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Many gifts, one Spirit
First Corinthians 12:1–13 is part of the lectionary readings for Pentecost Sunday, May 31st. On this momentous day in the life of the Church, the passage highlights the gifts of grace the Spirit brings to Jesus’ followers. A key purpose Paul had in writing 1 Corinthians was to explain that the crucified and risen Messiah embodied the gospel. He was also the basis for the church’s unity, service, and hope. Part of that unity was maintained through the presence and practice of “spiritual gifts” (v. 1) within the body of Christ. The Greek text (pneumatika) is more literally rendered “spiritual things” and can either refer to persons filled with the…
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A Prayer for Unity
John 17:1–11 is part of the lectionary readings for the seventh Sunday of Easter, May 24th. Jesus’ petition is often called His high priestly prayer. In the Old Testament, the high priest had a special role in representing God’s people. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Most Holy Place in the temple to make atonement for the sins of the nation (Lev 16:5–17). Yet, the blood of bulls and goats was only a temporary, anticipative substitute for the spotless Lamb of God. At the divinely appointed time, He offered Himself as the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice of atonement for our sins (Rom 3:23–26; Heb…
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Hope Even in Suffering
First Peter 3:13–22 is part of the lectionary readings for the sixth Sunday of Easter, May 17th. In verse 9, the apostle alluded to the fact that his readers were being persecuted for their faith. Then, in 3:13–4:19, he dealt more fully with the issue of suffering as believers. Peter observed that, as a general rule, a devotion to “do what is good” (3:13) should not result in “harm” or punishment. Yet, even if the exception to this rule prevails and undeserved suffering results from doing good, those who belong to the Messiah are “blessed” (v. 14) for being virtuous. One interpretive option is that Peter’s mention of adversity was…
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Jesus, the One and Only Way
John 14:1–14 is part of the lectionary readings for the fifth Sunday of Easter, May 10th. The backdrop for this passage is the Savior’s final meal with His disciples before His crucifixion. During what is now called the Last Supper, Jesus demonstrated what it truly means to be a bondservant. Even though He was the Son of God (1:34, 49), He humbled Himself by washing the feet of His disciples. This act was so deferential that at first Peter refused to allow Jesus to wash this disciple’s feet. In response, Jesus told Peter and his peers that unless this was done, He could not accept them as one of His…
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Divine Blessings Amid Suffering
First Peter 2:19–25 is part of the lectionary readings for the fourth Sunday of Easter, May 3rd. In this passage, the author encouraged Christians to rejoice, even when they suffered as the Messiah did and for His glory. Peter regarded his readers as pilgrims in the world. “Aliens” (1 Pet. 2:11) refers to permanent resident foreigners in a land. They would have had no legal status or rights where they were sojourning. “Strangers” denotes those who dwelt temporarily in an area. When taken together, these two terms stress the truth that even though believers dwell in the world, they do not belong to it. Because Christians are temporary residents on…
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Called to Be Holy
First Peter 1:17–23 is part of the lectionary readings for the third Sunday of Easter, April 26. In this passage, the author summoned us to cultivate hope, holiness, and love in our lives, especially during trials. Many Bible scholars consider this early Christian letter to be part of the persecution literature of the New Testament (which also includes Hebrews, Revelation, and possibly James). The epistle would have been written during one of the three periods of Roman persecution endured by early Christians—under emperors Nero (AD 62–64), Domitian (AD 90–97), and Trajan (AD 111). If one holds to Peter’s authorship of the letter, the only period that fits would be the…
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Living Proof
John 20:19–31 is the Gospel lectionary reading for the second Sunday of Easter, April 19. The focus is on the risen Lord appearing to His disciples. Jesus first appeared to ten of His followers on the evening of Easter Sunday, with Thomas being the only person absent. (Judas Iscariot had already committed suicide.) Then, a week later, Jesus appeared again, and this time Thomas was present, along with the rest of the disciples. Like the other Gospel writers, John concluded his account of Jesus’ life with His resurrection. Yet, John’s presentation shows us that Jesus’ resurrection was not only a decisive affirmation that He is God and Savior, but it…
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Victory Overtaking Defeat
John 20:1–18 is part of the lectionary readings for Easter Sunday, April 12th. The eyewitness testimony recorded in this passage reminds believers that Jesus truly rose from the dead in space-time history. There is no better message of hope that Christians can proclaim, especially as people around the globe struggle under the crushing weight of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The Savior’s crucifixion is the prelude to His resurrection from the dead. After the crowd outside the Praetorium (the official Jerusalem residence of Judea’s Roman governor, Pilate) insisted on Barabbas’s release, Pilate ordered his soldiers to flog Jesus. The military personnel pressed a crown of thorns on Jesus’ head and wrapped…
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Jesus, the supreme example of humility
The lectionary readings for Sunday, April 5th (Palm Sunday in the church calendar), include Philippians 2:5–11. As the worldwide body of Christ, along with the rest of the global community, endures the current pandemic crisis, Paul’s observations about the humiliation and exaltation of the Messiah seem especially pertinent. In verses 1–2, the apostle called the recipients of his letter to unity, humility, and obedience. As long as the congregation remained divided, they would not be able to withstand opposition from their antagonists (1:28). Most likely, this hostility was linked to the resistance originating from the pagan residents in Philippi. They had created a mob scene in which Paul and Silas…
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Believing and Living
The Revised Common Lectionary for Sunday, March 29th, spotlights Jesus’ restoration of Lazarus to life. This amazing account, as recorded in John 11, offers believers timely hope amid an ongoing global pandemic. As Jesus’ prospect of suffering and death grew closer, He returned to the area of Jerusalem. Though the religious establishment spurned Him (10:39), His closest followers loved Him. Even rejection and scorn could not dim the glory of the Messiah as displayed through the restoration of Lazarus to life, a miracle that likely occurred in the winter of AD 29. The record of the above incident is important, for it serves as an undisputed, confirming sign of the…
