Year B, Lectionary 32
God is about raising, lifting and restoring us from our fallen state. We have moved away from God, not cooperating or heeding God’s message. And despite our transgressions God still elevated us not only to our former selves but higher into the divine space. Jesus makes this return from exile possible only if we stay connected to Christ. We can be lifted up if we gaze and follow Jesus to Calvary and into heaven.
Hate feeling lost on Sundays at church? Searching for a better explanation of the Bible than what you hear from your pastor's sermon? Check out the following collection of audio, video, and text commentaries from various Christian experts for a better understanding of today's scripture that deal with: Adam • Anger • Believe • Cleanse • Condemn • Condemnation • Creation • Cross • Darkness • Eve • Evil • Faith • Forgive • Glory • Grace • Happiness • Healing • Hesed • History • Idolatry • Incarnation • Israel • Joy • Judgment • Justice • Lent • Light • Listen • Love • Mercy • Moses • Nicodemus • Penance • Pride • Relationship • Repent • Sabbath • Sacrifice • Salvation • Seek • Serpent • Sin • Suffering • Witness •
“the catalyst, so to speak, for salvation are divine love and divine mercy. That's why God saves humanity, out of his love for humanity and out of his mercy toward us as sinners.”
“In Jesus Christ the light of God has been brought to us but this requires a response from us if we are to have a share in the resurrection of Jesus Christ”
“I think God is trying to get the people to look squarely in the face of their own sinfulness, look at that which is killing you, your own disobedience to God. That's why they gaze upon the serpent.”
“The cross of Christ is where we find the solutions to our problems”
“Jesus is trying to point out to you and me that we keep repeating the same mistake over and over again as humanity, that God provides everything we need and yet we go after the thing that we shouldn’t have and we get ourselves in trouble”
“So just as Adam and Eve rejected the command of God and brought death upon themselves so now the Israelites in the desert reject the gift of God in the manna from heaven and bring death upon themselves”
“Salvation is not egocentric, it is centered in Christ. It is not gazing at our own image, it is looking upon the Son of Man who has been raised up in both ignominy and exaltation.”
“In our daily routines, our different commitments to work, at school, to our families, to our ministries, to those in need, did we remember in our business to seek time with God and did we recognize him in the very people and circumstances around us?”
“We are called to follow the example of Jesus Christ…it means inviting the love and compassion of Christ in all that we do and in everyone we encounter”
“rejoicing in the Lord must be our strength”
“you might be an admirer, you might be fascinated by Jesus, but until you know that he died to raise you up for your sins, you don’t really know him”
“In whatever condition God finds us, God loves us”
“God continues to invite us to draw us closer. God looks at us and sees possibility and goodness and light even when we don't see it, especially when we don't see it. So if God doesn't give up on us why should I? How could I give up on us?”
“All too often we are unfaithful to pausing and listening to the God who looks upon each of us and all of us with compassion”