Book: Matthew

Baptism is to the Christian life as a wedding is to the married life – an ongoing symbol of the vowed and relational life in God.

Jesus died an apparent failure, but in his resurrection, the failure’s power over us is broken for ever.

Lent is a recurring reminder of the fragility of our discipleship in the face of tempting shortcuts and instant gratifications.

While the final judgement of each individual is rightly left to God, we are called to ensure that we are found to be loving, merciful and trustworthy by the world around us.

Although often dismissed as utopian nonsense, Jesus’s teachings about non-retaliation and love of enemies are the key to the salvation of the world.

We make a devilish mistake when we project the origins of hell onto God. Jesus calls us to follow him into a new way of life that will save us from plunging into the hells of our own making.

The world finds the message of Jesus almost incomprehensible because it seems too simplistic and unrealistic to be taken seriously.

Jesus did not come to be the ultimate sacrifice that would appease God, but to show us, once and for all, that God does not want sacrifices at all, but lives of love, mercy and compassion.

Baptism is a magnificent gift, far surpassing anything we could imagine or devise, for ultimately it is God’s chosen means of self giving to us.

In the violence and suffering that surround the Christmas story, we find the revelation of a God who does not inflict violence and suffering, but suffers violence to bring love and peace.

In Joseph we see an impressive example of someone with the integrity and courage to embrace God’s new directions despite considerable personal cost.

Jesus Christ is the coming one who will fulfill the hopes and yearnings of the world, but we will imperil our faith and hope if we keep trying to set the agendas for him.