In this second half of the book of Ephesians, the subject shifts from theological instruction to moral teaching. Now that we believe in Jesus Christ and have committed ourselves to following...

From a distance of almost 2000 years, we may wonder why the people who saw Jesus up close seem so confused about his identity. We believe, don’t we? And all we...

This week’s Gospel lesson starts in the middle of an action-packed story. A huge crowd of people are following Jesus, who had fed them all with a little boy’s five loaves...

Penny had just started her position as a youth director in a town that was new to her, and she was excited about an invitation to play church league volleyball. She...

What does confession look like? Often it is limited to the weekly collective confession we offer in worship, with words chosen by someone else. Even if time is allotted in worship...

We have seen it in others: A person makes an impulsive decision, and that decision leads to another and another. One wrong turn begets a second poor choice and a third,...

The apostle Paul closes this prayer to the church in Ephesus by giving thanks that humanity is able “to accomplish abundantly far more” with God than without. Abundant life, Paul says,...

We live in a polarized world. With each election cycle and church council meeting it feels like more people are finding reasons to hate and separate themselves from one another. Whether...

After the large crowd was miraculously fed and leftovers were still spilling from baskets, the scripture tells us the people “wanted to force [Jesus] to be their king.” Jesus had fed...

In this chapter of the fourth Gospel, Jesus reveals just how far the generosity of God extends. When Jesus and the disciples encounter a large crowd, Jesus sees an opportunity to...