Kind of like this: When Jesus started talking about oaths and about swearing he wasn’t talking about the #@%&* kind of swearing. He was talking about people who couldn’t be trusted. He was talking about people who had broken their word and had […]

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My True Calling

Rich Dixon is looking away from the easy thing: +++ Jon’s been writing about The Sermon on the Mount – feels like, if I took Jesus at his word, it’s an invitation to do difficult things. As Bob Goff says, we ought to be content in our circumstances, but that’s not a hall pass for […]

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