In our worship we drink in the vision of heaven and earth made one so that our yearning might be fuelled; strengthening us against despair and empowering us to strive for the renewal of the world.
Following Christ may take us into costly confrontation with the powers of the world, and we cannot be protected from the costs of that, but Christ will bring us through to the land of promise beyond.
Our worship is a part of a cosmic liturgy of praise to the One who was slaughtered in reconciling a suffering universe to God.
Locating our struggles within the bigger picture of God’s purposes can give hope and purpose, but it also places us in a challenging place of priestly mission.
Knowing Christ intimately is the most important thing of all, but many of our otherwise good gifts and concerns are constantly getting in the way.
The Parable of the Prodigal Son may really be intended by Jesus as the Parable of the Loving Father and the Angry Brother.
The beatitudes proclaim God’s preferential love for the poor and challenge us to rethink our own dependence on financial security.
When we truly encounter God in worship, we see everything in all its splendour and horror and are transformed for mission.
A modern paraphrase of a Homily from St Gregory Nazianzus for the Feast of the Nativity
Celebrating God is not to be a denial of reality, but a faith-filled reaching out for a new reality.
Although the coming Christ is brings our deepest hopes to fulfillment, the transition will be traumatic and we still fear his coming because of our unhealthy investments in the present.
When we call Jesus King, we may not know what we’re saying.
Jesus calls us to accept forgiveness and get on with a life and faith that do not revolve constantly about trying to make up for mistakes.
Love is both command and promise and is what gives meaning to all our offerings to God.
Summing up the previous section of the gospel, Bartimaeus is a model disciple – one who sees who Jesus is, has no pretensions to power, leaves everything, and follows Jesus on the way.
Christ is our high priest, the sole mediator between the world and God, but as the body of Christ we share in Christ’s task of reconciling earth and heaven.
Because of who Jesus is, we are both naked and vulnerable before him, and confident to approach God. Our only fear is of ourselves!
Jesus is not calling us to self-mutilation, but he is saying that our efforts to root out sin in ourselves need to be as rigorous as it takes, even if it means appearing like a fanatic.
The challenge of relinquishing selfish desire is a crucial key to a deeper journey into the life of Christ.
The Bible highlights the consequences of the world’s unjust economic system, and we, as the church, are called to find ways of living out our prayer for justice.