30 April 2015 - servant king

Jesus, you are the culmination of the Father's plans for us. The Father delivered his people from Egypt and drove out the nations before them. He gave them judges and prophets and kings. He raised up David, a man after his own heart. There is a sense in which one could say of David that the one who receives him receives the Father. But David was an imperfect image. He could say "You are my father, my God, the Rock, my savior." But sin still tainted him even as great as he was just as it did everyone since Adam. His selfishness still tarnished the the family resemblance David bore to the Father. Rather than setting aside his own interests for the sake of his people David chose to sacrifice his people for his own interest and pleasure. He chose not to wash the feet of his people in service. He chose not to lay down his life in love. He chose to try to be greater than his master. And so your people had to wait until you finally came, Jesus.

From this man’s descendants God, according to his promise,
has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus. 

Jesus, like John, we are not worthy to unfasten the sandals of your feet. But you love us so much that you wash our feet. You are so humble in the way you love us. You cling to none of your rights. You do not deem equality with God a thing to be grasped but empty yourself. There is the real risk that we might misunderstand who you are. You accept this risk, but you take precautions against it.

From now on I am telling you before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe that I AM. 

Even as you wash our feet you want us to realize that you are the great I AM. Even as you lay down your life you want us to realize that you are the great I AM. We do not receive merely the love of a servant. We receive the servant love of God. We have to know this to truly appreciate it. Only then can we receive both you and the one who sent you. We receive the Father as you wash our feet precisely because we could never deserve love of this magnitude. The very fact of this love opens and transforms us.

As we receive you you tell us, "no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one  who sent him." We must the feet of our sisters and our brothers. This is what it truly means to receive you and the love you first show us. As we receive it we are able to say with greater and greater sincerity, "You are my father, my God, the Rock, my savior." Our song starts off stuttering and imperfect but as you love us it gains strength and confidence until we can say:

For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.

29 April 2015 - humble before the truth

Jesus, you want to reveal the Father to us. You reveal yourself and speak your word to us because if we believe in you we also believe in the one who sent you. If we obey your commands we obey the commands of the Father. We must not write you off as one who merely speaks on his own. There are a lot of people who do that. There are many so-called gurus and guides who make it up as they go along. There ultimate test of truth is how well it works for them or, worse, how easy it is to sell. Jesus, you are the truth. But you are the truth precisely because of your openness to the Father's will. This is not some academic notion which we can each solve and hold on our own in isolation. This is a living truth which is found only in humility.

Because this is so we see that the Church at Antioch gain access to the truth more through prayer than through labors of the intellect.

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,
“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul
for the work to which I have called them.” 
Then, completing their fasting and prayer,
they laid hands on them and sent them off.

We can't gain access to your truth by just working harder. Nothing which might have pride as a side effect is permitted. You choose to make foolish the wisdom of the world (cf. 1 Cor. 1:20). Jesus, "thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes" (cf. Mat. 11:25).

This is why it is not just truth but light. Error is not just mistake but darkness. Only in relationship with you do we find not just truths but the truth which sets us free (cf. Joh. 8:32).

I came into the world as light,
so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness. 

We can recognize the places where we accept abstractions instead of the word you speak. Abstractions make us prideful without moving us to works of mercy. They lead to a contentedness which is false. They lead to a security which turns us inward and away from you and others. Your word itself condemns us because it rules out pride and excludes selfishness.

But when we, in humility, truly accept your word it sends us forth. It motivates us and gives us purpose.

So they, sent forth by the Holy Spirit,

Because it sends us and motivates us it is true peace and joy.  It is ultimately "eternal life."

May the peoples praise you, O God;
may all the peoples praise you!
May God bless us,
and may all the ends of the earth fear him!

28 April 2015 - home free

My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me. 
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. 

Help us to hear your voice and follow you, Jesus.  We want to be among your sheep because there is no better place to be. You know your sheep and love them. We want to be known to our depths and yet loved.  Help us to turn to you and believe. Don't let us turn to impostors that pretend they have something to offer. They don't know us. If we reveal ourselves to them they exploit us. Instead, may your hand be with us. Reach out to us through your body here on earth. May your hand gather us to yourself. May we rest secure in your embrace. Only in this place do we find where we truly belong. Only in this place do we find our truest home.

And of Zion they shall say:
“One and all were born in her;

Though our physical birth is in the land of exile we have a more true birth from water and Spirit. We have a home where we don't need to fear being exposed. We don't need to fear being exploited. You know all of your sheep and reject no one. You don't shepherd us because you want something from us. You don't exploit us. That is why this is home. This is the love of family at it's best and with you it is unchanging.

And all shall sing, in their festive dance:
“My home is within you.”

We are able to celebrate with our brothers and sisters. We can dance like no one is watching even though we dance in the presence of all of your people.

Now that we are known by you we don't have anything to prove. We can genuinely welcome everyone you call into this flock. Your hand is able to reach out to the world through us.

The hand of the Lord was with them
and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. 

May your hand reach broad and far. Let large numbers of people be added to you, LORD. Gather us all together. Unite us in love under the banner of love.

And a large number of people was added to the Lord. 

Amen, LORD Jesus. May it be so.

When he arrived and saw the grace of God,
he rejoiced and encouraged them all
to remain faithful to the Lord in firmness of heart,
for he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith.

This is the joy you want for the kingdom here below. It is the joy of being one flock and one shepherd. It is joy which we are invited to share and celebrate. And it should motivate us to help spread your kingdom far and wide. We want to remain faithful to you in firmness of heart because only in you do we find the place we truly belong. Only you can truly unite us, because the principle of that unity, selfless love is embodied perfectly in you. That is why you can say, "The Father and I are one." May we be one in you!

27 April 2015 - voice recognition

As the hind longs for the running waters,
so my soul longs for you, O God.

Jesus we thirst for you. In you we find gladness and joy. You call us, but so do many strangers. Many thieves and robbers try to snatch us away from you. We have the choice of who to follow. But how do we stay safe? We are sheep, not know for our intelligence. We aren't the best judges of character when people are making promises and telling us what we want to hear.

When he has driven out all his own,
he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.

We can recognize your voice. We can see you walking ahead of us, leading us, and showing us the way. We can tell your voice apart from the voice of strangers. And when we hear the voice of strangers the appropriate response is to run away and not follow. You are leading us to salvation and "life-giving repentance". You are the gate through whom we "come in and go out and find pasture." Strangers talk big but they really want to steal, slaughter, and destroy even if they themselves don't think of it in those terms.

Jesus, we've heard too much from strangers. We thirst for your word. Speak to us, Jesus.

As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them
as it had upon us at the beginning,

Your word has power. It is your own light and fidelity which you give to guide us "to your holy mountain, to your dwelling-place." It opens the way to "life-giving repentance". Through your word we are filled with your Holy Spirt.

We can recognize your words because they are not like other words. They are spoken with authority (cf. Mat. 7:29). But even so Peter learns that your voice sometimes says things which we don't expect. 

Get up, Peter. Slaughter and eat.

And at first Peter cannot accept this. It sounds unfamiliar. Is it the voice of a stranger? Perhaps he considers running from the voice and the vision. But he does manage to perceive the voice of the Spirit speaking. He hears him say to accompany the six men "without discriminating." Peter is not called to follow merely a path from the past. He is called to follow a voice speaking now. He hears in that voice a call to unity. He hears the One Shepherd calling the other sheep to be his own as well. Although the essentials remain unchanged even beloved practices like kosher food requirements must be laid aside because they are not designed to facilitate a unified sheepfold.

If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us
when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
who was I to be able to hinder God?”

Peter is surprised that you do this. But he recognizes an authentic motivation of the Good Shepherd in what he hears. He follows the shepherd because he knows your voice. He recognizes the true promise of gladness and joy in what your voice speaks. Your Spirit is present when you speak to him, LORD. Your word contains within itself all we need to recognize it. And this Spirit in the word is not merely a feeling. It is power.

As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them
as it had upon us at the beginning,
and I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said,
‘John baptized with water
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 

Your word transforms. And we can see it happen. This isn't something subjective which we experience. It is power which is poured out. It is real.

Let us all, as one flock, go to your altar and give you thanks upon the harp. Let us all behold your face!

26 April 2015 - name above all names

There is no salvation through anyone else,
nor is there any other name under heaven
given to the human race by which we are to be saved.

Thank you, LORD, for teaching us your name. Thank you for inviting us to call upon you. It is better to take refuge in you than in man or princes. The paralytic walks now. Princes couldn't help. But your name has that power. 

Your name is not revealed to us to exclude anyone. Indeed you promise that you reject no one who comes to. Your name is love which the Father bestows on us in order to make us his children. Your name reveals God to us. It reveals the truth of who you are in such a way that we are transformed. It is the source of healing because you are the one who pours the Spirit out upon us. Even though your name is rejected by builders it is the only cornerstone which can bear the wait of the coming kingdom.

It is your name, Jesus, thats has the power to save. In your name we discover the good shepherd who lays his life down for us. You have concern for us and do not abandon us to wolves. You know us and you reveal your name and your voice to us that we might know you.

You want to bring us all together as one flock under one shepherd. We must know the name of the shepherd for this to work. But even if we know it you are not done revealing yourself to us yet. You want to help us to treasure your name more. There is still more untaped power in your name. If we open ourselves to it we can be even more transformed.

We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him,
for we shall see him as he is.

Your name reveals this to us. It transforms us to be more like you. It lets us recognize you and enjoy the unity, peace, and joy that come from following you. Your name fills us with the Holy Spirit just as it does Peter when he proclaims your name in the first reading.

Jesus.

Let your name be our mantra, ever on our lips.

Jesus.

Let your name be our prayer.

Jesus.

When we speak your name you become present. You reveal yourself. You transform us.

O Jesus, help us to share in your desire that there be only one flock and one shepherd. Help us to appreciate what it means that there is no other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved. Without your name we are divided. Without your name our efforts collapse. And without your name we are ultimately lost. This is possible even though you reject no one. This is possible even though you desire all men to be saved. This is the result of not appreciating what we have in your name.

O Jesus, our love, our prayer, our only hope: teach us to love your name. Reveal yourself to us!

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD;
we bless you from the house of the LORD.
I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me
and have been my savior.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
for his kindness endures forever.

25 April 2015 - vigilant, not lion down

LORD, help us to be humble.

You want us to be humble so that we can rely on you. You want to love us and bless us. No matter how we feel right now you want to exult us in due time. You don't want us dealing with any worries all alone. You want us to cast all our cares upon you.

You want to restore, confirm, strengthen and establish us after we've suffered. But the Devil is prowling around us. He is trying to get us to take our eyes off of the God of all grace. He is trying to trick us into feeling alone and to not realizing that others are undergoing the same sufferings. He wants us to wrest control back from Jesus into our hands. Humility is the antidote. It is how we stay vigilant.

The Devil says that we are alone in a suffering that no one else knows. He tells us that God must not care or we would never suffer. But God allows us to be tested. He wants to refine our faith so that we can trust in him no matter what we see or feel. Our faith is more precious than fire-tried gold (cf. 1 Pet. 1:7). God disciplines us as his beloved children so that we can mature (cf. Heb. 12:6). He makes any suffering work for our good (cf. Rom. 8:28). We would prefer to not suffer. But in this fallen world we can only show our trust in you through challenges like this. And having this trust is worth it. It opens us to all of your blessings.

When we trust in you and stay humble about our own abilities and our own rights we ourselves become a lion that the devil fears. Saint Mark himself is known as a lion (cf. Rev. 4:6-9) because he trusts in you and makes you the center of his life. He knows that the only thing that really matters is to believe in you for salvation. He dedicates himself to proclaim the Gospel to every creature because he knows how much we all need it. And he doesn't trust in himself or his own ability to proclaim it.

These signs will accompany those who believe:
in my name they will drive out demons,
they will speak new languages.
They will pick up serpents with their hands,
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.
They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.

Even though Mark endures persecution for the sake of this message it doesn't slow him down. He is humble and trusts and you to bring great things even from pain and suffering. Because he endures the trials he experiences the triumph.

Blessed the people who know the joyful shout;
in the light of your countenance, O LORD, they walk.

24 April 2015 - scaling up

Horse or not, this is beautiful

I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 

Jesus, we see that you reject no one who comes to you. Even when Saul is still breathing murderous threats you draw him to yourself. You prove your love in that while we are yet sinners yet die for us (cf. Rom. 5:8).

You prepare Saul and call him to yourself through your body. Just as you call the eunuch through Philip you call Saul through Ananias. You prepare the heart of Saul by revealing to him his weakness and his need. You prepare the heart of Ananias to accept in welcome this one whom he perceives to be an enemy. You prepare the hearts of those who are called and you prepare the hearts of those who call.

You want to give us new eyes, LORD. We need your body to stretch out hands to us and pray for us so that the scales may fall from our eyes as well. We need to recognize your presence in our world, in your people, in your word, and in the Sacraments. We imagine that you cannot be present in certain people who are our enemies and who are "breathing murderous threats" but you want to reveal that you love them and even work through them. Even if we're smart and strong you want us to be open to your work through others. You work even through those we don't think have anything to offer us.  You often choose to work through those we think are weaker or not as smart or even not as pious as ourselves. We see that "God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are" (cf. 1 Cor. 1:27-28).

Sometimes you have to knock us to the ground. You take away our imagined ability to see with a flash in the sky. When are eyes are no longer preoccupied a vision of deeper sight impels us to seek you.

in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias
come in and lay his hands on him,
that he may regain his sight.

We need this sight so that we can see you in your body. We need this sight so we can see your Flesh, true food, in the bread you give and your blood, true drink, in the chalice.

Maybe we think we know your presence in the people of the world, in your Church, in your Word, and in the Sacraments. But certainly we often take your presence in each of these for granted. When we do we wind up placing limits on how you can come to us and bless us. We wind up placing limits on how you can work through us to bless the world. You reject no one. Let us in no way reject you so that our hearts can be open to the lost and the broken. When you open our hearts in this way we find ourselves embraced as well. We realize that we too are lost and broken but that you hold us and heal us in your love.

23 April 2015 - draw me, we shall run

Jesus said to the crowds:
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him,
and I will raise him on the last day.

Jesus, all men are being drawn to you. Jesus, you are lifted high (cf. Joh. 12:32). It is not just some whom the Father calls. Rather, he "desires all people to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth" (cf. 1 Tim. 2:4). The Father brings us to you. He gives us to you. And you reject no one!

When you say "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him" it is not in order to exclude anyone. Rather it is to show us that every movement toward you and every desire for you is a gift. Even when we think our smarts, our sanctity, or our strength is what is moving us toward you there is always something deeper. The Father is supplying the grace to make it possible.

The Father is drawing the eunuch is the first reading today. He inspires him to go to Jerusalem to worship and to read the Scriptures. But the Father doesn't draw him to you in isolation. In fact he is unable to discover you on his own.

“Do you understand what you are reading?” 
He replied,
“How can I, unless someone instructs me?” 

And so you draw him to your body, Jesus. You draw him to yourself, but not apart from your body.

Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning with this Scripture passage,
he proclaimed Jesus to him.

You draw us all deeper into your body, LORD. You do so because what you have for us is more than mere words or understanding. You want to give us your "Flesh for the life of the world." This is something which no one would guess seated on his chariot reading Isaiah. But this is where the Father is drawing us. He is drawing us so deeply into your Body that we actually receive your Flesh.

This leads us to realize the importance of the part you have for us to play. You draw all to yourself. But you want to draw them through us. We need to be as open to the Spirit as Philip so that we don't miss the parts which you want us to play.

The Spirit said to Philip,
“Go and join up with that chariot.” 

When the Spirit speaks to us let us go and join with that chariot. If we do not, there is a real risk that the eunuch continues on his way and never comes to know you and never tastes the grace of baptism. Let us do so without fear knowing that the Father is preparing them. Let us be confident that we are not on our own. He is working through us to bring all people to you Jesus. He is giving us all to you.

Hear now, all you who fear God, while I declare
what he has done for me.
When I appealed to him in words,
praise was on the tip of my tongue.

22 April 2015 - urban planning

There was great joy in that city.

What a difference you can make, Jesus. It seems like persecution would hurt your Church and slow its growth. When your Church is dispersed and scattered how can that be helpful? But you make all things work together for the good of those who love you and are called according to your purpose (cf. Rom. 8:28). You transform the forces that scatter us into winds which spread the seed of your word. You move us from static situations to places where there are new conversations to have. You move us from places where people have made up there minds about us to places where the people are open. They see unclean spirits cast and people cured and they actually pay attention.

There was great joy in that city.

May you bring that joy into our cities, LORD. There are places in our daily lives where your seeds have not yet been sown. Your winds constantly change the landscape of our lives and open new possibilities for people to pay attention to us as we go about preaching the word.

There was great joy in that city.

You yourself are the source of our joy. You are the bread of life which sates our hunger for all times. The will of the Father is that you will not lose anyone whom he sends you. That means persecutions won't loosen your grip on us. Circumstances won't prevent the spread of your kingdom. Rather than being an obstacle to belief your power is revealed precisely in our own weakness (cf. 2 Cor. 12:9). You do not lose anything of what the Father gave you. You reject no one who comes to you. We can have great confidence!

May our cities come to see you and believe. 

He has changed the sea into dry land;
through the river they passed on foot;
therefore let us rejoice in him.
He rules by his might forever.

You have the power to transform not only persecutions and adversity but death itself.

and I shall raise him on the last day.

So, "Let all the earth cry out to God with joy"!

21 April 2015 - you satisfy

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life;
whoever comes to me will never hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

You are the bread which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. Don't let us be like the elders and the scribes who "received the law as transmitted by angels" but did not observe it. Don't let us tacitly acknowledge you and then ignore you and continue to live however we want. You come down from heaven in order to give us life. Teach us to say, "Sir, give us this bread always" and to mean it.

Everything else leaves us hungry and thirsty. Only if we receive you do we find satiety. When we observe you like Mary does by treasuring you in our hearts we finally quench our thirst. You become a rock of refuge for us. What can the world do? You yourself fulfill our deepest desires and our most profound needs. No matter the circumstances which surround us you hide us "in the shelter of your presence from the plottings of men."

This is how Stephen is able to bear witness. He trusts in you to sate the hunger and quench the thirst of his heart. He is not at the mercy of worldly compulsions and drives. He is not led around by the nose by his survival instincts. If he were he would not be able to speak the truth to those who need to hear it because fear would close his mouth. He would not be able to forgive his persecutors because he would only be able to see them as enemies to his survival. He would not be able to commend his spirit into your hands because he would be too busy trying to keep his spirit down on the earth.

But because Stephen trusts in you to fulfill him he receives answer to the psalmists prayer.

Let your face shine upon your servant;
save me in your kindness.

Even as he says "Into your hands I commend my spirit" he sees you stand from your throne to receive him into the fulfillment of his hope. 

Jesus, teach us to trust in you so profoundly. Teach us that what you give is all we need. Bring home the fact that the world only leaves us hungry, thirsty, tired, and angry. Let your face shine on us and give us always the bread of life. Saint Stephen, teach us to commend our spirits into the hands of Jesus just as you do.

20 April 2015 - face off

Though princes meet and talk against me,
your servant meditates on your statutes.

Jesus, our words allow us to have peace in difficult times. Your words have the power to be our delight even when it feels like the whole world is debating us and the way we follow. Even when we feel alone before the Sanhedrin, if we meditate on your deeds and set your ordinances before us we can face these situations with a face like that of an angel.

Accusations are laid before us. People misinterpret and misrepresent us. And though we may face them alone we are not alone because your decrees themselves are our counselors. They are our counselors because they are animated by the Counselor, the Holy Spirit whom the Father sends to remind us of all of your words, Jesus (cf. Joh. 14:26)

We don't often experience peace that is so unshakable. We don't often experience the peace of God which surpasses all understanding. But this peace is meant to guard our hearts and minds in you, LORD (cf. Phi. 4:7). The trouble is we often follow you for the same reason as the crowds who "ate the loaves and were filled." But what happens when we get hungry again? Do we stop looking for you when the food which perishes runs out. Because this food will perish. It is not the food that endures for eternal life. But you want to give us the food which will endure for eternal life. You fill our stomachs to reveal your love to us at a base level. But you give us signs to help lift our eyes from this food to the food that endures. You want us to recognize the seal that the Father sets on you. It isn't some crazy work you ask of us, but simply to believe in you with our whole hearts.

Stephen recognizes the seal the Father places upon you. He can see you so clearly that the barrier between heaven and earth grows thin and porous as we will read tomorrow. Even when people are trying to tell him what he said and it is something other than what he said his composure is not shaken. He doesn't get wrapped in a disingenuous discussion. His face remains angelic because he believes in you, Jesus, the one whom the Father has sent. He is not filled with food with perishes. He is filled with grace and power because he understands who you are. This grace and power reaches its apex as he surrenders his life into your hands in complete trust.

Let us choose your ordinances LORD. Let us follow the way of truth. Raise our hearts from the things which perish to those which endure so that we can follow you without wavering. Let us experience the blessings that come from following you with our whole hearts.

19 April 2015 - i know him

Jesus, you want to bring your resurrection power into our daily and mundane lives.

We want to segregate your power to the specifically spiritual. A ghost does not have flesh and bones as you do. A ghost can't really interfere with daily life. It is something that fascinates us. It is something we watch on TV. It is not likely to change our lives. But you are not a ghost. You come to us in our real lives. You are willing to share our meals with us. You are happy with our simple baked fish. Into these ordinary circumstances you bring amazing power to transform our lives and hearts.

He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

You bring the power of your word right where we think it doesn't belong. You bring your word right into daily rituals like meals. You bring it to the little places where we neglect you. You bring it to the places where it can transform us. Our minds won't be transformed when we watch television shows about supernatural phenomenon. But when you enter our daily lives you encounter us and all of our imperfections. You bring with you the power to heal us.

“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

You are our advocate with the Father. You expiate the sins we do commit and lead us and give us strength so that we can keep your word. Your love in us is what perfects us and makes this obedience possible. In order to say "I know him" we have to let this love have its way in us. All of us try to keep you relegated to the TV novelty category. But you come to the mundane, the ritual, and the routine so that we can truly say, "I know him".

As we are changed we hear Jesus say, "You are witnesses of these things." Just as you lead us to repentance, conversion, and forgiveness you want us to lead others. They act out of ignorance just as we did. But this is all part of the plan. It doesn't take you by surprise. You use it all to set the stage for the resurrection. This morning we receive the benefits thereof. We receive the power you pour out. And we receive your call to share it.

Just like the psalmist our own stories become case studies for your resurrection power.

Know that the LORD does wonders for his faithful one;
the LORD will hear me when I call upon him.

18 April 2015 - shore, not of ourselves

It had already grown dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.

Jesus, it is dark. Where are you? The winds are strong and blowing. We are far from the shores of safety. Where are you?

The world needs the words you have, LORD. Only your words calm the storms. Only your words bring light to the darkness. And you do come.

they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat,
and they began to be afraid.
But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.”

You are "able to give us deliverance when we least expect it. When man’s understanding can  no longer help him, then the Divine deliverance comes" (Theophylact). Even though the sky is dark and the wind is strong we need not fear. Even though we are far from shore and it we feel alone and cut off from all help we need not fear. You do not require a smooth path to our hearts. You come to us even when there is no path at all. You say, "Do not be afraid" and in your presence fear flees. If we listen to you, your perfect love casts out our fear (cf. 1 Joh. 4:18). If we are willing to take you into our boat we arrive "immediately" at the shore toward which we journey. This is the difference your presence makes in our journey. From hopeless and fearful you transform our hearts to a love, joy, and peace which make the journey effortless. We discover your promise of a yoke which is easy and a burden which is light (cf. Mat. 11:30).

The Apostles feel overwhelmed by the needs of the community in the readings from Acts. They feel strong winds pulling them in different directions. But even with these winds they trust in you to provide. They have your words, "Do not be afraid", engraved in their hearts. They look to the presence of your Spirit in this storm and they trust you to provide.

select from among you seven reputable men,
filled with the Spirit and wisdom,
whom we shall appoint to this task

Their trust in you extends even far enough to believe that you can even work through others. They are able to focus on your mission for them and make it to the shore. They are able to lay aside the other pieces of your mission which are for others and not for them. It isn't that they don't care or don't realize how important it is to make sure that the widows are included in the daily distribution. They know that their task in the word of God. They trust in you enough to allow you to entrust the daily distribution to Stephen and the others. When trust in you is the driving force behind a community that community can flourish.

The word of God continued to spread,
and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly;
even a large group of priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

We want to trust you like this, Jesus. We want to welcome you into our boats to cast out fear so that we can immediately reach the shores to which you send us.

Lord, let your mercy be on us, as we place our trust in you.

17 April 2015 - the god fight

And all day long, both at the temple and in their homes,
they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the Christ, Jesus.

Jesus, help us to proclaim your name all day long. Help us to be more like your Apostles who "left the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name." Really? How can this be? When circumstances beat us up even a little we don't usually rejoice. The Apostles rejoice after being flogged for your sake LORD. They don't enjoy the pain any more than we do. But they do rejoice that your share your mission with them. They know that you yourself are flogged for our sake. Even this participation in your pain serves to remind them of your love for them. 

May all of our suffering remind us of what you suffer for us. May this reminder of your love help impel us to share you with others. May this love impel us to proclaim your name at home and in the temple no matter what anyone says or thinks.

We often find a lack of receptivity. But not always. Sometimes, when we risk talking about you, we find someone who will prudently give us a fair hearing just like Gamaliel. These are people who have heard that hyper of various movements are won't just go off and follow the next new thing. They know that the world is filled with empty promises which are too good to be true. But they recognize that not every endeavor is always "of human origin". They see those sorts of movements gradually exhaust and destroy themselves. But Gamaliel knows that God does work in history. If people acknowledge that possibility it gives God room to reveal himself.

But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them;
you may even find yourselves fighting against God.”

Gamaliel hears a message that is almost too good to be true and does not dismiss it because of that. He sees these Apostles imprisoned and beaten and he does not dismiss it just because worldly success doesn't look like that. Instead, behind the suffering of the Apostles, Gamaliel witnesses what is in fact your own grace sustaining them, Jesus.

We begin to see that suffering and persecution have no power to stop God's mission.

The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom should I be afraid?

This is true in big sufferings like floggings and even in the small and daily sufferings of circumstance that we experience when we follow you.

Honestly, when it is too good we have the tendency to get confused.

Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off
to make him king

You do care about the bread we need and the sickness we face. But you do not ultimately come just to address those problems. You have even more for us than this. You want to heal our souls even more than our bodies. You want to feed us with the bread from heaven even more than earthly bread. As we make these our priority we reveal to the world that the movement we follow does come from God and that it cannot be destroyed. We are no longer alone. God himself fights for us.

For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will lift me high upon a rock.

16 April 2015 - get a witness

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life

Help us to believe, LORD. We are from the earth and our minds are filled with the things thereof. We have a hard time accepting your testimony because it is outside our realm of experience. Our cup is too full already. You word is different than that which we are accustomed to hear. No one ever spoke like you (cf. Joh. 7:46). We need to hear the difference like the Thessalonians hear it, so that Paul can say of us, "And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe" (cf. Thes. 2:13).

Yet we must obey God rather than men. And if we are to obey we must first listen. If we only listen to things of the earth we won't be able to obey you, Jesus. We need to see you exalted at the right hand of the Father "as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins." We must listen even when we hear things that sound harsh. If we are told, "you had him killed by hanging him on a tree" we must not shut our ears. Earthly minds turn away. But we must look on him whom we have pierced. Only if we do not turn away do we find repentance and forgiveness of sins. Only if we look and listen do we recognize in you our leader and our savior.

The Holy Spirit is a witness of all of these things for us. He convicts the world of its sin and shows the way to the righteousness (cf. Joh. 16:8).

Jesus, the Father gives you everything. And you are open to all he gives. His gift of the Spirit is not rationed in you. The truth you give us is complete and whole. We are not to pick and choose. We are not to turn when it doesn't suit us. We can only receive eternal life when we receive it on your terms. The world may give us strict orders to stop teaching in your name, to stop thinking about your name, or to stop acting in your name. The world promises life on our own terms if we just stop making a big deal about your name. But if we neglect your name and your word we close ourselves to what you want to do in us. We close ourselves to the life you want to give.

LORD, in spite of ourselves we find our hearts closed this morning. We find that your name marks only parts of our lives. We find areas of our lives where you do not yet reign. We find parts of your truth that are hard to hear. The severity of sin is so great that to fix it you had to suffer pain and death. We don't really want to know that. We are nice. We don't want to see you in pain let alone be the ones who cause you pain. Yet if we reject this knowledge we reject the grace it carries to change us and make us new.

The Father's gift of the Spirit is not rationed in you LORD. You long to give us more of the Spirit, too. You long to witness to the full truth of the gospel in our hearts by the Spirit's power. You desire to fill us with the Spirit without measure. The only limits are the ones we impose. Open our hearts! Let us show the world that God is worthy of all of our trust.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
Many are the troubles of the just man,
but out of them all the LORD delivers him.

15 April 2015 - children of the light

And this is the verdict,
that the light came into the world,
but people preferred darkness to light,
because their works were evil.

Jesus, guide us out from darkness into light. Send your angel into the dark prisons of our lives. This prison night is any darkness in our lives. It is the darkness of sin which imprisons our desires. It is the darkness of circumstance that keeps us from experiencing all you have for us. It is the darkness which keeps us from fulfilling your mission for us. Send your angel and open the doors of our prisons.

Jesus, these prisons are so dark. We cannot escape on our own. But your angel encamps around those who fear you and delivers us. Don't let us be comfortable in our darkness. Don't let us hate the light. The light, it is true, is dangerous. As we embark on your mission for us we risk being exposed as weak. We risk being exposed as sinful. But let us come to the light anyway. It isn't about our strength. It is about yours. Let your angel guide us out. Nothing good is happening in our prisons of darkness. Salvation and life is found only in the light. Don't let us hide from you like Adam hides. Your desire is not to condemn us.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but that the world might be saved through him.

Lead us out into the light and say to us:

Go and take your place in the temple area,
and tell the people everything about this life.

May we embrace the light of this life! May we go out "early in the morning" of your light and tell the nations about the one who longs to set us free.

I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.

14 April 2015 - need a lift

If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe,
how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?

You teach us, LORD. You are willing to use the earth to reveal the things of heaven. 

No one has gone up to heaven
except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.

You yourself are the perfect example of this. You are the word spoken by the Father from all eternity. Yet you take on flesh and become visible to us. Heavenly things are mysterious and distant but your coming allows us to say "we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen" just as you do. This is what excites John so much in his first epistle.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—  the life was made manifest, and we saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us (cf. 1 Joh. 1:1-3).

You bring heaven down to a level where we can begin to see it and understand it. You give us your Spirit when we are washed in the waters of baptism. You give us your Spirit when we are anointed with oil and hands are laid upon us. You give us your forgiveness at the spoken words of a priest. And most extravagantly of all you give us yourself under the appearance of bread. These earthly things call us to lift our eyes to the things of heaven with which they put us in contact.

And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

When we do this, we begin to taste the life which flows from heaven to earth through you. You are the source of eternal life if we have eyes to see and faith to respond. If we don't lift up our eyes when you are lifted up we see someone who is merely a man. Then water is just water, oil just oil, words just words and bread and wine are just ordinary food and drink. But when we lift our eyes up we realize that the truth of the unseen hidden just behind the veil of these symbols. 

It takes the apostles a while to fully lift up there eyes. They begin to look up but then they lower their gaze. But you are patient with them. You reveal yourself to them until they are changed to the core:

With great power the Apostles bore witness
to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,
and great favor was accorded them all.

And you want to change us as well. You want to make us people who hold nothing back from the kingdom. You enable us to create a society where there "was no needy person among them" even here on earth by the power of your resurrection. All this if we just lift up our eyes to you!

Let us look to you, especially when the host is elevated at Holy Mass. Let us behold the king whom the Father sets on Zion:

The LORD is king, in splendor robed;
robed is the LORD and girt about with strength.

13 April 2015 - laughing matters

What is born of flesh is flesh. It is motivated by flesh. It is ultimately dominated by its own desires.

Why did the Gentiles rage
and the peoples entertain folly?

Restraint of the flesh is why the nations rage. They are not interested. The world is a system which is trying to create conditions where the desires of the flesh can be satiated to the greatest degree.

He who is throned in heaven laughs;
the LORD derides them.

The LORD laughs because this is folly. The LORD laughs because the world is doing the exact opposite of what it needs to do to find true fulfillment. The LORD does not actually find this situation humorous. Laughter here doesn't mean he is indifferent to the plight of those who find themselves trapped in this system. It does mean that he is recognizing folly. It does mean that he isn't going to change the whole moral order to make it work the way people wish it worked. Instead, he takes a different approach.

"I myself have set up my king
on Zion, my holy mountain."
I will proclaim the decree of the LORD.

Jesus is the king whom the Father sets on Zion. Jesus proclaims the Father's will. The decree he proclaims makes known a better way than the way of the world. Jesus establishes this kingdom and reveals one and only one point of entry. Specifically, "unless one is born of water and Spirit he cannot enter the Kingdom of God." Not fleshly the fleshly desires that promise so much but leave us empty. Instead, rebirth in the Holy Spirit is the only door to happiness.

The world is flesh seeking flesh. But we don't have to be a part of that system any longer. We are empowered to become a people utterly beyond the comprehension of the world and the flesh. When we are born of the Spirit the world just can't understand us. It can't see what motivates us.

The wind blows where it wills,
and you can hear the sound it makes,
but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes;
so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

But until we are reborn we are among those who rage and entertain folly. Let us not slip back into the old ways which cannot satisfy us. Let us embrace the life of the Spirit. Let us choose to help spread this life to all who are still raging and entertaining folly. The king the Father sets on Zion will stretch out his hand to assist us as we do. He will work signs and wonders. He will not leave behind even a single lost sheep who desires rescue.

enable your servants to speak your word
with all boldness, as you stretch forth your hand to heal,
and signs and wonders are done
through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”
As they prayed, the place where they were gathered shook,
and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit
and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

12 April 2015 - water and blood

This is the one who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ,
not by water alone, but by water and blood.
The Spirit is the one that testifies,
and the Spirit is truth.

This is the heart of Jesus. Let us draw near to his Sacred Heart. We want to drink the living water of his Holy Spirit that he pours out upon us. This is the spring from which we are called to draw water joyfully. This is the water which, if we drink, we shall not thirst again.

To receive this water we must realize that it does not come alone. The living water of the Spirit is poured out only together with the precious blood of Jesus. Only by this great mercy do we have access to the grace that makes us alive. We like the idea of living water but we have a hard time asking Jesus for his precious blood. But we need both. He wants to give us both. Living water is a nice image. But blood is a little too real. It is a little to in our faces. It makes the truth at the core of the mercy of Jesus real. It prevents us from receiving his blessings cheaply. It forces us to realize the true depth of the gift. And this is why Jesus insists on it.

When we receive the blood as well as the water we do not take the commandments to be burdensome. The one who pours out even his own blood does not have the heart of a tyrant. He shares all that he is with us. The commandments protect our relationship as the children of God. Jesus sheds his precious blood for the sake of this obedience. And only as we receive it do we share in that obedience. But as we share in his obedience through the mercy of his blood we also share in his victory! These commandments make us world conquerors!

My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
in the tents of the just

Jesus helps to make his mercy this real for Thomas when he doubts.

Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands,
and bring your hand and put it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”

It is not just words any more. No longer is it the mere promise of water. Here Thomas comes to share in the gift of the precious blood. If we hear people around us saying "We have seen the Lord" but haven't experienced that ourselves Jesus wants to meet us where we are this morning. He wants to share the reality of his mercy with us. He wants to give us his own precious blood to drink.

There is a place where we can encounter his mercy in a special way.

“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained.”

Let us go to those on whom the LORD bestows both water and Spirit. Let us go to those who make the merciful heart of Jesus available to us. We need to avail ourselves of the great price which Jesus pays for our salvation.

There was no needy person among them,
for those who owned property or houses would sell them,

This is not how most of our communities actually are. But it shows how Jesus wants us to be. His mercy can guide us until our communities are like those of the early Church.

Let us drink deeply from his mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. When we see why it is poured out and at what cost we realize that we largely squander it. But this Sacrament is given even as a part of that mercy in order to renew us in it. Then let us drink from this mercy in the most perfect way, unencumbered by sin, in the Eucharistic chalice.

11 April 2015 - can't keep quiet

Everyone living in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign
was done through them, and we cannot deny it.

Part of us wants to deny it. This is the part which doesn't want to see our whole world  flipped upside down. It is the part of us that doesn't want to give up control. It prefers the familiar and the comfortable. We know that the name of Jesus is dangerous. We know that his name changes everything. It leaves no realm of life untouched.  Government, politics, economics, or healthcare can not be considered apart from it. It leaves us no room to hold anything back. If Jesus is who he is proclaimed to be we can no longer live for ourselves.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own (cf. 1 Cor. 6:19).

And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again (cf. 2 Cor. 5:15).

And yet we even prefer our own "mourning and weeping" over acknowledging who Jesus truly is. Are we willing to listen to the witnesses all around us, "those who saw him after he had been raised"? or is this resurrection power both too good and too threatening?  Are we willing to let his name change our worlds? Or do we prefer mourning and weeping to acknowledging the name above all names?

But later, as the Eleven were at table, he appeared to them
and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart
because they had not believed those
who saw him after he had been raised.

We all do this at times. We all sometimes fear to risk the extravagant hope that can be found in Jesus. We all fear to surrender. Jesus is asking for a little more this morning. He is asking for that piece of our hearts which we withhold. He says that to hold on to it ourselves means mourning and weeping. He promises to give us the strength to overcome our fear and to lay our hearts down at his feet.

Jesus, change us from people who are timid about the implications of your name to people with the boldness of Peter and John. Make us say:

It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.

May we join the psalmist:

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
in the tents of the just.

May we join his joyful shout of victory!

Jesus, you say "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature." How can we not? Being "uneducated, ordinary men" can't stop us. In fact, it only makes your power more evident.

10 April 2015 - gone fishing

Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”

We don't quite get it yet. Everything is different now because you are risen. But because we don't understand we isolate the resurrection experience. We then return from it to the ordinary and daily routine of life as if these are separate and mutually exclusive realities. We go to the celebrate the Easter liturgy but then we return home and how are we different? You manifest your resurrection to us. You show us that you are living. You show us that you are powerful and that you are with us. But we isolate that and then try to return to the ordinary just like Peter and the others try to return to fishing. We can't imagine that you resurrection is enough to fill up our whole lives. But returning to daily life after this doesn't work any more. It fails to satisfy.

Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”

We know there is more. We have seen it. Ordinary fishing isn't enough any more. But here is the thing. We may still fish. But now we do it together with you, LORD Jesus. Your promise to be with us always really means just that. You don't simply mean you'll be with us at mass, or when when pray, or even only when we are thinking of you. You are with us always. You take us by surprise when we think we are alone and you reveal your reality to us.

So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”

Our lives only work with you at the center. That is how we are made. We must not reject this stone even if all other builders discard it. We need to build our lives upon it. Only with you as the cornerstone will the structures of our lives hold together. You, Jesus are the only one in whom we find salvation. There is no other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.

When you reign over our lives there is nothing ambiguous about our motivation in anything that we do.

it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean
whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead;
in his name this man stands before you healed.

Whether you are using our hands to heal a paralytic or helping us to fish we do all things "in the name of Jesus Christ". We do all things in the only name by which we are to be saved. We do mighty deeds in your name. But we do not leave you and return to living our ordinary lives in our own names. We fish in your name. We do everything in your name, LORD Jesus, because you promise to be with us always.

Today, right now, here in the ordinary, you remind us: always means always.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let the house of Israel say,
“His mercy endures forever.”

9 April 2015 - no hungry ghost

“Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?

Why are we troubled, Jesus? We saw you die. You were taken from us. You seem to still be with us in some sense, but how can it be the same as before? How can you ever be as real again? Your death is shocking. It's reality is undeniable. You must be something like a ghost now. You must be a vague and ethereal presence. Or maybe you are an inspirational idea. But surely you can't be a person to whom we can know intimacy. Death divides and we know it. That is just how things are. Or is it?

The author of life you put to death,
but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.

You explain it to us. You are the one death cannot hold. You use the power of your word to show us.

Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name

Our minds are closed and troubled and questions arise. But you speak to us. You open our minds to understand. You show us that your death was part of the plan, and that things have been under control all along. You yourself are the "author of life". When you die it means something different from any other death. It opens the way to repentance, conversion, times of refreshment, and even times of universal restoration.

As a consequence you are not distant from us. You are neither ghost nor idea. You are real and in our midst. You have real power to change and to heal us.

“You children of Israel, why are you amazed at this,
and why do you look so intently at us
as if we had made him walk by our own power or piety?

It is you who act here, LORD, in the mighty deeds of your Church. It is you who speak when the Scriptures are proclaimed. But to convince us you are real you want us to experience your presence in the ordinary and everyday moments of life.

While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish; 
he took it and ate it in front of them.

You want to share our meals and our lives. You want to be around us even when we aren't desperate. You want to be more the special effects and emergency services of our lives. You want to be present here and now. Now matter how mundane or boring things seem you want to share them with us. Though, in truth, with you nothing is dry or lifeless. 

O LORD, our Lord,
how glorious is your name over all the earth!
What is man that you should be mindful of him,
or the son of man that you should care for him?

LORD, your name is glorious indeed. Faith in this name is the only true source of strength, the source of the refreshment for which we long.

And by faith in his name,
this man, whom you see and know, his name has made strong,
and the faith that comes through it
has given him this perfect health,
in the presence of all of you.

Make yourself known to us, today, Jesus. Speak our names in the extraordinary but also in the ordinary. Speak our names so that we may in turn call out to you.

8 April 2015 - known to us

Jesus himself drew near and walked with them,
but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.

LORD Jesus, we want to see you but we can't. Our eyes are prevented from recognizing you. What prevents it? We can't see past "a sentence of death". This whole world is under that sentence. The whole world is in "the power of death, that is, the devil". We are all those "who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery" (cf. Heb. 2:14-15). This fear makes us afraid to hope. Even when we hear from the women of our group that...

they were at the tomb early in the morning 
and did not find his Body;
they came back and reported
that they had indeed seen a vision of angels
who announced that he was alive.

It hits us more as an abstraction. We know that you are at least "prophet mighty in deed and word
before God and all the people". It doesn't make sense to us that you are gone, dead, and crucified. But at the same time we can't raise our hope beyond the horizon of death. You are walking with us and we miss you. We miss you because it can't be you, because that would be too good, because that is not how this death bound world works.

Indeed it is not how the world works. But you have overcome the world (cf. Joh.16:33). You don't leave us blinded and enslaved by fear. Through your Church it is you yourself who speak to us and call us to recognize you.

But Peter looked intently at him, as did John,
and said, “Look at us.”

You yourself speak through the Scriptures.

Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he interpreted to them what referred to him
in all the Scriptures.

You show us that this hope is the culmination of your plans for us. You show us how your love has been with us all along. You show us how your fidelity to the covenant does not waver.

He remembers forever his covenant
which he made binding for a thousand generations—

Nothing, not fear, not sickness, not injury, not even death, need keep us from you any longer.

“I have neither silver nor gold,
but what I do have I give you: 
in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk.”

You raise us up. You enable us to stand and to walk with you in the freedom of the sons of God (cf. Rom. 8:21), no longer slaves to sin and death.

He leaped up, stood, and walked around,
and went into the temple with them,
walking and jumping and praising God.

You do this by giving us your very self, saying "what I do have I give you". You give us all that you have to give. This is the most precious gift imaginable, the antidote to sin and the remedy for death. It is your own life. It is the only thing which lasts. It is the only source of peace. It is your own life which animates us and makes our feet and ankles strong to follow you.

And it happened that, while he was with them at table,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them.

It is the culmination of your effort to enable us to truly see you. You begin with the first covenant and never ever abandon us. But now, at last, our eyes are opened to your love.

With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
but he vanished from their sight.

7 April 2015 - no skipping seens

I have seen the Lord

Let us see you LORD. Let us see your risen glory.

We are too busy looking at where you were and we miss where you are now. We can't seem to see past the limited horizons of mortal life. Open the eyes of our hearts and enlighten them (cf. Eph. 1:18). Let us fix our eyes on you (cf. Heb. 12:2). Let us keep our eyes on you no matter how the wind blows (cf. Mat. 14:30).

We need you to help us see you or we won't recognize you even though you are with us.

They have taken my Lord,
and I don’t know where they laid him.

Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

We need you to speak our name. The sound of your voice will cut through all of the expectations which the world imposes on us. We have a hard time believing that you can rise from the dead. We acknowledge the fact but we don't see it in our daily experience so we weep with Mary Magdalene, mistaking you for the gardener. But when you call our names we are cut to the heart. The reality of your presence is more real than the supposed laws of decay and death. It is more real than our distractions and obsessions. It is more real than our the expectations which are formed by our limited experiences. Your voice speaks to us from outside of ourselves, from beyond the grasp of sin and death. It gives us the confidence which Peter has. We say:

“Let the whole house of Israel know for certain
that God has made him both Lord and Christ,
this Jesus whom you crucified.”

We ourselves know for certain that you are both Lord and Christ because you first speak our names. This is the necessary first step before we say with Mary, "I have seen the Lord." Then, as we proclaim the truth to the whole house of Israel and to the nations you speak the names of all who will listen.

Upright is the word of the LORD,
and all his works are trustworthy.

This is something we can stake our whole lives on. In fact there is nothing else which holds up. Besides you, everything ends in death and decay. When those things call us to move away from you they are a siren song toward destruction. When they call, LORD, call us back to you more loudly. Call us through our tears. Call us through our pain. Jesus, call us by name! Let your voice cut through the wind and the waves to reach our hearts! Call us to renew your forgiveness and to fan into flame the gift of the Holy Spirit which you promise and pour out.

You don't stop with Mary Magdalene.  And you don't stop with us. This promise is to for everyone:

For the promise is made to you and to your children
and to all those far off,
whomever the Lord our God will call.”

As you call our names and we receive this promise let us know it is true for sure so that we can share it with courage and joy. Give us the confidence of the psalmist:

See, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
upon those who hope for his kindness

6 April 2015 - we are all witnesses

God raised this Jesus;
of this we are all witnesses.

Jesus, you want to make us witnesses of your resurrection today. You want to change us from people who know about the event to people who have been changed by it. You want to change us from people who are "fearful yet overjoyed" to people who can raise our voices and proclaim the truth just as Peter and the eleven do.

From a worldly perspective there are probably reasons to be fearful. There are still people who try to conceal the truth of the resurrection. There are still those who oppose it. There are still those who can't accept it. They may simply laugh and mock us. But they may go further. Our finances may be on the line, especially if we own businesses. Or in some cases even our very lives might be on the line as with Christians living in the middle east.

“You are to say,
‘His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.’

So, Jesus, in the face of this opposition we need you. We are tempted to hide in the upper room and lock the doors. But we are all supposed to be witnesses. We are supposed to say with Peter, "God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses" no matter what the world thinks about it.

Jesus, you yourself transform our hearts. You pour out your Spirit upon us and move us from fear to faith. 

Exalted at the right hand of God,
he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit 
that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear.”

You give us the grace to speak your truth. You make us bold because the proclamation is accompanied by signs and wonders and doesn't rely on mere human wisdom. If it was up to our own human wisdom we would not feel adequate to the task and we'd be right. But it is up to God's power working through the Holy Spirit and we can therefore be fearless.

my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God (cf. 2 Cor. 2:4-5).

We don't have to worry about what we are to say, specifically, because we know that we will be given the words in the hour when we need them by the Holy Spirit himself (cf. Luk. 12:12).

Peter is given words of such power and boldness that we can hear the Spirit dripping from them even all these years hence:

But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death,
because it was impossible for him to be held by it.

Jesus, you will give us words like these when we need them. Fill us with your Spirit so that we can be fearless witnesses to you. The same confidence that you have in the Father even as you face the cross now empowers your people as we proclaim your truth:

I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.

5 April 2015 - alleluia

This man God raised on the third day and granted that he be visible

But we do not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead. We think we do but we don't. What does it really mean to us? Do we just look back on it today as a nice moment of history? It is't just that death is a setback for Jesus and he gets a continue or an extra live from the Father to give it another try. This death is not an unintentional setback. This resurrection is more than just a return to more of the same.

He makes himself the door and portal from death to life. He is the ladder from heaven to earth and earth to heaven which the angels traverse. He is a bridge from the futility of life here below to the promise of total fulfillment of everlasting joy in heaven.

For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ your life appears,
then you too will appear with him in glory.

We are baptized into a death which is no mere accident. Jesus freely lays his life down to kill the sin in our own hearts. But Jesus is not destroyed. His life is indestructible (cf. Heb. 7:16). He not only lays all of the evil within us to rest but he himself, the Good Shepherd, carries us beyond death into glory. 

This is why Jesus is the only name which can save (cf. Act. 4:12). Only he has the obedience to do what is necessary. Only he is the life on which death has no claim. Therefore only he is the resurrection and the life (cf. Joh. 11:25).

He commissioned us to preach to the people
and testify that he is the one appointed by God
as judge of the living and the dead.
To him all the prophets bear witness,
that everyone who believes in him
will receive forgiveness of sins through his name.”

So this is no abstraction. This is no historical curiosity. This is something which must apply to each of us this Easter day. We miss the point if we leave this event in the past and nod in reverence. Jesus wants to fill us with the power of his resurrection right now.

If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, 
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.

So let us come to understand the Scriptures that he had to rise from the dead. Without the resurrection of Jesus we cannot know life. But Jesus is truly risen, alleluia! He invites us, not just to acknowledge his victory, but to share it.

“The right hand of the LORD has struck with power;
the right hand of the LORD is exalted.
I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD.”

Don't reject this stone! He is the cornerstone and without him we can't build anything which lasts.

The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.