Matthew
Faithful Presence: “Prayer”
The Lord’s Prayer is not simply a pattern of prayer or a recommendation of prayer. Somehow, the Lord’s Prayer is the DNA of the church. This prayer must be both lived and prayed...
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Living In Exile: “The New Family”
Families have been the backbone of human history. It has been by having children that we’ve carried on and have had a future. However, in the kingdom of God, the natural family ...
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Living In Exile: “Least in the Kingdom”
Jesus is a new moment of salvation in God’s history with his creation. As a result those who enter through him enjoy a greater privilege. This grace is truly awe-inspiring!
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Living In Exile: “Dangerous Dining”
Our work, at its heart, is invitational. And, as Jesus reminds his opponents, the kingdom is coming to those who have typically been excluded from entry. While this grace refuse...
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Living In Exile: “Defeating Satan On His Turf”
When we do our work of kingdom witness to our neighbours we have an enemy that is working to disrupt that work. Belief in the devil is at an all time low, but there is a kingdom...
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Living In Exile: “Preparing For Ministry”
In this scene we have the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit all acting and moving. This is the moment of Jesus’s baptism and the preparation for his ministry. He receives his...
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Living In Exile: “Preaching Fire”
When the moment of God’s rescue arrives it is never just a rescue from our dire circumstance. No matter what our situation is, when God moves he moves to change us. The metaphor...
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Living In Exile: “A New Beginning”
Certain details seem very familiar: Joseph, a dream, and salvation, but other parts are strangely different: a pregnant virgin and a human saviour who is “God with us.” Sometime...
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Almost Christian: “Unrepentant”
We all run the risk of shifting in our thinking and living from claiming the grace of God for our inclusion into the kingdom to thinking we’re in and stay in because we are mora...
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Almost Christian: “Real Forgiveness”
What would stop you from extending forgiveness to someone and why? Of course, the very language of forgiveness is quite foreign to our culture and, as a result, often to us. We ...
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Almost Christian: “Do You Even Know Me?”
Christianity is not simply ticking a box for our preferred religion, nor is it merely holding the correct beliefs. Jesus came announcing that the kingdom of God had come. At lon...
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Breaking Idols: “Seeing New Things”
What is the source of new creation? The same one who created the heavens and the earth promises to remake them. To bring about the new heavens and the new earth. A whole new, he...
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Praying God: “Seeking God”
What does it look like when God’s kingdom comes to the world? It looks like heaven on earth. The heart of this prayer is that God’s good heavenly rule (government) will also be ...
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Kingdom Seeds: Net
God’s kingdom is open to all and should be a blessing to all. No one will be forced into it against their will, nor will they be programmed to want it. God’s kingdom has come in...
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Kingdom Seeds: Treasure & Pearl
The kingdom is given to us as a gift, but like all gifts it must be received. This kingdom is so great that in order to receive it we must use both hands. This means that only b...
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Kingdom Seeds: Weeds
The rule and reign of God is meant to bring freedom, life, and joy. So, it can be a bit confusing when the opposite of these things appear instead: captivity, death, and sorrow....
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Kingdom Seeds – First Sunday of Advent: Hope
As Jesus begins to teach the people about the kingdom he does so using a well known form called parables. Why doesn’t he use direct speech? What should we expect for people list...
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The Least of These: Love With Actions
Guest Speaker: Mark Dynna Exploring Matthew 25, and the relationship of faith and good works.
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The Least of These: Prayer and the Poor
If our relationship with God is like a boss and employee relationship, then we will never help with our charity because we are focused on our benefit. Jesus gives us a better mo...
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Christmas Eve
After our long waiting through Advent, we celebrate the arrival of Jesus our King. His humble status as a baby lying in a feeding trough reminds us that God has stepped down int...
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