“Lord, Hallowed Be Your Holy Name!”
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He began with a request that is easy to say but staggering when we understand what we are actually asking: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name” (Matthew 6:9). Before we ask for daily bread, forgiveness, protection, or anything concerning ourselves, Jesus teaches us to begin with God. Our first and greatest concern in prayer should be that God’s name would be regarded as holy.
A Simple Way to Pray: Learning from Martin Luther
I mentioned in Sunday’s sermon Martin Luther’s little classic, A Simple Way to Pray. A free online edition is available through Union Publishing, which contains the complete text of Luther’s original letter. You can also find the booklet in print or digital form through Westminster John Knox Press editions or other Christian publishers. It is a remarkably practical booklet that Luther wrote in 1535 after his barber, Peter Beskendorf, asked him a simple question: “How should I pray?”
Degrees of Reward in Heaven: With a Little Help from Jonathan Edwards
This past Sunday, I mentioned in my sermon that Jesus often motivates His disciples by pointing them to heavenly rewards. Throughout the Sermon on the Mount and elsewhere in the Gospels, Christ repeatedly calls His followers to live with eternity in view (Matthew 6:1–4, 19–24). I also noted that Scripture teaches there will be varying degrees of reward in heaven based on the faithfulness with which believers lived their earthly lives. In other words, some Christians will receive greater rewards than others.
Death is Not the End: Grieving the Loss of My Friends
Few paintings capture the Christian life as vividly as The Transfiguration by the great Renaissance artist Raphael. It is a beautiful piece of art. The upper portion of the painting depicts Christ shining in divine glory on the mountain with Moses and Elijah beside Him. Below that glorious scene, however, is something entirely different: a demon-possessed boy writhing in agony, a desperate father, confused disciples, skeptical scribes, and a restless crowd. The contrast is striking. One scene radiates light and glory. The other is filled with darkness, suffering, and chaos.
“Lord, Help My Unbelief!” — Mark 9:14-29
Few paintings capture the Christian life as vividly as The Transfiguration by the great Renaissance artist Raphael. It is a beautiful piece of art. The upper portion of the painting depicts Christ shining in divine glory on the mountain with Moses and Elijah beside Him. Below that glorious scene, however, is something entirely different: a demon-possessed boy writhing in agony, a desperate father, confused disciples, skeptical scribes, and a restless crowd. The contrast is striking. One scene radiates light and glory. The other is filled with darkness, suffering, and chaos.
Rendering Unto Caesar
This past Sunday, we examined Jesus’ teaching on truthfulness in Matthew 5:33-37, where He calls His disciples to a righteousness that exceeds mere outward rule-keeping. The Pharisees had developed an elaborate system of oath-taking that allowed them to appear truthful while creating loopholes for dishonesty. They distinguished between oaths made directly in God’s name, which they considered binding, and oaths made by heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or other sacred objects, which they believed could be broken without consequence (see Matthew 23:16-22). Jesus exposes this entire system as an attempt to manipulate the truth while maintaining an appearance of righteousness.
Rendering to Caesar, Rendering to God
“And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they marveled at him.” (Mark 12:13-17)
Battling Lust in a World of Temptation
This past Sunday, we looked at Jesus’ sobering words in Matthew 5:27-30, where He takes the seventh commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” and applies it to the heart. Jesus reminds us that God’s concern is not merely outward behavior but inward holiness. “Everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” In a culture that often treats lust as normal, harmless, or even unavoidable, Jesus exposes it for what it truly is: a serious sin that corrupts the heart and dishonors both God and others.
My Takeaway from This Year’s SBC Convention Meeting
Last week, thousands of Southern Baptists from across the United States gathered for what was one of the largest deliberative religious assemblies in the nation. This year’s Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting in Orlando brought together more than 11,000 voting messengers and nearly 20,000 total attendees for four days of worship, fellowship, prayer, preaching, and denominational business.
To Such Belongs the Kingdom: Reflections from Vacation Bible School
As a church, we are in the midst of another wonderful week of Vacation Bible School. I have found myself reflecting on one of the most beautiful scenes in the Gospels found in Mark 10. All week long our church has been filled with the sounds of children laughing, singing, learning Scripture, asking questions, and hearing about Jesus. It is a reminder that children are not a distraction from ministry. They are one of the greatest mission fields God has entrusted to the church.