Waxing Theological

4-26-15 (Easter 4B) 1 John 3:16-24; John 10:11-18 Loving In Truth And Action     You see things from time to time that go a long way to “restore your faith in humanity,” as some people like to say.  Occasionally, you see them on the news as the anchors give a rare report of some kind of “good news” or “unbelievable occurrence,” but these kind of stories are more often than not relegated to television features or websites that dedicate themselves to seeking these kinds of things out.  We’re likely all familiar with at least one or two stories of incredible heroism that perform this function - the soldier who runs back headlong into enemy gunfire to rescue the civilian child or to ensure that none of his brothers in arms are left behind.  As I was working on my sermon this week, I found this particular video of a young boy in Ohio who has Cerebral Palsy, but who decided to run a 400 meter race with his classmates:     Sometimes you ha...

4-19-15 (Easter 3B) 1 John 3:1-7; Luke 4:36b-48 What Is Revealed     There’s something incredibly compelling about “surprise reveals” in our culture.  We thrive on surprises, on the unexpected, on the kinds of things that make us gasp, look at our neighbors, and say “I can’t believe they just did that!”  We build entire experiences around those moments of revelation through shows like “Extreme Home Makeover” and “Undercover Boss” and we wait on pins and needles for the moment when the sheet is pulled away, the boss removes their disguise, or Oprah stands in front of her audience to tell them they’ve all won new cars.  Shows like “Antiques Roadshow” and “Pawn Stars” captivate our attention as we watch people bring in their treasures to find out how much they’re worth - whether it’s the Babe Ruth card that ends up being a fake or the five dollar garage-sale painting that ends up being a genuine priceless Picasso, we anxiously wait to hear the results....

4-12-15 (Easter 2B) Acts 4:32-35; John 20:19-31 Transformed From Doubt     The lectionary does something very interesting during the first Sunday after Easter as we start into the season collectively known as “Eastertide.”  In all three years of the lectionary cycle, this specific Sunday after Easter uses this text from John’s Gospel.  On Easter Sunday itself, we typically hear John’s account of the resurrection, and then the Sunday after Easter, we are guaranteed to hear the Gospel reading that we so commonly know and refer to as “the story of Doubting Thomas.”     When I saw this text come up again this year, my first instinct was actually to put my focus on the text from Acts, instead.  I thought to myself, “We just did this last year - what could I possibly add or change from last year’s sermon that wouldn’t feel like I’m just re-using a sermon year after year?”  But then I started to look at the John text again… and as I wrestle...