Matthew 17:1-9- "The Light Has Changed: Transfixed on the Transfiguration"

Synopsis:

Transfiguration marks the conclusion of Epiphany. The Light of the World made flesh changes before the disciples’ very eyes as they see Jesus fully revealed as the Son of God, the who about whom the law (Represented by Moses’ appearance) and the prophets (Represented by Elijah’s appearance) spoke and testified. The Transfiguration is a strange, surprising moment where we finally fully realize the epiphany that things are not always what they seem–the poor, Jewish Palestinian day laborer Jesus is, in fact, the Son of the Living God and the fulfillment of the promise to make one human family from old Abraham and Sarah. The transfiguration is the spotlight of God’s Epiphany on the Eternal Christ made flesh, just before we turn our eyes up the Lenten road to Crucifixion as light turns once again to darkness.

Habakkuk 1:1-4, 2:1-4- All Saints: Semper Reformanda

Synopsis: This beloved text from Habakkuk helped spark the Protestant Reformation. Martin Luther, exhausted and exasperated from the ritual demands of Medieval Christianity, heard these words scream in his soul, “The just shall live by faith.” With each passing generation, we make our contribution to each chapter of God’s Story, and on All Saint’s we remember and honor the lives of those who have gone before us as we draw courage from their witness. The stories of our past inspire us into our future as we stand on the shoulders of giants who continued the great work of the Church which Karl Barth described as semper reformanda––always reforming. There is no Church of the old or the young. There is no Church that is not evolving, changing, or growing. Wherever the Church is and wherever the Holy Spirit is still breathing life through God’s Word made flesh, there will always be Reformation.

Keywords: Jesus, Holy Spirit, All Saints, Church Universal, history, saints, past, story, future, vision, hope, Reformation

Galatians 3:23-29 - "Brother Paul and the Kin-dom of God"

In a biographical look at the life of Saul-turned-Paul, we see a life of violence, hate, and bigotry transformed on the road to Damascus in an encounter with the Living, Risen Christ. After this, Paul’s hatred of the Jesus-follower’s inclusion of Gentiles into their community becomes his life calling. In a world where we label, divide, and polarize, Brother Paul is still preaching today that we are all not just citizens in the Kingdom of God, but kinfolk and siblings in the family of God.