Summary: According to this biblical passage, Jesus’ public ministry begins with a test, one that gives us hints to suggest God is in the process of reorienting the whole created order. Everything is changing. The time is right for inaugurating the kingdom of God, but it remains a time in which risk hangs in the air.
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Summary: According to this biblical passage, Jesus’ Transfiguration draws us to him, even as the event makes statements about God and what God will accomplish through Jesus, God’s beloved child. This Transfiguration makes promises about unseen things becoming visible, about God’s love, and about the possibility of our sharing intimacy with God.
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Summary: In this biblical passage, Jesus demonstrates his power over illness when he heals Simon’s mother-in-law from a fever. At the same time, Mark’s Gospel prompts us to consider what true service looks like, who gets to perform it, and how.
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Summary: Jesus sets his own pattern as a “servant” in contrast to the oppressive, self-serving tendencies of his society’s leaders. Does this passage help us think about government in our time, and about the religious commitments of our candidates?
Read the full article, which is part of the ON Scripture–The Bible project, on The Huffington Post and ON Scripture.
Summary: “If pondering Jesus’ crucifixion doesn’t make you uncomfortable, you probably aren’t doing it right.”
Read the full article, which is part of the ON Scripture–The Bible project, on The Huffington Post and ON Scripture.
Summary: In this biblical passage, when Jesus and his disciples talk about who people think he really is, Jesus begins to describe what it means to follow him. The instructions he gives, to deny oneself and take up a cross, are not easy.
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Summary: In this biblical passage, a woman, named as a Syrophoenician, with a demon-possessed daughter persuades Jesus to heal the girl. As a result, Jesus’ ministry moves in new directions with a new urgency toward an increasingly broad “audience.”
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Summary: In this biblical passage, Jesus names the source of evil and impurity: the human heart.
I wrote this biblical commentary for those preparing to preach or teach on the passage. Read the commentary at Working Preacher.
Daring to Hope in the Stress of Uncertainty (Mark 16:1-8)
Summary: When terrified women flee Jesus’ tomb on the first Easter morning, Mark’s Gospel comes to a jarring end, refusing to let us forget that the prospect of Jesus’ resurrection will deeply unsettle us. This Gospel seems to know that we view Easter from a place situated between hope and fear, between disappointment and fullness. What propels us forward, as we live in the midst of uncertainties and events that remind us how beyond control our lives are, is the promise that Jesus continues to go before us.
Read the full article, which is part of the ON Scripture–The Bible project, on The Huffington Post and ON Scripture.
Bible commentary: general audience ON Scripture--The Bible
easter gospel of mark mark 16:1-8 resurrection