Reflexion, A Spiritual Community

Eddie Pioreck - THE MIRACLE OF THE INCARNATION

The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this. C. S. Lewis, ". . . In the Christian story God descends to re-ascend. He comes down; down from the heights of absolute being into time and space, down into humanity . . . down to the very roots and sea-bed of the Nature He has created." (C S Lewis) Incarnation literally means “embodied in flesh…or taking on flesh” The union of...

Sermon OTM - Matthew 5:8-9

Jesus is sitting on a mountain overlooking Sea of Galilee He is teaching a course on “Christian Spirituality” - we are now five weeks into his introduction: The Beatitudes • prior to teaching this course, Jesus had been announcing, "the kingdom of heaven is at hand" ◦ the course he teaches is meant to prepare us for that kingdom ◦ the Beatitudes reveal characteristics of the abundant life--the truly "good life" • Jesus is not giving us a new list of rules ◦ he isn’t telling us what we should be ...

Sermon On the Mount: Matthew 5:6-7

When I began preparing today’s talk, there was a sudden moment when I felt very small The spiritual wisdom of Jesus rivals every other enlightened text - even gurus, like Gandhi, who rejected Christianity have admired the Sermon • reading the words of Jesus, and trying to explain them to you, ◦ leaves me feeling inadequate and foolish ◦ like a four-year old who is told, “Explain quantum physics - what I know about these two Beatitudes, I learned on the job, • not from other Bible teachers or com...

Steve Gumaer

SOM Matthew 5:4-5

Welcome back to Jesus’ Sermon On the Mount He begins with the Beatitudes – not to be confused with "benedictions" - they are more like a series of riddles • he describes conditions in which people are already blessed ◦ already acceptable to God and discovering the abundant life ◦ but what he says sounds like the opposite of abundant life • we would never tell a friend who is grieving, “You’re so blessed” ◦ and even in Jesus’ time and culture meekness was a deficit - for this reason, we must pat ...

Sermon OTM Matthew 5:3

Recently, I came across an interesting ad: The caption said, “Free AI Sermon Generator” “Free AI sermon outlines help you preach a confident, creative message. AI sermon starter ideas make your sermon fresh and relevant.” - I realized, from now on my life could be easy; for example, • last week I mentioned my frustration with “kingdom” (bringing to mind the idea of a nation with borders)

Sermon On the Mount - Introduction pt. 2

Last week I gave my introduction to the Sermon On the Mount This week we’re going to look at Matthew’s introduction - but first, I have a question – and it’s for me as much as anyone: Are we ready for this? - the Lord has made many changes in our exterior lives, • but the big challenge of the Sermon is what it does on the interior ◦ we’ve cleaned up our speech; what about our thoughts? ◦ we've given up bad habits; what about desires and resentments? • I rationalize my inner life: “My thoughts do...

Sermon On the Mount: Introduction

A couple weeks ago someone told me, “Your next series of talks should be about The Sermon On the Mount” - that title has a pleasant ring to it, doesn’t it? • isn’t that where Jesus talks about birds and lilies? Love your enemies? Do not judge? • it’s like a friend has invited us on an outing: “Hey, go with us to the park for a picnic. We’re going to sing our favorite worship choruses, then share our favorite Bible verses.” - but the reality is, the Sermon isn’t butterflies and rainbows • it does...

The Story of Elijah, chapter 11

The prophetic ministry of Elijah provides one of the most entertaining stories in all the Bible. When it comes to phenomenal miracles, Elijah’s only rival would be Moses. His spiritual stature as a man of God is equal to the greatest heroes in scripture, and yet St. James wrote, “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours” (Jas. 5:17). Like us, Elijah could be frightened, discouraged, and ready to give up. Elijah would have been a fun person to know– if you like surprises. For instance, this final...

A Workshop In Listening

Psalm 123

Psalm 3 is the most loved, most quoted, and best known of all Psalms There are lots of reasons for this. It’s short – just six verses. But though it’s so short it’s incredibly deep. It’s simple – easy to understand. The Lord, the shepherd is God. I am the sheep. I get it! And there is something uniquely encouraging, comforting, and empowering about this Psalm. So, this morning, I’d like to give you Psalm 23 as a “fixed focal point” for your faith – through all the different seasons and experienc...

The Story of Elijah, chapter 10

This first sentence of 2 Kings is an odd way to begin a new chapter. The transition from the previous book to this one could have been much smoother. For instance, the last lines of 1 Kings provide all the explanation we need for this new episode: Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria . . . and he reigned for two years. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother . . . . He served Baal and worshiped him an...

The Story of Elijah, chapter 9

King Ahab left the battlefield, victorious over the Syrians, but he arrived home moody and sullen . In theory, there’s no reason for kings to be “moody and sullen.” If they are troubled, they have counselors. If they feel sad, they have jesters. If they need comfort, the priest is always on call. Having the luxuries afforded them by wealth and power, one imagines they could avoid ever being moody and sullen. Ahab may have assumed he did a good thing, releasing the enemy king who had attacked Isr...

The Story of Elijah chapter 8

Today’s episode requires an explanation, because my plan was to skip this chapter. For the past seven weeks we’ve been immersed in the story of Elijah, but for some reason he does not appear here; not even his name is mentioned. But that is one of the curiosities in this episode that interests me. There are still gifted seers through whom God delivers messages to King Ahab, and these three fill the void that Elijah leaves. However, not even one of the three is named, but each one is identified b...

The Story of Elijah chapter 7

The Elijah with whom we spent time in the previous chapter is hardly recognizable in this episode. He is no longer the prophet who lost heart and had been wallowing in defeat, sulking in a cave. He was transformed. Once again he is on the move, and you would have had to jog to keep pace with his long, rapid strides. Every time his foot hit the ground, it raised a small, meaningful dust cloud. He was on assignment for Yehovah–nothing could stand in his way. The wild and fearless prophet was back....

The Story of Elijah, chapter 6

Elijah was excited–an energetic excited–an excited he had not allowed himself to indulge until now. The tide was turning. The entire crowd witnessed God’s answer from heaven. They had been won over. They had chanted, “Yehovah, he is God! Yehovah, he is God!” The king was there too. He saw it for himself. Now he also knew who was the real God. Running off to Jezreel was a bold move for Elijah. King Ahab had a palace there, and the royal family used it to retreat from the demanding affairs of stat...

The Story of Elijah chapter 5 - 08/18/2024

Elijah found King Ahab sitting off by himself still as a statue, staring into nothing, and his face coated in confusion. Ahab wondered, “What just happened? How could it have happened?” His feud with Elijah had ended suddenly in a phenomenon of fire and blood. His army of prophets failed to rouse their Bah-al god, while from the sky Yehovah answered Elijah with a spectacle never before seen. The king was defeated, but it was a strange loss that left him groping for his next move. Elijah had prov...

The Story of Elijah chapter 4

There must have been court officials who wished they could restrain King Ahab’s poor decisions and thoughtless actions. But those with enough skill in diplomacy to hold a position in the royal court also had enough sense to value their lives. Ahab was too full of himself to take advise from anyone else, let alone, take orders. However, there was that one exception. From the time Elijah first set foot in Israel, the king willingly listened to him and did as he was told. Perhaps Ahab believed ther...

The Story of Elijah, chapter 3

The village where Elijah had been living was on the Mediterranean coast, so I find it easy to imagine him walking the shoreline, allowing the onshore breeze to be refreshed. He listens to the rhythm of the waves and the squawking seagulls, and opens his heart to receive the moment. Then, hearing something else, he pauses, and shading his eyes from the glare of the sun’s bright reflection glancing off the ripples that stretch to the distant horizon, he looks and he listens. And now, after many da...

The Story of Elijah chapter 2

Picking up from last week, directed by the word of Yehovah, Elijah came to the home of a widow in Sidon, north of Israel’s border. She had helped Elijah when he was hungry and homeless. She let him stay in her home, in the small room upstairs. She hid him from King Ahab’s spies. And, now, this! Her son was struck down with an illness. Was this the reward for her hospitality and kindness. Who is she? What is her name? We were never told, and now it’s buried in a history archeology cannot retrieve...

The Story of Elijah: chapter 1

A crooked king, a wicked queen, and a foreign god. You know this is going to be a great story. That’s because in literature (and storytelling), evil is more entertaining than good. We can predict a good person’s actions–they will be honest, kind, generous, and always choose what is right. The villains, however, are full of surprises. And they typically create the conflict that the heroes must overcome and resolve. There are times when the scoundrels are at their worst, the champions must be all ...

Psalm 140:1-8

This week a nearby church hosted a Vacation Bible School My fourteen-year-old granddaughter, Adrianna, volunteered to help out - on Friday, a friend sent me a video that she filmed the day before • when I watched it, there was Adrianna on a stage in front of a crowd of kids • she had a Bible in her hand, and from it she read a couple verses from the Psalms ◦ then she gave a brief talk, encouraging everyone to trust God’s love and faithfulness - Adrianna was superb – as if she were a professional...

Revelation 22:6-21

In this final chapter we come to the end of the vision To me, it feels like waking up from a dream - just before I woke up yesterday morning, I was enjoying a pleasant dream • I heard someone call me, and I was immediately awake ◦ the house was completely silent ◦ I then realized it was my dad’s voice in the dream that called my name • for me, this chapter unfolds in the same sort of fuzzy way - four times, the voice of Jesus breaks into the flow of the chapter • however, it does not feel like a...

Revelation chapters 21-22:5 - 06/30/2024

Once again, John begins to describe an event with “I saw” We are reminded that this entire book is a mystical vision and uses the strange language of images and symbols - however, we could be tempted to read last two chapters differently, • as if John were describing events in a literal future • but when, once again, he says “I saw,” we know this is the same as the rest of the book - so we turn our imaginations toward what he saw; • namely, something that had been predicted in prophecy of Isaiah...

Revelation chapter 20

When Jesus told the parable of the Prodigal Son, He did not expect anyone to come to him afterward and say, - “Lord, I’d like to visit that family. Where do where they live?” • it was just a story – a made-up story meant to make a point • if all the crowd heard was a heart-warming story, they missed the point - here in Revelation 19, John describes a vision – Satan is imprisoned • then, after 1,000 years he is unleashed on world again ◦ if that were meant to be taken literally, it makes no sense...

Revelation chapter 19

This is a fascinating chapter It is complex, and it is put together well - the chapter divides into two parts: • in the first half, heaven reverberates with praise • in the second half, Jesus leads heaven’s army in a final battle

Revelation chapters 17-18

I’m going to begin with a quote by St. Augustine In The City of God he traces two cities through world history Augustine, “Accordingly, two cities have been formed by two loves: the earthly [city] by the love of self, even to the contempt of God; the heavenly [city] by the love of God, even to the contempt of self. The former, in a word, glories in itself, the latter in the Lord.” - John, the visionary, identifies the heavenly city as Jerusalem and the earthly city Babylon • Babylon is featured ...

Revelation 15-16

A few years ago, Barry Liesch, a professor at Biola-Talbot University, - wrote an article on worship in the book of Revelation • he suggested that by using its examples of form, content, and splendor, ◦ we might enjoy a more meaningful, intense, and richer worship experience • worship here on earth is already a participation in heaven’s worship ◦ our prayers are mixed with the incense that burns in heaven (Rev. 8:3) - it will not always be a feel-good worship (that’s for sure!) • but it would be...

Revelation 14

I’ve been feeling that talking about the book of Revelation Is like trying to practice dream interpretation - how do I make sense out of all these foreign signs and symbols? - of course, the bigger question is: what is God’s Spirit trying to communicate to us?

Revelation chapter 13

I think most anyone reading Revelation sees that it takes a turn in chapter 13 What stays the same: the dragon (Satan) is still here - at least at the start – and he’s continuing his fight against God What changes: the dragon, after being defeated three times in the previous chapter - now scores a significant victory - also, prior to this, his battle has been in the religion arena • he tried to sabotage the life and ministry of Jesus • but now he changes the battlefield and his strategy...